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sl-ut · 5 months

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new years eve

more college!abby

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE! THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE PUBLISHED A WHILE AGO, BUT LIKE I MENTIONED BEFORE, A LOT OF SHIT CAME UP AND DIDN’T LET ME FINISH ANYTHING THAT I’VE BEEN WORKING ON. TYSM FOR YOUR PATIENCE, AND ENJOY!

also tysm to @princesssmars for giving me permission to steal her idea lol ily babe.

pairing: college!abby anderson x fem!reader

description: abby invites y/n on her friends’ annual new years ski trip! five days of uninterrupted fun at a private chalet with abby, her friends, her ex boyfriend, and his current girlfriend who seems to have some kind of vendetta against them both.

warnings: UNEDITED, smut (not a lot tbh), swearing, alcohol consumption, mentions of drug use, owen is really mean to reader, homophobia, a lot of sweet little moments between abby and reader

words: 7.4K

date posted: 07/01/24

Y/n knew she wasn’t exactly the most welcome on this trip, they didn’t even try to hide it. The only exception to this would be, of course, Nora, who’d been the one to set her up with Abby in the first place, and Manny, who genuinely seemed like the only one who didn’t seem bothered by her presence at all times. Not wanting to impose on a seemingly very strict tradition, Y/n initially declined her girlfriend’s offer to spend New Years Eve together in Aspen, which didn’t go over as well with Abby as she had expected.

“They don’t mind, really.” She tried to reassure her, only to be met with a knowing look, “Okay, a few of them feel that we shouldn’t bring people outside of our friend group, but think about it; Owen and Mel are both going, Leah is bringing Jordan…” Then came the ultimatum of, “No, if you don’t go, I don’t go.”

The threat was more than what Abby’s words even said. The cabin belonged to Abby’s grandparents, and were more than enthusiastic about their sole grandchild using it with her friends over the holidays, but were stern with the condition that Abby was not to let them go up and destroy it. To summarise, if Abby didn’t go, nobody did, and Y/n was certain that her friends would hate her less if she joined them than if she caused the entire trip to be cancelled.

So there she was on the twenty-ninth of December, tightly belted into the front seat of Abby’s Bronco on the road to Aspen. The drive wasn’t terrible, only a few hours from Abby’s childhood home just outside of Salt Lake city, though Abby made it sort of enjoyable by making a road-trip playlist and barely taking her large hand away from her girlfriend’s thigh throughout the remainder of the journey.

The chalet was more than Y/n even had the ability to imagine. It looked like it was straight out of a movie; high ceilings, wooden panelling lining the entire interior, large windows looking out over a snow-covered valley, all that was missing was for the pair of them to snuggle up together in front of the wide stone fireplace, which was bound to happen at some point over the holiday. As she ran her fingertips over the glazed butcher block counters, she was thankful that the others wouldn’t be arriving until the next day, giving them more time to fulfil the fantasies that had been racing through her mind since setting foot inside the chalet.

Abby was eager to give the full tour, looking delightfully in-place in her tight jeans and cream coloured cable knit sweater. She left no room or corner alone, using little anecdotes and stories from her childhood to help her feel more at home, and finishing by explaining exactly how she would fuck her in each and every room. Y/n laughed and brushed it off in the moment, but came to realise that she was dead serious when she could barely move her legs to crawl out of bed the next morning.

The sweet bliss was finally interrupted by the rest of the crew making their arrivals. First came Leah and Jordan, who immediately rushed to the next biggest room and then made their way to the jacuzzi on the deck. Then came Manny and Nora, who couldn’t seem to get to the kitchen fast enough, before finally, Mel and Owen quietly made their way in, offering silent greetings to their friends before going straight to their bedroom, which didn’t seem to bode well with Mel, who’s complaints carried through the entire ventilation system of the house.

The others seemed to have no patience for their drama, all clearly picking up on the fact that they must have fought the entire drive, as well as the thick tension that filled the room whenever they were both present. Instead, they all gathered in the kitchen for a late lunch and began pouring drinks, loud laughter overwhelming the hushed argument escaping the vent. Y/n was a little surprised to see that even Abby had reached for a second beer, the merriment in the kitchen and the overall excitement for the holiday seeming more important to her in that moment than her otherwise strict fitness regimen, though she really didn’t mind. In fact, she sort of liked the way that she had been looser than she normally would have been, gliding her hands across Y/n’s body without care, laughing along carelessly to jokes that she normally would’ve only chuckled at. She was more open with the group, and made sure to keep Y/n involved in the conversation even when the others talked over top of her.

The atmosphere felt warm, like they were spending time with their closest family members. Manny showed off his mixology skills, which were mediocre at best, while Nora and Abby whipped up a luxurious rendition of pasta with a side salad, all of which seemed to disappear in a matter of minutes, leaving barely enough for both Mel and Owen to split between themselves once they finally re-emerged from their shared bedroom.

The sun was beginning to set early, thanks to the shorter days of winter, leaving poor Manny no other option but to wait until morning until he could finally hit the slopes. Instead, he found interest in offering constant refills to everyone in order to, as he put it, boost morale. Abby had taken the initiative to cut herself off, wanting to make sure she still had her wits about her while also being able to relax, and made sure to warn Y/n about Manny’s drinks.

“He calls himself a mixologist,” She’d whispered into her girlfriend’s ear, “But I’d say he’s more of a wizard. He makes drinks so strong, but somehow covers up the taste of the liquor.”

That was the first and final time that Y/n ignored a warning from Abby, soon enough finding herself stumbling out the door in just her bathing suit, ears completely deaf to everyone’s questions of concern for the nearly naked girl in the cold weather as she clambered into the jacuzzi. She grinned, watching as Abby followed closely behind her, along with Manny, Nora, and Leah.

She snuggled up against Abby’s side, relishing in the weight of her thick bicep around her shoulder as she only half-listened to whatever Nora was trying to fill her in on, and babbling on about some nonsense that no one really had much interest in hearing, but they all listened in and responded as if she were telling the most interesting tale to ever exist.

Once Leah and Nora took over the conversation, she turned to stare up at her girlfriend with glossy eyes, grinning stupidly at the mere sight of her face.

“What?” Abby laughed when she finally took notice.

Y/n shrugged, answering as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, “Nothing, just thinking about how much I love you.”

Abby’s already flushed cheeks darkened, but she was quick to press a longing kiss to her forehead and return the sentiment lovingly.

“No,” Y/n frowned, “You don’t understand, I love you. I love how smart you are, I love how you make me laugh, I love how you make me feel loved, I love how you make me feel.”

Abby glanced around at the others to ensure that they weren’t overhearing this intimate conversation. Thankfully, Manny was too wrapped up in making sure that Nora was correctly recounting the time that he successfully hooked up with his TA and bumped his grade up.

“I love your abs, and your big beefy arms.” Y/n continued, leaning her head back against the bulging muscle to emphasise her point, “I love your fingers, too. And of course I love your face, and your pretty eyes, and your nose–God I love your nose, I just wanna sit on it–”

All conversation seemed to stop as the patio door creaked open, all heads turning in surprise to see Owen standing in the doorway, swimming trunks hanging low on his hips and a towel slung over his shoulder.

“Room for one more?”

Manny was the first to break the silence, “Of course, man. We all thought you guys were just calling it for the night.”

The blond furrowed his brow, “What, you guys really thought you could replace me so easily?”

The words were so obviously aimed at his ex-girlfriend and the girl curled into her side, and if she hadn’t been so intoxicated, this probably would have been enough to send Y/n off the rails when it came to Owen. Instead, Abby took the reins in order to diffuse the situation.

“Are you gonna get in or are you gonna keep on bitching, Moore?”

He looked equally as pleased and displeased with her dual-sided tone, both wanting to keep things light while also warning him not to start anything.

“Yeah, yeah,” He tossed his towel to the side and climbed in, taking a seat next to Leah and directly across from Abby. “Whatever.”

The group sat in silence for a few moments before Y/n finally chimed in, “Where’s Mel? Is she coming down?”

He seemed to be visibly annoyed by either the question or by her, probably both. “She’s upstairs, not feeling too well.”

“Oh,” She nodded along, “That’s too bad, I think she really would’ve liked whatever drink Manny just made me.”

Manny grinned at the credit, “I call it, dulce peligro.”

Nora snorted, “Sweet danger? That’s a little on the nose, even for you, don’t you think?”

“Hey, when you start mixing up drinks like that, then you get a say, ‘kay?”

Owen’s stern tone cut through the playful nature of their bickering, “Not likely. None of us really come up here and get sloshed anymore, I guess we’ve all just matured past that.”

Embarrassment crept up her throat, causing tears to spring into her eyes from his clear disapproval of her current state. Nora and Leah shared an uncomfortable stare, both seemingly ready to grab Abby before she could make a move against him, her disbelief and anger so clear on her face.

“Well I definitely haven’t,” Manny chuckled awkwardly, “Besides, the holidays are the only time of the year where it's actually encouraged to get shitfaced.”

“Yeah,” Nora jumped in, “The night’s still young, and most of us probably aren’t even gonna remember tonight.”

Their words had obviously been a mere attempt at bringing comfort to the younger girl, whose face betrayed the insecurity that was very rapidly eating away at her drunken confidence from the inside out. Her eyes had become even glossier, and her heaving breaths made it clear that she was on the verge of tears.

“No,” She wiped at her nose with the back of her hand, “He’s right, I think it’s time I put myself to bed.”

Abby grabbed her hand as she stood up, carefully stepping over her girlfriend’s legs and onto the steps that lead out onto the deck, “Hey, hey, don’t go yet. You’re having fun.”

Y/n could tell she was trying to keep her cool, not wanting to put the other three of her friends in the position of hearing her and Owen fighting once again. She shook her head, stepping out onto the pine floor and wrapping herself in the fluffy white robe that Abby had brought out for her, “I’m tired, I might go take a shower and then just go to bed.”

Abby nodded, standing from her own seat and moving to climb out after her, “Alright, I’m gonna hit the hay too, guys.”

“Aww,” Nora whined, “Guys don’t go yet.”

“Stay,” Y/n turned to Abby, offering a weak smile, “I’m just… tired. You don’t have to come to bed yet.”

“Let me walk you up,” She was practically begging at this point, wanting to comfort her girlfriend when she was so obviously upset.

“C’mon Abs, she’s a big girl. I’m sure she can go to sleep without being tucked in for just one night.”

Abby scowled at him, turning to him with intent as she growled at him, “What the hell is your problem?”

It was true, as bad as Owen usually was when Y/n was around, he was usually only passive aggressive, but now he was just being downright mean. If Abby hadn’t already gone to hell and back trying to convince her friend to let Y/n come (even though she really didn’t give them a choice), Y/n wasn’t about to let the whole vacation be ruined by her pride, choosing to allow Owen’s words to slide rather than biting back as she usually would.

“Abs, it’s okay,” Y/n tried again.

“No I don’t think-”

Nora was the next person to step out of the tub, “You know, I’m starting to get a little pruny anyways, so why don’t I help her to bed?”

Abby appeared annoyed at Nora’s intrusion, but allowed her to pull Y/n away from the situation and back into the chalet, leaving Leah and Manny to face the intense staredown between her and Owen before they, too, fled the scene, allowing the real fighting to start.

Hardly an hour had passed since Y/n had curled herself into bed, not even bothering to get herself ready at all aside from removing her bathing suit and snuggling back into the fluffy robe, leaving her surprised when her light sleep was broken by the feeling of the mattress sinking next to her. Abby looked tired, irritation clear on her face as she slumped against the headboard with a quiet sigh. Her eyes softened as she turned to glance at her girlfriend, an apologetic smile crossing her features when their eyes met.

“Sorry baby, didn’t mean to wake you.”

“‘S okay,” Y/n’s words were slurred with sleep, “‘M sorry too.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for, Owen’s just being a…he’s being a stupid prick.”

Y/n pushed herself up, scooching across the mattress to snuggle into her girlfriend’s side as sighing at the comforting weight of her arm around her shoulder, “I know but… I don’t know. I guess I can see why he’s annoyed. I’m not one of you guys, I know how I would feel if one of my friends invited their partners to join our traditions.”

“It’s not even about that, it’s–” she cut herself off, a deep frown cutting into her cheeks, “It’s nothing. Let’s just forget it.” She hugged Y/n tighter to her chest, pressing a long kiss to the crown of her head. “I love you, you know that, right?”

Y/n lifted her head, concern filling her at her girlfriend’s tone, “Is something wrong? Did something happen with Owen?”

Abby looked alarmed, “What–No, no. Nothing happened. I promise.”

“Good,” Y/n nuzzled her head back into her shoulder, “‘Cause I’ll kick his ass.”

Abby snorted, “I’m sure you would. Now go back to sleep, I’m gonna go take a shower and I’ll be back.”

Y/n whined, “Are you punishing me or something?”

Abby cocked her head in confusion.

“No invitation?”

A knowing smirk appeared on the blonde’s lips, “I don’t know if you know what you’re asking for here, baby.”

Y/n pushed herself away from Abby, crawling to stand at the foot of the bed as she slowly backed up towards the bathroom, hips swaying seductively as she untied her robe and let it slowly glide down her arms until it hit the floor with a soft thud, leaving her bare for her girlfriend’s viewing pleasure. She bit her lip, fluttering her lashes as she whispered a response, “I think I do.”

Abby grinned, moving faster than Y/n’s brain could even register to race towards her and haul her body over her shoulder as she rushed into the large ensuite. She reached the shower, turning the water on to allow it to heat up for a few moments before she placed her girlfriend onto the marble countertop.

Y/n’s brain swirled with pleasure as the seconds ticked by, the room slowly heating up as steam curled around the glass wall of the insanely oversized shower, feelings only heightened from the bit of alcohol still in her system and her girlfriend’s hands and lips roaming around her body.

“Abs,” she gasped out as her fingers massaged her inner thigh, “I think the water’s ready.”

Despite her previous flurry of attention, Abby seemed to have settled down the moment that they set foot in the shower, relishing in the casual intimacy of carefully washing each other’s hair, lathering one another in a foamy vanilla scented body wash, and just holding each other under the hot water. After all was said and done, Abby pulled her back against her chest, one arm wrapping around her waist and the other curling around her shoulders to hold her in place. Y/n leaned her head back, staring up at the taller blonde with droopy eyelids.

“I love you too.”

“Huh?”

Y/n giggled, “I never said it back earlier, so I am now.”

Abby shook her head, leaning down to press a kiss to her soft lips, “I love you more.”

“I love you more.”

“I love you to the moon and back ten times.”

“Well I love you times infinity!”

“Infinity?” Abby whistled, tightening her arms around her, “Don’t know if I can beat that.”

Scoffing in mock offence, Y/n turned her head to sink her teeth into the meaty bulge of Abby’s bicep, just biting hard enough to leave the faintest of teeth marks in her burning skin.

“Hey!” Abby grunted, twirling her around to face her, “I bring you on this nice vacation, I make you dinner, I drive you around, I rock your world whenever you ask,” her face grew closer with every statement, “And this is the thanks I get?”

Y/n squealed at the feeling of her fingers digging into her sides, leaning up to press their foreheads together, “I suppose you’re right, I’m sorry.” Her hands moved from their places on her biceps, gliding up her slick skin to her neck, then down over her chest, one finding purchase on one of her toned breasts, the other pressing into her firm abdomen, massaging the protruding muscles appreciatively, “Can I make it up to you?”

Abby didn’t respond, instead gripping the back of her head and slamming their lips together, teeth clashing and tongues fighting for dominance, though the fight was over within seconds as Abby forced her girlfriend into submission. She allowed her to press her against the wall, her shorter frame pressing against her so tightly that it would seem they were connected, then seemingly made the move to flip them around until Y/n pulled back.

“Nuh-uh, I’m making it up to you, remember?” Her hand slid even lower, resting against her lower belly just above the thick patch of blonde curls between her legs.

“Baby, you don’t have to–oh,” Her words came to a halt as her fingers grazed against her clit.

It was a fight that they had on the regular, Abby always feeling like she had to be on the giving end, and not the receiving. To be quite fair, there was never a time where Abby didn’t finish during sex with Y/n, but she seemed to be determined to only allow it happen either against the harness of her strap or directly against Y/n’s own centre. Hell, they’d been seeing each other for almost two months before she even let Y/n go down on her for the first time. She was a giver, and tended to find pleasure in giving, but was growing to enjoy the aspect of receiving just as much.

“Just let me,” Y/n whispered against the wet skin of her neck, lips pressing against her jugular with an indescribable softness. “Can I? Please?”

After finally receiving the green light, Y/n wasted no time in dropping to her knees, nudging Abby’s feet apart as she slid her hands over her thick thighs, lips and tongue gliding along the trembling muscles until the tip of her nose was met with the coarse hair covering her pubis.

A soft grunt fell from Abby’s lips at the contact, chuckling at the feeling of her girlfriend’s nose prodding even further inwards, poking at her clit.

“Spread your legs, baby,” Y/n murmured, mouth barely parting from the skin of her inner thigh as she spoke, carefully scooching in closer as Abby complied, even slinging one of her calves over her shoulder to offer better access. “Thank you.”

Abby laughed, “Look at you, on your knees for me and still so polite. Such a good girl.”

Y/n moaned at the words, finally moving her mouth to drag her tongue up the entire length of Abby’s cunt, whining at the taste of Abby’s dripping nectar. She twirled her tongue around her engorged clit, dragging the muscle over the bundle of nerves, encouraged by Abby’s moans and the grip she had on the back of her head.

“Right there,” The blonde gasped, bucking her hips against her face, pressing her hand even more firmly against the base of her skull. “Yeah, right fucking there. Shit.”

Then the real moaning started. What had begun as muffled grunts had quickly developed into breathy cries of pleasure, the only words falling from her lips being drawn out curses or punchy words of praise.

Y/n prodded her tongue around the opening of her core, poking inside shallowly, hardly able to slip inside with how tightly she was clenching. Chuckling, Y/n drew her middle finger against the opening, “Relax for me, Abby.”

At her words, the muscles of her core almost immediately relaxed, easily accepting the intrusion of her finger with eagerness, walls clamping down as she added her ring finger. She pulled her face away for a moment, pumping her fingers in and out with precision as her fingertips easily found purchase against the spongy flesh that caused her eyes to roll back in her skull.

Y/n grinned, pressing her lips against the thigh that had rested over her shoulder. She would never be able to recover from this view that she was so rarely able to see; Abby’s head tilted back, eyes hooded and lips parted as she whimpered out soft praises, small breasts heaving with each breath and her nipples pebbled with arousal. There was something about having somebody so big and strong at her disposal that she simply couldn’t get enough of, knowing that in a simple movement, Abby could have her at her disposal before she could even protest, the idea that someone like Abby, who took such pride in her dominance, was willing to give it up just for her.

Feeling the tell-tale fluttering of her inner walls, Y/n quickened the pace of her fingers and returned her mouth to its rightful place on her clit, sucking and licking so gently in comparison to the fast pace of her fingers.

Abby came with a shout, hand forcing Y/n’s face impossibly closer to her core as she continued to pump her fingers, fucking her through the orgasm until she felt her walls slacken. She removed her fingers, and with one last kiss to her inner thigh, she pulled away. Abby moved her leg, reaching down and yanking her girlfriend up to slam their lips together, whimpering at the musky taste of her own cum.

“God, I’m gonna marry you,” Abby murmured against her mouth, drawing soft giggles from both of them.

“Not if I marry you first.”

Abby rolled her eyes as she reached past Y/n, turning the water off and scooping her up in a single movement, “Everything’s gotta be a competition with you, huh?”

Y/n giggled, hooking her ankles at the base of Abby’s spine and wrapping her arms around her neck, “Well, not everything.”

“Yeah? So you’re not gonna try and fight me when I have my way with you?”

Y/n kissed her again, “As long as you don’t make me wait, I’m impatient.”

Abby tossed her on the mattress, completely unconcerned about the fact that she was still dripping wet from the shower. She crossed the room, opening the top drawer of the dresser and fishing around for a moment before she found her target. Y/n watched in awe as Abby skillfully slid the harness up her legs, tightening it just enough that it wouldn’t slip as she turned, revealing the thick blue dildo hanging from her pelvis.

“Why don’t you just lay there and be a good girl for me, heh?”

When Y/n woke up the next morning, she was stiff, but who wouldn’t be after being bent in every imaginable position for over an hour?

It was nearly twelve o’clock by the time her eyes finally cracked open, and she was disappointed, but not surprised, to find that she was alone in the bed. She was dressed in only one of Abby’s lacrosse sweatshirts, and tucked snugly into the blankets and a note set neatly on the pillow next to her own.

Went out to the slopes, be back soon. Love you.

Y/n sighed, tossing the note aside as she glanced around the room, noticing that Abby must have tidied up a bit before she left, everything that had been knocked over or thrown across the room in the early hours of the morning having been set neatly back in place. Y/n would have preferred to stay in bed a while longer, but her throbbing headache demanded that she go downstairs and consume as much coffee and aspirin as possible without needed medical attention (luckily for her, she has a sexy pre-med girlfriend on standby).

After cleaning herself up some and tidying her hair (and cursing herself for not doing her entire hair routine while it was wet) and sliding a pair of sweatpants up her legs, she shuffled down the wooden staircase to face the few stragglers that stayed behind.

In the kitchen, she found Nora, who seemed like she had just returned, still dressed in her snowpants as she stood at the kitchen counter stirring her coffee. The dark-haired girl turned her head at the sound of Y/n coming down the stairs, a grin appearing on her face at the sight of the sleepy girl.

“Morning sunshine!” She chuckled, glancing over at the large grandfather clock quickly, “You just won me ten bucks, gorgeous. Manny said you’d be out for the count until the afternoon.”

Y/n raised her eyebrows, shaking her head as she made her own cup of coffee and swallowed two tablets of aspirin. She took up one of the tall stools opposite Nora, quickly taking a mouthful of her drink.

“You come back alone?”

Nora shrugged, “Yeah, once Abby and Manny start making everything a competition I count myself out.”

Y/n nodded her head, a knowing smile crossing her features. She, too, has fallen victim to the pissing contests between those two.

“Was it just you three?”

She pursed her lips, slowly shaking her head, “No, uh, Owen joined kinda last minute. Hey, did Abby tell you anything about last night? Manny said they sort of went after it after we left, but he and Leah kinda made a run for it.”

“No, she didn’t,” Y/n frowned, “She seemed a little worked up when she came to bed, but she didn’t really say much.”

A smirk appeared on Nora’s lips, “Yeah, we all heard how worked up she was.”

The blood drained from Y/n’s face, realisation dawning on her face. She thought she had made some kind of effort to keep herself quiet the night before, but to be fair, she had been intoxicated and Abby had made her come three times with just her tongue before even thinking of putting the strap to work.

“Gotta say, I never pictured Abby being a little freaky, I never even would have imagined some of the shit she was saying to you. It had me blushing.”

Y/n buried her face in her hands, wincing at the burning temperature of her skin. Had they all heard it? She’d been so worried about imposing herself on this trip that she hadn’t even considered the consequences of any alone time that she and Abby would have together. She supposed it was bound to happen; The chalet wasn’t that big, and the vents connected every room together, and even knowing that every other person on the vacation had witnessed their very active and intense sex life, she couldn’t find it within herself to regret it at all. The light purple bruises on her neck were a testimony to the way her night ended, and with Owen around, she would proudly wear them.

The front door swung open, the entire house immediately being filled with the energetic and boisterously loud voice of Manny, obviously still hyped up from his seemingly long session on the slopes. When his gaze fell on Y/n, he hurriedly glanced down at his watch, scowling as he read the time as 11:59, indicating that he had lost the bet. His disappointment was not long-lasting, however, grinning mischievously and wiggling his brows at her as Abby appeared behind her, arms resting on the counter on either side of her body and caging her in, skin cold to the touch through her thin long-sleeve shirt.

“Jesus, Abigail,” He whistled, “What did you do to her? The poor girl looks like she got mugged.”

“Fuck off,” The blonde groaned, pressing a kiss to her girlfriend’s head and chuckling as Y/n raised her middle finger in his direction.

“Jealousy doesn’t look good on you, Manuel.” She hummed, leaning back against Abby’s chest.

Manny seemed surprised at her bold response, turning to the taller girl with a smirk as he continued to tease them.

“That’s enough Manny, I already gave her hell for interrupting my beauty sleep,” Nora added, taking a long sip from her mug.

“Please,” Abby rested her chin on the top of Y/n’s head, “I’ve lived with both of you before, I can’t even count how many times I had to sleep with earplugs in.”

Nora shrugged, “What goes around, comes around I suppose.”

Abby’s body stiffened when Owen appeared next to Manny, his blue eyes narrowing in on the pair across the counter. It didn’t surprise her in the least that Owen would be bothered by their late night activities; Abby had once disclosed to her early on in their sexual relationship that she had very little experience in anything beyond the basics. With Owen, things were quite vanilla, and there was little said and there was almost no experimentation, so it would make sense that he felt a bit dejected at the idea that the woman he was still so obviously in love with was now in a much healthier and more adventurous relationship with someone else.

Abby squeezed Y/n’s shoulders, leaning down to whisper in her ear, “I think I’m gonna go up to the room for a bit, maybe watch a movie and take a nap, if you wanna join me.”

Y/n nodded immediately, excited at the idea of going back to bed, hopping off of the stool and letting Abby lead her upstairs by the hand.

She curled up in the bed, constructing a nest of pillows and blankets on top of the comforter and tucking herself in under a lighter fleece blanket. Abby appeared out of the bathroom, now dressed in a pair of sweats and a tight-fitting t-shirt, her hair hanging loosely around her shoulders. She chuckled when she spotted the structure that had been erected on top of the bed.

“What movie did you pick?” She asked, carefully climbing in next to her girlfriend and snuggling up against her.”

Y/n glanced up at her, “The Holiday. Thought it was fitting.”

A few minutes into the film, Y/n could hardly even hold her eyes open, rolling over to lay on her belly and nuzzle her face into the crook of Abby’s neck. She glanced up at her girlfriend, admiring the way that the flickering colours from the screen were being projected on her face, light catching on her features and causing her rosy cheeks to glow. Abby turned her head, staring down at her with a fond smile.

“What?” She asked, fingers gracing Y/n’s cheek softly.

“Just looking,” She mumbled, “You’re so pretty.”

Abby scoffed, “Says you.”

“Says me,” Y/n agreed, “If anyone else says that, I’ll kill them. Except for your grandmother.”

Abby laughed, “Yes, I would prefer if you didn’t kill Nana, thank you.”

Y/n pressed her lips to the underside of her jaw, “Is everything good between you and Owen?”

“You want everything to be good between us?” Abby raised an eyebrow.

She shrugged, “You know how I feel about Owen, but he’s your friend, and I don’t wanna be the cause of some drama between you if I can help it. Nora said you guys had a fight last night.”

Abby sighed, her arms tightening around her girlfriend’s figure, “I don’t like the way he talks about you. The thing is, when I broke up with him, I was honest with him and he seemed to be okay with it. But since you and I started dating, he seems to be bothered by it. Last night, he was drunk, and he said some pretty nasty stuff about us, mostly about me, honestly.”

“So what, he’s mad that you’ve moved on with someone else, or he’s mad that you’ve moved on with a girl?”

“Not sure,” Abby shook her head, “I don’t–I just wanna move past it. I don’t care what he thinks, and neither should you. If it comes down to you and him, I'm picking you every time.”

Y/n leaned up, nudging Abby’s curved nose with her own before pressing a sweet kiss to her lips, “I love you.”

Abby smiled, kissing her again, “I love you too.”

This time, when Y/n woke up, she was still curled tightly against Abby’s chest. She was thankful, smiling softly as she nuzzled closer to her warmth and simply just laid there contentedly until a loud banging sounded from their bedroom door.

“Wake up, you lazy perras,” Manny shouted through the wooden door, “It’s time to party!”

Y/n had quickly come to realise over the few days at the chalet that Abby’s friends took New Year’s Eve very seriously. Her eyes had grown three sizes at the sight of the mountain of booze that they had all collected to share amongst the group on the one night. Each of them had expressed their excitement for the holiday, even Mel, who had hardly interacted with her the whole time they’d been there.

It was torture to pull themselves out of the little nest they’d made, but they knew that Manny would be back in a matter of minutes if they weren’t out of bed soon, and he would be much less friendly the second time. Taking a few moments to wake themselves up, both girls finally crawled out of bed and began to get themselves ready for the evening, knowing that Leah, Nora, and Mel would be wanting to take and post pictures from the little party on any social media platform that they could get their hands on.

They were both offered drinks immediately upon entering the kitchen, discovering a large bowl of punch sitting in the middle of the large island, apparently having been a concoction made by Jordan and Manny, which became quite obvious once Y/n took a small drink and discovered that it was probably closer in form to a toxic chemical than any kind of enjoyable beverage, but for the sake of the holiday, she continued to take small sips of the drink, quickly followed up by a much more enjoyable Diet Coke.

They spent the evening playing drinking games, watching movies, and exposing each other’s most embarrassing moments until late in the evening, though Y/n decided to cap herself at the one drink, considering the night she’d had the night before, and instead accepted the edible offered to her by Nora, who had also been put off of liquor by the hangover she’d had that morning.

Y/n could admit that the small get-together felt much more intimate and enjoyable to her than attending a larger party, as she likely would have done if Abby had not invited her. Even those who did not overly like Y/n seemed glad to have her there, except for Owen, of course.

Even Mel had entertained some conversations with her and had invited her to jump into some pictures with her and the other girls, the alcohol making her much friendlier than usual. Y/n’s feelings towards Mel were never set in stone. From time to time, she was very nice to her, but the majority of the time, she seemed completely uninterested in her being there. Of course, Y/n could understand it, to a degree; If Abby acted the same way that Owen did when she was around, Y/n would feel the same way, and he apparently hadn’t started acting that way until Y/n came around.

Y/n couldn’t help but keep a watchful eye on the two figures out on the deck, doing her best to not make it obvious, feeling the need to protect her girlfriend from any more hurt, especially after hearing what sort of things that Owen had said to her the night before. They’d only been out there for about ten minutes after Owen had asked her to talk in private, offering an overly sympathetic look to both Abby and her girlfriend, who’d been reluctant to let her go on her own, especially since he had been drinking quite heavily all evening.

In truth, Owen had immediately apologised for what he’d said the night before, shocking the blonde with his words. Normally, Owen was a proud man, never apologising to anyone unless he knows that it might offer him something in return.

“Really,” He had cleared his throat, obviously hesitant and uncomfortable, “I’m really sorry. I wouldn’t intentionally do anything to hurt you, it’s just…You don’t know how hard it’s been.”

“Hard?” Abby repeated, “What’s been so hard for you, Owen?”

He scowled, “Seeing you happy, with someone else–with her.”

She scoffed, “So it is about her. Tell me, if I was dating another man, would you have this issue?”

“Yes!” He looked appalled, “Seriously–how are you trying to turn this into that sorta thing. You know I’m not like that.”

“Do I?” She pressed, “How many times have I heard you use the f slur in passing, or couldn’t stop staring at two girls holding hands in public? You may not realise it all the time, but you are like that, and I can’t just sit back and let you treat someone I love like that.”

He paused, “You love her?”

She nodded.

“I just–I don’t get it. How can you be…you were never like that with me. We were happy, I thought you loved me.”

Abby stared at him incredulously, “I did. Part of me always will, and you know that, but I’m not sure I was ever in love with you.”

That seemed to set him off, “So I was just…what to you? A plaything? An experiment?”

“Owen,” she growled, “You’re the one who started dating someone else only a week after we broke up, and not just anyone, but Mel. The one person who you always told me not to worry about, that you two were just good friends. Now look at you two, you act like an old married couple.”

“I don’t love Mel.” He stated, like it was a blatantly obvious statement. “I love you.”

Abby laughed, pushing herself away from the railing harshly, “You’re drunk, Owen.”

He grabbed her arm, pulling her back into him before she could stomp away, forcing his lips onto hers in a fury of passion. His hand gripped the back of her head, holding her in place as she fought against him. Finally, she sank her teeth into his bottom lip, not relenting until she could taste the iron of his blood and he was forcing her away.

“Fuck!” He swore, reaching up to nurse his bleeding lip, though he was given very little time to recover as Y/n practically flew past Abby and swung her fist into his jaw. He stumbled backwards from the force, flood now running down his chin and neck, “You stupid bitch.”

Abby stepped between the two as he lunged at the shorter of the two girls, shoving him down onto the deck as the others came rushing out after Y/n. She scowled at him, crouching ever so slightly to meet his gaze, “Don’t you ever put your hands on her, or me, ever again.”

She turned to face her girlfriend, hands cradling her now swollen fist and running her thumb over the cracked and bleeding skin over the knuckles, “You okay?”

Y/n lifted her good hand up to swipe at the lip on Abby’s lower lip, tears leaking down her cheeks, “Are you?”

She nodded, pressing her bloody lips to Y/n’s forehead briefly, taking one final look at the man on the floor, who seemed to be in shock and finally realising what he had done, glancing between the two women standing over him, to his friends who all seemed nothing short of disgusted with him, and finally, his girlfriend, who could barely stand to offer him anything more than a fleeting glance. Abby shook her head. She never wanted this, she would have been more than content to keep Owen in her life as a friend, but there was very little that could recover him in her eyes, and she knew that he would never be able to accept her or the woman she loved. She hoped that, at some point in the future, he might come to his senses, but until then, she decided that he would no longer be regarded as one of her best friends, as he previously had been.

She led her girlfriend back inside, grabbing an ice pack from the freezer before guiding her up the stairs and to their bedroom. Abby pushed her to sit on the edge of the mattress, lowering herself to kneel in front of her. She gingerly pressed the ice to her knuckles, shushing her when she whimpered at the sudden cold.

“I’m sorry,” Y/n whispered, “None of this would’ve happened if I didn’t come on this trip.”

“Stop apologising. It’s no one’s fault but his, for being a homophobic prick, and my own, for putting up with it for so long.”

It was quiet for a moment before a giggle escaped from Y/n’s lips, “I told you I would kick someone’s ass for you.”

“That’s really all you got out of this?” Abby laughed, her radiant smile breaking through her otherwise stony expression.

“That,” Y/n leaned down, “And that I love you.”

“I thought you already knew that.”

Y/n rolled her eyes, “I did, but this was my proof that I wasn’t joking about it.”

She leaned down, hands cupping Abby’s defined jaw in her hands, holding her just as softly as one might hold a newborn as she pressed a kiss to her lips. When she pulled back, she glanced at the alarm clock on the dresser, smirking as she pressed another kiss to her lips and mumbled against her.

“Happy New Year, baby.”

#reader insert #x reader #imagines #lesbian #abby anderson #abby anderson imagine #abby anderson x reader #abby anderson x you #abby tlou #college!abby anderson

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teastyun · 5 months

Note

Hiii! How r uu?? I just read edges hatred and omg that was so good. I have a little idea for u 🤭🤭🤭

Okay okay so how about Abby and reader were best friends, they knew each other since salt lake (they were both fireflies) but since joining the WLF, Abby grew distant from reader and reader didn’t understand why. They ended up becoming enemies until one night reader found Abby breaking down (in tears, not dancing 😭😭) because she just broke up with Ow*n for the 3rd time so reader decides to cheer her up if u get where I’m coming from 🙏🙏🙏

༉‧₊˚ denial is a river in Egypt

sfw!

one night, you hear a big fight happening between Abby and Owen in her dorm on your way to the bathroom. will you be able to cheer her up, despite you two being sworn enemies for the last few years?

╰┈➤ masterlist

a/n: I'm fine, how are you?? thank you so much for trusting me with your idea!! I had so much fun writing it ♥

stationed in Salt Lake City, you and Abby grew up to be the best friends anyone would be jealous of. you two were the typical duo that would only be found together no matter place or time; eating meals, training or studying. anything you do, Abby would always tag along.

growing older, you and your crew joined the WLF in Seattle after a fatal attack by a madman on your people, including Abby's father dying from a shooting attack at the place he was stationed at. Abby's world was shifted by an instance and she needed any support and help she could get badly.

as her best friend, you were always there for Abby. sleepovers were already quite common for you, but after experiencing such traumatic experience, you two would always stay together at night and help each other through the rough times.

you still remember the way she would wake up drenched in sweat next to you, her breathing unsteady as you try to get her to calm down from an anxiety attack, which were sadly common for her to wake up to due to her repeating horrible nightmares of finding her father dead at a medical office. she clawed to you crying herself to sleep, as she slowly calmed down in your embrace.

Abby often has dealt with those nightmares, so she occasionally tried tried to sleep in her own half of her you two's shared bunkbed. failing miserably, those repeated stressful nights lead her to climb into your part of your bunk bed. most of the times you wouldn't notice her joining you as you were fast asleep, but you'd wake up tangled with each other, and you weren't timid of her touch. even the opposite, you loved to embrace the platonic intimacy by hugging and cuddling her in response.

like a cure, you always made her nightmares and terrors go away in an instance. she saw you as her guardian angel, but she could never tell you as she thought it was awkward admitting it to you in person.

few weeks before moving to Seattle, Abby slowly started to grow distant from you. the reason for that, as she reveals to you when you were on your weekly training sessions, is Owen, who she, at that time, recently grew romantic interest for. you weren't quite sure why, but you were deeply hurt. to not worry Abby, you assured her that you're happy for her as long as she is.

⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡

few years later, your hurt feelings developed into irritation, frustration and also slowly into hatred.

although, the love and physical attraction you've already developed in Salt Lake for her never left. she became such a strong, masculine and slightly feminine woman, who is (against your will) absolutely your type. no matter what she's doing, your senses are always hyper fixated on her. god, you know those veins in her arms by heart. your physical attraction towards her growing over these last few years didn't help you at all, leading you to countless nights as you help yourself with a vibrator you found in an abandoned sex shop several months ago, hoping it was her tongue making you come.

luckily, your crew always stayed the same except for Manny, who joined you after moving from Mexico to Seattle. the only difference is that Abby and Owen are in a committed relationship for the last two years, which may or may not agitates you to a certain extend, but you are way too embarrassed to admit it. no one knows how badly you want to show her that you could be a better boyfriend than him, showing her all the things he could never do for her.

although those are only your fantasies, you're actually quite onto something. no one knows that Abby and Owen broke up several times already, simply because of disagreement or incompatibility. Abby would never tell anyone about it, since she and Owen would always come back together after a few days of separation.

the real reason she wouldn't tell anyone was that she was scared of you finding out, since she wants to appear as flawless as possible in front of you. since you two started having quite bad feelings for each other despite the strong friendship you had before, her aim is to prove that she can do well without you, and she is persistent.

she admits that it is definitely a toxic way of thinking, but she is in deep denial with herself; anytime she sees you, she feels butterflies dancing tango in her stomach. when you're around, her senses are hyperaware of anything you're doing. she always listens to what you're saying, even if she's not part of the conversation.

you grew from her cure to her curse, and you are the only one able to lift it.

⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡

her roommate Manny and you are really close friends, so you'd see Abby at least once a week in her dorm when you and Manny play video games on their tv, but she would always find an excuse to leave the dorm.

for Abby, she feels like she can't breathe when you're around. it's much worse to her than actual spores; it feels as if you'd draw her in, but at the same time a way barricades the space between you two, keeping you separate from each other. after so many years of actively trying to avoid you, she feels like she's suffocating, especially when you're looking so pretty in your everyday clothing.

the smart guy Manny is, he notices Abby's sudden changes around you, but he would only silently observe. seeing how tense Abby can get, he doesn't want to put any more pressure on her. he thinks you two will be able to figure it out sooner or later.

⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡

one night, you were on your way to clean yourself up after a hard day of work. you walk past Abby and Manny's dorm and you notice angry sounding voices, making you stop in your tracks to listen.

"you think I wouldn't notice? Abby, what the actual fuck!" you hear Owen say, as his voice rises with each word by the end of his sentence and you wince at his harsh tone.

you have no idea what their fight is about, but you had no time to think any further, since Owen bursts out of the room and slams the door shut behind him and runs off the hallway.

unsure whether you should intervene or not, you end up knocking on the door.

"Owen, there's no point in-" you hear Abby say in a broken tone as she opens the door several moments after. she stops when she realises it's you who's knocked on her door with worry written all over your face. although she sniffles, she tries to hide her emotionally wrecked state and tries to pretend nothing happened by taking a second to maintain herself.

"Manny isn't here yet," she starts, but she stops to take a deep breath to keep her facade up. "I know, that's not why I'm here," you speak quietly, trying to not stir anything in her. "may I come in?"

Abby hesitates and takes a deep breath, but opens the door eventually for you to step inside the room. she walks further into the room.

you can tell how exhausted she is not only physically, but mentally as well. she has her usual khaki cargos combined with a light tank on, showing her beautiful curves and strong build underneath. the black bra's straps beneath it peak around her shoulders, and god, she looked so fine despite the broken state she's in. her hair was in a French braid, but several streaks were loosely framing her face, telling you that she had a hard day of work as well.

she silently leans on the railing that separates Manny's part of the room from hers, as she looks through the window on the nightlife decorating the stadium. her gaze was focused on the sight, obviously avoiding any eye contact with you.

trying not to pressure her, you mirror her movements and carefully ask "what are you feeling?" hoping to not agitate her by your question.

you see a shift in her movement after a few moments, as she answers in a whisper "I don't know." she sounds confused, but your question seems to calm her down. you try to think of a logic answer, but she continues "well, no, I feel angry and frustrated,"

surprised by her honest answer, you turn around to face her. she still looks ahead at the stadium, clearly in thoughts. her eyes are reddened and her light eyelashes dark due the tears, which streaks you make out on her cheeks. the sorrow sight of her makes your heart ache, but you still remember the situation you both are in nonetheless, so you silently wait for her to continue.

"you know what he did?" she starts, finally looking at you. in response, you slightly shake your head.

she blinks several times before turning away from you again, "he cheated on me. several times, probably even more than I know of. with Mel," she tells you and takes a small break in between her shortened sentences.

shocked by what you just heard, you aren't sure how to react appropriately.

"I- we broke up, but not for the first time," she continues, not daring to look you into your eyes again.

"why... would you ever go back to him after what he did to you?" you ask clearly confused.

she sighs and drops her head. "there's no fucking way you'd ever understand," she tells you as her tone rises, and removes herself from holding onto the railing. at first, you thought she's about to leave the room, but instead she paces around the room, clearly trying to think of how to deal with the situation

her sudden change of attitude provokes something inside of you, so you say "why wouldn't I understand, Abby?" as you watch her still pace the room. she stops mid-tracks as she hears your tone.

"what does that have to do with me?" you sound equally frustrated as your tone rises, not caring anymore whether your reaction catalyses something in her.

Abby unsteady breath reveals her frustration even further. she seems to think of something, before she walks straight towards you. seeing her so angry creates goosebumps on your skin, but you try not to show your nervousness by gaining a steady hold onto the railing behind you.

stopping right in front of you, she looks down into your eyes. "you- you have no fucking idea what those years did to me," she tells you, caging you in by holding into the railing behind you. her eyes would glance between your eyes and lips, hoping for you not to see it.

"I- fuck," she curses in denial.

"Abby," your chest rises with each deep breath you take to calm yourself.

she blinks several times and breaks the eye contact again. her emotional state makes her bite on her own lip. her eyes are glassy, revealing how frustrated she is with the situation.

carefully, your hands rose to grab her chin softly to motion her back to you, "tell me, Abby, please" you beg in a whisper, your hands now resting on her warm cheeks. it feels so natural and strange at the same time to touch her so intimately. she looks at you so hurt and grieving, but lovingly at the same time, like you were always hers.

Abby feels your breath on her lips, just now realising how close you two are. her heart is racing, her mind spiralling, her eyes focusing on only your eyes. so many times she thought of kissing you, even after your two's friendship went downhill. she feels like she's slowly loosing control over herself.

now, your smell captivates her mind and she feels herself becoming dizzy in your presence.

she wants to touch you so badly. hug you, kiss you, make you feel good, all at the same time. she looks into your eyes, trying to read whatever is written in them. they are glassy from your emotions and she couldn't help but get lost in their mesmerising colour.

"I..." she starts, "I can't tell you,"

her answer frustrates you, leading you to sigh and shake your head frustrated, as your eyes get even more teary than before.

"here I am, thinking I finally get to talk to you. fuck, Abby, I really thought we could finally solve this," you say with a breaking voice, tears running down your face. you are about to push her away from you, but her hands go up to hold your wrists to stop you.

"isn't it obvious?" her voice sounds shaky, but she continues, "it's been you the whole fucking time. I always went back to him so I could forget you. to forget the desire of you, your touch, everything of you. fuck-" she stops her rambling, trying to focus back on what she actually wanted to say, "you have no idea how often I think of you. I'm in fucking denial of loving you and I don't even really know why,"

surprised by her confession, you stare at her. your wrists are still in her hold. like in a trance, Abby starts rambling again, "I- god, I can't even form coherent thoughts-"

"Abby, can you shut up for one second?" you interrupt her with a growing smile on your lips, slightly amused by her chaotic rambling.

she looks at you with her big grey eyes and slightly parted lips, just now realising your wrists in her hold. she releases them and your hands immediately go back to rest on her cheeks.

"-can I kiss you?" you ask in a whisper, and Abby doesn't think twice of an answer. she finally connects her lips with yours in a desperate and longing kiss, as if your touch was the only think she ever craved for her whole life. your hands wander from her cheeks to her neck, as wrap your arms around her tightly.

moaning into the heated kiss, she wraps her arms tightly around your waist, wanting to feel every single inch of you against herself. you bite her lips, when you feel her knee pressing between your legs, which create friction against the zip line in your trousers.

"fuck-" you mumble into the kiss, "I missed you so much" you continue as you grab her hair, longing for even more.

Abby grins in response, and squeezes your ass. "me too, baby," she kisses your neck, "me too," she draws you into a tight hug, while she leaves several pecks on your neck.

her love and affection after so many restless years make you smile so big, but a sudden thought interrupted your two's moment. you softly pushed her away to look at her face, as you say "did you just tell me you love me?" with a challenging tone, but still smiling big.

"do I really have to say it again?" she murmurs embarrassed. you softly cup her face in your hands, "I love you too, Abs."

at that, she takes you in for another kiss, but the door suddenly opened.

the door frame revealed Manny, who is still oblivious to what's going on, "Abs, I brought you dinner from the canteen-" he starts, but immediately turns around as he sees you two's position, "doesn't matter, see you later!" he interrupts himself and turns around to close the door behind him as he leaves.

you and Abby got back as a strong and healthy couple, catching up on all the things you couldn't do the last few years ♥

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officialaemondtargaryen · 1 year

Text

Home For The Holidays

Summary: Eddie's band is on tour and can't make it home for the holidays.

Characters: Eddie Munson x Reader (can be read as gender neutral)

Word Count: 2.3k

Trigger Warning: Eddie and Dustin are conniving, per my usual works.

Author’s Note: Happy birthday, Sam (@felteppsters). This is the first part of your birthday/Christmas gift.

He said, "I'm not going to be able to make it."

When Eddie left for his first headlining tour, he made a promise to you that he would be home for just five days out of the six months that he would be on the road; a short break the week of Christmas so that the bands and crew were able to spend time with their families.

"They added more dates to the tour," he continued after a few moments of silence. He was calling from a payphone somewhere near Kansas City, and he could sense your disappointment even though he was over five hundred miles away.

You knew that it wasn't his fault. Corroded Coffin gained significant popularity after their last tour opening up for Metallica and the demand to see them was overwhelming. There were four new dates; Kansas City, Minneapolis, Denver, and Salt Lake, before the band got a one-day break for Christmas Day and were to be in Seattle on December 26th.

"Y/N," he sighed. "Say something."

"I know how much this means to you, Eddie." You told him, your voice doing nothing to hide the fact that your heart was in your stomach. "I'm so proud of you."

The line went quiet and you could hear the faint sound of static and Eddie's breathing in your ear. Your burning eyes fluttered shut at the sound, forcing a tear to drop to your cheek. You were proud of him. You at least hoped that he believed that. In the ten years that you had known Eddie and the four years that you had been dating, he had never once disappointed you- and the one time that he had, today, was out of his control.

"When I get ho-" You could hear Gareth's voice in the background yelling for Eddie to hurry up. "Shit, I have to go." He said, there was more yelling. "Shut the hell up! I'm coming! Gareth and Jeff need to call their folks."

"It's okay." You frowned.

"I love you," he said sincerely. "And Y/N? Nothing means more to me than you." The corners of your lips pulled up into a small smile.

"I love you, too!"

The phone line disconnected and you felt empty. All you could do was stare at the little Christmas tree that you had put up and decorated yourself and the presents underneath, all with his name on them. You had argued about whether or not you would put up the tree without him, as it had been a little tradition of yours since you had moved into this house with him three years ago. He wanted you to wait, you wanted him to come home to presents under the tree. You remember him laughing to himself over the phone, could practically picture him shaking his head, knowing that it was pointless to argue about it- you were going to do what you want.

A sigh escaped your lips as you wiped your dampened cheeks. It was a little past noon, and you were still in your pajamas. You had cleaned the house spotless for Eddie's arrival, leaving you nothing to keep your mind busy now that he wasn't going to be here.

You picked up the phone and dialed Robin, but her line immediately went busy. So you dialed Steve, but it should have been obvious to you that his line would also be busy. You dialed Nancy and Jonathan answered only to tell you that she was at work. Your head fell back with a frustrated groan.

"I think everyone forgot that it is my birthday." You muttered to yourself. "Even my own boyfriend."

The moment that you had conceded to spending the day on the couch, wallowing in your misery, in the same pajamas you had been wearing for two days while watching VHS Christmas movies, there was a knock on the front door. You hurried to the door and peered through the glass to see a very familiar head of curly hair standing on your front porch with his hands in his pockets.

"Dustin?" You asked as you hurriedly opened the door. "What are you doing here, wait- how did you get here?"

The younger boy looked at you quizzically before holding up a set of car keys. "I'm eighteen and I can drive."

"Shit," you laughed rubbing your eyes. "I sometimes forget that you're not fourteen anymore."

"So does my mom," he replied and shoved past you, making himself at home in your kitchen before you could even say 'come in'.

"Well, what's up?" You asked. "You know Eddie isn't going to make it home this week, right?"

"I heard", Dustin replied from inside your refrigerator. Your eyes narrowed. "I figured you were going to be super depressed since it's your birthday and all, so here I am!" He said turning to you and holding out his arms. "Damnit, all you have to eat is leftovers?" He moved over to your cabinets. "And cereal?"

"Sorry to disappoint you?"

That was when Dustin turned back to you and really took in your appearance. "You really are depressed, aren't you?"

"No, no." You huffed. "I'm not depressed. It's just early."

"It's almost one!" He objected. "Go change out of your PJ's and we can go get a pizza. My treat." You narrowed your eyes once more, wondering when this boy became an adult who felt like he could tell you what to do. "Well, go!"

"Okay!"

Not wanting to argue with him, you made a beeline to your bedroom and threw together an outfit. You emerged a few moments later and the younger boy was staring at your Christmas tree and shoving a handful of Froot Loops in his mouth.

"There's something missing." He said with his mouth full.

"I was waiting for Eddie to get home to put the star on top since I couldn't reach." You replied with a frown. "Maybe later I can get the step-stool out and you can put it on, Short-Stack."

"Screw you," he sneered. "I don't see anyone else offering to take you out to lunch on your birthday."

"You're absolutely right, kiddo." You laughed. "Let's go."

Dustin was able to keep your mind off Eddie for most of the day. He had taken you to the brand new Surfer Boy Pizza that had just opened up near the new mall in Hawkins before you both met up with Mike and El for a movie. Once Nancy had gotten off from work, she and Jonathan joined the four of you for dinner at Antonio's. She had asked about Steve and Robin, but Dustin made an excuse for the two of them. Truth be told, you had no clue where they were other than what Dustin told you, "they were otherwise engaged, but wished they were able to make it." The whole thing was odd, but you were just happy to not be alone on your birthday.

Jonathan had the idea to check out Christmas lights in Loch Nora as the sun began to set. You stopped at a gas station for some cheap hot chocolate which probably wasn't the best idea after the fact. Once you had driven through the entire neighborhood and the one over, you mentioned making your way home, but Dustin and Mike had other ideas.

"Why don't we all come over and play a game or something?" Dustin mentioned, inviting the entire party over to your house.

"Dustin, it's getting late, I don't think we have time for a D&D campaign tonight." You replied with a yawn.

"Come on, Y/N." Mike urged. "We're having such a great time, don't you want to end it on a high note?"

At this point you realized that something was up, you could not accept the fact that your jerky friends really just didn't want you to spend any part of your birthday alone, despite what they said.

"What the hell, sure!" You replied, throwing your hands up in defeat.

Dustin decided to take the long way home through another neighborhood because El mentioned that she would like to see more Christmas lights. Jonathan and Nancy followed closely behind in their own car as Dustin made his way through not one, not two, but three additional neighborhoods to see the lights.

When he finally pulled up to the curb outside of your house, you were exhausted. Keeping up with a bunch of teenagers took the life right out of you.

"I don't know how much fun I'm going to be," you mentioned as you unlocked the deadbolt. "But you're all welcome to stay for as long as you-"

"SURPRISE!"

The lights flickered on to reveal Robin, Steve, Lucas, Max, Erica, and Will with balloons and party hats and a cake that had way, too many candles on it.

"Before anything else happens," Robin stated. "Please blow out these candles so that they are no longer a fire hazard!"

You were utterly speechless as Steve ushered you over to the cake. "Make a wish!" He said softly as he put his arm around you.

You closed your eyes and made your wish.

And even though you knew that it was impossible, you still wished that Eddie could have been there.

"Happy Birthday!" Max yelled when you opened your eyes.

"How did you guys even get in here?" You said as you wrapped her up in a hug.

"I picked the lock, obviously." She shrugged as you moved to hug Lucas and Erica.

"She did not pick the lock," Steve added. "Because that would be breaking and entering and that's illegal, even if it would have been for a good cause." Max rolled her eyes and went to refill her cup.

"Where have you two been?" You asked Steve and Robin.

"We had to go pick up your gift!" Robin replied, hopping up on your counter and sticking her finger in the cake frosting.

"My gift?" You asked. "You didn't have to get me anything, your company is enough."

"Oh, we know." She replied with a sly smile. "This gift kind of forced our hand."

You looked at Steve for answers but he was looking over your shoulder. Your heart was hammering against your chest as you turned slowly to see Eddie standing in the middle of your living room with a silver bow sitting atop his head.

"How?" You gasped and before he could say anything, you leaped for him, wrapping your arms around his neck and your legs around his middle.

"Hi," was all that he was able to say in between the hundred kisses that you placed upon his lips. "I missed you, too."

"You said that you weren't going to be able to make it!" You exclaimed. "You had a show tonight!"

"We were able to postpone it," he replied. "Another band took our place and we're going to honor the tickets on another date." He took your chin in between his index finger and thumb and made you look at him. "I made a promise to you, and even though I have to be at the airport at 6:00 AM tomorrow, I couldn't miss your birthday."

"I love you so much." You told him.

"I love you, too." He replied as he sealed a kiss to your lips.

One by one, your friends filtered out of your home. You thanked each and every one of them for the best birthday that you could have ever asked for and made plans for them to come over on Christmas Eve for dinner and presents.

"You planned this didn't you?" You asked Dustin as you stood at the front door with him. "You knew the whole time." He only shrugged before winking terribly. You pulled him in for a hug and raked your knuckles over his scalp before letting him go. "See ya later, Shorty."

He stepped out onto the front porch and turned back to give you the middle finger. "Happy birthday, Asshole."

You closed the door behind him and locked the deadbolt, turning to see Eddie standing at the Christmas tree. You came up behind him and wrapped your arms around his middle, your head resting on his back. If you could just stay in this moment forever, and live in this happiness that you felt, you would. You would never let him go if you didn't have to.

"Babe, where's the star?" He asked curiously, his eyebrows furrowed.

"I couldn't reach it," you replied. "And it didn't feel right to finish without you."

He turned around to face you with your arms still wrapped around him. "You are so cute, you know?" He asked as he removed your arms from him and placed a kiss on the top of your head.

Eddie bent down to the box of Christmas decorations still sitting next to the tree and pulled out the star. He stuck it on top of the tree and plugged it into the outlet and suddenly the living room was filled with a beautiful yellow glow.

"Wait a minute," Eddie said, bending back down to the box of decorations. "You didn't want to put this ornament on the tree? But it's my favorite one!"

"Hm?" You turned to him to see Eddie on one knee with a dainty, diamond ring in his hands. "Oh," the breath was taken right out of your lungs. "Eddie-"

"Y/N," He began. "I wasn't planning on doing this until I got home from the tour, but I couldn't wait. When I said that there is nothing more important to me than you, I meant it. Will you spend the rest of your life with me?"

"I was already planning on it." You replied excitedly, meeting his lips with yours.

Eddie slipped the ring over your finger and laced his fingers with yours. "Happy birthday, Y/N. I love you."

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yesjazzywazzylove-blog · 21 days

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(Possible spoilers: be warned)

Hear me out.

Joel and Tommy get injured, but there is no "clubbing" (iykyk). Ellie gets to the chalet in time to witness the fight, but Abby and the crew escape. Seeing Joel injured, Ellie forgives him for Salt Lake City. When Joel and Tommy recover, they take the fight to Seattle with Ellie. Abby takes a dirt nap. Joel gets his sheep ranch and a few little Millers courtesy of my womb 😂 The end.

What would your ending be for Joel??

#joel miller #joel miller smut #joel miller fanfiction #joel miller x you #joel tlou #tlou #tlou2

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elliewilliamslover · 7 months

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The Archer

6. Do you mind?

Here is the Masterlist for this story

November 9th of 2034...

Y/n was in the back of a moving covered truck along with Owen, Abigail, Mel and the rest of the Salt Lake crew with Manny driving. A firefly pendant with the name Y/n L/n moved slightly with every movement the truck had made. She looked down at her feet, moving them from side to side every so often. Looking around at everyone sitting and quietly talking, then taking the firefly pendant around her neck off, holding it in her hands to fidget with it. A loud clink, followed by loud silence could be heard throughout the back of the truck as Y/n dropped the dog tag on the floor.

She quickly retrieved it off the ground, securing it back around her neck, looking at everyone who was looking at her. There weren't many as most of them went back to looking around or doing their own things, except for Abby Anderson. She had her eyes dead set on Y/n. She wouldn't lie and say she wasn't somewhat scared of her cause she was. After their first encounter at the hospital in Spring, they were separated, one side of the hospital was Abby's territory, the other was Y/n's. After the handprints of Abby's hands on her neck had faded away, taking three to four weeks to do so as Abby had been trying to choke her to her death, Owen had tried to get them to be in the same room together, which didn't end well.

"Why the fuck is she still here?" "Oh, like your everyone's cup of fucking sunshine." "Dump her in the city, see how long she lasts looking like that." "Looking like what? I can't possibly look as bad as you." Those were the only words heard throughout the small hospital cafeteria. "Get her out of here, I can't be in the same room with her." "Fuck you, Anderson." "Say my last name again, see what happens you cruel bitch." Abby yelled at Y/n, Manny starting to walk up to Abby, getting ready to take the blonde girl out of the room, Owen doing the same with Y/n. "Fuck you Abigail Anderson." Y/n yelled at her as they got escorted out of the cafeteria and walked back to their rooms.

"This is gonna take ages." Owen said under his breath, sighing. "She'll come around soon, and so will you, you do realize that you have to put in work too if you want this to work out." He said as they reached Y/n's room in one of the hospital wings. "I will if she does." Y/n responded plainly, scoffing at his words, sitting on the bed that had become her's in a little over three weeks. Moving back till she hit the backboard, putting her knees in her chest, resting her chin on them and focusing on the ground, ignoring Owen when he sat in a seat near a wall. A couple silent minutes went by until Owen asked her a question.

"What's going on in that brain of yours?" She let out a small chuckle, moving her focus onto him. "I'm just thinking." Y/n responded, looking down at her mom's bandanna tied around her wrist. "About what?" "My mom." She said turning back to him. "What was her name?" Owen asked hesitantly, looking her in the eye. "Tess. She had me four years after the world went to shit. She was an amazing mom. She cared about me so much, more than anyone else. She died almost a year ago. At the beginning of summer, we were taking Ellie, the immune girl, to the capitol building in Boston. We were gonna deliver her to the fireflies like Marlene said to, but when we got there, they were all dead and my mom kept saying how she wasn't going anywhere. Ellie then realized she was infected and it was true. She had a bite mark near her neck and we had to leave without her. I haven't spoke of or about her again until now."

"I'm sorry." He said, getting up from the chair to go sit on the bed. "Don't be, you didn't have anything to do with it." She said, moving her legs into a criss-cross position, fidgeting with her hands. "Same goes for you, you didn't have anything to do with what went on here. Like I said, it'll take time for Abby, she lost her dad, and so did-" "He's not my dad anymore, he never really acted like one." Y/n said to Owen, going back to fidgeting with her hands. "I wanted to give you something." Owen said, holding a closed hand out to her. She put her hand under his and he dropped a firefly dog tag in it. She inspected it, the name 'Y/n L/n.' was on the back of the pendant. "Since you're one of us now, I thought you might want one of those. I hope you don't mind that I put a different last name on there, thought you wouldn't want your original one there." He said, smiling at her. "Thank you, for everything you and the rest of your friends have done for me, it means everything to me." She said, giving him a side hug. "You're one of us now Y/n, one of our friends." He said, patting her on the back.

"That was the most cliche thing I've ever heard." Y/n said, laughing as he got off the bed and walked to the door. "I'm gonna go check on Ab's, I'll be back in a bit, maybe go see what Leah, Mel or Nora are doing when you get bored." And with that said, he left.

"Do you mind?" Y/n asked the blue eyed girl, who wouldn't stop staring in her direction. Abby slowly looked away from her, focusing on the ground. "Guys, we gotta stop for a bit, have to get some diesel out of these trucks up here." Manny said as the truck came to a halt, everyone got out to take a bathroom break. Y/n got out and walked for a minute into some greenery, checking around every now and then to make sure no one was around or infected. She sat down on a rock and listened to the birds in the trees chirping, taking out a knife from her bag, she grabbed a stick off the ground and started sharpening it to a point. As she was doing so, she heard a twig snap not too far away from her making her jump to her feet, looking behind her. When Y/n saw nothing, she turned around only to feel the knife taken out of her hand and held at her throat. When she looked into eyes, she saw the blue eyed girl holding her knife to her neck.

"What the fuck Anderson?" She said, hands now trembling. "You think you can just become one of us and make snarky comments at me like you're all high and mighty? Guess what, that shit is not gonna fly with me, I don't see you as a threat, I only see you as a mouse in a cat chase." She said in an aggressive tone to the girl against the tree who was now slightly bleeding on her neck with the small pressure Abby put on the knife. "I'm just a girl, trying to survive, I'm not a fucking threat." Y/n said as best as she could, holding her arms out to her side as a sign that she's not going to do anything.

"Really? Cause if you're fucking lying to my face right now and it turns out that you're actually a threat, your gonna be on your knees, begging for your life as I hold a gun to that pretty little face of yours." She said, lightly dragging the knife across Y/n's neck, a small whimper could be heard from Y/n as she squinted her eyes shut to block out the pain. Abby soon takes the knife off her neck, folding it, then throwing it onto the rock Y/n was sitting on before she came. "Your getting one fucking chance, you fuck it up, you're dead. You get it, Miller?" She said to the girl who was still against the tree, shaking. Y/n nods her head fast, eyes glued shut. "Good. We leave in five." Abby said, then diapered the way she came from. Y/n slid down the tree, sitting at the trunk, wiping a small amount of blood off her neck. She sat for some moments, gaining her composure. She took her knife, placing it in her pocket and starting back towards the trucks.

She never got to take a bathroom break.

March 2038...

"Mel, your back." Abby said, moving Mel's backpack to see blood and a big gouge. "Holy shit Mel." Y/n said, looking at her back. The truck pulled into the back of the infirmary, letting Mel and a soldier off the truck. Abby had helped Mel down the truck, turning around to grab her backpack, giving it to her. Meanwhile, Y/n couldn't take her eyes off her as she watched Abby's bicep as it flexed while she handed Mel her pack. Abby turned her head to look at Y/n out of the corner of her eye making Y/n catch on that she was, she quickly looked at the apartment building they were slowly approaching.

When they came to a stop, Manny, Abby and Y/n got out of the back as a soldier took Alice to a kennel. Manny and Abby talked for a bit as Y/n took a walk around the parking lot filled with military vehicles. She walked up the stairs and draped her arms on a railing looking at Abby having a conversation with Manny. When she turned to the door to enter, she saw a shiny circle on the ground next to her foot. Y/n picked it up and inspected it, she flipped it around and read the back of it. "California, 2001." She said to herself.

Manny and Abby soon came up the stairs and saw Y/n leaning on the wall twirling something in her hand. "Whatcha got there Y/n?" Manny said to her, pointing at her hand. "I got a little gift for the princess." She said, holding a closed hand out to her. She put her hand under Y/n's and she dropped the coin in it. "Shit, thanks Y/n, 2001." Abby said, putting it in her bag then giving her a side hug. Walking into the FOB, they turned left and saw a WLF soldier. "Hey, we're checking in." Y/n said, looking at the girl standing, writing on a piece of paper. "Hey you three." "What you got for us?" "No assignment, just says report to Isaac." She said looking at the paper. "The three of us?" Manny said, looking at Y/n and Abby then back to the soldier. "Yeah." She said, writing down that they had showed up. Y/n took another walk about, trying to avoid going into the torture-building. "Y/n!" Abby said, calling her over. "Coming." She responded, sighing. They walked through the infirmary and saw Mel getting stitched up.

"Speak of the devils." They heard in a raspy voice. "Hey Nora." Y/n said, smiling at the girl wearing nurse equipment around her neck. "You guys need to convince this girl to relax." Mel said to the three of them standing around Mel. "Hey Mel, relax." Abby said, making Y/n chuckle. "You got it." She said, clicking her tongue and making a finger gun gesture. "Hey, I need some muscle, could you guys give me a hand with something?" Nora said to Manny, Y/n and Abby. Y/n was confused as to why Nora needed her since she didn't have nearly as much muscle as Manny or Abby.

They followed her out to another small building that looked similar to the infirmary from the outside. "I need to show you guys something." Nora said, opening the door. "What is it?" "Follow me." As soon as they entered, the smell of rotting meat hit their noses, making them immediately cover their noses in an attempt to block the stench out. "Holy fuck." Y/n said, looking around at all the body bags. "Are these all ours?" Abby said, looking around as well. "Yeah, and more are coming in by the hour." Nora said, leading them into another part.

"You can't tell Mel, all right?" She said, stopping and kneeling in front of a body bag on the ground. "Who's in that body bag?" Abby asked Nora, making Y/n feel even more queasy to her stomach. "Who is it Nora?" She said hoping it's not who she thinks it is. Nora zipped open the bag, pulling the two sides apart for them to see the body. "Holy shit, its Danny." Manny said, making Y/n look away with trembling knees, Abby turned away putting her hands on her hips. "Where's Owen?" Abby said, turning to face Nora. "I don't know, a few days back, there were some Scar sightings out by the marina. Danny and Owen were sent on a sweep. This morning, the guards found Danny collapsed by the perimeter fence. He had walked back with a bullet in his stomach." Nora said with a shaky voice. "¡Pinches Scars! ¡Hijos de puta!" Manny said, zipping the body bag up. 'So what about Owen? Did you ask Isaac what happened?" "I tried, but he gave me that fucking look and told me to keep quiet so you guys can't say shit." "Wheres Isaac?" Y/n said trying to vacate as soon as possible. "We'll be discreet." Abby said, looking at Nora. "Last I heard he was in the apartments.

They entered the building, making a right and walking down the hall. Y/n was ahead of them as they talked. She walked in front of the cells, hearing the Scars muttering words like "It's her..." and many more. Y/n walked up to a cell, only for the Scar in it to back up until they hit the cell next to them. She then walked up to the elevator meeting Abby and Manny there, where a soldier was sitting, reading a book. "Hey guys." "We need to go up." "Isaac's in there, he said to get him when you three arrive, Come on." He said, leading us to a door on the left. He opened it and they saw someone Isaac was torturing, most likely for information. Y/n along with Abby, turned the other way, not wanting to look. The trio and Isaac went into the elevator, Manny and Isaac talking in front of Y/n and Abby. She sneaked glances at Abby whenever she was looking a different way until they made it to the floor.

Walking into one of the apartments, Y/n stood next to Abby as they watched Isaac talk. "There's a big storm a few days out, we're going to use it to mask our approach. You three are going to lead the first wave. Pick your squads, start prepping, except for you Y/n, you're with Abby on this." He said, all of them standing around a map on the table. "We want Owen, when are he and Danny coming back?" Abby said to Isaac, who saw right through her. "Who talked? Nora? No secrets between the Salt Lake crew, right?" He said, grabbing an apple out of a fruit bowl, taking a few bites out of it. "We got one shot at this. This is bigger than any of us, definitely bigger than Owen." Abby crossed her arms over her chest, looking at the floor when he said that. He spoke to her then left. Abby walked up to a window and looked out of it. "Owen wouldn't have killed Danny over some Scar, right?" Y/n said as she looked out the window. Abby turned around, fidgeting with her hands. "What? No, Abby don't."

"I'll be back by morning, you guys just gotta cover for me till then." She said quickly, making Y/n's eyes go straight from the window to Abby's. "Ab's you can't." She said, lightly grabbing the girl's forearm. "If Owen's out there, how in the hell are you going to find him?" He said, watching her and Y/n's eyes trail to the Ferris Wheel. "I know where he'll go." Y/n didn't like Abby's idea at all, but whatever she was thinking,

She wanted in on it.

#abby anderson #abby anderson x reader #ellie williams #ellie williams x reader #the last of us #the last of us part 2 #tlou #tlou 2 #abby the last of us #abby tlou

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20th-century-railroading · 3 months

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UP North Yard in Salt Lake City

With a colorful block of K-Line containers in tow, UP's North Platte - Milpitas premium intermodal train glides into North Yard for a crew change the morning of Sept. 19, 1992. Viewed from the UP employee skybridge, one can see an SW10 working a cut of cars along Top End Tower. On the right of the photo are switches with spurs that lead to a large gravel pit on the east side of Beck Street and the Amoco Refinery. This portion of North Yard, at 13th North, is bordered by Swedetown, a neighborhood on the east side of the yard. The Rose Park neighborhood, the Rio Grande Ogden main line and I-15 border the west side.

#up #union pacific #1992 #trains #freight train #history #salt lake city #utah

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falcqns · 1 year

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𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐛𝐢𝐠 𝐤𝐧𝐢𝐟𝐞

◎ pairing: Joel Miller & Ellie Williams

◎ summary: after Silver Lake, all Joel can focus on is his girl.

◎ warnings: Post Ep 8, slight mention of D*vid, insinuations of SA and canon typical violence, blood, Joel finally admitting Ellie is his daughter, mentions of Sarah

◎ a/n: my first TLOU fic!! i hope you like it! tagging @natashasera like always <3

Joel had never truly realized how small Ellie was. He knew she was little, a small girl of only 14, but until now, when he was cradling her in his arms, he realized how small she was. This child, the child that he told Marlene and Tess that he didn’t want, that he shouldn’t be entrusted with, was small. Too small. But then again, he hadn’t been around a child her age for 20 years.

He watched as her chest rose and fell with each breath she took. They’d managed to make it to a small abandoned cottage close to Salt Lake City, but far enough from Silver Lake to keep Joel’s throat from closing up. Seeing Ellie, his kid, stumble from that burning building covered in blood, ponytail falling apart, was a sight he never wanted to see again, as long as he lived. All he wanted to do now was get her to the Fireflies, let them run their tests, and then take her back to Jackson. To their farmhouse, number 38. Even though they’d only spent a night there, he could see himself, and his new-found daughter, living there.

He wanted to help her redo the bedroom that she had claimed. Repaint the walls, get a new, bigger bed. The biggest he could find. Fill the room with all the pillows and blankets he could find and trade for in Jackson. Maybe add some string lights, like ones hanging on the main strip in the town. Find her things to do with space. Books, posters, figurines, anything. Anything and everything she wanted. He wanted to give her a bedroom where nothing bad had ever happened. No tears, no fighting, no ‘you’re not my daughter, and I sure as hell ain’t your dad.’ Because the truth was, she was his the second he laid eyes on her.

And could anyone blame him? He may have lost his daughter 20 years ago, but that paternal feeling, the feeling of needing to protect those smaller than you, didn’t go away. It remained, spreading through his whole body, like the virus. And like the fungus, it exploded out. The second he laid eyes on Ellie Williams, on the ground at his feet, glaring up at him, he was screwed.

Ellie’s legs began to slip off of his lap, and the motion jerked him out of the trance he was in, watching her chest rise and fall as she slept. He cleared his throat quietly, and picked up the wet cloth he’d been using to wipe off the blood caked to Ellie’s pale skin. He’d managed to check her over for any breaks earlier, but hadn’t gotten the chance to clean her up, in his panic to keep her alive.

They’d been walking for hours. Both of them were tired, ready to fall asleep standing up. But, Joel had been determined to push on. The man who took his Ellie was dead, but that didn’t mean his followers were. He wanted to get them as far away from Silver Lake as possible. He stopped though, when Ellie collapsed. Fell, into the snow. Had Joel not been gripping her so tightly, making sure he didn’t let go, he may not even have known she’d collapsed. That’s when he spotted the abandoned cottage. He knelt down next to her, and checked her over.

He pushed away the sides of his coat, and reached for the brown crew neck she had on. He lifted it up, trying to get a good look at her ribs. A large red, purple and blue bruise was blossoming on her rib. “‘m sorry, baby girl,” he whispered, before, as gently as he could, poked and prodded her midsection, trying to see if she’d broken any ribs. From his inspection, she’d broken at least one, but it was low enough that it didn’t endanger her lungs. He lowered her sweater down, and continued his inspection. There were no other injuries that he could detect, and as long as she wasn’t bleeding internally, she had simply collapsed from exhaustion. He cradled her head in his elbow, and slid his other arm under her legs, groaning as he stood and lifted her. After a breath, he continued on to the small cottage in the distance.

Joel lowered the cloth once her face was free from any blood. Her nose appeared to at least be fractured, but other than that, she seemed okay. Physically, at least. He dropped the cloth onto the bed next to him, and lifted her legs back up. As he held them, he remembered the last time he held his other baby girl.

Sarah would have loved Ellie. If Sarah had lived, she would be 34. And knowing his Sarah, she would have been attached to Ellie right away. Joel had always known Sarah would be a mother, and after meeting Ellie, he knew she would have thought of the younger girl as her own. She was great with children, and always talked of being a teacher when she was younger. He just wished she was here, so Ellie could have a female figure to look up to. Something neither of his daughters had, he realized.

He sniffled, as a tear ran down his face. He gently laid Ellie’s legs down, and lifted her up, so they were chest to chest. Her head flopped around briefly, before snuggling into his neck. His right hand settled on her lower back as he slowly began to rock her, while his other buried itself in her messy hair.

He had been so scared, when he woke up and she was gone. He couldn’t lose her. He’d lost one daughter, and that’d been one too many. Ellie needed to survive, so he can give her the life she deserved.

Ellie whimpered, her head moving around briefly, and Joel found himself shushing her like he would a newborn baby fussing. But yet, he couldn’t find it in himself to care. Someone had hurt his baby girl. Hurt this small, skinny child. She wasn’t defenceless, in fact she could defend herself better than he could defend her, but she was 14. She shouldn’t have to worry about anything other than who she had a crush on at her age.

As he sat there, against the wall off the cottage, cradling his Ellie in his arms, he vowed to make sure no one ever touched her again. No one would harm her, bruise or break her porcelain skin. She would never have to defend herself again. Not while he was alive to protect her.

Just because her small hand was able fit around her too big knife, it didn’t mean it should.

#the last of us imagine #the last of us #joel x ellie #joel miller #ellie williams #pedro pascal #pedro pascal fic #joel miller fanfiction #ellie williams fanfic #bella ramsey

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randomgirlreading · 15 days

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I don’t know if anyone else is on tree planter TikTok, but can you image a TLOU tree planter AU!?!?!

Like imagine Ellie freshly nineteen, freshly out of foster care, a little aimless and wanting to run away from things in the US (either because of stuff with David or because of Riley’s death) so she moves to Canada and gets a job planting trees. And who runs the camp? Non other than a grumpy old man named Joel!

He doesn’t think she can make it through the season so he writes her off at first, but he slowly finds out that she is not want he thought and finds himself looking out for her.

Dina and Jesse can be there and maybe the Salt Lake City crew too.

Idk but I feel like there is definitely something to this AU and I wanted to share the thought. Lol.

#ellie williams #ao3 fanfic #tlou fanfiction #fanfiction ideas #joel tlou #ellie the last of us #joel miller #joel the last of us #tlou AU idea

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alixennial · 11 months

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Limsa Lominsa & La Noscea (1/3)

Barracuda Piers, Limsa Lominsa

These docks provide safe mooring for the Thalassocratic Navy's principal squadrons, also known as the Crimson Fleet. To prevent sabotage, admittance to the area is forbidden to the general citizenry; however, on clear days, one may catch a glimpse of the armada flagship, the Triumph, from atop one of Limsa Lominsa's myriad spans.

The Astalicia, Limsa Lominsa

Registered as a trade vessel hailing from foreign waters, this battle-scarred warship captained by the lord of the region's underworld, One-eyed Hyllfyr, serves as a gathering place for brigands, cutthroats, and the purveyors of sundry other breeds of villainy. It is here that the city-state's pirate crews find new recruits to join their ranks.

Seasong Grotto, Middle La Noscea

Nestled within a shallow cavern situated to the south of Summerford Farms sits an ancient monolith upon is carved this, the Sailor's Requiem: "I am the waves that bear, I am the winds that guide. I am the evening stars, I am the morning sky. I am born of the sea, and there I shall die."

The Skylift, Middle La Noscea

Once an endless expanse of flat, rocky meadows, Middle La Noscea is now severed by a sheer cliff known as the Descent. To maintain overland trade routes from the easterly outposts of Aleport and Bronze Lake, Lominsan engineers created the Skylift - a tower of wooden scaffolding outfitted with pulleys, winches, and lighter-than-air balloons.

La Thagran Eastroad, Middle La Noscea

When the Galadion fell victim to the Navigator's fury and ran aground on the southern shores of Vylbrand seven hundred years ago, it was her two helmsmen, Jean De Nevelle and Guy La Thagran, who were tasked with exploring the newfound island - the former heading east, the latter, west. To this day, their routes still serve as La Noscea's two main thoroughfares.

The Salt Strand, Lower La Noscea

When struck by a fallen shard from Dalamud's outer shell, a massive amount of concentrated aether was released from just below the surface of the Rhotano Sea, immediately fusing with and crystallizing the towering fount of saltwater which was expelled during the impact. City-state-funded exploratory forays into the inner crater have all yet to return…

Red Rooster Stead, Lower La Noscea

The farmers on the Red Rooster Stead will rarely shy from testing the agricultural acumen on exotic crops or untested growing methods, and take pride in their willingness to sacrifice a harvest if it means a better yield an autumn hence. The plantation's name is said to be taken from the bloody cockfights held after nightfall by the gamekeeps.

Brewer's Beacon, Western La Noscea

This relatively new lighthouse was built soon after the Calamity claimed Swiftperch Tower to ensure safe passage for trade vessels carrying shipments of dark stouts and blonde barleywines out of Aleport. In addition, the candlekeeps also keep watch for increasingly frequent rogue tidal waves caused by the stirrings of the Lord of the Whorl.

Indie's Sightseeing Log

Limsa Lominsa & La Noscea (1/3) Limsa Lominsa & La Noscea (2/3) Limsa Lominsa & La Noscea (3/3)

Gridania & The Black Shroud (1/3) Gridania & The Black Shroud (2/3) Gridania & The Black Shroud (3/3)

Ul'dah & Thanalan (1/3) Ul'dah & Thanalan (2/3) Ul'dah & Thanalan (3/3)

Mor Dhona (1/1)

Ishgard & The Coerthas Highlands (1/3) Ishgard & The Coerthas Highlands (2/3) Ishgard & The Coerthas Highlands (3/3)

Dravania (1/4) Dravania (2/4) Dravania (3/4) Dravania (4/4)

Abalathia's Spine (1/3) Abalathia's Spine (2/3) Abalathia's Spine (3/3)

#limsa lominsa #la noscea #ffxiv landscape #ffxiv sightseeing log #indie's adventures #indie has been working through her sightseeing log #everything is so pretty T_T #time of day and weather is accurate for the log entries but a lot of these pics are not taken from the actual vista position #because sometimes the view is prettier from other angles #text from in-game sightseeing log descriptions #ffxiv

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cranberryjuice-posts · 5 months

Text

Sarcastic man hating Lesbian Y/n if she was in tlou

Pairings - Abby X fem! reader, the Salt Lake City Crew X platonic reader

———

Random WLF Girl - hey y/n we Need to talk.

Y/n - uh.. ok

Random WLF Girl - look so I know you and manny have been hanging out a lot more recently but just so you know he’s mine.

Y/n - girl.. what the fuck does that have to do with me

Random WLF Girl - I know you like him!

Y/n - …right idea wrong person babe

———

Owen - all I’m saying is that your plan to to attack the scars is stupid

Y/n - ok and I think the way you act is fucking stupid but I wasn’t asking you ok

———

Owen - What’s more important huh? Doing the assignment like Issac has intended for us or going after some rumor about some stray pregnant dogs

Y/n - Abby~ I can’t do it alone.. pleasssee *purposely shifting so your cleavage is more noticeable*

Abby - *looking down and sighing*

Manny - and we lost her

———

Nora & Mel - *standing aside watching you and Owen fight*

Owen - You don’t get to talk to me like that

Y/n - And you need to shut the fuck up when grown women are talking!

Owen - I—

Y/n - SHUT the fuck up! When grown women talking!

———

Mel - thanks for doing my hair y/n

Y/n - of course I always cut your hair melon *kisses her cheek*

Owen - *walks into the room* woahh someone looks pretty

Y/n - and it certainly isn’t you

Mel - dude..

———

Y/n - I fucking hate men

Manny & Owen - we know

———

Y/n - *bleeding out*

Nora - she’s loosing blood! Y/n look at me what’s your type

Y/n - really hot blonde girls with muscles and a passion for revenge

Nora - blood type dumbass

———

Owen — *thinks he’s telling a joke but it’s actually stupid*

Y/n - *chuckles and points gun at him* I will shoot you

———

Y/n - manny what the fuck! If you hook up with someone at-least have them take their underwear home with them *tosses blue bra at him*

Manny - keep that same energy when you leave your shit here after your nights with Abby

Y/n - 🧍‍♀️🧍‍♀️

———

Leah - are there any drugs in the apartment

Y/n - if there are you better find them and give them to me immediately… no there’s no weed in the apartment

Leah - you sure Nora said you can’t smoke while hurt

Y/n - yeah I’m sure if there is I’ll find it and give it away it’s not a big deal ‘ouhhh there’s drugs in the house ahh we’re all gonna die’

———

Manny - hey man I don’t think that’s how your supposed to change a light bulb

Y/n - oh my fucking bad Tomas Edison why don’t you come over here and show me how to do it

———

Jordan - you didn’t cry when bambis mom died?!

Y/n - yes it was very sad when the guy stopped drawing the dear

———

Owen - *tells plan for an assignment*

Y/n - Owen that’s actually a really good idea

Owen - really?!

Y/n - no.

———

Y/n - *anxiously packing to leave an assignment early because she heard Abby had gotten injured*

Jordan - wait where are you going

Y/n - to the clicker convention down the road WHERE DO YOU THINK IM GOING!

———

That’s it lmk if y’all want a pt 2

#lesbian #wlw #abby anderson x reader #tlou #the last of us #sarcasm #tlou fanfiction #the last of us fanfiction

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iamprchung · 3 months

Text

The Spider and the FBI: Part 7 "Paradise Syndrome"

Synopsis by guest writer Jose Chung (written prior to his apparent death at the hands of the Nostradamus Nutball):

Now, grab your Stetsons, conspiracy cowboys, 'cause we're moseying on over to Elmo, Wyoming. Here, amidst the questionable barbeque and dazzling fireworks of the 4th of July festivities, we find Agent Scully embroiled in a situation more perplexing than a malfunctioning weather balloon.

In strides Sheriff Lawrence Durokoff, a man carved from the same government-issue granite as Assistant Director Skinner, only with a grin brighter than a chrome bumper on a brand-new pickup truck. Was it a case of cloning gone wrong? Or perhaps long-lost twins separated by, well, let's just say a misplaced birth certificate (we can delve into government conspiracies all day, but identical twins are a stretch even for this jaded scribe).

The truth, as always, is stranger than the wildest fan fiction. The undeniable spark between Scully and Sheriff Durokoff has tongues wagging about a future filled with calico dresses and prairie sunburns instead of chasing shadows in the bureaucratic labyrinth. Is our favorite redhead about to trade her badge for a butter churn? Only time, and perhaps a strategically placed horseshoe (it's a small town, after all) will tell!

Notes: Yes, I sure did title this after a Star Trek episode.

"Paradise Syndrome"

Part VIII of "The Spider and the FBI"

by PR Chung

Preface/Notes:

Just reading through this, even after all these years, I recognize exactly where one of my very best friends and amazing author assisted with this story. I know her work is still out there somewhere as she was one of the originals in the X-Files fiction fandom, authoring stories that are still amazing. None other than the very talented Paula B. Her ability to turn a phrase cannot be surpassed, and it’s a joy to read passages I know she helped on.

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

Elmo, Wyoming July 4th

By the time she hung up the phone from her conversation with Mulder, Scully's hair was nearly dry from her shower. She got up from the bed and went to the window, drawing back the curtains of her hotel room to look out on the street below.

Nothing much had changed except for the layer of increasing smoke drifting up through the trees from the square. How many barbecues were going? She wondered. And what were they cooking? Burgers and hot dogs? Roasting corn snugly rolled in foil? Brisket and ribs, too?

Her stomach gurgled.

Trying to remember the last meal she'd eaten she turned to go check on her blouse. It was hanging to dry in the bathroom after a lame attempt to clean it in the porcelain basin. It was a very nice bathroom, just not very functional.

The entire room was very nice, as was the whole hotel. Small and quaint, just a few rooms sitting atop a gift shop and cafe. Heavy in small town charm and light on the amenities; a bed, chest of drawers, mirror, and nightstand. No television, no radio, and the phone had to be brought up specially for her room, as had the one taken into Skinner's room down the hall.

His would undoubtedly be of heavier use than hers she presumed as she touched the still damp fabric of her blue blouse. He wasn't pleased in the least about either the situation or the location, and he apparently wanted out as fast as humanly possible.

He had been on the phone at the Sheriff's station the entire time it took to get Bernstein squared away in the holding cell. There was nothing but skeleton crews of federal workers manning the phones in Denver and Salt Lake City. Calling Washington hadn't been much help either; apparently all he had gotten was an ear full of instructions to get Bernstein back there for trial- come hell or high water.

Sure, they could get a flight out of Laramie or Cheyenne in the morning or even tonight if they were lucky enough that the agents from the Casper field operation should show up. But things were looking ugly up there, suspicion of terrorism and arrests sparking upset among the jingoistic masses. It was just another unpleasant federal incident in the making.

Aside from becoming another bout of bad press for the bureau, this whole Casper thing had gummed up the works, delaying agents that Mulder had needed, and now, still, those she and Skinner needed.

Mulder could have gone forever, and would have, if she hadn't interrupted his denunciation of every federal employee he had dealt with during the last twenty-four hours. She could tell he hadn't slept by just the shear amount of information he was trying to pack into a single conversation followed by a spate of questions.

She was sure there would be more questions when he finally arrived in a few hours. After muttering something about manic helicopter pilots, he had said was going to drive to Elmo, which concerned her if he hadn't slept, but once Mulder was set on doing something there was generally no swaying him from it.

A sudden resonant sound of a band practicing drew her attention back to the street below her hotel window, where she caught sight of Sheriff Durokoff.

Self-consciously she took a step back from the window not wanting to be discovered in just her bra. At a careful distance from the window, she watched him across the street and stop there in the shade, talking pleasantly with others.

The sound started up again, a guitar... being tested on an amplifier. Curious, she searched through the trees trying to see, hearing the strong chords of a bluesy country-rock song she couldn't name being played by fits and starts.

The trees were just too thick. She couldn't see a thing and gave up and turned back to look at more interesting things— He was gone. The people he'd been talking to were still there, mulling around and talking, but Durokoff was gone.

Crap. She'd see more of him later, but it was unlikely she would get another chance to covertly study him at length, to examine the similarities between him and Skinner.

His cousin, she concerned. How bizarre, she thought and smiled. Of all the towns they should end up in, after all they had gone through, they just happen to hit the one tiny patch of earth containing another Skinner- or rather a Durokoff. Their mothers were sisters undoubtedly, or perhaps a remarriage had caused the difference in names. She analyzed the possible branches of genealogy.

Like an impression of the sun Durokoff's smile was emblazoned on her retinas. He wasn't the consummate small town, no non-sense Sheriff, all bluster, and intimidation when it came to federal involvement.

He didn't like Bernstein, and he had been to the point with the man, swiftly locking him away in the blunt bowels of the Elmo holding cells, but during the entire time at the Sheriff's station he had still managed to be cheerful and lighthearted. She thought she'd even seen him give her a quick wink at one point.

The un-Skinner, she thought and nearly laughed out loud.

Not completely, though, the similarities remained, and were so great in certain respects that she had found herself deferring to Durokoff the same as if he were Skinner. A certain turn of a phrase, a look, a motion, everything about him stirred an almost constant sense of surprise and amusement in her.

Two Skinner's could be a rather daunting concept for some, but it didn't seem like such a bad idea to her.

A solid knocking sounded at the door of her room yanked her out of that thought, audibly startling her.

"Agent Scully?" a muffled voice called through the door, concerns seeping through the woodgrain.

"Just a minute," she called, rushing to grab her top.

Lawrence Durokoff stood in the hall listening to the muffled scurrying sounds beyond the door, arched his brows. Perhaps she wasn't alone in there, he thought and glanced down the hall toward his cousin's room which he'd discovered was empty only a moment before he tried her room.

"Is there a problem?" Durokoff turned at the sound of Skinner's voice. He was coming down the hall from the stairs, his eyes pinched and his jaw set.

"No. No problem here." He answered taking a step back from the door to address Skinner. Well, he wasn't in there. So, what's going on?

The door jerked open suddenly, a flush faced Scully looked back at the two men. Her eyes darted back and forth between the two of them, questions pooling.

"Uh, hi." She greeted the two of them, holding the hem of her blouse out and away from herself, it was still damp and almost transparent when it contacted her body. "Is something wrong?" She finally asked when neither one of them spoke.

“You two sure are shellshocked.” He commented, glancing amusedly between the two of them. “Nothing wrong,” he told her, and glanced at Skinner, “and no problems.”

Durokoff held out a small satchel to Scully. "I had one of the deputies gather some things together for you," he explained as she took.

"Thank you," Scully said glancing inside it to see what appeared at first glance to be a tee shirt still in the plastic packaging, a hairbrush, and a few basic items of make-up.

Skinner averted his gaze from the scene shifting the plastic bag he was carrying from one hand to the other. Durokoff glanced back at his cousin holding out another bag, a half-sized duffel. "I got some clothes for you and some shaving stuff."

Skinner's hand went to his face, feeling the growth of beard stubble. What a pig he must have looked like, he ruefully thought and glanced at Scully. "Thanks."

The sound of music drifted into the hall through Scully's room from outside; a hearty rendition of Bad Moon Rising being played in the square.

"Well, uh," Durokoff muttered planting his hands on his hips, looking between the two of them. "I guess you've figured out there's a little party starting outside. There's plenty of food and music," he made a brief gesture toward the sound of the music past Scully's shoulder. "I've come to extend the official Elmo invitation for you both to join us."

Scully's stomach gurgled urging her to accept the invitation.

* "... I see the bad moon a rising. I see trouble on the way..." *

Skinner spoke before she could. "Food sounds great, but I don't think we should get distracted. We're still on duty here."

"No distractions," Durokoff said and grinned. "Just good food. I've got plenty of people keeping an eye on that Bernstein joker, so you can stop worrying about him. Just come on down to the square when you're ready and make yourselves at home."

* "... I see bad times on their way..."*

"I may just rest some." Skinner said quietly.

Speak for yourself, Scully thought. "I'd be happy to sample the local flavor. I can't remember my last real meal."

* "I know the end is coming soon..." *

"Great," Durokoff blurted, zealously slapping his hands together. "I'll see you down there, Agent Scully." He said and turned to go, saying to his cousin as he went, "I hope you'll come down, too, once you get some rest, Walter."

* "...don't go 'round tonight... It's bound to take your life..." *

"Here," Skinner said, unceremoniously extending a plastic bag to Scully.

She blinked pulling her gaze off his departing cousin. "What's this?" She asked, taking the bag.

"A toothbrush and paste." He answered already halfway to his room down the hall.

"Thank you..." she leaned out the door calling back to him, but his door had already shut, leaving her alone in the hall.

Back inside her room, she picked through the duffel finding a new tee-shirt, boasting a silk screen print that read 'Second Annual 4th of July Celebration, Elmo, Wyoming'. She frowned reading it.

Only their second? She wondered and moved on to inspect the rest of the items. The mascara would work fine and the lipstick too if she only dabbed it on, it was just a little too dark for her taste, but the blush would have to go, it was far too red.

Grateful for necessities, she snatched up the brush and plastic bag, heading to the bathroom. Her hair was frightful. Could she get it to behave even if she did re-wet it and brush it straight out? No beauty contest is going on that I know of right now, she told herself, yanking first paste from the plastic bag, then the toothbrush— and stopped.

She looked at it, confused at first by what she saw. Turning the brush over in she found a small decal stamped on the handle; a little stagecoach in motion with a name drifting behind it like dust from the wheels. The name wasn't Dana, though... It was Kate.

She looked at that a second before she realized and glanced back, her thoughts on the room down the hall. Dana wasn’t a common name emblazoned on any gift shop trinket. She looked down at the toothbrush.

He’d gotten the next closest.

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

The when the music began Skinner opened his eyes, hearing the chords that were undeniably familiar aside from the performers’ ad-libbing. Before finally getting up to go to the window, he laid on the bed listening to the guitar playing down in the square wrenching out Sleepwalk.

It wasn't great, but it was close, he critiqued pulling back the gossamer curtains to look out. Anyway, the slower, more sedate sounds were a nice break from the honky tonkin,’ rambunctious stuff they'd been playing for the last hour.

He would have liked to have blamed his inability to sleep on the music, but he doubted he could have slept if he were in a soundproof room with no windows. There was just too much weighing on his mind to allow sleep to come easily. There was still no call from the special agent in charge up in Casper, no word on when they could expect more agents. At least Mulder was on his way, that fact, in the strangest of ways helped ease his concerns in some.

Once he got there, they could continue on to Laramie, get Bernstein drugged to the hilt and on a plane and back to DC by Monday at the latest. That would still give them a day before the arraignment hearing and get the federal prosecutor and Attorney General out of his hair.

Skinner chuckled to himself. If ever there was a figure of speech...

A glimpse of red drew his attention to the street below. There walked one of his other concerns: Scully was heading across to the town square.

Damn.

From out of the cover of the trees came Lawrence, a huge smile plastered across his face.

And there came the next concern.

Of all the damn places to end up in why the hell did they have to end up here? Eighteen years of peace shattered in a single day. Peace, yes, but not complete disconnection. There had always been word floating through the family about who was doing what and where they were.

He had known when Lawrence finally made Sheriff here, he'd actually been invited to a party to celebrate the event. He knew it hurt Aunt Anne and Bulah when he didn't respond. He had been busy, and just didn't feel like dealing with it again.

Skinner watched as two boys scurried between Scully and Lawrence, almost bumping into her as they went. He watched Scully laugh about it and talk cheerfully as Lawrence guided her into the park, disappearing beyond the thick canopy of tree branches.

His heart sank almost in time with the lamenting cry of the guitar playing. Too much time had passed, he thought, but things hadn't changed much...

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

Norwalk, Ohio December 1st, 1963

There just wasn’t a whole lot to do, and all the adults were still shuffling around, overwhelmed by the news out of Dallas a little over a week before. It felt like the world, at least their part of it had come to stand still after the news of the president’s assassination.

Heavy and silent, the day pressed in around two small figures scuffing through turned leaves. It was Sunday after Thanksgiving, not much to do between the time Church was done and time for supper, except track around in the woods, down by trestle and maybe, if luck were good, a train would pass on its way into Cedar Point.

But come tomorrow, Monday was going to be the start of a whole new experience...

"Will there be a lot of girls there?"

"Sure will. Who do you think we're gonna dance with, Walter, each other?"

Walter pulled the collar of his red plaid coat up closer to his neck, shivering against the sudden cold breeze. "But a lot of them?" he asked, concerned.

"I don't know," Lawrence looked at him closely, "why, are you scared?"

Walter shrugged and stuffed his hands deep in the warmth of his Tuff-Skin pockets. "No. I was just wondering."

"I think you're scared. You're scared of the girls." Lawrence began to laugh. Walter blushed making his cousin laugh even harder. "Cubby's afraid of the girls."

"I'm not. And stop calling me that stupid name."

"Cubby, Cubby, Cubby." He chanted, jogging in a circle around Walter.

"I don't even look like that kid, knock it off!" Walter hauled off and shoved Lawrence knocking him off balance.

"You got the ears."

"So, what if I have mouse ears? You've got that stupid coonskin hat, and I know your cat gave it fleas cause you're always scratching your head when you wear it!"

"I don't scratch my head!" Lawrence proclaimed, his voice cracking hard. "And I wasn't talkin'bout your dumb Mickey Mouse ears. I meant your ears!"

"So! You scratch your head so much you're gonna scratch all your hair off and then see how many girls you dance with."

"You're dumb." Lawrence spat shoving Walter.

"You're stupid." Walter spat back, regaining his balance.

"You're fat."

The comment fell on deaf ears, Walter wasn't listening to his cousin, something else had caught his attention, a rustling sound close by. Lawrence tried shoving him again, but Walter didn't budge, he remained steady and fixed on the sound. "Cut it out... Listen..." he said, adjusting his glasses.

Lawrence listened, hearing the sound he frowned. "What is that?"

Walter shook his head and started forward, following the rustling.

They walked carefully though the brittle layer of leaves covering the ground, listening intently, checking the bare trees around them for some sign of what the sound was.

"There," Lawrence blurted, his arm shooting straight out from his body as he pointed toward the trees ahead of them. "It's a kite!"

"It was a kite," Walter corrected his cousin who had started for the tree the tattered kite was caught in.

"Oh, wow, look," Lawrence excitedly called out when he peered up at the object. "It's not torn or nothing, look, Walter. Look."

Walter stepped up next to him, peering up. "Nope. It's not torn or nothing."

"Wow."

"But it's also up a tree."

Without a word Lawrence reached up and grabbed a low branch in each hand.

"What are you doing?" Walter sounded more accusatory than he did inquiring.

"I'm gonna get it."

"It's just junk, Lawrence." He told him and shook his head when he saw that he wasn't being listened to.

Lawrence struggled up through the bare branches, losing purchase several times as deader ones broke off under his weight, but somehow managing to only go higher rather than fall back down. It wouldn't be long though...

"You're gonna fall. You better not go any higher!" Walter yelled; his neck bent back until it hurt now to see his cousin. How high was he going go before he would see that kite was just junk, all busted up and worthless?

"I got it!" Lawrence shouted triumphantly.

Walter watched as he waved the ragged kite before him like some trophy for endurance and strength.

It was about then a loud crack sounded.

Clear and loud, like bones cracking, the branch Lawrence was resting his butt on breaking cut through the chilly air.

Walter saw the look in Lawrence's eyes when he realized things had gone very bad- black and huge with fear. He shrieked and Walter thought he sounded like a girl in the instant before his cousin plummeted through the branches and crashed to the ground on his side.

He lay there on his side; his back curved like a hula-hoop and his legs turned in crazy angles that didn't look right at all. His mouth was moving but there was no sound, he was sucking air in, and his eyes were squeezed shut so hard Walter couldn't see his eyelashes when he got up close.

"Holy smokes! Are you all right? Are you all right?"

Finally, and with an intensity like Walter had never heard in his life, a horrible noise came out of Lawrence's mouth: a ragged scream that degenerated into a gut-wrenching bawling. "My legs," he screamed, blood and snot trickling from his nose. "It hurts! It hurts! Walter, help me! Oh, God it hurts!"

"I told you!" Walter screamed, his breath beginning to hitch with frightened sobs. "I told you! Why didn't you listen to me?"

"Please- it hurts!"

Freezing air ripping at his lungs Walter tore through the woods, crashing toward Lawrence's house.

Walter Skinner didn't believe he had ever run harder or faster in his life than he had that afternoon.

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

Elmo, Wyoming 4th of July 1999

"Here you go," Durokoff declared, sounding a little breathless as he reappeared from the crowd, waving a handful of napkins.

Scully almost laughed at the inordinate amount of napkins he'd brought back to the table.

"I know I wasn't that messy," she said as he sat back down opposite her at the picnic table.

He watched her take a napkin from the pile and begin to wipe the barbecue sauce from her chin, noticing the dab she'd dropped on her tee shirt. "I don't know," he said grinning at her, "maybe I should have brought back a bib, too."

Scully looked down, gasping at the blotch of red sauce on herself. "I can't believe I've turned into such a mess."

"Ribs are messy business," he said handing her another fist full of napkins.

She laughed, feeling embarrassed. She had been half starved but attempted good manners, yet good manners went out the window when it came to barbecued ribs. She knew she should have stuck with the hot dogs.

"Barbecue in general is a messy business," she commented, demurely dabbing at her shirt.

"That's what makes it fun." Scully looked at him, struck by the strong and cheerful sound of his familiar voice. He looked back at her with kind brown eyes she thought she knew and had to remind herself that she didn’t know this man at all. "I think you missed a little..." He told her, gesturing first at her face then his own, brushing at his own upper lip.

Scully wiped at her mouth again, another wave of chagrin passing over her.

"Uh, it's..." he stammered a little again gesturing at her mouth and beginning to sound frustrated. "It's still..." Scully frowned, growing annoyed by her inability to find this stray smear of barbecue sauce he kept pointing at. "Uh, here," he said leaning over the table enough to hesitantly wipe her lip with another napkin. He stopped, pulling his hand back to look at her quizzically before he confusedly said, "it's not coming off?"

"Huh?" Then she realized and her hand flew to her mouth. "Oh... Well, it's not going to be coming off, either, not without laser surgery, unfortunately." Durokoff's expression was beginning to take on that cast that Skinner more than often got when he didn't quite get something. "It's a mole," she explained and went back to pick at the ribs on her paper plate.

"Unfortunately?" He questioned her choice of words. "Don't you like it?"

"No," she said emphasizing the word by pursing her lips. "I usually cover it up."

"It's darling," he declared. She raised her eyes to give him a dubious look. He wasn't making it any better and she hoped her expression communicated the fact. "Why would you cover it up?"

Apparently her expression did not phase the man. "I've never liked it," she answered and shrugged. "Since I was a little girl, I hated it."

"Why don't you have it cut off?" he bluntly asked.

She cringed, managing to stop her hands before the ribs touched her mouth. "I don't know," she sighed putting the rib back on the plate and pushing it away. "I guess because it's still a part of me."

"Attached to it, huh?" He was being deliberately idiotic now.

Scully blew her breath out, laughing hard in spite of herself. He laughed along with her appearing to do so with his whole body; he seemed to shudder, his eyes pinched with glee, his mouth a full broad smile.

She liked him. She liked his laugh- full on bass and warm- she liked the way he looked and carried him self- formidable confidence blended with deft grace. She'd even become a little fond of the propensity he had for repeatedly adjusting his hat when he spoke. A nervous quirk, Scully had considered, or merely a motion to ease the press of the cap against his bare scalp. She had seen he was just as balding as Skinner the few times his hat had come far enough away from his head.

Although, his skull appeared smoother than Skinner's that was subtly pitted and pocked with peculiar dings and curious indentations. Occasionally, while seated before her superior's desk with Mulder explaining himself at her side, her mind would drift curiously over that uneven back-lit scalp, indexing the probable causes of those marks and wondering if there something more to phrenology.

When their laughter tapered down to scant chuckling they found themselves looking at one another, a certain level of wariness passing between their gazes. The echo of live music rebounded around them, people mulled about laughing and cheering, but it all seemed suddenly very far away.

After a moment, affected, Durokoff cleared his throat shifting his eyes left and right, anywhere but on her. He got up from the table and motioned for her to follow. "Come on, I think that sauce is getting to you."

"Getting to me?"

He laughed one last breathy laugh, re-adjusting the cap on his head. "That sauce has probably got more booze in it than the bar over there."

She gawked at the plate of ribs she'd torn through. There might have been a good amount of liquor in the sauce but surely not enough to make her tipsy. "I couldn't taste liquor in it."

"Likely story, missy," he teased, "come on along with me."

"Am I under arrest for public intoxication?" She went with it, allowing him to take her by the arm and lead her through the crowd.

"Public intoxication, lewd and disorderly conduct, not to mention bad table manners..."

She didn't know where he was taking her but happily trotted along enjoying the feel of Durokoff's firm grasp.

Why couldn't Skinner be more like this, she mused as they wound their way through the crowded park. There was that one brief instant, she recalled his inciting of the Gilligan's Island theme while they were marooned in the middle of the lake, but she had assumed that was just the champagne.

She'd seen him smile just once, that same night, and the simple gesture had softened his features and lent light to his eyes. It was a long time before she had rid herself of the hope of ever seeing him smile like that again, at least for her. Again, she chalked it up to the alcohol he'd consumed and let it go.

Anything between them was not meant to be despite her moments of weakness, times when she was ready to throw everything away and tell him how she felt. He would probably give her one of those incredulous looks he so effortlessly doled out on a regular basis, saying something like "you've obviously made a mistake." Yeah, a mistake, all right. A big one, too. Don't go falling for your superior unless you're ready to suffer the knicks and scratches of unrequited... The sound of Durokoff's walkie-talkie interrupted her dejected introspective.

He excused himself by stepping away from her. A few moments later she was accepting his request to join him on a call, promising it would be interesting. And interesting it did turn out to be.

A rather typical domestic disagreement but with rather distinctive circumstances; at the far-off fringe of Carbon County where the Elmo Sheriff's department authority just about ran out. Two men of wise age, one would assume at first sight, sitting around all morning with nothing better to do than drink themselves into a stupor, decided the fireworks show was too far off to wait any longer. So, they started their own show a little early by setting off sticks of dynamite in their front yard.

The first blast had taken out a car belonging to one man who promptly set off a second stick that demolished the car belonging to the man who had set off the first explosion.

With their cars burning and the yard and house torn up and looking like a scene from a war, the men continued to argue and fight, each threatening to blow the other up.

Judging by the familiarity that the deputies on the scene as well as Durokoff treated the men, Scully figured that these two had a long history of such behavior.

An hour or more had passed when the county fire trucks were finally showing up on the scene and the two men had been talked down and on their way to Elmo where their view of the fireworks show would be quite good from their cells.

Stating that he was certain nothing he could show her now would top what they'd just seen, Durokoff set off anyway to give Scully a brief tour of the area, introducing her to locals less radical than the last and reciting regional history and lore making her feel quite comfortable with his attentiveness and polite gestures of respect.

She found in his behavior an old-fashioned charm replacing cautious political correctness that punctuated the cities she'd lived in most her life. Still, he showed respect to her, as the fellow agent of law enforcement she was, asking her opinion on issues of concern in the area and wanting to know her feelings about recent negative attitudes directed toward federal agencies.

But in defiance of their almost deliberate trade discussions, there was an underlying tension building between them. She could feel the air becoming charged as they traveled together and quite by themselves in the four-wheeler. Talk was becoming less and less as they drove through the mountainous roads, replaced by the frequent exchange of glances and shared smiles in the increasingly awkward silence.

Scully was beginning to feel as though she were on a first date when the radio gratefully crackled for attention, the dispatcher announcing she had a message from the Albany Country Sheriff's department. Scully was quick to stop any information from going out over the radio, making Durokoff aware of that being one feasible way Gryzwac had been tracing them with the use of a scanner.

Remarking how he hoped everyone was being as alert as she was he instructed the call be put through to them on his cell phone, and moments later Scully was talking to a ragged out sounding Mulder. He was traveling with an Albany Country deputy to get a rental car and didn't believe he'd be arriving until nightfall.

"Why doesn't he just get Boyd to have him flown over here," Durokoff asked Scully who relayed the question to Mulder.

"The helicopter is temporarily out of commission," she relayed back, listening to something else Mulder said, then, "besides, he's not thrilled about the idea if it were working."

Durokoff laughed. "I don't blame him in the least."

By the time they got back to town he'd shared his own tale of his experiences with Ronnie Stewart, the rock’n’rolling hot shot of the Albany County Air Patrol. It seemed the man had never quite put aside his days as a stunt show pilot, still managing to get a little acrobatic flying in every once in a while to show off and sometimes scare what he liked to call his "virgin" passengers.

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

Lariat Car Rentals Rock Springs, Wyoming

What was the deal?

Was there no respect left in this country for the urgency of federal business?

Mulder mulled these and a multifarious amount of other questions over as he watched the rental car agency employee languidly collect agreements from various pigeonholes along the wall of the storefront agency. Tired beyond measure he leaned against the chest high counter, believing if he stared hard enough at the back of the man's head, willing him to move faster.

"Please do not lean on the counter," he suddenly announced without turning.

Rolling his eyes, Mulder straightened and checked the time on the wall clock. Jesus, it was nearly four o'clock. Where had the damn day gone? "Could we hurry this up some, I'm really tired and I'm in a hurry to get to where I'm going."

"Perhaps you shouldn't be in such a hurry if you're so tired, sir." The man said, turning back to him with a smug lift to his eyebrow, his bushy mustache twitching like a nervous ferret had nested under his nose.

An abrupt and unsolicited laugh escaped Mulder. "Uh," he forced his eyes closed against the sight of the man. "I'm taking the full insurance on the car." He finally managed to assure the funny little man, who was now frowning at him.

"Of course you are after what happened to your last vehicle." He said planting the paperwork on the counter in front of Mulder. "Never in the history of Lariat Rental has there ever been such an act of complete disregard and..."

"I'm really sorry about the other rental car," Mulder bemoaned both what had become of the car he'd left on the side of the road the previous day and the fact that Lariat Rental seemed to have a monopoly on the rental car business throughout the area. Who would have thought there was a vandalism problem in such an area of the country? "Circumstances beyond my control kept me from calling..."

"Yes, yes. So, you've said. Still, I certainly hope this isn't the normal mode of operation among all representatives of the Federal Bureau of Investigation." He remarked pointedly as he handed Mulder a pen.

"As a matter of fact, it is," Mulder, aggravated to a point now, began signing papers with a whimsical flourish of his wrist, dispatching the signed copies toward the man with abandon. "It's a new policy that all federal employees must abide by totally, seek out and destroy as much property as humanly possible within the private sector." He emphasized his final word with such zeal he ripped right though the tissue thin top copy of the rental agreement with the ballpoint of the pen.

"Wonderful," the man declared throwing his hands up, "more destruction. I just never- now, we'll have to start over again."

"What!" Mulder spat as the man snatched up all the papers and started for the pigeonholes again for fresh copies. "Haven't you ever heard of scotch tape?"

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

Continued in part 8

#the spider and the fbi #walter skinner #skinner scully fanfic #scully #mulder #skinner #xfiles fanfic #the x-files

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longlivetv · 3 months

Note

It's funny that you added the point about reliability for trains, because it's a big issue and Amtrak have absolutely no consideration for the fact that they regularly fail to achieve the scheduled times. It's never been a huge issue for me because I've always been on holiday and learned quickly to factor in an assumed delay, but I met 2 Belgian guys on the train from Denver to Chicago last summer who were totally bemused by the fact that they train was running about 5 hours late and all the Amtrak employees said was "come back later" with no provision of food vouchers or even just a sincere apology! Obviously, the staff deal with the same thing pretty much every day, so they're probably over it, but the difference with the European network is insane.

My wait for that train at Salt Lake City was one time I got caught out a bit. I was supposed to leave at 3am so I decided to just go to the station on the last tram ... which was at about 1030pm. But when I arrived they said the train would be there til 530am (at the earliest) so I really wished I'd just kept my hotel room! It ended up being 630am. I still had a great journey, but it's not a great service.

My one and only Amtrak trip was literally the trip from hell. The planned vacation was a trip to Disney World planned for me by my then boyfriend. We were university students with no money, so the trip also included various friends, including two girls I didn’t know well, a friend of mine from high school, who had introduced us, and my best college friend. Best college friend and I had always wanted to take the train, so we decided to do that while my boyfriend, his two friends, and my high school friend drove. The plan was for them to pick us up at the train station, and we would all end up arriving about the same time, and then we would go to the rental house.

Well. Although our train left on time, somewhere in the middle of nowhere we got stopped. For 12 hours. Which was then so long that once they fixed whatever had us stopped, we were still trapped there waiting on a new crew because they’d been on duty too long. They ran out of food, and we couldn’t get off to walk to the Shell station we could see out the train window to get food or water. There were almost no outlets, so passengers had to take turns sitting in the bag storage to charge their phones.

We arrived in Orlando an entire day late. We missed a whole park day, and in my absence my boyfriend had slept with my high school friend, as I discovered finding her stuff and used condoms in the room he and I were supposed to share. And I then had to fly back to my hometown with her and eat the most awkward dinner with ever, because our respective parents were picking us up and her dad was on the board at my mom's work.

So yeah. No amount of vouchers or refunds was gonna fix that one. Gonna take a lot to convince me to go very far on Amtrak.

#I can laugh about it now #but that was horrific lol

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mel-the-fangirl · 2 years

Text

The Witch & The Freak

Eddie Munson x Reader

Words: 5,132 (oh, boy...)

My first Eddie fic! I really could not help but stan this guy because, let's admit it, he's pretty adorable. I know we're well into November but I'm still feeling the Halloween vibes so this might get just a smidge creepy. It's long as hell, there's a little slice-of-life action, I just went with it but I hope you all enjoy!

Please like, reblog, or leave me a comment if you liked it!

------------------------------------

October 31, 1986

Somewhere in Salt Lake City, USA

Eddie Munson tightened his grip on the steering wheel, paying no mind as his knuckles turned white. His mind was obviously somewhere else, trying his hardest not to dwell on the fact that he was so totally lost. He had been driving on the same stretch of road for about half an hour now but not a single car had passed by him.

“Fuckin’ Henderson.” Eddie hissed, cursing his friend for getting him in this situation

Since when was he the babysitter anyway? Wasn’t that Harrington’s job? What was he doing wasting his Halloween playing chauffeur to Dustin Henderson when he could have been playing a killer Halloween setlist at the Hideout. He told Steve just as much but when he heard that Dustin didn’t have a ride back to Hawkins since his car was in the shop, Eddie was pretty much out the door without a second thought.

He was all huffy and puffy about it, sure. But if he was being honest, he just really needed a distraction from this weird feeling he was having that something was about to happen. He had no idea if it was something bad like a zombie ambushing him and eating his brains, or something good like finally getting off this damn road and back to civilisation.

Wherever this place was, it was giving him major heebie-jeebies. Probably because it was too goddamn quiet. Like the air was sucked out of the whole area.

“Radio!” he exclaimed, a light bulb finally going off in his head. He fumbled with the dials until the static finally turned into Steve Perry’s “Foolish Heart”

Eddie looked around with an eyebrow quirked up like he was expecting the gang to somehow pop up in the backseat. Once the coast was clear, he sang softly at first, bobbing his head along.

“I need a love that's strong, I'm so tired of being alone..”

As the song reached its peak, Eddie Munson, Eddie the Freak, Eddie the big bad guitarist of Corroded Coffin, belted out with all the passion he had,

“Foolish heart, hear me calling. Stop before you start falling!” he swayed side to side in time with the melody

What a sight to behold. A tried and true metalhead singing his little heart out to a mushy soft rock ballad. As far as everyone he knew was concerned, if it wasn’t metal, Eddie wouldn’t touch it with a ten foot pole. But honestly? He loved all types of music, he was just sure if people knew “Candle in the Wind” made him tear up, all the mean and scary street cred he had would fly out the window.

The music began to fade out and so did the tension in Eddie’s shoulders. He rolled them out, exhaling in relief.

“Nothing to be afraid of, Munson.” he chuckled to himself, “You’ve been through worse than a quiet roadtrip, haven’t ya?”

Instinctively, his free hand wandered to his stomach, tracing the length of marred skin. A constant reminder that no girl would want to see him shirtless ever again.

Just like that, his mind replayed the events of the last few months. Dustin shattering his leg carrying his dead weight back to the portal in the Upside Down, nearly losing Max forever, his month-long stay at the hospital, his very public trial and acquittal not long after, finally graduating.

He never was able to give Principal Higgins that one finger salute, not to his face at least but he did flip him one behind his back, the whole crew hooting and cheering for him from the stands.

Getting wrapped up in all those memories, Eddie didn’t even notice that “Total Eclipse of the Heart” started playing. It was another one of his guilty pleasure power ballads, only to be listened to using headphones, with his door and window firmly closed.

Turn around,

Every now and then I get a little bit lonely

And you're never coming 'round

Turn around…

What?

Eddie eyed his stereo warily as the lyric repeated over and over, he kept his hand on one of the dials but no matter how much he turned it, the station never changed, Bonnie Tyler’s voice just kept getting lower and lower until it was almost demonic.

TURN AROUND!

The volume maxed out of nowhere. Static and feedback mixing together at varying pitches, Hell's choir harmonising. Every hair on Eddie’s body stood on end and his hands started to shake. The calm he had built within himself shattering into pieces.

“C’mon, c’mon, c’mon.” he tried his hardest through his trembling hands to turn off the damn thing but to no avail

He pushed his foot into the gas, speeding along the deserted road, hoping it was just a really fucked up signal patch.

The distance did manage to get rid of the demon choir on his stereo but the damn thing still wouldn't turn off. The static, the fucking static was making him lose his mind. The screeching sound filled the entirety of the van and was close to crawling into his head.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. Be cool, Munson. Be fucking cool.” he breathed in and out steadily

Just as he was starting to have some semblance of calm, his engine started sputtering until gradually and agonisingly slowly, the van halted to a complete stop. Eddie could have sworn someone had it out for him. He got out of the van on shaky legs, his Reeboks crunching on the gravel as he lifted the hood of the van up.

A flashlight would've been handy. The streetlights did nothing to help him see any of the wiring. He couldn’t help but slam the hood down in frustration, the harsh sound echoing off into the night. Of course, something like this was happening to him. Noticing what was across the empty street only confirmed his beliefs that he was probably the unluckiest bastard to walk the earth.

A fucking cemetery of all the fucking places to be. At night. On Halloween. Smack dab in the middle of nowhere, USA.

“Just my fucking luck.” he exhaled, placing one hand flat on the slightly heated hood and the other on his chest, Eddie screwed his eyes shut and tipped his head forward, curly locks falling all around him

How did it get like this?

There he was, quietly making his way to his teenage friend who needed a ride home, a chivalrous act. Next thing he knows, he's a sitting duck right in the middle of the road. Easy prey for whoever wanted a piece of him. Of course, they'd have to go around the parts that haven't already been picked at.

He snorted at that.

Nothing like a bit of self-deprecating humour to get him up and running again. He raised his head and finally got his thoughts in order.

Obviously, the van was busted and he was stuck. That much was clear. According to his watch, it was thirty past one in the morning. He still had hours to go until dawn so he should probably get some rest. The rollercoaster of emotions he'd just been through was enough to drain whatever energy he had left.

"And so, it was decided," Eddie narrated in his Dungeon Master voice, climbing back in the van.

"Eddie the Banished would spend the night in his faithful but useless van, clutching in his grasp, the 2x4 he could never be bothered to throw away. Guess it came in handy in the end."

What was also handy were the blankets and pillows he stored in the back. He'd have to thank El for coming up with the idea after he took the gang out to a drive-in and literally everyone complained about how uncomfortable it was.

Oddly enough though? Eddie was comfortable. Having the van break down right across the street from a cemetery and that freaky thing with the stereo aside, being nestled in those blankets in the darkness of his van was actually kind of cozy. Hugging the 2x4 like a teddy bear, he drifted off to sleep, hoping he wouldn't have to use it.

…

A dull thud roused Eddie from his sleep. He shifted around in his blankets, nearly taking his eye out with the edge of the 2x4 he forgot he was cradling in his arms.

He groaned, cracking his knuckles above his head. He almost forgot where he was.

The realisation was like a cold bucket of water down his shirt. He let his guard down for God knows how long. What could be lurking out there? What if he was surrounded by enemies already? He shot up, crawling to the passenger’s side window. Eddie muttered his own version of a prayer under his breath and very cautiously took a look across the road.

Everything was pitch black beyond the rusty cemetery gates, save for a few lit candles. He could make out the flickering flames in the distance but other than that, not a fucking thing. Even the goddamn lamps perched on the gate didn’t seem to be working.

Eddie craned his neck to get a view farther along the moss covered stone wall that bordered the property. Nothing but rustling bushes and darkness.

Wait.

Rustling… Bushes?

Thankfully, his eyes were starting to adjust. He kept his gaze glued to one spot, hoping to catch whatever critter was in those bushes. Suddenly, a flashlight poked through the leaves. It circled the ground until it abruptly shone in the direction of the van. Eddie dove out of sight, immediately regretting the move. He was sure his cover was blown.

Army crawling back under his blankets, Eddie tried his best to peep out of the van's rear windows this time. The light in the bushes was gone and there wasn't anyone in sight.

He sighed in relief. Safe for now but his mind was running wild with theories of who could be in the bushes

A squatter, maybe?

Someone trying to set up camp for the night?

This wasn't exactly a camper's hot spot but who knows, right? Nine times out of ten, Eddie's morbid curiosity led him to places he couldn't even imagine.

Out of the quiet, he heard it. A little muffled from his spot inside the van but it was there all the same.

"GOD DAMN IT!" the voice from outside yelled

Eddie froze, brown eyes bigger than even thought possible.

Not much had changed outside. The light was still gone, the bush was still moving. No other cars had passed by. Though that little expletive was confirmation that there was a person in the bushes.

What he was going to do with that information was still up for debate.

He could just leave it alone… Really though, what good was it going to get him if he left the safety of his van?

But then again, what if they needed help? No one in their right mind would be poking around cemetery bushes if they weren’t in some form of distress. If there was something that Eddie learned from what he went through, it was never to run away.

He was still fucking scared though, don’t get him wrong. But he wasn’t going anywhere.

With a deep exhale, he stepped out of the van, trusty 2x4 in hand.

His pulse thumped uncomfortably in his ears, like at any time his eardrums would burst. Every step he took to close the distance between him and the cemetery gate, he felt like he was being watched by unseen eyes.

“Christ.” he muttered, trying not to look straight at the candle-speckled darkness that lay ahead

His footsteps went unheard as his mystery lurker continued to… Well, lurk in the bushes, moving to and fro along a particular stretch of grass.

“Uh, hello? Do you need any help?” his voice wavered ever so slightly at the end of his sentence

The rustling stopped. For Eddie, it seemed like everything stopped in those few seconds where he thought he was going to die for real this time.

That was until, you finally poked your head out.

Then everything stopped for Eddie a second time.

You had to be a ghost or something right? Because there was no way. NO WAY. Anyone alive could look as ethereal and unreal as you. Sure, there were leaves stuck in your hair and dirt streaked on your cheek but to Eddie that just made you look even more heart-stopping.

“Uh,” you cleared your throat, rising to your feet and dusting yourself off as best you could

Taking stock of your sudden companion, you mentally checked off a list.

Long shaggy hair, check. The devil on his shirt, check. And finally, big brown eyes, check. Though your powers of divination were improving, they still didn't work well enough to find the damn crystal you dropped.

“Hi, um. I’m sure this looks a little strange,” you gestured to the bushes you’ve been searching through for the past fifteen minutes or so.

“But I, well I dropped something around here and I’m having a real tough time finding it as you can see.” you chuckled breathily, patting at your jeans, knees covered in grass stains

“Oh, uh,” Eddie stepped towards you, feeling a weird sort of gravitational pull. “When’d you lose it? The caretakers might’ve done away with it, y’know.”

“That’s not it.” you waved your hand dismissively, returning your gaze to the grass beneath your sneakered feet. “I lost it just now when I fell off that damn gate.”

Something was totally off, Eddie could feel it. For starters, he kept involuntarily walking towards you, completely disregarding the bush right in front of him. He couldn’t even see his Reeboks underneath the leaves anymore. Second, his eyes were practically glued to the ground. Every time he'd try to raise his head, it was like there was a hand pushing it back down again, forcing him to search for something but he had no idea what.

“Just uh,” he walked along the line of bushes just as you did, squinting at the ground. “Just now, huh? What’re you even doing here at this time? It’s uh, it isn’t safe.”

He crouched down and began poking at the bushes with his 2x4. The intent look on his face made you giggle, he was an easy one to influence.

“While I appreciate the concern, I can take care of myself just fine, thank you. Now, be a doll and look over there..”

Like a little marionette, Eddie made his way over to the bush you were pointing at. He couldn’t even stop to question why the hell he was just blindly following your orders, his brain was covered in a thick fog. His one-track mind concerned only with finding what you had lost.

“It would be really helpful if I knew what I was looking for.” he whispered to himself.

Before he could even blink, you were only two steps away from him. How the hell did you do that?

"You'll know it when you see it." you said, watching him closely

The close proximity was making Eddie's head spin, if he was being honest. The scent of warm cinnamon sugar mixed with the dewy grass you fell in wafted off you and invaded his senses. Not even the pricier stuff in his stash could make him feel this way.

This had to stop. Somehow his hijacked brain connected the dots, whatever effect you had on him would only stop if he found what you were looking for. He took the flashlight from your hand and got on his knees.

"That's a bit much, isn't it?" you remarked, tilting your head to see how he was doing

"You're.. You're doing something to me." Eddie struggled to get the words out. His lips were barely moving, like they’d been glued together and it was just starting to dry

"Huh. Intuitive." you thought. Perhaps shutting him up was a bit much but you were exhausted and really wanted to get home.

As he swung the flashlight to search somewhere else, a glint partially obscured by a fallen leaf caught Eddie's eye. He bent down and flicked the leaf out of the way, revealing a shiny, palm sized pink stone of some sort. As he picked it up, it felt warm to the touch.

“Rose quartz.” you filled him in, closing your hand over his

Of course Eddie had no fucking idea what that was but you had his full attention, you were only about a hair’s breadth away from each other now.

“Eddie Munson.” you smiled slowly, noticing how your heart was beating a little too fast

At the mention of his name, he could feel the haze that had settled in his mind starting to lift. He nodded, still not able to produce any words with your hand still in his. You weren’t sure if he could feel it, but the rose quartz began to vibrate under your entwined hands.

What that meant, you weren’t entirely sure.

In one fluid movement, you managed to take your crystal out of his hand and step away.

You cleared your throat and dropped your crystal into your bag with the others, "The love crystal."

“What?” Eddie’s lips were finally functioning again but he felt out of breath

“The one you picked up. It’s also called the love crystal.” you clarified, kicking at some pebbles with the tip of your shoe

“Crystal…” he shook his head, looking at you apprehensively. “What the hell did you just do to me back there? Are you some kind of witch or something?"

"If I’m being totally honest, I find that term offensive and I don’t like being called that. It’s so goddamn archaic…"

"Wait, hold on-"

"...I mean, what is this? The 17th century? You gonna report me to the Witchmaster General too?"

"SHUT UP!" Eddie yelled, his voice echoing all throughout the empty street

His sudden outburst caused you to let go of your bag of crystals, the lot of them clattering to the ground. You tsk-ed in annoyance before dropping to your knees to round them all up again.

"Was just trying to make conversation. Didn't have to fucking yell at me." you muttered, occasionally shooting nasty looks at him

He joined you on the ground, hurriedly picking up your crystals. "Shit, um. Look, I'm sorry. I just.. Well, how the hell do I even put this. You're-You're a witch? Like an actual real life witch? Is that how you knew my name?"

"No, you idiot. I watched your trial a few months back. I bet everyone in America knows your fucking name.”

“Oh.”

“But I am a witch.”

“Oh.”

The thing about him is his wit was always quicker than his common sense. The quip was already tumbling out of his mouth before he could stop himself.

“Hey, I thought you didn’t like being called a witch?”

“I don’t.” you almost growled at him

Oh, man, if looks could kill… There would definitely be a grave at that cemetery with Eddie’s name right on it but his brain-to-mouth filter wasn’t going to start working just because of that.

“Alright, alright.” he put his hands up in mock defence, “You got a name or should I just call you Sabrina?”

The silence stretched long between you, both of you sizing the other up. Then, much to Eddie’s relief, you burst out in laughter. He wasn’t exactly sure what that meant for him but the sound made him smile anyway.

“Oh, you’re funny,” you held out a small bag towards him, “Drop my stuff in here please.”

“Not gonna lie, I was a hundred percent expecting you to sock me in the jaw.” he chuckled, doing as he was told. The sound of the crystals knocking together was kind of soothing for him.

“I really wanted to.”

“Well, I’m glad you didn’t.”

“I’m glad too.”

You two stood there for a beat, saying nothing, just awkward half-smiles and heads filled with scrambled thoughts. Most of them consisted of wondering how someone could be this pretty.

“That must be some name if you’re gonna keep me waiting this long.” he stuffed his hands in his pockets, a playful twinkle in his brown eyes

Heat rose to your cheeks in an instant. “It’s Y/N. You can call me Y/N.”

Call it sleep deprivation or being under the light of the moon too much but the sound of your name automatically plastered a smile onto his face. God, if the kids could see him now acting all cheesy. He’d never hear the end of it.

“Well, I guess I don’t need to tell you my name.”

“Nope.” you shook your head

Warmth flooded your body as you kept your gaze on his smiling brown eyes. Oh, he was cute.

“Sooo,” he began, swaying while placing his hands behind his back

You in turn, crossed your arms over your chest and raised an eyebrow, the move made him want you to step on him. He didn’t even care that you only knew his name because of all the murders it was associated with.

“Sooo?”

He scoffed, throwing his arms up, “Come on! You’re really not going to tell me what you were doing? In the bushes? At this time of night?”

The rise in his pitch was definitely starting to sound like a whine, a small smirk played on your lips.

"I thought you got the gist already." you teased, gently shaking your bag of crystals

Would you believe that he actually pouted? You were struggling to keep your eyes off his plump pink lips.

“Well, would you be kind enough to enlighten me?” he whined some more, completely melting away your defences

“Since you asked so nicely,” you smiled, reaching into your little bag

The first crystal you held up to the moonlight was the exact one you'd hoped for, Tiger's Eye. It glowed in different shades of brown. Almost the exact same shade as Eddie's eyes. You made eye contact with him and winked which made him blush in return.

"It’s nothing complicated," you began, "People use crystals for a lot of different things so just like a human would, they get worn out."

"So, the moonlight.. Recharges them or something?" Eddie ventured a guess

"Exactly! Very good, Eddie. We might make a warlock of you yet."

Ah, praise. A surefire way to get on his good side. Not that you weren't already.

"And the cemetery?" he asked, already wondering if ghosts had something to do with it. Could you see ghosts too? Would you be offended if he asked?

“I was coming from a party. I cut through the cemetery and figured I’d do a cleansing since the moon was full.” you shrugged nonchalantly

The simplicity of it all made Eddie laugh out loud, soon enough you found yourself laughing along too.

“Maybe I should have said something cooler, like oh the spirits of the dead fuel the crystals with more energy.”

He wiped at his eyes, feeling his cheeks hurt from smiling too much. “No, no. I, uh, I appreciate your honesty.”

“And you?” you nodded to his van across the street, “Camping?”

“Ah, something like that, madame,” he replied in a mock posh accent, “I’m afraid my faithful steed has let me down tonight.”

You looked at the van pensively while Eddie admired the slopes and angles of your face like a dorky schoolkid looking at his first crush.

“Mind if I take a look?”

“Huh?” he blushed hard, hoping you didn’t notice him drooling all over you. “Oh, uh, yeah. You know about cars? Or is there like, a crystal for car trouble?”

It was a completely innocent question, his tone filled with curiosity. Absolutely nothing like the other mocking questions and judgmental looks you usually got when people found out your beliefs. You couldn’t help but walk a little closer to Eddie’s side as you made your way over to the van.

“Not car trouble, but there is one to ward off car accidents and stuff like that.” you answered, lifting up the hood and producing a mini flashlight from your back pocket

Eddie tried, like he really tried not to be a creep but you were just so goddamn pretty. The shadows that continually moved across your face as you moved your flashlight across the engine reminded him of this nightlight he had that spun around, sending stars all over his dark room. But tonight instead of stars, he had you and he preferred that more.

“Eddie, could you try starting it up, please?” your brows knitted together as you shut the hood

He could’ve lassoed the damn moon if you asked.

To his surprise, the van roared to life with the radio blasting the chorus of “I Wanna Know What Love Is” deep into the night. Eddie scrambled to get it under control while you doubled over in laughter.

“I didn’t peg you as the power ballad type, Eddie.” you walked over to the driver’s side and perched your arms on the lowered window

“Well, I didn’t peg you as the mechanic type, Y/N.” he countered, cheeks burning but he still found it in himself to bring his face closer to yours

He could pinpoint the exact second your pupils dilated and Eddie figured it was as good a time as ever to finally do what he'd been thinking about all night since seeing you.

"Thank god for that fucking rose quartz." Eddie mumbled before softly pressing his lips to yours

It was almost as if your lips were covered in a million tiny live wires, sending your entire body alight with sensation. The air was positively snap-crackle-and popping all around you, all that was missing were the actual sparks.

Eddie pulled away for a second to jump out of the van and take you in his arms, he smelled of leather, soap, and a hint of smoke. It was almost second nature to you, wrapping your arms around his waist and letting him kiss you once again.

Despite your disdain for the term, you were a witch. That much was true. You had abilities, you studied, and you practised. But this right here, kissing Eddie. That was a whole other sort of magic all together.

Once you found it in yourselves to pull away, breathing hard and smiling like fools, you hopped in the van.

“What did you do to get her running again?” Eddie asked, making sure you fastened your seatbelt

“Nothing. There wasn’t even anything wrong.”

He decided to leave it at that. Eddie just pecked you on the cheek before pulling back into the road with you guiding him on the right track to the Bingham House which surprisingly, you didn't live far from.

As the sky changed from midnight blue to a purple-dusted orange, you and Eddie watched and talked as the sun began to peek just over the horizon. He told you about his life in Hawkins and about what really happened, the whole demobats took a pound of flesh from him truth, not the censored bullcrap the authorities told him to stick with. He didn't doubt it when you said you believed him.

You told him all about your abilities, about all the people who just didn't understand, how you really did make him do your bidding back there and how you foresaw that he'd be coming for you. It all flowed out, the easiest conversation either of you had in your lives.

"Quite a pair we are, huh?" he nudged you affectionately, an easy smile on his face

You nodded, reaching over to lace your fingers through his, "The witch and the freak."

"The witch and the freak." he agreed, bring your hand to his lips

…

"So, just take the next left then straight on till morning, Eddie." you kissed him one last time before hopping out of the van

"Aw, c'mon, Y/N." he whined and pouted

Him whining and pouting was quickly becoming one of your weaknesses.

"It's just one more block, why won't you come with me? Had enough of me already?"

"Because, Eddie! My mom's going to kill me if she catches me sneaking in. Don't worry, we'll be seeing each other again soon."

Eddie knew the finality in your voice wasn't for nothing, you've probably already seen how this was going to go but still, he loved pushing your buttons.

He scooted to the passenger's seat, "And how are you so sure about that, hm?" he puckered his lips at you

With a chuckle, you planted a big 'ol smooch on his waiting lips. Already visualising what the next time you'd see each other would be like.

"Because I'm sure! Now go! The Binghams usually serve a feast for breakfast. I hope you like kids!" you waved him off, already knowing that you didn't need to consult your cards to see if you were right or not.

You blew him a kiss which he playfully stuffed in the pocket of his jean jacket before slipping quietly into your house.

"Oh, what a night," Eddie shamelessly sang along to Frankie Valli, shimmying his hips as much as he could while seated

"What a lady, what a nigh-Oh shit!" he slammed his foot on the brakes, tires squealing against the pavement

He forgot to ask for your phone number.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid!" Eddie hissed, bonking his head on the wheel

Just as he was about to turn back around, he noticed something on the passenger's seat that definitely wasn't there five seconds ago.

A crystal that Eddie recognised was the colour of your eyes and a note.

"When did she have the time to write this?" he wondered

It seemed like you already knew he was going to think that.

"I'm a witch, remember?" the note began, making Eddie shake his head in awe

You're under strict rules to keep this crystal with you at all times, Eddie. It will protect you and hopefully make you think of me. We will be seeing each other again very soon.

Love, Y/N.

You also had the foresight to scrawl your number on the back along with,

Can't believe you forgot to ask!! >:(

Which made Eddie Munson giggle. Thank God no one was around to witness it or else he'd never live it down.

Having everything he needed, Eddie started up the radio again and went on his way to the Bingham's.

Those fingers in my hair

That sly come-hither stare

That strips my conscience bare

It's witchcraft.

"You got that right, Frank," Eddie placed a kiss on the crystal you left him, "You got that right."

#eddie munson #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson x you #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson fanfiction #eddie munson fic #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things

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