#shout out to charlie for being the only one with shoes that have any detail

[nachosforfree]

Here's the lineup for the happily ever afton au that I never posted publicly, I figured since the computer I was drawing the comic on has been toast for a while I should just go ahead and throw these out

[padfootdaredmetoo]

hello! i noticed requests were open so i thought id send in an idea! could a request a peaky blinders scenario where reader is a younger blinder and is quite short and small? they try to keep her out of danger and out of the business but sometimes she’s the only person small enough to sneak into places and get information? sorry if this is against any rules feel free to ignore! 💖

Dear Anon, this one just wrote itself. It's different than what's requested but it's fluffy as hell so hopefully, that makes up for it. I promise I tried my best! My friend is very short and tiny, we are both 1997 babies, and every time we go out to eat people hand her a kids menu which is hilarious because she always orders enough booze to drown a sailor. Also, I don't remember all the details from the episode below so if you wouldn't mind looking the other way at mistakes I would love you forever.

Warnings: kiddo gets taken, things get stolen, and Tommy falls for the reader.

Originally when Finn brought her in Tommy wanted to slap him. The girl must have been a few years older than Finn, and in her best shoes, she was around 5’maybe. She had long hair and was slender enough that he even wanted to offer her something to eat. Despite her appearance, she came across as if the meeting was a joke. 

“Look, If you need something stolen, I’m your gal,” She said brightly as if she wasn't about to risk her life for a bunch of dirty Birmingham gangsters. 

That was just the beginning. She was soon reluctantly a part of every plan in some way or another, even if it was just to tell him off for being stupid. Tommy noticed the risker the job the more excited she would get. The same death wish that rested on his shoulders was always evident in the shadows of her face. 

Without noticing, over the years he eventually just started lumping her in with his family. Always over and around, she’d stay over enough that he just told her to pick a room in the house and keep out of his way. He told himself that it was just someone for Charlie to have around to feel less lonely, but he felt better that she wasn’t going home to an empty apartment. Here he knew she was safe at night. 

She was too tiny for any respectable man to let her fight but she made up for it by being quick with a gun. Anytime people would start up at the pub, Arthur would pick her up under her arms and place her on the bar top like she was a kid causing her to glare at him for days. 

He didn't like her wasting her best years with them, but she was essential for stealing information. Even if she didn't have to navigate her way through impossible locked doors and cabinets, she was pretty and approachable so people naturally wanted to tell her things. Her luck was endless and she always did right by him. 

Counting her as one of the inner circle was one thing but he didn’t feel it till they took Charlie. 

He looked at her and hated the fact that she was going to follow him into that tunnel. His mind broke over the decision but his kid's life was hanging by a thread and his hand was forced. 

“Even if they’d fucking killed you back there, I’d still be going in to get him back.” You said honestly. He gave her a nod and they lowered them into his own personal hell. While digging he thought about all the times they’d given her a hard time. Teasing her about her height, or watching her struggle for things on high shelves. How Charlie had latched on to her, forcing her into a mothering role with responsibilities that were much taller than her.  

But you thrived, the more a part of the family the more he watched you unravel into a person. She always thanked Finn for dragging her into so such a lovely family, and every time Finn's face would twist up into confusion. He should have been kinder to you.

Reaching the end she slipped into the impossibly small opening. Into a dark abyss that made his skin crawl. He wanted to shout at her to hurry but he was cut off by a bag narrowly missing his head. 

She’d managed to take more than he’d hoped for. They both fought their way out of the tunnel. He drove three times over the limit to get to the phone booth that held all the answers. He left her praying in the front seat, muddy fingers running over the rosary her mother had left her. 

The phone line went through and he cried as he told his son to go to bed with his Auntie. All was right in the world for that movement. He got back to the car and he pulled her across the bench seat, his hands gripping on to her tightly. 

“They have him.” He choked. “He’s fine.” 

He felt her body break against his as a harsh sob left her ribs. Her shaking hands ran over his head and the moment he pulled away from her lips were chasing his. It could have been the intense vulnerability brought on by their hearts breaking over the same thing, or maybe this was why she always put up with his bullshit. He didn’t care, her soft lips felt like magic and she gave him a silence he hadn’t felt before. She broke the kiss leaving him stunned for a moment. 

They rode the rest of the way back to Charlie in silence. Once there, they checked on him before washing up. He curled around the sleeping boy's body, no words in his head, only the feeling of relief. When you were finished you opened the door and crawled in on the other side of him. He watched as you ran your fingers over his pudgy cheeks, a look in your eye that only mothers were capable of. 

He didn’t need to tell you that you were welcome in his space because you’d managed to sneak your own way into his heart on your own. How you managed it he would never understand. One second he thought of you as someone important, but you were woven into the dark fabric of his life. He thought about how she should have ended up with Finn, that she was too young for him, all the thoughts were chased out of his mind as your freezing cold feet pushed up against the flesh of his legs.

“What are you thinking about?” She whispered in the darkness somehow knowing he wasn't asleep, not that anyone would be able to sleep against feet that cold. 

“How you managed to steal my heart.” He answered honestly despite it being cheesy. 

“You wanted it stolen, so I took it. Simple as that, love.” 

“It’s not though.” 

“Oh, and why is that then? Come on I love a good challenge.” And she did, he knew that if this was really what she wanted he had no hope it pushing her away. 

“Should go after Finn, or Isiah.” the thought of such things made him incredibly mad, but he knew right from wrong despite the way he often lived his life.

“You know I’m only 6 years younger than you right? I don’t think it’s that bad. John and Esme -” She said softly. 

“6 years?” He interrupted with a smile on his face he was sure she could hear in his voice. 

“I swear if you -” Her voice tensed. 

“God your short.” He said it and and immediately felt her foot kick his calf. 

“God I thought you were younger than Finn” 

“That’s because youre incredibly dense.” She said yawning. 

“Go to sleep, love.” Eventually, he could hear two sets of even breaths, before he let sleep take him. 

[katmoonz]

Tell Me Your Dirty Secret

Pairing Bill Weasley x Fem!Reader (slight Sirius Black x Fem!Reader)

Word Count: 4.5k

CW: Smut, Jealousy, choking kink, possessive!Bill, Dom!Bill, Sub!Reader, use of pet names, aftercare, slight degradation, oral (male receiving), vaginal sex, slightest bit of violence, unprotected sex. if I’ve missed anything out plz let me know!

It’s midnight and there is not a soul in sight. Spending the holidays with the order in Grimmauld place sure was exciting from Sirius’ drunken shenanigans and Molly's incredible cooking to the twins' pranks, there was never a boring moment within the household.

Currently, you were sitting in the kitchen nursing a cup of hot chocolate thinking about your boyfriend Bill Weasley. You had met Bill through his brother Charlie, whose year you’d been in at school, the crush you had on Bill started from the moment you met him but you waited until you had left school before trying to get closer to him.

At the moment Bill was away on order business he was due back in the morning, this left you unable to sleep out of concern for his safety and with time to collect your thoughts.

Bill is the most handsome man you’ve ever met, his piercing blue eyes and his strong muscular form are all perfect but his kind and charming personality made you even more attracted. Bill is the sweetest boyfriend you could ever ask for, always checking up on you asking about your day, complimenting the meals you make, running a bath when you don’t feel well. His warm embrace makes you feel so safe and secure among other things... The sex is amazing Bill is always so attentive, always taking care of you first before carefully making love to you but it wasn’t enough. For the past few weeks, you had been wanting him to be a little rougher with you but you didn’t know how to tell him what you wanted.

It started one morning when he’d walked into the bedroom to find you struggling to tie your shoes, he’d bent down and tied them for you. You watched as his fingers, which were laden with rings, quickly but efficiently tie your laces before he stood up to kiss you on the cheek.

That was only the start of your fascination with his rings, he would often massage your shoulders for you after a long day at work before retiring to bed. When he kisses you he often holds your face in one of his hands, the cold metal of his rings against your face would cause butterflies in your stomach.

But you also wanted him to choke you. You’d started imagining him choking you after going out to a bar with him, a guy had been harassing you and you’d been trying to ignore it but he grabbed your arm tightly within his hand in a bruising grip trying to talk you into going home with him. You could smell the alcohol on his breath and before you knew it the man was being held up against the nearest wall by Bill, his hand around the pervs throat as he gave him a gruff warning to leave you alone.

Since that moment you’d constantly been fantasising about what it’d be like to have Bills hands around your neck whilst you had sex. The only problem with this being that Bill was ever so gentle whilst having sex with you, he’d never been rough in the bedroom.

You sigh as you finish off your hot chocolate before walking over to the sink with your mug to wash it out. *there must be some way to get him to be rough with me* you think longingly, suddenly the idea strikes you like a lightning bolt *Bill only had his hand around that man's neck because he pissed him off, perhaps if I make him jealous enough and then try to seduce him he will be rougher*

With that thought in mind, you decide to head up to bed not wanting to wear yourself out before tomorrow’s order meeting which would be the perfect opportunity to put your plan into action.

-

The weekly order meeting at Grimmauld Place was due to start in a few minutes, the house bustling with order members. Bill spots you from across the room and starts making his way over to you, “y/n” he shouts over the crowd.

Looking around you, you notice that the seat next to the owner of the house Sirius Black is free so you quickly seat yourself next to him.

“Alright love,” he says arching one brow before taking a sip out of the goblet in front of him.

“Yeah good,” you say looking around the kitchen for Bill, you spot him speaking to his mother who must have accosted him before he could get to you.

“trouble in paradise?” he asks before leaning back in his seat.

“No, no, nothing like that” you hastily reply, “I just um…” you look him up and down before taking a quick glance at Bill across the room.

“Y/n?”

You decide to give in and ask Sirius for help with your plan considering that he seems to be one of the few people in the room who would agree to it. “Would you help me with something?”

“Sure doll, what?” he asks, leaning in closer to listen to you.

“I need to make Bill jealous”

Sirius smirks before looking over your shoulder for Bill, he turns back to you and looks you up and down “what’s in it for me?”

You consider backing out for a second but at the thought of potentially having Bill's hand around your neck, you decide to go for it. “I’ll get you a bottle of firewhiskey”

Sirius smiles before taking your hand in his “deal” he doesn’t release your hand and whispers “don’t turn around he’s watching us, play along.” He raises your hand to his mouth before placing a chaste kiss upon your knuckle, you giggle both out of nervousness and to keep up the act.

You place your hand on the table and continue your conversation with Sirius.

“Why are you trying to make him jealous? If you don’t mind me asking?”

You look into his eyes and contemplate whether you should tell him or not. “I just want to piss him off,” you say, batting your eyelashes innocently.

“Mhmm, so you don’t just want some rough passionate make-up sex” He replies cockily picking up his goblet again.

You look at him sheepishly “how’d you know?”

He places his goblet back on the table before putting his hand on top of yours, “you don’t look like an angry woman trust me I’d know from all of the women- well also men that I’ve angered in my lifetime and every time you look at him you look as if you want to jump his bones.”

“I um-“

Sirius cuts you off, “it’s okay, you don’t need to explain yourself, maybe give me a few details tomorrow if you’re still able to walk, oh and my firewhiskey but I’m glad to be at your service doll”

You hit him on the shoulder before letting out a laugh, a tear falls from your eye as you laugh.

Dumbledore walks into the room getting ready to start the meeting, “Let's hope that Bill sits reasonably close to us” you say getting visibly excited.

Sirius lets out a chuckle, “Have fun I suppose but don’t come crying to me in the morning when you need a pain-relieving potion”

Bill walks over to you and leans over your shoulder to kiss you but you dodge him at the last second so that his kiss lands on your cheek. “Hello love, you look like you’re having fun” instead of turning around to speak to him you continue to look at Sirius, “mhmm,” you say dismissively. Bill gives you a look of confusion before walking away, he sits down at the opposite side of the table to you just as Dumbledore starts the meeting.

The meeting is relatively boring. It mainly consists of Albus talking about the upcoming patrols, you can feel Bill's eyes on you as you try to concentrate on the meeting and decide to shift your chair closer to Sirius’. Your hand is still on the table and after a few seconds of sitting closer to Sirius you can feel him place his hand on top of yours, he starts to stroke your knuckles with his thumb. You look up at him offering him a smile, he smirks back at you and leans into your ear. “We’ve barely done anything and he looks irritated already, follow my lead” he whispers before he leans back into his chair he strokes your cheek lightly with his free hand.

A couple of minutes pass by before Sirius shifts his chair even closer, he takes one arm and wraps it around you, you lean into his side with your head resting on his shoulder. You hear an angry huff from the other side of the table and take a glance up to see Bill with an angry expression upon his face.

Mad-eye starts giving his report on the happenings in Hogsmeade and you can feel yourself start to drift off to sleep as he continuously rambles.

You open your eyes at the feeling of someone lightly shaking you, “y/n love, you fell asleep the meetings finished” you look up to see that you have fallen asleep on Sirius, the rest of the order are starting to get up out of their chairs. Bill walks Molly and Arthur over to the floo giving yourself and Sirius a minute to yourselves.

“I don’t think we’ve pissed him off enough,” you say whilst trying to think of what else you could possibly do.

“You’re staying for drinks with us aren’t you? Perhaps we could flirt a bit more or you touch me up” suggests Sirius and before you can put up even the slightest protest at his suggestion Bill returns to the table with Charlie, Remus, Tonks and drinks in tow.

For a while Bill ignores you but you can see the slight frown upon his face every time he looks down your end of the table.

After a while of sitting back and listening to Charlie's stories about his encounters with dragons, you hear someone’s stomach rumble. Tonks giggles “sorry, I guess I’m still hungry”

Bill stands up “I’ll see if I can find any food, I’m sure Mum left some cookies a couple of days ago”

As Bill walks around the table you reach out to Sirius and put your hand on his thigh. You hear Bill let out a low growl as he notices how close you are to touching Sirius’ crotch. Before making his way over to the pantry he leans down over your shoulder, you can feel his warm breath behind your ear. “What are you doing?” He asks angrily.

You turn around to look at him and notice the red tinge on his face. It almost matches the shade of his hair due to how angry he is. “Nothing babe, I’m just talking to Sirius, am I not allowed to speak to my friend?” You reply innocently.

Bill lets out a huff before wiping a hand across his face trying to calm himself down, he proceeds to walk over to the pantry to find the cookies and upon returning he practically throws the plate onto the table. Everyone bar yourself and Remus takes one. After a couple of minutes you reach out to grab a smaller one but Sirius stops you by grabbing onto your hand. “I’m not sure you’ll want one love, they’re a few days old so they are quite hard.”

“That’s okay, I like it hard” you reply cockily before grabbing one.

There's a stunned silence for a moment before everyone starts laughing, that is everyone except Bill.

Sirius stretches in his seat before standing up, “c’mon let’s go sit in the library it’s much warmer up there” Sirius reaches towards you taking your arm in his before leading the way up to the library.

Upon reaching the library, Sirius backs you into a bookshelf and cages you in with his arms. “I’m sure you’ll get what you want soon, love” he whispers down into your ear. Instead of withdrawing after whispering into your ear, he keeps his face close to yours so that if anyone were to walk into the room it would look as though the two of you were making out.

Sirius has the most breathtaking eyes you’ve ever seen, you can feel your breath hitch as you gaze into his face. Sirius due to his lineage has sharp aristocratic features upon his face, his lips voluptuous and full. If you weren’t already with Bill you definitely would have jumped Sirius’ bones.

A couple of minutes go by, you hear the sound of the floo signalling that someone has left. Another minute flies by and you feel your heart flutter in your chest with anticipation. A stomping noise comes from the staircase before the door is abruptly opened,

Bang!

In a matter of seconds, Sirius has been roughly pulled away from you and pinned into the wall by an angry Bill.

Bill has his hand wrapped around Sirius’ throat and you can feel the anger radiating off of him. “Hands off my girl” he growls. You whimper but Bill ignores you so that he can focus on Sirius who is currently pinned to the wall smirking.

“Trust me I’m not interested in your girl” replies Sirius cockily despite having a muscular hand around his throat.

“Then why were you all over each other?” Asks Bill, his hand on Sirius's neck slightly loosens

“Because she asked for it” Sirius replies cockily. Bill tightens his hand around Sirius’ neck yet again and you whimper even louder than before. Your panties are completely soaked and you’re rubbing your thighs together to try and relieve some of the arousal that you are feeling. Both Bill and Sirius hear your whimper and look over to you watching as you non-discreetly rub your thighs together.

“She planned this Bill, look at her, she’s getting off on it,” Sirius says with a hint of laughter in his voice.

Bill watches you for another second before letting go of Sirius.

“Is that true princess? Did you plan this?” asks Bill, with a strange look on his face. You don’t respond to him so he walks over to you and tilts your head up to look at him.

“Answer me when I talk to you” he growls dangerously, his eyes have darkened slightly, possibly due to his anger or arousal. You whimper again before nodding. “come on love, let’s go to bed” he firmly grasps your arm and marches you over to the door, he stops and turns to speak to Sirius from across the room “we still okay to stay tonight?” He asks gruffly.

“Sure mate” replies Sirius leaning against a bookcase with a smirk on his face. The last thing you see before you are dragged out of the room is Sirius winking at you.

With a tight grip on your arm, Bill marches you up the stairs of Grimmauld Place towards one of the guest rooms. You can feel butterflies in your stomach both excited and nervous at the prospect of getting what you want. Bill drags you into the guest room and closes the door. Bill turns around to watch you for a minute before beckoning you forward with his finger. “Come here love”

Cautiously you walk towards him till you are standing right in front of him.

“Why did you do that?” asks Bill, the strange but intimidating look remains on his face.

“M’sorry” you reply, slightly embarrassed.

“No love, I didn’t ask you to apologise. I said why?” He steps forward so that there is no space between you. You can feel his breath on your face.

“Just wanted to make you jealous” you reply, sheepishly.

Bill puts his hand under your chin and tilts your head to make you look at him. “Why’d you want me jealous princess?” his mouth is right next to your ear and you can feel his warm breath against the side of your face.

“S’hot” you reply putting a hand on his chest

“Mhmm, and what else?” Asks Bill, starting to kiss and suck on your neck.

You let out a quiet moan, “want you to be rough”

“Rough? how’d you want me to be rough?”

You pull back from him slightly to look into his eyes, his pupils are wide with arousal, “Well?” He asks arching a brow

“Want you to fuck me hard,” you say breathlessly, you can feel the tingle in your pussy from just admitting to your desire to be dominated.

“Good girl” he whispers before kissing you, Bill brings up one hand to start massaging your breast as he backs you up to the closest wall. Bill presses you up against the wall and softly bites your lip before backing away from you. You whine, Bill stands in the middle of the room with his arms crossed looking slightly amused at how desperate you are. “strip” he orders. You look up at him and don’t make a move to take off your clothes.

“Are you dumb princess? I said strip” Bill gives you a stern look as he orders you to take your clothes off. After a few seconds more of staring at Bill blankly, you start to remove your clothing. Just as you are about to remove your panties his voice reaches your ears again. “Leave them on”.

You look at him and rub your thighs together, your panties damp with arousal. Bill comes closer to you and puts one hand on your shoulder to push you down “Be a good girl and suck my cock”

You get onto your knees and wait patiently for him to unbuckle his belt, you watch as his ring laden fingers pop open the button on his trousers and push them to the floor alongside his underwear. His cock, long and hard now revealed to you.

The sight of his cock has what one might describe as a Pavlovian effect on you, your pussy throbs with excitement and your mouth suddenly feels as though it has too much saliva. You lean forward and spit on your hand before enclosing his length in your fist, you run your hand up and down it, getting him harder with your hand. You bring your face closer and look up at Bill, his face expectant. “Well?” He asks.

You bring out your tongue and give the head of his cock a lick, Bill shudders and lets out a pleasurable moan, you grin before taking him slightly into your mouth, sucking on the tip like a lollipop. Bill starts to moan a bit louder, you take him deeper into the warm cavern that is your mouth. You bob your head up and down whilst using a hand to work the rest of him off as he has a rather generously sized cock. Bill puts a hand in your hair, his eyes are shut revelling in the pleasure that your mouth is giving him. “Yess, good girl” he hisses, trying not to succumb to the urge to just cum in your mouth.

After a few minutes, Bill pulls on your hair, you release him from your mouth and look up at him before whining in disappointment. “Up,” he says, you stand up slowly trying to adjust to the blood flow getting back to your feet after being on your knees.

Bill reaches down to help you and pulls you into his chest as you rise, “are you gonna be my good girl?” He asks with a smirk on his face, without giving you a second to reply he lifts you off of your feet and carries you to the bed, throwing you down and settling himself over you. Roughly, Bill pulls down your panties before chucking them across the room, he brings himself back up to your face grasping your jaw in one hand. Your pussy throbs as you stare into each other’s eyes.

Bill has the most beautiful blue eyes you’ve ever seen, the blue orbs a stark contrast to his ginger locks which are tied back in a bun at the back of his head. As you distract yourself with your boyfriend's beauty he sneaks a hand down to your pussy. You gasp as a lone finger suddenly fills your aching core, he pumps it in and out a few times before stopping causing you to squirm, “Bill, please” you whine.

Bill smirks and leans down to take a nipple in his mouth, he waits until you let out a little moan before releasing your nipple with a pop. Not wasting another second he pushes his cock into you, letting out a groan at how tightly you are gripping him, he starts with gentle thrusts before steadily speeding up. You can feel the tingle in your pussy and let out little moans every time Bill pushes back in.

As you get closer to your release Bill starts to slow down, he slows till you start to whine having been pulled away from the brink of orgasm. Bill moves one hand to rest next to your neck and continues slowly thrusting, he leans down and takes your ear lobe between his teeth for a second before letting go and pulling back to look into your eyes.

“So princess,” he starts “did you think it was fun to make me jealous?” he punctuates his sentence with a hard thrust causing you to let out a gasp.

“M’sorry” you whisper back at him.

“Sorry? So you don’t want me to be rough with you?” He asks with a smirk on his face, this time he ceases all movement. You whimper and buck up your hips to try and get him to move, he chuckles. “Look at you, acting like such a desperate slut” he starts to move again, this time with slow, hard thrusts.

“Is that good baby?” he asks

“Not enough” you whine back at him

“Not enough?” he asks “maybe my desperate whore would get what she wanted if she asked for it”

He wait to see if you respond before continuing, he looks you dead in the eye, “Tell me” he whispers huskily “tell me your dirty secret”

Without thinking you end up blurting out what you want, “want your hand on my neck”

Bill takes one hand and gently wraps it around the front of your neck, pressing down lightly at the sides. Bills rings feel cool against your skin, the cold metal a stark contrast to the heat of your sweaty body. You moan loudly and your pussy clenches around his cock drenching it even more.

Bill feels himself getting close from the grip you have on him so he starts to thrust harder “good girl” he hisses.

It feels like a dream, how could this delicious demanding man be your Bill, you are in such disbelief at how easy it was to get him to be rougher with you that the next words that fall from his mouth seem almost unreal.

“Touch yourself” he huffs out mid-thrust

You reach a hand down and start frantically rubbing your clit, desperate for release. You feel the tingle in your navel grow and your moans get louder. Bill senses that you are about to cum and presses down slightly against the sides of your neck pushing you over the edge. You see white and feel Bill release your neck as he gives a few more thrusts before releasing inside of you, he manages to stay on his arms long enough to pull out and drop down next to you.

Half asleep from the powerful orgasm you hear someone moving around the room, you let out a groan and shift slightly to get more comfortable.

“Shh baby” Bill whispers, he moves your legs to start cleaning you up and you let out a whine at being moved from your position. Bill gently strokes your cheek, “it’s okay, I’m just cleaning up the mess, good girl” He takes a wet cloth and carefully wipes up the mess between your legs.

The mattress shifts slightly as Bill returns to you, he pulls you into his chest and softly kisses your forehead, “my good girl” he whispers into the top of your head just as you drift off to sleep.

-

The soft glow of sunlight coming through the dusty old curtains is the first thing to greet you upon awakening. You stretch out your limbs which are sore from last night and try to roll over but find that you can’t due to the strong arm that Bill has wrapped around your torso.

Bill softly snores and you peer up at his face over your shoulder, his features even more beautiful in the glow of the morning sunshine. His skin has a pretty sheen to it, the freckles on his arms and face stand out against his pale skin.

Carefully so as not to awaken him, you slip out from under his arm. As you stand up you almost lose your balance and have to hold on to the edge of the bed to steady yourself. You notice Bill's shirt from the previous day abandoned on the floor so you pick it up and pull it on buttoning it up before shuffling out the door.

You head to the restroom and then start to make your way down to the kitchen, the trip taking almost twice as long as usual due to your aching muscles.

Finally, you get to the kitchen which is empty, you make yourself breakfast before sitting down. After a few minutes, you hear the floorboards creak signalling that someone is approaching the kitchen. The door creaks open and you are greeted by Sirius who is grinning from ear to ear, “morning love, wasn’t expecting to see you today”

You roll your eyes and finish your breakfast. You slowly stand up and make your way to the sink with your dishes, you lean against the counter after ridding yourself of them. “Soooo” begins Sirius, “how was it?” He leans against a nearby wall and takes a sip of his coffee waiting for your answer.

“Good” you respond not giving anything away

Sirius looks you up and down before putting his mug down and crossing the room to stand between your legs, he’s so close that you can feel his breath upon your cheek. You close your eyes as he brushes a strand of hair away from your face, you feel him shift away from you and as you open them again you find him softly smiling at you his eyes have a mischievous twinkle.

Sirius walks back towards the door pausing before turning back towards you. “I have a present for you” he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a bottle, he throws it to you, you catch it. It’s a bottle of pain-relieving potion. He winks at you before leaving the room.

Tags: @crystal-dee @fredweasleylittleslut @padf00ts-l0ver @divanca2006

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[courageous-she]

Needing You- Charlie Gillespie

Charlie x female reader

Summary: You’re having a rough day and go to your best friend for some comfort

Word Count: 3037

Author’s Note: I haven’t really written in a while but became a SIMP for this boy after watching JATP. Here’s something I thought up while I should have been working at work. Also the formatting may have gotten a little wonky so sorry for that. Um anyway, hope you enjoy!

**

You: Hey, are you home? Charlie: Yeah, why, what’s up? You: Can we hang out? I don’t really want to be alone rn Charlie: Sure thing! I can come over? You: Actually, can I come over? I don’t feel like being in my apartment rn Charlie: Of course, doors unlocked <3

You locked your phone, resting it on your chest and letting out a long sigh. Life had just been hitting too hard lately, so you texted Charlie hoping he’d be able to distract you and take your mind off of things. You simply needed some quality time with your best friend and to not think about everything going on in your life right now. Luckily, Charlie was always down to hang out and was always flexible on what the two of you would do.

You lifted your head just enough from your starfish position on your bed to glance over your outfit. You’d changed into your comfy clothes when you got home a few hours ago. These would be fine, Charlie has seen you in worse clothes, and probably in an overall worse state than this. Shrugging, you stood from your bed and grabbed your keys, making your way over to the bus stop at the end of your street. 

Quietly opening the door to Charlie and Owen’s apartment, you carefully left your shoes at the door. You looked up and noticed Owen and Jeremy sitting on the couch in the small apartment living room. “Hey, Y/N” Owen and Jeremy said at the same time, both giving a quick nod of the head. You waved back, making your way down the hallway to Charlie’s room. It wasn’t odd for you to come over to the boy’s apartment, so Owen and Jeremy didn’t question it. Owen was more used to your frequent visits than Jeremy because Owen actually lived there, but both boys knew how close you and Charlie are so it would be odd if you didn’t show up at some point during the week.

Charlie’s door was open a crack, a low light creeping out into the hallway. You pushed the door open just enough to slide your body through, and closed it when you were all the way inside. 

“Hey” Charlie said softly, sitting up slightly in his bed and closing his laptop. Instead of responding, you pulled the covers back on his bed and slid under. Charlie watched you, slightly confused, but lifted his arm for you when you began to crawl under it resting your head on his chest. His arm around you hugged you closer, while his other hand came around to rest on top of yours that was resting on his stomach. 

“Y/N? Is everything okay?” he asked, voice soft. You shook your head ‘no’ on his chest. “Do you want to talk about it?” Again, you shook your head. Charlie’s chest rose up before he let out a long sigh. It wasn’t often you got like this, but when you did it always broke Charlie a little inside. “What can I do to help?” “Is it okay if we just lay here for a while?” you finally said.

“Yeah, ‘course it is. Want me to put on a movie for background noise or somethin’?” Charlie asked, leaning over slightly to grab his tv remote. You simply nodded a ‘yes’ against his chest, knowing he would just choose a movie for the two of you. 

Charlie ended up choosing “Onward”, a Disney movie was bound to put a smile on your face, he thought. The two of you silently watched the movie, staying in relatively the same position. As the movie was coming to a close, tears began to make their way down your face, landing on Charlie’s shirt. He looked down when he began to feel the wet spot on his chest. Moving so he could see your face better, Charlie smirked at your current state.

“Are you crying?” Charlie asked, the goofy smirk not leaving his face. You lifted your head from his chest, glancing between his smirking expression and the puddle on his chest. 

“What? He never got to meet his dad! After all that!!” you said, pouting out your bottom lip so you didn’t start sobbing. Charlie chuckled before sitting back and pulling you back into him.

“Haven’t you seen this before? You knew this was coming” he replied while turning his attention back to the screen.

“Just because I’ve seen it already doesn’t make it any less sad, Char.” But he could tell by the tone in your voice that you weren’t talking about the movie anymore. He grabbed the remote, stopping the end credits. You started to sit up, wiping the remnants of tears from your face.

“Are you ready to talk about it?” he asked, voice soft and understanding. You hugged your knees to your chest, resting your head on your knees facing your friend sitting next to you.

“Everything is just so overwhelming right now. It’s like nothing can go my way and just keeps piling on top of me. I feel like I’m drowning and I’m so over it.” There was a comfortable silence between the two of you for a moment “I hate feeling like this” you whispered. Charlie put his hand on your back, rubbing small circles.

“Hey, hey, look at me” he said. Your eyes remained fixed on a random spot of his bed. “Y/N, please” he whispered. You shifted your gaze so that your eyes met his. “I know that things might be really tough right now, but I know you, and I know how hard you work, and I know that you will get through this. You have the weekend to forget about things and relax for a bit too, I’m here to get your mind off of the stress.”

You smiled at his reassuring words; he always knew what to say. You moved so that you could rest your head on his shoulder. “Thanks, Char, don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“I don’t know, probably die or something” he said casually. You punched his shoulder jokingly and laughing at the boy next to you. “You hungry? We can order some food” 

“I didn’t bring my wallet with me” you said, remembering that you’d only grabbed your keys on your way out. 

“Don’t worry about that, it was on me anyway.” Charlie said, scrolling through UberEats on his phone for something to order. “What are you feeling?”

“Char, I’m not letting you pay! At least let me Venmo you?” you asked, already beginning to feel guilty at the fact that he offered to pay.

“Y/N” he said, putting his phone down and turning to face you, “You’re not paying,” he placed both hands on your cheeks, squishing them slightly, “Do not. Worry. About it.”

“But Charlie,” you replied, turning your body to face him straight on, “I. Feel. Bad” you mimicked his position, placing both hands on his cheeks and squishing them. And there the two of you were, hands on each other’s cheeks, squishing them. That was until you heard Charlie’s bedroom door slowly creak open.

“Hey guys, Jer and I were just wondering if you wanted to order food?” Owen asked, walking in while looking down at his phone. When he looked up and noticed the way you two were positioned, he stopped dead in his tracks. “Uh, I’m sorry, did I walk in on something?” he asked concerned, but slightly amused. 

“Perfect timing Owen!” Charlie said, taking his hands off your cheeks and grabbing his phone again, “Y/N and I were just having the same conversation”

“I was thinking maybe Chinese?” Owen asked, resuming his scrolling on his phone. You and Charlie looked at each other, an unsure look on your face.

“Eh, not really feelin’ it” Charlie replied, going back to his phone for food inspiration.

“I was kind of craving pasta from that Italian place down the street” you said.

“Pomodoro?” Charlie asked, and immediately he looked at Owen and they gave each other the same look. “Yes!” They both said at the same time.

“I’ll go ask Jer what he wants, text me your orders.” Owen replied, leaving the room. But before Owen asked Jeremy what he wanted to eat, he explained in detail what he saw when he walked in on you and Charlie. The two boys grinned at each other, knowing how the two of you felt about the other, and knowing that neither of you would say anything to the other.

**

When the food arrived, the four of you sat in the small living room eating, joking, and watching a variety of YouTube videos. You loved hanging out with the guys, it was always entertaining and you definitely got a workout from how much you laughed. 

After everyone had finished eating, the four of you decided to put on a movie. You sat next to Charlie on the smaller couch, leaning into his side, while Owen laid out on the bigger couch and Jeremy had a spot on the floor with some pillows. 

You’re not sure how long into the movie you made it, but eventually you fell asleep on Charlie’s shoulder. He hadn’t noticed you fell asleep until Owen brought it up.

“Hey man, she out?” he asked, leaning up on the couch. Jeremy looked over too, noticing your sleeping figure resting against Charlie. Charlie glanced down at you, brushing your hair away from your face.

“Yeah, she must’a fell asleep” he said, eyes resting on you a little longer before turning to look at Owen. Owen smirked and looked at Jeremy, who matched his smirk before the two boys looked back at Charlie. “What’s the look for?” he asked confused.

“Oh, come on, Charlie!” Jeremy said, “You are head over heels for her!” he whisper shouted.

“And you have been since day one” Owen added. 

“I- I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Charlie whisper shouted back. The boys couldn’t see but underneath the blanket, Charlie was pulling you closer to him. He felt like he had to protect you despite there really being nothing to protect you from.

“Don’t avoid it Charlie, it’s so obvious” Owen retorted.

“The only question is, when are you finally going to tell her?” Jeremy asked.

As Charlie was forming his response, his felt you shift next to him. All three boys shifted their gaze to you, hoping you hadn’t heard what they were talking about. You shifted so that your face was resting in the crook of Charlie’s neck. He shivered at the feeling of your breath on his skin.

“Char?” you asked, too sleepy to open your eyes. Charlie squeezed your side to let you know he was there.

“What’s up? You alright?” he asked.

“ ‘m fine. What time is it?”

“Uh, it’s about 12:30” 

“Shit!” you said, quickly sitting up from your comfortable position and rubbing the sleep out of your eyes, “The last bus leaves in 30 minutes, I gotta go!” You started to stand up from the couch, but Charlie grabbed your hips, sitting you back down on the couch.

“Chill, Y/N! I’m not letting you get on a bus in the middle of the night! You can sleep in my bed, I’ll take the couch tonight” Charlie said, trying to calm you down. Jeremy coughed from the other side of the room, giving Charlie a look. Jeremy was crashing on the couch considering that he didn’t actually live there and had planned to spend the night. Charlie shot back a ‘not now’ look, returning his focus on you.

“I can’t take your bed. I’ll take the couch” you said, not wanting to put your friend out any more than you had tonight.

“Well, actually, I-I’m supposed to be sleeping on the couch” Jeremy finally spoke up. Charlie shot him a look, causing Jeremy to shrug and shy back out of the conversation.

“Then I’ll take the floor, but I’m not taking your bed” You said, bundling the blanket that was piled next to you. 

“Y/N, you are not sleeping on the damn floor. Either you sleep in my bed or we’re both sleeping on the floor. End of story” Charlie said, a little more stern this time.

“Well with that logic, why don’t we both just sleep in the bed?” you asked, shrugging. Charlie’s eyes went wide. Owen and Jeremy’s heads quickly turned their attention to you, smirks threatening to appear on their faces. 

“I-I mean, if-if you’re cool with that, yeah we could do that” Charlie stuttered, rubbing the back of his neck. He hadn’t expected you to offer to share a bed with him, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to pass this opportunity up.

“I wouldn’t offer if I wasn’t cool with it, but now that we’ve settled that, I’m tired. Goodnight boys!” you said, standing up and waving.

“ ‘night!” Owen and Jeremy replied, waving as you made your way back to Charlie’s room. What you didn’t see was the two boys silently cheering Charlie on as he slowly stood and made his way to his room. 

You were already tucked away when he made it, closing the door softly behind him. He made his way through the dark and found his way to bed. He slipped in next to you, laying awkwardly on his back, not exactly knowing how to sleep next to you. He turned his head to look at you. Your back was facing him, breathing slow. He figured that you’d already fallen asleep given how tired you were, so he got comfortable and eventually fell asleep.

**

Charlie woke with a start when he heard you start to cry out in your sleep. He couldn’t make out what you were saying but he knew that you were having a nightmare. He immediately pulled your back close to his chest, arms wrapping around you. His cheek was pressed against yours as he whispered in your ear. “Hey, hey, you’re alright, I’m here, you’re okay” You woke up, heart racing, and hands grasping Charlie’s arms that wrapped around your middle. He loosened them enough for you to turn around and face him. 

“What would I do without you?” you asked, cuddling closer into his chest, eyes closing in comfort. Charlie took a deep breath, he felt like now was the time to tell you. Tell you how he really felt, how much he wanted to never be without you.

“Y/N?” he whispered?

“Yeah, Char?”

“Can I tell you something?” He was trying to keep his nerves down, knowing you’d be able to feel him shaking.

“Of course, you can tell me anything.” You replied, shifting to lean slightly over him. He mimicked your position, the two of you leaning to face the other. “I like you. Um, like more than a friend kind of like you. And I don’t want this to ruin what we have so if you don’t feel the same way that’s- that’s cool we can forget I said this.” Charlie rambled. You were taken aback by the sudden out poor of emotional truth. Charlie was beginning to accept that you didn’t feel the same way until you made a move. You leaned in and kissed Charlie, all of the bottled-up feelings coming to the surface. 

“I like you too, Char,” you whispered, hand cupping the side of his face, “God, I’ve liked you since the day we met” you laughed, remembering your first encounter on set with Charlie. Charlie sighed from relief from next to you.

“I was so scared you didn’t feel the same…”

“How could I not, Charlie? I literally couldn’t survive without you.” You spoke. A smile crept its way onto Charlie’s face before he leaned in for another kiss, deeper and more passionate than the first. The two of you spent much of the rest of the night like that, moving between sleep and giggly sleepy kisses. The next morning, the two of you slept in a little later than normal, and laid in bed cuddled up watching TikToks, sneaking kisses in between. It was a kind of bliss you didn’t think you’d ever experience. Both of your heads turned when a short knock was made against the door.

“Are you guys dead in there?” Owen asked through the door. The two of you chuckled from the bed.

“We’re fine Owen!” Charlie shouted.

“Are you sure? It’s like noon-thirty and I haven’t heard anything from either of you?” Owen shouted back. You laughed at the boys, moving to get out of the bed and answer the door. Charlie pouted at the lack of you next to him. You opened the door to see a concerned looking Owen. 

“Good morning, Owen” you smiled.

“Did I interrupt something?” he asked, noticing Charlie’s lack of shirt and a messy bed.

“No, you didn’t. We were just getting up to grab some breakfast” you replied.

“Oh, well I was going to ask if you guys wanted some waffles? Jeremy and I just made some” he said, still looking between you and Charlie, attempting to put the pieces together on what happened when the two of you went to bed last night.

“I’d love some waffles! Let me just grab my sweatshirt and I’ll be right there!” 

Owen nodded, leaving the room. You turned to look for your sweatshirt somewhere on the floor. Feeling two arms wrap around your waist, you giggled, placing your arms over Charlie’s.

“You know you don’t have to go out there.” He said, lips hovering just over your ear.

“No, I don’t have to.” You said, “But we need to eat.”

“There’s something right here I could eat.” Charlie replied. You spun around quickly in his arms, slapping him lightly on the upper arm.

“Charlie!” You couldn’t believe how quickly he responded with that!

“What!? It’s true!” he winked at you.

“Well too bad because that is currently not on the menu. I want waffles!” you said before breaking free of his grasp, grabbing your sweatshirt and skipping out of the room to the kitchen. Charlie was left standing in his room, mouth agape, but laughing at how you handled that. What would he do without you?

[canyouhearthelight]

The Miys, Ch. 150

I think for the time being, I am going to quit calling myself ‘late’ posting as long as I get the chapter up on the right day of the week *facepalm*.  Bc I am barely keeping ahead, much less remembering to queue things up.

I am so, so sorry about that....

Fair warning before anyone @s me: The French is a joke, so if I got it super wrong I am equally sorry to the degree of which it’s wrong.

Unless it’s obscene. Then I want to know so that I can laugh with you, and I am LEAVING IT.

As always, shouts out to @baelpenrose, @the-raven-fae, and @charlylimph-blog!

Heaving an enormous Dutch oven onto a burner, I turned on the heat low and started chopping vegetables. After the first celery stalk, I glanced up at Derek, who sat across from Maverick in our living room.  The quarters were shaped differently, which had distressed Derek initially, but the addition of his favorite blankets to the sofa had helped.  Currently, he was completely distracted from even Mac: staring off into space, his fingers flying and flicking with a feverish, almost convulsive movement.

Maverick glanced up at me with a smile before following my gaze. “Yep, the cyber siege continues.  He’s doing well, from what Zach told me.”

“I thought he was only supposed to attack human-managed systems,” I grumbled, thinking back to the cold shower I had been subjected to that morning. Turning back to the vegetables, I made short work of the celery before taking my frustration out on the carrots. Scooping the diced vegetables into a bowl, I started measuring out paprika, sugar, salt, pepper, basil, and oregano into another bowl.  “Where’s Sam, by the way?”

“On the way,” Maverick promised. “With Terran-style tomatoes, he swears.  And Derek is only attacking systems we manage.  When BioLab 2 was set up, we had to take over water management, to protect the lab from any sort of contamination.”

The knife in my hand, brandished at three cloves of garlic, clattered to the work surface. “Seriously?” I glared at the tap, suddenly suspicious.

“Probably get water from the console,” he winced, nodding briskly at Derek, who nodded in confirmation without stopping his tapping and flicking gestures.

Groaning, I shook my head and crushed the garlic, removed the skin, and started mincing. All that was left was to wait on the tomatoes from Sam.  The garlic was potent enough, and I wanted to avoid cutting any onion until absolutely necessary since Derek was clearly parked for the duration.

I was saved about fifteen minutes later when Conor and Sam stopped at the door.  Sam waved cheerfully and held up the requested vegetables while Conor removed his boots. A quick shuffle later for Sam to remove his own shoes, and both came to the food prep area - too small to be considered a proper kitchen - to greet me. 

First, Conor gave me a big, smelly hug and a kiss on my hair. “Did you already slice the bread?”

“Ew, you gorilla!” I laughed. “And I haven’t sliced any bread yet, I wasn’t sure how long I had and I didn’t want it to get too stale.”

“They’re toasties, love.” He shook his head with a grin before swatting me on the butt. “No one cares if the bread was a bit stale before you started.”

Over his shoulder, Derek’s head bobbed side to side. “I think someone disagrees.” I looked meaningfully past him.  To Conor’s credit, he looked sheepish.

Sam squeezed around and handed me the tomatoes and gave me a hug. “Thank you for making soup.”

“I know it’s our favorite,” I winked before shooing him out of the area. “Not enough room for more than one in the kitchen. Y’all go unwind out there, and make sure you warn Derek that I’m about to start cutting onions.”

As he held up his hands and jokingly scurried away, I turned to the stove and started cursing myself. I’d forgotten to start boiling water. Snagging a small saucepan, I got a carafe of water from the console and started rectifying that, tossing in a generous pinch of salt.  Gently, I cut an X into the bottom of each tomato and set them aside before peeling and dicing the onion.  Immediately, the onion, carrots, and celery went into a food processor.  “Derek, I’m about to be loud,” I called softly before counting to ten to give him time to cover his ears or step into the corridor.  A quick blitz later, the vegetables were perfectly between a mince and a puree.

A quick swizzle of oil went into the already-hot dutch oven before adding the mirepoix and giving it a quick stir. As if on cue, Tyche and Antoine breezed through the door, noses twitching.

“I smell food,” she announced, stalking into the kitchen.  One look at the ingredients was all it took. “Ooooo you’re making the tomato soup.”

I couldn’t help laughing. “I am, and you know I don’t have room in here for spectators, unfortunately.” Arching an eyebrow, I pointed the spoon in my hand at the table.

She wasn’t having it. “One of these days, you’re going to show me how to make that. May as well be today.”

“Nice try, but I need some secrets. Besides, the longer I argue with you, the more likely the vegetables are going to scorch. Scoot!”

She scrunched her face at me but acquiesced. As I scooped the garlic into the pot, I heard her change topics. “How much longer is the stress test? My music keeps getting mixed up with Antoine’s. I don’t mind it, but…”

Antoine smiled softly and shook his head. “But it is quite a shock to expect classical music and instead her rock starts playing.”

Personally, I liked both, but still shuddered at what he was talking about. Carefully lowering three of the tomatoes into the now-boiling water, I glanced at the sauteing vegetables and gave them a quick stir to check. “We have about six more days before the repairs start, maybe four more after that?”

Conor sighed. “I wish we could ask if anything important was being hacked, not just annoying environmental controls.”

“Plants aren’t dead yet,” Sam pointed out, tipping his bottle of water toward Conor in a practiced gesture.  Everyone laughed when, rather than being reassured, Conor leapt to his feet to check on his ‘babies’ in the room.

Cursing, I dipped the tomatoes out of the boiling water and dropped them immediately into an ice bath.  A couple pokes with my trusty spoon showed they weren’t overcooked, thankfully. “None of my information for work has been acting up,” I admitted as I started peeling them. “But Pranav advised that more critical data would either go completely missing or not show any signs of infiltration.  We won’t know until after the test is over.”

“Lovely,” Tyche drawled as she watched Conor fretting over the plants. “So it’s all or nothing.”

I shrugged and dumped the tomato paste - admittedly, from the console - into the pan of other vegetables.  When I stirred, I was satisfied that the carrots, onion, and celery had cooked down to where they were soft. “In a weird way, it makes sense. They’re testing for catastrophic data breaches, which would pull everything down, or for data theft, which you wouldn’t want to leave traces of.”

The corner of Antoine’s mouth quirked up as I dropped three more tomatoes into the pan of boiling water. “No hidden boba tea this time, that is reassuring.”

Hands still moving without hesitation, Derek whipped his head toward Antoine, paused, and turned back to where he had been staring. Derek’s version of a glare.

“That was Charly,” I responded in unexpected unison with Maverick and Conor.  I smirked while dumping the already-peeled tomatoes into the processor with another pinch of salt. “Seriously, Derek had nothing to do with that other than divine retribution.” I paused for a moment. “Although I do have to admit that the cold showers do seem to track with what Charly reported.”

That only got a shrug from Derek, which was as good as an admission.

The conversation shifted again - something Conor and Sam were working on in the aeroponics labs that I had already heard multiple details on, plus repetition.  Tuning it out, I pulled out the last three tomatoes, dropped them in the ice bath, and took a platter with a loaf of bread, sliced cheese, and butter out to the table. “Mav, can you start setting up the sandwiches?”

He went to stand, but Tyche shooed him back down. “I got it. She may not let me help make the soup on this one, but I can prep a grilled cheese with the best.” Staring me in the eye, she started cutting slices from the loaf defiantly.

I just laughed it off. This was the only tomato soup either of us liked, and she had been chasing me for the recipe for ages.  It had become a running joke at this point, so without hesitation, I moved back to the food prep area, peeled the remaining tomatoes, and gave another warning that I was going to be loud.  Some more blitzing later, the now-pureed tomatoes went into the pan of veggies along with the spices I had already measured out, the juice from one lemon, and enough water to fill the pan three-quarters full.  Leaving that to boil, I moved the boiling water off the stove and swapped it for a grill-pan.

“Sophie!” Conor cried from the armchair where he perched. “You’ve seen the plants we’re growing in the lab! Tell them we’ve managed a crop of roots!”

I winced. “Jury’s out… I’m not sure how aeroponic potatoes are going to turn out, but I can confirm they are in the process of finding out?”

Tyche’s knife fell to the table, and she moved her mouth silently in a very accurate imitation of a fish before managing to sputter. “Air-grown… potatoes?”

The confusion on Antoine’s face was painful to look at. He started to speak before stopping himself and instead pulling up his datapad, jotting a message, and flicking it out to the room.

When I read the message, the confusion was so clear that I hurt my sinuses snorting. Des pomme de terre en l’air? Pommes aeriennes? Talk about being lost in translation…. “Conor, Sam… I think Antoine has the perfect name for those if they work out. Just sayin’”

Tyche snorted and shook her head before handing me the platter, with a stack of perfectly buttered bread, two slices of cheese between every other slice of bread.  The soup had just come to a simmer, so I was stirring intently and just nodded for her to start grilling sandwiches.  Several appreciative sniffs and twenty minutes later, six bowls of soup and six matching sandwiches - three cut vertically and three cut diagonally, because it mattered and was not a battle I was willing to fight - hit the table.  Tyche politely placed the salt cellar and a pepper grinder on the table, although the glare she dished out to the collected group promised strong retaliation to anyone who touched them.

I held up half of my grilled cheese in a mock-toast. “To soup night!”

“To air potato soup, soon!” Maverick offered up with a grin, only for everyone to echo his sentiment with the exception of Derek - who just held up half of his sandwich with one hand and tapped away with the other, not even relenting to eat.

Frankly, as long as he spared a hand to eat, I couldn’t bring myself to care.  He took these tests very seriously, and generally only stopped when he was completely asleep.

Everyone dug in, but it was only after my first spoonful that I spoke up. “Considering how long it took to make sure the tomatoes wouldn’t be poisonous, I’m not sure the potatoes will be ready before we get to Von.”

Conor and Sam nodded, as did Tyche and Antoine, but Maverick stopped with his bowl halfway to his mouth.  Setting it down gently, he angled his head. “What do you mean, poisonous?”

“They’re nightshades,” Conor told him, as calmly as if he was telling us that water was wet. “Tomatoes are the only edible berries of that family, and potatoes are the only edible tubers, so we have to be extra careful.”

Maverick’s eyes grew wide and turned toward his soup. Tyche just reached out and patted his hand. “You’ve eaten this soup for years, and you love tomatoes. They’re safe, I swear.  And Sam won’t let Sophia near the new ones until he’s completely sure they’ll be okay to eat.”

Sam nodded, shoving a soup-covered wedge into his mouth. “We’re growing them in simulated Von-light, hoping that keeps the roots from creating chlorophyll.  If we’re wrong, there’s a forty-three-point-six percent chance they won’t grow at all, ten-point-five percent chance they will give you a stomach ache, eighteen-point-four percent they won’t taste good, and twenty-seven-point-five percent they will taste good and be safe to eat at the same time.”

“Meaning they won’t kill you, you might get a tummy ache, but most likely for this generation, they just won’t grow,” Conor translated.

“Hang on,” I held up my spoon. “What kind of stomachache are we talking here?”

The mad botanists looked at each other and made a few thoughtful faces. Finally, Conor nodded and Sam spoke. “Unripe apples,” he stated flatly. “But just unripe apples.”

“Oh, that’s not too bad,” I shrugged and crunched into my sandwich.

Derek finished his half-sandwich and blindly reached for another. He had it halfway to his mouth before he looked at it and dropped it back to the plate in alarm. You would have thought it tried to bite him rather than vice versa.

Antoine shook his head and reached past the vertically cut sandwich Derek had dropped and delicately handed him a diagonally cut one. “Here you go, friend.”

Glaring at the sandwich like it may betray him, he bit it viciously before going back to the screen he could only see in his mind, seemingly satisfied that the sandwich would not change into the offending shape.

I told you, it matters.

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[hb-writes]

Gestures of Fairness

Summary: Set in 1927 in the Little Lady Blinder universe. Thomas Shelby isn’t ticklish, at least that’s what a few decades of Clara’s intel says. Charles and Clara test the theory of his god-like ability to remain stoic in the face of writhing fingers. 

Inspired by this request: I am not sure if you would write this but I thought of something pretty adorable. Clara finding Tommy’s ticklish spot. Ugh. I can just imagine how adorable 🤣🤣🤣

Featuring: Tommy, Charles, and Clara (Shelby sister)

Charles’s breath tickled Clara’s ear and neck, his small hands clasped around her neck as he told her his secrets, warm puffs of air accompanying his confiding words. Their ragged breathing, interspersed with bouts of snickering, had filled the walls of Tommy’s office for only a few minutes, Charlie having chased his aunt there before they both tumbled to the carpets, immersed in a tickling struggle so immersive not even Tommy’s more irritable of glances or throat clearing could bring a stop to it. 

 “But daddy’s not ticklish, Charlie,” Clara offered, her voice a bit hushed though not quite a whisper as she looked into her nephew's mischievous eyes. 

She rested her head back into the carpet, tilting her head to see her brother as her nephew rolled away from where he had landed half on top of her, reclining beside her on his back. 

Tommy glanced their way for only a moment now, acknowledging their presence but offering nothing more now that they'd settled. He was in the middle of something, always was, and despite his throat clearing and glaring, Tommy hadn’t sent them out, so Clara stayed there with her nephew, the two of them lounging on the carpet. 

“Every single person in this family is ticklish,” she continued, reaching under Charles’s chin as he giggled, quickly catching her hand and pushing her away. “But not your dad, as if he’s a god or something, safe from the disparaging attacks that bring mere mortals like you and me to our knees.”

Charles tilted his head back as Clara had done, looking at his father upside down from the carpet.

Charles turned back to his aunt and whispered the words, “But he’s not a god.” 

Clara snorted and observed her brother again, certain Tommy heard them though he no longer seemed to be paying their conversation any mind. 

The boy was right. Thomas Shelby, despite all the pretenses, despite the power and the glares and the titles, was not a god. But, mythical deity or not, Tommy was seemingly impervious to tickles and had not a single weak spot, a feat of seemingly divine providence considering how the rest of them fared in the same situation, and his unaffected guise certainly wasn’t from a lack of a search on the part of the other parties involved. 

Though for many years it was only Finn and Clara receiving tickles, the twins began reciprocating the attack quite early on, their pudgy toddler hands squirming in the same spots the other Shelbys used on them, in the crook of the neck and under the chin, at the sides of the torso, and deep in the underarms or across a sock-clad foot whenever they could gain access to it.

John was the first one Finn and Clara had any genuine luck with, the spot under his chin so sensitive that even their imprecise attacks brought on a bout of genuine laughter, the man entirely compelled to it while the others were simply amused by the babies and their often inexact attempts. 

Then came Ada’s demise, the twins pouncing on her together one morning while she enjoyed a late lie-in. They’d found Ada’s most ticklish spots without delay, just behind her knees, and for a long time, it took a true partnership between Finn and Clara in order to make it happen, both bodies needed to hold Ada’s thrashing body down well enough. 

It was the soles of Arthur’s feet that were his downfall, as well as the very reason why he almost never slipped his shoes off when he was at the family home on Watery Lane, but Clara had caught him twice since he moved out to the country, his sock-clad feet propped on an ottoman as he napped in a chair, starting a ruckus that had everyone but Linda in a fit of giggles, though she’d at least smiled at them, pulling Billy up and out of harm’s way, the harm being the two siblings tousling on the floor as Arthur sought out retribution for his sister's childlike crimes. 

They got Polly once, Finn’s hands grazing at the back of the woman's neck, but she’d threatened the two of them so severely and with such striking detail of what would be coming their way at a second attempt that they never even considered trying it again. 

Even Michael was ticklish, in the very same spot as his mother, actually, and before he was gone to America, Clara never tired of passing a set of cold fingers along the back of her cousin’s neck while she walked behind his desk or when he was focused on a bit of paperwork they were going through together. There was something so delightful about the shriek that came through his lips, well worth the smack that usually accompanied it, a reflexive movement of Michael’s that usually left her hand stinging well beyond the humor of the moment subsided.

Tommy’s weak spot was an enigma though because for several years he had been quite adamant that he wasn’t ticklish at all and quite adept at hiding any sort of response if he was lying. It always had been that way for as long as Clara could remember, even before the war, Tommy being passive and stoic in the face of tickles. Even Polly and Charlie and Arthur couldn’t recall if there was ever a spot where they’d even once been able to get a giggle or the hint of a smile out of him when he was small. 

Clara turned over to her stomach and propped herself up on her elbows, watching her nephew as he crossed the room and climbed into his father’s lap, separating Tommy from his papers. 

“Auntie Clara says you’re not ticklish.” 

Tommy smirked, eyebrows raised as he met his sister’s eye from across the room. 

For two children who screamed and thrashed about when they were tickled, it baffled Tommy how often they engaged in the practice amongst themselves or broached the topic with people who could easily have them writhing on the floor within seconds. He supposed Clara and Charles didn’t hate it as much as they sometimes put on, even enjoying it up until a certain point so long as it stopped when requested.

“Your aunt would be correct," Tommy answered, settling back in the chair.

“But everyone’s ticklish, Dad.”

Charles had never met a person who didn’t share the affliction, though his exposure was limited to that of his family and the staff of Arrow House, but Clara hadn’t met a person with immunity to such a thing in her life either, so the sentiment held as far as she was concerned. 

“Not me,” Tommy answered. “Your aunt and uncle have tried unsuccessfully for almost two decades.”

“Can I try?” 

Clara pushed herself off the floor at Tommy’s nod, a bit impressed with the allowance. She’d figured over the years that Charles had a higher probability of getting a yes out of her brother, and she’d used that to her advantage the same way her siblings had once used her, sending Charles off to garner Tommy's permission for something whenever he was sullen rather than asking after things herself, almost certain the boy could get a yes when she’d get a no. 

“Three attempts, my boy, and then you can take your aunt out and keep her out of trouble for me until dinner, eh?” 

Clara rolled her eyes, leaning against the side of Tommy’s desk, just a pace or so away from them. “Why only allow him three if you’re not ticklish?” 

“Because I have business,” Tommy answered, nodding towards the papers scattered across his desk.

“Always with the business," Clara mused. "Always frowning at your paperwork all Sunday afternoon.” 

“That’s why we need to find where he’s ticklish, so he can laugh.” 

Clara snorted and crossed her arms over her chest, her eyebrow raising just a bit. “Well said, Charlie.” 

Tommy looked about to say something but Charles jabbed his hand into the space beneath Tommy’s chin, the spot most obvious to the boy since it had always worked for him and his Aunt Clara and Uncle John, but Tommy barely responded to the intrusion, his body almost entirely still as Charles continued his assault, the boy’s hand finally dropping with a huff after a second endeavor in the same spot.

Charles then poked his fingers into Tommy’s stomach, another unsuccessful experimentation, a bewildered hum coming from Charles’s lips before the boy reached out again, this time his fingers barely grazing the side of his father’s ribs before Tommy trapped the small hand in his. 

“You’ve already had three.”

Clara narrowed her eyes, stepping closer to them. “You’re cheating, Tommy.” 

“How am I cheating?”

“Because he—”

“I only had two tries!” Charles shouted before Clara could get the words out herself.

“You went twice under the chin and once in the stomach,” Tommy answered in an even tone. "One and two is three."

“That’s not fair!” Charles pouted.

“Life often isn’t. Best to learn that now,” Tommy said as he slid Charles from his lap to the floor. “A good lesson to you both.” 

Clara knew well enough the world wasn’t fair, knew well enough that her brother wasn’t often very fair either, but her young nephew had no need of coming to expect that type of unfairness in life, and certainly not at such a young age. 

“Maybe the world isn’t always fair, but family should be,” Clara said. “You’re cheating your own son, Thomas.”

Clara saw it, she knew she did, a small tremble in Tommy’s cheek when Charles’s fingers grazed his ribs. The rest of him had stayed still, immersed in perfunctory indifference to his son’s pursuit, but Clara saw the twitch. Without the distance, without her being a casual observer, she never would have noticed such a small movement, the well-disciplined facade of her brother almost concealing it.

Tommy wasn't sure which part of her sentence he wanted to go for first. The accusation or the 'Thomas,' but in his deliberation, Clara filled the silence herself.

“And me,” she offered. “You’re ticklish. I saw.” 

Clara stepped in front of her nephew. “He touched you right—”

Tommy grasped her outstretched hand. “Enough.”

Clara pouted as she pulled her hand back. “You’re no fun.”

“I have calls to—”

The twitch was more pronounced when Clara dug her fingers into his side, the hint of a smile there on Tommy’s face as he jolted, some small noise merging a laugh and a throat clearing coming from his lips. But the moment was gone almost as quickly as it had come on because Tommy caught her, his hand firm around her wrist.

Clara recognized the message. To anyone else, it might have read as an adult telling a child they had reached their limit and were edging towards trouble, or as a gangster threatening a subordinate to fall back in line, but grasping the wrist was precisely the same gesture of fairness Clara and Charles adopted between the two of them, an irrefutable request to stop, a removal of consent for a game no longer being enjoyed, and Clara understood that her long-pretending brother was indeed ticklish, but unlike her and Charles and the others, not even a small part of him enjoyed it. 

Clara smiled at her brother though his hand still held her wrist, the tightness of his grasp uncomfortable enough she wasn't eager for it to continue for long. Though a part of Clara was giddy at finally solving over a decade's long riddle and more than a bit entranced by the idea of an encore, she’d not discredit the nearly sacrosanct vow indicated by the gesture she and Charles had developed, and she would not reinforce for the boy that he should expect the world and his family to be cruel and dishonorable at every turn. 

“Alright, Tommy. Peace, then,” Clara offered.

“But—” 

Clara glanced down at her protesting nephew, nodding towards the wrist the boy's father was still holding, Tommy's fingers slipping off Clara's wrist only as she turned to Charles and continued speaking.

“Your dad’s asked us to stop, Charlie boy. He’s got calls to do before he joins us for dinner, eh Tommy?” 

Charles moved around Clara and leaned into Tommy's knee, distracted from his aunt's lesson by the notion of his father joining them for dinner. “Are you joining us, Dad?” 

It seemed fair by Clara’s standards, that her brother should grant them that small concession since he was prematurely stopping their fun, and Tommy stared at his sister for only a short moment before nodding at the boy. “You best go on and let Frances know to set an extra place.” 

Charles sprinted off to find the woman, leaving Clara and Tommy smiling in his wake. 

“Clara, it’d be best for you to—”

“Forget I’ve finally found where you’re ticklish?” she asked, smirking as she stepped back from him. “Of course. Can’t have word getting out Thomas Shelby, OBE is a mere human like the rest of us.”

“I mean it, Clara.” 

Clara rolled her eyes. “I know, Tommy. I’ll keep it to myself.” 

Tommy took a breath, nodding once before he looked back to the papers on his desk. 

“Right, so you’re back to paperwork and calls and frowning, then?” Clara asked.

“If you and my boy are demanding my presence at dinner, then, yes.” 

Clara smiled. She’d leave him to it, and she’d not tell anyone her brother was ticklish, not even Finn as tempting as that was, but she’d not forget. She’d store the information away, kept safe until needed, until Tommy needed a subtle gesture to remind him of what it felt like to be on the receiving end of family not being fair.

-----

Read more Little Lady Blinder stories here.

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[themadauthorshatter]

Time to give this series more angst, and to make Henry even more of a dick; this is Charles's story now.

If you haven't read the previous parts, they are right here:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4 and revision

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Really quick recap: With Charles captured, Henry tries to persuade Charles into gibing up the sapphire. Upon resistance, however, Charles is left alone, and in a race against time.

LET'S JUST DIVE BACK IN!!!

We start on Earth as a child, man, and woman are outside and setting up a picnic near some woods.

TV perspective, we see the child hold the basket as his parents set up the blanket, one of them holding a cooler for drinks and condiments, the two talking, but we can't exactly hear what they're saying.

The man talks about drills and finally having a day off, to which the woman agrees, and then she sighs that it's good they have a day to themselves and their son.

Speaking of, the woman tells him to join them, now that the blanket's set up and cooler's open.

He does and they begin.

TV perspective again, we see from the child's perspective that these two adults are smiling and hear their words more clearly, especially when the woman places a hand on her son's head.

"What do you think, baby? Wanna help me throw Daddy in the water?"

"Try it. I'll pull you both in with me." The man turns to the boy, a smile on his face. "Don't give her ideas, Hawk, she's pure evil."

"How dare you," the woman laughs back. "He's my son, too, you a-"

"Hey. Language, he's just a kid."

"Right, and a future pilot like his parents."

We cut to see the child grown up, said child being Charles as he looks between his parents, confused and concerned.

"Mom? Dad?"

As they smile at him, an explosion goes off behind them and fire raises, coming closer by the second.

They don't notice, but it's a good thing Charles does.

"Mom! Dad! BEHIND YOU!" Charles shouts as he reaches out to them.

Too late, because the fire engulfs them both, but simply blows past Charles like wind or fog.

With the fire gone, smoke rises, but shows Calvin and Konrad, the two smiling with Charles in between them.

"Thanks for taking the fall for us," Calvin says. "Really we don't know what we'd do without you."

Charles looks between them and gives a confused look to them both. "What!?"

"Yeah," Konrad replies. "Better you take the fall than us. Who knows who would've lost it, if it were us instead of you."

"Captain Canterbury, for one," Calvin states.

"And the General."

"And Grit. She would've been sooo mad."

"And Rupert. Don't forget him."

Charles covers his ears and crouches down, saying to himself, "You're dreaming. This is just a dream. You've just gotta wake up."

"They're not wrong," Charles hears Rupert say, his friend appearing through the smoke-fog and standing over him. "If it had been them instead of you, I'd make you wish the General just put you in an orphanage instead of letting you join the government."

"Come on," Charles murmurs as he lightly slaps himself. "Come on, wake up already!"

Rupert reaches down and grabs Charles, pulling him up until they're practically breathing the same air.

The thing is, though, Charles isn't looking at Rupert, per se. He sees Galeforce instead, and what the General says to him:

"If it had been you instead of them, none of this would've happened."

"STOP!" Charles shouts as he pushes Galeforce away from him and runs. "WAKE UP! WAKE UP!"

Charles suddenly stops in his tracks when he sees Henry, who's standing in front of the military base as it burns.

"Don't have anywhere else to go." Henry holds out his hand, smirking. "Might as well come with. I really have missed you."

Charles tries to run again, but Henry grabs him and holds onto him as the fire grows and bursts behind them.

"WAKE UP!"

We cut to Charles as he's dropped to the floor, the cuffs still on and Charles waking up, sweaty, shaking, and hyperventilating. Don't worry, he didn't land on his wounds.

He looks around, feeling worse when he remembers where he is, who he spoke to, and what they were talking about.

Charles groans and sits back against the wall, a little tired of just about all of this.

He does notice he's free and runs toward the panel to open the door, but that hope dies when he sees the cuffs are still on his hands. He tries getting the panel to activate using both his nose and togue before giving up and kicking and beating at the door.

"No. No. No. No! No! NO!"

Charles sits against the wall and closes his eyes tightly, trying not to fully break down.

It doesn't help that the withdrawal of medicine has started and the hum of the orbital station is getting a little too loud, and Henry comes in with some breakfast in a tray; he's not sending in anyone else because he doesn't want Charles attacking them.

Charles does notice Henry, but ignores him, because he's not in the mood for dealing with him.

Henry sits across from him and sets the tray down. "I would've waited until you woke up on your own, but you looked like you REALLY needed some help."

Charles only glares at him.

Henry sighs at this and moves closer to Charles, bringing the tray with him before taking a piece of food on a fork and holding it in front of Charles, who cringes away from it; he has nothing against scrambled eggs, but he does when Henry serves them.

Henry's amused look drops instantly. "None of it is poisoned in any way, if that's what you're thinking. Now open up. You need to eat."

Henry goes to feed Charles again, but the pilot presses himself against the wall as much as he can.

Henry, done with this, grabs Charles by the jaw and makes him eat some breakfast; it's pancakes, for anyone curious.

Charles tries kicking him away, which works, but Henry claps a hand onver his mouth before Charles can spit out his food.

The two glare at each other, but Charles also holds up his hand, which still have the cuffs on them.

"Look. You're going to be here for a while. I don't know when you ate last, so eat. And I don't trust you yet, so I'll feed you."

Charles, more pissed than ever, remains resolute, wanting very much to spit out that piece of pancake in his mouth.

Henry has none of that and uses his other hand to plug Charles's nose.

It's incentive for Charles to eat his food and let Henry feed him.

After a while, when the plate's empty, Henry speaks back up.

"You know, this is the quietest I've ever seen you, since we met."

Charles inhales sharply and trembles a little bit, trying to talk.

Henry leans forward and turns his ear toward him.

Charles struggles, but eventually forces out, "Medicine."

Henry has a confused look on his face before realizing what Charles means, standing up, and taking the pill bottle out of his inside coat pocket. "This medicine?" He asks, being a smug prick.

Charles races toward Henry, who steps back and watches Charles fall back down.

TV/Camera perspective, we see that Charles's eyes keep darting to the seams/bonds in the metal floor, to some scuff marks from shoes, to the details on the cuffs, like the seams, bolts, and even the metal around his wrists. We also hear the hum of the orbital station get lower, especially when Henry walks toward him and kneels down in front of him, reaching his hand to him.

Out of the perspective Henry lifts Charles's chin up, so they can see each other better.

"Sorry, Charles. As much as I like our conversations, I think I like you better like this." Henry holds up the pills again and leans closer to Charles. "Unless you know where the sapphire is."

Charles only stares at the medicine and reaches for it, forgetting the cuffs, and Henry holds them further away.

"Please," Charles says, just above a whisper.

Henry only holds the bottle close again and shakes it. "Where can we find it, Charles? Just tell me, and I'll let you take as many as you want."

Charles can only stare between the bottle and Henry, who's patiently waiting for an answer.

"Please."

Henry sighs, shakes his head, and stands back up, Charles watching in absolute despair.

"I'll leave you alone for a little while to rethink your answer."

Charles watches Henry, trying to protest as he leaves.

Tv/Camera perspective, we follow Henry leave Charles, who yells for him even as the door shuts.

Henry walks until he's in the Communications area, where he meets Burt.

"Oh, hey, Chief."

'Hello, Burt,' Henry signs. 'Is the message ready?'

Burt nods. "Yeah. Got the message and video ready. Just, uh, waiting on your call."

Henry examines the file, and the video feed that's attached, and nods as he smiles. 'Send it.'

CUT TO EARTH IN THE MILITARY BASE!

Galeforce is training via target practice and trying not to think about Charles being in danger, even though his parent instincts are going absolutely crazy.

That's when new character to this whole thing Victoria Grit comes in and reports to Galeforce that they just recieved a message from the Toppat Clan.

Galeforce follows her and meets up with Rupert, the twins, and Canterbury as they open the file.

It's a video that shows Charles in his cell as he sleeps, hanging by his wrists.

Galeforce is triggered instantly, while everyone else is highly disturbed.

They watch as Charles has his nightmare, as he's given breakfast by Henry, and has his medicine taken away from him, even when Henry leaves.

Galeforce is silent and trembling with pure rage as Rupert growls, "That bastard," and Canterbury mutters, "Junky," under his breath.

"Charles is attention deficited," Victoria explains. "Without those pills, he's about as functional as a plastic compass."

"Why do it, though?" Konrad asks. "Why take the pills, if Charles needs them that much?"

"Read what His Majesty added," Calvin replies as he points to the message attached.

'GIVE IT BACK'

Galeforce barely registers what the soldiers elaborate on a plan, instead watching Charles on the floor of his cell, trying to cover his ears and remain calm.

"Hang in there, Charlie. We'll get you out of there."

[superw3nch]

weak and weary | Billy Hargrove

The one where Billy realizes these cold nights in Hawkins aren’t so bad now that he isn’t alone. 

Billy’s been going over to Sinclair's house every Sunday for the past month now and for the first time in a long time, Billy has been happy. Like really fucking happy.

He didn’t prance in a prairie happy but he was playing his music a little louder on the way to school happy. Not complain as much when Max asked for a ride somewhere happy, but still, complain a bit because that’s just what he does. He did not give Harrington so much shit at basketball practice happy.

Because for the past month he had something to look forward to every day. And that was Sundays at the Sinclair’s in Charles’ garage fixing up that piece of shit car, even though it was getting better now.

It also meant Charlie.

Seeing her more dinners have become less awkward now and she wasn’t glaring at him the entire time, so he thinks things are going good. Erica was still Erica and gave him shit every time she saw him come through the door. He didn’t really mind, she was a good kid. When she felt like being one.

Lucas was almost as hard to crack as Charlie. He wouldn’t really speak to him at first and Billy was too scared to initiate a conversation, yes scared. He, Billy Hargrove, was scared of the scrawny little 12-year-old boy. Per se.

More like he was scared of the fact that if he did say something and it’ll be the wrong thing then Charlie and her parents would hate him all over again. He couldn’t do that, couldn’t go back to that. Not to Neil and his closed fists, that cold home where his only company was his record player and sometimes Max.

He needed those Sunday nights in that garage to make him feel sane. So one day after school he caught Charlie just as she was about to make her way to Steve’s car. Because she was always with Steve now since Jonathon was always with Nancy. She briefly mentioned that at dinner once and it’s the only reason he even knows it.

“Hey, Charlie.”

She turned towards him and for a second Billy forgot how to breathe. Because now Charlie doesn’t look at him like he’s the devil, but she looks at him like he’s Billy. And sometimes.

“Hey California,” She smiled and Billy really thought he was going to die. Like how does she just do that? How does she just smile at him like that and look at him with those eyes and just give him nicknames like they’ve known each other forever? “Wassup.”

Billy blinked. “I actually need your help with something.” His hands went into the pockets of his pants. “Or like advice really.”

She raised a brow but didn’t say anything which kind of made him nervous, but Charlie always makes him nervous, so. “It’s about Lucas as you know I’m not really the best at talking things out.” She laughed and normally Billy would've been irritated, annoyed even but it’s Charlie. “I just-- how do I get Lucas to not hate me?”

Charlie stared at him for a moment, and he got scared because shit did he say the wrong thing? Did a month's worth or work just go down the drain in a fucking second because he didn’t know how to talk to a goddamn girl?

“I don’t think he hates you,” She finally answered, adjusting the backpack on her shoulders and Billy sent her a spectacle look, she caught it. “Honestly I don't. I just think it’s more of a grudge at this point.”

“A grudge?”

“Yeah you know like when someone beats your score on your favorite game.”

“I have no idea what that means.”

She sighed deeply through her nose. “Walk with me, California.” and he did walk with her from the school to the parking lot. Walked so close their arms brushed and he couldn’t concentrate on anything but that.

“Lucas is a lot like me.” She Continued some of her hair catching in the wind exposing more of her face. “He may forgive but he doesn’t forget and honestly I never thought you would make it this far so that’s saying a lot.” She turned to him and smiled at the last part and he tried not to stare. “Just keep doing what you’re doing I’m sure he’ll come around.”

“It worked on me though,” Charlie pointed out just a hint of a smile playing on her lips as she looked over at him. “That’s gotta count for something.”

“Counts for a lot, Sinclair.”

Charlie smiled like he said the right thing, and he pauses for just a second. Cause no one ever looks at Billy that way. No one ever has a smile, a genuine fucking smile, just for him. It’s always those looks, or sneers, and even snickers. But no one ever fucking smiles at him. But Charlie. And it’s a lot.

They were at his car now and it made Billy frown because that meant Charlie would be leaving. This conversation would be over and he wouldn’t have an excuse to talk to her again until Sunday dinners. And he didn’t know if he could make it all the way till Sunday dinner.

Because those small smiles in the hall weren’t enough anymore. Holding her stupid hand during that prayer wasn’t enough anymore. He needed more. More of her smiles. More of her looks. Just more of her. So.

“Hey what are you doing right now?”

“I-I was going to hang out with Steve,” At the mention of Harrington he had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. Because yes of course she would be with fucking Steve. “But I don’t have any plans Friday. If you’re free.”

He was supposed to hang out with Tiffany or Tina, he honestly couldn’t tell them apart. But. “Yeah no, I’m free.” And Billy had to take a chance to process that information, cause really this was a lot. Charlie Sinclair, who rightfully hated him a month ago, had just agreed to hang out with him.

And he wanted to play it off and be the cool guy, like always. But. Billy thinks maybe she would’ve never agreed but for some reason she did. And it meant a lot. A smile was beginning to grow on his face as he looked at the brown girl.

But as quickly as it came it was gone because one loud, alarming honking horn echoed across the parking lot. And Charlie jumped surprised, they both turned to find the source and. Yeah of course it was King Steve sitting in the driver's seat of his car.

“Let’s go, Charlie!” He hollered from his car. “The kids are waiting!”

And Charlie she, gave him this annoyed look. But like the thing is Billy he’s seen that look before. At least he thinks he has maybe once or twice directed at him. Which it shouldn’t even bother him really, but it does. A lot.

“I have to go before he blows a fuse,” Steve honked again, this time longer. Which now was beginning to annoy Billy. For more than one reason. “But can we discuss the finer details later?”

Billy sent a glare at Steve, which he gladly returned. Cause yeah even though Charlie was kinda nice to him now the same feelings didn’t resonate between the boys. Which makes sense cause it’s not like Billy didn’t break a plate over his head.

“Yeah but I don’t have your--”

“I know your number,” Billy gave her a look. “My brother is literally dating your sister.”

And what ?

Yeah, Billy knew that Max was close with that little ragtag team of prepubescent dorks, but dating one of them? It had never come up at any dinners, or maybe it has and he’s just been that checked out at the dinner table. But he feels like that is something he should be at least vaguely aware of.

“Oh god, you didn’t know?” Charlie was laughing now and Billy could not find out what was funny. And Steve wouldn’t stop honking that fucking horn so he couldn’t even think. “Look I will call you tonight, California.”

And that wasn’t fair. She had called him that stupid nickname that makes it hard to breathe and was walking away before he could even get anything out. But Steve was still giving him this smug look. And he was still pissed off about the honking and the look . So.

“I’ll be waiting on your call, Sinclair.” He shouted across the parking lot making sure everyone, mostly Steve, could hear it. And based on the look King Steve was giving him he heard him loud and clear.

Billy smiled. Steve glared. Charlie rolled her eyes.

Billy realizes now that Charlie never told him when she would call him. Just that she would. So because of that Billy has been sitting next to the phone for the past 2 hours waiting on a call from the Sinclair household.

And it's just. How did he fucking get here? How did he turn into the guy who waits by the phone? He was never that guy. But now he’s waiting by the stupid fucking phone, for the stupid girl to call him. To call him. Which is so fucking stupid now that he thinks about it.

And he would’ve just gone into his room and blasted his music like always. But it’s Charlie. So he sat in the living room watching, but not really, tv until he heard the stupid thing ring. And since he's been home it’s only rung twice.

Once for had been a telemarketer which he told to fuck off. And the other had been a friend of Susan’s who had called for the recipe of her broccoli casserole. Which he doesn’t know fucking why compared to anything Mrs. Sincalir cooked she didn’t hold a candle. But Whatever.

Billy sat on the end of the couch, the one closest to the phone, almost asleep really. This was one of the rare few days where Neil wouldn’t be home till around dinner time so the house didn’t feel as oppressive as normal. Meaning Billy didn’t actually have to hide in his room till dinner. He could roam the house without being terrified he’d upset him.

It was nice and Susan wasn’t the worst company. Coming in every once in a while asking him if he wanted any snacks. He’d say no of course but it was a nice gesture he could acknowledge that.

Just then Max came through the front door kicking off her shoes and greeting her mother. The red-haired girl stopped as she saw the sight of Billy on the couch, probably surprised. And Normally Billy wouldn’t even say anything to her, but then he remembered what Charlie had said to him in the parking lot. So when the girl had sat on the other end of the couch. He kinda just blurted it out.

“So you're dating Lucas Sinclair?”

And Billy had to stop himself from laughing, cause Max looked like she was about to burst a blood vessel from how red she was turning. “Who told you?” She hissed sending a look at her Mom who was preparing dinner.

Billy shouldn’t be enjoying this, but he can’t remember that last time he’s seen Max so worked up. “So it’s true then?” He laughed resulting in her throwing a seat cushion at him, he caught it with ease.

“I can’t believe you,” She huffed, arms crossed tight. “How did you even find out?”

Billy shrugged, not really seeing a point in lying. “Charlie told me.”

Max blinked, confused. “Why the hell would Charlie tell you anything?” There was no real malice in her voice, just genuine confusion. He wasn’t offended.

“Don’t worry about it,” Billy Chided. “So you and Lucas. How long have you two been, uh, a thing?”

Now Max was looking at him like he had grown a second head, and Billy couldn’t blame her. He was never the best brother, honestly, he was probably the worst. But he felt like he didn't know, they didn’t have to be total strangers while he was here. He wasn’t expecting Max to answer him; she had no reason to really, but she did.

“Since the Snow Ball,” The small girl confesses never turning to meet Billy’s eyes. “We’ve been dating since then.”

That’s been what a month, little less than that maybe. Billy doesn’t really know. He can’t even remember the last time him and Max had even sat down and talked. It probably was way before that night. Long before they even moved to Hawkins. Billy has never been an active factor in Max’s life, just her chauffeur and not by choice.

They didn’t act the way the Sinclair kids did with one another. They probably never would if he was being honest, but he didn’t like it. He didn’t like feeling like a stranger in his own home.

“Lucas, told me you’ve been coming over for Sunday dinners,” Max spoke after a beat of silence. “He said his Dad really likes you too.”

Billy couldn’t help but smile at that because it was nice to know that everyone could see it too. See how well he and Charles got along and thankfully it all just wasn’t in his head.

“I’m helping him fix up this old car,” Billy shrugged. “Nothing really.”

“Yeah, but why did you go?” Billy turns to look at the girl to find her staring right back at him. And he forgot just how intense this kid could be sometimes. “I mean after what happened with Steve.”

And that was the million-dollar question wasn’t it? Why had Billy Hargrove done the right thing for once in his life? He doesn’t regret it not at all because he loves working on that piece of shit car in the garage. Love those Sunday dinners. Loves not being treated like a burden.

But why?

He could argue that it was the drugs they gave him. Messed him up so bad it made him right. Or he could argue it was being hit in the head with a shotgun so maybe it knocked something back into place because Neil knocked it out of. But the truth. The truth was it was Charlie Sinclair.

The girl had managed to crawl under his skin and press every button he had, and ones he didn’t even know about. In the following weeks of that night, she would look at him. That old look that he has almost forgotten about, but it broke something in him. He doesn’t know what couldn’t even put it into words. But it drove him to her porch that night.

It made him apologize. It made him work.

Now he couldn’t tell Max that because they weren’t there. He wasn’t the best with his words and opening up to his 12-year-old step sister? No, not today. So.

“I was a piece of shit,” Billy explained. “So I apologized.”

That wasn’t enough for the redhead though. But Billy really didn’t feel like having a heart to heart right now so when that phone finally did ring he jumped from the couch. Managing to beat Susan there which she sent him a look cause like, why would he run to the phone? And he didn’t need to look behind him to know what Max was thinking. But the phone was ringing.

Billy ran a hand through his hair and picked it up on the third ring.

“Hargrove residence.”

“Hi I’m calling looking for Billy,” Charlie chorused and Billy could almost picture her smile. “He’s about yeah high. Mullet. Rarely ever in a shirt unless it's about freezing.”

“Very funny, asshole.” She was laughing now and he had to stop himself from smiling cause Max was now openly staring at him from the couch now.

“I know you laughed.” He didn’t but he wanted to. “Also did Max make it home ok?”

Billy turned to look at the said red-headed child, who turned a second too late back to the tv. “Yeah, Max is ok.” He smiled at the back of her head before turning his back. “Why?”

“Nothing just checking,” She hummed. “So Friday what were you thinking?”

And yeah Billy had been thinking but it was nothing he wished to divulge over this phone call. Truthfully he had no idea what to do with a girl like Charlie. He knew what to do with Tina's and Carol’s because everyone just wanted the same thing. He had no idea how to be alone with a girl and just be alone with her.

“Why don’t you pick.”

“And they say chivalry is dead.” She mused and something in her tone made him worry. “How do you feel about the outside?”

“It’s cold and I hate it.” He answered honestly cause yeah not only did the people in Hawkins suck but so did the fucking weather. Yes, he is aware that it’s January, almost February, but did it really have to be so fucking cold?

“Sounds perfect.” She chorused. “Bring a jacket, a heavy one and you’ll be fine.”

“I didn’t say yes.”

“Well, you’re not saying no either.”

And yeah he was definitely worried now.

“I’ll take your silence as a yes then,” She continued. “Come pick me up at 6 from work ok?”

“I don’t even know where you work.” Billy started and he could feel a headache coming. “And do I get to know where we are going since I’m driving?”

“No,” She sang and if it was anybody else he would’ve been annoyed. “It’s a surprise, California. And I work at the arcade. You know the one you constantly take your sister to?”

“I’ve never seen you there before.”

“That’s because the second Max closes the door you speed off like a bat out of hell, Hargrove.”

Which yeah ok that was true.

“Yeah ok I can do that then.”

“Great,”

And Billy knew the conversation would be coming to an end soon. But he just wasn’t quite ready for that yet. He just wanted to stay on the phone with her for a little bit longer. So.

“Uh, how was your evening?”

What was he fucking Dracula all of the sudden? How’s your evening come the fuck on really. He wanted to punch himself in his stupid face.

“Uh, fine it was fine. Just watched a movie with Steve and the kids.”

He didn’t like the way she said that. Steve and the kids. Like they were an old married couple. He didn’t like it and he was mad at himself because he shouldn’t care.

“What movie?” Why can’t he just hang up the damn phone?

“Night of the living dead.” She answered. “So if Max has a nightmare feel free to yell at me.”

Billy doubted that would ever happen. He probably gets them more than her. He’s never even seen her cry let alone be scared of anything.

“Will do.” And he needed to hang up this phone before he said something stupid. But he really just couldn’t. But then.

“Lucas, what are you--”

“You’ve been on the phone for 30 minutes!” There was a struggle and had it been that long already? “Tell Steve you will call him back later!”

“This isn’t Steve you little asswhipe.”

“Who cares I need to call Max!”

“You literally just saw her for fucks sake!”

“Steve, Charlie will call you back later ok?” It was Lucas yelling into the phone now and Billy wanted to laugh cause yeah this was funny. “I just really need to talk to my girlfriend before she breaks up with me again ok?”

“This isn’t Steve,” Billy finally spoke turning over his shoulder to sneak a glance at Max. “It’s Billy.”

“Billy?”

“Yeah.”

“You were on the phone with Charlie?”

“Yeah,” Billy chided. “Can you give the phone back for a quick sec then I’ll put Max on?”

“Uh, yeah sure.” Lucas stuttered.

“Hello?” Charlie’s voice came through.

“I think we better get off the phone,” Billy mused. “Seems like we’re getting in between something.”

She laughed. “Yeah, I guess so. See you at school tomorrow.”

“Bye, Charlie.”

“Bye, Billy.”

He pulled the phone away from his ear motioning it to Max. And again she gave him a confused look, “It's for you, Maxine.” And begrudgingly she got up to get the phone but Billy was already retreating back into his room to hide for the rest of the night.

Neil had gotten to him that Thursday night.

It had been a stupid fight really and at this point, Billy doesn’t even know why he tried to fight back. Neil always wins.

He’s lucky now he supposes because Hawkins is such a small town and people talk Neils learned not to go for the face. But now his body was a map of black and blue. And like it shouldn’t bother him anymore he should be used to this. Friday was around the corner and so was Sunday he had something to look forward to.

But that night.

That Thursday night before he would see Charlie he couldn’t sleep. He stayed up all night crying in his rooms wishing he was dead.

He didn’t say anything in the car on the way to school with Max. He never did after nights like this. She knew why no doubt she heard why.

And Max would send him these looks from the passenger seat, that he pretended not to notice. She looked like she wanted to say something, anything but maybe she was too scared to. Maybe she was like Billy where he always thought he would say the wrong thing.

But when they got to the school parking lot she gave him a soft ‘ Thank you ’ but her eyes said ‘ I’m sorry .’ ‘ I hate him too .’ and ‘ not even you deserve this. ’

And yeah at that point Billy could barely keep it together. He couldn’t go into the school and pretend for 8 hours that everything was ok. He didn’t want Charlie to see him like this. Even though it’s Friday and he should be happy.

So after he watched Max go into the front doors of school he left.

It was hard to find something to do all day in Hawkins because this town really didn’t have shit.

Small corner stores, even smaller, shops, a shitty diner that could at least make a good burger. But he wasn’t particularly hungry today, honestly, the thought of eating was too much. So he went to the only spot he knew in this fucking town that made him somewhat happy.

He went to the border.

Stared at the sign that said ‘ Now Leaving Hawkins ' for hours. Cause yeah maybe hopefully one day he would be gone. Back home in California where it was never cold. Where the sun was always out and beaches were always open. Where there was no Neil.

And yeah it sucked cause he was stuck here till graduation. So Billy sat in his car. Staring at the sign. And he cried.

He did go back to pick up Max from school.

He didn’t want Neil on his case again about her finding her own way home and like Max shouldn’t have to find her own way home if he was there anyway. And he felt better now, maybe. He got as much of it out as he could and he felt fine. Ok. Normal. His normal.

So as he sat out there in the parking lot waiting for Max to come through the school doors he wasn’t really paying attention to anything else. His music was blasting and he was smoking those cigarettes he liked so much.

So when someone knocked on his window, he almost jumped. It pissed him off and he was just on edge enough as is so he turned to tell whoever this was to fuck off. But when he turned he saw those stupid brown eyes he's been thinking about all day.

“Hey, Hargrove.”

And Billy he wanted to pretend that seeing Charlie wasn’t a breath of fresh fucking air. But Charlie was everything he needed right now and more. Just what the doctor ordered.

So he turned his music off his music and rolled his window down, cause he wanted to hear everything she had to say. “Missed ya at school today,” She quipped brown eyes scanning over him trying to see what was wrong, but she wouldn’t be able to. “Everything ok?”

No. It was not fucking ok. But.

“Yeah just had to deal with some shit,” He shrugged. Some shit he’s been dealing with his whole life but like, that’s not important.

Charlie leaned forward forearms pressed against the side of his car. Invading his space and it just wasn’t fucking fair. “We don’t have to hang out tonight,” She offered. “If you're not feeling ok.”

And Billy he just kind of froze. Cause she was so close. He could smell whatever perfume she had on and it was making his head swim. “No, I’m fine.” He reassured her, but the look on her face told him Charlie wasn’t buying it. “I’m better. Looking forward to tonight even if you're dragging my ass out in the cold.”

Charlie smiled then so bright like the California sun and Billy had to remember how to breathe.

“Ok then. I’ll see you after work.”

“You will.”

“6 Oclock sharp.”

“Not a minute late.”

Billy had shown up early.

15 minutes early to be exact. He had run Max around in between, got some spare parts that he and Charles might use to stretch out the time. Picked up another pack of cigarettes cause he blew through half of them today. Got a few beers and he kinda wished he knew what was Charlie’s favorite brand. But whatever.

So now he’s sitting outside this stupid arcade, in the parking lot going on his second cigarette because yes he was nervous. He doesn’t know why. He just is and it pisses him off. And like he’s sitting out here waiting for her to come out counting in this head the 1,001 ways he could fuck this up.

He’s made it this far albeit not entirely unscathed. But he’s fucking made it.

Charlie wouldn’t have even agreed to hang out with him unless she wanted to. She doesn’t do anything unless she wants to, he remembers. And she’s willing to spend her Friday night with him. Billy Hargrove. Not King Steve, or weird little Byers, not even that Priss Nancy. But him. So yeah. That has to mean something.

He let his cigarette dangle between his lips as he looked in his side mirror yet again, brushing back curls that he felt were too unruly. Making sure he didn’t look as bad as he felt. And even though it is barely 6 o'clock it's already dark out.

Charlie came out at exactly 6:02.

He managed to give himself one last look in his rearview mirror, ‘ Don’t fuck this up ’ before she got into the car. Charlie turned to him, brown eyes twinkling and a smile still just as bright.

“Are you ready for the best night of your life?”

Billy took one last huff of his cigarette before flicking it out the window. “Lead the way, Sinclair.”

Somehow her smile grew and his stomach churned. He started the engine and peeled out the parking lot like hell on wheels.

“When you said the best night of my life I imagined something completely different.”

“Oh come on this isn’t that bad,” Charlie hummed from the hood of his car beer in hand. “This is literally one of the best spots in Hawkins.”

Billy stared out ahead of him looking at the murky depth of the quarry, unphased. He took a swig of his beer.

“Then how come I never heard of it?” He quipped digging his free hand deeper in his pocket because the cold was nipping at his skin now. And yes he did wear a thick jacket as requested.

Charlie laughed and it sounded like bells. “Cause you hang out with uneducated trolls like Tommy.”

She wasn’t wrong about that. The only thing they did together was drink till they couldn’t remember the night and make stupid decisions. And that was just a Tuesday for them. Fridays were even worse because usually, Billy was conscious of the stupid decision he was making.

“What, is this your spot?” He remarked, tone light. “Is this where you bring all the guys or am I just that special?”

Charlie smiled, taking another sip of her beer. “I don’t think I ever brought anyone here besides, Jonathan.” She admitted honestly followed by a light shrug.

“Wait, you and Byers?” Billy wasn’t prying honestly; he was just genuinely curious about her. Because outside of family dinners they don’t speak. He doesn’t know much about her besides the fact that Tommy and Coral can’t stand her.

She raised an eyebrow. “ What ?”

“You and Byers,” He reiterated. “Were you two--”

“Oh my god , no.”

“Never?”

“Never,” She repeated sternly, hands going to her face. “We are quite literally Best Friends.”

Billy made a face. “But you two were always together,” He added, and literally everyone just assumed they were something cause he followed her around like a lost puppy. Never could find one without the other. Attached like glue.

“Yes, because we are best friends,” She continued. “And Jonathon was never good with talking with people. And I never liked talking to people so. We just clicked.”

He mulled over what she said, looking forward. Took another sip of beer before he spoke again. “Did you ever think about it?”

Charlie turned to look at him. Hand rubbing the back of her neck and the other swirling her beer.

“Once. I thought about it once.” She answered honestly, taking him by surprise. “Think he did too at one point, but we never did anything about it.”

“How come?”

“I don’t know, scared?” She offered. “Afraid it’ll go wrong probably. We’ve known each other since grade school so if we did it and it went wrong,” She exhaled deeply, her breath becoming a cloud in the cold. “It could ruin everything.”

Billy concluded that Jonathon Byers was a fucking moron and took a large gulp of his beer.

“It worked out for the best anyway,” She said. “He’s happy. I’m happy. What more could I ask for?”

He didn’t say anything after that looking at the quarry waters that were just as black as night. Seems to reflect the stars in the sky like a mirror. It was nice he’d give her that.

“My turn, California.”

Billy’s stomach churned but he put on a brave face. “I’m an open book, Sinclair.”

“You’re many things, Billy, but open is not one of them.” He laughed at that, something small but it was enough to draw her attention. “So what’s California like?”

“Fucking warm for starters,” He sniffed trying his best to hide from the cold in his jacket. Charlie smiled at him. “The sun seems like it’s always out. You can smell the salt from the sea in the air. I don’t know, it just seems like anything is possible there.”

“You miss it.”

It wasn’t a question. Billy finished off the last of his beer before grabbing another one from where the case sat in between them.

“Yeah, more than I care to admit.” He divulged opening a new can. “I miss the ocean. Could stay on the beach for hours just looking at it.”

“What’s it like?”

“Uh, ya know it’s a shit ton of water.” He wished he was better with words. “It can be scary. Currents could take you under if you’re not careful. But it's beautiful.”

He remembers the days his mom used to take him out surfing. He'd always convince her to let him stay out there a few extra minutes. He rolled his eyes at the memory taking a sip of his can.

“Why do Tommy and Coral hate to see you coming?” He asks, suddenly catching her off guard he didn’t mean to. Just didn’t want to think about her.

“I’m not surprised he didn’t tell you,” She laughed. “It’s because I used to kick his ass every day when we were kids.”

And Billy blinked. Cause there’s just no way. Charlie caught his look and laughed even harder. “No seriously when we were younger he loved picking on Jonathon, so I--” She snorted. “I would beat his ass.”

“You’re kidding.”

“No, no ask anyone.” She takes the last sip of her beer. Not going for a new one quite yet. “I remember distinctly putting his little ass in a headlock on the playground cause he fucked up Jonathon’s art project and tried to pretend it was an accident.” She was laughing again, this time hard. “The teacher had to pry me off him.”

Billy was joining her in laughing too now. Cause just the image of a small Charlie giving Tommy absolute hell was enough for him. But Charlie had this type of laugh that made you want to join in too.

“Ah, fuck,” He chuckled as Charlie wiped the corner of her eyes. “Ok, so Carol what’s the story there?”

“Do not judge me,” She reached in between them for another beer. They were down to three now. “Coral hates me because Tommy was my first kiss.”

Billy choked mid-sip at that. “No fucking way.”

“It was a moment of weakness.”

“You just said you used to beat the shit out of him,” Billy chuckled, wiping droplets of beer off his chin. “How did it even happen?”

“Uh, 7th-grade spring dance,” She offered brown eyes shining even in this dark night. “It was behind the bleachers. Carol, of course, had a crush on him so she was livid.” Charlie shrugged. “Hated me ever since.”

“She makes it seem like you tried to kill her puppy.”

“Yeah, well that's cause she’s a bitch.”

Billy laughed, taking another sip of his beer.

“Who was your first kiss?”

Billy raised his eyebrows. “If you repeat a word of this to anyone I’ll kill you,” She crossed an X over her chest and Billy’s eyes lingered at the action. “Stacy Holloway. I was 12, dumb, and in love.”

“ The Billy Hargrove was smitten?” She teased and he couldn’t help but chuckle before murmuring a shut up, continuing with his story.

“This is so stupid but I asked her to  go for a walk with me on the pier one day, for whatever reason she agreed.” Billy fiddled with the ring on his finger. “I held her hand on the walk there and,” He sighed harshly through his nose. “I can’t believe I’m telling you this, fuck it. I timed it so we would get to the end of the pier at sunset and that’s when I kissed her.”

“That is the cutest shit I ever heard.”

“Charlie, I swear to--”

“No, honestly!” She laughed. “Who knew you could be such a sweetheart?”

Billy scratched at his temple. Stomach churning but he ignored it and took a long swing of his beer, knowing it was half gone at this point.

“You’re next.”

“How do you expect me to follow that?”

“Charlie.”

“You just gave romance authors a run for their money,” She insisted between sips. “I got nothing to beat that. The closest thing you get to romance in Hawkins is guys trying to put their hands down your pants at the movies.”

“Ok fine,” Billy laughed. “No romance. What’s your favorite band?”

“Blondie.” She admitted without missing a beat. “Jonathon is actually the one that introduced me to them. May his taste in music never waver.”

Charlie took a large gulp of her beer at that. Billy smiled as he watched her do it.

“So I’m gonna say something while I have the liquor running through me as an excuse,” She admitted turning to him. He could only make out half her face, it was so dark out. “I don’t know what made you apologize that night but I’m glad you did.”

Billy’s stomach churned again but this time he couldn’t ignore it.

“I can admit in the beginning I gave you a hard time but you kept coming back.” Those stupid brown eyes were holding him in place and he couldn’t turn away if he wanted to. “My parents love you, Erica tolerates you,” Billy had laughed at that. “And Lucas I think is finally warming up to you.”

“What qualifies as warming up?” He asked with a raised brow because the kid still won’t say a word to him.

“When you’re brought up in conversations he actually engages now instead of pretending you don’t exist.” She admitted smiling like this was a grand improvement.

“You bring me up in conversations?”

“That’s not the point I was trying to make, California.” Turning her face away so he can’t see it. He won’t push it but he’ll be saving that one for later. Hopefully another time.

He took a small sip. “So what is the point then?”

She stared out into the quarry this time.

“I like having you around.” She admitted so quietly he almost didn’t catch it.

It was a small admission. But it was enough to make his world stop spinning. Charlie Sinclair liked having him around. Liked having him around as much as he liked being around. It made the bruises on his body not ache so much. Made his ears ring. Because maybe, just maybe. It could be more.

Suddenly it wasn’t so cold in Hawkins anymore.

He cleared his throat and his mouth was dry. “I like uh, coming around.” He grimaced at the sound of his voice and decided to just finish his beer cause maybe that’ll help.

“Good, hoping you’ll stick around for a while.” She tucking a strand of hair behind her ear now. “My Dad would be really sad if you didn’t.”

Maybe it was the cheap beer that was making him a little braver than usual. It made him not second guess himself so much. So he kinda just.

“Just your Dad?”

She paused for a beat. Looking up at him through her lashes. Billy wasn’t even aware he was leaning forward slightly, maybe to get a better look. Maybe to inch his hand closer to hers on the hood of his car. Maybe.

Her lips parted to answer him and he couldn’t pry his eyes away from them.

But then there was a flash of blue and red. A Police siren and they jumped away from one another.

“Shit,” He cursed, quickly throwing his beer can into the woods. He grabbed Charlie’s and the girl let him take it. For a brief moment their hands touched but Billy didn't even have a chance to process it because a cop was making his way towards them.

“Wait, Billy, I think--”

The sheriff got out of his car shining that obnoxious flashlight in hand and Billy had to cover his eyes. “What are you kids-- Charlie?”

Charlie grimaced. “H-hey, Hopper. How’s your night going?”

Hopper looked between Billy and Charlie then to the beers scattered on the ground before he answered. “You know, same ol same old. And you?”

“Ah, you know.” She laughed. “Just catching up with my buddy, Billy.” She clapped a hand on his back and Billy stumbled forward at the action. He sent her a look and she just nodded her head towards Hopper.

“Hello, Sir.”

“Hargrove,” He regarded him with an overall unimpressed look.

He turned back to the smaller girl and Billy was relieved. “Charlie, are your parents aware that you are here. Alone. With a boy. Drinking, what I’m hoping is canned sodas.”

Charlie rocked back on her feet. “Yeah, they know all about, Billy.” She elbowed him in the side. “Don’t they, Billy?”

He knew when to take a hint.

“Yeah, The Sinclairs know,” He offered his best smile to the gruff-looking cop. “They know we are here.”

“Right so here’s what we are going to do,” Hopper mumbled clicking off his flashlight. “I am going to get in my car and drive away. Then you, Hargrove, are going to take Charlie straight home. Do I make myself clear?”

“Cyrstal sir.”

“And drive the speed limit with her in the car.”

“Yessir.”

“Thank you, Hopper!” Charlie called from next to him and the old man just waved a hand over his shoulder in acknowledgment before getting in his car and leaving the clearing.

Billy turned to Charlie. “What the fuck was that?”

“What was what?”

“The sheriff,” He clarified. “He just let us go.”

Charlie shrugged, grabbing the leftover beers off the hood of his car. “Well me and Hopper are pretty cool so yeah.”

“You’re cool with the cops?”

“Cop, singular.” She corrected him as if that made a difference. “Honestly we got lucky it was him and not dumb and dumber. Those two would’ve definitely given us tickets.”

Billy patted his jacket down for his keys but did not find them. He heard a jingle and looked up just in time to catch them as Charlie tossed them his way.

“Now come on, California.” She ushered already making her way to the passenger seat. “We got about 15 minutes before Hopper is driving down my street making sure I actually made it home.”

Billy made it back to her house in 10.

Could’ve been five but he regarded Hopper’s warning about going the speed limit. He only had 3 beers and was only the slightest bit buzzed but he rather not risk it. It was about 9:40 when they pulled up to the Sinclair household didn’t even seem like they were out there that long.

But Charlie wasn’t rushing to get out of the car and he wasn’t forcing her to go.

So.

“This was fun,” She admitted with a laugh. “Before Hopper showed up I mean.”

“Yeah, it was,” Billy’s finger drummed along his steering wheel. Nervous. “We should do this again.”

Her eyes were on him again. “I’d like that.”

“Cool,” He bit the inside of his cheek. “But next time I pick the place if that’s okay.”

“I’m sure I’ll live, California.” She reached for her backpack. “Well see you Sunday?”

“Yeah, Sunday.” He hoped it didn’t sound as awkward as he felt. “Goodnight, Charlie.”

“Night, Billy,”

And she turned to leave one foot on the sidewalk but she turned back towards him at the last second. “Right ok I forgot to tell you this,” She stammered. “But I’ll be sad too.”

Billy blinked so very confused.

“Ok wow really have to spell it out for you.” Charlie bit her lip and normally he would’ve felt insulted. “When you asked if just my Dad would be sad.” She clarified. “I wanted to tell you if you ever stopped coming around I’d be sad too.”

Oh.

Fuck. His stomach was churning again cause now he didn’t have the beer to calm him down. He was just his stupid self in front of her and he’d never thought, never dreamed of what to do in a situation like this.

And Charlie was looking at him with those stupid brown eyes waiting for him to say something, anything. But he couldn’t for the life of him get his mouth to form words in this singular moment. It was like he was physically glitching.

Billy tried his best to smile and hoping this awkward pause wasn’t as long as he actually thought it was. “Thank you, Charlie.”

That must’ve been the right thing to say because now she’s smiling at him and he can’t breathe.

“Ok I’m gonna head inside then,” And just like that she was gone, making her way across the dimly lit yard to her front door. Turning around to send him one last wave before heading inside and like the dumbass, he is he waved back.

When she went inside Billy sped off.

His chest felt light, he couldn’t stop smiling, he was just so fucking happy. He had this Friday and hopefully the next. He had those Sunday’s in the garage with Charles.

Now he had Charlie.

[vertigoseokjin]

Break my Heart Again

Sweet Pea x Y/N x Reggie (requested)

Break my Heart Again: FINNEAS 

Warning: this displays a toxic poly!relationship and self hate, hints at an abusive relationship

I’m so sorry this took forever to post! Also the ending isn’t that fluffy but-

could i request a poly! with pea, reggie & reader where pea is busy with a new, girl, serpent & reg is helping another girl for something & the reader feels jealous & neglected? angsty with a fluffy ending pls!! :)

Loud laughter echoes through your shared trailer, a sound that usually warms your heart. Yet, today, you only feel uneasy walking into you and your boyfriend's house. There's a motorcycle you've never seen parked outside, and a pair of woman's shoes that definitely don't belong to you.

Although your relationship is made out of three people, Reggie's the only one who resides on the Northside. In order to lessen the living costs, you and Sweet Pea decided to move into a trailer together shortly after the start of your relationship.

It always worked out, the three of you have never fought. Yes, you bickered very often. But that was inevitable when Reggie Mantle and Sweet Pea were anywhere near each other. Yet, you all knew you loved each other. Sure, things have been a bit tense recently, but you brushed it off as stress from school and Serpent things. But now you can't help but wonder if something else has been happening.

"Pea?" You nervously call out, slipping off your own shoes and coat. "Pea, are you home?" You can't help the small crack in your voice when you call his name.

When there's no response, you decide to venture a little further into the trailer, finally making it to the bedroom.

Taking a deep breath, you knock gently on the door. "Pea? Babe, are you okay?" Again, no response. Before you can knock again, the door flies open. You flinch back at the sound of the wood colliding with the wall.

"What?" Your eyes widen, shocked at the hostile acknowledgement directed towards you. "Are you going to say anything?" His tone becomes increasingly louder and aggressive.

"I-is everything okay?" You speak through tears, already feeling choked up. Sweet Pea nor Reggie have ever screamed at you the way he is now.

"Everything was okay. Before you decided to piss me off." The tall boy practically growls while rolling his eyes, before walking back into the room and plopping onto the bed. That's when you notice the girl.

She's laying comfortably on your side of the bed, holding your laptop.

As soon as Sweet Pea lays down, she snuggles closer to him, the pair already ignoring you again.

"Pea? Who is this?" The words come out cautiously, not wanting him to blow up again.

"Charlie." He answers simply, no other explanation coming with his introduction. He presses 'play' on the movie they were watching, and the pair immediately burst out in laughter again.

"Pea..." you try again, immediately regretting your decision when Sweet Pea huffs loudly and harshly slams your laptop shut.  

"What? Can't you see we're doing something! What the hell is wrong with you?!" He rapidly begins approaching you, causing you to back away in panic.

Sweet Pea never hit you, or any of his past girlfriends, before, but he also never spoke to you in such a... hateful tone. Rather than striking you like you were expecting, he slams the door shut. You shake the shock from your body, before rushing to the front door to escape Pea's rage.

With nowhere else to go, you find yourself walking in the direction of your other boyfriend's house.

Hurriedly wiping the tears from your red face, you knock gently on the door.

"I got it!" Another feminine voice shouts, not sounding like his mom's or sister's. The door opens to reveal a beautiful, tall girl. She looks to be about your age, with curly brunette hair and seemingly perfect features. Just staring at her adds to your insecurities. "Hey! I don't think we've met, I'm Jennie!" Even her stupid name and personality are perfect.

"H-hi. I...I'm (Y/N)." You fail at matching her enthusiasm. "Is Reggie home?" You force yourself to ask.

"Yeah! I'll run in and get him!" She practically skips into the house, shortly returning with a smiling Reggie. Unfortunately, his smile falls the second he sees you.

"What are you doing here?" He rolls his eyes as he speaks.

"J-just missed you..." you mumble. "I didn't know you were busy, I'm sorry. I'll go..." you drag your feet down the stairs, wishing he'd even say bye in response, but all you get is the door slamming shut.

You begin dragging your feet down the road, unsure where to go now.

Instinctively, you find yourself in front of your best friend's house, Jughead Jones. You almost talk yourself out of knocking due to fear of annoying him too, but there's nowhere else to go.

You knock quietly, the door almost flying open right away.

"(Y/N)? Sweet Pea asked me to look out for you, is everything okay?" You stare at him confused, why would Sweet Pea care about me? "(Y/N)?" Him calling your name again snaps you out of your violent thoughts.

"Sorry! I was just... yeah everything's fine. Can I come in?" You blurt out. He nods uncertainly, but steps over to let you in. "Why did Sweet Pea ask to look out for me?"

"Something about you rushing out with his jacket? I don't know, but he sounded busy." He shrugs uncaring. You look down and notice you are wearing Sweet Pea's signature jacket. You sigh, realizing he doesn't actually care about you. He just needs his jacket. "Everything okay?" He seats himself on the couch, patting the spot next to him.

"Yeah..." you simply mumble, not wanting to get into details about your failing relationship.

"I don't think you'd be here if that was true." He dryly chuckles.

"It's whatever, Jug. Can I spend the night? Thanks." You get up quickly, wanting to avoid the conversation. You hear his delayed yes, but still make a beeline to his spare room.

"I know you don't want to talk, but maybe a date at Pop's with them would clear things up? The three of you should sit and talk." Jughead suggests, leaning on the door frame. You almost laugh at how well he's able to read any situation.

"You're right, I just don't feel like dealing with it right now. They're busy anyway."

"Busy? With what? Charlie?" Your eyes almost bug out of your head.

"You know Charlie?" You almost shout at him.

"Newest Serpent." Jughead states factually. "Sweet Pea threw a tantrum about initiation, got her in without doing the dance." He can't stop the eye roll that comes with his words, where you get chills from remembering your own initiation.

"Really? Do you know anything about her?"

"Not really, she's quiet though. I never really got a chance to speak to her." You release another sigh at his words.

"I bet she's nice. And pretty." A loud groan escapes your mouth following your rant. "Reggie has a new girl too, and she's perfect. I can't compete." Jughead smiles sadly, sitting next to you and hugging you close.

"You don't need to compete, (Y/N). You're perfect." You can't help but let your mood rise a bit after his words.

"You always know how to make me feel better, Juggie."

"Of course. Get some rest, alright? Talk to them tomorrow." He ruffles your hair messily, before leaving you alone with your thoughts.

You're able to sleep with your spirits lifted a little.

___________________________________________________________________________

The next day, the three of you decided to meet at Pop's for lunch.

You leave Jughead's with a heavy heart after he leaves a gentle kiss to your forehead, in a perfectly brotherly manner.

After the fairly short walk, you decide to get a booth, knowing they tend to arrive late.

You're hoping to get a fixed relationship out of the conversation.

However, you're met with surprise when you see four seated at a booth, instead of two like you were expecting.

Reggie, Sweet Pea, Charlie, and Jennie are all seated together.

You cautiously walk up to their table, unsure how to act.

"Hey (Y/N)!" Jennie says cheerfully. "We ordered fries for you!" She pushes a plate full of clearly half eaten fries in your direction. You still crack a little smile at the the effort.

"I... I just thought it was gonna be the three of us?" You ask weakly, still standing over their booth. Rather than a response from the two you came to meet, Jennie pops in again with a small gasp.

"I'm sorry! I didn't know we were intruding! Here, me and Charlie can grab another table!" Jennie goes to collect her stuff, before being stopped by Reggie.

"No, it's fine. I don't know why she's acting like that." Reggie rolls his eyes, Sweet Pea and Charlie still not even bothering to look at you.

"Reggie, it's really our fault. We should've known it was a date when you said (Y/N) was coming." The bright smile still doesn't leave her face.

"It's okay, sorry Jennie." You finally force yourself to speak. "I was just a little confused, I'll pull a chair over." You leave to find an empty chair, dragging it over to the head of the table. Yet, once you sit, the group resume in their previous conversation, excluding you. You just sit quietly, pushing your plate of fries around, having lost your appetite from the interaction.

"Alright, I think we're gonna head home." Reggie finally acknowledges you. Jennie and he begin collecting their stuff, leaving you unsure on what to do.

All you want to do is lay down on your own bed, maybe cry a little, and just go to sleep. But you don't know if Sweet Pea and Charlie are going to your trailer.

"Yeah, us too." Sweet Pea follows, stretching as he gets up from the booth.

"Pea? Are you going home?" You finally gather the courage to ask, holding your breath as you wait for a response.

"Why?" He snaps again, still not looking at you.

Does he hate me that much he can't even look at me?

"I... I do-don't want to bother y-you guys if yo-you're going ba-back to the trailer." You struggle to get the words out.

"Good, cause we are." He rolls his eyes again, shoving past you, Charlie closely following.

"Hey, (Y/N), Reggie and I were going to head back to my place. Would you want to come? We're probably watching a movie or something." She smiles sweetly at you, but you still let yourself be swayed by the look of disgust on Reggie's face.

"It's alright, but thank you for the offer." You mumble, staring at your torn up shoes.

"Are you sure? Don't you live with Sweet Pea? Where are you spending the night?"

"I'll figure it out, Jennie. But thank you for caring." You try to give her a genuine smile, but it doesn't reach your eyes.

"Alright, good night (Y/N)!" Her and Reggie leave you sitting alone in the chair you pulled over, once again not knowing where to go.

After a deep sigh and covering your face with your hands, you pull yourself up and let your feet guide you. Talking yourself out of bothering Jughead again, you decide to break into his father's office instead.

FP Jones barely uses it anyway, it's more of a storage room. But, lucky for you, there's a recliner big enough for you to spend the long night.

You sadly curl up on the chair, allowing yourself to shed a few tears, before calling it a night. _____________________________________________________________________

Unfortunately, a voice wakes you before your alarm goes off.

"Kid, what the hell are you doing?" You roll off the sofa in surprise, making eye contact with the owner of the office you broke into.

"Mr. Jones! Sorry! I was going to leave in the morning but I fell asleep... I'm so sorry. I'll clean everything up an-" he simply holds a hand up to silence you.

"Don't worry about it. You didn't even touch anything." You sigh in relief, feeling thankful for your close relationship with him. "But you are going to explain to me what you're doing in my office at the ass crack of dawn." He plops himself down on his office chair, scanning your disheveled appearance.

"I don't really wanna talk about it..." you mumble, trying to get out of the situation.

"Then you shouldn't have broken into my office. C'mon, spill." A deep sigh escapes your lips, before you finally nod in defeat.

"It's Sweet Pea and Reggie," your voice is barely audible, too embarrassed to properly speak to the gang leader about your relationship drama.

"They hurting you?" His posture immediately stiffens into a defensive stance, causing panic to course through you.

"No! Of course not! They'd never, Mr. Jones."

"Then what's the problem?"

"They've just been ignoring me, I guess." You mumble sadly.

"Charlie?" You hate how the Jones's know you so well. You're unable to hide any thought or problem from them.

"...yeah, and this other Northsider. Jennie. They're... perfect, Mr. Jones. And I'm not. I can't blame them." He responds to your self hate with a soft sigh, not knowing how to respond.

Teenage problems have changed a lot since he was growing up.

"Don't put yourself down like that, kid." FP replies with uncertainty, never really the best at advice. His dad would just smack him over the head and tell him to get his shit together.

"It's okay, Mr. Jones. I'll get going, thank you for letting me stay the night."

"Course, Charlie. My office is always open for you to break in to." You try to smile in response, but the smile doesn't reach your eyes. Then, you swiftly exit his office, still embarrassed from being caught in the first place.

You sigh to yourself, still so confused.

When did everything get so complicated?

_______________________________________________________

You walked over to Jughead's house again, still temporarily homeless. As always, he welcomes you happily, deciding to kill time by cuddling and watching a movie. Always unable to stay awake during movies, you feel your eyes drifting shut right after Jughead points out the most important part. Still, you rest your head fully on Jughead's shoulder and pull him a little closer.

"Hey, your phone's blowing up." He rasps, shaking you awake gently.  You thanked him softly, squinting as the light from your phone burned your eyes. You were shocked when you saw your phone practically flooded with texts from Sweet Pea and Reggie. "Who's it?" He slurs, tiredness obviously hindering his actions.

"Pea and Reg." You mumble, throwing your phone to the side.

"You're not responding?" He woke up a little more at the sound of the names causing you so much distress.

"No." You answer firmly, with no thought, just holding him tighter. Jughead releases a quiet laugh at your answer, but has no problem with accepting it.

They can wait.

________________________________________

Later that night, you finally forced yourself to answer their endless calls and texts. Your phone is filled with panicked texts and voicemails wondering where you disappeared to.

You roll over on the bed you decided to share with Jughead for the night, seeing he's still asleep. Not wanting to bother him, you slowly roll out of his bed, leaving him a note about your situation.

You call Sweet Pea, curious of his sudden care towards you.

"Hey," you're so shocked of him answering right away you forget to respond. "Babe?"

"Yea-Yeah! Hi!" You almost shout.

"Reg and I were wondering if you want to have a movie night? We haven't seen you in a while." You hold back a scoff, choosing to keep the air clear.

"O-okay. Can I come over now?" You ask weakly. You almost want to ask if Charlie and Jennie are going to be there, but you hold yourself back. You start walking in the direction of Reggie's house, assuming the movie night is hosted by him as usual. The walk isn't too long, maybe 15 minutes, and the weather was nice so you weren't complaining. You really did miss them.

"Of course. Meet us at Reggie's." Always a man of few words, you assume the conversation is over there. However, you bring the phone back to your ear when you hear them speak again.

"Hello?" But you go unanswered.

"I don't know, Reg. She's been getting on my nerves lately." You don't want to eavesdrop, but you're unable to help it. You know you should hang up, but your relationship has been on the verge of completely falling apart, and you'd do almost anything if it even gave you a chance at fixing it.

"(Y/N)? I know what you mean." You can almost hear the eye roll that came along with the agreement. "She's so clingy. It was cute at first, but I don't know if I can keep up."

"...we shouldn't make it too obvious though, right? We have been ignoring her recently, she doesn't deserve that." A gentle smile cracks through your face when you hear the little concern he has for you, but it quickly fades at the remembrance of their previous words.

"I mean, I guess." You can almost hear the shrug that comes with those words, Sweet Pea needs to maintain his careless persona.

Finally deciding you heard enough, you hang up and gather the courage to knock on the door.

"Coming!" Reggie's deep voice shouts. The door flies open quickly, his smiling face greeting you.

"Hi." You say quietly, genuinely not wanting to annoy them with the sound of your voice.

"Hey babe!" Reggie exclaims, coming closer to embrace you.

How can he be acting so normal?  You ask yourself.

"Hey." You utter another greeting, but trying to avoid his hug.

"Babe? Is everything okay?" Slipping off your shoes and dropping your bag neatly by the door, you respond with a gentle nod. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I just think I'm coming down with something..." your voice lowers in volume with every word, eyes drifting to stare at the floor.

"Really? Do you need tea? Medicine? PEA! Boil some hot water!" Reggie commands, coming closer to try and embrace you again, to which you back away quickly.

"No! It's okay!" You internally panic at the thought of bothering Sweet Pea with your needs. "I don't need anything, I'm fine." Reggie still stares at you uncertainty, but accepting the odd behavior.

"...okay, just let us know if you need anything. We missed you!" You only nod in response, trying to reduce the amount of times you speak to them in a day.

"Hi, sweetheart." Another deep voice sounds from behind you. You flinch at the sudden appearance, turning to face your other boyfriend. "You feeling okay?" Instead of allowing a gentle forehead kiss to happen, something that always helped you relax, you rapidly nod your head so he doesn't attempt to come closer than he already is.

"I'm fine." You squeak out again, walking past both of them to sit on the couch.

The pair share a suspicious look behind your back, before shrugging and coming to join you on the couch.

Sweet Pea beats Reggie to the spot next to you, immediately pulling you closer to him and attempting to cuddle with you. However, you hurriedly shove his arm off, moving to sit on the recliner positioned diagonal from the couch.

"I think I'm sick, I don't want to give you my virus." You make up on the spot, curling up in a ball in your seat.

"Babe, it's alright if you're sick. We don't care." Reggie approaches you slowly, placing his hands on the arms of the chair, caging you in so you can't run again. "It'll be more comfortable if you sit on the couch with us, come on."

"I just feel hot, Reggie. It's cooler over here." You mumble again, curling under the blanket draped over the recliner. He sends you an odd look, but shrugs when he realizes he's in a losing battle.

"Alright..." he takes a seat next to Sweet Pea, the pair sharing a blanket with their eyes glued to the movie playing. You smile sadly at the sight of them sitting together. They look... perfect. It only adds to how out of place you've been feeling lately. You sitting in the middle of them would just ruin the picture perfect image.

Another gentle sigh escapes you, but you try to focus on the movie instead of them.

"Hey, babe, don't you like that actor?" Reggie asks, but you just nod stiffly, not even sure what or who they're talking about. You've long since zoned out of the movie, you wouldn't even be able to tell them the title if they asked. You miss the look they exchange, the only actors on the screen are from an infomercial about adult diapers. Something's clearly wrong with you.

"Okay, do we need to talk about something?" Sweet Pea finally cuts through the awkwardness, turning the TV off. "You're acting weirder than normal." He directs towards you, but you still refuse to make eye contact.

"No." A short answer, still trying to not talk around them.

"(Y/N), it'll be easier if you just talk to us." Reggie tries to urge you into speaking. You finally lift your head up, looking rapidly between the two of them. "You know you can tell us anything." He smiles softly, trying to ease you into speaking. You shut your eyes tightly, before taking a deep breath.

"I think we should break up." You finally blurt out without thinking. The two boys' mouths widen in shock, not fully comprehending your words.

"Break up? Why?" Sweet Pea can't stop the anger flooding into his tone from your impulsive suggestion.

"Just... because." You mutter, not knowing how to vocalize your thoughts from the last month.

"Sweetie, we're gonna need more than a 'because' if you want to break up." Sweet Pea's naturally condescending tone makes you feel even worse about the situation.

"I-I don't know." You stupidly say, opting to stare at your hands.

"You don't know?" He stands up suddenly, rapidly walking towards you.

"Pea, calm down." Reggie snaps, blocking your body from Sweet Pea. "We're going to sit down and have a calm conversation, does that work for everyone?" You just nod, Sweet Pea rolling his eyes in anger.

"Whatever." He grumbles, sitting down in his previous seat on the couch.

"Baby, you have to have a reason." Reggie tries again.

"I just don't want to bother you anymore..." you mutter, tearing up slightly.

"Bother us?" Sweet Pea's tone softens slightly, but he's still in a slightly defensive stance.

"I mean... you guys have new people now." You chuckle slightly. "You don't really need me anymore. We haven't even talked in at least a month. You're all so happy with Jennie and Charlie, I don't want to be in the middle of it anymore." They stare at you in what you're assuming is anger. "I'll just go guys. I'm sorry for ruining your night." You get up quickly, making a beeline for the door. However, both of the men stop you, Sweet Pea picking you up and gently placing you back on the couch. You're surprised to see the tears in his eyes.

"Baby... baby we're so sorry." He cries into your shoulder, causing your own tears to fall.

"No, don't say sorry. I'm sorry I wasn't better for you." You choke out through sobs.

"That's not true." Reggie rasps, tears flooding his own eyes. The three of you sit huddled together on the couch, unable to speak anymore through the never ending sobs.

"We love you, baby." Sweet Pea finally breaks the silence, pressing a small kiss to her cheek after wiping her tears.

"We love you so much." Reggie adds, squeezing the both of you tighter. Their hearts break when they hear your little sobs and Sweet Pea goes to wipe your tears.

"Can we fix this?" You finally force yourself to ask, still not able to see a solution within the love they're giving you.

"Of course!" Reggie and Sweet Pea exclaim loudly.

"We'll do whatever we need to make up for it." Reggie tearfully promises, kissing your forehead.

You feel nothing but love being in their arms in this moment, but something doesn't feel right still.

You still have so many questions.

"But... why were you so mean?" In any other scenario, the boys would have swooned at how adorable your childlike tone came off. Yet, it only breaks their heart more. It's another reminder at how badly they messed up.

"I don't know, baby. I-"

"That's not good enough!" They also jump away in shock at your sudden outburst. Your voice hardly ever went past a gentle whisper. "I- you all made me feel worthless! I spent this past month wondering what I did wrong and I couldn't even go home because you and Charlie were always in our room! I need more than an I don't know." Your anger is radiating off of you, but you can only feel proud at finally standing up for yourself. But they just stare at you blankly. "If you don't have an answer, I'm going to go back to Jug's house until you know what you want from me."

"No, let's just sit and-"

"I waited a month, Reggie. I need an answer now."

"Honestly, we don't have one." Sweet Pea bluntly states. "I know you want an explanation and reasons, but we can't give you one. But we can give you a promise to never let it happen again. Hell, we won't even need to contact Charlie or Jennie ever again," Reggie nods in agreement, "so, can we try again?"

"Yeah, we're so sorry, baby." Reggie chimes in. "We love you more than anything and I can't believe how badly we messed up. Just give us a second chance, baby? Please?"

You know you shouldn't. Everything is screaming at you to run away back to your safety and forget about them, let them be happy with their new girls.

But... the amount of love in their eyes right now makes it hard to doubt their truthfulness.

"Okay." You mumble weakly. "Okay. Let's try again." You're suddenly tackled by two large figures, the three of you collapsing onto the couch. They start peppering every inch of your face and neck in kisses, causing giggles to erupt from all of you.

You suddenly feel like you won't regret this decision.

[alex-writes-things]

ginnyxhermione part 3- after quidditch

I wish I could say that in the night, she woke up crying and I joined her in the bed, and we drifted off to sleep, tangled together. But this morning I wake up very much alone, my head splitting with pain, to the school bell. As much as I want to bury my head back into the cushions- which have split beneath me, leaving a gap for my back so that my shoulders ache as if I’ve spent the night playing Quidditch- I drag myself up. Luckily, last night I wore my robes beneath my coat. They aren’t stained or ruffled more than I can manage.

“Good morning,” Hermione murmurs sleepily. I sharply turn to face her, almost tripping on one of the cushions. She looks up at me, all bleary-eyed and still stunningly beautiful, and watches lazily as I tie my hair into a ponytail. “We got very drunk last night, didn’t we?”

“Yeah.”

She laughs breathily. “I wish I had some Nurofen right now, I must say.”

“Nurofen?”

“Muggle medicine.”

I pull on my coat and scarf and tuck my hat and gloves into the pocket. “Come on, ‘Mione. Get up. Let’s go down to the hall and catch the boys before they leave without us.”

And I can’t stand it when you smile at me like that.

I gather up my stuff and am halfway to the door before I realise she isn’t following me. I turn back to see her sat on the edge of the bed, frozen with her hand over her mouth, staring right at me, her eyes wide.

“We- I- Oh, oh. Oh, Merlin’s beard. Oh, Ginny, I’m so sorry.”

She’s apologising. For kissing me. Because that isn’t supposed to happen; we’re not supposed to like each other. And yes, I think she does like me. It was in the way she kissed me- gently, like an angel- and in the way she looked so broken as she sobbed in my arms yesterday. Yes, she likes me. But it’s not supposed to be like that. I just say simply, “It’s forgotten.”

I won’t forget.

“Forgotten,” she repeats.

We won’t forget.

And then we walk down to the Great Hall for breakfast. The corridors are mostly empty, so I have time to run my fingers through my ponytail and kick some of the dried mud from my shoes. Hermione spends the whole time in stunned silence.

“You okay?” I ask before we step inside the hall.

She brushes her hair from her face. “Yes. Go on.”

Almost everyone looks up when we enter, some smirking knowingly. Have Harry and Ron told them all about last night? Surely not. And then I realise how bad it must look: neither of us returned to our dormitories last night, and now we rock up in dishevelled clothing to breakfast. At least the crowds haven’t arrived yet. Only the professors and various students from each house are still here.

“About time,” Ron mutters between a mouthful of toast as we sit down. “Hermione, what’s wrong? You look like you just saw a ghost.”

Harry snorts. “Remember when Nearly Headless Nick- he came right up through the table on our first day. Goodness, that was so long ago now.”

“Six years,” Hermione says wearily. Five years ago, I joined them at this table. I follow her lead and start buttering a slice of toast.

“What are we doing today, Ginny?” Harry asks, smiling across the table.

I blink. “Um, I don’t- how are you two so un-hungover?”

“I don’t think that’s a word,” Ron says.

“Oh, shut up. Mum loves me better, remember.”

“We aren’t as hungover as you because you’re a lightweight,” Harry says loudly, the sound shuddering through my head with a bolt of pain.

“All right, Chosen One.”

Harry sips his pumpkin juice defiantly. “Fine. We’ll have a game of Quidditch without you, then.”

“What makes you think I can’t play with a headache? You’re only the boy that caught the snitch in his very throat out of sheer determination!”

They all grunt in agreement- Harry more begrudgingly than the others- and after the quick meal (I couldn’t stomach more than half a piece of toast) we head out to the pitch for a game. I take Hermione on a quick detour to my dormitory for my new broom. I saved up for a year and finally had enough for the old Nimbus 2001 model. It’s my most prized possession and always will be.

“Ooh, I love this photo of you, Gin,” she says. “Actually- is that from the day we went swimming in the lake last summer?”

“Yeah,” I admit ruefully. “I just like the way the sun shines on my face.”

I only keep it here because you took it of me.

“You look beautiful.”

I swear under my breath. This isn’t going to be any easier with her not-so-subtly flirting with me left right and centre. “Thanks,” I say flatly.

-

Wind crashes against me like the churning waters of the lake, whipping my hair back. I keep my eyes on the quaffle in Harry’s grasp, lean forwards in a dive as he tosses it to Ron and in a moment of blind luck I manage to intercept it before my brother catches it.

“Bloody hell, Ginny, how do you always manage to catch those ones?” he shouts as I soar victorious over him and toss the quaffle into the middle hoop. Harry dives down and catches it before it lands.

“I’m a chaser. You’re not. It makes sense,” I say modestly. Harry laughs, doubtful. I hear Hermione screaming encouragement from the stands and spin my broom to face her with a smile. My hands almost slip from the handle as I see McGonagall standing beside her, grinning a rare grin.

“Oi, Harry, look,” I say, gesturing to our head of house. He nods, but his eyes are elsewhere, scanning the stands, the disappointment in his face growing by the second. “What are you looking for?”

“Oh- nothing. Just checking.” Checking for what? Who’s he got his sights on this time? Last time that I knew of him crushing on anyone was Cho Chang in fifth year. Something seems off. Not that he would tell me whom he liked without my asking. I make a mental note to squeeze some details out of him later.

As I soar above the pitch, I let my mind wander. The rest of the student body will be arriving later on today, at about six o’clock in the evening, but before that we’ll head back inside for lunch and spend the evening tidying and preparing our dorms. The only problem with being the only one in the room for two weeks is that somehow all of my stuff ends up strewn across the floor and over the others’ beds.

I’m looking forward to Luna’s return. We’ll probably still hang around with Harry, Ron and Hermione most of the time, and Neville will be here too, though he seems to spend more time out in the greenhouse or with his new Hufflepuff friend Abbott.

I’m not looking forward to spending less time with Hermione. Over the Christmas break we’ve grown closer than ever and even though I know it’s probably for the best that we don’t talk much- to stop the feelings from taking over- I still crave her companionship. Sometimes I have doubts about her reciprocation, but then I catch her staring right at me with a dreamy smile, and I just know.

I can’t believe how many people just aren’t gay.

Hermione approaches me in the changing room. Thankfully, I’m fully clothed, but I still haven’t changed out of my robes. I fiddle with my shoes as she stands in the doorway. “You played well.”

“Wasn’t a match,” I say, and look up at her with a smirk.

“I know, but still.” She twirls her hair around her finger awkwardly. “Can I make a suggestion?”

“Go ahead.”

“Do you want to go up to the astronomy tower tonight? There’s supposed to be a really clear sky for stargazing and I know we stayed up late last night but I’d love if you could- If you wanted to come with me,” she gushes.

“Of course! That sounds great.”

Her face lights up with a grin. After a moment of awkward silence, I clear my throat and she blushes fiercely, finally taking it as a hint to leave. I shower and dress quickly, stow my broom in the broom shed and walk up to the castle. Before I cross the threshold, I take a quick glance over the empty grounds, Hagrid’s currently vacant hut (he’s away in Romania visiting Charlie and his dragons) and the shimmering lake.

[hold-on-a-little-longer-whump]

Tell me about your OC's! — @i-kill-my-darlings

@i-kill-my-darlings Ohhhh boy you know exactly how to get me talking. I’ll be doing official introduction posts in the future, but this will work for now *cracks knuckles*

First and foremost, I have so many AUs that I can’t even choose what is canon anymore. Bear with me. Now, on to my first brainchild Charlie.

Full name: Charleston Grant Darling, prefers to be called Charles or Charlie

Height: 5’10”

Ethnicity: Austrian, Russian, Arabic

Gender ID: Male, He/Him

Appearance: Wide, strong shoulders; oak brown hair; widow’s peak hairline; medium-small roman nose; intense, darkest blue eyes (often mistaken for black); average cheekbones; strong jaw; thick eyebrows; close-shaven beard; DIY star tattoo on wrist from teen years, scar on collarbone; muscly boi™

Role: Everyone’s impulse control, sharpshooter, tank, human shield & wounded transport

Traits at first glance: terse, observant, standoff-ish, skeptical, talks to get the point across

Traits after earning his trust: curious, devoted, mildly humorous, values his personal space, bad with words, hard-working

Likes: jokes, thunderstorms, reading, traveling, camping, music, and foggy mornings

Dislikes: wet socks, flowers indoors, excessive heat, gambling, doctors, sitting still, coffee, and kids he says

Fears: Who says you get to know?

Weaknesses: deep water, he sinks very easily; ankles - they snag on things when he’s not paying attention; authoritative figures, climbing, when friends or significant other is threatened, flirting? flirting.

Listen, this boy just wants to be left alone with his hunting gear. All he desires is the hermit life. Trophy hunter? Check. Hired help for animals that are getting out of hand? Check. Unexpectedly and unofficially adopted as team sharpshooter? He’s convinced this is because they all suck at target practice.

He’s a horrible conversationalist unless drunk - then you can never get him to shut up.

He really wants to publish a book some day, but he’s too harsh of a judge and scraps almost everything he writes. Nobody knows he writes.

DAD FRIEND

If you ever get close enough, he smells like honey, cinnamon, and leather

*slaps roof* this bad boy can fit so much self-doubt and angst

He either overthinks to the last detail or jumps on something without considering anything - and there is no in between.

He’s the best out of the team at that soft “Hey...” when reassuring or comforting.

He does not do doctors. Bad experience with them as a kid. He will do every herbal remedy possible before being dragged to a hospital bc he put it off for so long.

“For my next trick I will disappear without an explanation”

After a scare or a fright, he sneezes.

In some AUs, an ex-soldier.

Next up: Beatrice!

Full name: Beatrice Anne Vitale, nicknames include Bea, Bess, & Bumble-Bee

Height: 5’4”

Ethnicity: Swedish, Native American, other ethnicities unknown

Gender ID: Female, She/Her

Appearance: pear-shaped, plump but strong; small shoulders; wispy, curly/wavy chestnut brown hair that’s cut to just above her shoulders; beauty marks (notably, one below her left eye & one on her neck); her eyes are bright, hazel with flecks of gray; dark-but-neat eyebrows; slightly prominent cheekbones; small chin; button nose; heart-shaped lips that are naturally pink; burn scar on right wrist and large birthmark covering her left thigh.

Role: Healer, slaps others when they need a slapping and apologizes directly afterwards, sneak/stealth ninja

Traits at first glance: quiet, painfully polite, passive, timid

Traits after getting to know her: cheery, energetic, relatively talkative, stubborn af

Likes: lilies, lavender, quiet, strawberries, pumpkin-flavored foods, making her own decisions, snow, autumn, she loves cows, chilly weather, dancing

Dislikes: being told what to do, drunk people, strange bugs, sweating, being rude, being underestimated, talking to others in front of her family, being laughed at, small talk, when people cry, unnecessary drama, obligations, and being called “cute”

Fears: not fulfilling her goals, loud noises, crowded places, frogs, having children/being pregnant, and being rejected

Weaknesses: cannot flirt to save her life, terrible liar, combat, public speaking, confrontation, gullible

Her parents are ridiculously overbearing. She just wants to make her own decisions - routine is nice, but not for your entire life.

When she’s nervous she fidgets with her hair or tugs on her earlobes

She smells of lavender and ink

When she’s excited about something, her words tend to run together and gradually increase in volume.

Even though she’s terrible in combat and fights in general, she keeps a surprisingly level head and doesn’t panic.

If you make her angry enough she’ll give you the silent treatment - usually after a good shouting row first

Just like Charlie, she’s clueless with flirting. If you’re nice to her, she assumes that you want to be friends and goes along with it. She’ll only get the hint if you actually kiss her or tell her outright. Too bad Gideon can’t work up the balls.

Speaking of which: Gideon!

Full name: Gideon Faye Miles

Height: 6’2”

Ethnicity: Scottish, Spanish, & Portuguese

Gender ID: Male, He/Him

Appearance: Average build; ashen blond/red hair tied back in a pony tail; hazy brown eyes w/ a patch of sky blue under his left iris; freckles all over; his face is narrow but attractive; average cheekbones; sharp chin; a soul patch

Role: the one that plows in headfirst and does rash things without consulting everyone else first - wannabe leader, but let’s be real here this team is a collective effort

Traits at first glance: annoying, full of himself, lucky, debonair, airy, stuck up

Traits after you get to know him: inventive, fair, lively, organized, committed

Likes: finding ways to make others smile, babies!!!, cherries, meteorology, sailing, messes (so he can clean them), cleaning, braiding everyones’ hair

Dislikes: harsh winds, unloyal spouses/dating partners, bad/cheap shoes that make his feet ache, hammocks, wind chimes, tedious tasks (Beatrice gets him to detangle her yarn as punishment), mushrooms

Fears: tiny spaces/crawlspaces, skunks, getting sick, making a decision/mistake that wrecks everything/puts his team in danger, freezing to death

Weaknesses: randomly zones out when being spoken to/doesn’t listen, the team is positive that his cause of death will be competitiveness, he’s horrible at adapting to last minute changes

He smells clean. Like freshly watered plants and sudsy soap.

He has the unfortunate habit of forgetting his drink is full and ends up soaking himself. The team buys him a sippy cup as a joke but he secretly loves it and uses it all the time.

He is the epitome of a guy being perfectly at peace with his feminine side and still feeling masculine/comfortable af.

Shaming? What’s that?

He’s always wearing his brown leather coat (appearance varies in AUs, but he always has it regardless)

He takes it as a personal challenge to sit in chairs in any way but the normal way. His favorite pose is the lounging monarch.

He cannot write well in print, but his cursive is lovely.

Loves being lazy and brags about his inability to get fat.

This boy will puppy-eye beg any girl he meets to give him the same killer manicure they have.

“Look! Twinsies!”

He would absolutely jump on the latest tiktok trend of swapping clothes with the girls and so help him he will summon a demon to get Charlie to do it with him

[ducktracy]

154. porky’s road race (1937)

release date: february 6th, 1937

series: looney tunes

director: frank tashlin

starring: joe dougherty (porky), billy bletcher (borax karoff), tedd pierce (w.c. fields)

because of the 10 photo limit i can’t post a photo, but you’re lucky i can read! this is the first of many cartoons that begins with a fake disclaimer (often used exclusively for facetious purposes):

FOREWORD:—

all the characters in this picture are strictly phoney! any fancied resemblance to any living person is the bunk! any incident portrayed is pure fiction!

and so, of course, the cartoon deals with an amalgamation of celebrity caricatures, all competing in a road race, with plucky little porky reduces to a mere shadow in the competition... or so we think.

frank tashlin provides a clever segue into the cartoon as the title card fades into a banner that still advertises PORKY’S ROAD RACE —

first prize....$2,000,000.00

less tax.......$1,999,998.37

net..............$1.63

a very clever gag that would be used time and time again in many a looney tunes cartoon.

pan down from the banner to an extended garage of cars. “in my merry oldsmobile” underscores the scene (and a hearty chunk of the short), stalling’s music transforming into whistling as we hone in on porky hammering away at a behemoth of an engine. another “i would NOT want to animate that” moment from a tashlin cartoon—there’s so many little movements happening at once! to top the gag off, the behemoth engine slides out of view, and we see porky hammering on his OWN engine, a dinky, pathetic excuse of a machine. wonderful setup as always.

and, because frank warned us, we now see caricatures of Totally Fictitious Celebrities who in fact do not exist. stan laurel and oliver hardy start us off, both seesawing on a sawhorse. laurel scratches his hatless head (which spins around in circles behind him on the board) while hardy glares at him. both make their contributions to the preparations for the race—laurel pumps up a tire, while hardy raises the car jack, both contraptions connected to the seesaw. a lot of meticulous details and animation, lots too look at.

next victim is charlie chaplin, who’s going to town with a spanner wrench in the engine. the music is wonderfully hilarious—still an underscore of “in my merry oldsmobile”, but chaplin’s frantic movements are accompanied by the quick chuffs of a calliope, syncopated with the music. chaplin moves from one car to the next, wobbling along with the same frantic movements. he heads over to another car, emblazoned with three stars on the side. chaplin prepare to twist a bulb poking out of the car, when in reality, the bulb is just the bulbous nose of w.c. fields (not in pig form this time!), who chews him out. “heeeey, whaddaya think you’re doing here, my good man? keep your wrenches out of my proboscis, yeeeaaaah.” tedd pierce’s drawl is lovely as always.

next is elderly actress edna may oliver (who really wasn’t all that old, she was only 54 in 1937, and would die on her 59th birthday in 1942), sitting in her jalopy. she pegs w.c. fields for assistance, a man doing her voice—imdb lists it as dave barry, but imdb is about as reliable as wikipedia; not very. fields lumbers out of his car, droning in terms of endearment (“my little demitasse, my little chickadee, my little bonnie lassie...”) tashlin does a great job of stretching out fields’ actions, purposefully making him take forever to put on his hat and coat and get to the point, but almost to the point where it grows tedious and the joke dies off. nevertheless, tashlin compensates with the product of the build up: fields pours a bottle of alcohol into the engine, and the car launches into a hiccuping frenzy, faster than the eye can see. a faithful gag we’ve been seeing since 1931 with you don’t know what you’re doin’! (which is still my favorite ising cartoon melody)

an unseen greta garbo works beneath her car, and all we see is her giant shoes (a reoccurring garbo gag), providing her catchphrase of “i want to be alone” as “at last, i am alone.” the next car is no car at all, but a full bathtub, an engine with a propeller sputtering in the water. a zoom out reveals the driver as charles laughton, donning a captain’s hat and tipping it wordlessly to the audience. laughton played captain bligh in MGM’s mutiny on the bounty (1935), which even inspired such shorts like jack king’s shangahied shipmates.

the next caricature is probably my favorite, or at least pun wise. billy bletcher’s villainous bellow thunders as we hone in on a shed. if the skull and crossbones mounted to the wooden doors wasn’t enough of a turnoff, the giant sign shouting BORAX KAROFF — KEEP OUT! certainly is. borax karoff is a take on actor boris karloff, who played frankenstein’s monster in frankenstein. while billy bletcher supplies his voice, karloff WOULD work with a rather notable looney tunes alumnus, voicing the grinch on chuck jones’ how the grinch stole christmas! borax is a compound of boron, used to help clean cars as well as a number of other uses. i’m a sucker for puns. borax karoff is depicted as frankenstein’s monster, lubing up his giant of an engine. and, for good measure, his car number is 13. what else would it be? karoff crawls into his limo of a car and revs the engine, the skull hood ornament chattering like crazy.

tashlin’s distaste for porky is certainly starting to become more noticeable, because only now does he say his first lines of the short approximately halfway through the cartoon. an announcer (who sounds like tedd pierce to me) calls “calling all stars! calling all stars!” (as opposed to calling all cars), signaling the start of the race. porky, still whistling “in my merry oldsmobile”, obeys the cue and gives a few happy “oh boy, oh boy, oh boys!” the animation is exceptionally smooth, flouncy, and weighted as he bounces out of his car, out of frame, and then bouncing ON his car into the seat that awaits him, now donning his racing gear. with the way the eyes are drawn, it looks possibly like norm mccabe animation? i wouldn’t quote myself on that, though. the car sputters and jerks to life, an unpromising start, but manages to transport porky to the starting line where the rest of the competition awaits.

the flagger gives the telltale “on your mark, get set, SCRAM!”, which was reused earlier in hugh batman’s bosko the speed king in 1933, albeit with a stuttering dog. no stuttering dog flagger here, but we do have a stuttering pig, does that count? the cars all zip off, a few stragglers speeding by, whooshing along to “shave and a haircut”. the sound effects sound eerily similar to mel blanc’s hoohoo shrieks, so i wouldn’t totally rule that out as a possibility. on a much less lighthearted note, we get a dose of racism as a stereotypical blackface caricature of stepin fetchit (at least in voice) straggles much further behind. “i don't know why everybody's in such a big rush, i’m in no rush.” agggh, product of its time, but c’mon frank, you’re better than that! if anything though, the slightly tilted camera angle makes for an interesting layout, and the shave and a haircut gag was nice.

another parallel to bosko the speed king as we receive a ground shot of the cars barreling towards the camera, swallowing up the viewer. tashlin uses his quick cuts again, perhaps not to the extent of porky in the north woods or later porky’s romance, but they’re certainly quick enough as the cars whirl around the track, skidding on walls and flying around sideways. three celebrities are all packed in one giant car: the cheerio special, toting george arliss, leslie howard (ashley wilkes in gone with the wind), and child actor freddie bartholomew, all from the UK. w.c. fields passes the trio, honking his nose like a horn (daffy would later save everyone the trouble by either biting or squeezing the noses of his victims himself). freddie asks leslie what the time is—4:00. george does a take. “4:00? then it’s time for tea.” with that, all three pull out their teacups from the Great Unknown, taking a sip and staring into the audience, giving a “pip pip, cheerio!” in frightening unison.

big bold letters advertise the CALIBAN, a zoom out revealing the car belonging to john barrymore, who starred in a film adaptation of shakespeare’s the tempest from which the character caliban comes from. “caliban” suddenly speeds away from a shrill woman’s voice calling for his name. we see the perpetrator—a woman with a lasso, calling for caliban, the word ARIEL emblazoned on her own vehicle. barrymore’s “ariel” turns out to be his wife, elaine barrie. in real life, barrymore and barrie (confusing, ain’t it?) would call each other caliban and ariel. strangely sweet!

tashlin plays around with dynamic angles as we view the front of borax karoff’s threatening limo. he pokes his head out of the window, spotting the competition behind him. to further his lead, karoff laughs as he showers tacks on the road behind him (wacky races is taking notes), with the next shot being a lovely view of the racks thrown into the track from the audience’s perspective. charles laughton attempts to remedy the situation by wielding a fishing rod, a magnet tied to the line and thus collecting all the tacks.

karoff’s next line of action is a “torpedo” (which is really just a toy plane), tossing the torpedo at laughton. the torpedo sinks into laughton’s bathtub on wheels, striking the engine and causing the engine to drown in the water. living up to his role as captain, laughton cries “it’s mutiny! that’s what it is, it’s mutiny!” meanwhile, edna may oliver putters along in her jalopy, but her “success”, so to speak, is hindered by each passerby. one car whirls past, stripping her car of its windshield, retractable roof, horn, etcetera. another zooms by, reducing the car to a soapbox, and then another, reducing the car to a mere frame with wheels as oliver ogles at the audience in disbelief, “woo!”ing with each passerby.

it’s no cartoon without a clark gable caricature! gable hitchhikes on the side of the road, but the racers aren’t too willing. he’s spun like a top (tex avery style) as the cars whirl by. once the dust settles, gable has been considerably dug into the dirt, his lone thumb still jerking out of the hole in hopes for a ride.

some wonderfully malleable animation as karoff displays his next trick: squirting glue onto the course. the racers get lodged into the glue and fly up into the air thanks to the resistance, slingshotting back into a cluster in the middle. accompanied by the famous electric guitar zooming twang, of course. the animation reminds me a lot of the rubbery, malleable animation in ub iwerks’ cartoons. the scene where a bee swoops around and stings porky, both beneath a tarp, comes to mind from porky and gabby. speaking of porky, this is still his cartoon. he skids around in the glue, animation smooth as ever, circling around and stretching into the air. the glue strand manages to snap, and he’s propelled into a pile of bricks near a construction site (a sign reading W.P.A. DETOUR PROJECT). the combination of bricks and glue on the wheels makes for army tank wheels on porky’s car.

a lovely sense of urgency and speed as karoff speeds into view, halting in front of the camera and spreading grease on the track next. all of the other competitors zip off of the track like nothing, but thanks to the traction provided by porky’s makeshift army wheels, he’s able to crawl up the hill with ease. as both he and karoff race down the hill, the glue begins to wear on porky’s wheels, and a shower of bricks knock on karoff’s head in succession. there’s a great, quick camera angle as karoff turns the corner on the track, with porky close behind. they weave in and out, porky attempting to pass, but with little luck. the weaving gets faster and faster, carl stalling’s score enhancing the gag as each weave brings forth a higher note in succession. finally, porky outsmarts karoff (which is rare), extending a car horn to the other side and honking. as karoff zips back to where the source of the sound was in hopes of blocking porky, the pig zooms straight past him.

another one of tashlin’s famous “concealed action” scenes as porky and karoff head into a tunnel. there’s the sound of crashing and an explosion. tashlin cleverly extends the surprise just a little longer as an unidentified blur rushes out of the tunnel, presumably porky. however, a look at karoff’s long limo reveals porky in the driver’s seat, with a hunched over karoff crammed into porky’s little car. juxtaposition is comedy’s best friends, and it works!

karoff veers off course in favor of a draw bridge, where he reaches into the control room and pulls the lever. the draw bridge starts its incline, and porky in karoff’s elongated limo flies over the bridge like a ramp. just as karoff’s about to make it across the finish line, porky dives ahead of him in a photo finish, screeching to a half with karoff just a second behind.

if losing wasn’t bad enough, crashing into the rear end of porky‘s new car definitely is. karoff flops to the ground, his car landing next to him. a classic gag that never fails to amuse me as an ambulance screeches up next to karoff, the assistants loading the car into the stretcher leaving karoff by his lonesome, the assistants heading off to tend to the “injured” car. an oldie but goodie.

while the race is clinched, the others still haven’t finished. edna may oliver has completely refurbished her frame car into a sailboat, her dress the makeshift sail as she pumps air via tire pump and funnel into the sail, propelling the car along. a pompous porky awaits his coronation as speed king, when oliver zooms right past. everyone ogles in befuddlement as we iris out on oliver pumping along her makeshift car, the crown placed promptly on top of her butt.

this isn’t my favorite porky cartoon, nor is it my favorite tashlin cartoon, but i certainly think it has its share of good qualities. tashlin uses some beautiful and unconventional camera angles, such as cars zooming at the audience, tacks being thrown FROM the audience’s point of view, and so on. the caricature designs are hilarious—we’ve seen many of these from the coo-coo nut grove, but they still have their charm. a dated cartoon for sure, but as i mentioned in my review of the coo-coo nut grove, looking up who the celebrities are and learning about them is half the fun. with these shorts, at least, you get to learn something new. however, nothing in this cartoon particularly wowed me. not bad, but not as exhilarating as tashlin’s other cartoons. though, for 1937, the wacky races trope would be much fresher and newer than it is now, so as clichéd as it may be, this isn’t necessarily the fault of the cartoon itself, but just how played out the cliché came to be in other cartoons. and plus, the stepin fetchit caricature was... not great. a minor role, but still enough to be considered uncomfortable. i’d recommend this cartoon to check out the caricature drawings in action, but essentially that’s about it. you can go either way with this one.

link!

[lothiriel84]

Welcome to the Sun

There’s an open horizon before us There is a rainbow under my eyes The detector reads low radiation And you’re fearless to rise till you’re high

A The Bunker ficlet. Tom & Dave friendship, with background (referenced) David/Dave.

Out of the ten of them, Charlie was the only one who knew how to cut hair properly. When he perished in a plague victim attack, Alex had to step into his shoes, and he was fine, mostly, even though David for one resorted to shearing his own hair himself, with mixed results at best.

In the end, it was just the three of them, and they somehow settled into the established routine of Dave being the only one allowed to hold a pair of scissors that close to David’s face – something to do with Tom ‘snipping off too loudly’, among other things, as they gathered eventually – while Tom took care of Dave’s periodic haircuts. As for Tom himself, he’d long since stopped complying with the standard company-approved hair length, which meant he only required the occasional trim, and even then, he was more than happy to do by himself.

Dave’s hair was auburn and naturally wavy, which in many ways made Tom’s job harder, but he was still proud of his own handiwork. And unlike David, Dave was perfectly capable of sitting still without unnecessary complaints, and was gracious enough to thank him afterwards.

“You sure you don’t want me to return the favour?” Dave offered, even as he studied his own reflection in the mirror. “I don’t mind, honest.”

“Nah, I’m good,” he shrugged, sweeping up the hair cuttings from the floor. David was very peculiar about leaving everything clean and tidy after a haircut, even more so when he was in no way involved in the process.

“Suit yourself,” Dave acquiesced, tapping at the packet of cigarettes he always kept on his person. “Cigarette?”

“God, yes,” he accepted, eagerly. “Cheers, man.”

“Let’s get some fresh air, yeah?”

As they climbed past the Stones of the Deceased they paused, as if by common accord. “To our colleagues and friends,” Dave uttered, raising his unlit cigarette in mock salute. “May the contaminated ground of the Wasteland rest lightly upon you.”

“Amen,” Tom nodded, and followed him up the ladder. As they emerged from the rooftop hatch, they were greeted by the jarringly familiar breeze that tasted ever so slightly metallic; no welcoming hail of bullets from their friendly scavenging neighbours, no crawling monstrosity in sight for miles.

He patted his pockets for his dodgy lighter, only took four tries to light both of their cigarettes. “This is the life, man,” he laughed, stretching his limbs towards the unforgiving heat of the winter sun. “Should’ve brought a couple of beers with us.”

“There are only half a dozen left,” Dave exhaled with a puff of smoke, his head a shock of fiery curls in full sunlight. “And you know how David gets when we start drinking without him.”

“Yeah,” he sighed, going for the diplomatic approach. David was a bloody nightmare when they crossed him, which seemed to be happening more and more frequently those days.

However awful their current conditions, it was still better than total oblivion, or that’s what he used to say in the early days after the Big Headache. Now, with several decades gone by with nothing to show but a collection of new stones adorning their welcome mat, he wasn’t so sure anymore.

“David and I had sex two weeks ago,” Dave dropped the bombshell out of nowhere, his tone conversational, almost unnaturally so. “We might, again, at some point. I trust that won’t to be a problem?”

At a loss as how to react to such a casual announcement, completely devoid of any meaning or context, his attention focussed on such insignificant detail as the peculiar way Dave’s fingers flexed every time he was about to flick his cigarette. “I don’t – I mean – why?”

Dave stared back at him, his stance now somewhere between defiant and defensive. “You mean, why would I sleep with him, or why would it be a problem?”

“Why are you telling me?”

A shrug. “We’re stuck down there together, the three of us, whether we like it or not. There’s hardly much room for secrets when you’ll be sharing the same living space for gods know how long.”

“Right. Got it. It’s all cool, man. Honest.”

“God,” Dave rolled his eyes, and took another drag. “You sound just like David.”

“Look, I won’t pretend I understand whatever’s going on with you and David. If you’re happy then I’m happy, that’s all I’m saying.”

“Ha,” Dave shot back, clearly unwilling to elaborate any further. “That’s a good one.”

“If you ever need to talk,” he started, somewhat uncomfortably, only to be immediately cut off by Dave.

“I’m good. But thanks, anyway.”

They went back to smoking in silence, their cigarettes smouldering as the wind picked up. “Right. That’s enough radiation exposure for one day, I think,” Dave declared at length, stubbing out the butt against one of the supports holding the solar panels in place.

Tom dithered, taking plenty of time to crush what was left of his cigarette under his foot. “What’s a little radiation sickness between friends, am I right?”

Dave actually, genuinely burst out laughing at that. “I heard it works wonders for your hair, too.”

“No way! I worked really hard on that haircut, you know,” he was quick to remonstrate, shoving at Dave’s arm in mock offence.

“It’s just that my hair’s naturally amazing, you mean,” Dave smirked, running his fingers through it so as to purposely muss it up.

“Oh, yeah. I’d totally have sex with your hair, man.”

“Piss off,” Dave laughed, again, and made to open the hatch. “I’m cutting it myself next time.”

“Yeah, sure,” he huffed, even as Dave started climbing down the ladder. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

“Are you two coming down for tea and biscuits, or do I need to come and fetch you myself?” they could hear David loudly grumble from the bottom of the passageway.

“Aye aye, Captain,” Dave shouted back, rolling his eyes for Tom to see, and they both disappeared inside.

[dontreadthistrashgarbage]

Pt. 9

Han Jisoo was true to her word and within a week she called HEET and Woojin in for a meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to tell them that Guerin would be reinstated as their manager, and that Woojin would be staying on as an assistant. Woojin had already been briefed, but he was better at keeping a straight face than Guerin so she had to wait outside the room or the boys would know before Jisoo got to announce it.

Once Guerin heard a ruckus inside the room she knew it was okay to open the door and peek her head in, beaming at the scene that greeted her. Jisoo was laughing at the surprised reactions of her boy group, taken with their joy. Minhwan had jumped up and was hugging Gabriel and Woojin, the latter being a less willing participate in the spritely jumping around of the other two but still smiling. Seungbin was standing and asking if it was real and not a prank, Byoungjin had his hand buried in his face, likely starting to cry while Tobio crooned to him and comforted him. In a split second that changed as soon as they saw her coming through the door and she was rushed by her boys all speaking and shouting indecipherably at once.

She bounced around with them and couldn't help shedding a few happy tears herself, so relieved that this part of her life could return to normal finally and moved by everyone's reaction.

Once everyone had calmed down and reseated themselves, Seungbin had tried to sit on Guerins lap but she redirected him to his chair reminding him that it was a professional meeting. He settled for pulling his chair close to her and holding her arm while resting his head on her shoulder. No one had the heart to tell him to stop.

After the meeting Minhwan suggested they all get dinner to celebrate once their lessons and practice were over. Jisoo politely declined attending but handed over the company card to Guerin in support. Guerin resisted hugging her friend and instead bowed deeply with all the boys following suit.

"Noona, are you going to invite Wow-hyung to dinner with us too?" Byoungjin asked as Guerin escorted them back to their practice room.

"No!" Seungbin said quickly before Guerin had a chance to respond. She gave him a curious look before speaking into the silence that his abrupt interruption had caused.

"I was going to say that I think this is a team celebration so we should keep it to us."

"Seungbin, don't be rude. You need to apologize." Minhwan chastised the younger boy in true leader fashion.

Seungbin's eyes were on the floor, "I'm sorry Noona..."

She didn't respond right away but did give him a head pat and a smile as he looked up at her from under her hand. Once they were in the practice room Guerin cleared her throat, getting everyone's attention.

"I think we should talk really quickly before you all start." She looked at each of them, "Wow is my boyfriend. I like him a lot. All of A.C.E are my friends. But HEET are my boys. I love you all so very much and I'm always rooting for you first. I might have to balance my personal life a bit differently, but know that my love for you hasn't changed." Tobio remained largely expressionless per usual, Byoungjin looked curious, Minhwan was nodding, Gabriel had a slightly disbelieving look, Woojin looked uncomfortable as though he had been caught eavesdropping and Seungbin looked conflicted.

"I'm sorry Noona... it's just that... we just got you back and he's been with you this whole time..." Seungbin rubbed the toe of his shoe on the floor as he looked down.

"I understand. And you'll have enough of me around soon enough since we're getting back to normal. It was hard for me to be apart from you, and Kim Seyoon was a part of that support to help me get through it. All of you make me so happy, his is just a different kind of happy." She caught Gabriel hiding a laugh at her last comment.

"Oh shut up you know what I mean." She scolded him in English, unconvincingly because she had to fight to hide a laugh too.

"What I really want to say," she continued, "is to please not hold any grudges with him or any of A.C.E. Just like you don't with Charlie. And if you feel sad, worried or insecure you can talk to me. Don't bottle it up okay? And don't judge Wow unfairly." She finished.

A smattering of nods and words of affirmation from HEET were enough for her for now.

"Okay, let me see what you've been working on!" She clapped her hands and walked over to the music player with Woojin while HEET scurried to get warmed up.

"You still haven't had sex?" Charlie hissed.

Guerin shushed her, looking around quickly, "Just because we're speaking English doesn't mean we should assume people won't understand, or record and translate."

"I was quiet, but more importantly are you dying?" Charlie looked at Guerin with concern and held a hand to her forehead. Guerin groaned and rested her head on the table.

"Yeah I think I am." Her respond was muffled and tragic.

The two girls were in a small bakery sharing a piece of cake. It had been a couple days since their respective dates, Seyoon and Jun were busy as their fan project had been released and they had some schedules pertaining to that.

"You know how much effort I've put into making that situation happen for me and you have your own place and it is WASTED on you." Charlie feigned anger at the top of her friends head.

"I know." Guerin turned her head to the side to stare absently out the window, watching a young woman sitting on a bench outside on her phone. Charlie changed tactics and patted Guerin on the head encouragingly.

"We can see them again soon. You can try again!"

Guerin sighed and forced herself to sit up, "I'm not really worried. We'll get there eventually. But like... I want to."

"I believe in you." Charlie offered, taking a bite of cake.

Seyoon and Jun had their final schedule for their fan project. They sat in their respective seats getting their makeup done after their hair. The usual staff were tending to their cosmetics so the chatter was friendly per usual. Eunkyung was adding some finishing touches to Seyoon's look before changing the subject.

"These schedules are all because of your girlfriends right?"

He hesitated as he decided how to respond, feeling about odd, "It's not because of them." She didn't say anything as though waiting for him to finish a thought but he didn't say anything else.

"But... because you are openly dating now?"

Seyoon glanced at Jun but he was engrossed in conversation with his own makeup artist and didn't seem to hear the topic change, "We just want to assure our fans our love for them hasn't changed." He finally answered.

Eunkyung nodded absentmindedly, adding some gentle brush strokes to the foundation on his face. "I have to admit. I was surprised when I saw who you were dating."

Seyoon glanced up at her but she was seemingly focused on his makeup. He felt a response wasn't necessary so he didn't say anything.

"I thought you'd definitely date another idol once your ban was up." She smiled, stopping the touch ups to look at his face as she appreciated her handiwork. He nodded again, still not sure how to respond.

"When I was little my parents divorced." She started, "My parents never seemed to be suited for each other. I asked my dad how he and my mom had decided to start a family despite being so I'll suited for each other." Seyoon watched her pensively as she focused on more makeup details, not meeting his eyes.

"He said he felt that deciding to get married was like being a taxi going on duty. Once he turned on his light, whoever hopped into the cab was his responsibility. It was just unfortunate that it turned out to be a bad tipper." Eunkyung finished her story and sat back again, then met his eyes and the slight young woman smiled prettily. "You're all set for stage."

He thanked her and stood to move to the couch to wait for Jun for them to start their surprise vlive before the schedule.

Charlie had arrived at Guerin's place ahead of time to set up. She had asked him over with a movie night, only letting him know that it would be more private than at his dorm. Other than that she hadn't given him other details. Charlie had spent ages deciding on whether lighting candles would be too much or not and kept lighting, blowing them out, then lighting them until a knock finally came at the door.

The secluded environment that they were about to be in had inspired some ideas in Jun. He hesitated outside the door for a moment, trying to get his thoughts under control before ringing the buzzer. He continued reminding himself to not jump to conclusions and to just enjoy the movie with Charlie while he waited for her to answer the door.

Hearing the buzzer Charlie froze and took a deep breath to calm the butterflies in her stomache. She opened the door, relieved for a moment to see that Jun had also dressed casually, even though her outfit hid her much more selectively chosen lingerie. Once the door was closed behind him they embraced, almost a little awkwardly.

The two of them puttered around until eventually settling onto the couch with some snacks as they started the movie they had agreed on beforehand. Charlie was completely unable to focus on the movie as she kept going through her plan for later in the evening in her head. She was so distracted she didn't even notice Jun's lack of reactions to the comedy. He was equally as distracted as the two of them cuddled closer and closer.

Charlie couldn't handle it, about an hour into the movie she couldn't even follow what was happening. She gave up and decided to go for it. Acting on impulse, refusing herself the opportunity to overthink anymore. Pulling away from him she pulled off her shirt, revealing a lacey surprise, the swung her leg over his lap, blocking the television.

Jun, who hadn't even been paying attention and contemplating along the same (although less bold) options was taken by surprise. His hands went automatically to the hips of his girlfriend. Jun's attention was snapped to attention as his eyeline, which started at her new lingerie before traveling up to her face, forced the reaction he had been lacking from the film. His eyes wide, he couldn't help but grin as a reaction before biting his lip and increasing pressure on her hips, pulling her closer. Their lips met, the kiss passionate and deep without lacked any pretense. Charlie removed his hands from him long enough to stand and remove her jeans, revealing the rest of her lacey provocation. He had all of a full second to react, not even noticing her flush before she moved back onto his lap her arms pulling him close as their lips met again.

His hands moved up to trace the edges of her bra, moving back to touch the clasp before hesitating. She pressed against him, wordlessly encouraging him grinding on his lap. Motivated by her response he fumbled momentarily before unhooking her and exposing her torso to him. He had seen her like this once before, but the moment had been ruined by Wow bumbling into their moment. This time no such distractions marred the experience. He took the time to experience the full glory, holding her away for a few moments.

She allowed him the enjoyment before stepping off him, taking his hands in hers and pulling him up. She snuck a kiss as they stood, lasting a few seconds longer than intended, before leading him away into the bedroom where they were finally able to more fully explore their desires.

For security and privacy, Kim Hyeim had allowed Guerin and Charlie access to the main waiting area of Beat Interactive. Seyoon had worked late knowing Guerin had a personal matter to attend to. Once she texted him that she was waiting for him when he was ready, he wrapped up his work and headed to the main floor immediately.

Guerin was waiting close to the door with her surprise. As soon as the elevator doors dinged she looked up to see Seyoon stepping out. She had time to stand up before seeing a pretty young woman that had been waiting closer to the elevators pop up and rush over to him.

Seyoon was surprised with Eunkyung greeting him first at the elevator doors. "Oppa!" She greeted him excitedly, hugging him without precedent. He froze for a moment looking down at her before patting her head, causing her to look up at him, "I waited for you!" She added.

He took her shoulders and gently moved her away from him. She complied by letting him go but still leaning close to him. He wasn't sure what to say but she seemed expectant so he mentally scrambled before settling on "Why?"

"I... I like you!" She said earnestly, pushing against his hands on her shoulders again. His lost expression only grew more confused and desperate as he floundered on how to react.

"Your girlfriend... she doesn't suit you! You have more options." She pressed, "I think you should know... you don't have to settle for the first customer once your light comes on!"

Seyoon had been known to react to annoying stimuli in situations like Jun singing loudly in the shower at bedtime, but he had rarely been moved to anger. The feeling for him was less a hot flash and more a settling cold at his face froze, eyes darkening. He was spared an immediate reaction as Guerin stepped up.

Seeing Eunkyung embrace Seyoon had made her heart lurch. She stood in place gathering her emotions, forcing herself to calm down as she watched another woman overtly throwing herself on her boyfriend. Swallowing her bubbling rage she forced a smile and moved to the pair.

"Seyoonie." Guerin said, greeting her boyfriend with forced cheerfulness before staring pointedly at the shorter woman leaning into him.

Eunkyung started. She hadn't noticed Guerin come into the waiting room, unaware she was allowed and having spent the last few hours working up her courage to confess to Seyoon. Seeing Guerin, the obstacle she perceived between her and Seyoon, she stepped back but couldn't hide a hateful expression.

The animosity was not lost on Guerin, who proceeded to politely bow and introduce herself. Eunkyung barely inclined her head in response. Guerin let her gaze linger almost condescendingly on Eunkyung, her annoyance poorly hidden before she turned fully to Seyoon, "Are you ready to go?" She asked.

"One moment." He reached for Guerin's hand, the turned to Eunkyung, "My light wasn't on when I met Guerin. But meeting her changed that." Guerin looked at him, baffled by his words and sure that her language skills were failing her. He continued, "I don't expect anyone to understand. I don't need them to. Least of all you." Eunkyung's expression became hurt and shocked but he wasn't done, "Our relationship has been professional until now. It's clear to me that it can't continue. I'll speak with Kim Hyeim so you won't need to be bothered by my presence anymore. It's been nice working with you, you've done well." He bowed politely to her form as she was frozen in surprise.

"Are you serious? Her??" Eunkyung spat, recovering enough to be angry. Guerin raised her eyebrows but Seyoon spoke.

"You have been inappropriate this entire time and I've been patient. You are about to cross the line." His cold expression was unfamiliar and scary, even Guerin looked to him in surprise, "At this point you will be leaving with a good recommendation. I suggest you don't throw that away."

Eunkyung took a step backward, paused and looked at him in shock. She seemed to debate saying something, threw a last disgusted expression at Guerin then turned to leave, angry tears in her eyes. The pair watched her leave. As soon as the doors closed behind her, Seyoon pulled Guerin into him hugging her close. Guerin was temporarily lost for words. She knew she had been insulted but the interaction had been confusing, so her anger was curbed by curiosity, and embracing Seyoon who held her so tenderly helped abate the strong negative emotions she felt.

"What just happened?" She asked.

"She's not important. She was wrong." He rested his head against hers, trying to calm himself.

"Will you tell me more later?" She asked, snesing he might be too worked up now to get into details. He nodded into her. After a moment he relaxed and changed the subject.

"So what was your surprise?" He asked.

"Oh... well I hope this cheers you up..." she pulled away from him and reached down to a crate she had set behind her protectively out of habit. Opening the door a white fluffy cloud of a creature pushed out, wagging a happy tail.

Seyoon dissolved.

[hookedonapirate]

To Play the Game (and win your heart)

Summary: Some people would call it a job, but to Emma and her sister, Milah, it’s a game of the heart. Play by the rules and you’ll never get hurt.

Whatever you call swindling wealthy men out of their money, this con-artist duo has it down to a tee. Milah sets up an available, rich man and gets him to marry her. Emma seduces and lures the husband into having an affair so he’ll get caught in the act. He then loses his money in the ensuing divorce.

The sisters wear a coat of armor around their hearts to keep them intact, but when they set their sights on their next mark, professional golfer Killian “Hook” Jones, Emma never imagined how hard the game could be and how easily her heart could be stolen—especially when she switches roles with Milah and becomes the one exchanging vows with the gorgeous multi-millionaire. Heartbreakers AU.

Artwork by: @distant-rose​​

Rating: Mature for connivery, vixen behavior and sexual themes.

Content Warnings: This story deals with conning and manipulation and also mentions/includes children with various disabilities, and also .

Author’s Notes: Thank you @captainswanbigbang​​​ and all of the moderators for organizing the event and for all of your help throughout the process.

A huge shout out goes to @ilovemesomekillianjones​​​ for all of her help with this fic. She really kicked some butt while beta reading, and if not for her, this story would not be what it is.

Thank you @distant-rose​​ for stepping in as my artist. She is so talented and I can’t wait for everyone to see all of the art she has planned for this fic. She even made me a playlist for this story including Emma’s and Milah’s theme song, Homewrecker by Marina and the Diamonds, and some other great tracks that fit well with the theme of the fic.

Thank you @onceuponaprincessworld​​​ for all of her feedback and for her constant support and for letting me bounce ideas off of her during the process. Thank you @teamhook​​​ for her help and ideas with scenes I was struggling with.

There are 12 chapters, and I will be posting every Tuesday, so let me know if you would like to be tagged.

Ch 1 Ch 2 Ch 3 Ch 4

Also available on: AO3 FFnet

Artwork by @distant-rose

Ch 1 Art Ch 3 Art Ch 4 Art

Chapter 5: Let the Games Begin

~Rule #5: Play the crowd. When surrounded by strangers, take the opportunity to make eyes at a few of them to let your target know you can have any man you desire. Some may be turned off by the notion that they have competition, but a true competitor will either accept the challenge or find your obvious self-confidence attractive.~

“Emma! I’m so glad you could make it!” Mary Margaret greets exuberantly when Emma arrives at the golf course. It’s a perfect day to be on the green—warm and sunny without a cloud in sight.

Emma gives the woman a kind smile. “Thank you for inviting me as a volunteer. I’m honored to be a part of this fantastic event.”

“And we are happy to have you!” Mary Margaret is carrying a clipboard in one hand and grabbing Emma’s with the other as they start walking. “I will introduce you to the group you will be working with, but first thing’s first—are you single?”

Emma lifts a brow, eyeing her suspiciously. “Am I that transparent?”

The brunette laughs and shakes her head. “No, sorry, I was wondering because after the tournament, we’ll be holding a Date Auction where bachelorettes will be bid on for a date here at the country club. And I was wondering if you wanted to sign up? It’s basically a free dinner with some company.”

“Oh, I don't’ know…”

Mary Margaret stops and turns around, looking at her with pleading eyes. “Oh please, Emma. One woman dropped out at the last minute, so we need a replacement. As you know, it’s for a good cause. All of the proceeds go towards Hook’s foundation.”

Emma grimaces, not at all interested in being a doll one can bid on, nor having dinner with a rich snob who will undress her with his eyes the entire evening. However, when the bidder wins, Hook might get jealous when he sees her on a date with someone else, and the possibility of this intrigues Emma. Pondering whether she should or not, she thinks about what Milah would do and say about it, and makes her decision. “Okay, since it’s for a good cause, I'll do it. But I don’t have anything to wear, and I definitely can’t go on stage in this outfit.” Emma looks down at her sneakers, khaki shorts and tight blue tank top before looking up at Mary Margaret again.

The brunette grins and is practically jumping up and down. “Oh thank you, Emma! And don‘t worry about the outfit, just tell me your dress and shoe size and I‘ll do the rest.”

After writing down all the necessary information, Mary Margaret gives Emma a tour of the course, explaining the event in more detail. Each player has a pledge who has promised to sponsor a child of their choosing—a child they wish to see his or her dreams come true. The sponsors have also donated items to the raffle and would be bidding in the dating auction.

Hook’s agent goes on to explain the foundation and how it was born from a small group home for children who were living with developmental and physical disabilities and were isolated from society with no organized sports or socialized activities available to them. “Killian came to the kids offering these opportunities to them, along with a little hope and a lot of love. He wants nothing more than to help make these kids’ dreams come true.” Mary Margaret laughs a little, shaking her head at a thought. “Last Halloween, Ryan—one of the kids you’ll be working with—who was born with spinal muscular atrophy, wanted to be Captain Hook for Halloween because he always refers to Killian as the captain of the ship; he looks up to him and always says ‘I want to be just like Captain Hook’. So Killian had his wheelchair turned into a pirate ship.”

“Really?” Emma asks, thinking about that for a moment and starts putting the pieces together. “So, is this kid the reason why Killian named his yacht The Jolly Roger ?”

“Oh, yes. Ryan had suggested it when Killian was trying to think of a name for the new yacht. He wanted Killian to have his own Jolly Roger. How do you know about Killian’s boat anyway?” Mary Margaret asks suspiciously.

Crap.

“Umm... I don’t know, honestly, I think I heard it from someone at a bar or something. People talk a lot around here,” Emma laughs, trying to cover up the anxiety twisting in her stomach.

“They sure do,” the brunette agrees, and Emma sighs in relief as they approach a group of children. “Emma, this is the group you’ll be working with. Ryan over here, Chelsea, Hayley and Charly over there.”

“Charles,” the young boy corrects Mary Margaret—however he doesn’t look at her, and instead stares at Emma and smiles shyly, waving his fingers.

“There is also Anthony. He is Chelsea’s interpreter; he not only translates sign language, he also teaches her social and behavioral cues as well as management strategies for daily life, so eventually she won’t need any help.”

Emma greets the kids and shakes Anthony’s hand before she turns to Mary Margaret again, waiting for further instructions.

When Emma had accepted her offer, she didn't think about what this job would look like. Her primary goal at the time was to appear on Hook’s radar, begin her mission of collecting as much information as possible and to find ways to get close to him.

“You and your group can practice over there, and in an hour, the tournament will begin.” With that said, Mary Margaret hurries to a blonde man with a camera in his hands. Emma watches them kiss briefly before Mary Margaret slips back into manager mode and scurries off again.

Curious about who he is, Emma decides to store the question in the back of her mind for later and turns to her group.

“So, who wants to play some golf?”

$*$*$

“What do you think of her?” Killian’s eyes land on Emma, who is standing next to Ryan as he looks at the beautiful woman like he is looking directly at an angel. The young lad is confined to a wheelchair because of spinal muscular atrophy after being diagnosed at only ten months old; however, Killian has never seen a more self-confident kid before. Ryan smiles more than anyone Killian knows, he is eager to learn new things and is always the first who greets everyone and includes new people in every activity he is doing.

“I think she’s doing great. She’s a natural,” Mary Margaret answers as Killian studies the woman who haunts his dreams more and more every day.

“Aye,” Killian agrees, raising a brow. He’s been mesmerized by her since the moment he’d seen her, and is even more so as he sees how good she is with the kids.

When he hears clapping and cheering from the direction he was staring at just moments before, he looks up again and sees Emma beaming at Ryan.

“She is really great with the kids, isn’t she?” Mary Margaret suddenly asks. When her eyes meet his it’s she who raises a brow this time. “What is it, Killian?”

He shakes his head, averting his gaze to the scenery in front of him and watches Emma placing the ball in front of Ryan’s wheelchair, encouraging him to hit the ball again. When he does, another wave of cheers and applauds fill the air, and Killian smiles approvingly.

Emma walks to Hayley, a blind girl, and her friend Chelsea who is deaf. The two of them have the most beautiful friendship in Killian’s eyes. He had never imagined these two could be friends when he’d met them because a girl with no sight and a girl who can not hear is a combination which makes everyone scratch their head. But it works. Chelsea has someone with her who translates everything into sign language for her, however, Killian knows she is lip reading and is really good at it despite her young age. He can see she is concentrating on Hayley’s lips and not looking at her interpreter at all. This fact makes him smile.

He admires these young people who are able to cope with their disabilities so easily. Sometimes he forgets they are disabled at all; they are all so eager and enthusiastic, always giving their best and having fun together. But sometimes the dynamic between them doesn’t work without help. Chelsea’s and Hayley’s friendship only works when there is a third party who translates what Chelsea is saying. Because she isn’t able to speak well enough so that people can understand her, and Hayley is incapable of seeing her, a third party is essential. But neither of the girls has a problem with that. Killian often watches them interact as if they were two normal teenagers, talking about boys, school and other activities.

“Yay! Well done!” Emma’s chanting brings him back to reality once again.

His smile widens when he sees her standing behind Charles, a ten year old kid with autism who has a golf club in his hands. Killian watches as another ball is placed in front of Charles, and Emma wraps her arms around his little frame to help him hit the ball, which he does. Involuntarily, Killian thinks about when he was doing the same with her, and a shudder runs down his spine.

“Earth to Killian.” Mary Margaret’s amused voice makes him stop watching Emma and the kids, and instead he tries to concentrate on his manager. He slowly turns his head, his eyes glued to them as long as possible until he finally looks at Mary Margaret, seeing the amusement dancing in her eyes, matching the tone in her voice. “If you stare at her any harder you might drill a hole in her head.”

“I am not staring at her, I'm just seeing how she interacts with the children,” Killian starts to defend himself, but gives up quickly and sighs. “Alright alright, there is something about that woman which fascinates me. Maybe it’s her confident behavior, or maybe it’s how good she is with the kids. I don’t know.”

Now it’s Mary Margaret who is staring at Killian as she tilts her head—a dead giveaway that she’s thinking about possible answers and how to help him reach his goal (whatever it is this time).

Killian’s eyes trail back to Emma, who is helping Chelsea hit the ball. He can’t help himself, but this whole scene warms his heart. It seems he had entirely misunderstood Emma and had awoken this morning with a false impression of her, but who can blame him after how she has treated him thus far? He didn't take her as the kindest or most caring person at first. He’d thought maybe she was too stuck up to go on a date with him, or maybe if she did give in and let him take her out, he’d only end up with his heart broken. And he’d never expected her to work so well with the kids. Perhaps she actually is kind, she’s just not one to show who she truly is right off the bat.

“Well, why don’t you join the group and help her out a bit, and you two can—um—talk? The kids would love to see you.”

“Right. I could do that, but I think I need to check on something else beforehand,” he fibs, because he knows exactly what his agent’s intentions are, as innocent as she may seem.

“Like what?” Mary Margaret asks skittishly, and at the same time, Killian waves his hand in the air, greeting his friend Robin who shows up at the perfect moment.

“Locksley!”

$*$*$

Mary Margaret rolls her eyes, but inwardly she is already forming a plan to let Killian and Emma have a quiet moment for themselves. She can see Killian is bewitched by her, judging by the way he stares at her—the way he talks about her; she sees the fire in his eyes. It’s the same interest—no, the same passion —he normally shows during a competition.

Ignoring the men, Mary Margaret thinks about walking over to Emma and the kids, asking her if everything is okay, when suddenly an idea crosses her mind. She observes Emma looking in Killian’s direction, sees her smile at him and decides to take matters into her own hands.

“Hey, Robin, have you met Emma already?” Mary Margaret asks him with a mischievous grin, which grows bigger the moment she sees Killian’s shocked expression. “I would really like to introduce her to you. She is the one who is replacing Ariel tonight at the dinner auction.”

“She is?” Killian asks, perplexed and a tad too quickly to mask his eagerness to find the answer to his question. He swallows thickly, thinking about the implications.

Robin glances at him, surprised, while Mary Margaret suppresses a smile. She starts walking towards Emma and her group of kids, followed by the men.

Before she reaches them, David joins them, the camera now on his shoulder recording the walk to Emma and her group.

“Emma, how’s it going?” Mary Margaret asks when they approach.

“Everything's fine, I promise,” Emma assures with a small laugh.

“I had no doubts,” the brunette beams at her. “I was just wondering if you already knew Robin Locksley? He is married to the owner of the country club and is also one of the best golfers around.”

Emma shakes his hand, smiling at him. “Henry told me about you. You are his stepfather, aren’t you?”

Robin nods, grinning back at her. “That's right.”

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Locksley.”

“It’s Robin, lass, and it’s nice meeting you too. Mary Margaret was just telling us you will participate in the dinner auction later,” Robin remarks, offering a smirk. “Maybe I will try my luck and bid on a date with you.”

“Oi, mate! You are happily married,” Killian reminds him, a hint of jealousy in his tone. “Don’t let Regina hear that.”

“Oh come on, Hook, you only say that because you want to have her for yourself.”

Mary Margaret grins in success; she can’t tell who is blushing more—Emma who is trying to focus on the kids again, or Killian who is bashfully scratching behind his red tipped ear.

“We will have to wait and see who places the highest bid,” Mary Margaret chips in to avoid any awkward moments, and then looks at her husband, who is still recording the children. “Sweetie, can you lower the camera for two seconds? I want you to meet the volunteer I told you about.”

“This is her?” David does as he's asked and stops recording, lowering the camera to shake the other blonde’s hand.

“Emma, this is my husband, David. He’s the camera operator if you couldn’t already tell,” Mary Margaret introduces proudly.

“Ah, I figured you didn't normally go around kissing the camera crew,” Emma says with a smile and turns her eyes to David. “It's nice to meet the other half of the kind woman who invited me to volunteer at this wonderful event.”

“You too, Emma. And she is definitely the better half,” David remarks, winking at his wife.

“I tend to disagree,” Mary Margaret blushes at him; she could easily get lost in her husband's eyes, so she immediately shifts her focus to Killian, maintaining her professionalism. “Hook, didn’t you want to talk to the kids? I think this would be a great moment for David to record, right, honey?”

The blonde man smiles at her. “It’s good to collect some impressions of the preparation for the tournament, and having the owner of the foundation interacting with the children is a great idea. Also, having my lovely wife here who is organizing the whole event is an even better bonus.” He briefly presses his lips to hers before lifting the camera to his shoulder again.

“David!” Mary Margaret hisses, her cheeks flushed, but it’s evident on her face she is enjoying the little affection from her man. It’s not difficult to miss the uneasiness on Killian’s face, though, at the possible implications that he is hosting this event for publicity reasons. But, everyone here knows better. Mary Margaret can see how everyone admires him for his good heart—even Emma who doesn't know him very well.

She’s just glad she’d decided to not set up Killian on a date after he’d mentioned her over the phone the other day, hoping Emma would come to the event. However, she has to admit she feels guilty about signing Emma up for the auction in hopes that Killian would become jealous and take matters into his own hands, but she has a feeling these two will find a way to each other's hearts, even if it takes a little persuasion.

$*$*$

David films the interaction between Emma, Hook and the group for a while before Mary Margaret is off to go help with a problem somewhere else, taking David with her. Emma isn’t so sure there is an actual problem, but she would never call out her newfound friend, who also might be handy for her mission and for information about Hook. He and Robin have to leave a short time later, much to the dismay of the kids and Emma, although she would never admit that.

Emma tries to concentrate on her task, but her thoughts are already on the auction. She has no idea what to do or how to behave exactly. She isn’t even sure why she’d accepted Mary Margaret’s request. Was it to help her out? Was it to find a way of making Hook jealous? Robin’s comment makes her rethink the whole idea. She knows she already has a chance to have a date with Hook soon—all she has to do is say the word, but she’s starting to think whether signing up for the auction was a good idea or not. She hopes Hook will become jealous when he sees her with another man, but what if he doesn’t accept the challenge? What if he finds some other woman at dinner who demands his attention? And what will Milah really think about the whole situation? Emma wishes she could call her sister now for some advice.

She doesn’t want to make Milah angry with her decisions, but she also knows she has to make her own if she wants to be the lead in this game. Milah always knows what to do and how to make things happen, so why can’t Emma do it this time? Technically she’s already made her decision and now she has to live with the consequences. So why does this decision make her feel so nervous?

People are starting to arrive, so Emma suggests heading over to the clubhouse to eat something before the tournament starts. The kids start to hurry towards the clubhouse as Emma pushes Ryan’s wheelchair. He thanks her for the lovely day they’ve had so far, and Emma feels touched by his words; this is one thing she will never regret. Being with the kids, helping them and getting to know them better warms her heart. She cannot wait to watch the tournament, root for her group and enjoy the afternoon with them. She also hopes to gather some information about Hook while being here today, surrounded by people who know him better than she does.

While chewing on her grilled cheese sandwich, she tries to analyse her progress in seducing Hook. When she sees him chatting with a studious looking brunette, Emma pauses for a moment, suddenly remembering him asking her to be his date outside of Marco’s. Her mouth is still full when realization hits her hard. He won’t be alone at dinner. Emma is convinced Mary Margaret didn't allow him to show up alone, and has set this woman up as his date.

Emma’s stomach is in knots now, her appetite completely gone. She doesn’t want anyone else to be Killian’s date; she wants to be his date. The moment the thought crosses her mind, all of the blood drains from her face, and she feels ill. What’s happening here? Is she really falling for her target? No, she only feels this way because she is afraid someone else will snatch him up and ruin the con. She shouldn't be worried though. She enjoys a little competition. She's had lots of practice stealing men from Milah—the woman they saw as their wife—so Emma's certainly not worried about some rich, snobby twat.

But just to be safe, Emma finishes her sandwich and passes the two, hoping Killian will see her. She keeps her eyes forward, but when he doesn't say anything, she looks in his direction. Killian hasn't even noticed her presence, he’s still talking to the brunette and smiling. Emma suddenly feels like she can't breathe, thinking she has lost him. But she chooses not to give up, so she boldly makes her way over to her future husband. His gaze finally peels away from the woman, and his lips twitch into a small smirk as she approaches.

“Killian, I just wanted to wish you good luck on the event; I know it will be a complete success,” Emma says sweetly as she curls both hands around his arm, leaning in and kissing him on the cheek. Even with a quick, subtle gesture, she can hear his breath hitch at the contact.

“Thank you, love. I do hope so. And I'm glad you’re here.” He nods towards the woman in front of him, so Emma turns to face the brunette, looping her arm through his. “Emma, this is Regina Mills. She is the owner of the country club. Regina, this is Emma Swan. She is one of our volunteers for the day.”

Emma is relieved as she shakes the woman's hand with her free one. “It’s very nice to meet you.”

“You too,” Regina says, eyeing her suspiciously. “I haven't seen you around here. Are you new in town?”

“Yeah, I’m from Boston.”

Regina’s already high brows curve upward, expressing her curiosity. “Well, you’re a long way from home, then. What brings you here?”

“I just needed a fresh start,” Emma assures a bit nervously. She’s no longer worried about her being with Killian because she knows Regina is married to Robin, but this woman seems very intense, and Emma has an inkling she does not want to be on her bad side.

Regina’s eyes widen in realization. “Right, you’re the new member my son had mentioned.”

“Yeah, that’s right,” Emma says with a polite smile.

“Alright, I think that’s enough interrogation, Regina,” Killian says a bit sternly. “We want her here, not to scare her off.”

Regina’s lips finally break out into a friendly smile. “My apologies, Miss Swan. Didn’t mean to pry. I’ll leave you to it. Again it was nice meeting you.” With those words said, she walks away leaving Emma with Killian as she keeps an eye on the children sitting at the table across the room.

“I’m sorry about her, love. She does that with all the newcomers.”

Emma swallows thickly, hoping this woman isn't someone she has to worry about ruining her plans, but she chooses to shrug it off. “It’s fine. I have nothing to hide,” she says, and Killian looks at her with a small smile.

“Oh, I think you do.”

Emma's eyes widen at that. Does he know what she's planning? Shit! She's completely screwed! “You do?”

Killian nods with certainty, and Emma swallows thickly, bracing herself for the worst. “Aye, I think you prefer to be a bit reserved,” he concurs, wagging a flirty brow, “which is good because I do enjoy a little mystery.”

With a breath of relief, Emma is smiling uncontrollably and rolling her eyes. “That’s good because I’m not one to give away all of my secrets at once. Not that I care about what you enjoy.”

Unconvinced, Killian bites his bottom lip, amusement dancing in his eyes. “I’m not so sure about that. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were jealous when you came over here claiming me as yours.”

Emma blushes and tears her eyes away, watching the kids. “I was not jealous.”

“Oh really? Then why can't you look me in the eye when you say it?” he teases.

Emma laughs and shakes her head, returning her gaze to him. “Not saying I was, but if I were, would that scare you away?”

Killian shrugs and looks like he has to mull over the possible answer for a moment before leaning in and whispering in her ear, “I’m not running, now am I?”

The sound of his deep, silky accent vibrates in her ear, shooting down her spine. She tilts her head slightly, just enough so her cheek brushes against the sharp stubble on his face and she whispers back, “Good, because maybe I was a little jealous. You told me Mary Margaret was going to pressure you into procuring a date, so I thought Regina was her.”

“Well surprisingly, my agent let me off the hook this time,” Killian clarifies. “So, no date to speak of.”

Emma sighs in relief, never tearing her eyes from his. In all honesty, she enjoys being on his arm like this, enjoys the heat between them, but almost as soon as it’s there, they have to seperate.

“Killian, the ceremony is about to begin,” Mary Margaret informs him when she approaches with a soft smirk, seeing how close they are.

“I’m right behind you,” he assures his agent before reverting his soft, blue eyes to Emma, “but make no mistake… this is not me running away.” He pulls his arm away and lifts her hand to confirm his statement with a gentle kiss on the back of her knuckles, making Emma shudder, the entirety of her skin igniting with goosebumps. Killian steps back, his cheeks painted with blush as he slowly releases her hand and gets one last glimpse of her before turning and walking away.

Emma watches him, her mouth hung open, surprised she’s not a puddle of liquid on the floor right now.

The opening ceremony begins and Killian gives the audience a fantastic speech before the tournament. Emma easily sees he’d started the foundation out of the kindness of his heart and not for publicity. She can see it in his eyes when he speaks about these young people and how they have changed his life. Once again her conscience is gripped with guilt. How can she even think of ripping a man’s heart to pieces when his heart is so full of love and warmth and passion? But perhaps he is strong willed. Emma has a feeling this man can overcome anything. He’s an athlete and he wouldn’t be one of the best golfers in the world if he didn’t know how to handle his shit.

Emma guides the children to their position for the tee off when it's time for the tournament to begin. She's a bit nervous with the crowds and cameras, especially when she sees a spectator who keeps staring at her, uninterested in the children or how well they're playing, only her. He’s tall and lanky and dressed obnoxiously with a flat cap, a bright yellow polo shirt, an ugly sweater vest and plaid pants. Every time Emma moves to the next hole with the children, he is following and observing her. She starts to feel uneasy under his gaze, so instead, she keeps her focus on the children.

She listens to Hayley talking, when it’s not her turn, about Killian and how she thinks he may look depending on his voice and scent, his behavior around them and everything she’s heard about him so far. She smiles when Chelsea joins her, using signing and her interpreter to describe how he looks. She mentions he has pretty lips and is very handsome, and they both snicker to themselves. Emma really tries to concentrate on Charles, who’s trying to get the ball in the hole, but now she is too distracted by the words of the girls and their effect on her.

Before Emma had arrived at the tournament, she didn’t really expect to enjoy herself. Or at least she hadn’t expected to enjoy herself with the kids. But she has to admit, interacting with them and helping them has turned out to be very rewarding. In fact, by the end of the tournament, Emma is sad to say goodbye.

“Bye, Emma. Will we see you again?” Charles asks hopefully, and Emma smiles and nods her head.

“I hope so.” She watches as her group files into the bus, Ryan’s wheelchair being lifted into the back, and she waves at the other kids as they look out the windows and wave back at her.

“The children really like you, don’t they?” Mary Margaret’s voice is heard from behind, and Emma turns around holding a small smile.

“You think so? I know they have really grown on me,” Emma admits honestly, and it feels good to tell such a wonderful truth. “And they all did a fantastic job today.”

“Perhaps you would be a good fit as a volunteer at the activity center?”

“It’s certainly something to think about,” Emma replies, and she doesn’t think it’s such a bad idea. She really did enjoy working with the children, and there’s something pulling at her gut telling her she should back out of this whole thing, but she doesn’t want to. She wants to help these children and spend time with them, and she wants to get close to Killian and be a part of his life.

As they start walking towards the clubhouse, Emma sees the same man from earlier who is now chatting with another sponsor and is still watching her. She had earlier learned his name is Oscar and he was Chelsea's pledge; he had donated money to watch her play, which sickened Emma a bit, because the man is oozing with creepy vibrations.

“What's the deal with him?” Emma asks Mary Margaret as she makes a subtle gesture towards him.

“Oscar? Oh, don't pay attention to him. He’s a former PGA Player of the Year champion and jealous of Killian because he’s broken numerous golf records and has had more wins and more success. Oscar only showed up to this event to try and prove to Killian he is the better man, but no one actually buys his facade. He's only here hoping Killian will fail somehow, but he's severely delusional,” Mary Margaret shakes her head. “We only allowed him to attend because he promised to donate a considerable amount of money to the organization.”

“Ah, I see.” Emma studies him carefully as he walks away.

“Well, I don’t know about you, but I’m in need of a shower and a change of clothes.”

“Me too,” Emma agrees. She is sweating from the heat, her clothes clinging to her skin, and she feels gross and certainly not prepared to stand on stage and attend a fancy dinner with rich folks.

When the two go inside, she is greeted by Henry in the lobby, and the big square gift box he’s holding, which is wrapped in a bright blue bow.

Arching a brow, Emma gapes at it suspiciously. “What’s this?”

“Not sure. I guess you’ll have to see for yourself,” Henry replies with a shrug. “But I’ll give you a hint—it’s from someone who was informed you were in need of an outfit for the evening.”

Eyeing the small envelope taped to the box, she very skittishly looks up and glances between Henry and Mary Margaret whose smiles are both dripping with mischief. Removing the card from the envelope, she reads the note.

Swan,

You helped me with my attire for the evening, now I am helping you with yours. Hope you like the dress. See you tonight.

—Killian Jones

Emma blushes as she lifts her gaze, and sees the two still staring at her.

“See? I told you not to worry,” Mary Margaret says and comes over, linking her arm with Emma’s. “Now that we have that taken care of, let me show you to the locker rooms.”

Tagging: @mayquita @freakassbuthunter @libbcoxnet-blog @goldengirlschildhood @courtorderedcake @florenzu @marcella2727  @veryverynotgood @i-would-cross-realms-4-her @hooklineandswan @wonderfullycarriedaway @0swald-c0bblep0t @cs-forlife @andiirivera @snotelek @capswantrue @nikkiemms @capswantrue @swansong12 @lg-campbell @lassluna @followbatb @harshini01 @betchesgetshitdone @coliferoncer @ultraluckycatnd @resident-of-storybrooke @kinkyhiddlesgirl @teamhook​

[softboywriting]

Honey| Werewolf!Shawn One Shot

It’s too late for me to properly title this. But I did it. Pleaseeeeee enjoy. tw:violence/fighting tw:choking/injury (by OC not Shawn)

Btw in this AU werewolves are a part of everyday society.

Summary: Shawn is your werewolf roommate.

Word count: 1,698

You knew what Shawn was when you met him. You could tell by the way he stood tall, his eyes just too golden brown for any normal guy. His skin was perfect, he was ripped but ate like a professional in an eating competition. Not that he didn’t work out, because he very obviously did, it was just that the amount of food and calories he consumed was alarming and if consumed by anyone else, would have made them gain weight rapidly. No, Shawn was no average run of the mill guy with a cheeky smile and a beautiful voice. He was a werewolf.

Your best friend, Maya, was hesitant to let him move into the flat with the two of you. She thought he could be dangerous or bring some unwanted trouble, but she was wrong. Shawn was sweet, caring and considerate of their space. He hardly ever left his dishes undone, he cleaned up the bathroom after himself and even took on the responsibility of cleaning the living room once a week. Overall he was the perfect roommate.

The two of you got close, staying up together while he worked on music and you studied for your upcoming tests and did homework. He was funny, he made you laugh with his stupid jokes and dumb impressions and he always went to you for advice about his song lyrics. He loved to call you Honey when he got real tired and you loved hearing him say it. The two of you never dated, never went beyond the talking and late night bonding. It just never came up.

However, there was thing about him that bothered you. Shawn would disappear for a week every month. He wouldn’t say he was leaving or when he would be back. He would just be gone and he would show up 5 to 7 days later as if nothing happened. You asked him once and he laughed and said it was a werewolf thing. You didn’t push for details.

It was almost that time of the month. In fact, you look at a calendar, it was three days after when he usually ditches. Your day started like normal, wake up, bathroom, breakfast. It’s while you're munching on a bagel that you hear a loud groan from Shawn’s room. You peek down the hall but ultimately decide to mind your business.

Ten minutes later Shawn is all but yelling. You drop the mug you were washing in the sink and run to his room. His door is locked and you bang on it. “Shawn?! Shawn?! Is everything okay? Why are you yelling?!”

Shawn doesn’t answer, per say. He makes a loud series of growls and throaty yells. It sounds like he is in pain and you don’t know what to do. You go for your phone, hands shaking as you scroll through your contacts to get ahold of your friend Lilly. Her boyfriend, Charlie, was a werewolf and he and Shawn worked together and hung out sometimes. They were on vacation in New York so you really hoped she would pick up. After a few rings Lilly picks up. “Lilly, hey it's me, yeah i’m fine. Listen I need to talk to Charlie, is he with you?”

Charlie picks up the phone and sounds like he’s just woken up. “Yeah? What’s wrong? Shawn alright?”

“No. Something is happening and I can’t get in his room. H-he’s yelling and making pained noises.” You hold the phone close to Shawn’s bedroom door. “Can you hear him?”

“You need to leave the house. Shawn is not stable right now. Can you go anywhere for a few days?” Charlie sounds dead serious and you’re starting to feel sick to your stomach.

“I don’t have anywhere to stay!” You’re racking your brain trying to think of anyone you could just drop in on. Your parents were two states away, your brother was stationed in Turkey with the Army for the fall. Maya wasn’t even there to help you find a place because she was on a work trip in LA.

“Listen, listen to me! You have to leave! Shawn could hurt you!” Charlie’s cool serious tone was now breaking. His voice shaking at the thought of what could happen to you. “Please, grab what you need and go check into a hotel!”

You hang up and go to grab a backpack from your room. You start shoving in clothes, some stuff off your dresser, your purse, a pair of shoes and your laptop. Shawn is still yelling, his voice sounding strained and it hurts you just to hear it. “Shawn I’m leaving! I’m sorry, Charlie said I should go!” you yell through the door, doubting he would even hear you. However at the mention of Charlie he gets louder and you hear something hit the door. You jump back with a yelp.

There is a loud thumping from the living room followed by what sounds like the front door being broken into. You’re torn between backing into your room and hiding, and finding out what that non Shawn related thumping was. In the end it doesn’t matter because you find out what made the noise before you have time to take three steps backward. A tall guy with olive skin, dark hair and iridescent blue eyes was making his way toward you.

“Get out of my house!” you shout at him, backing against the wall between Shawn’s room and the bathroom. The guy doesn’t stop, he doesn’t seem to care you’ve spoken. He picks up the pace and puts his hand around your throat as soon as he gets to you. You’re paralysed with fear, this man is going to kill you or eat you, which one you didn’t know. You cough, his hand tightening against your throat. It hurts, you grab at his wrist to stop him but it’s no use.

As you start to see dark spots in your vision, you hear a loud noise that can only be equated to taking a wall out with a large sledgehammer. Suddenly there is no longer a hand around your throat and you are gasping for air. You collapse to the floor, hands going to your neck as you struggle to get oxygen in. As your vision becomes less spotty, you hear another loud thump followed by the sound of splintering wood. Looking up, you can see the large intruder laying against the now badly dented wall across from you, body limp and eyes closed.

Shawn is standing between the two of you, chest heaving. He is shirtless, wearing only a pair of gym shorts and no socks or shoes. He looks down at you, and you see his eyes are glowing golden brown. His face is scrunched up in a snarl that looks like something out of a book of nightmares and his usually beautiful straight white teeth have large protruding fangs.

“S-shawn...please...” you don’t know what to say. Don’t eat me? Don’t kill me? You’re sure you’re going to die. Charlie said Shawn wasn’t stable, wasn’t himself. Rationally you knew you wouldn’t outrun a werewolf, you couldn’t fight one off either. You’re scared, heart in your throat. You close your eyes, duck your head against your knees and await the worst. You feel Shawn step closer. Heat is radiating off him and against your legs.

The next thing you know, his arms are around you. He’s pressing his face into your shoulder and breathing deep. “Honey?” he says, his voice strained, completely wrecked from the yelling and growling before. He pulls your arms away from your knees and gets his arms around your chest, hauling you forward onto his lap. He presses his face hard into the crook of your neck. “You smell so good, Honey.”

Tentatively, you put your hands on his back and he holds you closer. “Shawn...is that man...?” you ask, eyes trained on the man slumped just a few feet away.

Shawn shakes his head and slides his hands under your butt. “Wrap your legs around me,” he says, face still against your neck. You do as he says and he shifts a bit so he can get up while holding you against him. He carries you effortlessly to your bedroom, kicking the door closed behind him and dropping down onto the bed with you. Shawn is huge as he holds himself up over you, his eyes a less prominent golden brown now and his face returned to it’s normal way of being.

“What happened out there?”

“He wanted to hurt you, to hurt me. I couldn’t let that happen.”

You blink a few times, really trying to take in what has happened. “Shawn I don’t understand why he would want to hurt me I don’t even-” Shawn leans down and kisses you. His lips are hot and he’s....good lord...he is actually purring. It’s really the only way you can describe the low rumble coming from his chest, vibrating through his whole body.

“You smell like me,” he says in barely a whisper. “I’ve been leaving every month to protect you.”

You lick your lower lip, mind reeling from the kiss. “W-why not just move out?”

Shawn laughs, winces at his sore throat and rolls to lay beside you. “Because I love you. I’ve loved you for so damn long.” He rolls to press his face back to your neck. “Because I knew when I met you, when I smelled you, that I could never leave you again.”

It’s a lot to take in. You’d had feelings for Shawn for a while, but never acted on them because he never acted on them either. To learn he’s been in love with you, pining away while you came to his bedroom every night and talked, it was unreal. You think about it for a second and come to the conclusion that you’ve loved him for a long time too. “Shawn?”

“Yes?” he answers, breath warm on your skin.

“What do I smell like?”

He pulls away and props himself up on his elbow and looks down at you, “You smell like honey.”