#thread: rae1 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

singwithflynn · 4 months

Text

If Flynn thought that the beating he'd taken on his way out of the city, just a few short months ago, had been bad, he hadn't quite accounted for the fresh, mottled bruises that coloured his skin now that he was returning. Flynn was no stranger to having his ass kicked, but the fact that the same assholes had managed to get the jump on him not once, not twice, but three times tended to sting a little. If the whole thing weren’t such a sorry state of affairs, he was sure Wardo would be ripping into him endlessly for letting his guard down so drastically. And honestly, he’d have been right to do so – that was, if Flynn’s buddy even had the faintest clue where he was or what had happened to him.

Rae's mom had made quick work of setting her goons on Flynn, driving him out of town and away from her most prized possession. And Flynn had shamefully abided by her demands, desperate to protect the girl of his dreams from being exposed to the violence he'd been laid victim to. He hadn't had time to tell Rae he was leaving, nor to explain why, but it was for the best. He figured if it kept her safe, what should it matter? Sure, she might miss him to begin with, but he'd already laid the foundations for her getting over... whatever it was they’d had. It had broken his heart to know that Rae couldn't see sense, that she was so hung up on the love and trust she had in that evil, wretched ghoul that claimed to be her mother, but undoing such a long-lasting cycle of abuse and manipulation would take more than some poorly handled pleading on his part. Things had gotten out of hand; He'd raised his voice, they'd fought, and the last the two of them had seen of one another had left a sour taste in his mouth.

Truthfully, he'd spent the past few months avoiding frantic texts and calls from everybody he knew - Rae included. Even despite their last encounter, she still maintained the kindness that he so loved about her and had still been eager to know that he was safe and alright. He felt terrible for ignoring everybody and he knew that his friends were just concerned for his safety, but he hadn't seen the point in responding. What would he tell them? That he'd had his ass handed to him, several times over, and had been strong-armed into disappearing and staying quiet? That would kinda defeat the whole point of the agreement he'd struck when leaving, so he figured silence was the best way forward.

But he'd been stuck, lonely, and missing Rae as though she were an extension of his very being - and, honestly, in a lot of ways she was. She'd gotten stuck under his skin in the most visceral, unavoidable way imaginable; Rae Sunne had planted a seed inside his chest that had grown and grown, bright and shining as its roots tangled themselves around his heart and refused to let go. Eventually, he’d gotten into touch with Noah – the only person he’d dared to reach out to, all too aware the runaway roadie might have some understanding of his predicament, at the very least – and had been crashing in whatever hotels the Shattered Diamonds appeared to be putting him up in. It didn’t seem to matter to Noah, who was stumbling into a different person’s room every night regardless, with no care as to whether Flynn was making himself at home beneath his sheets or not, and it meant a safe space for Flynn to hide away.

The tour seemed to have edged ever close to New York with each venue, though, and even with Flynn keeping his head down, stowed away at the back of the bus in Noah’s bunk and keeping to himself, he knew it was only a matter of time before the past caught back up to him. He missed his friends, his shitty apartment that rarely had running water, and he missed her.

It had been a week since he’d finally arrived back in the city, using Noah and Keeley’s apartment as his own personal hideaway, but he’d known that sooner or later he’d need to suck it up and face the music.

The first attempt he’d made an attempt at going to see Rae, he’d fucked up. He’d made the rookie error of heading to her apartment – he hoped, against all logic, that Katie might answer the door instead. Her friendly roommate – who always seemed to have great time for Flynn, despite the ups and downs he’d gone through with her best friend – hadn't even been given the opportunity to slam the door in his face. The moment he’d arrived at the apartment block, he’d felt the cold, familiar press of metal to his throat, a knife thrust in his face as he was forcibly dragged down a dark alleyway, clumsy hands shoving him against a wall. Thankfully, the knife had been nothing more than a means to frighten him, its sharp edges never making contact. Flynn hadn’t been so lucky as for that to have been the end of the encounter, though, and had been told – not for the first time – to stay away from the girl, with various punches and kicks to the face and ribs emphasising the demand. He’d dragged himself, bleeding and achey, back to Noah’s apartment, and had barely left his couch in the days since.

As he hovered outside of the entrance to A Novel Idea now, he hesitated. Maybe Rae didn't want to see him again? Maybe their time apart had given her further cause to push him away, to see the truth of who he really was - a lowlife, good for nothing loser who wasn't good enough for her. Hell, he had no doubt in his mind her mother had likely poisoned her further in that time, lying and manipulating the blonde.

But in the end, none of that mattered to Flynn.

Nothing felt more important to him now than protecting Rae, and while he could lie to himself and insist that staying away was his way of doing just that, he knew it wasn’t the truth. The time would eventually come when someone else – somebody new, somebody kinder, better looking, and far more deserving of Rae – would come along and catch her eye, see through her mother’s lies, and start the cycle all over again. Nothing would keep her safe other than for her to be away from that dreaded woman, and Flynn would let them beat him to an inch of his life if he had to. She deserved the truth.

With his hood firmly over his head, shielding customers from the unsightly view of his broken, bruised skin, his signature denim jacket wrapped firmly over the hoodie, he kept his head low as he sidled into the coffee shop. He knew that Rae still worked there – he'd be lying if he said he hadn’t been religiously following her every instagram update, his chest aching at the sight of her wide smile as she cosied up next to people she’d never seen before.

Glancing up at his surroundings, Flynn frowned. The store that he thought he’d known so well had undergone quite the makeover, with paper hearts dangling from the ceilings, flowers blooming in every corner, a harsh pink glow to the business as light bounced off the array of new decor that seemed to fill the space. He shoved his confusion aside and focused on the matter at hand, his heart stilling in his chest as he glanced up, gaze landing on Rae.

She was deep in conversation with somebody – an older gentleman that Flynn didn’t quite recognise – and she looked... happy. She was laughing with him, a veritable glow surrounding her as always seemed to be the case, and for a moment Flynn wondered if he’d made a mistake coming here, disturbing her peace. But he couldn’t turn back now, not when he’d come so far.

Closing in on the counter, a chalkboard full of puns sat square on the wall, serving as their backdrop. Drinks such as You Mocha Me Crazy and I Love You A Latte were scrawled on the board, perfect doodles surrounding each pun that he knew Rae must be responsible for. Anxious, he shoved his hands into the front pocket of his hoodie, and cleared his throat, by way of announcing his arrival.

The older man was the first to look up, attention caught immediately, and Flynn immediately felt himself undeserving of the smile he directed his way. The full weight of it seemed to knock the air from his lungs, and he couldn’t help but feel that Rae was surrounded by exactly the perfect people for her.

“Uh, hey. Can I get a... Don’t Worry, Be Frappe-y, and also a side of wholly undeserved forgiveness?” Flynn asked, tugging his hood down, and smiling sheepishly across the counter. The man looked confused now, his brow arched in askance, but Flynn only had eyes for Rae.

#thread: rae1 #ft. rae

3 notes · View notes

daydreambxliever · 7 years

Text

The diner was quiet as Joy finished wiping up the counter. In all honesty, she was looking for things to do that would take up time; the diner was almost empty and she’d gotten through most of the bits and bobs Patricia had set for her to do. She didn’t want to go back to an empty apartment, Fionn having texted to say he had taken Lassie out to the park and she didn’t really want to interrupt. She knew if she turned up to the park, he would feel bad that he couldn’t be more playful with her and the last thing she wanted was to inadvertently upset him. Besides, taking Lassie alone might improve his confidence with walking and she could deal with a couple of bored hours if that was the outcome.

Patricia was busy baking the afternoon’s batch of delights and the other waitresses, who Joy didn’t speak much to, were all busy with the few customers they had in the pre-lunch hour. Augusta and Riley were both swamped with work, which left Joy with a free afternoon alone with her thoughts, a place she generally avoided.

The diner door swung open, letting in a gust of summer breeze with it, and a young girl wandered in. Joy recognised her immediately; she was fairly certain her name began with an R - Rachel? - and she’d seen her around the college campus. Until a week or so ago, she’d had long blonde hair that Joy had admired, instantly throwing up comparisons to her own where she as always fell short. Now it was chopped to her shoulders, framing her sweet face prettily; it was definitely a big change, but it looked absolutely stunning.

Remembering her promises to Patricia and Fionn to talk to more people and try to make friends, Joy watched the other student make her way to a booth. She had always seemed friendly, often animatedly chatting to a dark haired man as they strolled past, so maybe she would be a good first attempt at trying to make friends outside her small circle?

Squaring her shoulder, she picked up a menu and made her way nervously over to her window seat. It was actually Aggie’s section of the diner and Joy technically wasn’t a part of the table staff, but a hopeful glance at the waitress was met with a shrug that she took to mean she could take her job this time.

She made it to the end of the table, then froze as she looked at the back of the woman’s head, panicking about what to say. It was like all social etiquette had suddenly flown out of her brain; should she ask for her order? Or just say hi? She definitely didn’t envy the other girls’ this part of their job, much preferring her quiet time spent washing dishes and helping Patricia prepare ingredients for her pies. The girl turned to look at her and Joy bit the bullet.

Thrusting the menu out, with a slightly panicked smile, she blurted out: “I like your hair!”

#thread: rae1

4 notes · View notes