#like my mom's late german shepherd

[random2908]

me: I'm not a dog person.

my little sister: What are you talking about? Dogs LOVE you.

me: That's not what that means.

my sister: It's the important part. Who cares how you feel.

[fictionallystable]

Rating: Mature

Fandom: Call of Duty (Video Games)

Relationship: Phillip Graves (Call of Duty)/Reader

Characters: Reader, Phillip Graves (Call of Duty), Original Male Character(s)

Additional Tags: Author Has Played Call of Duty, Childhood Friends, Miscommunication, Mutual Pining, Civilian!Reader, Pre-Canon, Jealousy, Angst, Kissing, Mild Smut, Time Skips, Brother's Best Friend, Toxic Family Dynamics, Eventual Smut, Drama, Misunderstandings, Getting Together, Minor Age Gap

Words: 9,080| Chapters: 4/5

Authors: @orphancains & @collinnmckinley

Chapter 4: The Engagement Party

Chapter Summary: You're invited to Matty's engagement party and run into a familiar face—only for everything to seemingly fall apart.

A/N: agian we are extremely apologetic for the late update. life got hectic for both of us and hit us like a bus. and we were too exahsted from everything to even think about writing. but here we are!!! with a longer chapter to make it up to yall!! we really hope you enjoy this one c: only one chapter left to go ;) (likes and reblogs are appreciated <3)

the fic can also be found on AO3

tags will be updated!!

You felt nauseous at the thought of returning home for Matty’s engagement party. You’d been living out of town, happy with your job as an architect even if it meant you sometimes went months without seeing family. But you preferred it that way, with less judgment from your parents for choosing to postpone your own engagement yet again. 

With your boyfriend Richard’s arm around your waist, you braced yourself for the booming cheers from your mother and father when they saw you. Immediately, they enveloped you in hugs and shook you with delight. 

“[Y/N], oh, it’s so good to see you! We’ve missed you so much.” 

“The drive must’ve been tiring, huh? How’s work been, Richard?” 

“[Y/N], your figure looks great! And that skirt is gorgeous!” 

Ah, yes. The skirt Richard picked out for me.

Your mother’s wrinkled, smiling eyes rubbed your back as you made your way to the living room for a drink, while Richard stayed in the hall with your father, enraptured in more dull small talk. The stiff smile you had kept carved on your face all this time suddenly melted into a real one when you saw Bear, your dog, laying on the ground.

You knelt down immediately to pet him, forgetting the drink your mom was getting you. You rubbed your hands through his long, brown fur as he wagged his tail back and forth. He panted excitedly, leaning up trying to lick your cheek. You laughed. “I’m glad you’re looking good, Bear,” you said to the dog. He had been staying comfortably with your mother for the past 6 months, enjoying her leftovers but far away from you. Every night, you wished you could cuddle up with the dog. But Richard insisted that no dogs be allowed in your apartment.

“ I can’t handle all the hair, especially with it sticking to my suits. And I doubt you’ll have the time to clean up after a German Shepherd’s furballs with your workload ,” you remembered he sourly sneered while he unpacked your boxes all those months ago. 

“And Matty?” you asked your mom when she handed you a cup of soda and ice in a red plastic solo, while Bear rolled over on his back elatedly.

“He’s outside entertaining the guests with Elaine.” Your mom grinned. “Her parents seem to be very happy with our arrangement.”

You tried to smile, but a grimace cracked through instead. Ever since you graduated high school, your mother and father had insisted you get married quickly. Matty seemed to have no issue finding the right girl to propose to. You, on the other hand, well… you couldn’t see yourself with Richard. He was protective, he remembered your anniversaries, and he always made the time to take you on dates, to remember your favorite flowers, and always paraded you with pride at his own work parties. But the thought of saying “I do” to the man made your chest bubble with anxiety. And maybe even dread. Sometimes he was too  protective, interrupted you too much, and sometimes took his sarcastic jokes too far to the point of cruelty. You were sensitive, ever since your adolescence. But… you could get used to it, right? 

“Oh, that’s great news,” you muttered in reply to your mother.

Your mother leered at you from the corner of her eye. A mischievous but scrutinizing twinkle in her eyes. “Yes, it’s just a matter of time before you and Richard have your very own—”

“I should go say hi to Matty, yes?” You got up quickly and brushed the wrinkles from your skirt. “And of course, to my future sister-in-law…” you sputtered out as you scurried past your mother.

When you stepped out onto the back garden, you were hit once again with the warm, thick heat of the Texas night. You saw your brother from behind, with his arm around Elaine, whose long, pin-straight hung like a curtain from behind her, and a cold beer in his hand. You saw they were laughing while they chatted to an older man and woman you didn’t recognize, crinkled skin and silvery but pin-straight thin hair that Elaine had. From what you could guess, they must’ve been Elaine’s parents.  

It was hard to hide your joy at seeing your brother. You sauntered up to your brother, wanting to catch up with him. Last time you’d seen him, he’d been arguing with your dad about the very idea of proposing to Elaine. He wanted to wait another couple of months, but your father insisted Elaine would start to get impatient and would find another husband, another arrangement. Your brother had stormed off that day, driven away in his car, uttering nothing more than a “Not now!” at you when you had asked if he was okay.

“Matty!” you called out to your brother from where you stood. Your smile couldn’t get any wider. Yes you spoke with your brother every week when work let you, but it's been a long while since you last saw your brother in person. 

So when he heard your voice calling his name, he turned to see you standing there, at your parents backyard porch, waving to him excitedly, he couldn’t help but let out an airy laugh and immediately started to make his way to you. You did the same and both met in the middle as you scooped you in a hug lifting your feet off the ground. Oh how he missed his baby sister. Although all grown up.

Seeing how excitedly Matty basically ran towards you, it made Elaine chuckle and shake her head. She knew how strong the sibling bond you and your brother shared, and she found it extremely endearing and adorable in a way she can never experience, as she was the only child.

As Matty let you down on the ground again, Elaine made her way to greet you. When you saw her you couldn’t help but hug her too. You liked Elaine, she was like a sister you never had, and you couldn’t be happier for both of them. 

“It’s so good to see you [Y/N]! We missed you so much” Elaine told you, her smile was bright and contagious. You couldn’t help but to mirror her excitement and feeling.

“It’s good to see you both too! I’m so sorry I couldn’t get earlier work got in the way, and we packed at the last minute-” you expressed how regretful you were about how late you arrived. You truly meant to arrive earlier, to help your brother and his wife-to-be with the arrangement of the party, but the universe had other plans for you. 

Before you went on a tangent, Matty cut you off with his usual reassuring demeanor.

“Nonsense! You’re here and that's what matters.” Elaine nodded, as Matty’s hand came around her shoulder. They truly looked like a couple made for each other. 

“Oh! Before you go or do anything, I gotta show you who’s here!” Matty said, his excitement meant trouble. For some reason you were worried.

“Oh there he is! Just the man I was looking for hah!” Matty was looking over your shoulder when he spoke. 

As you turned around like any normal person would do to see who your brother was talking about, the air was knocked out of you immediately as your eyes landed on him.

“Phil…” you sputtered out, quiet enough for it to be a whisper.

Phillip Graves stood a few feet away from you, far enough to reach in a couple of steps. And that's what he did when your brother called him over. The Phillip Graves was standing in front of you now, except now he was older. His hair was still the light brown, almost blonde hair that had as a teen. His tan skin now was littered with a few scars, on accenting his cheek bone. You remembered he was tall, always athletic, as a kid from playing varsity football and soccer. But now, he had filled out muscles under his burgundy t-shirt and light-wash jeans. And he still towered over you just enough that you had to peer up to meet his blue eyes. 

With a surprised, almost confused smile, he repeated your name back to you. 

“Phillip... Phil…” you breathed out, still in disbelief. “I didn’t know you’d be here.”

“Of course he’s gonna be here, silly! He’s my best friend, I couldn’t have a wedding without him being my best man can I?” you’re brother jokes. Before you could say anything to him, you heard a distant voice calling his name. He answers “coming!”, but not before bidding you both to have a good time and catch up.

He knows how much Phil meant to you, and he knows for sure for the past fifteen years how much you tried to forget him.

You watched as your brother and his fiancee in his arms went to tend to the other guests, before turning to Phillip, who’s smile grew into one of his beaming ones that you’d grown familiar with as a teen. “Hopefully seeing me ain’t a bad surprise.” He winks at you teasingly before smiling softly. He gestured to the plastic, white porch table nearby. “D’ya wanna sit?”

Tentatively, you took a seat across from him at the table. He looked around, almost looking bored, as he took a drink of his own beer bottle. But you knew Phil. He wasn’t disinterested. You could tell from the way he was bouncing his left leg in slight nervousness. 

“So, how have you been [Y/N]? I heard you became a big shot architect in Seattle! Not gonna lie, I thought that you’d become a famous artist with her own exhibit all across the country.” Phillip genuinely sounded happy and surprised, leaning back in his chair, hands intertwining on his torso. A habit he picked up during his time away from home in the Marine Corps.

You smiled at him. He recognized that as the one your mother trained you to show new people. It only got sweeter—and prettier—as you grew older, he thought. It suited you even as you were no longer a little girl and now a beautiful, grown woman. Graves’ heart strings tugged, and for a split second, and only for that tiny moment, he was taken off guard. 

“Yeah.” You paused but only for a second. “Things turned out differently. But I can't complain.” That sweet smile still plastered on your face. Phil couldn’t believe it, how much you’ve changed, how much you’ve grown. How beautiful you’ve become-

“Things… didn’t end well the last time we saw each other.” He was lost in thought again but your voice brought him back. 

“Or rather didn’t see.” You murmured.

He knitted his brows in confusion. “I’m not following.” 

Annoyance began to stir inside you. You huffed and looked away.

He nearly stammered his words. “From what I last remember; we had a blast at your birthday party, Matty gave you a puppy, the one that he’d been planning months to get for you. And I—”

“And you left.” Your eyes, returning to him and now darker with hurt, pierced straight into his eyes, and your silky voice cut him like a sharp knife. “Practically the next day.” “Without saying a single word to me about your enlistment that day.” A sad, but bitter, smile adorned your face, eyes cast downward. As the memories of that day continued to unfurl for you, a dormant resentment continued to bubble in the depths of your viscera. 

“You didn’t even bother to say goodbye to Matty properly let alone me.” Your voice was softer now,  but he could still see the hurt behind your eyes. “Much less to my parents who—”

“Listen, [Y/N], I didn’t—” He clenched his jaw and dragged his chair closer, hoping to keep his voice low. He felt embarrassed to be having this conversation with you in the first place in your parents’ backyard. And he especially didn’t want Matty to know you were talking about this with him. Still, he felt he owed you an explanation. “I didn’t want to scare you….” he stops and looks at you, in his eyes an emotion you have never seen before swims, you can't decipher it, but it somehow looks familiar. “Or hurt you for that matter.” 

He shook his head, crossing his arms across his chest. He scoffed, just barely audible to you. “But be realistic for a moment. What did you expect me to say to you? ‘Hey, kiddo, I’m off to join the Marine Corps. Might die or get a limb or two blown off. Make sure you do your homework and don’t stay up too late playing video games with Matty! Bye!” 

Phil couldn’t help being defensive of his actions that summer, a bit too defensive even to his liking. He sighs and continues with a bit of a calmer voice. Phil knew that his answer wasn’t half-assed, but he still knew they could be biting. Although he didn’t want to reopen old wounds, he also didn’t want to lie to you. Especially not now that you were no longer a child, and not just Matty’s kid sister. “I did what I thought was right, for you… and me. And I wouldn’t change it if I had to do it again. That’s the truth.” 

You blinked. You couldn’t help but hear something alien in his voice, a tone so unfamiliar in your memories of him as kids. Was it sorrow? Remorse? Pain? You couldn’t figure it out. But you know it was something not to be pushed any further. As a kid you never understood why he did what he did, but as you grew older, somehow you knew that as a child everyone’s decisions were outside your range of understanding. You had accepted what happened. Or at least you thought you did. But today that young girl returned, took back control your body and mind, and you found yourself spluttering these words to Phil. 

Sitting with his own answers, you sat in silence. You watched as he leaned back and eyed you carefully. His eyes were still the same baby blue ones that always gazed at you with brotherly affection all those years, the ones that sparkled when the Texan summer sun’s rays cast on them. But now you felt a hardness radiating from behind them, one that would make anyone else cower and feel smaller. Years in military combat had definitely changed him and his gaze. Indeed, you did feel like he was studying every inch of your face and body, scanning you as if trying to profile you, maybe like he did with the captured combatants in whatever war in which he fought. You tried your hardest to return the intensity of his stare, but it was hard to compete with the icy look in his eyes.

But behind his colder eyes was a burning curiosity that he was successful in concealing from you. It was a curiosity he didn’t expect to experience tonight, because he never expected to see you, Matty’s beloved little sister, again. In all his memories, some more faded and fuzzier than others, you remained a little girl whose clothes were stained with paint and fingers sometimes still smudged from soft pastels or even charcoal from your art. In his mind, you still had baby cheeks and wore Matty’s old hand-me-down clothes and hoodies. But before him, he never expected Matty’s little sister, now a woman, to be sitting before him. He almost wanted to curse himself for immediately noticing when you walked to the table how your curves fit the skirt you wore. And when you sat across from him, he caught himself glancing more than once at your chest when your arms folded just beneath it. 

He clenched his jaw. God, if Matty even caught the places his eyes were traveling when he saw you, he was sure he was going to get his ass kicked and his face pounded in by Matty’s notorious fist. Grown up or not, you were still his sister. And this was also still Matty’s engagement party, and he couldn’t ruin it. And you were clearly still torn up about his sudden, unannounced enlistment all those years ago. This was not the place or time to be thinking of… other things.

What disrupted his curious gaze from roaming over you was a sole tear that began to trickle down the corner of your eye. Just one, and one that you quickly wiped away with your hand before it could ruin much of your makeup. But it was enough to know that, once again, Phil had made you upset. He internally wanted to bang a fist against the table. He was hoping you would lash out at him, he would let you burn off some of the steam that you couldn’t when you were both kids, he knew how much you controlled your rage, and he wished you would finally let it out even if it was on him. Let you both make fools of yourselves that night, so he could feel less remorse. But instead, the silence from you that he was me with was damning him more than he could expect.

When you refused to say anything, Phil anxiously whirled the cold glass bottle in his hands. “But, I was also an idiot,” Phil spat out suddenly. 

Your furrowed brows softened, noticing how Phil’s eyes melted into what you couldn’t intercept at first. But you soon realized it was a miserable mixture of hurt and regret. “I just wanted to get away from my folks, you know. Even though they were hardly ever home, I still felt like they controlled every aspect of my life. So…” He breathed out. “So, I’m sorry.”

“I get that,” was all you said as you mindlessly twirled the bracelet around your wrist. As you did so, his eyes glanced down at your hand on the table, the same ones that were always covered in stubborn faded blue and yellow hues of paint. He swallowed when he noticed that, unlike Matty whom he’d spoken to earlier, you had no ring on your left hand. Before you could notice, Phil quickly glanced back up at your face, and was relieved to see that your harsh scowl from before had melted away. “I just wish you could’ve told me that then. But I… I get that I was too young. We were both pretty stubborn when it came to talking about anything serious, but we cared—”

Before you could finish, you heard a booming voice call out your name. You turned and saw Richard beckoning you to where he stood, while your parents stood to the side and grinned giddily together. Suddenly the whole party had grown strangely quiet. Beside the ice cooler, you noticed a bluetooth speaker playing a familiar soft rock song. One that you distinctly remember as the one Richard played in the car after your first date together at the theme park, and the same one you two danced to in his old apartment when you both were tipsy one night.

You got up from your seat. Next to you Phil also suddenly wondered why so many eyes were on you and this unfamiliar man. You started walking toward him and your parents, wondering what in the world was happening, and why your boyfriend was standing in the middle of the backyard like he was about to give a speech. Oh no, I've seen this scenario happening in public one too many times. This does not look good…. Your internal monologue was put in a pause when you looked around to find your brother, and when your eyes landed on his and his fiance, you knew with one look they did not seem pleased of what was going on.

“[Y/N],” he started. “We’ve only known each other for a few months…”

“I can’t fucking believe this,” Matty muttered from a few feet away from where Phil sat. 

Phil blinked a couple of times. His gut was telling him he knew exactly what was going on, but he himself couldn’t believe it. Not after he just reunited with Y/N a few minutes earlier.

Elaine tried to calm Matty down silently, but Matty was furious. “I specifically told them not to pull this shit, not on this occasion. Jesus fucking Christ.” Elaine didn’t need to hear him say it, but she knew who he was referring to when he said ‘they’.

Richard continued. “But you’ve made me a better man, a man with bigger, better ambitions, a man who can see himself becoming a family man. Beyond just a businessman, a partner, a rock to lean on, someone who could build a home with you and raise a family together.”

When he got down on one knee, you felt your heart stop and all the muscles in your body seize. You tightened your jaw, dormant rage igniting all over again. You didn’t know if you wanted to run away and flee the scene or smash Richard’s head with the beer bottle from a nearby table, but you felt as though your shoes were glued to the dry grass. “Y/N,” he said as he took a ring out of his jacket pocket. 

You looked up frantically and saw your mother on the verge of happy tears and your father with a proud grin but his hands tucked in his suit jacket’s pockets, much like when he is negotiating a business deal at work. You knew immediately that this was not simply Richard’s doing. No, you had told Richard as recently as last night at bedtime that you would rather wait at least when you hit 30 before even considering marriage. This was your parents handing you off to Richard, hoping and desperately trying to have their wealth merge with Richard’s own family wealth. Just like you feared in every conversation you had with your mom and dad, you feared you represented nothing more than a simple pawn in another one of your dad’s business deals. 

You glanced back down at Richard, the sour sneer on your face growing harder and harder for you to conceal. You could feel your hands trembling now by your side, and the cup of soda in your hand threatening to get crushed.  

“Will you do me the honor of letting me call you my wife?”

You heard murmurs and all around you from the backyard. The night’s spotlight was now on you, no longer on Matty and Elaine, and that made you grind your teeth even more. You didn’t want extra attention. It was bad enough that suddenly your childhood crush crashed the party and made you relive your teenage hormones and heartbreak. Richard and your parents both knew how uncomfortable you felt coming back home, and suddenly they decided to make you have to answer a marriage proposal in front of all your relatives, friends, and neighbors. 

You glared down at Richard, who was oblivious to the storm raging in your mind. “You’re out of your fucking mind,” you spat out, with a low and harsh voice, but still loud enough for everyone to hear. You whipped your head up furiously to glare directly at your mom and dad. “And you two! You two are unbelievable. You should be ashamed of yourselves!” Your throat ached from how harshly you growled at them.

Without another word, not even a “no” to dignify Richard’s proposal, you threw your cup of soda at Richard’s face. The half-melted ice-cubes and cold Sprite made him flinch and get back up to his feet quickly. A chorus of gasps erupted from behind and around you. 

“You spoiled brat!” your mother shrieked. The disdain and disappointment on her face was one so familiar, but one that still brought your heart racing anxiously and your lips to quiver. Your father stood frozen in shock beside her. He himself didn’t expect you to react in such a way. He thought tonight would be another business success for him. “Do you know how much we had sacrificed for you? And you decide to act like a child? When will you grow up?l!” 

“THIS IS INSANE!” 

Your eyes snapped to the source of outburst and landed on Matty standing near where Phil and you had been sitting. Phil remained at his seat watching all of this unfold with amusement, as Matty was walking towards where your parents had been standing, with determination of giving an earful to them most likely, but before he could start what he had to say your voice decided to come out on its own accord.

“Oh mother… How can you still be so stubborn about this? How could you pull this stunt at Matty’s engagement party, your own son's engagement party? Do you have no shame? Either of you?” Your voice determined and harsh. Even your mother was taken aback by your bold retort. Her speechlessness only allowed you to continue your tirade. “I told you at least a hundred times that I don’t have any plans to get married anytime soon. But you didn’t listen! That doesn’t surprise me; you hardly ever listen to me. But at least have some respect for your own goddamn son! Who has been nothing but an obedient child to you! Both of you! And this is how you treat him?! The least that you could have done was ask him and Elaine if this was okay with them!” 

Your mother was stunned, the blood having drained from her face and her hand clutching her handbag tightly as she gawked at you. You’ve never been this brave with your words. You never talked back to either of your parents in all your youth. And if your father wasn’t just as speechless, he would’ve given you an earful, and even threatened you to remove you from inheritance. But you didn’t care, your patience ran thinner and thinner each year and this new stunt made all that remained evaporate in a matter of seconds.

You knew you couldn’t come back from this. The realization that there was a chance you’ll probably be shunned and even maybe disowned after this. You had run out of words, so you simply ran from the scene. Your spilled red cup of coke laid on the grass, something the ants in the yard would later indulge in. You bolted into your family’s house, your childhood home, which was mainly empty with everyone mingling in the evening out in the yard. You went into your room on instinct, but noticed your mom and dad had converted it into an office space for their work. Your jaw dropped as you realized they never kept your room the same way they had adoringly preserved Matty’s. You tightened your grip around the door knob. You wanted nothing more than to trash the room, break the desk that sat where your bed once did, and stomp on bookshelves that once held your comics and artbooks but now held folders of boring white paperwork. 

But instead you fled to your brother’s room across the hall. You knelt down beside his bed, kicked off your shoes, and buried your face in a pillow. You let out a muffled scream. After a few seconds, your scream morphed into pathetic sobs. You knew you were surely staining Matty’s old pillows with your makeup, but you didn’t care at that moment. At that moment, it felt as though you time-traveled back fifteen years in your old home, crying your eyes out into your beloved brother’s pillow.

‿︵‿︵‿୨ ୧‿︵‿︵‿

Phil watched as Matty slouched on the plastic lounging chair outside. Almost everyone had left. Your mother and father stood near the backyard fence, arguing desperately about what to do next after you had ruined their evening. Richard stood next to them but remained mostly silent and merely listened to them. Elaine, Matty’s fiancée, trudged into the house in search of you. Meanwhile, Phil took a seat across from Matty, who ran his hands through his beard and squeezed his eyes shut momentarily out of frustration.

“Cannot believe they would fucking do that on tonight of all nights,” Matty groaned out.

Phil let out a low whistle. “Yeah definitely didn’t expect to see [Y/N] throw a cup of soda at some random guy.” It would almost be laughable if it weren’t for the fact that he had seen tears once again streaming down your face when you darted inside. “So, that was actually [Y/N]’s boyfriend or—”

“Unfortunately,” Matty spat out. “I can’t stand the guy. But our parents love Richard even though he’s a huge asshole to her half the time.”

“Huh…”

Phil tried to recall the man. He was tall and athletic. He seemed like the type to weight lift, worry about trends in luxury suits, and track his meals’ calories to keep up with his appearance and health everyday. His dark hair was slicked back with some gel, and his jaw was sharp and pronounced. His sharp, aquiline facial features reminded Phil of some of the college guys who would apply for internships to work for his dad’s firm during summers back when he was a kid. But something about him made Phil’s skin crawl. He wasn’t sure if it was the fact that his entire personality seemed like a masquerade of wealth and opulence, or the fact that he was dating you , had the gall to propose to you , while also being an asshole to you, according to Matty at least.

“I can’t say I blame her for throwing the soda at him,” Phil snickered quietly.

Matty almost cracked a smile at this. Suddenly, he remembered why he called Phil his best friend for so many years of his life. “Trust me, if I could’ve thrown one too, I would’ve.”

Your father suddenly bellowed your name. “Come out! We need to have a talk!”

Phil and Matty quickly glanced at each other, worry coating both of their faces. They expected Elaine and you to come out together, Elaine probably holding a box of tissues and your eyes still swollen from crying. But instead, no one came out of the backyard door. They waited several seconds, until your father stormed toward the door to head inside himself. Richard trailed behind him, not nearly as full of energy. It seemed the would-be fiancé was still feeling dejected, even if the soda from early had already dried.

“Unbelievable,” your father growled, the door of the house slamming open violently with a bang.

Phil and Matty both got up quickly, following the man. They found you and Elaine sitting in the kitchen, you nursing a cup of warm tea and Elaine sitting next to you still attempting to console you. Your father rushed toward you, grabbing you by your shoulders, forcing your gaze away from your cup of tea and to his own red-beet face. The force of his grasp made your elbow knock into the mug, tumbling it to the ground with a sharp crash. 

Elaine gasped sharply before stepping back in shock. Meanwhile, Bear emerged from the living room, his bushy tail stiff in the air in alert and his pointed ears slicked back against his head. He growled and barked furiously at the sight of your father grabbing you. Agape, you stared back at your father in horror, feeling all the muscles in your body suddenly become paralyzed in fear.

“How can you throw away your future just because of your own stubborn self-righteousness?! Didn’t we raise you better than to act so selfishly?!” your father yelled into your face.

Matty quickly grabbed your father’s arm, grabbing him by his gray blazer’s stiff fabric, and pulled him off of you. “Your dumb plan for the night was botched from the start, dad,” he sneered out. “She clearly doesn’t want to marry Richard and this was supposed to be our engagement party to begin with!” he looked at Elaine for a second saying that.

The graying wisps of hair on your fathers were now disheveled and sticking up, his sagging and wrinkled face now flushed with a furious red. He balled his fists as he spoke back to your brother. “What she did, regardless of what day it was, to Richard was unacceptable. Would you ever imagine Elaine treating you in such a way? No, of course not! Because [Y/N] is acting like a child, and an insolent one at that!”

He turned back to glare at you, taking one step further forward. “Richard, come here,” he said, his glower locked on you not wavering.

The tall, dark-haired man strode beside your father. You couldn’t read the expression on his face. You had wounded your ego and in public in front of your friends and family, something he would seldomly allow without biting back. But he remained quiet ever since his botched proposal. Usually he would yell back, make a scene, demand he stay in a hotel for the night, after arguing with you over nonsense. But his silent, narrow-eyed stare bore down on you and made you feel uneasy. There was nothing calm or passive about it.

“So, why don’t we start over, hm? Why don’t the two of you go to the living room to discuss and… reconsider Richard’s proposal once again, yes?” Your father’s gritted teeth betrayed the false air of diplomacy he was trying to prop up.

“I don’t think—” Your brother was caught off.

“[Y/N],” your father said more sternly this time. “Now.”

Your brother wanted to continue to protest, but he knew your father would not take no for an answer right now. Not with his fists balled up and his face as red as it was. So Matty, Phil, and Elaine watched breathlessly as you and Richard walked to the living room by yourselves. Phil noticed how your hands shook ever so slightly, even while you kept your lips pursed and tried to straighten your blouse, desperately clinging onto any semblance of composure before talking to your boyfriend.

Breathing out an exasperated sigh, your father, the man Phil used to revere so much as a child, began to step outside back to the yard. “There better still be some drinks in the cooler. I need one right now,” he muttered. Your mother followed him, obediently, to avoid the thick air of tension that was suffocating everyone in the kitchen.

Phil couldn’t help but let curiosity get the best of him. While Elaine consoled Matty in hushed voices and picked up the broken glass on the kitchen tile, Phil drifted away from them. He could hear Elaine telling Matty that it was okay, that they could hold a smaller, more intimate engagement party next week with just close friends. He knew that he, too, should be trying to console Phil. But he was worried about you. He just couldn’t believe your family was pressuring you to marry.

Phil stood just outside the living room beside its entrance, leaning on his side against the wall and focusing on the little he could hear. Bear padded up to Phil. Much calmer now, the German Shepherd sat down and looked up at Phil with a panting smile. Phil wanted to smile and pet the dog, but instead brought his finger up to his own lips, hoping the dog wouldn’t alert everyone to what Phil was doing.

“—how embarrassed I was left feeling! In front of everybody!” It sounded to Phil like Richard was still furious, still left with his pride injured. He was on the verge of yelling, but kept his voice somewhat hushed. Maybe to avoid drawing even more humiliation to himself tonight.

Your voice was less hushed, a little bolder. “We’ve barely been dating long enough to begin even thinking about marriage, Richard! I told you I wanted to wait!”

Phil carefully peeked into the room just enough to see that the two of you were standing and you had refused to sit on the couch. Richard towered over you, clearly trying to intimidate you. You were trapped between him and the untouched couch. You nervously ran your hand through your hair as Richard continued roughly gripping one of your shoulders with one of his hands. The sight of his hands on you like that made Phil’s skin crawl and stomach lurch. He tried his best to control himself.

“[Y/N],” Richard began again, clearly still annoyed. “You already made a scene with the first proposal. But I’m not giving up on you . And so is your father—”

You scoffed at this and rolled your eyes. 

“So, please. Just stop being so stupid and stubborn for a second, and just say yes so we can both move on ”

You stayed quiet. And Phil’s mind was racing in the midst of your silence. Was it possible you were actually considering it? He remembered you when you were younger, as a kid. You were stubborn, yes, and very outspoken. It’s what stopped any kids from picking on you or your art. But you also never betrayed your own goals, your own ideas and feelings, for the sake of someone else’s preferences. Even if that meant getting into ugly fights with others and giving your mom and dad the silent treatment for weeks. It was one of many qualities in you that Phil remembered admiring, and he hoped that it was a quality that had never diminished during these last fifteen years.

Phil didn’t want to admit it, but he also felt sick to the thought of you getting engaged just when he had finally reunited with you. He felt a nauseating feeling in his gut at the idea of you marrying this, clearly, arrogant guy. Phillip Graves himself was arrogant at times—sassy even, but when it came to the people he cared about, he was never arrogant. When it came to you, he could never be arrogant.

Finally, you did answer. “I already said my thoughts on the subject, Richard,” you said firmly. At that moment, you hoped Richard and your father would respect your wishes more than anything. Once again, you felt like nothing more than a pawn. “I already said no to you once. And now I’m saying it twice. Do I have to say it a third time?”

“Well, neither of us are getting any younger, [Y/N]. If you’re as serious about this relationship as I am, then you should at least be considering marriage with me. If not, then what’s the goddamn point of this? Of any of this with you?” He placed both his hands now on your shoulders, shaking you just a little. “What do you even want out of this?”

Your face seemed almost serene. You didn’t frown, nor did you nervously smile or even produce a grimace. You placed your hands on his that were squeezing your shoulders, gently sliding them off of you and placing them back to his sides. “After tonight, Richard. I can’t give you a straight answer. I don’t know. After this scene you tried to pull despite everything I told you, I can’t say I see a future with you anymore.”

Richard leaned away, almost repulsed by your answer. He scoffed in disbelief, shaking his head furiously. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean? Are you breaking up with me? ”

Phil would’ve started laughing if he didn’t give away the fact he was spying on you and Richard. But he also wanted to beam with pride at seeing you stand up for yourself despite Richard and your dad not ceasing in urging you two to get married. He was glad to see that you never lost your fiery side as you’ve grown. 

“I guess that’s what it is,” you mustered out. “If you can’t stay in a relationship with me without getting married immediately just to make our parents happy, then maybe we just shouldn’t be in a relationship.”

Any shock was replaced with fury. Richard began seething. “You can’t be so goddamn dumb, [Y/N],” he growled out. “Why are you throwing all of this away? We could’ve had a future together, a built home, a nice family. And you’re throwing it all away just because you wanted to make a point about waiting ?!”

You scoffed. “A nice home where you’re calling me an idiot for sticking to my values. Yeah, sure.” You tried to step beside him to walk away, to finally leave this conversation behind and head back to the family that cares about you. 

But instead Richard grabbed you by your forearm, whipping you back toward him and forcing you to face him again. His eyes were now no longer narrow with disdain but wide and dilated with rage. It was a look you only saw on rare occasions, mostly when you had screaming matches after you would “ruin the mood” when he’d try to have sex with you, drunk out of his mind, after one of his work parties. 

“Let me go,” you muttered, your annoyance desperately trying to mask any fear that could be detected in your voice. 

Suddenly, Richard grabbed your face with a hand, squeezing your jaw and cheeks as he did. He forced you to look at him, even while you desperately tried to pull his hand off you, scratching his forearms and trying to push him away. Phil’s heart began racing and he could feel the blood coursing through his body grow hotter. He couldn’t believe his eyes, but all he could focus on was how the solemn look in your eyes was now replaced with one of terror and shining with wet tears beginning to form.

Richard’s fury continued. “I never thought you could be this stupid. Do you even realize what you’re doing to your—”

Phil had enough. He rushed into the room and in what felt like a flash he pushed Richard away from you. You fell onto the couch, watching in horror as Richard tried to fight back against Phil. Sure, Richard was strong and big. But Phil’s hand-to-hand combat had been refined over the years in the Marine Corps. With little struggle, he managed to subdue him, and within seconds, Richard was pinned to the ground. Phil was successful in knocking the air out of Richard, leaving the man breathless and writhing on the floor. 

“What the fuck ! Get off me!! ” Richard growled through gritted teeth.

Phil smirked for a split second before ignoring him. He let Richard crumble to the ground before he went over and tentatively kneeled in front of Y/N. He saw once again furious tears pooling in your eyes threatening to fall . He placed a gentle hand on her knee and gazed up at her. “You okay [Y/N] ? He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

You shook your head, your own hand traveling to your jaw where Richard had roughly grabbed you. “No, I’m fine.” 

He nodded in understanding, still looking at you carefully. While he watched you, he felt Matty and Elaine rush into the room, confusion written on their faces. They saw your small form still sitting on the couch with Phil crouching in front of you while Richard was still getting up from the ground, catching his breath. 

“Th-thanks, Phil,” you said quietly. “I… didn’t know he was gonna lash out like that.”

“ He what ?!” Matty demanded. “Richard, what the hell did you do to my sister?!”

Richard was now back on his feet, he breathed out deeply and glared at Matty. Then he straightened his shirt and painted on his usual smug look of contempt he carried. “I broke up with her. If she’s not taking this relationship seriously, then neither will I.”

“What a load of bullshit,” Matty practically spat the words in Richard's face before grabbing him by his collar. Elaine watched in horror too, scurrying away to the side. Matty dragged him out of the room until both you and Phil lost sight of the two of them. Knowing Matty and his long-lasting hatred for Richard, you were sure he was kicking him out of your parents’ home. 

“Dad is going to be furious,” you mumbled to yourself, but Phil could hear you loud and clear. 

He took a seat next to you on the couch, deciding not to touch you further. He had to remind himself that you were no longer a 12 year old girl, he had to restrain himself from holding you . Yes, you two were very close when both of you were mere teens . But it had been years since you last spoke. Fifteen years to be exact, he didn’t know if you ever counted the days but he did, for some reason that even he couldn’t explain it to himself. He couldn’t overstep his boundaries. So he just pulled his hands back to his lap and sat there, trying to console you as best as he could.

“He’s not always like that… but when he is it gets too much ” you breathed out. Phil tried to listen but he was also acutely aware of how your hand, albeit sweaty from your nerves, felt on his much rougher, larger one. “Matty never liked him. But mom and dad adored him for some reason.”

Phil sighed out. He wished he could say something comforting, something that would chase all your anxieties and fears away. But all he could do was sit there and listen to nothing and everything all at once . Feeling your heat radiate from your side, and he sits besides you only a hair of a touch away. He could lean in and hold you close, and the thought made his heart flutter with nervousness. From here, he could smell how your hair smelled like roses and coconuts—

Before he could drift further away he had to snap back to reality with you still sitting next to him solemnly. How could he think that about you? You were his best friend’s sister for goodness sake… but was he in the wrong to think of you as the pretty woman that you have become? Yes he considered you as a little sister back in the day, but that was a decade and half ago. But now? His heart told him one thing but his brain said something else.

You always carried your emotions on your sleeves. If you were happy, your face would be brighter than the sun. But then if sad, a cloud would particularly be looming over your head. When you were flustered, your face would be brighter than the fresh tomato that his parents would have the cooks pick up from the farmers market And if you were angry, oh man that was something to witness. That was why he always loved teasing you and making you laugh, to get that reaction and to see those emotions. He admired them. But in your grown-up state, he noticed that trait in you lessened. It was as if you were trained to wear a mask that would hide all your emotions. Even now, watching you sit there waiting for the unknown, you try to mask your emotions, hide them in a box and lock it. And discard the keys somewhere where no one can find it. And it hurt Phill to see you in this state. He couldn’t decide which one was worse; having you go through the trauma of facing your now abusive ex boyfriend, or that you were forced to masquerade your emotions.

“I knew the guy for like half an hour, but… yeah, I can say he seems like a dick.” He pursed his lips, but raised his eyebrows when he heard and felt you start to chuckle. “Pun intended” Phil smirked as he looked at you.

“He reminds me of a guy I met back when I first joined MARSOC,” Phil continued. You tore your teary eyes away from your hands and looked at him, listening intently.  “He was big and burly too, but he actually was much more considerate. Hated bullies. Always lending the rest of us a hand if he could see we were struggling.”

You held back a snort. You couldn’t imagine Richard enduring something like Marines training, much less being generous and looking out for others if his skin was on the line. But as a child so many years back, you also couldn’t imagine Phil joining an elite fighting team. Not because he couldn’t work in a team, but because you only saw him as your brother’s best friend who just seemed to play football and video games—not shoot guns and hunt down dangerous men. So, you asked him more. While your mother was off trying to calm your father down, and your brother was getting fresh air to cool down with Elaine, the two of you stayed on the couch. While he did, Bear padded over to both of you, laying down at your feet and surely feeling sleepy already. Phil finally had a chance to reminisce out loud on some of his training days and some missions with the MARSOC Raiders—at least the parts of them he was allowed to tell others about. He even remarked how he had left the Raiders, now working with others to form a new PMC, hence why he was back in Texas. 

While you sat listening and while your tears dried, you couldn’t help but feel admiration bloom inside your chest for him. Admiration and… something familiar you still couldn’t put your finger on. Yes, you were thrilled to have him back in your life, someone you might’ve called your best friend as a young girl. You felt some nostalgia, of course. You felt like you were truly back home for the first time, even after visiting home a few times already after moving in with Richard. Still, while he spoke and you listened intently, you couldn’t help but admire how his lips moved when he smirked as he remembered something cheeky he did, or how his brows furrowed tightly and his jaw clenched when a difficult memory flashed for him. Or how he’d sometimes run his hand across the side of his head, his light brown hair getting disheveled for just a few moments without his knowing. It made you smile for a few seconds before returning your focus to his words. But even while you concentrated on him and his stories, you couldn’t ignore the fluttering of butterflies in your stomach and the way your palms sweat when you noticed him gazing at you several times.

For a moment, it felt good to disconnect from your world, from the drama and yelling of your parents and Richard. Delving into Phil’s past several years away from your hometown felt like finding an oasis in a harsh, unforgiving desert. Your racing heart that you felt when Richard had glowered down at you in furious disbelief moments ago had diminished, now a comforting lull in your chest as you listened to Phil’s familiar voice. But it was short-lived, and it made you realize, yes, this was just one night, when your parents both walked in.

Your father’s face was less red, but the tired look in his eyes made you know that he was still disappointed. “Your mother and I are heading to bed.” He pursed his lips into a thin line when he looked at you. He had so much he wanted to say to you, so much he wanted to yell too. But your mother next to him nudged him with her elbow and cleared her throat. He shook himself out of his death stare and instead looked at the man beside you. “It was, uh… good to see you, Phillip. Please give your father my regards when you see him. It’s been a while since we’ve emailed each other.”

Phil nodded curtly but said nothing in response. Next to you, he could feel how tense you still were. He didn’t want this conversation to drag on any longer. Without another word, your parents left the living room, finally retiring to their bedroom up upstairs. But replacing your parents’ spot in the living room’s entrance came Matty and Elaine. 

Elaine yawned. “How are y’all not tired yet?” 

“We’re going to be heading to the guest room in a bit. But by all means, let me know if you need anything. Just knock on our door or give me a call. I’m here.” Matty gave you a reassuring smile. 

Phil glanced down at his watch—you remember it as the same rolex that his dad had given him for his sixteenth birthday and that Phil only begrudgingly accepted.

“Jesus, time sure flies. It’s already one in the morning.” He huffed, feigning sleepiness,  and looked at you with pursed lips. He placed an earnest hand over his chest. “I’m sorry to have kept you awake so long, [Y/N].” 

You shook your head frantically. “No, don’t apologize, Phil. Catching up on what you’ve been up to has meant the world to me.”

Hit with sudden realization, Phil widened his eyes slightly. “[Y/N], do you need a place to sleep tonight?” The thought of you returning to your hotel room with your furious ex-boyfriend made his chest tighten. 

You shook your head. “No, I’ll just be sleeping in Matty’s room for the rest of my stay. So I'll be hanging around here for a while.” You honestly weren’t in a rush to return to Seattle immediately, just to have to see Richard glowering at you from every corner of his apartment. He was going to have to find a new roommate quickly.

Your brother wrapped his arm warmly around Elaine, bringing her sleepy body closer to him comfortingly. “See you two around,” he said before turning around and heading up the same stairs your parents had climbed earlier.

Phil got up from the couch, and you followed. You straightened your skirt as he rubbed the back of his neck, almost sheepishly. “Really, I mean it. I hope I didn’t bore the hell out of you, [Y/N].”

The two of you began to walk to the front door, Phil pulling out his car keys from his pockets. “No, Phil. I’m being honest. Just getting to sit and hear you speak for a while has really helped me. I’m—I feel a lot better now. Thanks to you.” You watched as he opened the door but then you realized he also is technically only visiting town. “Wait. Do-do you have a place to stay?”

He paused. He shut the door that he had left slightly ajar before, as he turned to look at you. “Oh, yeah I’m staying back at my parents’ place. They rent out the first floor as an AirBnB sometimes, especially since they mostly spend time with my uncle in St. Augustine in Florida. But they’re letting me stay on the second floor now that I’m back home for a while as I work things out.” He smiled warmly. He couldn’t help but find it endearing how you worried where he was staying as well. 

You let out a soft sigh. “Good.” You were relieved to hear not only that he wasn’t staying in some sketchy motel but that it was back in his childhood home, where you and him had spent so much time watching TV and pranking Matty on your weekends off of school. 

He leans in slightly. “That’s right,” he said in a low voice. “If you wanna come by tomorrow, we can hang out. I’ll even cook you something.” He smirked. 

You felt your heart leap and your face heat up furiously. You prayed that he couldn’t tell how flustered you felt. You tried to play it off smoothly. You tried to suppress the huge grin from growing on your lips and said, “I’ll think about it.”

Phil nodded and turned the doorknob again, getting ready to head out. “You better, or I’ll come by and snatch you myself.”

Your heart did backflips again at this. The image of eating dinner with him flashed in your mind, and you felt like your brain was short-circuiting. But you had to say something back, you had to answer without melting down. You desperately kept your composure but let out an airy laugh, one you hoped didn’t give away your nerves. “Goodnight, Phil. I’ll see you later.” 

You followed him, stepping outside to your front porch as you watched him heading back to his black sedan parked by the side of the house. You couldn’t help but watch him as he walked with the same confident strides from when he was your childhood crush, his keys jangling in his hands. 

As he pressed his car key’s FOB and and his car beeped, unlocking, he turned and glanced at you. He felt breathless as he saw as your hair blew in the cool nighttime breeze. But he didn’t want to give away how he, too, was gazing at you for too long. “Go inside, [Y/N],” he laughed. “You’re gonna catch a cold like that.”

You groaned and rolled your eyes. “Just making sure you’re gonna head out safely, Phil,” you called back, feigning annoyance. He shook his head and chuckled as he stepped into his car, headlights turning on and engine rumbling. 

You turned around and headed back inside, closing the front door but quickly scampering to the window to look through the blinds until you saw his car disappear down the road. 

Even after chatting with him all night, you still couldn’t believe Phil Graves had somehow returned to your life.

[abbysimsfun]

Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 28 (The Trouble With Marcus Flex)

Heather received great news from the developers of VetConnect when they agreed to help her build the PetConnect extension. They believed it would be successful and might even give her enough to buy out the Landgraabs, but for now, she just had to get it finished.

At work the next morning, she thanked her problematic vet tech, Marcus Flex, for the idea. But ever-flirty Marcus took it as something more.

He leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers. Heather pulled back immediately. "Half the clients who walk in here might fall to a puddle at your feet when you kiss them like that, but I'm your employer, Marcus."

"I'm sorry, Doc. I thought-"

"I should fire you. I can't because you kissed me and it'll look personal, but this is your last chance. Pull your socks up around here, or you'll have to find another place to work."

He was twenty-one years old and noncommittal by nature, but he finally started paying attention in his evening classes and began to pull his weight around the clinic.

Then one day, a girl came in with her family’s German Shepherd, Jax. She wiped tears from her eyes as she signed him in.

Instantly, Marcus was taken with her, approaching her and her dog with more trepidation than Heather had ever seen in him. "Hi, uh, my name's Marcus Flex. I'm sorry to see you looking so sad, but we'll take care of your dog and make him feel good as new."

"My mom was supposed to bring Jax for his annual check-up today, but she just died of heatstroke from the heat wave," she said gloomily. "I miss her so much."

Marcus wanted to reach out and comfort her, but his boss was watching nearby with a stern glare. "I'm so sorry for your loss, Miss...?"

"Thomasine Chopra."

Heather poured herself an espresso and smiled at Thomasine and her pet. "How are classes going at Deadgrass Isle High School, Thomasine?"

"We took a few weeks off to mourn my mom. Dad took us to the city to distract us, I think, but I couldn't sit through math class so I'm grateful. Needless to say, my last year of classes will start a little late."

Marcus looked away, flustered.

"I'm so sorry," Heather said. "When I heard about your mother's death I couldn't believe it. I can't imagine what you're going through."

"The card was really sweet, and Jax loves his Buttercups. Everyone in town's been great, and they've made things a little bit easier."

"Well, Marcus will take extra good care of Jax today, and I'm always here if you or your family need anything. Not just for Jax."

Heather's endlessly flirtatious vet tech had caused her as much grief as he'd proven he wasn't entirely hopeless. She couldn't help but think he needed guidance, and while they closed up at the end of the day, Heather warned him to wait for Thomasine Chopra. "I don't care if she's 18 already. If you think your feelings mean anything this time, keep your distance until graduation or I will fire you."

Marcus nodded, still a little shell-shocked by his new affections.

Could Heather continue to manage motherhood, the Landgraabs, and her clinic? ->

<- Previous Chapter | Gen 2 Start | Gen 1 Summary | Gen 1 Start

NOTE: When Heather opened her clinic, Marcus was one of the sims she could hire and I went for it immediately because I love playing with premades. But then Marcus became an obnoxious NPC who made out with every single customer constantly because the Romantic Aura Action Plan had been default activated in Brindleton Bay. It all gave unflirty Heather a negative 'witnessed crass moment' moodlet EVERY TIME. So I finally decided to give him a storyline with the intention of moving him into the save file so he'll age naturally, make nooboos, etc. Somewhat unfortunately this is the only unmarried sim Marcus wanted because I also hadn't adjusted my age gap romance settings after playing the Ultimate Decades Challenge in my last save, so YA and teens could flirt etc.

All this to say I promise I won't let Marcus become a complete toad. Since I love my premades, I'm plotting a decent arc because this save did him a little dirty.

[vex-bittys]

So, I have a few questions. One; I have seven dogs, 1 is an old mutt, and the other 7 are white german shepherds, 4 of them are puppies, and the last 2 are their parents. The mom has been attacking the mutt for no reason, and the mutt has gotten hurt. Would a bitty or lamia be able to break up the fight with magic because I can't?

Question two; I also have 2 leopard geckos. Would a lamia show interest in them seeing how similar they are?

Last question; I'm autistic and have anxiety, so I have trouble voicing about what I like to do. Would a lamia or bitty be able to see me struggle?

Sorry if my questions are worded bluntly.

(Sorry for the late answer. I hope you got things worked out with your dogs)

*If there's tension and aggression between two of the dogs, you would want a full-sized lamia for assistance. Full-sized lamias have enough magic to create a quick barrier to keep the dogs separated. They might not use gravity magic in this situation to avoid scaring the dogs involved. A larger lamia could also physically intervene to prevent any injuries. Papythons have a naturally positive aura that might soothe the dogs as well.

*Lamia bittybones are very interested in different types of pets, especially reptiles. You can see my response to a similar question about leopard geckos here.

*If you're looking for perceptive lamias, I recommend a Chain, Honey Bo, or Papython. Cornies, Kraits, Firerings, and Kings will start to pick up on your personal characteristics over time. Pygmies, Corals, and Mambas are not good at figuring out their adopter's needs and have to be told directly.

[janicho88]

When It All Falls Apart-Chapter 1

Pairing- Jensen x Reader

Word count- 1,069

Warnings-Not much for this chapter. Pregnancy talk (Will last a good chunk of the story) But it's not the reader. If I missed something let me know!

A/N- Birthday Post 1. Apparently, I can't write short stories. Not that I've been writing much lately. This was a one shot, then three part, and here we are with another series. Thank you to @writercole and @leigh70 for your help with this. You two are amazing!!

Summary-Y/N Padalecki loved acting on Supernatural.  Working alongside your older brother and your boyfriend, but after ten seasons the guys have chosen to hang up the guns.  Now the three of you are moving on to other projects, but that’s all that needs to change right?  While you have moved to Austin to be closer to your family and boyfriend, Jensen is working elsewhere.  Distance is only the start of your troubles.

Series Masterlist

“Aunt Y/N, Aunt Y/N!” Tom calls for your attention.

“Yes!  I’m watching, I really am,” you tell the young boy as you set your phone down on the table next to you.

“No you weren’t.  You were watching your phone,” your nephew argues back.

“I’m sorry buddy, but you really do have my full attention now.”

With a dramatic huff, the young boy gets himself ready to run through his self-made obstacle course in the backyard.  Your brother Jared and his wife, Gen are in the house talking with your parents and Gen’s while you volunteered to keep Tom busy out here.  The little man is right, you have been staring at your phone, hoping for a message, call, anything to come through.  Giving up on it, you focus on Tom running over to the slide.

“How’s things out here?” a cheery voice questions, as its owner sits down beside you.

“Good, Tom is just about to finish up his obstacle run.  I think he is anyway.  How did it go in the house?” you ask your sister-in-law.

“Great, they are all so excited.”

“Did you have any doubts?”

“Not really.”

“When are you telling Tom?”

“Just before we tell everyone else, so another month or so.  Just in case he spills the beans.”  

“He does take after my brother in the talk first, think later aspect.”

She laughs, “I don’t know how I’m going to handle three of them.”

“Wait, you’re having twins?  You didn’t tell me that!”

“What? No.  Jared, Tom and this baby will make three.”

“Ah, I got you now.  You are going to have your hands full.”

“Definitely.  Are you sure you want to move back out soon?  I’m going to miss having you around.  I’ll split custody of you with Jensen.”

When your boyfriend went out of town for work five months ago and wasn’t able to come home much, or at all, you started sleeping over at your brother's.  That turned into you just temporarily moving into the guest bedroom because you didn’t like staying alone in his empty house.  First, he was gone to film a movie in Chicago for three and a half months, and off to Toronto days after finishing that to start filming The Boys.  You have been working on a Netflix series filming just outside of Austin, then are going to join Walker, when it begins filming in August.  At least Jensen is supposed to be home just before that.  Just under two months to go, you think. 

You try to hide it, but she still catches the slight fall of your face at her comment, but before Gen can say anything, or you can respond, Tom is calling for you. 

“Aunt Y/N, did you see that?”

“I did!  Amazing job Tom, you are getting so fast.”  

“That’s ‘cause I��m four now.  Soon I’m going to start getting as tall as daddy.”

“Yes, you are.”

He goes back to play, and Sadie, Jared’s German Shepherd, chases after.  Gen is sitting there watching you.

“Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, just peachy.”

“Are you sure?  You’ve spent a lot of time staring at your phone lately.  I’ve noticed you seem to be a bit down.”

“Hey Y/N,” your brother calls out, “mom and dad are getting ready to hit the road.”

Saved from answering her question you jump up.  “I need to go see my parents off.”

“Tom, Grandma and Grandpa Padalecki are heading back to San Antonio.  Let’s go say goodbye,” your sister-in-law calls to her son. 

You make your way inside before she can continue her questioning.  No, things aren’t really great, but you don’t want to talk about it right now.  Putting a smile on your face you walk inside to face your parents.  Goodbyes are said, hugs are exchanged and before long you are standing in the driveway next to Jared waving as their car pulls out. 

“Mom and dad can’t wait to spoil another grandbaby,” you say as the two of you walk back inside.

“No they can’t.  As happy as they have been for Jeff and I, just wait until you and Jensen have your first kid.  You’re mom’s baby girl, she is going to go nuts.”

“Yeah, hard to say if that’s in the cards,” you mumble, but Jared still caught it.

“Jensen loves kids, I thought he couldn’t wait to have a few?”

“Yeah, I just don’t know if it will be with me.”

Jared stops and stares after you walking ahead of him through the living room, “What??  Did something happen between you two?  Do I need to go up to Toronto and kick his ass?”

“Nothing has happened, just drop it,” you call back over your shoulder as you hit the stairs and head for your room.

Gen is standing in the kitchen doorway and looks over at her husband, “what’s going on?”

“I’m not really sure.  But I’m going to make a call and find out.”

“Ah, no you aren’t.  We don’t know what has her so off.  If something is going on with the two of them, if she’s just stressed and tired, or maybe it really is nothing.  You aren’t going to call and worry Jensen if it’s nothing.”

“She’s my little sister.”

“Who would kick your ass if you made that call.  I’ll see if she’ll talk to me tomorrow.  I’ve noticed she’s been off for a few days, I was trying to give her space.”

“I could find out right now.”

“I know it’s hard, but turn off big brother mode for now.  Don’t make me hide your phone, Mister.”

“Fine, I’ll let you talk to her first.”

“Good boy, now go find your son for his bath please, while I check on my parents outside.”

 Gen leans up and gives Jared a kiss before she walks away.

Up in the guest room you are curled up on the bed trying not to over think what your brother had just said.  You can’t help the tears that begin to fall.  You’ve been with Jensen for four years now, it would be a lie if you said you hadn’t thought about having a family with him before.  He has been your rock, safe place and well, everything for so long.  You just weren’t expecting things to go the way they had.  That steady rock you leaned on had become a landslide. 

Thank you for reading!!

Chapter 2

Tag list

SPNForevers- @winchest09 @flamencodiva @whatareyousearchingfordean @waywardbeanie @deanwanddamons  @emoryhemsworth  @atc74 @sandlee44 @akshi8278  @fantasydevil2002 @writercole​ @440mxs-wife   @nervousfandom @lunarmoon8 @thoughts-and-funnies @downanddirtydean @katelyn--renee​ @that-one-gay-girl​ @lyarr24​ @pineapleavocado​ @siospins2​ ​ @ariesbabe1993​  @graciebear73  @stixnstripesworld​ @spnbaby-67​  @treat-winchesterswith-kindness​ @charmed-asylum​ @winchestergirl2​ @hobby27​  @amyzombie1013​  @sexyvixen7​ @leigh70 @jawritter @krazykelly @nancymcl

WIAFA-

[swansstuff]

Uhhhh

OK so I haven't posted a chapter of my fic for a while so have some ramblings about fankids (anyone remember those fandom trends?) and other silliness <3 some I have thought about more than others but enjoy a tasty little morsel until I can actually produce something of substance lmao

Steph and Pete: get engaged when they graduate college in 2023. Get married when they both have steady income in 2026. Have Owen in October 2029. Have Amy in December 2034. Owen starts highschool in 2044. Amy skips 4th grade, starts highschool in 2047.

Pete: becomes a highschool physics teacher at hfh. Grows a moustache, sometimes double takes that he looks like Ted in the mirror. Takes Steph’s name.

Steph: becomes a 3rd grade teacher.

Owen: got the combo of autism and adhd, thanks mom and dad, had a 1:1 in elementary school (Mrs Keane). Art kid. May or may not be in love with his best friend (Will Green). Could be mistaken for Pete on a bad hair day. Inherited the Spankoffski family watch. Favourite colour is blue.

Amy: only got the autism but it's the freaky smart kind. Loves space, obsessed with planets. Probably also in love with her best friend (Elsie Chasity). Absolutely knows more than she should about the LiBs. Favourite colour is yellow.

Skrzynka: (Box in Polish) this fucked up, mixed breed cat that wandered into their backyard at some point. May or may not be a Tinky vessel

Grace and Ruth: get engaged in 2024. Get married in 2026. Have Joseph in 2031. Have Elsie in 2034. Have Abe in 2038.

Grace: criminal psychologist. (Major true crime fan)

Ruth: musical writer and director.

Joseph: quiet nerd kid, but has the same weird, threatening aura as Grace does. Into some real left field shit. Will debate the extended family on religion, one of those smarmy reddit atheists.

Elsie: non-verbal until like 7, Amy helped her communicate at school. Autism. Gentle, sweetheart. Creative girly, into her art, will forget to move until her piece is done.

Abe: nightmare toddler, Grace and Ruth regret having a third. Hair untamable.

Watson: ratty ass Irish wolfhound. Ruth had her childhood dog called Sherlock who passed so decided to get a puppy when Joseph was 3. They are inseperable.

Max and Richie: get engaged in 2024. Get married in 2028 once Max's dad finally fucking dies. Have Marie in 2033.

Richie: film critic (specifically horror movies)

Max: park ranger and highschool football coach

Marie: her middle name is Asuka, Richie had to be restrained and this was the compromise. She fucking hates this. Mini goth kid but also quite athletic, more into running than football. Did not inherit Richie's asthma but did inherit his insomnia.

Totoro: Named by Richie. Marie calls him Toto. Golden retriever.

Oscar: Named by Max. German Shepherd.

Suzie: Named by Marie after Suzie and the banshees. Rescue.

Lex and Ethan: get engaged in 2021, get married in 2026 once everything settles down. Have William in 2029.

Lex: actor at the Starlight

Ethan: runs his dad's garage

William: Will. Sort of takes after his dad, perceived as a bad kid but just likes sticking up for people. Quite creative as well, but more on the music side. Plays the piano and the violin, doesn't own either but plays at the highschool. Also very much in love with his best friend. Also raging adhd.

Hannah and Daniel: get married in 2040, have Meghan in 2043.

Hannah: guidance councillor

Daniel: ccrp worker

Meghan: can speak, doesn't until she's about 5. Her first word is Webby. This doesn't worry anyone at all. She may genuinely be a Webby conduit.

Emma and Paul: get married in 2022, have the twins in 2024. Have Jane in 2029.

Paul: this poor man will be with ccrp until the day he dies

Emma: "plant biologist"

Henry: yes he was named after hidgens. like a slightly more outgoing Paul, does end up working at Beanie's during his highschool years. Bit of a nerd for sci-fi thrillers. Has strong opinions on Working Boys.

Penny: named after Richie’s late mom, ie Paul's older sister. Manic anxious energy, doing everything all of the time, bit like cousin Tim. Has a Ted like sense of humor, Paul regrets letting him babysit.

Jane: named after Emma's older sister. Couldn't be more different. Absolute mess, reminds Emma of a younger her. Persued musical theatre in highschool and drove Paul fucking nuts.

[dirtyvulture]

😎 Sooooooo My Nephew is due TODAY ✨✨✨✨ my sister was induced this morning and is going back to the hospital night . It’s very likely that My nephew will be born on the 11 ( especially considering the first baby’s labor typically takes a REALLY LONG time and my nephew is my sister’s first) . So Dad , Mom and I decided to celebrate a bit with beer , pizza and there is also cake !!!!!!!

Now let’s see if I can come up with soo thoughts !!!!!

I will start it with , I read the new fic and it’s AMAZING like always and once again vulture proves why they have the title of god of lust with that smut !!!!! I have been talking with a friend and we all know how SB is a golden retriever , welllllll ….. my friend and I decided that Wolvie R is a grumpy old German Shepherd and that DK! Nat is a golden retriever ( Sgt Romanoff is of course a black cat) . My friend and I also decided that the CEO ! R is a high maintenance golden doodle , and that Nat was acting like a TRUE Black Widow ( much like the ones in the comics and muc) . I found a very interesting detail about how excited R got about talking about her work , her plans , tech in general and her company….. she has so much pride and passion in her work . Seeing how that played out is just soooo heartbreaking.

Ummmmmmm , let’s see if I can come up with something of a thought for the SB and DK universe.

I think Sarah ( SB’s sister) was induced when she had her son ( SB’s nephew) , SB was soooo excited ( think FULL BLOWN excited golden retriever completed with HONEST TO GOD ZOOMIES ) and was trying to be as supportive and helpful as possible . Getting Sarah snacks, helping her walking around, just anything and everything . They are even helpful and supportive of Sarah’s partner. SB told Nat that she didn’t have to come if she didn’t want to but Nat came anyways , Nat fell asleep in a chair and SB DIDNT SLEEP AT ALL ( they were READY for their nephew) . Ps I am fully projecting as my sister lives soooo far away from the rest of us so I won’t be able to see , meet or hold my nephew UNTIL JULY/ JUNE 😭😭😭😭 I will probably wouldn’t be able sleep tonight because I am sooo excited for my nephew!!!!!!

Soooo I had to clip my nails again today , my nails grow so damn fast that I have to CONSTANTLY cut them ( I FUCKING HATE those emery board things, they feel sooo weird and I HATE IT) . I think that R’s also CONSTANTLY has to cut/ clip her nails as they grow LONG and SHARP ( not like full blown CLAWS but still long and sharp) and soooo FAST , so she cuts and clips them so she doesn’t accidentally scratch the shit out of herself or others. She also has a bit longer Canine teeth, sharp ones too ( again NOT full blown fangs or anything like that) . R also HATES the dentist ( I can go more in depth on this later ) !!!!

That is about it for this post , everyone take it !!!!!

I'm responding to this very late but I hope your nephew was born safely and your sister is doing well :)

Thank you very much for the love on a new fic! 🥰 I do have some plans for a Part 2 when I finally get the time to write again.

I love all the analogies to dogs, they are all very fitting. And yep, CEO!R is definitely a golden doodle. I don't think she necessarily tries to be a high-maintenance or obnoxious person, it's kind of the way she was raised, and yes, she is actually extremely smart and talented, but as a woman in tech she is just not respected that way.

Sergeant Beef would be so excited for their coming nephew, and of course Sergeant Nat would be very impressed (and probably even feral) for them the whole time. And I hope you get to see your nephew in person at the earliest chance you get!

Lol, I wonder if Wolvie!R has the dexterity to cut her own nails with her claws on the other hand...that would probably be very dangerous though and Nat would make her stop immediately.

Thanks for stopping by, anon!

[thrillingdetectivetales]

This is a total long shot, but I'm looking for a series of Harringrove fics that appears to have been taken off AO3. The series is at least two fics, but may be more (I can't fully recall) and I think both parts were fairly long. I don't remember the titles of the individual stories or the series or the author, because my brain is a sieve, but I put a quick rundown of what plot/details I remember under a read more below. If anybody either has a download of this fic, knows where I can get one, or remembers the author/titles so I can try my hand with the Wayback Machine, I would really appreciate it. (Spoilers ahead, obviously, and caveat that there's a chance I may be misremembering some of these from other Harringrove fic I've read):

Billy meets Eleven fairly early on, and I believe that at first he mishears her name as Ellen, but he eventually moves into calling her Elijane. Later on, toward the end of the first story/beginning of the second, he runs into Eleven (on her way to Chicago/to find her mom, maybe?) and offers to take her because he needs to get out of town to clear his head after a fight with Steve (detailed later). Their car gets run off the road and they get kidnapped by lab people.

Midwayish through the first story, I want to say, Hopper or someone intervenes on behalf of Billy with Neil and he winds up in his own apartment. He buys a couch or a whole set of furniture or something that's red.

Billy and Steve have their first kiss after they get into an altercation with Tommy and either some of his friends or maybe cousins, where they're walking down the street and Tommy throws a beer can at them. They throw it back and hit Tommy in the face or something and then go running. They end up in an alley together late at night hiding and that's where they have their first kiss.

Billy catches Steve wearing glasses he doesn't normally wear in public and Steve gets super self-conscious about it at first. He also has two german shepherds named Luke and Leia. When Billy first meets them, while Steve is out walking them near the garage where Billy works, he plays with them and asks "Are you a puppy?"

At one point, Lucas sees Steve and Billy together before they're out, and Billy goes full rage mode on him like an asshole. Steve gets big mad for obvious reasons and they sort of separate until Billy apologizes and gets his shit together. He does eventually go to apologize to Lucas, after which he goes to apologize to Steve. Steve is hanging out at his place with Nancy, because he needs to talk to someone about stuff with Billy, and Billy mistakenly deduces that they're together. This is why he's driving along and sees El on her way to wherever she's going before they get kidnapped.

When Steve and Billy try to have penetrative sex the first time, it isn't very good. I believe because they'd been drinking and having a celebration of sometime and don't communicate well. They try again a second time and it goes way better.

Steve calls Billy "Bill" a fair amount and the author, while writing in Billy's voice, describes the kids as yapping pretty frequently. They also tend to write, 'says, "Ha ha ha!"' instead of 'laughs' which I thought was very endearing and delightful.

I don't remember the specific wording but at one point there's a bit that's sort of like, "Steve is a bitch but fuck yeah that's Billy's bitch."

I know it's not a ton to go on but I'm getting back into Stranger Things fandom recently and was so devastated the other day when I trolled through as many posted Harringrove fic over 80k as I could and didn't see it anywhere.

Any help is appreciated! Feel free to shoot me a DM here on Tumblr/reply to this post. I don't usually see Tumblr messages but you can give that a shot too. Otherwise I'm on Discord as thrillingdetectivetales, too, and you can message me there as well.

Thanks in advance for any assistance!!

[obikinwhore]

15 Questions for 15 Friends

Tagged by my beloved @amadwinter

1. Are you named after anyone?

My mom got my name from some random newscaster she used to watch on tv

2. When was the last time you cried?

A week ago about lukeleia but truly?? A couple of days before last december when I decided I needed to quit my job

3. Do you have kids?

Naur <3

4. What sports do you play/ have you played?

I'm a nerd dowwwwnnn. I did marching band in high school. Some basketball sort of or well its the only one I was sorta good at.

5. Do you use sarcasm?

I do if I am friendly with the person I am talking to. Idk I feel like I come off as rude otherwise

6. What's the first thing you notice about people?

Idk ig it depends. Notice in a way that is not appearance I presume? Then the first thing is if I can joke around with them or if they are sort of nerdy like me

7. What's your eye colour?

A very dark brown

8. Scary movies or happy endings?

Scary movies always and forever. My favorite movie ever is Hereditary and I will never turn down watching a scary movie. If its good then fuck yeah! and if its bad then it'll probably at least be funny

9. Any talents?

I have mostly useless talents: whistling (and i am not fucking with you i have debated going to contests about it), I can sing a tune pretty well.

10. Where were you born?

SoCal baby, born and raised.

11. What are your hobbies?

Reading fanfic, singing along to music, watching hours of videos on skincare/haircare/science lectures, making plans and not sticking to them <3

12. Do you have any pets?

3 little boys. A german shepherd, a white crusty dog and a weenie dog.

13. How tall are you?

5' 2 :(

14. Favourite subject in school?

Science, math and music class, i'm a mega Nerd

15. Dream job?

Travel nurse! I'm almost there lads. Couple more years.

Not tagging anyone cause i'm so late i'm sure everyone has done this, but if you see this and u want to then u're tagged and say I tagged u

[reachingmygoalsss]

Life Update

April 25 2024

Got multiple new jobs, a new apartment and new dogs literally 5 days after the December post. Lost some weight around 15lbs rn! Things are looking up the dogs have helped me relax so so much.

My boyfriend got a new job as a carpenter now and actually stepped up after a fight we had on Valentine's Day. He started trying really hard, and I admit I wasn't the best person during the time because of how hurt and betrayed I felt. I feel a lot of guilt for that, and like I don't fully deserve this new beginning to some extent with him because of how angry I was up until he got the job. I'm really happy for him and thankful too. After all I wouldn't be dating him this long if I didn't love who he is. Stress just gets in the way of that sometimes.

My new dogs are the best little girls! They are German Shepherd lab mixes and are beautiful. Now around 7 months old. I will upload some pictures with this of them! They literally help me so much in my dream realms and through my healing stuff as well as with the transmutation of my emotions. I try to give back as much as I can to them by getting them treats, bones, and things they need or want. I really think I'm gonna try and walk them more, though. It's something I have been lacking with. That and training, and they deserve more of that, so that is a new thing I want to do for them going forward.

I have lots of big plans for the future. I'm going to make a goals list soon, so be hopeful for that. But I think the rest of the post I'm going to rant.

My parents still suck. I don't like how they take everything as me trying to hurt them. It's very frustrating. I'm not going to say I didn't have a lot of hate for them from all the buildup and stuff but I have let go of most of that now. I don't hate them anymore I just don't like them because I realized they will never actually understand me or how I speak.

Something I have been having issues healing lately is feeling like I'm hurting others. Today I talked to my mom for the first time in months and we were having a conversation about my brother since he is in the process of having a kid. Said conversation:

"you know your brother he gets stressed so easily and is nervous"

"that's because you yelled at him for so many years"

"that's because he never would listen unless I yell at him"

"he never was able to hear you because his ears were damaged from you yelling at him"

"I'm not going to let you ruin my day today I'm about to have a grandkid"

"I'm just telling you where that comes from"

✨️conversation ended 2 mins later✨️

This is how every conversation goes and yet I still somehow feel like I'm a dickhead for just stating what I see when she tries to bring stuff up. I feel this way with everyone, either in a state of confusion or guilt and shame for triggering them. I genuinely don't mean to trigger them either I'm just looking at a situation and word vomiting what I see, hear or feel. Sometimes I think I'm autistic because of this. With my mom though I do question if my motives are good. Like is it a subconscious jab at her character? Am I living in the past? Part of me does feel like I am still there in the house a scared kid waiting for her to come in my bedroom and tell me to do some chore or scream at me. During those times my throat feels tight like I'm being strangled and I still can't seem to get the words out clearly. It's hard for me to be in a relationship when there is no relationship because it will always be one-sided. She still wants me to wear the golden child, straight A student, favorite cousin, grandchild, bullshit mask I wore for so long. Perfection mask curated to her, otherwise I'm imperfect, but more importantly she is imperfect. I find myself with traits like her sometimes. Cold and cruel due to insecurities and superficialities. I see how hurt she is too and I guess that's why I still hold so much guilt, shame and hurt for cutting her out. She will never see me. Just like her mother never saw her.

I hope I'm not like her.

My father, I cut off from Jan 1st to early April. It's nice to talk to my dad, and I miss him. The problem is that I usually go into an anxiety attack after I get off the phone with him. Even if the conversation is good, it feels like he invades my whole being, and I have intrusive hate thoughts every time I talk to him that I have to clear out of my head almost every time. He also defends my mom with her behavior, and then he lets her into conversation a lot. Which has put a lot of strain on our relationship in general. I didn't want to have to make him choose between me or mom, but she made that the case a lot of the time. I wish he had the balls to say no to her and just have a relationship with me. I don't expect him to ever stick up for me though at this point. If he defended her to a 5 year old me saying I was the problem at 5 why should I have expected anything different at 22. That's the part I think that hurts the most is still dealing with the same thing younger me dealt with. No one to help me stand up to my bully other than myself.

Good news is I'm an adult now and I no longer feel helpless against them. I can stand up to them and they can't put their shit on me anymore. Though I'm the villain now and that kinda sucks considering I went from being perfect in their eyes. I destroyed their image of everything they saw in me and I feel like myself for the first time but I have no family because of it. I will have to build my own.

Everyone in my family looks at me like I'm an asshole and none of them other than my dad want to see me truly succeed. And even then my dad will try to change my plans or will outright judge or insult them behind my back to my mom. I know this because that's how they all work. Then they get sick or get into a car accident or some shit because they are fucking mean. I don't know why I keep going back. When I disconnect from them I feel so much anxiety, sadness, and hate and it's hard to focus on anything else. I hope there's a day where I can just let go or talk to them without feeling so fucked up. Self harm or self hate maybe? Self sabotage? Layers of bullshit that needs to go. Too much manipulation. Sometimes I wish they would just die so I can move on and get some relief.

I guess the end of this is just me wishing I had a supportive and loving family. One where I don't have to be fake to avoid making people upset or afraid.

[thruheavenandhighwater]

Pairing: Eddie Munson/ Steve Harrington

Requested By: NA

Word Count: 2,932

Series Summary: Eddie left Hawkins in 1986 with no reason to ever return. But now, a few years have passed and life has changed. Eddie finally returns home and has to deal with everything he left behind, including Steve Harrington. This story starts in May 1991.

Chapter Summary: A peek into the Munson's future together. This takes place in 2008.

Stranger Things Masterlist

Steddie Masterlist

Series Masterlist

~~~~~

"We're gonna be late!" Eddie called up the stairs for the third time in five minutes. "Listen, I know I'm cooler than Dad, but you don't have to be exactly like me, Lu!"

Lucy bounded down the stairs with a smile. Her hair and makeup were done, dress on, shoes in hand. She sat on the bottom step and slid one tan sandal onto her foot, fussing with the buckle as she did her best to fasten it as quickly as possible.

"She's not exactly like you, babe," Steve said, rounding the corner to join them at the stairs. "Lucy's graduating on her first try."

"And you're not cooler than Dad," Lucy said as she stood from the step. "I just tell you that so you'll let me borrow the car."

"I've been doomed to live the rest of my mortal life in a family of really mean, not funny comedians."

As much as Eddie whined and complained when Lucy and Steve would gang up on him, he wouldn't trade it for anything. The past seventeen years with them had been the best of his life. Probably the best years ever, if he were to guess.

Eddie and Steve had become official two days after Eddie kissed him in front of his uncle's house. Three months later he and Lucy moved into Steve's apartment. Then, once Lucy was old enough to need her own room, into an even bigger apartment. And finally, in 2001, they bought their forever home. It wasn't anything fancy. Two floors, three bedrooms. But it was theirs. They were even able to get themselves a dog. Not a golden retriever, to Steve's dismay. But a big, hyper German shepherd that Lucy had named Sully. Their life was perfect.

Together they'd seen it all. Lost baby teeth and skinned knees. Lucy's first crush and school dances. Even a trip to California the year Lucy found out about "gay days" at Disneyland and absolutely insisted they all go as a family. "You guys are gay!" She said almost too excitedly, earning exhausted eyerolls from both of them. "It's like, meant for you!"

They'd only heard from Billie twice since that November day in 1991. Once, when Lucy was six she'd tried to take Eddie to court again. But when her lawyer showed up and she didn't, the case was dismissed. And then earlier this year she'd found Lucy online and wished her a happy 18th birthday, two weeks after her 17th birthday. It had hurt Eddie to see her so upset, clinging to Sully as she asked her dads why she didn't have a mom like everyone else's.

But through it all, their little family stayed strong. When Wayne fell at work and cracked a rib, Steve was there every morning to check on him. And when Steve's mom passed away from liver failure, Eddie had held him every night for eight months while he mourned a woman who had been out of his life by her own choice for nearly a decade.

"Call your grandpa and tell him we're on the way," Steve said as he opened the door to usher Lucy and Eddie outside. He loved both of them more than anything, he really did, but the Munson gene of being habitually late to everything was not going to work. Not today.

Once they arrived at the high school Lucy had just enough time to run inside and slip into her rented green robe. Eddie, Wayne, and Steve bid her goodbye and good luck, each of them giving her a hug before watching her walk through the glass doors of Hawkins High.

The ceremony itself was exactly the same as Eddie and Steve remembered. The principal led the faculty out onto the stage, where they all sat in a line of folding chairs behind him. He gave a speech, more or less the same speech he'd given at every commencement ceremony he'd ever done.

"And now," he said, the microphone cracking with feedback as he picked up the stack of note cards he'd been reading from. "The valedictorian of Hawkins High School class of 2008, Lucy Munson."

Eddie and Steve stood from their seats immediately. They both clapped and loudly shouted as they watched Lucy walk to the podium. Wayne clapped along with them, staying in his seat and tucking his cane between his knees. Eddie didn't even try to hide the few tears that were falling down his cheeks as he watched his daughters brown curls bounce over the shoulders of her green robe. He felt Steve's arm wrapped around his back. He leaned his head onto his shoulder, wiping his cheeks. The two sat down as Lucy cleared her throat, leaning away from the microphone just like Eddie had taught her. He placed his hand on Steve's knee with a sigh.

"How did we raise a valedictorian?" Steve asked. He could hear the pride in his voice.

"No idea," he answered quietly. "More importantly, how the fuck is Higgins still principal?" Steve giggled, pressing his cheek into Eddie's hair as Lucy began to give the speech she'd written.

"To all of the family and friends with us today, I want to say thank you, from all of us, for being here. It wasn't an easy road for any of us, and I think I can speak for everyone when I say that it means a lot to us for you all to be here."

"She's good," Steve sighed.

"She gets it from me," Eddie answered with a shrug.

Steve laughed just a little. He turned his head, his lips resting atop Eddie's head. He closed his eyes as he kissed Eddie's hair. It took everything Steve had not to cry. He listened to Lucy through the speakers, talking about her teachers and her memories of her time in school. But all he could think of, all he could see in his mind, was Lucy at six months old. The day he met her. The day he knew that he was going to love her for the rest of his life.

He heard her start to talk about prom and how it was the last time their class would all be together, hearing the smile in her voice. He remembered eight months ago when he took her to the small bridal shop in town. The way her eyes lit up just like Eddie's did when she found the perfect dress to wear, a baby blue strapless gown. He remembered the way he and Eddie had both shed a tear the exact moment her dates car turned the corner.

"And finally, before I hand the ceremony back over to Mr. Higgins, I want to take a moment to thank the men who raised me to be the person I am today." All three of them sat at attention when they heard her sniffle into the mic. Steve turned to face the stage just in time to see her reach up and wipe her nose before resuming her speech.

"My dads, Steve and Eddie Munson. The best dads anyone could ever hope to have. And my wonderful, funny grandpa Wayne." Lucy sniffled once more, taking a deep breath as she looked up to the stands, easily finding her family in the front row.

"I'm lucky enough to be loved by the three most incredible men in the world. I was raised in a house full of music, and fun, and terrible jokes, and love. From Sunday night football with my grandpa, to dinner time dance offs in the kitchen with my dad. Even having to listen to Anthrax while my daddy taught me to drive last year."

By now even Wayne was getting misty eyed. Eddie nudged him with his elbow, smiling as his own tears fell freely over his cheeks.

"They have always done so much for me. My entire life none of them have ever told me 'no.' Perks of being the only child and the only grandchild," she joked, earning wet giggles from the three of them.

"But the most important thing they've ever given me was my attitude. My adventurous and hardheaded spirit. They worked together for the last seventeen years to teach me that life… Man, life is though. But Munson's are tougher. And for that, I want to loudly and proudly say thank you. And I love you all more than words could ever say. Thank you."

There was not a dry face to be found among the Munson family as Lucy took a step back from the podium. Eddie's chest swelled with pride as he watched her walk across the stage, down the stairs and to her seat. Lucy was happy. She was healthy and thriving in a town that he had tried so hard to get away from.

The following afternoon was Lucy's graduation party. Steve stood at the grill in their backyard, burning hotdogs and burgers for their friends. Eddie was playing his favorite role, busy housewife. He was in and out the back door a thousand times. Bringing more meat to Steve for the grill, refilling drinks, opening fresh bags of Doritos.

"Daddy, relax!" Lucy called from the picnic table she was sat at with her friends. "Sit down and eat something before dad yells at you."

Steve clicked his tongs twice in her direction. She was right and everyone at the party knew it. Eddie rolled his eyes dramatically and picked up a green paper plate from the stack on the food table. He sidled up to Steve and bumped his hip into him.

"Scared of your daughter?" Steve asked with a smile as he turned a row of hotdogs.

"No," Eddie scoffed. "Scared of your daughter. She's mean when she acts like you."

"Sometimes you need to be humbled," Steve answered with a shrug. Eddie smiled as he wrapped one arm around Steve's waist. He turned to look over his shoulder. He saw Lucy surrounded by her friends, laughing as one boy snapped off pictures with his new digital camera - a graduation gift.

"She's a good kid, huh?" Eddie asked, his eyes still on Lucy. Though she was nearly grown, he had a hard time looking at her and seeing anything other than the half bald little baby he'd brought back to Hawkins seventeen years before.

"She's an awesome kid," Robin stated matter of factly, suddenly standing on Steve's other side. Eddie jumped higher than he thought was possible, muttering a string of profanity under his breath as he begged his heart to stop beating out of his chest. Robin laughed, shaking her head as she held her plate out in front of her. "Man, that never gets old. Honestly, though, you did a good job on her."

"What about me?" Steve asked, his mock offense almost seeming real.

"I watched her drink pickle juice out of the jar when she was nine," Robin told him, her voice suddenly very serious and monotone. "I have yet to be given a reason that that wasn't your influence at work."

Steve scoffed and dropped a burnt hotdog on her plate. "The only influence I've had on her is that she brushes her hair every day. Other than that, poor girl is all Munson." Eddie let out a small laugh, his smile bright as he looked down to his feet. Steve nudged his shoulder with his own, pulling his attention back to him. "But, I guess there are worse things."

Lucy's party spanned the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. All of her aunts and uncles made appearances, bringing with them hugs and cards and congratulations. Lucy spent most of her party alternating between spending time with her friends and running around with the kids who were, for lack of a better word, her cousins. Watching her play hide and seek with Max and Lucas's twins was nearly enough to bring a tear to Steve's eye.

Eventually, the sun began to set and their friends and family slowly started to trickle out. Lucy hugged Will and Jack goodbye, ruffling their daughters hair as they turned to leave. As they walked around the house to their car Lucy walked over to where her dads were standing with Robin, watching the last few embers of the grill die down.

She had her hands clasped in front of her as she walked. She ducked her head, revealing the best puppy dog eyes Roane County had ever seen when she finally looked up at Eddie. The picture of innocence.

"Daddy?" She started quietly. "Can I pretty pretty please stay the night at Lindsay's?"

Eddie looked over her shoulder to where the friend in question was sat on a patio chair, anxiously watching the interaction. "Dunno, kid," Eddie started with a sigh. "It's a Sunday. Don't you have school tomorrow?"

Lucy immediately dropped the innocent, pleading act and turned to Steve. "Dad? Please?" Steve looked from Lucy to Eddie, who was wearing the textbook definition of a shit eating grin.

"Oh, be nice," Robin admonished him, landing a soft smack to his shoulder.

"Fine," Steve relented. Lucy bounced on her toes, Lindsay stood from the patio seat behind her. The girls ran into the house, Steve calling out behind them. "We're doing thank you cards tomorrow!"

A few minutes later Lucy reappeared in the doorway. She stuck her head out and announced that she and Lindsay were leaving.

"Get your ass over here," Eddie told her. She rolled her eyes, set her bag by the door and walked towards her dads and her aunt. "Just 'cause you think you're grown now don't mean you can get out of hugs, young lady."

Lucy hugged each of them before retrieving her bag. She turned back to them, "Love you guys!" She called out, waiting for a chorus of the same sentiment in return before letting the door fall closed behind her.

Eddie leaned into Steve's side, hugging him close as they listened to the girls leaving for the night. Steve wrapped his arm around Eddie's shoulders, pulling him tightly to himself and placing a kiss to the top of his head. "We should make a new baby," Eddie sighed. "Ours is old now."

"We haven't had any luck yet, but I do love trying," Steve answered, his voice low as he purred the final words. Eddie lifted his head only enough to capture Steve's lips with his own.

"Disgusting," Robin gagged dramatically.

"Don't you have your own house you could be at?" Eddie asked, dropping his forehead to Steve's shoulder.

"But I wanna hang out with my husband," she whined. "And my husband's husband."

Eddie sighed, moving to hide his smile against Steve's shoulders. "That joke hasn't been funny for like, 15 years."

"It was actually never funny," Steve asserted. "It's always stupid. Can't believe you thought I'd marry her."

"It was funny for a little bit, baby," Eddie told him softly.

"It was kinda hot that you got all jealous on me," he relented. "I liked seein' ya get all squirmy on that stool when you thought you didn't have a chance."

Eddie smiled up at him as the sun continued its descent in the distance. He moved forward, kissing him softly. He heard Robin groan behind him. He felt Steve smile into the kiss. For a moment he considered putting on a show, just to annoy her. He moved his hands to the hem of Steve's old t shirt, his skin soft and warm against his palms. Just as he was beginning the move up towards his chest, taking the cotton with him, she spoke up.

"Okay, oh my god," she whined. "I'm leaving. At least wait until I'm out of earshot to start your nastiness, please."

Both men hugged her tightly before she rounded the side of the house. They listened, waiting for her usual send off. They heard her car door close, then the engine roared to life. "Peace out, husbands!" Before she backed out of the driveway and turned left towards home.

Steve and Eddie began to clear up from the party. Eddie followed Steve around with a trash bag, holding it open for him. They moved the grill back to its spot on the back porch. Eddie complained about having to eat leftover hot dogs for a week as they packed away the uneaten food. He was placing a plastic bowl full of Wayne's famous potato salad when Steve appeared suddenly behind him.

Steve placed his hands on Eddie's hips. His lips ghosted over the sensitive skin of his neck. His hand began to move, his fingertips dipping into the waist of his jeans.

"I got a hot dog for you right now," he whispered.

Eddie shivered against him. "I hate that I'm already in love with you," he sighed. "That was the worst fucking pick up line I've ever heard."

"But did it work?"

"Yes, but I'm homophobic now."

Steve chuckled, his lips curling into a smile against Eddie's skin. He pulled his hands away from Eddie only long enough for him to turn around. They heard the refrigerator door close behind them as Steve led Eddie upstairs. They both giggled as they almost tripped over Sully, sleeping at the bottom of the stairs. Once they were upstairs, in their bedroom at the end of the hallway, they were like kids again. Neither said as much, but both of them knew that no matter what, they'd always be those two early twenty-somethings who were hopelessly in love and trying to figure out life together some seventeen years ago.

~~~~~

previous part

~~~~~

Oh, how I've loved sharing this story with you all. I hope you've enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing this. Also! I used my own baby pictures for this because it felt weird to me to try to find pictures of random children online. Please appreciate how cute I used to be 😅

I'm going to make an official post in a few days, but I figured I'd let my loyal readers know first. I'm not at all ready to leave these boys and their little family behind. So I'm asking for requests for them! If there is anything you'd like to see the Munsons get up to, please let me know!!

[highwaytothedangerzone502]

Foxtrot Alpha Alpha - Chapter 8

Pairing: Hangman x Female OC

Word Count: 2595

Warnings: None

Summary: Hangman learned his lesson a long time ago to never show his true feelings when someone's words or actions hurt him. To do so showed weakness that could be exploited, and Seresin men couldn't show weakness. Of course, there was an exception to every rule, and Jake's always came in the form of women, three in particular: his mom, Juliette Kazansky, and the girl whose name he could no longer bring himself to speak. She was the girl that got away; she was his biggest 'what if' and his biggest regret; she would forever be the ghost that haunted his dreams. Jake believed that's where she'd stay, for he would surely never see her again after what he did.

Or so he thought.

Notes: This is the sequel to India Lima Yankee; I'm using the same callsign for the Female OC as in Ghost Story because I just really like it, but they are different characters; chapters in italics are flashbacks.

Chapter Songs: I Ain't Worried Red

****

Ghost

Juliette and Rooster adored the presents Ghost gave them, laughing at the wine and beer glasses that said "Because Twins" and grinning like children themselves over the multiple outfits for each other and the babies. 

"Thank you for all of this! These are wonderful!" Juliette exclaimed, hugging her friend tightly. Rooster followed suit. "I can't wait for the day I can actually fill that wine glass with alcohol. I don't drink a lot by any means, but God, I'd kill to have some Baileys or whiskey. Or both. Both is good."

"Speaking of killing someone, the Daggers might kill us if we're late," Rooster said, checking the time. "We better get going. Ghost, want a ride?"

"Thanks, but I'll just take my motorcycle. Besides, I think the dogs want to come." Ghost nodded at the two German Shepherds sitting at the door, their tags wagging and tongues flopped out to the side while they stared expectantly at their owners.

Juliette placed her hands on her hips. "Boys, do you want to go to the beach?" She asked, causing both dogs to bark eagerly and dance in circles around each other. The trio laughed at their excitement. "All right, follow Daddy to the car. Momma's gotta grab her purse." 

Rooster opened the door, and the dogs bolted out. Ghost waited for Juliette to grab her purse. She noticed her friend take some Tylenol, prompting her to ask, "You okay?"

"Yeah, I've been having bad headaches recently. I think it's the lack of sleep and the strain this big belly puts on my back. I have a doctor's appointment in a couple of days, so I'll bring it up with her then, make sure it's nothing to worry about."

"You up to going to the beach? If not, I'll stay here with you," Ghost offered. As much as she meant her words sincerely out of concern for her friend. Ghost also prayed Jules wished to stay home so she wouldn't have to face Hangman.

"Yeah, I'll sit in the shade with Penny and play fetch with the dogs. Come on. You're going to love the game!"

Trying to hide her disappointment, Ghost plastered on a smile and followed Juliette out the door. She hopped onto her motorcycle and trailed closely behind Rooster to the beach, trying to ignore the nerves rapidly spreading throughout her body. Ghost chastised herself for letting herself get this nervous: It's just a game, and it's one day. It's not like I'm going to be left alone with Jake, and I have Juliette and Rooster if I need friends. I even have Phoenix. Deep breaths. Deep breaths...

They pulled into adjoining parking spots and strode over to the Daggers, who already tossed the football around. A familiar man stood to the side, chatting with Penny and Hondo. He beamed at the sight of Rooster and Juliette, hugging them when they approached. "Hey! Glad you two could make it. Who's your friend?"

"Mav, this is Annalise Blackwood, callsign Ghost," Juliette introduced proudly. "Ghost, this is Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell and Bernie 'Hondo' Coleman."

"It's an honor," Ghost said, shaking the men's hands but finding herself starstruck by Maverick. He'd been her idol for as long as she could remember after her mom told her stories about him. Ghost barely managed to say, "I've heard a lot about you, sir."

"Not sure if that's a good or bad thing," Maverick joked, but he studied her curiously. "Forgive me if I'm wrong, but are you related to Charlotte Blackwood by any chance?"

"Yes, sir," Ghost replied with a smile. "She's my mom."

"How is she?"

"Good, good. She lives in DC with my dad now and is still working with the Pentagon."

"Tell her I say hi, next time you speak to her."

"I will! So-" Ghost scanned the Daggers, trying to figure out if they were already playing the game- "what's dogfight football?"

"Glad you asked!" Maverick clapped his hands and dove into an explanation. It ended up being much simpler than Ghost thought it'd be, and she looked forward to playing until Hangman jogged up to them with the Daggers in tow, reminding her he'd be here the entire time. She kept her head in Maverick's direction but used her dark, reflective sunglasses to hide the fact her line of sight focused on Jake Seresin. Outside of their brief reunion in the Hard Deck, she hadn't given herself a chance to properly look at him, but she did now. Ghost couldn't help noticing his bulging biceps and rock-hard abs or the thin sheen of sweat glistening on his body and accentuating the perfection of his Adonis build. 

"Hey, Pops, we ready to-" Hangman stopped short at the sight of his long-time 'acquaintance.' "Ghost! What are you doing here?"

"Juliette and Phoenix invited me," Ghost responded, unsure how she managed to sound so calm when she felt anything but.

"Glad you could join us." He flashed her what appeared to be a genuine smile before turning to Maverick. "All right, Pops, we're ready to play. We picking teams?"

Maverick nodded. "We are. All right, captains today are-" Maverick lifted his phone and played a roulette-type game on his phone. It apparently chose the names for him. "Omaha and Coyote, you're captains. Let's see who your teammates will be."

Maverick hit the roulette again, assigning each person to a team. Hangman and Rooster ended up on opposing teams and egged each other on until the last name had been called. Ghost's name.

"You'll be on Coyote's team," Maverick said, clapping her shoulder. Ghost smiled but couldn't help the involuntary glance in Hangman's direction, who would be on her team. "You all ready?"

The group cheered and scrambled down to the beach. Juliette shuffled off to a shaded picnic bench with Penny and the dogs. Ghost trailed behind the Daggers, feeling slightly left out despite the mass group she found herself a part of. She hoped the sensation would disappear once they started playing, but people had always tended to forget about her, whether Ghost wanted them to or not. It was part of how she obtained her callsign, and while she lived up to it now with her skill as a stealth pilot, the truth behind its origin still got to her on occasion, like now.

Coyote and team huddled together; Ghost stood opposite Hangman, their heads nearly touching as the group devised a game plan. 

"All right, positions are as follows," Coyote said, "Hangman, you're fullback, and Ghost, you're halfback. Harvard, Phoenix, I want you two as defense. I'll be quarterback. Bob, Fritz, you're wide receivers."

Ghost and Hangman shared a look. It was thanks to Jake that she knew all she did about football between him being on the team both in high school and in college and having been scouted by a few NFL teams that he ultimately turned down to pursue his career as a pilot. She also knew the fullback's primary responsibility was protecting the halfback. Ghost wondered if Coyote assigned them these positions on purpose...

"Anything I should know about how the others play?" Ghost queried. "Anyone I need to watch out for?"

"Don't underestimate Maverick," Hangman replied immediately. "Pops can move. Rooster is fast but isn't too agile. Omaha is the opposite of that. Yale is speedy and agile but not great at catching. Halo is sneaky but is afraid to get tackled. Payback and Fanboy are a package deal, so if you see one, the other's not far behind, and they're great at defense."

Ghost nodded, and then Coyote came up with a game plan. After making eye contact with each member to confirm they understood, they broke apart and got into their respective positions. Ghost stood behind Hangman, hating herself for admiring his well-defined, muscular back. She barely heard Coyote yell "hike" before the game began. Ghost darted forward to him, trying to scan and understand the mayhem at the same time. She noticed a small break in the defense between Halo and Omaha. Hangman ran behind Coyote and faked grabbing the ball. In the blink of an eye, Ghost took the football instead and sprang forward, taking advantage of the gap she'd noticed earlier and bursting through it. Hangman chased after her, keeping Payback and Rooster at bay from gaining on Ghost as she cruised into the endzone. Hondo blew the whistle, alerting the teams to the swift touchdown.

"Now that's how you start off a game!" Coyote shouted, throwing his hands up proudly into the air. Ghost chucked the ball back toward him in a perfect spiral before jogging back to her team. On the way there, Rooster asked, "Where the hell did you learn how to play and throw like that?"

Taking one out of Jake's playbook, she said, "Old acquaintance."

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Rooster's head turn toward Hangman, but thankfully, the aviator didn't prod. 

With the element of surprise gone for Ghost and eyes now trained on her after that touchdown, she never got another good chance to run the ball through like that. They switched up tactics to throwing the ball mostly. Ghost had fun tackling people, including an impressive takedown of Rooster before he hit the endzone. Hangman lifted his hand to high-five her for it, and not wanting to cause any scene, she returned it, albeit with a hard slap that left her hand stinging. 

Right before the game ended, Hangman scored a touchdown and made it known to the world, celebrating in a way Ghost could only describe as "hulking out." Every muscle popped out in definition in the process, and Ghost couldn't help but ogle. She hated how good he looked right now.

The Daggers retired to the picnic table where Penny sat. Juliette stood a little ways away, playing fetch with the dogs. Rooster jogged up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and gently lifting her belly. Ghost saw Juliette visibly relax and sink against him, closing her eyes in relief while he lifted the weight strain off her back that her growing belly caused. The couple waited for Raptor and Lightning to run back to them before they joined the group. Hangman gave up his seat for Juliette, who gladly accepted it.

"I'm grabbing drinks. Who wants what?" Coyote asked, pulling out his phone and pretending to take orders like a waiter. "Got it. I'll be right back."

"I'll help," Ghost offered, deciding a reprieve from the beating sun would be welcome. 

"I'll join. Don't think you two have enough hands to carry the drinks for everyone," Hangman said, strutting over to her.

"Coyote has big hands, so I think we're fine."

"Appreciate it," Coyote remarked, winking appreciatively at her innuendo. She grabbed her phone from her bag and followed him into the Hard Deck, Hangman on her heels. The trio went behind the bar and started grabbing the drinks, although none of them could find the lemonade Juliette requested.

"Might be in the back. I'll go check," Coyote said. He swiftly disappeared to the back room before either Hangman or Ghost could argue.

"That was subtle," Hangman remarked, shooting Ghost an amused grin, which she ignored. She wanted to get away from Jake Seresin as quickly as possible before she gave in to the temptation to talk to him. If Ghost did, all the pent-up anger, and more importantly, the pent-up betrayal and hurt, risked boiling over. She intended to have fun today, and fighting with him would spoil that plan. Of course, Hangman was never one to back down, and he sighed at her silence. "Still not talking to me?"

"No," she replied shortly.

"You just did."

"Shut up."

"Annie-"

"Don't call me that," Ghost snapped defensively, heart-wrenching at the affectionate nickname she'd only ever allowed him to call her. It'd been so long since she'd heard it, and it made the nostalgia of their relationship burst into her mind, threatening to make her throw caution to the wind and cause her to forgive him for everything. Ghost quickly reminded herself that if she let him in again, he'd only hurt her again, sooner or later.

"Annalise, I know now's not the time to talk-"

"At least we can agree on something."

"-but I do want to. It's been almost six years. Surely-" he stopped short, pausing for a moment- "Why is Kyle Peterson calling you?"

Ghost groaned inwardly, forgetting she'd placed her phone on the counter in full view for anyone to see incoming calls or texts. "Not that it's any of your business, but he's an ex. Of sorts."

"You- you dated Kyle Peterson?" Hangman demanded, miffed. "Do I need to remind you what a dickhead he was to us-"

"No, you don't," Ghost interrupted shortly, standing with beer bottles in hand and staring him down. "He was an asshole in high school. Most teenagers are, but I know he was worse because he was friends with Nick."

"Yeah, so what possessed you to date him?" 

"I ran into him at the store when I returned to Texas a month ago, and he started chatting to me. He doesn't hang out with Nick anymore, and he apologized for being such a dick to us in high school. He acted like he changed, so I accepted the date when he asked me out. It went on for about a month before I realized he hadn't changed at all and dumped him. He's not taking it well and has been calling me non-stop to try and win me over. I'm ignoring him. That's all. The only reason I still have his number in my phone is to know when he's calling so I can ignore him."

Hangman glowered at Ghost, although whether it was directed at her or at Kyle, she couldn't quite tell. The buzzing of the phone had stopped, but a few seconds later, it started back up again. "Do you want me to stop him for you?"

"No, it's fine. He'll get the message sooner or later. Besides, I don't want to owe you any favors."

Hangman's narrowed eyes darted to the phone. "Then do me a favor and let me handle him."

"No. I don't want you owing me any favors either."

"Don't be stubborn-"

"I'm not. I don't want you getting involved and aggravating the situation. Sometimes silence is the best solution."

Hangman chuckled humorlessly. "You'd know all about silence."

"You're one to talk," Ghost retorted, setting the beer bottles down to swipe her phone off the counter. "You know, I said I didn't want to talk to you and look what's happened: I talked to you, and now I'm in a bad mood. This is exactly what I knew would happen."

"I don't want to fight with you, Ghost," Hangman said softly, his green eyes startlingly vulnerable. "I just-"

"I found it!" Coyote declared victoriously, lifting a glass bottle of lemonade. His cheerfulness faded when he saw the expressions of his friends. "Am I interrupting something?"

"Only the conversation you'd expect for leaving us alone," Ghost responded, grabbing the beer bottles. "I'll see you outside."

Going against every nerve in her body screaming at her to abort the mission and escape the get-together with the Daggers, she wouldn't go yet. She wanted to hang out with Juliette and Rooster some more before heading home. It'd been too long since she'd seen her friends, and no one would come between that. Besides, what's the worst that could happen if she stayed?

****

Tags: @lgg5989 @shanimallina87 @polikszena @summ3rlotus @icemansgirl1999 @supernaturaldawning @thedarkinmansfield @lyannaforpresident @lapilark @getmyprettynameoutofyourmouth @simpofthecentury @shadeops21 @pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy @double-j @bradshawsandbridgetons @catsandgeekyandnerd @peachiicherries @multifandomcnova @fandomsstolemylife00 @bookloverhorses @mak-32 @midnightmagpiemama @luckyladycreator2 @ellamae021 @genius2050

Chapters: Chp 1 Chp 2 Chp 3 Chp 4 Chp 5 Chp 6 Chp 7 Chp 8

If you're not on the tag list and want to be, just let me know :)

[fictionallystable]

Rating: Mature

Fandom: Call of Duty (Video Games)

Relationship: Phillip Graves (Call of Duty)/Reader

Characters: Reader, Phillip Graves (Call of Duty), Original Male Character(s)

Additional Tags: Author Has Played Call of Duty, Childhood Friends, Miscommunication, Mutual Pining, slight age gap, Civilian!Reader, Pre-Canon, Jealousy, Angst, Kissing, Time Skips, Slight OOC Graves, Brother's Best Friend.

Words: 1,990 | Chapters: 3/5

Authors: @orphancains & @collinnmckinley

Chapter 3: Happy Birthday.

Chapter Summary: Your parents invite Phil and his new pretty girlfriend to dinner, and things take a turn but not for the better.

A/N: Sorry for the late update. But here is Chapter 3, finally! We'll try to post Chapter 4 sooner than this one. Again, thanks for hanging in with us! :) (likes and reblogs are appreciated <3)

the fic can also be found on AO3

tags will be updated!!

In front of you a cake with light purple frosting and exactly thirteen candles sat on it . Your mom had ordered it and it was a special order for your birthday. You were excited to finally get into your teen years , and you were grateful your mom didn’t force you to invite your old classmates from school to your home, despite your father’s initial ideas. Instead, you sat at the table outside in your backyard, the same oak tree you always played under as a kid provided your family shade as you sat by the cake, whose candles you blew out just minutes before. You were content to just be with your brother, mom, dad, and a few cousins for the afternoon, rather than surrounded by strangers masquerading as friends. And now, you were excited to dig into the cake.

“ Wait wait wait- Before we eat,” Your brother spoke up, while your mom removed the candles with smoke still spiraling off their tips. “I wanted to give you my present.”

You gave him a confused chuckle. “Matty, you already gave me the present this morning, remember?”

“I have something else,” he said with a sly grin before jogging off back into the house. 

You looked up at your parents, as if silently asking them if they knew what he was up to. Your mom shrugged while your dad only huffed.

When your brother came back, your jaw dropped and you gasped. In his hand was a bundle of fur , but most importantly, the said bundle was moving and when you looked closely you recognized it as a small German Shepherd puppy. He couldn’t have been older than 2 months. In typical puppy fashion, he wiggled out of your brother’s arms to scamper toward you.

“I just picked him up from the humane society an hour ago.” He let out a breathy laugh.

When he let go of the puppy, immediately the fur bundle tried to leap onto your lap, sniffing your face and giving small kisses near your nose as you bent down to carry him. You giggled at the tickling of his whiskers against your skin. You cooed lovingly and caressed his head and felt his soft fur between your fingers. Purposefully, you sang the dog praises loud enough to drown out the sound of your parents trying to reprimand Matty for this ‘expensive’ gift and the “ Matty, we’re going to talk about this later ”.

You beckoned your brother to come over to you, and when he did you hugged him tightly.

Your brother knelt down in front of you. “ So? You gonna give him a name? ”

You furrowed your brow, still petting the dog. “Oh shoot ! Now I have to think about that don’t I… ”, your brother shook his head amused at your conflict.

Before you could begin brainstorming, you heard the door from the house open and looked up. You saw Phillip there, closing the door behind him holding a gift box. When he glanced at you, he gave a small wave and one of his soft smiles. You stiffened, but you waved back hesitantly. You didn’t expect him to come. Suddenly, you felt nervous, embarrassed. Scenes from the night of that disastrous dinner flashing in your mind, him kissing Marisa by the pool also invading your thoughts. But you tried to brush them aside. And when you did you felt a hint of the same joy you always felt when Phil appeared. As if feeling your emotions too, the new puppy sitting on your lap yapped and barked happily at the sight of the new human.

Your brother glared briefly at Phil. “Dude, you’re late.”

Phil ignored his comment, focusing instead on you and the dog on your lap. “Holy shit, Matty—” Phil’s cursing prompted a low grumble from your dad “—I thought you were joking when you said you were getting her a puppy ,” he said as he approached you. “And you actually got her a German Shepherd. Jesus, he’s gonna be as big as a bear when he’s fully grown.”

The puppy then lept back off your lap and landed on the floor, clambering up Phillip’s leg trying with his front paws. He knelt down and gave the dog a few pets as well. “Man, I don’t know if my gift can top this,” he said with a small laugh as the dog also l icked his face. You felt your heartbeat quicken a bit at the mention of him getting you a present. You were surprised he even kept your birthday in mind, let alone wanting to give you something after what had happened.

He stood back up and dusted the grass off his knees. “Sorry, I’m late. Had to meet up with someone real quick on the way , it took longer than I thought.”

“Don’t worry, Phillip, we were going to save you a slice of cake just in case,” your mother warmly added, to which Phillip thanked her.

He handed you the box gently and said, “I made sure to bring you something though.”

You felt your throat tighten and you felt your eyes wanted to water from the emotions flooding you. Regret, from the dinner. But also adoration for this boy who felt like a second older brother to you, but even more than that. You couldn’t find the words to describe it. Instead, you held the present, unwrapping the lilac and silver wrapping paper slowly. 

When you opened it, you felt your heart soar in your chest.

“Oh, my god…” you exclaimed, looking up at him in surprise. Phil had gotten you the artist kit that you had been dreaming about for months, but you could never afford with what little money you had saved. Your eyes shined with joy as you held the gift in disbelief. “I can’t believe you got this! You—you actually remembered!” 

He furrowed his brows for a split second, but he continued to smile and tenderly placed a hand on your shoulder. “Of course I did.”

Standing much shorter than Phillip, you had to crane your neck to look at him, but your heart fluttered when you saw the warmth with which he looked at you. Without a word, you jumped forward and wrapped your arms around his chest, hugging him tightly. With the hug, you could feel all the shame and hurt from the past couple of weeks melt away. He hugged you back, his larger arms making you feel safe. 

“ Oh, god! The dog is trying to eat the cake!,” your mom was panicking.

You pulled away from the hug and found that, yes, the puppy had its two paws on the edge of the table, his nose dangerously close to the slices of cake that your mom had put aside while she cut the rest.

“ So , what’s his name?” Phillip asked you gingerly but also choked back a laugh at seeing your dad scratching his graying head of hair in annoyance.

“I’m not sure…” you frowned at the thought, grabbing the dog and carrying him, you held him to your chest while he panted happily at Phil beside you. 

He hummed in return.

“Why not name him Bear then ?”

He blinked and mulled over this for a few seconds, but gave you a playful smirk. “Bear… Yeah, I like it.” 

The start of the school year was quickly approaching. You sat in your brother’s room as he was packing his bags for college and with a now slightly larger Bear chewing on a toy beside you. The next day, he was going to drive with your dad to College Station, where he was going to start his first year. You watched as he begrudgingly packed his clothes into bags, asking him questions about it. “Are you nervous?” “What classes are you taking?” and most importantly “How often are you coming back to visit?” You couldn’t deny you were going to painfully miss him. You were glad he had gotten you Bear to keep you company in his absence, but it wasn’t the same.

“I’ll try to drive back home every few weeks, okay?. And I’ll definitely be back for Thanksgiving.” 

When he started packing his video game discs, you froze for a few moments, before asking him. “Hey, is Phil going with you too?” You now wondered why your dad didn’t mention also driving him to College Station with Matty.

Matty stopped packing and looked at you with a small frown, puzzled. “No, of course not. He shipped out last week.”

It was your turn to frown now. “Shipped out? What does that mean?”

He grimaced . “ Oh, he never told you…” He paused and ran his hand through his hair in frustration now. “What the fuck, Phil,” he mumbled under his breath. With a heavy sigh he looked up at you with regretful eyes. “What I mean is… he left to start boot camp with the Marines a few days ago, Y/N.” 

You leaned away and stared in confusion “Wait, w-why would he…” you stammered, unable to finish the question. “He… left?” You felt your heart shatter but you were still so confused. A thousand thoughts ran through your mind. Since when did Phil want to join the military? He never did mention college to you, you suddenly realized. But when did he decide to just get up and leave? And why did he never tell you? 

Your brother sighed again, “Yeah, that’s why he got here late as fuck on your birthday. ” Annoyance flashed in his eyes for a brief second. “He was at the Marines’ recruiting office, getting the paperwork done, setting up dates and… finalizing his decision to join, I guess.”

Your eyes were watering. You fought so the tears that were gathering behind your eyes . “Why… wouldn’t he tell me ?” 

Matty opened his mouth to answer but he couldn’t find the words. “I don’t know, to be honest. I told him he should, but he didn’t say anything .”

You stood up from his bed and headed towards the door. Your heart ached at knowing Phil didn’t trust you with this information, or worse, you fear that he didn’t care about you anymore to tell you anything . “ Why did you keep this from me…?” you asked as you gripped at the door frame. You felt betrayed, ignored, small once again. You felt like the dumb little sister once more. 

Your brother stood up and gently held onto your shoulders. “Listen, if I know Phil like I think I know him, he’d surely have a reason.” ‘What reason would have been big enough for him to hide about his enlistment?’ “Don’t forget, he cares a lot about you.” ‘Does he?’

You felt like your knees would give up , you leaned into his chest slightly as you tried holding back your cries, but ending up staining his shirt with your silent tears . “I didn’t think… I didn’t think he would actually hide this from you . He said something about not wanting you to worry about it. ”

On the bed, Bear nervously whined seeing you in tears. Matty wanted to guide you back to his bed to sit you down, but you removed his hands from your shoulders as you started to leave the room. Bear trailing behind you. 

In your room, you sat on the bed as it became gloomy all of a sudden. Whenever something plagued your mind with concern or a wave of depression hit you, the atmosphere changes drastically in your room. Bear’s cold, wet nose poked your hand. You slowly raised it to gently caress the dog, feeling your cries grow into quiet sobs . Sniffling and your vision blurred from more tears gathering in your eyes, as you slowly laid down on the bed . Curling up on your side you cried into your pillow. You breathed deeply as you realized now: Phil could in a matter of months be in a warzone tens of thousands of miles away from home. The heartbreak and sense of betrayal that had stunned your senses were now inundated and replaced with fear. You didn’t know if you’d ever hear back from him. Knowing him, he maybe didn’t even have plans to come back to your town because his parents were never home. His house was never really his home.  

“Oh, god, please ,” you thought to yourself, “please stay safe Phil. ”

[random0lover]

Perfume, fleece & pigment <3

Ask game

I am super sorry for responding to this so late, at first I though tumblr ate the ask cause for some reason it’s been doing th at lately but it was in my drafts so here we go! Sorry this is so long but I wanted to share some pics of my dogs! @homicidal-slvt

Perfume- favorite scent?

So I love the smell of coffee but my favorite candle is Better Homes & Garden Warm Leather & Amber. I’m not sure why but I absolutely love the way it smells and every time I go to Walmart I stop to smell it!

Fleece- have any pets?

I’ve talked about this a little before but I have four dogs! (A lot I know lol they drive me crazy but I love them dearly) 3 German Shepherd mixes (1 girl 2 boys) and a beagle chihuahua mix (a boy)

This is Diamond (or Sweet Sweet), she’s the mom of our other two german shepherds and her favorite things are laying out in the sun and crying for attention all the time 😂

Then this is Titan, yes his name matches how big of a dog he is. Sometimes I call him a “tank of a dog” or a “behemoth of a dog” but he loves playing and he can talk to you. For example he can tell you he’s really hungry, tell you he loves you, that he’s thirsty, and he has recently started asking us to not leave when we’re about to leave for work 😅

Then there’s Chewie (technically my dog but he loves my dad a lot for some reason 🙄 he’s a ball of energy and likes to bite my arm like it’s a chew toy if he gets to excited 💀 oh and his favorite snack are Qtips and loaves of bread 😭 the amount of time I’ve had to dig around in his mouth for a Qtips is ridiculous *sigh*

(he loves to sleep too)

The there’s the small little demon dog Boogie (technically his name is Max but we hardly call him that) and he loves to try and act like he’s the biggest dog lol him and Chewie have a love hate relationship cause one minute they’re laying with each other then the next it’s like their arguing over who gets to lay with me 😂

Oh and he loves to claw the shit out of you 💀

Pigment- what color is your hair naturally? if you could dye it any color which one would you choose?

So I have naturally brown hair, it’s pretty dark but I do have red tones in it when I’m in the sun which I adore! Fun fact about me, I’ve never dyed my hair. I’ve wanted to and at one point I was actually going to get some like bronze or some type of red highlights but this was when I was like 12 so I don’t really remember but I have always loved the idea of doing some sort of dark purple! Most likely not all of my hair but like the lower half of it like a temporary dye or something? Tbh I haven’t put to much thought into it but yeah 🫠

[the-rippers]

List 5 things that make you happy, then put this in the askbox for the Last 10 people Who reblogged something from you. Learn to know your mutuals and followers. 🎠 But only if you want to, just have fun! 💖💖

oh my god thank you for ask anon, been a long time 🖤 theyre not in specific order, cause i hate putting things like that in order

1. music; as corny as it sounds it is my life and if i went without music i would probably go batshit crazy. and the music i listen to made most of my personality, so i feel if i was without it, i wouldn't be myself

2. the boy i'm in love with; we're not together, i hope yet, but he is my safe place. whenever he texts me or sends me a meme to start a conversation or sends me how he plays his guitar or when we go to concerts or when we go to abandoned buildings and draw graffiti or when we smoke together or when he buys me drinks even tho i didnt mention im thirsty nor i wanted one or when he asks me to wear a shirt he bought or when he looks down on me with knowing smile. ugh

3. my friends; the thing is - im an asshole, with a big heart, but still an asshole. so liking me and being my friend is tricky, i will not keep things to myself and say what i dont like or uncover shit somebody lied about etc etc. so i lose a lot of people bc of that, but i keep people that are honest and like hearing the truth and respect shit if i tell them not to do something towards me. so yeah, if someone is like that then i will run miles if something happens and be there with them

4. my dog; she's my ray of sunshine, whenever im sad she comes to me and hugs to me, whenever im happy she jumps with me, whenever i dance to music on speakers and turn my room into moshpit, she deathwalls with me (just a joke she is fine), and come on german shepherds are cool as fuck we look rad on walks

5. my mom; even tho our contact fucks up a lot lately, i know it will pass, it will be just us anyway so thinking back how it used to be makes me happy, i believe it will come back

[hircyon]

1,4,11,23,25,38,43 :>

1. Your first OC ever?

Strictly speaking, a blue and purple (and I mean CRAYOLA blue and purple) German Shepherd furry named Karma, that I made when I was 10 or something.

I really don't remember my first fandom OC. I'm not sure when I got "into" fandom. My most complete memory was Harry Potter, but that wasn't the first time I’d been obsessed with a media. Maybe the first time I was seeing and creating content within the context of fandom (as opposed to me @ 11 spamming a Redwall RP board with character submissions because I didn’t know what RP was, I just liked to make little guys).

I sure did make the Mary Sue-est of Sues to ship with Sirius. I don't remember her name at all but I do remember that she was genuine royalty but didn't know it until late in her "story," so she had like 6 names, because that's what I thought being regal was like. I think one of her middle names was "Tundra Aurora" I'm not shitting you. She was also an incomplete shapeshifter due to a tragic accident in her youth where she was struck with an errant spell (the one that uhhhh turns you into an animal. I'm NOT doing HP research in this day and age) and that somehow meant she could turn into any creature at will. Because of reasons. I really went off the shits.

4. A character you rarely talk about?

I almost never talk about Neira, Ayo's mom. She's traditionalist, for a Phindian, which means she tends to see people more as extensions of their value to other people and communities rather than individuals. That's what she thinks is most important. She's results-oriented and practical, a skilled negotiator. By the time she had Ayo (who was a surprise late pregnancy), she already had 6 kids and was tired of parenting. Not to say she didn’t put in the effort...but she was tired. Neira made a strong effort to lead Ayo in the right direction, but she let him be passed around with the families of her older children and cousins quite often, rather than keeping him strictly in her home.

She's strong-willed and emotionally withdrawn. She carries the trauma most adults her age do from the Syndicat's rule. Ayo never comes to see eye to eye with her, especially concerning his career as a pilot, which she sees as a selfish and frivolous pursuit. Neira openly regrets not sending him to a boarding school for part of his education, and sees his inability to serve his community and family as her own failing, as much as his.

I answered 11 in a previous ask. This post is going to get long, so

23. Introduce an OC that has changed from your first idea concerning what the character would be like?

I think Ayo has changed the most in his iterations. He used to be kind of bland. Still a pilot, still ran away from home to pursue being a pilot, but without any of the trauma or sensation-seeking coping mechanisms. Without any of the nuance or depth. He was just Astrid’s rock, originally. The responsible one in their relationship. It’s funny that the roles have fully reversed. He loved her deeply and put up with her emotional instability and flighty, violent behavior. I was very lonely and hardcore projecting when I created him; it showed.

I think he’s better now. He has purpose as a character outside of some vague sense of eternal love. He has an internal compass and goals that direct his behavior, reasoning that comes from within, not only because of his relationships. All of that has changed about him, and fairly recently (the last couple of years).

25. The OC that resembles you the most (same hobby, height, shared like/dislike for something etc?)

Uuuhhh in fandom I take pains to NOT make characters too like me because I’m boring and I’ve got Mary Sue trauma. But. It would be Ponnik, now that I think about it.

He’s a little overweight, totally average height, totally average everything. Smart, sure, but not a genius like Moralo or Osi. He’s really into hologaming, but usually keeps it casual because he’s got a family and a wife to support. He’s the emotional rock, the stable one, the constant. A homebody. A little boring to people who like to go out a lot, honestly. Has a similar sense of humor to me (maybe less meme-y than I am). He’s also got a fluid sort of he/they thing going on that’s pretty similar the blasé way I treat my own gender. Dad culture’s just got a certain appeal.

 38. Which one of your OCs would be the best dancer?

You want technical perfection and physical power, that would be Astrid. But there’s no soul in her dancing, the way there’s no soul in any art she creates. If you want passion, that’s Ayo. But he can only dance at the club. Would be hopeless at something more structured like ballroom dancing.

43. Do you have any certain type when you create your OCs? Do you tend to favour some certain traits or looks? It’s time to confess

Jesus Christ my standard OFC is the same character every single time I hop fandoms for any reason. I like stone-faced, icy girls with long hair, emotional constipation, and high cheekbones. They’re usually thematically tied to wolves or dogs, even if it’s a universe where I can’t blatantly make a furry (I’ll usually make a furry).

Outside my One True Girl, most of my characters are bi, in part because I gotta rep, and because it’s just easy to write a lived experience. They tend to have complex relationships with their families. Hard to find a character of mine that had a perfectly decent childhood (there are some). They tend to have some manner of mental illness or neurodivergency, even if it’s well-treated and doesn’t negatively impact their lives.

I tend to roll up traits I find funny or interesting like katamari around the concept of a character until it feels fully fleshed out.