#seethesunny mailbox

[seethesunny]

Prompt: Joel/Tess on a date but Sarah (knows Tess and adores her) doesn’t know yet that they’re dating, catches them at the movies or at the mall. Something innocent and adorable yet very smoochy!

It's been a while since I got this but this prompt was lovely! Happy belated birthday @bignosebushybrows and hopefully you had an amazing day ❤ and fingers crossed you like it:

When her uncle barged loudly inside their house, calling her downstairs and immediately showing her the keys of the car looped around his finger with a flashy grin, Sarah hadn’t thought much of it. Really, she would, over all things sacred, hate it if someone else had been entrusted to watch over her. 

But uncle Tommy was fun and, hopefully her daddy wouldn’t know if she lowered the voice inside her head just a little; Sarah liked going on with him because he let her do things on her own. 

Now, she did love her dad. More than she could try to put into words, more than she could ever describe, more than the countless stars that adorned the countryside sky when they visited the old ranch where they grew up. However, she was growing older, and there was so much freedom a girl of her age could get under the vigilance of her parents. And she had long gotten used to her daddy being overprotective, it was for her own good, and there was truth to it sometimes.

Tommy rolled the windows down and clicked on the radio, humming along, and she beamed on the passenger side.

Yet she liked this, and it wouldn’t do her harm. At the end of the day, there was someone supervising her, and Sarah understood her own limits and what risks she could encounter. 

“You gotta try the new arcade.” He said, messing up her hair, laughing at her scoff.

She couldn’t stop smiling, having talked long enough about that with her friends over the phone. 

“Sure will.” She agreed eagerly, wrinkling her nose at him playfully.

“And what are you gonna do while I’m nowhere to be seen? You aren’t gonna be scared, aren’t ya? ” He teased half-heartedly, earning a giggle out of her as he took a turn and drove through the park, a shortcut he always reminded her existed when they went this way. 

“I'm gonna use the money my daddy gave me, buy me some fries.” Sarah shrugged, playing with the bracelet around her wrist. “And you should take out Maria on a real date.” 

Tommy gave her a sidelong glare before staring ahead.

“Uncle, meeting her at the mall only is a disgrace to the Miller’s last name.” Not for the first time Sarah scolded, and Tommy almost put his hands up in surrender. 

“I’ll keep that in mind.” He joked, elbowing her gently while she frowned, right as they approached the parking lot. “Listen, I promise this is the last time.” 

“It better be.” Sarah gave, that chiding tone the same one she brought out so similar to her dad’s, and then she remarked seriously, elbowing him back. “You should buy her something nice.” 

Maria was a cool, charismatic woman who worked at the cash register in one of the stores—she had forgotten the name now—and her uncle was infatuated. He would use the excuse of taking her to the mall for an ice cream or to shop around, but then he would flirt with her while Sarah looked around, and it became common. 

Right now, her daddy had no clue, and she had zipped her mouth shut. 

Once inside, Sarah counted her money twice as Tommy mocked her without malice, barely disguising his impatience.

Maria’s store popped into view when they took the escalator, and Tommy kissed her forehead to her light-hearted complaint.

“Don’t get too far, ‘kay? And if you need anythin’ you know where to find me. Go have fun, kid.” He squeezed her shoulders, trusting her and letting her acknowledge it as she nodded. 

“Please, bring up the date before we leave!” Sarah exclaimed, waving a hand in the air before disappearing into a bright, big H&M store on her left. 

She took a break at the food court when she got thirsty, all the walking and observing and trying on clothes tiring her some, so she sat close to the cinema entrance and ordered some cinnamon sugar pretzels after drinking her lemonade. Munching on them, Sarah squinted in the fluorescent lights above her head.

It couldn’t be him, right? 

Sarah was sure of one thing: she could recognize her daddy on a crowd, and he just stood out with his physique. And he wasn’t alone! His arm was banded around a woman’s shoulders, leaning on him, and when she saw a glimpse of her face- 

“Ish that Tesh?” She murmured around a mouthful of food, crumbs drizzling around her lips; Sarah brushed them aside, pretzels being set apart as she scanned them thoroughly, not being noticed.

Accidents happened, and she could mistake some random couple; nonetheless, some meters between them couldn’t fuzz out the truth. Sarah leaned on he elbows, attempting to capture more as her daddy whispered something on Tess’s ear, who in turn smacked him gently on the chest and pressed their lips together. Oh, oh, so it was something serious.

Tess had been a constant presence in her life whose encouraging words were always at the ready, who had figuratively taken her under her wing since the first day, who was confident and relaying both—she was friend of the family, had known her for so long. The past summer, she had spent so many hours at their home teaching her how to work with clay, starting with easy things since Sarah was a beginner.

Had she been so blinded by her own joy as to not notice the signs? Tess surely showed up more, and her daddy had been a bit weird, in the sense that he would act differently around her, and once Uncle Tommy picked at him because he called her during work hours… 

Her heart almost leaped out of her chest, the dawning realization sticky like the cinnamon on the pad of her fingers, a gasp spilling out of her lips as they walked towards her seat. 

Sarah froze as there was no way she was exiting without being noticed, clutching a napkin to clean her fingers anxiously and blinking repeatedly at the wait for the inevitable.  

Warm eyes spotted her, their conversation drowned before being completely shut down, and then it was their turn to still like a deer caught in headlights.

Tess’s hands were intertwined with his, and Sarah fixed on it before her gaze darted between them, chewing the inside of her cheek.

The first one to regain her composure was Tess, laughing nervously. “Hey, hi Sarah. Nice to see you here.” 

Sarah rubbed her palms, clasping them together as she locked eyes with her daddy, who looked as if he wanted the earth to swallow him whole. 

“Uh, baby girl.” He greeted gruffly, strained, but not dropping Tess’s hand at all. “How long have you-” 

“You have some explainin’ to do.” Is what Sarah opted to answer after chosing her words carefully, approaching them openly. 

Tess was the one who tilted her head and offered a relieving, small grin, offering her other hand. “Let’s go for a walk then.” 

Joel sighed heavily and scrubbed at his face with a hand, staring at them both afterward. “‘S a long story, Sarah.” 

“Got nowhere else to be, Daddy! I suspect we’ll be here for a long period of time.” She yelled to jab at them, who shared a quick, fleeting look, giving in easily. “At least you were in good hands.” 

A complicit wink at Tess—they both busted in giggles, he rolled his eyes, and urged them forward.

She wasn’t ready to go home yet.

[seethesunny]

For the top 5 ask: Top 5 places you want to visit!

Well, this is tricky because I'm not someone that goes out that often, and I don't enjoy traveling as much, but at the top of my head (and not as specific):

I would love to visit Italy, Brazil, Australia, Chile, and Costa Rica 🫡

[seethesunny]

🩵🩵🩵💐 once you receive this lovely bouquet of flowers you have to mention five things you love, publicly, and send it to 10 of your favorite followers if you want. SPREAD POSITIVITY! ⛅️

5 more things that I love! Thank you for sending this ask btw, you're so nice :)

I love the sunset! I live in an Island and the most beautiful shades appear in the sky (I can brag about it) but it's something so vivid and beautiful to watch, I've painted it so many times and it's still my fav sight in the whole world. 🌅

I love loooove Mexican food and it's such a joy to be passed down the recipes from my family, you can tell habits and traditions from that alone.

I love listening to 70's music (my dad's fault), it was such a good period of time that I don't mind the genre. Shout-out to Fleetwood Mac btw.

I love stickers! Who doesn’t like stamping a bunch of stickers on something?? If I didn’t have the bad habit of buying and hoarding collecting them instead of actually putting them somewhere...

I love sharing my ideas with someone and being listened to, it feels nice. (Special dedication to Koku for being there to yell about Boston smugglers and the aus, and the sequels, and the headcanons, and canon pain).

[seethesunny]

I am very curious about “Idiots in love who try for a baby as friends au”

Good morning Ameera! 🫡❤️ this was the very first au @kokureno and me created back in April when we first met and our brainrot was so fresh, it's our firstborn 🫶🏼

Title is very straightforward, but for context, this all happened bc of a tessjoel Bones au that another user (goldlinings on ao3) was brainstorming on Twitter, and eventually, it strayed away from that idea until it devolved into our little au! I don't think it shares any resemblance anymore.

Tess and Joel are best friends and coworkers, Tess wants to be a mom and asks him for the favor but they do it the old-fashioned way bc they both agree it won't change their friendship (liars) and so lots of denial of feelings and mutual pining and everyone noticing how badly in love they are, but them. (Tommy and Maria are beyond tired). Eventually, they cross lines they hadn’t before until they can't deny it anymore, and it all becomes worse when Joel starts getting attached to the baby, too. It's a happy ending, though, so they do get together (to everyone's "I told you so") and they coparent the kid (even though Joel's mom nags at them to marry asap) and there's a little time skip epilogue 🫡

It's a multichapter meant to be a slow burn in the gran scheme of things, but it's not near done despite sitting on my drive for a year now uhhh we don't talk about that.

Anyway, I'm fully giving away the Doc with some of the excerpts. It's got smut in there so fair warning 🫶🏼

[seethesunny]

☀️🌊 for the writer ask!

Heyyyy and thanks for the ask!

☀️ Sun - What's your favorite part of your WIP?

With my current wip, it has to be how I dealt with pacing and my choice of words. I normally try to edit after I'm done, but I tried doing both at the same time, and it's paying off.

If we're being specific, the main argument was one of my favorite things I've ever written, and I can't wait to share it!

🌊 Tsunami - When and where do you like to write?

I prefer to write during the daytime when I have free time because it's easier to focus on. On random occasions, I'll write at night, but it's not really good since I tend to fall sleep lol I like to write in more secluded places or places that aren't noisy, because if not it's harder to concentrate, but there are times when an idea doesn't leave my brain and I need to jot it down on the notes app 🤷🏽‍♀️ If I'm in the mindset though, nothing else matters.

[seethesunny]

CAN WE GET THE ICE SKATING AU PLS

One of my oldest aus ehehehe I love you so much I'm gifting you a spicy scene bc you already know the dramatic plot 🥰

Snippet under the cut:

“Tess,” He pants on her neck, his beard scratches her exactly how she remembered, and a zing of pleasure descends between her thighs. “Tess I've thought ‘bout this- for so long.” 

Despite the feelings she keeps at bay, and the smart side of her brain coming together to slow her hips that grind hard on him, the drunk rumble of words makes her groan, and she shamefully moans when his mouth runs down her cleavage to press wet kisses on her breasts. 

Cradling his head, the strikes of gray so different to his dark curls back in that time, she guides him desperately to continue. “Right- Right there.” 

His name doesn’t leave her lips, and she's grateful for that when he cups a handful of ass in the poor excuse of a dress she wears, riding higher and higher and exposing her wet crotch. 

The approving low, animal sounds he makes as he simply feeds on her neck and exposed clavicle cause her to shiver, it steals her breath away, and she feels her body overheated.

When he used to fuck her just like this, he was way more clumsy, way more disoriented, yet now it seems as if he just perfectly understands how to craft her from scratch just to break her.

“Fuck, stop teasing.” She chides, tugging a handful of hair with enough force to still him, but he nips along her pale skin more fervently. 

“Missed ya on my tongue.” He whispers, positioning them better so he can stare with hunger at her own half lidded eyes, dark and lost and unrecognizable.

She craves him madly, and one hand sneaks to undo his belt without any patience left. 

[seethesunny]

Are you a planner or a freestyler when you write, or somewhere in between?

Helloooo and morning Miss Australia, this is a good question! 🤔

Cannot sleep, so I'm answering right away:

It's not secret that I'm a control freak (hate categorizing me like that but honesty is an inherent part of our lives and that is pretty fitting, so it it what it is), and that has been a prominent thing in my writing since forever, even when it was like random stuff that got scribbled down on a notebook haha

This means that's why I can't post long fics without having no direction, planning or "ahead" writing beforehand, I'm not posting something I know I won't finish so it's better if I have everything done from the start. Is it too idealistic? Yes. There's nothing some spite can't hurry up.

I think that puts me more on the planner side since I really need to have an outline before fully delving into said idea. While I can absolutely write in the moment and freestyle whatever I want—legit there are times when I get possessed—and considering I'm most known for doing oneshots pursuing one idea/concept/theme at a time, and I'm good at improvising, still I prefer to have something backing up what I'm coming up with.

I have the tendency to make two documents (one for the real writing, one for the outline with bullet points and sometimes inspo), occasionally I'll check them and drive myself nuts by changing important stuff, or rearranging ideas, or adding something totally different, but watching this slow process turn into a story is fascinating and while I'm not someone that shares my stuff (I try not to gatekeep okay) there are days when I spend time reading what I'm weaving together and I know one day maybe someone will love it as much as I do.

But writing as a whole? Just the habit of putting something down? I can do that. Some of these eventually become something bigger, so I don't necessarily need to have the planning first before writing, just that the process of coming up with a story involves lots of planning and polishing, and some awful sleepy writing.

Anyway, considering my tendencies, I'm gonna have to go with planner 🧍🏽‍♀️

[seethesunny]

Morning, afternoon or night?

If it was up to me, it would always be morning, but night is the better option for someone like me bc I'm less stressed and busy. No one bothers me, so I can enjoy those few hours before passing out 🫡 it's also quiet, and it brings me so much peace

[seethesunny]

idk if you were aware but G1 Toradeen is basically canon btw. There will be a pride month comic canon to g1 with them and Valentine/Spelldon as couples

I know beloved anon!!!! I've been here since they were a random little crackship that three other souls liked lmaooo the resurgence of them has been so nice bc I'm a g1 girlie at heart 🥹 I'm glad they got to shine this time around, I'm super excited ♡

[seethesunny]

Hi, lovely! Here’s some for the ask game. 🍓🥤🌻🪐

Hi friend, happy Saturday 🤲🏼❤ thank u lots for the ask! I always get bored haha

🍓 ⇢ how did you get into writing fanfiction? 

This is funny because I've always been a creative kid, so I would create my own stories inside my head and they eventually turned into some of the shows/books I liked- sometimes a mixture- and at the time I didn’t know that was called fanfiction! I have the vivid memory of snatching my mom's lavender Nokia cellphone to write in a notes app, that happened until I fell into the role-playing world for years and that only cemented my love for it, I fully got into writing seriously around five years since that but never posted, it was for that same group of friends only. So that's my backstory! I had given up on it for a number of reasons but I'm back in the fanfiction pit lol

🥤 ⇢ recommend an author or fanfic you love

Since I've been a tessjoel girlie from the beginning I'm pulling some of the hidden gems on FF dot net that some new fans may not know! These are all videogame tlou.

Starting with one of my favorite fics EVER (it is a habit to reread it monthly) written by Raff who is a legend and was a pioneer for them. This is an au that's technically canon compliant for the tone, a very straight-forward summary: Ellie is Tess and Joel's daughter, this is the little glimpses of how they raise her in the QZ:

@kokureno and I gush over this particular fic nonstop, college au with romcom elements, what's not to love?

This one is a curious case because while I read it previously, my mind was blown away when I finally read Dirt (also recommend it) then came back to it. Tess and Joel share a vulnerable moment and Tess realizes there is more to him than what she thought, pretty spot on character analysis:

This one is a Tess lives au AND a babyfic, and you know how hard it used to be to find babyfics for them specifically? Aside from signs (originally from FFnet), I wasn't that lucky and this was a blessing:

Someone said missing scene fic about a very necessary topic aka Joel and Ellie bringing up Tess during their journey? The old man HAS feelings??? Anyway, this is 100% canon to me:

This one is for those who are fans of Tess’s backstory in the old tlou storyline where she was the main antagonist/villain, which means she had a brother who was killed; in my heart this will always be her OG origin story honestly. Plus, Joel also opens up about his own loss:

Don't you love it when there's a recurring theme in your fic???? Tess and Joel's lives when they're running out of time, Tommy appears too, canon compliant:

Okay this one is on AO3 too, I get that, however I first found it here and anyway it has now been buried so! I'm showing it again. Tess's centered fic were a rarity so I know this one like the back of my hand, the most juicy gritty QZ life angst, it's also an origin story about her AND a character study, go wild:

Another one on AO3, but hear me out this IS them at their true core and a required reading for everyone to understand them and their dynamic perfectly, it's pretty sad and there's not much comfort but that's why it's so good. Also, the queen herself (amb) wrote it and this is my special dedication to her bc she cemented this Fandom alongside Raff and she's the best at pulling our heartstrings:

Those are some of my favs. I can't include every single one cause it would take me ages but there are so many more there that are worth a read. If you love them most at their ambiguous nature, the early fics filled the void and nurtured the mind.

🌻 ⇢ tag someone you appreciate but don't talk to on a regular basis

A really talented artist around here who's outstanding at what she does, ily chica @betweentwoceremonials

🪐 ⇢ name three good things going on in your life right now

Last year I had an awful infection and it took me a while to get rid of it, but I did some medical analysis a few weeks ago and now I'm fine 🥳

This spot is for the people I love and love me in return, I never take it for granted!

Not to get too pessimistic bc I try to keep it light but I never thought I would reach my 20s and yet- I'm still here, and I'm proud of myself for it

[seethesunny]

29. What's the hardest thing about writing?

40. Write a 9-word fic

Heyyyy Andy my most beloved 🫂 thanks for the ask!

29. What's the hardest thing about writing?

So for starters just the action of actually sharing what you write can be difficult, not everyone has the courage to show it to everyone and it gets scary out there once you do BUT it will always find its audience and it will be appreciated!

I think also crafting an idea and trying to make it work within words is a feat sometimes haha it can be very frustrating but so rewarding, everything is inside your head and you try to make someone else see it through your eyes, which gets tricky.

Also maintaining a rhythm, when you don't write often you lose the habit and then it gets harder and harder to pick it back up, even the most simple stuff can help breaking a writer's block! I tend to fall into clichés too and I'm trying to work on that lmao it is so messy and I still enjoy this hobby

40. Write a 9-word fic.

Flowers bloomed in spring; now Ellie is finally home.

[seethesunny]

12. If you write in more than one language, what's the difference?

24. Thoughts on flashbacks/flashforwards.

Hey Arien it's always nice to see you here!

12. If you write in more than one language, what's the difference?

Well I'm not sure if people know this but English is my second language while Spanish is my mother tongue, having to translate myself is one of the hardest parts bc I always have to find the correct way to convey that! Which means I'm extra slow while writing bc I want to make sure the words I'm using can carry it out. Also some punctuation rules do change and I've gotten used to it but it was harder before lol

24. Thoughts on flashbacks/flashforwards?

Love them! I'm very fond of flashbacks myself and employing them can do wonders to the storytelling, flashforwards can get a bit more tricky without context, but they're fun to add. Maybe overusing them if the story doesn't need it can get repetitive and annoying, not for me tho!

[seethesunny]

Tell me about the bitches in baby denial 👀

Oh gosh I love putting these two in so much stress and despondency, don't I?

Pretty self-explanatory, it follows the same premise as unraveled/undone (but its not in the same universe), so they get themselves in this situation and neither of then wants to address it which clearly causes pain. I have no idea what it will be plot wise or how long it will get yet lol

Snippet under the cut:

Communication had seemed useless around the time her belly rounded and the visible signs of sickness appeared; though it was a shared clarification that they weren't, under any circumstances, off to a doctor. Nor the FEDRA kind, nor the homeopathic one. 

Tess had gone through worse, they had gone through worse time and time again, how could this be any different?

She was sure there wasn't a surface around the QZ that wasn't plagued with disease. So, endure. Endure the illness and come on top. Walk across the hell underneath her skin and relinquish the burn. 

It was easy, to turn a blind eye to the changes upon her body with layers upon layers of clothes, then came the night the apartment was too stuffed for the July heat, sweating and cursing whatever deity was left, and she peeled away the fabric until she was only wearing the threadbare tank top and panties, low on her hips by how thin the sickness had made her. 

Joel had tried his best to look away, standing across the other corner of the room, hands busy tidying up their stash of goods, back turned as Tess tried to cool off in front of their fan; but the spell had broken, it was done, and he swallowed the awful truth despite their hard efforts to keep it at bay. 

It plastered as a parasite in the back of her mind, yet she never acknowledged it. Not when she went to sleep, her whole body curled into a ball and away from him, as if his touch would hurt her. 

The curve on her figure stuck out as she tried—and she swore she would kill someone to do so—to sleep, the dip making her nauseated if she opened her eyes, so she kept them shut. And, like most things, she imagined something grim, something bloody, something terrifying. But maybe she already knew, and it was her mind replaying a message, some sort of omen. Would it be bad to think about how she wanted this gone? Tess couldn't touch her midriff anymore, she was sick, and she was probably going to die. 

[seethesunny]

Your three favourite ships other than Tessjoel? 🌻

Ohhh hi Arien! Hope you're doing fine ❤

I always reply to these with the same ships so for a change:

Hayffie from The Hunger Games franchise which includes both books and movies.

Jackieshauna, I recently watched yellowjackets and became obsessed with them oops.

Rikki/Emma from H20: Just Add Water bc they were OGs opposites attract in my book.

[seethesunny]

💐 once you receive this lovely bouquet of flowers you have to mention five things you love, publicly, and send it to 10 of your favorite followers if you want. SPREAD POSITIVITY! ⛅️

Vane ily!!! I hope you’re having a wonderful day

ohhh I'm so very bad at these they always get lost in my inbox but hi there Kayli! Thank you for thinking of me aaaand back at ya 😁

I love going on my almost daily aimless walks (lol I sound like a pet) since movement soothes me when I get antsy and instead makes me observant, there goes number one!

I love any type of art because I think it's something amazing how it all comes from someone's mind??? People may take it for granted but I don't, creating is something so wonderful, that's number two.

Number three has to be that I ❤ drinks lmao it sounds soooo silly aloud but I like trying any beverage- I'm a simple gal, it is fun 2 me.

I love connecting with people! I'm mostly someone private and it takes me a while to open up yet there's nothing like creating bonds with someone else, even better when you click immediately <3 that's number four.

Lastly, I love learning! What's the point of life if you aren't open to it, plans for this year include remembering that it's okay to simply learn since we all start somewhere.

As a bonus I love aus though that is predictable and everyone knows that

[seethesunny]

i would like the deets on the biblically accurate a/b/o please and thank you :)

As you please ma'am!

So technically I have two aus!

In the one that takes most space in the doc (solely tessjoel centric and it happens in the QZ) Tess is an omega (unknown to anyone but Joel) and Joel is an alpha, they have been working together for some years now but they weren't mates yet until it happened in one impulsive night. Anyway they mark each other and eventually she accidentally gets pregnant but doesn’t tell him (bc they don’t communicate right) so she leaves him sometime, then she comes looking for him and they make up, then they live together again.

Yes its filthy and nasty but also there's drama™️ and yearning and longing 😁

The second one is kind of an au of an au, no Cordyceps, expectant parents Joel and Tess live in a cabin in the woods (somewhere idk yet) and they're pretty much fine when one day a teeny tiny feral girl around five or six appears on their garden stealing vegetables and yes Tess caught her. She gets her inside, properly feeds her and bathes her, and when Joel comes home she already adopted her lmao Joel is all confused but Tess explains this is the one who has been munching on their strawberries and they should keep her bc she's alone. And that's pretty much it, Joel isn’t that fond of accepting her bc they're about to have pups however he eventually loves her just the same. Sweet and nice and maybe I'll add even more lore to it (Tommy is at Jackson with Maria and uhhh they meet again. Somehow.)