It's just a game, right?
pt 2
"I just don't see how sitting around is gonna do anything!" Dash argues, face to face with Sam.
"Well, if you have other ideas you're more than welcome to offer them, but we can't just take out the giw. They have more manpower than us, more equipment, and the new agents actually seem to be competent in fights! And we are a bunch of high school students!"
They are all, ostensibly in English Class right now, but even Mr. lancer has forgone the illusion of normal classwork. He assigns books and hands out reading assignments every week, but nobody really cares whether they get turned in or not. The city, after all, has a much bigger problem.
"I don't know! But sitting here-"
"He's not entirely wrong, the longer we wait the more likely they figure it out, just like we all did." As Valerie finishes speaking, the room temperature drops noticeably, and the kids all glance nervously over at Danny who's head hasn't moved from it's spot on his desk. He almost seems dead with how still he is. Beside him Tucker stares at his PDA, the only one who hasn't reacted to the temperature change.
"Should I even ask what you're messing with?" Sam asks, walking over while the others stare nervously at Danny.
"Actually, yeah." Tucker easily shifts so they can both see the webpage displayed on the handmade tech. "I got something through."
"I thought getting stuff through wasn't really the problem?"
"I mean, yeah, they're letting Everything Is Normal posts through, but this wasn't. That. I was, um, kind of fucking around with ciphers and shit? Not saying anything relevant, but just seeing whether they'd flag any old weird shit, you know? And um. I got a video out."
"Okay, but how does that help us?" Valerie asks.
"It helps because if they let a cipher through then means if I encode shit well enough, then it'll also get through."
"But if it's, like, that hard to figure out what it says, then won't it be useless on the outside?"
"The chances of it getting into the hands of someone who could crack it do seem, uh, improbable."
"Not if we stack the deck."
"Wes-"
"No, listen, I know you're all still mad at me, but like. If you can attract a community of codebreakers? Then eventually someone will crack the code on what you need them to!"
"If you have an idea then just fucking say it, Wes," Sam snaps.
"Make an ARG. We can even have like, the base level be completely United to anything real, just make up a story about, i dunno, space travel? And then bury the actual info beneath that. Eventually somebody will crack into the real stuff, and if it's popular enough by then, and the GIW tries to suppress it? That'll be even more suspicious-looking, and just make them dig harder."
"What the fuck is a ARG?" Dash asks, pulling his gaze away from their definitely-just-sleeping classmate.
"Augmented reality game. It's like an unfiction thing. Make a story but the story is interactive and people have to decode shit to figure out what's going on." Tucker glances over to Wes. "And actually not a bad idea. If we all work together, we could probably make something cool."
"You could treat it as a class-wide project." Mr. Lancer says, making everyone jump. "That way I can back you up if anyone starts asking questions."
"Make it about black holes," Danny says, finally pulling himself up from his desk. "We can base it in wormhole theory, and distract the GIW with all the theoretical science."
"What, so like we make videos that seem like they're being sent through a black hole?"
"Fuckin. Sure, why not? As if shit couldn't get any weirder around here."
"Star, please try to refrain from swearing in front of me. I know the situation is - difficult - but I am officially still your teacher."
"Sorry, Lancer."
224 notes
·
View notes
As much as Yuu tried, she still ended up in trouble in trouble sometimes. Be it with Ace and Deuce, or just running late from acting as Crowley’s unofficial gopher, it was something. The punishments usually weren't that bad though, sometimes even relaxing.
Like right now, it was a little bit of a trip down memory lane as she scrubbed the statues down on Main Street. It was odd, having the dreams that she did that painted the Great 7 in shadows instead of light, but it felt...right. Balanced.
A story about a maid who would be going to a ball was the current dream cycle, though she didn’t get the feeling this one was going to relate to any upcoming overblots. While they didn’t happen as often, she occasionally just dreamt of things like this. While there was a lot to ruminate over, like the stepmother and Professor Trien, right now it was just a catchy little song sung by the fairy stuck in her head.
“Put it together-” The King of Beasts statue wasn’t in bad shape at least, “and what do you got-” Just had to get the moss out of his eye, “Bippity Boppity Boo!”
The eye blazed green, cracking open with a clap of thunder!
Yuu fell, catching herself with her hands. Shit! Did she break it? Damnit, she couldn’t afford-
Wait. It looked fine. Just a wet statue.
“Maybe I just need to finish this up.” She muttered. “Lack of sleep must be getting to me.”
The atmosphere had changed, the tension of a storm about to break open. As she finished the King of Beasts, she clocked her progress and ran, feeling like eyes followed her until she turned the corner.
Malleus must be in a mood, she thinks, watching the dark clouds forming and the green smoke that seems to be spilling out the fence of Ramshackle. It isn’t the right shade of green though, more muted and not as...saturated? The gate creeks ominously and it doesn’t take her long to notice the figure sitting on the porch of Ramshackle.
He is hunched over, a shawl tossed over his head that was once bright with color and design, now faded to grays, browns and darker reds like blood. His left eye is as green as the Diasomnia mage crystals, clear and unclouded, and the right faded as the green smoke around him. A gnarled staff is gripped in his hands, a gourd tied to the top with a handful of what might be rib bones along with some sort of dried fruit she thinks.
This isn’t a harmless man, her instincts can say that much, but...he doesn’t feel like a threat. He could be. He’s choosing not to.
“How can I help you?” Yuu asks, getting a bit closer. “I don’t think I’ve seen you before. Are you a teacher here?”
He chuckles, making the pointed beard shake, but it’s not cruel. “I suppose that depends on you. I think you are in need of a teacher. And I am in need of a place to stay.”
“What do I need to learn?”
“Magic.”
“Ha!” Yuu can’t help it, barking a laugh. “You are mistaken. I have no magic of my own.”
“No, cub, you have magic, just not Wonderland magic. You have the Old magic, older even than General Lilia, the same as I. These teachers cannot help you, but I can.”
He removes the shawl’s hood from his face, revealing a pair of brown lion ears and a mane that puts Yuu’s hair to shame. Even braided in parts to keep it out of his face, the long black hair stretches all the way down to his curved spine. A tail thumps against the dusty steps,
“Afterall, you freed me, didn’t you?”
It takes some explaining, a quick meal shared on her dining room table that feels even more rundown than usual with actual royalty sitting down. Thank the Seven that Grim was asleep beforehand, his new Spelldrive practices tiring him out in the evenings.
“So, are the others...the same? Petrified?”
“Yes, though you aren’t ready to free us all just yet. I was an accident, correct?”
She flinches, nodding. “I mean, I guess? Sometimes I have dreams. Alternate tellings of the stories around here it feels like, or added details? Most of the time they follow an Overblot, but this one just felt like a non-threatening one. I don’t have these as often.”
“Precognition is a dangerous magic, especially with no guiding tools.”
“I dont know if-”
“You dreamt of mine, did you not? Leona Kingscholar? The Phantom still was a part of me, drawn from my form and magic.”
Yuu blinked, shrugging. “I mean, it didn’t stop it.”
“No, but you were more prepared. You were willing and ready to accept Leona’s trauma and show compassion because you witnessed me make the exact follies and look at how that ended.” he huffed, taking a sip from his water.
She hadn’t considered that really. It just felt natural, to show them kindness after all of it. But they were alike. Really alike. And the actions Leona had taken paralleled his perfectly.
“Do you think if somebody had done so with you, you would have listened?”
“Oh cub!” He laughed, and this one felt harsher. “I would not have. I was far too hardened. But Leona...he will be better.”
“Well, I better try and at least get a bed ready for you.” She said, taking both of their dishes. “What do I call you though? King of Beasts is a bit of a mouthful.”
He tilts his head, as if considering. She gets the dishes loaded and leftovers put away before he finally answers.
“Taka. My Mother’s Son.” he says. “That’s who I wish to be now.”
Yuu smiles, sticking out her hand.
“Nice to meet you, Professor Taka! I look forward to learning from you.”
For just a moment, he sees Simba, and Nuka and Kovu and Vitani. He sees Shenzi, Banzai and Ed. He sees naive and friendly and believes in him, for as little he has to offer, and still finds him worthy.
He shakes her hand and hangs his stone heart to air out.
75 notes
·
View notes
That’s it, Let it out 18+
Reader x Jessie Fleming
Warning: Smut, Smut, Smut
Word count: 3.7k
*Y/n's Pov*
We are playing England right now. I get ahold of the ball and sprint up field. Beth Mead and Lucy Bronze hot on my tail. Leah Williamson and Kiera Walsh charging at me from the front.
I nut Meg both of them, I get to the net and smash my foot into the ball. The ball flies past the goalie and into the back of the net.
After 90 minutes the ref blows the final whistle ending the game. The final score was 3-2. Me and Jessie and the team go into the locker rooms
Me and Jessie get into the locker room and coach pulls us off to the side.
"You two shower and get dressed. You guys have a photo shoot for the new Nike gear in an hour." She says.
Me and her both nod. We hit the showers and get ready. We grab our things and drive the mini van we rented to the Nike store.
Me and Jessie change into our first outfit for the photo shoot. Jessie was taking pictures in their new sports bra and underwear. I bite my lip and check out the view in front of me.
I bite my lip as I check out her amazing 6 pack. The panties were showing her pussy folds and were making her ass pop. Her bra was showing amazing clevelage and I couldn't look away.
Jessie smirks, she knows shes teasing me and continues to tease me. Jessie finishes her first photo shoot in her first outfit and walks past Me. I giggle and slap her ass as she walks past me.
Jessie jumps and squeals in shock and blushes darkly. I was wearing their new sports bra and their new boxers. Jessie bites her lip as she checks me out.
She fucks me with her eyes and looks down at my crotch. She blushes darkly as she checks out my bulge.
I look down at my crotch and smirk when I notice she's looking at my bulge. We do the photo shoot for an hour and then get changed back in our normal clothes and go get lunch. We agree on Chinese, we get our food and make small talk as we eat.
We laugh as I share a story with her. "There is no way that she gave you a blow job in the school bathroom for $40." Jessie says.
"Yes I'm telling you it's 100% true. I was stressed out about the team cause I was the team captain. She helped me relieve some stress." I laugh.
Jessie laughs and shakes her head. "Sure."
We finish eating lunch, we walk to an ice cream place. As we are walking our pinkies rub against each other, Jessie looks at our pinkies and smiles. Takes her hand in mine and interlocks our fingers, we both smile at each other as we walk hand in hand to the ice cream place.
*Jessie's pov*
Not gonna lie I got turned on when Y/n told me the story of the girl giving her head in the school bathroom.
I was soaking wet, I saw her bulge. I wondered how big she is, I was so honey I wanted to feel her deep inside, I kept fantasizing about her fucking me. Before lunch my feet were killing me so took off my shoes and put on flip flops.
We get to the ice cream place, Y/n opens the door for me. I smile and thank her, the thing I loved about Y/n was that she was very old school. Opening the car door for me or opening other doors for me.
We order what we want, we get our ice cream and sit down. We sit down in the corner away from everyone for a bit more privacy. I wanted to tease Y/n and make her hard, I slip off a flip flop while we are talking.
I smirk as I trail my foot up Y/n's leg. Y/n smirks and watches me do this and bites her lip. I slide my foot up her thigh, Y/n quietly moans as I do this. I smirk and rub her dick over her shorts with my foot.
Y/n quietly moans. "Mm fuck."
I giggle, I bite my lip and continue to tease her dick over her shorts. Fuck she felt huge, Y/n was hard and turned on.
I tease her and stop making her quietly groan. I giggle, "Does daddy need a release."
Y/n blushes darkly and nods. "Y-Yes."
I look up to the toilets. I take Y/n's hand and stand her up. "Follow me."
*Y/n's pov*
Jessie guides me into the bathroom and locks the door. "Let me recreate that school bathroom story." Jessie smiled as she got onto her knees.
"Yes please." I whispered so no one could hear.
Jessie kissed my bulge above my shorts and boxers before pulling them down. I bit my lip as she kisses up and down my thighs, I began to get hard. Jessie licked along my length as she took my length in her mouth and began to suck my dick.
"Fuck babe, such a good girl." I moan as I grip her hair putting her hair into a ponytail.
She gripped my thighs, as she sped up her sucking gagging as my tip hit the back of her throat. Spot going everywhere as she began to tear up from the continuous gagging.
"J-Jessie Y-You need to be quiet people will hear." I whisper and giggle slightly leaning my head backwards against the wall.
My dick plops out Jessie's mouth, a string of spit still connecting us together. She takes my dick and slaps it against her tongue as well as her cheeks, rubbing it along her lips before taking it back in her mouth and continuing to give me head.
"Fuck Jessie, please keep going I'm gonna cum buckets." I moaned gripping her ponytail bit tighter.
She listens to my request as she gargled my length in her mouth letting it hit the back of her throat. Sliding all the way down her throat like she was swallowing me whole.
Throat pie:
I didn't have time to warn Jessie as I explode inside her mouth, filling her mouth up with my seed causing her to gag from the sudden liquid oozing into her kit and traveling down her throat.
"Fuck, swallow my cum like a good girl." I moan pressing her head further down on my cock making her swallow my cum.
She swallows every drop, not leaving any behind. "Hehe you let it all out, didn't you baby." Jessie giggles as she wiped her mouth clean.
I was going crazy, my legs shaking the dark look Jessie was giving me as she stayed on her knees looking at my cock swallowing the last bit of cum in her mouth. Without saying a word, she took my cock back in her mouth and started to give me another blowjob.
"Uuuhhh Fuck, Jessie fuck." I moaned quietly as Jessie began to suck my cock once again.
The cheeky look Jessie gave me as she got faster make my eyes roll to the back of my head. Her spit dripping down my balls as she continued to gag on my cock, my cock sliding down her throat as she deep throats me her hand snaking up my leg to play with my balls, covered In her Silva.
"J-Jessie, I'm... I'm close." I moans, my hand finding the back of her head once again.
Jessie listened to my words as she began to deep throat me faster. My precum leaking down her throat letting her know I was about to explode.
Throat pie #2:
"Fuuuccck." I moaned can my eyes slammed shut. My cum shooting out into Jessie's mouth once again making her gag as her mouth got filled up with my seed.
"Such a good girl for me." I moaned as I guided her head up and down on my length for the final time.
Jessie wiped her mouth for the second time before getting up from her knees. Leaning in and planting a kiss onto my lips, the biggest smile on her face.
"Come on we've got dinner to get to then you're all mine." She winked as she took hold of my hand guiding me out of the bathroom.
"Yes ma'am." I reply.
*Jessie's Pov*
Y/n and I sat down at dinner after what happened in the bathroom at the ice cream place. Something I couldn't get out of my mind, giving her a smile as I felt myself become wetter and wetter from the thought of what I had done. Making her cum from giving her head in public.
Taking a sip of my drink i looked at Y/n deep in the eyes. "I need you." I whispered.
Y/n didn't respond, instead she giggled as she also took a tip from her drink. "Won't worry baby, you can have me all night, you just need to eat first." She smiled.
I nodded instantly thinking what kind of night I had ahead of me. No sleep just pure pleasure, how desperate I was for Y/n I wanted to spice it up a little bit I wanted to make Y/n want me even more.
We sat in the corner, the restaurant was dim. After receiving our food we both begin to eat, I slowly travel my foot up Y/n's leg like I did in the ice cream place. This time I travel my foot up further reaching her cock, I begin to run her cock with my foot. She starts to get hard almost instantly.
"Jessie Stop." Y/n whispered.
I didn't answer, instead I just giggle and continue to rub her bulge with my foot. Making Y/n close her eyes and take a deep breath, setting her fork and knife down on the table she got up off the chair.
"We're leaving now." Y/n ordered, her voice dominant.
I didn't say anything apart from a slight smile knowing I had gotten to Y/n. "Was there something wrong with the food?" The waiter asked as we made our way to the door of the restaurant.
"No, wait a little longer nothing was wrong. We've just got a situation back at the hotel that we need to take care of." Y/n answered as we left the restaurant. We get in our cab.
*Y/n's Pov*
The cab ride was quiet, I didn't wanna say anything to Jessie. Wanting her to guess what she had got herself into tonight, have her mind full of different scenarios I could do with her.
Jessie followed me into our hotel room closing the door behind her and locking it. "Get in the room, clothes off now baby. I'm gonna help you let it all out." I ordered Jessie which she filled my instructions immediately.
I purposely made Jessie wait a little too long, walking into the room I was met with her naked, laid on the bed. Jessie looked at me with pleading eyes.
"On your knees." I say to her as I sit in the edge of the bed.
Jessie does as I say and gets on her knees. I look down at her and lock eyes with her. "Get my cock out and start sucking. You've been so desperate since dinner, now show me." I ordered.
Jessie bites her lip, she wastes no time and slides my shorts and boxers off and tosses them off to the side, my hard length immediately springs out and at attention once it's freed from its confinement.
Jessie gave me one more look before spitting on my tip and began to suck my dick. I slowly began to undress myself as Jessie carried on, pulling my shirt off then my bra. I brushed Jessie's hair with my hand into a make shift bun and began to guide her head up and down in my length.
Spit spluttering out of her mouth and she started to get non stop, my tip hitting the back of her throat for the third time today.
"Keep going Jessie, that's it." I moaned, my fist gripped her hair tighter. The feeling of me in her mouth was amazing.
"Such a good girl." I moaned as I leaned back on my spare arm.
The only sounds in the room was the continuous gagging from Jessie's throat as she tried to take my length further and further down her throat each time.
"I wanna cum all over that beautiful face of yours." I said as I feel my balls tighten.
Jessie nodded taking my cock out of her mouth with a plop, strings of spit still linked from my cock to her mouth. I began to jerk over her face, as Jessie plays and massages my balls making them tighten up more.
Cumshot/Facial:
"Oh my." I moaned loudly as ropes of cum began to ooze and shoot out of my dick. I didn't have time to warn Jessie before her face, lips, eyes and even her mouth was covered in cum, painting her face white.
I bite my lip and rub my cock all over her face covering her face with more of my seed. "Look at that messy face." I giggle.
"Did I feel good?" Jessie coughed slightly after what her throat had just gone through.
"So good, but you're not done baby get on all fours." I say.
Jessie does as I say, she gets off her knees. She moves onto the bed and gets on all fours. "Such a good girl." I say and spank her ass as she wiggled it around.
I get situated behind her, I line my dick up with her pussy, a thought comes to mind as I reach around Jessie's body taking grip of both her wrists and place them behind her back so her face was against the mattress.
"Ready baby? Ready to get destroyed?" I whispered as I gripped her wrists tighter and slammed my cock deep inside her pussy.
She let out a mighty scream filled with pleasure as I bottomed out inside of her pussy, not slowing down.
"This is what you get for teasing me at dinner. I was always gonna get the last laugh." I moaned as I carried on destroying her entrance. Jessie tries to reply to which I press her face into the pillows muffling whatever she tried to say.
The sight of her ass rippling against me after every thrust was a sight I loved to see. Jessie trying to move her hands but couldn't from the grip I had on them seemed to send her into over drive. Her moans became louder, sweat dripping down her back as she began to get closer to her orgasm.
"That's it let it out." I whispered, I leant forward placing delicate kisses to her back.
As soon as my words left my mouth Jessie exploded. Noises coming from her mouth I had never heard before. Jessie squirts all over my stomach, as I felt her walls tighten around my cock immediately making my balls tighten.
Creampie #1:
"Fuck." I yelled as I began to cum at the same time as Jessie. I could feel my cum oozing inside of her, not being able to warn her in time. Us both moaning together as we reached our highs, filling her pussy to the brim.
One final spank to her right cheek, I let go of her hands to which she falls onto the bed exhausted. I planted a kiss on her ass before moving up the kisses up and down her back receiving little giggles from Jessie. Suddenly flipping her over onto her back.
"Missionary now baby." I pouted as she smiles back at me.
I began to tease her pussy with my length, hitting her clit and putting my tip in and out of her entrance. I giggle as Jessie's moans and pouts, I bite my lip and slam my cock back inside her making her moan loudly in pleasure and gripping the sheets.
I grip her thighs as I thrust in and out of her at a fast pace. "Fuck Y/n, you're actually fucking huge." She moaned as she adjusts to my size in this position. Her head moving side to side as my thrusts sped up putting her through more pleasure.
"F-Fuck Y/n, please keep going." Jessie begged, as vains popped out of her neck.
"Does it feel good baby." I asked as I held onto her right boob.
"So so good, I'm close." Jessie cries out in pleasure.
"Beg me, why should you be allowed to cum." I demanded.
"Fuck I've been a good girl Y/n, your good girl please let me cum." Jessie begged.
"Okay, when you're ready cum baby." I agreed not wanting to tease her anymore.
A few more hard thrusts I began to feel my balls tighten, also from the sight of Jessie's tits bouncing up and down. I pulled her left leg up over my shoulder to give me more of an angle to go deeper into her pussy.
Creampie #2:
"Fuck." I shout at the same time as Jessie. We both begin to cum again at the exact same time, her juices leaking out of her pussy as I fill her up. Both becoming moaning messes under each other's touch.
I kiss her calf up and down as we help each other come down from our highs. "Such a good girl for me." I whispered as I kissed up Jessie's body reaching her lips. "Can you go again?" I asked as I planted a kiss on her lips.
She nodded in response. I took her hand, standing her up off the bed. Placing her hands against the wall for her to keep her balance, bringing her ass closer to me.
"I was thinking maybe I could use this nice looking ass of yours." I giggled as I spank her.
"Yes please." Jessie giggles and agrees with my requests.
I took a slight grip of Jessie's hips, guiding my cock into her asshole slowly. Wanting her to get use to every feeling she was about to experience.
"Fuck, you're so tight." I whispered as I thrust in and out of her slowly and then pick up the pace and thrust into her tight ass faster and faster.
Jessie's hands were making fists against the wall as I continued to fuck her ass. The noise of her ass slapping against my skin, the way it wobbled after every thrust.
"Such a good girl for me, aren't you." I moaned again as I spanked her ass.
"Such a good girl for you, you deserve it." Jessie's moaned back as she turned her head to the side to face me, her face covered in sweat.
I took her ponytail into my hand as I began to thrust harder and harder. I could see the effect I was having on Jessie, her legs beginning to tremble as her toes start to curl.
"Are you feeling okay baby? Shall we stop?" I asked as I began to slow down.
"Don't you dare slow down, keep going. Fill me up." Jessie said raising her voice.
"God, Okay." I smiled as I sped my thrusts back up. The feeling of my balls hitting her ass felt amazing. Her ass bouncing after every thrust, I placed my spare hand on her back as I sped up for the final time making Jessie scream in pleasure against the wall.
"Fuck Jessie I'm, I'm..." I tried to warn her but it was too late.
Creampie #3:
Slowly I filled her ass up with my cum. My cock twitching from the cum filling her up, some of the cum dripping over her folds and down her leg.
"Fuck Y/n, you've filled me up so good." Jessie moaned once again standing up straight.
I looked Jessie up and down, her visibly exhausted from what we had both been out through. "Can I use your tits Jessie and thats it I'm done." I say.
"Yes baby." She smiled. "Get on the bed."
I got in the bed, sitting up against the headboard. My length still rock hard, Jessie laid between my legs as she planted a kiss into my dick. She then spits on my tip slowly letting her Silvia drip down my length before wrapping her tits around my cock. Slowly she began to stroke my dick with her tits.
"F-Fuck Jessie.... Just like that." I moaned as I began to play with her right nipple.
Jessie began to speed up, pressing her tits tighter and tighter around my cock covering it in spit as she continues to stroke my dick in spit.
"Fuck Jessie I'm gonna cum buckets if you keep doing that." I moaned as I gripped the sheets underneath me.
She didn't slow down as she kept going, she began to play with my balls with her right hand. "Let it all out." Jessie giggled from the way she was seeing my facial expressions change.
Somehow I could feel my length getting harder as I become closer to releasing. A feeling I had never felt before, Jessie spat once more on my tip and went as fast as she could as she began to moan at the precum she could feel leaking out.
"Jessie... oh m-my..."
Cumshot:
Cum fired out of my cock going everywhere. All over Jessie's face, tits and even landing in her mouth. My biggest cumshot yet, Jessie stopped tit fucking me and began to lick up all the cum off her face and tits.
"Such a cum slut." I moaned as I watched Jessie do this.
"Your cum slut." Jessie giggled as she licked up the remaining cum. "Letting it all out all over me." Jessie laughed again as she planted a thank you kiss on my lips.
We lay in bed, it was now 5:30 am. I turn on the tv, I put on a random movie. We cuddle together and fall asleep naked me cock warming her.
58 notes
·
View notes
Monthly story - male bat-like forest monster x male character (nsfw)
This one was a really sweet one to write, though as ever, it's about 10k words longer than I intended. I hope you enjoy these two and the autumnal forest vibes. There are also a couple of tiny little Gabe & Odessa easter eggs in there, if you spot them...
Summary: a heartsick author books a remote fire lookout tower for some solitude after a messy breakup, and for the chance to finish his latest novel, only to fall slowly in love with a voice over the radio.
Content (light spoilers): stormy conditions, then lost while hiking, forest entity attacks with constricting vines (not romantic interest). Nsfw includes oral, no penetrative, messy sex, come marking(?), and there's some purring too.
Wordcount: 13,238
(for the tower lookout vibes, this reddit link should help)
Preview:
“You’re renting a what?” Lavinia snorted, setting down her coffee cup with a clunk and gawping at Bowen like he’d just grown another head. Or maybe like he’d lost the one he’d had to begin with.
“I’m renting an old fire lookout in the Pinewatch Range for a month.”
“Have you lost your fucking mind?” she blurted. “Seriously, I know the breakup with Mike fucked with your head, and with good fucking reason because the man is a complete —”
“— it’s not about the breakup, Lav,” Bowen interjected heavily, taking a sip of his own drink and wincing. Instead of his usual coffee, he’d opted for a remarkably bland chamomile tea, and was regretting it enormously. “It’s just… I’ve been wanting to work on my novel. I think a place with no electricity other than a solar panel to charge my phone and radio, and no running water, is going to suit me just fine.”
“No running water?” Lavinia looked truly horrified at that. “Seriously? How are you gonna shower? And, like… flush the toilet? Oh my god, don’t tell me you have to shit in the woods…”
At that, Bowen bit back a rare, true laugh. “There’s a composting toilet in an outhouse. It’s not like I’m turning into a bear.”
She eyed Bowen’s gut, which was just a little softer than it had once been, and raised one eyebrow. “Sweetheart, if you put on a red flannel shirt and grew that thick scruff out into a proper beard, you’d be the definition of a bear.”
He rolled his cocoa-brown eyes at her and leaned back in the farmhouse style chair, gazing around at the new coffee shop that had opened up on North Street. Lavinia looked out of place in the cutesy, rustic tea room, but as usual, she paid her surroundings little mind. Instead, she regarded him from under her heavy, Goth makeup, with a back-combed bird’s nest of box dyed, black hair piled atop her head. Behind the dramatic makeup and the false eyelashes that looked like the kind of spiders Bowen only found in the deepest recesses of his basement, he could see real concern in her features,and his heart squeezed. He’d isolated himself too much from his friend in the past six months, and now he was running away to the wilderness.
He leaned forwards, just catching the creak of the rattan beneath his jeans above the clatter of the cafe as the chair shifted and groaned a little, and he rested his weight on his forearms. “Honestly, this will be good for me, Lav. I need to unplug for a while.”
“I’m just worried you’re not gonna be able to plug back in afterwards,” she muttered darkly. “I take it you don’t get phone reception out there?”
He shook his head. “Nope. There’s a radio that connects you to the forest service in an emergency, and there are a few other old lookout towers in the area, but unless there’s a very lost hiker, I won’t see another soul for the whole month.”
“Jesus,” she hissed. “Well, I hope you know what you’re doing. And if I come across Mike in the meantime, I’ll hex his bollocks off and make him rue the day he dumped you.”
“You already did that.”
Something flashed in her eyes. “I made him rue the day he dumped you, but it was sweet little ‘butter-wouldn’t-melt’ Hazel that hexed him.”
Bowen rolled his eyes and chuckled fondly. “You and all that witchy shit, Lav. Ever since you watched The Craft in high school…”
Easy-going Bowen had always respectfully humoured his best friend’s interest and belief in the Occult, but he’d never subscribed to anything spooky himself. The spookiest thing that had ever happened to him was a traffic light going from red to green as he approached it. Hardly cause to call the Ghostbusters in, after all.
At first, he’d thought Lav had been joking, or just using some affectionate name for the group of people who had all met after class and at the weekends, calling them ‘her coven’, but over the course of their university degree, and the subsequent years of employment, he’d come to discover they all actually believed in the supernatural. Then again, Mike’s apartment had flooded the week after he’d ditched Bowen, and his had been the only one to suffer any damage. There was now some lingering problem with a particularly stubborn and rather toxic mould all over the ceilings, according to Lavinia’s mystical sources…
“Just promise me you’ll take good care of yourself, and you’ll fucking phone me the second you get back to civilisation,” she growled, and he solemnly promised with hand on heart to keep her updated when he could.
A week later, Bowen’s pickup bounced up the rutted track to the fire lookout station, with a fortnight’s worth of water and camping supplies lashed down in the bed. The nearest town of Pinewatch was a jolting, twenty mile trip down dirt roads before even reaching the main, tarmac road to get there, so he’d be using the truck for a resupply run in a couple of weeks, but until then, he figured he had everything he needed. At least, he hoped he did.
Read the whole thing on Patreon, plus gain access to every monthly story so far and join our chilled out Discord server here!
23 notes
·
View notes
how to start reading again
from someone who was a voracious reader until high school and is now getting back into it in her twenties.
start with an old favourite. even though it felt a little silly, i re-read the harry potter series one christmas and it wiped away my worry that i wasn't capable of reading anymore. they are long books, but i was still able to get completely immersed and to read just as fast as i had years and years ago.
don't be afraid of "easier" books. before high school i was reading the french existentialists, but when getting back into reading, i picked up lucinda riley and sally rooney. not my favourite authors by far, but easier to read while not being totally terrible. i needed to remind myself that only choosing classics would not make me a better or smarter person. if a book requires a slower pace of reading to be understood, it's easier to just drop it, which is exactly what i wanted to avoid at first.
go for essays and short stories. no need to explain this one: the shorter the whole, the less daunting it is. i definitely avoided all books over 350 pages at first and stuck to essay collections until i suddenly devoured donna tartt's goldfinch.
remember it's okay not to finish. i was one of those people who finished every book they started, but not anymore! if i pick up a book at the library and after a few chapters realise i'd rather not read it, i just return it. (another good reason to use your local library! no money spent on books you might end up disliking.)
analyse — or don't. some people enjoy reading more when they take notes or really stop to think about the contents. for me, at first, it was more important to build the habit of reading, and the thought of analysing what i read felt daunting. once i let go of that expectation, i realised i naturally analyse and process what i read anyway.
read when you would usually use your phone. just as i did when i was a child, i try to read when eating, in the bathroom, on public transport, right before sleeping. i even read when i walk, because that's normally a time i stare at my screen anyway. those few pages you read when you brush your teeth and wait for a friend very quickly stack up.
finish the chapter. if you have time, try to finish the part you're reading before closing the book. usually i find i actually don't want to stop reading once i get to the end of a chapter — and if i do, it feels like a good place to pick up again later.
try different languages. i was quickly approaching a reading slump towards the end of my exchange year, until i realised i had only had access to books in english and that, despite my fluency, i was tired of the language. so as soon as i got back home i started picking up books in my native tongue, which made reading feel much easier and more fun again! after some nine months, i'm starting to read in english again without it feeling like a huge task.
forget what's popular. i thought social media would be a fun way to find interesting books to read, but i quickly grew frustrated after hating every single book i picked up on some influencer's recommendation. it's certainly more time-consuming to find new books on your own, but this way i don't despise every novel i pick up.
remember it isn't about quantity. the online book community's endless posts about reading 150 books each year or 6 books in a single day easily make us feel like we're slow, bad readers, but here's the thing: it does not matter at all how many books you read or what your reading pace is. we all lead different lives, just be proud of yourself for reading at all!
stop stressing about it. we all know why reading is important, and since the pandemic reading has become an even more popular hobby than it was before (which is wonderful!). however, there's no need to force yourself to be "a reader". pick up a book every now and then and keep reading if you enjoy it, but not reading regularly doesn't make you any less of a good person. i find the pressure to become "a person who reads" or to rediscover my inner bookworm only distances me from the very act of reading.
6K notes
·
View notes