#oh and it's his birthday today!! happy birthday bowie :))

[happylandfill23]

absolutely freaking out when the tone of a song changes even though you've heard it over a million times is just a side effect of being hot

[turvi]

Dance With Me

Young Severus x reader

Severus sat far away from his usual spot on the Hogwarts grounds. It was his last year in Hogwarts and he was avoiding the Marauders like a plague. He hated how easily they were able to overpower him. For him, it was better that they forget he ever existed. He closed his eyes as the wind blew softly.

A flutter of wings interrupted his peace. He saw an owl sitting on his shoulder. Not just any owl, it was Y/n's owl, Bowie. He stifled a grin as he fed Bowie and took the letter from him. Bowie nudged his beak against Severus' cheek and flew away.

He opened the letter to see very familiar bad handwriting made worse he guessed so that he wouldn't know who wrote it. Nice try Y/n.

Hello Mr. Snape,

I hope this letter finds you in good health. It would be nice if you visit your dorm right now. Nothing suspicious, just it is healthy to visit your dorm every now and then. Alright, see you there Mr. Snape.

PS. This has nothing to do with your birthday which I am sure is not today.

With Love,

Anonymous.

Severus let out a chuckle. He didn't care what Y/n had planned for his birthday but he was going to visit his dorm just for her efforts.

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

Severus slowly opens the door to his dorm and finds a radio playing songs softly on his desk. He looks around to find his lover but only finds a plate covered with a lid on his bed. He makes his way to the bed and opens the lid to find his favorite dessert Blancmange and another letter lying beside the plate.

Dear Severus,

Happy Birthday. I hope this birthday you feel better. I love you so much my words can't explain it. As the song suggests love works in strange ways. I never thought I would experience love like this. To feel so wanted, loved, and cherished is something one could only dream about.

I love how different we are from each other and still find new things to love about each other. I can't wait to marry you Severus and get to call you mine and be yours forever. I am so lucky that I am your lover Severus never forget that. Ever.

Yours

Y/n

Severus teared up from your words. He feels if anyone is lucky in this relationship it is him. All of a sudden there is a knock on his door he wipes his tears and opens his door to find you holding a wrapped gift and a bouquet.

"Y/n-

"Ah shush I won't hear anything this is all for you. You deserve this."

He smiled and walked closer to you brushing his lips against yours. "I was saying thank you"

"Oh Sevy if you want to thank me you have to dance with me loverboy"

Severus rolled his eyes at your antics "I told you not to call me that" he said with a stifled smile.

You placed his gifts on his tables "oh and what if I keep calling you that"

He wrapped his arms around your waist holding you so close you could feel his heart beating against yours.

"I am afraid then I will have to kiss that mouth of yours to keep you from calling me that again"

"Oh no," you said having one thing in common with Severus which is being dramatic.

He softly chuckled as he pressed his lips with yours. Thanking Merlin for the best gift he received this year. You.

A/N: I am so late but anyways. HAPPY BIRTHDAY YOU DUNGEON BAT. Oh gosh, I love you so much. Please reblog and leave feedback if you like what I write

[cursed-herbalist]

➔ Okay, so here’s a little something that I wrote for Jimmy’s birthday. Annie and I were kinda talking about it over discord and I, pretty spontaneously, decided to make it happen … hence me being a little late. Jimmy, please forgive me. Hope you enjoy it!!

Ocs mentioned: Jupiter Durand (mine), Jimmy Crouch, Rosa Yaxley, Maxim Raeburn, Dawn Harvelle @potionboy3, Rocky Weasley and Gwendolyn Montague @magicallymalted

—

𝓗𝓪𝓹𝓹𝔂 𝓑𝓲𝓻𝓽𝓱𝓭𝓪𝔂, 𝓓𝓾𝓭𝓮!!

The great hall was filled with cheerful chatter as Jimmy and Maxim were sitting at one of the long dining tables. As per usual, neither of them talked much, however, today Jimmy seemed to be particularly on edge.

‘Why are you so nervous?’ Maxim asked, raising an eyebrow.

‘I’m not nervous. What makes you think so?’ Jimmy frowned.

‘You’re bouncing your knee like crazy.’

Trying to avoid further questions, Jimmy reached for an apple and took a quick bite.

‘You don’t wanna talk about it?’

‘No.’

‘You sure?’

‘Yes.’

‘Well, okay then,’ Maxim shrugged and continued to munch on his muesli.

Just at that moment, the large doors flew open and two smiling Gryffindor boys came strutting down the corridor. It was beyond Jimmy how a human being could be this happy in the morning. Although polar opposites, he still considered those two boys his friends.

‘Good morning~,’ the voice of one of them echoed through the hall and made all the heads turn in his direction. Not bothered by it, the boy kept scanning the room and started to smile even wider when he finally found the two people he was looking for. Picking up his pace, he almost ran toward Jimmy. ‘And an especially wonderful morning to you!’ he laughed while placing his hands on his shoulders, shaking them just a little too hard. Jimmy, on the other hand, was pressing his lips together, knowing very well what was about to follow. ‘Don’t say it, Rocky. Please.’

‘Happy Birthday, mate!! How are we going to celebrate?’

The other boys froze mid-motion before excited chaos broke loose. ‘It’s your birthday? How come you never told us?’ Maxim questioned while Dawn, the other Gryffindor boy, started singing 'Happy Birthday' at the top of his lungs. ‘Shut up, shut up, shut up! Not so loud!’ Jimmy tried to shush them but to no avail. Rocky sat down next to him and wrapped his arm around Jimmy’s shoulder. ‘Sorry, but now we finally have enough friends to actually celebrate—properly! I couldn’t keep it in any longer.’ ‘We have to throw a party!’ Dawn insisted but Jimmy shook his head. ‘No, we don’t.’ ‘Oh, yes. We must!’ Rocky agreed which earned him a glare from Jimmy.

‘What’s all the excitement about?’ another voice suddenly asked from behind them. Immersed in their little argument the four boys hadn’t noticed Jupiter, Jimmy’s girlfriend, approaching them. The boys shared a few silent looks, all of them choosing to ignore Jimmy’s pleading eyes, practically begging them not to say anything. ‘It’s Jimmy’s birthday!!’ the three boys all blurted out and, in doing so, caused Jimmy’s head to fall into his hands. Jupiter’s friendly smile was now a full-on light show. Beaming she wrapped her arms around him. ‘Why didn’t you tell me? Happy Birthday~!!' she cooed and placed a kiss on his cheek. Jimmy was blushing madly but didn’t say a word. ‘We’re planning a party,’ Dawn informed her. ‘It’s gonna be wild!’ ‘No, we’re not,’ Jimmy protested but the boys dived right back into the planning.

‘We need butter beer!’

‘And music! There’s no party without Bowie!!’

‘Don’t forget fireworks!’

‘Ooo, and a bonfiiiiire’

Noticing Jimmy’s discomfort Jupiter tried her best to reason. ‘How about more of a chill gathering? You know, instead of a full-blown party with—fireworks?’ ‘What do you mean?’ Rocky looked up in horror only to meet Jupiter’s urging stare. ‘Oh, eh, yeah, you’re right, that’s much more—reasonable,’ he stuttered. ‘Maybe we should keep it a bit more low-key?’ Jupiter nodded approvingly and Jimmy finally started to relax.

—

‘Do we really need to go?’ Jimmy whined. ‘They organized all of this for you. How rude would it be to, just, not show up?’ Jupiter argued. ‘I don’t really care,’ he shrugged. ‘I’m not much of a “birthday” person.’ Jupiter stopped dead in her tracks and wrapped her arms around his neck. ‘Look, I know you hate your birthday but just because it was never fun doesn’t mean it needs to be this way forever. It’s your birthday and you deserve to be appreciated!’ For a moment, the two just looked at each other. ‘Don’t know if Rosa would agree on that,’ Jimmy frowned and made Jupiter laugh. ‘She’ll warm up eventually,’ she said and gave him a small peck on the lips. ‘Let’s go?’ ‘Okay, but you’re not allowed to leave my side,’ he smirked and interlocked their fingers. ‘Deal.’

The two continued to make their way from the castle, down to the lake where a huge bonfire was already crackling away. All their friends had gathered around it, chatting happily while waiting for the birthday boy to arrive. Jimmy knew most of the faces yet definitely not all of them. Most of the guests seemed to be friends with either Jupiter, Rocky, or Dawn and he certainly wouldn’t talk to any of them on his own. Apparently, even Maxim’s cousin Roe was there, someone who he had never even spoken to. Jimmy was about to turn on his heel when their friends noticed them. A joined ‘Happy Birthday~!!’ promptly echoed through the night, accompanied by loud cheers and the clinking of glass bottles.

‘I really don’t wanna do this,’ Jimmy mumbled through a forced smile but Jupiter had already dragged him down the hill to meet their friends. Dawn was the first to fall into his arms, ‘I know it ain’t much but,’ he pulled out a handmade card from behind his back, ‘it comes from the heart!’ Blinking incredibly fast, Jimmy took the card in his hands. Even if he didn’t like to admit it, it did touch him how much effort Dawn had put into it. Getting presents or attention, in general, wasn’t something he was used to. To be fair, birthdays at the Crouch’s were quite the opposite of what Jimmy was experiencing at this moment. Growing up, he never had a proper birthday party, nor did his parents acknowledge it much at all. The most they would do is invite colleagues over for dinner—not quite the birthday party a child would dream of. A party like this one, was a welcome change, although still quite odd to him.

Jimmy managed to endure all the dancing, taking of photos, and conversations with people he barely knew for a couple hours, although still looking forward to when he could leave. Deep in thought, the sudden noise of a camera shutter made him snap out of it. ‘Sorry but—you looked so cute, I just had to. What were you thinking of?’ ‘That I’m glad Rocky’s distracted and finally let me be,’ he whispered and nodded his head in the direction of the bonfire where Rosa and Gwen were turning sparks into flaming butterflies. Jupiter couldn’t help but chuckle when she noticed Rocky, totally entranced, making heart eyes at one of them. She would bet good money that is was Rosa. Meanwhile, most of their other friends were either dancing or in the midst of a drinking game. ‘You know, I think now would be a good time to sneak away,’ Jupiter whispered, leaning closer to Jimmy. ‘Thought you’d never ask,’ he grinned.

The halls were deserted as the two teenagers tiptoed up the stairs to the astronomy tower, their favourite place at Hogwarts. Not only was it quiet, as most people didn’t bother climbing up all the stairs, but it was also the best place to observe the stars, a hobby Jimmy and Jupiter shared. Over time it had become their little hideaway, where the two would spend hours together, escaping the crowds.

‘Oh, look at the moon,’ Jupiter marveled as she leaned over the railing. ‘You can see the stars very clearly tonight. Look, there’s Jupiter!’ Jimmy stood back and watched her for a moment as she kept pointing at the night sky. He never thought he’d feel this strongly about anyone in his life but somehow Jupiter had changed everything. Thinking about their early days, a smile started growing on his lips as he walked over and wrapped his arms around her waist. ‘Remember when I learned all those Jupiter facts?’ Jimmy laughed. ‘Yes, I do,’ Jupiter giggled. ‘You used to have a new one almost every time we saw each other. It was the cutest thing. And very educational!’ ‘I swear my dormmates were about to kill me for staying up all night, looking up all those random facts. Sadly, I don’t have any left to share,’ he looked up at Jupiter, the planet, as Jupiter, the girlfriend, snuggled into him. ‘It really made my day when you got all excited about it.’ Jupiter tilted her head to get a better look at Jimmy. ‘Now I get excited about seeing you,’ she smiled and kissed him gently. ‘I guess, my plan worked then,’ he laughed and nuzzled his head into the crook of her neck. ‘It most definitely did.’ Jimmy smiled as he started placing soft kisses up Jupiter’s neck. ‘I'm glad you’re enjoying your birthday,’ Jupiter chuckled and buried her fingers in his hair. ‘Only because you’re spending it with me.'

What happens next is up to your imagination.

[thewaybackcloset]

Farewell Starman: Forever My Style Icon

Ashes to ashes, stardust to stardust

Happy belated birthday, Bowie. 01/08/2023.

This post was originally on my blogspot back in 2016, when David Bowie passed away on January 10th, 2016. Here is a special Happy Birthday to him. He would have been 72 today.

I grew up a Beatles girl, musicals, Queen later on and eventually Bowie came into the mix. My first album of his that I listened all the way through to was Aladdin Sane (or, a lad insane) I had gotten from my brother. I immediately fell in love with "Drive-In Saturday", which had a faint nostalgic romance bop sound to it.. and growing up with early Beatles and Grease, it remains one of my favorites, among "Prettiest Star", "Time", "Oh, You Pretty Things", "Fame","Fashion"and "Life on Mars."

David Bowie remains today to be iconic in his style, musical storytelling and a mysterious voyager. His life progression through his many personas is one of my inspirations for how to tell stories with depth and authenticity. His style continues to drive my will to keep creating and keep the imagination of styling alive when I get dressed.

So, wherever you may be, Starman...

"Keep your 'lectric eye on me babe.

Press your space face close to mine, love.

Freak out in a moonage daydream, oh yeah."

-"Moonage Daydream"

[hope-for-the-best-98]

Study Session #4 (Eddie Munson X Reader)

Previous Part Masterlist Spotify Playlist

Summary: Eddie takes you out for your birthday.

Word Count: 5.2k

Warnings: Mature readers only (18+).Shitty friends. Smoking. Future chapters will have smut. No use of y/n.

A/N: So sorry this took so long. Life got busy, had a birthday, went to Comic Con, then proceeded to catch Covid... But hey, I met Jospeh Quinn and he is fucking gorgeous and lovely???? Who gave him the right?

You have your plan. Lie to your parents, say you’re still going out with Stacey and Amanda. They’ll be none the wiser. You’ll tell the girls that your grandparents are in town to surprise you for your birthday, and you had no idea about their intentions. They can’t exactly argue about seeing family over friends. You wouldn’t say you’re a bad liar, far from it, but maybe it’s the thrill of lying to see a guy. A guy that you have fallen head over heels for in a matter of weeks. 

There’s clothes all over your floor. You’ve spent the last twenty minutes trying to find an outfit that your brain can decide on. And don’t even get started on the hair mishap that you started at 4am. You can’t get the stench of hairspray out of your nose. After a few more fails, you finally decide on an outfit, a pair of stonewashed jeans, an old Bowie shirt with your trusty denim jacket. 

You can already smell the pancakes as you open your bedroom door, waltzing downstairs to the sight of your mum laying out the table. Your sister’s in her usual spot, scraping her burnt looking pancakes across her plate. You can barely hear the radio playing in the kitchen over the sound of your dad cooking.

“Morning.”

Your mum looks over at you, grinning. “Morning birthday girl. You look very done up for school.”

“Can’t a girl look nice on her birthday?” You smile, kissing her cheek.

She quickly turns her head and plants a kiss on your forehead. “Come and sit before Kimberly eats your plate” You hear the teasing tone in your mums voice and you take a closer look at your sisters plate, seeing the pancakes practically swimming in runny egg. 

 “You father attempted to make scrambled eggs, but um, they’re more like a soup.”

“They still taste fine!” You hear your dad yell through the door. 

Your mum shakes her head as she pours you a drink. “They really don’t.” She whispers. 

 “Well thanks. You didn’t have to do all of this. I have to leave soon.”

“Well, your dad’s doing a late shift at the hospital tonight, so it’s just us girls tonight. He thought his birthday present to you should be food poisoning.”

“Oh, I’m out with Stacey and Amanda tonight, remember? We’ve got that dinner, plus this surprise thing they planned that could run late.”

“We can do something tomorrow night then. Are they picking you up before school today?”

You nod. “Amanda is. Said she’ll be here in about ten minutes.”

“Do you think she’ll mind if Kimberly goes with you guys this morning? Cindy’s mum called and said she’s sick. I can pick her up after school, it’s just getting there.”

You sideway glance between the both. There goes your idea of lying to both parties confidently. “Um, yeah sure. Don’t see it being a problem.”

“Good.” She kisses the top of your head and places a small gift bag in front of you. “I know that we agreed on just money this year, but you know, I can’t resist. Plus your sister helped me pick it.”

You raise an eyebrow as you look over at Kimberly. “Well… Thanks.”

Right on queue, your dad walks in through the kitchen door, plates in both hands. “I remember that going smoother last time.”

“It’s because I made them, hun. All you did was wash the dishes” Your mum says sweetly as he sets the plates down. “I think this might be the last time I ever ask you to make me eggs though.”

“Well, lucky I’m a doctor and not a chef.” Your dad kisses the top of your head. “Happy birthday, sweetie.” 

“Thanks dad.” You smile, taking off the tissue paper and reaching into the bag. Your eyes widen as you pull out a blue Walkman, the same one you were eyeing up weeks ago in a store window while with Kimberly. 

“You remembered?” You ask, grinning over at her. 

She shrugs, taking a small bite out of her pancake. “You were practically drooling over it.”

You walk around the table, wrapping your arms around her and squeezing tightly. “Aren’t you a great little sister.” You coo.

She groans loudly but doesn’t push you away. “Don’t be gross.”

You kiss her forehead loudly. “Thank you though. Even got the colour right.”

“There’s a couple of cassettes inside there, too. We thought you could use it when you’re doing all that walking in Chicago.” Your mum wiggles her eyebrows. 

“Mum, I haven’t even finished the school year yet.” You laugh.

“Oh c’mon, you get your smarts from me.”

Your dad looks at her, eyebrow raised. “And me?”

She rolls her eyes, taking a sip of her coffee. “Yes and obviously you too.”

“C’mon, sit.” Your dad says. “Before your slightly overdone pancakes go cold.”

You grin, sitting back down in your chair and taking a sip of your drink. You grab your fork and take a bite out of your pancake, chewing slowly. They definitely don’t taste as good as your mums. And do you taste salt?

“So?” Your dad leans forward. “Good right?”

“Hmm.” You mumble, nodding. “Good.”

You’re saved by the honk of a car horn outside. “Must be Amanda!” You chirp up, abandoning your food.

“What about breakfast?”

“Yeah it was great.” You say quickly.

“But maybe let mum do it next time?” Kimberly adds, grabbing her bag. “Nothing personal, dad.”

Your mum doesn’t even cover up her laughter as she kisses you and Kimberly on the forehead. “I’ll put your present in your room, and I’ll see you tomorrow. Have fun tonight.”

You hug her tightly and catch up with Kimberly. You wrap your arm around her, pulling her close as the front door shuts behind you. “I need you to help cover for me.”

“What? Why?”

“Doesn’t matter. Pretend our grandparents are here for my birthday so I can’t go out with them tonight.” You wave over at the car, forcing a smile.

“Where are you going?”

“None of your business. Just help me out here.”

“Well, a lie like that is gonna cost twenty bucks.” She grins. 

You roll your eyes. Always the negotiator. “More like five bucks.”

“Twenty bucks.”

“Ten bucks and I’ll do the garbage for the next two weeks.” You sigh, holding out your pinky to her. 

She beams up at you, wrapping her pinky around yours tightly. “Deal.”

You step away from her as you reach the car. “Hey guys. Is it okay if Kim comes with us?”

“Yeah sure I guess. Hey Kimberly.” Amanda waves as you both get in the car.

She’s barely driven the car down the street before Kim speaks.

“Our grandparents are over today.” She blurts out. “We uh… Haven’t seen them in a long time.”

You give her a side glance. “Yeah, so uh… I’ve gotta cancel our plans later guys. I’m sorry.”

“What?” Stacey groans.

You see Amanda looking at you in the rearview mirror. “You’re kidding.”

“I’m really sorry. But you guys still go, the table’s booked and everything.”

“We can see if the guys are free.” Stacey pipes up, looking at Amanda. 

You see Amanda turn to her, eyebrows raised, almost like the same thought popped into both of their heads. You try not to feel hurt at how quickly they make their own plans. You’re the one cancelling them, even lying to them to meet a guy behind their back. But, you know, deep down the friendship is starting to feel one-sided, and since hanging with Eddie you realise how blatantly obvious it has always been. Any guilt you are feeling for ditching them seems to fade quickly.

You lean in close to Kimberly and whisper in her ear. “That totally wasn’t ten dollar acting.”

“Well it worked didn’t it?”

-

You barely see Eddie throughout the day, even when you’re both in Mr Walters class, he doesn’t look in your direction. Maybe it was the fact Stacey and Amanda were glued to your sides, trying to make you feel somewhat special on your birthday. Maybe he didn’t want the hassle of them starting unnecessary drama in the middle of the hallway like last week. They hadn’t mentioned it since, and you wanted to keep it that way. 

At the end of the day, after saying your goodbyes to Stacey and Amanda, you make your way to the library and find Eddie already sitting at your table. He’s hunched over in his seat, twirling his pen in his hand as he stares at a piece of paper. 

You approach him slowly, hoping not to startle him. “Hi?”

He looks at you quickly and sits up. “Hi.  I’ve uh… Nearly finished it. Did some work over the weekend.”

You sit down beside him and pick up his paper, smiling gently at the scribbles of skulls and bats he left himself in the margins. “Want me to have a look?”

He rubs the back of his neck, shrugging. “You’re the tutor.”

You sit back in your chair, staring to read over his paper. You hope you hide your shock as you read through the pages because it’s actually… Good? You couldn’t even say the person that wrote that first paper you read those couple weeks ago was capable of writing the one in your hand. He really tried and put in the work over the weekend for you. 

But there seems to be a level of uncertainty between you both. He hasn’t mentioned what nearly happened at the bar the other night, the almost kiss in the alley behind the bar. Surely he would have mentioned it straight away instead of talking about the paper? You were so close, lips practically touching before Gareth caught you like a pair of horny teenagers, which wasn’t really that far from the truth. 

But as you sit beside Eddie, helping him with his paper, your heart begins to sink. Maybe he was a little drunk, or the adrenaline was pumping from performing on stage, and the kiss was just a spur of the moment thing. But he dedicated a song to you, surely that’s got to count for something? Now maybe you’re just overthinking things.

You flinch back as a hand moves in front of your face. “Earth to tutor?”

Eddie’s staring at you, eyebrows raised at you questionably. 

“Sorry.” You give him a quick smile. “Zoned out a little. So, um, the evidence is good, and so are your points. You just need to write up your closing paragraph. We get that done and it should pass as gradable.” You try to joke, but you can tell Eddie sees right through it as he looks at you. But he doesn’t say anything and simply nods his head.

You lean your head in your hand, admiring him as he starts to write. You watch as he sucks his bottom lip between his teeth and it makes you wonder if this is what he looks like when he’s writing his music, or learning how to play a new song. A piece of his hair falls against his cheek, and you have to resist the urge to reach out and tuck it behind his ear.

Oh God, what is happening to you?

You look away quickly, pulling your textbook closer as you pretend to read it. You drum your pen against the page as you try and think of something to say to him. Anything. Why did this suddenly become so difficult? You glance over at him and notice he’s watching you tap your pen against the book. You didn’t realise how loud you had gotten.

“Sorry.” You hold your pen tighter. “That must be distracting.”

“It’s fine.” He smiles, but he doesn’t take his eyes off of you. “So what big plans did you cancel tonight for little ol’ me?”

“It was just a birthday dinner thing.” You shrug. “Nothing big.”

“Whose birthday?”

Your mouth opens and closes a few times as you stare at him. “Well uh… Mine I guess.”

He sits up, eyes wide. “Wait… It’s your birthday? Today? Why didn’t you say anything?”

“It’s really not that big of a deal, Eddie. We’ve gotta get your paper done.”

He scoffs, snatching the pen out of your hand and closing your textbook. “Yeah… I don’t think so.” 

“What are you doing?”

“You think I’m going to let you celebrate your birthday in this shit hole library?” He stands up, grabbing your hand and pulling you to your feet. “Where do you wanna go?”

“I don’t…” You trail off as you feel his thumb run across the top of your hand. “I just want to hang out with you.”

You know the second it leaves your mouth it sounds pathetic, and it makes you physically wince. “I know that it seems stupid-“

“Hey,” Eddie grips your chin gently with his other hand, “you think I want you to help me write some boring paper? I thought I made my intentions pretty clear the other night, Angel Face. You’re really more than some tutor to me.” 

“O-oh.” 

When did your mouth get so dry?

“You just didn’t bring up what nearly happened the other night and I thought you regretted it.”

“Trust me, I still really wanna kiss you. It’s just… Just not in the school library. So, where should we go?”

-

You’re not sure why you picked Palace Arcade, one of the busiest places to be after school, but you haven’t been in so long. You used to go a lot with your family when you were younger. But they expected you had grown up too much to enjoy it anymore, and it wasn’t exactly an ideal hang out spot for you, Stacey and Amanda. 

It’s loud, bustling with people as you head inside. Kids are running from one arcade machine to the other, screaming and cheering as they get a new high score on their favourite machines. 

“You want something to drink?” Eddie asks loud enough for you to hear him over the crowd. 

You smile up at him. “Strawberry slurpee?” 

You feel his fingers graze against yours, almost testing the waters. You bite your lip, reaching down and interlocking your fingers with his, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. “After you, Munson.” 

He leads you over to the counter, grabbing one of the workers attention to order your drink. He leans his back against the top and holds your hand tighter. “So you were supposed to hang out with your friends tonight?”

You shrug. “Wouldn’t exactly call them friends right now. Feels like everything is a popularity contest, not like any of it will matter after we graduate. It’s exhausting.”

“I guess they wouldn’t like the fact we’re hanging out, huh?”

“Honestly? No. But I don’t care what they think. Not anymore. I like being around you, Eddie. I feel like I can actually be me and not that superficial version of myself that I created to fit in.”

He grips your hand tighter, his thumb leaving goosebumps as it runs across your skin. 

“Since you started tutoring me, you never treated me like I was a bit of shit under your shoe. You’ve never looked down on me. You were never like them, and I wish I knew that sooner.” He holds your hand to his chest. “Because I would’ve loved to hang out with you, the smartest girl in class who’s letting me teach her D&D. Who comes and watches my band. Who actually makes me want to work hard at school for the first time in my life.” 

He lets out a chuckle, shaking his head. “It sounds stupid.”

“No. No it-“

“Strawberry slurpee.” The worker says as they put the drink down between you and Eddie.

He hands you the drink with a smile. “One strawberry slurpee for the birthday girl.”

“Thanks.” You smile, taking a sip. 

“Good?”

“Are you kidding me? I lived on these as a kid.” You laugh, holding the cup to his mouth. 

He grins as he takes the straw between his lips and takes a sip. “Damn, that is good.”

“Strawberry flavour is the best.”

“I dunno, cherry is pretty good.” 

You squint your eyes at him. “Take that back, Munson.” 

He laughs, throwing his arm across your shoulders and turning you. “So what do you want to start with? Galaga? Street Fighter?”

“Pacman?” You smile up at him. “I’m pretty good at it.”

“Show me your skills, Angel Face.”

No matter how many times he says it, it still makes your stomach do a backflip. 

You walk over to a free Pacman machine and Eddie puts in the money. 

“You don’t have to pay for everything.”

“Are you kidding? It’s your birthday. Now,” Eddie takes the drink from your hand and has another sip. “Let’s see if we can get you on the board.”

“Well, I don’t think I’m beating ‘MADMAX’, that’s for sure.” You laugh, pressing start. 

You grab onto the joystick, biting your lip as you try to keep your attention on the game. But suddenly Eddie’s rests his chin on your shoulder as he watches you play. You try to focus, you really try, but you feel Eddie’s cheek press into yours and your hand falters on the joystick. 

“I thought you said you were good at this.” He laughs, standing closer behind you.

“Maybe something’s distracting me.”

“Something, huh?” He places his hands either side of the machine, caging you in, and you instinctively lean back into him.

“Or someone.”

You carry on playing the game, somehow successfully completing the first stage. You smile as Eddie holds the drink towards your lips and you take a sip gratefully. After a few more attempts at the next level, you feel him start to fidget behind you and take in a deep breath.

“So is… This technically the fourth date? Or are we counting this as the first?”

“It’s a date?” You tease, looking at him over your shoulder. 

He smiles gently. “It kinda feels like one to me.” 

You pause the game, turning slowly to face him. “Yeah… I guess it does feel like a date.”

“And uh… Gareth’s not here, so no interruptions.”

“That’s also very true.”

 The atmosphere around you seems to shift, just like it had that night at the bar. The noise from the crowd and arcade machines seem to quieten down, and all you can focus on is him. How the lights reflect in his brown doe eyes. How he runs his tongue across his bottom lip. 

You have no idea how someone you only truly met a couple weeks ago can suddenly mean so much to you. But he’s been all you can think about, taking up your every waking thought. Before him you were so unsure about yourself, about your grades, friends, boys. 

But your feelings for Eddie? You have never been so sure about something in your life.

He cups your jaw, his thumb running across your bottom lip slowly. “Can I kiss-“

You don’t give him the chance to ask as you lean up and press your lips against his. You grip the front of his shirt, a silent plea for him not to pull away from you, because you never want to stop.  A warmth fills you as he kisses you back, his soft lips gliding against yours. His other arm slowly starts to wrap around the small of your back and you gasp into his mouth, reaching back to grip his wrist as the condensation from the slurpee sinks through your clothes. 

“Shit.” His voice sounds hoarse as he pulls away. “Sorry, let me just…” 

He takes a step back quickly and almost practically throws the slurpee onto the nearest empty table. He turns back to you and a grin slowly forms on his face. He reaches for you, his hand cupping your cheek. “Now… Where were we?”

You grab his other hand, guiding it to wrap around the small of your back. “Something like thi-.” 

He doesn’t allow you to finish as he kisses you desperately, his hand slowly moving from your cheek to the nape of your neck, pulling you closer. The taste of cheap cigarettes and strawberry slurpee on his lips makes your head spin, and now you couldn’t imagine your life without it. The kiss turns demanding, his body curving into yours as you press back into the arcade machine. You reluctantly pull away from him, gripping onto the front of his shirt to steady yourself. 

“We should probably keep this PG.” You say breathlessly.

He furrows his brows, his chest moving rapidly as he looks around and spots a group of middle school kids watching from a machine a few feet away. “Well, I guess they can learn a thing or two.”

“Oh my God.” You laugh, pressing your head against his chest as you regain your breath.

He wraps his arms around you, pressing a kiss to the top of your head. “Sorry.”

“Nothing to be sorry for.” You say quickly, looking up at him. “That was…”

“Yeah.” He grins, pressing his forehead against yours. “It’s all I’ve been thinking about since the bar, and uh, probably before then too.”

His words sent a shiver down your spine, your fingertips buzzing as they reach up and grip the collar on his jacket. “I’m so happy Ms O’Donnell and Principal Higgins made me tutor you.”

 He chuckles, leaning back to press his lips to your forehead. “So am I, Angel Face.”

You let out a laugh as Eddie kisses your cheek, and then your nose, and then your chin, slowly gliding his lips down to your neck. You thread your fingers through his hair and tug gently, biting your lip. “What happened to keeping it PG?”

“I think they’re ready for a little R-rated action.”

You tilt your neck to the side and you freeze as you see a familiar-looking blonde looking at herself in a compact mirror, and a guy in a Hawkins Varsity jacket beside her.

“Oh shit!”

Eddie pulls back quickly, frowning as he looks at your face. “What? What’s wrong?”

“I think I just saw Stacey and Kyle by the counter. We were suppose to hang out, but I said I was with my grandparents tonight.”

“Okay, uh…” Eddie looks around the arcade quickly. “Think Munson.”

“What-“ You gasp quietly as he pulls you to the other row of machines, walking down them slowly. 

“We should be-“

You both freeze as you see Stacey come into sight, her eyes looking up at Kyle as they walk towards you. Eddie wraps his arm around your waist, pulling you into a Photo Booth that is beside you. He falls back onto the stool as you shut the curtain. You both stare at each other silently and a smile forms on Eddie’s face. He reaches into his pocket, taking out a dollar and putting it into the machine. 

“Eddie, what are you doing?”

“We’ve gotta blend in. Now c’mere.”

He wraps his arms around you and pulls you into his lap as a bright flash fills the space. 

“C’mon, what’s the next pose?”

You know you barely have time to think, so you turn your head and cup his cheek as you press your lips against his gently until the next flash. You stare at him and a grin breaks out onto both of your faces at the next picture. For the last one, you wrap your arm around his shoulders, resting your head on top of his and smiling at the camera as the last photo is taken. 

You cup his jaw in your hand, angling his head up to look at you. There’s silence for a moment, and a boyish grin breaks out on his face.

“Happy birthday, Angel Face.”

Well, if this doesn’t feel like you’ve been pulled into a romcom. Not that you’re complaining. 

He kisses you quickly before poking his head out from in between the curtains. “I think the coast is clear.” He leans back inside and looks at you. “Ready to get out of here?” 

He extends his hand out back to you, and you entwine your fingers with his. “Let’s go.”

Eddie reaches for the front of the machine and grabs the photostrip, shoving it into his leather jacket. He looks around a last time before leaving the booth, griping your hand tightly as he walks towards the exit. 

-

He’s barely put the van into park before he’s diving towards you, pressing his lips against yours as he holds your face in his hands. You can’t even feel the cold contrast of his rings against your burning cheeks as he tilts your head back, deepening the kiss. He’s certainly more confident now that you’re both hidden away in the van, away from prying eyes, and you’re definitely not complaining. 

After a few moments he pulls away, bumping his nose against yours with a grin. “Hi.”

“Hi.” You say breathlessly.

“So, um… We should do some studying after school tomorrow, right? Finish that really important paper for Miss Millers class?”

You nod your head slowly, staring down at his lips. “Yeah, that… That sounds good.”

He places his hand on your thigh hesitantly, almost like you might push it away, and it makes you want to laugh. Like Eddie freakin’ Munson wasn’t just kissing the air out of your lungs seconds ago.  “Maybe some other things too?”

You put your hand on top of his and give it a reassuring squeeze. “Other things sound fun too.”

 “Sweet, so if you bring your D&D notes we can finish up on your character.” He says cooly, sitting back in his seat.

You stare at him dumbly. “Oh, um… Yeah sure.”

Eddie fails to suppress his laugh as he leans back in close. “Are you kidding? Hottest girl at school makes the moves on me and you expect me to be able to focus on anything else ever again?”

You bite your lip, shaking your head as you turn to look out of the windshield. “Shut up.” 

He grips your chin gently, forcing you to look back and meet his gaze. “Never.”

You both lean in at the same time, and his hand winds around to cup the back of your neck as your lips touch. There’s nothing urgent or desperate in the way Eddie holds you close, just a gentle press of his lips against yours, but even that still leaves you breathless and wanting more. 

He breaks away first and sighs as he moves his hand to caress your cheek. “I should probably be a gentlemen and let you go home, huh?”

You whine, leaning into his touch. “Eddie Munson being the responsible adult? Maybe you have corrupted me.”

“Yeah, yeah…” He grins, reaching into his pocket for the photostrip and placing it into yours. “I hope you had a good birthday at least.”

“The best.” You promise. “Thank you for making it a memorable one.”

You don’t miss the playful smirk on his face as he kisses your forehead. “Go inside before I pull you into the back of his van.”

“That doesn’t sound like much of a threat to me, Munson.” You grin, undoing your seatbelt. “But I guess you’re right.”

He grabs your hand, pulling you in closer to steal another kiss. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Angel Face.”

“Bye Eddie.” You smile, getting out of the van and into the cold January air. 

You walk towards your house, resisting the urge to look back at him until you reach your front door. His head is hanging out of his window, a lit cigarette in his mouth already as he waves you off. You give him a mock salute before heading inside. 

The house is quiet, like you expected it to be. Your dad is probably still doing his rounds at the hospital, and your mum and Kimberly should be fast asleep. You lock the door behind you and creep upstairs slowly, heading for your room.

“Who was that?”

You jump at the voice and turn to see your sister’s head poking out of her bedroom door. “Kimberly!” You hiss. “Why are you still up?”

“You were out with a guy.” She wiggles her eyebrows. “What’s his name?”

“None of your business. Go to bed.”

“I’m sure mum is gonna love to hear that you lied about meeting with your friends.” She grins, opening her door wider.

“You’ve already conned me out of ten dollars, Kim. Don’t push it.” 

“I’m just curious!”

You sigh, grabbing her hand and pulling her into your room. You point at the bed and reach into your jacket pocket. “Sit.”

She sits at the bottom, crossing her legs and looking at you expectedly. “Well?”

You hesitantly hand her the photostrip and she squints as she looks at the photos. “Is that..” She gasps loudly, looking up at you. “Is that you kissing Eddie Munson!?”

You cover her mouth, glaring at her. “Do you have to yell?”

She pushes your hand away and looks back down at the photostrip. “How did- why?”

“I’ve been tutoring him.” You say defensively. “And it just… Happened. He’s really not what people think he’s like.”

“They call him a freak.”

“And those people are assholes, okay?”

She puts her hands up defensively. “Okay okay.” 

You sit down beside her. “He’s a really nice guy, and I think you’ll like him. He plays the guitar and sings in his own band.” You bump your arm into hers playfully. “And he likes nerdy stuff like you.”

“I’m not nerdy.”

“I dunno, religiously reading Lord of the Rings seems pretty nerdy to me.”

“Shut up.”

“Okay,” You smile, “but this stays between us, for now at least. Promise?”

You hold out your pinky finger in front of her, and she reluctantly wraps her own around yours before shoving the photostrip into your hand.“Fine, but warn me next time before showing me photos of his tongue going down your throat.”

“Oh my God.” You laugh, pushing her off your bed. “Go to sleep.”

“Oh Eddie.” She mocks, twirling a piece of hair around her finger as she walks to your door. “Strum me like your guitar.”

You grab a pillow from the top of your bed and launch it in her direction, hitting the door as she closes it behind her. “That little…”

You exhale loudly, laying back on your bed and staring up at the ceiling. You feel needy in the fact that you already miss him. You still feel the tingle on your lips, the ghost of his fingers on your cheek and thigh. You press your nose to your jacket and the smell of stale cigarettes and cheap cologne fills your senses, and it makes your head all fuzzy. 

You hold up the photostrip, smiling as you run a finger across each photo. You don’t remember the last time you looked this happy. You don’t remember the last time you felt this happy. But the evidence is there, in black and white, staring back at you as Eddie Munson. You hold the photostrip to your chest, grinning at the thought of seeing him tomorrow. 

[sitp-recs]

(Perfect artwork for Modern Love, by @cambiodipolvere)

Today is the day of one of my favorite people! And I totally resent @tackytigerfic and Starry for almost sharing the same birthday, god the STRESS 😂 Tacky is my first and closest fandom friend. We clicked together so fast and easy that sometimes it feels like I’ve known her all my life, like we’re two dog moms living in the same neighborhood who happen to read fic in their free time. Despite our conflicting time zones and crazy schedules we manage to chat every other day, tagging and sending each other all kinds of stuff, coming together to cry scream about a brilliant fic we’ve just read or shaking our heads in embarrassment at every other unnecessary bullshit post. Tacky’s bright and wise energy uplifts my spirit even on my moody days, and makes me grateful for her friendship and for this fandom life. Okay so this got long and I had to put the rest under the cut:

It’s such a lovely and precious thing, to have someone with whom you can share every single thought that crosses your mind, your scariest, most embarrassing, petty or disturbing idea, without fear of being shamed or judged by it. I trust Tacky with all my heart to hear me out, share a joke or a piece of advice, even on the (rare) occasions when we don’t get the same perspective - that doesn’t happen often when it comes to Drarry, as we are taste twins!

Tacky my darling, you’re such a good person, and such an incredible friend. Thank you for introducing me to this lovely community, for being my safe haven and your unique self, with so many qualities I admire and feel inspired by: kind, witty, earnest, wise, and so very human. I love your humour and empathy, and your chill yet no-nonsense personality; I love your talent and how articulated you are; I love your passion for Drarry, and how you let this emotion inform the way you navigate the fandom and create for it. And god, but you’ve been creating some of the most beautiful content I’ve seen in these recent years! I’m permanently in awe of your ability to write Drarry in any shape, format or length, transforming even the most ordinary moment into an extraordinary and meaningful piece of character or relationship development. You know how you mentioned yesterday that some authors change the way you feel about a ship in a deep, definitive way? Well, you are that author for me. Your works made me fall in love with M-rated contemplative romance, and also allowed me to fall in love with Harry in a way I never thought it was possible before.

Some people - myself included - got to know you through the fun and intriguing A Lick and a Promise, others through the atmospheric and sensitive Modern Love, others through your contemplative and heartbreaking short form. Each story has its merits and purpose, and all of them share a Tacky trademark: the heartkick factor! Your talent has no limits and goes across different genres and tropes, that you explore with a bold twist full of personality and heart. And even more impressive is your consistency at always raising the bar - every new fic of yours becomes an instant fave and makes me think “wow I thought Tacky couldn’t get better yet here we are”. Seeing how your writing evolves as you find your narrative voice is a beautiful and humbling experience, I feel so lucky!

I’m really grateful for being active in the fandom at this moment in time, because that allows me to read and engage with your brilliant work, and to have you as a dear friend. I can’t wait to see what comes out of your beautiful brain next. It was an impossible job choosing a single fic to rec today, so I decided to do a belated Tacky reclist! Naturally these are my personal and biased must-reads, and I urge everyone to go check these beauties right now. Feel free to include your own favorites too, and don’t forget to leave them some appreciation.

Happy happy birthday my darling Tacky! This fandom life wouldn’t be the same without you. I hope you have the amazing day you deserve!

Between the Power Lines (2020, M, 3.2k)

The road trip fic you didn’t know you needed. I got utterly immersed in the heartbreaking quietness of this, feeling like a witness to an ordinary yet poignant love story. Such tender intimacy, such character development, such lovely American aesthetics with barely any dialogue. This is, IMO, the fic that reveals Tacky’s triumph in storytelling.

Even the Night (2020, M, 3.4k)

This fic has a surreal atmosphere, those Midsummer vibes unbelievably sexy and intoxicating linked to the sensorial experience of fumbling together in the night. Masterclass in tension building, a silky and languid dream-like affair.

Aim for my Heart (2021, M, 3.4k) - Harry/Draco/Ron

One of the most sensitive and stunning portraits I’ve ever seen of a poly/triad relationship, this fic packs so much character and longing! It’s a privilege to watch Ron and Draco’s tentative dynamics through the smitten eyes of the one person that loves them like no one else: Harry.

The Long Fall (2021, M, 3.6k)

I can’t even write about this tender domesticity without getting a lump in my throat. Best opening scene I’ve read in years, and a refreshing way to approach both mpreg and parenthood, painfully honest and lovely. This became an immediate comfort read for me, and it’s probably one of the fics I revisit the most.

Mortal Frame (2021, M, 6.6k)

This thrilling, fast-paced spy story left me breathless since the first paragraph, gods what an immersive ride! I’m so here for Drarry on the run, sharp and urgent with danger but mellowed by the silent trust and tender intimacy only Tacky can master. Major bonus points for the brilliant take on the Horcrux hunt plot line!

Last Offices (2020, M, 6.7k)

Oh, this fic 💔 I tend to avoid MCD but there’s something so deeply fascinating about body washing rituals that I caught myself mesmerized by this. I just couldn’t put it down, so emotionally compromised I felt. There’s a sort of strange comfort in the heartbreak of doing one last act of service out of devotion to someone. This fic inspired so many difficult but lovely feelings in me, and one of them was hope. Only Tacky could possibly achieve that!

Our Little Life (2020, M, 7.2k)

Inventive and singular, this story hit me straight on the solar plexus and left me speechless as I saw the (clever, magical and bittersweet) plot unravel. Such a fabulous take on alternate universes and all the angst potential behind it. Come and bask in the yearning melancholia of a short yet intricate and perfectly executed plot.

And One to Play (2019, E, 21k)

What a fun and delightful fic, I can’t have enough of pining Harry losing all sense of propriety when faced with a hot, competent and pragmatic Draco. This has fab dynamics, unhinged protectiveness, even more unhinged attraction between two idiots who can’t keep their hands off each other. A must-read for any Auror partners fan!

A Lick and a Promise (2019, E, 55k)

Hot, BAMF Professors carefully balancing a fuck buddies situation while solving a Hogwarts mystery, do we need anything else? I certainly do not. This fic is so fun and intriguing and immersive, with amazing supportive cast and a delicious get together feat secret shagging and oblivious pining. Love it!

Modern Love (2020, E, 61k)

My favorite read of 2020, this fic is a love letter to Drarry and will always hold a piece of my soul. Sensitive, wistful, tenderly aching and so very romantic, this is a Muggle Draco triumph with a superb Harry, exquisite slow burn and a side of suds comfort. I promise it will be impossible to listen to Bowie again without thinking of this love story.

Bonus: five stunning drabbles!

Something in the Way (2021, T, 119 words)

“Up,” he said, and Draco, sick with love, raised his arms above his head and allowed Potter to slide the jumper on him, big hands stroking it flat over Draco’s stomach until they both shivered.

Stir-Up Sunday (2020, M, 300 words)

“I want you always,” he said, tugging again on the fine curling length of it. “Is it okay to say that?”

Whalebone Arch (2021, M, 722 words)

“Are you still not talking to me?” Draco steered Harry towards the crisps. “Do I have to suck you off in the loo to cheer you up?”

Semiplume (2021, T, 923 words)

“Did you know,” Harry murmured, and he put his arms around Draco, fearless. “I’d be your mate. If you needed a mate, I mean.”

Relic Radiation (2021, M, 927 words)

“You’ll kill me,” Harry said, and Draco turned his face towards the darkened sky, lunar pale, his profile some stupid unearthly thing—a flaring blazar, a supernova—in the light from the kitchen window.

[aziraphales-library]

Hi!! Do you think you could find some fics where Azira and Crowley raise the antichrist together? Or any child for that matter, just them raising a kid. Please and Thank you!!

Hello! We have some Crowley and Aziraphale raise the Antichrist fics here. And today I have some more mixed bag Crowley and Aziraphale raise a child fics...

Ground Control by nieded (T)

In which Crowley kidnaps the Antichrist as a baby--or so he thinks--and ends up with Warlock instead. Basically, I wanted a story where Warlock got a happy ending. Here it is.

Or: Aziraphale closes the shop earlier and earlier until they’re spending all day together, every moment. They take Warlock to the art museum and have a Star Trek marathon. Warlock loves The Next Generation but still reserves a special place in his heart for Spock from the original. He hangs a poster of the Vulcan next to David Bowie, his stern face in direct opposite to the cocked hip and flair of the rockstar. They go good together, though, the spacemen. If they lived a different life, Crowley thinks, he’d swoop Warlock up and take him to the stars. He’d show him Alpha Centauri, a system comprised of two large suns in orbit around each other, and a third circling them both.

That’s you, he’d say to Warlock, and the other is Aziraphale. He’d point to the two stars in the centre drawn to each other. And that’s me going around you both.

Crazy Ineffable Thing (Called Love) by TawnyOwl95 (E)

“You’ve lost the children!” “We’ve lost the children.” “The children have been lost.”

Pepper Galadriel Moonchild-Fell does not want to be sent to live with her distant, career driven mother. Adam Crowley does not want to be shipped off to military school by his slightly satanic grandmother.

They both think that their fathers should stop being idiots and fall in love already.

No one is going to listen to a pair of eleven year olds though. A plan is required.

A plan that will throw their fathers together on a high-stakes rescue mission where they will be forced into dangerous, intimate proximity. They must rise to occasions, overcome bullshit and, oh my god, there will only be one bed to do it in!

soldier, poet, king by RJam9 (T)

Eleven years ago, the Antichrist was born, set to bring upon the end of the world in due time. He was suppose to be delivered to the Order of the Chattering Nuns the night of his birth by the demon Crowley.

And that’s what happened. Well, what everyone thinks that happened.

In reality, Crowley snuck the baby home to a lovely little bookshop in Soho, where him and an angel by the name of Aziriphale lived. The couple decided that instead of letting the boy be raised by humans who didn’t understand his destiny, they would take over custody of him themselves.

That was eleven years ago. Now, the day of Adam C. Fells eleventh birthday is coming to, and with his parents and friends by his side, Adam hoped he could face his destiny and not let the world die, since he quite likes the Earth and doesn’t want it to end.

Well, expect for the fact there’s a lot of other players in this game running about, and thing don’t go exactly as planned. That’s alright, I guess. You’ve got to work with what you got.

(aka, another Aziraphale and Crowley raise Adam AU)

Bittersweet Genesis (or How to raise Antichrists, By A.Z. Fell and Anthony J. Crowley) by WeAreStarStuff (T)

Another Crowley and Aziraphale try to raise the Antichrist fic. Crowley has a change of heart and decided to take the Antichrist with him to see Aziraphale. Only problem? When he gets back to the hospital there’s another baby in the room. Oh well. Plan works just as well with two.

Second chances by ylc (T)

Crowley finds an abandoned newborn baby. Under other circumstances, he would have come to Aziraphale for help, but after a careless comment from the angel, their relationship isn’t at its best. The solution then, is quite clear: Look after the baby himself.

It takes heaven and hell to raise the Antichrist by dont_stop_imagine_mccartneys_celery (G)

If Good Omens was a Rom Com Sitcom!

In which Crowley stays just a little longer at the hospital of the Chattering Order of Saint Beryl and witnesses how the nuns misplace the Antichrist. He decides that he will take matters into his own hands and runs off again with the Antichrist, that is believed to be the exchanged baby of the American Cultural Attaché's wife. In lack of a better idea he brings the baby to his archenemy and dear friend Aziraphale and they agree they have no other choice than to raise the son of Satan themselves. That way they have the chance to let him grow up well-balanced between heaven and hell. Surprisingly, (for them, but really not the readers) the little extension of their family lets them only grow closer.

- Mod D

[1d-discourseoftheday]

🎈Tues 12 Jan ‘21🎈

********HAPPY 28th BIRTHDAY ZAYN!!**********

The man of the hour is (surprise surprise) laying low, but he took time to tweet: “Thanks to everyone sending birthday messages and wishes today! Having a great day! big love! X.” The paps brought us pics of Gigi and the zaby out for a walk in NYC (as has been the case nearly every day lately) and of vintage arcade games and a lot of balloons being delivered to their apartment. Lots of best wishes being posted, but the top prize goes to MUA Joanna Simkin for her fabulous Zayn pic caption- “You’re looking kinda aight in these pics!/ I’m looking like a ting?/ Like a ting for sure!/ Happy birthday, Z. Here’s to always looking like a ting.” Almost as good as getting to hear him talk... Oh and Yolanda posted a pic in which you could see a wee framed pic in the background that showed the zaby's face (which they have been carefully keeping private.) She deleted and most fans are not sharing out of respect for their wishes but for the record I saw it and it looks like, uh, a baby. I mean honestly it's a tiny pic of a pic of, again: a baby. There's sincerely nothing to deduce there, so hopefully they're not too stressed about it.

Lots of interviews about Harry's new video and music (rather than his fake love life) all at once today! Nice, and also … hmmm! Interesting. Ben Turner says the camera is a harrie; “the camera doesn't just love him, the camera wants to marry him and run off with him and probably never come back,” and “I'm quite a lot older than him. I'm not as cool as him.” Jeff Azoff says “He’s such a good person that you’re immediately disarmed around him, no matter who you are. You get a sense of comfort and respect right away. He's got a calming effect on anybody he’s around,” and that “a big part of my mission going forward is to be fiercely protective over songwriters and intellectual property, specifically” which kind of feels like a first glimmer of something we're going to be hearing a lot about so, noted. Paul Roberts, the 1D choreographer who did the TPWK video, is in Billboard talking about whether or not Harry will take Broadway by storm next with his dancing. “It won’t necessarily be out-and-out dancing,” LMAO but he softens the blow-- “I guess it’s a bit like Bowie used to do, isn’t it? It’s the showmanship and presentation of the performance.” But, he adds, “who knows? He’s just so open-minded and open-hearted — and because he’s so open it allows the universe to come back at him and he’s able to do anything he sets his mind to.” He says that they brought in a ballet teacher to work with Harry and Pheobe, love that, ballerina Harry dreams coming true! Also the intriguing tidbit “we had a conversation back at the end of the summer about how much we enjoyed the process, and I know he was doing another project where choreography was involved.” Ooh? DWD or something else? Time will tell. As he said, “I think with Harry Styles, anything is possible, is it not?”

Fake relationship news meanwhile is focused on Olivia wearing Harry's necklace which is news from last week so it's weird that suddenly there are 3 articles about it, verrrry organic, but mostly it's... kind of taking a turn? Today's articles give you one that concludes that Harry did NOT break up Oliva and Jason AND says that speculation about her moving in with him has been “debunked”, and the die hards are so starved of material they've resorted to running their astrological charts-- but maybe not to quite the effect they'd hoped! “It’s not necessarily going to be about a romantic connection” says the astrologer brought in by PageSix, but “they could end up collaborating on a successful work project.” UNCANNY! The astrologer (who clearly knows their stuff!) also says that we can look for Olivia and Jason to get back together “as early as May or June.” * furiously jotting down notes * mhmm mhmm tell me more..

[peaceoutofthepieces]

Tracing Time

Tuesday, 08:21

Song: Maggie Rogers - Dog Years

Sander is still rubbing at his eyes as he wanders into the kitchen, yawning loudly as he half-blindly makes his way towards the table. Before he can even get there, however, his mother is blocking his path and shoving a cake in his face and his dad is joining her to chorus, “Happy Birthday!”

“Uhm,” Sander blinks at them.

It’s strange to see that his mother is clearly wide awake, and that his father hasn’t left for work yet. Though he is already dressed in his police uniform, as one should always be when apparently preparing to have cake for breakfast. “Thanks. Don’t we usually do this in the evening, though?”

“Blow out your candles,” his mom orders. “Remember to make a wish!”

Twenty candles. The woman has twenty candles in a circular cake. (He’s sure, he counts them.) There’s already wax threatening to drip onto the icing, where the hastily piped ‘Happy Birthday Sander’ has holes pierced in it, the cake too small and the candles too numerous to avoid all of the writing.

Sander quickly blows out the candles.

“What did you wish for?” Léa asks, innocent and eager.

His dad, Ciel, makes a noise of protest and holds a hand up towards Sander. “If he tells you, it won’t come true.”

Sander points at him in agreement, and Léa huffs. It’s odd, that it’s odd to see his parents standing in front of him so early, interacting so casually, doing it all together. It’s not that they’re a distant couple, far from it. Sander’s father is just a busy man who sleeps and wakes early, and his mother is a not-quite-as-busy woman who has the luxury of being her own boss and rivals Sander’s own temperamental sleep schedule. They do not have breakfast as a family because they do not cross paths in the morning. They have dinner all together once or twice a week, if they get lucky. But there is certainly a bigger chance of their evenings coinciding.

So what is happening here?

“We’ll keep this for another time, I made actual breakfast,” his mother adds, gesturing at the table—with the cake still in her hands. Sander takes it from her quickly and sets it aside on the counter.

“Are we not having dinner, then?” he asks carefully.

They both give him bland looks. He curses both their heights—surely he should have earned an extra few inches from them. “We know you won’t be free for dinner,” Léa says.

Sander opens his mouth. Closes it again. Smiles sheepishly. “Oh.”

She huffs as she squeezes his shoulder. “But at least I can still be the first to wish my son happy birthday.” At his increasingly sheepish expression, she corrects, “In person. My god.”

It’s part of the reason he’s so sleepy still. He’d stayed up on a video call with Robbe until (well after) midnight, and the boy had wished him ‘happy birthday’ countless times, peppering kisses at the camera and apologising every time he’d started to nod off. It was possibly the cutest thing Sander has ever had the honour of witnessing. His lips twitch in a smile as he thinks about it again now.

He’d gotten a slew of other messages, all almost simultaneously at midnight. Gilles and Emilie and Thomas had all messaged almost at once into their small group chat, with varying styles and lengths and emoji usage. Adi and Lucas had both kept it sweet and simple. Milan had sent him a short video singing all of ‘Happy Birthday’ and blowing him a kiss. Jens had sent him one a few minutes late simply saying ‘happy bday. no I didn’t forget’, which Sander had blinked and then laughed at. He’d responded to them a while too late, after Robbe had eventually decided they both needed to sleep.

“Why couldn’t we just ask Robbe to join us for dinner?” Ciel asks. Not for the first time, Sander thinks that, for a policeman, his father is at times worryingly oblivious.

Léa clearly agrees, as she simply rolls her eyes in response. “I’m sure they’ll have their own private plans, of course he’ll want to spend his birthday with his boyfriend.”

“Uhm,” Sander says, again. “I still have class first though, so…”

“We should eat,” Ciel agrees, but glances at his wife. “Gifts now too, or in the evening?”

She considers it for a moment, then nods decisively. “We will do it before you two have to go. I’m not sure it’s too exciting, but you can make more use of it this way, maybe.” She offers Sander an apologetic smile.

He waves her off and presses a kiss to her cheek. “Don’t be silly.”

She returns his gestures and then pulls him to the table, pressing him down into a chair and piling food in front of him. It doesn’t matter that he’s not quite hungry enough for it, not this soon after waking, and his stomach protests a little with each bite. He enjoys it. He sits and eats with a parent at either side of him and he doesn’t get the feeling of too much. He doesn’t think undeserved. He’s not worrying about another year gone and him still the same. He’s not hit by a wave of inexplicable loneliness, or fretting over his current painful mistake, or mourning another year of life gone in which he has failed to grow up.

It’s all there, lurking in the constant shadows, but it’s not there, at the same time. Instead it’s his parents’ light bickering, and the memory of Robbe’s ‘goodnight kiss’, and all those messages on his phone.

And it’s relief.

Another year. Twelve months. 52 weeks. 365 days. 8,760 hours. 525,600 minutes.

All that time, and nothing has really changed.

No intrinsic part of his life has altered, nothing’s gone. He’s still managing school (mostly), he still has the same friends, his parents are still fairly understanding, his unrelenting mental illness still hasn’t killed him, and he still has the man of his dreams across infinite universes (as said man claims).

He’s still here. Breathing, living. Thriving, his mind exalts.

“That’s a genuine little smile,” his father notes, returning it with one of his own. “It’s nice to see.”

Warmth spreads through Sander, cushioning his heart but also sneaking into his cheeks as he shakes his head and takes another overstuffed mouthful of food. Ciel’s smile just widens in understanding, and Sander feels a twinge for how often he turns the man away. It’s moments like these where he thinks it’s wrong to do so, that he should give him more of a chance on occasion, that maybe he really would be more helpful than Sander lets himself hope for.

But it doesn’t matter, today. Nothing like that needs to matter when they’re all happy to make it about his birthday.

They give him his gifts after breakfast, quickly. New clothes that he likes enough to go change into before he leaves, wearing the tee with subtle Bowie graphics with pride. There’s the usual restocking of art supplies as well, more expensive than he ever buys himself and which he gives his mother another kiss for. Then they pass him a card, which has sappy words in his mother’s handwriting and money tucked inside.

“Thank you,” he says, for the third or fourth time, squeezing them both in a quick hug as Ciel checks his watch and Léa smacks him on the arm for it. “Everything is perfect, really. And we can have some cake in the afternoon? I’ll come back for a while before I meet up with Robbe.”

His mother narrows her eyes and places a hand on her heart playfully. “So kind of you to include me in your busy day, the woman who brought you into this world.”

Ciel smiles at her, in a way that suggests he’s heard this particular speech before. “Yes, really a day to celebrate you, if we’re doing it right.”

“Of course,” Sander agrees, nodding sagely. “What was it? Seventeen hours of labour?”

“Followed by twenty years of tender and loving care,” she adds, and Sander laughs.

He wraps his arm around her shoulder and kisses the top of her head before leaning away to pick up his bag. “Truly the best,” he tells her.

“Save me some cake,” Ciel requests, also collecting his things by the door.

“But you weren’t involved in any of that credit,” Sander notes. “Hard to know if you should get to join in the best part of the celebration.”

“I cooked those croques this morning, and I’ll drive you to college.”

It’s a cheap bribe, considering Sander could drive himself if he so wished, but he still beams and pats his father’s shoulder, following him out. “A slice will be left in the fridge.”

~^~

previous/next

[womenstan]

I Will Be King

Sander Birthday fic ft. a birthday video! Ao3

It was almost pitch black outside, the streets barely illuminated by the lampposts, as Sander biked towards his apartment. He’d worked the late shift today, despite trying to get out of it so he could go and celebrate his birthday with Robbe.

Speaking of Robbe, Sander couldn’t help but feel his heart tighten painfully as he remembered their exchange that morning. Sander had invited Robbe to his apartment to celebrate his birthday once his shift was over, but Robbe had to decline, stating that he had a lot of schoolwork and that his mama didn’t want him to sleep over during the week.

Sander knew Robbe was only being responsible and his mom wasn’t wrong, so he didn’t argue. Inside though, he felt disappointed and a little sad that he was going to spend his 20th birthday all alone in his apartment after working all afternoon and well into the evening.

When he got to his apartment, he unlocked the door, cursing a little under his breath when he picked the wrong key, before finally getting inside. He took off his shoes, threw his bag on the floor and made his way inside.

Immediately, he noticed something was wrong. The light in his living room was on, despite Sander always making sure he closed every light off when he left (he wasn’t made of money). Even stranger, his laptop, which he usually kept on his bedroom desk, was laying on the coffee table, with a USB key on it. A USB key that Sander did not remember owning…

Slowly, he approached the table, only to find a small post-it that read “Watch this.” Sander was even more confused, as he recognized Robbe’s handwriting on that note. When had he brought this over? Did Robbe forget the light on? Why hadn’t he told Sander anything? And what on Earth was on that key?

Shaking his head, Sander wasted no more time sitting down on his couch and plugging the USB key inside of his computer. His fingers tapped anxiously on the keyboard as he waited for the computer to connect to the key. As soon as it did, Sander opened it up, surprised to find only one .mp4 video, ominously titled ‘Sander’.

Curious, Sander leaned back in his seat, turning the volume up before clicking on the video. As soon as he did, he could recognize the first notes to Bowie’s ‘Heroes’ fill up the room, as his own smiling face appeared on the screen.

Sander laughing, Sander and Robbe laying in bed, Sander and Robbe singing badly off key to some karaoke, Robbe teasing Sander about his newly cut hair by calling him ‘my army man’, Sander and Robbe driving around at night when Sander finally got his driving license last year, Sander and Robbe cuddling at night with Sander sound asleep on Robbe’s chest, just… Sander and Robbe being in love, for a whole 3 minutes 37 seconds. As the song faded out, tears pooling in Sander’s eyes, Robbe’s face showed up on the screen. Sander recognized the background, as it was his own room. A tear slipped down his cheek.

“Hey baby! Happy birthday! I’m sorry I made you think we weren’t going to celebrate your birthday, but I really wanted to surprise you and, well, Jens said… I probably shouldn’t listen to Jens anymore” Robbe laughed, making Sander snort through his tears. “Anyway, I really wanted to wish you a happy birthday. I love you, old man.”

Sander wiped his tears, thinking the video was over, but the Robbe on his screen continued on, “But, hm… I didn’t think wishing you a happy birthday like this would be satisfying enough, so… I mean it took a lot of convincing with my mama, but…”

Before the Robbe on his screen could even finish his sentence, Sander had bolted from the living room, practically sprinting to his bedroom.

He opened the door, only to find Robbe, his Robbe, standing in the middle, smiling brightly at him. Sander didn’t try to suppress the urge that came over him, as he jumped in Robbe’s arms, holding him closely. He hid his face in Robbe’s neck, as Robbe chuckled, his own arms coming around Sander.

Overwhelmed, Sander started crying again, sniffling a little. Robbe backed away, taking Sander’s face in his hands, his face twisted in worry. “Sander? Baby? Are you ok?”

Sander could only nod, before diving right for Robbe’s lips. He tried to convey his gratefulness and his love to Robbe in that kiss. He was so full of love at that moment that he felt like he could burst from it.

When they separated again to breathe, forehead against forehead, Robbe traced Sander’s jaw tenderly with his fingers. “Why were you crying?”

Sander shrugged, chuckling a little. “I don’t know. I just… I love you so much, Robbe. So much.”

Robbe sent him a beaming smile, leaning back a little to press a soft kiss to Sander’s temple.

“I love you too, Sander.”

Sander smiled into their following kiss, which made it more messy than anything, but it was ok. It didn’t matter, they’d have an infinite amount of other kisses to make up for it.

Later that night, they both laid in Sander’s bed, all wrapped up in each other. Robbe brushed Sander’s hair off of his forehead, which only made Sander snuggle closer to Robbe, his face pressed somewhere between his neck and his shoulder.

“Sander?” Robbe asked.

Sander hummed in answer, too comfortable to move even a single muscle.

“Remember when you said ‘You and I, always’?”

Sander moved his head a little, raising his gaze to Robbe’s. Slowly, he nodded.

“Well I plan on holding you to that. You can’t get rid of me, now, I’m holding onto you forever.” Robbe smiled, holding Sander tighter, as if to prove his point.

Sander smirked at that, although his cheek was too squished onto Robbe’s skin for it to really be a smirk. “Good, because I have no intentions of ever letting you go.”

Robbe smiled softly, rubbing their noses together. “I love you, old man.”

Sander grimaced at that, which made Robbe chuckle. Oh, the things Sander would do only to hear that chuckle all the time…

“I love you too, young man.”

[jackfrostsander]

Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday little Robin! Happy birthday to you!

Also available on AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/33374809

Friday August 20th, 2021

08:43

Robbe slowly woke up… With his eyes still closed his hand looked for the warmth of Sander’s body next to him… “San???” Robbe jumped up as his hand had felt nothing but cold bedsheets. There was no trace of Sander in his bed except for his intoxicating smell that still emanated from the bedsheets. Robbe jumped out of bed, took the first shirt he could find from the floor – Sander’s lightning bolt t-shirt – and went to check the bathroom… Nope, nobody there… Maybe Sander woke up before him and is already having breakfast downstairs?

As Robbe ran into the living room he got the surprise of his life… A large banner hang across the room saying “Happy 18th birthday!”.

As Robbe walked in Sander and his mum started to sing together:

“Long will he live… Long will he live… Long will he live in the gloria! In the gloria! In the gloria! Hieperdepiep hooray!”

Robbe ran towards Sander and jumped into his arms like a hyperexcited little child. Sander nearly lost his balance… But before he even got his feet steady again Robbe was already showering him in kisses. Sander allowed him to indulge and so for the next several minutes they did nothing but exchange kisses and ‘I love you’s’.

Eventually Robbe remembered that his mum was standing there patiently waiting to wish her son a happy birthday too so he reluctantly let go of Sander’s comforting embrace. Robbe turned towards his mother. “Happy birthday Robbe! No mum could be prouder of her son” Charlotte said. “I love you mum” Robbe replied before hugging her. She gave him three birthday kisses and then pulled back while her hands retrieved a gift from behind her back. She gave the box, wrapped in orange gift wrap, to Robbe who eagerly opened it. Inside he found a box of his favourite cookies. “Thanks mum!” Robbe said. “I have something else…” Charlotte added, “But I couldn’t wrap it… I bought you a licence for the video editing software you need for university…”. “Mum… You didn’t need to… OMG, Thank you so much…” Robbe said before hugging her again. The software was not cheap and since the breakup with his dad she had to pay everything from a single income and that meant that it wasn’t always easy… So, as happy as Robbe was with his present, he also was feeling somewhat guilty that his mum had spent so much money on his gift.

“First gift of the day” Sander said while handing a drawing over to Robbe. It depicted Robbe spray painting the garbage truck. A memory of the first time Sander had seen him and had instantly fallen for him… “It’s amazing San! Thank you!” Robbe exclaimed before pulling his boyfriend in for a kiss. “Oooo wait… I am not done yet…” Sander said as he handed Robbe a long rectangular box that was wrapped in Sander's favourite Bowie gift wrap paper. "For me?" Robbe asked surprised. "For who else..." Sander teased. "Thank you San!" Robbe exclaimed as he started to unwrap the box. Inside he found a plain cardboard box. Robbe burned with curiosity for what was hidden inside this box. He opened the box and... "A skateboard!" Robbe blurted out in joy. "Check the bottom side" Sander instructed. Robbe turned the deck over and... Most skateboards have some kind of art decoration on the bottom but this one... This one had been spray painted by his artist... "Sander..." Robbe said with an open mouth as he admired the work of his talented boyfriend. Robbe put the board down, turned towards Sander and pulled his lover in for a kiss. He wrapped his arms around Sander's neck while his lips never departed those of Sander. He could spend the whole day like this... Just being with Sander... Feeling his skin against his own... Feeling those soft lips and warm tongue... Inhaling Sander's mesmerizing smell... Oh, he didn't need anything more to have a perfect birthday...

Then Sander took Robbe to the kitchen where a pile of freshly baked pancakes was waiting for them… There was butter, jam, different sugars, chocolate topping, and whipped cream as complements to the pancakes. Robbe was instantly salivating at the delicious smell. How lucky was he that his boyfriend could cook… Because he didn’t get much further than instant noodles… But Sander could make all sorts of things. Not just croques but also spaghetti with homemade bolognaise sauce, steak frites, witloof with ham in cheese sauce,… and the fresh soup he made for Robbe when he was in bed with a cold. Sander nursed him for days until Robbe felt better again. For sure, Sander’s fresh soup and honey-spiked warm tea had helped to clear his airways.

“Are there any croques with cardamon?” Robbe teased his boyfriend. Sander made a disgusted face upon being remembered of Robbe’s little experiment at the sea earlier this summer… Sander had told him that they would taste awful but Robbe had stubbornly ignored his boyfriend’s advice. When the croque was ready it really did taste badly but Robbe forced himself to take several bites to avoid having to agree with Sander…

Robbe grabbed a pancake from the pile and added whipped cream and chocolate topping to it. Next, he rolled it up into a delicious sweet bite-sized roll from which he took a bite. Hmmmm, heaven… He wanted to share his creation with his boyfriend so he turned towards Sander and fed him another bite from the rolled up pancake. Sander closed his eyes as he enjoyed the food liking the chocolate sauce from his lips with his tongue… Robbe nearly combusted at seeing Sander act like this. He wasn’t sure if it was intentional on Sander’s behalf or if he was oblivious to the effect that his actions had on his boyfriend… Well… knowing Sander he probably was well aware of the fact that he was a massive tease by licking his lips like this…

Robbe couldn’t control himself and before Sander had opened his eyes Robbe’s lips were pressed against his. He tasted the chocolate/whipped cream/pancake taste from Sander’s lips mixed with the black coffee that his boyfriend must have had earlier today… This kiss quickly deepened and Robbe nearly forgot that he was in his mum’s kitchen… Luckily he remembered where he was before things got too far… He pulled back and looked deeply into those emerald eyes of his perfect boyfriend. How lucky he was… He could stare into those eyes all day and not grow tired off it. He was mesmerised by his boyfriend’s beauty… He started to caress Sander’s cheek while whispering “I love you soooo much”. And Sander melted into a puddle in front of him…

11:03

"Come" Sander instructed while extending his hand in Robbe's direction. "Where are we going?" Robbe demanded to know. "Surprise... Come" Sander repeated. Robbe smiled softly. The unpredictable nature of Sander was one of the things he loved the most. He loved the cute and special surprises that Sander regularly planned for him. He knew that with Sander by his side life would never be boring. So, he enthusiastically grabbed Sander's extended hand and allowed himself to be pulled out of his mum's home on the way to whatever adventure Sander had in stall for him...

Once outside Robbe wanted to grab their bikes but Sander stopped him. "Let's walk" Sander suggested. Robbe gave Sander a quick rub on his back before interlocking his hand in Sander's. And so, hand in hand they walked across town... Stopping regularly to take some artistic pictures or inspect some street art...

12:19

Robbe's stomach growled. "Getting hungry?" Sander inquired. "Fainting" Robbe replied. "Well, that's perfect on schedule..." Sander replied earning him a confused look from Robbe. "We're nearly at the restaurant where I reserved a table for us..." Sander clarified. "Not at the hospital, I hope?" Robbe jokingly asked. Sander was confused for a moment until he noticed that they were indeed walking past the hospital. Sander snorted. "Nope, something much better than under-seasoned bland potato puree they serve in hospitals..." Sander replied with a smirk.

Not even a minute later they arrived at Sander's chosen restaurant. Robbe had expected to eat some burgers and fries or pizza... Or maybe a steak frites at a brasserie... However, that was clearly not what Sander had in mind for today… "A one Michelin star restaurant!?" Robbe exclaimed in disbelief. "From the best dessert chef of Belgium" Sander added. "But... That's too expensive..." Robbe said. "Nothing is too expensive for you..." Sander replied before pulling Robbe towards the entrance gate of the restaurant.

"Good afternoon young gentlemen. Do you have a reservation?" the maître d' asked. "Yes, on the name of IJzermans-Driesen" Sander replied. "Ok, let me show you your table" the maître d' said as he guided the two boys to a lovely table at the terrace outside of the restaurant. It was the ideal weather to eat outside. Not too cold and also not oppressively warm… Just the perfect mild Belgian summer weather with a slight breeze. Only rain could be a problem according to the weather forecast but so far it had remained dry and the sky looked clear...

The maître d' handed the boys the menu cards and asked if he could already bring an aperitif. "Two glasses of champagne" Sander immediately replied. "Champagne?" Robbe said in disbelief. "It's your birthday sweetie" Sander said. Robbe's worries about Sander's spending become even worse when he opened up the menu card. "Any idea what you would like?" Sander asked. "Maybe just the brioche wagyu" Robbe suggested. "Sweetie, its fine. Ignore the prices..." Sander said, "What do you think of the tacos as a starter?". "Tacos... That's sounds nice" Robbe said. "Ok, and what do you think about sea bass for a main?" Sander suggested. Robbe quickly checked Sander's suggestion... 49.50 euro for the bass... Robbe felt so uncomfortable to have Sander spend that much money on him... Sander must have noticed... "Sweetie... You only once become 18... Just relax and enjoy... Sometimes one just should stop thinking about things and just enjoy the special moments..." Sander said. Robbe smiled. "You're special enough..." Robbe said, "I don't need fancy food... Just having you by my side...". "You're such a romantic..." Sander teased.

13:55

After a mind-blowing starter and an exquisite main dish the boys were waiting for dessert when... The chef of the restaurant, Robbe recognized him from his TV-show that his mother watches, walks out with two plates and comes over to them. He places a desert plate in front of Robbe with in chocolate glace "Happy 18th birthday" piped on it. "Happy birthday young man" the chef says, "I hope you have enjoyed your lunch?". "It was outstanding! A true delight for the palate!" Robbe complimented the chef. "Thank you. Enjoy your desert and the rest of your birthday" the chef said before returning to the kitchen.

14:22

After an astonishing gastronomic lunch the boys decided to use the restrooms before leaving the restaurant. As they walked in Robbe observed that they were alone there so in an impulse he changed plans and pushed Sander against the wall… Before his head could hit the wall Robbe inserted his hand. He pushed his body impossibly close to Sander’s and they started to kiss passionately… Robbe moaned… His body burning with desire… No matter how close their bodies were it would never be close enough for Robbe… Sander… Sander… Sander… was the only thing Robbe could think about. He was in a public space… He shouldn’t take things too far… But trying to constrain himself was soooo difficult… It felt like his whole body was screaming for Sander… He was slowly losing the battle that was going on in his mind… Until… Footsteps… Someone was approaching the door… Robbe quickly withdrew and went to the sink to wash his hands while Sander went to use the restroom…

21:15

"Come" Sander said as he pulled Robbe towards what looked like an abandoned factory. "San, what are you doing?" Robbe objected as Sander pulled him past the fence. He had no intention of getting arrested for trespassing on his birthday... But Sander didn’t seem to care. "Come..." Sander instructed again. He pulled Robbe towards the door and opened the door…

“Surprise!” dozens of voices shouted. Everyone was there… The broerrrs, his parents, Sander’s parents, his aunt, his grandparents, Zoë, Senne, Milan, Yasmina,… “Third surprise” Sander beamed.

The old factory was in fact a party venue and it had been completely decorated… All his family and friends were standing around cocktail tables covered in black spandex. The sealing was covered in various coloured spots, party lasers and mirror balls. There was a bar, dance floor and music installation. Hanging on the wall in front of him was “18” spelled out in silver Mylar balloons surrounded by floating black and white balloons. But nothing could have prepared Robbe, and also most of the people present, for what was coming next…

21:21

Suddenly, Sander got down on his one knee. In the background Bowie’s Wedding song started to play… “Robbe IJzermans… My angel… The love of my life… My soulmate… The sun who illuminates my existence… Would you do me the honour of becoming my husband?” Sander asked while he presented Robbe with a flat silver, satin-finish, comfort-fit, 7 mm wide engagement ring that had a lightning bolt engraved in it. It was a truly stunning ring, clearly chosen by someone with impeccable artistic taste…

Robbe was speechless… This wasn’t happening… Did Sander really just asked him to marry him??? Robbe’s heart skipped a beat or two and his brain went into a mild epileptic seizure as he was trying to comprehend what was happening… “Marry… you…” Robbe finally stuttered in a questioning tone. “Yes, I want to marry you” Sander replied.

Robbe was silent for another brief moment before he spoke: “On one condition…”. This must have taken Sander by surprise as he instantly gave Robbe a confused look. Robbe bended down and whispered in his ear: “I am not marrying nude”. Sander snorted at Robbe’s joke but also blushed a bit when he remembered the conversation from almost 2 years ago... “Condition accepted!” Sander loudly proclaimed as he wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and started to kiss him. Both boys were in tears now. Happy tears.

The beginning of their relationship had been a bit chaotic and Robbe struggled with his internalized homophobia and Sander with the demons in his head and the doubts about if Robbe would stay with him when all aspects of him got revealed… However, it didn’t took Robbe more than two months after first meeting Sander to be completely convinced that this was the boy he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Sander made him feel things that he didn’t even know one could feel… And those feelings have never changed… Every time Sander touches or kisses him still feels as special as that first time… Every single time Robbe gets butterflies in his stomach, chills though his spine, and Chernobyl in his head… A never ending honeymoon phase…

Their family and friends started to applaud. After making out for a few minutes the awkward position started to become uncomfortable enough to force them to stop kissing and get up. Sander quickly placed the ring on Robbe’s finger before pulling him in for more kisses.

After a few minutes of pure bliss… Making out with Sander… The boys finally broke apart ready to accept the birthday and engagement wishes from their family and friends. But first, Sander snapped a picture of his fiancée’s hand with the ring and uploaded it on his Instagram. As caption he added a fragment from Bowie’s wedding song:

I believe in magic

Angel for life

Robbe got a message from his mum. It was several pics that she had taken of Sander proposing to him. Robbe quickly looked through the pics and decided upon the best one. He was going to upload this on his Instagram to show the world that Sander was his. Robbe isn’t the boasting type of person but he can’t help to feel soooo lucky and proud to say that Sander is his and the whole world can know it. Sander is his… Even after all this time this thought was almost surreal to Robbe. Why did the universe grant him such happiness? “Nowhere as happy as we are…” Robbe remembered Sander’s words. How true this statement was…

"But where will we live?" Robbe asked Sander. "You and Sander can keep living with me... If you want at least... Until after you finish university and have the means to find a place of your own..." Charlotte interrupted. "I have the best mum and boyfriend in the whole world!" Robbe exclaimed while jumping around his mum's neck like the baby koala he is. "Fiancée" Sander corrected him earning him a playful push from Robbe back.

In the meantime Sander’s parents had walked towards them… “Happy birthday Robbe and welcome in the family” Isabelle said. “Thank you” Robbe said as he hugged Sander’s mum. “You’re the best son-in-law that any mother could imagine… And know that you and Sander can always count on us if you need our help” she said. Robbe smiled: “Thank you so much”. He felt Sander’s father’s hand on his shoulder so he let loose of Isabelle and turned toward him. “Happy birthday Robbe!” Charles said. “Thank you” Robbe said with a smile. “We have something for you that you will soon need…” Charles said as he handed over a box. Robbe opened the box and found… “A Nikon Z6 II!!!” Robbe exclaimed. Sander’s parents were quite well-to-do but that was exuberant even by their standards… “I… I… can’t…” Robbe stuttered. “We’ve only got one future son-in-law… And you deserve it Robbe. You really do. Look at Sander. We’ve never seen him this happy in his whole life. And I know you will make all of us proud with your movies” Charles said. Robbe blinked away a tear. Not only did he have the best boyfriend but also the best parents-in-law that anyone could wish for… Indeed, Sander’s parents had always been there for him and Sander… From the first day they had welcomed him with open arms.

Suddenly his dad showed up and grabbing him by the shoulder he lead Robbe a meter or two away from Sander and his parents. “Happy birthday son and congratulations with your engagement” Louis said. “Thanks dad!” Robbe replied. His dad took a little box from his pocket and gave it to him. Robbe unwrapped it… “A new phone!” Robbe exclaimed. “Your current one is quite beaten up… So, I think you can use this…” his dad explained. “Yes! Thank you dad!” Robbe smiled. Robbe was about to turn around when his dad hold him by the shoulder. “You know… I mean… You’re still young… You don’t have to rush into things…” Louis started. “Dad, what are you saying?” Robbe asked in a slight fierce tone as he didn’t like where his dad was going. “Your mum and I also got married at young age…” Louis added. Robbe didn’t like this conversation at all. He would like to tell his dad what he thinks about the fact that he cheated on his mum and then left her. But this was a happy day and he was not going to let his dad ruin it. So, he just turned around without saying something. “Robbe…” his dad yelled but Robbe decided to ignore him.

He didn’t get far before Sander appeared next to him. He must have noticed that Robbe was irritated after that short talk with his dad. His boyfriend is so observant. “Nothing, I am fine San” Robbe replied. Sander clearly didn’t believe it as he gave Robbe a ‘tell me what’s wrong’ look. “Just my dad… He’s annoying again… But I am not going to let him ruin the happy mood” Robbe said. He gave Sander a smile to let him know that he was truly fine. Sander didn’t seem fully reassured yet so Robbe added: “Nowhere as happy as we are”. This sentence had since become one of the reoccurring lines that they used to profess their love to each other…

Robbe and Sander spend the next half an hour going around to everyone to receive Robbe’s birthday wishes and presents and their engagement wishes. Zoë gave him a new beanie. Jens gave him two presents. One from himself and one in name of Jana who was back in New York. And then there was Noor… She had given him a lightning bolt earing. Robbe seriously doubted he would get the opportunity to wear it as his boyfriend would probably steal it… After all, Sander got his right ear pierced recently…

22:02

“DJ Sobbe!” Jens yelled. “Sobbe! Sobbe! Sobbe!” everyone started to chant as the boys made their way to the music installation. Robbe grabbed the mic and yelled: “Who’s in for a partyyyyy!” while Sander got the first song playing. Moyo came over and handed the lovers two beers. “Cheers!” Robbe said as he clinked his bottle against Moyo’s. “The first broerrr to get married…” Moyo said, “I am focking proud of you!”. Robbe beamed.

02:18

The party had ended about twenty minutes ago and Robbe at first thought that Sander was walking him home but he soon noticed that they were heading in a different direction… Now, they were walking down the ‘Keizersstraat’. “Could it be?” Robbe started to wonder. And of course… They halted in front of THEIR hotel. “Penthouse suite for the night? Large bed and nobody to interrupt us…” Sander asked. “Sander…” Robbe said in disbelief. There didn’t seem to come an end to the surprises that Sander had in stall for him… “Shall we repeat that night?” Sander asked. Robbe beamed. “I promise I won’t run away this time” he added. “You better don’t or I shackle you to the bed…” Robbe teased. “Ooooo… I like your thinking…” Sander replied with a smirk. Most often Sander tended to dominate in bed but he also loved to occasionally give complete control to Robbe… “Be careful what you wish for…” Robbe continued to tease.

[langdxn]

infamy | outpost!michael x witch!reader

SUMMARY: It’s Michael’s birthday and you have a surprise for him. He has one of his own.

WARNINGS: Smut, fluff, breeding kink, daddy!Michael, vaginal sex, choking, sneaky Xavier reference, cockblocking David Bowie.

WORD COUNT: 2.3k (I am so sorry, I’m new to this smut thing)

You knocked gingerly on the colossal wooden door to Michael’s office, your heart catching in your throat with trepidation. Your previous attempts to dissuade Michael from his work were never 100% successful, it was a risky game that could end in either your clothes in tatters hanging from the ceiling or a terrifying threat to incinerate you and your soul.

You nervously fiddled with the hem of your mini dress, a skintight black velvet number reserved specifically for special occasions when Ms Venable’s purple regalia was not enforced.

As his incessant typing ceased abruptly, the door creaked open by itself. Your eyes lay upon Michael sat forward in his desk chair, his hands studiously clasped over his laptop which swiftly closed the second the door opened.

“To what do I owe the pleasure?” He grinned as your silhouette emerged lit by the roaring fire in his office furnace.

“It’s your birthday, Mr Langdon.” You sashayed agonisingly slowly toward his desk, making sure your stilettos made a satisfying clink with every choreographed step on the polished floorboards. Supermodels walk with less sass, you thought to yourself, but this wasn’t the time for half measures.

“You remembered, my little witch,” he beamed his signature sinister grin across a corner of his lips, touched by the fact that your stay in the Outpost hadn’t robbed you of your sense of time. His oceanic eyes pierced through yours as you perched on the edge of his desk beside him,

As he prepared to lift himself from his seat to join you, you placed your hands atop his. Instead, he reached out to touch your leg where your suspender stockings met your bare skin, but you swatted him away again.

“Not so fast, sir.”

With a blink of your eye, his laptop bellowed a familiar tune. You’d heard Michael playing David Bowie’s Fame in his office weeks ago, dismissing it at the time as an accidental email popup but the mental images of him strutting around his quarters was too good to pass up.

Despite flinching at the sound, Michael’s smile eked across his countenance as he recognised it, even further when he clocked the tone you were setting with the song choice. The groove made you involuntarily roll your hips towards Michael, seductively sliding across the table edge to line yourself up with Michael.

Looking you up and down, concentrating on the height of your skirt, his eyes coursed their way up to meet yours, burning with desire and equal resentment at not being allowed the freedom to touch you.

Fame, makes a man take things over…

Hitching your dress up to reveal a glimpse of your blood red lace panties, Michael’s pupils burst as he realised they were the same panties he gifted you on your birthday. You protested they weren’t necessary, that clothing barely lasted seconds on your person around him, but he assured you they would come in useful someday. They lay, unused and unloved, in your closet shelves for months.

Until today.

Fame, puts you there where things are hollow…

Planting one stiletto on the seat beside his leg, your skirt exposed your core flush against your panties, already damp from your arousal. Being so close to Michael without feeling his touch sent your hormones into overdrive, your arms were desperate to cling onto him and draw him between your legs.

Lowering your eyes to glare into his from under your eyebrows, you caught a low growl escape his lips as he took in the vision of you, his little witch, nothing he could do about it.

But there was always something he could do about it. He’d proved his powers were beyond yours on numerous occasions, overpowering your attempts to dominate him every time without even a flick of his wrist.

This time, he wanted you to control him - the only question was for how long.

Fame, what you like is in the limo…

You slipped the thin straps of your dress over your shoulder and let them drape down your arms as you clung the main body of the fabric to your chest with tightened elbows. A gasp thinly veiled as a moan poured from Michael, driving you to reach over and place a gentle yet demanding finger atop his lips. As you leaned forward, your dress pooled around your waist, completely exposing your naked breasts in a happy yet nonetheless accidental seduction.

Something compelled you to turn and check you’d closed the door behind you, knowing full well the rest of the Outpost shouldn’t see or hear what comes next. As you half-heartedly waved a hand to close it tight, a much stronger force swung it open again.

You snapped your head back to find Michael, his hand gesturing in the air and a painfully intentional azure wink hit you.

“Oh, so it’s like that, is it Mr Langdon?"

You already knew he liked the rest of the Outpost discovering your antics with their one chance at salvation. Knowing that you were the Cooperative’s only priority in the underground sanctum, that you were the solitary owner of the one guaranteed place in the Sanctuary. Knowing that the formidable Mr Langdon was directly responsible for the vicious bruises and welts peppered across your skin on a daily basis. Knowing that the blood-curdling screams that echoed through Hawthorne’s halls were yours, brought on by his relentless late-night punishments on the Outpost inhabitant he referred to as his little witch.

His plan to annihilate all the witches was doomed to fail from the onset because he fell for you. The last survivor of your kind, the final remaining Robichaux legacy. Owning you and your existence was a dominance you accepted gladly, having metaphorically sold your soul to him the second you met at a school exchange. The Boy Wonder was yours instantly, you were part of his survival plan before you were even aware there was something to survive. Now he had initiated the apocalypse, all he had left was to make your connection official.

Fame, what you need you have to borrow…

“Fuck this,” Michael snarled as his hips shot forward to stand, both hands grabbing at your legs and wrapping them around his waist before you could flinch. His palms gravitated towards your breasts, kneading away at both simultaneously as he leaned in to plant a searing kiss on your lips.

As you opened your eyes, you saw Michael towering over you, his eyes bore down on you like a ruthless predator that could tear you limb from limb at any moment. Instead, he tugged at the waistband of your panties, snapping both sides of their restrictive fabric before you could raise your hips to remove them. Casting the lifeless lace into the air which lands in a heap across the room, Michael’s eyes darted to their landing spot.

“Ignis,” he spat as the panties burst into ferocious flames on the floor behind his desk, his eyes snapping into their pitch black form with a blink. You knew in that instant that once his eyes have descended, there was no time for foreplay.

You were his now.

Is it any wonder I reject you first?

Grappling to unbutton his dress pants, he unleashed his member from its velour incarceration, leaving you questioning how much magic it took to encase his hard length in fabric. As he lined up his cock with your entrance, you clocked his girth which seemed to increase every time you saw it, fleeting ideas passing your mind of how much pain you’ll be in after this session.

The one predictable action Michael committed every time you made love was his habit of clutching at your throat just as he entered you for the first time, ensuring you struggled to breathe as well as concentrate. As the tip of his cock neared your folds, you instinctively looked down at his hands, palming away at the beads of precum lacing the head as his signature statement rings glistened in the dim light.

Gazing at the slick black shirt covering his chest, you concentrated on its obstructive buttons and they disintegrated into pieces, then the seams popped on your command and within seconds, Michael was completely shirtless.

“No, little bitch,” he barked as you felt a force strike you across the jaw making you gasp sharply before it clenched around your throat, an invisible iron grip on your airways.

“S—sorry, daddy,” you pleaded as you fought for breath. You felt his member suddenly stretch your entrance with one hard thrust, your walls aching on contact while your eyes roll into the back of your skull.

Is it any wonder you are too cool to fool?

Michael rolled his hips deep into you as he deftly hit your g spot instantly, noticing your illicit moans of pleasure he tightened the force against your windpipe with a grunt and an accompanying grin spread across his cheeks. His hands trailed determinedly from the base of his cock up your thighs and spread them open as wide as you could take, the burn of your inside leg muscles mirroring the scolding heat inside you as Michael’s thrusts intensified.

“Fuck, you’re so tight,” he groaned as he let go of the force on your throat and poured every inch into you, his own eyes journeying to the ceiling as he bottomed out inside you.

Regaining control of his sight, he wrapped your legs back around his waist and grabbed the back of your neck with both hands, pulling you in to crash your lips against his. This kiss was not his average dismissive clinch to remind you who you belonged to; this was a meaningful, deep connection that told you he needed you.

Got to get a rain check on pain…

Tearing his lips away from yours and leaving you whimpering at the loss, he looked you square in the eyes and caught his breath, his trademark red eyeshadow transforming into a burning crimson in the light.

“Sweetheart, I think daddy needs to fill you up,” he slammed further into you, “more,” again, “than,” again, “this.”

You knew exactly what he was getting at, but it pained you to leave the exact words unspoken in such a passionate encounter across his weary Outpost desk.

“What do you mean, Mr Langdon?” You questioned feigning innocence, tightening your walls around him and reaching out to dig your nails down his back in anticipation. Michael growled and pulled you closer.

“You didn’t think you were the only one coming here with a surprise tonight, did you?” he emphasised by pounding into you as if it were punctuation. “Daddy needs to fuck a baby into you, little witch."

“I thought you’d never ask, Michael,” you cried breathlessly, your voice firing up decibels and your back arching as Michael hit your cervix. You’d been impatiently waiting for him to finally bind your relationship and further his father’s plan.

“Oh I think you’re mistaken baby,” he hummed under his breath, towering over you like every word you said made him a foot taller. “I wasn’t asking.”

He plunged every inch of his cock inside you harder than before, if that were even possible. Your walls constricted around him and you felt the familiar ticking time bomb about to explode inside you.

“I can’t wait to see you growing with our baby, watch you swell with our new life, everything my father planned for us.” He held his palm flat on your stomach suggestively. “The whole Outpost will see you every day, blossoming with our child, knowing that I did this to you.”

His words poured into your ears like petrol on the fire burning inside you, both in your heart and your womb.

“G-gonna cum daddy, fuck,” you exhaled, scratching his back so deep you could feel the skin ripping beneath your fingertips, your personal time bomb almost at implosion and white spots dancing across your eyes.

“Go on little witch, cum for me,” he commanded, wrapping his arms around you tightly and protectively as you shook and writhed uncontrollably in his embrace. “I’ve got you baby, I’ve got you.”

With another thrust against your walls, Michael came undone with his own orgasm, releasing his cum right up against your cervix.

His eyes slowly returned to their gorgeous cerulean, gazing into your soul through your own irises. He kept his length deep inside you as he leaned forward to plant a haunting kiss on your lips.

“What the hell, daddy?” You chuckled, pressing your forehead against his as you waited for the erotic haze across your vision to dissipate.

“I want you to carry our baby, Y/N. The apocalypse has come, we need to repopulate, also it’s about time the rest of this pathetic Outpost realised you belong to Mr Langdon.”

You weakly nodded in agreement, too exhausted to form a more coherent response. Michael’s cock slipped gently out of you, pouring the wetness from your combined orgasms through your swollen folds and pooling onto his desk.

“Every year on this day, I’m going to get you pregnant. Right here on this desk, just like that,” he detailed as he buttoned himself back into his dress pants as if no further explanation was required. “Any objections, little witch?”

“None at all, Mr Langdon,” you obeyed as he gently pulled up your dress for you, planting the shoulder straps carefully in their rightful places. Michael stared down at his torso bewildered at his loss of shirt, before a quick transmutation to reach into his closet in his quarters across the hall swiftly rectified it.

“Funny, I didn’t notice the music had stopped,” you laughed under your breath, desperate to fill the silence as you composed yourselves.

As you took to your feet to pull your dress down, you stood flush against Michael, now fully clothed, his gentle breath grazing your cheek. A soft peck fell upon your lips as he gently placed his palm over your velvet-clad abdomen, examining his work.

“So… same time next year?”

[elle-smells]

Birthday Kisses -- one shot

20:03

Robbe had been waiting all day. 

The two hands in the old living room clock seemed to be moving slower than usual and that just wasn’t going to do it for him. There wasn’t a word in any language that could describe the way he felt right now. After all the birthday wishes and cake and blowing out candles all the newly 17 year old wanted was his boyfriend; the same person who was running late. 

Not that Robbe is an impatient person, he prides himself in being able to not stress when things run a little behind schedule, but Sander had promised him he’d be here tonight to celebrate with Robbe and yet every time someone passes by his mama’s house it’s not the person he’s expecting.

“Dude, chill, you staring at the clock isn’t going to make him appear out of thin air” Jens teased as he took as seat next to his best friend who grew more anxious by the minute. 

Robbe sighed, “I know but it’s been a long time since he last texted”, Sander had been spoiling his Robin all day with sweet messages complimenting him and others that were a little more suggestive and made Robbe blush more than he’d like to admit. “I just want to make sure he is coming, you know, so I can... save him a piece of cake...”

“Cake?! There’s some cake left?!!” Aaron suddenly spoke from where he was playing video games with Moyo.

“Can I have more, pleaseeee”

“No, it’s not for you, it’s for Sander” Robbe got up to cut a slice before he muttered “If he ever decides to show up.”

Robbe served the cake on one of the plastic plates his mama had bought the day before and sat back down grabbing his beer from the living room table. 

“I’m sure there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation, when has he ever dispapointed you- oh wait, never mind”

“Jens!” Robbe hit his best friend on the shoulder “That was a long time ago! And of course I trust him, I’m just a little confused as to what is taking him so long, that’s all”

Reluctantly Robbe decided to let it go. Jens was right, Sander wouldn’t be late unless he had a good excuse. He’ll just have to be more patient...

21:21

He’s starting to get little more worried now.....ok, he’s REALLY worried. I’ts been over an hour and Sander is still a no show. Robbe looks at the time, 21.21. He feels a smile forming on his lips. Once, on a rainy afternoon during a day-long cuddle session, Sander had told him that was the time they got together for real. That exact time stamp is when Sander told him it was them, 100%, in every universe. Of course, Robbe knew it was nearly impossible for the art student to know one of the most special moments in their realtionship happened at such a specific time. 

However, he didn’t dare question it out loud, because as soon as Sander said it, the words felt more right than Robbe could’ve ever imagined. Like it was bigger than them, their love or even the universe they were so glad to live in with each other. That day they decided 21:21 would be like their 11:11 (but much more more meaningful than those weird tumblr posts everyone used to quote). Sometimes the couple would send texts simply whishing their lover a “Happy 21:21″ 

It felt perfect. Which is why Robbe couldn’t help but feel slight disappointment when Sander didn’t walk through the door at exactly that time. 

The Broerrrs were one drink away from reaching their “limit”, which basically meant that they were one drink away from not being able to stand, and kept asking Robbe to join them. “It’s your birthday! Come on, you only get turn 17 once!” Robbe hated to admit it but his friends were right. He invited them over to have fun, and that’s exactly what the were going to do. 

25 mintues later...

He was having the time of his life. Seriously, after going so long without proper partying, dancing like an idiot with his friends was exactly what he needed. It was almost enough to make him forget about- oh....

Robbe had pretty much given up at this point, though he didn’t exactly know how much time had passed since he last checked he had almost fully accepted that it was way too long and maybe his boyfriend wasn’t coming. It saddened the brown haired boy to the core. He wanted those birthday kisses, cuddles, giggles and everything he had always secretly hoped for while he was still hidding a huge part of himself. 

One thing was for sure, Robbe was expecting one hell of an explanation-

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

“I’ll get it” Robbe dragged his body to the door trying, and failing, to not get his hopes up. He slowly opened the door and his heart sunk yet again when he realised there was no one there.... and then he saw it; the drawing.

It was of a day Robbe remembered well. There was some stress with his mama and he had stayed up with her all night. He loved her very much and would do anything to make her comfortable, but he was human after all and his body had limits too. Sander had noticed the purple bags beginning to form under his eyes and practically begged his boyfriend to get some sleep, god knows he needed. He remembers waking up however many hours later to the sun hitting his eyes with so much intensity he felt like never opening them again. And then a giggle, and then a soft “Don’t move Robin, you’re gonna make me mess this up, it’s a good one”. 

There it was, a sketch of him peacefully sleeping into the late hours of the morning with a white comforter covering everything below his hips, leaving his bare back completly exposed. It was beautiful. There was no mistaking who the artist was, Sander.

Robbe felt his phone buzz in his pocket, he pulled it out and saw a notification for a single text, “Look up ;)” 

His boyfriend was standing a little to the right of the door almost as if he had been hidding. Wearing a simple white graphic tee and black jeans, Robbe thought Sander had never looked so gorgeous. 

“Happy Birthday Robin” he said with an easy smile that perfectly translated into the way he was looking at the birthday boy. Robbe forgot all the frustration he felt throughout the night and jumped into his boyfriends awaiting arms. Like always, it felt like coming home. 

Sander held him as tightly as he could while whispering countless “happy birthdays” and “I love you so much” or “you are so beautiful”.

When his lover finally placed him down on the pavement Robbe looked at him with gentle eyes and asked “What took you so long?”

“Hey, I’m sorry I wasn’t here earlier but setting up your surprise took longer than I thought it would”

“Surprise?” Now the older boy had Robbe’s full attention

“Come, you’ll see” Sander grabbed Robbe’s hands and led him to a small green area right next to where he lived. The brown eyed boy couldn’t believe it. Sander had set up fairy lights all around a triangular white tent big enough to fit the both of them. There were pillows, snacks and a small speaker that would most likely end up playing something by Bowie soon. 

Robbe felt arms wrap around his waist from behind, “So, do you like it? Is it too much? fuck I knew it was too much, I´ll just take it down sorry-” 

At those words the birthday boy immediately spun around and gently grabbed his boyfriend´s face “Sander stop! It’s perfect, you’re perfect I love this and you so much” he tilted his head up to join Sander’s lips with his own in a reassuring kiss. 

“Look, honestly, I was a little upset that you took so long to get here but it doesn’t matter. You’re here now and that’s all I wanted”

Sander’s smile was so big it took up half his face, his brown hair had grown out a little since he cut it and now it was long enough to have a messy look to it. Robbe has never felt so lucky.

“So what you’re saying is that I’m the best birthday present you got today”

Neither could contain their laughter as they kissed once more, this time with all the passion and love they had built up inside. The broerrrs won’t mind if Robbe disappears for a little while, and if they do then at least he had this moment with the best thing that ever happened to him.

Eventually they do notice Robbe's absence and join them outside making the obvious kissy faces and "oohh" sounds which got them a glare from their best friend in love. They all walk around as far as their tired and almost sober bodies will take them without a destination in mind. The cool late night air makes everyone shiver and yet Robbe has never felt so warm, so loved.

Yup, this was defintely the best birthday ever. 

[hopetofantasy]

‘Wandering Romance’

- A future with child fic -

Square Filled: Future, Family, Past lovers Ship: Sander Driesen/Robbe Ijzermans   Trigger Warnings (if applicable): none applied. Created for @skamevents Summary: "A perfect, tight little family. But happy. Until one unfortunate day in May, in the year that David turned six." In the future, Robbe and Sander have a son named David. The only tie they have left with each other, actually. Because our lovers split up years ago, due to mistakes that were made in the past. So is their love strong enough to sustain a healthy friendship? Will they find their way to each other again or break all connections for good? Also available on AO3

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CHAPTER 1: 'No one knows the pain'

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“David! Your dad’s here!”

Loud thundering on the stairs, caused by tiny child’s feet, followed by a high pitched exhale directed towards the man in the door. The later one immediately wrapped his arms around his hyperactive boy. Sighing deeply. The emotion on his face revealed unconditional love, as well as a vague sadness. Hurt. Hurt for the other man standing on the opposite side.

“Papa, I missed you! OMG, did you color your hair again? I don’t see any brown anymore, I love the brown, papa, why did you change it? Oh and I -”

“David, let your father have some room to breathe, please. Go put on some shoes and bring your jacket, it’s cold out.”

The 9 year old turned towards the other part of the parental couple. The deep brown in his eyes filled with such an invigorating energy. The color was something he inherited from Robbe. The lack of stopping the chaos in his head? That was such a Sander move. David truly was a piece of both. Even though, he wasn’t truly born out of either of them, he simply belonged here.

“But, paps, I don’t want to wear my own jacket!”

“What are you going to wear then?”

“Papa’s leather jacket!” he exclaimed, like it just was as easy as one plus one. The long blonde curls bouncing off his head, while he pulled at the arm of Sander’s coat. The beach blonde couldn’t help, but laugh fondly at his son’s statement. He really loved the boy like nobody else. Well, there may be a time, where he loved someone just as much.

Gosh, Robbe, don’t think about that.

“It’s okay, Robbe,” Sander directed the flashy smile towards him, knowing all too well he couldn’t say no to the both of them if they banded together. “We’re just going to the movies anyways. The new cartoon movie is perfect for our tiny artist. Isn’t it?” A excited squeal filled the cold air between them. Apparently, he had touched David on a ticklish spot, trying to make him giggle.

Robbe couldn’t help, but feel the sting. The picture before his eyes made his heartache complete. Sander laughing along with their beautiful son, the beach blonde complementing the blond, energy matching tones, he even saw how David was starting to copy Sander’s mannerisms more and more. Reminding him, every day, of the mistake he once made.

The follow-up question made the atmosphere even more loaded. “How’s Wouter? I didn’t see his car in the driveway? I thought he wasn’t working today?”, was asked. Ah, there it was. Another cut in his heart. Exactly the question he was trying to avoid. Another crossed line through his life. Something he didn’t intended to share with his ex. Not completely, at least.

“He hasn’t been around much, lately.”, he simply stated. Knowing that Sander would probably connect the dots later, he’d rather not discuss this in front of their son. It was difficult enough to maintain relationships in these situations. Especially when you were still friends with the other dad. They needed to be. Their son didn’t ask for this, he deserved to have a strong, loving family.

Something they’d made clear from the day they signed the divorce documents.

It only took a half an hour to get David ready, which was a record in Robbe’s book. After searching the entire room for his son’s shoes and the kitchen cabinets for his backpack (don’t ask, it’ll be easier if you. just. didn’t. ask), he was finally able to hand over the week-bag, the dreaded jacket and wave them goodbye. A huge piercing smile on their little one’s face. And...

A loaded glance.

An electrified touch.

A last cheek kiss.

Before he slumped down against the back of the door.

-^-

It didn’t start out this way, you know. They were happy before. Before all the things that led up to this moment.

Wait, I’m jumping ahead.

Let me tell you a story. The story of a beautiful love shared between two boys. Boys who loved like they never loved before. They found each other, they lost each other and found each other again. Push and pull. To say that their love was a rollercoaster? That’s an understatement. It made them only stronger in the future.

Until, it didn’t.

In the week of Robbe’s 20th birthday, they decided to move into their own apartment. It was a tiny studio at the edge of the city centre. Just enough for the both of them. Their living room was filled by their bed, tossed clothes and a ratty couch, the kitchen was tiny enough to only fit a midget size refrigerator, a second-hand stove and one kitchen counter. That they didn’t use anyways. Except... for... stuff. You know.

But it was perfect.

The best time of their lives.

When Robbe came home every day after class - his last year of IT & Webdesign - he could wrap his arms around his lover, who smelled of paint, citrus and himself. Kissing Sander was like being born again. Giving him goosebumps each time. No other feeling was as fierce. This bliss, this happiness. Making love to him, was heaven on earth. Nothing could compare. Nothing ever did.

Sander was struggling to get by on an artist paycheck. He only sold one of his pieces to art collectors every other month. His talents weren’t always appreciated like they should’ve been. But he kept trying. Through his highs as well as his lows, he never gave up his two passions: his art and David Bowie. He once even made an entire collection of Bowie portraits.

Which would later caught the eye of a notorious gallery owner, asking him to join the alternative artist collective he was setting up. Filled with musicians, writers, painters. Sander’s people. But that would take at least a couple of more years of struggling. Of cheap dinners and scraping by on one paycheck. Until the year of David’s sixth birthday.

When Robbe made the mistake.

To say that their lives was perfect, was an huge overstatement though. Sander’s medication wasn’t always working like it needed to be, living together wasn’t quite the same as staying with their parents and Robbe’s studies took a lot out of him. And then came the day that Jens knocked on their door. With a statement that chilled their bones to the core.

“Noor’s dead.”

Shock.

Denial.

Sadness.

Such a beautiful soul that was lost. Never roaming the earth again. Never again her special artistic cooking, the scoffing if someone said something she considered dumb. Late night jamming sessions, wine spills on new couches, burning protests at parliaments, all saying ‘f-u society, I’m not your bitch’? All gone. The light that made all of their laughs a little brighter, was no more.

And their lives would never again be the same.

These emotions followed rapidly by anger. Because apparently, it was a drunk driver that had hit her car on the way home. On the way home to her family. A tight little group that’d only consisted of a proud surrogate uncle/roommate Jens and a small child, barely a year old. The latter one was a small detail that she’d left out of her stories of backpacking in the US of A. Something that Jens didn’t mention during the wild parties, set up by Moyo in his underground club.

The small child was already fatherless, but now he didn’t have a mom either. He had nobody to care for him. Jens had put every single cent into his new start-up in New York and was in the process of moving there. Trying to set up a different life. Possibly meeting up with Jana again. Before all of this had happened, of course. Because who could’ve know?

So the boys didn’t have any other choice.

From the moment both had seen the little, bubbly baby in his basket, crying out for his mom, they’d knew. The boy had nestled in their hearts. The sorrow was a little less harsh, when you could look into the eyes of someone so pure. Noor’s son needed them. It was what Robbe owed her. For her unconditional love. After all, she had been his voice of reason, his shoulder to cry on - even through international phone calls - when it all was too much. The harshness of life.

The Sobbe relationship rollercoaster.

So arrangements were made. A graduate job secured. A family-backed loan for a small house was asked. And the adoption process had started. It only took them a year, due to Aaron’s social work contacts, before they could call David theirs. David Ijzermans-Driesen. The only one that could call them ‘papa’ and ‘paps’. The most precious boy in the entire universe. And any other universe, for that matter. In every parallel one.

A perfect, tight little family. But happy.

Until one unfortunate day in May, in the year that David turned six.

-^-

“Schat, don’t be so nervous. It’s me who’s supposed to be nervous, right?”

Sander eyes twinkled with mischief. He was dragging Robbe along to the dress rehearsal for their ‘happening’. Yes, a happening. Like the ones in the times of hippie communes. Those kind of artsy fartsy things. The brown haired boy didn’t know what it had meant entirely, but whatever Sander was into, he couldn’t help but show it to his partner.

To be completely honest, their relationship was strained these last few months. Robbe was more tired than anything else. Their son had started his first year of primary school, so this meant that evenings were filled with encouraging to practice reading and writing, guiding through homework and all the while trying to understand the problems that had manifested into his web code. His plate was filled with more work than ever before.

He wouldn’t really blame Sander, though, since this was the first time he finally caught a break in the artistic world. Yet, unconsciously, he had counted the days that they didn’t touch each other. And they were a lot. At least, for a couple that’d got married only a year ago. They were supposed to be in their blissful period of marriage, filled with the constant desire to touch each other at any time at any place.

And that wasn’t the case.

So when he caught sight of a certain man, someone who wasn’t his husband, his heart had skipped a slight beat. His hands were starting to get clammy, his voice caught in his throat and he didn’t know how to breath anymore. Robbe didn’t remember the last time this had happened with Sander. So, his immediate next thought, was shame and disgust.

For what he felt right now.

Yet, he couldn’t seem to look away. All during the dress rehearsal, his eyes were following the beautiful man who played along with his guitar in the background. His eyes were stars of stark blue, covered by a mop of light curls. The combination of these, together with a timid, yet mysterious air around him, immediately reeled him in. Worst part? He seemed to know Robbe was staring at him. Before he exited the area, he even turned back to wink at him.

Sander, of course, didn’t caught his boy’s entire thought process that followed. He was still going on about the dynamics of the entire art installation. Even introducing his other half to a few new friends he’d made. A Spanish girl with colorful hair, a German boy with a too-cool-for-you gaze and pair of Italian guys with soft smiles. Their energy all flowed through one another, like single organism. Like they were all part of something better.

Robbe could understand why Sander was attracted to these kind of people. He however, still wanted the ask the question that lingered in the back of his mind. Who had been the beautiful model that gave him a wink? Was he still here? Did  he expect something of him? He couldn’t do anything to someone else than Sander. Right? Right. It was wrong, with the capital W. So he let it be.

At least, that what’s he thought.

All through the happenings, the same feelings manifested. His eyes pulled towards the mysterious guy, instead of what his own husband was doing. While he heard the gasps of the audience around him, he gasped at the intense stare. While the people were urging closer to see what was happening, he’d fill his mind with thoughts about what he would do with the man before him.

Laying him down on the floor.

Touching him.

Kissing him.

Making his way with him.

Sander seemed to know Robbe wasn’t really raving about the entire art thing, so he never asked why his eyes glanced over every time he brought up the performances. He seemed to wait patiently for his lover to talk about his thoughts. What seemed to bother him. But, that was the thing: he didn’t. Robbe didn’t say a word. He just... stared. Longingly.

At someone else.

On the fourth week of mutual silence, Sander spiraled. His words were reeling with pain, with agony. They still didn’t know what caused an bipolar episode. They both wished they did, though, this time even more. Because it was a really, really bad one. Never before had Sander called him names. Never before did he make Robbe cry with desperation. He didn’t even let him touch him. Sander had said about himself, that he was a waste of space, so why would Robbe even bother about loving him? Why would their son ever love him? He was broken.

And Robbe let his tears fall.

He blamed himself. Because of the thoughts he had about the unknown man. He deserved this. A loveless touch, a hollow kiss, a silenced dagger thrown at his heart. He had felt something for someone else, he deserved so much worse. This was just tip of the ice-berg. It’s what he manifested. What he cooked up in his own thoughts, that made Sander hate him. Robbe knew it was all his fault.

His rational mind knew that these feelings were ridiculous though. Sander wasn’t his MI. His lover always saw the best in him, it was just the chemicals in his brain that sometimes fought with each other. And that, was maybe even worse. Knowing that Sander would always love him, no matter what, even when his episode was at his lowest, while Robbe was looking at someone else?

It broke him.

His fault.

Toxic.

For feeling the wrong things towards the wrong guy.

Sander saw it happening. After the episode, when he climbed out of the canyon of hurt, he still tried to pull his lover out of his own spiral. He touched his cluttered mind, wanted to break through the newly built walls and screamed out in frustration to shock him. But Robbe slowly became more silent. He reverted back to his older self, his younger, less pronounced ‘me’. The one who was insecure about every step he took. About every thing he did. About their love.

And that’s when he broke them.

Fights were more the norm in their household than lovemaking. David kept running towards either of them asking if they were angry at each other. To stop crying. To stop shouting. To stop hurting each other. He wanted papa and paps to be happy again. He wanted to kiss all the boo-boos away, making their hearts hurt even more.

So, after a bunch of whispered discussions, a few stints at a crappy couples counselor - some smuck that didn’t even remember their names - and a few months of loaded silence, they knew. This wasn’t healthy anymore. Sander gave and gave and gave, while Robbe ran. He ran away from the love. They knew it had to stop. It was healthier this way. To catch a break. To breathe.

A breath that was stolen only one time more. Their lips connected, the tears flowed, their bodies felt the hurt between them, even though they were making love. For the last time. Pieces of heart exchanged, never truly whole again. Grasping at the air surrounding them. Emerald eyes lingering into brown. The touch of heaven. Never again. All over. Discarded. 

Making the biggest mistake in both their lives:

They split up.

-^-

“Don’t forget, Robbe”

“I won’t.”

“I’m serious”

“I know.”

“David won’t stop babbling on about this.”

“Yes, Sander, he’s my son too. I know this already!”

“...”

“Sorry...”

“... It’s okay.”

Robbe sighed, fidgeting with the cellphone in his hand. A headache was starting to build up behind his eyes. Why did Sander call him again? Like he didn’t know about the biggest event of the school year approaching? The school’s annual show was on Saterday, open to every parent interested in sending their kids to the school as well as the parents of attending children.

“He just wants us to be there. Maybe we could invite the rest of the boys?”

“I’ll ask them. I don’t know if Jens will get a babysitter on such short notice, though. Jana is pretty busy with her job as a lawyer, you know that.”

“Come on, try to convince them to come. Maybe Amber can babysit the kids. It’s been a while since David has seen his uncles!”

Robbe thought long and hard about this statement. It had been a while since he saw his best friends. Nowadays, their lives were filled with juggling their family lives, responsibilities at work while maintaining a healthy lifestyle with their respective partners. Not that he didn’t know how difficult it could be sometimes.

Only recently, he’d acquired the new lecturing job at the IT departement, making way more pay and significantly better hours, so he could focus his time on David. Robbe really liked this job though. Educating other young people in the world of digits and numbers, something that always made sense even if your life was insecure. Exactly why he studied IT in the first place.

“Robbe, are you there?”, Sander voice whispered soothingly. Like only an ex-lover could feel, he somehow knew every thought that passed through Robbe’s brain. “You know, you don’t have to invite them if you don’t want to. I’m sure we’ll be fine just the three of us. David will be proud to show us his performance nonetheless. He’s been raving about his Bowie song, since they made the announcement.”

“The three of us?”

“Yeah, you, me and Wouter right?”

“Ah. Yes.”

“You know, your boyfriend?”, the voice chuckled.

Since a month ago, Robbe’s free weeks were filled with unhealthy habits again. Pigging out on junk food, vegetating on the couch, binging Netflix shows. Only, his friends or Sander didn’t need to know about this. David barely met his ex-boyfriend, thank god. They didn’t need to know about the nasty fights that happened between him and Wouter.

About the black eyes, cuts and bruises.

The disgusting words.

The break-up...

But yeah,

Robbe deserved all of it anyways.

“Robbe...”, he heard the other whisper.

“You do know I don’t have a problem with him, right? I mean, it’s been ages since the two of us were ever together. You deserve a healthy love-life. Someone to call yours. Someone who loves you. You deserve someone who gives you the world. I don’t like you being alone. I want to see you happy...”

He didn’t knew why Sander said stuff like that to him. He didn’t deserve it, because all he brought upon his lovers was worry and anger. Everything he touched, would slowly turn more and more toxic. During their teenage years, Sander had said something similar to him. Right after an episode. And he didn’t believe it. He never will. Since it was him that made everything worse.

Not Sander. Not Wouter. Not any of his other previous flings.

Him.

“You know what I think about that, Sander.”

“Robbe...”

“I’ll ask the boys, okay?”

“But Robbe, I-”

“Give David a kiss for me!”

He quickly disconnected the line.

Before Sander could say something back.

He simply didn’t want to know.

Focussing his thoughts on anything else, pulling out a vague sketch their son had made. Apparently the drawing class was paying off. He’d made the outline of a tree, standing lonely in a grove. The environment around it was completely bare. No grass. Yet, at the outlines you could still see the branches of other trees. Something felt off.

Robbe shook his head. He was probably projecting his own feelings onto the drawing. It was just a grove of trees, for god’s sake. An amazing technique. Some intense colors. That truly made the sketch vibrate. Their tiny boy was filled with lots of surprises. You see, both parents still didn’t know what song he’d picked to sing for them Saturday. “Something special”, David said with a glint in his eyes, before packing his bag for his stay at Sander’s.

The co-parenting system was a bitch as well as a blessing. He’d love to see his boy more than every other week, but some ‘me-time’ wasn’t bad either. Having this free time for himself was a privilege. Time to sort out stuff in the house, work ahead for the school year or take relaxing baths. Maybe go to a bar and hook up with someone, without having a hyperactive kid bursting in.

Not that he felt up for that right now.

But he truly was happy with the 9 year old. Every moment with him was an extra day of unconditional love. A love that was consistent. A gift that kept on giving. A reflection of a beautiful soul lost. But also a mirror for Sander and him.

He was happy.

Or at least, he thought he was.

(But he wasn’t)

[meggie-stardust]

30 Questions

Rules: answer 30 questions and tag 20 blogs you are contractually obligated to know better.

Tagged by @myletternevercame 💜💜💜

name/nickname: meg

gender: female

star sign: leo

height: 5′7″

birthday: the same as neville longbottom

time: 9:08pm

favorite bands: the hold steady, frightened rabbit, the mountain goats, AFI

favorite solo artists: does david bowie count? 

song stuck in my head: I’ve had Just Communication stuck in my head for a few days

last movie: i have no idea. omg. 

last show: Gundam Wing; still in progress: ATLA and What We do in the Shadows 

when did i create this blog: april 2010, aparently 

what do i post: whatever bullshit i feel like. lots of teen wolf, superhusbands, and recently gundam wing

last thing googled: how much iron supplements should i take

other blogs: oh god... a holder for endlessmeg; glitter-adorned: an AFI blog that’s been unused for a while; wreckwrites: which was supposed to be for fic then it turned into where i reblog rec lists; merrymegmas: for my megmas mixes; two pornish blogs that are useless now, and i have access to two community blogs for fests... i used to have a narcissa malfoy one, but i purged that a while ago.

do i get asks: not usually from random people, but some times

why i chose my url: it’s how i’m listed in my husband’s phone

following: 300+ but I think like 1/2 are abandoned. 

followers: 500+ which is crazy and 3/4 most be abandoned. but i guess that’s what happens over 10 years???

average hours of sleep: 7ish

lucky number: 11

instruments: i kinda play bass; i took keyboard and guitar lessons as a kid and remember noting

what am i wearing: leggings, a neutral milk hotel shirt, and a oversized sweater jacket thingie 

dream job: actor? 

dream trip: i’ve wanted to go to Japan since Big Bird went in 1989

favorite food: pancakes

nationality: american

favorite song: just one? today i’ll go with yeah sapphire by the hold steady

last book read: still reading “not all fairytales have happy endings, the story of serria on-line” by ron williams

top three fictional universes i’d like to live in: Lyra’s world (his dark materials), middle earth, the world in the mapmaker’s trilogy 

Tagging: i don’t know 20 people... @arathesane @lolahardy @panto-x and anyone else who wants to play, you can say i tagged you

[krispyweiss]

Adrian Belew Packs Lifetimes Worth of Music Into 70 Years

- Happy birthday to the masterful journeyman

Though his current status with King Crimson is “ninth man - inactive,” Adrian Belew has been everything but inactive in his 70 years on Earth.

Born Dec. 23, 1949, the guitarist celebrates the big 7-oh today and has a resumé that seems impossibly fat even for seven decades.

After cutting his teeth with Frank Zappa - who famously said “Adrian reinvented the electric guitar” - and then being poached for David Bowie’s band, Belew went on to play guitar with Talking Heads, before meeting Robert Fripp and beginning a decades-long tenure with the revolving door that is King Crimson

Crash Test Dummies, Laurie Anderson, Paul Simon and Nine Inch Nails are among the other artists who’ve called upon Belew for assistance. He’s also found time to make some 15 solo albums.

So yeah, Belew’s been mega-busy. But hopefully not too busy to mark this milestone - and maybe join the active King Crimson roster before the game is over.

12/23/19