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twinkleallnight · 2 months ago

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Is this hot Greek babe Kate? That was an interesting conversation. But where did Olivia go? She was with them in part 1.

It's good to see Leo finally feeling sincere for someone

Boys Will Be Boys

Brothers-in-Arms Series - Chapter 2

Choices Books: The Royal Romance, pre-book 1 (cross-over with Choices, Crimes of Passion, pre-book 1)

Pairing: None

Characters: Liam Rys, Drake Walker, Maxwell Beaumont, Leo Rys, Olivia Nevrakis, Eleanor Rys, Trystan Thorne

Rating: Teen

Warning: swearing, alcohol/drug use

Category: angst/fluff, alternate universe

Words: 1200, not Beta’d, please excuse all errors

Brothers-in-Arms Masterlist

A/N: My submission for #choices bejeweled, June monthly challenge 2025

Summary: Liam, Drake, Maxwell, Leo, and Trystan are at the Royal Mountain Retreat in the Blackspine Mountains of Cordonia. The firepit is crackling, s'mores are toasting , and ... the discussion turns to ???

Trystan snorted like he’d just heard the dumbest thing in royal history. “Wait, you didn’t even kiss her?”

“No, Sherlock.”

Trystan looked at him like he’d just confessed to a crime. “Are you broken?”

Leo sighed dramatically, running his fingers through hair. “It just didn’t feel right.”

“What does that even mean? Did she have spinach in her teeth? Were you under surveillance by your dead relative?”

Leo groaned. “I mean emotionally, you emotionally stunted goat. I actually want to get to know her first.”

Trystan blinked. “Since when do you feel things?”

Leo glanced at Liam and the middle-school brigade (aka Liam, Drake, and Maxwell), who were busy arguing over whether dragons or space pirates would win in a fight.

“Let’s move this convo. I can’t have my twelve-year-old brother psychoanalyzing me again.”

They walked quickly to the lake, not forgetting their beers, and flopped onto a bench.

Trystan: “So, spill. You like her, but you didn’t kiss her because... you have morals now?”

Leo: “I just want it to mean something. She’s not like the girls who throw themselves at every bloody event.”

Trystan smirked. “Let me guess. It’s because of Madeleine.”

Leo punched him—not hard - but with enough force to make a statement.

“Ow! Dude! I need that arm for fencing and styling my hair!”

Leo grinned. “Would you prefer a push into the lake? It’s about six degrees Celsius in there.”

Trystan massaged his arm, still offended. “You Cordonians are violent.”

Leo wiggled his eyebrows. “Okay, enough about me. Spill it—who’s your secret admirer?”

Trystan sighed dramatically. “Her name’s Julianna. We’ve been friends for years, but lately… she’s gotten… interesting.”

Leo looked amused. “Like, ‘I suddenly noticed she’s 'hot’ interesting, or ‘she no longer chews with her mouth open’ interesting?”

Trystan laughed. “Both. She’s shy, which is weirdly adorable. Like a kitten that punches you in the heart.”

Leo smirked. “That doesn’t sound like your type. You usually like the loud, terrifying ones.”

“I know! But I want to take care of her, you know? Like... be the guy who shows her how to have fun.”

Leo gave a smug grin. “Oh, I bet you want to show her lots of fun.”

Trystan punched him back. “Don’t make me drown you, Romeo.”

Leo: “So? Is it happening? Are you two gonna ride off into the hormonal sunset?”

Trystan: “Maybe. Depends on what she wants. I’ve waited this long. I can wait a little longer.”

Leo: “Patience. How royal of you.”

They headed back to the firepit, where Liam, Drake, and Maxwell were still deep in their existential debate.

Leo: “You guys ready to head to the cottage? It’s past your royal bedtimes.”

Liam, brushing dirt off his pants and stood up, “Yeah. I gotta prep for tomorrow.”

As Liam walked off, Maxwell leaned in to Drake. “Hey, Li never answered your question.”

“Yeah, and now he’s gone, and I still don’t know what happened to the crown!” Drake looked agitated.

Maxwell grinned wickedly. “Dude. You seriously don’t remember?”

Drake looked like he was already regretting his life choices. “No. Should I?”

Maxwell burst into laughter, trying to suppress it and failing spectacularly. He collapsed onto the ground in a heap of giggles.

Drake groaned. “Why do you always do this? Can’t you just tell me what happened?”

Maxwell tried to look innocent. “What? You mean now?”

“Yes, now!”

Maxwell shrugged. “Nah. It’s more fun this way.”

Drake stomped off. “I hate you.”

“Love you too, buddy!” Maxwell called after him, still giggling.

Inside the Cottage – Later That Night

The royal mountain cottage was rustic-chic mixed with royal finery —stone fireplace crackling, oversized velvet couches, and expensive portraits and accessories.

Leo flopped dramatically onto a couch, nearly knocking over a tray of imported herbal teas. Trystan settled into the armchair with a grunt and a handful of shortbread cookies, which he had clearly stolen from a diplomatic gift basket.

“I’m serious,” Leo said suddenly, turning to him with a look that was one part scheming and two parts big-brother mischief. “Next time we’re in Paris… I’m going to make a man out of Liam.”

Trystan choked on his cookie. “What?!” he coughed. “What does that even mean? You’re not sending him to the Foreign Legion!”

Leo grinned. “No! I mean, like… take him out. Show him the world. Teach him the arts of charm, confidence, maybe get him a nice haircut that doesn’t look like it was done with a medieval sword.”

Trystan raised an eyebrow. “So… your plan is to drag a twelve-year-old around Paris and sprinkle him with cologne until women swoon?”

Leo shrugged. “Exactly.”

“Leo, you do realize Paris is full of croissants and chaos. Liam’s idea of a good time is still building Lego castles and quoting Star Wars.”

“Which is exactly why he needs me. Paris will change him.”

“Into what? A pretentious art critic with a beret and a heartbreak playlist?”

Leo leaned back smugly. “Into a gentleman. A Casanova. A future king who knows how to hold a wine glass and a conversation.”

Trystan shook his head, laughing. “You’re unbelievable.”

Leo wagged a finger. “Unbelievably effective.”

"Wait ... wait ... a future king? Trystan looks at Leo.

Just then, a loud thud echoed from upstairs, followed by Maxwell’s voice yelling, “Drake! I swear if you farted in my room again, I will smother you with a decorative pillow!”

Trystan looked toward the ceiling. “Yeah. Definitely ready for Paris.”

Leo grinned. “Not those two, just my Prince Mini-Me.”

☆●☆●☆●☆●☆●☆●☆●☆●☆●☆●☆●☆●☆●☆●☆

☆ @choicesficwriterscreations

☆ @choicesmonthlychallenge

☆ @choicescommunityevents

● my perma-tags: @beau1811 @bascmve01 @twinkleallnight @dutifullynuttywitch @lovingchoices14 @alj4890 @busywoman @bardic-tales @kingliam2019 @malblk21 @delmissesryanandcassi @selina012 @differenttyphoonwerewolf

●Brothers-in-Arms @walkerdrakewalker

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twinkleallnight · 2 months ago

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Tagging @choicesprompts for the pride event throwback . I wish I could write more about these two n how they have built up their world with Ryan. Someday, I will. Till then happy reading my crackship!

Book: The Royal Romance AU

Characters: Max, Ryan and his fathe r.

Word count: 929

Disclaimer: All characters belong to pixelberry except Ryan.

Rating: Mature.

Prompt: Features day 5 of TRR Appreciation Week hosted by @trraw

Link to the Series here.

“Once upon a time, there lived a girl named Celesté in a small Kingdom of Cordonia.”

“Popsie, I hope this is not another animal story that you are trying to push on me.” Ryan warned Maxwell.

“No, no, no. Absolutely not.” Maxwell waved off. Maxwell knew he could not fool his son. The little guy already acted like a miniature teenager.

Ryan moved his hand through his dark brown hair like a pro and looked expectantly through his Beaumont grey eyes. “Celesté? Who was she? I never heard Papa say that name.”

“She was an important member at the Beaumont duchy, not at the palace. That is why your Papa doesn’t know much about her.”

Ryan turned to lie on his side and propped up his head on his palm supported by the elbow. “Tell me more.”

“So at our manor back in Cordonia, I grew up with your Uncle Bertrand. And you know how strict he is. In fact, no one can beat him in his collection of cutlery….”

“Popsie!” Ryan rolled his eyes. “ You were telling about Celesté!”

“Oh ya. Yes. Celesté joined us at the manor when I was young and boy, I fell in love with her the moment I first saw her.”

Ryan jumped up and stomped out of the room. Maxwell rushed behind him, clueless of what went wrong.

“Papa! Papa!” Ryan shouted.

“What's the matter?” his second father called out from his study taking quick steps towards the father and the son.

“I don’t know! Ryan, what’s wrong?” Maxwell inquired.

“You lied to me. You said it is no animal story.”

“Yes, There wasn’t any animal.” Maxwell assured looking at his son innocently.

“Papa, popsie said he fell in love with her at first sight. He says that only for his pets.”

Maxwell’s mouth was hung open. His son was a born detective. He had decoded the mystery of who Celesté was, even before Maxwell could reach the climax of the story. Was he taking secret training under some cunning Auvernal spy? He felt proud too at the same time.

“You lied Max, I know Celesté was your first peahen.” His partner too was now blaming him. Max had to defend himself right now.

“You knew? Wasn’t she a darling?” When he saw both of them staring at him, he reasoned. “So what? What’s wrong in a cute little animal tale?”

“I don’t like animal tales!” Ryan protested hugging his Papa.

“How can you not like animals? Popsie Max is an animal lover and papa Zeke is a vet. How could you hate them?”

Ezekiel who was quiet till now, spoke. “Max, you are being unreasonable now.”

“I am just giving him exposure to things around us. People he will see when we go back to our manor in Cordonia."

"Pets you mean." Ezekiel corrected.

"How does it make any difference?"

Ryan saw the argument turning to a phase of no return and boomed loudly, “Is anyone going to take me to bed?”

“Sorry Cherie, let’s go.” Ezekiel hugged him and walked him back.

Ryan settled down in his bed and Zeke started, “il était une fois…”

“ Papa, English please.”

“qu'est-ce qui ne va pas avec le français” Ezekiel questioned why not french.

Max who was watching it all standing at the door said, “See now you are being unreasonable, Zeke”

Ezekiel glared at Max. "Learning a foreign language is good. Aunt Kiara knows so many of them Ryan and you always want to be like her."

This time Max stood up to support Ryan, "But he is not interested. I tried to teach him a foreign language. He refused."

"We are talking about human language Max, not the cat language or the porcupines languages that you want him to learn.

Ryan rolled his eyes. He picked his favourite book from the shelves and lay down. He was soon lost in reading the book, oblivious to his arguing parents.

Max and Ezekiel realised that Ryan was quiet and turned to see him hiding his face behind a book about spaceships. They went across, each on one side of the bed. Ezekiel took away the book while Max held Ryan's hand.

Ezekiel placed the book on the shelf and they sat down beside the bed and looked fondly at their son. They both bent down to kiss Ryan. He smiled at them, happy to have their attention back.

"You know why Celeste was important, Ryan?" Max placed his palm along the side of Ryan's face.

Ryan frowned at the mention of the peahen again. But he knew it was important for his father so he gave back a questioning look.

Max exchanged a smile with Ezekiel and then looked back at their son. "She was the reason your popsie and your papa bonded first."

Ezekiel continued, "Yes, I remember when your popsie came to know that I am a vet, he invited me specially to the Beaumont manor to meet his pets. Celesté out of all other pets, stayed beside Max all the time."

Ezekiel asked Max, "She did really love you a lot, didn't she? Would have made me jealous, had she been around now."

Maxwell laughed and so did Ryan.

"I love Popsie the most. More than anyone." Ryan curled his little hands around Maxwell's broad biceps.

"And papa?" Ezekiel asked.

Ryan then stretched each one of his arms across both his father's neck pulling their faces to his cheeks. "I love you both!"

*****************

They did a little group hug and kissed each other. "We love you too Ryan!" Both the fathers said in unison.

Next part here

Tags: @annekebbphotography @alj4890 @anjanettexcordonia @bascmve01 @charlotteg234 @choicesficwriterscreations @cordonia-gothqueen @cordonian-literature @drakewalker04 @gkittylove99 @krsnlove @hopefulmoonobject @hopelessromanticmonie @idontknowwhysblog @indiacater @jessiembruno @kingliam2019 @lisha1valecha @neotericthemis @ntoraplayschoices @princess-geek @princessleac1 @secretaryunpaid @sirbeepsalot @speedyoperarascalparty @texaskitten30 @txemrn @sweatyrysconnoisseur @theroyalheirshadowhunter @aestheticartsx @yourmajesty09 @efecom @grsarco-blog @lovelyladyk88 @mainstreetreader @choiceskatie @claireloutoo @tinkie1973

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twinkleallnight · 3 months ago

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@angelasscribbles @alj4890 @lizzybeth1986 @princess-geek

So true n apt for my comfort people. Thanks for being there.. n Robin even if it's deactivated

i’ll be honest i still fan girl over my own mutuals

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twinkleallnight · 4 months ago

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Picture Perfect

Series: None, this is a one-shot and you can find those here.

Fandom: The Royal Romance

Pairing: Drake x Riley

Rating: Mature

Warnings for this chapter: there's a tiny bit of lemon scenting. Also, they will be mean to each other. Curse words of course.

Word Count: 2,107

My other stuff: Master List.

The Duke and Duchess of Valtoria climbed out of the back of the limousine, the Duke wrapping his arms protectively around his wife’s waist. He angled his body between her and the crowd, as he always did.

Riley smiled and waved to the crowd as they made their way down the red carpet toward the charity gala. Drake smiled at her. The only attention he spared for the crowd was to survey it for threats.

This was not lost on the press. The rulers of Valtoria were beloved by their people. Partially because they both used to be commoners and everyone loved a good rags to riches story, but also because of the genuine love and affection they showed each other.

It was rare, after all, in this day and age to see such a high profile couple so obviously in love, so dedicated to each other. It was inspiring, and there had been a proliferation of articles about their once in a lifetime kind of love.

Every Cordonian woman dreamed of finding a man who looked at her the way Drake looked at Riley.

In interviews, they each gave all the credit for their personal successes to the other.

She laughed at all his jokes.

He opened doors for her, pulled out chairs and led her around the dance floor, staring down at her like she was the only woman in the world.

She straightened his tie for him and reached across the table to wipe crumbs from the corner of his mouth.

Yes, everyone agreed that they were the perfect couple. Perfectly in love.

Which was exactly what their carefully curated public image was supposed to convey.

Behind closed doors, the story was a little different.

Later that night, the limo pulled down the drive at the Valtorian estate and rolled to a stop in front of the manor.

The Duke exited first and reached back for his wife’s hand.

She took his hand and climbed out behind him, giving him a grateful smile then thanking their driver.

The couple made their way to the entryway as the limo drove away. He pulled the door open for her.

The duchess glanced back as she entered her home to ensure the car was out of sight, then she whirled on her husband, the well-rehearsed smile replaced by a mask of fury. “Did you get her number?”

He blinked. “Whose?”

“The fucking waitress you couldn’t keep your eyes off of all night! She sure found all your stupid jokes funny. Spoiler alert, you’re not funny.”

His jaw ticked. “Frankly, I’m surprised you noticed who I was speaking to at all, considering how much time you spent fawning all over Liam.”

“Oh, give it a fucking rest already. If I wanted Liam, I would have married Liam! I could have!”

“Yes, I know! You never miss an opportunity to throw it in my face.”

Her eyes scanned the foyer as they traversed it to ensure there were no servants within hearing. Couldn’t have their little tiff on the front page of tomorrow’s Cordonian Star, marring their image. A perfect picture with a broken frame, that’s what they were. “You what your problem is?”

“No,” he rolled his eyes. “But I’m sure you’re going to tell me.”

“You’re just pissed that I don’t need you anymore. I’m not some clueless waitress that needs your help. Is that your obsession with waitresses, Drake, huh? You need clueless women so you feel more powerful?”

“Jesus Christ. I was just making conversation! You left me alone at the table half the night! What was I supposed to do?”

“You’re supposed to not embarrass me, that’s what! Considering what I gave up to be with you, the least you could do is afford me some fucking respect!” She gathered her dress in her hands as she stormed up the stairs toward their shared bedroom.

She should make him move into another room. God knows there were plenty of them.

“Oh, yeah, what did you give up to be with me?” He already knew the answer, but now he was ready for a fight. She had a lot of gall to be pissed at him when he had to watch her flirt with his best friend all night.

“I turned down a literal king to be with you!”

“Oh, here we go with this shit again!” He bounded up the stairs behind her. “Don’t put that on me, Riley, you made your own choices!”

“I gave up everything to be with you!” She pushed into the bedroom and threw herself onto a chaise lounge to pull her ridiculously high heels off.

“What the fuck did you give up, Riley, huh? You still got every damn thing Liam promised you. A duchy, money, power. What exactly did you give up? Tell me that!”

“I could have been queen!”

“Queen,” he scoffed. “You didn’t want to be queen. That involves work. You got all the fame and fortune without having to do the actual work!”

“I work!”

“Yeah? Really? Doing what?”

“I run a duchy in case you haven’t noticed you fucking prick!”

“Max runs the duchy for you.”

“He’s my assistant!” She tossed the shoes to the floor and stood up to turn her back to him.

“Assistant my ass,” he fumed as he pulled her zipper down for her. “He does all the work! Remember the one budget meeting you went to? Remember when you were trying to prepare for it? You didn’t even know the difference between a fixed expense and a variable expense, I had to tell you. You would have nothing if it weren’t for the people around you. You’d still be waiting tables in New York.”

She jerked away from him and reached up to remove her earrings. “You’re one to talk. You’ve been riding Liam’s coattails your entire fucking life!”

Drake glared at her as he shrugged out of his jacket and clawed at his tie. “Oh, is that what I’ve been doing?”

“Yes, Drake, it is. If it weren’t for Liam, you wouldn’t have anything, including me!” The sentence was punctuated by the clatter of her seventy thousand dollar sapphire earrings clattering to the table top where she flung them.

His fingers froze with his shirt only halfway unbuttoned. He turned toward her incredulously and flung his arms out. “You think I wanted any of this? Liam did all this for you, not me!”

“You didn’t exactly drag your feet moving into Valtoria, did you? You sure let him make you a duke fast enough.”

His mouth fell open. “I did that for you and you know it!”

The laws and traditions in Cordonia made it much easier for the aristocracy to marry each other than to marry outside of it.

It was the entire reason Liam had made her duchess in the first place. Back when he thought he still had a chance to make her his queen.

Riley turned her back to him again as she let her dress fall to the ground and pulled on an old t-shirt. “Don’t act like you did it for me. You never loved me, you just wanted to stick it to Liam, remember?”

His brows furrowed in confusion. “What are you talking about?”

“Isn’t that what you told me that day you said it felt good to win against him for once?”

The words hit him like a gut punch. He took a step toward her and laid a hand on her shoulder. “Yeah, no, that’s not what I—”

She shrugged out from under his touch and headed for the master bath. “It’s what you said.”

“Riley—” He sighed with a shake of his head as he finished undressing and changed into a pair of grey sweatpants and a Cordonia University t-shirt.

When Riley returned from the bathroom, face scrubbed clean and hair taken down, she found Drake standing at the drink cart pouring himself a generous helping of Macallan. He shook his head when he saw her and launched right back into the argument. “I became a fucking duke for you and you know how I feel about the damn aristocracy and all their bullshit!”

“Yeah, yeah, you’ve got it so rough.” She rolled her eyes and flicked her hand dismissively in the air. “Sitting here in my estate, drinking three hundred thousand dollar bottles of scotch and smoking imported cigars while my staff does your laundry and cooks your meals.”

He threw his head back and laughed. That laugh made her want to punch him in his smug face… with a baseball bat. “What?”

“Do you think I need you for any of that? I’ve got news for you, sweetheart, I moved out of a literal palace to come live here, and this whiskey is swill compared to the stuff they stock! Cheers!” He held the glass out to her with a mocking smile, then threw the drink back.

It went down smooth. He was pleased with himself for winning the argument until he saw the expression on her face.

Riley had had enough. She pulled open a dresser drawer and started throwing clothes onto the bed. “Get out.”

“What?”

“I said get out! Move into the room across the hall. You’re not sleeping in here ever again.” She stormed to the closet and pulled his luggage out, dragging the largest one to the bed.

Disbelief rooted him to the spot for a bare second, then fury exploded through his chest. He moved to take the suitcase from her. “Fuck that and fuck you! I’ll just move into my cabin!”

“Good!”

“Great!”

“I can call a butler to help you pack.”

“Don’t need one. Unlike you, I still know how to do shit for myself.”

“Whatever. Fucking asshole.”

She retreated to her favorite wingback chair with a glass of wine as he haphazardly grabbed items from the closet, the dresser, and the bathroom, not bothering to check if he’d gotten it all.

It wasn’t until he was dragging four suitcases to the door that panic started to set in.

When was the last time he’d been to the cabin? Was it dusty? Was the heat working? Was there food in the kitchen?

He could go to the palace, but then he’d have to explain to Liam why he was there, and that was the last thing he wanted to do. He was sure that Liam was just waiting for a crack in their relationship.

He could go stay with his sister, but then Max would ask him a million questions and probably head straight to Valtoria to comfort her.

Riley might not be aware of the raging crush Max had on her, but Drake was. No, he couldn’t go to Ramsford.

Would she file for divorce? Who would she hire? Most likely Rashad. That mother fucker was definitely interested.

Shit!

He couldn’t take it back now, though. He had some pride left.

He had just kicked the last suitcase out the door and into the hallway when he heard her voice.

“Drake, wait!”

Oh, thank God!

She cracked first. Now he could stay without having to admit that he wanted to.

He turned back to find her standing within arm's reach. He grabbed her arm and yanked her to him. His lips crashed down on hers. He kicked the door shut behind him, suitcases abandoned in the hallway.

She pulled back to murmur, “Drake, I’m so—”

“Shut up,” he breathed, as he swept her into his arms and carried her to the bed.

An hour later, they lay in the bed naked, sweaty, satiated. His back was streaked with blood from her scratch marks. Bruises bloomed like a necklace around her neck and along the top of her breasts. Her teeth marks stood out, red and angry, on his chest and shoulders.

His voice was rough with emotion as he pulled her body close to his. “I love you, Riley. I wasn’t flirting with that waitress.”

He had been, but it was just to boost his ego a little. It meant nothing.

“I know. I’m sorry. I wasn’t flirting with Liam either. I love you too.”

She had been, but it was hard not to. He was so attentive and charming. It meant nothing.

He pretended to believe her.

She pretended to believe him.

It was easier than facing their issues and insecurities.

She scooted closer to him, sighing as his arms tightened around her.

He had definitely been flirting with the waitress, but she pushed that out of her mind as she snuggled against him.

That was a problem for another day.

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twinkleallnight · 5 months ago

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Honestly, even I think most of my taglist is either gone yet I m not cleaning up. What's the use?

Anyways.The point is I am here reading another amazing fic by you soon after you posted it.. so yeah Cheers to the TRR fandom! What a start to the fic n I love that conversation.

The Big Mistake

Series: Mistake of a Lifetime

Fandom: The Royal Romance

Pairings: Riley x Leo, Riley x Hana

Word Count: 1,104

Rating: MA

Warnings for this chapter: alludes to sex, probably some cursing

A/N: Ya’ll haven’t had anything new from me in a while, so I decided to take this out of my WIP folder (where it’s been sitting, completed, for quite some time now) and offer it up. I make no promises about when this will be continued, as I have so much going on right now in real life. But, here it is. Happy Sunday.

My other stuff: Master List.

Riley blinked her eyes against the glare of light slipping through the floor to ceiling curtains she was facing. Her eyes darted from the elegant brocade curtains to the plush carpeting on the floor. She sat upright in confusion.

This was not her hotel room.

Her room was on the first floor of a nondescript budget friendly hotel she had booked online.

Judging by the plush furnishings and the high quality art on the walls, she was in a five star hotel. Through the curtains, she caught a glimpse of the city. The view was pretty good, so she must be on the top floor.

A muffled groan and rustling of sheets caught her attention. She turned her head to discover the reason for her confusion. Stretched out next to her in the double king sized bed was a shirtless man with tousled blond hair and rippling muscles. She squeezed her eyes shut trying to remember his name.

It started with an L. Lee… Leon or Louie or something like that.

His blue eyes blinked open as she tried to ease out of the bed without waking him. “Hey, where you going?”

“You caught me. I was just going to slip out quietly and avoid the awkward morning after small talk.”

“Okay. But at least let me buy you breakfast first. I’m not a complete cad.”

It was tempting. Free food, hot guy. Morning sex wouldn’t be the end of the world. “Okay, just let me text my girlfriend so she knows I wasn’t kidnapped last night.”

“Hana, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah, how’d you—” She froze as she caught sight of her left hand. Lifting it in the air, she examined the diamond ring that sparkled and glinted on her ring finger. “Um… what did we do last night, exactly?”

“The usual,” he smirked, “Got drunk, danced a lot, there was sex. Lots of it if memory serves.”

“Is that all?”

“Why? What else—” He sat straight up in the bed as one particular memory shoved its way to the forefront of his consciousness. “Shit!”

She turned toward him and thrust the ring in his face. “Please tell me this is a novelty ring!”

“I can’t tell you that because I’m pretty sure it’s not.”

Her head shook vigorously from side to side. “No, no, no, no, this can’t be happening! We did not get married!”

“Well…”

“How was there a jewelry store open in the middle of the night?”

“I know a guy—"

She flung the covers back and bolted out of the bed, scooping her clothes off the floor. “No, there’s no way we got married! Don’t you need your birth certificate for that? Don’t you have to get a marriage license first?”

“Generally, yes. But there’s a reason that wouldn’t be an issue for me.” He got up and rummaged around the room. Once he found what he was looking for, he presented it to her.

She clutched last night’s dress to her body with one hand while she took the paper from him with the other. She stared down at it in horror. It was a marriage certificate all right. Riley Brooks and Leo Rys, joined in holy matrimony. Her hands started to shake. “No, no, no, this isn’t happening!”

“I mean…. Would being married to me be the worst thing that—”

She glared at him. “I don’t even know you!”

“Well, okay.” He put his hands up in the air. “But we seemed pretty close last night.”

“This isn’t funny! Hana is going to kill me! I mean fucking murder me!” Riley and Hana were in an open relationship, but she was pretty sure that marrying a total stranger would be a deal breaker.

“It’s okay,” he assured her. “I can fix it.”

“How?”

“Just…. Get dressed. We have to go to the palace.”

“The palace?” She blinked at him as her sleep and alcohol laden brain tried to make sense of what he was saying. “Why?”

“My father can just grant an annulment.”

“Your father?”

“Yes, my father! The king. Remember, I told you last night—”

Her eyes widened as she sucked in a shocked gasp. “You were serious about that?”

“Yes. You thought I was lying?”

“Of course, I thought you were lying! Men will say any kind of shit to get a woman into bed!”

“So, you thought I was lying but you still slept with me?”

“I thought you were doing it ironically! It was such an obvious lie that no one would believe it, so you were saying it as a joke. You know, poking fun at ridiculous pickup lines. I thought it was funny and charming you fucking prick!”

“Hey now,” He held both hands up in front of him in the universal symbol of surrender. “It’s not my fault that I was honest with you and you chose not to believe me. Maybe you have some trust issues you should work on.”

“Of course, I have trust issues. Men do asinine shit like trick women they just met into marriage!”

“Oh, men do that, do they? This happens to you all the time? How many strange men have you married?”

“Fuck you.”

“You already did that. But I’m not averse to round two.”

“Oh, there is no way I’m sleeping with you again!”

Leo shrugged. “Your loss.”

She opened her mouth to say something rude when a memory from the night before broke through.

“…it’s an arranged marriage. I don’t see any way out of it, short of just…running away…”

“What if you married someone else?” she blurted out.

“What?” He laughed.

“I mean… you can’t marry her if you’re already married to someone else, right?”

“Right.”

She closed her eyes in mortification. The marriage had been her idea.

“What is it? What’s wrong?” Concern laced his voice.

She was taken aback by how quickly he’d gone from cocky and flippant to kind and solicitous.

“Nothing… just…” she thrust her dirty clothes toward him. “Do you have a T-shirt and some sweats or something I can borrow? I can’t put these back on.”

“I… yeah, ok, go take a shower and I’ll make sure you have something that fits when you get out. And I’ll order breakfast.”

“I don’t think we have time to—”

“Come on. You have to eat.”

“Fine. Whatever.” She huffed as she slammed into the bathroom. Glaring at herself in the mirror, she tried to quell the panic rising in her throat. How the hell was she going to explain this to Hana?

Their epic summer abroad had just taken a disastrous turn.

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twinkleallnight · 5 months ago

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You may not tag... But we will reblog n let the fandom know what they r gonna miss with one of the finest writers leaving the fandom...

Fare Thee Well

Dearest Tumblrs,

I believe the title of the post says it all; this is my goodbye letter to the site and the remaining people that have made the past 6 ½ years the most eclectic learning experience ever. It really shouldn’t be a shock or surprise given that I have already stepped away from Tumblr for indefinite periods before and am currently on hiatus; I’m just making it official.

But there’s a finality to this, a sadness over this chapter of my journey coming to a close.

It's been quite the ride; like so many, I came to lurk and read about my chosen LI and all-time OTP. I never intended to write; while I have dabbled in creative writing off and on since I was a teenager and had a personal blog for therapeutic purposes from 2010-2014, I felt my writing style was too clunky/wordy, too repetitive, and downright boring because my voice didn’t sound like others.

But one day, I decided to sit down and write something (my very first fanfic, Queen of Diamonds) I thought hadn’t been done before; I was so wrong. Fandoms are the literal embodiment of nothing new under the sun. I had no taglist, no idea how to tag my fic, and it received one note.

It didn’t matter. The joy and feeling of accomplishment from reading MY writing ON THE INTERNET is still the best high I’ve ever had (and I’m a recovering addict). So I wrote another something (my first series, Timing, which is STILL incomplete), and that is when Tumblr stepped in to help me along. I was befriended and mentored by the most amazing writers (who are no longer on this site), which helped me to hone my craft and appreciate my voice.

My time here has been a journey: I was schooled in fandom etiquette (I was greener than a can of peas); there has been discourse (nothing like a robust argument to bring a fandom together); I have been on both sides of the popularity line; I made both frenemies and nurtured friendships; and was gaslit (heavily) by Note Count Syndrome.

I have learned to agree to disagree, that 4 +5 isn’t the only way to get a sum total of 9, to stay open to learning, and to listen to another opinion/perspective with the objective of understanding, not rebutting.

While my reasons for finally cutting the cord with Tumblr are many, my #1 reason is to further explore my writing, digging deeper into characters I have already molded in images far removed from what Pixelberry presented. Side note: Yes, I am taking my versions of the TRR gang (and a few from other stories) with me. PB doesn’t own names, countries (even fictional ones), or tropes. I do not plan to use their story verbatim (which is plagiarism and wrong), although there will still be a few fics with a Cordonian/royalty element to them.

I’ve written basically nothing but these characters for the past 6.5 years; I have custody of them now.

I’m looking forward to breathing life into original characters, creating worlds and situations that are both real and relatable on all levels. I can’t do that with fanfiction (especially fanfiction based on a romance trope), I can’t do that within a fandom where happily ever afters are mandatory and true love prevails no matter the plotline.

So yes, I plan to continue writing; if you’re interested in following the next steps in my journey to the Great American Novel, I am on WordPress. Right now, there isn’t much there but hopeful that will change soon. If you wish to connect with me on social media/messaging, I am really only active on Facebook, Signal, and WhatsApp. I’ll be leaving this post up for 24 hours to let the algos rithm and hopefully reach someone, so PM me for contact info.

Not tagging anyone because no idea who (if anybody) is left here.

In closing, THANK YOU, Tumblr. I couldn’t have done this without you.

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