#watch sixteenth post a chapter tomorrow

[chrisrin]

The full illustration collection of all of @sixteenth-days ‘From the Archives’ fics to-date! This took me around a month to do all 26 of them. It was an incredibly fun challenge!

This series in placed in The Hermit Archives AU (which you can find more about @hermitarchive and on our Carrd!) 

(We also have a podfic being developed for this series of fanfics, so if it’s piqued your interest at all, check out our applications here!)

[stubbornness-and-spite]

the ink on our skin and the blood in our hearts (are intertwined): Chapter 2

first chapter | next chapter

Read on AO3

Notes: I didn’t want to rewrite scenes that were essentially the same as canon just with a little bit of soulmate au mixed in, so I only wrote in the scenes that were either different or we didn’t see them in canon to begin with. Any scenes I left out happened basically the same as canon. In this universe, soulmates share any ink or marks on their skin after the youngest soulmate turns 16. Makeup companies design their products to not transmit through soulbonds. Next chapter gets into post-canon territory!

Warnings: swearing

Word Count: 2218

Chapter Summary:  something ends and something begins. they go back to east high and things change

Reblogs are greatly appreciated!

~

EJ POV

EJ and Nini’s summer flew by as they ended up performing as the leads in the camp musical. Nini’s album of pictures of Ricky was quickly overwhelmed by pictures of EJ and EJ thought that if being with Nini was how people felt with their soulmates then there might be something to it after all because he would do anything to stay by her side.

But as with all good things, summer comes to an end, and EJ and Nini made their way back to East High. They auditioned for the musical together and EJ knew they were going to be a perfect Troy and Gabriella. As annoying as Nini’s ex popping up at auditions was, it didn’t matter, because Nini had picked him and they were going to be the best onstage couple East High had seen since Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens.

~

Chad. He got Chad. He wouldn’t have even been that mad if it wasn’t “Never Done Theater Before” Ricky fucking Bowen who got cast as Troy. He wasn’t just the lead, he was also opposite Nini’s Gabriella. Did Ricky and Nini really have more chemistry than he and Nini did? Was their showmance going to ruin his?

No. EJ smirked at his reflection in the bathroom mirror, straightened his jacket, and strode out with the confidence he deserved. He was Troy’s understudy and he could damn well get the role and even if he didn’t, the largest supporting male role wasn’t bad either. Of course, he was going to make sure everyone knew that he should have been the lead, but it was fine. He had a big part, and an amazing girlfriend. and nothing was going to get in the way of that, not even having to play the best friend to her ex.

(story continues under the cut)

~

Everything was fine. Everything was absolutely fine. He’d stolen Nini’s phone and gone through it and deleted a voicemail in a jealous panic. It was fine. He couldn’t say anything without making Ricky fucking Bowen look like the good guy. It was fine. Ricky fucking Bowen had thrown a basketball at his face. It was fine. He already had his shirt off so that the blood didn’t get on his shoulder and he was poking at his face, trying to figure out the fastest way to get it to stop bleeding.

“How's the lip?” EJ looked away from the mirror to see Ricky fucking Bowen looking at him and looking surprisingly guilty. EJ probably wouldn’t have looked that guilty if their positions were reversed. Yet another reason that “Never Done Theater Before But Somehow Got The Lead” Ricky fucking Bowen was better than him.

“All good,” EJ snapped.

Ricky sighed. “Listen, I don't know what happened out there. It was an accident.”

“Really?” EJ whipped around to face Ricky. “Because "infinity plus one" sounded pretty real.”

“That's not even a number,” Ricky mumbled.

“Do me a favor and stay away from me and Nini, okay?” EJ’s lip curled into an ugly sneer, but he didn’t care enough to smooth his expression back out. The only person who could see him was Ricky fucking Bowen and EJ didn’t give a shit what he thought.

“Excuse me?”

EJ scoffed. “Don't act like my best friend or her boyfriend. Just stop acting, period. Why can't you be real?”

Ricky looked like he was trying to diffuse EJ’s anger, but EJ had been stewing for weeks, and getting smacked in the face was the last straw. “I'm trying to make the best out of a bad situation-”

EJ cut him off. “Stop trying, Ricky." He let out a derisive laugh. "Don't try so hard! It's embarrassing.”

Ricky took a step back, finally looking a little defensive. “Dude. I'm just trying to say I'm sorry.”

“You want to apologize?” EJ growled. He felt a speck of spit fly past his lips and he snarled, moving forward like a cornered animal. “You can start with that thirsty voicemail you left for Nini. You broke her heart. She doesn't need to hear from you anymore.”

“What did you just say?”

EJ opened his mouth to fire something else back at Ricky, but his eyes caught on a dark mark on Ricky’s face, specifically his right upper lip. EJ’s hand drifted to his own right upper lip and traced the spot where the blood had marked his face the way he’d been so careful to keep from happening for two years. His face went slack. His shoulders dropped. Every bit of breath in him fell out.

“Just go home, Ricky.”

Fuck.

Fuck.

~

EJ went to Ashlynn’s house instead of his after rehearsal, actually knocking on the door and waiting to be let in for once.

“EJ!” Ashlynn greeted him cheerfully. “Why are you knock-” she stopped, taking him in. “You’re shaking. EJ, what’s wrong?”

“I found my soulmate,” EJ whispered, staring at the ground. “Ash, I found my soulmate.”

“Oh my god,” Ashlynn’s eyes went wide and she gaped at EJ.  After a second, she cleared her throat. “Come inside, come on.” She dragged him to her room and sat him down on her bed. EJ stared at her helplessly. “Do you want to tell me who it is?” she asked. “I can just give you some company if you don’t. Also, less important, what happened to your lip?”

EJ scoffed. “Fortunately the answer to both questions is the same: Ricky fucking Bowen.”

“Oh, EJ,” Ashlynn sighed, sitting down next to him. “What are you going to do?”

EJ shook his head. “Nothing. He doesn’t know. He didn’t see the mark on his lip and I got the blood off mine before he could. I said I wasn’t going to let soulmates get in the way of who I wanted to date and I meant it.”

“He’s going to find out, EJ.”

“How?” EJ snapped. “How is he going to find out, Ashlynn? He’s almost seventeen and he thinks he doesn’t have a soulmate. The stage makeup is designed to not transmit through soulmate bonds. After the musical, we never have to talk to each other again. How is he going to know that I’m his soulmate?”

“The universe finds a way,” Ashlynn said. “It always finds a way.”

“Not for me,” EJ said firmly. “I don’t care if I’m playing against the universe, I play to win and I’m not losing twice over to Ricky fucking Bowen.”

Ashlynn shook her head and sighed. “I’m not doing this. Come talk to me if you want to have an actual emotional discussion.” She stood up and walked to the door, pausing as if giving EJ a chance to change his mind.

“Can I sleep on the couch?” he asked. “I really don’t feel like going home.”

Ashlynn just shook her head again. “Do whatever, EJ.”

~

Ricky POV

For all that went wrong with High School Musical, Ricky still loved it so much. He finally understood why Nini loved musicals so much. He didn’t think he was going to start watching or listening to them by himself, but he wasn’t going to complain if the rest of the theater kids did while they were all hanging out. He was a theater kid now and he liked it.

He wandered around the makeshift backstage area looking for Nini. Eventually, he found her in one of the rooms they’d turned into a small dressing room.

“Hey! There you are!”

“Hey!”

Ricky zoned out a little while they talked, just saying anything to keep the conversation going. Nini was amazing, seriously amazing. He’d gotten in his own head about soulmates, but as he had learned with his parents, soulmates weren’t the be-all and end-all of relationships. Being happy was more important. The conversation was stilted and awkward but it was still one of the longest conversations they’d had since before the summer started. Nini started to leave and Ricky realized that he could either take a chance now or let Nini go for real.

“I love you!” he blurted out. “I’ve loved you since the first time we learned about soulmates in second grade and I looked over at you because I knew that no matter what the universe said, you were my soulmate. I love you.” He took a shaky breath.

“And on your birthday, in your room, when you told me you loved me, I meant to say it. I meant to say it. I was so scared of what the marks on your skin meant but that didn’t mean that I didn’t love you. I've kicked myself every day since then because I didn't say it. Because I do. I love you.” Ricky balled his hands into fists to keep them from shaking.

“I've loved you since seventh grade when I made you ride in the front row of Demon's Destiny at Six Flags, and you told me you sometimes get a little seasick on roller coasters, and I said, Come on, live a little."

“I remember,” Nini murmured.

Ricky laughed breathlessly. “Yeah. And then I puked all over your shoes and you didn't even make me feel bad about it. No. You just said-”

“No worries,” Nini remembered. “I've been wanting to get rid of these shoes for a while.”

Ricky’s smile grew. “Yeah, because you outgrew them. The thing is,” he shook his head. “I never outgrew you. I've loved you since before I knew the meaning of the word. And I don't really know what happens tomorrow, or in two minutes when we walk out that door. All I know is: I don’t care whose ink is on your skin or if someday someone else's is on mine. I don’t care. I want you. I choose you. I’m not ready for this to be over. I’m not ready for us to be over.” He shook his head fondly. “And if that means doing another musical, then fine.”

“I get to pick the musical,” Nini said, her voice slightly choked up and her eyes damp.

Ricky laughed. “Fine. That's fine. It's all fine.” He sobered, but his smile didn’t fall. “I just don’t want this to be just a showmance. I want it to be real. I want to be the guy you deserved on your sixteenth birthday when I fucked up the best thing that ever happened to me. I want a chance to prove to you that I can be that guy.”

“Ricky?” Nini asked suddenly. “You know in musicals when people burst into song when they've run out of things to say?”

“Yeah?”

“Sometimes it's easier to just kiss.”

And they did. Ricky pulled away for a moment to just look at her and bask in how absolutely lucky he was before kissing her again.

Nini pulled away after a minute. “Hey, wait,” she said. She reached into her bag and pulled out a small box.

“What's this?” Ricky asked, having a hard time talking through his smile.

Nini rolled her eyes. “Open it.”

Ricky opened the box and saw an engraved dog tag on a chain. “To Freaky Callback Boy,” he read.

“This is nice,” he said, slipping the chain over his head. “I am a guy who wears necklaces now, apparently.” He laughed and reached for his own pocket, pulling out the box he’d put her gift in. “And I also feel less stupid for doing this.”

Nini smiled as she read the engraved guitar pick he’d gotten her. “To Freaky Math Girl. Of course.”

“There's a song, too,” Ricky admitted. “And this.” He pulled out a pen from his pocket. It was a pen designed to write on skin. “I was going to give it to you for your birthday, but I-”

“I know,” Nini said, cutting him off and keeping him from having to explain again. She took the pen. “Will you be mad if I don’t use it?”

Ricky shrugged. “Just try it the once,” he suggested. “For tradition.” Nini pulled off the cap with her teeth and drew a heart on the back of her hand. Ricky huffed a laugh and rolled his eyes as he dramatically looked at the back of his own hand, smiling at what he knew would be blank skin.

Ricky froze. His jaw dropped open and his eyes went wide. “What the fuck,” he whispered.

“What?” Nini asked, her smile frozen on her face. Wordlessly, Ricky turned his hand around to show Nini the heart on the back of it.

“I didn’t draw that,” Ricky said breathlessly.

Nini lifted up her hand so that the two hearts were next to each other and slowly drew a line on the back of Ricky’s hand. It faded into view on hers.

“You were wearing a shirt,” Nini muttered. “On my birthday. Maybe you just didn’t notice the ink.”

Ricky threw his head back and laughed. “I ran away from you, the best person in my life, because we didn’t think to check that my shoulder wasn’t stained too.”

“Kiss me again,” Nini blurted out. Ricky lunged forward and clutched her face as he heard her pen clatter to the floor and kissed her like his life depended on it.

“Knock, knock.” Ricky and Nini turned to see Kourtney grinning at them in the doorway. She turned to Nini. “Nini, your moms are asking for you, and I think your grandma wants pictures.”

“Got it,” Nini replied. She turned back to Ricky. “I should probably…” she gestured towards the door.

“Yeah,” Ricky said, distracted by her face.

“One more.”

~

taglist - let me know if you want to be added or removed! 

@after-nine-at-the-oasis

[trashpanda-remus]

One More Time With Feeling: Chapter One

So, I’m finally starting this thing up! I can’t tell if it’s moving too slow or too fast but I’m posting it before I can hate and delete it!

On AO3

Tagging: @icequeenoriginal and going back to get @athenashipsthings

WARNINGS: Language, mention of cancer, fear of death, tell me if I’m missing any

“Roman sighed, rolling his eyes at his screen. On it was Remus absolutely glowing, waving his left hand around and shrieking so loud he coughed. Beside him was Derrik, smiling as well and grabbing Remus’ hand. On both men’s hands were matching gold bands.

“I’m going to be a husband, y’all!!” Remus’ scream pushed through the speakers and Roman had to turn his phone off to regroup.

It wasn’t that Roman wasn’t happy for his brother, he was ecstatic that Remus had found somebody and all that, but he had to find out through a vlog? Three weeks later?

The King twins hardly spoke after they turned 20, but this was a huge life event and Remus was still too angry to give him a call?

The King twins had once been inseparable. Until they turned nineteen, when Remus drifted, fell into a crowd his brother wasn’t a fan of. College pulled them apart in a way high school hadn’t quite achieved. But that didn’t mean they didn’t care about one another.

The two hardly spoke, yes, but it wasn’t as though they hated one another - Roman at least expected a call. If it weren’t for his brother’s YouTube channel, would he have ever known?

Watching his brother laugh onscreen, his chest tightened. The duo looked happy; Derrik lighting up in a way Roman ha only ever seen when the two were together. Remus was cackling at every other sentence from his boyf- fiance. He was proud of Remus, that he was happy, but that didn’t stop the hurt. 

“We’re thinking something simple!” Remus announced. “In six months. We’re only waiting for that because I’ve gotta go to the doctor’s office the week before to be officially pronounced cured.”

Roman had almost forgotten about that. Had it almost been ten years already? The months hovering over his brother, taking notes over any sign of illness or ailment seemed to drag into his memories of just yesterday. But, Remus was going to be cured in less than a year.

Thoughts moved through Roman’s head as he moved towards his phone. and dialed his twin brother’s number. The phone rang three times before there was an answer.

“Rah!” Remus’ voice erupted from the phone, loud and excited with a wheeze behind it, as though he had been laughing before picking up. “What’cha need, Ro-Ro?”

“Oh, nothing,” Roman chided into the phone. “Just an explanation as to why my own brother didn’t want to tell me he was engaged?”

“Oh,” Remus sighed. “I wanted to call everyone, but somebody saw Dee’s ring in a stream and - I just had more announcements I wanted to do later on and…” Remus coughed. “Things got derailed.”

“Derailed? How?” Roman asked. “When were you planning to tell me?”

“When I get home from my doctor’s appointment tomorrow,” Remus said, trying to be casual. “They’re running tests, cause a big milestone’s coming up and you know how my luck works.”

Roman chuckled at his brother, rolling his eyes. Remus did tend to have terrible luck when milestones approached. He had to get his tonsils taken out the night before his tenth birthday, spent his sixteenth in chemo. He had been so sick the day before graduation that he almost passed out on stage. 

“And it doesn’t look good, Roman…” Roman’s breath stopped. 

“What… What do you mean, Re?” He tried to even out his breathing, not good could mean a lot of things, right? His mind was just stuck because he was a worrywart, he worried about his brother, big deal.

“The tests are still underway, so we aren’t panicking, but I’ve been feeling.. off. And Derrik’s been scared that maybe it’s getting bad.” Remus sighed. “My doctor says that if it happens, it’ll probably respond to what was used last time. It’ll be okay. I just… wanted it to be a good news, bad news thing.”

Roman felt like the walls were closing in. This was a nightmare he’d had when he was nineteen, a scary thought that passed his mind from time to time when he wasn’t quite busy enough to keep them at bay. This couldn’t be real. He knew he couldn’t protect his brother from this, but he felt like, like a failure. The cotton was back in his throat, but he spoke up.

“Okay,” he sighed. “Just… keep me updated, please. Let me know the moment you get the news!”

“Promise, Twinno! The second I get a yay or nay, you’re getting a phone call!”

And with that, there was silence. 

_-_-_-_-_-

The next day, Roman was on his toes. He leaned close to everybody around him, his friends were supportive of him, letting him lean despite his refusal to talk about what was bothering him. He tried to do some editing, some writing and all that, but his gaze kept flickering to his phone. His mind was wandering.

The phone didn’t ring until four in the afternoon, Virgil jumped out of his skin with how quickly his boyfriend grabbed for it. Roman’s voice was frantic as he picked up the phone. 

“Remus!” His voice was choked up, without even knowing the news. “So?”

“Remember that time when we were sixteen?” Remus’ subdued voice was the first red flag. “It came back and you got all wishy washy, all ‘but why you?’ and stuff. And I said, ‘Ya know, it just didn’t think I beat it right the last time. This time I’ll get it right.’” 

Roman nodded, not liking where this was going. 

“Well time to start from the top. One more time with feeling.”

[doeeyeddarlingxo]

The Myriad Misadventures of a Midgardian Queen-In-Training - Chapter 1

Why did I decide 4.5 years and 53 chapters in to try and post this directly on Tumblr? I honestly don’t know. I’ll try to space out the chapter posts a bit between other posts/reblogs, so hopefully this won’t be as painful a process as I fear!

AO3 | Next

Summary: In an AU where Loki DID take over the world by the end of The Avengers, you (the reader) receive a letter on your sixteenth birthday informing you that you are eligible to be considered for The Choosing, a one-time-only, televised event in which the new King of Midgard will select a wife.

Eight girls. One crown. Who will win?

Word Count: 1115

Pairing: Loki/Reader

Rating: T 

A/N: Keep in mind—I started writing this story my sophomore year of high school, when I was 15 or 16. A lot of it is cringe-y. A lot of my views and values has changed since then. That being said, I hope you enjoy anyway!

Myriad Misadventures - Chapter 1

The letter comes at the worst time imaginable.

The envelope is plain, if a bit large compared to the average letter. What first catches your attention is that it is addressed to you. Not Mom or Dad, not Erik or Carlie, but you. Okay, so it’s technically addressed "To The Parent/Guardian of (Y/N),” but still! It doesn’t have a return address, which doesn’t strike you as particularly strange, until you tear into the envelope and notice two things:

The heavy, creamy stationery.

The insignia. The smooth, calligraphy-curly insignia, drawn in deep, shiny, green ink.

“Mom!”

“Yes, sweetie?”

“C’mere!”

You shove the letter and envelope at her. “It was addressed to me - kinda - but I didn’t read it. I just saw the - ”

“Insignia,” she breathes. Her eyes widen as she scans the page.

You expect her to tell you what’s going on as soon as her gaze reaches the bottom of the page. Instead, you watch as she reads it again. And again. The third time she goes to reread it, you can’t stand waiting any longer. “Mom!”

“Sweetheart.” She looks up at you, eyes filled with dread. But instead of explaining, she shakes her head, stuffing the paper back into the envelope. “It’s nothing we need to worry about right now. Go get dressed.”

“What?” You can’t believe it. “No! Mom, come on. I know it’s about me. I have a right to know!” You extend an arm, but she pulls the letter just out of reach. You play the only card you have left. “It’s my birthday.”

At that, you see her resolve weaken a little bit. But it’s not enough. “Exactly. You deserve to have a nice evening out, and this can wait until tomorrow.”

“Let’s compromise. Open it at dinner. As a family,” you add.

At long last, she nods. “All right.” A split second later, her expression has gone from serious to playful as she leans in to kiss you on the cheek. “Now go change. And decide where you want dinner from. Your birthday, your choice."

(Yep. The letter arrives on the day you turned sixteen. Because you couldn't have been born one freaking day later.)

You run upstairs, grabbing a dress at random from your closet and yanking it on over your least-worn nude tights. Any minute, you know, your mom will leave to pick Carlie up from soccer practice.

Sure enough, you hear the tell-tale slam and click of the front door. You let out a sigh of relief when, upon reaching the bottom of the stairs, you see her pocketbook hanging from the back door, the envelope peeking out.

It takes you an infuriatingly long time to pull out and unfold the letter, shaky as your hands are, but you finally manage it. Beneath the insignia, it reads:

Dear Ms. (LN),

It is recorded that, as of (DD/MM), you are a heterosexual female between the ages of sixteen and thirty. As is such, you have been marked as eligible to participate in an exciting event in our realm’s history - The Choosing.

As the fifth anniversary of his rule approaches, our great leader has seen it fit to take a wife. Eight women will be selected from a lottery to compete for his hand in marriage. If you are the recipient of this letter, you are required to fill out the attached forms and submit them to your nearest government office by no later than a week from the day on which you received this letter.

Your king and government thank you for your service.

You’ve never been one for screaming at surprises. Instead, you have a tendency of going into shock, acting kind of dazed as your mind slowly absorbs whatever new piece of information it was being bombarded with. Which is what you do now.

“Heterosexual female between the ages of sixteen and thirty.” I’m a heterosexual female. I’m fifteen. I mean, I’m sixteen. I’m a sixteen-year-old straight girl…”The Choosing?” What the hell is The Choosing? And “Our great leader?” Who...oh. OH. Right.

Honestly, after the Battle of New York, life has pretty much gone on as usual, besides the whole thing with psycho-alien-king-guy taking over the world. You’ve never followed politics, and besides the fact that you miss your once-frequent trips into the city - Mom doesn’t want you there alone while all the renovations are going on - you’ve been too busy to notice any major changes. You still go to school and participate in your usual extracurriculars and stay up too late Skyping your friends. You have done quite a bit of online research - about Loki and the nine realms and what exactly went down during the Battle of New York and how apparently he's some kind of Norse god - so you aren’t completely ignorant, but after a while you’ve just fallen back into your normal routine.

But now, this letter…

So, Him. Psycho-alien-king-guy. Loki. Our great leader. Um, keep reading...wife. Eight women. Marriage. Competing? What, like The Bachelorette? Or The Bachelor, I guess, in this case...recipient of this letter, that’s me. Fill out the form...why? What service are they thanking me for? Are they just trying to ensure they have enough viewers for The Bachelor: Alien Royalty Edition?

Finally, it clicks.

Oh, my God.

Oh. My. God.

They want you. They’re rounding up potential candidates to star in their little reality marriage competition, and they want you.

But...I’m too young! I just barely made the age cutoff! That's so unfair! You rack your brain for more reasons why you should be exempt from this ridiculous "lottery" - as though that'll make any difference. I’m not even over the age of consent! In New York, I mean. If I was in California or Ohio or something, that would be a different story, but this is New York, so I still have a year before...or did they change the age of consent when they changed the government and stuff? Again, you didn’t really paid any attention to the news when all of that was going on. Or ever, really.

Later, you check Google and see that yes, the age of consent is still eighteen pretty much worldwide, something you might have found interesting and mildly amusing under different circumstances.

Like if you had a boyfriend, for instance.

Which you didn’t. Ever.

But these circumstances...the government wants you to marry a guy you’ve never met. Or compete to marry a guy you’ve never met, anyway...and based on what you know about Loki from your research thus far (Frost Giant? Trickster God? Psychopath?), you’re more than a little scared.

Okay, let's be honest: you are absolutely terrified.

[agustdef]

Here & Now - Chapter 12

Pairing: Yoongi x OC

Genre: Fluff; Chill romance

Word Count: 2,490

Warning: None.

Banner Marker: @dee-ehn​

A/N: Posting this early because it’s my birthday and I wanted to. Another chapter will still be posted tomorrow because it’s the regular posting day (Wednesday).

That lovely urge to burn my manuscript was back and in full force. Everything I read felt like it was already a dumpster fire, so adding actual fire wasn’t a wild concept.

I only had myself to blame for the feeling though. I’d finished the first draft in record time and Ara, the awesome woman she was, allowed me to keep the initial timeline to churn out the book. So when I had so much time left over instead of handing it over, I thought I could rewrite it so it’s less disaster. Told myself I didn’t mind having to do it and then do it however many times Ara or my editor for the series decided.

There was no greater lie.

The first ten chapters were a breeze, nothing major I needed to fix and the words just flowed out of me; better than the first draft. However, work started to hit hard and then before I knew it I’d hit a block wall with it. My music and work on other things were going fine, but the will to touch the particular story dissipated.

I’d finally reached the sixteenth chapter after a week and a half on the struggle bus that was chapter fifteen. And by some miracle, it was all flowing again. For the first time in like a month, I’d been able to pump out a rewrite in a day. It felt like heaven.

So when someone came knocking on my door like they were the police in the midst of the last five hundred word stretch I wasn’t amused.

On the other side of my door was Hals, who pushed her way inside and immediately went to my laptop. She bent down and stared for a few seconds.

“Can I help you?” I asked.

“Hm…” Another few seconds of nothing and then she turned to me. “The boys got here yesterday.”

“I know that.”

We stared at each other for several seconds, as if waiting on the other to expound on our statements. I was so deep into the fictional world that I couldn’t possibly pick up what she was putting down.

“So… you were texted that this was their day off before things got hectic and you were summoned.”

“Am I a demon?”

She rolled her eyes, clearly fed up with me. “Sometimes, but that’s not the point. The point is that you are also off today, minus the writing which I can see is almost done. Meaning you’re coming with me, since you failed to answer or look at any texts from Yoongi, Joon or the group chat.”

“I have writing to…”

“We both know that it will take less than an hour to finish that and you planned to nap the rest of the day.”

I opened my mouth to interject but had nothing. “You not wrong.”

Hals smiled, grabbing her phone and taking a seat on my couch. “Then I’ll wait and then we’ll go. Oh… you’re driving.”

Sighing, I retook my seat and got back to work. There was little time for me to internally cuss her out as I slipped back into the moment. Making sure that my main character ended the chapter full or rage and holding a knife to someone’s throat was the priority.

Before I knew it my fingers finished typing and the chapter was done. The clock on my computer alerted me it had only been fifteen minutes, which was a rare occurrence with pumping out six hundred and twenty-three words. I was pleased regardless.

“Now go change,” she said without even looking my way.

“Why am I letting you order me around?” I asked as I shut down my laptop.

“Because it would be pointless to argue with me. You’d be wasting time when we both know you want to go, even though you don’t like that I just popped up and interrupted.” The way she smiled so sweetly after made me want to throw a pillow at her.

I ended up just flipping her off and heading to my room to get dressed. With the lack of need to impress anyone, I threw on a pair of ripped gray jeans, a lilac crop top that said ‘The sky is not the limit’ and one of my million dark gray sweaters. My hair was already in two braids, so after laying my edges I grabbed a beanie and reentered the living room.

Halsey was already at the door, holding up a pair of shoes for me. I brushed her aside, grabbed the galaxy Converse I had and slipped them on. I’d swiped my phone and bag on the way to the door.

“Also you’re driving,��� I said, shoving the keys into her hand and exiting the apartment.

The entire drive their she grumbled about it. It was hilarious, even more so when we pulled up at the house the boys were staying at when she jumped out without a glance my way.

We walked to the door in silence and before she could even knock Namjoon was yanking it open. The big dork was smiling way too hard when he saw us and without a word pulled us inside. I almost ended up knocking into the small table in the foyer but was able to stop myself last minute.

“Damn dude.”

“Sorry,” he said bashfully.

Shaking my head I just proceeded to kick off my shoes and then follow the two of them deeper into the house. We entered the living room/kitchen/dining room area where there were already five people: Jin, Hoseok, Jimin, Jungkook, and Taehyung.

They were scattered on the couches and chairs, all watching some show on the TV. When Joon clapped they all turned our way, smiles immediately gracing their faces as they got up to greet her.

Nerves kicked in immediately. Meeting people was always awkward as hell for me and I tended to overthink, so meeting five new people was weird.

While hiding I hadn’t noticed Hoseok slink over to me, arms wide and smile bright as ever. “Why are you hiding?”

The smile that tugged on my lips was because his was so contagious. Though hesitant I stepped into the hug. “Hi, Hoseok.”

Though we’d never met in person I’d spoken to him many times. First, when Joon had come over and they’d video chat while we worked. More so when Yoongi and I started, they talked often as well and when he’d returned back rap line tended to speak to me as a group. We clicked well and just like any in-person bonding it solidified and friendship.

“They’re nice,” he stage whispered to me.

We pulled away and I laughed, then realized eyes were on me now. They were all still smiling, waiting patiently.

“Hi.” I gave the most awkward wave of my life.

“Say it with you chest,” Joon said.

Whipping around to look at him I gave what I assumed was a look that said, ‘what the actual fuck.’ The man lacked shame though and just pushed me closer to the half-circle.

Sighing I put on my best, genuine smile and made eye contact with all four boys. “Hi. I’m Kendall.”

Before I knew it all four moved forward and spoke at the same time, but stopped when they realized. After several more seconds, they stared at each other and then tried again.

“Hello, I’m Jin.”

“Nice to meet you, Kendall. I’m Jimin.” He did that cute smile of his and I almost gushed.

“I’m Taehyung. Hello.”

“I’m Jungkook,” he blurted out. “I mean hi, I’m Jungkook.”

In the corner of my eye, I could see Joon roll his eyes and Hals trying not to laugh. I myself wanted to laugh, but Jungkook looked a little embarrassed.

“It’s nice to meet all of you.”

Before I could say anything else there was a jab to my side that made me jump. Whipping around my finger was already raised and inches from Yoongi’s face.

“You need to stop doing that. You pretend it’s a light poke, but it’s like your trying to push that bony finger of yours in between my ribs.”

All he did was shrug and smirk. Then he pulled me into a hug I wanted to reject but didn’t. His hugs were always nice and we always lingered longer than normal, but when I remembered where we are I casually pull away.

Hals, being the awesome person she is, directs attention to her so there’s no weird silence afterward.

“Sorry, would have been here on time but she was writing and I know better than pulling her away without finishing,” she said.

“Writing? I thought you were on a break after finishing the draft?” Yoongi asked in Korean.

I froze. Part of me thought I’d told him, but then I remembered I’d chosen not to. He’d been lecturing on taking a break of some kind because of all the projects I had, and I’d pretended to consider that.

“I’m rewriting it,” I mumbled.

“What did she say?” I heard Jin ask Joon in Korean.

Joon just shook his head, taking a step closer to me. He was only a few inches taller so he didn’t completely tower over me, but it felt like he was; staring down at me menacing. Hell, the same feeling was created when Yoongi also stepped closer and we were just about the same height.

“She said she’s rewriting it,” Joon said.

In the background, I could see Hals watching intently with a smirk on her face. The jerk knew what was coming next for me, I was very sure that the entire situation was a set-up at that point.

“Thought you were going to take a break?” Yoongi stepped closer again and I tried to step back, but Hoseok just pushed me forward again.

I made a mental note to beat his ass at a later time.

“What I said was that I would try to. But then I breezed through those last chapters and thought a rewrite wouldn’t kill me.” I tried to play it cool. Tried.

His eyes narrowed and he crossed his arms as he moved closer; Joon doing the same.

“She also is exceeding her producing limit which is three projects at a time to five as of last week. Plus she’s still working on that anthology,” Hals added.

Whipping around I glared at her. She just continued to smirk at me, especially when the boys moved even closer leaving me no escape.

“Why do I tell your punk ass anything? Why?”

Joon tapped my shoulder to bring my attention back to them and while he looked more amused than before Yoongi did not. His brow was raised and he was making that face he made when he was genuinely upset.

I was ninety-five percent sure if I made the wrong move I’d be murdered.

“Wait. It’s not that bad. Yes, it’s a lot but I’m handling it. The projects are at varying stages, two of them almost done. The anthology is just editing and rewriting certain parts of it. And I just finished the sixteenth chapter of the rewrite, leaving me with eight chapters left.”

Even though I was appealing to both of them I focused on Yoongi. I’d even given my little mercy pleading in Korean, though that hadn’t been intentional.

If nothing else showed how close I was to them and how I genuinely cared allowing them to scold me about being a knucklehead did. For over a year Joon had already been like a brother figure, we’d clicked and he’d asserted himself that way. Yoongi had made it clear at the beginning of our friendship how he’d operate if I was doing something slightly stupid. Hell, even Hoseok had grown comfortable enough to call me out on my bullshit.

For a second I thought I saw Yoongi’s expression soften, Joon’s did, but I was proven wrong.

Yoongi huffed. “You overwork your brain too much. You need to rest.”

“I promise things clear up in like a month. My mom and Marcus talked me into making myself unavailable for a month. Most of my stuff will be done by then and I’m restricted from starting new things. Plus it gives me time to truly sit and think about contract stuff.”

For a moment we just stood there, but then he sighed and he shoulders dropped. “Fine.”

With that, I let out a sigh of relief and then was aware of those around us. Most of them wore a confused expression, while Joon and Hoseok were trying not to smile. Halsey was hiding behind Joon was I couldn’t see her.

“So, back to the movie?” Jungkook asked, breaking the silence.

Everyone nodded and headed towards the seating. They all gave me brief smiles as they went by, but Jimin had this weird little smirk on his face that I didn’t have time to decipher. Hals tried to run past me quickly, but I pinched her arm and flipped her off as she went.

When Joon went past he paused to throat chop me, which I failed to block. “Stop being hard-headed.”

Hoseok walked by and I immediately punched his arm, to which he dramatically gasped. But he knew what he did, so he went on his merry way. It left me and Yoongi who just stared for a moment and then inclined his head so I would follow. I ended up on a smaller couch between him and Hoseok.

The atmosphere was nice and I got to know the other guys a little better. From my point of view, they were cool and none of them seemed to hate me. I knew I’d been awkward to start, but as time went on it became more comfortable.

We went through a few movies and ordered food at some point because no one was in the mood to cook anything. Everyone tired for one reason or another. Before I knew it though, I was drifting off to sleep on the couch. My body falling to the side and onto Yoongi’s arm. I was aware of it, but sleep had its hooks deep in me and I couldn’t move.

In my half-sleep state, Yoongi had adjusted me so I leaned comfortably on him. And just as I almost went over my phone went off, startling me awake. Fumbling for a bit I pulled it out to see it was Marcus, meaning I should answer. Before I could the phone was taken and tossed to Joon.

“Handle that,” Yoongi said.

I went to protest, but Joon was already on the phone greeting him. The haze of sleep was already reclaiming me, so I could barely make out what they were saying. I tried to shake it off, but then I was pushed back down onto Yoongi’s shoulder.

“Go to sleep, Kendall,” Yoongi said.

It was that last thing I heard before my body finally gave in.

[freckledandfighting-blog]

Hamilsquad x Reader Chapter 1.

Hello hello hello! Guess what, its me. And I’m containing myself from singing the rest of ‘Hello’ from Adele. So chapter 1 is up, please comment, ask questions request because I get bored sometimes all the time.

Warnings: Horrible editing, I’m on my phone posting from a roller coaster. Also swearing, always swearing.

2:09 pm.

It had been eleven days since you had told your boys. The week was spent with everyone packing, Alex repeating your family’s names under his breath, Laf trying to perfect his English, and Mr. Washington practically forcing your boyfriends to take a break. Alexander had enough unused sick days and vacations for all of you.

Angelica gave you the week off as soon as you said yes to her promotion.

“Yes. Definitely. You are going, that is final.”

“Yes, Angel, thank you so much for your input, I wouldn’t have gone without your permission.” You said sarcastically. She shoved you with her elbow and swiftly pushed you out the door so you could actually do your job.

“Don’t forget you have to start interviewing people eventually!” She called to you from her office.

3:09 pm.

“How much sunscreen do I need to take?” John asked you, sitting on his suitcase, which was overloaded with his bathing suits and art supply.

It was Thursday afternoon and you and your boyfriends were spending your last day before leaving perfecting your packing. You were leaving on Friday after Alex, John and Laf’s coffee run, they were given an extra day off. Hercules was leaving Cato with the shop for the break and Angelica said if you came to work that day, she would call security.

“I mean, I’m sure we have some at the house.. maybe a bit if you want it.” You said nonchalantly, checking your passport.

“I don’t need anymore freckles.” You looked up. John was shirtless, debating between two shirts. Freckles were dappled across his shoulders, down his back, a few on his toned chest.

“I like your freckles.” You tilted your head, clearly checking out your boyfriend. He turned around, a mischievous grin spread over his face.

“What are you-” you were scooped up and thrown on the bed. He attacked you with kisses, tickling your sides, making you squeal a protest.

He responded with more playful kisses across your collarbone. You squirmed under his grip, but not really trying.

“Lemme go!” You whined, pushing your hands up against his shoulders. “Johnny!”

He didn’t let go, but he stopped tickling you and just rested his head in the crook of your neck. You sighed, shifting under him, getting as comfortable as possible with your boyfriend collapsed atop you.

Well.. as possible you can get with another human on you.

It was these little moments that really made you fall in love. Cuddling, curling up and watching Stranger Things, buying ice cream, dancing on the sidewalk.. the list could go on forever. It was the simple seconds you spent with your partners that made you fall more in love with them anymore.

“Y/N-” Alex started, then froze when he walked into the room, seeing the two of you. “Aww!”

You grumbled halfheartedly, not really making an effort to complain. You were cozy, using John as a personal heated blanket, and you were not moving. He nuzzled his forehead on your collarbone, humming slightly. You could feel him nibbling lightly on your neck.

“Laffy! Herc! Look they’re being adorable!” He yelled, leaning his head out the doorway, alerting the other two.

“Shuddup Alex.” You said into John’s shoulder. “Alexandre, couldn’t it wait-” Lafayette opened his mouth making an inaudible coo. “You look so cute, Mon Petits.”

John lifted his head, a satisfied grin across his face. You narrowed your eyes, confused of his wicked smile. “What did you do..” You said accusingly.

“Johnathan Laurens!” Hercules scolded, shoving him off of you. You jumped up, running to the bathroom. He definitely did something.

“Fucking hell!” You yelled, throwing your arms into the air. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”

John had left a large red hickey on your neck.

“Oops!” He called from the bedroom. You could actually hear the cheeky grin on his face. “My bad!”

“We’re meeting her parents in less than forty-eight hours! No kisses!” Alex instructed, crossing his arms. Alex was 5'6 he wasn’t tall, he had a slim figure, he was far from threatening.

“But Alex!” John whined loudly. “She’s so kissable!”

You rolled your eyes. “So are the rest of them.” You gestured to your other partners.

“Tell us more about your family.” Hercules wrapped his arms around you, hugging you from behind. You smiled, kissing his shoulder.

“What do you want to know?”

“Chase, Lucas, Oliver, Charlie, Percy, Scott, Tyler, Dylan, Theo, Mason, Roy, Conner, Cory, Liam, Benny.. I’m forgetting someone!” Alex wailed, collapsing dramatically on the bed. “But don’t tell me! I have to figure this out.”

You smirked, knowing instantly who he was missing.

“Fifteen.. who’s the sixteenth?” He murmured, hitting his head with a pillow.

“Alex, Honey, relax.” John soothed, shoving a pair of flip flops into his suitcase. “They aren’t going to freak if we don’t know all of their names.” He turned toward you, his eyes wide. “They won’t freak if we don’t know all of their names, will they?”

“They are much more worried about getting Laf’s right.” You laughed, winking at the Frenchmen.

“Many have tried, few have succeeded.” He chuckled, blowing you a kiss.

“Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette.” You answered, shuffling around with Hercules still attached to you. “Eleven words.. my mom has more kids than that, she’ll manage.”

“Who am I missing!” Alex succumbed to help. “Fifteen.. who am I forgetting!”

“Our favorite.” Hercules kissed you head, his laugh vibrated against your back.

“Who?” Alex said desperately.

“Me.” You grinned, a teasing smile on your face. He mouth ‘o’ before sighing in relief.

“Chase, Lucas, Oliver, Charlie, Percy, Scott, Tyler, Dylan, Theo, Mason, Roy, Conner, Cory, Liam, Benny and Y/N.” He breathed, closing his eyes. “Thank god.”

“It worries me you forgot the name of our girlfriend who’s family we’re visiting.” John threw a pillow at Alexander’s head.

“Tell me stories of little Y/N!” Herc pouted. You huffed.

“I fended for myself at the dinner table, earned the eldest’s respect, in my household, it’s eat or be eaten.” You joked, a serious expression on your face. “I doubt you guys’ll survive dinner unless we eat out.”

“I don’t think I like this story.”

“I’m joking.. sort of. You’ll probably like my siblings.. Probably.” You hummed.

“Story Time!” Alex yelled, clapping hysterically like a seal. You groaned, throwing John a shirt from your suitcase.

“Tyler, Dylan, Theo, Mason, Roy, the twins, Liam, and Benny are the ones you really have to worry about.” You tilted you head, thinking about it. “They pull the most pranks, since they’re the youngest.”

“Only like half of your brothers.” Herc commented, earning your glare.

“Chase through Scott are okay. They’ll be more interested in making fun of me. And Lucas is going to be the most sane because of his kids.” You turned back to the four of them, narrowing your eyes.

“Don’t you have packing to do?” You asked, putting a pair of shoes in your bag. “We aren’t coming back for a week.”

“I’ll pack tomorrow.” Alex procrastinated in nothing but if had something to do with clothing, he wouldn’t even think about it.

“Alexandre we’re leaving tomorrow.” Laf’s inner mother hen was coming out. “Go pack.” He ordered, shoving the smaller man off his lap.

Alex simply responded with a loud screech.

“Alexander Hamilton do not make me go call Angelica!” You spun around, making him go silent and freeze.

Angelica Schuyler was the by far the level-headed, most impowering woman you had ever met.. Unless one of your boyfriends was acting up. Hercules and Lafayette were smart, they knew about Angelica’s signature ear grabbing, John and Alex on the other hand weren’t as careful. They often forgot she was there and start leaving hickeys and pinching each other. In simplest form:

Angelica did not like that.

“I’m good, I’ll go pack.” He squeaked, tripping as he sprung off the bed and out of the room.

“Well that’s one way to get things done.” Hercules held in a laugh watching Alexander stumble around.

“'Ow you say ‘whipped’.” Laf said, zipping John’s finally packed suitcase.

“The Angelica Card always works.”

7:02 am.

“It’s too early!” John whined, rubbing his eyes.

“Suck it up, Buttercup.” You pressed you lips to his temple. “You can sleep through the flight, it’s going to be about two hours till we land.”

You were sitting in between Hercules, who had the isle seat, and John who was by the window. Alex and Lafayette were behind you and John talking quickly in French. You only caught a few words, hearing your parents’ names as well as your own and your siblings.

“No! Sleep is for the weak..” He quickly lowered his voice, remembering he was on an airplane. “Oops.” John’s outburst was greeted with many ‘shh’s.

“Fine, but the ride to the lake is another two hours, so you better sleep then.” You reminded him, fiddling with your earbuds. “My family is going to be exhausting.”

“Maybe you should be the one sleeping, Princess.” Hercules chuckled, lacing his fingers with yours. “You seemed more stressed than Alex.”

“HEY!”

“SHH!”

“Yeah, Alex.” You teased, looking back at him and Lafayette.

9:34 am.

“You don’t know true power until you’ve had six three-hour energy drinks and a large cup of coffee with four shots of espresso.” Alexander was bouncing up and down, sitting on the baggage cart that was filled with your many suitcases.

“Never again..” Hercules murmured, rubbing his forehead.

“I’m banning Alex from Starbucks for the week.” You sighed, watching him let out a squeal of glee as Laf pushed the cart.

“He will die without coffee.” John commented. He hadn’t taken your advice and spent the entire flight playing flappy bird. He was mostly leaning on you for support.

You clicked you tongue against the roof of your mouth. “Without Starbucks no, he’ll just suffer, my mom makes an amazing coffee-caramel ice cream that no one can miss out on.”

“Sugaarr..” John moaned, banging his head against your shoulder. You laughed, kissing his forehead.

“ALEXANDER HAMILTON!” Lafayette yelled, running after Alex who was riding the cart down the slope of the parting lot. Laf must of let go of the cart at some point which was definitely not a good idea.

“That ended badly when Cory and Conner did that.” You remembered the stitches and the broken nose they received after the incident.

“Aww!”

You silently thanked Laf for catching him.

“You’re no fun!” He whined as he was scooped off the cart. “That was entertaining!”

“Ne discutez pas avec moi, Alexandre.” Lafayette threw his boyfriend over his shoulder and continued to push the luggage.

“That’s the car.” Hercules pointed to the black Chevrolet that’s lights were blinking.

“It’s like an FBI car!“John exclaimed excitedly, dragging you toward it. “It’s so shiny!”

“I’m surrounded by children.” Herc mumbled, face-palming.

“Alright, alright.” You ‘shh'ed your boyfriends. “John you aren’t driving, you are sleeping the entire drive.” You instructed, opening the backseat door. “In.”

He raised his hands in surrender, entering the car.

“Alex no way in hell are you driving, you’ve consumed way too much caffeine.” Laf was facing the opposite direction so you could talk to Alex, who was still being carried.

“I take offense to that!” He crossed his arms. You raised an eyebrow, seeing if he wanted to argue with you, which he didn’t. Alex quickly was put down and he retreated to the car.

“I’ll drive if you put the address in, Princess.” Hercules said, shoving the last of the suitcases into the trunk. “I don’t mind.”

“Thank god because I will get road rage and I will yell.” You sighed in relief, quickly kissing him and Laf on the lips.

“Mon Amour, we know, that’s why he offered.” Lafayette grinned, helping you in the car next to Alex, John was already falling asleep on his boyfriend’s lap.

“Fair enough.” You yawned, buckling your seat. You have Herc your address, feeling your eyes lids grow heavy.

11:24 am.

“Hey, Babygirl.” John lightly cupped his hands together, waking you. His voice was nervous. “Time to get up, little one.” You yawned, reaching you arms out as you stretched.

“What’d I miss?” You sat up, arching you back.

“I followed the GPS to the address.” Herc said from the drivers seat. “But I might of taken a wrong turn, because there’s nothing here.” You looked outside.

The car was on a familiar gravel road. Willow trees were hanging over, the swaying leaves hitting to car lightly.

“You did perfect, I can get us there from here.”

“I’m not complaining.” Alex said from above you. He had climbed through the sunroof and was sitting atop of the car. “It’s nice out here, really quiet.” You smiled, glad he was actually relaxing.

“Mon amour, do you mind driving? I think our Hercules needs a break.” Laf kissed Herc’s forehead. He did look tired, you nodded.

“It’s probably best I get us there anyway.” You opened the door, stepping out. The air was fresh, and warm due to the sun. It was different that New York, not filled with different smells, just the clear scent of summer.

Sunshine. A soft breeze. Wildflowers.

“Thank you.” Herc said sleepily, getting out of the drivers seat.

“It’ll be another thirty minutes till we get there, sleep.” You instructed him, kissing his cheek. “Alex, you should probably get back inside.” Alex did not get back inside.

“Honey come back in the car.” John whined, tugging on his boyfriend’s foot.

“But it’s nice up here.” He protested.

"Alexandre.” Laf said in a gentle, but warning tone. Alex panicked and jumped back in the car. Lafayette did have that effect on people.

The rest of the drive was quiet, Alex head was out the window, Herc was using John as a pillow, Laf was placing small kisses across the back of your hand and wrists.

You parked the stone pathway, that winded along the lake. The house wasn’t yet visible, shielded by the gardens around it. You could see some of your siblings on the docks, who were noticing the new car pulling up.

“Uh,” you clasped your hands together, gaining your boyfriends’ attention. You sent an apologetic look on your face towards Hercules since he was sleeping. “I want you guys to know.. my family has a different amount of money than most families.”

“We don’t care how much money your family has, Mon amour.” Laf pressed his lips to your fist. “We love you, and we’ll love your family.” You inhaled.

“Okay, and I’m just forewarning you on this one, their sort of crazy.”

“Don’t stall, Babygirl.” John teased.

"Oh my god! We can go swimming! Is that a speedboat?” Alex was bouncing up and down in his seat.

“Y/N!” Your brothers waved frantically from the docks.

“We could turn back now.. They aren’t very athletic.” You said, opening the door and stepping out of the car. The warm sun hitting your skin instantly.

You pulled out a familiar red whistle from your pocket.

“Is that a rape whistle?” Alex asked, popping his head out from the sunroof once again. You laughed, shaking your head.

“You’ll see.”

“That’s another boat? Do you own that one? What about that big floaty thing? Do you own that too? How about the-”

You pressed the whistle to your lips, blowing as hard on it as possible.

“HOLY FUCK!” John covered his ears, then looked around frantically, as if he was being watched. “I probably shouldn’t have said that around here.”

“That should summon them.” You put the whistle back in your jean pocket. “There’ll be a stampede in the house, so I think she should leave our bags here for now. If your ready to meet a family from your nightmares, right this way.”

“I really do hope your lying.” Laf blinked, watching your brothers that were on the docks dash into the house.

“This fountain is bigger than our kitchen.” Hercules stared in awe of the marble fountain.

“Screw the fountain!” Alex said, wildly gesturing back and forth from the fountain to the docks. “That speed boat is bigger than our entire apartment!”

“Is that a horse?”

“Moving this way.” You said, trying to change to conversation. You lead them down another gravel path that lead to your house. “You’ll probably sleep in my room, my bed is big enough.” You informed them.“

“Can we go swimming?”

Alex was probably the most excited about being on the lake. He was from the Virgin Islands and New York didn’t have the cleanest waters so he had to stick with pools. He was thrilled to be near the water and you could already picture the red sunburn he was going to receive after not wearing sunscreen.

“Yes, we can go swimming.”

“But the horses-”

“We can do that later.” You stared at the gardens that surrounded half of the house in a semicircle.

You grew up with a wealthy family. Your parents made a lot of money. They also wanted a big family. They exceeded the ‘normal’ amount of children by having thirteen more kids.

“Chase, Lucas, Oliver, Charlie, Percy, Scott, Tyler, Dylan, Theo, Mason, Roy, Conner, Cory, Liam, Benny and Y/N.” Alex murmured again, kicking rocks under his foot.

“Scarlett, McKenna, Diana, and Marco.” John added, taking his boyfriend’s hand. “And then William, Hunter, Zara, Kylie, Owen, and Lydia.”

“Jemma and Stephen are your parents.” Laf finished.

“Why thank you, now I know all of my family member’s names.” You said sarcastically but a large grin was spread across your face.

You were happy, this was your childhood home. You grew up going to this house every summer. And this week, you got to not only share it with your family but your boyfriends as well.

You stepped up to the front door, turning back to your boyfriends. You inhaled once more, telling yourself to relax.

You smiled at your partners. “Welcome to hell.”

Okay thank god I finished this today. I will definitely update next week. I hope you enjoyed and honestly I’m super jumpy right now and sorta bored now that I’m posting this because it’s only been two hours and thirty minutes since I got in the 'Space Mountain’ ride at DisneyWorld. Okay *inhale* thank you for reading.

[dvddggs]

To the Four of Us (Part Nineteen)

premise: modern AU chronicling the squad as they make their way through college and deal with general life things.

soundtrack song: The End of All Things - Panic! At The Disco

full soundtrack: x

words: 2,640

warnings: STRONG trigger warning for abuse!!! PLEASE keep that in mind before you read. I italicized it so if this applies to you, you are still safe to read this as long as you skip the italics (it is written in first person so it’s also distinguishable by that.) BE SAFE YOUNG ONES I LOVE YOU ALL<3

a/n: UR GONNA ALL HATE ME LOOL

all chapters: x

tags: @heythereitsloey @anitheunicorn @newyorkyoucanbeanew @lafbagxette @justafangirlwithanavy @iamgrayfox @ordinaryornate @schuylerjoon @angelica-peggy-eliza @trashyperson101 @crazydragon15 @but-if-you-had-to-choose @geespilots @marvelous-hamilfan @5p00kygh05t @panda-powers @and-maria @lafeyettegunsandships @schokoobananaa @allthegoodurlshavebeentaken @aphboi @hell-yes-puns-and-ships @aham-threw-his-shot-away @hesitantcat @nonstopspook @hamrevolution @passmethegoddamnball

dedication: @hamilton-trash-1, @danimeow, @hamiltonshippingmachine, and @victorieschild for liking literally EVERY SINGLE ONE OF MY POSTS ((if ur wondering if i notice,, I do)) lol idek if you guys read this but !!! thank you :)

“So who is John anyways?” Charles asked eagerly after ten minutes straight of dead silence.

He, Alexander, and Aaron were half an hour into their impromptu road trip to rescue John from the train station across the state. Charles was growing restless already, which was annoying Alexander and Aaron, although they silently admitted that it was probably their fault for completely ignoring him.

“The guy he’s fucking,” Aaron said, pointing his thumb in Alexander’s direction with a chuckle.

“The guy I’m fucking,” Alexander confirmed, although there was no humour in his voice. He had not taken his tense eyes off of the road since they’d left, and he was only speaking when spoken to.

He had been clenching his teeth together, even tighter than they were bound, which he hadn’t realized until he spoke.

“Ouch,” he muttered, relaxing his jaw and rubbing it with his free hand. “Did John text again?”

Aaron shook his head no. Leaning towards the steering wheel, Alexander tensed up again and took a deep breath, wishing more than anything that he could have been with John at that moment. Just thinking about his boyfriend alone, scared, and heartbroken on the train was enough to make him feel nauseous to the point of dizziness.

“How long have you been—dating—him?” Charles prompted. “I mean, I feel like if you talk about it you’ll feel better, you know? How did you meet?”

They both ignored him.

“Seriously though, you okay, Lex?” Aaron asked quietly. “We’re gonna get there, okay? We’re gonna get you to him.”

Charles piped up from the backseat.

“How long till we get there, by the way? Just wondering…because tomorrow morning my friends and I are going out and I want to make sure I get enough sleep because I’m not sure how long we’re going to be out for, y’know?”

Aaron rolled his eyes and Alexander felt an extremely irrational bout of rage fire up inside of him.

“Charles fucking Lee, no offence, but I’m going to need you to stop asking stupid fucking questions right fucking now. I frankly don’t give a shit how long it takes to get there, and I don’t give a shit that you care. So please, for the love of god, do us all a favour and shut the fuck up for the next two and a half hours! Go to sleep, play on your phone, or sit there and stare at the back of my head, I don’t give a shit! Just let me think for ten seconds. I don’t need to hear about you and your friends! Got it!?”

Charles recoiled into the backseat of the car, eyes wide and staring at the floor. From the rearview mirror, Alexander could tell that his face was bright red. He felt a bit badly for snapping at his not-cousin, but he truthfully couldn’t bring himself to care too much—his mind was otherwise occupied.

“Wow, harsh,” Aaron said under his breath as Charles stuffed his earbuds into his ears. “But called for.”

Aaron left Alexander pretty much to his thoughts after that, except for reading out the odd text from John, to which Alexander verbally responded.

After awhile, Charles pulled out an earbud and leaned forward.

“Alex,” he began. “Are you sure you don’t wanna talk about it?”

Alexander’s eyes widened in anger as he stared at the road, willing himself not to say anything hurtful.

“Charles,” Aaron piped up, knowing full well that Alexander was about to explode. “He’s going to pummel you.”

And that’s how the road trip was going.

John leaned his forehead against the cool glass window of the bumping train and took a deep breath. He was thinking about the events of the day, which had surely been the longest day of his life.

He closed his eyes and was instantly lost inside his head.

I’m late. Fuck, he’s going to kill me. Why do I keep screwing up like this? I’m frantic as I run down my street, chased by one of my friends.

“John!” he calls. “Slow down!”

“My dad is going to be so mad,” I say, panting.

“It’s your sixteenth birthday; he won’t mind you being a little late!”

My friend, however, doesn’t know that I’d promised to spend the night watching baseball with my father. He had told me that it was the one day per year he wants to hang out with me, which is true. He isn’t asking for too much. And yet I still fuck it up. He doesn’t deserve this.

I stop suddenly, hands on my knees and my stomach erupting with nauseous butterflies. I feel so, so guilty.

“I’m sorry, I have to go,” I say, turning to sprint the rest of the way home.

“Well happy birthday, I guess,” I hear my friend call.

I don’t turn back.

When I burst into the house, the sound of the television makes me freeze. The game is already on. Bottom of the second. I had missed almost two entire innings. I am so selfish.

“Hi, Dad,” I say slowly, hoping that he is not too angry.

“Happy birthday, John,” he says. I sigh in relief at the greeting. His voice is calculated, careful, but after all I haven’t missed too much of the game. I go into the kitchen and grab a beer for my father before joining him on the couch.

“Why don’t you have one, kid?” he says, handing the bottle back to me. “Happy birthday.”

I smile and twist the cap off, taking a long sip of the bitter liquid. I try not to spit it out. It’s not pleasant, but I don’t want to be rude.

“That’s all I need,” I say, smiling, and hand the drink back to my father. “Sorry I’m late.”

Dad tells me that it’s alright and ruffles my hair. I groan, but I am giggling and we cheer as we watch our team score the first run of the game.

“It’s funny,” my father says slowly. I raise an eyebrow. “I was going to take you to this game tonight…bought the tickets and everything.”

The colour drains from my face. His eyes harden, reflecting the baseball game in the irises.

“You should have told—”

“I WANTED IT TO BE A SURPRISE, JOHN.”

I whimper, recoiling into the couch. I am afraid, guilt-ridden, helpless. I should have been home earlier. 

I ruined my birthday.

I ruined his day.

“I don’t mind watching it on TV.” I try to make my father feel better.

He shakes his head without looking at me. He pulls something out of his pocket, rips it in half, and throws the pieces at me. I pick them up.

The tickets.

Dad takes another sip of his beer and turns back to the game, putting the empty bottle on the table beside him.

“Dad—” I say, blinking back tears. I feel so guilty. It is all my fault.

“Shut UP, John. Just watch the game.” I nod and a sniffle escapes my nose before I can stop it. “Are you crying?”

I quickly shake my head, trying to wipe my eyes from which tears are now freely falling.

Dad stands up. He towers over me.

“I SAID, John, it’s FINE. Don’t be a pussy.”

I gulp and it is involuntary but I whimper and before I know it my cheek is stinging burning hot and Dad’s hand is stretched out and it makes me cry harder so he snatches my upper arm and pulls me so that I am standing up. My arm hurts, it hurts, my cheek hurts and I almost cry out in pain but I stop myself before I do because I know that this is my own fault. My sniffles earn me another quick smack on the other cheek but I brave up and take it like a man because that’s what Dad wants. It stings and I flinch but I do not cry because I am a man and I am my father’s son. I am strong.

“Are you done?” he asks coldly. I have made him really mad.

I nod, wiping what I hope are the last of the tears from my face.

“There, there, John. There we go…it’s alright,” Dad says. He rubs my cheek where I can still feel the sting of his hand and I rub my arm where I can still feel the pressure of his strong fingers. 

This is what we do. This is how we bond. We get through things together. Now he is feeling better and so I am feeling better.

He sits back down on the couch just in time for the commercials to end.

The score is 1-0.

I get Dad another beer.

John was bumped out of the trance he’d fallen into by the drink cart smashing against his knee.

“FUCK,” he screamed in pain, ignoring the angry parents who glared at him for swearing.

“I am so sorry, sir!” said the man pushing the drink cart. “So, so sorry.”

John grumblingly pulled his knee back into his seat and shrugged, eyes watering still visibly shaken from his flashback episode. Relatively, his knee did not hurt. Not compared to his brain and his heart and everything else that had been figuratively injured that day.

When James and John had gone to the hospital to see their father, they were greeted in front of the closed door of his room by two police officers filling out a report. John’s stomach sank when he entered the room as he noticed that his father had been handcuffed to the hospital bed.

Just down the hall, John watched a doctor tell a family that their daughter had been hit by a car and that, despite their best efforts, they were unable to save her. John and James sat on the floor in the corridor and listened to the horrific screams of the absolute pain of loss, and knew that it was their father’s fault. They didn’t react. They couldn’t react. John knew that if he reacted to the pain that tore through his body in waves and threatened to rip him apart that he would never recover.

He stood up and paced the hallway, ignoring his father. He hadn’t said a word to him since they’d gotten there. He went to the cafeteria and got a coffee, enjoying the burn it left on his tongue. It distracted him from the pain in his mind. When he returned to their corridor, James still hadn’t moved. He was staring expressionlessly at the gurney across from which he sat.

“James,” John said in a hoarse whisper.

James shook his head.

“James.”

They looked at each other. James motioned for John to sit back down beside him. When he did, he put his arm around John’s smaller shoulders, pulling his face into his neck. As soon as John felt his brother’s hair tickle his face, he started crying. He was hysterical, panting and whimpering, snot dripping from his nose. Tears fell silently from James’ eyes as well as he held his brother.

They stayed like that until John was too tired and dehydrated to cry anymore. He wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but they’d been checked on by a nurse twice so it must have been quite awhile.  

Finally, when John couldn’t sit still anymore he stood up.

“I’ll be back,” he announced in a weak voice. James nodded without looking at him.

That was when John took the bus home, packed what little clothing he’d brought in a bag, and left the house. On his way out the door, he snatched his father’s wallet and stuffed it in his pocket. He went back to the bus stop and rode around the city until they stopped at the train station.

In a trance, John walked up to the kiosk and stared at the lady.

“Where ya going?” she asked him, smiling. John tried to smile back, but it didn’t work.

“Uhh…I’m not sure.”

The lady raised an eyebrow and leaned forward in her booth. “Are you alone? Are you okay?”

“Yeah—uh—I’m fine. I—when’s the next train to Virginia leave?”

“An hour from now.”

“Any tickets left?” John asked. He had no idea what he was doing but he hadn’t stopped long enough to think about it.

“Yes.”



“I’ll take one.”

He pulled out his father’s wallet and swiped his credit card. Before he knew it, he was on a train.

James: Where did you go? And how long till you get back?

John: a while.

John was brought back to reality by the speakers throughout the train announcing their arrival at Norfolk station. Taking a deep breath, he got to his feet, hiked his backpack onto his shoulder, and took his suitcase out of the luggage compartment as the train rolled to a stop.

As John got in line to walk towards the exit, he realized he was shaking all over. He had no idea what to expect. Did Lex come by himself? It was almost two o’clock in the morning—surely someone was with him. But who? His father? Would he be mad at John?

The more John thought, the more he realized what a rash and stupid this decision this was—he had no money, no plan, and nobody except Alexander even knew that he’d left town, let alone his state.

He begun to panic as he stepped off the train, enveloped in the sudden darkness that meant he was underground. John’s breathing was coming in quick, short bursts as he began to see black spots pop in front of his eyes. He was bleakly unaware of his surroundings as he walked, unsure of which direction he was going. He vaguely noticed that it was colder here and that he shouldn’t have been wearing shorts. The goosebumps that stretched and tightened his skin made John feel like he was suffocating and he grew dizzy as he found a spot to sit down, sliding against the cool brick wall until the backs of his legs hit the hard, concrete ground. John put his head between his knees and told himself to breathe. No matter what, he needed to breathe. Just breathe, John, damn it. All he needed was to breathe and the rest would come, right? After a while, this had to—

“John.”

And, oh great, now he was hearing voices. He hadn’t had a panic attack in years, but he could feel this one quickly approaching and was unsure he’d be able to stop it. Just breathe, John. Just—fucking—br—

“JOHN!”

At this, John snapped his head up, ignoring the dizzy spell the quick action brought on. He recognized the voice that time; it hadn’t just been in his head.

Once the crowds of people cleared, John could see Alexander walking quickly towards him, concern plastered on his face probably because he was wondering why the hell John was sitting on the ground.

As soon as John saw him, all of his anxiety seemed to melt away. Somehow, miraculously, everything that he had done made sense.

“Oh, Lex,” he murmured, standing up and closing the gap between them. As soon as he reached Alexander’s outstretched arms, which pulled him into a tight hug, John broke down in a renewed round of sobbing. He was so exhausted and had waited so long, and it had been such a long day and it could finally end.

“Shh,” Alex whispered, laying his cheek on the top of John’s head. “It’s okay now, John…everything is going to work out, okay? You’re safe now.”

“I l-love you,” John spluttered hysterically.

“I love you, John,” Alex replied. His voice was steady. He was his rock. “Come on, let’s get you home.”