ultrone-reposts

[ultrone-reposts]

in the woods somewhere

pairing: Shauna Shipman x r summary: First you eat Mari (rip), and then you eat Shauna (out). it's smut. notes: minors dni. trigger warning yall about the cannibalism rn. it's not graphic but it's mentioned. you and shauna being weird about blood. you saw her in that trailer don't ask meee.

“Fuck, Shauna,” You say, more of a gasp than anything else as Shauna graciously allows you to pull away from her lips long enough to breathe. Her hands are firm on your waist, digging in just enough that you know you're going to find little bruises there for days. Weeks even, if Shauna catches sight of them, always eager to press down harder, to mark you for longer. 

The metallic taste of blood on your tongue lingers even as the warmth of her lips starts to face, grounding you in the nightmare you've been living. Mari's blood stains the bottom half of her face: her lips, the curve of her jaw, the hollow of her throat. Shauna never used to be such a messy eater, but a lot of things about her have changed in the last year. You thought about wiping the blood off her mouth long before it was pressed against yours, smearing across your face and turning you into a horror movie extra, but there's something about the way it glints against her face. 

Unapologetically wild, fitting into the forest around her like she’s never known anything different.

Even with her back up against a tree, rough bark tearing into whatever skin is unlucky enough to make contact with it, her smirk doesn’t falter. Her mocking eyes look back at you, gleaming with something almost verging on contempt–not for you, never for you, but nothing else is safe. It’s the look that makes you wonder what it would feel like to have Shauna's teeth sink into your flesh and come away wet, your blood staining her lips like what was left of Mari.

You never saw this look before the crash, never could have imagined it on her face, but now it haunts you even in your dreams. You can't get away from that feral fucking grin, edges sharper than any knife. It’s there when she moves, there in that smug confidence as she twirls around knives and howls through the woods. 

There's nothing in that look of that sweet girl who used to make you mixtapes, shoving them into your hands and running away before you could ask her about them. But Shauna hasn't been that girl in a while. That girl was buried with the plane like the rest of you were. Not since she learned what it felt like to run her knife across a throat, or the way hard steel sounded as it scraped against bone to get the last pieces of flesh. 

It’s that same girl who grabs ahold of your jaw, fingers digging in unapologetically as she shoves you down to your knees. There’s no softness in her touch, not now, not when her bloodlust still lingers. Later she might press guilty kisses against your skin, fingers trailing across it with a gentleness that makes you tear up, but that won’t come till after. Now she’s all hunger.

You would call it an offering, the way she allows you to pin her up against the tree and devour her, daring you to take what’s been given, but you know that’s not quite right. You were the offering, weren’t you? Just as thankful to be fed no matter where Shauna sourced her meat, and just as eager to prove it to her. You don’t question her when she’s like this, don’t tell her to “Chill the fuck out, Shipman.” the way the other girls sometimes do–laughter too nervous to be anything but fear. 

And in turn, Shauna doesn’t look at you like she looks at everyone else–like she’s wondering what they’ll look like on her table next, or what their blood will feel like spilling over her hands as she picks them clean.

Shauna’s eyes lock with yours, dark and knowing as she drags her thumb across the bottom half of your face. Slowly, enough that she can be sure you see the blood adorning it even in the dim light, she brings her thumb to her mouth and sucks. You watch her cheeks hollow, her tongue sweeping across her thumb like she’s still starved. She is, isn’t she? When are any of you not anymore? Even as full as you feel you still want more. You can never have enough.

And you’re not alone.

She grins, pulling it away clean with a wet pop. Her teeth catch the light, glimmering like fangs in the dark. It’s a smile that promises things you aren’t sure you can handle, but can’t help but want regardless. Her hand drops to her shorts, unbuttoning them with any easy confidence that makes your heart racing and your thoughts fleeing.

Shauna’s barely stepped out of her clothes before you strike, not bothering to work her up. Not when she’s just as wet as you thought you would find her. Your hands grip her thighs, tight enough to return those bruises she’s so deliberately gifted you with, as you pull one leg over your shoulder. She stumbles back, worn heel of her sneaker skidding across the damn earth beneath her feet, startled to find herself so suddenly on uneven footing. She grasps at your shoulder with a gasp that quickly turns into a quiet moan as your lips find her wanting, arching against the tree to press as much of your mouth against her cunt as she can manage.

The feeling of her skin against your cheeks, under your tongue, the slick sound of her desire, drowns everything else out. You don't feel the sticks digging into your knees, the broken edges tearing holes into what was left of your pants. You don't even hear the beating of your heart in your ears, even when it was so loud just moments ago.

It's just her. 

Her hand rests firmly against the back of your neck, fingers curling in your hair as she clutches at you for stability. You lean in, dragging the flat of your tongue against her in one long, slow lick. She digs the heel of her shoe into your back, either in revenge or a silent plea to hurry up. Likely both. 

Shauna's hips jerk instinctively as you flick your tongue against her clit, a mindless roll that quickly falls into a rhythm as you press her back against the tree. Her hairs already messed up, both from a mixture of your hands as you’d stumbled into the woods away from the rest of the girls and from the branches she’s gotten caught in her hair as she tossed it back against the tree. Leaves cling to the messy strands, a wild crown that only adds to that feral look you love so well.

You can feel her leg trembling from the strain of holding herself up, muscles still taut and trembling from the hunt. She’s the fastest of all of you, always catching up to whoever was unlucky enough to draw that card before the rest of you could even catch sight of her. If you couldn’t hear her wild howls and breathless laughter echoing through the trees you would worry she disappeared entirely into the thicket of trees.

But you don’t have to worry about that now, not when her breath comes out in shallow pants as you slip two fingers inside of her. The change only brings her further into your touch, and you’re more than happy to take advantage of it as you curl your fingers just so. She clutches at the bark behind her for support, fingertips scratching themselves bloody, but she doesn’t seem to care. How could she, when you’re working so diligently on your knees?

You falter for a moment at the thought of sucking Shauna’s bloody fingertips in your mouth, warm skin against your tongue as you lap at the ruined skin beneath her nails. The way she would whine at the hint of pain every time you traced the small cuts, teasing her as you reopened the wounds just enough to make her squirm. The thought is dizzying, but you do your best to put it out of your mind for now.

Shauna isn’t having it. She pulls hard at your hair even as you quickly fall back into place, making her displeasure known in her favorite way. Sharp, deliberate, and painful enough to ground you immediately in the moment. It leaves no room for misunderstanding, as Shauna rarely does when she wants something from you. 

You gasp as Shauna bucks her hips firmly, holding you in place with an authority that makes you squirm. She doesn't let you back up for air even as you claw at her leg, thin red lines popping up across her skin in the aftermath as she keeps you right where she wants you. 

The edges of panic start to set in as your lungs start to burn, a desperate feeling crawling up your throat and taking over your every thought. You wonder for a moment, as you start to get light headed, if this is how Shauna plans on killing you? Fucking your mouth just the way she likes as she suffocates you between her thighs, taking everything you give her and then some more. 

There are definitely worse ways to go out here, Mari certainly proved that.

There's no malice in it, none of the blinding hatred she feels when she's overcome by the sheer scale of her rage. If you could think clearly you'd know that, but Shauna doesn’t leave any room left in your brain for things as useless to her as thoughts. Every moan that leaves her throat only seems to make you feel more and more desperate for air. Shauna laughs as you let the hand on her thigh go limp, trying to keep your fingers thrusting steadily even as it gets harder and harder to focus on even that. 

“Aw,” Shauna says, her voice dripping with mocking sympathy as she rubs her thumb against the back of your head. “You can’t keep up?” The words alone would have been enough to keep you between her legs even without her holding you, but she has other ideas.

She lets you up for a moment, just enough to take a desperate breath, the sound raw and broken, before she draws you back in to properly ride your face. You can feel the way her muscles flex as she moves her hips in firm, hard thrusts. You didn't know what you wanted when you pulled Shauna away from the rest of the girls, still blood soaked and high off the thrill of your victory, but it had to be this. It had to be the roll of her hips as she took, and took, and took.

You fall back against your heels as Shauna finally lets you up for air, head resting against her thigh as you gasp and tremble from the experience. Shauna pulls on the back of your hair, pulling your head up to look at her. She's got a strange look on her face, some cross between devotion and madness. Sometimes you hate that she wears it so well. 

You're sure you look like a mess. Chest heaving as you pant for air she’s been denying you, hair knotted up from the push and pull of her whims. Your face is slick with a mixture of blood and her wetness, and your eyes still watering with unspent tears. Shauna seems almost enraptured by the sight of what she’s reduced you to. Her lips curl into a predatory grin, free hand coming off the tree to further smear herself across your lips.

She tuts as you just stare up at her, as if offended by your continued silence, clenching suddenly around your fingers as if to remind you where they were. You answer her unspoken demand, quickly resuming the same rhythm she had so enjoyed earlier.

“Faster,” She complains, her voice rough and thick with desire. There’s something about her when she gets this way, when there’s no trace of the girl who whispers your name against your ear in a voice so quiet you can barely hear it. Loud, demanding, and unrelenting when it comes to the things she wants. And right now, all she wants is you. You oblige without question, without conscious thought if you’re being completely honest with yourself.

“Yes,” Shauna breathes, the sound slipping through her lips like it cost her something to admit. She gasps as you dig your fingers further into her thigh, finally sucking her clit into your mouth, lapping at her with the precision of someone who’s long since memorized what makes her fall apart. 

When her gasps turn into a broken moan you tighten your grip, holding her up as her thighs start to tremble, and refusing to let up till she’s shaking and clinging to you like you’re the only thing keeping her from sinking to her knees from the weight of her orgasm. For just a moment her world has narrowed down to just you, and the way your hands feel as you anchor her to the tree.

Shauna pulls her leg off your shoulder when she can finally breathe again, one hand still holding on to you as you help her step back into the clothes still wrapped loosely around one ankle. It’s a slow process, her limbs moving sluggish and boneless. She gives you a considering look as you button her shorts back up for her, one that finally turns into a smile as she sinks to her knees to look you in the eyes.

“Hey,” She says quietly, voice still rough and raspy.

“Hey,” You say back, attempting that same broody tone and failing spectacularly. It comes out far too light, and you recognize it immediately. Shauna scoffs, but doesn’t seem all that put out by it.

Her fingers start to comb through your hair in a futile attempt to work the knots out of your hair. Shauna’s only making it worse, you both know that, but even the look of frustration on her face as she pulls just a little too hard on a strand of your hair is enough to make you smile back.

Shauna squeals as you cup her face with both of your hands, trying to squirm away and only succeeding in dragging your wet fingers clear across her face. She blows a strand of hair out of her face in frustration, looking away for a moment in an attempt to find patience you’ve never known her to possess.

“Don’t laugh,” She warns, giving you a half-hearted glare that looks utterly ridiculous on her bloody cheeks. 

You think she should probably seem more intimidating right now than she is, but you’ve grown used to her.

[ultrone-reposts]

LMAOOO ofc travis would say that 🙄

the ghost you dressed up as [6]

pairing: Jackie Taylor x Shauna Shipman x r summary: "It's all been leading up to this, hasn't it? Time for you to officially become a part of it all." note: GRAPHIC depictions of violence. masterlist

You finally rise to a crouch at the sound of Mrs. Loomis's voice rising in fright, peeking through the small slats in her hall closet’s door. Hiding out in her home for her wasn't quite as glamorous as you had imagined it being. The sweat clings to your skin, making the black cloak stick to your skin in odd places. The mask sits awkwardly on your face, leaving you struggling to find a position for it to sit in which you can both see and breathe through it.

Your limbs ache from the position you'd taken, the cramped quarters causing you to contort awkwardly to fit inside. The small wire shelves had been pressing into your skin for what felt like hours, leaving uncomfortable indents in your skin.

No part of you could see Shauna being patient enough to lay in waiting like this, and certainly not Jackie, but maybe that was what you were for. Maybe the concept of waiting in the house was as new to you as it was to her. Maybe that could be what you brought to the table–a patience neither of them could stomach.

Shauna and Jackie had insisted that someone needed to wait inside the house, claiming that they'd never tried taking on someone so much older than themselves. Mrs. Loomis was no teenager, not like the rest of their victims. A fully grown adult with authority of her own who loathed to give it up. Jackie claims she would have to choose her words carefully to instill that feeling of being prey upon her, to ensure she would be too frightened to act logically.

But you knew how easily Mrs. Loomis folded from the will of teenagers. How long had she sat there and done nothing while your peers pointed their fingers at you? She was a coward at heart.

You suspected, however, that it mostly just served to prevent you from chickening out last second. Where would you go, after all? You were already inside, already lying in wait.

Mrs. Loomis anxiously walks across the living room to look through the blinds, foolishly ensuring herself that there was no one actually there as long as she couldn't see them. As if they wouldn't be hiding from her, probably just below that very window. Shauna took pleasure in that, knowing that she could get caught if her victims were only just a little smarter. There was something about watching that misplaced sense of security turn into horror that appealed to her. It was a validation, in a way, ensuring herself that she was as smart as she believed she was.

It wasn't enough to just win, just to kill them–no, the way she won mattered just as much. More, even. She needed them to realize that they never stood a chance, not once she and Jackie decided to kill them. Shauna lived for the reveal more than anything, when they realized they weren't just running from her. There had been two of them all along, and they hadn't even noticed, even with the almost supernatural prowess it would've taken for just one person to get around that quickly.

At least, that's how it sounded when Jackie described it to you. You've never seen her in action, not really. You'd seen her kill Tatum, but there was no real action in that. No flourish beyond just getting the job done. They hadn't had time to really think it through, having felt pressured to move up the timeline the moment you announced your date. There was no hunt in that.

You can almost imagine it: that wide-eyed, almost manic grin hidden beneath Shauna's mask. You know Shauna loves this–the waiting, the hunt. 

Or that almost bored smirk beneath Jackie as she weaves her words of terror down the phone line. She never rushes, never feeling the need to. Each word is carefully chosen to maximize the terror she’s causing. So often she spoke without meaning to, revealing things that she never wanted to, but not like this. Never when she’s like this. You know she must be succeeding with the way Mrs. Loomis's voice starts to shake. You swear you can almost hear her heart pounding in her chest.

Good, you think, remembering that condescending look on her face. ‘Hanging off of them’ indeed.

She lets the blinds fall back into place with a shaky sigh, trying to convince herself of a safety she no longer believes in. There’s something so pleasing in seeing her be the one out of control for once, watching her squirm beneath the weight of her own feelings. You can see it in the way her hands shake, the way each breath comes out just a little too sharp–she’s afraid.

You could step in, could call it off somehow. You knew they would let you, even if you’d be hearing about it. 

But you don’t. 

Just like she didn’t.

“Listen,” She says suddenly, her voice cracking but finally loud enough for you to make out the individual words. “I-I don’t know who you are, but you need to stop this. Right now! This isn’t funny.” She’s growing more and more frantic, even as she tries to maintain some sort of control over the conversation. It’s almost pathetic to watch her flounder like this. Riding the edge of begging and demanding.

She’s crying in earnest now, screaming as a window shatters on the other side of the house. You grip the knife in your hand tighter, readying yourself for the inevitable. The weight of it feels grounding, the smooth handle warming beneath the heat of your palm. It was probably Shauna, growing somewhat tired of the game. Mrs. Loomis thought it was a joke? Shauna would show her it wasn’t.

“You’re sick,” She sobs. “You’re insane. Why are you doing this?”

The back door slams against the wall, reminding her she forgot to lock it in her haste. You can just barely see the horrified realization on her face: that she may die from her own complacency. Who would leave a door unlocked when there was a serial killer on the prowl in her own town? Someone who was confident in the knowledge that she wouldn’t be a victim. Now, faced with an open door, that confidence crumbles.

She runs toward it to close it before someone else can get it, giving you the chance to silently slip out of the closet. You watch her as you back up, making your way up to the stairs just like the three of you had discussed. The stairs creak softly beneath your weight, a sound that would be a dead giveaway in the usual silence that blanketed her home. But now, under the weight of her panic and the deadly voice whispering in her ear? She stood no chance of hearing it.

They would chase her up to you, and you would take her by surprise. It sounded so easy when they discussed it. All you had to do was kill her. They would bring her right to you. She would bolt up the stairs for her only chance, and when she reached the top? There you would be.

Mrs. Loomis, frantic, panting, scared out of her mind, would stumble right into your path. Just bring the knife down. The weight of it presses heavier on top of you now that it’s no longer just an idea. The knife feels more solid now, each step taking you closer to the inevitable.

It’s real, and you have to be ready.

You hear a slam downstairs, and the sound of glass shattering. When you don't hear the immediate sound of screaming, you wince–knowing either Shauna or Jackie is going to be insufferable about getting injured. 

Jackie, over the top and prone to dramatics, will milk it for all it's worth. The most shallow cut will end up being the talk of the evening just so she can make you and Shauna kiss it better. You can already imagine it, eyes wide and pitiful, as they draw you in and force you to indulge her. You’ll have to act concerned, play your part, or else you’ll end up with the cold shoulder.

It's Shauna that worries you more. That girl would try to hide a stab wound out of embarrassment if she thought she could get away with it. She could be as pale as a ghost from the blood loss and would stick her nose in the air and shake her head at the slightest hint of concern on your face. 

Either way, it's going to be a long night. 

You peer through a gap in the railing as Mrs. Loomis runs for the front door, glancing over her shoulder at whoever is behind her. She runs straight into it, frantically fumbling with the lock long enough that either of them could have killed her three times over if they hadn't been saving her for you. The thought is terribly charming: a gift, just for you. Predictably, there's already a black-robed figure waiting for her when she opens the door, a knife glinting threateningly in the light. 

She's almost frozen for a moment in horror, screaming as she comes face to face with the soulless mask that has haunted the town. Mrs. Loomis backs away as quickly as she can, nearly wiping out on the corner of the rug. Whirling around, she finds that whoever was behind her was no longer there. You catch sight of one of them looking up at you before kneeling behind a counter to hide from view. 

Backdoor, out. 

Frontdoor, out. 

Eventually she turns to the only option left: the footsteps sound frantically up the stairs toward you. You ready the knife in your hand, lunging out at her the moment she reaches the top step. She slams against the wall under the force of your body, but you don't quite manage to get the knife in before she manages to shove you off. You manage to slash her side, the blood dripping down your gloved hand matching the growing stain on her shirt. 

She breathes hard, her chest rapidly rising and falling under the sheer adrenaline she must be feeling. Her eyes are wide with terror, and something much worse: hope. She thinks she has a chance. Clearly she's realized you're the weakest link here. How embarrassing. 

That alone is enough to prepare you to try again. The thought of Jackie trying to comfort you with a patronizing smile as she tells you that everyone makes mistakes is almost unbearable. You’d rather die trying than let Shauna come in to clean up your mess for you. The look on Shauna’s face, silent and disappointed, would stay in your mind far longer than any injury could.

Her hand presses to her side in some frantic attempt to stop the bleeding, blood running out from between her fingers and dripping to the floor. You lunge again, immediately taking advantage of that moment of weakness. She’s not thinking about anything but staying alive, which unfortunately will be her downfall. 

Mrs. Loomis screams, trying to claw at your arm with her free hand, but it’s not enough to stop you from sinking the blade into her torso with a sickening sound. The flesh gives way easier than you imagined it would, sinking to the hilt almost like it was nothing. It was the adrenaline, it had to be, but you’re almost sickened by how easy it felt to kill someone. Shauna had told you it was her sharpest knife, offering it up like a gift. You understand why now.

She jerks in your grasp, letting out a shrill, blood-curdling scream that has you suddenly worried about how close the nearest house was. The worry was pointless–the three of you had scoped out her daily routine and found the best place to kill her–but the fear makes your hand shake as you rip the knife back out. The sound she lets out is almost a gasp, but just not quite. As if she couldn’t fully force the sound out. The hand clawing at your arm weakens with the blood loss, but not enough that she couldn’t manage one last swing at you as she pushes off the wall with enough force to take the both of you down to the ground.

Mrs. Loomis lands on top of you, taking your breath away as your back hits the wooden flooring. You can faintly hear frantic footsteps running toward the stairs as your ears ring, but you're not done yet. She swings wildly at you, trying to hit any part of you she can reach. Still, the wounds made her weak enough that you’re able to buck her off of you. You follow her back, hands wrapping around her throat as you frantically look around for the knife. It had clattered to the ground with your fall, and you can just barely make out the hilt from where it’s fallen beneath a nearby table.

Not close enough for you to reach. 

Her whole body thrashes beneath you, scratching and hitting at anything she can reach. Thankfully, most of your skin is covered one way or another. It seems the stupid costumes Shauna insisted on had at least one use. She gasps and chokes with a sound so horrible you can barely manage to look at her as you close your hand tighter and tighter around her throat. The blood from your gloves smears across her neck, making the whole scene look gorier, as if what you did already wasn’t enough.

A hand comes up weakly to your face, the fight draining out of her along with her last vestiges of air as she pulls at the mask. You tilt your head just slightly, enough that you’re not entirely sure whether it was purposeful or not. Was it some semblance of guilt that possessed you to do it, to let her know who her attacker was? Or maybe it was just arrogance. Wanting her to know that you were the one who sunk that knife into her chest, that you were the one that choked the life out of her.

Her eyes widen with a sick recognition as she pulls it over your head, the mask clutched tightly in weakening fingers as the fight in her fades completely. Mrs. Loomis’s hand weakly hits the floor, the mask cluttering to the ground next to her as she looks up at you with unseeing eyes. Her chest is finally still, a calmness so utterly different than just 15 seconds ago. How quickly a person ceases to be. You let go of her throat hesitantly, watching her closely to make sure she doesn’t move as you stretch across her body to reach the knife.

Gloved fingers close around the hilt, sending a jolt of surprise through you as a masked face suddenly appears in front of you. The crouching figure flips the knife around in her hand, holding the hilt out for you to grab. You take it from her slowly, wondering just how long she has been standing at the top of the stairs watching you. She tilts her head to the side in consideration, shuffling forward to snatch the mask off the ground and slowly put it back over your head.

Shauna, then.

“Thanks,” You say softly, glancing down again at the body underneath you. You raise the knife, sinking it into Mrs. Loomis’s torso. Again, and again, until Shauna finally pulls you away from her. 

There’s an undeniable excitement to her as she pulls you down the stairs, taking them two at a time in her haste to get out of the house with you. Jackie joins you the second your feet make contact with the first floor, following behind you as you race out of the house and toward Shauna’s car.

You sit in the backseat with Jackie, eyes wide with the shock of the whole night, as you stare out the window and into the distance as Shauna drives. Gentle fingers make their way up your shoulder, carefully cataloging her movements as if not to scare you. When they start pulling your mask off your head, you don’t stop them, even if some part of you desperately wanted the sense of anonymity the mask provided you.

“See?” Jackie asks quietly, fingers carding through your hair as she leans over to press a kiss against your cheek. “It wasn’t that hard. You’re a natural.”

You weren’t sure if murder was something you wanted to be a natural at, but you knew that wasn’t quite true either. Jackie had stayed outside in order to catch Mrs. Loomis if she made it out the door. She hadn’t seen the way she managed to get the drop on you. You catch Shauna’s eyes in the rearview mirror, her mask sitting almost innocently on the passenger's seat next to her knife. There wasn’t a drop of blood on either–none that she hadn’t gotten from touching you, at least. She shakes her head in answer to your unspoken question.

Shauna wouldn’t tell her, and neither would you.

“Yeah,” You say. “A natural.”

…

You stare at the small memorial, flowers and notes strewn chaotically outside of her classroom door, with an expression you can't quite name. It isn't guilt–you hadn't, for a second, felt bad about it. It isn't regret or sorrow, not when you knew it had to happen. But, strangely, it also wasn't happiness. There's no thrill to it, not like there was that night. She's dead, and you're not. 

That's all there is to it. 

You thought–in the small moments you allowed yourself to consider it–that you would have stronger feelings looking at the impact of what you did. Even last night, watching her grieving parents on the news calling for the police to finally stop this monster, you hadn't felt like you thought you should. Their voices had cracked under the weight of their sorrow, choked sobs forced from throats that couldn't hold them back any longer.

It just didn't seem like something that was happening to you. You watched along with the same detachment you'd watched every new murder announcement, slightly intrigued but mostly just bored. You'd taken something from these people, who obviously cared about her to some extent. 

You erased her. 

You were the reason this meager display even existed. It had already been defaced by someone writing “bitch” across the door in big blocky letters–the janitors had tried to get it off, but you could still just barely make out the ink still lingering. Even in death, she couldn't escape her reputation. 

It pleased you, at least somewhat, to know that she hadn't singled you out. Mrs. Loomis was awful enough that others can't bring themselves to forgive her even after her brutal death. This whole attempt at a memorial, and all it took was a marker to reduce her down to a single word. 

You remembered how it felt to stab her, and how it felt to watch her blood drop down your fingers. More than anything, you remember how it felt to hold her life in your hands and then to take it.

Maybe that was it. Maybe you were waiting to feel like that again. 

You hadn't expected the way her glassy eyes stared back at you. How they seemed to blame you. That look of surprise on her face when she finally pulled your mask off had played over and over again in your head as you ran back to the car, but it hadn't bothered you since. 

Not after Jackie pulled your mask off in the backseat of Shauna's car, after she dragged her knife across your skin just enough to draw blood. Just enough to scratch their initials–Shauna's, and then hers–into your skin. Jackie had leaned in to press a kiss just above it, gloved fingers wiping your blood from her blade with a flourish. Shauna had been watching from the driver's seat, a gleam of approval beneath her barely hidden jealousy. 

You were theirs now–it was official. How could you regret something that gave you them? If Mrs. Loomis was the price of admission, you'd gladly pay it a thousand more times. She had been a means to an end, and you had gotten it. They would've let you stay even if you hadn't done it, but your relationship would've been different, marked by your reluctance to fully join them. Your skin still burns beneath your shirt, the fabric rubbing against the carefully bandaged wound despite Shauna's best efforts to cover it. 

You step down the hallway with none of the drama you had been expecting, hurrying out the door to meet Jackie and Shauna by Shauna's car. 

“Hey,” You hear a voice call out, just as you push the front doors open. Reluctantly, you turn to face him, taking in the sight of Jeff Sadecki with visible surprise. You hadn't been expecting a meeting with Jackie's ex-boyfriend today. He looks awkward, shifting back and forth from foot to foot, as if unsure how to approach you.

You knew the official reason they had broken up: he had been cheating on Jackie with some blonde girl you wouldn't recognize in a lineup. But you'd quickly learned that he'd only ever been used to please Jackie's parents, who hadn't much noticed the way Jackie barely gave him the time of day when they weren't directly watching. Jackie insisted that it didn't matter that he had cheated on her–her heart just wasn't in it anyway–but you and Shauna wore matching glares whenever his name came up. 

“I just wanted to ask if you were okay after…” Jeff trails off, leaving her name unspoken. You can see his hesitation, clearly unsure if one of Jackie’s friends will appreciate him approaching her. There’s something else, though: a genuine concern that disgusts you a little.

You give him a curious look, shifting your bag nonchalantly on your shoulder. “Why wouldn't I be?”

He gives you a sympathetic look, hands buried in his pockets as he rocks on his heels. “It's just… I saw that she pulled you aside after class. It just must be freaky, is all. Hell, you were probably the last one to see her alive.” He pauses before adding, “Besides the dude who gutted her, obviously.”

Anyone else in his position would have lobbied that as a threat, and you're still half expecting him to as your stomach drops at the words. But no. Stupid Jeff Sadecki, so laughably earnest. The more you watch him, the more you become certain that your secret is safe. At least for now. 

Why would he tell anyone? He doesn't think it means anything. 

“I'm okay, really. Thanks,” You say quietly, shooting him a smile that he quickly returns with a dumb little nod he probably believes is charming. He’s probably already patting himself on the back for whatever noble thing he thinks he’s accomplished by pulling you aside after class. 

… 

“What is it, Mari?” You ask finally, getting irritated about the way she’s been skirting around you all practice. Mari’s been following just a step behind, close enough that she stepped on the back of your cleats a few times, mouth opening and closing without saying anything–like a fish gasping for air. Clearly something’s on her mind.

“I wanted to… apologize.” She spits out the last word like it personally pains her. You’re sure it does. 

Apologize? Mari?

You can’t imagine what possibly could have made Mari decide that she was going to apologize for that dumb comment she made. You haven't known her to apologize for anything. Not when she got a week of detention for a bitchy comment she’d made to her math teacher, not even when the whole team was mad at her. But then, you see the way Jackie keeps glancing over at the two of you in a way she probably thinks is subtle. You glance away to hide your dumb smile, already convinced she has something to do with Mari’s sudden change of heart.

In all honesty, you could barely even remember what Mari had even said to you at this point. It had barely even registered in the moment, not any longer than it took you to storm off from the table. You hadn’t even thought about it since it happened. But Jackie? Jackie wouldn’t let an insult like that slide.

You can imagine the look at Mari’s face as Jackie pulled her aside in the locker room, Jackie’s sweet smile masking the quiet threat beneath her words. Jackie’s never openly malicious, not in any way that can be tied back to her, but when she looks at you with those slightly narrowed eyes and strained smile, it’s almost more terrifying than if she glared. Your girlfriend uses her charm like a weapon.

“Well?”

Mari huffs, glaring at you as she crosses her arms across her chest. “I’m sorry, or whatever. It wasn’t cool of me to accuse you of killing our teammate, no matter how suspicious you looked.” She adds the last sentence in a bit of a rush, clearly intending to get one last insult in for her trouble.

“Sure, Mari,” You say, rolling your eyes. You weren’t likely to get anything better. “We’re good–”

“Obviously it wasn’t her,” Travis interrupts, causing the both of you to whirl around in surprise to see him leaning against the side of the bleachers. “Only a man could’ve done something like that.”

You almost laugh, both of you walking back toward the locker room as Jackie calls for the end of practice.

“Maybe it was Travis,” Mari muses once you’re out of ear shot, grinning when you snicker under your breath. She’s obviously just trying to lighten the mood, and yet…

“Didn’t he almost fail Mrs. Loomis’s class?” You ask, watching as Mari’s eyes light up at the reminder. She gives him another look, as if sizing him up.

[ultrone-reposts]

the ghost you dressed up as [5]

pairing: Jackie Taylor x Shauna Shipman x R summary: "You've decided that, maybe, murder isn't as bad as you thought it was. Especially if your girlfriends say please." note: discussion of violence masterlist

“... and that's when Shauna stabbed her in the shoulder and sent her down a flight of stairs,“ Jackie says excitedly, trailing her fingers absently up your arm as she regales you in the story of Casey's murder. She's so excited to tell you the story that you try not to cringe hearing the brutal death of your friend. You keep having to remind yourself that this is your girlfriend and not some true crime documentary.

“We never saw Jackie coming; she always had a nice thing to say about everyone,” They’d say.

There's an almost childlike eagerness on her face as she sets the scene, eyes bright and animated, like she can't wait to share every gruesome detail with you. “She screamed the first few steps, but then she got sort of quiet. I mean, the thudding was pretty loud, but I think she hit her head or something.” Jackie frowns at the memory, looking put out. How dare Casey pass out and spoil her fun. “God, and when Shauna started going down the stairs after her? She started clawing at the tiles to pull herself away. It was kind of sad, really, but you know…”

Jackie looks over her shoulder at Shauna affectionately. “You should've seen how Shauna just stood there watching. She didn't even flinch, all calm and stuff, as she did her little head tilt. You know the one?”

Jackie mimics the movement sloppily, an almost awkward exaggeration of Shauna's terrifying glare. She smiles widely at you as she lets it fall, like she's waiting for you to laugh. You nod slowly, forcing a smile to your face. 

“Yeah, I know the one,” You agree. 

It's not that the conversation is completely unexpected. Dating them has come with a host of morbid conversations–offers of murder seem to be how they show affection–but this was about someone who used to be your friend. It wasn't some abstract victim you barely liked like Allie or someone who you hated like Steven. Listening to Jackie talk about her last moments of utter agony made you feel sick. 

It hadn’t bothered you listening to how Allie or Steven died, or even Tatum. Jackie had described that one at length, going into every gorey detail like you hadn’t been there to see it yourself. You think you must know every word of that mocking phone call she’d had with Tatum before Tatum had finally dropped the phone in her fear. The shrill ring of the phone, the way her voice started so confident and turned broken and begging by the end, the way she’d cried at Jackie’s giggling taunts, how she broke down into sobs and begged for her life. You hadn’t minded listening, not really. It was sweet in a way, even if it sounds fucked up to admit, but there was always some sort of affection underlying everything they do.

The worst part is how unaware of it she seems, like it's just another cool adventure her and Shauna had without you. She'd even assured you a few days ago that they wouldn't leave you out of it the next time they “went out.” Like it was a date. 

Shauna seems vaguely amused about the whole thing, peering over Jackie at you as she lays behind her. She’s been half-watching you and half-listening to Jackie all night. Drifting in between her clear desire to go to sleep and Jackie’s desire for her to stay up and talk with her. Instead, just settling on listening in with her eyes barely open. Something has finally caught her attention, though, as she pokes at your hip with the arm she's got wrapped around Jackie, looking at you expectantly. 

“What?” You ask suddenly, squirming under their combined stare. 

“I asked if you were okay. You're not like mad or anything, right?” Jackie asks, frowning slightly. Her enthusiasm begins to dim at your lack of reaction, leaning forward to search your face for any sort of clue as to how you’re feeling. Even now she doesn’t seem to believe you’ll actually answer in the affirmative, looking at you with a quiet expectation that you'll reassure her–tell her, of course not. There's a genuine curiosity to the question, but you know what's underlying it. 

You can handle it, handle us, can't you? 

“It's just a lot to process,” You lie, trying to make your voice sound steadier than you feel. “I had no idea that you were doing all this for me.”

Jackie's positively beaming at your words, eating that lie right up. She rests herself head against your shoulder, nuzzling her face into the side of your neck as she peppers your skin in brief kisses. Either unaware or uncaring of how tense you'd been previously, but still managing to turn you into mush as you relax back into the sheets. It’s hard to stay upset for long when she’s so damn affectionate all the time, erasing all of your worries before you even realize you have them. Some part of her, however deep, must be aware. But when it comes down to it, how much do you really care?

Shauna looks unconvinced, like she can see at least somewhat through you, but she just absentmindedly rubs circles on Jackie's skin with her thumb. She’s more than content to let Jackie live in her delusional, wholeheartedly supporting most of it, but she won’t ever let you forget that she sees more than you want her to. There’s always something so horribly knowing about her. Always watching, always waiting. Her eyes linger where Jackie presses up against you, a glint of approval in her eyes. She’s pleased with what she’s seeing–the way Jackie clings to you, the way you allow it.

Jackie’s still oblivious, lips grazing your skin like she’s marking you as hers. You, in the brief moments you’d allowed your mind to drift there before you forced yourself to stop, had always imagined Shauna as the more possessive of the two. It was true, to some extent. She was certainly more outwardly possessive, more likely to start a fight with someone just for standing a little too close to you, as she’d done so many times with Jackie. It was like she was always on edge, just waiting for an excuse to unleash all that rage she had inside her. But Jackie was a different breed altogether.

Her need for your attention was constant, suffocating even at times. If she wasn’t in your direct line of sight, she would endeavor to be there as quickly as she could manage, as if you’d forget about her in the twenty minutes you were taking a shower. Her eyes scanned for you constantly, like a nervous animal looking for predators. As if she wasn’t the thing that goes bump in the night. She wasn’t as outwardly aggressive, but she was no less intense for it. The hunger that was always present, how she always needed more from you–your time, your affection, your focus–was almost more dangerous. 

“So you’ll come then, next time? Like you promised?” Jackie prompts lowly, her lips brushing against your skin with every word. Her fingers still trail lazy patterns up and down your arm, making it difficult to focus on anything that isn't her. Even as you turn your head to look, you find two pairs of eyes looking back at you: Jackie's hopeful eyes and Shauna's expectant gaze. 

“It wouldn't be the same without you,” Shauna adds, her expression neutral as she gauges your reaction. She may try to look uninterested, try to put on some air of indifference, but you know her too well to know that she's not ever capable of that. Beneath that forced calm she's watching intensely, desperate for some sort of reaction. 

You remember the way Shauna had looked at you covered in Tatums blood, smug and exhilarated but still so clearly nervous of your reaction. She expected you to react positively because she needed you to. It was as if she believed she could just will your approval into existence as long as she acted like she already had it. 

Shauna always got so blank in those moments, shutting herself down like she could stop your reaction from hurting her if she just pretended she didn't care. But Shauna always cared, to a fault even. She was so sensitive, so easily hurt, when you got down to it. Always so ready to read in too far over a simple twitch of your face. If you frown, if you hesitate too long, it's like she's already decided for you how you feel about it.

Jackie was the opposite: while Shauna withdrew, Jackie only clung even tighter. It has made your life complete and utter hell any time you've witnessed them get into a serious disagreement, watching as Shauna retreated to lick at her wounds while Jackie hopelessly chased after her. Every step she took only drove Shauna–who was intent on drowning herself in her anger–further away. Jackie never knew when to let go, and the more she pushed, the more Shauna pulled away. Like the world's most irritating game of tug-of-war. 

You can’t remember ever making that promise, not even hinting at it. Yet you find yourself agreeing anyway, nodding your head before you even realize what you're doing. How could you not? They made it so hard to disagree, so hard to deny them anything. You've accepted so much about them, been made complicit in their murder. At this point, you might as well just bite the bullet at join. 

“I'll be there,” You promise weakly. It feels inevitable, like there was never another choice for you to make. Really, haven't you been set on this path from the moment they sat across from you in the cafeteria? Before that, even, if you count the time they'd spent planning to make you theirs from afar. They've made you this way, haven't they? 

Someone who would say yes without thinking. Someone unable to leave even if you wanted to. 

Jackie squeals excitedly, her hands clasping yours and squeezing hard as she presses more losses against your shoulder. Shauna doesn't react right away, but you can't see the way her shoulders carefully start to relax. A pleased upturn of her lips as she snuggles further into Jackie. 

Their bodies fit together like puzzle pieces, as they always do, but you don't feel left out anymore. You're a part of it now, even if it took you a while to realize. No longer tiptoeing around their bond like you've spent so much of your time doing. 

Not a spectator, but an integral part of it. 

…

You’re the last one out of the classroom, which is probably the only reason it happened to begin with. Deep in thought about the murder you were now expected to join in with, you hadn’t noticed that the bell had rung to dismiss you from class. Your classmates certainly had, a fact you’re made aware of as the door slams behind the last straggler as he slips out the door. It startles you out of your thoughts, a quick glance around the room telling you what you’ve noticed embarrassingly late.

You stuff your things back into your bag, cursing under your breath and not even bothering to slip your papers into folders–Jackie will probably do it herself whenever she so helpfully goes through your bag for you. It definitely has nothing to do with her wanting to go through your stuff. How generous of her, really. You can already imagine the look she’ll give you: that half-fond and half-exasperated look she gives whenever she thinks you're being careless. 

No, you’d much rather catch up with your girlfriends after class before Jackie calls the national guard. 

The sound of your teacher calling out your name forces you to come to a stop with your hand hovering over the handle. You can just barely catch Shauna’s eyes as she leans against a locker across the hall, looking curiously back at you. It takes everything in you not to react, the interruption raising hell for your already frayed nerves. You pause, considering what would actually happen if you just opened the door and left anyway, before clenching your jaw and reluctantly turning around.

“Mrs. Loomis,” You acknowledge, trying not to let your irritation show. The sooner you get this over with, the sooner you leave. Your hand flexes around the strap of your back, fiddling idly with the end.

Her smile is as strained as you feel, the kind you pull when you should be smiling, but you’re really just uncomfortable and trying not to let the other person know. The pursed lips and the lingering tension around her eyes as she forces a smile does more to project her mood than if she hadn’t bothered to smile at all.

“How are you doing?” She asks, trying to seem kind. Maybe it would’ve been, if not for how cautious it sounded. Careful, even, like she was talking to something about to bite her. You catch the way her eyes flick nervously up and down your figure, darting back to the door just as quickly. She seems just as eager as you are to leave, and it makes you wonder why she had bothered to stop you at all.

How are you doing? Like she has some kind of right to ask that of you? A bitter feeling wells up in your chest, as much as you try to push it down. She, of all people, should know. You haven’t forgotten the way she looked at you when the cops had first shown up to interview you–the way she’d turned you over to them without a shred of hesitation on her part. None of the concern she seems to possess in droves now. Mrs. Loomis hadn’t even had the decency to tell your classmates off for their whispering, pretending not to see whenever you’d given her a desperate look on a particularly brutal day.

All she ever offered you was silence. It wasn’t her problem, was it?

No, you’ve seen that look before. A concern that’s really just poorly veiled suspicion, when they’re too afraid to confront you about whatever they think they know about you. Far too cowardly to come out and ask you directly.

“I’m fine,” You say stiffly, almost cutting her off. It wouldn’t matter what she had to say to you anyway. You were passed the days of wanting her to help you.

“How are those girls you hang out with?” She asks, leaning back against her desk with a move that she clearly thinks looks casual. You can almost see the gears turning in her head as she picks her angle.

“Fine.” Your eyes drift unbidden back to the door, knowing the two of them must still be waiting for you in the hall. The thought fills you with an equal mix of comfort in dread, burdened by the weight of their secret–your secret, soon enough. Mrs. Loomis doesn’t miss the shift in your attention, suddenly standing up straighter as she refocuses.

“It's just…” She trails off, clasping her hands in front of her. It’s like she knows she’s going somewhere she shouldn’t, but she’s too curious–or worried–to stop herself. “How well do you think you know them?”

Your eyes narrow, suspicion flaring hot in your chest. The question lands with all the subtlety of a punch in the face, immediately putting you on edge as you start to size her up. You hadn’t expected this line of questioning in the slightest, and you don’t at all appreciate the insinuation in her voice. How dare she sit here and point fingers at things she doesn’t understand when she’s spent so long turning her back on you.

“What's that supposed to mean?”

She doesn’t flinch, which surprises you, but there’s a flicker of something in her eyes. Fear or surprise–you’re not sure, but you know you don’t like it. Whatever it is, she quickly tries to mask it with another fake smile, the same tight-lipped smile she gave you as your life fell apart.

“I just wonder if you’ve considered what sort of influence they’ve been having on you. You’ve been different since you started hanging off of them.” You don’t like the way she says that, not one bit. The almost condescending way she says it, hanging off of them, like you were some sort of leach. Like your presence was somehow unwanted. Or maybe she meant it a different way. Maybe she was just insinuating that it was a phase, that you were somehow falling into the wrong crowd.

Each word is chosen carefully, each designed to seem as unthreatening as possible, but the warning is clear in her voice. The insinuation cuts deep, sending a wave of panic through your body even as you try to remain unaffected.

What does she know? Or, rather, what does she think she knows? Half truths and suspicions can be deadly in the wrong hands. You of all people were aware of how deep they could cut if wielded correctly. Mrs. Loomis was playing with fire, but you don’t think she realized.

It takes a concentrated effort to keep the nerves out of your voice as you say, “They’re my friends.” It’s not quite as certain as you’d like it to be, but that could work in your favor if only you could play it correctly. Trying to dance around accusations wasn’t your strong suit, not by far. She doesn’t buy it, you can tell.

Maybe it’s because it’s not entirely true, not anymore. Mrs. Loomis has picked up on something in your voice, but you doubt that it’s the truth. She hears your hesitation on the word friends and draws the wrong conclusion from it. She thinks that you have reasons to doubt their affection, that you could doubt their loyalty over something as simple as her words. It isn’t doubt that makes you falter–it’s the memory of hands on your skin, of kisses, and so much more shared in the dark. 

Jackie and Shauna–they’re so much more than your friends. They’ve pulled you into their mess, into their darkness, and you’ve let them. You’ve had so many times to dig your feet in, even if it wouldn’t have ultimately made a difference, but again and again you’ve let yourself be moved with the current. Maybe you’ve always wanted it. Needed it, even.

“Sometimes people we think are friends aren’t looking out for our best interests,” Mrs. Loomis says slowly, a pitying smile crossing her face. It makes you feel so small and insignificant. “You’ll learn that when you’re older.”

Falling in with the wrong crowd, then. What had she noticed? A small part of you wants to scream, to ask her why now. Why not when you needed someone, anyone, to believe you? It’s too late now–for you and for her. 

You knew Shauna would want to do something about her, that this insult couldn’t go unanswered. Especially when she was already on the prowl for someone else. It was so pathetic that she had even dared to try, meddling in what she would never understand. Whatever she thinks she knows–whatever scraps of truth she’s managed to put together from idle gossip she upholds as truth–couldn’t be close to the reality of it.

“It’s awful, what’s been happening to you. I believe you’re innocent, but those girls are no good. You should see the way they look at you. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think...” There’s a finality to her words, like she’s already decided the ending and has written it for you. Even now she doesn’t even bother to offer you help, offering a few half-hearted words of wisdom and expecting you to do all the work of fixing it. She’s judging you again. That’s all this is in the end.

Your hands clench tightly into fists by your side, almost shaking with the effort not to start yelling. You can feel your fingernails digging into your skin hard enough that you start to worry you’ll draw blood. Wouldn’t that be embarrassing, you think bitterly. Letting her know that she could ever get to you. You hate this: the way she talks to you like you’re some child.

More than anything, you hate how small it makes you feel. Weak. Helpless. And maybe that’s why you keep wondering what Shauna would do about it. What Jackie would want to do, what she would help you do. You run through the scenarios in your mind, each one more gory than the last. The thoughts of bloodshed are the only things that manage to calm you, finally allowing you to give Mrs. Loomis a stiff nod. 

Wouldn’t it just be so easy to handle it their way for once? Your way, ignoring it and hoping things changed, hadn’t been all that effective lately. You’ve taken the high road for months on end and have nothing left to show for it.

Jackie greets you the second you step out of the door, hands pressing against your shoulders in a way that would have you anxiously glancing around the hall if you didn’t already know it was empty. She pulls you forward by the straps of your bag, pressing a kiss against your cheek in full view of that tiny door window. You wonder if Mrs. Loomis saw, but decided that she must’ve. You’d easily seen Shauna from where you were standing, and you knew your teacher was probably going out of her way to look. You couldn’t find it in yourself to care, not this time.

Even Shauna notices that fact.

“Forget to do your homework?” Shauna asks, lips pursed tight. She, of course, already knew that wasn’t true. It was obvious she didn’t have the skill of subtlety that Jackie so often used to dance around the question, but you appreciated the bluntness of it all. She doesn’t say it in so many words, but you feel it in your bones nonetheless. What did she want with you? 

“It seems you’re quite the topic of discussion lately,” you say dryly.

Shauna hums. “Is that right?”

It’s easier this way, to get ahead of it.

Jackie doesn’t pull away, her thumbs rubbing thoughtful circles against your shoulders as her grip tightens around the strap of your bag. “What did she say?”

“Asked me how well I knew you. Insinuated that she thought I was falling into the wrong crowd. That I was just hanging off you.” You don’t bother to hide the bitterness in your voice. Why should you? Not when they would understand, when they would spark your ire into a burning fire. You want them to.

Shauna goes absolutely rigid, her mind racing as she looks between the two of you. “She doesn’t know anything.” It’s both a statement and a question, like she isn’t quite sure herself.

“No,” you agree. “But she thinks she does.”

“She’ll be watching,” Jackie adds thoughtfully. The word lingers long after it leaves her lips, heavy with implication.

[ultrone-reposts]

the knife part…

the ghost you dressed up as [4]

pairing: Jackie Taylor x Shauna Shipman x reader summary: "What do you do when you find out your best friends have sort of, kind of, been killing people in your name? Probably not what you're about to do." note: there's def a knife involved 🥰 masterlist

The table was awkwardly quiet, full of the teammates that happened to share the same lunch period as you. The group of you have been sitting around and hoping someone else will take the initiative to finally start talking. There had been a few abandoned attempts and side conversations, but for the most part it felt like your table was isolated from the rest of the cafeteria. 

You certainly aren’t helping: caught between sneaking glances at Shauna and staring down at your tray to avoid Jackie’s irritated stare. Shauna was tearing apart her food into little pieces, obviously more interested in destroying it than actually eating anything. You felt much the same: the idea of eating right now was enough to make you sick. It wasn't even what you had witnessed this weekend that was really getting to you. Rather, it was your own reaction that concerned you. 

The way you hadn't run when you should have, watching wide-eyed as Shauna tore that girl apart. How quick you were to accept it, leaning back into Jackie's reassuring touch like it was nothing. Why you hadn't screamed, why you hadn't asked them to stop. All of it kept running through your head on loop–and that wasn't even taking the way Shauna had looked into consideration. Staring up at you with wild eyes, almost feral. Blood soaked and trembling in excitement, each breath heavy and ragged as she finally caught it. 

Suffice to say that you've had a lot on your mind recently. 

The gathering was something of a show of support after what had gone down this weekend at the party. Another murder so soon after the last brought back the suspicion from before that you had foolishly thought you'd escaped from. You appreciated the attempt, as strange and awkward as it felt. You've never known any of them to be silent for any period of time, so it really goes to show how close to home it was hitting. 

Still, the silence was beginning to grow unbearable. It was unnerving seeing a group of girls, usually so loud and jovial, so quiet and subdued. No jokes, no insults, no gossip spreading like wildfires. Just the oppressive nothingness stretching on for what felt like forever, but had to have been less than thirty minutes. 

You can still feel Jackie's eyes drilling a hole into your head. Knowing that, she at least, would have something to say to you if you were alone wasn't as much of a comfort as you hoped. What would you even say to her after what they did? After what you didn't do? 

Even if you hadn't ended up going home with them, a part of you had so desperately wanted to. That part of you still yearns for their company, for the security you feel laying between them on Jackie's too-small mattress. But how could you? Knowing what they did, what they're presumably still going to do.

We did this for you. 

Normal people would be afraid for their lives knowing what you know and not saying anything about it, but as irrational as it sounds to think even in your mind, you don't feel like you're in any real danger. Not from Shauna, and certainly not from Jackie. You've seen what they're capable of, the kind of dangers that's inherent in their every action. But you don't worry about that danger spilling over to you, even if you should. You feel oddly protected, as unsettling as the thought sounds. 

That might be the most terrifying part. 

You know that it's only a matter of time before you end up back between them, Shauna's guiding hand on your shoulder as Jackie pulls you by the wrist. You'll go willingly, won't you? They won't even have to ask, not with words anyhow. You so desperately need time to sort yourself out, to figure out your feelings on the matter without two pretty girls looking over your shoulder and whispering in your ears, but the way Jackie keeps looking at you clues you in that time is running out. 

Jackie's glare had only gotten more pointed and impatient as the day went on. She did, after all, give you 36 whole hours to come to terms with the fact that they had been committing all the murders that you yourself have been suspected of. Generous, right? In Jackie's mind, at least. You could almost hear her now, complaining about how ungrateful you're being in that petulant whine she always keeps in her back pocket for when Shauna doesn't give her something she wants. It was, of course, devastatingly effective, even in your imagination. 

You really ought to get out more. 

She's never been very good at waiting, an impatient go-getter by nature. Jackie was always the first to want to talk things out; even the smallest little disagreement had to be worked out in the moment, or she'd work herself up catastrophizing about it. You'd seen it too many times to name, watching as she ran scenarios over and over again in her head till she convinced herself you hated her because you wanted to finish an assignment at the library.

Shauna's much the same way. Not in the way of communication, as any conversation with her about emotions could feel like talking to a brick wall unless she was feeling something strongly, but she has a way of blowing things way out of proportion if she’s given time to stew in her feelings. The two of them together were awful, feeding off of each other's energies until it became apocalyptic. 

So you knew, with the same feeling of dread that kept you awake at night staring at the blurred blades of your ceiling fan, that if you didn't approach them soon, they would find you. And when it came down to that, you probably wouldn't enjoy the consequences. Neither of them are good at letting things just play out naturally, but the second they finally caved in, you know they won't leave you any room to think or to hesitate. You had to make your mind up quickly, though. It wouldn't be long till they ambushed you at your locker, or better yet, just block the door to your car. 

It wouldn't be the first time, either. In a moment of pettiness, when you'd insisted on driving yourself to school, Shauna had shown up in your driveway and parked her car behind yours, so you had to let her take you or risk being late. No amount of glaring or complaining changed her mind, just staring back at you from the driver's seat with a smug look on her face, tapping her fingers against the steering wheel as she hummed along to the song playing on the radio. It didn't even seem to bother her that you spent the entire ride to Jackie's house and then school glaring at her in the rear view mirror. If anything, it excited her. That really should have clued you in that–

“So are we going to talk about how she disappeared right around the time that girl got murdered last night?” Mari asks suddenly, her voice cutting through the silence like a gunshot. 

You glance up immediately, pulled out of your thoughts quickly enough to leave you a little dizzy. For a second, you just blink at her, almost in shock. The way she stiffened ever so slightly as the words traveled down the table, eyes darting between your other teammates, told you she probably didn't mean it as accusatory as it sounded–more of a bitchy joke to break the silence. It's the kind of thing Mari was known for, an awkward laugh after saying something just a touch too mean for the situation. Sometimes she meant it, more often than not, but it's obvious it's already snowballed into something out of her control. The glances shared between your teammates that quickly turn into defensive glares at Mari's expense. You would almost feel bad for her if it wasn't at your expense. 

Mari's half-hearted smile falters at the looks, a tension gathering in her shoulders as she realizes how carelessly she's crossed a line. She's tense as she waits for the fallout, stiffly holding her head up high. There's no attempt at an apology; you knew better than to expect one, but she shrugs her shoulders as if to say, Oops. It's too late now anyway, and you wouldn't have appreciated any attempt she made to make one. You can almost respect her for it–at least she's not pretending. 

Still, the damage is done. You sling your bag over your shoulder as you stand up, hoping it looks more like a strategic retreat than the storm-off it really is. You get enough of it from everybody else; the last thing you want is to have to answer those questions during lunch too. 

It's enough for Shauna to hold off on what was likely about to be a scathing retort, her hand already tensed into a fist you're sure was about to meet Mari's nose. Her eyes narrow on you instead, following you as you gather your things until she abruptly stands up to join you. Her chair scrapes loudly against the floor, drawing attention from nearby tables until the sight of her glare was enough to have them looking back at their own lunch. Jackie follows just a step behind as she hurries to catch up–never one to be left out. 

You can barely hear Nat's wry comment of, “Didn't you notice that Jackie and Shauna had also disappeared last night?” Her tone is thick with a mocking lilt of sarcasm as she stares Mari down, the implication obvious for anyone capable of reading between the lines. 

There's a knowing laugh shared between Tai and Van that has you speeding up in your haste to get out of there. Your face burns as you walk out of earshot, but if that's what they want to believe happened–that you were sneaking around to hook up with Jackie and Shauna–it was certainly better than thinking you'd witnessed a murder. It would've been your preferred way to spend Saturday night, anyhow. 

Even with that thought in your mind, you couldn't help but enjoy the familiar feeling of comfort you get at their presence behind you. They aren't following you out of habit, you know, just another attempt at tethering themselves to you. No matter how far you tried to run, they'd be right behind you, waiting. 

You appreciate that they don't attempt to talk to you along the way, the silence more comforting than it had been in the cafeteria. They cling close enough to your shadow that there's no real need for words to be exchanged anyway. Shauna's frustration, Jackie's impatience, all of it echoed in their footsteps. 

“Not today,” you say firmly, turning around to look at them. Shauna almost bumps into you with the suddenness of your turn, but just barely manages to take a step back. Jackie runs straight into Shauna, of course. 

Jackie opens her mouth, indignant, before sharing a look with Shauna and then nodding sullenly. 

“Fine,” she agrees reluctantly, her arms crossing over her chest. “Not today.” 

You smile at them, knowing that you should probably know better than to take them at their word. Their compliance was only ever temporary, you were sure. 

…

You don't run as your window slowly cracks open. You don't even flinch. Half expecting them to show up, you hadn't even bothered to try to go to sleep. It was almost a relief to hear the quiet footfalls against the floor of your room after you'd spent the last several hours switching between staring at the wall, your ceiling, and your alarm clock. 

There's no need to look even as you hear a second set of footsteps against the floor and then the quiet squeaking of your window closing. You start to sit up as the bed creaks in protest beneath someone's weight, but quickly find yourself pressed flat against the mattress with a knife to your throat. 

Shauna's hand is steady as she holds the blade right against your skin, fingers gripping the hilt with a white-knuckled confidence that makes you shiver, the sharp edges so close you're almost afraid to breathe too heavily in fear of cutting yourself. She swings one leg over your hip, settling her weight on top of you to keep you pinned beneath her. The position is reminiscent of the one you'd seen her take with Tatum, but this time you feel none of the fear and betrayal you felt before. No, it's something else entirely different that you feel in the pit of your stomach at the sight. 

Something you don't care to name. 

The weight on top of you is calming, almost familiar. You've found yourself in this position at least a dozen times, but never with her knife involved. The heat of her body against yours contrasts so well with cold steel pressing against your neck. You wonder idly if it's the same one she's used on all her victims. Some part of you hopes it is. You want to ask, to have her explain every gory detail to you as she holds you hostage in your own bed, but mostly you just want her. 

You reach up for Shauna's hips–not to stop her or push her away, just to touch–but your hands are swatted away with a click of Jackie's tongue. 

“Ah, ah,” Jackie murmurs in that same patronizing tone you'd chide a misbehaving child in. 

She holds your hands down against your stomach as she sits cross-legged next to you on the bed, looking far too interested in the scene in front of her. You're sure you could break your hands away with fairly little effort, she was barely holding on tightly enough to discolor the skin, but you couldn't afford the movement with the knife pressed so close to your throat. 

“You get to listen now,” Jackie says, squeezing one of your hands. “We let you do all the talking before.” The words hang in the air for a moment, a gentle reminder of the situation. 

Her thumb traces idle circles against the skin of your hands, her index finger brushing purposefully against the sliver of skin showing where your shirt was pulled up. You normally would've let her play it off like an accident, like her hand just slipped, but you don't think either of you are in the mood for that game tonight. 

Your eyes narrow slightly, an undeniable frustration rising at her words. You hadn't talked at all. But you're smart enough to just swallow the accusation, nodding as much as you can manage without nicking yourself. Shauna looks pleased at the response, shifting on her knees to get a better view as she stares down at your face. Her eyes, inevitably, flick back and forth between yours and where the blade is pressed against you. She seems fascinated by the sight. 

“Don't look at her,” Shauna says, irritation clear in the bite of her fingers into your chin as she turns your head to look up at her. Her fingertips press into your cheek as she cups your face, her hand hovering just above the knife she's holding to your throat. You'd been looking at Jackie as she spoke, attention naturally pulled toward her, and it's clear that Shauna hasn't appreciated that at all. Shauna doesn't like fighting for your attention at the best of times, let alone while she's sitting on top of you. It never took much to set Shauna off when Jackie was involved, especially if it involved your attention. 

You feel a strange urge to sigh, yet again put in the middle of one of their little spats. Jackie sighs, a disappointed sound that's barely audible but is enough to make Shauna shift uncomfortably on top of you. Her head turns to look at Jackie, eyes wide with frustration or guilt or something else entirely, the corners of her lips downturned as she tries to think of something to say. The knife seems almost forgotten in the exchange. 

Jackie doesn't say anything, her presence more of a shadow next to you at the very edge of your vision. You can still feel her there, hand resting against your stomach and still stroking your hand in slow, deliberate circles. Something is exchanged between them in that moment of silence, some quiet communication that has always left you confused and more than a little jealous. 

“Eyes on me,” Shauna demands again, even though your eyes hadn't left her side profile. It's not quite a threat, but it could be. It's always a possibility with her. She's still not looking at you, staring over at Jackie in a way that has you dangerously curious. You don't dare to look at Jackie, not wanting Shauna to think you weren't completely hers while she battles her own jealousy. 

“Don't hurt her,” Jackie finally says, sounding almost amused at Shauna's power play. It's nothing new with Shauna, always one to push and push to see how far she could toe that line. Shauna's expression has softened now that she looks back down at you, but there's still an intensity there that makes it impossible to draw your eyes away even if she hadn't told you not to. 

She's satisfied for the moment, your undivided attention won at least briefly. “You're not going to scream?” She questions, almost unsure if that disappoints her or excites her. The way she looks at you makes you wonder how she'd react if she heard your voice break beneath her. 

“You'd like that, wouldn't you?” You mutter, your voice a little hoarse but undeniably challenging. It's not a question, but an accusation. There's a flicker of something in her eyes, her lips finally twitching into a smile. She's decided, then: it excites her. Shauna doesn't reply right away, her fingers gripping the knife tighter as she leans down closer to you. You wonder if she's going to press down harder, breathless at the thought of her cutting into you with the same skill she'd used to to carve all those people up. 

“Maybe,” she acknowledges. “I think I might like you like this more, though.”

Jackie's watching carefully even as she projects an air of nonchalance, eyes lingering where the knife has begun to bite into your skin. Her breath hitches as she catches sight of the bead of blood traveling along the edge of the blade. 

“Shauna,” Jackie warns, voice cutting through the tension between you. Shauna rolls her eyes, pulling the knife just far enough from your skin to placate Jackie. It's barely an inch, but it's enough to get Jackie to relax back against the mattress. There's a huff, like Jackie's caution was completely unnecessary. Her eyes trace down your skin, following the faint red stain left on your skin before it disappears beneath the collar of your shirt. 

She shares another look with Jackie before, with absolutely no warning, she leans down to kiss you. You let out a surprised noise but eagerly move to reciprocate. The knife bites back into your skin, Shauna using the closeness between your chests to hide the movement. You almost laugh, and you would've if not for the way the sound was lost in your throat, drowned out by the possessive way she kisses you. 

Jackie's eyes are still locked on you, even if she manages to miss the knife in favor of watching your lips move against Shauna's. She shifts closer, her fingers flexing against your stomach as she pulls her from between your bodies to brush Shauna's hair over her shoulder for a better view. She moves slowly, so utterly unhurried, like she's savoring each and every moment. 

Though Jackie's fingers don't physically touch the blade, her hand lingers close enough on your neck that Shauna finally removes herself from you long enough to drop it in the vague direction of your nightstand. It's obvious Shauna intends to take her place back, but Jackie doesn't give her the chance as she turns your head to capture your lips instead. 

Shauna lets out a groan, pinching at Jackie's arm before she turns her attention to your neck instead. No one can say that Shauna Shipman isn't adaptable. She's gentle at first as her lips meet the soft skin of your neck, teasing with deliberate kisses that quickly turn into bites as she zeros in on the trail of blood still marking your neck. Her touch is more aggressive now, teeth dragging along your skin to mark you in a way that Jackie can't. 

Jackie rests a hand lightly on your cheek, keeping you focused on her as Shauna's lips trail along the collar of your shirt. Despite her apparent gentleness, her desire makes her somehow more dangerous for it, teeth grazing against your skin as she tries desperately to get closer. Her eagerness makes her endearingly sloppy, clearly struggling to keep up with the almost methodical way Shauna moves. Frustration manifests in the way Jackie's hands are everywhere and nowhere, like she can't make her mind up about where she wants to put them. She's always wanted everything at once, unable to decide between a need for restraint or her desire to indulge. If you were more cognizant at this moment, it wouldn't have surprised you to feel her hands darting across your body as she shifted impatiently at your side. 

For the first time tonight, she seems to get a little peeved at the way Shauna's been hogging you, pushing lightly at her shoulders to get her to move over a little. A move that backfires as Shauna bites down on your shoulder in retaliation, causing you to finally push both of them away with an annoyed cry. You reacted instinctively, sending both of them away with more force than was necessary.

“Enough,” you mutter, frustrated at being made a competition. 

Jackie looks over at you with wide-eyed surprise as she sits back on her heels, lips parted like she can't believe you actually pushed her–like she's the victim somehow. Shauna looks terribly pleased as she has to catch herself with her hand to stop from toppling off the bed entirely. The rooms quiet for a bit as you rub at your shoulder, annoyed as you glance between them. Shauna seems insufferably smug about the whole situation, not even bothering to hide her amusement as she watches you. 

Jackie, on the other hand, seems genuinely upset as she glares over at Shauna. Shauna pulls herself out of her moment of triumph to return it equally as seriously. You almost have to laugh at the sight of their mused hair and flushed faces as they stare the other down, both clearly refusing to accept fault. It's so completely childish the way they both stubbornly refuse to let go, and you smile at the thought of a little Jackie and Shauna doing the same thing on the playground as children. 

Neither of them seem truly upset at the whole thing, tension softening as Shauna rolls her eyes and looks away. She quickly leans forward to press one last kiss against your neck before flopping down on the bed next to you. Jackie's still a little sulky, fingers trailing across your skin to try to soothe the marks Shauna left before resting her hands back in her lap. 

“I thought I asked you not to do this today,” You accuse mildly, grinning playfully to break Jackie's quiet irritation. 

“It's midnight,” Jackie defends with a pout, grabbing your hand and lacing your fingers together. She squeezes your hand gently, as if trying to make up for earlier. “It's a different day, see?”

“Is that right?”

“That's generally how days work, yeah,” Shauna adds dryly. There's a lazy sort of confidence about her, shrugging unrepentantly, unaffected by even your most playful scolding. Shauna starts to reach for the knife again, clearly itching to have it back in her hands, but aborts the movement halfway through after a look from Jackie. 

“You freaked out on us Saturday,” Jackie says carefully, trying not to make it sound like the accusation it so obviously was. The frustration lining the statement is easy to pick up on, but the hurt lingering beneath it required someone fluent in Jackie subtleties to pick up on. It's not obvious in her voice or by the set of her lips–it's the way her eyes don't quite meet yours, focused on some insignificant point on your face, or the way her fingers clench just a little tighter around yours. For someone who wears her heart on her sleeve all the time, she's gotten quite skilled at hiding her hurts, a natural deflection hidden behind a seemingly radiant smile. 

“Did you think I wouldn't?” You ask, honestly baffled at the thought process behind it. 

Jackie hesitates, the corners of her lips twitching into something between a pout and a frown before looking over at Shauna for support. She doesn’t jump in immediately, letting the silence linger on long enough that Jackie starts to squirm before speaking.

“We thought you might have handled it differently,” Shauna says evenly, propping herself up on her elbow.

“Handled it differently? You killed my date–” You stop midsentence, pinching the bridge of your nose. “You know what? I’m not arguing with you about this. You’re insane. You're both insane.”

Shauna, the asshole that she is, doesn’t even flinch at the accusation. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.” The teasing in her voice makes you want to hit something, but knowing her, she would probably enjoy it.

“You didn��t even like her,” Jackie adds, almost daring you to say otherwise. There’s an edge of jealousy underlying it that has you wanting to hear more of it. She’s not wrong, exactly, but the sureness in her voice sends a shiver down your spine. “She left you to go meet someone else anyway.”

“Jackie…” You say slowly. “You know I was going to meet her in the woods to–”

“You didn’t like her,” Shauna interrupts, shaking her head. She gives you a wide-eyed look as she purposely glances at Jackie. You catch the warning: Jackie’s going to lose it.

“...Fine. You’re justifying murder by saying I didn’t like her?”

“She didn’t even appreciate you like we would,” Jackie mutters under her breath, still sulking as she starts to play with your fingers. The action is equally comforting and possessive, like she’s trying to distract you away from the conversation at hand if you would just let her. A pathetic attempt to soften the blow of what they did.

“You were bored,” Shauna says matter-of-factly. “You’re welcome.”

“Well, as long as I was bored,” you mutter under your breath.

“You’re not really upset about Tatum, are you?” Jackie asks as she leans closer. Her voice is warm against your ear, her voice playful as she continues. “Was it the pictures? Shauna promises she's sorry about those pictures she took. She thought you'd like them.” 

“What?” You say, flushing at how it comes out as squeak. You glance over at Shauna, eyes narrowing in accusation. “I'd forgotten about that.”

“Nice going, Jax,” Shauna mumbles under her breath. Her fingers twitch, like she still wants that familiar weight of the knife in her palm. She clearly hadn’t been intending on sharing that particular bit of information, and you can see her frustration with Jackie for even bringing it up. Shauna’s always so careful about what she lets people know about her.

You didn’t quite blame her for that–those pictures had been creepy as hell. You would've kept that information to yourself too at this point. The very mention of them fills you with fear for the first time since Saturday. Out of everything that’s happened, those pictures of you just going about your life had been the worst part of it. You were looking over your shoulder for weeks after you first received them, terrified every moment would be your last.

Even after realizing Shauna and Jackie had been behind all the murders, you hadn’t quite put it together that they’d been the ones following you for all that time. If it had been anyone else, you would’ve been horrified beyond belief. 

Beyond forgiveness. 

But this is Shauna, and you’ve already forgiven worse, haven’t you?

You shift awkwardly, suddenly feeling a little trapped between them. They’d carefully placed themselves on either side of you from the beginning, even before this night, but it’s never felt this oppressive before. Shauna still hasn’t met your eye, though, and you can’t have that. You give a dramatic sigh, something you’d learned from Jackie, before silently offering her what she’s too proud to ask for: your hand.

Shauna’s expression almost immediately goes neutral, her eyes lingering on your hand before lacing your fingers together as if doing you a favor. You’re just glad to see the uncertain look leave her face. It’s almost unsettling to watch how quickly she changes up, but somehow it’s soothing. Familiar. You can never quite predict how Shauna will react to anything with any real certainty.

“She’s so moody. But so are you. Don’t be so grumpy,” Jackie murmurs affectionately, pressing a kiss against your temple. She doesn’t pull away after, resting her head next to yours on the pillow as she starts to play with the ends of your hair. “Steven was an asshole. So was Allie.”

“What about the other ones?” You ask dryly. 

You’re not really asking because you want to know, but more out of a sense of obligation you haven’t quite shaken. Casey was your friend at one time. You’d like Tatum enough to agree to go out with her. A normal person would be more upset about that sort of thing, wouldn’t they? But here you are, laying between them and holding Shauna’s hand while Jackie plays with your hair like nothing’s wrong.

Shauna squeezes your hand. A warning. Don’t you remember where your loyalties lie?

“Shauna was jealous,” Jackie whispers against your ear, glancing over at Shauna with a sly smile. Shauna scoffs, low and dismissive, immediately responding to the taunt. Jackie giggles, shifting closer to burying her head further into your shoulder and playfully pressing her lips against your neck. She looks up at Shauna through strands of your hair, her face shining with mischief.

“Shauna was jealous, huh?” Shauna repeats, finally sitting up. “I think Jackie was jealous.”

“Maybe,” Jackie whispers, twirling a strand of your hair idly around her finger. The rhythmic tug and release had been lulling you to sleep since she started. “You’re not innocent either, Shauna.” 

She doesn’t seem to care much about the argument, cuddling further into your side as she uses your body as a shield between them. It’s all about needling Shauna, about making her squirm.

“Please,” Shauna starts, clearly intending on winning this argument. Jackie smiles against your skin. “Tatum never stood a chance after you–”

[ultrone-reposts]

jackieshauna wants readers demise atp like they making her the main suspect LMFAOO 😭😭😭

the ghost you dressed up as [3]

pairing: Jackie Taylor x Shauna Shipman x R summary: "Things have been a little strained with your two friends given the weight of your own suspicions, but you carry on regardless. You have a date at a party tonight with some girl you barely remember. Jackie and Shauna are being a little weird about it. What could possibly go wrong?" note: jackieshauna my beloved 🥰. warnings for descriptions of violence masterlist

You can’t help but sneak looks at Shauna just like you have all night long. Despite your newfound suspicions, you can’t change one simple fact: damn, does she look good in the so-called “boob dress.” Jackie had scoffed at the look of amused disbelief on your face when she had first uttered those words, but once you saw it, you couldn’t help but agree it was aptly named. The effect it had on Shauna’s figure was nothing short of life-changing.

Normally, you'd be all for sneaking a few peaks at Shauna throughout the night. She never seemed to mind, even before the two of you became friends–she'd encouraged it, even. Catching your eyes as they trailed across her figure and giving you a smug smile or a raised eyebrow that just dared you to keep looking. 

There's just one problem: you were getting ready for a date with another girl. Your thoughts spiral as you pull your eyes away from that plunging neckline, choosing instead to focus on the finishing touches of your outfit. You didn't know the girl all that well–truthfully, you'd already forgotten her name–but she had flirted with you the last few times you'd stopped by the video store. It was something to do, at least. Something to take your mind off of everything happening with Jackie and Shauna. 

At least you had hoped it would. It didn't seem to be working well so far, given that they insisted on getting ready with you. You were only meeting her to hang out at the party, nothing all that serious, but Jackie's voice had reached a pitch that only dogs could hear when you told her why you couldn't hang out on a Friday night, demanding to know everything about this random girl you were apparently ditching them for. Then, of course, she and Shauna just happened to also want to attend the same party. 

Go figure. 

Every time you tried to refocus your mind, there Shauna was in the background. Legs crossed lazily, lounging back on Jackie's bed like she belonged there. It was a scene straight out of Jackie's playbook, and you have a sneaking suspicion they're teaming up to work against you. Her eyes keep catching yours in the mirror, looking more and more smug every time your eyes have to dart away. 

This level of possessiveness from them simply wasn't fair, given that they're already dating each other. You weren't theirs–not in any way that mattered–yet here they were making it difficult for you to have anyone else. What gave them that right, anyway? The territorial behavior did not make sense, and it was really starting to get on your nerves. You'd rightfully pointed out the unfairness of it all earlier, and Jackie had just given you a strange look while Shauna had let out a long, exasperated sigh and threw her head back into the arm of the couch (misjudging the force and sending poor Jackie into near hysterics as Shauna had cried out in pain). 

“You know,” Jackie says, reaching over to brush stray hair flat. “That girl’s going to be boring compared to us.” Her voice is low, almost teasing, but there's a knowing glint in her eyes that makes you squirm. 

She'd been giving you unsolicited advice all night long, throwing out comments on your outfit, your hair, your date, you name it. But this is the first time one of her comments strikes home. You'd been having much the same thoughts since you had agreed to meet up with her there. A big part of you wonders how right Jackie is. The worst part is that you're not even sure you want to prove her wrong about it. 

The way Jackie says it makes you feel like she's daring you to try. To go out with this girl and be bored just to find yourself crawling back to them at the end of the night. Is there even a doubt in her mind, or is she just confirming what all of you already know? 

That some part of you wants her to be boring and forgettable so you can come back home with them tonight. You're already dreaming of curling up in Jackie's too small bed after the three of you stumble up the stairs. You can almost feel Shauna's hand just brushing your arm as she wraps her arm around Jackie's hip, who's tucked tightly between you. She'll complain, like she always does, about how the two of you together make her too hot. She'll complain about the lack of space, maybe kick you in the shin for stealing the covers, but neither of them will ever actually pull you away. You'll fit in that space like you always have. 

Jackie almost immediately zeros in, quick to jump on a perceived weakness. “Why don't we just stay home and watch a movie instead? We can watch your favorite this time, I promise.”

“After we spent all this time getting ready?” You point out with a laugh. 

“Shauna will keep the dress on,” Jackie offers with a wink. 

Your eyes widen slightly. Is it weird to give a friend permission to ogle your girlfriend? Shauna certainly would have killed—Allie's broken body flashes through your mind—someone else for doing it to Jackie. But here Jackie was, offering her girlfriend up on a silver platter. 

“I think I'll have to pass,” You say slowly. It's not like you hadn't considered it. That was not the kind of game you wanted to be pulled into. Not tonight. 

Jackie looks annoyed but unsurprised, sharing a look with Shauna behind you before she walks off to get her jacket. There's something about the way she moves–calculated, almost dismissive–that makes you immediately feel the need to take it back. Like you want to beg for her forgiveness. But you don't. 

Tatum–it had taken an embarrassingly long time for you to finally catch her name–wasn't as boring as you feared, but you still spent the night uncomfortably aware that you'd rather be spending your time with your two friends. It was a creeping realization every time you laughed at one of her jokes, knowing that Shauna would have phrased it better, or nodded along to one of her stories, knowing Jackie would have told it better. You tried to stay present, in the moment, but no matter how engaging she was, your mind kept inevitably drifting back to them. That was becoming an increasingly common problem as of late. 

Yet, when she had–with all the subtlety of a brick wall–told you to follow after her in a few minutes as she walked off further into the woods, hands already playing with the hem of her shirt, you hadn't done anything to discourage it. You'd just watched her go, heart beating rapidly in your chest, and told yourself this was what you wanted. 

You're being an asshole, you know, but you might as well get something out of the night. Of course you know exactly what she wanted. The way she tilted her head off to the side as she spoke, that slight intensity that was but a pale imitation of what came so naturally to Shauna–but it was enough. 

You can't shake the feeling of guilt that comes along with it as you start making your way into the woods after her. It wasn't like you were doing anything wrong, technically. It's not like you were actually dating either of them; you'd said it yourself just earlier the same night, but it felt strange. You'd agreed to meet up with Tatum tonight, not Jackie or Shauna. You were here to have fun, damn it. So that's what you would do. 

Only, you've already checked out on Tatum tonight. Your heart wasn't in it, if it ever was. As you stumble over protruding roots and sticks, your mind keeps coming back to Jackie, wondering how drunk she's already gotten tonight. She never seems to hold her liquor well, always slurring her words a couple drinks in. Jackie was a touchy drunk, and you were usually happy to enjoy the benefits of it. Then the thoughts of Shauna in that ridiculous dress filled your mind, doing more to entice you back to the party than Tatum had managed all evening. 

But not tonight. 

No, tonight you were trapezing through the woods to hook up with some girl whose name you hadn't remembered until three-fourths of the way through your date. 

For some reason. 

You curse silently under your breath as you catch your foot on an uneven patch of ground, sending you stumbling to your hands and knees. The sting shoots through your body as you hit the ground, and you mutter another string of curses as you wipe the dirt leaves off your skin as you start to stand up. 

It's the only reason you even notice the blocky phone laying there abandoned. You remember seeing it earlier, knowing it was Tatums. She'd pulled it out to brag about how her father could afford to buy her one, which you would've completely zoned out had it not been for the rhinestones encrusting it that brought Jackie to the forefront of your mind. It was glitzy and girly, just like something Jackie would like.

Why would she have dropped it? You start to reach for it, intent on bringing it to her when you find her, only to suddenly hear what sounds like a scream. Briefly, you consider running back to the party for help, but you don't trust your ability to find your way back to where you are once you get back to the party. Besides, you thought to comfort yourself, Tatum probably just saw a snake or something. 

You follow quickly after the sound, hoping just as much to find her as you hope not too. Man, do you wish you were back with Jackie and Shauna right now. You wondered if Jackie was already getting handsy with Shauna in your absence, hanging off her arm like she always did with you. It was Jackie's right to hang off her girlfriend's arm, of course, but the thought made you more jealous than you were comfortable admitting.

Another scream pierces the air, much closer this time. You turn just in time to see a terrified Tatum running right for you. There’s a look of relief on your face when you see her, that clearly turns to horror as you catch the reflection of moonlight on something pale, too pale just to be skin. The ghostly white mask of the person chasing after her stands out sharply in the deep dark of the woods, like every possible light source began and ended on it. Its mouth is hauntingly opened in a blood chilling scream, terrifying in both its visage and its mocking of Tatum. The dark cloak is barely able to be seen with how dark it is, leaving the mask looking as if it’s floating toward you at top speed. The blade in their hand finally catches the light, the cold, hard steel stretching into a sickening point. 

It’s no costume. Not tonight. Each and every step brings that terrifying mask closer, and you just stand stock-still in your horror, frozen in the gaze of those empty soulless eyes staring back at you. There’s a fluid purposefulness to each one of their movements, like every action is carefully calculated to be as efficient as possible. They're playing with Tatum, you realize, holding themselves back as they revel in her fear. It’s surreal, like it’s been ripped straight from a horror movie Jackie would only watch through her fingers. You’re not sure what’s more horrifying: the killer barreling toward you or the fact that you’re already weighing your options–none of which include saving Tatum.

Tatum’s certainly counting on you to help her, to bravely fight off her pursuer as she runs back to the party for help; you could tell from the look in her eyes: the belief that you’ll somehow save the day. She must not know you as well as she thought, because you certainly weren’t going to be doing that. You turn and run too, using the distance you had on her for all it’s worth. You didn’t have to outrun the guy in the bloody costume–who, judging by the speed he’s closing in, definitely could have made the track team. 

No, you just needed to be faster than her.

This wasn’t how tonight was supposed to go, you think bitterly, but here you were running for your life in the middle of the woods. This wasn’t Tatum’s fault, but you couldn’t help but blame her for it anyway. You wouldn’t be here if she hadn’t been so insistent on sneaking off into the middle of the woods to hook up when there were perfectly good bedrooms in whomever house this was. Instead, you’d allowed her to play off the slight fear everyone looked at you with since the accusations, playing right into it just like she so obviously wanted from you. Was it your fault she took your short answers as broody silences?

Your heart pounds rapidly in your ears, drowning out the noise of Tatum’s frantic screaming. You want to yell at her to save her breath, that she’s not doing anyone any favors by wasting precious air on screaming, but that’s not entirely true, is it? No, she’s doing you a favor by making herself an easy target. You can hear her stumbling, hear the cracking of sticks beneath her feet, and hear the frantic footfalls off every step. But what’s more important is that you can’t hear whoever is chasing her.

Reluctantly, you sneak a look over your shoulder, expecting to find another glimpse of that mask, only to find Tatum running behind you. Just Tatum. Your eyes widen in horror, taking a few precious seconds to come to a terrifying conclusion. Slowly, you turn your head forward, already sure what you’ll find. Sure enough, there they’re. Standing just thirty feet in front of you, the knife is held behind their back so that it doesn’t catch the light, gloved fingers wrapped tightly around the handle. They tilt their head slowly to the side, the movement mocking, almost playful, as if daring you to do something about it.

You stop suddenly, or at least you try to, feet sliding in front of you on a forest floor full of leaves as the rest of your body tries to stop. Your back hits the floor with a painful thud, knocking the breath out of your chest as you stare up dazedly at the treetops. Tatum, for her credit, at least spares you a look as she runs straight past you. It makes you want to warn her, to finally do something to help her, but you can’t force it out of your mouth, each painful breath taking the words out of you. You close your eyes, knowing she’s sprinting right into her own demise.

Her scream is cut off almost as soon as it starts, trailing off into a gurgling noise and frantic wheezing for breath as she fights to fill her punctured lungs with air that'll never come again. You can hear the sounds of sticks breaking beneath her knees as she tries in vain to crawl away from her attacker, then a guttural wail of fear as they grab her by the ankle. The pitiful sound of her whimpering fills the air as the killer's gloved hands pulls her across the floor with a practiced ease. 

A chilling voice fills the air, menacing and distorted as she speaks. It's gravelly, almost robotic in nature, like an automated voicemail from hell. Slow, deliberate, and taunting. Every word carefully chosen to deliver a bolt of fear through Tatum's body, and you by extension. The worst part is how impersonal it sounds and how indifferent it is to Tatum's suffering. 

Only, the longer you listen to it, the more familiar it starts to sound. Not on the surface–you would certainly know that malice-filled voice from anywhere–but in the word choices, the way her mouth moves around the vowels as she speaks. If you didn't know any better, you would almost think it was… 

You sit up, finally, scrambling to your feet as you find Ghostface staring back at you. Her head is still tilted in the horrifying eagerness as she watches you, one hand holding a knife to Tatum's throat and the other casually holding a small box up to her masked mouth. She seems almost excited to have your attention, leaning back from her place on Tatum's hips to slowly raise her hand up to her mask. 

You want to scream at her to keep it on, knowing the second it comes off that your fate would be sealed, but a part of you needs to know for certain that it's Shauna staring back at you from those menacing eyes. 

The mask lifts just enough for a sliver of skin to become visible in the faint light, revealing an achingly familiar jaw line. The truth doesn't feel like a relief, even as the mask finally reveals those brown eyes staring back at you. Because it's Shauna–the girl you've spent so many months exchanging glances with, spilling your fears too. Shauna, who sits perched on Tatum's trembling form, knees digging into the dirt on either side of her hips. She glances down as Tatum makes another pathetic noise, looking utterly interested before looking back at you. 

Slowly, knowing you’re watching her, she raises the knife and brings it down with terrifying accuracy. You stand frozen in the trees as Shauna stabs into her with a sickening noise that grates your ears. The blade scraping against her ribs, you realize with  sudden clarity. You shudder, looking away and closing your eyes as she stabs her over and over and over again. She’s not just killing her–she’s savoring it, relishing every thrust, every splatter of blood as it leaves her body. Her eyes are wild, a feral gleam that turns her normally familiar expression into something unrecognizable.

The sheer joy in Shauna’s eyes makes your blood run cold. Your stomach churns, a wave of nausea overtaking you as you force yourself to stay standing, your knees buckling beneath you at the sheer brutality of it. It doesn’t seem to matter to her that you’re here or that you’re watching. Instinctively you look away, closing your eyes tightly, but even then you can’t escape the sounds.

All you can hear is the sound of the knife tearing through her skin, each stab more frenzied than the last. The squelching noises as her blood rushes out around the wound and drip, drip, drips onto the floor. Her blood is pooling on the floor, spreading out in a terrifying wave as it seeps into the floorboards. The scent of copper fills the air, overwhelming even as you barely resist the urge to gag.

You start to stumble back, desperate to get away before her attention is turned onto you, but you run into someone else. Their presence is a cold shock, one you don’t even have a chance to grow accustomed to before a soft voice speaks into your ear.

“Breathe,” Jackie says, her voice calm, almost soothing. Her arm wraps around your waist, pulling you against her as she leans her head against the back of your shoulder. Her breath is warm against the back of your neck, a welcome presence even as she keeps you captive in a moment of utter terror.

“Jackie,” you breathe out, barely audible over the scene in front of you. Your voice trembles, a mix of fear and relief fighting against each other. You know better than to think Jackie doesn’t already know what Shauna was here to do, but she’s somehow still a comfort.

“It’s okay,” she murmurs. “Shauna wouldn’t hurt you. Don’t you know that?”

You shake your head slowly, the motion almost mechanical in nature. You had certainly believed that before; even as rough as Shauna could get with others, she’d never once frightened you, but this was something else entirely. Her rage was a terrifying thing to witness.

Jackie tuts, a disappointed sigh leaving her mouth. “Don’t be like that,” she chides, her voice a mix of pity and something darker. Her grip tightens around your waist, whether to reassure you or to keep you in place–you’re not sure. A subtle possessiveness that makes you squirm despite yourself. 

Neither the time nor the place.

“Look at me,” she whispers. Reluctantly, you turn your head, just barely meeting your eyes as she looks up at you from her place against your shoulder. There’s a tenderness to her expression that soothes the jagged edges of your fear, but even that soft smile on her face can’t erase it entirely. She’s enjoying this, you can tell. Enjoying your dependence on her, taking pleasure in your vulnerability.

“Shauna wouldn’t hurt you,” Jackie repeats again, as it’s the most obvious conclusion in the world. She tilts her head slightly, searching your face for a flicker of belief, of trust. It almost makes you feel silly for ever doubting her in the first place.

The words are stuck in your throat, unable to come out even as you try to force them. You want to believe her–have to believe her. What other choice are you left with? The image of Shauna wild and slashing is imprinted on your mind, playing over and over again even as you try to think of other things. 

You think of how Shauna likes to carry your books for you, pressing up against you in the hallways as she bumps you against Jackie. 

(The same hands she’s using to hold the knife, to drive it into flesh.)

A soft, secret smile that Shauna saves for you and Jackie, the one you only catch when she thinks you aren’t looking. A tenderness you enjoyed being on the receiving end of.

(The feral grin as Shauna tears Tatum's stomach apart, relishing every moment of her pain.)

“Shh,” Jackie soothes, her touch gentle, almost loving. “Don’t think about it, okay? Trust me.”

You nod slowly, hesitantly, not sure if you’re trying to convince yourself or her. “Jackie…”

“Just watch,” Jackie interrupts, with a reverence that unnerves you. “Isn’t she gorgeous like this?” 

The skin of her hand is surprisingly soft against your chin as she maneuvers your head, turning you to face the bloodbath you’ve been avoiding. The horror of it looms large in your mind, and your eyes snap shut reflexively, shaking your head desperately.

“Open your eyes,” Jackie says, a gentle reprimand as she taps her fingers against your chin. “We’re doing this for you, you know? You could at least watch.” You can’t focus on the meaning of those words for a second, or they’d undo you.

We're doing this for you. 

The expectation in her voice is almost unbearable, and no matter how much you want to resist, you find yourself opening your eyes once again at her command. The sight that greets you is almost too much to bear, but at least Shauna’s wild frenzy has tempered into something more methodical, something controlled.

“It’s over, see? Nothing to be afraid of.”

Even as she speaks you look at Shauna, watching the way her chest heaves with exertion as she stands over Tatum's lifeless body. You can’t help but wonder how true it is and how long you could possibly count on that reassurance.

Jackie squeezes your hand in a way that would almost be affectionate if it weren't for the drying blood splatters on her knuckles as she lets you go, nearly skipping over to Shauna as she finally stands up. You stand frozen, eyes flicking between Tatum's mangled corpse and the sight of them kissing above it, ghostly black robes blowing in the slight wind. 

After a kiss you watch longer than you care to admit, Jackie pulls away, her face flushed with a mixture of excitement and desire. “We'll see you at home, ’kay? You seem like you need a moment,” She offers helpfully, like she's doing you a favor. 

You look at her, wide-eyed and pale as the mask she's holding loosely between her fingers, before nodding slowly. They walk off hand-in-hand further into the woods, presumably to wherever they were hiding out in the first place. Somewhere, deep down beneath your horror and fear, there's a flicker of something else. Acceptance, almost excitement at the thought. 

You go home. 

Your home.

[ultrone-reposts]

this was so long just gow i like it😻😻😻😻

the ghost you dressed up as [2]

pairing: Jackie Taylor x Shauna Shipman x R summary: "Life continues on as the number one suspect, but there's been a surprising lack of murders since you were first accused. Things don't look great for you, but at least your new friendship with Jackie and Shauna seems to be going well. Only, they're a little creepy, aren't they?" note: warnings for descriptions of violence. it's all jackieshauna now 🥰 masterlist

Jackie Taylor has a staring problem. 

You know that intimately by now, but you're still surprised every time you're struck by the sudden realization you're being watched. A tingling feeling on the back of your neck, your hairs standing on end. Only to turn around and find Jackie's eyes staring back at you, unblinking as you're faced with the entirety of her attention. 

The intensity of her stare always catches you off guard. There's so much focus in her gaze, like she's memorizing every little detail of yours down to the smallest habits you don't even realize you have. You can't help but wonder what goes through her head during those moments. Does she analyze you, trying to find out what makes you tick? Or does she just watch, waiting to see what you do when you mistakenly believe you're by yourself?

You've never had anyone pay you even a fraction of the amount of attention Jackie constantly gives you. It should feel suffocating to have to constantly deal with the weight of her gaze and her expectations for explanations of your every action. But it's not. 

She doesn't react right away, always waiting just a moment too long before shooting you a disarming smile. The kind that makes you think she knows she got caught doing something she shouldn't, just verging on sheepish. Or an attempt at sheepishness, at least. It always seems just a touch too mocking to be genuine. 

Without missing a beat, Jackie will wave her fingertips at you in greeting like it's a normal thing. Like she just happened to be looking over at you. She's so smooth about it, so nonchalant, that you almost don't believe your own eyes. 

But then she doesn't stop. She just keeps staring. 

Her eyes follow you across the room anytime you happen to share the same space. Sometimes she almost looks as surprised as you do when you catch her, like she truly didn't even realize she was doing it. Jackie always frowns on those times, a thoughtful if distant expression crossing her face as she turns away. 

Other times she just shrugs, an amused look on her face as she almost dares you to come over and say something to her about it. There never seems to be any shame in it for her, no matter how strange it was for her to be watching something. 

She just keeps looking as if she has every right to witness it. 

Instead, you're always the one left flustered. Heat creeping up the back of your neck like you're the one caught red-handed. You try to look away, but it's hard to tear yourself away from those eyes. 

You want to ask her why, or maybe to stop, but you can never work up the nerve in the moment. It always seems so distant afterward, like it happened to someone else. 

It's an unnerving behavior that would be creepy by anyone else, but you find yourself strangely flattered by it anyway. You'd feel completely exposed, uncomfortable, even violated if you caught someone else doing half of what she does on a daily basis. But it's different. She's different. 

It feels almost affectionate. Like her attention is given as a compliment in itself. Some people smile and wave when they see people they know, but Jackie Taylor just stares. Only ever at you, though. And Shauna the rare times they're apart. It makes you feel special. 

Maybe that's why you keep ignoring the alarm bells it sets off in your mind. 

Then there’s the touching. So. Much. Touching.

Any time she can conceivably get away with touching you, there she is. At lunch, she’ll reach for your hand like it’s the most casual thing in the world, lacing your fingers together across the table in the middle of the cafeteria. You’ve tried to pull away before, afraid of the kind of attention that touch will bring you, but she just holds on just tight enough to keep you there without making a scene. Not tightly enough that you can accuse her of hurting you, but enough to cut off any hope of escape. And if you keep pulling?

Well, she’d drawn enough attention to you the one time you tried that you never attempted it again. She’d only had to raise her voice a little, calling out your name in mock surprise with that voice of hers that always carried. Heads turned from tables away, eyes curious as they narrowed on your intertwined hands. You couldn’t exactly tell her off now, could you? Not with your reputation in shatters the way it was. The final nail in your coffin would be making sweet Jackie Taylor cry in front of half the cafeteria. Besides, the embarrassment was enough of an incentive just to let her do what she wanted with you.

A light squeeze of your fingers, a thumb brushing delicately across the sensitive skin of your knuckles–anything she can get away with. It doesn’t stop there. Walking to your car after school, there she is again, a hand ready to hold yours or an arm ready to slip through yours. On the way to and from the locker room during practice, on the bench when you’re trying to catch your breath, during drills when she should be focused on her footwork.

Jackie’s almost dragging you out of the locker room after every practice before you’ve barely even had time to get your gear off. She’s always by your side before anyone else can even get a word in edgewise, pulling you along with a surprisingly tight grip on your wrist. You barely catch the glances shared between your teammates as you pass, their voices calling out to you as Jackie pulls you out the door. Tai tried blocking off the door once, but rolled her eyes and gave up as Shauna gave her a particularly nasty glare.

You wonder sometimes what they might be saying about you. You’re not entirely sure you want to know, having been on the receiving end of quite a bit of negative press recently, but you’d always been on fairly good terms with at least the varsity girls. Maybe they wouldn’t be like your other friends, who still can’t seem to work the nerve up to talk to you. You find them looking at you sometimes, some mix of concern and fear in their eyes, but they never come up to you, and you never get close enough to find out.

She has this thing, too, where she traces her fingers so teasingly light against your skin. Running her fingers along your veins as she traces them up and up, until the heat of her fingertips finally has you squirming away from her. A hand pressed to the small of your back as she “guides” you down the sidewalk. A shoulder brushing yours as she passes you in the hallway between classes. Whenever the opportunity presents itself, Jackie is the first to take advantage of it.

Then there’s Shauna. She’s not as blatant as Jackie. You’ve never caught her watching you walk to class, eyes lingering on every step until you finally disappear from view. She’s more clever about it. More patient. No, you only find Shauna watching you when she’s confident in thinking you won't catch her. 

Finding brown eyes tracing across your skin in the dark of night when you wake in the night becomes an increasingly common occurrence, enough that you don’t bother to question it. Shauna never tries to hide it or offer up explanations for it. It’s almost as if she’s waiting for you to wake up, to find her staring at you with a focus that unnerves you. She never says anything; she just holds your gaze until you finally burrow back into your pillow.

She’s certainly less suffocating than Jackie can be at times, but no less present for it. She doesn’t cling to you like Jackie does, nor does she need to. Her presence is quieter, more subtle, but she’s always just there. Like a shadow you can’t outrun. Everywhere that Jackie is, and then some. Venturing even to the places Jackie doesn’t bother to follow you, like the library. You look up from your homework to see her slipping into the seat across from you more often than not.

She sometimes appears behind you out of nowhere, slipping into the conversation just as the person you were talking to suddenly has other places to be. Shauna doesn’t always even have to say anything, just staring over your shoulder as her eyes flick back and forth between you and whoever was brave enough to approach. She doesn’t insult them; she doesn’t even glare. Just stands there. Menacingly. 

Shauna always stands too close. It started with her arm brushing against yours, deniable enough in its purpose that you didn’t immediately comment on it. Then she’d stand closer and closer, until eventually she’s pressed almost fully against your back. You move away, but Shauna only moves with you. One step behind, but never letting you get any real distance between you. She never says a word, her face staying perfectly blank as she waits for you to call her out for it.

The conversation always quickly dies after that. No one’s ever brave enough to keep talking in face of Shauna’s silent judgment. The worst part is that it doesn’t seem to be out of jealousy or spite. It’s so terribly strategic. You’d be upset at her if she didn’t seem so calm about it. You’re left wondering if there’s even anything there to be upset about in the first place.

Shauna rarely touches you in public, certainly not to the extent that Jackie does, but when she does, it’s always intentional. Small fleeting gestures that always serve a purpose but are always enough to send shivers down your spine. Her timing is always impeccable, passing by just as you start to feel comfortable in a conversation. 

There’s always some reason why you shouldn’t be talking to whoever it is. Shauna doesn’t have to explain it, but Jackie always explained it with enough detail why they simply aren’t worth your time. Her fervor is always strong enough that you start to doubt your initial judgment–after all, who would know more about social situations than Jackie? You always reluctantly agreed that it was the right choice.

Then there were the photos. They started showing up in the strangest of places: stuffed in your locker, pinned underneath your windshield wipers, slipped between the pages of your textbook. 

You were always alone in them, always isolated; sitting in your car with your head resting against the steering wheel after a long day, keys in your hand as you’re about to unlock the door, glancing over your shoulder as you walk into the store. The lighting gave the photos some strange voyeuristic quality, a harshness to it that made you look more vulnerable than you felt.

You were in tears the time you’d finally broken down and shown them the pictures, not having wanted to scare them off before. The thought of someone hanging around, just watching you like that, filled you with a terror you’ve never known.

Jackie looked nearly as frustrated as you felt when you told them, sharing a look with Shauna as you talked about how much they terrified you. Her eyes narrowed as she rifled through the photos, her fingers tightening around the edges as she held one up to the light to inspect it. She held on so tightly that you wondered for a moment if she was going to start ripping it up in front of you.

Shauna frowned as she looked over Jackie’s shoulder, but the expression didn’t quite look genuine. There was something a little cagey about it, and you feared that you had finally scared her off. You were far too focused at the time on the fear of losing your only friends, but when you thought back to it?

The way Shauna’s eyes kept returning to the pictures made you a little uneasy.

… 

You're ashamed to admit you couldn't resist the urge to sneak a peek at the pages of the journal you found stuffed between the side of the drawer and the dresser. It wasn't Shauna's normal journal, far too plain to be something Shauna would drag around in public. No fancy leather cover, no bookmark, none of the usual flair she insisted on. It looked cheap–the sort of notebook that would fall apart before you were halfway through it.  She was pretty stuck up with that sort of thing, especially considering how quickly she seemed to tear through her journals. She had to spend more money on stationery than gas at this point. 

This notebook felt like something she wanted to hide. 

It was with no shortage of guilt that you started quickly flipping through pages, as quietly as you could, knowing Jackie and Shauna were most likely impatiently making their way up the stairs as you read. Besides, with as much snooping into your life that Jackie and Shauna did, your turn was much overdo. 

Her handwriting was rushed and messy, much more than normal–you hadn't realized it was possible for her handwriting to get worse. Words were scratched into the paper, sometimes breaking through onto the page beneath when she seemed especially excited about something. It was hard to make out any one line of thought, as she seemed to jump between sentence fragments just as quickly as she could write them down. 

She's even crossed out some sections so thoroughly you couldn't make out the words beneath it for multiple pages, the ink bleeding through and hiding her secrets as effectively as if she kept them in her head. The act is almost violent in nature; the indents left from where she'd scrawled across the sentence over and over again show the force she's used to remove it. 

You weren't surprised to find all the mentions of Jackie's names, at least once on every page–some things never change–but you were surprised to find your own name mentioned more than you could ever be comfortable with. The details you manage to make out can only be described as creepy at best. The amount of detail she goes into is unsettling. It's the sort of thing you wouldn't even care to know about yourself, let alone expect anyone else to. 

It's obsessive. 

Your fingers trace briefly over your name, scribbled across the page with more care than any other word besides Jackie's own name. You slip the notebook back into place just as you hear the creek of a floorboard in the hallway, holding an armful of clothes up as you slip past them into the bathroom. 

The door slips closed just slowly enough to see the frustrated way Jackie stares down at the creaky stair before following Shauna into her room. 

Jackie grins as you walk back into the room, her eyes lighting up as she claps her hands together excitedly. It’s almost childlike, but her expression is anything but innocent. Her gaze lingers on the hem of your shorts in a way that has you wanting to tug them further down, but her eyes flick away to share a look with Shauna before returning back to safer places.

“You look good,” Jackie comments, her voice light, almost teasing. She nudges Shauna playfully with her elbow before crawling across the bed to stand up. “Doesn’t she?”

Shauna, back pressed against the wall behind her bed, looks up from her notebook and gives you a slow, lazy smile. Her eyes flick up and down, her head tilting just slightly to the side as she takes you in. She lets the moment hang just long enough that you start to shift your weight from foot to foot, awkward as you're faced with the entirety of their attention.

“Yeah,” she agrees, flipping her journal shut and capping the pen without taking her eyes off of you. There’s a deliberateness to it, like Shauna wants you to know that she finished what she was doing just for this. She seems more appraising than usual, eyes lingering just a moment too long as if committing the image to memory.

Shauna doesn’t even seem to blink. It’s surprisingly flattering, even if it does make her look a little psychotic. Then again, Shauna seems more than a little psychotic at the best of times. You’ve grown fond of it from afar over the years, but especially in the last few weeks as you’ve grown closer.

You have to resist the urge to laugh, glancing down at the wrinkled t-shirt you’ve pulled from the depths of Shauna’s bottom drawer. An old practice tee that’s clearly seen better days, ‘Property of WHS’ stamped across the chest in that obnoxious black font the school always uses. The fabrics worn and soft from countless washes with a few rips from tumbles she’s taken during practice, but it was easily the most comfortable-looking shirt in the drawer.

The shorts weren’t exactly flattering either, an especially ugly flannel pattern that clashes horribly with the shirt and sits awkwardly high on your thighs. Yet somehow the two of them look at you like it’s something special. It must be something about Shauna’s clothes, you suppose. As if the act of pulling on her old wrinkled t-shirt has somehow fundamentally shifted the vibes. 

You fiddle anxiously with the hem of your shirt, wishing one of them would just look away. There’s a brief but unmistakable look of interest in Jackie’s eyes.

“School spirit really does it for you, huh?” You joke, hoping to dispel whatever’s settled over the room. Even as you laugh, the sound seems out of place, landing just short of sounding genuine.

They’ve been doing this a lot lately: looking at you in a way that you would take as flirting from anyone else. It seemed friendly enough at first, but the longer you hung out with them, the more intense the looks seemed to have gotten. Lingering stares, playful nudges, eyes that dip just low enough to make you uncomfortable, shared glances between them, eyes watching you when they think you aren’t looking. 

Still, they always manage to border just on the edge of something you could actually call them out for. Not without sounding paranoid, at least. It would sound so ridiculous to say out loud–hell, you can barely say it in your head. It’s too vague, too accusatory for something you’re simply just reading too much into.

Yet, here you are: standing in Shauna’s clothing in the middle of the room as you’re forced into yet another sleepover, trying not to feel out of place. Jackie had insisted, of course, as she did every time. She was almost worse than Shauna in that way, like she never wanted you to get out of her sight.

They were the most possessive friends you’ve ever had, but you can’t exactly afford to be picky at the moment. Things had gotten better at school since the initial wave of accusations died down, but things were certainly still awkward. You weren’t sure you would take your old friends back even if they came crawling back to you now, not if you still had Jackie and Shauna to keep you company. Third-wheeling really wasn’t all that bad once you grew used to it.

It couldn’t be what you thought, given the looks they always give each other. You’ve seen the way Shauna’s hand lingers on Jackie’s arm when you're out at the mall, tightening fondly any time Jackie tries to run off, as she’s so prone to do. The special way that Jackie speaks only to Shauna, softer and warmer than her normal tone. Even just the way Shauna’s guarded expression softens any time Jackie says her name. 

Whatever they share, it’s theirs only. There’s just no room for you. You’ve told yourself this a thousand times, having to repeat it until you get it through your head.

You can’t imagine anyone else ever matching the intensity of their affection for each other, but the way they’ve been acting lately keeps you on edge; horribly off-balanced in a way that they both seem to delight in.

Jackie’s gaze flicks down again, much slower this time. There’s not even a hint of subtlety this time, not that she was ever much capable of it before. She’s deliberately taking her time, like she wants you to notice. Just toying with you as she watches you squirm.

Shauna tilts her head, a smile tugging at her lips like she’s daring you to say something about it. There’s no real expectation in her eyes, like she already knows you won't.

And you don’t.

Coward.

It’s the infuriatingly knowing look on Shauna’s face that really starts to get on your nerves–the one she always gets when she has the upper hand. It makes you feel like there’s some sort of joke you’re not a part of, one that you aren’t quick enough to figure out.

There’s so many different ways you could lighten the mood–with a laugh, with a joke, rolling your eyes and pushing at Jackie’s shoulder. Anything to break the tension between you. Instead, you just stand there. Pretending you haven’t noticed the way Jackie’s eyes return to your thighs, heat barely contained behind a polite smile.

Jackie takes her time as she circles around you; each step must be deliberate in its attempt to drive you insane. She's just close enough for you to feel the worn fabric of her far-too-large shirt rub against your skin, close enough for you to faintly smell the floral scent of her perfume wafting around you. Just walks. Circles, again. Dragging it out endlessly. You aren’t sure what sort of game she’s playing, but you know enough to know you’re losing.

“You make it work,” Jackie says, finally stopping in front of you to trail her fingers across the collar of your shirt. She pulls on it lightly, fixing the way it lays across your shoulders before clasping them in her hands. The touch would be casual from anyone else, but the way her fingers linger makes it feel anything but.

Your eyes are almost panicked as you glance at Shauna behind her, half expecting her to already be on her way to pull Jackie away from you. She’s frighteningly calm as she lounges back on her bed, looking more amused than anything else. Shauna looks awfully comfortable, hugging a pillow to her chest with one leg outstretched–settling in to enjoy the show, it seems. There’s not the slightest bit of anger, not in the twist of her lips or the furrow of her brow. Neither is there the jealousy you were expecting, no burning anger in her eyes that always precedes a confrontation with the unfortunate person who had made the mistake of breathing Jackie’s air.

There’s only the calm, unbothered amusement.

Shauna widens her eyes mockingly in exaggerated surprise as she notices your attention. It makes you feel like you missed something again–some integral part of the conversation that left you as the only one not knowing what was going on.

“She always does,” Shauna teases.

Jackie hums in agreement, her hands sliding across your shoulders in slow, circular motions. It should be soothing in theory, but all it serves to do is make you achingly aware of every inch of space between you. Just as soon as it starts, it stops. Jackie drops her hands from your shoulder to intertwine your fingers as she tugs you over to Shauna’s bed.

“We should get some sleep,” Jackie says breezily, like she hadn’t spent the last few minutes utterly tormenting you. 

Shauna shifts around on the bed, dropping the pillow from her lap and making room without complaint. She’s propped herself up on one elbow as she watches Jackie pull you toward her, something possessive in her eyes as they land on your hands. The mattress dips beneath your weight as you settle on the bed next to her, trying to stay near the edge before Jackie inevitably pulls you into the pile.

…

For the first time in what feels like forever, you’re blissfully alone as you finish getting dressed. Of course, you’re never really alone in the locker room–the chattering of at least a dozen girls attests to that–but for once it’s without Shauna hovering around you looking like they’re ready to strike at the slightest provocation, or Jackie almost draped across your shoulders.

You never thought you would treasure a rare moment alone, but you’ve never had friends as attentive as Jackie and Shauna have been. So, yeah. It’s pretty nice to close your locker and not see Jackie leaning up against the locker next to you with a teasing smile and a “hurry up, slowpoke” already locked and loaded. No playful nudging at your sides, no impatient groans when she’s unilaterally decided you’re taking too long, or indulgent smiles from Shauna a few lockers down. Just you, your thoughts, and a few minutes by yourself to put them together. There’s a sort of freedom in being able to lace your own shoes without Jackie stumbling over herself to “help.”

You’re half expecting one of them to jump out at you from behind a locker, revealing they’ve just been messing with you the entire time. The thought wasn’t as jarring as it once was, which was more than a little concerning. You were growing far too accustomed to their particular brand of crazy for your own sake. But no, you knew for sure that they’d be walking back in through the door–pouting on Jackie’s part, of course–as soon as they were done talking to the coaches. You can almost hear Jackie’s voice now, whining about whatever thing Coach has chosen to comment on today and how unfair he was being. Shauna, of course, would silently storm her way over to her own locker to collect her things, slamming every item she could conceivably manage so that everyone else was aware how annoyed she was about something that was her own damn fault to begin with.

Shauna was dragged off by an almost stuttering Coach Ben before practice even ended for a talking-to, which you were almost sure was about her unnecessary roughness. Something’s really gotten into her lately, like there’s something just beneath the skin itching to strike out at whoever she deems deserves it the most. Her unlucky victim today was Laura Lee of all people, who’s usually easygoing smile was strained as she limped back to the bench after Shauna had kicked her foot out from under her during a drill. 

You weren’t sure what exactly Laura Lee had done for that one, as she was more likely to avoid Shauna than actually speak to her, but you had a sneaking suspicion it had something to do with her promise to pray for you before practice began. It was sweet in a way, and you appreciate someone's belief in your innocence, but neither Jackie nor Shauna looked particularly enthused at the support. It was hard not to notice the way Jackie’s jaw had clenched or the way Shauna had stiffened. You had felt their eyes on you when you had accepted the gesture for what it was, eyes sharp and assessing with an unsettling sort of silence. You wondered if Laura Lee had known what she was stepping in when she had offered it–if she had realized how protective they’ve become. Either way, the reminder had been swift.

But just because they're not here doesn't mean that no one is watching you. You can feel Allie's eyes burning into you from across the room with the dirtiest look a freshman can manage–which is, to say, not all that intimidating. She was over there vibrating with barely contained outrage, trying her absolute hardest to make you feel guilty or scared or something else entirely. You had to give her kudos for the effort, at least. Of course, you'd seen Shauna give a lifted edge of a sidewalk a harsher glare, so you weren't all that affected by it. She lacked the skill of someone who had truly mastered the art, as much as she wanted to play at it.

It wasn't all that surprising, considering you were still half sure she was the one that ratted you out in the first place. You weren't sure if Allie's distrust of you came more from a place of fear or simply the desire to create drama when there was none. It wouldn't surprise you to learn that she's been dramatizing every soccer practice to her friends at lunch, telling them you were one bad day away from slitting someone's throat in the daylight this time. 

In your mind, you could almost hear her at lunch, vividly painting the scene with enough dramatic flair to capture the attention of the tables around her as she described the way you stole the ball right out from under her and how afraid she must have been for her life. Embellishing the way you stared blankly at her with a murderous glare, standing beside Jackie and Shauna like they were your bodyguards. She’d tell them how intense Shauna was, looking like she was ready to jump out at her at the slightest provocation. That, of course, was probably true. But it was frustrating to know she’d turn the most mundane parts of your day into a weapon against you.

At this point, even you can admit her suspicions have at least a little validity. God knows how suspicious it was that the murders had apparently stopped the second you had been accused of the crime, which was beginning to make even some of your staunchest supporters nervous. The timing was utterly impeccable, and people were beginning to ask all the wrong questions. As much as the tension had died down in the weeks after the eventual interview, it only grew as the killings continued to cease. It's not like you even had time to be running around killing people, given how attached at the hip you've been to Jackie and Shauna lately. You could barely find a moment to breathe, let alone run around with a knife.

You've heard her whispers of your name turn into terrified giggles as you pass by, eyes following you down the hallway with hands over her mouth to hide a smile like you'd been caught doing something particularly embarrassing rather than just walking to class. Everything is funny when you're fourteen and not the center of a murder investigation, you guess, but it was starting to really get on your nerves. It wasn't a fucking game, but she kept insisting on treating it like one. 

It's like she didn't even realize this had real consequences for you, or simply didn't care. Why would she? Allie's never seemed to care about anything that doesn't impact her directly, and as much as she seems to edge around you lately, there's no doubt in your mind that she's not even considered that she might be putting herself in danger if you really were who she was accusing you to be. Did she seriously think she would be spared from the killer's wrath just because she was the only one “brave” enough to call them out on it? 

The real nightmare was having to hope that nothing happened to her–not because you cared at all about her safety, but for the simple knowledge that your name would be the first on everybody's lips if it did. It was an exhausting sort of responsibility, so unfair that it made you want to scream. Maybe you should ask Laura Lee to pray for Allie’s safety instead. At least someone would be looking out for Allie, as she didn’t seem all that interested in doing it herself.

Speak of the devil.

“... I just don’t understand why they let her stay on the team after what she did. I mean, everyone knows she’s guilty.” Allie’s speaking in what's presumably meant to be a whisper, but it travels across the room well enough that you knew it had to be purposeful. She seems to have a skill for that, which you’ve recognized recently. You don’t ever bother to question who she’s talking about. As sure as you knew your own name, you knew she was talking about you. The way some of the other girls glance your way, pretending not to listen but also looking to see if you’re going to react.

“Do they, Allie? Does everyone know?” Tai asks, her voice scathing as she slams her locker closed. Her eyes narrow into a deadly glare as she stares Allie down. Van grins beside her, leaning against the locker and watching interestedly as she enjoys the show.

You almost want to laugh at the look on Allie’s face, physically flinching away even from across the locker room. Tai’s defense of you was shocking, but not unwelcome in any sense of the word. You and Tai share a certain kind of understanding–one that’s more than words and something closer to recognition. A bond formed from catching the other standing just a little too closely to another girl at a party, sharing a knowing glance when eyes linge just a moment too long before glancing away. You’ve never spoken about it, but the knowledge is there just the same.

It’s funny: you wouldn’t call Tai a friend, but here she was standing up for you more than your actual friends did. Not that it was particularly hard with how quick they had been to jump ships, but you appreciated her for it even more for it.

“What?” Allie asks, stuttering over herself in the face of receiving actual backlash but still not backing down. “It’s not my fault that no one else wants to say it,” she adds, her voice wavering in her pathetic attempt at martyrdom. Her eyes dart around the room, looking for silent validation from the other girls in the room–none came. You aren’t foolish enough to think that they’re all actually on your side, but they’re cowed enough by Tai’s ire that no one else dares to say anything in support.

“No one else is saying it because it’s stupid,” Nat mutters, not bothering to look up as her boot hits the bench with a thud as she starts lacing it up. Her nonchalance is cutting, like the accusation isn’t even worth the entirety of her attention. Her fingers move deftly, lacing her boot tighter with that ridiculously cool ease that you’ve always admired in her.

“Don’t say stupid shit, Allie,” Nat says finally, the dismissal more humiliating than any rebuttal could hope to be.

Allie’s face flushes as her mouth opens wordlessly, trying to say something but finding nothing. You would almost feel bad for her if she hadn’t been such a little shit lately. It’s satisfying in a way, finally getting to see her squirm as a room full of eyes is focused on her instead. Her confidence has all but drained away, making her look small and vulnerable.

“Grow up,” Nat adds, shouldering her bag and walking out the door in a clear dismissal–the conversation over before it even had the chance to begin. Nat hadn’t looked at you the whole time, but you’re not sure what you would have even said if she did. You appreciated it more than words could express, but you knew she wouldn’t appreciate being on the receiving end of whatever suitably mushy shit you wanted to say to her. 

Maybe you’ll leave the answers to the English homework in her locker. Practical, just the way she likes it.

As if on cue, Jackie takes that time to walk back into the locker room, a confused look as she watches Nat leave so quickly. “Where’s Nat going?” She asks innocently, prompting the whole room to break into relieved laughter. She seems to clock the humiliated look on Allie’s face, her eyes narrowing as a dark understanding flickers across her face. Jackie opens her mouth to add onto it, but you just shake your head. Her mouth is still open for a moment, a clear hesitation, before she finally relents.

It’s in Jackie’s room later that night that you finally explain the situation to them. Jackie looks a little annoyed that you stopped her from going off on Allie, but seems pleased at the thought of Nat telling her off so thoroughly. Shauna, perched on the edge of Jackie’s desk, nods along thoughtfully, though her eyes are focused solely on you.

“Want me to kill her for you?” She jokes, her voice soft but laced with her usual dry humor.

You grin, shaking your head in an attempt to brush off the unsettling undertones.

“Sure, Shipman. Kill her for me.”

…

It’s the day after Allie’s whispers in the locker room. You had a copy of your English homework ready in your bag to slip into Nat’s locker and then run away afterward, as a show of gratitude, and it was honestly the only thought in your mind until you saw the crowd. Slowly stepping out of your car, you edge your way toward the crowd with a growing feeling of dread in your stomach before you even have a fully formed idea of what could’ve happened. Some part of you deep down already suspects what you’re about to find.

You push your way through the crowd, stomach tightening with every step through the eerily quiet chattering until you see her. Allie. Broken body laying on the ground with one leg twisted in an impossibly grotesque direction, the bone pushing through the skin. Her ankle is barely attached, the terrifying sight of the inside of her leg greeting your morbid curiosity. There’s a dark streak of blood across her face, like she hit her head and tried to wipe the blood away. You can see where her fingers smeared it across her skin. Did she know what was happening then? 

Had she reached for her face in panicked confusion, or just an aftereffect of what she had first believed to be an accident?

There’s sobbing nearby, one of the freshmen from the JV team. It wasn’t anything you ever cared to pay attention to before, but Jackie was always obsessed with knowing every girl on both teams on sight. It had unfortunately seemed to rub off on you. Normally you’d resent that fact, but now it barely even registers as a thought in your mind.

Allie’s face is empty in death, all muscles relaxed. Eyes still half open, but devoid of all signs of life. It’s not peaceful. Not the way that all the movies talk about it. You can’t help but imagine the look of terror engrained on her face as she agonizingly tried and failed to crawl away from her killer. Her fingertips are bloody and her palms scraped raw, hands ruined from her desperate attempt to escape what was clearly inevitable. 

There’s a trail of blood on the ground near her that some unaware students are standing on, soles of their shoes bloody as they leave careless footprints. It’s a gruesome scene, made even worse by just how long the trail is. They were toying with her, letting her think she stood a chance. Screaming herself hoarse for help that was never going to come, begging for anyone and everything to come save her. Every inch of that trail marks another moment the killer had stood there and watched her suffer until her body had finally given up on her.

Someone takes a step back, further spreading Allie’s blood all over the concrete. You wonder idly if they’ll even be able to get that much blood out of the concrete. Will they replace it, or will you have to carefully avert your eyes every day between now and graduation? You can’t imagine ever being in the parking lot again without seeing her crumpled form at your feet, without seeing her shirt so soaked with blood that you hadn’t at first realized it wasn’t red. The telltale slashes in it tell you everything you need to know about how she died.

Whoever killed her has gotten increasingly ballsy to do this sort of thing in what must have been broad daylight. Allie was always early to class by nature, earlier than anyone else you knew. She was always waiting outside the field before even Jackie showed up for morning practices, always ready with that over-eager and slightly annoying energy of hers. Everyone on the team would have known that.

You freeze. 

Everyone on the team would have known that. 

A thought comes to you, unbidden. A memory from the night before. “Want me to kill her for you?” A joke, surely. Yet it haunts you just the same. The way Shauna’s eyes had lingered on you after you laughed it off, the look she exchanged with Jackie after, how excited she had seemed the whole night–practically bouncing on her feet with each step. You want to laugh it off. It’s Shauna, after all. Despite everything, she’s still Shauna.

You look around for her, suddenly needing desperately to see her face. As you back your way out of the crowd, you finally see her, standing next to Jackie at the far edge of everyone, looking horrifically calm. Too calm. Her face doesn’t give anything away, carefully blank as she surveys the scene, but that’s somehow worse than if she had just smiled at the scene. She exchanges another whisper with Jackie, her eyes flicking your way and then away as the sirens finally approach.

It’s with the flashing blue and red lights that you finally take your leave, heading inside before you can be questioned with the rest of them. You wish it was that easy to leave the gnawing feeling in your stomach behind as well.

[ultrone-reposts]

the ghost you dressed up as [1]

pairing: Jackie Taylor x Shauna Shipman x R summary: "A vicious string of murders has shook the town of Wiskayok, and there seems to only be one common thread: you. Of course, everyone knows everyone in a small town—but that doesn't seem to save you. Isolated and alone as even your closest friends start to keep their distance from the only viable suspect, you start to form an unlikely friendship with two of your teammates." note: warnings for descriptions of violence. not a ton of Jackieshauna in this one but there will be. masterlist

The streets are quieter with the fear of echoing footsteps following you down the street. People darting from place to place; too afraid to stay in one place too long. Not when it could be your last. It’s ridiculous in a way, with every murder happening at their own houses. What can shatter an illusion of safety more than that? A sanctuary turned into a slaughterhouse. That’s somehow more terrifying than bleeding out in the street. At least here you could run.

You’ve grown increasingly used to looking over your shoulder in the last few months. Second nature, almost. Like checking your watch, but with none of the comfort of routine. There’s never anyone there: no shadow lurking in the darkness, no face obscured by the limits of a streetlight. Just empty air, indifferent and terrifying at the same time. The kind of emptiness that stares right back at you.

Yet, the nagging feeling that someone should be there still won’t leave your mind. Something deep down whispering that you’re not alone even when your eyes tell you otherwise. Paranoia, maybe. The chance is still high enough that you haven’t bothered to mention it to your friends. What would they even say about it?

You can imagine the conversation. The way they’d pause, hesitating just long enough to make you feel so achingly alone, sharing a look between themselves before telling you that you were just imagining it. Everyone’s grown paranoid since the murders began. 

Painting a target on your back, imagined or not, isn’t going to help anyone. It’s better for everyone if you just keep your head down; just keep looking forward even when everything in you is screaming at you to turn around. Sometimes you swear you can hear the flutter of a camera just out of sight. A whisper of a sound that’s gone in an instant, ringing like a gunshot in your ears as you stand frozen. Frantic eyes searching around as you clutch the straps of your backpack like it would somehow save you. But it’s silly. 

You’re acting silly.

You take a deep breath and give a perfunctory smile at the next person you walk past, a switch of your lips for an attempt at a smile that fails to meet your eyes. There’s a strange enjoyment to be gained from the way it makes them flinch away from you, whether from fear or surprise. You notice the way they white knuckle their own bag as they give you an increasingly wider berth. Speeding up their steps just enough to put distance between you.

Does that make you a bad person? You’re not sure you care anymore. You keep telling yourself it’s just a defense mechanism–to scare them before they can scare you. That was sure at first, maybe. There’s power in it. Knowing that just for a moment they’re sharing in the terror that's become your baseline. At least that’s something you can control.

You sneak one last look over your shoulder. 

No one.

You stare into the depths of your locker, feigning a search for a textbook, fingers brushing across cold metal as you aimlessly shuffle through papers. Really, you’re just buying time. Trying to suppress the curve of your lips that would give you away. The hallways buzz with hushed whispers, groups moving past in packs as people fear being caught alone. The tension is thick, almost suffocating. Accusations fly from mouths loosened by fear, fingers pointing at their own neighbors, whispers turned into truths.

And there you are. Fighting back a smile. 

When you heard Steven was dead, a peculiar feeling welled up in you: relief, satisfaction, a giddy sense of joy. You know now, without a doubt, that what you once only feared was true. You are a bad person. The realization settles in on you with less gravitas than you would have been expecting. No guilt weighing you down, no remorse settling around your shoulders to hold you in place. No, it was almost like a weight was taken away. A burden you hadn’t realized you were carrying. 

You can still hear the voice of your friend echoing faintly in your ear. “His parents found him this morning, in a lawn chair outside. I heard that–that his stomach was…” Her voice was trembling, both from fear and a morbid sort of fascination–the same thing that draws people to watch horror movies with a hand placed strategically over their eyes, fingers spread just enough to see through. A ready denial that they just couldn’t stomach that sort of stuff without ever actually looking away.

She didn’t need to finish. The horror on her face and the way she trailed off said enough. You could fill in the rest, almost all too eagerly. You could almost picture it: Steven sprawled out on a chair as his guts spilled out of him. Blood, so much blood, staining the expensive, overpriced tiles in the giant house he’d always held over people’s heads. Pristine flooring ruined beyond repair, a stark contrast to the blindingly white walls of the house looming large behind him.

You could imagine the terror in his parents' eyes as they found his body. The ear-splitting screams his mother would emit as her expensive and impractically high heels slipped in his blood. In your mind, she was covered in it. Covered in the blood of a son whose discretions she’d always covered up for. His father standing frozen, finally meeting a crime he couldn’t just wave away. The image was so clear you almost felt like you were there.

Stomach wounds hurt the most, don’t they? You’ve heard that somewhere–a dozen TV shows that blend together indiscriminately. The thought that Steven might have suffered, might have felt every agonizing moment of his own death as he bled out slowly fills you with a sick sense of satisfaction. It doesn’t matter in the end. Steven’s still dead. You should be horrified, both at the act and your own callousness. But you’re not. A painful, terrifying end for a man that reveled in terrorizing you. The irony isn’t lost on you. A poetic justice that you carefully revel in.

That cruel smirk; the mocking laughter that rang in your ears as he lorded every inch of his height over you; the way he leaned in close to invade your space; the joy he took from letting his eyes wonder. It was all gone, erased by several strokes of a knife. Another name added to a growing list of victims, another statistic. 

A statistic. That’s all Steven would ever be, all his life leading up to dying at someone else's hand. In death, he was no more than a number. Number four, in fact. He wasn’t even important enough to be the first person killed. 

The thought lingers as you finally shut the door to your locker, turning to face your friends with a carefully blank look on your face. A solemn nod that conveys whatever you need it to.

Not one of your friends had noticed anything amiss, not that you ever thought they would. They don’t notice, too caught up in their own fears to think you’d react differently.

But someone notices. A figure at a locker across the hall that you’d never think to look for. Lounging back against a locker, casual and unafraid as she revels in the terror their actions have caused. An unspoken look of recognition exchanged between two best friends. 

A look you never notice.

…

The whispers have already started before you've even risen from your seat, a wave of low murmuring washing over the classroom. Heads turn, watching your every movement as you sit stiffly in your chair, a dozen silent accusations thrown at you all at once. 

It seems they don't even have the decency to wait till your back is turned to turn on you. You can feel a rush of heat rising up to your face, darkening your cheeks. A flush of anger or embarrassment–you can't tell which. 

You silently pack up your things, meticulously placing your belongings in your bag. Anything to buy time to get your heartbeat back under control. The rustling of your papers does nothing to drown out the buzzing of your classmates' voices. 

Their eyes dig into you like daggers as you slowly push back your chair to stand. You wince at the sound: the grating noise of well-worn chair legs scraping against the cheap linoleum flooring. 

If everyone wasn't looking at you before, they certainly are now.

Your teacher’s voice had been calm when she had first answered the door, but the sight of the officers standing in the hallway had her faltering. Her mouth opened and closed, almost like a fish, before she finally managed to call out your name in a shaky voice. 

She had tried not to let her fear get the best of her, not to let anyone know, but it was obvious what they were here for. The shift in the room had been immediate. Just one question on anyone's mind: why you? 

“Did you hear that she and Steven got into an argument last night?”

“She knew Casey, didn't she?”

“...no, he was found by the pool.” 

“Didn't she used to hang out with…”

The murmurs cut short as you stand up, dozens of nervous eyes focusing on you as you throw your bag over your shoulder. You keep your face blank, impassive, almost as if you haven't noticed everyone staring at you. You'd be a fool not to, of course. But better a fool than a serial killer. 

It wouldn't matter after this. Wouldn't matter that you hadn't actually done it. Hadn't actually killed anyone. They're connecting dots that don't exist, and there's nothing you can do to stop it from happening. You'd be as good as guilty by the time your foot hit the hallway. 

Judging by the way your friend refuses to meet your eyes, you've already been sentenced. She stares down at the desk as she fiddles with her spiral notebook, avoiding your gaze like it might burn her. 

She's already cut ties from a sinking ship. 

You know better than to protest too much, no matter how much you just want to scream. Instead, you set your jaw and walk through the aisle, clenching your teeth until it aches. 

Each step is measured and deliberate as you walk to what feels like certain doom. They echo far too loudly in the eerie silence that's fallen over the room, the pressure of their suspicion only growing as you draw closer to the stern-looking officer at the front of the room. 

You stuff your hands in your pockets to stop them from shaking, fingers curled up into fists as your nails bite into your skin. You don't look back as the door closes behind you, but you can hear the voices start up immediately. Muted through the door, but unmistakable. 

The walk to the principal's office is mostly silent, a heavy silence that seems to press in on you from all sides. They walk side-by-side with you the whole way there, while partially shielding you from view from curious eyes in the hall; it mostly serves to make you feel more like a prisoner than anything else. The younger officer tries to make small talk, but you're too stressed to appreciate it.

He asks mundane questions that you give short, noncommittal answers to. His voice is light, conversational, and far too casual for the conversation he’s angling for. He’s trying to set you at ease, maybe. Or maybe he’s trying to see how easy it’ll be to get you to crack. Either way, you don’t give much away, responding to each question with the short, noncommittal answers. The words feel hollow, your mind racing as you try to figure out how you're going to get out of this. 

What do they know? Better yet, what do they think they know? You haven’t done anything wrong, and you should be safe in that knowledge, but it offers you little comfort.

You can see the shadows of figures inside; their silhouettes are just barely visible through the frosted glass, though they loom large in your mind.

One of them has to be a detective, you're sure. You've seen some local ones on TV a couple times being hounded by some hotshot reporter, but you'd never bothered to watch any of it. Always mindlessly flipping channels whenever they came on. Maybe you should've. Maybe then you would’ve known what kind of questions they’d ask and what they were looking for in a suspect.

You'd noticed the connections between you and the other victims–you'd have to be stupid not to. It wasn't something you'd given much thought to after the first murder or the second. They'd felt so distant at the time, even if you knew the people killed. Wiskayok was a small town, and privacy was a luxury few could afford. Everybody knew everybody, even if you didn't care much for them. 

It has to be a coincidence. 

What else could it be? 

The threads that had seemed so flimsy at first had started to choke you and started to haunt your dreams. The growing list of victims, each tied to you in some inconsequential way, became harder and harder to brush away. You’d wake up in the middle of the night, not knowing why but having some bone-deep feeling that someone was watching you.

Sitting up in your bed, glancing around your room and it’s all too familiar clutter till your eyes eventually narrowed on your closet, convinced there was someone in there staring back at you through the smallest crack in the door. It was embarrassing–like you were a child terrified of some boogeyman–but sometimes you swore you could hear the faint sound of terrifyingly even breathing. 

Methodical, almost like they were trying to match the sound of your own.

But by the time the third murder rolled by and you were still the only plausible connection between them, you grew to hate those nights even more. Three people, three murders, and the most plausible connection: you. 

The fear was bleeding into the daylight hours now, clinging to your every thought. It was gnawing at your insides, making it hard to focus on anything other than that looming dread weighing down on you. It followed you everywhere–that paranoia poisoning any relationship you had.

Now, standing at the threshold of the principal’s office, the fear had turned into something much more tangible. You knew what they were going to ask. What they were going to imply. They were going to tear your whole life apart, and for what?

You didn’t think they’d be able to connect the dots so quickly, not when it had taken you so long to even get an inkling, but they must’ve been more competent than you’d thought. Or–the thought strikes you–someone else must’ve clued them in on it. That seemed much more likely. Taking a moment to remember how one of the freshmen had looked at you when Casey’s death was announced, the way Allie’s eyes had widened dramatically–you’re almost certain.

They’ll want answers and explanations to questions you yourself weren’t even able to answer. Pick apart every relationship you’ve ever had just to come to the same conclusions that you had. You were confident enough that they wouldn't be able to pin it on you legally. Hell, you were out of town when the first murder occurred. But they were getting desperate, and you knew that. 

You step into the room, noticeably warmer than the hallway outside. Uncomfortably so, even. It’s so stifling that you wonder for a moment if it was on purpose, but as your eyes land on the thermostat, encased in a plastic lockbox, you decide the principal must just be cheap. 

The lead detective is visibly sweating as he takes in the sight of you, brushing a hand across his brow and wiping it on his pants. He gives you a surprisingly kind smile as he notices your discomfort in the room, shrugging lightly–What do you do?–as he sits back in the chair. The smile doesn’t quite reach his eyes, but it’s a genuine one nonetheless. It’s already more comfort than you were expecting to get.

The click of the door shutting behind with a soft click, the barely audible noise terribly grating on your already shot nerves. You’ve always excelled at keeping your cool, even when people around you are freaking out, but it’s a struggle not to let on how afraid you are.

Detective Andrews tries to appear relaxed, but the way he fiddles with the pen in his hands makes it clear he’s anything but. He spins it around his fingers, taps it against the desk, spins it again. It goes flying from his hands, landing on the floor with a quiet thud. His cheeks flush just the slightest as his partner bends down and places it back on the desk. Good, at least the both of you are uncomfortable. It’s a bitter comfort.

Your eyes inevitably land on the woman standing next to him, her eyes sizing you up. Waiting to see how you’re going to react to the situation. Will you pretend not to know why you’ve been called here? Immediately start protesting your innocence? You can’t think of anything to say that wouldn’t be misconstrued, so instead you say nothing. You’re sure she’ll still read into that somehow.

Sure enough, her eyes narrow as she scribbles something on the notepad she’s carrying. Every stroke feels like a mark against you, another tally in the guilty column.

Great.

“We just have a few questions,” the woman–Detective Richards–indicates finally, her pen still poised against the notepad as she looks pointedly at the lone chair on the other side of the desk. “Have a seat?”

Despite being phrased as a question, it would be stupid to interpret it as anything but what it was: an order. You could already feel the noose tightening around your neck as you sit down slowly, fingers intertwining in your lap to keep them from shaking.

“Great,” Detective Andrews says, clapping his hands together with a forced cheerfulness that makes your skin crawl. “This shouldn’t take long.”

Famous last words.

…

It was everywhere by lunchtime. Heads turned to watch you walk down the hallway, whispers following just as quickly as soon as you were out of earshot. It didn’t matter that the police had let you go without even as much as a warning. 

The cafeteria was no different: loud chattering turning to a dull murmur the second you step in the room. You walk with your eyes focused on the floor as you find an empty table, each step heavy with the certainty your every move was being scrutinized and picked apart. 

It was impossible to pinpoint just who was talking, which made it so much worse. At least then you’d have the comfort of knowing who had turned on you, but now you just had to assume it was everyone. 

The weight of that combined judgment weighed down on you, making it hard to focus on any one thing. The hum of voices was oppressive and the lights were far too bright. The room felt suffocating; each breath leaving your chest felt like a battle that you were about to lose. You couldn’t just leave, not in the middle of lunch, but you weren’t sure how much longer you could stomach sitting here and listening to your fall from grace.

Your fingers twitched against the table, tapping relentlessly against the edge of it for something to do. You were hyperaware of the sweat gathering on the back of your neck, your heart pounding in your chest like you were waiting for the verdict to be announced. Sitting here felt wrong, but what else could you do?

You didn’t bother to look for any of your friends, already suspecting that they wouldn’t be interested in being seen with you no matter what they actually believed. It’s for the same reason you don’t bother to brave the lunch line, knowing it would be filled with people who’d rather you starve than stand next to them.

It was… dramatic, yes, but you figured you might deserve to be. You’d already resigned yourself to spending the next few weeks alone till they moved on to the next big thing–hopefully sooner than later–but until then you would just have to deal with it. Rumors spread through small towns like wildfires, and you were as good as guilty in the eyes of everyone you knew. 

Everyone, surprisingly, but two of your friends. 

You were hesitant to even call them as such, never having spoken all that much outside of practice before today. The three of you had always run in pretty different circles–Jackie and Shauna always off in their own orbit–so you rarely interacted in practice, let alone outside of it. You can’t think of anything you could have done to inspire such loyalty in them, but it must be something for them to want to stick beside you like this. 

It wasn’t as if choosing to sit next to you at that empty table was a small decision. 

The whole cafeteria had gone quiet as Jackie and Shauna walked up to your table–not that either of them seemed to notice. You were just as surprised as everyone else as they approached, trays in hand, with a kind of quiet confidence that made you envious. 

You wondered for a moment, just an instant, if they were coming over to condemn you too. Jackie was seemingly one of the nicest girls you knew, but you’d heard her giggling enough in the locker room to know she was a bit of a gossip. 

There was a danger to Jackie Taylor, you knew. No matter how hidden it was. She was the kind of girl who could gut you with a well-placed whisper, share a secret that you were so willing to trust her with, and still flash you that innocent smile afterwards. Just because she wouldn’t do it doesn’t mean she couldn’t.

Shauna always pretends she’s above it all, but she’s always listening just as closely as she stares at some fixed point at the wall to pretend she wasn’t paying attention. She was never directly a part of the drama, but she was never fully out of it, was she? Those eyes see a lot more than her mouth reveals, you knew from experience. She was surprisingly observant.

You would know: you were too. Just as much as Shauna watched you, you always watched her back. It started as a form of retaliation for all the times you’ve caught her staring at you, eyes tracing your person with some mixture of intrigue and frustration. She was always quick to look away when she caught your attention, turning her attention back to Jackie like you just wouldn’t notice what she was doing.

Were they going to ask you questions too? Hound you for answers you honestly didn’t have under the guise of friendly concern? You’ve had more than enough of that today.

Jackie slid her tray on to the table with practiced ease, flipping her hair over her shoulder with an effortless grace as she took the seat across from you. She had a way of commanding a room without a single word, but you’ve never seen it used outside the locker room. Even that was usually met with varying success, as Nat was just as likely to tell her to fuck off as she was to actually listen.

There’s always been an undeniable magnetism about her that’s hard to resist. She was someone people watched because they wanted to, not because they had to. For once, it seems to be working in your favor, swiftly turning people’s attention from you to her.

Shauna took the seat next to her with far less grace, a deliberateness to her movements that betrayed her attempt at being casual. You smile at the sight of a particularly nasty glare that was aimed at someone at a table nearby who seems to be checking Jackie out. Some things never change. Shauna was never this confident on her own, not this visibly at least, but you figured Jackie could inspire that in anyone if she tried.

There was just something about being on the receiving end of a pleased look from her, and you knew Shauna must have received it more than anyone else on Earth. You were giddy for days once after Jackie complimented your footwork in practice, so you can’t even imagine being on the receiving end of that smile all the time.

Their relationship has always been closed off, so incredibly insular that you’ve never attempted to befriend them. It’s not that you don’t like them or that they’ve ever been unkind to you. They just seem reluctant to have to talk to anyone else, and you weren’t the type to force yourself where you were clearly not wanted. You’re not sure you’ve ever seen one without the other, though you know on some level they’d have to separate at some point.

The very idea of it feels strange, so you don’t dwell on it for too long. It was hard to even imagine Jackie without Shauna, or Shauna without Jackie. 

For a long moment, all you can do is stare at them, your mind scrambling to put the pieces together and coming up with nothing.

Whatever their reasoning is, the fact remains that they’re now sitting across from you and looking at you expectantly. Jackie’s eyes are bright, her nails tapping impatiently against the table one after the other as she waits for you to answer. Shauna is a little more subdued, but her gaze is steady, her eyes focused entirely on you as she waits for you to answer whatever question was posed.

Shit.

“Did you say something?” You ask hesitantly. Your voice sounds small and uncertain, and you hate the way it betrays your nerves. You’ve been on edge all day, and this sudden interaction certainly wasn’t helping to calm you down.

Jackie laughs quietly, flashing you a smile. She shares a look with Shauna, something quick and indecipherable before turning her attention back to you. She’s the picture of confidence, as always, but at least Shauna was a little more reserved. It was strangely relaxing to see that at least they weren’t acting any different around you. 

Shauna, for her part, didn’t seem all that bothered by the sudden attention on her either. She seems almost bored, eyes flicking across the crowd like getting suspicious glares from half the school was just another Tuesday. You wonder how she could look so indifferent, how she could look so calm when you were struggling not to collapse beneath the pressure of the accusations flying your way.

“Crazy morning, huh?” Shauna repeats, pinching a fry between her fingers as she brings it to her lips. She chews slowly, either unaware of or simply not caring about the way you stare at her in response.

You blink at her, almost stunned. It was so casual, nonchalant even. It was jarring how little she seems to care about an event that’s effectively ruined your life. Here she was acting like you tripped over your feet in homeroom or something.

Jackie nudges her in the side with her elbow, giving her a pointed look. “Really?” She says in an exasperated whisper, the reprimand softened by her obvious amusement as she rolls her eyes.

Shauna shrugs innocently, holding up her hands in a half-hearted gesture of surrender for good measure. There’s a trace of a smile on her face, like she’s testing you. Just waiting to see how you respond when provoked. She reaches out to swap something on their trays without much attention before she just starts eating. 

The movement is quick and practiced, as if she's done it a million times. Jackie barely spares the action a glance, further confirming your assumption. You can’t help the feeling it provokes, a flash of jealousy you’re quick to tamper down. You wonder for a moment what it must be like to be known so well. What it must be like to experience the unspoken understanding they’ve always had.

Jackie gives you a reassuring smile as she reaches forward and squeezes your hand, the suddenness of it making you gasp. Her hands are cold–unsurprising given the amount of jackets she adorns every winter–but surprisingly grounding. You spare a glance at Shauna, who seems strangely pleased at the reaction, but you don’t pay it much thought as Jackie speaks.

“Don’t mind her,” she says apologetically, clearly trying to mend the bridge that Shauna so carelessly blundered over. It’s surprisingly well practiced, and you get the feeling that Jackie often has to apologize for something that Shauna’s said.

Shauna rolls her eyes, but there’s no real malice in it; rather a, we’re still on this? kind of vibe. “People are idiots,” she mutters, almost to herself more than anyone else. There’s a finality to her words that makes them hard to argue with.

You’re not so sure that it’ll be that easy, but Shauna’s confidence in it does raise your spirits.

“Yeah,” you say finally, trying to mirror her indifference. “Crazy morning.”

Shauna smirks, glancing over at Jackie to make sure she’s watching her gloat. Jackie sighs dramatically but doesn’t seem all that put out about it. There’s an easy affection there between them, one that speaks of years and years worth of moments just like this–knowing just when to push the others buttons and when to let things go. You smile slightly as you watch. 

It’s so easy just to observe them, to bask in their devotion to each other even if you aren’t a part of it. Jackie reaches over to snatch a fry off of Shauna’s tray, which is received with little more than an annoyed sigh before Jackie pulls you back into the conversation.

[ultrone-reposts]

𝗶'𝗺 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀 '𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗴𝗶𝗿𝗹 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘄𝗮𝘆

summary: it's been nearly two months since you broke up with your girlfriend, shauna, and neither of you are taking it well.

cw: angst, mentions of cheating, very brief nsfw, underage drinking (though all characters are in college), background jackieshauna

two months.

god, has it already been two months? time feels like it hasn’t been moving quite right ever since your breakup. you figured it would take you a week, maybe two, to get over her. after all, you were the one to break up with her after you’d found her two fingers deep in jackie at lottie’s halloween party. you figured you’d ought to be moved on by now, but much to your chagrin, you weren’t.

you still found yourself checking your phone on the train ride, used to how she’d text you asking to let her know when you made it home. she always texted you in the middle of practice, sneaking away for the team for just a moment to make sure that you were safe. you could only imagine the way jackie pouted at her when she snuck away, asking her to come back to practice with that fucking stare you always saw her give shauna when she wanted something. and what’s worse is knowing that she always gave in, unable to say no to those

small>

fucking eyes.

for a few weeks after you’d pulled her away from practice and told her that you were over, that “if you’re gonna keep acting like jackie’s fucking lap dog, then why don’t you just go date her already?”, she’d been spamming your phone. sometimes it was begging you to hear her out, sometimes it was telling you how much she missed you, sometimes it was her saying she was so sorry and that it didn’t mean anything, they were both drunk, they didn’t know what they were doing.

you didn’t buy any of it for a second, especially when you were so used to seeing her pathetic yearning stares at jackie whenever she didn’t think you were looking. you’d be lying if you said you hadn’t had a suspicion, but you never expected her to do something like this.

it all came to a head the day you woke up to her car in the driveway, her standing outside with a nervous expression, a bouquet of flowers in her hands. your favorite flowers, you noticed - lilies and hydrangeas. leave it to shauna shipman to remember your favorite flowers even after she had cheated on you. it took a lot of passive-aggressive turned angry remarks to get her to finally leave, the flowers lying dejected on your front lawn after she sped away.

(you went back to bring them inside after you were sure she was far away.)

since then, you hadn’t really seen or heard from her. sure, you noticed her around school, but when she saw you, she turned the other way. you thought that it would make it easier to forget about her, but it only made your stomach turn.

you’d also noticed her hanging around jackie less, a noticeable divide forming in their friendship as you’d heard from several of your more gossip-inclined classmates. that did make you feel better, but not by much - it was bittersweet, knowing she was willing to change, but not while she was with you. god, why did she have to wait until after your breakup to become a better person?

sometimes, more often than you’re comfortable admitting, you think about texting her. you’re not sure where you’d start - she must have sent you over a hundred texts - but late at night, you catch yourself opening your messenger, fingers hovering over the place where her contact used to be. now it’s just your parents and your friend, who more often than not, were convincing you not to text shauna. you’d shared your feelings with them, and they chastised you for still wanting her when she treated you like shit.

they’ve got a point, you think. still, you can’t bring yourself to stop loving her. to stop wanting her.

you’re currently spending your free time at a really shitty frat party, one that shauna would’ve wanted you to come to only because “jackie wants me to go and you know how she gets when she wants to go out.” the alcohol hadn’t had its desired effect, and what started as you going out to forget about shauna led to her consuming your drunken thoughts.

not particularly wanting to make a fool of yourself on what passed for the “dance floor”, you stood against the wall, red solo cup in hand. occasionally someone who you knew would pass by and give you a small wave, but for the most part, you didn’t know many people in attendance.

this idle people-watching continued, observing the way couples danced together and subsequently taking another swig from your cup until your eyes caught onto something.

you couldn’t make out her face, but you’d recognize her long, brown hair draped over that fucking red dress (the one that jackie affectionately referred to as the “boob dress”) anywhere. shauna fucking shipman.

as if things couldn’t get any worse, someone to your side called out loudly, drawing her attention right in your direction. seeing those wide brown eyes staring directly at you was comparable to getting hit by a bus - however, you’d reckon getting hit by a bus would be more merciful.

you’d (stupidly) believed that all the times you imagined finally talking to shauna again would have prepared you for this moment, but no. you were a deer and she was a car hurtling at you full-speed. your mouth gaped open, trying to say something, anything, to her, but not a word could leave your lips. unshed tears stung at the corners of your eyes, and the sinking feeling of finally being face-to-face with her for the first time since the breakup made it hard to breathe.

“shauna…”

before you could say another word, before you could even think of another word, someone (presumably a guy from the frat) yelled out that there were cops on the way. the next few minutes were a blur of noise and movement, and by the time you regained some semblance of consciousness, you were out on someone’s front yard, no sign of shauna to be seen.

she got away.

[ultrone-reposts]

bro literally came up with this idea yesterday 😭😭😭 i wasn’t expecting it to be posted so soon 😌💯 bro never disappoints

Dating Ghost!Jackie Headcanons

pairing: Jackie Taylor x r note: I'm not sure what this is either 🤷

Jackie being a pain in your ass beyond the grave. maybe not getting on with her super well while she was alive, so while her death was sad, it wasn’t nearly as emotionally devastating as it was for Shauna or someone else. so when you suddenly start seeing Jackie standing behind Shauna and trying to get her attention as she sobs over Jackie’s corpse, you wonder why you of all people would “hallucinate” her.

she finally notices you can see her when you can’t quite muffle your laugh at some petty comment she makes as the girls start carrying her body off to the meatshed. her eyes immediately narrow in on you while you’re just standing like a deer in the headlights.

just thinking about Shauna out there sobbing and crying in the meatshed with Jackie's corpse while Jackie's screaming in your ear because you won’t respond to her and she knows your ass can see her. at the top of her fucking lungs like a damn toddler. keeps switching into songs that give Crystal and Misty a run for their money on being annoying. holding a pillow over your head and groaning to drown her out, and Lottie’s trying to put a hand on your shoulder to comfort you, thinking it's hunger pain or something.

she doesn’t talk as much as she did before—not that she ever really talked to you all that much to begin with. Jackie stares after Shauna a lot, following her around and trying fruitlessly to get her to hear her. she’s quiet a lot now, but if she’s not at Shauna’s side, she’s at yours. 

you finally give up and start answering her whenever you’re mostly alone, claiming it’s just because you’ve accepted that you’re crazy now—though it’s mostly because she just looks so damn sad all the time. she brightens up a lot after this, following you like a lost puppy as you find the emptiest corners of the room to sit in. the other girls sometimes catch you talking to yourself, but with how everyone else is doing, they don’t bother to be concerned about it.

makes it her mission to annoy you as much as humanly possible, commenting on every little thing you’re doing like she’s a game show host. if you have to listen to Jackie narrate the way you eat one more time, you might just join her. always finds the worst time to jump out at you, giggling as she makes you look insane for screaming in shock in the middle of the cabin.

Jackie knocks stuff over whenever the other girls start talking shit about Shauna’s behavior in the meatshed. she doesn’t talk a lot about what Shauna does there, but she always looks strangely flattered when she comes back.

keeps you up to date on all the little drama’s going on in the cabin that you don’t witness. there’s literally no stopping her from eavesdropping on conversations and giving you a play-by-play as they happen. sometimes you just hear a dramatic gasp as her ghostly ass is skipping over to you to tell you about it.

bullies you into giving some of your food to Shauna. Shauna looks at you like you’re crazy but eagerly accepts it all the same. Jackie is standing there looking so proud of herself, like she’s the one that’s going to be starving and not you.

you have weird dreams almost every night. they aren’t unpleasant, just a little strange. they’re always about Jackie, always in places you think she would’ve enjoyed. walking around the mall, passing the ball around on the field, that sort of thing. you don’t think much of it until Jackie mentions something in passing one day about it.

guilt trips you into doing things for her all the time. “Do you remember that time you let me go outside and die in the snow?” and then “yeah, that’s what I thought.” when you roll your eyes and go do it.

thinking about Jackie’s emotions bleeding over onto you. Jackie’s always felt everything so strongly, and this only seems to get worse after she’s died. you can literally feel her longing so strongly that it’ll wake you up in the middle of the night, just to find Jackie staring at you with the softest little look. you aren’t sure how to feel about it at first, but it’s better than feeling her grief.

who’s going to tell the dead girl she can’t have a little crush after all? besides, it’s not like you’re uninterested: Jackie’s the prettiest girl you’ve ever met. it’s a strange dynamic, but it’s not like either of you have a lot of options out here.

just as possessive, even in death. starts getting incredibly jealous whenever you talk to someone who’s alive. Nat’s asking if you’ve seen her headband and the fucking door slams open against the wall. you weren’t even aware she could do something like that. you can feel her eyes burning a hole into the back of your head as the whole room starts to get cold if anyone goes near you besides Shauna.

she always tries to touch you, but most of the time you can’t feel it. the only time you can is when she gets particularly emotional. a hand closing around your wrist and almost pulling you away when she gets particularly jealous about something, a finger brushing away your tears when you can’t help but cry, etc.

Jackie can’t really do much else, so she resorts to a lot of compliments. she compliments your three layers of random shirts like it was an actual fashion choice, and you finally have to draw the line. just thinking about Jackie complimenting you and then sitting cross-legged in front of you like “and now me,” all expectant.

[ultrone-reposts]

look at that range 😻 loved all of them

yellowjackets + affection headcanons

pairing: Shauna Shipman x r, Jackie Taylor x r, Lottie Matthews x r, Natalie Scatorccio x r note: seperatelyyyyy.

Shauna Shipman

very subtle demonstrations of affection. she’s definitely not a fan of over-the-top displays of PDA, preferring to express her feelings through her actions. show, don’t tell type.

does a lot of small things like making your favorite meal, leaving you little notes, and letting you pick what to watch even if it’s not your turn.

a lot of what she does isn’t especially romantic in nature, though it’s not to say that she doesn’t have her moment, but it’s always demonstrative that you’re special to her in some way or another.

very clingy, but not necessarily in public. she really likes to sit flush against you on the couch, the entirety of her side pressed against yours as she rests her head against yours. 

she’s a big fan of just laying together, even if you’re not necessarily intending on going to sleep. running her fingers across your skin absentmindedly as you lay together on the couch.

gives you compliments almost as if they’re an afterthought, but they’re always so sincere that you know she’s put actual thought into them even if she pretends otherwise.

drunk Shauna or jealous Shauna is all over you, though. she sees someone breathe in your direction and nearly jumps the couch to get over to you.

she’s so protective of you, even over the smallest things. imagined injustices are too much for her. tell her Nat was mean to you in a dream, and her ass is glaring at her the next time she sees her.

she’s always watching you in one way or another. sometimes it’s because she's being possessive, but she mostly just likes to know that you’re okay. any time you’re separated at the same event, you can relax knowing Shauna knows exactly where you are at any moment.

Shauna Shipman will not forget a date. she knows every milestone of your relationship and could list off the day they happened. she’s kind of cheating because her ass is going straight home and writing in her journal about it the day it happens, so she can always check back to the date.

Jackie Taylor

likes to make your life easier any way she can. unfortunately, Jackie’s ideas of what would make your life easier aren’t always exactly true. but she’s trying, and that’s the important part, right? sure, you spent twenty minutes trying to figure out how she reorganized your kitchen, but she did it with love.

queen of PDA. she’s all over you all the time. her ass will climb you like a tree in public. absolutely does not understand that there’s a time and a place for all that, but who would want her to?

always, always, always holding your hand. tries to pull your hand off the wheel at every single stoplight because it’s been sooooo long. kisses your cheek any time you’ve done anything that made her even the slightest bit happy, or also just because. she’s not picky.

no one on Earth will talk you up more than Jackie Taylor. she’s showering you with compliments, both to your face and to anyone who will listen to her talk about you. they’re all so genuine too.

plans the most complex dates you’ve ever seen. truthfully, they’re mostly for her own benefit, but you always have a good time anyway. she will expect to hear how impressed you were with whatever she planned out at length. she needs the reassurance.

so physically affectionate. hand-holding where she just plays with your fingers while watching TV. anytime you’re lying down, trust that Jackie will be climbing on top of you and staying there. falls asleep on top of you, and you’re stuck there till she wakes up.

listens very intently whenever you talk, but eventually her eyes always end up falling to your lips. she’s just a girl.

she’s so playfully mean to you. always gently poking fun at something you’re doing as she skips up next to you and presses the entirety of her body against your back.

so incredibly possessive. god forbid you even look in someone else's direction or it’s on. as much as she craves your attention on her all the time, it truly is just the way she cares for you.

quality time!!! your ass isn’t going anywhere.

Lottie Matthews

Lottie’s trying to get you lore dropping on the first date for sure. she’s very emotionally aware and enjoys the intimacy of sharing secrets and feelings between the two of you.

loves to take care of you. she hates when you’re sick but also loves to smother you in love and care whenever you are. definitely confesses it to you guiltily one day like it’s a grievous sin.

stocks her cabinets with things that you like. walking around the store with a little list of everything she’s ever seen you eat before you stay over for the first time.

forces the nastiest herbal teas on you for your "health.”.

gives you so many gifts. most of them are just small little trinkets that remind her of you, but they’re always so thoughtful in nature. remembers anything you’ve ever mentioned being interested in or looked at when out at shops.

the type to drop in while you’re studying all day with a snack because she knows you forgot to eat. pulling you out of your chair to get up and dance with her because you haven’t moved from your desk in four hours. pulling your headphones off your ears and dragging you to bed because you have to get up in six hours.

she’s so physical touch. Lottie’s always touching you in some way or another. just small touches mostly: brushes of her fingers across her arm as you walk past her, fingers intertwined as you walk around whatever market she’s dragged you to today, her thumb against your face as she rubs off the tiniest speck of dirt, brushing hair out of your face as you talk animatedly.

good luck getting Lottie’s head off of your shoulder. doesn’t matter if you’re standing or laying down. she’s zeroing in on it immediately.

Natalie Scatorrcio

not traditionally affectionate in the slightest. she’s very awkward with it at the best of times. epitome of like, “I dunno, you’re cool, or whatever,” while kicking the toe of her shoe against the dirt and avoiding eye contact. does not have any experience with giving or receiving affection at all.

she blushes to her ears at even the slightest hint of love or care once you get closer. girl does not know what to do with herself; she's so stressed.

it takes forever for Nat to tell you anything personal about her life. so when she finally does start talking that vulnerability is a major sign of her affection for you.

quality time where you sit together and do separate things. sitting on opposite sides of the couch while Nat keeps sneaking looks at you whenever she thinks you’re not paying attention.

she’s not great at comforting you while you’re upset, but she’ll always listen for as long as you want to talk about it.

so incredibly loyal and protective. she’s not even letting rightful criticism of you go. at least when other people say it. argues with someone for twenty minutes about something you did, but the second you’re alone she’s like, “that was so lame.”

she’s really physically affectionate in public, but not in the traditional sense. bumps your shoulders together a lot while giving you that crooked grin of hers, taps her foot against yours under the table, that sort of thing. in private, I think she would like more full-body contact stuff like cuddling than handholding or stuff of that nature.

Nat’s the type to drop you off at the front of the store when it’s raining while she parks the car. always walks on the curbside of the sidewalk so that car “hits her instead." always tries to open the door for you even when it’s inconvenient (think rushing around the car).

definitely the type to present you with pretty rocks she found and grins stupidly whenever she sees it sitting on a shelf at your place.

likes to try to fix things around your house.

[ultrone-reposts]

Being Jackieshauna's Controversially Young GF

pairing: jackie taylor x r / shauna shipman x r note: yes, i will always manage to make it about jackieshauna.

Jackie definitely brings a “we saw you from across the club and loved your vibe” energy to the party, and you’re just kind of glancing at Shauna glaring at you over her shoulder. like, does her ass know that? Shauna’s all for it, but the glower takes breaks for no one.

Shauna loudly refers to you as their daughter at least once to embarrass Jackie. preferably right after she’s kissed you in the grocery store. Jackie tells her off for the whole drive back, but Shauna's ass does not care. hands at ten and two on the wheel and the smuggest fucking look on her face. loses the attitude when Jackie starts throwing blankets on the couch, but it’s over for her at that point.

Jackie’s introducing you to all her friends without shame, and Shauna’s just daring someone to say something.

You start to wonder if Shauna’s main reason for dating you is all the opportunities it gives her to embarrass Jackie. One of their friends asks where you met, and Shauna says something like, “Jackie stole her from the cradle.” Jackie’s over there doing a spittake as she nearly chokes on her wine. she just loves to make Jackie squirm.

Now, if someone else makes a comment about it? Jackie’s going to have to drag her out of there or blood’s going to be spilled.

Jackie insists on making you watch the "classics," but it’s mostly just beaches over and over again. she refuses to move on. Shauna’s three glasses of wine in before the movie even starts. she’s seen it so many times she can recite it line by line.

Shauna throws Star Wars in there, but it’s mostly just because she knows Jackie's sick and tired of watching it. Shauna's got to get revenge somehow.

Shauna comes up behind you and just stands there, glaring at anyone that tries to approach you. God forbid you mention having to meet someone at the library for a project. you’ve never heard a more terrifying “Oh?” in your entire life. she’s dropping you off in her little minivan like your a child. talking about “I’ll be back in two hours.”

Jackie consistently tries to match your schedule to stay up with you, but it's always lights out for her at 10 PM sharp, no matter how hard she tries. she’s so competitive with it though, so sometimes the two of you just have to pretend you’re going to sleep so that Jackie won’t be an absolute nightmare in the morning. she wakes up once to find you in the living room doing something else after you've “gone to sleep” and won’t speak to you for at least a day.

Shauna likes to teach you how to cook (spices who? ), but Jackie always hovers around giving bad advice. They end up bickering about it every time, and the food gets burned. Shauna’s so frustrated she can barely look at Jackie, and Jackie’s ass is skipping over to the takeout menu drawer.

Jackie and Shauna have separate bank accounts just so Jackie can make Shauna pay for dates still. It’s the small things.

Shauna’s more self-conscious about initiating PDA, given that she’s a lot more aware of the age difference in a way. Jackie’s always the one to initiate it first; whether it’s holding your hand or practically climbing on top of you, trust that Jackie does not care.

Jackie’s way too invested in any of your friend group gossip. she’s expecting daily updates. Shauna “doesn’t care” and yet still knows every detail. interesting.

Any argument Jackie is losing, she pulls the “listen to your elders” card. It’s the only time you’re ever allowed to acknowledge that she’s older than you, unless it’s to call her a milf. she’s partial to that, no matter how much she pretends not to.

Shauna tries to give you advice that you barely listen to because her life is a train wreck. Let's be honest, she pulled Jackie by accident. Who else was going to match her freak?

Jackie’s embarrassedly knowledgeable about slang for her age. you’re not sure what's worse: Shauna purposely using it wrong to embarrass you, or Jackie using it correctly at her advanced age.

Every gift you’ve ever received from the two of them has been one that Jackie bought and put Shauna’s name down on. It’s not to say that Shauna can’t get thoughtful gifts, but if it’s from the both of them, it’s really just from Jackie. Jackie thinks you don’t notice, but she always overexaggerates Shauna’s bad handwriting when signing the card. it goes from being slightly unreadable to looking like a five-year-old wrote it.

Jackie tries too hard with your friends and always comes off as the like “cool mom” type. she’s out here offering snacks. shauna’s making it awkward by asking one with a Nirvana shirt to name five songs.

[ultrone-reposts]

College AU Rain Carradine X Reader PT 2

Much requested Pt 2 to my College AU Rain Carradine X Reader fic part 1

Warnings: Friends with Benefits, Angst, Kind of a break up

Word Count: 1187

Pairings: Rain Carradine X Fem! Reader

Modern College AU Friends with Benefits

It had been three weeks since that night, and you hadn’t seen Rain once. You had managed to avoid her on campus, staying away from the places you knew she liked to hang out, burying yourself in your studies and trying to forget about her. But forgetting Rain was easier said than done. She was like a shadow that followed you everywhere, a constant presence in the back of your mind, even when you tried to push her away.

You were sitting in the library, your textbooks spread out in front of you, but your mind wasn’t on your work. You kept thinking about Rain, about the way she had looked at you that night, the way she had seemed almost… sad. But that was probably just wishful thinking. Rain didn’t do sad, not for you, not for anyone.

“Hey” a voice interrupted your thoughts, and you looked up to see one of your friends, Kay, standing beside your table. She looked concerned, and you realized you must have been staring off into space for a while. “You okay?”

You forced a smile, nodding. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just… tired, I guess.”

Kay didn’t look convinced, but she didn’t push it. “We’re going to the coffee shop across the street. Want to join us?”

You hesitated, not really in the mood for socializing, but you knew that sitting here alone, dwelling on Rain, wasn’t doing you any good. “Sure,” you said, closing your books and standing up. “I could use a break.”

The coffee shop was busy, filled with students chatting and studying, the hum of conversation blending with the sound of the espresso machine. You followed Kay to a table in the back, joining a few other friends who were already there. They greeted you warmly, and for a moment, you felt a little better, surrounded by people who cared about you, even if they didn’t know what you were going through.

But then, as you were sipping your coffee, you heard a familiar voice behind you, and your heart sank. You didn’t have to turn around to know it was Rain. You would recognize her voice anywhere.

You tried to focus on the conversation at your table, but you couldn’t help sneaking a glance over your shoulder. Rain was sitting at a table near the window, laughing at something one of her friends had said. She looked… happy, completely unaffected by the last few weeks, as if nothing had changed.

It hurt, more than you wanted to admit, seeing her like that, seeing her so at ease when you had been struggling so much. You turned back to your friends, trying to ignore the tightness in your chest, the feeling of being completely and utterly alone.

But then, as if sensing your gaze, Rain looked up and caught your eye. For a moment, neither of you moved, the noise of the coffee shop fading into the background as you stared at each other. Her expression was unreadable, but there was something in her eyes, something that made your heart ache even more.

She was the first to look away, turning back to her friends as if nothing had happened. But that brief moment had been enough to shake you, to make you realize that no matter how much you tried to move on, you weren’t over her. Not even close.

You excused yourself from the table, mumbling something about needing some air, and walked out of the coffee shop, the cool evening air hitting your face like a slap. You took a deep breath, trying to steady yourself, but it wasn’t working. All you could think about was Rain, the way she had looked at you, the way she had dismissed you so easily.

You didn’t know what to do. You didn’t want to go back inside, but you didn’t want to go back to your dorm either, where you would be alone with your thoughts. So you just started walking, not really caring where you were going, just needing to move, to get away from the suffocating weight of your feelings.

It wasn’t until you were halfway across campus that you heard footsteps behind you, and then a voice that made you stop in your tracks.

“Hi”

You turned around slowly, your heart pounding in your chest. Rain was standing a few feet away, her hands shoved into the pockets of her jacket, her expression unreadable.

You didn’t say anything, just stared at her, waiting for her to speak. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, she took a step closer.

“I saw you in the coffee shop,” she said, her voice low, almost hesitant.

“Yeah, I saw you too,” you replied, your voice colder than you intended.

Rain flinched slightly at your tone but didn’t back down. “Why’d you leave?”

You shrugged, trying to seem indifferent. “I needed some air.”

Rain frowned, taking another step closer. “You’re avoiding me.”

It wasn’t a question, and you didn’t bother denying it. “What do you expect, Rain? You told me you didn’t want anything more, that this was all it was ever going to be. What do you want from me?”

She looked away, her jaw tightening. “I don’t know.”

“That’s not good enough,” you said, your voice rising slightly. “I can’t keep doing this, Rain. I can’t keep being the person you turn to when it’s convenient for you, only to be pushed away the moment it gets too real.”

Rain didn’t say anything, just kept staring at the ground. You felt a wave of frustration and sadness wash over you, and before you could stop yourself, you took a step closer to her.

“Do you even care?” you asked, your voice breaking. “Do you even care about me, or am I just someone to pass the time with?”

Rain’s head snapped up, and for the first time, you saw something in her eyes that looked like real emotion, something raw and vulnerable. “I do care,” she said quietly. “But I don’t know how to do this. I don’t know how to be in a relationship. I don’t want to hurt you, but I’m afraid I already have.”

You felt tears welling up in your eyes, but you blinked them back, refusing to cry in front of her. “You have,” you said softly. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t want you to try. I’m not asking you to be perfect, Rain. I’m just asking you to be honest with me, to let me in.”

Rain looked at you for a long moment, and then, slowly, she reached out and took your hand. Her touch was tentative, almost uncertain, but it was enough to make your heart ache.

“I don’t want to lose you,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “But I don’t know if I can give you what you need.”

You squeezed her hand, feeling a tear slip down your cheek despite your best efforts. “I just need you to try.”

Rain nodded slowly, her thumb brushing against your knuckles in a gesture that was almost tender. “Okay,” she said softly. “I’ll try.”

[ultrone-reposts]

girl please i am on my knees give us another rain x reader the fics are running drier than the sahara desert on this app

at ur service 🫡🫡 (also so sorry for the inactivity ik ive been taking forever to answer asks but i PROMISE im getting to them rn ily) SPOILERS BELOW !!

A LITTLE DEATH | RAIN CARRADINE X FEM! READER (alien romulus)

SYNOPSIS: separated from rain and facing certain death, how far is she willing to go to save you?

WARNINGS: (mentions of blood/death, swearing, kissing)

NOTE: this is gonna be a rain x fem! reader & will be slightly au with reader taking kay’s place during the scene where she’s being chased by the xeno, hope u enjoy <33

THE NEIGHBOR WAS KNOCKING, YEAH.

BUT NO ONE WOULD LET HIM IN…..

everything went sideways faster than you ever could’ve imagined. it was already off to a rough start when navarro had come rushing into the cockpit, frantically searching for her bag before you’d handed it to her.

never in your wildest dreams could you ever have imagined what you witnessed. the sound of a cracking ribcage and blood splatter all over the ships walls were the last thing you could remember.

you weren’t sure how long it had been when you woke the next time, head pressed against the grates on the bottom of the ships floor. smoke rose around you, the sound of the ships alarms blaring as you pushed yourself off the ground. you had to hold back your tears as you passed by navarro’s body, lifeless on the floor.

it was deathly silent, save the alarms, the sound of electricity crackling as you walked through the hull of the ship. you didn’t know where you were, the ship having crashed at any part of the station as far as you knew.

it was only a few steps before you saw what looked like some sort of snake skin on the floor, the sight sending a chill up your spine. you spotted something you couldn’t even begin to explain growing out of the wall, a step closer before you were pulled backwards.

your scream was silenced quickly as you whipped around, turning to face bjorn. you silently exhaled at the sight of him, glad to finally see someone you recognized. he shushed you, removing his hand from your mouth as he looked over at the wall.

he walked closer to it, lightening prod in his hand, the same one you’d seen him grab from the station earlier. you held your breath, your heart beating faster as you watched him turn up the current on the weapon.

it was over nearly as quickly as it started, the loud sound of electrical cracking and smoke as he attempted to kill the creature in front of you.

you could only stand still, frozen as the creature began to burn him, his hand pointing you towards the door. all you had left to do was run.

your hands shook as you made your way to the door, repeatedly pressing the unlock button and failing. your comms were somehow still functioning, static crackling in your ear as you turned it on in hopes of anyone hearing you.

I WANT YOU TO TOUCH ME THERE

MAKE ME FEEL LIKE I AM HUMAN…

rain had never felt like crushing suspense weighing on her chest before. she walked through the room, quiet as humanly possible, the clicking sounds of the same creatures that had attacked navarro all around her.

she could’ve sworn her heart nearly fell out of her chest at the sound of static over the comms. it was you. it had to be you, right?

it quickly caught the attention of tyler and andy, both turning around to see what was so urgent.

“please, please, somebody help me. there’s some fucking- i don’t know what to do, please.”

the voice was distorted, but she would recognize it anywhere. she could practically hear the tremors in your voice over the comms. she quickly put the headset on, speaking into the microphone.

“where are you, what’s going on?”

“oh, jesus christ. thank god, rain. i’m at some door, the ship crashed in this hangar and i can’t fucking get it open.”

“there should be a key somewhere, okay? just look for a key, there has to be one, that’s the only way to get it open.”

there was a moment of silence, rain attributed to your search of a way to open the door.

“i found it, i found it.”

she exhaled, hearing the sound of the door hissing open, before the static crack of the comms cut off your voice again.

she shot a look to tyler, the 3 of them picking up their pace as he tracked your heat signature. there was only a glass door separating you, the relief that washed over both your and rain’s faces evident.

“oh thank god. please, open this fucking door. there’s some kind of security clearance on it, and i can’t get it open.”

rain turned around, ushering andy toward the door as she walked closer toward the glass.

“we’re gonna get you out of there, okay? just trust me, you gotta trust me.”

rain spoke, head against the glass as you glanced over your shoulder. your heart thrummed against your chest as you watched andy stand still, both rain and tyler pleading with him to open the door.

“guys, please. please, what are you doing? come on, open the door. open the fucking door! please!”

you felt the blood drip from the wound on the side of your head, the sound of metal creaking altering you of a presence behind you. you watched as the color in rain’s face drained, andy’s face stoic.

“rain, please open the door, please. please, you have to help me, okay?”

“you’re gonna be fine baby, we’re gonna get the door open, okay? just keep your eyes on me, don’t look away.”

your chest rise and fell rapidly, the sounds behind you growing closer. you watched as rain’s fists gripped the collar of andy’s suit, pleading with him. his eyes looked between the two of you, your hands pressed against the glass.

andy walked closer to the door, looking at the keypad. you turned around, no sign of anyone in the room with you.

“andy, please, please. please, you have to let me in, please.”

rain looked up at him, her hand on his arm as he reached for the keypad.

“fuck, thank god.”

the door hissed and slid open as you squeezed your way through the crack as it did. you fell into rain’s arms, the sound of the door beginning to close once more as something smashed into the glass.

“i got you, i got you. you’re okay.”

rain spoke into your ear, hands smoothing over your back as the two of you fell to the floor. she pulled the two of you up, hands steadying on your shoulders. there was ringing in your ears, the sound of your heartbeat destroying her words as she spoke.

she grabbed your hand, leading you to the elevator. she silently thanked god that andy opened that door for you. she held onto you, hands gripping the material of your t shirt. she wouldn’t let you go again.

MAKE ME FEEL LIKE I AM HUMAN, AGAIN….

[ultrone-reposts]

haven’t seen alien romulus yet but i am SO EXCITED i’m seeing it the night i move into my dorm !!

i saw you’re taking requests for rain x fem reader and soooo since you’ve seen the movie i’m giving u the freedom to write ANY blurb/drabble/headcanon that’s on ur mind!! fluff is my fav area but honestly i will take any idea u have :)

much love 🤍!

— gracie

AHHHH so excited for u to see it i hope u love it and thank u so so much for the ask i’m so excited to finally start writing for my girl !! here’s a little fluff drabble of an off day in bed with rain + no spoilers ofc<33 (sorry for this being so short but i’m working on a MUCH longer rain fic to come soon !!)

(no warnings)

the dim orange light shone through the cracks of the window in rain’s trailer. the two of you laid clinging to each other in the small confines of her bed, limbs tangled under the sheets. your head rested on rain’s chest, taking in the quiet rise and fall of her breaths as she slept.

you sat up, pushing slowly off of her as to not wake her up, but you felt her begin to shift beneath you.

“why are you awake?”

she groaned, hand resting on the small of your back as you laid chest to chest with her. your hand fell in her tousled strands of hair, brushing them away from her face as she blinked away the sleep from her eyes.

“couldn’t sleep.”

you answered, rain’s hands sliding beneath the material of your her tank top. she pulled you closer, tucking her face into the crook of her neck as she sighed. your hands rested between her shoulder blades, rubbing out the knots in her muscles.

you felt the rumble of her breath against your skin, the feeling of her finger tips against your spine. you tilted your head up, nose brushing against hers as she finally opened her eyes.

“stay in with me today.”

she spoke, voice gravely from sleep and eyes pleading as she looked up at you.

“you know we can’t.”

rain rolled her eyes playfully, fingers brushing against yours as they settled over each other.

“andy will cover for us, hm? one day isn’t gonna kill us.”

you dropped your head against her shoulder, her palms now flat against your back. she was persuasive, as always. the same reason she’d got you two working the same shifts, and the same reason she’d convinced andy not to say anything if the two of you just so happened to be out the same day.

“you’re trouble, you know that?”

“oh, yeah. i’m all bad, baby.”

rain shot back, rolling over to lean over you, arms braced on the sides of your head, a smile on her face. you’d do anything to keep her like this.

it hurt you just as much as it hurt her to see every request she’d sent it to base be denied. but as long as the two of you had each other like this, you would survive.

[ultrone-reposts]

fwb shauna is so real to me 🙏🏻 i didn’t want these to end 😔

FWB to Lovers HC's

pairing: Shauna Shipman x reader

she’s the one that suggested it in the first place but girl has no chill. you leave the conversation with a bounce in your step and she’s pulling her journal talking about some “she doesn’t think i’m good enough to date” type shit.

Shauna gets irrationally jealous if someone so much as breathes in your direction. If you thought girlfriend Shauna was possessive, friends with benefits Shauna is so much worse. in her mind she has no real like “control” of what you do, so she’s just passive aggressive as hell about it. pulls out her inner Jackie and hits you with “oh?” all the time and refuses to answer your texts because you’ve pissed her off (said excuse me when walking past someone).

starts to get really affectionate without really realizing she’s doing it. tracing little patterns on your hands when you sit next to each other, resting her head on your shoulder, holding your hand while you're out together, wrapping her arm around your waist, etc. little stuff she never really did when you were just friends. she only really notices what she’s doing when Tai calls her out on it, some stupid joke about you replacing Jackie and Shauna’s fuming. it’s like she forgets that you’re not really a couple until someone brings her back down to earth. she’s all quiet and broody for the rest of the day.

you catch her staring at you all the time. she looks away the second you notice, but she’s quick to go back to looking at you as soon as you look away. it’s an intense look, as Shauna’s often are, so you’re not really sure what’s going on about that. she always distracts you with a kiss anytime you try to bring it up, so you never really get an answer about it.

drunk Shauna writes your name in little hearts in her journal and tears the page into shreds the next morning. aggressively crosses it out first just in case someone happens to look through her trash. there can be no evidence of her weakness (crush).

Shauna’s mood swings are off the charts. one second she’s laughing and giving you the sweetest smile, and then the next she’s frowning and sulking as she glares down at the dirt. she’s struggling so hard with her feelings, but refuses to admit it even to herself.

she compliments you a lot more than she did before (never), but it’s always on the stupidest things. talks about how she likes your outfit that you’ve worn a thousand times, or how she thinks your hobby that she previously never liked is interesting. (she got desperate and started reading through Jackie’s magazines.) 

agrees too enthusiastically if someone else ever compliments you to the point it gets weird. how dare they compliment you before she could?

insists on always being the one to drive you home. even if you have a car she’s going to argue with you until you get mad and give up. claims its just for your safety, but she really just wants to spend as much time with you as possible

so overprotective. steps in aggressively at the slightest negative remark about you and you’ve got to drag her away unless you want blood to be spilled. can not for the life of her explain why she got so angry over it later. just stares straight ahead as she drives past your house on the way home and tells you that you’re sleeping over at hers instead.

calls you a pet name once and cringes so hard she has to leave the conversation. will not speak to you for days. she’s so embarrassed.

offers you a drawer in her room because you spend so much time sleeping over. in like a totally casual way. actually, she got you a toothbrush too. like friends do.

it’s the small things she does that starts to jump out at you. suddenly starts getting you little gifts because she “thought of you”, remembers little details about things you’ve mentioned offhandedly. just all around thoughtful gestures that seem a little out of character for her.

suddenly engages you in deep conversations. Shauna’s very emotionally withdrawn, so it comes as a big shock when she starts asking about your future plans, dreams, etc. she always asks right after you hooked up, tentatively cuddling up to you as she rests her arm across your waist. that’s a thing that friends do, right?

at the same time, Shauna starts expertly dodging any question that has the slightest thing to do with your friendship or her feelings. she gets extremely defensive if someone even implies your relationship is a little unusual, which gives the other girls great ammunition to make her squirm and storm off. her reactions only make it more obvious that something is going on between you.

brings you up in conversations a lot, to the point that people start rolling their eyes when she does. “we” did this, “we” did that. “should we go to X?” includes you in any of her plans.

she gets so frustrated with herself for caring so much when she’s the one who wanted your relationship to be like this in the first place, but at the same time her ass will not communicate to save her life.

it finally comes out completely by accident during a heated argument. throws it in your face in a sort of “so there” thing, and goes bright red as she realizes what she just said. tries backtracking it but just gives up and glares at you. it’s your fault she’s like this.

when you get your shit together and start officially dating everyone she tells is confused that you weren’t dating the enter time with the way she was always talking about you.

[ultrone-reposts]

Office Hours

Warnings: Contains mature content (Minors DNI, 18+)

Plot Summary: One of the University’s library attendants catches your eye through a series of standoffish encounters with her.

God, you are so fucking late. How the hell did you manage to sleep through all your alarms? Your partners and you had agreed to meet up at 4 p.m. in the study room, and it was already 4:10 while you sprinted through campus in an attempt to make it there as soon as possible. As you run, you type out an apology message to them, telling them that you’ll get there as quickly as you can, but that didn’t help the fact that when you arrived, you had no idea where the study room was. 

You transferred to Brown just this year, so you were still figuring out where buildings were and how they were laid out, much to your own embarrassment. Nothing has ever been more humiliating than asking a freshman for directions to the junior dorms. Nevertheless, the directions to your specific room would be a problem you’d deal with when you actually got there.

You ran for a few minutes before you finally made it to the library. In your haste, you almost slam into the sliding glass doors that are just slightly too slow to open. Walking into the university’s library, you look back at the text your group mates sent. ‘I booked room 125 for us.’ Okay, perfect. All you needed to do was figure out where that was, and you’d only be a few minutes late; they’d understand.

Admittedly, this was the first time you’d been in the university’s library since transferring, so you were a little awestruck. The inside was far more grandiose than you were expecting; the chandeliers and many rows of books made it look like something out of Hogwarts. Right in the middle of the library foyer, there was a large wooden desk where a brown-haired library attendant sat, reading a book. It seemed that she was your best bet to find where you were meant to go. 

You walk up to the large desk adorned with a small metal bell and stand in front of her, waiting to be acknowledged, to no avail. She seems far too engrossed in her reading to see you were there, in need of directions. “Excuse me?” You try. The brunette ignores you and keeps her eyes trained on her book. "Um, excuse me?” You repeat, giving her the benefit of the doubt that she didn’t hear you. This time, instead of outright ignoring you, she gives you a pointed look over her book and then goes back to reading. Well, there was no way you could give her the benefit of the doubt now.

“I was wondering if you could help me find this study room—” Without even looking up from her book, she cuts you off by pointing to a sign on the desk that reads, ‘Please Keep Quiet in the Library.’ You can’t help the insulted expression that makes its way onto your face. You’re able to catch a smirk on her face before she returns to being stoic. To add insult to injury, she spins her chair to face her back towards you. Oh, she was not making this easy. 

You stand there for a moment trying to figure out what to do from here, as the brown-haired girl made it obvious she was not in the mood to assist you. But you still needed help, and she was your best bet. So you were determined to get her to be the one to help you, if not to just be a bother. You have an idea. Reaching for a piece of paper from your bag and taking a pen off the desk, you scribbled something down. 

You press down on the bell that you saw as soon as you approach the desk. You can see the girl cringe at the sound, but she didn’t move besides that, keeping her back facing you. You were hoping for that. You hit the bell again, then again, and suddenly barraged the bell. Pressing incessantly until the ringing was too much for her to bear.

The girl turns around angrily, snatching the bell from under your hand. She got as up into your face as she could with the desk separating you, both hands planted on the wood to stabilize herself. “What?!” She tries to keep her shout as hushed as possible, but it wasn’t a valiant effort, as evidenced by the several shushes heard from students in the vicinity of the shouting. 

With her attention now on you, you point at the sign that she had used to dismiss you earlier, with an all too pleased look on your face. You can see her jaw locking in frustration and her eyes narrowing at you. Boy, she had a temper on her. If looks could kill, you would’ve been dead and buried several times over at this point. Deciding that you had angered her enough and because you were a little intimidated, you held up your paper that read, “Where is study room 125?”

She groans before pointing somewhere vaguely behind her and to the right. You mouthe a ‘thank you’ to her and were about to head towards where she pointed when she gathered a couple books into her arms and shoulder checked you as she passed, heading somewhere deeper into the library.

You hike your backpack strap up higher onto your shoulder before sparing one last glance at the girl's desk. Noticing something new that revealed itself once she was out of the chair: a blue and yellow varsity jacket with a name written out in cursive. ‘Shauna?’ you read. You hum at the newfound name of the brunette. She was kind of pretty when she was mad.

==================================

 

The next time you ended up in the library was to check out a couple books for a research assignment. After browsing around for a bit, you finally gathered the books you needed for your paper. Sauntering up to the check-out desk, you were about to mark this errand down as a success. That is, until you saw who the attendant was. It was the brunette from your previous encounter. 

She hadn’t yet noticed you, or maybe she had forgotten the whole first encounter entirely. You were hoping it was the latter. She turns her back and is organizing some paperwork when you finally muster up the courage to approach. You place the books that you've gathered on the desk and speak up. 

“Hello, checking out, please.” You say it in a much more confident tone than you’d had in your first meeting, hoping she can’t recognize your voice.

“Sure, one sec—” She turns around as she responds, and as soon as she makes eye contact with you, she scoffs. You guess she remembers you. It was a fair response; you didn’t exactly leave the best first impression. Then again, neither did she. 

She looks like she wants to do anything in her power to avoid assisting you, but she knew how that ended the last time. So, she begrudgingly began the check-out process of scanning and recording all of the first book's information. She was silent in between the flapping open of the pages and covers, the beep of the scanner, and the glares she’d shoot your way. The intensity of her gaze made you want to speak, even though the better part of your mind knew you shouldn’t.

“I guess you didn’t forget the first time we met, huh?” She didn’t acknowledge you at all this time, continuing to scan and log the books. A slight tinge of guilt washes over you, making you want to apologize, more so to not have awkward encounters with her going forward. You knew your workload would make you spend a lot of time in the library, and you’d be avoiding her a lot if you didn’t make amends. “I’m sorry about that, by the way. I just needed help; I wasn’t looking to annoy you. My name is Y/n; I only transferred here this year.”

You assume your apology fell upon deaf ears because she is deathly silent for a few seconds, the only sounds being pages turning and a distant cough somewhere in the library. She doesn’t even look up from her little check-out process when she responds.

“You know, you interrupted a really good book.” The way she said it made it sound like more of a warning than a joke. You inhale slightly and mumble another apology. She hesitates for a moment, as if she were deciding what to say next, if anything. “It’s Shauna, by the way.” You’d gathered as much after the previous meeting, but you’d never tell her that. You were thankful for any interaction with the girl where she didn’t look like she wanted to kill you.

There’s a pause once again as she scans each book and stacks it onto the ones she's already done. She says nothing more to you, so you assume she’s finished with the conversation. You open up your bag to make room for the books and grab your library card as she places the final research book on the stack. 

“Is that all? What about that one?” She gestures at your own book that you had just removed from your bag to fit the other books into.

“Oh no, this one’s mine.” You hold up the paperback copy to show which book you’re referring to. Upon this action, however, allows her a closer look at the state of your reading material. She looked absolutely mortified.

“Oh my god, it looks like a mess; it’s practically falling apart. And you dog-ear the pages? Are you a criminal?” To say her outburst surprised you was an understatement. You pull the book back to your body and recoil. She’s scolding you over your own book? You look at it again. It looked perfectly fine to you. Maybe a little worn out at the crease, and yeah, dog-eared pages, but it wasn’t hanging on by a thread like she made it out to be.

“What are you talking about? It looks fine. And of course I do; how am I meant to know where I left off without marking it?” You argue, getting defensive and slightly embarrassed as you try to shove the book back into your bag.

“Um, use a bookmark, like a civilized human? God, are you a toddler? That’s like basic book etiquette.” She says it like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. 

"Jesus, am I getting lectured right now? Just give me my books so I can leave.” You shove your library card into her hands and stand there impatiently. You should’ve guessed that she’d be pretentious about something even as stupid as this. And to think you apologized for being bitchy. Shauna scans your card and grabs something behind her computer before she goes on her librarian schpeel.

“Please return the books within the allotted time. If you need an extension on the return date, please come back so we can adjust and you don’t get fined. If the books are missing or returned damaged…” She puts emphasis on that word and looks you in the eye. “Then you will be fined the full amount for a new copy of the same book. Thank you.” She finishes it off by handing you back your card with a sickly sweet smile that was so fake you wanted to roll your eyes. You start wrapping your hands around your books before she speaks up one final time.

"Also, learn to use this so you don’t destroy any more books.” She tosses a bookmark at you before going back to organizing the paperwork she put on hold to help you. The bookmark itself is almost insulting. It looks like one you’d get at the scholastic book fair as a kid, showcasing a worm with glasses and the phrase ‘Reading is cool’ in big, bold letters. 

You wanted to retaliate; in fact, it seemed like she was hoping you would, loving every second of locking horns with you. But to your absolute dismay, you could think of nothing. You gathered your books and walked away, catching the smug grin that graced her lips as she caught sight of the bookmark that you took with you.

==================================

 

You found yourself back at the library once again, working on an essay for class. You had gotten there in the late afternoon, and since your arrival, the sky has grown dark and the light drizzle has turned into an outright downpour. You were relieved you’d brought your umbrella earlier; otherwise, the walk back to your dorm would be miserable. You had to give it to your parents; you didn’t think an umbrella was a necessity when packing for college. Boy, did they prove you wrong. However, you still thought that them having your initials etched onto the handle was a bit much, ‘in case someone stole it’ they said.

Gathering up all your books and all the items you’d had strewn about on the library table, you pack everything to head home. While you walk towards the exit, you take notice that you’re one of the few people still remaining in the building; everyone else was probably smart enough to get back before the rain picked up.

At the entrance, you find Shauna standing at the doorway but making no effort to go outside. She looked mad; she always seemed to have an upset expression on her face. You pull off your headphones that you wore when you were studying to address her. The loud music no longer playing in your ears allowed you to hear the rolling thunder that sounded off every few seconds. You decided you had a minute to spare to let the thunder pass before you continued back to your apartment. So you stood next to her, waiting for a pause in the rain so you could leave, but nothing came. 

After a few minutes of standing next to her without either of you saying a word, you finally break. “Hey, waiting on a ride?” You ask, your morbid curiosity about the angry girl getting the better of you. She turns at the sound of your voice but groans upon seeing who was talking to her and turns back to face outside. 

“How am I always stuck with you?” It’s a barely audible mumble, but you can hear it. She finally turns and fully faces you, leaning her back against the wall. “But to answer your question, no. I walked today, and my roommate doesn't have her license, so she can’t pick me up.” She sighs.

You give her a sympathetic look. "Oh, that sucks. Do you have far to walk?” A crack of thunder sounds during the pause for Shauna’s response. She cringes and looks miserable at the idea of walking any distance in that storm.

“I live off campus.” She says finally, after the roaring sound stopped. Jeez, that would be a long walk, and she is definitely not layered properly to brave that weather. 

“Yikes, that will definitely take a while.” She groans at your statement.

”God, I’m going to kill Jackie.” The roommate, you presume, “She told me to dress light today because it’d be hot. I’m gonna be drenched when I get home.” You give her a sympathetic look before reaching into your backpack and pulling out your umbrella. 

“Here.” You stand up and hold it out to her. She looked confused at it for a second, her narrowing eyes shifting between you and the umbrella you held in your hand. She quickly gathers that you were being genuine and tries to deny it.

“No, I can't take your umbrella.” She says pushing your hand back to your body.

“Don’t worry about it; I’ll be fine. I live in one of the university apartments, so it won’t take too long for me to get back. Just take it.” You hold it out again and place the umbrella in her arms.

“Are you sure? How am I gonna get it back to you?” 

“Positive. And don’t sweat it; I’ll be here almost every day to study, so you can give it back whenever you get a chance.” At that, you pull the hood of your jacket over your head, leaving no room for her to argue further. “Later.” You say to her as you head out the door, and you’re sure you saw a small smile on her face as you left.

==================================

You were hoping that the most recent interaction between you and Shauna was enough to spark some sort of friendly behavior between the two of you, and you were eager to get back to the library and have her return the umbrella with a gracious smile and a ‘thank you.’ Only that’s not what happened.

In reality, you would find it waiting at the entrance with a post-it note saying ‘Y/n’ placed right over the initials on the handle. No Shauna, smile, or anything. It wounded you a bit, but you guess Shauna wasn’t that type of girl. But certainly, it was enough of a kind gesture that you’d be able to go up and talk to her. 

You’d caught her sorting out books in the rows of bookshelves by the private study room that had become your usual go-to place. Shauna had noticed you frequenting the room, catching her staring a few times while you worked on an assignment for class. Lucky for you, you needed to find a book to continue working, and she happened to be right there, so what was the harm of asking her? 

Sauntering up to her side as she was replacing all the novels in their rightful spot, she took no notice of you until you were right next to her. You awkwardly drummed your hands against the hardwood shelf.

“Shauna, just the girl I wanted to see! Listen, can I get your help with—”

“I’m going to stop you right there, new kid.” The nickname made you feel juvenile; you couldn’t describe the immediate effect all her words had on you. It put you on edge in an instant. Making you stand stiffer and putting on a face of confusion as she continued. 

“What you did the other day, that was really nice. But just because you’re nice to me one time doesn’t mean I’m gonna like you, or wanna be friends or anything. Don’t expect any niceties from me.”

Obviously, you didn’t assume that you and her would become best friends after, but you’d thought you’d get some cordial interactions with Shauna going forward. So hearing each word was like a blow to the stomach. You couldn’t pinpoint why you wanted some semblance of a friendship or even an acquaintanceship with her. Either way, the sentiment hurt a lot more than you were willing to show, so you put on a brave face.

“Oh… I didn’t assume.” Your smile only faltered for a moment before you managed to put on a neutral expression, trying to be nonchalant about the whole thing. A part of you was hoping it was a practical joke, but Shauna doesn’t seem the type.

“Perfect, glad you’re on the same page.” Shauna flashes you a tight-lipped smile with a pair of raised eyebrows as she pushes past you. If you were grasping at straws, you would say it was at least more gentle than the first time she shoulder bumped you, but that just made you seem pathetic.

Once Shauna was out of sight, going up the stairs to the next floor, you had to resist the urge to shout out ‘You’re welcome’ at her. You returned to your study room without the book you set out to get and with a small ache in your chest.

==================================

You began to make it a habit to run into Shauna if you saw that she was working. Attempting to give her a friendly smile or greeting here and there when you could, but her words stayed fresh in your mind. ‘Just because you’re nice to her once doesn't mean she liked you.’ You gave the sentence a lot more thought than you’d care to admit. If at all possible, you were somehow more determined to make her like you after she said that, which you’re sure wasn’t the goal. 

It felt as if every time you caught sight of her, your leg was bouncing up and down like you were an addict experiencing withdrawals. You debated continuing the not-caring act, hoping that your indifference to her dislike towards you would give her pause about the whole thing. Then you thought about being super positive and affectionate, but you’re positive you’d get punched in the face with that approach. 

In truth, you were just desperate for any excuse to talk to her. You’d plan all sorts of things to say or do that would require her to assist you, but you'd always find yourself too nervous to even bother. It became apparent that half of your time in the library was spent working while the other half was trying to find a way to change her mind.

Another rainy day where you found yourself going to the library had you hoping that maybe Shauna would need to borrow your umbrella again. It wasn’t necessarily a great plan; in truth, it was probably the worst plan you had conceived thus far, but it was the nicest interaction you’d had with her, and you wished to replicate it if you could.

After studying for hours, you decide to call it a night and start packing up. The sun was about to set from what you could see from the windows, and the rain had certainly lightened up, which put a wrench in your plan. After packing up your bag, you head towards the front desk, only pausing when you see Shauna at her desk talking to another student.

The girl had an inviting smile while she spoke animatedly to Shauna, and Shauna wore a warm expression with her as well. You couldn’t help the small pang of jealousy that surged through you. She’d never acted like that with you; why would she be like that with this girl that you’d never even seen in the library before? You hadn’t seen Shauna so at ease conversing with someone while she worked. Every other student that you had seen approach her got the same sour expression. Like she was annoyed that anyone would disturb her by asking her to do her job.

Shauna exits from behind the desk and heads off somewhere while the girl she was talking to turns and sits down on one of the benches. You walked up to the desk while Shauna was gone, waiting for her to come back so you could maybe offer up the umbrella, but all you could do was stare at the other girl, who was seemingly waiting for Shauna as well.

She sat, scrolling through her phone, in her rain-soaked ‘Brown University Soccer’ sweatshirt. Her hair was slightly dampened on her forehead as well, but she wore the look so well that you’d think it was intentional. She was a pretty girl, no doubt about that. You could understand why Shauna had a soft smile on her face when she spoke to her. Frankly, you’d think any attention from this girl would be flattering.

Almost as if she felt your eyes on her, the girl looks up from her phone and catches you staring at her. You quickly avert your eyes, but you can still feel hers boring into the side of your face, then quickly raking over you before landing on your hands. She hums slightly, as if she found what she was looking for, before she makes her way over. You can hear the sound of her footsteps approaching you and feel her presence beside you before she speaks up. “Hey, you.”

Her raspy voice and flirtatious tone made you understand Shauna’s warmth towards the girl. You wished you could just stay looking straight, but the girl's acknowledgment made you turn your head towards her. "Oh, you’re cute.” The compliment caught you off guard. The way she said it was slightly like an observation, like she was judging you, and then slightly like she was flirting with you on her own.

“Uh, thank you.” You say it a little hesitantly, hoping it doesn’t come off as ungrateful. She points to your hand.

“That umbrella, it's yours, right?” Shit, you forgot you even had the thing on you. You nod, a little confused at her question, before she throws her arms around you and wraps you in a tight hug. 

“Oh my gosh, you’re the one that let Shauna borrow it! You’re literally a lifesaver. I thought she was gonna come home soaking wet and strangle me.” Though the tone of voice she used was chipper, what she was saying was mildly concerning. She pulls away with a smile, but you guess your hesitance showed on your face as she quickly follows her sentence up with “But she didn’t, obviously.” She reaches out her hand with a smile. “I’m Jackie, Shauna’s roommate.” 

You inwardly smack yourself for being stupid before smiling, taking Jackie’s hand, and introducing yourself. Jackie starts yapping at you as if you were her best friend. You liked Jackie; she was super friendly and upbeat, which was a real switch-up from her roommate.

“I’m surprised I haven't seen you in here; I spend nearly every day in this place.” 

"God, yeah, I don’t come here too much. I came from class and didn’t pack a hoodie or anything, so I dropped by to ask Shauna for a ride home after her shift was over.” In the nicest way, you couldn’t see her spending too much time in the library; you just wish she did. She seems like the kind of person you’d want to hang out with.

“I’m still a little confused; how’d you know it was me that lent it to her?” Jackie scoffs with a smile.

“That stupid little engraving, silly.” If anyone else had said that, you’d have been slightly offended on behalf of your parents, but Jackie had an inflection in her tone that made it sound obviously dumb. Not to mention, she was inherently right. 

“Oh god, you two met.” Shauna’s voice breaks through both of you, making you and Jackie turn to her. She’s got that blue and yellow letterman jacket on now, looking like she was about to head out with Jackie. Shauna looks at you. “What did you need?”

“Shauna, be nice!” Jackie cuts in, scolding her friend, and then looking at you with a smile. You subtly try to hide the umbrella behind your form, suddenly embarrassed at the original plan.

“Oh, just stopping by to say ‘goodnight.’” You feel yourself get a little red with both Jackie and Shauna’s attention on you. They both seem to take the reason at face value, which you’re thankful for because if they questioned you, you’re sure you’d stumble through the excuse. You avert your eyes too quickly to notice Shauna with a small smile, but Jackie doesn’t. When you look back, there’s a neutral expression on Shauna's face, but Jackie has a look of utter elation.

“So Y/n,” Jackie starts. “We have to make plans outside of university; we have to go get drinks or something. All three of us.” She puts emphasis on ‘three’ while pulling Shauna closer to the two of you.

"Oh, Jackie, that’s sweet, but I wouldn’t wanna disturb Shauna outside of office hours.” You say it with a teasing tone, but it genuinely is a fear of yours. Shauna said as much. You weren’t friends. But it seemed that Shauna couldn’t ignore the influence Jackie had.

“No, maybe we should sometime. When the semester calms down, She says it as casually as she can, so you couldn’t dare read into it more than she allowed. She turns to Jackie before you can respond. “You ready to go?” Jackie nods her head like a toddler and starts walking out. It seemed like they were going to leave you behind when she stopped and turned back towards you. “Are you going to walk out with us?”

You’re not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, so you happily trot next to them and walk out to the parking lot. You say your farewells to the two girls, Jackie being much more personable than Shauna when saying goodbye, and start heading towards the dorm while they walk to Shauna’s car. As you get further away from the pair, you can faintly hear Jackie squealing at Shauna. “Shauna, she's so cute!” 

“Don’t even think about it, Jackie.”

“Not for me, for you!”

==================================

God, this new schedule was kicking your ass. You had to kick studying into high gear as exams approached. Going to class early and staying late, talking to professors, and spending almost twice the amount of time studying. You haven’t slept properly in days, needing to dedicate any extra time that you have to studying. All those instances in which you chose to study over sleep culminated in the situation you currently find yourself in.

A loud thud beside your ear jolts you from your slumber, and you hazily take in your surroundings. This wasn’t your bedroom; oh god, you fell asleep in the library? You look up at whoever woke you up and see Shauna with a disgruntled look on her face. She gathers up the books she dropped right by your head. 

“It’s past close. Get out.”

“You know, you should really work on your customer service skills.” She gives you a shrug and waits for you to get moving, but otherwise she doesn't acknowledge your slight against her. You try to wipe the haziness from your eyes and adjust. It was a familiar type of feeling, like when you’d fall asleep in the car as a kid and wake up in your bedroom. You’re unfamiliar, a little uneased and so tired still. Looking at the time on your phone, you curse, suddenly feeling so bad about being the reason Shauna was still here so late. “Shit, I’m really sorry; I didn’t mean to keep you here.”

Your actions are slow as you gather up all your books that are scattered around the table in the private room. Shauna had as sympathetic a look as she was able to muster, which wasn’t much given who she was.

“Didn’t sleep last night?” She sounds like she was only half interested in your answer. You shake your head tiredly and sigh.

“Nah, since exams are around the corner, I’ve been taking extra time. And my studying runs too late, so the coffee shop closes before I get out. I can’t function without caffeine and on such little sleep.” She hums at your words and turns to walk away from you once she’s seen that you’ve almost gathered everything. 

“You have drool on your cheek, by the way.” Shauna says, pointing to her own cheek to give you direction. Absolutely mortified, you quickly wipe at your face, trying to dry it. When you look at her again, Shauna smirks at you. You tried to say something in defense of yourself, but you truthfully had nothing. Even if you did, you’d think you were too tired to try.

You brush past Shauna and out the library doors and slowly wander back to your apartment and your bed.

The next day, you were back in the library at about the same time that you arrived yesterday. Only this time, when you went to the study room you always booked, there was a cup left behind with a small post-it note attached to it. ‘Just so you don’t fall asleep in here again, I wanna leave on time - Shauna.’

==================================

Shauna and having a place to study weren’t the only reasons you came to the library, though. Sometimes you were simply looking for reading material. The latest trendy book was making its way through the recommendation lists, and you were finally convinced to get it. The only problem was that the local Barnes & Noble sold out of all their copies. Your friend told you there was a copy available in the library, so you went there to try and find it. You just so happened to be going during Shauna’s hours, which you were unaware of until too late. 

Approaching the desk without sparing a glance at the attendant that was working while you pulled up the name and author of the book on your phone.

“Hi, I’ve been looking for this book, I—” 

"Oh, hey, transfer kid.” The familiar voice startled you. Your voice catches in your throat, suddenly horrifyingly aware that you were about to get Shauna to help you find a cornier version of a Wuthering Heights-type tragic-romance story. 

“You said you were looking for a book?” Your mind goes blank, trying to think of any book title that would make you seem cool and intelligent. You had nothing. You try to hide your phone screen so Shauna can’t see the cover or name, desperately trying to protect her image of you. It being one of those sad romance books, you were positive that Shauna would make fun of you for it. 

After you don't respond, Shauna takes it upon herself to glance at the screen before you can properly hide it.

“Is that the one? Here, lemme see if I can find it.” Shauna gestures to your phone in hand, and you weigh the options. This did seem to be the only way you’d get your hands on a copy, so you hesitantly handed her your phone.

Upon seeing the specific book you were trying to check out, Shauna’s reaction was not immediately making fun of you, which was surprising. Rather, she wore an introspective face before giving you a sympathetic look.

"Oh, sorry, the library copy is out, and there’s a long waitlist.” God, of course you’d embarrass yourself for nothing. Now Shauna would think you were one of those romance novel girls; that’s humiliating. You can’t help but let your disappointment slip into your reaction.

“Dammit, I was actually really looking forward to reading it.” Shauna looks as if she was contemplating something before looking at you with an intent expression. “Wait here; I’ll be right back.” 

She swiftly heads towards the back office of the library, leaving you alone standing at the front desk. You shift momentarily before Shauna returns, a book in hand. As soon as she’s in front of you, she gives the book to you; miraculously, it was a copy of the novel you were looking for. 

“What? No way, you have a copy?” You excitedly grab the book and skim through it. It looked like it had already been read back and forth; the margins on every other page were littered with annotations. It takes only a moment for it to click, and your smile drops. “Shauna, I can't borrow this; it’s yours.” 

You try to hand it back to her, and she steadfastly backs away from your outstretched hand, trying to return the novel to her.

“No, take it and read it. You wanted to.” It’s the most sincere Shauna has ever been with you. Her insistence made you blush. She looks like she knew she won the argument because she smirked at you. “Just promise me you’ll use that bookmark.” Shauna seemed to be more of a romantic than she’d led you to believe.

==================================

After studying for weeks on end, your friends finally convince you to head out to a party for one night. ‘It’s not going to kill you.’ They said. Well, they aren’t waist deep in final projects and essays in their new school. Whatever will shut them up for a few days, and maybe you missed going out a little.

Arriving at one of the already packed sorority houses, your friends disperse to collect alcohol from the kitchen area and leave you alone. If you were going to be away from your desk and unable to study, you were at least going to make the most of it, you supposed. Very quickly, you find yourself wandering around the party, pouring shots of vodka down your throat like water. You’d worry about the hangover when it came, for now you were focusing on the fun. An hour or so passes when you decide to try and find your friends.

Stumbling into a different room, you see a familiar figure off in the corner, nursing her drink and looking into the crowd of people dancing. Shauna was certainly a sight; even in your drunken stupor, you could see she looked stunning. Trading in her usual flannel for an eye-catching red dress, you’re sure due in no small part to Jackie’s insistence.

You approach her, the drink in your hand sloshing as you walk, as she’s still staring somewhere deep into the crowd. You startle her slightly when you speak.

“Hey, Shauna.” You slur out.

“Oh Jesus. Hey.” She clutches her chest slightly before offering you a small smile. She takes you in for a second and scoffs gently. She raises her eyebrow at you, questioningly. “How plastered are you? You smell like a distillery.”

You pout at her, "Oh, come on, Shauna, can’t a girl live?” Shauna rolls her eyes at you and focuses back on the crowd. “I wouldn’t have guessed this to be your scene.” You try. You’re not sure Shauna can hear you; she's staring so intensely in the same direction as before. Your curiosity gets the better of you.

“What’re we looking at?” You try to find out who she's staring at and find Jackie in Shauna’s sight line.

“Trying to make sure that girl doesn't make the mistake of getting back with her ex.” You look next to Jackie and see a blonde boy next to her, eyeing her up and down as she does her best to ignore him.

“Jesus,” You squint to get a good look at the guy. “He looks like he bathes in Axe.” Jackie dated him? She must’ve been doing charity work or something. You grimace at Shauna.

“You can smell him walk into a room before you see him.” She confirms with a smirk. You gag at the thought. You look back to Jackie, who was already excitedly making her way over, leaving her ex behind. As soon as she gets to you, she wraps you in a tight hug.

“Y/n!” She squeals at you as she pulls back from your embrace. “It’s so good to see you! Doesn’t Shauna look great in the dress I picked out for her?” You called it.

“Yeah, she looks great.” You smile at Shauna, who averts her eyes from you, and Jackie just beams.

“See, Shauna? Everyone loves the boob dress.” 

“The what?” Shauna groans at your question. Jackie gestures to the low-cut baby doll dress Shauna was wearing. 

“This lovely dress that I got Shauna last year, which she never wears,” Jackie pouts at her friend. The boob dress was certainly a fitting name for the piece of fabric. “Anywho, I have to run and find someone to kiss so Jeff will stop following me around tonight. Y/n?” Jackie smiles at you, flirtily and invitingly.

“Goodbye Jackie.” Shauna says it firmly, leaving no room for Jackie to debate.

“Aw, no fun, Shippy.” Jackie pouts as she begins backing up. "Okay, bye, Y/n, bye Shauna. Text me when we’re heading home!” And with that, Jackie quickly disappears into the crowd. You turn to Shauna.

“Well—” your sentence is quickly cut off by a large body colliding with yours, sending you flying into Shauna. The smell of Axe fills your nose as the boy follows after Jackie. 

“Jackie, wait up!” Jeff shouts desperately at her, trying to catch up to her.

“I hate him already.” You say as you separate from being pressed up against Shauna. Once you look down, you find your cup empty; the contents spilled all over the front of Shauna’s dress.

“Oh my god, no! We gotta get that out; lemme help.”

You grab Shauna by the hand, leading her throughout the party and into the upstairs bathroom. You begin drunkenly fumbling with the faucet and hand towels, trying to wet them so you can try and dab out the stain the drink would surely leave. Shauna keeps trying to calm you down, but her words drown out as you lightly press the towel against her body repeatedly. 

The room is silent as you get more and more desperate to get the stain out of her dress, if not for Shauna, for Jackie. She was tiny, but she still didn’t seem like the kind of girl you’d want to upset.

“Y/n, seriously, I think you’re taking this way more seriously than you should.” Shauna tries to assure you, but your drunken state can’t let it go.

“God, Jackie’s going to kill me for ruining the boob dress.” You say it only half jokingly, because Jackie may actually kill you for that. The far-off look you gave as you spoke made Shauna burst into laughter. 

You’d never seen her laugh before. The sight was so intimate to you that you felt like you should avert your eyes for her privacy, but you simply couldn’t. You were entranced by her. The moment felt different to you. Driven by all the alcohol in your system, you surge forward and lock lips with Shauna. 

Her lips tasted of the cherry-flavored jungle juice they were serving in the kitchen, and her lips were so soft. But Shauna wasn’t reciprocating. It’s only two seconds later that you realize what you've done. You pull away, and Shauna’s eyes are wide open in shock. You suddenly feel so very sober.

“Shit, Shauna I am so sorry! I didn’t mean to do that; well, I did, but I thought you felt the same but—” You take a breath from rambling and try to think for a moment. "Okay, wait, let me restart. I really like you. I’ve felt this way for a while. You’re so stunning, and you give me a hard time, but it's never annoying when it’s you. I wanna see if we could maybe go out because I think you’re incredible. Please?” 

The words pour out of you like a fire hydrant. You couldn’t stop the flow if you tried, and the more you said, the more shocked Shauna looked. She doesn’t utter a word; she just stares at you. You’re not sure you’d like what she had to say if she spoke, but any reaction is better than no reaction.

“Shauna?” Shauna glances into your eyes, at your lips, and then runs out the door. It seemed that all at once Shauna regained movement in her body; she was here one second and gone the next, and suddenly you were alone in the bathroom.

“Fuck.”

==================================

 

The following Sunday, you make your way back to the library, mostly to try and smooth things over with Shauna. You really messed everything up. You got caught up in the moment, and she just looked so good. You hoped she’d be able to accept your apology; the guilt was eating you alive, and you really didn’t want to have to go downtown to the city’s library instead.

Walking up to the desk, you found an unfamiliar attendant. There's no sign of Shauna, but maybe she's still in the library somewhere.

“Hi, excuse me, is Shauna working?” You ask the girl. 

“No, sorry.” She gives you a small sympathetic look.

“Oh, well, if she comes in, can you tell her Y/n is in study room 125, and I’d like to talk to her if I can?” You try, hoping that Shauna will come in for a later shift or something. She nods, and you thank her, making your way to the room slightly dejected. It would've been helpful to just talk to Shauna then and there and beg for her forgiveness, but you guess you’ll have to try the hard way if Shauna’s even willing to speak with you.

Every minute feels exponentially longer. You tried to focus on doing some work—any work, in fact—but you just kept glancing at the clock and seeing how much time had elapsed since you got here. The hours ticked by so slowly and so quickly at the same time, and before you knew it, the library was closing.

The final warning tone sounded to signify that the library was closed. You looked out the window of the private room and saw the remaining students filing out of the library until you were the last person. You guessed you’d have to talk to Shauna another night. You begin the process of saving all your work and packing up when your focus is broken by the sound of the study room’s door opening. 

You turn and find Shauna; her eyes already raking over you with an intensity that makes you shiver. She closes the door, still facing you, and leans back against it. You get up from your chair and approach her.

“Shauna, I was looking for you. Listen, I am so sorry. I was so drunk and crossed a boundary.” You try to keep some distance between the two of you so you don’t make her uncomfortable. Her expression was unreadable, with her jaw clenched and her brown eyes holding a scrutinizing gaze on you. You can’t help but feel small in the awkwardness of the moment. You wished the world would swallow you whole with every second of silence that passed between the two of you.

“Did you mean it?” She says, finally breaking the silence. You give her a confused look, not entirely sure what she was referring to. Her gaze hardens on you as she repeats herself.

“All the stuff you said the other night, did you mean it?”

“Well, yeah, but we don’t have to talk about—” She crosses over to you before you can finish your sentence and silences you with her lips. She tugs possessively at your hair with one hand while the other finds solace grabbing at your shirt with a balled-up fist. The action catches you so off guard that you have to think for a moment about how you ended up kissing her again. It doesn't take more than a second to process and place your hands on her waist, pulling her body closer to you.

Shauna mumbles something against your lips that you couldn’t make out, so you continue kissing her. After a second, she pulls back and says it again. “Fuck me, now.” You barely have time to nod your head ‘yes’ before she's attacking your lips again and pulling you towards the study room table.

Once her legs are pressed against the edge of the table, you lift her by her thighs to sit on top of it, never once breaking the kiss as she starts undoing her jeans. Once she has them unzipped, you assist her in tugging them down her legs. You couldn’t help but let a hand wander from her waist down to grip at her newly exposed thighs. The tight muscles in her legs are tensing at the soft caress of your touch.

Her hand on your shoulder makes its way to grab your jaw, and she moves your mouth to her neck. Shauna moans the second you start sucking small hickies onto the skin right under her ear. Her hand slowly snakes over your shoulder, grabbing you by the back of the neck to keep you in place, while the other is managing to strip off her underwear.

Shauna is able to work the fabric down to her knees when she pulls you to her lips again. The kiss was brief, as she pulled away slightly. She grabs your hand and inserts your middle and ring fingers into her mouth, all while holding your gaze. She drags her tongue over each finger, and you could go weak at the sight alone. The feeling of her going over and around each index made you shiver at the sensation. 

She pulls them out and moves them down her body towards the apex of her legs. You didn’t need the instruction; you’d have done it gladly, but something told you she liked the control. So you allowed her to puppeteer your hand any way she pleased.

The second your fingers touched her pussy, you were able to feel just how wet she was, and you resist the urge to tease her because of how badly you needed to fuck her. Shauna groans, her nails digging into the flesh of your neck, as soon as you slide your fingers up her lips, pausing at her entrance.

“Fingers, inside.” Shauna says to you, and you do as you’re told. Sliding into Shauna with no resistance, she sighs, finally satisfied, as you begin slowly pumping in and out of her. Every time you thrust your fingers deep into her, she’d pull your torso impossibly closer to her, leaving you barely any space to move your arms so you could continue fucking her. 

The lewd, wet sounds she made as you pumped were only interrupted by her breathy moans. You want to draw this out as long as you can, beginning to slow down your pace, much to Shauna's anger.

“What are you doing? Why are you stopping?” Her eyes were wide and filled with frustration.

“Say ‘Please.’” You state simply, continuing your slow pace and placing your other hand on Shauna’s waist.

“What? No.” Shauna looks angry; you even asked that of her.

“I wanna hear you say it,” you say, getting close to her ear. “Or else I’ll stop.” You pull back from Shauna with a large grin.

“No way.” You simply shrug and start to remove your hand from between her legs. As soon as you try to move your hand, Shauna clamps your hand between her thighs. It’s only then that she realizes you were being serious. She tries mumbling it against your skin at first, but it doesn’t make you finger her any faster. She even tries grinding her hips against your hand, to no avail, as your hand is holding them steady.

“Beg Shipman.” You look at Shauna with a devilish smirk before sucking hickies onto Shauna’s neck while you wait for her to comply. She simply had no other way to avoid it.

“Please!” It’s a desperate cry. Louder than you expected she’d be, truthfully.

“Shhhh, you have to be quiet in the library. Remember?” Shauna can feel you smirk against her neck in between the open-mouthed kisses you left there. She tried to string together an insult or quip in response quickly, but your thumb doing slow, firm circles on her clit was making her draw a blank. Your hot breath on the side of her neck and shoulders was fogging up her mind even more than she thought possible, and she desperately tried to get out a single coherent thought.

“Fuck y—oh my fucking god.” Shauna’s sentence is cut off by you biting down on her shoulder and picking up the pace once again, faster this time. Her eyes shut in bliss as she held your hand in place between her legs.

After a few more pumps, Shauna’s cumming for you with a gasp and a call of your name. Her nails rake down your back, and you know they left marks even over the shirt you were wearing. Once Shauna opened her eyes again, the hazy look she previously had was replaced with blown pupils. You can’t help the smug grin that overtakes your features.

“Did I seriously hear you say ‘please’ at some point? Shauna, it's wonderful that you’re finally learning your manners.” You smiled at her, and she did not look thrilled at the comment.

Her hand that was gripping onto your shoulder slowly inched up to your face, cupping one of your cheeks. She stared at your lips possessively while she lightly rubbed her thumb across them. 

“I can think of a better use for this mouth instead of you running it.” Shauna pulls you in for a kiss, smirking against your lips and quickly breaking the kiss to direct your head in between her legs.

==================================

 

The next day, when you came to the library and went into your study room, you found yet another coffee waiting for you with another note.

‘Date Friday at 7 p.m. Don’t be late. - Shauna.’

[ultrone-reposts]

this healed the marvel stan in me 😌

limbo; shauna shipman x fem!reader

Summary: they are used to the loneliness. fear. they meet during a bad mission, where the yellowjackets take care of you.

Warnings: mutant!shauna, mutant!reader, mutant!yellowjackets, bad words, blood, cuts, smut, jealousy.

Note: English is not my first language.

The Yellowjackets.

That is the name they called themselves. A group of young people with mutant powers. Your mind wondered towards the people next to you. At your right was Charlotte Matthews, or like she likes people call her, Lottie. One of the main leaders, always polite and caressing towards you the moment they decide to keep you, also since your powers are in an emotional way, you think that maybe it could be a reason, since there aren't many ones with the same type. Just you, Lottie and Natalie.

To your left, Taissa Turner. The curly haired girl was one of the most sceptical people you met. Even if you are there for around a month, Taissa always gives her opinion, whether you like it or not.

It's a therapy group meeting, where you can express freely how you are. Van's voice resounds in the big white room, giving you some ground from your mind.

You have a hard time expressing yourself. Actually you didn't speak. The doctor says that it is for the trauma, many pain that you can't even express a word. He recommended them to give you time. What you don't understand is why they wanted you to keep in the team, maybe the test that they made you, interested them.

While the redhead talks calmly, their posture is carefree, arms crossed about their chest, you focus your eyes on their scar that covers part of their left cheek. They are talking about the last mission they have, who Natalie was the other one going with them.

You remember when they rescued you. At the last minute, the whole laboratory was in flames, making it difficult to breathe and try to free you from the jail they put you in. The only one finding you was Shauna Shipman, if she heard you was because of the attack of coughing you were. You remember how she approached you, moving her mouth but you didn't comprehend what she was telling you. The brunette raised a hand to her ear and started to talk to someone, looking everywhere. You only catch a sentence; "I can't leave her here."

The next time you opened your eyes, you were surrounded by a lot of beeps and monitors, making you have a panic attack for the memories it brought you. The doctors tried to calm you, but they couldn't and in exchange they sedated you. The girls approached you a few days later, when you were calm and knowing that they wouldn't harm you. You saw the only one who rescued you hiding behind some of them in a corner, leaning on the frame and watching the interaction carefully, a wound decorating her right eyebrow caught your attention. You removed your eyes the moment her brown eyes met yours, instead you find the crystal very interesting in front of you.

Since then, you are assigned to the emotional team to train. It's weird that you all are assigned by the main power you have, the rest of the girls here are assigned by the strongest team, less Shauna, who controls time and space. Sometimes you all train together, but it's only sparring to test one against each other.

"Nat is a good company, even when she has the most horrible taste in films." Van joked, gaining some laughs by the others making you pay attention to them again.

They finished talking, taking the therapist turn to stand up. "Alright, we have time for another one. Who wants to share?" You look at the floor, uncomfortable. You know that at some point, you need to talk, but you can't right now. A knot that forms in your stomach every time you think about the atrocious things they made you.

You can feel some looks on you, but you don't dare to look up. You feel embarrassed, even afraid. "I'll do it." A soft voice next to you spoke. You breathe normally again when you hear Lottie. The moment you raise your head, you find the warmth in her dark eyes, gifting you with a sweet smile before she looks straight, clearing her throat and starting to express herself.

Honestly you are so grateful for the Matthews' girl to keep around you. She gave the space you needed, but never let you alone during group meetings. Sometimes Natalie or Jackie keeps around you, mainly because maybe they know what will happen if they aren't around. Even you know what could happen.

When it finishes, you disappear from there the moment the therapist puts an end to this. You went to the kitchen, this week it's your turn to cook alongside Laura Lee. Thankfully the blonde is not too used to judging people and you feel safe around her.

•••

The days passed and your behaviour remains the same, altering some of your teammates.

Taissa Turner to be more specific.

The curly haired girl let out some sarcastic comments loudly, mostly after some missions that required more people.

It kept worsen though. The moment Shauna was badly injured, you felt really bad. You follow the whole team to the infirmary with a hysterical Jackie Taylor demanding to see her best friend. You remained there the whole night, awake while your teammates got sleepy because of the tiredness they felt from the previous mission, including Jackie. You were sitting down between her and Lottie, both girls with some injuries but nothing like Shauna damage. When the doctor comes, you tap Jackie's forearm carefully, their hazel eyes look around until she sees you indicate with your head the direction where the doctor is coming.

After that the days where Shauna needed to recuperate in the infirmary, you sneak sometimes there to have a glimpse about the brunette. She never saw you, being careful to be there at the moments where there isn't nobody and probably she would be sleeping. The only time she saw you was when the whole team visited her when she woke up, since then, you keep your distance.

Today while you are in the gym area with Natalie, Taissa came shouting at you. You are confused, looking at Natalie who wears the same expression as yours when she looks at you back.

"WHEN ARE YOU TAKING YOUR SHIT TOGETHER, UH? THE TEAM NEEDS YOU AND YOU AREN'T DOING LITERALLY NOTHING TO IMPROVE." Taissa shouted, her voice echoing the whole space. Her eyes look fiercely at you, a finger pointing you with every word she leaves out.

Natalie walked towards her to stop her steps towards you. You see how Van, Lottie and Jackie run towards her to do the same.

"Calm down, Tai." Van whispered, putting their hand on her cheek to break the eye contact with you, but Taissa wouldn't give in that easily.

"I CAN'T! SHE SHOULD IMPROVING BY NOW. I ACCEPT WITH THE CONDITION THAT SHE HELPS US, AND MOSTLY NOW SINCE SHAUNA IS OUT FOR THREE MONTHS!" Taissa roared out, cheeks flushed for the heat of the moment.

You remained on the spot, sinking with every word directed towards you. When she mentioned that Shauna would be out for three months, you blame yourself. Why? You didn't know, maybe your help would save her from that explosion.

"SHE WAS CAPTIVE TWO YEARS, TAISSA! YOU CAN'T BLAME HER FOR OUR FAULT, OKAY?" Lottie snap. Her features are becoming harder, looking at her friend with disappointment. "I hope you never experience what she did."

You are shocked to see Lottie angry, raising her voice. The tall girl is a calm person, the times where their teammates were mad, she is the only one calming them down. This time however, Lottie changed her behaviour.

"What happened here?" A hoarse voice asked when the silence enveloped the space. Everyone turned to look at the person, seeing a confused Shauna approaching with slow steps towards the small group forming in the middle.

Jackie walks towards her until she is in front of Shauna. "You should be resting, Shipman." She said in an accusing tone of voice, wrapping her arms on her chest giving a disapproving look at her.

"Are you screaming at her, Taissa?" Shauna ignores Jackie and steps towards you, to your right side. It seems that it angered the Turner girl more with the glare she is giving you. "It's not her fault." She simply said, looking at you with a worried expression.

You avoided her gaze, too preoccupied to not lose sight of Taissa in case you need to run away the moment she decides to attack you.

"It's her fault when she can't do anything to remedy it. Didn't she be one of the best? Prove it, that's all I ask for." Taissa replied in a cold tone, being calmed a little thanks to the people surrounding her.

Something inside of you makes click when you hear the moment she referred to you like that. You didn't ask to have that power, the best of it? You can't use them now because you don't know how it works, they never teach you. Your breath becomes irregular, changing completely your attitude.

A warm thing made you blink, looking at the spot where it came from. It's a hand, from Shauna. You frown, your eyes remaining on her hand.

"Your eyes." She whispers, leaning on your side only for you to hear. "Don't let her words affect you." She starts to rub her thumb on your skin when she wraps it around your forearm, not in a strong manner.

You hear a smug short laugh. "So that's how you work, uh? You need to be provoked."

Lottie raised her voice again to shut her up, above some of the others who silenced her too. When you look at her, you can appreciate everyone giving her disapproving looks, however Shauna's was the worse one.

But it's too late. You can't focus on anything else than the desire to punch Taissa's face and eat her words one by one. You can't stop the fire spreading for your body.

"You didn't know anything about me." You said in a small broken voice, almost a whisper.

They all freeze when they hear you. All eyes on you now. You feel a new aura around you, more confident to give some steps forward, letting Shauna's hand fall. Thought you didn't give too much because again you feel that warm sensation stopping you.

"Focus on me." You hear far away. It's a blur between a whirlwind inside of your mind. Voices, there are many voices that you can hear. It's been a long time since you heard them, these ones are new. You recognise all of them, having heard them. It's a mix between shock, fear and excitement?

You tried to focus on those words, the only ones that the person behind you muttered. You stood there, eyes focusing on the dark orbs challenging you. It infuriated you that Taissa wore a wide smirk with what she obtained.

"Fuck you." You spat before turning on your heels and going away from there.

You ran towards your bedroom, slamming the door and throwing yourself on your bed, hiding your head between your arms. You can't stop thinking about how foolish you are that Taissa did exactly what she wanted, testing you by pressing the exact words.

For the rest of the day, you decided to stay in your room. You didn't care if you didn't eat, you just didn't want to meet Taissa and her petulant smirk. Also for sure the news about you speaking for the first time and not only that, showing your power, run like the powder. Gladly too that the rest didn't come, giving you some space.

What you didn't wait for later after you left yourself asleep was for Shauna show in your bedroom the moment you opened your eyes for the bad dream you had. Out of breath, you see the corner of your eyes how the brunette walked inside of your room. She brought both hands to your cheeks, wiping the tears falling from your eyes, you could see how she is talking to you, but you can't listen to her. The ringing on your ears is stronger than the words she is saying.

So you close your eyes, trying to calm yourself down. You can feel the cold sweat on your forehead, some strands of hair sticking on your face.

"Are you better?" Shauna's asleep voice talks to you after a few minutes.

Nodding with your head, slowly you open your eyes. Shauna is still holding your face between her hands, wearing a worried expression.

That's becoming common. You think ironically.

Slowly, you pull away their hands from your cheeks. The gesture makes her confused, showing it on her features. Shauna was sitting with their knees, in a rush to console you she remains in that position.

"Everything okay?" Lottie's voice interrupts the silence.

At this point probably the whole mansion heard you scream. You think it's the first time you have a nightmare that wakes you up screaming.

"Bad dream." You only say, laying down and turning aside, giving them your back.

After a few moments, you could feel how Shauna stands up and how the door closed.

It's so weird people worrying about you.

•••

From that day on, you gained some confidence.

You talk, your powers are becoming stronger and you have gained some friends. It's thanks to Shauna and Lottie.

Shauna glued to your side the next day of your nightmare that woke her up. It started like a silence pact, she keeps around you and keeps abey whoever tries to tell you something. And since she needs to be stuck for three months there, she tried to teach the basics. With patience, Shauna gained your trust and vice versa. You feel a little proud about it, been watching her these past month, the Shipman's girl didn't let anyone know her that easily.

At first there were a few exchanges of words, Shauna is reserved too so there aren't many conversations, neither of you complained. Until you two get warmer to each other after a week, she waited for you when the emotional team worked on their powers and offered an energetic drink with a lipped smile, that wash over when Natalie snatches it from her hand and runs away. Shauna muttered under her breath that she was lucky to be injured. Since Natalie did it, she brings two more drinks for the other two.

"You should be ready by now!" Shauna shouts outside of your door, feeling comfortable enough to open it and go inside.

You look a little embarrassed when she catches you with two pieces of clothes in your hands and still in pajamas.

"Are you kidding me?" Shauna whines, huffing. You hold a smile when you see her reaction. She closed the door behind her and sat down on your bed, crossing her arms around her chest looking at you. "You are like Jackie and Lottie." She mumbles.

"Thank you." You murmured, closing the closet and opting to wear something casual.

Today is Van's birthday and they decided to celebrate it in a pub they love to go to. Some of them are already there, while Misty would take you, Shauna and Jackie to the pub.

You went to the bathroom that is connected to your room, thanks to Shauna that you took a shower before, so you just change your clothes and brush your hair, putting on some light make up to cover some cuts from training.

"I am ready." You leave the bathroom, catching Shauna laying on your bed looking at the ceiling with a frown.

The brunette directed her eyes towards you, reincorporating. "Finally." She mumbles, a tiny smirk on her lips. Clearly she is teasing you, you didn't take so long.

"Shut up." You mumble back, slapping her arm playfully. While you turn to grab some things to take with you, you hear Shauna snort by the door.

Once there, you follow the pair of friends inside while they tease each other. It amused you how silly they are sometimes, but you didn't care when Shauna seemed so relaxed and without the constant frown on her face. You all walked to the VIP area, where Lottie reserved it for their friend.

The three girls walked towards the redhead, hugging them. You remained a little behind, unsure until you saw Taissa next to Van and stopped. You feel a little resentful with the curly haired girl, you avoided her the most you can, only standing near when it is inevitable.

It seems like you called Shauna's attention, because she approached you and grabbed your hand carefully, pulling you with her. She gently pushed towards Van, who gave an amused smirk but gave you a bear hug, ranting some drunk words. You wrap your arms awkwardly around them, blushing a little when they all start to tease you knowing you aren't a big fan of affection.

"Alright, let her alone!" Van exclaimed, side hugging you while looking at them. "Our girl is growing up slowly, but we are proud of her." They slurred, but a sincere smile approached their features while they gazed at you.

They all started to chant your name, agreeing with their friend. You blushed more, hiding your face between your hands and hearing how they laugh by your antics.

"I'm going for a drink for us, want you to accompany me?" Shauna takes off your hands gently from your face, talking loudly for you to hear her. You nod, making her grab your hand and walk through the sea of people.

The night passes by with you being around Lottie who takes care of you, when she goes to dance with Jackie she leaves you with Shauna because neither of you wanted to dance and keep company with each other. It worsened though when you went out to take some air and the brunette offered to accompany you outside.

You two are laughing at something Natalie said before, when not too far from you are who like to be a couple having a discussion, gaining your attention. You look apprehensive about how the man shouts, then you feel a rush of air by your left giving big steps towards him, pushing with force to the pavement. Shauna puts herself on top of him and starts to punch his face, the woman near them starts to cry loudly making you startled and run over there.

"Shauna, stop!" You beg, putting a hand on her shoulder, but the brunette just ignores you and keeps punching him. You squeeze her towards you, but again Shauna ignores you. "Please!" You look at the woman now, seeing her scared face.

"YOU ARE A PIECE OF SHIT." The Shipman's girl shouts angrily. You could hear a crack, making you wince and keep calling her. "ARE YOU PROVING AT HER THAT YOU ARE STRONG BY HITTING HER!?" You realise then that Shauna saw something that you didn't.

You put both hands on their shoulders and push her back, destabilising her and falling to the side. The frown on Shauna's face deepened, putting herself on their feet and with the idea to come back for him. You put yourself between, grabbing her face between your hands. "Enough, Shauna." You whispered, trembling a little by the rage of the girl in front of you showing off her body.

Shauna keeps their eyes on the pavement where the man is laying. She makes the move to walk over there, but you stop her. You knew that you needed to distract her, so since your faces are mere inches away from each other, you smash your lips on hers.

Under your fingertips you could feel how Shauna freezes on the spot. Until slowly she wraps an arm on your waist and reciprocates the kiss, putting a hand on your cheek.

You separate, keeping the proximity. You see how Shauna opened her eyes and fixed her gaze on you, her thumb finds her way to your lower lip while her gaze now travels over there.

"Let's go to clean your knuckles." You whisper, smelling the blood from the hand on your cheek.

Before you separate, Shauna stops you. She didn't say anything, just kept staring at you. It's then when you appreciate her face, soft strands of hair that fell from her low bun, now messy from the hours passed, red chapped lips parting and brown eyes dilated telling words that she didn't say out loud.

You know that you could read her mind, but you don't dare to do that. You try to keep at bay reading their minds, especially the ones that help you. Shauna fascinated you, the mysteriousness she emanates, how rough she can be but with you she is soft, how she writes in her journal her thoughts, ideas, the opinions she didn't say out loud. And many more.

Shauna leans her forehead on yours, brushing her nose for a few seconds and then she removes her face, her hand falls from your cheek and grab one of your hands on her cheek instead.

Once you clean the blood on the toilet, away from the rest of the girls, you two remain in silence for the rest of the night. You know that Shauna is tipsy, that's why she showed a little of her emotions earlier, that maybe was the reason she reciprocated the kiss. Thankfully the rest didn't find out about the fight, too preoccupied to having fun. You glued yourself to Lottie, sneaking some glances at the Shipman's girl having some fun with Jackie and Laura Lee.

The next day you are one of the first to wake up earlier, finding Misty in the gym already training. You greet her politely and go to do your thing, trying to avoid the new sensation you are feeling from the last night.

It warmed you later that day, around lunch time and where the majority were awake, Shauna walked next to you and took a seat gifting you a smile. You are glad that she didn't care about what happened, not avoiding you like in a mutual understanding from last night to not be near.

"How is your hand?" You lean on her ear, trying to not call their attention.

"Hurt a little." Shauna answered in a small voice, showing you the hand wrapped with a clean bandage. "I don't mind though." She whispers, shrugging.

You look at her curiously, maybe she is referring to the moment she helped the woman from hopefully ex boyfriend.

•••

You are experiencing your powers freely on your first full moon. And you are feeling the consequences of it. Like when you woke up that day, like any other you put your sport clothes on and went to the gym where the rest are. Usually you train with Lottie, sometimes Laura Lee joins in but not today, thankfully because you feel hungry.

When you finish work, you sit down panting, wiping the sweat from your face with a towel until you see Lottie making some exercise a few meters, your eyes look over her body and stopping on her ass. You appreciate the curve, how with every move Lottie is making how it bounces. You gulp when abruptly the tall girl stops and turns around catching you, making moves your eyes elsewhere while you feel how your cheeks burn. You rise from the seat and walk where Natalie is chatting animatedly with Shauna.

Nat pinched your warm cheek, asking the reason behind. You remained quiet and pulled away her hand, hearing how the pair laughed.

"Let her alone, guys." Lottie approached Natalie, wearing a knowing smirk. "She has enough with me catching her." She teases you, passing by and winking at you.

"What does that mean?" Shauna asks, seeing the interaction. You could appreciate her jaw clenching.

You shake your head, the words Lottie said was only for you to understand, of course. "It's nothing. She is feeling the need to tease me lately." You half lie, going to the treadmill.

It didn't stop there. You find yourself looking at some of them with lust, like a fire spreading inside of your body that you barely felt before. You remained quiet all day, the desire intensifying with hours passing.

That night the whole team got out, less Shauna who is still injured and didn't feel like partying. You decided to keep her company, after all, you owe her for helping you.

"You look like a grumpy kid." Shauna muttered next to you, poking your cheek with her finger.

You tilt your head, chuckling. "I have been feeling a little weird today." You admitted, playing with your sweatshirt. You decided to open up a little, hopefully you didn't need to mention the other thing.

Shauna raises her head up to look at you better, curious brown eyes boring into you. "Weird? About?" She asks gently.

You lick your lips, your eyes looking at the film playing on the TV but in fact you aren't paying attention to what they are saying.

"I think it is for the full moon." You explained, reincorporating better on your seat.

"Some of us at first we are affected by the full moon." Shauna said, eye level with you now. "Ask Jackie or Lottie." She reassured you.

You think to tell her about it. You feel curious about how the full moon affects them, but you know that Shauna isn't gonna tell you about it only because it's not something involving her.

"I feel some... necessities that usually I never pay attention to. Well, I guess I don't have time to think about it." You murmured, playing with your fingers.

Shauna put a hand on yours, stopping the movement and grabbing one, squeezing your hand reassuringly. "You can tell me anything. I'm not going to judge you."

You look at her, the gentleness showing on her brown orbs. You trust her enough to know that the only thing you would obtain from her is that it's been teased by her.

"I can't stop to look with lust the rest of the girls. Like, really appreciating their bodies in a manner that I never did." You said in a small voice, hopefully you wish she understood you. You retire your eyes from her the moment that words slipped from your mouth.

You received another squeeze on your hand. "Are you feeling that right now?" She asks lowly. The way she asked makes you feel goosebumps.

"I think it's getting worse by the moment." You confess, feeling very sensitive.

You feel how Shauna leaves your hand and grab your chin, turning you to look at her. She has her lower lip trapped between her teeth, cheeks flushed red. "I can help." She whispers, eyes scanning your face.

It's your turn to blush.

Your mind played how it would be to have sex with Shauna. You never imagined something else with the girl, but it's true since the kiss something changed. Do you want her help? Or keep being horny and turn frustrated by it? It wouldn't be weird later for you two?

You have many questions, but the look she is giving you was enough for you to lean on and capture her lips, letting out a low moan for the contact. It soon turned languid, Shauna's tongue sneaked in easily, roughly. The hand on your chin is pressing a little there, you fell on top of her while grabbing her face between your hands.

Now on her lap, Shauna's hands traveled for your body, finding once again your face and pulling you nearer her. Out of breath you two separate, remaining closer.

"I have an idea." Shauna whispers in your mouth, pecking your lips and gently standing up with you on her lap, pulling you on the floor and grabbing your hand, guiding you outside where the basketball pitch is.

You look at her confused, seeing how she left your hand and from her sleeve pull out a sword, making you speechless. It turns blue when she raises it in the air, doing a circle finishing in a cross opening a portal.

"What?" You say dumbly, looking inside of it while an orange shadow hits your faces.

Shauna laughs quietly next to you, saving the sword. "Space and time, remember?" She informed you, intertwining your hands and pulling you in with her.

You knew that Shauna's powers were the mentioned ones, but you didn't know she could open a portal that looked like... hell? It's a huge place, decorated by slopes and many ways. In the background you can hear something crackling, like fire but you can't see it.

"It's limbo." Shauna says, like if right now she is the one reading minds. She starts to walk, leading the way. "This place was my home for a few years..." She gives you a short explanation with a melancholic voice, looking at her surroundings.

You decided to stay quiet, only rubbing your thumb on her palm. You are grateful that Shauna wanted to show you something important to her, also you are confused why she decided to show it now.

The rest of the way is in silence, the last stretch you two got up a hill where at the end waited a cabin, taking you for surprise. It looks cosy.

Shauna opened the door, putting herself aside and letting you go first. It is small, you could only see a bed, a table and chair, a fireplace and a window. It looks lonely, also it is so Shauna too.

You felt a pair of arms wrapping from behind you, scattering kisses on your neck.

"I think we would be peaceful here." Shauna comments, her nose brushing your cheek.

"They are out. I think we are safe." You tease her a little, turning on her embrace and staying in front of her, wrapping your arms on her neck.

Shauna gives you a sarcastic smile. "I know them and some will come soon. They would hear us." You heard how she left out a quiet laugh when you turned your head.

The kisses comes back on your neck, becoming bitten making you hiss for her to pass her tongue for the bitten spot. She walks with you between her arms, not letting out your neck until your legs feel a metallic thing and gently pushes you, your back hitting the mattress. She is soon on top of you, kissing your lips now with fierceness. Her hands, calloused, travel for your body, sneaking under your sweatshirt and making you shiver under her touch when her fingertips meet your skin. It burns with every touch, slowly going up until one of her hands finds your right boob, squeezing it hard making you moan on the kiss.

It's for that you two stopped kissing, you looking at her in a drunken state. Now you taste her lips, you want more. You press her head towards yours, her mouth colliding with yours, her turn to leave out a moan when you pull your tongue in her mouth. The hand on your right boob tightens, making you hiss and pull Shauna's hair softly with your hand, her teeth pull your lower lip fixing her eyes on yours.

She separated and slowly removed her hand and took off your sweatshirt, letting you on your bra. You could see how her gaze turned hungry, lustful and somehow it made you feel turned on. You are a firm believer that Shauna have too much power with her eyes, hypnotizing if she wants you. Her hands caressed your sides, finding a place between your legs making pressure between your bodies. You reincorporate a little and with your hand, pull off in a slow motion the button from her black flannel, showing on the same colour bra. Once you pull them off, your fingertips trace her abdomen, feeling how she tensed under your touch. She is so warm it surprised you, the heat radiating from her body pulled you towards her, feeling her deep gaze on you with every move you made.

You timidly approached her breast, trailing kisses over there. You feel a hand on your head, caressing your hair and pulling it off from your hair tie. Your tongue meets the skin showing, going brave and biting on the fabric covering her breast. A soft grunt was heard above you, the hand on your hair pulling your face in, your hand sneaking under her back and thankfully you could undo it quickly, the unique experience you have with it is with yours. Since there isn't any more pressure, the bra pulls up a little, revealing part of her chest.

"I thought it would be about you, not me." Shauna rasped out when you looked up at her. You put yourself over your knees, at the same level as her and without resisting too much, you pull her head towards yours, meeting her again in a needy kiss. It's Shauna's turn to pull off your bra, this time it fell down with her help. You shivered when your front met her skin, letting Shauna take control over you more easily. "Lay down and enjoy." She whispered in your ear, pushing you down and soon her tongue was on your left breast, massaging the other one with her hand, feeling the cold from the rings she was wearing, contrasting the warmth of her body emanating.

She was there for a long time, making you a mess whining her name.

"I can't anymore, Shauna." You pant, moving under her because you feel very sensitive and the graze of her tongue on your breast you couldn't handle anymore.

Shauna leaves a trail of saliva when she raises her head, a thread of it hanging on her red lower lip. Keeping her eyes on yours, she brushed her nose for your abdomen and stopped on your jeans, her hands found the button and unbuttoned it, pulling down the piece of clothes.

You blush when Shauna gives you an intense look when she meets your center, you look over there and see a big patch there, surprising you. Without warning Shauna pulled off your panties, making you whine when the air meets your naked center.

"You are dripping." Shauna said in a hoarse voice, studying your expression. It takes too long for her to make herself space between your legs, putting both hands to your head's sides. You close your eyes when you feel her abdomen making pressure with your clit, letting out a low moan when Shauna moves her hips in a soft movement but enough for you to make you crazy. "Open your eyes." She murmurs in your mouth, nose brushing yours. You did what she said, seeing how the brunette painted a smirk. "I want you to see me how I eat you." She didn't give you time to answer because she attacked your mouth in a rough kiss before she gave open mouthed kisses for your body until reach her destination, eyes fixed on your distressed expression knowing you are doing what she commands.

You can't hold the sighs escaping from your mouth the moment she meets her tongue with your center, hands steading your legs to maintain them open. Soon the moans were filled in the small place, echoing between the walls. Your hand flies to her head, pulling her close to where you need her.

After the first orgasm, there are many more. Your mind is dizzy from the pleasure Shauna brought you the time it passes by. You almost finished, but you need another one to be satisfied. With your half open, breath very irregularly you brought Shauna's face towards you, kissing her lazily. With slow movements a hand flies to her jeans, unbuttoning it and sneaking a hand under her underwear, both of your gasp surprised. She is for the unexpected touch and you feel how wet she is.

"This night it's about you." She explains when saw your surprise face. "Don't worry about me." She said lowly, still with your hand there.

You think in the state you are in, and you decide you want her to at least, she has an orgasm. "Pull it off." You said in a broken voice, but firm.

Shauna raised an eyebrow, not used to you to hear such demanding coming from you all night or in general. You both know that you can pull it off with your magic if she decides to not follow your order. So she pulled away from you and pulled off her flannel, bra, jeans and underwear under your expectant gaze, coming between your legs once again, naked. You traced with your thumb her swollen red lip, playing and deciding to lean on and biting it, hearing Shauna leaves a pained sound.

"I want you cum on me." You whispered, hiding a smirk when you saw her blushed cheeks for your words, but knowing she liked the idea when opened more of your legs for her to gain more access. You removed some strands of hair from her face, sticking there from the previous events.

You tilt your head, admiring her features. You never thought that Shauna Shipman could be so beautiful.

Shauna catches your gaze, laying on top of you while she gives you a smile. Her chest meets yours, covered by love bites. You are wrapped by the warmth coming off her naked body, hugging you and making you feel cozy.

When she leans her face next to you, you decide to trail kisses on her jaw to her neck, doing the thing she likes doing on you, bite. You smile when you hear her leave out a groan, her head falling to your shoulder. Your smile pulls off when she moves her hip, creating friction.

Shauna left out a muffled sound, a pleasant one. You feel blissful. "Do it again." You whispered, liking the way her body feels against yours. The brunette raised her head to meet you again, face inches away from yours and looking directly into your eyes, she pushes her hips again, making your head press into the pillow while your nails scratch her back.

The thrust turns faster and at some point messy. It doesn't matter because you two are blinded by the pleasure it creates. You pant her name, like the whole time she gives you pleasure. You could feel the wetness from her on your skin, also you are sure she can feel you too. The whole place could hear your moans, the sounds of the thrust of her hips pushing and the mattress hitting the wall.

When you are near, the movement becomes sloppy. With your hand once again removed some strands of hair from her flushed face, wanting to appreciate her pleasure without anything interrupting the moment. With the other one you keep scratching her back, wrapping your legs on her waist, whispering in her mouth that you are almost there.

Shauna's hands were on your hips. "Together." She breathes out, messily kissing you and leans her forehead on yours, giving the last thrusts with force until you feel how Shauna pant and whine, letting out a moan with her eyes closed and mouth hanging open. A warm liquid meets your clit, dropping slowly for your skin, mixing with your own fluids. Shauna left her weight on your body, panting.

You have so many orgasms that this one you just came with a half broken sound and appreciating Shauna came on top of you. You caress her back with soft motions, careful to not damage the already cuts she has there for your fault.

"Your eyes..." Shauna whispers when she moves her head up to look at you, making you look down at her. "They are red." She said dazzled.

"Yours are blue." You whispered back mesmerized by their colour, two light blue balls looking back at you. It seems that your comments have an effect on her and after blinking a few times, the brown comes back to her eyes. "I can't do that easily." You half pouted.

"You need some practice." She chuckles a little, tracing with her finger on your cheek. "I like them though." You blinked a few times, trying to empty your mind, but the soft chuckle Shauna leaves out tells you enough. "They are still red."

You two pass a few minutes in silence, staring at each other. In your mind there is a new fear, would it change your friendship with the Shipman's girl? You wish it didn't because you truly have affection for the girl, you like the way she treats you.

Once again it surprised you how Shauna could read your mind. "What is it?" She murmurs, changing her posture and putting herself next to you, not too much because the bed is not bigger.

You bite your lip, unsure. "Promise me you won't act differently tomorrow." You beg in a whisper, afraid.

Shauna softened her gaze, her left hand finding a place on your cheek. "I promise you that never will change." She reassured you in a small voice, kissing your cheek. "Now get some rest." She removes the hand from your cheek and wraps it around your waist, her head falling to your shoulder.

You left out a relief small sigh, involuntarily wrapping an arm around her neck. "Should we come back?" You ask doubtful, playing with her hair.

"Only if you want." She answers you, big brown eyes staring at you.

"I feel too lazy to move." You admitted sleepily, very comfortable. You hear how Shauna hummed quietly next to you, her hand drawing shadows on your skin makes you lean more on her, grateful for her warmness.

•••

You opened your eyes when a slam to your door startled you. With the eyeliner in your hand while you are in front of the mirror, you frown and walk out of the bathroom, seeing a pouting Shauna standing there.

"Shauna? Everything okay?" You ask softly, approaching her.

You are surprised when she wraps her arms around your waist and roughly presses you against her. "I need you." She said lowly, kissing the corner of your mouth.

You swallow, tilting your head. You press both hands on her chest, still with the eyeliner with you careful to not get dirty her. You fix your eyes on her stressful face, her brown eyes are looking you up and down, stopping when your eyes meet.

It's been less than a day from the events, just a few hours here in the mansion when you two decide to come back from limbo. Both of you keep with friendly conversations when you are there.

"Need me?" You ask dumbly, shuddering with the intensity of her gaze.

Shauna nods, kissing your chin. You drop the eyeliner to the nearby desk, knowing that something would happen. "I helped you last night. Help me now." She whispers, biting your neck making you whimper.

You could feel her smirk on your skin.

"I'm going with some of the girls to the cinema." You breathe out, playing with the collar of her flannel.

You feel how Shauna grabs your ass, squeezing hard making you hiss. "That's why you are dressed like that." She muttered now on your mouth, brushing them on yours before speaking again. "I'm going to talk with Lottie, because she is going, right?" She said, you nod. And like that, she pecks your lips and flies away, making you blink.

In less than ten seconds Shauna is back, you not having time to process what happened. "Where did you go?" You ask.

"I tell Lottie that I will drop you there." She said quickly, closing the door again and walking towards you. "I need you now." She repeats herself again, grabbing your hand and sitting on your bed putting you on her lap, enveloping her arms around your waist and kissing you.

You gasp making her slipping her tongue easily, your hands on her head searching balance. You heard how she left out a muffled grunt, one of her hands going down and gripping your ass, pressing you nearer.

Her mouth soon changed the place, coming back to your neck. You tilt your head, giving her more access. Your hand grips some strands of her hair when she bites a little too hard, making her hiss with you.

"Let me help you." You said in a husky voice, caressing both cheeks while you kiss the corner of her mouth.

Shauna flinches when your hand unbuttoned her black pants, both hands now tightening on the perfectly made duvet. You bent down, licking your painted lips and smiling when you noticed the marks of your lipstick on her mouth and cheeks. A small groan left her mouth when you made her pull up to quit off her pants alongside her underwear, your mouth found place on her thigh when she sat down again.

Your hands search for balance on their thighs, giving her some mouthed open kisses and changing into a slower one and you know that it's making her impatient. She opens more of her legs, a hand going to your head and guides you to where she wants. Your mouth meets her center, both of you left out a moan.

She is dripping, making you hide your face there and the only thing in your mind was to pleasure her. You know the sensation she is and it makes you wonder how many time she is feeling like that. With every lick, Shauna tightens her grip on your hair, small grunts escaping from her lips and hips moving to search for more friction.

You know she is close, and knows too that you would be there for a long time, so you eagerly speed your movements, hopefully fulfill your commitment. The soft cry tells you that you in fact did it, the fluids falling and finding a place in your mouth, savouring every drop.

Shauna moves your hair aside after her third orgasm, panting. You look at her and she grabs your chin, pulling you up. Her hands sneak under your skirt, removing your underwear quickly and making you sit down on her lap once it is removed.

You saw how she flinched when she noticed how wet you are. You wrap your arms around her neck and start kissing there, Shauna's hands going to your ass.

"Move." She ordered in a hoarse voice, grabbing your hair and pulling away from her neck, making you look at her lust brown eyes. She attacked your mouth immediately, like she was starving. When you start to move, creating some friction, you both leave out a moan at the same time. You grab her flushed cheeks between your hands, looking at her dazzled state.

You lean your forehead on hers, her breath hitting your face. Your hips start to create a compass, Shauna joining soon. Her nails are pounding on your skin, making you hiss from time to time on her mouth.

It seems almost idyllic the moment you two came at the same time, matching your breaths while looking at each other. But a little voice in your mind reminds you of what happened last night and now it's pure pleasure, searching for help from the other to this type of thing. You tried hard to not show in your face what your mind is thinking, so you removed from her lap and laid down. Shauna copied you, laying down next to you while trying to recompose herself.

"You good?" You ask in a low voice, seeing how the brunette turns to look at you.

Shauna nods, smiling. "Yeah. I needed that." She chuckles a little at the end, relaxed. She extended her hand to grab one of yours, turning her head to look at the ceiling and closing her eyes.

You appreciate her side profile, the calmness coming into her body. You wish you met her before, even if you know her for almost two months, she shows you enough to trust her. You know too that Shauna isn't an easy person, battling with her own demons, with the injury she suffered last month that maybe it was thanks to that that you two start meeting.

Maybe it is too risky doing these things when you two only know the superficial part? You two barely spoke about your personal lives, Shauna probably knew some more things about you than vice versa. Your eyes found a big scar that you didn't pay attention to last night, her shirt was rolled up a little and on her left side, near her ribs it's this scar that you can't see on her full display because the shirt covers it. You traced unconsciously, feeling how Shauna tensed under your touch but relaxing soon.

"I wish I could heal quickly like Taissa or Laura Lee." She comments, starting to play with your fingers on the hand she is holding.

"You control space and time, I think your powers are cooler." You said casually, seeing an amused smirk showing on her red lips. "What?"

"Every time you name Taissa your tone changes. But thank you, I guess. Sometimes it's cool that someone else appreciates your powers." Shauna said mindlessly, the smirk on her face vanishing.

You frown. The rest didn't compliment her powers? Or didn't think they were cooler? You know that Shauna likes to keep in a second plane, but that there's no reason for the rest to notice her and thank her every time she helps them. Maybe you are making assumptions, but that comment really hits you.

"Shauna... I can't speak too much about this because I barely watch your powers, the only one I know is from Lottie and Natalie... the little you showed me yesterday, I like it. You have your own world to avoid from everyone, that's awesome." You said sincerely, hearing how she leaves out a soft chuckle.

"Someday I will explain to you about it..." Shauna whispers, melancholy taking her features. "But not today." She said, sitting back on the bed. "I need to take you there, so let's go." She informs you.

You didn't press, because of course she is changing the subject to not think or talk about it. You stand up and bent down to grab your underwear, blushing profusely when you feel how Shauna puts herself behind you and press herself against your ass, feeling her there.

"I don't mind fucking you on this posture." She said, both hands finding their place on your hips. You could see her face from the mirror standing next to the wardrobe, Shauna looking through it with a lust look appreciating the views.

You put on your panties quickly, hearing how Shauna leaves out a soft chuckle and slower, she puts on her own clothes. You went to your bathroom to tidy yourself up a little, brushing your hair with your fingers the moment you come out and approached Shauna.

"Good?" She asks innocently, hiding the amusement for the last comment she dropped.

You nod, opening the door, going out and hearing Shauna's laugh.

•••

Another month passed, another month where Shauna is still suffering from injury, fortunately she is good but needed to be out at the moment. Good for you too that there aren't any important missions where they need you.

You are still improving with your powers, getting better on them. You learn to shut up your mind, not read the other ones the moment you feel a little tired and your skills in fighting are better too.

With the rest of the team you get along with Jackie and Van, the rest you have small conversations and with Taissa you avoid her at all cost.

And with Shauna... well, it's true that your encounters were less, but it didn't bother you because you two pass time together. Some of them tease her by telling her that she changes Jackie for you.

"So, Y/N... do you think about getting into a relationship?" Van asks mindlessly, cutting the vegetables.

You scoff, hearing some laughter from the others. You all are in the kitchen, some helping to do the dinner while others help with other things. The question came because they are talking about Natalie sleeping with random people frequently and getting teased by it.

"I think I'm not ready for a relationship." You answer honestly, doing your part of your contribution to dinner.

"Why?" The redhead asks again, this time more curious.

You cleared your throat. "Well... Because I barely start talking again, that is a start. I think I need to heal too, it's not fair for the other person." You explain, hopefully making your point for them to understand you.

Van hummed next to you. "That's good. But the heart is too powerful to pay attention to that. Just... don't be like Shauna and close up." You could hear how Shauna leaves out an indignation sound, making Van paint a smirk.

You sneak a glance at her, seeing how she is tied to something while giving a dirty look at their redhead friend, Jackie nudging her side with a playful smile. The brunette rolls her eyes, catching your eyes and softening them.

"That is so corny, Palmer. Taissa is changing you." Nat teases Van, sitting in a stool at the bar.

Van laughs quietly, nodding with their head. "I know my friend. I miss the days where I accompany you to have a good night." Of course the last part gained her a slap by their girlfriend, making some of them hold their laughter or snort. "I'm joking baby, I wanted to make her feel better." They tried to reassure Taissa, leaving their task and hugging her, but the curly haired girl pushed Van back.

"Too late." Taissa gives them a sarcastic smile, walking away while Natalie laughs loudly next to them.

Van looks at Natalie, holding their laughter hard. "Maybe you are joining Shauna soon." Natalie said between laughter, making some of them laugh too.

Shauna frowned goes deeper. "Leave me alone." She muttered, clicking her tongue while her focus came back to the pot.

The tease intensifies for the pair of friends, the annoy coming to Shauna's features. You decided to approach her, leaning your chin on her shoulder intertwining your arm with hers. "Don't pay them attention." You said to her, seeing how Jackie is introducing something in the pot.

Later that night, laying in your bed Shauna joins you. Sometimes she approached there and without saying anything she lay there with you, hugging you while hiding her head between your shoulder and neck.

"Are you mad?" You ask after a while, deciding to adventure and find out about her mood.

Shauna hummed something. "I'm used to their teasing. It's funny how easy Van forgets she joins the single department until a few months. They were like Nat, sleeping with a different girl."

"What about you?" You ask curiously, feeling after how Shauna's fixed her gaze on you, no matter if you can't see each other for the darkness in the bedroom.

"What about me? If I'm asleep with girls?" She inquires, chuckling when you hummed an affirmative. "Sometimes, but not like them."

You nod your head. You have in mind the moment Van asked you about relationships, hoping that Shauna didn't find that answer in the wrong way.

"I only have sex with three people." You comment.

Shauna brushed her thumb on your arm, leaning her head on your shoulder again. "You don't have to explain yourself." She said quietly, almost in a sad tone.

You swallow.

You hate the people that take you away against your own and make experiments with you, taking away years where supposedly you should have fun, meet people, study, have a job and definitely, have fun, enjoy your life. But other people have other plans for you and more people that unfortunately the majority of them pass out in that fateful fire where the yellowjackets save you.

"I don't trust anyone, Shauna." You said in a whisper, holding your tears. You are looking at the ceiling, holding the arm that Shauna wrapped in your torso. "I hate that they make me this way... I was so the contrary, Shauna. So innocent, it almost scared me to think about it. The first nights here I spent awake, afraid it was a dream and waking up in that jail." Now your tears roll down your cheeks, wiping them with a hand. Shauna reincorporates herself and slowly brings your head on her chest, hugging you. "They c-can't stop for more I b-begged them." You hiccup, holding on her sweatshirt crying inconsolably.

Shauna holds you, rubbing her hand on your back. "They wouldn't hurt you, they are gone." She reassured you, with her other hand wiping your tears. "We lock them down."

You leave out a pained sob, tightening the hold on her grey sweatshirt. You feel so broken, tired, and having someone who cares about you is so scary, you leave your walls down. You know it's not fear for the rest of the other people who worry about you the moment you put a foot here, specially the mentors one, also there's Lottie too, who alongside Shauna were the ones who never pressure you.

You are a mess, inside and out.

"Stop crying, please." Shauna whispers, still wiping your cheeks with her thumb, pulling your head up to try to look at you in the darkness. She brushes her nose with yours, her breath hitting your cheek. Somehow her warmth calms you, the soft trail of kisses in your head while she caress your other cheek has an effect. When your breath becomes normal, she lays down with you on her chest, her hand now on your hair. Silence envelopes you both, your mind calming down. What you aren't waiting for is for Shauna to speak up, slow and in a low voice. "I was kidnapped when I was a kid," she said, making you open your eyes and shocks to your features. You didn't say anything, waiting for her to explain to you what she wants to tell you. "I was tricked by something that promised me things. I was a kid, and he took me away from my parents without any remorse. He starts to tell me that this place needs a Queen, a truly and powerful one. I spent a lot of time alone, with his cheating manners and learning a power that I barely understand. When I finally confronted him and I came back, my parents didn't recognise me, they called the police. Then, Professor Martinez finds me and wants to join his little weird school." She explains to you, not in full detail but enough for you to understand her story.

You raise your head a little, leaning your chin on her chest instead. You know she isn't crying, but telling you this makes her feel weak, even embarrassed, you could feel it in her voice. You decided to not say anything, just hug her waist and lean your head fully on her chest, hearing her heartbeat.

Instead, you try something that only works with your mentor. Talk to her in her mind.

You are so brave.

•••

Some days pass, you feel a little better with yourself. You also start to open up with the therapist privately.

Shauna keeps around you, never mentioned what happened that night, but with an eyeful on you. The rest is unaware about your feelings, something you didn't care too much about because it's your choice, but slowly you start to be more open with Lottie and Natalie during your practice together. You are glad they were so helpful to you, in and out of the meetings.

"We are going to be late!" You heard Lottie outside your door, warning you and probably some of them too. She knocks on your door, opening it when you give permission. "Are you taking too long? Because some are stressed already." She explains sheepishly, leaning on the door.

You laugh quietly, imagining who they probably are. You put on the leather jacket Natalie lends to you a few days for this occasion, and watching you last time in your mirror, you walk with Lottie to the living room. You could hear how the voices got louder with every step, some in particular sounded annoyed.

"I'm ready, Van! Don't be mad at me please." You half joked, sitting next to the dyed blonde who winked at you when she saw your outfit.

Van clicked their tongue, brushing their red flames hair with their fingers. "You are like them, Y/N. At least you have the decency to think of us." They point a finger towards you, their attention coming back to the staircase where nobody came down for their dismay.

"I'm going to check on Jackie." Shauna murmured, coming out of the kitchen, her brown eyes landed on you and gave you a smile that was soon removed from her face, replaced by a light frown.

You copied her gesture, confused.

"I'm going to check on Laura Lee and Taissa." Lottie offered too. These words look like Shauna came back from her lethargy and follows the tall brunette to the staircase.

Van stood up too, muttering something under their lines of waiting outside, letting you and Natalie alone.

"These girls..." Natalie murmurs, letting out a raspy chuckle while she leans her back and spreads both arms on the couch. "Well, you look nice. Catch someone's eye?"

The moment you turn to look at her, you could see the mischief on her blue orbs, the dimples on her cheeks showing up. "I think I'm already catching someone's eye." You tease back lightly, hearing her laugh next to you, not bother by your words.

"We could be a tragic romance, sweetheart." Her words make you laugh quietly too, knowing some from her story thanks to the group therapy. "But if you want to have a good time, I can help." She winks at you, squeezing your knee.

Too late, you thought in your head. You give her a sarcastic smile, putting away her hand playfully. "Fuck up more the dynamic team? Do you not have enough to sleep with random people?" You joke, seeing how Natalie leans her head back laughing.

"You are right. You have enough of Taissa giving you dirty looks." She jokes back, a playful smile remaining on her face.

You are going to answer her back, but the girls start to show up.

"Alright! We are all ready, let's go!" Jackie came shouting, leading the way with Lottie flying behind and the rest too. "Where's Misty and Van?" She asked both of you, her hazel eyes scanning you up and down and a smirk took her way into her pinkish lips. "Damn, you look hot!"

You blush a little, her intense gaze on you worsened it. "They are out." Natalie comments, standing up. "Leave her alone, Taylor. She never would date you." She hummed, walking to the front door with a smirk.

Jackie gasp, walking behind Natalie with an offended expression and expressing it out loud. You paint a smile with their bickering, echoing through the entry until they disappear outside.

The rest of you walk out, going in separate cars to The Cabin pub, one of their favourites to partying. You go with Natalie, who is driving and you swear to yourself to never go in the same car as her if she keeps driving like that, Lottie, Laura Lee and Misty. Fortunately you all arrived safe, maybe Lottie's and Misty's words made Natalie drive better at the end.

"You look pallid. Don't like Natalie's driving lesson?" Van comments amused, bringing an arm around your shoulder and walking to the pub, the loud music greeting you all.

You snort, letting yourself guide there. "Five more minutes and I would be throwing up." You joked, gaining their laugh. They take you to the bar, letting them take your drink since you don't have much taste in them.

A pair of arms wrapped around your waist, the strong scent makes you know who it is without turning around. "Van already asked you for your drink." You lean back a little for Natalie to hear you.

Their hands approached the bar, letting you between their arms, like a barrier. "Nice. I already caught someone's eye." She shouted near you, tapping the wood with her nails. You snort and give her a look, seeing the same smirk where the dimples were more pronounced on her cheeks.

Van turns around and pushes Natalie's drink on her hands, who soon disappeared in the sea of people after messing with your hair. One by one Van gives the drinks to the rest, you waiting on their side sipping from yours. You are looking around, seeing the ambience where Lottie is dancing with Jackie and Laura Lee, meanwhile Misty is dancing carefree with an unknown boy who strangely gave the same vibes as her.

Until your eyes find your favourite brunette all alone, sitting at the usual table they chose when they came. You thought she was alone until Taissa came to your vision, sitting in front of Shauna. You scowl when you see the girl, inevitably you blush for your behaviour but you can't avoid it. The Shipman's girl turns her head towards you the moment you almost turn yours to the other side. You bring a hand to the air and move it briefly, giving her a lipped smile. At first Shauna hesitated, but eventually she reciprocated the gesture.

Weird, why is she acting like that?

"Let's go!" Van shouts, grabbing your free hand and guiding you to the dance floor where the other girls are.

You dance awkwardly, sipping from your drink that makes you put some faces for the taste. Jackie notices you and moves her shoulders while she walks towards you, bringing your hand with hers while she dances. The blonde mouth at you to relax, making you put a fearful face and making her laugh. She changes your hand for your waist, approaching you towards her and letting a small space between your bodies.

"You need to relax!" She exclaimed in your ear, moving her hips to the beat of the song. "Look at Laura Lee. She was like you and look now."

You look at the blonde dancing with Lottie and Van, it shocked you how good she is dancing if Jackie's words are true. You decide to let go and take a big sip from your awful drink, you try to copy Jackie's movements. And you did after a while, much loosened now you dance without worrying about anyone. You could hear how Jackie encourages you with the others, letting you in the middle of them while you keep dancing.

The time passed and you didn't know how you stopped dancing with them to dance with a random guy who seemed very nice and handsome. He remained at a certain distance that you feel grateful for, keeping you entertained with his antics. That's it until some loud voices behind you call your attention, making you turn around and noticing the voices are from your team.

You turn to him again and politely excuse yourself, promising to come back later. You walk to the group, with every step you notice the barrier that leaves out Shauna and Natalie.

You frown. "What happens?" You ask, making all the eyes fall on you. It's Shauna's gaze who makes you feel shiver and in not a good way. It's the first time you saw her looking at you with... disdain? angry? You can't point the emotion properly, but you know it's bad.

Jackie, who is in front of her friend gives you a sympathetic look. Perhaps it's Lottie who walks towards you and wraps an arm around your shoulders. "Shauna is feeling tired, she wants to go." She said quickly, but you knew she was lying. Something you learn about her is that Charlotte can't lie even if she tries hard, like now. "Some of us are going with her to not let her alone. However Jackie is staying with Van and you." She smiles at you, accompanying you to her redhead friend.

You feel very confused. And more when Shauna leaves out a sarcastic laugh and walks away with big steps, pushing Natalie on the way.

"Don't worry about her. You will learn soon about Shauna's switching moods." Van comments, gaining a bad look from Lottie and Jackie. "What? It's true." They shrug, sipping from their drink but gripping your waist in a tight hold in case you decide to go away.

You want to go behind Shauna and ask if she is okay. However Natalie follows her with a scowl on her face, soon followed by Taissa, Lottie, Laura Lee and Misty. The tall brunette before going away, she whispers reassuring words that only you can hear.

The problem came when you didn't understand why she was reassuring you.

The same guy from before came with his charming smile, joining your little group. Jackie takes advantage of it and tries to keep a conversation to distract you, allowing you to participate in it too. But you can't, not when Shauna storms out after giving you one of her disappointing looks you never thought you would be at the end.

"I want to go." You said to Jackie, leaning on her only for her to hear. Jackie gives you a doubting look, eyeing Van like they could hear what you said. "Please, Jackie." You beg.

Jackie sighed and turned to look at you again she nodded. "Alright."

You turn to look at the guy, telling him you didn't feel well and taking his number when he offered it to you to meet you someday. You didn't mind, he seemed kind.

The journey to the mansion was quiet, the only sound was Van humming the song playing. You are in the back seat, aware of the looks the pair of friends shared. What you didn't know about the meanings of them. When Van parked the car, you see the other car you went to The Cabin driven by Nat, the window from the back seat was opened. When you put a foot in the pavement and closed the door, you could hear loud voices coming inside of the house.

You look at them, worry attached to their faces. Jackie is the first one to walk towards the front door, rummaging in her purse in search of the keys. You and Van waited for her patiently, the voices getting louder with every second passing. The moment Jackie finds the keys, something smashing inside is heard, alerting all of you.

"WHAT IS IT?" Jackie shouted the moment she opened the door, her worry turning into an angry face.

No one was visible, not until Jackie makes your arrival announcement and footsteps were heard. Misty is the first one to approach, followed by Laura Lee.

Misty fixed her eyes on you, looking doubtful if she could speak or not. She opened her mouth a few times, but nothing came out. Jackie looks at her exasperated, making a motion with her eyes to make her speak.

"I can read your mind, Misty." You said lowly, knowing very well that if she isn't saying anything it's because you are involved.

Misty pallied a little, but after clearing her throat she spoke. "It's S-Shauna... she is really angry." She mutters, her gaze alternating between you and the others, finishing on Laura Lee. "The girls are trying to calm her down."

When you are to take a step, a hand in your wrist stops you. Looking there, you saw Van's hand and a worried expression.

"You should leave Jackie to speak with her first." They muttered, giving a look to the blonde mentioned.

Jackie sighed again and walked in with Misty and Laura Lee behind her. The loudness turned into muffled voices, making your eyes alternate between Van and the furniture in the entry. The redhead takes you to the kitchen, that is in the opposite direction of the living room and lets go of your hand once there. You sit in a stool while putting a hand in the leather jacket, noticing a small piece of paper with a name and a number.

You wish to not pull it off later.

"No more fun?" A sarcastic voice interrupts the stay, making you look at Shauna with a frown. She looks defensive, arms crossing on her chest and giving you a challenging look. Her gaze dropped to your hands, the frown on her eyebrows approaching with force. She ignores Van when they call her, stepping towards you and once in front of you, borrowing the paper from your hand. She bites her lower lip hard, the moment her eyes look at you again there aren't brown anymore, they are a light blue flame. "James? Who the fuck is James?" She asks rhetorically.

You can see in your peripheral vision how the rest came, staying a few centimeters away but calling the Shipman's name.

You swallow, a little afraid for the way she is treating you. "A guy I meet tonight." You said in a small voice, confused.

Shauna licked her lips, a small laugh escaping from her mouth. "You don't have enough with Natalie and Jackie, don't you? You need another one to complete your night." She shushed, slamming the paper into the worktop.

You feel how the tears started to sting your eyes, not believing what she is insinuating. Someone pushed Shauna away from you, putting herself between yourself.

"I'M NOT GOING TO CONSENT YOU TALK AT HER LIKE THAT!" Lottie ragged out, towering her.

Shauna lets out another dry laugh, not bothered by Lottie's words. "Yeah, sure..." Her eyes turn brown again, the cold on them can make anyone freeze. "I thought you didn't want to be in relationships... what changes?"

You didn't understand it. What does she mean?

"Shauna, stop right now." Jackie scowled, still standing at the door.

However Shauna didn't care and like if Lottie isn't in front of you protecting from her temper, she approaches you. "Who's better, me or Natalie?" You feel so shocked by her words, that simple question that she is assuming that you slept with both of them without her knowing makes you feel sick.

"DUDE." Natalie said, going inside of the kitchen and walking towards you all. "We didn't sleep together, moron. I don't know what's wrong with you tonight but you need to stop." She warns.

For the expression on Shauna's face, you knew that she didn't believe her. "She is like you, why do I need to believe you?"

Right after those words, Lottie punched her hard on her face, making Shauna hit the fridge behind her, blood falling from her nose.

You run away from there with the tears falling from your eyes, you throw to your bed and hide your face in the pillow, muffling the sobs you are letting out. A hand in your back makes you hold onto her side, pouring your eyes out.

•••

"You look miserable." You raised your head when you heard Natalie's voice, seeing the bleached blonde leaning on your frame door, a sympathetic look on her face. "We need to go to training." She informs you in a soft voice.

You nod, reincorporating in your bed and putting on your shoes. It's been like that during the whole week, you are locked in your bedroom and some of them look for you.

Natalie guides you towards the emotional team room, fortunately you only cross with Misty.

"I bring the baby, we can start." The Scatorccio girl said, teasing you on purpose. Something you are glad about because it seems she is the only one treating you like usual, for Lottie's dismay.

This training finishes in two hours, making you happily think your mind would be so drain that nobody would invade tonight to torture you. It angers you a little to be innocent after everything you pass through. And maybe for that emotion you feel you made your best training since you joined them, finishing it and going immediately to your room, ignoring every person you cross in the halls.

At dinner time, you are surprised to see Jackie bringing your dinner in a tray, a shy smile looking at you insecure. She walks in after you nod your head, you turn off the volume from the TV and watch how the blonde after a few seconds where she is standing next to your bed when she deposits the tray in your nightstand, Jackie sits down on your left.

She clears her throat. "Hey..."

You hesitate for a few seconds. "Hi." You said in a quiet voice, hugging your knees.

Jackie turns to look at you, taking in your features and softening them. "I miss you." She admitted in a low voice, making you warm inside of you to hear those words. You nod with your head again, in a gesture indicating you miss her too. "Look, I don't want to bother you too much time and probably the last thing you want to hear is from Shauna right now. I'm not asking for you to forgive her or excuse herself... I just want to explain her behaviour." She said carefully, the last part sounding mostly like a beg.

"I think she explained very well." You said inevitably in a cold voice. It hurts you how you turn these days when you referred to her like that.

The blonde sighed, rubbing her eyes stressed. "She is afraid." She starts, opening her eyes and looking at you sadly, playing with her fingers. "Something I learn about Shauna these years it's how easily she can hurt people that she cares. Usually Shauna didn't get along with people, preferring to be alone than needing to bond with them. She suffered a lot from her past, and when she thinks she would get hurt in the process, Shauna does it first." She explains, making a pause. Her hazel eyes scanned your face for a signal that indicates you are uncomfortable, but you look neutral. "I remember my first fight with her... she got so angry and I was so confused... until I learned she watched and remained quiet, then on a random day she shouted things she bottled up because that's the way she is." Jackie tilted her head, on her expressive eyes showing some remorse for something you didn't know. "Shauna found you, I think you know it... but I doubt you know that we told her to leave there because there isn't time for you two making it on time..." She seems embarrassed by this confession, removing her gaze from you. "It was my best friend or you. And I'm sorry if I don't sound emphatic, but I always would choose her. Shauna didn't listen to me, to us. So I don't know how she rescued you from that hermetic place." She heard how you leave out a small gasp, still she progresses with her explanation. "But I remember how she looks after it. Shauna looked traumatised in some way. You were undernourished, pallid and I think it hit her. I know she approaches you time after you came here, but I promise you Shauna always had an eye on you the whole time. She cares about you, Y/N. The moment she got injured we all feared the worst, knowing how Shauna would react to be out for it. But you helped her, you make her distracted and vice versa. We all saw the progress you made, and I'm not resting Lottie's or Natalie's. You just look different from them than with Shauna." She finished, some tears slipping from her eyes. The blonde quickly wipes them with the sleeve of her blue and yellow sweatshirt, letting out a wet chuckle. "Sorry... It pisses me off how Shauna treated you because she truly cares about you."

You crawl towards her slowly and wrap both arms around her neck when you approach her. You hear how Jackie giggles about it, but she leans her head on your shoulder and lets herself be wrapped between your arms.

"It's complicated to tell you how Shauna works, but she is in pain and wouldn't express it until she can't anymore. And it is worth it, Shauna looks worse than you." She informed you.

After that, she kisses your cheek, stands up and wishes you a good night before disappearing behind the door, letting you alone with the new information.

You spent the whole night thinking about what Jackie told you. And you cursed her for it. You know she meant well, after all Jackie is trying to help her best friend in a situation where she screws up, still Jackie tried to repair it when in reality it's Shauna who should come to you to apologise at least, but she never approached you. And it pisses you off.

What told you Jackie about Shauna caring about you is it true? Because you are very conflicted to believe it.

What you didn't expect two days later was for the alarm resounding for the whole mansion, meaning this time it's a dangerous mission where everyone is required to help. You are in the gym with Lottie and Misty, both of them running to where their uniforms are, you look a little disoriented.

You could see people running in the halls, shouting to be ready for your teammates. You see Van with their uniform on, putting something on their ear and running in the direction contrary to yours. The next ones are Jackie and Taissa, the last one catches your eyes and with a quick pass put herself in front of you, making you step back a few steps.

"I know that you hate me. But we need your help. I saw you and I heard that you progress really well with your powers. Please, if you don't do it for us, do it for the people that are locked in that building." Taissa said in a rush, begging you with her eyes.

You hesitate, seeing how Jackie approached behind Taissa. "It's okay if you don't feel ready, Y/N." The blonde lets you know, giving you a kind look. "But we would appreciate it, still you are important to us and we didn't you being hurt." She admitted, giving a helmet to Taissa.

Your doubts washed off when you saw a brunette walking behind them, your eyes meeting briefly before you removed them. Lottie approached you, trying to reason with Taissa that you aren't ready.

However when Natalie joined reasoning with Lottie, who seemed to be the unique one disagree with them, Shauna decided to speak.

"I'm with Lottie. You all can with it." Shauna rasped out, her voice sounding very hoarse.

You could feel her eyes on you even if you aren't looking at her. And her words anger you. "I'm doing it." You said firm, interrupting their bickering. "I'll do it. What do I need to wear?" You fixed your eyes on Taissa, surprisingly.

Lottie turns quickly to look at you to refute, but Taissa grabs your arm and pushes to the room where their uniforms are. She takes you to the right at the end where a red uniform is waiting to be used.

"This is yours. It has everything your powers require. I'll be waiting outside." She mutters the last part when her eyes look behind your back.

You follow the way of it and your jaw is clenched, turning to look at your uniform and starting to undress, completely ignoring the person there.

"Don't do it." She whispers, still you could hear the emotion in her voice.

You didn't turn, starting to dress with the new set of clothes. For your luck Jackie approached to explain to you the basics while you put on your shoes.

"And this is your intercom, you can hear us and we can hear you. You press the bottom in the middle to turn it on and the same to turn off. We need to go now." She finished explaining, whispering the last part while giving a look behind her.

You hummed, standing up. You grab from her hand the intercom and put it on with the blonde help. You follow her to the exit where Shauna looks devastated, but you try to keep it cool, like you didn't care when in reality the only thing you want to do is hide in her arms because you are afraid as fuck. You see how she gives a supplicant look when gives you two spaces to exit there.

With a stoic face you walk out, ignoring her. Still you find yourself surprised when Shauna thinks loudly begging you to stop and don't go. She did it one time and never more, until now.

I'll be fine.

It's the only thing you tell her in her mind, not looking back and walking towards the rest of the team.

•••

"I'm going with her." You offer, stepping towards Taissa is.

They look at each other, unsure.

"I'm with them, you all separated and searched for every civilian. Something happens, you know what to do." Jackie ordered, showing her lead side.

They all nod and you follow them when they set out upstairs. You do what they instruct you in a whisper, keeping your eyes open and trying to hear any sound that indicates that the bad ones are near.

Taissa recommended looking at the end of the empty hall, the sporadic bub turning on and off gives you shivers. Instead Jackie ordered that she register that part while you two register the other area.

"This looks awful." You hear Taissa comments with disgust, and for what you are looking for in the office where you two are, you agree with her. "I think they aren't in this hall."

And like she said the magic words, the doors that you leave open, they close with a big slam, making you two to jump on the spot.

"Shit, it is a tramp." Jackie murmurs, looking everywhere. You tried to open the doors, but you can't. You feel your breath stuck in your throat. "Taissa, they locked us at the other end of the hall, we need you to open it from outside. It seems it's the only way." Jackie said in a rush, her skin disappeared and in change something like ice covered it.

"I'm on my way." Taissa let you two know.

Jackie sees your state and soon changes her appearance, walking by your side. "Hey, it's okay. Taissa is gonna help us." She reassured you, bringing a hand to your arm up and down.

You nod, closing your eyes and taking a breath, doing what your mentor told you all these sessions.

"Guys! I need to pull the door from inside." Taissa asks for your help.

But it is vain, the door remains intact. You decided to use your power but nothing, it's like they thought for everything for you to be stuck there.

And it worsened when fast footsteps were heard, hearing Taissa from outside call the rest of the team for help. Jackie transforms again, throwing ice around you to give you more time if they enter. You look at the big windows showing the cloudy sky threatening to rain, and you have a bad feeling. You look everywhere to try to escape from another part of this big office, but nothing.

It was useless, you two couldn't do anything until someone from outside wanted to help you.

Then, it happened. Big slams at the door start to sound, hitting them with force. You could hear Taissa and some of the other girls fight.

"Taissa, take out the rest from there now!" Jackie ordered, pressing the intercom with her index finger and an authority tone.

The curly haired girl protests, like the rest. You swallow unsure, why did Jackie want them to run away?

"You all can't do anything for it! Just get out of here and call for help at the school. Bring Professor Ben here to help." Jackie ordered once again, firmly.

You move your hands in slow motion, red lines intertwining in your fingers. The door was going to break at any moment and at least you want to be ready.

Then, something hit you. You look at Jackie's back facing the door ready to fight. The Taylor girl is the leader, wanting to keep the rest of the team safe and if someone needed to fall, it was her.

So you chose.

You start to create small spheres with your hands, gaining Jackie's attention. You could feel your power raising, muttering something under your breath. You repeat them clear and fast with every near slam at the door sounding. You move your hands in the air and point to Jackie, a big red sphere ball let her inside of it.

"Don't." Jackie says, a fear looks on her face. "Break it now, Y/N!" She orders, her voice becomes pitchy at the end.

You didn't listen to her and keep moving your hands, the magic intensifying the protector spell you are putting on Jackie. The blonde keeps shouting at you, even threatening you with false words that both of you know she never would do that.

"Please..." Jackie begged, tears pooling in her eyes.

You stop when the spell is strong enough to break it, and standing in front of her you give her a kind smile.

"I am choosing you Jackie Taylor. I'm sorry if I'm selfish." You put a hand where she is pressing hers.

Jackie shook her head, desperately trying to convince you, but it was too late. The doors opened and from them approached people with guns pointing at your both. Thankfully the ice Jackie put before it is still resistance and they have some difficulty to walk towards you.

You look back at Jackie, who is looking terrified of the people surrounding you two. You start to move your hands again, putting the sphere in the air and calling Jackie's attention. She gives you a warning to not do that, but you just whisper some words at her before throwing Jackie for the window, the magic only would vanish if you are unconscious or... dead.

Take care of her.

•••

Jackie arrived on the ground where the rest of the team were fighting or taking care of civilians. She landed next to Natalie, who gives her a weird look when she gives the last punch to the man in front of her. The hazel eyed girl watches how Natalie looks up, but nobody approaches and that makes her look back at Jackie, who looks shocked and sad.

"Where is she?!" Natalie's voice sounded muffled by the spell Y/N put on her. Jackie shakes her head, covering her face with her hands. She didn't need to look back at Natalie, the hit on the sphere is enough to know what her reaction is. "YOU DIDN'T DO ANYTHING?!"

This word is what makes her raise her head angrily. She stood up and walked towards the other angry person, nose to nose Jackie spat; "I do everything for her to listen to me. And she didn't..." Jackie couldn't finish, the tears now on display while her body shakes.

Natalie swallows hard, looking around them and seeing how Charlotte is helping Van fight against someone shooting at them. How funny is it that she looks for the tall brunette because she knew the news would affect her? The Scatorccio girl needed to know if Y/N is still there, so she leaves out a curse of words and run upstairs, bringing with herself Laura Lee who is the nearer at her.

Soon Van and Lottie finished with them, and it gained their attention to the sphere protecting someone inside, gasping when they recognised who it was there.

Charlotte feels her world crush when saw the devastated look the leader gives her. So shaking her head and repeating to herself no, no, no, she copied Natalie's steps and walked upstairs, ignoring Van's calls. Lottie approached the place panting, but she didn't care she kept walking the few steps to the area where supposedly Y/N is. Her breath catches on her throat when saw Natalie raising both hands with Laura Lee laying on the floor unconscious meanwhile the man is pointing at her with a gun while with the other hand gripping Taissa. He isn't alone, there is a small group of people to the left behind him, armed and holding Y/N.

She leaves out a relief sight, Y/N is alive.

She calls their attention and soon the gun is directed towards her, alternating between her and Natalie when the bleached blonde tries to step to him.

"MOVE OVER THERE." He shouts at her, Charlotte swallows and with awkward steps goes to the place he indicated, gripping Y/N's towards until some of them pushed her away from Y/N.

Lottie fixed her dark eyes on her, seeing how many cuts she portrays. She was right when she told before Y/N didn't need to come with them. She heard how the lead one maintains a little chat with Natalie, the blue eyed girl gaining time to attack. She calls Y/N's name in her mind, immediately telling her to no look at her way.

I'm going to attack him when Natalie moves her feet to the right, it's our signal. The moment I attack, you take Taissa with you downstairs, okay?

Lottie saw how you whispered back an affirmative in her head. The brunette keeps looking at Natalie to not miss the signal.

And like a blurry memory, Lottie could comprehend what happened next. She attacks him, Natalie immediately pushes Taissa to the side and immobilises him to the floor, kicking the gun out of his reach. Then, something else happened and it was some of the bad grab Taissa's arm, the girl is pretty badly injured and barely could defend herself. So you did what they would do, defend a teammate.

You kick his knee, making him balance back and leave her arm. He looks angrily at you, but you don't care. You start to fly in the air, raising both hands with force and creating a wind for him to throw away and apart him from Taissa. You reach her side, helping her to stand up.

"That's p-pretty cool, t-thanks." Taissa thanked you, giving you a pained smile while holding your shoulders.

You didn't answer because you see how bad Lottie is right now and decided to put Taissa in a secluded area to help your friend. You tell her you will be right back.

"GO OUT NOW." Lottie sees you approach her and immediately screams that to you, red dark eyes fixing on you. "Don't worry about us, we can with them. Go." She tells you softer.

You nod slowly, seeing how she turns her canines into his skin, making him let out a piercing scream. Then, turning around you see Taissa being approached by another one and you run.

Lottie turns around the moment the smell of fear hits her nostrils, seeing how the woman raised her gun to Taissa's direction and shot, Lottie sees in slow motion how Y/N quickly put herself in front of Taissa and fell to the floor at her feet. The brunette feels nauseating, her sadness multiply and without thinking too much her teeth are ripping away the skin from the person who hurt you.

Natalie ran to your side, shock evidence on her face. Looking at Taissa, who is the same as her, she saw how blood covered her abdomen, starting to fall from her mouth. Lottie is soon by their side, removing your hair away from your face and taking your pulse. She is so nervous that her senses can't perceive your heartbeat.

"She is alive." Lottie whispered, standing up and grabbing you between her arms easily. "I tell Van to come for Laura Lee. Until then, you remain here and when they come, you take Taissa." She said in a rush, the leadership passed to her and it showed in her voice. No one of them dares to say the contrary.

•••

Tightness.

That it was your first feeling when your consciousness came. You try to open your eyes, however the light makes your head pound. Moving your head slowly to the right, your senses coming, you hear a soft sound that you find familiar.

You are in the infirmary.

You swallow and you adventure to open your eyes, the sight in front of you makes your heart melt. Shauna is sitting next to you in a chair with her hand intertwined with yours while her head is leaning on the same arm, asleep. You blinked a few times, with your left hand raising, something that really makes an effort to do, you start to stroke her hair, brushing away some strand of hair from her face.

Stirring for your gesture, Shauna slowly opened her tired eyes. You saw how her eyes started to water and then immediately she stood up, calling the doctor going out of the room.

They check you, ask you many questions and a few more things before they leave you alone with the other members of the team.

A teary Lottie remains by your side, the same with Jackie on the other side while softly scolding you. Taissa apologizes many times for her behaviour in the past, something you rest importance and apologize too because you too act bad with her. Then there is Shauna, who stayed quiet and a little away from you all, but doesn't dare to move a muscle to move from there.

You badly want to talk to her, also to scream too for her shitty accusations about you and Nat.

Later that night, when you are alone to rest without anyone to disturb, you decide to stand up and quietly go away from there. You know you would be in trouble if some doctor or nurse catches you, but you don't mind. Your steps are slow, maybe you would take minutes to arrive at the place you want to be, but you don't care.

You knock a few times, looking around you in case someone is around at this hour. It would surprise you if she isn't sleeping.

"Go away!" Shauna grunted, a hint of annoyance in her voice.

You roll your eyes, a small smile approaching in your mouth, however you insist and knock again. This time you could hear how Shauna leaves out a small groan, steps coming to the door and it has been opened by an angry Shauna, who immediately changes her expression for one of surprise.

"What are you doing here? You should be resting." She asks, finishing with a small scold by your choice.

You shrug. "I want to talk to you." You admitted, still standing there and taking on her appearance. She really looks tired, dark circles under her eyes accompanied probably for days.

Shauna moves aside, a sheepish look now on her usually harder features. You walk in, a hand in your wound where the bandage is pressing you. You hear how Shauna closes the door softly behind you.

"How are you?" You ask, sitting on her bed while your eyes fix on her.

The brunette shrugs her shoulders, scratching her neck nervously. "I have been better." She mutters, walking towards you and after hesitation about it, she sits down next to you, letting a space between you two. "How are you?" She asks you in a small voice, putting her hair in a low bun.

You bite your lip. "Same." You murmur, playing with your fingers and looking at her messy bedroom. A small smile painted on your lips, usually Shauna has it all tidy, maybe there are small things scattered on the desk, but that's all. But now, it seems like she doesn't care to clean her bedroom anymore, and you wondered why. "Are you mad with Jackie?" You ask out of the blue.

You feel how Shauna is tense by your question, only with that answering your it. "It's difficult." She rasped out, moving her right leg up and down. "I want to blame her, I really do. But she isn't guilty." She stopped talking, taking a breath.

You think that you understand what she means. Like if those words have a double meaning. "You are guilty neither. It was me. I want to protect Jackie. I want to protect the whole team." You explain, becoming brave and raising your gaze towards her. Big sad brown eyes look back at you, ready to argue what you said, but you didn't let her. "Shauna... I know you think it's your fault because you voted to stay here and somehow you push to go with them. Maybe... But I decided to put myself in front of Taissa because I wanted to."

Shauna seems apprehensive by your words, but remains quiet and nodded with her head. Rubbing her eyes, you closed the gap between you two and intertwined your arm on hers. "I get scared when they bring you. I almost killed all of them." She said in a whisper, crying. You are surprised to see her cry, so vulnerable that your heart clenches at the sight. "I-I don't know why I f-feel so connected with you, but I never forgive m-myself if the last words you heard from me were t-that ones." She broke, hands covering her face while small sobs escaped from her mouth.

You lean your head on her shoulder, unwrapping your arm from hers and deciding to rub her back in a comforting manner. You don't like seeing her like that, also you know that she needs to leave everything out.

"Do you still wanted to fuck my ass?" You ask, mindlessly after a while, when Shauna stopped to leave sobs out.

The brusque movement from her part makes you raise your head from her shoulder, inevitably a small laugh escape from your mouth when you see her redden cheeks with a shocked expression.

"Stop laughing." Shauna reproaches you, frowning and her red on her cheeks getting deeper. It makes your laughter intensify, leaning your back on her bed and covering your mouth with your hands.

"You should see your face, Shipman." You said a few minutes later, your laughter dying. You feel how your abdomen aches a little, unconsciously you take a hand there and it brings Shauna's attention. "Don't worry, I'm fine." You reassured quickly.

Shauna leans next to you, shyly grabbing your hand and intertwining your fingers. "I'm sorry for what I told you... I didn't mean it, I was jealous and... well, you knew the rest." Her voice sounds more rasp, but you could appreciate the sincerity.

"You need to practice your apologies." You tease her a little, shrinking your nose. If it was another person, you for sure would never forgive them, but it's Shauna. The same one who rescued you, who patiently helps you when you didn't speak, who helps you with some... wishes and who was there the moment you opened your eyes. And it was enough for you to forgive her. "I forgive you only if you apologise with the whole team, take me out on a date and... I would think of other things." You give her a lipped innocent smile, seeing her frown getting deeper if that is possible.

"Do you want me to take you on a date?" She asks, a small smile approaching there and you are glad to see her after witnessing the tears rolling for her cheeks.

"That is what you heard?" She nods and you chuckle. "Yes, you idiot."

"Only if you take me in another one." She teases you back, copying your chuckle when you playfully smack her arm. "I'll do it." She whispers, caressing your palm with her thumb.

"Good, because you are taking me in a lot of them before we become a couple." You warn, raising your index finger and placing it on her nose briefly. "We need to meet each other more, Shauna Shipman."

Shauna laughs quietly, but nod. "I agree, Y/N future Shipman." You laugh at her antics, but secretly liking the way it sounded.

Y/N Shipman, definitely a powerful name.