#meaning that we likely won’t get a show based around them anymore

[chewbaccawithouthan]

Me, now that the Clones have finished their story arcs completely:

[maysileeewrites]

it looks better on you || Coriolanus Snow

18+ content; mdni!

summary: Coriolanus is obsessed with you wearing his clothes | based off of this concept post

my Coryo masterlist

Coriolanus Snow is positively obsessed with you wearing his clothes.

Whenever he sees you in one of his shirts or sweaters, it’s like he can’t think straight anymore, every single thought wiped from his head - except one: you’re absolutely mesmerizing, somehow even more beautiful and enchanting, wearing his clothes. 

You’re his - and you wearing his clothes is just one more way for him to mark you as his, to show everyone that you belong to him, and only him. 

No one else gets to touch you. No one else gets to fuck you. No one else gets to fall asleep next to you, wake up next to you. No one else gets to feel the immense, overwhelming satisfaction that always overcomes him when you’re wearing his clothes. 

No one else - just him. 

As it should be, Coriolanus thinks, smirking as he watches you poring over your University books at your desk from his position on your bed. Initially, he came over to your apartment so that you could study for your test next week together. Though he hasn’t really gotten a lot of actual studying done.

You’re just too damn distracting. 

You always are, but especially now - wearing his shirt and playing with the hem of it while you’re trying to memorize the text you’re currently reading, your other hand absentmindedly running through your hair, your lips silently moving - it’s like he can’t think straight. 

His eyes are fixed on you, following your every move. 

The way you screw your eyes shut as you sigh frustratedly - probably trying to remember a particularly difficult aspect of your textbook article. The way your fingers keep playing with the hem of his shirt. 

Really, he thinks, watching you sigh in frustration and slamming your textbook shot, throwing it a dirty look, his clothes look so good on you - almost better than they do on him. 

„Something wrong, love?“, he asks you, getting up from your bed and walking over to your desk, where you’re still sitting in your desk chair, head in your hands. 

You shake your head, sighing again. „No, it’s just this stupid biochemistry test … I just can’t get the hang of this stuff, which means that I’ll fail that test next week, which will bring my overall grade down and-“

„Hey“, Coriolanus interrupts your nervous ramblings, stepping closer to you and taking your hands in his, gently pulling them away from your face. He squeezes your hands, before bringing up one hand and gently brushing his knuckles over your cheek. 

You sigh, closing your eyes and leaning into his comforting touch. 

„I know that this is all a bit overwhelming right now, but you won’t fail that test, you hear me? You won’t - I’ll make sure of that. Even if it means that we have to spend every minute this weekend studying.“ 

„But, Coryo-“, you try to say, but he shakes his head, his eyes finding yours. 

„You won’t fail, trust me“, he says, leaning down to press a gentle kiss to your hairline. „We’ll continue studying for this, I promise, but right now, you need a break.“ His gentle, yet firm voice tells you that he won’t take an objection for an answer. 

You sigh, even though you know your boyfriend only has your best interests at heart. He can be so stubborn sometimes …

„A distraction …“, he continues, something in his voice changing that causes you to shiver involuntarily as he leans down, stepping between your legs, looking at you with a teasing smirk on his face. 

„What do you-“ 

Your words are swallowed by his hungry, wild kiss. 

You make a surprised noise, wrapping your arms around Coriolanus’s neck out of pure instinct as his hands settle on your waist, drawing you closer to him as he keeps kissing you, his tongue coaxing your mouth open. You can’t help but moan as you feel his tongue moving against yours. 

Then, suddenly, he’s picking you up from your chair and you wrap your legs around his waist out of instinct as he carries you over to your bed, not once breaking the kiss. Your back hits your soft mattress and Coriolanus swallows the surprised noise you make with his hungry, desperate kisses. 

He breaks the kiss then, looking down at you with a teasing smirk on his lips, before lowering his head to the crook of your neck, sucking at the soft, sensitive skin. His lips curl into a possessive smirk when he hears the mewling, panting noises you make. 

He knows that he’ll leave bruises on your skin - pretty, purple marks that will mark you as his, showing everyone who you belong to. 

„Coryo!“, you gasp, trying to make sense of the world, tangling your hands in his blonde curls and trying to ground yourself, as he continues to relentlessly suck at your soft skin, all the while grinding his hips into yours, creating a delicious, nerve-wrecking tension. 

His lips leave a trail on your skin, from the soft, sensitive skin of your neck, to your collarbone and then lower and lower, until the hem of his shirt you’re wearing gets in the way. 

Breathlessly, your hands leave his hair and you reach down, trying to free yourself from the bothersome garment, but then suddenly, Coryo’s hands are there as well, stoping your motions. 

„No, keep it on“, Coriolanus says, reaching out with his hands to tug the dark grey shirt you’re currently wearing - one of his that you’ve ‚borrowed‘ - back down. His voice is low, his eyes are dark, the expression in them sinful and challenging - a promise. (A threat.) 

„It looks better on you anyways.“ 

You swallow upon hearing the arrogant possessiveness in his voice and clench your thighs together. 

When he notices, Coriolanus just smirks at you. 

You whine, reaching for his hands. „Please, Coryo“, you beg, your eyes finding his. You can’t have him teasing you - not right now, not when he’s already got you this worked up. 

„Please what?“, he asks, still smirking. 

„Please, just - touch me; just do something, Coryo, please.“ 

When he still doesn’t react to your pleas, just keeps smirking at you, you reach out with one of your hands, brushing over the bulge in his pants, before growing bolder and cupping his already hardened length through the material of his trousers. 

Coriolanus closes his eyes then, a low moan escaping his lips. 

„Fuck.“ 

His voice is something between a groan and a whimper as you keep stroking him through the fabric. 

For a split second you toy with the thought of doing the same thing to him he did to you - teasing him, edging him on, only to cruelly withdraw your touch at the last second. But he looks so good right now, his head thrown back, his eyes screwed shut, his lips slightly open, soft whimpers escaping him, you can’t bring yourself to do so. 

You don’t need to - because the next thing you know, Coriolanus is impatiently swatting your hand away, getting rid of his trousers and briefs in mere seconds, before placing his hands on your waist, shifting you, until you’re straddling his lap, your legs on either side of him, your core brushing against his erection. 

You can’t help the loud moan that escapes you then - the friction feels so good and you just want to feel him inside you already. 

„Coryo-“, you start to say, but his hand is already there at your core, roughly yanking at the thin material of your panties. You hear the material tear and you gasp loudly, when, without warning, he pushes two fingers inside you, curling them inside you, immediately finding your sweet spot. 

„Y-you really o-owe me a v-visit to the clothing store“, you pant, trying to form a cohesive sentence as Coriolanus continues to pump his fingers in and out of you at a merciless pace, hitting your sweet spot with every thrust of his fingers. 

Coriolanus just smirks, groaning when he feels your walls clenching around his fingers. „Fuck, not yet“, he pants, removing his hand and causing you to whimper at the sudden feeling of emptiness. „Need to feel you, need to be inside you.“ 

All you can manage is a nod, moaning when he positions you in his lap. You try once again to take of the shirt you’re still wearing, but Coriolanus swats your hands away once again. 

„Keep it on“, he says, his voice low and dangerous. 

All you can manage is a weak nod, because then his grip on your waist is tightening, shifting you forward even more until you’re sinking down on his hard length. 

„Fuck, Coryo.“ Your voice is nothing more than a breathless whimper as you continue to sink down on him, trying to adjust to the stretch. 

Coriolanus however, is too impatient to give you time to adjust, bucking up his hips to thrust up into you the moment you’re fully seated. 

You whimper, feeling his cock hit that spot inside you that has you seeing stars. 

Coriolanus groans, his grip on your waist tightening to guide your movements as he continues to thrust up into you. „Fuck, baby, you look so good riding my cock like that, wearing my shirt …“

You whimper, squeezing your walls around him. 

Coriolanus groans again, his expression clouded with pleasure. „Fuck, keep doing that and I’m not going to last long …“ 

You can’t help it - your walls squeeze around him again. 

A strangled moan escapes him then and you whimper when his thrusts get harder and faster and one of his hands finds its way to your core, brushing over the bundle of sensitive nerves. 

„Fuck- Coryo, please“, you whimper, as the pressure inside you keeps building and building and building. 

„Don’t worry, I’ve got you“, he says, as he continues to thrust into you at a relentless pace, his fingers teasing your clit. 

You do your best to meet his movements with your own, glad for his bruising grip on your hip, guiding your movements. 

„Just like that, you’re doing so good“, Coriolanus praises, sitting up to claim your lips in a hungry kiss. 

You whimper, overcome by all these different sensations - Coriolanus moving unrelentlessly inside you, his fingers on your clit, his lips on yours; turning you to mush in his arms. 

„Coryo!“, you breathlessly try to warn him when you feel your walls clenching around him again, you’re so close and you just want to feel your sweet release. 

„I’ve got you“, he repeats his earlier sentiment, his thrusts becoming even more erratic. „I’ve got you - fuck, you look so good, I could watch you riding me in my clothes forever, fuck-“

It’s his words that do you in, sending you over the edge. 

You come with a loud cry, his name on your lips, shaking in his grip, your walls squeezing him. 

„Fuck, fuck-“

It only takes two more thrusts and then Coriolanus is coming as well, spilling inside you. 

„Fuck, Coryo“, you whimper, still overly sensitive from your orgasm. 

„I’ve got you“, he repeats, pulling out of you, before closing his arms around you, shifting you around until your head lands on his chest and your back hits the soft mattress of the bed. 

You close your eyes as he settles a hand on your stomach, drawing you even closer for a moment. 

You stay like that for a long moment, both of you trying to catch your breath. 

Once you’ve calmed down enough, you notice how unbearably hot you feel - Coriolanus’s body heat is more than warm enough, but you’re still wearing his shirt that’s now drenched through with your sweat. 

You press a quick kiss to his cheek, ignoring the protesting noise Coriolanus makes as you move to sit up again. 

„My turn“, is all you say, as you finally take off his shirt and throw it to the floor, baring your chest to him. 

„What-“ Coriolanus’s remark is swallowed by the loud moan that escapes his lips when you settle back down in his lap, brushing against his erection. 

„My turn“, you repeat, grinning, „and I think it looks better on the floor.“ 

You swallow his reply with a hungry, desperate kiss. And judging by the way he’s squirming beneath you, trying to brush against your core, he probably doesn’t mind too much. 

someone please get me some holy water so I can cleanse my mind from these smutty thoughts

It’s finally here!! Sorry that it took me so long to get to it, but I’ve been in quite a writing slump these last few days.

Anyways, I’m wishing you all a Happy New Year <3 and thank you so much for all the love you’ve shown my writing lately! Here’s to more content in 2024!! :)

tagging:

@qoopeeya @honey-flustered @spectr3inl0ve @reader-bookling123 @itsnocturna @toogardenheart @theamuz @livius-codex @dominqueeekk @ebsmind @damagdcoda @snows-wife

[apute11as]

Hurt - Alexia and Jenni x child!reader

Summary: A trip to the park before a match leads to disaster and an emotional revelation.

Warnings:⚠️swearing, injury, hospitals, shouting

Based on this request🤍

Words: 2765

P.s. Any feedback or requests is always welcome in the comments or ask box! Both are very helpful in terms of writing more fics :)

~~~~~~~

It was a beautiful sunny day in Barcelona, you were at your favourite park with Tia Alba, Mama and Mateo’s other Mommy. You’d met up with them before the match where you’d watch Irene and Mami.

You knew Mama was now 6 months pregnant which meant that she couldn’t play football anymore. It also meant that she was less mobile and couldn’t move as quickly. There was an incident a couple of weeks ago with some pushy fans that wanted Mama’s autograph when the two of you were walking back from school. You shouted at the people like you knew Mami would if she was there, protecting your Mama and baby sibling. An older woman came to the rescue, ushering the invasive fans away and walking with the two of you for a bit.

Alexia hadn’t planned on mentioning the incident to Jenni but when you came out with an unprecedented “mean people shoved mama”, causing Jenni to flip out. After that, Alexia felt that she had to tell the story to diffuse her wife’s growing anger but in actual fact she made it worse. Jenni has become hesitant for Alexia to leave the house alone, knowing all too well how invasive the fans are of player’s private lives and more so, personal spaces.

However, she was fairly confident today that Alexia would be fine, being with her sister and Irene’s wife. Although, she would find that Alexia wasn’t the one she had to be worrying about today.

——

As the three women watched you and Mateo playing on the climbing frame, Alexia started to feel some discomfort. Nothing out of the ordinary, just a sign that she’d likely be needing to pee pretty soon.

“I’m going to go and see if I can find a bathroom, baby is making me uncomfortable” stated the blonde, attempting to hoist herself upwards which was hard due to the considerable bump she was now sporting.

“Are you okay Ale?” asked Lucia, alba was too preoccupied staring at a woman she found attractive.

“Yeah yeah fine thank you, just baby making me need to pee 24/7” chuckled Alexia.

“There’s an ice cream shop around the corner, I’ll come with you if that’s okay and we can get the kids an ice cream?” Questioned Lucia

“Yeah sure,sounds good! Albs can you watch the kids whilst we’re gone?” Alexia asked her younger sister.

“What? Oh yeah watch the kids of course” she replied, as if she’d been paying any sort of attention.

With that, the pair left in search of the ice cream shop, leaving a distracted Alba to watch over you and Mateo.

“Hola guapa” said the older brunette that Alba had been making eyes at

“Hola” replied Alba with a smile and the two began a conversation, distracting Alba further so that she failed to notice you planning to jump off the top of the tower to show off to Mateo.

——

“Look Mateo I’m the queen of the castle and you’re the dirty rascal!”

“Are you coming down now” groaned the boy

“Yes I’m gonna jump from the top!” You beamed

“That’s really high y/n what if you fall?”

“I won’t I’m a big girl!” You insisted

Then with little more warning, you lept off the high ledge of the climbing frame, falling to the floor and crumpling into a heap with a snap.

“AGHHHH” you screamed in pain.

Alba was oblivious to it all, putting the screaming down to being just children playing.

A couple of other mothers rushed in yours and Mateo’s direction on instinct after hearing the scream, being able to tell the difference between playful and pained. You lay on the floor, clutching your arm as the mother’s reached you.

“Are you ok sweetheart?” One asked

“Where’s your mommy?” Another said

“Mama gone!” You cried out

“Are you okay y/n?” Asked Mateo “shall I go get your Tia Alba?”

“want Mamaaaa!” You wailed

Mateo had ran off to tug at Alba’s skirt now and pointed in your direction to which Alba apologised to the woman and followed the little boy.

“Oh bebé are you okay?” asked alba cradling your face

“Are you her mother?” Spat a woman who looked to be in her late 30s.

“No I’m her Tia” Alba spat back “what happened?”

“She jumped and fell off the climbing frame which you would’ve noticed if you were paying any sort of attention!” shouted the woman.

“EXCUSE ME?” yelled Alba

“Tia Alba I want Mamaaaa” you cried

“Okay bebé, she’ll be on her way soon!” She assured you, turning her back to the mother she’d just argued with.

——

Alexia and Lucia had just returned from the shop, holding two ice creams. However, alexia quickly thrust the one she was holding into Lucia’s hand upon seeing Alba hunched over your small body. She ran as fast as she could to reach you.

“WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED ALBA?” She demanded, dropping to her knees at a pace that would’ve had Jenni scolding her for her carelessness.

“She jumped and fell” said Mateo from beside you.

“Oh Bebita come here” she said cradling you into her chest.

“Alba was talking to the pretty lady over there” said Mateo, telling on the brunette.

“Oh for fucks sake Alba really?” Alexia scolded furiously. “What hurts mi amor?” Alexia turned to you.

“My arm Mama” you whimpered, cried muffled by Alexia’s body.

——

After another trip to the ice cream shop bathroom to clean you up and a lot of arguing between Alexia and Alba, the group finally made it to the game, albeit a little later than intended.

You found your seats without much fuss, in the family and friends section of course. Mama sits beside you, you stand on your seat anytime anything interesting happens. Mama tries to join your standing up when the goals go in, but is reminded of her condition when the baby harshly kicks her in the ribs.

“Ouch!” She yelped

“Okay Mama?” You asked, brow furrowed in concern.

“I’m okay mi alma, bebé is just celebrating in there too” she assured you, rubbing her bump.

——

The game ended a comfortable 3-0 win over Sevilla, with your Mami scoring two of those goals. Your arm was hurting still but you didn’t want to tell Mama because she might start shouting at Tia Alba again. Mami and the team had just started to come out of the changing rooms to thank the fans and sign some stuff, when Mapi spotted you. She bounded over to where you were sat, dragging ingrid along with her.

“Hola mi chica how are you?” She shouted over the railings as Ingrid greeted Alexia, enquiring about the baby.

“You won Mapi!!” You cheered

“Si we did, your Mami scored two goals!” she reminded you

“Hold on bebita I’ll lift you over the railings and you can go see Mapi and Ingrid okay?” Questioned Alexia.

“No Ale you shouldn’t with the baby” insisted Mapi. Alba was at the bathroom and Lucia and Mateo had already excused themselves to go and greet Irene.

“I’m pregnant not frail, I can lift my daughter over a barrier” huffed Alexia, hoisting you to meet Ingrid’a waiting arms.

“OUCH” you yelped

“What hurts Elskling?” Ingrid questioned, concern flooding her face

“My arm” you sobbed

“She fell off the playground today and hurt her arm, because Tia Alba was too busy flirting with a married woman to pay attention” ranted Alexia, causing Mapi to burst out laughing at Alba’s discrepancies, earning her a slap of warning from Ingrid.

“Oh dear bebé is your arm alright?” Asked Ingrid

“It’s ok I guess let’s go I want to see Mami!” You urged

“Are you coming too Alexia?” Asked Mapi with a furrowed brow

“Si it might take me a minute to get down though” she laughed

“You go ahead with y/n Maps, I’ll help Alexia down and we’ll follow you” assured the Norwegian.

Mapi took you off Ingrid, carefully and started a fast walk over to the team. Upon reaching them, you were greeted with smiley faces of all the girls. You spotted Mama signing a fan’s jersey and waited patiently for her to be done.

Shortly after, she noticed you stood behind her, wearing a Barça jersey with her name on it.

“Oh mi amor there you are!” She exclaimed, tuning to face you.

“Mami! I loved your goals!” You beamed

“Did you, well there was one for you and one for Mama!!” She smiles back, reaching to pick you up. As she did, you felt a shooting ache spread through your arm.

“OW MAMI STOP!” You yelled, gaining the attention of some if the girls nearby.

“What bebita what hurts?” She asked, alarmed at your sudden pain.

“My arm, it feels floppy!” You burst into tears.

“Oh bebé come here!” she urged, carefully picking you up on the other side, avoiding the arm you cradled.

Just as you’d gotten into her arms, Alexia and Ingrid caught up with you. Upon noticing your tearful expression, she picked up her pace to meet you and Jenni.

“She’s hurt her arm Ale, I don’t know what happened I just picked her up and she started crying!” Jenni stammered

“It wasn’t you, she fell at the park earlier and landed on her arm, she’s complained about it a few times now, maybe we should go get it checked out” alexia offered

“Oh no bebita” she fawned over you “Yeah we should probably go to the hospital I mean it can’t hurt surely?” Jenni agreed.

——

The three of you made a swift exit out of the building, Jenni grabbed her bags whilst you and Alexia wandered to Jenni’s car. Jenni and Alexia told the girls what had happened and where they were going, which everyone seemed to understand.

You helped Mama into the car by rushing ahead to open her door, like you’d watched Mami do countless times. Mama thanked you by kissing your head with a smile and calling you a gentlewoman. Mami returned with her bags shortly after and the three of you made your way to the hospital.

Alexia was stressing throughout the whole car journey and was making some rather vulgar comments about Alba for leaving you alone and allowing this to happen. Jenni placed a steadying hand on her thigh, reminding her that you were fine and safe in the car with them (and that your little ears were likely picking up the string of words flowing from her mouth).

When you got to the hospital, you were trembling. The building was big and everyone was walking around in white outfits. You could feel that your Mama was stressed too with the way she was gripping your hand tightly and muttering through her teeth at your Mami for taking too long parking the car.

Upon entering, you were directed to the accident and emergency unit and were told to wait in the child’s waiting room. You got some funny stares from people, likely because you and Mama were dressed in matching “Jenni hermoso” Barcelona jerseys and Mami was wearing her Barça tracksuit.

“Erm hi could me and my brother maybe have a picture with you two?” Asked a timid girl that looked to be around 7 or 8.

“Of course!” Smiled Jenni taking the phone and positioning it to snap a selfie of the four of them, whilst you played with the blocks on the floor.

“Thank you so much!!” Grinned the girl.

“No problem” replied Jenni

“y/n putellas-hermoso” voiced a nurse from a nearby room, signalling that it was your turn to go in.

The nurse was pretty, she had long ginger hair and hazel coloured eyes that reminded you of Mama. She smiled at you, constantly asking if what she was doing was okay as she poked and prodded your arm. You yelped in pain couple of times, which lead her to the decision that you needed an X-ray.

You walked hand in hand with Mama and Mami to the next waiting room outside the X-ray. Mama clutched her belly in discomfort which caused Mami to worry more than she already was. You decided that you really didn’t like hospitals.

“¿Estás bien amor?” questioned Jenni

“Si just baby kicking around in there” she half smiled, half winced.

“And you bebita are you okay?” Asked Jenni looking down at you.

“I’m scared of the x-Ray machine are you coming with me?”

“Yes of course bebé!”

Around 20 minutes passed, you were playing candy crush on Alexia’s phone, Jenni was looking through a home magazine and Alexia was biting her nails anxiously.

“Stop stressing Alé it’s bad for for the baby” urged Jenni

“Wow thanks Jenni, all my stresses are gone from you saying that!” She snapped, rolling her eyes.

“Y/n Putellas-Hermoso?”

The three of you stood up to follow the new nurse, this nurse was different. She was an older lady and she had raggedy teeth and a mean glare. You didn’t like her she was scary.

Still you followed her, clutching onto Mama’s sleeve as you did. You reached the door to the X-ray area, it looked like a dungeon, your stomach felt bubbly and your hands felt warm.

“Now, it says on my records that you’re pregnant Mrs Putellas?” the scary nurse demanded.

“Erm yes?” Alexia replied, confused.

“Well radiation exposure from x-rays can be damaging to a foetus’ development so we have to ask you to stay out here” she gestured to a set of chairs. “However y/n is under 5, we need someone to oversee her x-Ray so you’ll have to accompany her” she signalled to Jenni.

“Yes okay that’s fine” assured Jenni

“Okay I’ll just get the details from the doctor and the we can begin, I’ll be just a minute” and with that she left.

“Mama why can’t you go with me too?” You huffed in annoyance.

“Because it is bad for the baby for me to go in there pequeña” explained Alexia.

“But I’m your baby too and it’s bad for me if you stay outside!” You demanded

“Hey it’ll be okay Mami is going in with you!” Alexia assured, making concerned eye contact with Jenni.

“You promised you wouldn’t love baby more than me and you already do!” you pouted, crossing your arms.

“Oh no bebita that’s not-“ she was cut off before she could finish.

“All ready?” Asked the nurse

“Si she is” spoke Jenni

——

The X-ray showed that you had in fact, broken your arm. Mama looked stressed when you came out of the X-ray. Mami filled her in on what the doctor had said about your arm. Mama fussed over you, apologising for it happening and trying to reassure you that she loved you so much. You however, chose to ignore her and took to fiddling with the makeshift cast you’d been given.

A pained expression overtook Alexia, her eyes were tearful (the hormones making her more emotional). She looked at Jenni with a pleading expression, to which Jenni sighed and spoke to you.

“Bebita, I promise you me and Mama don’t love the baby more than you, we love you both so much! Mama only couldn’t go in the X-ray room because the special machine in there could hurt her and the baby. We don’t want Mama or baby to be hurt do we?” Jenni rambled, crouching down to your level.

You thought about it for a second. You didn’t like the idea of the new baby taking your Mama and Mami away but you didn’t want it to be hurt and you certainly didn’t want your Mama to be hurt.

“I understand Mami” you said looking at your feet. “Sorry for shouting Mama and sorry for making baby hurt” you frowned.

“It’s alright bebé but you didn’t make baby hurt what do you mean?”

“Mami says ‘stress is bad for baby’ and you stress because of me.” you sulked

“I was stressed yes but I am always going to stress y/n and baby is just fine, come here baby’s kicking” she beckoned you over, placing your small, cast-free hand on her swollen stomach.

You felt a small poke from under her skin, your mouth was agape. Jenni and Alexia shared a smile at your reaction to the kicking.

“It’s a baby brother!” You declared

“What do you mean?” Asked Jenni

“I think it’s a baby brother!” You repeated

“Well we’ll see pretty soon pequeña” laughed Jenni.

——

And sure enough, when baby was born, he was indeed a baby brother.

~~~~

Thank you for reading! My other works are found here ✨

[harrysgal]

I DIG YOUR CINEMA (2)

harry styles x yn aspiring filmmaker — social media AU

I know I’m just starting and don’t actually have much experience with this, but I’m actually having a lot of fun doing it and already can’t wait to post more.

About the smau: yn starts posting videos on youtube and is trying to build a career as a filmmaker. Things are going pretty well for her and she starts getting more attention when she creates content about shows she goes to. She’s also a fan of Harry’s music and some of his fans start getting suspicious when his team starts interacting with her.

Disclaimer: The story it’s set in 2021 and it will follow their relationship through the LOT leg in the US. Since this is nothing but fiction, I will be following some of the real timeline but also adding my own stuff. On top of that, I won’t be basing myself on Harry’s actual posts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

PART 1 — MEET YN / MASTERLIST

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I DIG YOUR CINEMA (PART 2) — LAS VEGAS

liked by bestfriend, yourmom, mollyjane_x and 22,108 others 

yourinstagram HELLOOOOOOO FABULOUS LAS VEGAS NEVADA 

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user1 soooo… a new full time job that took you to las vegas? 👀 yourbrother Please behave  bestfriend don’t get (too) drunk without me pls harryfan STOP FIRST LOT SHOW IT’S IN VEGAS 

↳ harryfan2 She’s going to the show right???? I mean it can’t be just a coincidence anymore IT JUST CAN’T ↳ harryfan NO I KNOW THIS IS IT I CAN FEEL IT IN MY BONES

Aug 26, 2021 •

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

liked by bestfriend, cuteguy, mollyjane_x and 22,451 others 

yourinstagram you’d think a lady in vegas would be out there getting wild but this one actually has been locked in her hotel room for the last 27 hours overthinking her ideas and freaking out about this new job lol if any of you could send me a pizza or something id appreciate it. thanks. 

view all 3,111 comments

user1 nooooo you’re so talented whatever it is i know you can do it!! bestfriend yn ✋🏻  cuteguy Should I give you a call? 😊 harryfan17 I would too be freaking out if I had to work for THE harry styles lol

↳ harryfan16 we still don’t know if she is tho  ↳ harryfan17 C’mon she’s in vegas and molly and jeff are following her ↳ harryfan16 still 🤷🏻‍♀️ tour doesn’t start for another few days so this could be just about something else  ↳ harryfan16 also maybe she’s there because she wants to be and not bc she’s “working” for him. she’s done videos about several artists and she isn’t working for any of them is she?  ↳ harryfan17 Well yes but she literally just said she was starting a new job so 🤷‍♀️ ↳ harryfan16 so everyone just assumed HARRY, out of all people, hired her? c’mon guys lol she could be working for just anyone and STILL go to a show. one doesn’t have to be related to the other.

Aug 28, 2021 •

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liked by anthonypham, bestfriend, lookitsnyoh and 25,103 others 

yourinstagram fun fact: if you post something on the internet people around you might see it 🫠

guess im lucky this lovely group who still don’t know me at all cared enough to drag me out of my room and show me around the city. sometimes i get so caught up inside my mind that i forget how important human connection is — which is funny if you think most of my videos are exactly about that lol. so plssssss make sure to surround yourself with (nice) people. also get some sleep, drink water and feed yourself. it’ll do wonderful things for you!!!

anyway my mom was worried about my “not leaving the room post” so this is just me saying everythings good!! (i also already called her of course <3)

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bestfriend LOVE YOU harryfan the new followers the new likes 😭 it’s happening i knew it  user1 so true bestie!! this reminded me of your 2nd video i think

↳ yourinstagram omg yesssss!!  ↳ user1 ahh i missed your interactions <3  ↳ yourinstagram i knowww! promise i’ll try my best to keep interacting even if it’s not as much as before 💗

lookitsnyoh my belly still hurts from all the laughing 

↳ yourinstagram and my mind is still rushing from all the talking ↳ anthonypham go to sleep you two 

harryfan9 I DON’T KNOW WHAT’S HAPPENING BUT OMFG I’M SO HERE FOR IT

Aug 29, 2021 •

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liked by anthonypham, mollyjane_x, bestfriend and 27,257 others 

yourinstagram sightseeing left me speechless. but here’s a picture from tonight. 

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user1 omg you’re feeding us this week! i’m so happy you’re being active again <3 harryfan78 POST A PICTURE OF YOURSELF I WANT TO MEET YOU AT THE SHOW BUT I DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU LOOK LIKE 

↳ user4 calm down pls? we like to behave as respectful human beings on this profile

bestfriend ❤️❤️❤️ bestfriend i’m losing my mind but i’m also so excited and proud! user7 I miss your videos :( lookitsnyoh when was this? where was I? bummed that I missed it!

↳ yourinstagram sorryyy just a last minute decision after dinner :( ↳ lookitsnyoh ohhhh makes sense now! Glad it left you speechless ↳ yourinstagram i mean the city is beautiful  ↳ lookitsnyoh sure thing it is 👽

Sep 1, 2021 •

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liked by harryfan, harryfan2 and 15,157 others 

fanwhometharry GUYS I JUST MET HARRY I’M SHAKKNG I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MY LIFE NOW 

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harryfan64 omg where did you meet him??

↳ fanwhometharry AT THE BELLAGIO  ↳ harryfan64 is he staying there???  ↳ fanwhometharry NO!! I MEAN IDK?? I DONT RHINK SO I JUST MET HIM OUTSIDE AT THE FOUNTAINS  ↳ harryfan74 hmm not tryin to be rude or something but that sounds like a weird place for him to be tbh ↳ fanwhometharry I FUCKKNG KNOW THAT?? I MEAN MY PARENTS WANTED TO SEE THE WATER SHOW SO I TAGGED ALONG BUT NEVER EVER THOUGHT ID BUMP INTO HIM THERE

harryfan62 you’re so lucky!! was he alone???

↳ imetharry I DONT KNOW?? I DONT REMEMBER I WAS SO NERVOUS  ↳ imetharry I KNOW THERE WAS A GIRL NEARBY BC SHE HANDED HIM A PEN WHEN I COULDNT FIND MINE BUT I DONT KNOW IF SHE WAS WITH HJIM OR NOT ↳ harryfan62 who was this girl? Anyone from the LOT crew? ↳ imetharry IDK I JUST SAID I DONT EVEN KNOW IF SHE WAS WITH HIM OR NOT 😭

harryfan15 Hi hun! Don’t listen to people, they're just jealous. It was really sweet of him to sign that for you! Hope you have a great time at the show 💕

↳ imetharry THANK YOU 😭😭 HE WAS THERE JUST WATCHING LIKE A NORMAL PERSON SO I DIDN’T WANT TO TAKE A PIC IF PEOPLE DON’T BELIEVE ME THEN I DON’T CARE I KNOW IT’S REAL 😭😭

Sep 1, 2021 •

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liked by gemmastyles, anthonypham, jefezoff and 35,109 others 

yourinstagram having to keep this secret from the world was the most cruelest thing that anyone has ever done to me. but whatever… it’s fine… i’m okay… i’m just gonna pretend this wasn’t a big deal and i didn’t just watch one of my favorite artists perform my favorite songs… and then i’ll just casually say: pls stay tuned for next wednesday when my new video will be up 😇

(i’ll be back and share more details once my serotonin levels have normalized again)

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bestfriend i love you so much thank you for representing us so well  harryfan I KNEW IT I KNEW IT I KNEW IT OMFG I CANT WAIT I KNEW IT harryfan2 YN KASDHUHHD PLS OMFG YOU CAN’T JUST SAY THIS AND LEAVE user1 😲 i can’t wait for this one! harrystyles soz 

↳ harryfan OMFG HARRY ↳ harryfan5 ?????????????????????????? ↳ harryfan3 AUIDHIAUSHDBAJH WTF ↳ harryfan9 ARE YOU F KIDDING ME WHATS HE DOING HERE

cuteguy Nice! Glad you’re having a good time darling. 

Sep 4, 2021 •

— — — — — 

PART 3: DENVER

— — — — — 

If you happen to read and enjoy this, pls let me know? 🙏 thanks!! it would be nice to know if this is working, or what else would people would like to see.

[aritamargarita]

SOLITUDE || 001

hello and welcome to the debut of solitude. to all my current readers, you already know what’s up, but to new and curious readers, this installment is based off of climbing the food chain of wwe, taking place in mostly the modern era, so there are superstars spanning from 2013 the earliest to 2022..

just let me cook on the timeline a little bit okay, you'll like it LOL. there’s a lot of Twitter segments in this so i hope it’s not annoying, they’re going to die down for the most part later i promise

without further ado, please enjoy!

TODAY IS THE first day of your call up. The support you’ve gotten from your friends from the training center was wonderful, but you’re still feeling antsy and incredibly nervous. Hopefully, your first day on the brand goes well..

Shawn Michaels was the one to break the news that you were getting called up. You could remember it so clearly because you completely ambushed him with an excited hug once he dropped the bomb on you.

He had patted your back and told you to lighten your grip a little bit, but not without a grin on his face.

If it’s one thing you deserve, it is the chance to expand your career. You always came early, and you were always prepared to learn.

You weren’t sure how to feel when he told you that you’d be heading to the main roster.

You only started as a superstar on the indie circuit and are only used to being on much smaller channels and local shows. You couldn’t even imagine being on WWE, which was broadcast on national television!

He had seen the look on your face and quickly tried to do damage control.

“We’re soft-launching you, or however you kids say it these days,” He told you. You think he grumbled something about how social media was confusing, but you brushed him off. “As an interviewer, I mean.”

“Huh..” You give a shrug. “As long as I can wrestle sometime.”

He had assured you that you will, sooner than you think, but they just wanted to focus on your speaking. Once they (and you), were more confident, they’d allow you to be in much more opportunities.

Such is life, you guess. Get through these obstacles for a bigger reward. You gave your gratitude to Shawn as you had a lot to look forward to.

If you’re not mistaken, WWE had already posted a teaser on their twitter. For some reason, you would find yourself constantly checking the tweet.

@WWE ✓

We hear someone is entering the scene… 👀

1.2K reposts 120 quotes 14K likes

—is what it said. The flurry of tweets under it were mixed. Lots of people wanted to know what the deal was, though some were already speculating it was an old star coming back.

However, the few fans that knew of your work had their guesses. Some of the pictures you posted on Instagram were cryptic hints, but you knew how the internet was. Crazy detective work..

But anyhow, people around the training center know that you’re pretty introverted. You only came to get some work done and go home. It was hard for others to get to know you at first.

They like to call you shy, but you’ve started to hate that word the more it’s used. It holds you back too much. You won’t make it far if you’re stuck with that description for your entire life.

Fortunately, they know what you lack in words is made up for in the ring. There’s no question that you’re good, you just tend to get nervous when speaking to the public.

At heart, you knew they wanted to help you out, and they wanted you to become the best you can be! If you start practicing, you’re sure to be a star!

As motivating as it sounds, it’s still stressful. Going out of your comfort zone was nothing new. It’s a given if you want to wrestle properly, but it still makes you uneasy.

You know you’ve gotta put your best foot forward and do this despite it. This was your only chance, and you absolutely can’t mess this up.

Most of the people still training had given you their well wishes. It’s heavily appreciated; after all, you won’t see them anymore unless they’re called up there themselves.

You think you’ll miss Carmella the most. She was your training buddy, and you think she was the most excited about you getting called up. You hope that she’ll be next soon enough….

As of right now, you look tired. You damn sure feel tired.

It causes you to lie down on the floor of the locker room. It probably wasn’t the best idea, but fuck it. You’ve already made a bad decision by staying up all night out of excitement. It’s starting to come back to you.

Of course, you came to the arena a little too early. (which was an inside joke between coaches, you’re too punctual for your own good..)

You were sure most of your coworkers hadn’t arrived yet, and you weren’t sure if you wanted to see them. It’s not that you don’t want to, you’re just nervous to meet them.

Especially since you’ll probably be half asleep and may forget their names.

Much to your misfortune, a woman comes in, sunglasses on and suitcase handle clenched in hand.

She only lowers them with a finger once you’re in view. “Oooh,” She starts, then clicks her tongue. It’s apparent that she’s mocking you already. “..You look like trash.”

“Thanks,” You say with a sigh. “It’s so appreciated.”

This is not a good start. You make the move to get up off the comfortable ground and the woman puts a hand on her hip.

She’s not very amused, moving a free hand to flip her blue hair. “Did they get me a personal makeup artist? Or…are you just everyone’s stylist? Never seen you here before.”

“I’m new. An interviewer.” You say. Giving yourself that title feels much weirder than saying you were a wrestler. “Pray tell, who am I talking to?”

She’s a little taken aback by the cynical tone in your voice but takes her sunglasses off. This woman doesn’t think she’s met her match yet.

“Of course you don’t recognize a celebrity when you’re in front of one. Let me refresh your memory a bit. How does this sound? The boss, the blueprint, the standard!” She pauses for a bit for dramatic effect. “…Sasha Banks. And I better not have to repeat myself. Who exactly are you?”

“You have a pretty name.” You start off with. Honestly, you didn’t want to make an enemy out of her as much as she wanted to make one out of you. You hope she could see that. “I’m [Name], and you’re right. I am new. Maybe we can get to know each other a bit more.”

It actually seems to work because she falters for a second. “…What?”

You hold out your hand to her and she looks at it for a moment before shaking it with a scowl. Before you realize it, she’s already taking her hand back.

“I’m assuming you’re wrestling? Do you have a match?” You quickly ask, not giving her a second to recover. “I’d like to interview you after if you do.”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Sasha drops her suitcase. She’s unsure if she could stand your bright personality for a second longer. You’re going to be a problem in the future. “Sorry, not sorry, but you’re a nobody. What’s the point?”

“It was worth a try. But if that’s what you want I won’t force you.” Sasha rolls her eyes at your response. You’re way too nice. “At least tell me, do you think it’s fun here?”

“Fun?” She repeats. “Tch, I know you didn’t just ask if it was fun. Get real. There’s nothing fun about being here. There’s only one thing that matters, and it’s the Divas Championship. Got it?”

“Got it.” You nod. Divas Championship…duly noted. You don’t think you’ll be going for it anytime soon. “Who’s got it?” You’ll have to ask if the standard Women’s Championship was still in circulation as well.

“AJ Lee.” She answers. It’s the least snarky answer she’s given you so far, but she reverts back to it. “I swear, I’m gonna drag her ass across the mat for that title. She makes me sick with her skipping around.”

You voice your thoughts. “She skips?” That’s one way to get to the ring. You’re curious now. “I wonder if I can interview her…she must have a lot to say about her reign so far.”

“What?” Sasha’s immediately offended. “Um, no. Who says you’re interviewing her first? You’re obviously going to interview me first.”

It’s contradictory to what she’s said before, but because of it, there’s a smile growing on your face. She notices and jabs her index finger toward you. “You can wipe that smile off your face, rookie.”

“So be it. I will see you afterwards.” You agree to interview her, doing your best to fight the smile off.

Sasha huffs and leaves the room for now. Your eyes follow her, and once she’s gone, you shrug to yourself. Wow.

Well, that’s one way to get an interviewee.

Almost seconds after her departure, your phone vibrates and you see it’s a notification from Twitter. After that, the tweets start to flow in.

What now?

@SashaBanksWWE ✓

I ALWAYS come first. Don’t forget that, rookie. @Officially[Name].

4.1K reposts 250 quotes 45K likes

@No1DivazStan: Wait…?

↳ @Sashabanksfan109: Literally like who is that??? What is she talking about?

Oh boy. Now people actually are getting the idea. She even went as far as tagging you. You’re already starting to have people follow you.

Including Sasha, which was a plus!

You’re confident about things for a moment until the thought of having to talk to her live circles back. Shit, you might start to freak out a little.

You hope Sasha wouldn’t be too harsh on you, even if it were wishful thinking. Sasha’s gonna come in hot, especially if she loses. You have no choice but to adjust.

A few more moments of silence pass, and suddenly the floor is calling you again.

You immediately lay back down. How long until the show? You take your phone out of your pocket and check the time. 6:45. The show starts at around 7. Maybe 8 if there are any delays.

Would it be wrong if you took a quick nap? It’ll only be 15 minutes, but it might just be enough to keep you going for the rest of the night.

You’re already closing your eyes. You know you’re going to be unable to hit any major stages of sleep, but even just laying like this is nice.

Until the door opens. You’re shooting up from your spot, almost falling over in the process.

“I WASN’T SLEEPING.” You clarify, doing your best to stand up. The woman, who’s not Sasha this time, looks at you in confusion.

She points a finger at you. “Ya’ sure about that? From the looks of it, it seemed like you were knocked out for a second.” Her accent is the first thing that catches your attention as she starts to motion towards you.

“No, no, not at all.” You try to defend. “Can’t a woman stretch on the floor in peace?”

“Seriously, you call that stretching?” Before she can make any more sarcastic comments toward you, she turns to look at you. “I’ve never seen you around before. Got a name?”

She is trying her best to identify you to no avail. You hop up to your feet, then hold your hand out to her. “[Name]. I’m just an interviewer right now, yeah. I’m new. Who are you?”

“Becky. Becky Lynch.” She introduces, taking your hand to shake it firmly. You swear you’ve seen her before, too. Probably on Twitter. Guess Becky isn't the only one with deja vu.

You pray you wouldn’t forget her or Sasha’s name for that matter. You can’t fight the urge to yawn.

“Someone’s tired. You should go get some water before you pass out. Looks like you’ve seen a ghost.”

This is a nice change of pace from Sasha. Despite you trying to kill her with kindness, she’s just all kinds of intimidating, while this woman is…okay.

Water may do the trick. It might just be cold enough to wake you up. “Good idea. Anywhere I can get some?”

“Should be a cooler down the hall to your right.” She informs. “See, I’d offer to get it for you, but I’ve got a match to get ready for.”

“Well, thanks anyway.” But before you leave, Before you leave, you turn over to her. “This may be an assumption, but are you going against Sasha Banks?” You ask. You could be wrong, but it’s worth a shot to see.

She nods at you. “Smart girl. How’d you know?”

“I talked to her a bit earlier. She wouldn’t exactly tell me she was going in a match, but I guess it was safe to assume it was you.” You say. “If you’d like to be interviewed, I’ll be waiting backstage.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Becky says. She’s more concerned about you getting your water. “Go, I might be here when you get back. Don’t pass out.”

You make a noise to let her know you heard her. Did you make a new friend? You think so.

You’re still a bit disoriented from the lack of sleep. You only made it a few steps down the hall before forgetting the direction she told you to go. Great.

This hallway seemed horribly long. The more you walked, the more you felt like it extended somehow. You need a nap, but you don’t think you’re going to get it until retiring back to your hotel room.

A group of men dressed in what seems to be tactical clothes are sitting around nearby, and you find yourself approaching them in a sudden spur of confidence. It’s probably because you’re tired.

“Excuse me,” you call. All three of them look at you with curious looks, and you feel like you could just up and die right there.

Doesn’t exactly help that they’re all kind of attractive, either.

“Where can I get some water? It feels like I’m dying here.” You ask, using your hand to rub the side of your face.

To them, you looked like you had just completed a damn marathon run. One of them with short brown hair whispers something to another with half-blonde, half-black hair, and you look between them curiously.

You don’t have time for whispers. You want water. It makes you think about purposely passing out in front of them. Rude and manipulative, sure, but you’re not here to gossip!

The other one speaks up to you instead. He’s also got long hair, but you think the most noticeable thing was his sleeve tattoo. You may have been staring too long because he snapped his fingers to get your attention.

At least he wasn’t glaring at you. There was a handsome smile on his face. “You there? Don’t tell me we’ve lost you already. You just got here.”

“Sorry. I’m really tired.” You admit. “Really, REALLY tired. Water would be nice.”

“To your left,” He says. “Should be one over there.”

The exasperation in your voice is ever present when you say: “Thank you!”. You’re dying here. You’ll have to come back and thank your only savior after replenishing yourself. Turning away, you head in the direction he told you.

You don’t hear the snickering behind you as you leave. Too busy thinking about hydration at this point.

Going further down, you see that there still is no water cooler. You’re only met with a dead end, and though there are doors, the signs only tell you that they’re just control rooms.

You’re confused. Why would he send you that way? You turn around and head back the way you came as it must’ve been an honest mistake.

You see them still sitting there with smiles. “Hey, excuse me,” you call, waving your hand. “There’s no water over there. Are you sure it’s that way?”

“We know.” The man who gave you instruction earlier had said. “We just wanted to mess with you a bit. Go that way.” First day on the job and people are already trying to rib you? Goddamn it.

On the bright side, it seemed to be lighthearted. Or so you hope.

This time, you hope, he points the correct way. The only thing you can do is let out a sigh and move forward. You don’t even stay to listen to anything else he says.

"Don't take it to heart!" One of them yells behind you.

You scoff to yourself. This time, they redeemed themselves because you found that lovely water cooler. You immediately pick up the pace and reach out to snatch a cup.

Finally, cold water. You're sure you'll wake up this time. You're almost half tempted to pour some on your face, but you aren't THAT unhinged. Besides, you don’t want to waste it.

The moment you lift your cup and and take a refreshing sip, someone saying “hey” makes you look over, and you nearly spit your drink out.

The guy that had given you the wrong direction had come around. You cough up bits of water, holding a hand on your chest. “Why?! God, you scared the hell out of me!”

“Sorry.” He apologizes. You’re not so sure if it’s sincere. “Stephanie McMahon told me about you. You’re [Name], right?”

It takes you a second to reply and he looks at you expectantly. You hold your hand up. “Uh, yeah. Yeah, that’s me.” You nod.

“Roman,” He introduced himself back, setting his hands on the vest of his tactical gear. “I know it’s your first day and all, but do you know who’s in charge?”

“….Vince McMahon?” You offer with a shrug.

Roman chuckles, shaking his head. “You were close. But that’s not it. The Authority is the one in charge.” He clarifies to you. “And you’d best be on their side. Tell me, new girl. Do you plan to be on the side of justice?”

Truth be told, you’re a little intimidated. Again.

You wonder if you even had a choice right now. Before you answer him you decide to take a sip of water, this time, without coughing up a lung.

“Justice, what do you mean by that?”

“The Authority is seeking to make sure that everyone keeps in line.” He explains. “We’ve already got a hold on the men’s division, but the women’s division….”

He trails off, looking toward you expectantly.

“I’m just an interviewer.” You hold your hands up in defense. “I don’t know anything about wrestling. Like anything.”

A lie, but you don’t exactly want to get involved.

You thought it felt weird to call yourself an interviewer, but now you’re going to hold onto that title until it’s convenient enough for you….

“Don’t give me that crap. I know exactly what you are.” So much for that. Roman gets closer to you and you move back just a little. It doesn’t do much, because he’s still in your space.

You’re starting to feel cornered.

“And what I don’t appreciate is people lying to me. Listen, [Name]. Pretty girls like you are always smart. If you knew what’s good for you, you’d better—“

“Hey guys!” A new voice makes you look over Roman. “Roman…and….who’s this?” He points a finger over to you.

“[Name].” You say. This guy might be your potential savior.

He doesn’t really pester any further than that, oddly enough. “Cool. You guys wanna take a selfie?” Before you two could even answer, he’s already approaching with a phone in hand.

“Wait,” You try to stop him. “I’m not ready—“

All Roman does was glare at the camera while you were holding out your hand toward it. He’s already took it and you were caught in the worst off guard moment.

“You guys better get ready for Raw. It starts in like five minutes.” The man recommends. “Thanks for the selfie.”

He saunters off and Roman shakes his head. After the stranger had made some distance, he finally speaks to you. “I can’t stand Theory’s dumbass.”

“Theory?” You repeat. “Who?”

“Austin Theory.” He clarifies. “Won’t stop taking those stupid selfies. It’s all the goddamn time.”

You slowly nod, but take advantage of the fact Austin had said there’s only five minutes until Raw starts. “Gosh. This was such a nice meeting, but I had better get going. You know, interviews and stuff to do.”

Roman says nothing, so you take the opportunity to side-step and walk past him. However, he doesn’t let you get far before saying…

“Better think about what I said. You don’t have much time.”

You’re hoping that wasn’t a threat. And now that you think about it?

He didn’t even apologize for leading you the wrong way!

You were just trying to get ready to be on television. You did everything you could to stand out for your debut, despite some people knowing that you’d show up sometime.

You can only imagine the pre-show talks around on social media. God, you hope you weren’t sweating. You think you’re just overreacting, but you feel like you’re gonna cry.

If you weren’t awake before, you sure are now.

Your phone starts buzzing again on the vanity you were seated at. The stylist who was helping you get things together had stepped away earlier, leaving you be with your thoughts.

Until now. The moment you pick up your phone and open Twitter, you groan.

Roman was right about the selfies being stupid.

Austin had posted it on Twitter. The only thing you’re really focused on is yourself. You look a disheveled mess and you’re happy you could fix yourself up a little bit right now.

You’re reeling as you read some of the responses. Although, some were funnier than others…

@Theory_1 ✓

Roman and some new girl are here today! I caught them in their natural habitat.

1.8K reposts 130 quotes 37K likes

@annsweet_: OMG FREE HER???? WHY DOES SHE LOOK SCARED LMAO

↳ @Lilgrab$78: Nah fr they holding her hostage in there

@Biilionnsmind: Are you serious? [Name] Theory AND Roman? This has gotta be the multiverse

↳ @YourChampion0: Not gonna lie they might be an item. Guess we’ll see if they have something going on or they just were filming something.

@bellstrings: Wait not too much on [Name]…face card is still ACTIVE and ready to TAP!

Along those lines of being mentioned, Austin had followed you as well. But seeing yourself being the talk of others is just surreal. You’re happy about it.

“Hey, [Name].” A stagehand calls. “You’re on in about 2 minutes. You’ll be interviewing Sasha Banks. It’s the only person you’ll be doing, so you’re free to go home after.”

Alright then. You hop up out of your seat. You looked good enough, so you didn’t exactly need that stylist to come back. Your time to shine.

You let the stagehand lead the way to where you’re supposed to be positioned. It’s a nice set up, you think. There’s a red curtain behind you as well as a television settled with “Raw” displayed on it.

“Sasha lost because of interference.” The stagehand informs you. “She’ll go on about the details. But just ask her some questions. She should be here any second now.”

You’ll try. The camera is already settled in front of you, waiting for the go ahead. As soon as he said that, Sasha comes storming into the room. He signals toward the both of you that he’s rolling.

“Wow, Sasha..!” You exclaim, shaking your head. “That was definitely……a match.”

Sasha looks at you with a scowl. “You think?! Becky only got lucky because AJ came out all peppy. I almost had her.” She complains. “I had Becky in the Bank Statement. She was about to tap…”

She literally has to stop talking and take a breath before she loses it. Everyone, even the crowd, can tell that she’s STEAMING.

“…Uh, do you think you’ll need help in the future for AJ? It looks like she’s posing a really big threat to you.” You say. “Cause’ if you’re asking me, it looks like you may need a future tag partner.”

You’re going steady, despite the fact your hand may or may not be shaking a bit. You’re just glad that this segment wasn’t out in the ring. You tilt the mic over to Sasha.

All you had to do was pretend like the camera wasn’t there and that you were having a simple conversation. Everything’s just fine.

You had hoped she would understand that you were insinuating that you could be of assistance, but she takes it the wrong way.

“What, you think I’m not good enough?” She challenges, stepping closer to you. “You think I can’t beat AJ on my own? She’s the one that needs help. That’s why she gets Tamina to do her dirty work. Let me remind you that I’m Sasha Banks. I was the NXT Women’s Champion. The Boss can handle herself in battle and she damn sure doesn’t need someone that’s gonna hold her back.”

“I get it, jeez. I was trying to help you, Sasha.” You explain. It might be a chance to get you active in the ring.

“Aren’t you supposed to be doing your job and asking me questions? I don’t need your help.” She fires back.

Whatever. You just shrug it off. “Fine. You want questions, I’ll give you questions. You tagged me on Twitter. When you tagged me on Twitter, was that you trying to put me on notice?”

It’s easy for her to bounce off of what you said.

“You clearly act like you have no idea who I am. Maybe now you’ll get a clue. As a matter of fact, you better leave that fake little sweet innocent act at the door, cause I see right through you.”

“What act? I’m just being me.” It’s true. You really are!

“Right, and Becky must be the best wrestler on the planet…hah! That’s hilarious even thinking about it.” Sasha falls into a laugh, and you fight the urge to smile at her contagious laugh. Instead, you wipe it off in order to look confused.

She takes a breath. “You know what? You wanna help me, prove it to me. You and me, a match next Monday. I know that you’re not gonna do well, but I’ll have fun destroying you anyways, rookie.”

This was your chance!! You can’t fight the excitement, so you immediately agree. “Yes! I mean, yeah. Absolutely. It’s a match, Sasha. Shake on it?”

You offer your free hand to her. Despite her gritting her teeth, she takes it.

Sasha thinks you’re too excited, but she’d be lying if she wasn’t curious to see how you’d fare against her.

Your first match is against Sasha Banks. Thinking about it seemed so surreal. You’ve got a lot to prepare for next Monday.

Sasha’s eyes seem to catch onto something behind you and she groans, snatching her hand back. “Not her—“

“I wasn’t expecting you here, Sasha!” There’s a woman who’s slightly shorter than you that comes over with a championship tucked over her arm. This must’ve been the Divas championship, if the words on the butterfly weren’t evident enough.

“You know, not after you lost. Thought you would’ve went home by now!” She holds onto it even tighter once Sasha gave her a nasty look.

“You must be AJ Lee?” You try to divert some of the tension. “It’s nice to see the divas champion face to face.”

Sasha gags, but AJ giggles at your words. She rubs a hand over the butterfly, looking at you. “Oh pssssh, this? It’s nothing major…it just means I’m the best, but seriously, nothing major. Oh, and Sasha? Sorry Tamina made you lose focus…no hard feelings?”

Sasha rears her fist back and you immediately try to jump in the middle of them. Might’ve been a dumb decision, but it made Sasha immediately freeze once you did. You’re not even sure if AJ flinched.

You’re planted firmly in between them without any plans of moving anytime soon. “Woah, woah woah, can we hold off on the fighting PLEASE?! Why don’t you guys settle it in the ring, just like me and Sasha are?”

“You guys…” AJ looks between you two. “…are wrestling each other? Huh.”

You nod at her. “Yeah. I think you should follow suit. It’s obvious you two have problems.”

“Well, you’re right. It’s not like can’t beat you again, Sasha!” AJ chimes. “Anyway, I’m going to go polish my title! Don’t wait up for me, ladies!”

And just like that, AJ skips off. Sasha slowly turns to look at you and the only thing you can do is look back at her.

“I don’t care,” She starts, pointing a finger at you. “You’re helping in whatever happens, rookie.”

“What?! Why me??” You whine. “This isn’t my issue, the only thing I’m worried about is our match.“

As she’s said earlier, she doesn’t care. “You heard me. All you’ve gotta do is be ready. When I tell you to do something, you go.”

She leaves you with that. An exasperated sigh falls from your lips.

You’ve got more than just your match to worry about now..

#RAWTonight

@WWE ✓

A nearly explosive confrontation tonight on Raw between AJ Lee, [Name], and Sasha Banks. Watch below! 👇🔥

6.7K reposts 310 quotes 67k likes

@xXHibiscus: THE GIRLS ARE FIGHTING!???!!!

↳ @WomenofWWE: Yess! This is what we need, a strong three-way feud! The newbie, the underdog, and the champion. The storylines kind of have been getting boring. I wouldn’t mind Sasha & [Name] vs AJ, or maybe even AJ & [Name] vs Sasha.

↳ @RaeFed: [name] might’ve just saved us hold on

@RoseGambler: [Name] trying to be a peacemaker 😭

↳ @101Mariposa: SASHA WAS LITERALLY ABOUT TO ROCK AJ PLEASE. SHE NEEDS TO MOVE

↳ @ThenNowForever: Why she hit the “Sasha, this isn’t you”??

@MarkPodcast: Never heard of [Name]..…is she new?

↳ @platinumstarred: yeah she was mainly on the indies, wasn’t bad at all like she was rlly good

↳ @MarkPodcast: Hopefully she’ll stay good while she’s here!

@Feistysummer: Sasha saying she doesn’t need help…then turns around and tells [Name] that she’s going to help LOL

↳ @Divas4L: They’re definitely going to be friends, if not best friends in the future..

[alexanderlightweight]

Lydia-John prompter here! No problemo, as Marie Kendo says if it don't spark joy - toss it! (Closs enough right?) However if it does spark joy, can I request Alec giving a final warning to siblings that he won't protect/take responsibility for them anymore - and then following through! Either that or Alec giving second-in-charge authority over Jace/Izzy decisions because he recognises he isn't objective?

here we go! i hope you enjoy it ^_^

it did spark joy and that was a sweet way to ask lol ty

lumine

-

“I can't believe the clave did this, Alec. But I'll fix it. I'll talk to grandmother-"

“What are you talking about, Jace?” Alec asks, confused as to why Jace has barged into his office, pacing and looking as pissed as he does when someone shows a hint of interest in Clary.

“The clave, they sent you someone else. It should be me as your second, so I’ll talk to my grandmother.”

“Actually, I requested Mirai. Imogen’s opinion is no longer being taken into consideration, as she tried to promote a shadowhunter above his rank solely based on blood ties. There were several options for me, Jace. You, however, weren’t one of them and neither was Izzy. Izzy went science and you went fighting, we all started on separate paths long ago Jace, we knew this was coming.”

“I thought I’d still be your second! You could make that happen and we could have each other’s back.”

“I need someone who has my back and has other people to have her back. Because I won’t be able to pay attention and protect my second.  Which means you definitely can’t have the position, as you’ve gotten careless the last few years. And now, after all this running around with Clary, you think you’re ready to the be the second of the Institute?”

“What if she has in it for Clary?”

“Not everything is about Clary. Not everything is about you. Be done Jace, go tell Izzy that this is my final decision and Idris has agreed. Even if Imogen were being listened to, they wouldn’t change this, and I wouldn’t want them to.”

“I’m disappointed in you, buddy.” Jace says as he leaves the door and Alec lets him leave with a sigh and an eyeroll.

“Yeah, me too.” He mutters, because if he were any less exhausted, he would have dealt with this days ago instead of accidentally avoiding it and letting it fester until Jace exploded.  Which isn’t Alec’s fault, but he knows he could have dealt with it sooner at least.

He texts Magnus, because he wants the comfort of his partner even if it’s just over the phone and then a portaling is ripping open and Magnus is gracefully sliding into Alec’s lap, hands curling into Alec’s hair like it was made to be touched by Magnus’ fingers.

“A rough day?” Magnus croons and Alec sighs and leans every bit of him that he can get against Magnus.

“Uh-huh.” He sighs out, exhausted and aching to be back home with Magnus, “Jace found out about Mirai Lakecastle.”

Magnus makes a sympathetic noise and his hands scratch Alec’s scalp in a delicious way that makes him want to melt.

“How tedious, did he bother you beloved?”

Alec pouts, because Magnus makes it sound so banal, yet he knows that’s just because Magnus considers Jace’s opinions to be of so little value.

“Yes—” he finally admits, because he’s learning not to hide these things from Magnus. “It was like he was channeling my mother, on a bad day. Reminding me of what a disappointment I am, especially for putting myself first.”

“You’re the leader of an entire Institute.” Magnus reminds him soothingly, voice dry, “you need a second you can trust and one that will listen to you and have your back. Who can be trusted and trust others and who will be loyal. Not a brother who throws himself into danger under the assumption that he remains under your protection. You’re helping him to grow up, satang. Now, you have at least half an hour. Enough time for a twenty-minute nap, hmm? For me?”

Alec smiles in tired exasperation and nuzzles Magnus face and then slumps into him,

—

Magnus pets Alexander’s hair and rubs the tight tendons of his boy’s neck soothingly as he eases him to sleep.

He had meant to lure Alexander to rest in his lap on Alexander’s sofa, however it seems that his boy is too exhausted to even move and he whuffles gentle, mouth open against Magnus’ neck.  Magnus uses magic to ease his position into something more comfortable. Alexander’s thighs are deliciously muscled, but they lack the necessary padding for Magnus to perch on them for any length of times without his own thighs going numb.

Magnus uses the gift of magic to ensure this is never a problem, for him or for Alexander.

[lillylvjy]

Sunday morning (rain is falling)

A/n- hi! Another fic?! Yes! Im on a writing kick guys! Anyways this is a dad!bur fic! My first one, it just felt right in this situation. Idrk if this fic makes sense, but I liked the way I put it together when I started writing so hopefully it makes sense!! Enjoy!!

Warnings: kissing, swearing, apron joke ( the whole apron part is based of a true story 🤭) and the duos listed in the fic are only to show similarities to each other’s relationship only! Thank you:)

Also thank you @pebblebrainlovejoy for adding onto the idea of this fic. Her idea got me inspired and made my brain stew with ideas so all credits to her!❤️

Sunday. One of the best and worst days ever. Best because Wilbur usually had the day off so you and your lovely daughter, Meadow, had him all to yourselves. Worst because it was one of the only days you and Meadow had him all to yourselves.

It was hard when all he did now was make music and tour, but you made it work. He was always on time to sing Meadow a song for her bedtime or read her a book. And you guys had a little time to yourself before bed. But you’d wake up to an empty bed and a note on the kitchen counter saying how much he loved you and Meadow and how he’s going to try to make it back for dinner. ‘Never does’ you’d think. You’re never mad at him. No! You’re happy for him and proud of how much he’s accomplished. But, it gets frustrating when he’s not there for his daughters school events. Or when’s he’s not there to have a dance or tea party with them. You’ve voiced this to him before. He says after this album he’s taking off a month or two to be with you both. That felt really good to hear.

But for now! You have Sundays. And your personal favorite, late Sunday mornings. Meadow and Wilbur are usually up late doing whatever she wants to do with him on Saturday nights, so that means you all get to sleep in. Meadow is a heavy sleeper. Don’t know where she got it because neither you or Wil are heavy sleepers. But you’re thankful for it! Doesn’t wake up until 10:30-11:00 on Sundays. Perfect.

You woke up that Sunday at 10:45 to the sound of heavy rain and thunder. ‘Perfect’ you thought with a smile on your face. You stretched and felt the arms around your waist tighten.

You turned in the persons arms to be met with Wilbur’s peaceful sleeping face. He’s perfect. His face calm and content. His hair longer than it needs to be and messy. You’ve been telling him to get it cut, but his reason is: “Love I can’t just cut it! Think about how sad Meadow will be. Think about how sad I’ll be! She won’t be able to put her butterfly clips in my hair anymore.” He’d say with a pout.

You’re run your finger over his face, tracing his beauty mark by his eye, over his lip to his jawline. He was the definition of perfection. You run your hand through his hair and kiss his forehead. You see him smile and his eyes flutter open.

“Hm good morning darling.” He said while rubbing your back. His voice deep and croaky.

You smiled back at him, rubbing his head. “Good morning, how’d you sleep?” You asked him.

“Amazing. I always sleep good when I have you by my side love.” He said, kissing your face. From your jawline to your cheek. Forehead to nose. And finally your lips. You both held the kiss for a couple seconds longer. This is what you want every morning to feel like. Blissful. Content. To wake up in his arms and just admire his beauty. That’s what you loved about mornings like these.

“Well we certainly won’t be going outside today. I’m going to get up and start making breakfast before the monster wakes up.” You said, pecking his lips one last time before getting up and putting on one of Wilbur’s sweaters. It went down to your mid thigh and covered your sleep shorts.

“She is not a monster! She is our princess and we must treat her like royalty.” He said getting up, putting on a t-shirt and wrapping his arms around your neck.

“She is so spoiled because of you, you know that right?” You asked him teasingly.

“Oh yeah. I know that. And I won’t stop.” He said smirking down at you. Lifting your chin up and kissing you. Soft and full of love. The best kiss of all. “Also you maybe want to look at your hair. It looks like a raccoons house.” He said looking at your hair.

You scoffed and smacked him in the shoulder and told him to shut up and help make breakfast. You didn’t even try to fix your hair. It was Sunday morning. Who cared!

You both decided to make waffles, eggs and bacon. You did the eggs and bacon, while Wilbur did the waffles. He was making plain, chocolate chip, and blueberry. Chocolate chip for Meadow and blueberry for you and Wilbur. The plain was for whoever wanted more. You decided on the easier and safest route, scrambled eggs.

Wilbur was wearing an apron that was gifted to him by your sister for his birthday this year. The front of it says “DILF” and underneath it states “Devoted. Involved. Loving. Father.” Yeah not the most appropriate thing to have in front of your daughter. One time we were out with a bunch of friends and we decided to take Meadow with us so she could see everyone. Her and Tommy were messing around and Tommy started to call Wilbur not so nice names in front of Meadow. Don’t worry, they were all sanitary names but still names you shouldn’t be saying in front of a 5 year old. You could tell Meadow was getting a little bit upset of the names Tommy was saying, but she couldn’t think of anything! Then, she remembered the saying on the apron. “No! Daddy’s not a retard, he’s a DILF.” She said with so much confidence.

When I tell you everyone went silent and looked at her, I mean everyone did. Tommy started bursting out laughing and everyone else followed. Wilbur’s face was so red as he hid his face in his hands. You had the biggest grin on your face. “That’s right sweetheart, he is! What does it stand for my love?” You asked as you picked her up and walked her back over towards where you and Wilbur were sitting. Wilbur looked at Meadow, waiting patiently for her reply like everyone else.

“Hmmm. Devoted… Involved…. Loving. Father!” She said happily while looking at you.

“That’s right darling!” You said giving her a kiss on her cheek. Everyone smiled at the two of you as Wilbur went around the table to the both of you and took Meadow out of your arms.

“Princess. Let’s maybe not say that in front of people other than me and mommy or grandma unless they know what that means ok?” He asked your daughter, kissing her hand.

“Mhm. Was the thing I said bad?” She said looking at Wilbur worried.

“No darling! Just DILF means two things. And the one you said barely anyone knows except me and mommy. So just be careful ok. I’m not mad at you baby. Pinky promise.” He said, putting his pinky out. Your daughter smiled and linked fingers with him.

Since then, she hasn’t said anything about it unless it’s with you and Wilbur. He loves it. Loves how she remembered what it means and knows what it means. Lets him know that she knows he loves her with his whole heart.

Wilbur walks into the living room and opens his backpack. He grabs his speaker and connects his phone to it. He puts on a random playlist and the first song to play is ‘Sunday Morning’ by Maroon 5. You recognize the song by the first couple seconds. It was your sisters favorite song when you were going to high school together and you drove to school together. You barely knew the songs but the catchy tune was hard to forget when you have amazing memories with it.

While you were making sure the eggs were done, Wilbur pulls you away from the eggs and spins you around to look at him. “Wil no! The foods going to burn!” You whined looking at the food.

Wilbur turned your head back to look at him. “Can’t I dance with my love?” He asked you with a shit-eating grin on his face. You roll your eyes and wrap your arms around his neck and you step on his feet.

“You’re leading. Like always.” You said looking into his eyes. This is nothing new. You do this anytime you can. 2 am on a Thursday when Wilbur is up writing music. Or 9 pm when Meadow is getting ready for bed and you guys have a couple minutes by yourselves.

As the music plays, Wilbur tries humming to it but fails to the fact of not knowing the lyrics at all. You smile up at him and laugh. You wish you could stay here. Here in this moment forever. This moment filled with longing, loving, and happiness.

Wilbur furrows his eyebrows and giggles. “What’s so funny huh?” He asked you.

You smiled and shook your head. “Nothing. I just love you. A lot.” You sigh. “I wish you were home more, we miss you a lot during the week. Sometimes I need you for help on her homework. I forgot half the shit they teach in school. You also miss a lot of fun dance parties. And family cuddles. The list goes on and on. Not trying to make you feel jealous or guilty. Just telling you all the things you could be having Wil.” You said, looking at him with a weak smile on your face.

He sighed and rest forehead on yours. “Two more weeks love. Then I’m done. I promise. Then you’ll have me for as long as you want. I have two and a half months off to be here with you and Meadow. We’ll do everything we can in that time. Go to America and visit your parents and sister? Sure why not! Go to France and see the Eiffel tower again but this time with Meadow and tell her all the stories? My dying wish. I want to do everything with my two girls. But wait just a little longer, darling. It’ll be worth it.” He said, kissing your forehead.

You smiled up at him and kissed him. The kiss was slow and passionate. The song was slowly ending in the background and a new song quickly came on. ‘Put your records on’ by Corinne Bailey Rae started playing as you both pulled away.

“One. Ew. Why in the middle of the kitchen too?! That’s just gross! And two! Where’s my dance daddy?!” You both turned to look at Meadow. Her bed head everywhere, her curls tangled with each others and made knots that’d be impossible to get out. ‘Hm. Reminds me of someone.’ You thought and looked at Wilbur’s hair who had the same situation going for him.

Wilbur let go of you and let you go save the food that surprisingly wasn’t burnt. He went over to Meadow, grabbed her from under her arms and twirled her around while placing her into his hip. He kissed her cheek a million times and tickled her stomach. They were both laughing and giggling with happiness. You turned around and smiled at the scene. He’s so good with her. Well you knew from the first day you found out you were pregnant, you knew he was going to be an amazing father. But this is different. They’re partners- in-crime. Batman and Robin. April and Ron. Jim and Pam. You can’t separate them. They compliment each other. They love each other. And you wouldn’t think about separating them in a million years.

“You want to dance then?” He asked her with a smile on his face.

“Yes! I want to dance with daddy!” He smiles and lets her hold onto his fingers. She smiles that bright big smile of hers as Wilbur starts singing the song. You’re just smiling at the scene in front of you. Not worried about the food or anything else. It was just the three of you.

“Mommy! Come on!” Meadow giggles at you, grabbing your attention.

You see Wilbur’s free arm opened up and his hand waves you to go over there. Meadows hand does the same.

“I’m coming my loves.” You said cleaning your hands.

You walked over to them both and wrap your arm around Wilbur’s waist and hold onto Meadow’s hand as Wilbur sways you three back and forth.

This. This is perfect.

This is home.

Taglist: @deadphantomsociety (if you want to be added here, message me:)

[nonagesimus]

Hiii for ur birthday prompts can you do something to do with Batman!Dick

thank uuuuu ana, enjoy!!

(AO3 link)

Maybe one day, Dick thinks for the umpteenth time, putting on the batsuit won’t feel like dressing up in his dad’s clothes.

It's funny, knowing the batsuit so well. Dick has seen every iteration of it; he's known every piece of padding, every trick to make the shoulders broader, the silhouette more intimidating. Still, on Bruce the façade never seemed to matter. On him it all seems painfully obvious. The lifts in the boots, the thick armour at the ribs, the arc of the cape. He looks like a kid in one of those stupid foam muscle-suit Halloween costumes.

"Grayson," comes sharply through the air, interrupting his train of thought. "We're behind schedule."

They're not. Insofar as they have a schedule, they're right on time. Still. It's a Robin's job to boss Batman round a bit. Dick had nearly a decade of being the bosser, it serves him right to be on the other side of it now.

"Alright," he says. "You know the route for today?"

"Tt." The kid's standing at attention by the batmobile. Too serious to do anything so base as to lean. "C-Alpha to B-Theta. It's Friday."

Dick hums approvingly, rounding to the driver's side. Fridays are busy, usually. It'll be good. Give him a chance to get lost in the work of it.

Especially since they haven’t had much in the way of real Rogue activity going on. It should hopefully just be muggings and burglaries, and simple things like that. A busy—but easy—night wavers like a dream in front of him as he starts the car and pulls into the tunnel that’ll lead them up from the Bunker. In the passenger side, Damian sits tense and ready. Maybe everything on Dick’s shoulder’s is too heavy, but they can still have a good day.

So, of course, they haven’t even reached their starting point for the night before the police radio starts filling up with something about Killer Croc tearing up Newtown with an angle towards Burnley, and they have to swing north. If anything, Damian’s more eager. Dick’s just tired.

Still. He has to muster up some enthusiasm for the kid.

“I think this is gonna be a whole crock of trouble, don’t you?”

“Tt.”

He grins, pulls into a parking space. Car alarms are blaring in the distance; it’s not too difficult to figure out what direction to head.

“Maybe a roaring good time.”

“Stop.”

“Whaddaya say we scale that apartment building so we can we can get a better look at what’s going on?”

“You’re a disgrace.”

But Damian does lead the way to the top of the apartment building. They get there right in time to watch Croc toss a motorcycle clear twenty feet down the road.

And that’s just the beginning.

They tranq Croc and wait around until a proper retrieval squad with heavy-duty restraints show up to cart him off. Then there’s a shootout in Chinatown with The Lucky Dragons and The Triad. Then a hold up at a 7-11, which feels like it was going to be a return to a normal night, but it turns out to just be a teenager who needs a little talking down, and Dick ends up paying for the groceries he was trying to steal, and letting him know where a good food bank was, while Damian—spoiling for more of a fight—fumes.

“This isn’t what Batman should be,” he says, once they’re back on the rooftops, tone stiff and disapproving.

“Why?” Dick asks, mildly.

There’s still a bit of a division between the idea of Batman and the reality, with Damian. It hasn’t helped that Bruce is—Well. It just means that Dick is failing to live up to what Batman should be. Now that Bruce is gone, Damian doesn’t have to confront Bruce not being what he expected anymore. He can blame it all on Dick. Maybe that idea isn’t fair. The kid’s doing fine. He’s just still adjusting.

“We fight crime,” Damian says.

“Eh,” Dick shrugs. “I like to think of it as we help people.”

Damian scoffs but doesn’t comment more. Really, on the leaderboard of Batman’s Legacy fights, it ranks pretty low.

Part of him wants to counter, to push. To ask about Robin, since he had to have bit more authority on that. Instead he takes them the long way to get back on-route, through all the up and down on the edge of Old Gotham and the Diamond District. Maybe it was just adrenaline and exertion making Damian breathless at the end of the run, but Dick can dream it’s exhilaration too. And that was close enough to talking about it.

He’s about to call it for the night when there’s another call—Upper East Side, this time, a classic mob bar shootout—and when the clean up’s finally done, Dick says, “Maybe Batman stands for overworking yourself, actually.”

Damian sniffs and says, “You simply lack conditioning,” but he’s drooping.

“We can work on it together,” Dick says, dryly. “It’s still time to head back.”

On the drive, Damian falls victim to the time-honoured Robin tradition of falling asleep in the batmobile. He’s subtle enough about it that Dick almost doesn’t notice; just his arms folded, his chin tipping down towards his chest. Dick doesn’t know what he looked like when he fell asleep in the car as a kid. He’d just come to getting scooped out of the seat, barely wake up enough to change out of the suit and shower. Tim he got to carry himself a few times. Kid would sleep through it and they’d end up having to take him all the way upstairs. Jason he only saw it happen once—He’d been talking and Bruce had slowly started to modulate the volume of their conversation down. It’d clicked, and Dick had looked over to see Jason slumped against the door, heavily enough that he’d wondered how they were going to get him out of there—Maybe he could hold the kid up and Bruce could open the door?—but Bruce had pulled into the Cave and Jason had woken up at the sound of the hand brake, blinking to full awareness and acting like nothing had happened.

Dick spends the whole drive back wondering what Damian will do. And what he should do; even if Damian is the stay asleep no matter what’s happening kind of kid, Dick doesn’t think he’d especially want to be carried all the way up to the penthouse. It doesn’t matter because he ends up being more like Jason. Dick pulls the batmobile into it’s space and turns the engine off and Damian opens the door and climbs out so smoothly Dick wouldn’t have known he’d been asleep if he hadn’t seen it.

“You did good today,” he says, as they make their way to the showers.

“Of course,” Damian says, “I’m in peak condition.”

Dick thinks about doing a lot of things. Damian’s still reluctant about what he considers childish, but they’re running at a rate of maybe three out of five times being interested in post-patrol ice cream now that they’ve figured out what kinds of flavours he likes. Dick could suggest they do something tomorrow, which they’d at least get to sleep before. The cape feels like it’s dragging his shoulders down, boots heavy every time he takes a step. Maybe, he thinks, Batman just means doing what you’re able when you’re able.

He ruffles Damian’s hair and says, “Wash up and get some rest, ok?”

Damian says, “You don’t need to micromanage,” but he doesn’t push the hand away that hard.

Dick heads to his own shower, takes off the batsuit, tries to pretend the weight isn’t still there.

[niceboyeds]

drunk sheep (e.m.)

pairing: Eddie x Fem!Reader(18yo)

word count: 3.5K

contains: fluff, underage drinking, handsy actions, swearing, mentions of weed, some bullying

summary: after ditching your friends at the party of the year, you find some new partiers and shows them how to have fun.

a/n: this turned out a bit differently than i originally intended, hope you like it :)

nav

~~~~~~

the laughter rings in your ears as you try your best to fake a smile and laugh along with your friends, never knowing why you can't just stick up for yourself. they continue joking, not realizing that their cruel comments feel like they're purposely trying to get a rise out of you.

your smile fades, you just can’t seem to keep it up any longer. instead you distract yourself by looking around the party, people watching. seeing cliques of all types in attendance.

that was the thing about going to school in such a small town. if there’s a party, mostly everyone is in attendance. the rival groups tend to stay on opposite sides of the house, everyone just wants to have a good time with no drama.

searching the crowd your eyes land on a group you recognized immediately. it was your boyfriend’s group, or at least some of them. a group for anyone and everyone, never seeming to discriminate based on how popular you are or what activities they do.

your boyfriend was not in attendance at this party, not something uncommon. he would’ve gone if you had asked but you told him not to cancel his band practice— that it was more important than hanging out with a bunch of wasted teenagers.

“where’s your freak boyfriend tonight? i don’t see him with his little mini freaks over there.” one of the girls slurs out, earning a roar of laughter from your so-called friends.

“did he have another cult meeting?”

“no the other weirdos would’ve been there too!”

that was the final straw. for them to make fun of you was one thing, but to call your boyfriend a freak after you asked them all to stop months ago on top of bringing the others into it, that crossed the line.

“you know what, fuck you guys. just because you’re single and miserable doesn’t mean you have to shit all over me all the fucking time!”

“woah calm down, it was only a joke!”

“no. no i don’t think it was. you constantly put me down and i won’t sit here and let it happen anymore. stay the fuck out of my business.”

you walk away from them, feeling a new-found confidence as you shoot back the rest of the punch you had in your plastic cup. walking into the kitchen you fill your cup again, immediately drinking every drop.

you weren’t planning on drinking much tonight, thinking you’d only have a cup or two, but you have a bad habit of letting your emotions get to you. it was either smack their snobby faces or drink the anger away. you chose the latter.

a couple cups later, you had calmed down. practically hovering the bowl of punch. you spot the young group again, smiling at how they were noticeably having a good time. you walk over to them, waving politely at the group of freshmen.

“hey guys!” you smile, earning a chorus of greetings and a hug from your favorite redhead.

“how are you guys enjoying your first high school party?” you tease, knowing they’re still babies and honestly shouldn’t be here, but you’ve been trying to watch out for them since you noticed them a bit ago.

“it’s so much fun! i’m sad Eddie had band practice tonight!” Dustin slurs his words and you notice a red cup in his hands.

you gasp, over-dramatically of course, “are you drinking??” their smiles fall, some of them tucking their cups behind their backs as their eyes go wide.

you can’t help it, they make it so easy to scare them and you laugh at their reactions. as soon as they realize it’s a joke they start to laugh as well.

“c’mon kids! you don’t think i drank at my first party too? just please promise me you’re being careful.”

“we are! Lucas and Will have been practically babysitting us all night long.” Max teases her sweet boyfriend, poking at his plastic water bottle.

“someone has to make sure we all leave in one piece!” he states, slightly defensive but it makes you smile. you’re so happy to see that they’re having fun and being young.

“as long as i’m not the babysitter again.” you giggle, recalling the last time you opted to watch the older half of the friend group while they got stoned at game night a few weeks ago.

“oh my god, Steve and Robin were so funny to watch!”

“until they almost fell in the pool!!” the kids all remember the evening as well and they laugh along with you.

“hey!” Max turns to you and shakes her empty cup. “wanna get a refill with me?” you contemplate, how many people will look down on your actions if you allow yourself to get drunk with 15 year olds?

screw it. they’ll either drink with you or alone and the first option seems like the safest choice.

“sure, anyone else coming?” you ask as you turn back towards the kitchen when Dustin follows, leaving the others to their conversation.

“hey, who’s picking you guys up tonight?” you ask, making sure they didn’t bike because there’s no way they’ll make it home on those things.

“no one, we walked!” Dustin beams, feeling proud of himself.

“what?? no! why didn’t you ask Steve or Nancy?”

“because they will literally never let us do anything fun ever again! i swear they are fun suckers!” Max complains, and you can’t help but laugh at how true that statement is.

“okay, okay. but I’m still not letting you walk home. let me make a call real quick, go back to the group.”

you had planned to go home with one of your “friends”, but seeing how you no longer want anything to do with them you figured you should sort out your ride situation as well.

finding a phone in the kitchen, you dial Gareth’s number, praying that he hears the phone over their music.

“hello?” oh thank god.

“hey! is Eddie still there?” you yell through the phone, trying your best to talk over the loudness around you and not slur your words.

“yeah, one sec.” you patiently wait for your boyfriend to come to the phone, but it doesn’t take long.

“hey baby, what’s going on??” he sounds worried, probably from knowing you’re at a party tonight and he’s not here to make sure you’re okay.

“hi!! i’m found a handful of your kids and was wondering if you can pick us up after your practice?”

“kids? what kids?” you giggle at his question before realizing he doesn’t call them kids.

“sheep!! your little sheep!” you laugh more while sipping on your drink.

“oh! okay yeah, i’ll be there a little later. you okay?”

“i’m great! watching after the sheepies and having fun.”

“how much have you had to drink?” he asks, totally trying to be a buzzkill over the phone. you see Max waving you down from across the kitchen, pointing at a bottle of vodka with a smirk on her face.

you knew you liked her most.

“gotta go, Max wants to take shots! love you!!” you hang up the line and finish what’s left in your cup to make room for the new liquid.

“have you ever taken a shot before, Maxy?” she shakes her head no, and you grin evilly. “okay, breathe in before you take it, swallow, and then breathe out through your nose.”

sure, just because you’re 18 doesn’t mean it’s necessarily wrong of you to teach the younger half of the group how to properly party. especially when all the other older friends act like parents. it’s nice to be the fun one.

you show her how to take it first, doing it with no reaction on your face other than a smile. she looks intimidated but tries her best to copy you. unfortunately she ends up gagging a little bit, but that’s nothing a chaser can’t fix.

heading back to the rest of the group you hold onto Max’s arm, everyone raises their eyebrows at you and you just laugh. “what? did someone else want to take a shot with us?”

the boys deliver looks of disgust which immediately makes you and Max giggle, looking at each other before she takes Lucas’ hand and drags him to the dance floor.

“El couldn’t come?” you ask Mike, who appears to be sulking a bit.

“you know how Hopper is, if he found out we’d all be dead.” you nod in agreement, knowing all too well how protective Hopper is of his daughter.

you continue making small talk with the boys, making sure to keep an eye out for Max and Lucas who appear to be having a great time. at this point, you are fully aware that you’re drunk. who knew being at a party with freshmen would be more fun than the clique you normally hang out with?

“Eddie!!!” you hear Dustin yell over the music, spinning around you see your sweet metal head boyfriend making his way through the sea of partygoers.

“Dustin! who the fuck is letting you drink dude?” he lectures, frowning at the boy who quickly sells you out with a point of his finger.

Eddie turns to you, a smile growing on his face. he could never be mad at you. “hi angel, having fun?” he leans down to kiss you, earning groans from the boys behind you which makes you giggle against his lips.

“hi baby! thanks for comin’ to get us.” you try your best to not slur your words but it’s no use, and he knows from the phone call that you’ve had quite a bit more to drink than usual.

“anything for you.” he’s being sweet, but you know he’s going to go all dad-mode just like Steve does in a minute. “but maybe we can get you some water?” there it is.

“um, you know… as much fun as that sounds i think i’d rather go dance with Maxers.” and you slip from his loose grip, immediately spotting the red headed girl.

“alright Lukey, it’s my turn! go back to the boys.” you tease, spinning him around once and pointing to the group. “Eds is here.” he smiles and kisses Max on the cheek before leaving you to dance with her.

“yay!! I was wondering when you’d come out here!” she beams, looking like she’s thoroughly enjoying her time. it’s refreshing to see her so happy.

after a little bit of dancing, she peaks over at the boys before smirking to you, “pst! they’re not looking! come on, can we do another shot??” she whispers in your ear as you look towards the group.

you’re feeling just as rebellious and a little more wouldn’t hurt, especially now that Eddie is here to watch over the kids. “okay… maybe one more, but then we should probably stop.”

that’s all she needs to hear before yanking you away from the crowd and pulling you into the kitchen. she asks you to teach her one more time to properly take a shot, and proceeds to mimic you. she successfully downs the liquor before giving you a high-five.

“that doesn’t look like dancing.” you turn to see Eddie right behind you, still smiling despite your slight rebellion because he cannot help but be totally and utterly obsessed with you. “i’m starting to think you’re a bad influence on these kids.”

you put a hand over your heart with a gasp, pretending to be hurt by his little attempt to tease you. “i’m the best influence!” you tell him while simultaneously refilling your cup of punch.

“ugh we should start calling you Mr. Fun Sucker number two!!” Max giggles, teasing your boyfriend before you had the chance, following your actions by refilling her own cup.

“who’s number one, red?”

“it’s Steve!” you answer with a laugh, knowing exactly who she was talking about.

“rude!!” he pokes at her, knowing it’s all fun. “i think it’s time we head out, yeah?” you comply with a nod before downing the rest of your drink, following him out of the kitchen while holding Max’s hand to not lose her.

“where are the boys??” you ask, searching the empty wall where you had left them. you must look extra worried because Eddie squeezes your hand.

“already sent them to the van, baby. it’s okay.” you nod and continue following, walking outside where it’s much quieter.

“uhh… Eds? I don’t think they’re in the van…” you point to where Dustin is laying in the grass, Will urging him to get up while Mike appears to be drinking from a cup he definitely didn’t have earlier.

“are you kidding me?! you two, please get in the car!” he groans, letting go of your hand and pointing you to the vehicle while marching over to the boys. his hands being thrown about while he is no doubt scolding the boys again.

“amateurs.” Max slurs while you pull her along the driveway to the parked van. the two of you are still giggling at the sight until Lucas’ head pops out of the open back door of Eddie’s familiar van.

“Lucas!” she yells his name and his face immediately lights up. he is taking in every second of this, knowing Max isn’t typically one for affection. drunk Max on the other hand, oh she’s head over heels for this boy.

“alright, get in there.” you tell them, turning to see if Eddie has corralled the other boys.

Will drags Dustin by his arm, appearing to use all his strength. meanwhile Eddie is pushing Mike’s head to make sure he continues walking while also talking to him. you can’t make out what he’s saying until they get closer.

“I don’t care where you found it Mike! you don’t take random cups off the ground and drink from them!!”

“ew Michael! that’s so gross!” you join in the lecture, helping the boys into the back of the van with the other two.

once the door is closed and the teens are all stowed away, Eddie sighs heavily— clearly annoyed.

“you’re gonna make a great dad.” slightly slurring your words as your arms wrap around his neck and you feel his body relax against you.

“yeah? you think so?” his embrace pushes your back against the van.

“I know so.” feeling slightly scandalous, you lean into his ear, lightly brushing your lips over it as you whisper, “god, you’re so hot. you know what I think we should do?”

“I uh— I think you’re drunk and need to go to bed.”

“I think I know exactly what I want.” your lips trail down his neck, sucking on a spot you know drives him crazy and he can’t help but groan. you keep going until you are interrupted by a knock on the window and a voice starts yelling at the two of you.

“get a room!!” Dustin shouts before the others erupt into laughing fits.

“c’mon, let’s get these monsters home.” he walks over to your door, helping you climb in and reaching over you with the seatbelt.

“okay. where are we taking you guys?” he looks to Will and Lucas once he joins everyone inside, buckling himself up.

“uh… yeah so about that...” oh no, what now??

“we didn’t exactly think that all far ahead…”

“where do your parents think you are??” you ask them, shocked they didn’t have this figured out being nerds and all.

“Max’s mom is working nights, Dustin is supposed to be at Lucas’, Lucas is supposed to be at Mike’s—” Will drones on and you look over to Eddie, who is laying his head on the steering wheel.

“remind me to teach you guys how to plan an alibi.” you can't help but roll your eyes at them, contemplating what to do next.

“let’s just take them to my house, hun. my parents are out of town this weekend.” you tell him while rubbing his back. “sleep over at mine, kids?” everyone agrees and Eddie starts up the van.

to keep yourself entertained on the drive, you play with Eddie’s fingers. twisting his rings around and scratching off the faded nail polish he let you paint on him a week ago.

you can hear the silence behind the two of you and know that they are all probably either asleep or at falling asleep. you feel yourself start to nod off along with them, loosening your grip on your boyfriend’s hand but you immediately open your eyes wide and readjust yourself in the seat.

“it’s okay, baby. you can sleep. i’ll take care of everything.” his hand slips from yours and he places it on your thigh, rubbing gently.

“no, i’m okay.” a yawn forces its way out of your mouth but you shake it away. “gonna help you.”

you come up with another idea to keep yourself awake. peaking to the back and seeing them all sleeping, you shift once again in your seat. turning your body more to face Eddie and reaching one of your hands out to touch him. 

you place your hand on his thigh, slowly making its way up to the waistband of his black jeans. you keep fiddling with it, sneaking a finger or two under randomly and circling the button with your thumb.

“what are you doing?” he glances over to you, forcing you to bat your eyelashes innocently.

“nothin’ baby.” you bring your hand down to the crotch of his pants and he clears his throat, grabbing your hand to stop you. earning a small whine in protest.

“as exciting as this is, you’re drunk and we have 5 others to take care of tonight.”

“i’m not drunk.” you huff at him, trying to get him to believe you.

“you’re also a bad liar.” he teases and holds your hand with his and brings it up to his lips for a kiss.

“fine… tomorrow then?” you smirk, making him hide a laugh so you don’t get upset with him.

“yes baby, tomorrow.” you hold out your little finger to him, making him pinky promise and this time he can't cover up his chuckle.

thankfully the sleepy teens in the back don't fight the two of you when you tell them to go inside your house. you gather all the spare blankets and pillows, making a bed for everyone on the floor. you can't help but smile at how sweet Eddie looks while helping you tuck them in.

“got a starrin’ problem?” he asks as he pulls the last blanket over them. he didn't even have to look at you to feel your eyes beaming into the back of his head.

a blush creeps onto your face when he starts walking toward you. he wraps you up in his arms, cradling your head and you nuzzle into his neck and you whisper, “I love you.”

“I love you too.” he smiles against your head, laughing when your stomach growls. “hungry?” you nod, pulling him into the kitchen.

“whatcha makin’ me?” you ask, hopping onto the counter.

“oh, so you want me to do all the work?” he teases you with another smile.

“i’m thinkin’ grilled cheese.” you suggest, and he gets to work with no complaints, frying up the request in a small pan just how you like it. he cuts it in half and you eagerly bite into the crunchy sandwich, blowing steam out of your mouth when it nearly burns your tongue.

“be careful!” he whisper-yells, taking the other half in his hand and doing the exact same thing. you laugh loudly and he shushes you while also trying to stop his own laughter, parking his body in between your legs.

“god I love you.” you sigh, leaning your forehead against his chest and still taking bites of your grilled cheese.

“me or the sandwich?”

“both.”

“I love you more.” he kisses your head and you sit up, a grumpy look on your face, “what?”

“take that back right now.” you poke him hard, making him lean back a little bit but you wrap your legs around his waist before he can fully move away. you keep poking him, waiting for him to say the words.

“okay I take it back!”

“good. because I think we love each other the same.”

“you’re right baby.” you smile at his agreement and a yawn slips out. “alright, why don't we get you to bed?” all you have to do is hold out your arms to him before he lifts you off the counter and carries you to your bedroom.

“are you gonna stay?” you ask as he helps slips your pajama top on, folding down your duvet to help you into the bed.

“want me to?”

“that’s a silly question.” you scoot over, waiting for him to pull off his jeans and t-shirt and he does so without a second thought. it’s part of a routine at this point, him sleeping over at your house or vice versa.

he joins you under the covers and clicks off the lamp on your bedside table. it doesn't take long before you’re both turned on your sides spooning. you move his hand from your waist to your breast and he lowly laughs at the action.

“don’t forget about your pinky promise, pretty boy.”

[seeinginthedark]

What is written in this blog is the same as what I say in this 7 minute video .

The topic is the benefits of transmuting actual demons .

I want to say something based on my experience with demons . I think it’s a bit controversial what I’m about to say … they are sort of like a part of us … when we go through a horrible trauma , especially as children … sometimes a demon attaches itself to us as part of our darkness. They attach and become part of that darkness . As a way of protecting us. But sometimes it takes over and causes us harm or pushes people away. Makes us do dark things. What I’ve learned is that You can actually tell your demon that you don’t need it anymore to step in because u aren’t a young child anymore needing protection. Healing from your trauma will intergrate the demon to work with you and not against you . That’s how I managed my trauma demons , I transmuted them into my whole entire self so they work for me now and don’t haunt me or push others away . To heal from my trauma I did quite a few different healing methods . I won’t list them in this video. Different methods of healing work for different people. You can try a few different things to see what works for you I did a lot of screaming . It helped me . I learned to accept my darkness, I realised its value and potential . Accepting it means you need to release any guilt , shame or doubt that you have . When you get depressed or anxious or low vibe, don’t try to numb it away with things. Let it pass through you .

I found with demons , true ones, you can make them submit and work for you for your benefit.

Some Demons are enamoured with us, I feel. They want to like merge with us and assist us but they act out like a disobedient child in need of authority . We show them authority , they submit . I’m learning more and more that this is true . If it doesn’t work this way for you , showing authority and they Lee doing evil things , then maybe what we are dealing with, isn’t a demon or an earth bound spirit . It’s something else more evil . But what is more evil than a demon, you might ask. Well,

An inter dimensional “ being “or “entity “ or a collective group of entities from another dimension. That are here to torment us AND our demons . Suppress our powers . Or disrupt the connection between us and our “helpful” demons.

I believe reptilians and most of the aliens are worse than demons , but they are sometimes referred to AS demons. So the whole terminology is confusing at times . Organised institutional religion really confused it for us.

I’ve been trying to categorising these entities, beings and demons for some time now.

And if we are dealing with reptilians or other nasty inter dimensional beings , than there is a that they have done one of these three things :

1/ they have made alliances with demons and are like “contracting” them out to do fucked up shit to certain humans . Such as the “chosen ones” or I refer to them as the “spiritual warriors” in my other videos .

Secondly

2/ they are maybe blackmailing demons into doing evil things to us or tricking them into doing it

Or

3/ they are using advanced technology which is out of our current understanding , to do evil shit to you. And it isn’t a demon attack .

Another point I want to address is this:

They potentially are able to give us false visions and false prophecies to get us off track of our true missions. And I have to maybe face the fact that they have done this to me , and this “ancestor mission” that im on is false and a waste of time for me.

I want my demons to make an alliance with others , to make us strong. I’m prepared to go to the Underworld to muster up an army of them if I have to. In some ways , I think I may already have done that . I’ve come to the conclusion now that my ancestors aren’t around me anymore . But they’ve left spirit minders around me and my family . Like Djinns. For protection during the spiritual war. We need all the help we can get in this war against these interdimensionals . Perhaps, reptilians . Who I suspect have upgraded themselves to be semi robotic now.

So how I see it in this war we have humans and spirits and demons on one side and on the other we have interdimensional beings with advanced technological weaponry, that may or may not be in control of some demons .

I believe they are the ones that gave King Solomon his “magic ring” that could control Djinn. It wasn’t a magic ring , it was advanced technology . And they weren’t all evil Djinn. They were spirits of Earth, some of them.

So it’s a battle for Earth and humans of Earth .

[babygirl-diaz]

Help Me Hold Onto You (Buddie Omegaverse fanfic)

((Based on this prompt I got in my ask: after Eddie gives birth, he is insecure about his body and Buck shows him how attractive he is. This fic contains mpreg so you've been warned!!!))

***

Buck smiled as he watched Eddie cooing to their 1-month-old daughter while holding her close to his chest and feeding her. The omega looked exhausted. He was barely getting any sleep. Both of them were barely getting any sleep. Having a baby at home meant that they were on her schedule. But something else was off about Eddie lately. Buck couldn’t put a finger on it. He recoiled from Buck’s touches, his kisses, like had been burned. Initially, Buck thought it was because he was tired and needed some space after the delivery but now the alpha wasn’t so sure. 

Eddie got out of bed with Cheyanne and put her in her crib. He kept his face and body turned away from Buck as he buttoned up his shirt. Buck went over to him and wrapped his arms around the omega who tensed. Buck didn’t let him go though. He instead buried his face in Eddie’s neck and sniffed his scent glands. “You’re so perfect,” he whispered. “I love you.” 

“Buck,” Eddie squirmed in his arms before pulling away. “Our daughter is the one who is perfect,” he said dismissing him. 

Buck frowned slightly. “Yeah, she is, but so are you.” 

Eddie scoffed and pushed past Buck to go to the bathroom. He didn’t lock the door so Buck went after him and closed the door behind him. 

“What are you doing?” Eddie asked. “Wait your turn. I am going to take a shower.” 

“Maybe we can save water and take a shower together like we used to,” Buck suggested. 

Eddie frowned at him. “That always ended with us having sex.” 

“And that’s bad why?” Buck asked confused. 

“Buck, I’ve just had a baby,” Eddie replied. 

“Yes, a month ago.” 

Eddie scoffed at him .“Well, I’m sorry, how much time do you think is appropriate for me to recover?” 

“Eddie, that’s not-” Buck let out an exasperated sound. “-that’s not what I meant. You can take as much time as you want to recover. But I think there is something wrong.” 

“What do you mean?” Eddie’s frown deepened. 

“I mean, you won’t let me touch you anymore.” When he noticed Eddie was about to take offense to what he said, he quickly added, “Not just sexually. You won’t let me touch you. Period.” 

“I have a lot on my plate, Buck. Excuse me if having sex with you doesn’t take top priority.” 

“I told you this isn’t about sex,” Buck tried telling him again. 

Eddie let out a sigh. “Please. Just go, Buck. I want to shower in peace.” 

It took Buck a month but he finally, finally, noticed something. Eddie refused to take off his clothes in his presence. He was actually waiting for Buck to leave. That’s when he also noticed how Eddie wore more baggy clothes these days. Long-sleeved shirts that were double his size and large sweats that were too big for his hips. 

“Are you leaving or what?” Eddie asked annoyed. 

“Eddie, take off your clothes,” Buck said instead and refused to budge. 

Eddie looked at him like a deer caught in headlights. “What?” 

“Take off your clothes,” Buck repeated himself.

“What part of I’m tired and don’t wanna have sex do you not understand?” Eddie sounded even more annoyed now. 

“I don’t wanna have sex,” Buck told him. “I just want you to take your clothes off. In front of me.” 

“No,” Eddie replied simply. 

“Why not?” 

Eddie gave him another exasperated look. “Because I don’t want to.”

“There has to be a reason for that,” Buck continued to push him as he got closer to him. 

“I don’t need a reason to refuse to take off my clothes for you,” Eddie told him. 

“Yeah, you do. You’ve never been shy about taking off your clothes before.” 

“Because that’s before my body became this- this horrible!!” 

Eddie’s outburst had Buck stop in his tracks and look at him like he had grown a second head. 

“Eddie, what the hell are you talking about?” 

“I love our daughter and I don’t for a second regret having her but I didn’t expect pregnancy to take such a toll on my body,” Eddie explained and he looked so dejected and embarrassed that it broke Buck’s heart. “I’ve got this ugly ass scar from the C-section and my stomach is all flabby and has lost its form.” 

“Eddie, since when do you care about that?” Buck asked. 

“I know it’s superficial but I just don’t feel comfortable in my body anymore!” Eddie told him. “You wouldn’t understand.” 

“I know this isn’t the same thing but,” Buck started to say. “I was a little chubby when I was a teenager and I hated my body. So I started starving myself.” 

“You never told me this,” Eddie pointed out. ‘Then what happened?” 

“One of the teachers realized this and talked to my parents about it,” Buck shrugged

“And?”

“And my parents being my parents didn’t really care and just told me to eat something,” Buck replied. 

“Your parents are a piece of work,” Eddie said through gritted teeth. “But how did you get comfortable with your body?”

“Maddie helped me. The teacher then told her and she made sure that I knew that there was nothing wrong with me. That I was perfect the way I was.” Buck gave Eddie a pointed look as he stopped next to him. “Let me do the same for you, Eds.”

Eddie gave him an unsure look. “I don’t know about that.”

“Do you trust me?” Buck asked 

“More than anything,” Eddie replied without missing a beat. 

“Then trust me on this,” Buck said, going for Eddie’s shirt. “May I?” 

Eddie looked hesitant but then he nodded. 

Buck took off Eddie’s shirt and tossed it aside. He wanted to tell Eddie how beautiful he was but he needed him to believe him. So he turned Eddie around, facing him towards the mirror as he got behind him. 

“Buck,” Eddie said desperately and looked away from the mirror. 

“Eddie, look at yourself. Please.”

Eddie slowly looked at himself in the mirror.

Buck didn’t say anything. Instead, he kissed Eddie’s shoulder and ran his hands down Eddie’s sides. He then kissed the back of his neck, followed by his other shoulder. 

He then turned Eddie to the side and gently kissed his lips before kissing the scar on his shoulder from the bullet wound 4 years ago, “This scar tells the story of how you survived,” he said kissing it again. There was another similar scar on his other shoulder, which was from another bullet wound from his time in Afghanistan. “This also tells the story of how you survived one of the toughest periods of your life.” 

He kept kissing down his body, His lips trailed down Eddie’s stomach which made Eddie gasp and gently push at his shoulders. 

“Did I hurt you?” Buck asked looking up at Eddie from where he was on his knees. 

“No, but it’s just- I don’t know-” Eddie said unsurely. 

Buck pushed Eddie’s sweats below his pelvis. “This scar right here,” Buck said hovering his finger over the C-section scar below his navel. “...it represents the beautiful life you brought into this world.” 

Buck placed kisses all over Eddie’s stomach. He then got up and pulled Eddie kissing his lips deeply. He turned him towards the mirror again and looked at him through it. “You’re gorgeous, Eddie. Doesn’t matter if you have an 8-pack or not. You’re beautiful inside and out. And I wish you could see that.” 

Buck noticed tears in Eddie’s eyes. 

“I don’t feel beautiful,” Eddie admitted and his voice sounded so broken. “I don’t know if I ever will.” 

“You will,” Buck assured him. “I will stand here right beside you and show you every day just how beautiful you are if that’s what it takes.”  

[kindlythevoid]

Okay, so I was watching the latest episode of Percy Jackson and I was thinking it over when it hit me— Percy Jackson is a Greek Myth.

Now bear with me here, I know how it sounds.

Yes, Percy Jackson is based off Greek Mythology, and the subsequent series(es) are based off their own respective mythos. Yes, the Percy Jackson books follow specific Greek Myths, we all know this. Odyssey, as it was so elegantly pointed out in the newest episode, Theseus in the Labyrinth, etc., etc. Someone else has mentioned this before, so I won’t get into because that… isn’t my point.

My point is that the story of Percy Jackson also functions as a Greek Myth. Tell me your favorite Myth. I’m sure a lot of you will have an overlap. I’m also sure that a lot of you will be telling the story differently. Same story, different details. We all know the fifty different versions of Persephone/Hades, Orpheus/Eurydice, the whole Achilles/Patroclus fiasco… the list really could go on and on. Books have their own takes on it, movies have their own takes, hell, there’s even a few musicals that have thrown their hat in the ring. Even the writers, the orators, whatever you want to call them, back in the day, thousands of years ago, had differing interpretations! And, here’s the kicker, because of its genre as a myth, because it’s about themes over details… at their core, all of them are valid.

Did Persephone wander into the Underworld? Was she wooed by Hades in a pasture? Did the earth swallow her up on Hades’ command? Ultimately, it doesn’t matter. In the end, it snows. Crops die. She’s there for a few months out of the year, every year, and so the seasons change. You can play this game with every myth.

Including Percy.

Now, I must admit that ideas like this have absolutely been floating around; the idea being that the show and the book share the same themes, just updated for a modern audience. I’m just doing my best to expound on that.

Let me try my hand at this, and correct me if I’m wrong.

Percy Jackson is about a boy, a pawn of the gods in a game he doesn’t want to play except not playing means that everyone he loves suffers. His fatal flaw is loyalty, so he plays along.

Annabeth Chase is about a girl who wants permanence. She’s smart, viciously so, but because of how she looks, people demean her. Her fatal flaw is pride, which damns her as much as it helps her survive.

Which one am I talking about? The book or the show? The musical? It shouldn’t matter, they all have the same core theme.

It doesn’t matter whether Hermes is in the Casino or not, it doesn’t matter whether Mrs. Dodds tries to kill Percy in the Museum or right outside of it. The important part is that the Casino delays their trip, and they get a taxi to make it the rest of the way. The important part is that Dodds is Percy’s first vivid experience with the Greek world.

Anyway, I won’t beat a dead horse (anymore). I just think it’s cool that Percy was able to evolve into the exact story he was emulating.

[illbeyourreasonwhy]

when the time comes, baby don't run (part 3)

(listen, we're just going to ignore how this update is over two years late, okay?)

Part 1

Part 2

*

“How was your date?”

“It wasn’t,” Alex answers, the words sticking to the back of his throat.

“Dude, you’re still pretending it wasn’t a date? I’m telling you –”

“He didn’t show up.”

Luke, Reggie and Julie all freeze, staring at him with varying levels of shock and confusion.

“What do you mean he didn’t show up?”

“I mean he didn’t show up,” Alex says, swallowing so his voice won’t crack. “I went there, and I waited, and he never… he never showed up.”

His voice breaks at the end. He squeezes his eyes shut, hating it, and when he opens them Julie’s look of indignation has molded into something sadder, sorrier, and she extends an arm to him. And as much as Alex doesn’t want the pitying looks he is sure to receive from the three of them, he is feeling pretty terrible and is in need of comfort, so he joins her on the couch, allowing her to wrap an arm around him and to card a hand through his hair while he rests his head against her shoulder.

“But you were gone for over two hours,” Reggie says, sounding almost as upset as Alex feels. “You waited for him for two hours?”

Alex swallows, feeling incredibly stupid, and doesn’t answer. Julie’s arm tightens around him and he turns his head to bury it in her shoulder, hiding away from the world. She shifts a little, no doubt exchanging looks with the boys over his shoulder. Alex doesn’t have the energy to care about that right now.

“Are you okay?” Reggie asks cautiously, which is really a stupid question based on Alex’s current everything, so he doesn’t bother answering.

Reggie sighs and moves closer, so that Alex is sandwiched between him and Julie, and that’s actually comforting, so he moves away from Julie’s shoulder to offer him a small smile. Reggie smiles back, just as small and sad, and reaches over to squeeze his arm gently.

Next to them, Luke is fuming.

“I can’t believe this,” he rants, pacing angrily. “How could he – how dare he ask you out and then bail on you? Who does that?”

“Luke,” Alex starts wearily, “it’s okay –”

“No!” Luke shoots back. “No, it’s not okay! You deserve better than to be stood up on your first date, which he asked you out on, by the way –”

“Luke,” Julie says sharply, and he stops. “Sit down.”

Luke doesn’t move for a beat, then huffs and stomps his way over to the couch, dumping himself onto the armrest next to Julie. He still looks outraged, but he’s not ranting anymore, and Alex shoots Julie a grateful smile. As much as he appreciates Luke being upset on his behalf, he can’t deal with the anger right now. Maybe tomorrow. But not right now.

She squeezes his shoulder in answer, then straightens up, dragging Alex with her. “Do you want to do something?” she asks him.

“Do something?” he repeats blankly.

“You know, like play a game or watch a movie or something, to take your mind off things.”

It suddenly occurs to him that it’s past ten o’clock on a school night, and that Julie definitely waited up on him to see how his date went. He thinks he probably would have been embarrassed by that if things had actually gone well, but right now, the fact that she is here, that she is hugging him and offering to stay up even longer just to try to cheer him up, makes him so damn grateful for her.

“Shouldn’t you get to bed soon?” he asks anyways, just to give her an out.

“What are you, my dad?”

She rolls her eyes and holds his gaze for a few seconds, just to make a point. Then she smiles a little and shrugs, nodding imperceptibly as if to tell him it’s okay, he’s worth staying up for.

So damn grateful.

“Ooh!” Reggie says, sitting up excitedly and jostling Alex in the process. “Can we watch Big Hero Six?”

“It’s up to Alex,” Julie says, still looking at him. “Do you want to watch it?”

What Alex wants is to see Willie, to ask him why he stood him up on a date he asked Alex out on. That, or he wants to get behind his drums and play as hard as he can until the sun comes up, until his sticks break and his hands are raw, until his heart stops feeling like it might tear itself open every time he breathes.

But he can’t do either of those things right now, not unless he wants to wake up the entire neighborhood, so he nods and shuffles closer to Julie.

“Yeah. Yeah, okay.”

They turn the movie on, and Alex is too busy feeling sorry for himself to fully take in what is happening on screen, but he’s tucked between Julie and Reggie with Luke sitting at his feet and resting against his legs, and he thinks that maybe, just maybe, he’s going to be okay.

It’s going to hurt like hell for a while before that, though.

*

Alex doesn’t see Willie over the next two days. He doesn’t exactly go looking for him, either. Lately, Willie was always the one to seek him out, but he is staying away now.

Considering the fact that Willie was about 50% of his social life, Alex finds himself now having a lot of time on his hands. That isn’t helped by the fact that the other 50%, the band, don’t seem to be around much either. Julie is in school most of the time, and Luke and Reggie keep mysteriously disappearing for hours at a time. Alex has his suspicions as to where they might be sneaking off to, but he doesn’t have to heart to call them out on it, so he lets them be.

Until –

“We have a confession.”

He looks up from the guitar – he was using this extra free time to strum a tune; he’s no Luke, but he’s half-decent – to meet the slightly sheepish looks in Reggie and Luke’s eyes.

“Oh, you’re back,” he comments. “Next time you two decide to go gallivanting together on a band getaway, maybe let your drummer know beforehand.”

“Yeah, about that…”

“That’s what the confession is about.”

Alex watches as they hesitantly sit across from him; Luke looks jittery, his leg bouncing more than usual, while Reggie won’t meet his gaze, twiddling with his ring.

“We kind of … went looking for Willie.”

They both wait, apparently anticipating a big reaction of some kind – maybe tears, or anger, Alex doesn’t know. But he only sighs.

“Yeah, I know.”

“What?”

Reggie stops wincing to instead stare at him, dumbfounded, while Luke looks utterly confused. “Since when?”

“Since you two started disappearing right after Willie stood me up? It wasn’t hard to connect the dots.” The boys at least have the decency to look a little bit sheepish. “What I don’t get is why.”

“Why what?”

“Why did you go looking for him?”

Luke stares at him as if it were obvious, while Reggie shrugs.

“To give him hell for messing you around?”

It sounds like a question by the end of his sentence, his voice getting more and more hesitant as he watches Alex’s face react to this information.

Alex groans.

“No. Guys, no. Tell me you didn’t go fight Willie on my behalf or something as stupid as that.”

“We didn’t!” Reggie hurries to say.

“Because we didn’t find him,” Luke adds. “That’s kind of why we’re here. We were wondering if you knew where he might be?”

“I’m not telling you guys where you can ‘give him hell’,” Alex states firmly. “He’s a good guy, I’m not going to let you haunt him.”

“A good guy who stood you up,” Luke mutters.

That stings. He knows Luke didn’t say that to hurt him, though, that he is only upset on his behalf, so he just sighs.

“I don’t need you to fight my battles.”

“Then come with us! I mean, you must want to give him a piece of your mind, right?”

“Not really,” he lies. “And if I did, I wouldn’t use that as an excuse to harass him.”

“We’re not harassing him,” Luke huffs.

“We haven’t even found him,” Reggie points out. “But yeah, it’s not about that. We just think he owes you an explanation.” He looks at Alex with a wounded sort of sadness. “Don’t you want an explanation?”

Yes. Yes, he does. He wants to know why Willie asked him out only not to show. He wants to know if he did something, if there’s a reason Willie has been avoiding him for two days. He wants to know if everything they had meant anything to Willie, the way it did – does – to him. He wants to know if Willie knew that Alex was going to sit on the beach and wait for two hours for him.

“He is the one who stood me up,” he says after a long moment, ignoring the way the words pain him. “If he wants to explain, he can come on his own. He knows where to find me, and we clearly don’t.”

The others must be able to tell he means it, because they don’t mention that he could probably find Willie, and instead let the matter drop.

They don’t bring up Willie at all, actually, until the next day during rehearsal. Willie is noticeably absent, which hasn’t happened in a while, but no one mentions it. That is, until Alex can’t handle the way everyone seems to be walking on eggshells around him and he snaps, slamming on his drums a fraction too loud and causing everyone to turn to him in alarm.

“Stop doing that,” he snaps. “Stop hovering, stop glancing at each other when you think I don’t notice, and stop looking at me like I’m going to break.” He notices the way Reggie withdraws into himself and winces, forcing himself to lower his voice. “I’m sorry,” he says, quieter. “I didn’t mean to yell. But I’m fine, so please stop acting like I’m not, because all it’s doing is making me think about why he’s not here, which then makes me mess up the songs.”

It’s quiet for a beat, then Luke says, “Yeah, dude, I wasn’t going to say anything, but you kind of botched the whole pre-chorus there.”

His voice is light, teasing, although his eyes are still searching for any sign of distress on Alex’s part. But Alex feels himself smile, relieved to slip back into familiar territory.

“Yeah, because you guys’ fretting is throwing me off my game,” he shoots back, although there is no heat to his words this time. “So can we try that again?”

“Actually, let’s take five,” Julie says, standing up. “We’ve been at it for hours, and my voice will break if I don’t drink water right now.”

She pats Alex on the arm as she passes him but other than that doesn’t say anything, which he appreciates. The same can’t be said for Flynn, who is sitting on the couch.

“So, I only caught parts of that rant, you were kind of flickering,” she says, leaning forward, “but I’m assuming it was about Willie?”

Alex shrugs, not in the mood to open up about this, but she goes on, undeterred.

“How are you doing?”

“Peachy,” he replies.

She snorts, then her face goes back to serious. “Seriously, I’m sorry about what happened. Willie seemed really into you.”

“And how would you know?” he says, a little shortly, but sue him, he doesn’t want to talk about this.

Besides, Flynn doesn’t seem bothered. “We talk,” she says simply, apparently missing the four curious looks this causes the others to send her. “Well, talked. I haven’t heard from him in a few days. Otherwise I would have chewed him out for standing you up.”

Alex feels something in him soften at her words. He likes Flynn, but they aren’t close by any means, and they haven’t really had the chance to ever properly talk. But the fact that she is loyal to him enough to be willing to talk to Willie on his account means a lot.

“You don’t have to do that,” he says, though, because she doesn’t, and because he already told Luke and Reggie off for wanting to do the same thing.

“Yeah, well, he didn’t have to be an asshole to you,” Luke cuts in.

“But that’s the thing,” Alex says, frowning, because something doesn’t add up, “he’s not an asshole. He’s a good guy, and I don’t get why he would just stand me up and then ghost me afterwards.”

Flynn looks pensive, and she must be taking this seriously if she won’t even comment on his use of ‘ghost’.

“Maybe he didn’t mean to, and now he’s embarrassed,” she says hesitantly, although she herself doesn’t look like she really believes it.

“Didn’t mean to?” Julie repeats dubiously.

“Yeah, maybe it was an accident,” she says, sounding a little surer of herself. “Maybe he lost track of time or something. I mean, that’s what happened to you guys at that club the night of the dance, right?”

And just like that, Alex feels the ground give way under his feet.

Not literally; he’s still standing here, in the middle of the studio, but he can’t see Flynn in front of him, can’t hear Luke speaking next to him. Everything around him seems distant, faraway, as he stumbles with the weight of his realisation.

“Caleb,” he gets out.

Suddenly Julie is there, bracing a hand against his chest, and his vision clears enough to focus on the worry in her face.

Somehow, he manages to pull himself together, take in his friends’ expressions. Based on the looks on their faces, they’ve reached the same conclusion he has, but he still needs to say it out loud.

“Caleb – Caleb must have found out. He must have found out that Willie helped us, that he told us about the stamps and he helped us with the Orpheum and he’s been coming here and god, that’s why he didn’t show up, that’s why he hasn’t been around, Caleb has him somewhere and that’s why you couldn’t find him…”

His voice is ragged and his breath is coming in short, desperate gulps. Julie’s hand is still on his chest, her other cupping his cheek as she tries to get his eyes to meet hers instead of darting furiously from place to place.

“Breathe, Alex,” he hears Reggie say.

But how can he breathe with the knowledge that Willie is out there, at Caleb’s mercy, has been for days and Alex didn’t even notice because he was too busy feeling sorry for himself?

“Alex,” Julie says seriously, calling for his attention. “Look at me.”

He does.

He does, and when he meets her gaze she reaches for his hand and squeezes, taking a deep breath and indicating for him to do the same. He takes a breath, and then another, and then another, and the buzzing in his ears slowly fades out and he can focus on his surroundings again. Julie looks relieved to see him back to himself, squeezing his hand again.

“We don’t know that’s what happened,” she reasons.

And she’s right, of course, this is just a theory, they don’t know that Caleb found Willie out, but they don’t know that he didn’t, either.

“We can go looking for him,” Reggie adds. “Do you know any of his hiding spots, anywhere he might look for shelter?”

It’s an eerie echo of what he asked not a day ago, and Alex could kick himself for bailing on looking for Willie just because he was sulking. For goodness’ sake, he knew that Willie was worried about Caleb, they talked about it not even a week ago –

He can’t focus on that right now, though. Reggie is right, they can go looking now, make sure that this didn’t actually happen. Now that Alex is coming back to himself, all he can think of is that he needs to see Willie, right now, to make sure that he is okay.

He chances a look towards Julie, feeling slightly guilty about ending an already subpar rehearsal, but she is already nodding.

“Go,” she says.

He poofs away the next moment.

He ends up at the boulevard. It’s where he and Willie met, where they agreed to meet up more than once after that. He looks around wildly as if Willie might be waiting for him here. There are hordes of people around him, talking, ambling aimlessly down the street. But no Willie.

Luke and Reggie appear next to him.

“Hey,” Luke says, resting a steadying hand on his shoulder. “Where do you want to start?”

Alex looks at the two of them, feeling lost. He doesn’t know. He doesn’t know where, how to start.

He looks around at the boulevard again. He hadn’t really had a destination in mind when he poofed away, just thought of Willie and followed his gut. Willie isn’t here, but Luke and Reggie are. They followed him. They always have.

He doesn’t even mean that in the sentimental way. From the start, from the moment they showed up as ghosts in Julie’s studio, he has been able to get a sense of how far Luke and Reggie are when they’re not around. It’s in that split-second before he starts to poof away, when he is still thinking of a destination; he can feel them, can feel a pull towards them, and he can trust that following it will lead him to them. He knows they feel it too. It’s what brought them here now.

He has felt that pull towards Julie, too, since the Orpheum. But not towards Willie. So how is he supposed to find him now, when he doesn’t even know where to start?

Except –

Willie must feel that pull towards him. Because Willie has always been able to find him, to show up out of the blue in the most random of places. So maybe… maybe it’s a skill ghosts have, and if he tries hard enough, it’s a skill he can hone in enough for it to lead him to Willie.

It’s worth a try. He has to try, if it will help him find Willie.

He closes his eyes, takes a deep breath, and thinks of Willie. He thinks of his smile, of the mischief in his eyes, of his laugh. He thinks of the feel of his hand in his, of how warm Willie’s gaze makes him feel, of his never-ending support and patience. He thinks of the way Willie makes him feel: free, and hopeful, and like anything is possible.

He thinks of their first meeting, of Willie complaining about his board when he was the one to knock Alex over, of Willie taking his helmet off and making Alex’s mind short-circuit, of Willie cheekily telling Alex to keep up, of him patiently answering each one of Alex’s questions. He thinks of himself falling for Willie, even then, and somehow knowing already that Willie was meant to be a part of Alex’s life for a long, long time.

He thinks of Willie, and tries to find him, wherever in the world he might be.

“Alex?” Reggie asks after a few moments.

“I don’t know,” Alex cries out, frustrated, feeling the last of his concentration slip away. “I don’t – I have no idea where to even start.”

His heart is beating wildly in his chest and he can feel himself start to spiral, but he can’t help it, not when this is Willie’s existence on the line. He can’t – he can’t –

Reggie finds his hand and squeezes it.

“That’s okay,” he says, and it’s not, it’s not okay, but Alex tries as hard as he can to believe that it is. “Alex, that’s okay. We can do it.”

It takes everything in him, but Alex is able to take a deep breath and push the panic at bay, thoughts coming a little clearer. The panic is still there; he doesn’t think it will leave until he knows Willie is safe and sound. But he can focus on Reggie now, can listen to what he and Luke have to say.

“We can?” he asks, his voice breaking. He’s too worried to be embarrassed about it.

“Of course we can. We will.”

“We can split up,” Reggie says. “Cover more ground. Can you think of anywhere you’ve been with Willie before? Anywhere, it doesn’t matter.”

“Uh…” An image pops into his head. “Above Sunset Boulevard. On the roofs. We went stargazing there once.”

“I’ll go,” Luke offers at once, and Alex could cry with how much he loves his friends.

“Great. Where else?”

“Skate park,” Alex says. He can’t believe this isn’t the first place he thought of.

“Which one?”

“All of them. The ones in LA, I mean. Oh, and Justin Bieber’s pool, too.”

Luke frowns. “Who’s Justin Bieber?”

Alex laughs. It’s short and breathless and a little hysterical and doesn’t sound quite right. “No idea.”

“Alright, I’ll go there,” Reggie says. “Luke’s got Sunset. You take one of the skate parks, we’ll go to others once we’re done with our places.” He meets Alex’s gaze. “We’ll find him. We will.”

Alex nods, at the moment unable to form any words.

“And if you think of anywhere else, let us know. We’ll go there too.”

He nods again, and Reggie smiles a little. It’s strained and worried but the sentiment is there and Alex is so grateful for him.

Reggie poofs away. Luke prepares to go too, then pauses and squeezes Alex’s shoulder.

“It’s gonna be okay.”

Alex swallows. “Thanks, Luke,” he says quietly, hoping Luke can tell how much he means it.

Luke just smiles and leaves, and the next moment Alex disappears to the skate park.

They search for the rest of the day. By the time night falls, Alex can’t count the number of places they have gone to. Skate parks, rooftops, street corners, random spots on the beach.

He saves the museum for last. Everywhere else he went – the beach, the parks, the roofs where they would sit and talk for hours – all those places he checked with a frantic sort of desperation. But the museum he can’t bring himself to go to until he has nowhere else left to look. It’s too painful. He has never been there without Willie, and the memories of everything that happened there – the handholds, the heart-to-hearts, the screaming – hit him like a truck when he steps inside.

More than anything, he misses Willie, in a way he didn’t let himself think about until now, too buried under the hurt and then the fear. But he does. He misses Willie like a crushing weight on his chest, misses their talks and their banter and everything in between. He just wants to see him again.

But he’s not there.

As Alex walks around the museum, he realises there was another reason he saved this place for last. If this is the most likely place where Willie might be hiding, he doesn’t know what he will do if he doesn’t find him here.

As it is, each step he takes feels harder than the last. Unlike all the other places where he searched frantically, he takes his time here. He looks everywhere, checks every corner, makes sure to leave no figurative stone unturned. He can’t afford to miss anything.

It isn’t until he has gone around the museum three times that he accepts – has no choice but to accept – the fact that Willie isn’t hiding here.

Alex screams for a long time, alone this time.

*

He spends so much time worrying about what might have happened to Willie and whether he will ever see him again that when he does, he freezes.

He is sitting on the roof of the studio, trying to trick his mind into taking a break from imagining the million different ways Willie might be suffering right now by taking in the warm evening air, when Willie appears.

By appears, Alex means he comes into view around the corner and walks up to the studio as if all is well in the word, as if he hasn’t been missing for four days, two of which Alex went half out of his mind searching for him. He walks, no skateboard in sight, hugging his arms to his sides and wearing a slightly guilty look on his face, and Alex is so stunned that Willie has almost made it to the door before he reacts.

He shakes himself out of his daze and slides off the roof, landing right in front of Willie, who jumps.

“Willie,” he breathes.

Willie’s eyes widen, darting across his face.

“Alex.”

Alex can’t move. Having Willie here, in front of him, okay, after Alex spent the past two days in varying states of distress over his wellbeing, is too much to handle. All he can do is stare, stare, and stare, take in, drink in the sight of Willie being here, being okay.

Then Willie says, “Alex, I’m so sorry,” and something in him unlocks.

He all but tackles Willie into a hug, pulling away before Willie can even properly wrap his arms around him back so that he can give Willie a once-over. “Are you okay?” he asks frantically, distantly aware that he is patting him down as if searching for injuries. “I was so worried, are you alright? I thought something happened to you, I thought –”

“Alex,” Willie says, reaching out to grasp Alex’s flailing hands. He lets go as soon as Alex stills, and Alex tries not to focus on how much that stings. “I’m alright,” Willie says, swallowing. “I’m sorry for worrying you.”

Alex nods once, twice, eyes still roaming Willie’s face with a sort of wild desperation.

“Where,” he starts; his voice catches and he clears his throat, trying to get a grasp on his jumbled emotions. “Where have you been?”

Willie’s face twists guiltily. “I’m sorry. I – Caleb came back.” Alex’s breath hitches in his throat and Willie hurries on, placating. “He doesn’t know about the Orpheum, or any of the rest. But he definitely suspects, and I… I had to stay away.”

Alex takes in the information, feels himself calm a little. It’s okay. Willie is okay. That’s all that matters.

“When you say he suspects…”

Willie hugs his arms to himself again, his thumb rubbing circles against his wrist. Alex desperately wants to reach out and hold his hand, provide some kind of comfort, but he doesn’t know if it would be appreciated in Willie’s quiet, fragile state.

“He knows you and I are close,” Willie says, managing the ghost of a smile, the first one since his reappearance. “And you guys found out about the stamps and found a way to defeat them, so – definitely looks a little suspicious.” He frowns. “By the way, how did you beat his stamp? Did you ever find out?”

Alex pauses, confused, before suddenly realising that he never did tell Willie about what happened the night of the Orpheum. At first he was too overcome with emotion because of his reunion with Willie to go into detail, and then… it just never came up.

“It was Julie,” he says simply now. “She saved us. She found us, and she was able to touch us. When she hugged us for the first time, we became stronger.” He pauses, the memory of that night enveloping him, the warm feeling that wrapped itself around him and his bandmates when they realised they were free, they were going to stay together. “She said she loved us. It’s her love for us that saved us, I think.”

Willie’s expression has molded into something like awe. “I have never heard of anything like that.” He shifts, smiles a little. “But I’m glad it happened. Good thing Julie has superpowers, huh?”

Alex is able to huff out a small laugh. It doesn’t land quite right. He doesn’t like this, doesn’t like this sort of distance that he feels between himself and Willie that wasn’t there before, but he doesn’t know how to fix it.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” he ends up asking, his voice coming out softer than he intended.

Willie starts, looking surprised by the question, but he recovers quickly. “Yeah,” he says, smiling, but it doesn’t quite reach his eyes. He looks so tired. “Yeah, I’m okay.”

His voice, at least, sounds sincere, so Alex decides to let it go. Willie can talk to him when he is ready.

“Okay, good,” he says, ignoring the worry churning in his gut.

Willie opens his mouth, closes it, looks away. He rubs the back of neck, glancing back at Alex. He hesitates, then sighs.

“Listen,” he says quietly. “I’m sorry about… about not being able to come to the beach.”

Alex feels his heart jump to his throat, because they haven’t talked about this, about what it meant. But Alex can’t stand the look in Willie’s eyes, looking wrecked with guilt as he avoids Alex’s gaze.

“It’s alright,” he says. And it is, but it isn’t, but Alex isn’t going to put this on Willie; it’s not his fault that Caleb decided to resurface right on time to ruin their maybe-date. “What matters is that you’re okay.”

Willie swallows. He is still hugging his arms to his sides, and this time Alex gives in to the urge to reach out and pull one of his hands into one of his own, intertwining their fingers.

“Maybe,” he says, heart beating wildly in his chest, “we could try that again? One of these days?”

He waits, hardly able to breathe. Willie looks at their hands for a long moment, before squeezing once and letting go.

“I don’t know, Alex,” he says quietly. “With Caleb back… I’m going to have to be really careful.”

Alex feels himself nod, shoving his hands into his pockets. He can feel tears building in the back of his throat and firmly shoves them down. He gets it, of course he does, and he knows it’s not about him, that Willie needs to take his precautions to stay safe and off Caleb’s radar, but he can’t help but think it feels like rejection.

It doesn’t help that the next thing Willie does is clear his throat, glancing behind him, and say, “Well, that’s all I came here to say, so…”

He trails off, glancing behind him again, and shuffles on his feet as if readying himself to leave. Alex watches him, heart in his throat, and wishes he knew how to make this better.

“Okay,” he says quietly instead.

Willie nods, his eyes still on Alex, and starts to turn around.

Alex’s arm reaches out. “Willie.”

Willie whirls back around, eyes lingering on Alex’s hand on his arm briefly before flitting back up to Alex’s face.

Alex swallows. “You know you’re always welcome here, right? Always.”

Willie offers him a wobbly smile. “Thanks, hot dog.”

Alex smiles back, and Willie lingers for another few seconds, looking on the verge of saying something. In the end he shrugs, giving Alex one last smile, and leaves.

Every time he left before this, he has always either skateboarded or just poofed away. Alex doesn’t think he appreciated those times enough. He wasn’t ready for how much it hurts to watch Willie walk away from him.

*

The following days are… odd.

Willie is back, which is great; but it’s also kind of not. He comes by the studio, albeit less often, and he watches them perform, but he doesn’t participate the way he used to. Where he used to hover near Flynn, he now tucks himself into the corner of the couch, folded into himself. Where he provided them with feedback after a song, he now remains in an almost sullen silence. Where he used to find any excuse to get close to Alex, he now only touches him sparingly, almost only when Alex initiates the contact in the first place.

His eyes are still on Alex, though. That, at least, hasn’t changed.

It’s especially evident about a week after he returns. Practise is just ending, Luke wants to go over the bridge of their new song for the third time, and Willie just said he was about to leave. That is another thing that has changed; Willie used to stay well after the actual rehearsal, but he never lingers now. Alex assumes it’s because he has to be more careful now that Caleb is back, but it’s hard to read Willie these days. (And doesn’t that hurt to think about.) His friends have been a lot warier around Willie since he hurt Alex, despite Alex telling them not to, so maybe that has something to do with it, too.

Whatever the reason, he is about to leave, waving goodbye at the lot of them from across the room, casually breaking Alex’s heart with the distance between them.

And that’s when Nick arrives.

“Hi, Julie!” he says brightly, something familiar in his smile that Alex can’t place. “Am I catching the end of rehearsal?”

Alex doesn’t hear Julie’s answer, because Willie freezes. His face goes slack, eyes darting wildly between Nick and the band. Alex wants to go over and ask what is wrong, but he can’t, because they’ve noticed they are most often visible right after playing, which means Nick can definitely see him now and it would look weird if he were to speak to thin air. The irony of being a ghost unable to speak to another ghost due to his visible state is not lost on him. He suddenly feels a lot more sympathetic towards Julie.

He settles for trying to catch Willie’s eye, but Willie seems to be determinedly not looking in his direction. He has schooled his face into a neutral expression, looking so unfazed Alex might think he imagined it all in the first place. He knows he didn’t, though.

None of the others seem to have noticed a thing. They are all focused on Nick, who is speaking with Julie.

“It’s just something we’re working on,” she’s saying.

“Doesn’t that sound promising,” Nick says.

He is still smiling, but Alex can’t help but think it looks odd, like his smile is too old for his face. Okay, that sounded weird. That’s just – those are just the words that came to mind.

“Can I hear it?” he asks.

Julie looks like she is about to say yes, but Luke beats her to it.

“It’s not quite ready yet,” he says cheerfully, all but glaring at the kid. “We’re going to keep it under wraps until then.”

Julie rolls her eyes, but Nick doesn’t look annoyed. In fact, he almost looks amused.

“Of course,” he says. “Wouldn’t want to be difficult.”

He says that last part pointedly, although Alex has no idea what he might be hinting at. Julie doesn’t either, based on the confused look on her face, which is even stranger.

“Maybe we can play something else,” Reggie suggests. For half a second it looks like Luke might protest, but then he seems to realise, like Alex, that they could lose their visibility any minute, which would be very complicated to explain to Nick, so maybe they should play some music.

Julie moves back to behind the piano, and Alex chances a glance back at Willie. His face still looks carefully blank, but his eyes betray panic as he watches Nick move further into the studio, and what the hell is that about? Why is Willie so nervous about Nick? There is no way he is afraid of some lifer kid, so what is it?

Nick settles on the couch, unknowingly placing himself right next to Willie, who doesn’t seem thrilled by this. Alex tries to catch his eye again, but he is staring straight ahead, not even looking like he is seeing anything.

Alex keeps looking at him, so concerned that he doesn’t even notice they have started playing. It is only when Julie gives him an amused, “Alex?” that he realises he missed his cue.

“Sorry, sorry,” he says hastily, forcing himself to focus back on his drums and not Willie’s odd behaviour. It’s a lot easier said than done.

“It’s okay to have a false start,” Nick says pleasantly, as though Alex asked for his input, “as long as in the end you get results.”

“I have to go,” Willie says quietly at the end of the song, effectively snapping Alex out of focus and reminding him that, yeah, Willie said he was leaving five minutes ago. He is finally looking at Alex again, too, but there is something urgent in his eyes, screaming at Alex to understand, and Alex doesn’t understand why he doesn’t just say it, it’s not like Nick would hear…

And then Willie waves, glances from Nick back to Alex, and walks out of the studio.

*

Okay. So. What the hell?

Alex has been turning it over and over in his mind all day, trying to figure out what the heck was up with Willie today. And so far, he has come up blank. It just doesn’t make sense. And Alex hates not knowing what is going on with Willie, hates that he is so out of touch with him that he has no idea what is going on inside his head.

Okay, he can’t focus on that right now or he might cry, so he should go back to trying to figure out what happened today.

He doesn’t have to wonder long.

Willie stumbles through the studio doors, so out of breath it looks like he might collapse. Alex barely thinks about it before poofing down from the loft to Willie, catching him and helping him stay upright.

“Alex,” Willie gasps. “I just – managed – to get – to get away,” he heaves.

Alex blinks. “Did you – did you run here?” He’s about to ask why Willie wouldn’t poof over or even skate, when Willie taps his arm urgently.

“Alex – it’s Caleb. Nick – it’s Caleb.”

Alex frowns, dragging Willie over to the couch. “What’s Caleb? Breathe, you’re not making any sense.”

Willie lets himself be sat on the couch, but he clings to Alex’s wrists when he starts to move away, eyes dead serious.

“Caleb is Nick,” he says, still out of breath but not gasping for air anymore. “He’s possessing him.”

Alex drops his hand in shock. “He’s – what?”

“He is possessing him,” Willie repeats. “Today, when Nick came to rehearsal – that was Caleb.”

Alex’s blood runs cold. “What?”

His mind flashes back to all the times Nick has been coming to rehearsal, so often since the Orpheum. If it was Caleb – if Caleb has been possessing Nick – he has been using him to get close to them, he has been here, watching them, in their space without them even knowing…

“Why didn’t you tell us?” he says, feeling like his heart is about to bound out of his chest as he takes in what all this means. “We let him near us – we let him near Julie.”

“I didn’t know,” Willie says desperately. “I didn’t know it was someone you knew, that he was doing it to get close to you, until today.”

Alex thinks he nods, barely aware of what he is doing. His mind feels like it is in overdrive, buzzing with thoughts flying around too fast for him to tape them down. He needs to find the others, warn them, figure out what to do, how to protect themselves.

“I have to go,” he manages.

Willie’s hand shoots out before he can move.

“There is more.”

“There is more,” Alex repeats, his voice raising half an octave. “I don’t know if I can take another bombshell.”

Willie is still on the couch; he has caught his breath, but now he lets out a distressed huff and runs a hand through his hair. He meets Alex’s eyes and swallows.

“You remember the day I asked you out on a date?”

And despite the absolute everything of this situation, Alex’s ridiculous heart skips a beat because this is the first time either of them has acknowledged that it was actually, really, truly supposed to be a date.

“I meant to come, Alex, really, I swear I didn’t mean to leave you hanging, but Caleb came back.”

“Yeah, I know,” Alex says, a little confused because Willie has told him this already, so he doesn’t understand the urgency in his voice.

“He came back, and he just… he knew everything, Alex.”

Of course he did, Alex thinks, seething quietly, because if he has been possessing Nick this whole time, then he would have been there the day Willie came back to him the first time, after the Orpheum. Willie wouldn’t have paid attention to him, wouldn’t have noticed anyone besides Alex, but Caleb noticed. He noticed everything.

“What did he do?” he asks, almost afraid of the answer. But it can’t be that bad, right? After all, Willie is sitting in front of him safe and sound, right?

“He threatened to wipe me out of existence,” Willie answers, his voice barely above a whisper, and okay, it is that bad.

“But he didn’t,” Alex says, aiming for reassuring, but Willie’s face twists guiltily and he feels a chill run down his spine. “He didn’t,” he repeats.

“Not yet,” Willie says. “He has taken away my skateboard privileges, but that’s not everything.” He swallows, suddenly looking afraid to meet Alex’s eyes. Alex itches to reach for his hand, but something holds him back. “He said I had to find out how you were able to escape his stamp. He said it was my last chance, or I was gone.”

Alex goes through a very rapid of succession of emotions then. First comes terror at the idea of Caleb following through on his threats. Then, more dread at the realization – no, confirmation – that Caleb won’t ever stop trying to own them, and that he is willing to use Willie to get there. And then, finally, his stomach drops when he realises that he already has.

“By the way, how did you beat his stamp? Did you ever find out?”

Willie’s words ring in his head; the memory of him evading Alex’s touch, avoiding his eyes, is all-encompassing as he remembers it all. It had been the first thing he asked when he got back, and Alex had told him, had told him about Julie, god…

“I didn’t tell him.” Willie is still talking, his voice growing desperate, begging for Alex to listen to him. “Look, I know what you’re thinking, but I swear I didn’t tell him, Alex. I swear. You have to believe me.”

The thing is, he does. Maybe it’s naïve, or even downright stupid, considering everything he just learned, but Alex knows Willie, and he believes him. This is the first time he is acting like the Willie he knows and lo – cares about since this whole thing started. And that has to mean something.

Plus, if Caleb is still posing as Nick, then he must still be fishing for information.

But if Willie doesn’t give him what he wants…

“What about you?”

A small smile makes its way onto Willie’s lips. “Don’t worry about me.”

“Have we met?”

Willie doesn’t stop smiling, but Alex can tell he has never been more serious.

“I made my choice. I’m not putting you or your friends under his control ever again. So I’m not telling him anything, and I’m leaving.” He pauses, wrapping his arms around himself. “I don’t know if I can escape him, but I have to try.”

Alex thinks his mind must finally be shutting down from trying to process all the new information, because it has slowed down to one simple thought. “You’re leaving?”

Willie nods slowly. “I just came here to warn you about Nick. And to say goodbye.”

Alex finds himself unable to say a word. His mind is still reeling and there are a million things he wants to say to Willie, but at the moment he has no idea what they are. He can only look at him.

Willie reaches out then, one hand cupping his face, thumb caressing his cheek almost absent-mindedly, and Alex can’t breathe.

They stay like that for a few seconds, and Willie smiles wistfully, a small, sad smile, before pulling away.

“Bye, hot dog,” he whispers.

He lingers for another moment, then turns to leave. And Alex finally comes back to himself.

“Willie, wait!”

Willie turns around, face open and wary and afraid and maybe a little hopeful.

“Don’t go.”

Willie sighs. “Alex, I –”

“We can figure this out,” he insists, and he knows he sounds desperate but he can’t not, because this is Willie and he can’t lose him again.

“Alex,” Willie says, and he sounds so defeated, so sad, and Alex’s heart breaks for him. “There is nothing we can do, okay, Caleb owns my soul, it’s not like there is a loophole we can use or anything like that.”

“Maybe there is.”

Willie’s arm jerks minutely, like an aborted attempt to reach for him. “I’m just trying to protect you,” he says.

“I’m trying to protect you,” Alex says, and means it, even if he has no idea where to start.

Willie pauses, eyes searching him wonderingly. “Why do you want to help me?” he asks, frowning. “I just told you I was spent to spy on you.”

“Yeah, but you didn’t.” In a knee-jerk reaction, Alex almost said that Willie didn’t have a choice, but the truth of the matter is that he did, and he chose not to tell Caleb what he found, and he is choosing to leave now to attempt to keep Alex and his friends safe from Caleb. “And I… I care about you, too, Willie,” he adds softly. “I don’t want you to go.”

Willie’s face twists at his words, and he looks like he might cry. Alex reaches for his hands.

“At least let us try,” he says. “We’ll call everyone, we’ll all put our heads together, and we might be able to find a solution. We can try, okay? Just…” He squeezes Willie’s hands, breath catching in his throat. “Don’t leave.”

Willie takes a deep breath, visibly shaken, but eventually he nods. “Okay,” he whispers. “We can try.”

*

An emergency meeting is called in the studio. All that has been said so far is a recap of everything that Willie revealed to Alex, and Alex watches as his friends take it in, silently reeling. Julie took the news of what happened to Nick especially hard, and Alex has no idea what to do as he helplessly watches her pace the studio.

“I can’t believe this is happening,” she mutters, mostly to herself. “He doesn’t deserve this, and I… I didn’t even notice – I should have known…”

Luke has been watching her worriedly from his seat on the couch, but at those words he stands up. “How could you have known? We didn’t even know possession was something Caleb could do.” He takes her hands gently, finally getting her to look at him. “Julie, you can’t blame yourself. If we hadn’t been so bent on getting revenge on Trevor, none of this would have happened.”

Willie shakes his head. “No, this is on me. I never should have taken you to him in the first place.”

And Alex might be feeling just as guilty as everyone else in the room based on the looks on their faces, but looking around, seeing how miserable his friends look, spurs him into action.

“No,” he says, somehow finding himself on his feet. “Okay, no, we’re not doing this. We’re not playing the blame game. What is happening isn’t our faults. It’s no one’s fault but Caleb’s.”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself.”

Alex blinks and suddenly Flynn is there, appearing in the doorway. She looks just as stressed as the rest of them, but she manages a comforting smile when she meets his eyes.

“You called Flynn?” Reggie asks Julie, sounding surprised. Alex doesn’t blame him; it’s nearing midnight.

“We’re going to need a good plan, so we need her,” Julie says, and yeah, that sounds about right. "But I didn’t expect you to come in the middle of the night,” she adds in direction of her best friend.

“I was awake when I got your text,” Flynn shrugs. “And when I read what happened, there was no way I was going to sleep, so. Here I am.” She raises her phone. “I texted you to say I was on my way.”

“Oh.” Julie fishes her own phone out of her pocket, presumably to check for Flynn’s message. “Sorry, I’ve been distracted.”

“Yeah, can’t blame you.” Flynn glances around the room. “Is everyone here?”

“We’re all here.”

Flynn raises an eyebrow. “Huh. I can see you,” she says, gesturing to Alex, “and you,” this time she pointedly looks at Luke, who is still holding one of Julie’s hands, “but not Reggie. I guess you don’t all have to be visible at the same time.”

Huh, indeed. They should probably start figuring out the patterns and variables of their visibility and solidness once all this chaos is over.

“Anyways,” Flynn says, clapping her hands, “Blondie here is right. There is no need for anyone to blame themselves, and frankly, there is no time for it, either. So chins up. We need to figure out what we’re going to do, and fast.”

“Hey, Julie?” Reggie says. “Calling Flynn? Good call.”

And despite everything, Julie musters a smile. “I know.”

“Know what?” Flynn asks, looking around as if finding Reggie would let her hear him.

“That you’re awesome,” Julie says. “And that we can’t do this without you.”

Flynn raises an eyebrow, looking pleased despite herself. “Damn right you can’t. So, what exactly are we looking to do?”

“We need to free Nick from Caleb,” Julie says at once, burrowing closer to Luke for comfort.

“And save Willie’s soul,” Alex adds. “So that he can be free of Caleb too.”

Flynn lets herself drop onto the couch, unknowingly landing between Reggie and Willie. “Nothing too complicated, then. Great.”

*

“In movies, people usually break free from possession when they have people they love remind them of who they are,” Flynn says.

“That’s in movies, though,” Julie refutes. “Besides, none of us know Nick well enough to break him free, and it’s not like we can get his dads involved.”

They have been at it for hours now. Reggie became visible two hours in and startled Flynn, who shrieked and jumped from the couch when he suddenly appeared right next to her. She is sitting next to him again now, her head lolling back against the back of the couch as the late hour starts to get to her. Pillowed against Luke in the armchair, Julie is blinking sleep out of her eyes, but she still wears a determined look on her face. She won’t go to sleep without a solution. None of them will.

They have been bouncing ideas back and forth, deciding to focus on how to help Nick first as it seemed like an easier issue to solve. They haven’t really gotten anywhere yet.

“Even if you could, it wouldn’t work,” Willie says. “Caleb is too strong. He needs to choose to release Nick.”

“How are we supposed to get him to do that?” Luke exclaims in frustration.

“Do what?” Julie and Flynn chorus.

Luke repeats for them, and Julie folds into herself as she hears, looking just as hopeless as him. Flynn, however, leans forward, a curious look on her face.

“Okay,” she mutters. “Okay, so we just need to find a reason to convince him to do that.”

“Like what?” Reggie says.

“You planning on blackmailing an evil ghost, Flynn?” Luke asks at the same time.

Flynn’s eyes brighten. “Now there is an idea.”

“No!” Julie straightens up in a flash. “No, are you hearing yourselves? That’s too dangerous!”

Alex secretly agrees, but Flynn raises an eyebrow. “Yeah, because what is happening to Nick right now isn’t already dangerous.”

“That’s my point!” Julie cries. “We’re already in enough trouble as it is, and provoking Caleb is only going to make things worse. We need to be careful. I can’t… I can’t lose anyone else.”

Flynn immediately softens, moving across the room to squeeze her hand. “Okay, no unnecessary provoking Caleb. It was a stupid idea, anyways. I mean, what do you even use to bribe an evil ghost who has been dead for five hundred years?”

Julie musters a smile, while Willie clears his throat. “Actually, he’s only been dead for about a hundred years.”

Alex isn’t sure who that was meant for, since Flynn can’t hear him, but Reggie perks up with an interested look on his face. “Really? I would have thought it would be at least two hundred. You know, so that he would have time to assemble all that power and influence.”

“Nah, Caleb has always been a pretty influential guy. Besides, a hundred years isn’t nothing.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s true.”

“He actually died in the twenties. That’s where the whole aesthetic of the club comes from.”

“Ohh, yeah, I thought I had noticed –”

“Guys!” Alex, Luke, Julie and Flynn all say.

Willie and Reggie both stop talking, pausing to turn to the rest of the crew sheepishly.

“Not that this isn’t interesting,” Luke says, “but we do have an urgent matter to get to.”

“Right, right.”

“Sorry.”

Flynn glances between the two of them. “You were talking about Caleb, right?” Reggie nods, and Flynn’s eyes cloud pensively. “This is good. We can use this.”

“Use what?”

“This,” Flynn replies, waving a hand in Reggie and Willie’s general direction. “Willie’s knowledge.”

Alex winces, wishing she had worded it differently. Willie has been used too many times already. But Willie doesn’t flinch, only looks at Flynn, waiting for her to continue.

“Willie,” Flynn continues, looking at a spot close enough to where Willie is sitting, “what do you know about Caleb?”

Willie shifts, looking uncomfortable with the sudden attention on him.

“I mean… He likes attention? He likes music, and putting on shows. And talent. He is always on the hunt for new talents, that’s why he… he was so interested in you three,” he adds more quietly.

Alex worries at his lip. None of this is exactly new information, and he doesn’t see how they could put any of it to use against Caleb. Willie seems to realize that, and he goes on, obviously racking his brain.

“He likes dealing with people,” he says after a moment. “Making deals, I mean.”

Something in Flynn’s eyes glitters when Alex translates that. “Like bargains?”

Willie nods. Flynn hums, and Julie looks at her warily.

“So we bargain with him,” Flynn says slowly. “Find something he is willing to trade Nick for.”

“And we’re back to blackmailing.”

“This isn’t blackmailing, though. It’s a trade-off. And if he likes deals, this will probably go over better.”

Julie looks a little uneasy, but she nods. “There is less of a chance of that ending badly, probably.”

“But how are we supposed to find something worth bargaining with to someone like Caleb?” Reggie asks helplessly.

“Raid Caleb’s dressing room,” Willie says, at the same time as Flynn says: “Snoop through Caleb’s things.”

Alex, Luke and Reggie stare between the two of them.

“That was freaky,” Reggie says.

“What was?” Julie asks, eyes wide.

“Willie and Flynn,” Luke answers, gesturing vaguely between the two. “They, like, both suggested criminal activity at the same time.”

“It’s not criminal activity,” Flynn says, rolling her eyes. “It’s just digging through his stuff. After what he has done to us, I think my conscience can handle a little snooping.”

“Digging through his stuff implies breaking and entering,” Alex points out. Flynn only raises an eyebrow, as if to say, “So?”.

“It’s not a bad idea, though,” Luke says. “I mean, what better way to understand that guy’s mind than to see what kind of weird shit he has got behind closed doors?”

“Exactly,” Willie and Flynn say adamantly, once again perfectly in sync. Reggie’s eyebrows fly into his hairline; Alex decides to just roll with it.

“How do we accomplish this breaking and entering, though?” Julie asks, ever the practical one. “Flynn and I don’t even know where this Hollywood Ghost Club is.”

“Neither of you will be setting a foot there,” Luke says sharply.

Julie looks like she is about to argue, and Flynn seems furious, so Alex quickly cuts in.

“It’s not because we don’t trust you, or we think it’s too dangerous. I mean, it is, but that’s why it better be ghosts doing the snooping. At least we can make a quick escape if things start to look like they will go south.”

Julie deflates, but she doesn’t look happy about it. “I don’t like the idea of doing nothing while you guys are out there risking your lives.”

“Afterlives,” Reggie corrects absently.

Julie gives him a look. Luke moves to wrap an arm around her and she all but sinks into him, worry lines creasing her forehead.

“I also can’t really do that quick escape thing,” Willie says. “I mean, I can technically poof away, but as soon as I do Caleb can track me. If he catches me and decides to follow me, I’ll lead him right to you.”

That would explain the amount of walking he’s been doing recently. Alex’s stomach churns uncomfortably at the notion of Willie’s every move being watched and followed. The reality of his situation hits him full force all over again: until they get him his soul back, Willie is trapped.

Flynn’s lip curls unhappily, like she was just reminded of the same thing, but she nods. “Okay, then you won’t be with us.” Willie’s brow furrows, but she continues before he has the chance to protest. Not that she would hear it, anyways. “We’ll find something else for you to do.”

“Like what?”

“Like distracting Caleb,” Luke suggests, eyes glinting. Willie and Alex both flinch, and Luke glances at them apologetically, but goes on. “Think about it. If he is talking to you, then he isn’t in his dressing room walking in on us looking around.”

Willie clenches his jaw and nods. “Okay, I’ll do it.”

Something in Alex’s heart clenches, constricting painfully. “You don’t have to do this.”

“I’ll do it,” Willie repeats.

Reggie lets out a breath. “Alright, that’s… something. That’s a plan, right? This feels like we have a plan.”

Julie manages a smile. “It’s the beginning of a plan, yeah.”

Flynn nods, eyes flickering back to where she thinks Willie is. “You can give him a reason for why the stamps disappeared. Not the truth, obviously, but something he’ll believe. That way we’ll send him on the wrong scent, and you get into his good books.” She pauses. “Or, you know, less bad books,” she amends.

“That’s a great idea, Flynn,” Willie says quietly.

“Have I mentioned I’m really glad you’re here to make this plan with us?” Reggie tells her.

There are huge bags under Flynn’s eyes, her hair is a mess, and it looks like she is only running on pure adrenaline and the three sodas she kicked back at the beginning of the meeting. But she smiles at Reggie, looking genuinely touched, and the exhaustion seems to fade from her expression for a moment.

“You three,” she says, pointing her finger at each of the ghosts in turn, “you be careful. And you bring us back something we can use to talk Caleb into releasing Nick.”

“And Willie,” Alex adds.

She nods vehemently. “Yes, and Willie.”

“Wait, guys,” Willie says, looking between them. “Asking Caleb to let go of Nick’s possession is already a pretty big deal, I don’t know if adding to that is a good idea. It might backfire.”

“That doesn’t matter,” Reggie says. “We’ll just have to find something to give us the upper hand when we bargain with Caleb so that he has no choice but to hear us out.”

“Yeah, Willie,” Alex says, moving closer to him. “We’re getting both you and Nick back. That’s the plan. We’re not backing out of that.”

“But if it starts looking like you’re losing that upper hand,” Willie starts, and Alex just knows he is about to say something stupidly sacrificial like they should forget about freeing him and focus on freeing Nick instead, so he shakes his head before Willie can get another word out.

“We’re not going to leave you with him, Willie. We’re just, we’re not going to do that. That’s just not going to happen.”

Willie frowns. “I put you all through enough already. You don’t need to go through all this trouble for me.”

“Willie,” Alex says, “we want to help.”

He doesn’t know how else to put it so that Willie can understand. It’s that simple, really. Willie is their friend, and they want him to be alright. They want to help.

Something about his words seems to floor Willie, and he pauses, staring at him, before his eyes slowly drift to look at Luke, then Julie, then Reggie, then Flynn, then back to Alex. He swallows, suddenly looking more lost and vulnerable than Alex thinks he has ever seen him.

“I’m not used to… caring,” he says finally, his voice rough. “About people. And having people care about me.”

Alex looks at him, tries to find the words to explain that they do care, that they are his friends and this is what friends do, that no one has cared for Willie in the right way in far too long but that they are willing to try to make up for all of it, that he knows Willie was alone for so long but that he doesn’t have to be anymore.

“We do,” Flynn says quietly, and maybe those are the words Alex was trying to find all along.

Willie shakes himself, and Alex breaks out of the daze he didn’t realize they were both in, registering that someone must have repeated Willie’s words to the girls in that time. He didn’t hear, nor did he see the look on Flynn’s face as she took them to heart, but he is glad she did, because Willie is looking at him now, looking at all of them, like he might believe them.

He moves closer, grasps Willie’s hands. “You’re getting your soul back, okay? End of discussion.”

Willie releases a shaky breath. “Okay."

“Good.” He turns back to the rest of the group. “So everyone is okay with this plan, then?”

He catches Julie’s eye. She is looking between him, Luke and Reggie with a kind of heartbreaking reluctance, one he recognizes all too well. He hates the idea of sending Willie into the lion’s den, hates that this plan has him confronting Caleb and lying to his face, hates what might happen if Caleb were to catch Willie in this lie, but he also knows that it’s necessary if they want this plan to work. He thinks Julie might be feeling similarly about sending them back to the club.

He waits for her to protest, or to tell them to be careful. Instead what she says is:

“When are you guys ready to do this?”

“Tomorrow?” Luke says. “Might as well not waste time.”

“Alright,” Julie says. “Tomorrow.”

It’s like settling it wipes the energy out of her. In the blink of an eye, she leans back against the chair, blinking sleep out of her eyes as the hour catches up to her. Flynn isn’t much better, letting out a loud yawn as her head drops against the back of the couch.

“Alright, let’s get you both to bed,” Reggie says. “If we’re doing this tomorrow, you need to be in shape.”

“Why, it’s not like we’re actually playing a huge part in this plan,” Flynn mumbles, though Alex can tell it’s more for show than anything.

“We need you,” Luke says anyway. “We’re a team, okay?”

Alex smiles slightly at that – it’s such a Luke thing to say, to make them all feel equal, included, special. He has been doing it since the nineties, when they were still busking and struggling – whenever they were tired and ready to give up, he would be quick to rally them, to remind them that he might be the frontman but they were all in this together, his version of all for one and one for all understood in his “We’re a band.” And now he has updated it to “We’re a team,” because they are. They’re all in this together, and Alex knows he wouldn’t be able to do any of this without every single one of them. And he loves Luke for always reminding them of that.

He steps away from the group as Luke drags Julie off the chair, Reggie attempting to do the same with Flynn and apparently forgetting that his grip will simply slip through her, and moves closer to Willie instead.

“You sure you’re okay with doing this for us?” he asks in an undertone. He knows Willie is, but he needs to hear it from him.

“I’m sure.” Alex waits for him to say that it’s the least he could do, that he owes them, or something. That seems to be where his mind is at most. Instead Willie smiles softly and says, “You know I’d do anything for you, right?”

“Yeah.” Alex swallows. He suddenly is hyperaware of his hands hanging limply at his hands, and wonders if he should be doing anything with them. “Yeah, you’ve more than proven that.”

The moment lingers between them; Willie holds his gaze, jaw working like he is pondering whether or not to say something. He apparently decides against it, simply cupping Alex’s cheek with so much gentleness he could cry, and smiling. Alex fidgets with his hands, unsure what to do with them, what to do about anything when he feels like his face is on fire.

Willie pulls away, still wearing the softest look Alex has ever seen on him, and Alex immediately feels cold from the minute distance between them.

He wants to reach out, wants to hold Willie’s hand, wants to swing his arms around his neck and pull him close, wants to kiss him until they’re both breathless and then some. But he is rooted on the spot, and he watches as Willie moves to join the others again.

With great effort, Alex shakes himself out of his trance and follows him.

Julie and Flynn have apparently elected to crash on the couch, too tired to make their way back into the house, and Reggie is laying a blanket over them when Alex reaches them. The sight has his heart settle inside his chest, warm and solid and feeling a little like he is home. This is his family. Everyone in this room is his family, and he loves them so, so much, and he will be damned if he lets anything happen to a single one of them.

“So,” he says, quiet so he won’t wake the girls. “Tomorrow, then.”

[and-claudia]

The End of The World (Crosshair x gn!reader)

Word Count: 748

Warnings: ANGST, no happy ending, mentions of not wanting to live anymore (PLEASE DO NOT READ IF YOU'RE TRIGGERED BY THIS)

Based on the song: End of the World by Skeeter Davis

Week 1: It’s been 5 days, one whole week since we left Crosshair on that platform. Before it was easy to keep going because I had a goal that I was working towards. I was working towards getting him back, saving him, bringing him home. But now… now that he was truly gone, I had nothing. Crosshair was my everything. He was my light. Without him, it felt like everything would stop, but it hadn’t, it still hasn’t and it won’t. Right now as I sit here and write this, on the beach some random planet I’ve lost track of, the sun is still shining down on me, mocking me with its cheerful warmth. The waves still rush the beach and crash onto the shore. I wish there was a way I could tell them that my world was over, that they could stop. The Crosshair I knew was gone, and with him so was his love. 

Week 5: Five weeks, 25 days. How had it been so long? Perhaps all the missions we were running for Cid were distracting me from the time. But now that we had a small break, everything came rushing back. My world was ending once again, but, just as before, it was only for me. Nothing else slowed. The birds still sang their all-too-cheery songs as that happily in their trees. At night the stars still glowed, just as they had on all the night Crosshair and I would go sneak out to look at them. He would show me all the different systems and stars and planets we could see from the planet we were currently on. I loved watching the stars with him. Now when I look up, I no longer see the stars, I see the pinholes made in my heart that cause me now to feel empty as all the love was forced out when he left. 

Week 7: A month. I can’t do this. I can’t keep going on with them. They’re all so seemingly fine without him. Like nothing has changed for them. How? HOW? It wasn’t fair. Echo found me last night, crying outside the ship. He asked me what was wrong. I was honest. I told him that I was wondering why everything was the same way that it was before we lost Crosshair for good. I told him that I just can’t understand how everything and everyone around me is just going on the same way that it always had before we lost him. How were they all okay with this? His silence broke me even more. I asked him if they even cared that he was gone. He said that of course he was, Crosshair was still his brother, but there just wasn’t anything they could do for him anymore. I nodded, deep down I knew he was right, but that didn’t take away the stinging, the emptiness, the hurt, the loss, the yearning. 

Week 10:

I was sitting with Echo late tonight in the cockpit. Although I was there physically, mentally I was somewhere else. I was thinking of Crosshair. It had been 50 days since I had seen him. Since he had forced me to say goodbye to him. 

“Echo, why am I here?” I asked suddenly causing him to turn to me. 

“What do you mean?” He asked. 

“Why am I here still? Why is my heart still beating?” 

He shook his head, “Please don’t say that, Yn. You have so many reasons to be here, to be alive.” 

I shook my head, “He was everything, Echo. Crosshair was the one who found me, got me back on my feet, made me about of the Bad Batch, made me feel like I was worthy of being loved, made me feel loved… He’s gone, Echo, GONE! My world ended when he said goodbye. So tell me, Echo, if my world ended then, 10 weeks ago, then, why, WHY has everything continued on around me? Why do I waste my time crying over him if there’s nothing I can do?” I was sobbing at this point. 

Echo looked at me sadly before standing up and pulling me up to stand as well. Once I was, he was hugging me. 

“Because you love him. Not loved, but love still. It’s going to hurt. It’s going to get worse before it gets better… but it will get better.” He said gently. 

I pulled back slightly, “How?” 

“I don’t know… I wish I did.” 

Crosshair Taglist: @fan-g0rl @alexxavicry

[queenimmadolla]

i won’t be replying to any of the recent asks i’ve gotten, but i’m assuming something has stirred the waters for me to even receive them so i will say this:

yes, i am not as vocal as i was previously. not at all because i have dropped my stance and beliefs, those will always stand and i’ll speak up when i have the mental strength for that and when i feel it is the right time for me to do so. we all know i’m not afraid of to pull out the megaphone or bite, if i must, but….i’m tired.

after a certain event on this site, it dawned on me that this space would rather hear what i have to say about people who look like me or share the same traits/experiences as me, or about anything really, from someone or people not at all like me; someone more “conventional” (to them) for this space, both in appearance and what they post. and then i encountered people who would be in my corner, support and uplift things i had to say—until it might have applied to them (i dont point fingers often, i would say i dont point fingers at all but there have been the occasional outlandish things i have witnessed that just need to be spoken about outright, but the people i am referring to are not part of those encounters) and suddenly, i’m no longer able to see their posts or affiliate with them. could it be a dislike of me? perhaps. but it always occurred when i spoke about some sort of injustice (usually racial based) occurring right then and there. which is whatever, i’ll survive but it just proved to me that no matter the statement here, regardless of how uplifting the invitation for inclusivity appears and eloquently worded it may be from a potential ally—performativism runs rampant.

(don’t know if anyone saw that one tumblr blogger’s post about POC—i think it was black—representation going around. it was from someone not in this fandom and it had an attached OP self-reblog of something like you’re allowed to reblog it even if you’re not a POC, it’s just a widely popular post. anyways, i took the time to go through the reblogs, see if the OP expressed further things and i saw their most recent self reblog of it was OP wondering if all the people who reblogged that post actually listened to the message and applied it to themselves and their conduct, and i find myself sharing the same thought process for any social post of mine that gets reblogged now)

i understand and know it’s not everyone, i have quite a few mutuals i am very appreciative of, who have reached out on multiple occasions to show their support and meant it. good people are also here.

but i don’t want to cater to performativism or open myself up to it anymore. it’s happened more times than i have fingers within the span of a year. i deal with that shit in real life all the time, i’m not about to let someone on tumblr do it to me. when i say it drains me, i truly mean it.

all that being said, i’m still present for a reason. i truly hope this space will get better for everyone, especially for all those underrepresented and treated in manners unbecoming.

vivi/queenie x

[lightoftheempath]

Joaquin Route Endings.

Hi, everyone! As promised, I wanted to share two Joaquin route endings I wrote for, Laws of Attraction. Both endings are based on the continuation of the romance route PB wrote for Joaquin. Each has minor sexual content but contains mostly fluff. 

I used she/her pronouns and the default name suggested at the beginning of the series for MC, Quinn Michaels. In these versions, Quinn is platonic with Gabe and Aislinn.

It’s been a long time since I sat and wrote anything outside of college psychology papers. Lol. I truly hope everyone enjoys it!

Ending 1- Finding Our Match: Quinn stays at the Brass Monkey after Joaquin leaves. He visits her office on Monday after his first day at Ricci & Associates. (2,343 words)

Ending 2- A Bright Future Ahead: Quinn goes after Joaquin when he leaves the Brass Monkey. They decide to spend the rest of the evening together. (2,935 words)

Ending 1- Finding Our Match:

It wasn’t an ordinary Monday at Ricci & Associates. The team had been celebrating their big win against Martin and Calvin Colby all weekend. Little did Quinn and Aislinn know, Gabe was planning a surprise for them. Once everyone arrived, he called the entire staff into the lobby. He announced that he was promoting Quinn and Aislinn to founding partners. Not only that, but Joaquin was also starting his first day at the firm as a corporate law expert. Everyone could feel the change in the air, the excitement was palpable. The firm was getting bigger with each passing day. They were finally going to make a real difference like they had always dreamed of. After toasting to the new firm’s name, everyone went back to work as usual.

At the end of his first workday, Joaquin walks nervously down the corridor to Quinn’s office. He planned to do what he said at the Brass Monkey, ask Quinn out on a date. A real one. He takes a deep breath and knocks on her door, his heart pounding in his chest. He’s surprised at his reaction, knowing this is abnormal for him. He’s usually so confident, but with Quinn, he finds himself second guessing everything. Quinn shouts, “come in” while going over some paperwork at her desk. Talking himself up quietly, he refuses to back down now and prepares to greet her.

“Knock knock…” he smiles, striding in with a self-assured smirk, hoping Quinn won’t catch on to his nerves. “Oh, hey Joaquin. How was your first day?” She gives him an interested look while signing the documents in front of her. Joaquin takes a seat on the chair across from her desk. “Good. Gabe showed me around and got me acclimated to everything. Congratulations on the new promotion. It’s an exciting day for both of us, huh?”. Quinn grins, putting her paperwork into the filing cabinet and sitting back down. “It sure is. I wasn’t expecting Gabe to do that for Aislinn and I. We’ve only tried to do the right thing as lawyers, but I’m not complaining about it either. A pay raise is always nice”. Joaquin laughs, silently fiddling with his thumbs while trying to remain stoic. “You’re a fantastic lawyer, Quinn, and an even better person. You deserve this”.

She smiles at him, enjoying this heartfelt moment over the usual flirtatious, sarcastic banter she’s gotten used to. “I guess now that you got the job you wanted, you don’t have to creep up on me in the parking garage or sneak into my office anymore”. Trying to think three steps ahead, Joaquin looks into Quinn’s eyes, running his hand through his hair. “You mean you didn’t like it? I thought we were having so much fun”. He winks, putting on his classic wicked smile. Quinn shakes her head with a sigh. “I’m just saying, we can be real coworkers now. No need to sneak around or invite me on fake dates”. Joaquin steadies himself, trying to think of something witty, but believable to capture Quinn’s attention. He hopes she’ll say yes to what he’s about to ask. “We don’t have to stop seeing each other if you don’t want to, and we certainly don’t have to stop going on dates either. Unless you like the sneaking around of course…then I’m happy to oblige”. Quinn raises her eyebrow in confusion and slight intrigue. “Are you asking me out on a date, Joaquin?’. He leans forward, not breaking eye contact with her, feeling the most vulnerable that he has in a long time. “I meant what I said the other night at the Brass Monkey. I want to take you on a real date.” Quinn tries to hide her shocked expression. “You’re serious? This isn’t a plot or a plan for something?” Joaquin leans back in his chair, creating a playful, pained expression on his face, placing his hand over his heart. “Quinn, you wound me. I thought I made it clear by now that you can trust me. Have I steered you wrong yet?”. She stares at him for a second, searching his eyes for any sign that this is a joke. There’s nothing there but him looking back at her genuinely. Quinn bites her lip for a second, looking down. Despite her best efforts, she can’t deny the chemistry she shares with Joaquin. The way his energy has pulled her in no matter how hard she’s tried to have a wall up. No matter how many times she’s been suspicious of his motivations, his intel has always checked out. Their relationship started out unconventionally, but his attentiveness and tenacity were hard for her to ignore. Her voice is serious as she answers. “No, you haven’t steered me wrong. I’ve realized that. I guess I never thought your advances were anything but planned and calculated”. Joaquin leans across Quinn’s desk, taking her hands in his, looking deeply into her eyes. “Despite what you may think about me or my past Quinn, our relationship was never just about sex or personal gain for me. I’m not Martin. Things may have started out spicy after our little rendezvous on the yacht, but I was never lying when I said I wanted you or your company. That was very real”. Quinn can’t help but feel stunned by what she’s hearing. Joaquin continues. “I found myself taking every opportunity to see you. I snuck into Martin’s meetings to get information. I even listened through the door sometimes. I did anything I could think of to get things to report. I made sure to plan special things so I could impress you in the meantime. My feelings for you are genuine, they always have been”. Quinn can’t hide her expression as she listens to him confess his feelings. She wanted to avoid looking at Joaquin in any serious light originally, but it was no use. She hasn’t been able to stop thinking about him.   “My feelings have been real for you too. I told myself though that you’d probably want nothing more outside of a fling. You didn’t strike me as a relationship type of person”. “Then you misjudged me. I may be a flirt. I may be extremely charismatic, but I’ve never wanted to impress or prove myself to anyone like I have with you”. Joaquin looks down for a second, overwhelmed, not used to being so straightforward about his feelings. Quinn takes her finger, lifting his chin up to meet her gaze. “You’re enough, Joaquin. You’ve never needed to impress me. There’s no doubting the chemistry between us.”. He holds her gaze as she continues. “I know I wasn’t the most trusting after everything I went through with McGraw Byrne, but that didn’t stop me from being drawn to you and enjoying every experience we’ve shared. My feelings for you are genuine too”. Joaquin takes her in for a moment. No one has stripped him of his confident exterior this way, but he’s happy to be here in this moment. Although this was uncharted territory, he wanted to travel down this road if it meant he got to do it beside Quinn. The energy becomes heavy, and he leans forward to seal their confessions with a kiss, almost to confirm that this is really happening. As Joaquin walks over to her, circling her desk, Quinn wraps her arms around his neck in response, pulling him close. She hums into the kiss, the chemistry between them surging. They let their once hidden feelings run free. After a few blissful minutes, Quinn breaks the kiss, taking Joaquin’s face in her hands. “I still owe you the rest of that thank you for helping me get one over on Martin. I was thinking maybe I could plan the date this time?”.

 “Whatever you want, little rabbit, I’m happy anywhere as long as I’m with you”. 

Quinn smirks at hearing that nickname again, laughing at the memory of seeing Joaquin stroll into the firm with Martin’s rabbit foot. She knows right away where she wants to take him on their date.  

“I want to show you one of my favorite spots in the city”. Joaquin leans in to place a thankful kiss on her lips.

“I’m looking forward to it”.

The next day, Quinn texts Joaquin to meet her in the park after work. She holds a picnic basket filled with food she made just for him. He shows up right on the dot, walking forward, and greeting her with a kiss. “Where are we off to?”. He asks. “I can’t wait to show you…” she says. Quinn takes his hand in hers, guiding them away from the crowd. They hike into a secluded area behind the trees. No one would think to look back there normally with all the foliage, but the spot Quinn leads him to is perfect. It provides a gorgeous view of the water. Natural plants are sprouting everywhere. It’s clear why she likes this place so much, it’s quite calming. Quinn lays down a couple of soft blankets on the ground, placing the picnic basket on top. After they sit, Joaquin wraps his arms around her waist while they take in the scenery. They enjoy this rare and quiet view of New York. “I can understand why you like it here. Not many places in the city allow you to have an unobstructed view of everything. Normally people are piling on top of you”. Quinn laughs to herself, taking out some food and drinks for them to enjoy. “I found this place after I moved here. Like you, I packed up my whole life to move to New York to be a lawyer for McGraw Byrne. I like to come here when I need time to think, relax, or go over a case. I’ve never brought anybody here before. It’s kind of my secret spot”. Joaquin looks at her meaningfully, feeling honored that she trusts him enough to take him here. “I appreciate you sharing this with me”. She smiles to herself, letting her hand drift over to his and holding it. The gesture is such a small show of intimacy, and yet Joaquin can feel his heart beating faster at the gentleness of her touch. “I made us some food. I brought wine and some water too in case you didn’t want to drink”. “You can cook too? Is there anything you can’t do, Quinn Michaels?”. She laughs, taking out some plates for them both and putting sandwiches, fruit, and her homemade cake on the side. Joaquin thanks her, taking a strawberry and moving it towards her lips. She softly takes a bite, the juices running down her chin. They both giggle while Joaquin wipes it off with a napkin. He gives her a sweet peck on the lips while they laugh again. After finishing off the bite she leans in to kiss him for real. Joaquin wraps his arms around her back. She climbs into his lap, straddling him, while they both deepen the kiss. Quinn runs her hands through his hair as he holds her close. They break the kiss a few minutes later, panting and grinning at each other. Quinn turns around, laying in Joaquin’s lap while they enjoy their food, joking and chatting. Afterward, they cuddle up to watch the sunset, enjoying the feeling of each other’s company. They talk about the near and distant future. They agree that they’ll tell Gabe and Aislinn they’re together, after they enjoy a few more days of sneaking around, just for the thrill of it. After most of the food is finished, Quinn packs up the picnic basket with Joaquin, neither of them wanting the day to end. She looks at him knowingly. “Do you want to come back to my place? It’s not far, and it’s probably safer than you walking home by yourself”. He looks at her mischievously, a wolfish smirk spreading across his face. “Is that what you really mean or are you trying to lure me back into your apartment for a nightcap? Either way, I won’t say no”. Quinn shakes her head, taking his hand in hers while they leisurely stroll back to her place together.

Quinn unlocks the door, telling Joaquin to make himself at home while she takes the basket to the kitchen. Joaquin sits on the couch, not taking his eyes off her. She turns around, feeling his gaze, and her cheeks redden. She’s used to being as confident as he is, but Joaquin has the power to make her weak in the knees with just a look or a touch. She walks back over to him, his arms already outstretched, their lips meeting in a passionate kiss. Hardly keeping their hands off each other, Quinn pulls him by the shirt into her room, closing the door. He pushes her up against it, biting down on her lip playfully. Ripping off each other’s clothes they stumble onto the bed half dressed. Joaquin rolls himself on top of her, kissing down Quinn’s neck until he makes her moan out. While he kisses back up her skin, he whispers into her ear. “What do you need Quinn? Tell me, and it’s yours”. She shivers at the soft sound of his voice, his breath on her ear causing goosebumps to crawl up her skin. She caresses his arm, her mind racing with thoughts and possibilities, but all she can get out is that she wants him. Joaquin understands though, and he leans in to kiss her again, wrapping his arms around her back. They grind against each other, kissing fervently. Joaquin pushes the rest of her clothes off her legs, and his right after. He holds her close to him, their chests pressed up against each other while their hands grip the other's body, their passion raging. Quinn feels Joaquin’s strong arms holding her close, almost as if he’s afraid she’ll fly away or disappear. They lose themselves in each other, savoring every moment, knowing that after all this time, they finally found their match.

Ending 2- A Bright Future Ahead:

After their big win against McGraw Byrne and Martin, the Ricci & Associates team is celebrating at the Brass Monkey. Everyone is congratulating Quinn on a job well done taking down Calvin Colby. After all the commotion, Quinn heads to the bar where she finds Joaquin alone. Earlier, Gabe and he were talking seriously. She assumed it was about the job he wanted. Seeing the grin on his face as she approaches him, Quinn can tell the conversation went well. Joaquin happily reports the good news of his job offer to be a corporate law expert for the firm. Quinn responds excitedly for him, happy to have another thing to celebrate tonight. Joaquin finishes off his drink, getting up from the bar. Quinn looks over at him curiously, wondering where he’s going. He tells her that tonight isn’t about him, but he can’t wait to see her on Monday when he can steal all her attention.

She watches his back as he walks out of the door, surprised at the disappointment that overcomes her. She sits down on the bar stool where he was, holding her drink. She starts thinking about all the recent events that have happened between her and Joaquin. He’s had a mysterious yet captivating energy since the day they met. His witty banter always keeps her on her toes. She wanted to be annoyed at his confident charms, but she couldn’t, at least not fully. He slowly but surely gained her trust, proving that he was always on her side from the beginning, despite how oddly their relationship started.

She couldn’t let him leave like this. There was too much left unsaid. Quinn made her rounds saying a quick goodbye to Gabe, Aislinn, Beau, Gigi, and the team. She headed out the door, hoping that Joaquin didn’t get too far yet. She power walked down the New York City streets, looking in every direction for him. Suddenly she sees Joaquin amongst the crowd, a few steps ahead. Yelling out his name she raises her hand hoping he’ll see her, pushing through the people blocking the way. He turns around at the sound of her voice, confusion plastered on his face. “Quinn?!”. After a few moments of dodging people, she steps in front of him. Joaquin looks taken by the sight of her. A part of him is selfishly happy to have her here. Another part feels guilty that she isn’t with her colleagues and friends. “What are you doing here? Why aren’t you at the Brass Monkey?” Huffing and puffing from her quick movements, she looks up at him. “I couldn’t let you leave. You deserve to be there too. Your help was invaluable on that case, Joaquin”. He shakes his head, a slight blush coming onto his cheeks from her praise. “Tonight, it isn’t about me, Quinn. You would have won that case regardless of my help. I want you to enjoy the night”. She takes his hand into hers, holding his gaze with a serious expression. Joaquin gives her a surprised reaction, almost gasping at her touch. “I don’t want to celebrate without you”. Joaquin stands conflicted and yet elated. He wants so badly to take her into his arms and kiss her right then and there, in front of all these people. But he can’t. He refuses to take away the night she deserves after her success. “Look, I didn’t want the attention to be on me or my promotion. You deserve the spotlight tonight. You did amazing, Quinn. You are amazing”. She looks at him earnestly, realizing what he’s saying. That he only left because he didn’t want to dull her shine. The realization hits her like a ton of bricks. Despite his façade, he has a caring side that she’s slowly seeing the more they spend time together. He has a soft spot, and it’s for her. “You got the job you’ve been waiting for, but you were worried about me?”. He nods, placing his hand on her cheek and looking deeply into her eyes. “I’m always on your side, Quinn. Go have fun. I’ll see you on Monday”.

Joaquin starts to walk off again, but Quinn grabs his arm, stopping him. “If it’s my celebration then I should get to choose who I celebrate with. I want that to be you”. He stares at her, stunned momentarily, but shakes it off, hoping she doesn’t notice. He walks over to her again, placing his hands on her shoulders. “You’re sure about that?”. She nods, reassuring him that she’s serious. Joaquin looks down for a second and grins. He’s happy that after everything he’s tried to do to show her how much he cares, how much she can trust him, she’s starting to see it. Even if she just wants him around as a friend, he’s pleased. “Okay, if you say so. I know a great hidden gem we can go to for dinner if you’re interested”. “Are we going back to your favorite sushi restaurant again? I loved it there”. He takes her hand in his, strolling down the sidewalk while swinging their arms together. “No, it’s a great little Italian place just up ahead. Wait until you try the food. It’s exquisite, and thankfully, it’s never packed”. They walk a few more minutes down the sidewalk and get to a small unassuming Italian bistro. The decorations are vintage, clearly dated, but charming. A short older woman who must be in her 70s greets them both with a huge smile. Her Italian accent is thick as she talks. “Joaquin! It’s so good to see you again. And you brought a beautiful young lady with you! I knew you would find someone, you’re such a charmer, and very handsome too!”. She goes in to give Quinn kisses on the cheek and a strong hug, then Joaquin. Her personality is bright and loving like a classic storybook grandmother. She places herself in the middle of them, taking both of their hands and leading them to the tables. “Please, come, take a seat. I’ll go grab Lorenzo to take your orders”. She walks away happily, handing out menus before walking into the kitchen. Italian music starts playing overhead, and a romantic vibe starts to fill the small restaurant. Quinn looks over the top of her menu at Joaquin. “Wow, that was some greeting. Do you eat here often?”. Joaquin laughs to himself. “I’ve only been here a couple of times. Nonna Rossi thinks everyone is a distant relative after she meets them. This is a family-owned business, and they try to make all their patrons feel like they’re an honorary Rossi”. A tall brunette waiter comes out from the kitchen, introducing himself as Lorenzo Rossi. Joaquin offers to order, asking for a bottle of red wine for the table, water, appetizers, and a Tour of Italy platter for them to share. He tells him he wants Quinn to taste a little bit of everything. After thanking Lorenzo, they talk comfortably in an intimate atmosphere. As Nonna Rossi and Lorenzo bring out each item of food, Quinn realizes that everything tastes just as good as Joaquin described. Finally, the main course arrives. It smells amazing. The portion sizes are like a small tower on the plate where there’s pasta with homemade red sauce, chicken parmigiana, and Nonna’s signature meatballs. As they start to dig in Quinn asks what’s been on her mind since they arrived. “How do you find these restaurants tucked away in a big city like this?” she wonders. Joaquin takes a swig of his wine, taking her hand in his. “If you keep your mind open to all possibilities, you’ll always be surprised at what you can find”. Quinn smiles at him, gripping his hand a little tighter in agreement. They finish up their dinner, say goodbye and thank you to the staff, and hold hands as they walk slowly down the sidewalk. Neither of them wants the night to end as they look up at the stars. Almost instinctually Quinn turns to him. “Do you…want to come back to my place? It’s still early. I have a balcony with a great view of the city skyline”. Joaquin grins, his mind trying to think of something witty to say back. He’s thrilled that Quinn doesn’t want the night to be over either. “You don’t have to tempt me, Quinn. I’d go anywhere you asked, but especially your place”. He winks and she shakes her head, slightly blushing. They make it back to her apartment a few minutes later.

The tension is thick between them as Quinn makes her way to the closet, taking out blankets and placing them outside on her balcony’s loveseat. She grabs some drinks while Joaquin goes outside to sit, his gaze never leaving her. She walks outside and sits next to him, pouring them a drink as they clink their glasses together. After a generous sip, Joaquin wraps his arm around Quinn, grabbing a blanket with his other hand and covering them both up. There’s a slight chill in the air, but the weather is perfect for being outdoors. Quinn rests her head on Joaquin’s shoulder while he rubs her arm, placing a kiss on her forehead. The atmosphere is so calm that he knows this is the perfect time to say what’s been on his mind. He doesn’t know how Quinn will react to his feelings, so he tries to lead with his usual flirty tone. “Now that we’re going to be coworkers, we’ll get to see each other much more often. We can get into all kinds of trouble”. Quinn laughs, lifting her head from his sweater and looking at him, taking in his chiseled features. “You have the job now, Joaquin, you don’t have to try and butter me up anymore”. He laughs in response.“Is that what you thought that was? Buttering you up so I’d get the job? I told you, Quinn, I didn’t want to buy my way into Ricci & Associates. I had every intention of showing you that I was qualified for the role, but most importantly, that you could trust me inside and outside of the courtroom”. “Was gaining my trust that important to you?”.   Joaquin silently sighs to himself, feeling vulnerable and put on the spot. It’s been a long time since he’s had to speak without his confident and smooth façade doing most of the talking for him. “Of course, it was. I’ve had to woo a lot of people for work, but it’s been a while since I truly cared about what they thought of me as a person, and not just as a lawyer”. Quinn is taken aback by his confession, realizing her doubts were wrong all along. All his efforts, his attentiveness, it did mean more than just trying to get a job offer. She had hoped it did, but she never wanted to get too attached to the idea that he might have true feelings for her. Joaquin continues to speak, barring his heart to her and bringing her out of her trance. “I have nothing to gain right now and yet here I am. I got the job. That insufferable ass Martin is going to get what’s been coming to him. So is Calvin Colby. I care about you, Quinn Michaels. I’ve been intrigued by you since I started seeing that yes, you’re an intelligent knockout who can take anyone down. But you’re an incredible person too. Once I realized how I felt, I made sure I went out of my way to get information for you. Any excuse to see you, I took”. Quinn searches his eyes, seeing that there is no deception, no ulterior motives that she can detect. He looks back at her seriously, his hand wiping a stray piece of hair from her face as it blows in the wind. He leans in closer, placing a kiss on her cheek, his voice almost a whisper. “This is so much more than a fling to me, Quinn. If that’s all you want it to be, I understand. If you want us to be nothing but coworkers, I’ll respect that too. Just know I want so much more and I’m willing to give it to you. Just say the word and it’s yours. I’m yours”. The energy becomes intense as they stare at each other. No matter the walls that Quinn had from the beginning, she knows that Joaquin has been the only one on her mind. Every time he’d pop up, her heart would skip a beat. She looked forward to every moment they shared, despite searching for every reason to push him away. She truly tried, but she never found a reason to. Joaquin’s been supporting her from the beginning. She takes his hands in hers, rubbing her thumb against his skin while trying to find the right words to say. “I want you too, Joaquin. In every way. I may have doubted you, but I was wrong. You’ve had my back in secret for so long. When I look at you, all I can think is that I’ve finally met my match. The one that can keep up with me. The one that can keep me on my toes. It’s you. It’s always going to be you”. Joaquin breaks out in a grin, wrapping his arms around Quinn and knocking them both over onto the loveseat. He looks down at her, examining every inch of her underneath his body. The reality that she feels the same way about him almost feels too good to be true. He descends, capturing her lips in his. Quinn wraps her arms around his neck, their lips meeting in a desperate, passionate kiss, trying to convey to each other how hard they’ve fallen for one another.

Quinn breaks the kiss, inviting him in so the neighbors don’t catch them making out on the balcony. Joaquin makes a snarky joke about giving everyone a show. She grabs his arm and drags him inside. She places her hands on the top of his sweater after locking the balcony door, pulling him close as they stumble into the bedroom. Joaquin wraps his arms around her waist, kissing her deeply. Quinn breaks the kiss for a moment as she shuts the bedroom door, Joaquin heading to sit on the bed. She walks over and they wrap their arms around each other again, their hands roaming each other’s bodies like they can’t believe the other is real. Joaquin breaks the heavy kiss, both gasping for breath. He places his hand on her cheek, gazing at her like she’s the only person in the world. He whispers softly into her ear. “I want to do whatever it takes to make you feel good tonight, Quinn. We have a lot to celebrate”. She grins back, caressing his hair as she remembers her earlier promise to him after he helped her play a trick on Martin.

“And I have a thank you I still need to make good on”. He laughs, kissing her affectionately before responding. “That you do. I guess we’ll need to compromise. Though knowing I brought you any sort of pleasure and comfort is enough to make me happy”. Quinn places her hands on his chest, pushing him down onto the bed and kissing from his ear to his neck. She lifts his sweater off of his body while kissing across his chest. Joaquin lets out a soft moan, his hands tangling in her hair. “The only thing I want tonight is you, Joaquin. The rest is just a bonus”. He sits up, smiling lovingly at her. “You have me. I’m not going anywhere”. She pushes him down onto the covers, his head hitting the pillows while she sarcastically says, “You’ve proven that”. Joaquin laughs back, grabbing Quinn, turning her over, and kissing her intensely. They slowly finish undressing. The heat in the room blazing as they explore each other’s bodies. Joaquin holds onto Quinn tightly, making sure he never misses an inch of her as he plants teasing kisses all over her skin. The feeling in the room is more intimate now that they’ve finally admitted the truth about their feelings. The night winds down and they hold each other close, Joaquin kissing Quinn’s forehead and then speaking softly. 

“What do we tell the others at work?” Quinn runs her hand down his chest. Joaquin softly shivers, taking her hand in his, and kissing her knuckles.

“I want them to know the truth, at least eventually”. “Eventually, huh? Are you going to keep me as your lusty work secret? My ego might hurt a little, but I can’t say the thrill isn’t intriguing”. “For one thing, your ego will be fine. For another, I’d never want to hide you. I’m just down for a couple more rendezvous dates before the big reveal”. He grins, his mind already thinking of places to run off to. Quinn puts her head on his chest, hugging him close, the feeling of his heartbeat calming her. “I’m ready to tell the world you’re mine if you’re ready too, Joaquin”. He lifts her chin up to meet his gaze. “Nothing would make me happier”. Quinn answers him with a kiss, smiling against his lips. They spend the rest of the night in each other’s arms, Joaquin promising to make them pancakes before work in the morning. Quinn closes her eyes, comforted by his presence as they both fall asleep. They know that the future is bright now that they have each other.