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the-name-is-z · 3 months

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SKELETONS | ch. 4

daryl dixon x f!oc

masterlist

a03 link

Summary: The group heads out on a search for answers or maybe even a cure. Warnings/Information: AMC's The Walking Dead OC Insert | 18+ Advised | strangers to lovers; the slowest of slow burns; gore; angst; horror; humour; m/f; descriptions of gore, violence, zombies, death, mourning, injury, infection, abandonment (consensual)

Chapter 4 - The CDC

“Everybody listen up.” Shane called. “Those of you with C.B.s, we’re gonna be on channel forty. Let’s keep the chatter down, okay? Now you got a problem, don’t have a C.B., can’t get a signal or anything at all, you’re gonna hit your horn one time. That’ll stop the caravan. Any questions?”

“We’re, ah… we’re not going.” Morales stated, glancing at his family before he turned back to Shane. The rest of the group had packed their things, the line of cars trailing out of the camp in preparation for the journey. Iris stood with her arms crossed, watching the group.

“We have family in Birmingham.” Morales’ wife explained, hugging her daughter close to her chest. “We want to be with our people.” Iris wouldn’t say it out loud, but two less children to care for is a significant advantage for survival. These people weren’t exactly prepared for this kind of life. Hell, was anyone?

“You go on your own, you won’t have anyone to watch your back.” Shane warned.

“We’ll take our chances. I gotta do what’s best for my family.” Morales said with a nod.

“You sure?” Rick asked.

“We talked about it.” He confirmed. “We’re sure.”

“Alright.” Rick nodded. “Shane?” He asked, glancing down at the bag of guns.

"Yeah, alright.” Shane agreed. Rick fished through the bag, handing Morales and his wife a gun and a box of ammo. “Box is half full.” Daryl looked none too pleased about the exchange. He scoffed, turning away to prepare his things before he exploded again.

Morales and his wife exchanged goodbyes and hugs with the people in the group they’d become close with, and little Carl even shed a few tears for his friends. Iris nodded to Morales, shaking his hand despite never really speaking. They walked to their own car, and as the group filed into the available cars, they said goodbye to the camp.

Dale and Glenn led the caravan in the RV, Rick, Lori with the kids in the second car. Jacqui and Jim were in the back of the RV, treating the symptoms of the infection while they drove. Carol, T-Dog and Andrea followed in an old van, then Iris and Shane in Shane’s jeep. Daryl brought up the end in an old pickup truck, his motorcycle carefully strapped into the bed.

“So, what’s your deal?” Shane asked, one hand on the window frame of the door and the other on the wheel.

“My deal?” Iris asked, raising an eyebrow at him. She’d tied her hair back with the bandana, her knives strapped tight to her hips and legs. She’d agreed to ride with Shane with the expectation he would interrogate her about her life, and because she was comfortable holding her own if the caravan was overrun.

“Yeah. Conveniently show up and join the camp, right when we need you, huh?” He asked, eyeing her from the side. The corner of Iris’ mouth pulled upward and she rolled her eyes.

“Rick made me a deal.” She explained. “I helped get Glenn, I back you up, and a good portion of the guns in that bag are mine.” She gestured vaguely to the duffel in the backseat, and Shane tensed. In complete honestly, Iris didn’t know where her loyalties lay, and Shane was very aware of that. These people didn’t know her, and she didn’t know them. If it came down to it, would she really stay?

They rode for another hour in silence, every so often the radio crackling as Shane checked everyone was good. Dale’s voice came up soon after, explaining that he was pulling the RV over. Iris hopped out of the jeep quickly, coming up to see steam rising from the RV’s grill.

“I told you we’d never get far on that hose.” Dale muttered, putting his hands on his hips as he sat back and examined the damage. Rick sighed, adjusting his hat in the hot sun. “I said I needed the one from the cube van.”

“Can you jury-rig it?” Rick asked.

“That’s all it’s been so far. It’s more duct-tape than hose. And I’m out of duct-tape.” Dale replied, making a face.

“I see something up ahead.” Shane called, peering through a pair of binoculars. “A gas station if we’re lucky.”

“Y’all, Jim— it’s bad. I don’t think he can take anymore.” Jacqui warned as she ran out of the RV. Iris frowned at the gravity of the situation. No one had decided what to do with him should he not make it to the CDC.

“Hey, Rick, you want to hold down the fort? I’ll drive ahead, see what I can bring back?” Shane offered.

“I’ll come. I know what to look for.” Iris added.

“You know what the RV engine needs?” Shane asked suspiciously. Iris rolled her eyes. Her entire life, men never accepted she knew anything about cars.

“I was a mechanic, once.” She stated. To reassure herself, she peered through the grate of the RV, nodding. “I’ll see if I can find some other replacements. There’s a hell of a lot of duct-tape in here.”

“Gotta keep it running somehow.” Dale shrugged, chuckling. Iris nodded, offering a small smile.

“I’ll come along too, back you up.” T-Dog offered. Shane nodded.

“Y’all keep your eyes open, now. We’ll be right back.” Shane called. Rick nodded, taking off his hat as he followed Jacqui into the RV. They loaded into the jeep, driving up ahead to the gas station.

It was old and abandoned, that was for sure. An old clock that looked like a bottle cap ticked loudly through the place. It’d been looted, but there were a few water bottles and packages of jerky that T-Dog filled his backpack with. Iris found a patch for the radiator hose. Not one that was made for an RV, but it would work if she could fashion it properly. She also grabbed another few rolls of duct-tape while Shane waited outside, guarding the door with his gun.

When they returned, Rick was sitting on the steps of the RV with his head in his hands.

“It’s what he says he wants.” Rick explained as they stood around outside the RV. Jim told him he wanted them to leave him here. With his family. How long they’d been gone, Iris wasn’t sure, but they really should limit their liability risks.

“And he’s lucid?” Carol asked, incredulous.

“He seems to be.” Rick confirmed. “I would say yes.”

“Back in the camp, when I said Daryl might be right, and you shut me down,” Dale said quietly, “you misunderstood. I would never go along with… callously killing a man. I was just gonna suggest that we ask Jim what he wants. Iris said the same.” He gestured to her and she nodded. “I think we have an answer.”

“We just leave him here? Take off?” Shane asked, rubbing a hand over his face as he turned to Rick. “Man, I’m not sure I could live with that.”

“It’s not your call.” Lori stated. “Either one of you.” Iris let a small smile play across her lips. She liked Lori. She didn’t put up with the alpha male pissing contest bullshit they liked to play at.

With that, Shane and Rick hauled Jim out of the RV, carefully trudging up the hill at the side of the road and placing him at the base of a thick oak tree. It cast a good amount of shade over the area, and Jim sighed as he practically sunk into the earth. Iris stayed back at the RV while Daryl patrolled the area and the rest of the group said their goodbyes.

None of them were particularly comfortable with the situation, but if it was what Jim wanted, it was for the best. And deep down, Iris knew they knew it was best for their group. It was emotional for all of them, that was evident. Even Daryl went to apologize quietly before they all went back to their separate vehicles. Iris watched Jim stare up into the sky, and he seemed to sigh in relief as the caravan pulled away.

When they arrived at the CDC they were overwhelmed by the smell of the bodies. Iris fashioned her bandana over her face once more as they armed themselves in preparation. Most of them seemed completely dead, but you could never be too careful. Swarms of flies surrounded the place, maggots festering. The roads had been blocked off in a perimeter around the building, barricades of sand bags providing protection to the National Guard whose bodies they now stepped over.

Rick led the way as they passed the bodies, tanks, military trucks. Everyone moved in a large group, keeping quiet apart from coughing as they walked to the building. Carol and Lori continuously whispered encouragements to their kids, who had hands over their noses, mouths and eyes. The doors to the building were covered with metal grates, all of which seemed bolted into the ground.

“Nothing?” Shane asked as Rick rattled the grate. Iris took note of the security cameras around the place, searching for any indication of activity. Shane pounded angrily on the door.

“There’s nobody here.” T-Dog muttered.

“Then why are these shutters down?” Rick asked argumentatively. Iris tilted her head. He had a point. But whoever had been inside could be long dead.

“Walkers!” Daryl called out in warning. Sophia, Carol’s daughter, began whimpering in fear as they all turned toward the dead.

“Watch the noise.” Iris warned as they cocked their guns. Daryl stepped forward with his crossbow, taking care of the closest one, a man in an army uniform.

“You led us into a graveyard!” Daryl snapped, scowling at Rick.

“Shh!” Dale warned.

“He made a call.” Shane snapped back, grabbing a shotgun.

“It was the wrong damn call!”

“Just shut up. You hear me? Shut up. Shut up!” Shane growled, shoving Daryl backward and pointing a finger to his face. He whipped around. “Rick, this is a dead end.”

“Where are we gonna go?” Carol asked, clutching her daughter to her closely.

“Do you hear me? No blame.” Shane continued.

“She’s right. We can’t be here, this close to the city after dark.” Lori agreed with Carol.

“This place will be crawling soon. We’re making too much noise. Even the sound of the cars.” Iris said quietly, surveying their surroundings. They had their backs up against a wall here.

“Fort Benning, Rick. Still an option.” Shane stated.

“On what?” Andrea asked. “No food, no fuel. That’s a hundred miles.”

“125. I checked the map.” Glenn corrected. Iris raised an eyebrow.

“Forget Fort Banning. We need answers tonight. Now.” Lori snapped, trying to console her sobbing son.

“We’ll think of something.” Rick insisted as they all began shouting, pleading with him. Iris kept quiet, watching him. She glanced back at the shutters, freezing.

“Alright, everyone back to the cars.” Shane called.

“Rick. The camera. The camera moved. It’s recording, but it moved.” Iris said loudly, pointing to the camera.

“You imagined it.” Dale stated quickly, shaking his head.

“No way.” She pulled down her bandana, stepping closer. “Someone’s inside.”

“Look, it’s dead, alright? An automated device. Gears, okay?” Shane said, shaking his head. Rick walked up to the camera, looking straight into it. “Look around this place. You hear me? It’s dead. You need to let it go, Rick!” Rick shoved past him, slamming his hands against the metal shutters again.

“Rick, there’s nobody here!” Lori screamed.

“I know you’re in there! I know you can hear me.” Rick yelled into the camera. Shane was yelling at the others to run back to the cars. The dreaded groaning of walkers got louder with them. “Please, we’re desperate! Please help us. We have women, children. No food, hardly any gas left.”

“Rick. Rick!” Lori pleaded.

“We have nowhere else to go!”

“There’s nobody here.” Lori insisted. “Rick, please!”

“You don’t let us in, you’re killing us!”

“Come on, buddy, let’s go.” Shane pulled at him, the others already halfway to the cars with Daryl leading the charge. Iris stood, staring straight into the camera as they wrestled with Rick. Shane started pulling him as he screamed.

“You’re killing us! You’re killing us! You’re killing us—“ They all stopped as the singular shutter screeched loudly, sliding open. They all whipped around as it thudded, pressurized air moving around, hissing.

They kept their guard up, Daryl covering their backs as they hesitantly walked inside.

“Hello?” Rick called. The building was enormous, an architect’s baby, columns spiralling up to a pointed roof and huge walls of windows trailing upward. The lobby was the majority of spaces, with what looked like offices above. But somewhere, there had to be more. “Hello?”

“Close those doors. Watch for walkers.” Dale warned, Daryl shutting the pedestrian doors behind them. They all stopped, looking around the space, waiting.

“Hello!” A voice called from the opposite end of the lobby. He stood in the mouth of the hallway. The man had scruffy hair and was wearing a t-shirt and sweatpants, but the grip he had on the military-grade rifle in his hands was confident. “Anybody infected?”

“One of our group was. He didn’t make it.” Rick replied. They all kept their weapons up.

“Why are you here? What do you want?” The man asked.

“A chance.” Rick replied simply. Optimistically. Obnoxiously.

“That’s asking an awful lot these days.” The man replied.

“I know.” Rick agreed. The man’s gaze flicked across each of them, taking in the sight of their group.

“You all submit to a blood test. That’s the price of admission.” The man said lowly.

“We can do that.” The man put his gun down.

“You got stuff to bring in, you do it now. Once this door closes, it stays closed.” He said firmly, gesturing outside.

Iris, Shane, Rick, Glenn and Daryl all ran outside, gathering bags and doing runs from the vehicles. They each took one, finding it easier to be agile when they separated. T-Dog and Dale manned the doors, closing them tight and opening them wide each time they ran in and out. In a few minutes, everything was in a pile in the lobby. Rick gave him the go-ahead, and the man scanned a keycard.

“Vi, seal the main entrance.” He spoke into it. “Kill the power up here.” The grate slid shut over the doors as the key panel beeped and blinked red.

“Rick Grimes.” Rick introduced, offering his hand to shake. The doctor looked at him warily, making no move to shake his hand.

“Dr. Edwin Jenner.” He replied.

#daryl dixon #daryl dixon x reader #skeletons #the walking dead #the walking dead daryl dixon #thenameisz #twd daryl #twd daryl dixon

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pomegranate-pen · 2 years

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Blasters| Eli Shane x reader. Chapter 1.old enemies and new friends.

---summary-----

in the eyes of others, all hope seems lost when the only one that can help the great Shane Gang is a girl who can't hold a blaster properly. let alone sling a slug.

yet, Eli still has hope.

reader is fem in this fanfic!

Who knew that falling into a whole world beneath you could lead to one almost having their face burnt up for more than one occasion?

Eli Shane was one of the best slingers in all of Slugterra. But he’s also one of the most reckless of the bunch too. Having that in mind, he’s pretty sure he should try dodging attacks more than shooting for a while. since you know, if he doesn’t, he’ll die right here and right now.

Before a grenuke slug could even take a glance at his spot, he jumps down behind the rock and takes cover. The poor slug that was now a few feet away from him starts his attack and blows up for nothing in return. The sounds of slugs transforming left and right were common and the cheeky yet annoying remarks of his enemies were quite annoying.

It was nothing compared to the citizens of Molenoid Cavern who were sitting ducks in the whole fight though. It amazed him how they didn’t even give a single care about their safety. Randomly walking around right in the middle of the fight and miraculously dodging every shot. Pronto was busy screaming for the Molenoid’s to get away and retreat, believing that as the rightful king of the place, they’ll comply and listen. Yet they just kept swarming around him instead, asking for help left and right about the most mundane things.

“oh for the love of-“ Pronto seemed to have enough of the chaos circling around him and facepalmed. “YOU’RE ABOUT TO DIE IF YOU STAY HERE!!! GET OUT OF THE WAY!!!”

“But my sink is still clogged!”

“HOW IS THAT MORE IMPORTANT TO YOU RIGHT NOW?!!!”

Sighing in exhaustion, he looks down at the slugs he still had left. Joules, Studs, and Burpy who was right on his shoulder. He hears light, quick footsteps and finds it to be Trixie, who was dodging a Hop Rock and falls face first to the ground. Groaning in annoyance, she gets up and urgently puts a slug in her blaster and shoots at the perpetrator. Kord suddenly comes as well, hiding behind a rock a few feet away from them and trying to get the best shot that’ll take out the whole group of bad guys together.

“I still don’t get it.” Trixie suddenly speaks up, grabbing the attention of her friends. “Why would they come to Molenoid cavern? They don’t really have anything worth attacking the people for.”

“Yeah, especially after the Vault of Knowledge was destroyed. Whatever these guys want to do, it’s probably really stupid.”

“Well, whatever the case is, they still got a bunch more grenukes in their hands.” He puts Joules in his blaster. “We need to stop them before anyone gets hurt!”

Joules throws electrical bolts all through the team and makes them jolt while Kord shoots an Arachnet and ties them all together in a web. “Pronto!” Trixie shouts to the Molenoid King, who was still busy trying to get the people away from the danger right before their eyes. He turns his head to Trixie. “Use your flatulorhinkus!” with a grin, Pronto nods and takes out the slug in question and shoves him in his blaster. “Do your worst! "

The shot let out a horrid smell that made the rest of the bandits close their eyes in disgust and try to get away from it, only to slam into each other and the gas still lingering between them. The gross mixture of lime-ish green and deep purple was stinging their eyes and before they knew it, they were encased in the stomach of a buballeone slug. The gas getting stuck with them as well.

Eli walks up to the group stuck in webs, puts Burpy in a tube and then his blaster, and aims it at them. The group follows suit and the bandits, now face to face with the infamous infurnus with a gleam of mischief in his eyes, cower in fear. They haphazardly kick their feet to the ground, trying to shove themselves away from the slug's viewpoint making a trail of dust awaken from their pathetic attempts.

“We’ll shoot…unless you tell us why you’re here.”

“Don’t tell them a single thing!” a muffled voice from the bubbaleone’s stomach shouts. He coughs from the smell, his eyes stinging with tears and yet he still punches the slug for a way to escape. The common sound of blasters starting up made the bandits’ ears ring and they looked at the group, still armed and ready to shoot with a hopeless look. “yeah…I don’t think you have a choice.” Although his words could shake one in fear, his sheepish grin showed his shocking optimistic attitude to the situation.

“It’s Twist. We’re working for Twist!”

Suddenly, everything in the world seemed to stop for Eli. His grin faltered and memories flowed through his mind like venom. the name made him feel sick.

Twist. The one he trusted and seen as a family, only for him to stab the gang in the back and become Blakk’s apprentice, has now come back?

It’s been a few months since they’ve defeated Dr.Blakk and with that, all the people who used to work for him have now been solo once again. Slingers had no choice but to use normal slugs, all the minions and employees have gone to other jobs and all the companies and incorporations, whether they collaborated with him by choice or not, have now been starting to do their own thing again.

Twist’s words to him echoed through his head. ‘I’m on the side who wins.’ Well…the good guys won, didn’t they?

He thought he’d gone back to their side.

He hoped he’d gone back to their side.

With a click of his tongue and a sigh, the grasp on his blaster tightens. “Why did he send you here?”

“He wants a map to two rare slugs!” the banging on the bubbly slug’s stomach became louder. “SHUT UP STEVE! SHUT.UP!”

“What kind of slugs?” Eli ignored the furious thrashing of the other and focused on Steve, his face seemed determined, done with bad luck. “We don’t know the names. But we know one can turn invisible and the other can shapeshift.”

“WHAT THE HELL STEVE!” the other cries out. “WE’RE ALL DEAD MEAT NOW!”

“I don’t care anymore!” Steve screams back at him. “That guy sucks! How are we even sure he was going to pay us, huh?!”

“MAYBE BECAUSE DR.BLAKK’S WILL HAD HIM ON IT?!!!”

“oh…”

As his teammates chuckle and shook their heads at the scene before them, Eli wastes no time and silently walks up to his Mecha, his head obviously in a different world at the moment. With a heavy heart and words stuck in his throat, he mutters a ‘let’s go’ to his teammates and waits for them to get into their Mechas as well. In a worrying silence, they all sit down and start to ride off to their hideout.

Eli could feel their stares burning holes at his back. “What?” he huffs out. he doesn’t dare to even glance at them.

“Dude…you looked pretty sad back there.”

“Yeah....”

“I-I was just thinking!” he tries to reason, shoulders rising up and his grasp on the handler tightening a bit. He tried his best to ignore the worried glance Burpy sent him. “Pronto would have to disagree on that.” the Molenoid muttered. “You don’t really seem in the best of moods.”

“You know you can talk with us, right?”

He frowns, his chest suddenly feeling heavy and body feeling frozen. As if a froscrawler has been shot at him. His form shakes a bit as he gets a hard time trying to verbalize his emotions. Seriously, what’s up with him? Even he doesn’t know at this point. Is he frustrated? Tired? Scared? Angry? He’s unsure. He doesn’t even think he wants to know what the cause could be. “Let’s just...” he takes a deep breath. “Let’s just go to the hideout first.”

---

The small tapping of a pencil echoed through the dark room. Webs and boxes filled with lab supplies filled up the giant space. The place was cold. There was always a chilly aura around it. Yet, this time, it felt more present than before. Twist scoffed. Who knew that Dr.Blakk had warmth in him?

Small bits of rubble and signs of blasts littered the ground like it was a canvas. The artist for the piece finished it months ago and left with no guilt. Leaving Twist to pick up and clean the brushes.

Maps and old fairy tale books were all over the large black desk. Twist remembers the old tale Blakk told him. The one where he proudly showed his desk, speaking about his hardships and pain for a way to make slugs obey his command. “This desk was the first to see it succeed.”

If Blakk could make the impossible happen, surely he can too, right? After all, he is his apprentice.

The door shuffled open, but he didn't falter one bit. too enamored with the old tale he had his eyes one for a while. The interrupter of his peace cleared their throat. “sir.”

The man spoke up. “we’ve found it.”

In a blink of an eye, Twist’s head snapped back up with an excited grin. Yes! He knew it! As his grin became a snarky smirk, he chuckled and put down his pencil. “good, keep it there. And double the guards there.” They nodded at that.

The blonde leans back on his chair and finally, after weeks of scowls, a small smile was placed on his face. Oh, Dr.Blakk the ever-so genius. Hiding some dark water for backup in case of total failure and not telling a single soul about it. Not even his own apprentice.

Before the henchman leaves, Twist calls out their name.” by the way,” he leans back up. Elbows now placed on the desk and his chin placed right into his hands. “tell all those old patrons of ours to start wreaking havoc again. And of course, they’ll be paid handsomely for it.” The blaring stylized ‘V’ shined brightly behind him. The henchman’s eyes widen. For they have now seen the birth of Dr.Blakk within the new boss.

---

The hideout, also known as the home of the Shane Gang, was in a secluded spot in a forest. Left by his father, Eli often wondered what more secrets the place held. There was this one time with the whole safe that led them to have an object that made him speak to the Shadow Clan. But other than that, there wasn’t much discovered about the place.

Eli thought he knew everything now. He knew every cavern, every slug and even managed to get some rare slugs as well. But this? If they didn’t get those slugs first, who knows what Twist would do with them. A question popped into his mind. What would he do with them? Why is he so hung up about this?

Call it hatred, call it fear, whatever it was, he knows it’s a bad feeling. One that he needs to make sure doesn’t get worse with time. After voicing a few of his worries, not really giving the full picture to the team yet enough for them to understand what he’s going through, he gets up and takes out two white stick figure objects that were stuck together. Taking the two apart, a holograph showed up and he lays it on the table. The blue holographic screen showed a map of the 99 caverns.

“We need to stop Twist. We have to get to those slugs first.”

Trixie, who was busy searching in her computer for some Intel, sighed in disappointment. She turned around and leaned back on the chair with crossed arms. “Hate to break it to you E, but there’s only one thing out there about these slugs.”

“What is it?”

“It’s an old fairy tale about an old slinger who used to have these slugs. They say the slinger wanted to make sure they wouldn’t fall into the wrong hands, so they hid them from the world.” Trixie’s lips thinned in thought. “In the past...I’d say it’s just an old story…but now knowing that the ‘burning world’ is somewhere real…”

“There’s a chance that this could be real, too.” Kord finished her thought. Eli tapped his foot, concentrating on the map to remember any clues he could’ve possibly found in the past within the caverns. He came up with nothing. Greeting his teeth a bit, he sighed in distress. “How are we going to find these slugs?!”

He hadn’t noticed the three friends glancing at each other, a silent conversation being held up with their expressions. Pronto seemed eager, yet warry to tell Shane, while Trixie’s was the opposite, not wanting to give intel about something that could be for nothing. Kord on the other hand, seemed stuck between the two decisions. But in the end, he went with his gut feeling and opened his mouth.

“There’s…someone who could help with this.” Without a second to waste, Eli turned his head to the cave troll. “There was this family that knew everything about the slugs, the L/n family. From rare ones to common, they had a whole book written about them. They could help.”

“Then where are they? Let’s go to them right now!” Eli grinned, yet he was only met with worried glances from the team. “Yeah…um…the thing is, they suddenly disappeared a few years ago. And no one has heard from them ever since. “

“rumor has it that Blakk went to their house for something, but after he left, the house was left in shambles and there were only one remaining L/n in the midst of its ruins.” Pronto spoke. Eli frowned, now a bit of anger and worry coursing through him.“Where are they right now?”

Pronto thinks for a bit. “If I remember well, in a forest near Quisingly Caverns.”

“Uh, guys…!” the shocked and distressed voice of Trixie took everyone’s attention. She pointed to the map that was laying on the table, the red dots suddenly appearing all around slugterra. “There are criminals everywhere! We can’t just leave everything like this!”

“But if we don’t get there in time Twist could get his hands on the slugs sooner than us!” Kord brought up, in a moment of strategic thinking, Eli hummed and his shoulders tensed. He called out for the group’s attention and laid out his plan to them.

----

‘I’ll go look for the last remaining L/n, you guys can handle all the crimes while I’m gone.’His own words from hours ago echoed through his head, his gaze following the road he’s so near to finish and reach his destination. The forests in Slugterra always were so beautiful, but he never thought one could live in them. Especially with all duels and fights around the place. But, there are a lot of slugs in the forests, so it’s no surprise that a family known for their slug knowledge would want to live somewhere with lots of them.

“you see anything Burpy?” he asks the companion on his shoulder. The slug looks around the place, his eyes widening and chirping loudly as he points out a house to his right. “good job, buddy!” he praised, now turning his Mecha Beast in its direction.

the house seemed a bit old and quite small. But it seemed to be enough for having three living in it, he noticed a fence in the back, which lead him to believe it could have more space behind it. As he got off the Mecha Beast, he walked up to the door and in a singular moment, took a deep breath, hoped for the best, and knocked.

There was no noise for two whole minutes. With a frown, he knocks again. He feels relieved as a groan reached his ears. Footsteps became louder and soon, the door opened.

It was a girl, seemed to be his age with messy hair and puffy swollen eyes, as if she just woke up. The clothes were a big giveaway to that as well. Sweatpants and a tee-shirt with some cringey line on it written in cursive. The girl frowned at the boy, clearly annoyed by his interruption.

“Uh…hi.” He gulped, giving an awkward wave. “I’m Eli Shane. Are you from the L/n family?”

The girl’s frown deepened. It took her a whole minute to respond. Begrudgingly, she rolled her eyes and huffed. “Yes…” Eli smiled, hopeful gleam in his heroic eyes and his posture now brighter than before.

“I need your hel-“

the door slammed shut.

Eli looks at the door with pure shock, he takes a small glance at Burpy and sees him with the same expression as his. Taking a moment to collect himself, he knocks once more.

“Nobody’s home!” your voice screams out. He huffs and frowns.”I know you’re in there.” He says, unimpressed. “please, you gotta help us!”

No one answered back. He takes a deep breath, collects his thoughts and forms the best words in his mind to speak up about .his shoulders slouched.

“Blakk’s gone.” His first words came out deadpanned, serious of some sorts. “But his apprentice, Twist, is still out there. We don’t know what his plan is, but we have to stop him before it’s too late.” He’s already attacked Molenoid Cavern, who knows where else he’ll resort to for these slugs. The thought made Eli even more worried than before. As a Shane, it is his duty to protect all of Slugterra. All caverns whether big or small. For the first time in quite a while, he felt worried. One of the last times he saw Twist, was when the blonde and Dr.Blakk defeated the Unbeatable Master. He let out a sigh he didn't realize he was holding back. “We could really use your help right now.”

There wasn’t a single noise coming from the house. Not even any sounds of walking around or shuffling away some objects. It was fully blank. It made Eli feel a bit awkward and stiff. Despite that, he didn’t falter. He didn’t give up a single hope. He’ll wait. He’ll wait for the night if he has to. Because the Shane knows that if he doesn’t, there’s no hope in stopping Twist.

---

He wasn’t sure how long it has been. A few minutes or hours, but certainly not a full day. He played a bit with his slugs, chuckling at their calm purrs as he pets them.

The girl was certainly stubborn, he’ll give her that. With feeling confident about getting through her, he smiles. He has already gotten through the great grumpy Redhook. If he survived that man’s wrath, he knew he could survive anyone’s.

He flinched as the door suddenly creaked. Quickly twisting his head in its direction; he was met with the same girl, but in a more outside casual outfit. An evident scowl on her face by seeing him still there. Eli got a bit distracted by the few hairpins that were stuck to her hair. “You’re still here? Seriously?” she scoffed.

By completely ignoring the blue-eyed Shane and closing the door, she walked out of her house. Eli quickly got up, rode his Mecha Beast, and followed. He had to lower the speed his vehicle was going at, all to hold a conversation with her. He looked at the road ahead of them, the Quisingly Caverns can be seen from a distance. “Sooo where are you going?” he fiddles a bit with the buttons placed on his Mecha Beast.

It took a few awkward seconds before she answered. “I’m out of slug chow.” He hummed at that, now looking at the road. “you need a ride there?” he twists the handlers in his grasp a bit, making his Mecha Beast roar off some sound as a way to impress.

Her frown deepened. “No.”

“alright…” Eli looked at her once more, now getting a closer look, he noticed her lack of blaster and slugs. ‘Weird.’ It was certainly not strange for some people to not have any slugs nor be slingers. But if she needed slug chow, then where are her slugs? Maybe she had them more like a pet or roommate rather than ammo? Still, isn’t her family all about slugs? She’d have to know how to sling if that’s the case...right?

An infinite supply of questions and barely even a thread of answers were given to Eli. He’s sure he’ll get the answers soon.

“could you at least tell me your name?”

“….its Y/n.”

---

Seriously, what the fuck is wrong with this guy?

That’s the first thought that ran through your head as you hesitantly walked beside him. Couldn’t he take a hint? You didn’t want anything to do with Blakk anymore. It doesn’t matter if he was gone for good, didn’t matter if he had an apprentice. Whatever the so-called ‘Eli Shane’ was getting himself into, it was absolutely none of your business.

Still, the sudden news shocked you. Dr.Blakk, the foulest and evil person you’ve ever met, the richest guy in slugterra, defeated? And by some kid like you no less? It made you feel relieved, a bit happy even. You still remember the days when Blakk was just a mere name you heard of in shops, some guy who you thought you’ll never have the dismay to meet.

Eli Shane…Shane…that name was very familiar. Who doesn’t know about the Shanes? Protectors of the caverns, heroes of all. You remember seeing his father once in the past, his visit to your house, talking with your father about some sort of plan and holograph recording through Enigmo Slugs. You even remember him talking a bit about his son, saying he’ll bring him to visit to one day. Ten-year-old you were happy to hear about a kid her age.

Who knew you’d be meeting in such different circumstances than it was imagined? A bittersweet smile gets placed on your lips. Looking back up, you noticed the city you’ve been meaning to reach. You give another annoyed glance at Eli, wondering if he’d leave you be, yet were only given an awkward grin from the boy instead. Soon, your eyes landed on the infurnus slug he had on his shoulder, something you hadn’t noticed till now.

He looked familiar, way too familiar in fact. The extreme orange skin…the fire design around him…it took you a few seconds to realize why. “I’ve met you before.” You speak to the slug, the little firey being flashing a grin and waving at you. “You were with Will Shane that day.” You unconsciously point out.

“You met my dad?” Eli gasped, now his head in a completely different subject. Your eyes squinted at the boy, unsure of how to respond. Yet, when you looked at the eagerness and desperation in his eyes, as if he hasn’t heard from his dad for years, you felt guilt stab into you. You looked away and sighed. “Yes. I’ve met him before.”

“I was young though.” You looked at a supermarket and made your way to it. “I think I was ten at that time…he was talking with my dad about some Enigmo slugs.” You opened the store’s door and went in. Eli muttered something to himself. Eyes on the ground as he stood still in thought. Seeing this as your golden opportunity, you made a run for it and lost yourself in the supermarket’s isles. Away from the stubborn boy.

Slugterra’s products are quite cute when you think about them. Since slugs are the most known beings throughout the place, many companies use them as their mascots. There’s the gum that features a Bubbaleone, chocolate featuring a hop rock, and spicy sauces with Flaringo’s on them. Really, it’s all too darn cute. At times when you look at them, you remember your own slugs at home. Always there with you. By your side at your best and worst times, always sticking with you even if…

You stop that thought.

Focus. They’re going to get hungry soon. Get the food.

Walking down the familiar place, you take a few steps forward and reach the counter filled with different brands of slug chow. You can always make ones yourself, but that’ll take more gold than the store-bought ones. At the same time, you’re sure your slugs would like the family recipe better. You hummed a bit, now in deep thought about the small ordeal.

Before you could decide, you heard a snicker behind you. Turning around, you found yourself regretting coming out today. The man before you made the moment significantly worse with his evil smirk.

C.C. was his name. Or at least, the name he’s known as throughout Slugterra. Last time you saw him, he was a respected slug slinger but a huge douchebag. He forced you to help him find a Forgesmelter. You had two choices at the time. Either help him find that slug or face his slinging skills and get your face chopped off by a thresher.

“Y/n.” he showed off a cocky grin. “…C.C.” you looked away.

“Long time, no see.” The slinger chuckled. “What are you doing around here?”

“Just buying some stuff.” You gulped, quickly taking the closest brand in front of you, and quickly tried to scurry away. Only to be stopped by a hand blocking your path. Your heartbeat quickened and you felt your nerves screaming at you to run. Run as fast as you could muster. “Now now, no need to be in such a rush! I just want to make another deal with you.” his tone was condescending. Sadistic. You felt like throwing up by just hearing his annoying voice. “Judging by the Shane by your side…” oh god no. oh shit fucking fuck. “ I’m guessin’ you know about the whole…” he takes a deep breath. “Rare slug thing going on.” his blaster, now in his grasp, was placed right at your head. “how about this, I’ll buy you the slug chow and in exchange,” his blaster was suddenly pushed right into your head, almost grazing your skin and reaching your skull.” you tell me everything you know.” You took a fearful breath.

As if the world has blessed you, a familiar infurnus flew around the slingers. Gasping in shock, C.C. let go of you, and as swift as possible, you made a beeline to the exit. Completely ignoring the thing you were here for from the start and running since your life depended on it.

“Not so fast you slug nerd!” you couldn’t even grimace at that nickname. C.C. was right behind you. Blaster fired up and a Lavanyx shot. You grabbed on anything you could. Taking a small glance at it, it seemed to be a plastic tray on discount. Without a second thought, you threw it in his direction. The Lavanyx took the bait and shot his hot scourging lava at it, melting the whole thing completely.

Finally reaching the exit, you push the glass door as hard as you could and zoom out. Completely ignoring the pain in your palms. You were met with another can of worms. Slingers who had been waiting outside, all blasters aimed right at you.

Within a blink, they all shoot. You try to dodge each and every slug yet got punched down by a Rammstone. Your chest ached. Your cheek felt sore. Your heartbeat was in a state of disarray and your muscles were screaming for rest. Before you knew it, a loud scream emitted from the supermarket, and C.C. came flying through the door. Crashing merely a few steps ahead of you. Eli quickly got out as well, Blaster aiming right at the slingers outside.

“Jeez, can’t a guy buy groceries in peace?” Eli gave a cocky smirk. His eyes swayed everywhere and soon, they landed on you. “You ok there?”

You got up a bit, groaning from the jolt of shocking pain that went through you. “I’m fine! Just focus on the fight!” he nodded and shot a Hoverbug. The flying slug grabbed two of the slingers and flew around the place, making them land face first on the ground next to you. Their blasters and slugs get thrown out in the process.

Eli shoots a Frostcrawler, getting the slingers stuck on the icy wall for a bit. “Come on! Grab a blaster and shoot!”

All the world seemed to go blank. Hear beat raising again, feeling like a frog was stuck in your throat and body starting to shake. The blaster stood on the ground, mocking you and starring as if it knew all your secrets, as if it would tell the whole world about it. Your head was filled with unwanted thoughts. Your stomach felt like it was punching your guts and tears threatened to spill. Soon the thoughts became memories.

“Y/n?....”

You looked back at Eli, a sheepish grin placed on your lips as you huffed out a laugh and quickly grabbed the blaster. “d-don’t worry! I’ll..I’ll…” you wanted to show you can do i. yeah, you can do it! It’s just...it’s just as easy as anything else!

“uhh- um-“ your words kept coming up scrambled. Your mind was in full panic mode. Grabbing the tube that the rammstone slug was in, which was looking at you with worry, you placed the tube in the blaster and stretched your arms out. Your aim seemed wonky and your hands were shaken. Eli noticed that you didn’t even have the right position for slinging a slug.

“Y/n wait-!”

Without letting another thought run through you, you shot the rammstone and chaos obliterated the atmosphere. The power that surged through the blaster to shoot it soon impacted your body as well and you stumbled to the ground. The poor slug hit a mecha beast rather than a slinger, soon bouncing off the mecha beast and hitting a wall, then a pole, then another mecha beast and it kept going and going without any stop. In fact, it seemed to be going at a higher speed with each hit.

The stare you believed Eli was giving you was burning through your skin. With an awkward cough, you turned around and grimaced at his expression. Jaw dropped from shock, eyes widened in disbelief. Worse part was, his slug had the exact same expression.

“U-uhh I…” seriously, what was there to say? You felt your throat become dry, your shoulders rack in shame and you looked at the ground as if it was the most interesting thing in the world.

“You…” Eli tried to process this. Never expecting such a situation. The slingers that were supposed to be fighting you seemed quiet as well. You didn’t even dare to look at their expressions.

The sudden sound of a blaster shooting made you all jolt and turn your heads to the source. A Bubbaleon transformed and swallowed the uncontrollable Rammstone, now slowing down the slug’s speed and keeping him still in her stomach. “what? You didn’t know?” a snort came from C.C., who now recovered from Eli’s harsh attack on him. “the girl cant blast even if her life depended on it!” his laugh hollered through the place. The other slingers joined in as well. Leaving you embarrassed out of your mind and looking away from anybody’s gaze.

God, you’re so embarrassing. A fool. What kind of person in Slugterra can’t fucking sling a slug? Taking a small glance at the people around you, you felt your dignity scream from the sight. The slingers were laughing their hearts out at your embarrassing actions while Eli seemed to show sympathy. Choking a bit and coughing, you slowly looked away, paying extreme attention to the Mecha Beast a few feet away from you. Already done with everything. You just want to go home. You really need to go home. You couldn’t bear the laughs they were hollering out anymore.

Eli’s gaze switched from the slingers to you in concern. Torn between two decisions, Eli bites the bullet and shoots a tomato; the tornado turns and turns with no intention of stopping, leaving the slingers with no clear way of seeing the two.

He taps your shoulder. “Come on Y/n. it’s our chance to leave!” he grabs your arm and forces you up. With no words said, he runs to his mecha beast. You sat down the mechanic wolf, mind occupied elsewhere as you both rode to the house.

Eli, now finally piecing out his thoughts and coming into a conclusion, cleared his throat and broke the silence between you two.

“So…” his finger tapped lightly on the handle. “…you can’t sling a slug?” he heard you sigh.

“It’s…none of your business.” You grumbled out, obviously not really meaning that.

“But how come you can’t sling?” Eli pressed further, not letting this slip away. With gritted teeth, you rolled your eyes. Even if your emotions betrayed you and felt complete embarrassment from his words. “I just..can’t. Ok? I never really learned how to.”

“…Alright then.” Eli finally let go of it, focusing on the road ahead of him. You felt a bit bad. Not only did you act so harsh with him the whole day, he also saved you and you had yet to thank him. With a small pat on his shoulder, you caught his attention.

Looking back, Eli was shocked by seeing your expression. “Hey…uhh…” you cleared your throat a bit from the nonexistent block. Taking a deep breath, you finally spoke up.

“Thanks…for saving me out there.”

Eli gave you a small smile. “No problem.”

---

It’s been officially a full day since Eli came here. Yesterday, after the ride home barely any words were spoken. Eli offered his spare of slug chow to your slugs and you offered him a room to sleep in.

The room, although packed with notes and pictures, books that seemed to collect dust and clothes that seemed untouched, felt completely empty. As if a ghost was living in it instead. The bed felt as cold as the Chillbore Caverns. Making him cling to the blanket as if it’s his last life. Despite the uncomfortable energy around the room, he slept quite fine after an hour of staring mindlessly at the ceiling.

Waking up, Eli realized it was quite late in the day. Two p.m., to be exact. He must've felt exhausted from all the slug fights yesterday. He still felt a tad bit worried about you and the whole fight yesterday. So without a single second wasted, he gets up and starts his new quest. Find the slug nerd!

The house felt different than the room he slept in. it was warm and full of life. The small sounds of chirps and chippers of slugs goofing off filled the silence in the room. Small pencils and papers lay across the table in the living room. With a small glance, he noticed that it seemed to have written a bit of info with a slug drawn on its side.

He saw a few slugs hanging around the table in the kitchen, a few being his and others seemingly yours. A chirp caught his attention, looking to his left, he noticed Burpy jumping to get to him. With one high jump, he lands perfectly on his shoulder. Chuckling, he pets the slug a bit and greets him. “Where’s Y/n?”

The slug smiles and jumps down, looking back at Eli and motioning him to follow.

---

He hasn’t actually seen your backyard yet, has he?

It was quite beautiful, blissful even. The tall mushrooms from blue to deep purple towered over you, making the whole place darker than the rest of the forest outside. Small patches of grass littered around the place and a few slugs seemed to be hiding in them for fun. The whole place was to simply put it, breath-taking.

Despite the wonderful scenery, there wasn’t any time to appreciate it. He still had a person to check up on. His gaze landed on your sitting figure on the wooden stairs. Ones that were leading up to the yard in front of him.

Quietly petting the Arachnet slug that sat on your lap, you heard footsteps that you could only assume were Eli’s. feeling a new weight getting added and a small creak coming along the stairs with it, you only tilted your head up to look at the top of the 99 caverns, covered by sharp rocks that go all up in an inevitable darkness.

In a few moments, you started to speak. “Invisible and shapeshifting slug…god that’s such a mouthful.” You scoffed. “They’re actually called Invislug and Shaper…”Eli’s head turned to you in a swift movement. “The owner might have had skills in slinging, but certainly not in naming slugs.” You chuckled, completely ignoring his shocked expression.

“so you do actually know about these slugs!”

“only a little.” You shrugged. “my great grandfather had been trying to find them for years. but died before finding out. the rest of the family didn’t want to continue his research, but they did write about it in the book.” Eli smiled, relief flooding his system. “Then can you show it to me?” the frown you gave worried Eli. Lips thinning in stress and shoulders tensing up.

“I destroyed the book.”

Silence took over the room for a moment.

“you what?”

“I destroyed it.” You repeated. It felt more like a confirmation to yourself than him. “It…it was to stay safe from Dr.Blakk.”

A few moments passed, but Eli sighed in nodded in understanding. He knew what you meant. From what he heard, no one ever stood up to Dr.Blakk before he came around. No one dared to disagree with the man in the fear of everything they have got taken away from them.

The ones who did stand up, ended up getting convinced and partnering up with the man or, well, dead. His father was proof of that.

In deep thought, you found yourselves fighting between two decisions. Be selfish or selfless?

It was a question that everybody goes through at some point. If you be selfish, you could stay here and rest for as much as you like. Do nothing for hours without any consequences. If you be selfless, however, you could find yourselves nearly dying every second, danger all around you. But, you’ll also make the universe avoid giving danger to others. If you get those slugs, you can keep them away from the wrong hands for good. You can finally be someone useful. Someone worthy of your family’s legacy.

“I’ll help you.” You stated, making the boy grin in response. “I don’t remember much about them, but I do know the book having something about clues being left around the 99 Caverns for where they hid the map.” Getting up, you gave a small smile and held out your hand for him to take.

“So? What are you waiting for?”

It took a moment for Eli to process your words. A new determination surged within him as he took your hand and got up.

“let's go find those slugs.”

-----A/N---------------

Guess which clown made an x reader fanfic for a show barely anybody remembers. THIS CLOWN!!!!

Anyways, so I recently rewatched all of slugterra and had this idea pop into my mind, in the end, I couldn’t help but write it. I'm sorry if Eli seems a bit ooc, I didn’t get much opportunity in the plot of the first chapter to show his personality. Had to make him get into his hero mode for most of the part. But dw, Eli will be in character in future chapters.

If you enjoyed this please do comment and leave a like on this fanfic. It keeps me motivated and makes me decide if I should write a second chapter or not.

Alrighty, so here's a question, whose is your favorite character in slugterra? Mine would be Junjie. He’s so sweet and kind- I really loved his arc about feeling horrible for who he was for the last twenty years and trying to move on from that. I wanted to give him a hug the whole time- if there ever was more slugterra made, I hope they show us Junjie more-

Anyways thank you all so much for reading!! See you all in the next chapter!!!

#slugterra #x reader #reader insert #fanfiction #eli shane #eli shane x reader #slugterra x reader #trixie sting #kord zane #Twist #fem reader #what am i doing

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girl-of-many-fandoms · 2 years

Text

Wrong Name // 3

Pairing: Shane Walsh x Reader

Summary: Everyone has secretes.

Warnings: mention of blood, knife violence, affairs

It's safe to say Jon Bernthal has taken over my life :)

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7

MASTERLIST

—-

“Rick!”

Shane grunted in pain from the punch Rick just landed on his jaw, drawing everyone’s attention. Rick is fuming, his face red and breathing erratically as he shot daggers at the man in front of him.

“You asshole! How could you?!” Carl held onto my arm as his dad continued on in his fit of rage, punching and shoving Shane until he landed in the dirt.

"Rick, stop!" Lori cried out, begging her husband to stop his assault on Shane but her pleas fell on deaf ears as he continued to beat the shit out of him.

Darryl and Glenn were the ones to pull Rick off of Shane, they almost failed as he fought against them to break free from their hold.

I sent Carl over to Lori before heading over to my bloodied husband. Rick really put everything he had in those punches. From what I can see, Shane has a pretty bad busted lip, a split cheek, he definitely has a broken nose and he's going to be bruised up pretty badly.

"Y/N get away from him, he doesn't deserve you to be taking care of him after what he did!" ignoring him I turned Shane’s head to the side so he could spit out the blood that gathered in his mouth.

"I know that but I'm still a nurse. Carl, go on up to the house buddy, the grown-ups need to talk." Lori wasn't in the right frame of mind right now, especially not now with her hysterical crying and Rick didn't care that his son was still nearby.

He doesn’t need to hear this conversation, he's just a child. He doesn't need to hear about his mother and dad's best friend having an affair. The little boy ran off leaving the adults of the group behind.

"You...you know?"

"Yes."

"And you didn't care to say anything to me?"

"I told her not to, Rick." Andrea rubbed Lori's back trying to calm her down but it didn't help. Shane coughed up more blood, his eyes focused on my face above him.

"Y/N" he tried to speak and I shushed him, pulling him up a bit so that his head would rest comfortably on my thigh.

"I'm right here." Rick's blows to the head must’ve given him a mild concussion.

"They slept together while we were fighting to stay alive and you’re cool with that?"

"No, I'm not but we can’t change what happened! I am beyond pissed off at both of them but he's still my husband and I still love him. You can stand there and look at me like I've completely lost all sense but I know you still love your wife despite what went down between them." Shane gripped onto my hand, squeezing it lightly as my words sank in. Maggie came over with a rag, a bowl of water and a first aid kit and I got started on cleaning his face. Taking the washcloth I dunked it in the water and wrung it before wiping away the blood on his cheekbones.

"Do you know that she's pregnant too?" Pausing I stared down at Shane who's eyes grew twice its size and nodded.

"Yeah."

"The three of you make me sick, Christ." He stormed off to God knows where and the others dispersed leaving Shane and I alone. He tried to sit up but I held him in place to finish what I started.

"She's pregnant."

"Yes, your sperm does in fact work Walsh."

"Darlin' I'm so sorry."

"Don't, let's not go there." He took that as a cue to stop talking while I continued to take care of him. Reaching into the first aid kit I pulled out the bandaid to put on the cut on his face to prevent it from getting an infection.

"How long have you known?"

"The same day we had sex in the shower."

"You've kept this to yourself for a week." He sat up and adjusted himself to look at me better. Hurt written across his face but I can’t seem to find it in me to care.

“It wasn’t my place to tell you.”

“Bullshit, you damned well know you could’ve told me that same night but you chose not to.”

“For fucks sake Shane, do you know how badly I wanted to scream it at you? No, you don’t! I had to listen to another woman tell me that she’s pregnant with your child. That shit fucked with me Shane, I was ready to put that shit behind us and then she broke the news to me. Not like she had to, I saw the signs but I was praying that I was wrong for once in my life, turns out I was right.” I gathered all the used supplies before getting to my feet, my vision blurring from the tears that threatened to fall. The last thing I want to do is cry in front of him over this, him nor Lori deserved my tears.

“Darlin’.” he called out for me but I was already crossing the grass to get to the house. There was no use in talking about this with him.

Rick scoffed as I walked by and I stopped in my tracks to look at him.

“You got anything else to say Grimes?”

“I expected better from you.” I stepped closer to him to speak at a level where I’m certain nobody else would hear if they were to walk by.

“Yeah, well, guess I’m good at keeping secrets. You’re such a hypocrite, thank God I didn’t play into your advances that night. You’re supposed to be the last person going after Shane like that all things considered. How would you think Shane would react if he found out you drunkenly copped a feel of his wife?” his jaw clenched as he looked into my eyes, he knew that Shane would react the same way he did. With that said I climbed the steps and entered the house.

—

A week after the apocalypse began

“Rick, we need to find somewhere to sleep tonight, it’s almost sundown.” the both of us are tired, hungry and damn well thirsty walking down the empty stretch of road.

There was some shuffling of feet to our left as well as mangled groans coming from the small group of walkers that roamed the street. Sensing us they picked up their pace to get to us, Rick took my hand in his and dragged me along as he took off running.

We hadn’t stopped running until we got into an abandoned bar, well not really all that abandoned as we were met with two walkers upon entry. Using my knife I jabbed it into its skull and Rick took care of the one that went after him. We spent the next fifteen minutes looking out the windows to make sure that the herd didn’t find us.

“I guess here would have to do for the night, drink?” I helped myself to the bourbon that was on the shelf behind the counter and he nodded. Grabbing a bottle each I slid the Jack Daniel’s over to him, remembering how much he likes it.

“Another day and we’re not dead yet.”

“Cheers to that.” the alcohol burned as it made its way down my throat, I can’t remember the last time I drank but in light of what’s happening around us, I needed more than one glass.

“You still got your ring on.”

“So do you.”

It’s been a hell of a week, one I started wrapped up in my husband’s arms one morning and ending it with his best friend in a bar with zombies walking around outside. I don’t know if Shane’s alive or if he turned into one of them nor do we know if Rick’s wife Lori and son Carl are also.

“What if they’re gone Y/N?” Rick was already halfway through his bottle so I know this is definitely the liquor talking.

“You can’t think like that-”

“What if it’s just us two now, what are we supposed to do?”

“I’m sure they’re out there and we’re going to find them.” he put the bottle down on the bartop and turned in his seat to face me.

“Look around you Y/N, we haven’t come across someone who hasn’t turned into one of those things. They’re gone whether we’d like to believe it or not.” with each word Rick leaned in closer to me, the scent of the Jack Daniel’s reeked off of his breath that fanned against my lips.

“Rick, wh-” my eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets as Rick crashed his lips against mine, I didn’t respond to it at all. I tried to shove him off of me but he didn’t budge an inch, his hands found their way beneath my blouse as he ran his calloused hands on my stomach until they got to my breasts.

“Rick, stop.” he gave my breasts a firm squeeze, trailing kisses down my neck. Closing my eyes I gripped onto his hair and smacked his head against the counter, knocking him out cold. Tears pricked my eyes as I stared at his unconscious state.

Hopefully when he wakes up he doesn’t remember anything so we can carry on like he didn’t feel me up but if he doesn’t we’re going to have to put that behind us and pretend like it never happened.

But the next morning he did remember and apologized a million times before we agreed to forget it never happened, vowing to keep it a secret between the both of us.

—--

Now

Looking out the kitchen window I watched as Rick held onto Lori as she snuggled up in his arms, his mood had changed completely after I reminded him that he’s not a better man than Shane.

“Darlin’ you still mad at me?” Shane hugged me from behind, kissing the top of my head.

“No, I’m just frustrated with the way things fell apart with us, the world.”

“I get it but at least we still have each other, right?” Shane nuzzled his face in the crook of my neck leaving kisses on my heated flesh just in time to not see Rick look back at us. He tipped his head at me as a thank you for not opening my mouth about what he did.

I’ve had enough drama to last me a lifetime and if I were to ever bring that to light, it would open another can of worms.

"I love you, darlin'."

"Love you too babe."

----

TWD Taglist:

@positive-squid @harrysthiccthighss @young7711 @beltzboys2015-blog

#shane walsh x you #shane walsh smut #shane walsh x reader #shane walsh imagine #shane walsh #jon bernthal x you #jon bernthal x reader #jon bernthal imagine #jon bernthal #rick grimes x y/n #rick grimes imagine #rick grimes x reader #rick grimes #the walking dead masterlist #the walking dead smut #the walking dead x reader #the walking dead imagine #the walking dead

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diegos-butt · 3 years

Text

Unnoticed (chapter one)

Summary: He had watch her grown up. He had seen her transform into a beautiful woman, with a strong will but insecurities. Despite being away from time to time, he had fallen for her, hard. She on the other hand, had seen him become a big, strong man. But deep down she knew he had a soft side. She had fallen, hard, for him too. Another thing they have in common? The believe that the other will never feel the same. Will their feelings for each other always stay unnoticed?

Captain Daniel Syverson x Kathy Davis (plus size/curvy/thick OFC)

Warnings: none. bad writing maybe. mention of beer?

Wordcount: 5.4k 👀

A/N: I tried something here so bear with me. Honestly curious of what y'all think.

•••

I was walking to my brother Tim’s house as the sun was settling down. He was throwing a barbeque for his best friend’s return, Captain Daniel – Dan – Syverson, or just Sy, as we usually called him. I smiled as I thought of him. I had known him for so long. He and my brother had been friends since I was born. So, I grew up with them, teasing me but when someone bullied me, they were there faster than the blink of an eye, ready to knock the bully down.

They always stood up for me, even though they knew I could take care of it myself. But they insisted. Every time. And that was nice, to know they would. To know I always had someone who would be there for me.

As we got older, our groups of friends intertwined, and we became one larger group of close friends. Me, Tim, Sy, Holly, Shane, Benjamin, and Brianna. We all lived in this town, went to the same high school. Some of us even went to college together. Now we were all working in this town as well, except for the captain. He was away from time to time. And I would never admit it, but I missed him so much while he was gone. My brother’s house came into my sight, and my heart skipped a beat. After all these months, I was finally seeing him again.

When I fell for him? I can’t even remember; it is like I have always been. However, I have always tried to hide it, so he doesn’t know. At least, that’s what I think. If he does, he’s being a good friend and doesn’t treat me any differently.

What our friendship is like? Teasing, and full of sarcastic comments. Unlike everyone else, he calls me Kat instead of Kathy. I’d never want to change that, so I will not ruin that by confessing my feelings. What’s the point? He does not and never will feel the same. Right?

I took a deep breath and opened the door of my brother’s house, hoping Sy would already be there. I walked through the hallway and living room until the garden came into my sight. Sy just disappeared into the shed, so I walked through the doors outside, and said hello to my brother.

“Hey sis,” he welcomed me and gave me a hug. “He’s already here you know. I’m sure he showed up early for you.”

“Oh, shut up! That’s not true, he is just happy to see his best friend again,” I laughed and slapped Tim on his arm.

“You might be able to fool him, but I can see the nerves in your eyes Kathy. Just admit you’re happy he’s back,” Tim teased. I wanted to smack him when we heard noises coming from the shed. Sy walked out carrying two lawn chairs.

Tim released me from his hug. “Go say hi to him,” he whispered. I took a step towards Sy, and felt my heartbeat increasing. He dropped the lawn chairs and proceeded to walk to me. Our steps became faster, and quickly he was close enough to wrap me in his arms. He lifted me up and I wrapped my arms around his neck, letting out a little squeal. He smelled good, manly, but so good. His buzzcut was starting to grow out, and I couldn’t help myself but to stroke his head. He buried his face in my neck, and I giggled. He was home.

“You’re back,” I said softly, the butterflies in my stomach going crazy. Contain yourself, he doesn’t need to know you missed him that much.

“Otherwise I wouldn’t be standing here darlin’,” he answered, and I could see in his eyes that he was happy to be home again.

“Welcome home you big idiot,” I grinned, I loved teasing him.

After squeezing me tight one more time, he’d put me down again. Suddenly I realized the sounds that disappeared when my eyes met his for the first time in so long had come back. The sound of the flock of birds came back, just as the noises Tim was making while meddling with the barbeque.

“Oh, that’s how ya welcome me back home?” Sy said. I laughed and walked past him, while picking up one of the lawn chairs.

When he’d lifted me up, it was just me and him. He always does that when he comes back from a tour. I don’t even know how it started, but it had become a thing. He knows I like that, that I love that. He is the only one I trust enough for that, because I know he will never let me fall. I did fall though, but in a different way.

“I could also have started by saying you should trim your beard. It looks like shit right now,” I mocked, and walked past him. He’d placed his hand on his chest and pretended I had hurt him. His chest though, how on earth did he get even bigger? Quickly, I moved towards the sitting area, and placed the lawn chair down. He followed close behind, and when I looked around, I saw his eyes moving up. Was he looking at my bum? Why? I tried to not look puzzled, but I felt like I was failing hard.

“Ya know, being disrespectful in the army can get you in a lot of trouble,” he said and handed me a beer. His hand touched mine slightly, and I pulled my hand away quickly.

“Really? You’re going to punish me then?” I raised an eyebrow at him. You can punish me in a couple ways captain. No Kathy, he is your friend. He is just your friend.

“Who knows.” He cocked an eyebrow at me and finished his beer. I nearly chocked on mine, and thankfully Shane and Benjamin busted through the door and stepped outside onto the terrace, preventing the continuation of the conversation between me and Sy. They were cheering loudly, screaming Sy’s name, and hugging him. I chuckled and took a few more sips of my beer.

I watched as Shane and Benjamin tried to tackle Sy, they obviously failed. To be fair, Shane and Benjamin weren’t small guys either, but Sy was definitely bigger. I took a sip of my beer and watched as my brother joined them.

While watching the boys I noticed Sy’s physique, he looked even more broad than before. I had no idea that was possible. He currently had Shane in a headlock, flexing his bicep. I wanted to crawl under that arm myself, not in that headlock, but still. He could choke me though.

I was rudely awakened out of my daydreaming when Holly and Brianna suddenly stood next to me. The two girls tried to hug me at the same time, which failed due to their hight difference. Me and Brianna were both quite tall, while Holly was smaller.

“Kathy! Let me guess, the captain has already said hello to you?” Holly said and wiggled her eyebrows. Trying to hide the fact I had a thing for the captain from them was useless, these girls knew me better than I knew myself.

“Did he do that cute hug yet were he lifts you up?” Brianna added while hooking her arm through mine.

“Hello to you too, and yes he said hello to me, and yes he did that hug thing. Don’t make it look like it’s a big deal!” I said and took the last sip of my beer.

“No, did I miss it? That is my favourite part of Sy’s return!” Holly pouted. The brunette took the beer bottle out of my hand and placed it on the table. “Sy! Aren’t you going to say hello to us or what?” she shouted. The boys stopped talking and closed the gap between our groups.

“Hi girls.” Sy opened his arms for Holly and Brianna and gave them both a hug. The chatter immediately started, everyone asking Sy questions about how he was doing, and how happy he was to be back.

“Stop! Everyone, stop talking for a minute!” Brianna shouted. “Since Holly and I were a bit late, we missed the famous welcome back hug between Sy and Kathy.”

“I was there,” Tim laughed. “Maybe you should’ve known they would both be here early.”

“We were planning on being early, but sweet Holly over here was being incredible slow,” Brianna said and gave Holly a death glare which turned into a little smile.

“I think they should do it again,” Holly grinned. Oh no.

“I think they should too, apparently we all, except Tim, missed the highlight of Sy’s return. We should not be robbed of that moment,” Shane agreed, and a playful smile appeared on his face.

“Oh, come on guys!” I said. “The man has just gotten home! Give him a break.” If he lifts me up again, I might faint. This actually made them cheer even louder.

“C’mere darlin’. Let’s give the audience what they want.” He gave his beer to Benjamin and winked at me.

He caged me in his strong arms again, lifting me up, effortlessly. I threw my arms around his neck, and I heard everyone around us cheer. This was my happy place. I don’t know if it is the being lifted part, of just being held by his strong arms.

Far too soon for my liking, he had put me down on my feet again. His eyes locked with mine, and I nearly drowned. The blue in his eyes looked even brighter than ever before.

I was rudely pulled away by Shane, who cheered loudly while putting his arm around my shoulder. Everyone was laughing and cheering. Benjamin walked inside to grab the speaker, and a few seconds later music mixed with our noises in the garden.

“Hey guys, who wants to eat?” Tim shouted.

“Better give me a sausage, I’m in the mood for some meat,” Holly answered with a mischievous grin. I laughed at her; she was never afraid to speak her mind.

After we had finished eating, we all sat around the firepit. The sun was already gone, and the moon and stars shone above us. While we were eating Sy wanted to know what we had been up to. We were all doing great, we had jobs and nothing major had happened. Unlike last time, no pregnancy scare for Holly. Me and Brianna did start our own business, after our last employer went bankrupt. We were now the proud owners of our own interior design business.

After we were done telling Sy about the last months, Brianna had asked Sy about his. I saw the look in his eyes change, he looked down at the glass in his hand, and avoided the question. I knew he didn’t want to talk about it. Thankfully, Benjamin understood it as well.

“Sy, a toast to you!” Benjamin said, and raised his glass. “Welcome home man.” We all raised our glasses as well.

“Thank ya Ben, it’s good to be back. And I’d like to thank y’all for writing me those letters. They mean a lot to me,” Sy said. I thought about the letters I’d send him. There were many, so many. A few years ago, I had no idea what to write, but eventually I figured I would write what I wish I could tell him. I wished I could talk to him about my day, about things that bothered me, about things that made me happy.

Quickly I learned he liked it. When he got home the first time I did that, he had thanked me in private. He had told me it helped him get through tough days, that it made him feel like he was home. In that moment, I was so close of telling him how I felt. Yet I couldn’t. I couldn’t risk losing him as a friend.

He did write me back, but his letters weren’t as long as mine. They were usually a paragraph or two. He wasn’t that much of a talker, I knew that, but it didn’t stop me from teasing him.

“Well, next time you could try and write longer ones back you know,” I began. “I have put so much effort into my pages long letters, and all I get back is a paragraph from you just thanking me.” I attempted to pout but started laughing. “Nah, just kidding. We know it means a lot, so we’re happy to write them.”

I smiled at him. The letters kept him sane, and I was happy to send them. Just like the others. I looked at Sy, he sat opposite of me, and I wished he’d sat beside me. His body radiated a warmth that was always welcome, even if he just sat a meter away from me. But from this distance, I could not feel it.

“Don’t be funny darlin’. Might not answer yours next time,” he joked and pulled me out of my thoughts.

“Like you would ignore her Sy,” Shane mocked. Wait, what? What is that supposed to mean. Everybody started laughing, while I was starting to freak out. I had no idea what that was supposed to mean, but the conversation around me continued, and the moment to ask a question about it was gone. My mind was going crazy, and I pretended to listen to the conversation, but I didn’t hear a thing. I know he wouldn’t ignore me, but why did Shane say it like that? And why did Sy suddenly look so awkward?

The fire slowly went out, and that was our cue to head home. We all stood up, and helped Tim clean the mess we made.

“Guys, why don’t you all just go home. I’ll help Tim clean up the rest!” Brianna suggested. I knew she had a thing for my brother, and this was her way of getting close to him. Of being alone with him.

Everyone laughed but agreed. A very nice thing of living close to each other, was that we were all able to walk home. Holly, Shane, and Benjamin walked home together, and Sy suggested he’d walk with me, since we both had to go in a different direction than the others. I walked inside to grab my cardigan, while Sy lifted two lawn chairs back to the shed. When we were out of reach, the others started talking.

“Are they seriously never going to notice they like each other? Or is it just obvious to me?” Shane said.

“Oh dear, it is painfully obvious,” Brianna added.

“I think we need to help them a little. They need a little push,” Holly suggested. They all agreed, but they couldn’t continue discussing their little plan because Sy and I appeared again. Completely unaware of the conversation that just happened.

We said goodbye to Tim and Brianna, and walked home. Holly, Shane, and Benjamin took a left, and Sy and I took a right. It was just us, walking next to each other. It felt nice to be in his presence again, and because I was so close to him, I could finally feel his warmth again. We spend the way walking to my home talking, he wanted to know everything about the business I started with Brianna and how my family was.

Far too soon, we reached my home. We stopped in front of the house, a small 2-bedroom home. But it was nice, and cosy. I liked it there, but I was ready for the next step. To settle down with someone. With him, but I knew that wasn’t going to happen.

We faced each other, and fell silent. I looked at him, the moonlight highlighted his face, and I spotted some new scars. I wanted to trace them with my fingers, but I restrained myself.

“Alright, well, it is so nice to have you back Sy,” I said.

“It is nice to be back here,” he smiled. We fell silent again, and I smiled back at him.

“I should go inside,” I spoke softly, and opened my arms to hug him.

He hummed and wrapped his arms around me. He squeezed me tightly, and I nuzzled my face in his neck. He smelled so good; I loved his cologne. We broke up the hug, but he kept me close and pressed a soft kiss to my cheek. My heart was beating fast, and my breathing started to get heavier.

“Goodnight darlin’,” he said and winked, or at least he tried to.

“Goodnight captain,” I answered, and gave him a smile. He laughed, and started to walk away backwards, and watched me until I was inside. I waved at him before I closed the door and saw how he waved back and turned around to walk home.

I leant with my back to the front door and sighed. Will he for always not notice my feelings for him?

I watched Tim as he prepared the barbeque. The soft rays of sunlight spreading through the garden. The sunlight reminded me of her, Kathy, or Kat as I liked to call her. Especially the last time I saw her before my deployment. The sun shone on her face, and lit up her hair, making her look like a goddess. I almost broke my promise to myself and told her how I felt. I could never tell her; I didn’t want to ruin our friendship.

The teasing, the banter, the sarcastic comments. Even though I pretended she annoyed me sometimes, I missed her and our dynamic the most while I was away. She kept me sharp, a goal to come back to. Thanks to her I got through those months. Especially her letters. Those long letters.

She was actually the reason I had shown up early at Tim’s house. I was hoping she would be here early too, so we’d have a little moment of privacy. Well, Tim was there, but he knew how I felt. He had known for a long time. I had always seen Kat as Tim’s little sister, but the moment she started to become a woman, that changed. I had always fancied her presence, her humour and we got along very well. But ever since she had grown into a beautiful woman, it had been different. I wanted more, but I knew that would never happen. Nevertheless, I settled for being her friend because I could not bear not having her in my life.

I grabbed a beer and opened it, quickly taking a few sips. Too caught up in my own thoughts, I nearly missed Tim asking me to grab a few more lawn chairs from the shed at the end of the garden. I set my beer down of the table, nodded at him and walked to the shed.

The shed was dark, but I spotted the lawn chairs without any problems. Those nights in the dark desert had increased my night vision. I was about to step outside when I heard it. A laugh, but not just a laugh. Her laugh. It was like music to my ears. She was here, finally. Kat.

Hastily, I stepped outside, and my gaze immediately fell on her. She hugged her brother as they laughed. When Tim let her out of his embrace, her eyes locked with mine. Completely forgotten about the lawn chairs, I dropped them and started to walk towards her. Her feet moved as well, making their way to me, speeding up a little.

Before I knew it, she was in arms reach, and I wrapped my arms around her waist, lifting her up. She wrapped her arms around my neck and squealed. One of her hands stroked my hair that was starting to grow out, and she nuzzled her face in my neck while I smelled the rose scent of her hair. Even though she might not be the smallest, I could lift her up effortlessly and I loved reminding her of that. I could think of another few ways of throwing you around darlin’.

“You’re back,” she said softly.

“Otherwise I wouldn’t be standing here darlin’,” I smiled. She removed her face from my neck and looked at me. She looked even prettier than I remember. I had no idea that was even possible. Don’t get mushy man, damn.

“Welcome home you big idiot,” she grinned at me, and I put her back down on her feet. Uh, not even back for a minute and she’s already teasing me.

“Oh, that’s how ya welcome me back home?” She walked past me and started laughing. She picked up one of the lawn chairs.

“I could also have started by saying you should trim your beard. It looks like shit right now,” she mocked as she walked past me. I placed my hand on my heart, pretending she’d hurt me.

Shaking my head, I picked up the other lawn chair and followed close behind her. She looked good, really good. The jeans she wore hugged her in all the right places. She placed the lawn chair down and looked at me. My eyes immediately left her behind, and I placed the lawn chair I was carrying down as well. She better not be standing with her ass towards me again, or I will smack it.

“Ya know, being disrespectful in the army can get ya in a lot of trouble,” I said and grabbed a beer for her. I handed it to her, our hands lightly touching. Quickly, I grabbed my own beer from the table.

“Really? You’re going to punish me then?” The sunlight caught her face, making her look like an angel. She tried not so smile, but the glistering in her eyes gave her away.

“Who knows.” I chugged the rest of my beer and cocked my eyebrow. I know a few ways I’d like to punish ya darlin’.

Before our conversation could continue, the door to the terrace busted open, and Shane and Benjamin stepped outside. Cheering loudly, chanting my name. They walked over to me and threw their arms around me. They tried to tackle me, but even though they were strong, I was the strongest one of the group. Tim joined us, and they let me go so we could talk.

“Welcome back man,” Benjamin said and slapped me on my back. “We missed ya.”

“I understand, my presence is gift. Y’all should be glad I’m back,” I declared.

“Whatever Sy. Don’t get too cocky,” Tim said, he stood beside me and lifted his arm to smack me on the back of my head. I simply shot him a look, and his arm fell down next to his body again. I chuckled, and from the corner of my eye I saw Holly and Brianna had also arrived. I liked the girls, they were nice and sweet, but most of all good friends.

“Sy! Aren’t you going to say hello to us or what?” Holly shouted. I walked over to them, the other men following close behind.

“Hi girls,” I said and opened my arms for them. I gave them a hug, and everyone started asking me questions. I tried to answer them, when suddenly Brianna yelled.

“Stop! Everyone, stop talking for a minute!” she shouted. “Since Holly and I were a bit late, we missed the famous welcome back hug between Sy and Kathy.” Might have been a reason I was here early.

“I was there,” Tim laughed. “Maybe you should’ve known they would both be here early.”

“We were planning on being early, but sweet Holly over here was being incredible slow,” Brianna said, and I noticed how she looked at Holly like she would kill her. Soon the look turned into a smile nonetheless. Thank you, Holly.

“I think they should do it again,” Holly grinned. I had to try not to grin too much. Being close to her, felt so good. I would love nothing more than to hug her more often, or to cuddle up on the couch together. The chances of that happening, were very slim, and my heart sunk a little in my chest.

“I think they should too, apparently we all, except Tim, missed the highlight of Sy’s return. We should not be robbed of that moment,” Shane agreed, and a smile appeared on his face.

“Oh, come on guys!” Kat said. “The man has just gotten home! Give him a break.” Her comment made them cheer even louder. Doesn’t she want me to hug her again? Well, that’s not my problem ‘cause I’d hug her anytime if it were up to me.

“C’mere darlin’. Let’s give the audience what they want.” I closed the gap between us and wrapped my arms around her. I could smell her perfume, and I didn’t know what kind of scent it was, it just smelled like her. It smelled like home.

Every time I hugged her, there was just one thing I was afraid of. That I would not let her go again, because that’s where she belonged. She belonged in my arms, and I wished she would realize that one day. But I had to let her go again. Shane immediately wrapped an arm around her, while everyone cheered. Soon I noticed someone had put on some music.

“Hey guys, who wants to eat?” Tim shouted. I’m starving but not for that kind of meat.

“Better give me a sausage, I’m in the mood for some meat,” Holly answered with a mischievous grin. She was a sweet girl, always joking around, but don’t you dare mess with her. Don’t you dare mess with Brianna or Kat either, they will make you regret it. I liked that about them, that they were strong women.

An hour later we had finished eating, and we sat around the firepit in Tim’s garden. The sun long gone, the moon and stars providing us some light. The last hour I had mostly asked them how they’ve been, and it did me good to hear everything was going well. Tim’s construction company, where Shane and Benjamin also worked, was doing great. They were happy I would soon be joining them again. Holly’s clothing store has made a big profit in the last month.

I was happy to hear that Kat and Brianna started their own interior design business after the company they worked for went bankrupt. Kat’s eyes lit up when she spoke about it, and I loved seeing her with this passion.

After they were done talking about what they’ve been up to, it was my turn. I told them quickly a few things I could tell them. That I wanted to tell them. Thankfully, none of them asked anymore questions. They knew I preferred to not talk about it.

“Sy, a toast to you!” Benjamin said, and raised his glass. “Welcome home man.” Me and everyone else raised their glasses as well.

“Thanks Ben, it’s good to be back. And I’d like to thank y’all for writing me those letters. They mean a lot to me,” I said. It was true, getting letters while being far away from home, is the best feeling ever. Especially her letters, she had written me long letters, talking about the little things in life. She’d wrote about the weather or an awful client at work. She would just write about her day-to-day life, like she would if I were there. I had kept every single one of her letters, safely stored away in a box that was now underneath my bed.

“Well, next time you could try and write longer ones back you know,” Kat spoke. “I have put so much effort into my pages long letters, and all I get back is a paragraph from you just thanking me.” She pouted, and looked incredible cute, but started laughing. “Nah, just kidding. We know it means a lot, so we’re happy to write them.” She gave me a smile, and I wished she sat closer to me. Instead, she sat across the firepit from me.

“Don’t be funny darlin’. Might not answer yours next time,” I joked.

“Like you would ignore her Sy,” Shane mocked. Shut up Shane. Everyone but her started laughing. Oh no, what is she thinking? Kat looked confused, and I knew she wanted Shane’s comment to be explained. Thankfully, Holly started telling a story about a client in her store, so the moment to address the comment was over. Thank god.

Soon, the fire went out and that was the universal sign for us to go home. We stood up, and started helping Tim clean the plates, cups, and cutlery. I looked at Kat, I liked watching her move. The way her hips swayed when she walked, was one of my favourite parts about her.

“Guys, why don’t you all just go home. I’ll help Tim clean up the rest!” Brianna suggested. I chuckled. Smooth Brianna. I had known for a while she had a thing for Tim, and I knew he felt the same. We all laughed and agreed with her plan. Holly, Shane, and Benjamin walked home together since they lived close to each other. Kat and I had to go the other way.

“I’ll walk you home darlin’,” I said to Kat, and she nodded in response.

“I’m going to grab my cardigan from inside, and then I’m ready to go,” she added, and quickly walked inside. I noticed the lawn chairs still had to be carried back to the shed, so I lifted two up and walked to the end of the garden. I heard the others talk behind me, almost whispering, but I didn’t pay any attention to it.

When I came back, the conversation between them stopped immediately. What were they talking about?

We said goodbye to each other, leaving Tim and Brianna behind. Holly, Shane, and Benjamin went to the left, while me and Kat started walking to the right. It was nice, to be alone with her. Calmness washed over me, while at the same time a fire inside me burned.

During our little walk, we talked. I wanted to know everything about her business, and she happily answered my questions. I watched her from the corner of my eye, when she talked, she uses her hands to gesture around, and it was an adorable sight.

Way too soon we reached her house. We stopped in front of it, and we fell silent. The moon provided a little light, bringing out the beautiful features of her face. I wanted to cup her cheeks and kiss her. Sy, dude, get yourself together. She is a friend. A. friend. You don’t kiss friends like that. Right?

“Alright, well, it is so nice to have you back Sy,” Kat said.

“It is nice to be back here,” I smiled. We fell silent again.

“I should go inside,” she spoke softly, and opened her arms for a hug. I could also go inside with you.

I let out a hum and wrapped my arms around her thick waist. I squeezed her tight, and she nuzzled her face in my neck. I loved it that she wasn’t fragile, and that I could just hug her like I wanted to.

We broke up the hug. I did not let her go yet, I wanted to kiss those soft lips so bad, but I settled for kissing her cheek instead. I hoped she did not hear my heart beating fast, or my sinful thoughts. She let out a little whimper, and I knew I had to let her go before I would drag her into her bedroom.

“Goodnight darlin’,” I said and winked. Shit, forgot I can’t wink.

“Goodnight captain,” she said and laughed at my attempt to wink. I shook my head and took a few steps backwards. I watched her go inside and waved before she closed the door.

I turned around and starting walking to my parents’ house. A few years ago, we had built a cabin at the end of our property. While I was serving, I lived there at the times I was back home. I was now back for good, but I still had to tell Kat, and my friends. It was time to come home, I was ready. I was ready to settle down. With her preferably, but I knew that would never happen.

I sighed, and dropped my head. Why won’t she notice me the way I notice her?

•••

> chapter two

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heyiwrotesomethings · 3 years

Text

Fresh Starts

Leah (Stardew) x Selectively Mute She/Her Reader

A/N: Thought I’d try something different with this one. Sorry if I didn’t detail the instances of sign language very well, or if they are a little off, I did try. Also Kel is an asshol in this when they show up so get ready for that. Robin is cool mom and Abigail is the friend who is always ready to fight at the drop of a hat. Also, time is so weird in Stardew? There are four season in a year but each season is like a month so a year is like four months. Time is scary. I hope you like it! Word Count: 8,943

“So, someone has finally taken up that old farmland,” Leah heard Gus say to Harvey as he fixed the good doctor a drink at the bar, “‘Heard Lewis and Robin talking about it outside of Pierre’s yesterday.”

“Is that so?” Harvey was tired from a long day at the clinic, but being ever polite, he humored Gus and rested fully against the bar stool.

“Mhmm, looks like the old man’s kin is finally gonna make something of it. A few years late though I must say, that place is well overgrown. It’s gonna take a lot more than a little elbow grease to spruce up that dump,” Gus chuckled good naturedly and handed Harvey his beer, “I wish them luck, whoever they are.”

“Bah!” Leah jumped in her seat tucked away in the corner. Pam must have been listening in too. “If they’re smart they’ll just sell the heap of trash to Joja. M’sure they’d get a pretty penny for it.” Pam spoke bitterly. Shane, who was also quite drunk at this point in the night, took the opportunity to add his two cents in and yell across the bar.

“Why would they get your daughter for selling out to Joja?”

“That’s not what I meant, dumbass!” Pam roared back, slamming her beer on the table with a loud thump.

Leah decided she’d call it a night then. Without Elliott to crack jokes with, the saloon could get real depressing real fast with Shane and Pam racing each other to see who would get alcohol poisoning first. Even Clint was just sad to watch. The poor man sitting hopefully, waiting for Emily to even just turn in his direction. Leah finished the rest of her beer and paid Gus, giving the man a sympathetic smile as he left to cut Shane off.

Leah shivered in the cool spring breeze as she walked along the river bank to her cottage and her thoughts wandered back to what Gus had been gossiping about.

“A new face around Stardew Valley, hm?” Leah mused, kicking a stray pebble in her path, watching it skip across the cobbled stone. “I guess I won’t be the town newbie anymore.” She smiled and turned to look in the direction of Marnie’s home, knowing that the farm was somewhere just beyond. As Leah turned the key to unlock the door of her small cottage, she wondered what changes this new resident might bring.

***

“Have you met our new resident farmer yet?” Leah heard Caroline ask Jodi as she walked across the town square.

“I suppose you could call it that,” Jodi laughed, “It was a very brief meeting to say the least.”

“I’m glad I wasn’t the only one then,” Caroline sighed, putting a hand to her chest in relief, “I thought I had offended the girl somehow, she never said a word. She just walked into the shop and pointed to a few seeds she wanted to buy, then she handed Abigail, Pierre and I daffodils and went on her way. Not so much as a sound.” Caroline explained, still bewildered by the interaction.

“Sounds about right,” Jodi nodded, “She knocked on the front door and handed me a single clam. Which was nice I suppose, but so very odd. She gave Vincent a daffodil too,” Jodi smiled, “He was very pleased. I’m sure she would have given Sam something as well if he could wake up at a more reasonable time.”

“Oh, Leah! Good morning!” Caroline had caught her. Leah put on her most sociable smile and walked forward, greeting the two women.

“Good morning Caroline, Jodi.”

“Have you been visited by the farm fairy yet?” Jodi asked, chuckling along with Caroline.

“I’m afraid not.” Leah admitted. “Although Elliott says I am a bit difficult to track down at the best of times.” She laughed good naturedly.

“Well, I’m sure she’ll get you sooner or later. She seems to be on a mission to greet the whole town. If you can call it a greeting I suppose. I don’t even know her name.” Caroline realized.

“It’s (Y/n).”

The three women jumped and turned to a grinning Robin, walking up to them with her yoga mat swaddled under her arm.

“Her name is (Y/n). She’s quite the character, huh?”

“Robin, you helped Mayor Lewis move her in didn’t you? What can you tell us?” Jodi asked, looking for any crumb of information she could get on the mysterious girl.

“Not much to tell,” Robin shrugged, “Just a sweet kid wanting to get away from the pressures of the big city,” she sent a knowing look at Leah, “Sounds like someone else I know.”

Leah laughed politely, twisting a finger around the tail end of her braid as blush settled in her cheeks faintly.

“But why is she so... you know, quiet?” Caroline asked.

“Hm, well, she did give me her blessing to explain should it come up.” Robin took a moment to think of how to proceed, absently tapping her fingers against her mat. “(Y/n) is selectively mute. She has the ability to speak, but she’s just not comfortable enough to do so at this time. This move was a big decision for her, and she’s excited, but it’s just gonna take some time before she feels secure enough to communicate orally.”

“And how did you get all this information out of her?” Caroline wondered.

Robin secured her yoga mat between her thighs and presented both hands, pointing her index fingers outward and drew a couple large circles in the air with the tips of her extended fingers. “Sign language!” Robin grinned, before taking a hold of her mat once more.

“Oh how clever!” Jodi praised. “I wish I understood sign language.”

“I’d be happy to show you a few of the basics sometime. If you really need to ask (Y/n) something though she will have no problem writing out answers for you.” Robin informed. “Now, are we working out today or...”

“I completely forgot!” Caroline smacked her forehead with the palm of her hand, “Yes, let’s go. Poor Marnie is probably wondering where we are. Are you going to join us Leah?”

“I’ll pass, thanks. I’m heading to the beach to do some painting,” Leah explained, motioning to her bag.

“Alright, see you around!” Caroline, Jodi and Robin bid Leah goodbye and hurried to the general store.

Leah sighed, as much as she liked the people in this town they were so chatty. She could have been at the beach forever ago! Once she arrived, she saw Haley sunbathing. Not unusual, but as she kept walking closer to shore she saw Elliott splayed out over the sand laying on his stomach.

Leah rolled her eyes and walked over, playfully kicking the man’s arm, causing him to squint up at her.

“Is there some kind of new writing exercise I should know about?” She asked, playfully.

“I wish, this is simply writer’s block at its finest.” Elliott groaned. “That, and I don’t know what I’m going to do with this,” he sat up and produced a wild horseradish from his jacket pocket.

“Why do you have a horseradish in your pocket?”

“A girl I’ve never seen before in my life gave it to me. Then she took off before I could refuse. Didn’t even say a word.”

“She’s totally weird, but she did give me a daffodil so I guess she’s not that bad.” Haley called from her own spot in the sand.

“Has everyone met the new girl except me?” Leah wondered aloud.

“She’s been making rounds. I’m sure she’ll find you eventually.” Elliott said, resting his chin over his arms.

“You make her sound so ominous.” Leah laughed, lowering herself to the sand and taking out a sketch pad.

“A silent specter. A harbinger of-“

“Oh can it, drama queen,” Leah smirked, “so she gave you a horseradish, it’s not the end of the world. She was just trying to be nice.”

Elliott pursed his lips, propping his head up with one hand he turned the horseradish in the other offering it to Leah. “Do you want it? You’re all about foraging.”

“I mean, if you’re not going to use it sure. Put it in my bag.” Leah relented easily. Her eyes only leaving her paper to study the horizon for a moment, then continue to sketch.

Leah stayed on the beach with Elliott for a couple of hours, talking sketching, and painting. Finally she stood and stretched, patting the sand off the back of her jeans. “I should get going. See you around.”

“See you.” Elliott nodded, splitting off from Leah to head over to his shack.

Leah hummed to herself as she walked through town, making her way past Jodi’s house and entered the Cindersnap Forest. As she rounded the corner of her cottage, she paused in her tracks. Observing a young woman staring at her door with dandelions in one hand and her other poised to knock on the weathered wood.

Leah flinched slightly, she had stepped on a twig, snapping it and alerting her visitor of her presence.

Startled eyes met Leah’s own and the farmer straightened from her previous position, stepping back from Leah’s door.

She smiled shyly, giving Leah a short, jaunty wave before gesturing between Leah and the cottage a moment. Then she stood still. An expectant look on her face.

Leah simply stared back, blinking before she registered the silent question. “Oh! Yes, I live here. That’s my house. You’re (Y/n), right? Robin told me about you, I’m Leah.” She smiled kindly, coming forward to offer (Y/n) her hand to shake.

Instead of grasping Leah’s hand, (Y/n) cupped it with her gloved hands, turning Leah’s hand palm up and placing the dandelions inside.

“Ah, thank you.” Leah chuckled, “These will make a great salad.”

(Y/n) nodded vigorously, then moved to make her exit. Leah wasn’t sure what possessed her, but she called out to (Y/n) before she could get too far.

“Wait, I um, it’s not much but I did take an intro to ASL course my freshman year of college so, I’m a bit limited but if you ever want to talk, you know...” Leah wished she could stop talking right now. Why had no one told her that the farmer was cute!? “So, yeah, you know,” Leah fumbled with her free hand, her fingers sat just underneath her chin before she sent them forward, “Thanks again.” She smiled nervously.

(Y/n) stared at her, dumbfounded. Then she released a short, sharp exhalation of air that was reminiscent of stuttered laughter and turned back to stand before Leah. (Y/n) made a timid approach and gingerly took Leah’s wrist, still hovering midair, and guided the hand back to rest on Leah’s chin, just below her lip. Leah stood still as stone as (Y/n) held it there for a second then extended the hand forward. She repeated the motion twice more before backing away and releasing Leah from her gloved grasp. The smell of earth and grass still clung to Leah’s nose even after (Y/n) had stepped back.

“Oh, I did it wrong, didn’t I?” Leah blushed, “Is there a big difference between the two?”

(Y/n) blew out a large breath of air and nodded. One of her gloved hands came up to cover the amused smile fighting against her lips.

“What did I say? Was is embarrassing? Yoba, I need to know,” Leah carefully set the dandelions at her feet and rummaged through her bag. Taking out her sketch pad and a pencil, she flipped to a clean page and presented the materials into the rough fabric of (Y/n)’s gloved hands, “Please, tell me.”

(Y/n) shot Leah a sympathetic smile, then she looked down at the paper and wrote quickly and concisely. She looked over her work, nodded to herself, then she handed the sketch book and pencil back to Leah before jogging of in the direction of her farm.

“Eh- Hey! Wait a minute!” Leah took a few strides after the farmer but quickly gave up, electing to look at the paper in her hand instead. “Maybe I’ll tell you some other time. Nice meeting you Leah, smiley face.” Leah read aloud to herself. She scoffed, but couldn’t stop the smile that had conquered her lips. She couldn’t wait to see (Y/n) again.

***

“Hey, Maru-“

“I think I have a feeling about what this is about, but just in case, please proceed.”

The next morning, Leah had made her way to the clinic to visit Maru and perhaps get the answers she was looking for. She had made the trek to (Y/n)’s farm first, but she wasn’t there. A little note hastily taped to the farmer’s door revealed that she was spending the day fishing in the mountains and wouldn’t be back until late at night.

“Maru, you know sign language like your mom, right?” Leah asked.

“Sure do. Seb and dad do too.” Maru nodded, leaning over the clinic counter. “But I’ve got to tell you that if you’re looking for the meaning of what you accidentally signed to (Y/n) last night, we were sworn to silence earlier this morning before (Y/n) went fishing. Sorry.” Maru smiled.

“Ugh,” Leah sighed, leaning her forehead against the counter. “Can I at least have a hint?”

“Well, it’s really funny. Especially considering how chill you normally are and your kind disposition.”

“Yoba, I really need to know!” Leah groaned against the counter.

“Well my family can’t tell you. You’ll just have to wait to hear it from (Y/n),” Maru grinned and pushed away from the counter, “I have to prepare for Evelyn’s check up now so I’ll see you around Leah.”

“Yeah, bye.” Leah grumbled, watching Maru disappear into the back offices. “Well, there goes that plan.” She mumbled under her breath as she left the clinic.

Leah spent the rest of the day sculpting in her cottage. She spent hours getting lost in the chipping of the wood before finally going to bed.

***

It had been days since Leah last saw (Y/n) and if the farming life wasn’t so demanding, Leah would have been worried that she had deeply offended the farmer to the point that she was purposely avoiding her. Leah decided not to waste the time she had been presented with.

She approached Robin about sign language lessons, enough to get some basic phrases and words. She practiced the motions herself, perfecting them to allow for no mistakes. Although she knew (Y/n) could hear her just fine, she found it easier to retain the lessons this way. Not to mention that it was just a useful language to know.

“I’ve hardly seen you around. I was worried you stabbed yourself with your woodworking tools.” Elliott said as Leah came up to sit next to him in the saloon.

“And you didn’t think to come to check on me?” Leah looked at the writer incredulously.

“Nope.”

Leah punched Elliott’s arm and he laughed. Before long, Emily came by with their food and they ate comfortably.

“Would you look at that.” Elliot spoke, pointing in direction of the door as he swallowed another bite.

Leah turned to look, purple irises sparkling at the sight of (Y/n) lugging a large bag up to the bar. She watched Emily talk (Y/n)’s ear off, the poor farmer smiled uncomfortably while trying to divide her attention between her and Gus who had apparently requested a variety of fish.

“Wow, Robin said you were in trouble but you really are,” Elliott chuckled behind his beer, “You really lit up just now.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Leah scoffed, still watching (Y/n) hand Gus fish after fish. It was almost comical how such an objectively small bag could hold so much.

“You can’t keep your eyes off her. I realize the dating pool in Stardew is small, but the girl just got here.”

“Elliott, stop!” Leah blushed, looking back down at her plate to stab at her salad.

“I’m just saying, you’re already taking sign language lessons for her you might want to dial it back a little bit. You wouldn’t want to come off as the obsessive type.”

“Oh! She’s leaving, should I offer to walk her home? I’m going to offer to walk her home.” Leah dug in her pocket and pulled out some gold, pushing it over to Elliott.

“What did I just say?” Elliott called after Leah, as she eagerly jogged to the exit to catch (Y/n) walking in the direction of the Cindersaps, perfect!

“(Y/n), good evening!” Leah called jogging up to the farmer only to have the farmer gasp and take several steps away from Leah, holding her hands out as a warning to not come any closer. “I’m sorry, I’m didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable!” Leah gasped, maybe Elliott was right.

(Y/n) shook her head, slowly taking a step back towards Leah, presenting her slightly soggy bag and waving her hand in front of her nose, scrunching her face as she did so.

Leah was sure the movement wasn’t an official ASL sign, but it did help get the point across and she giggled.

“What? Do you think you smell?”

Another nod and a look that seemed to say that she didn’t just think so, she knew so. She had been in the mines all morning and fishing at the beach all afternoon. She couldn’t wait to take a shower.

“It’s alright, I won’t judge you,” Leah smiled, “Are you heading home for the night? I’d be happy to walk with you since it’s so dark.”

(Y/n) took a moment to think about it before nodding shyly and motioning Leah closer. Leah happily obliged walking alongside the farmer into the Cindersap Forest. The walk was mostly silent, but that was to be expected nonetheless, Leah was having a great time. They had even found a couple of leeks along the way which (Y/n) had insisted Leah keep. All too soon, they reached the porch of the old farmhouse.

“You’re crops look great,” Leah complimented, looking for an excuse to stay even just a few minutes more, “really healthy. What all have you been growing? Are those potatoes and turnips?”

(Y/n) looked over her shoulder as she unlocked her door. Her eyes focused on where Leah was pointing and nodded affirmingly.

“Yeah, I’m no farmer but I love foraging. I’ve got a few really good books about wild foods and where to find them and when. It’s kind of like a scavenger hunt.” Leah grinned.

“Mhmm.”

It was quiet, a little strained, but the small hum of agreement almost sent Leah into cardiac arrest. She sounded so sweet! Leah’s cheeks were starting to hurt from how widely she was smiling.

“Well, I’ll leave you to it then. So, I’ll see you around?”

(Y/n) looked like she wanted to say something, but settled for a simple nod, fiddling with the gardening gloves she had taken off. Leah smiled softly, watching how the farmer intently eyed the fabric twisting in her hands.

“Feel free to drop by the cottage whenever it suits you. I’ll leave the door open!” Leah added, waving over her shoulder as she turned to walk away. (Y/n) beamed, looking a bit more lively as she waved back.

Leah turned her back on the house and walked back to her cottage in the Cindersaps with a skip in her step and a painfully large smile on her face. Although it was already late, she prepared a new block of wood for sculpting. Her new muse had granted her a vision for a grand project and had the potential to be one of her greatest works yet.

***

“Kel, I told you to stop calling me. I’m not coming back to the city, we are through.” Leah frowned, her hand gripped the phone receiver so tightly that she could hear the plastic giving slightly under the pressure.

She was so focused on combating Kel’s useless bargains that she hadn’t noticed the timid farmer show herself in, looking at Leah’s tense shoulders and back with concern. (Y/n) flinched as Leah cut off Kel to speak again, her voice low and stern.

“There is nothing you could say, nothing you could offer me, that would make me come back. Move on, and please, for the last time, do not call me again.” Leah slammed the phone down on its perch. Pressing her palms into her eyes she let out a frustrated groan, slowly positioning her hands to rub at her temples to combat the headache she felt coming on.

Then she heard the door creak.

Leah quickly turned around just in time to see (Y/n) looking back at her with wide eyes and lips pursed thin as if she had been caught witnessing an event she had no business seeing. Which was partially true, but Leah had told her a week beforehand that she could drop by anytime.

“(Y/n), what a pleasant surprise!” Leah grimaced, watching (Y/n) flinch and look down sheepishly at her feet. One had managed to retreat back out the door before being caught and it was slowly joined by the intruding foot, so (Y/n) was fully outside again. Leah shook her head and calmly approached the farmer.

“Please don’t leave, I’m the one who told you to come let yourself in whenever. I’m sorry you had to hear all of that.” Leah was worried, watching (Y/n) linger in the doorway. Her shoulders relaxed when (Y/n) cautiously came back inside and closed the door behind her.

(Y/n) stood in the entryway and looked over Leah, her eyes filled heavily with concern. She raised a hand, pointing to Leah before signing the letters ‘o’ and ‘k’.

“I’m okay. I’m just,” Leah fumbled for the right words, “mad, sad? Exhausted.”

(Y/n) made another gesture, shaping her fingers into a ‘hang loose’-esque sign. Her curled fingers meeting her chin. She lowered the hand momentarily to give it a controlled shake before bringing it back up into the starting position.

“What’s wrong?” Leah mumbled, making sure she understood. (Y/n) nodded. “I just got a phone call from someone I didn’t want to talk to is all,” Leah sighed, “They’re an ex of mine. The person who called.” Leah disclosed, rubbing the back of her neck, agitated.

(Y/n) signed again, but Leah didn’t quite catch it that time so she motioned (Y/n) over to her dining nook and sat her down with some paper and a pencil. The farmer seemed a bit unwilling to write it out, feeling like it was more insensitive somehow but with a little prodding from Leah, she gave in.

“Was it a bad break up...” Leah read aloud. She sat back in her chair and carefully chose her words. “Sometimes it feels like we’re still breaking up,” Leah chuckled wryly, “Kel, my ex, didn’t like me perusing art. They didn’t think I could make a living out of it and wanted me to waste away at some office job and well, I didn’t want that. They weren’t respectful or supportive of my dreams, so I left. They call me a lot though, to try to convince me to come back to the city... that I won’t make it as an artist. That I can’t be happy without them. It really is exhausting and the worst part is, I worry that they’re right.” Leah released a shuddering breath, “I haven’t sold a single piece. I don’t really even know how to start. I can sustain myself on what I have in my savings account for only so long.”

(Y/n) covered Leah’s hand with her own, squeezing it. Leah marveled at how soft it was in comparison to her own, especially since it was the hand of a farmer. Perhaps the gloves (Y/n) always wore had more practical uses rather than simply being worn for aesthetic’s sake. Leah chanced a look at (Y/n)’s face and was caught off guard by the determined fire blazing in her eyes. Then Leah’s attention was brought back to the table as (Y/n) furiously scratched the pencil against the paper and forcefully pushed her newly composed message in front of the sculptor, her other hand still rooted over Leah’s.

Leah read over the note and felt her heart ache with appreciative warmth. ‘You were brave enough to know what you wanted and even though it wasn’t easy, you went for it. That in itself is an amazing accomplishment that you should not take lightly. Your dream is not unfounded either, I’ve seen some of your sketches and paintings and I think you are very talented. Once you figure out how to put yourself out there you’ll have people begging you to take their money.’

Leah sniffed and smiled at (Y/n) appreciatively, turning her hand to reciprocate (Y/n)’s strong, yet gentle hold on her. “Thank you, (Y/n). I just wish I knew how to start.”

(Y/n) tapped her chin with the pencil as she thought. When she had an idea, she pulled the paper back to herself and wrote a suggestion.

“An art show? Oh, I don’t know (Y/n). It hardly seems possible.”

(Y/n) shook her head in disagreement and wrote more.

“You really think the town would want to help? Are you sure you want to help? You’ve got enough on your plate already with how busy the farm keeps you. I don’t want to impose.”

(Y/n) looked as if she had something to say, her throat bobbed and her lips twitched, but in the end she settled for the paper again, still too anxious to speak. After Leah had read the reply, she felt (Y/n)’s thumb rub against her knuckles and looked up. (Y/n) nodded, her expression serious. She wanted to help Leah with this.

“Thank you, (Y/n)!” Leah sniffled, holding back tears. She launched herself into (Y/n)’s arms and hugged the surprised farmer close. “Thank you so much!”

(Y/n) slowly returned the hug, smoothing one of her hands over Leah’s back in comforting motions. It was a bit of an awkward position with (Y/n) still sitting at the table and Leah hovering over her, but it felt nice.

“Sorry,” Leah chuckled after a moment, leaning back and wiping a stray tear from her eye, “I kind of caught you off guard with that didn’t I?”

(Y/n) shrugged and smiled good naturedly. A look came over her face as if she just remembered something and she stood up to grab her bag from the cottage entryway. She grinned when she found what she was looking for and made her way back to Leah, holding out a brown paper package to her.

“For me?” Leah asked. (Y/n) nodded and gestured for her to take it. Leah carefully unwrapped it and gasped. “(Y/n), is this goat cheese? I love this, how did you know?”

(Y/n) raised her hand, signing the letters ‘E’ ‘L’ ‘L’ ‘I’ ‘O’ ‘T’ ‘T’.

“Elliott hm?” Leah laughed, “I’m glad you two are getting along after the horseradish debacle.”

(Y/n) crossed her arms and stuck her nose up. She wasn’t looking back on the memory fondly.

“Hey, I’m with you on this one. He was being an ass. How could you have known he hated horseradish.”

(Y/n) nodded in agreement, one of her hands reaching out as if to say, ‘exactly’. She then noticed the time on Leah’s clock and signed that she had to go.

“I see.” Leah smiled sadly, trying not to let her disappointment shine through. “Good bye then, and (Y/n),” Leah signed ‘thank you’, very mindful of the position of her hands this time around, “seriously thank you for everything.”

(Y/n) beamed, giving Leah a thumbs up before heading out the door.

***

“I can’t believe I’m doing this.” Leah kept mumbling to herself while watching her fellow Pelican Townies set up her creations in the town square. There were already some tourists looking around and Leah felt her nerves fraying.

“Hang in there, kid. Everything looks great. Don’t worry so much.” Robin snuck up on Leah, making her jump. “It’s a beautiful summer day, don’t forget to enjoy it.”

“I’m trying, Robin. It’s just so much.” Leah said, nervously playing with her sleeve. Robin noticed Elliott walking up and motioned him to help deal with the artist while she went to help Demetrius move a heavy wooden sculpture.

“Come on now, Leah. Too late to back out now.” Elliott grinned, thumping her back. “(Y/n) seems especially excited by how things are progressing.”

Leah chanced a glance at (Y/n) and Maru putting up paintings between signing each other excitedly. The scene warmed her heart and her shoulders relaxed a bit.

“Yeah, okay. I’ll try.”

“Great, now let’s go woo some tourists.” Elliott said, wiggling his eyebrows.

“What? Elliott, no!” Leah shook her head.

“Not like that,” Elliott laughed, “I know your heart belongs to someone else. I just meant,” he looks around before whispering in Leah’s ear, “woo them out of their money.”

Leah laughed and pushed Elliott away. “Alright, you focus on the wooing and I’ll focus on explaining my thought processes.”

“That doesn’t sound as fun, but okay, this is your day.”

As Elliot and Leah made their way across the square, an unwelcome guest watched them from afar. Their blood boiled as they saw Leah pause at the makeshift painting gallery to give the farmer’s hand an affectionate squeeze.

***

“I can’t believe we sold so many!” Leah spoke in ecstatic disbelief as she waved at the last car she and (Y/n) had just loaded a heavy wooden sculpture into before it drove away. “This is crazy!”

(Y/n) wore a smile that matched Leah’s, happy to watch the sculptor bouncing in place. When Leah finally stilled, still giddy, she took both of (Y/n)’s hands in hers. Once again free of the gloves, the hands were pleasantly soft against her own and she relished in the feeling.

“(Y/n) I know it’s kind of late, but I have something I want to give to you. I left it at my house so I’m going to go get it. I’ll meet you at the farm, is that alright?”

(Y/n) stared at Leah, her curiosity piqued. She nodded, easily giving Leah the answer she was hoping for.

“Great! I’ll be there soon!” With one last squeeze of the farmer’s hands, she was off. (Y/n) heard the crack of a twig, but when she turned to investigate, nothing stood out so she made her way back to her farm to wait for Leah.

When Leah came up to the porch, (Y/n) had to do a double take at the big wooden statue she was lugging along. With one last huff of air, Leah placed the statue at the base of the steps and grinned up at (Y/n), wiping a bit of sweat from her brow.

“Thanks for waiting. It was a little more ah, heavy, than I expected.” Leah laughed sheepishly. “Come take a look.”

(Y/n) stepped off the porch and circled the piece, taking in every detail. Leah felt nervous butterflies fluttering in her stomach while she watched the farmer scrutinize the work and cleared her throat.

“I started working on it in the spring. I also incorporated some of that driftwood you gave me a few weeks ago. Anyway, I made it with you in mind. It’s called, ‘How I Feel about (Y/n)’ and I’d be honored if you would accept it as a gift for everything you’ve done for me.” Leah stared at her feet as she spoke, too embarrassed to keep her eyes on (Y/n) while she spoke. Then a pair of boots joined, hands came up to clasp her own, pulling the conjoined grasp into her line of vision and coaxing her to look up into (Y/n)’s eyes.

“It’s wonderful.”

At that moment, Leah thought her heart must have been beating so hard that it was affecting her hearing.

“Hh... huh?” Leah asked, rather dumbly.

(Y/n) swallowed thickly, took a deep breath, and whispered, “It’s wonderful, Leah. Thank you.”

Leah looked absolutely awestruck, purple irises shone with excitement and she laughed, pulling (Y/n) into a tight embrace.

“I’m glad you like it.” Leah sniffled, resting her face in (Y/n)’s shoulder.

“Leah?” (Y/n) wrapped her arms around the artist, it was only one word, her name, but Leah heard the concern in the farmer’s tone.

“I’m okay. I’m just happy,” Leah sniffled again, “I’m happy you felt comfortable enough with me to speak to me.”

“Me too.” (Y/n) whispered, holding Leah tighter.

The pair found it difficult when they had to part ways for the night, but they were equally excited over how their relationship was developing, looking forward to spending more time together over the summer.

***

“Come on, just a little further...” Leah coached herself. She was reaching for a piece of fruit hanging from a branch just out of her reach.

She had planned a picnic with (Y/n) for this afternoon. She had already set up under the big old tree near the pond and as she waited for (Y/n) to finish up with her crops and animals for the morning, when she spotted the unusual fruit. Now she was jumping and stretching for the fruit just out of reach.

“Almost— Ah!” Leah struggled to balance herself in the air, swiveling her head to peak over her shoulder, she saw (Y/n) looking up at her with a mischievous grin. Leah rolled her eyes, a smile tugging at the side of her lips. She turned back to the task at hand and grabbed the fruit, motioning (Y/n) to put her back down.

“Show off.” Leah scoffed, lightly punching (Y/n)’s shoulder. “You wanna try a bite?”

“Yes, please.” (Y/n)’s cheeks heated when Leah pressed the fruit to her lips. She took a bite of the offering, savoring the taste. “It’s so sweet.” She said, amazed.

“Right?” Leah smiled, “It’s rare to get fruit from this tree. Usually all the animals snap it all up as soon as they’re ripe, but it seems they miss some from time to time. How is everything with the farm this morning?”

“All is well,” (Y/n) nodded as the pair made themselves comfortable on the blanket Leah had set up, “I would have been here sooner but the goats kept standing in front of my cheese and mayo machines, the chicken coup too. Made it a little difficult.” (Y/n) disclosed. “Which reminds me,” she rummaged through her bag, “goat cheese salads.”

“Mmm, this looks heavenly. Thank you for making these.” Leah said, eagerly stirring in some vinaigrette into the generous fresh salad.

“No problem. Selling my harvest is nice, but it feels so much more rewarding enjoying it like this.” (Y/n) informed, mixing her own salad.

“I can imagine,” Leah hummed and leaned her back fully against the trunk of the tree, “Ah, it’s such a lovely day for this.”

“Mhmm.”

They ate the rest of their meal in peaceful silence, listening to the birds sing and the fish leap, the breeze rustling the trees and grass around them. It was tranquil, it was perfect.

“Hey, Leah,” (Y/n) spoke, breaking the silence.

“Yes?” Leah asked, turning her gaze away from the sketch pad she had brought out.

“It’s almost Fall you know, we’ve known each other for nearly two whole seasons. Half a year, it’s crazy, right?”

“Yeah, it doesn’t seem like it’s been that long, doesn’t it?” Leah giggled, “What made you think of that?”

“Well, I wanted to ask you something. Don’t feel like you have to answer one way or the other, but...” (Y/n) paused, trying to gather her thoughts.

“Hey, it’s okay (Y/n). You can tell me anything. Sign it out if you want to.”

“No, it’s okay. I’m just nervous,” (Y/n) turned to her bag and pulled out a lovely bouquet of flowers, “Leah, would you maybe consider being my girlfriend?“

“Yes!” Leah enveloped (Y/n) in a tackle like hug that sent them both to fully meet the ground, accidentally crushing the flowers between their bodies, “Oops, sorry,” Leah wiggled the flowers out from under her to look at them more closely, “these are lovely, (Y/n). I didn’t know Pierre had these in yet.”

“He didn’t, I planted them.” (Y/n) clarified, smiling up at Leah who still hovered over her, giggling.

“Of course you did, you’re so sweet.”

“I try.”

“Are you kidding me!”

Leah and (Y/n) quickly turned to face the disturbance, scrambling to sit up from their compromising position. Leah felt her stomach twist with discomfort seeing Kel of all people marching up to them, absolutely fuming.

“Seriously, what the hell, Leah?” Kel yelled, their hands clenched into tight fists as they closed in, making yard after yard disappear between them.

“No, more like what the hell, Kel? I broke up with you seasons ago. What are you even doing in Pelican Town?” Leah retorted angrily, as (Y/n) helped her to her feet. Kel watched the motion and ground their teeth.

They were already dangerously close to crossing the threshold of the blanket and that small display was enough to send them stomping over the edge.

“I came for you, obviously! I’ve been slumming it in that dusty old saloon since your art show, waiting to talk to you! Now I find you sucking face with some country bumpkin nobody!” They seethed, stepping even closer into Leah’s personal space until (Y/n) pulled Leah back behind her, making Kel even more incensed. “You stay out of this. I’m talking to Leah!”

(Y/n) held strong, stuck between the harsh obscenities attacking her from the front and the loving affirmations defending her from behind. She held her arm out, willing Kel to stay back as she slowly started to guide Leah back in the direction of town for help. Kel ignored the warning and followed after them.

“Don’t you have anything to say for yourself? You think you’re being some kind of hero right now?” Kel seethed.

(Y/n) stayed silent, she had gone mute again and who would blame her in the face of such a tense situation? She was so very uncomfortable, scared even, but she continued on passed Marnie’s since she knew the woman wasn’t home at this time and she sure wasn’t going to expose Jas to this. Jodi’s house was their next best bet.

“Hey, you obviously want to start something here. You’ve got something to say to me?” Kel continued forward.

“Kel, leave us alone!” Leah commanded, “It’s over, it’s been over, go home!”

“You think you’re too good to talk to me?” Kel yelled, ignoring Leah. “She’s just a whore. She just latched onto the first warm body she could find after her little meltdown. You’re not special.”

(Y/n) froze stiffly in place, Leah felt the muscles on her shoulders tense so she tried to pull on her arm to keep her moving.

“Ignore them, (Y/n). Let’s focus on getting to town, okay?” Leah pleaded. But (Y/n) gently pushed off Leah’s hands and took a step towards Kel with a cold glare. Leah stepped to stand beside (Y/n)’s side, nervous that a more serious confrontation was about to unfold.

“Well?” Kel spat.

(Y/n) crossed her arms, turning her head to look at Leah. The look on her face was all the communication Leah needed to understand. It was definitely a, ‘they better back off or I’m going to knock them off their block’ face. Leah had never known (Y/n) to be particularly violent, but with all the time she spent in the mines, she had no doubt that she could take care of herself.

Leah gasped when Kel suddenly roared, lunging forward. Apparently they had not liked how (Y/n) and Leah had been paying attention to each other rather than themself. Kel had rocketed forward and aimed to punch (Y/n) hard over her cheek, however, at the last moment, Leah pushed her aside and took the blow for her.

(Y/n) inhaled sharply and caught Leah as she stumbled back, noticing how blood immediately began gushing from Leah’s now broken nose.

“Ow- AH!” Leah cried, her hands muffled her voice since she had covered her nose and mouth.

It only took a second for (Y/n) to return the favor to Kel’s stunned face. She punched them fast and hard over their cheek, but Kel was quick to fight back and now it was a full out brawl.

“What’s going on, we heard yelling— holy shit!”

Leah turned away from the fight to see Sam, Seb, and Abigail running up on the scene.

“(Y/n)’s throwing hands!” Abigail yelled, sounding way more excited than worried.

“Leah are you okay? What’s going on?” Sebastian asked, noting the concerning amount of blood running down Leah’s arms and the front of her shirt.

“Don’t worry about me, stop them!” Leah winced, taking one hand away from her face to motion to her ex and her new girlfriend still going at each other.

“Damn, Abi! Go get your dad and Harvey too by the looks of it!” Sam yelled, he seemed to be looking for an opening to push the fighters apart.

“Are you kidding? You get my dad, I’m getting in on this!” Abigail cheered and ran up to jump on Kel’s back like she was at a rodeo while (Y/n) landed a good hit on Kel’s stomach. “Nice punch, (Y/n)!”

“Oh Yoba, Sam, start running.” Seb suggested, trying to help Leah with her nose. He was no Maru, but even he knew how to set a broken nose. Especially within the first couple weeks of Sam taking up skateboarding.

“Right!” Sam ran off back into town screaming. A few tense minutes later and Pierre, Caroline, Robin, Elliott, Maru and Harvey came running behind Sam to break up the fight.

“Abigail, stop!” Pierre huffed, pulling off his daughter and passing her off to his wife, “I taught you what I did to defend yourself, not to lash out like a wild animal!” He grunted, pulling Kel into his grasp and trapping their arms behind their back with Elliott coming up to assist.

“Come on dad, I was helping a friend! What’s the big deal?” Abi groaned, while her mom fretted over her, looking for injuries.

“Easy there kid, it’s over.” Robin coaxed (Y/n), pulling her back. The farmer slumped over in the carpenter’s hold, breathing heavily.

“Is (Y/n) okay? Ah!” Leah hissed as Harvey touched up her nose, giving her a nasal spray before wedging a couple wads of tissue up her nostrils.

“Sorry, Leah.” Harvey sympathized, “Maru is going to check up on her now.”

“What about me?” Kel hissed. Pierre had them resting on their knees. They looked really roughed up. A black eye was already forming and scratches and bruises littered their skin, they were also holding their stomach rather tightly.

“You’ll just have to wait a minute.” Elliott frowned, staring down at the stranger with contempt.

“Don’t you have any police officers in this backwater town? I’ll sue every one of you for withholding care to someone who is obviously hurt!” Kel threatened, grinding their teeth.

“Oh, the police are coming alright!” Caroline spoke indignantly. “You are in no position to be asking for anything right now, bringing violence to our community, you should be ashamed!”

“(Y/n) can you look up for me, please.” Maru asked, carefully tilting (Y/n)’s chin up. (Y/n) sucked in a breath when Maru touched her bruised jaw a tad to hard. “Sorry, Your jaw is bruised pretty badly. Your bottom lip split too. How is your vision?”

(Y/n) shook her head and winced, cradling her head in her hands.

“Okay, possible concussion. We’ll need to observe her at the clinic.” Maru said.

“Alright, come on bruiser,” Robin grunted, heaving (Y/n) to her feet, “Sebbie, help me walk her into town please.”

“Sure mom.” Seb took (Y/n)’s other side.

(Y/n) patted Robin’s arm, motioning her to wait. She slowly turned to Kel and leaned more heavily against Seb as she freed her other arm from Robin to snap her fingers aggressively, looking for Kel’s attention. Once Kel looked up at her, sneering from their spot in the dirt, (Y/n) turned briefly to make sure Leah was watching. When she saw that she was, she smiled as if to say, ‘watch this,’ and turned back to Kel. (Y/n) brought her flat, angled hand below her chin and sent it forward in the direction of Kel’s confused, but no less, pissed face.

“Oh ho! (Y/n) is such a badass!” Abigail laughed.

“Abi, since when do you know sign language?” Sam asked, clearly confused.

“I don’t, but I’ve spent enough time searching curses in different languages to know that was totally a ‘fuck you’. Personally I think a middle finger approach would have been an appropriate classic myself but whatever.” Abigail shrugged.

“Abigail, language!” Caroline scolded.

“Sorry mom.”

“Alright, you’ve had your fun. Clinic, now.” Robin tried to hold in a laugh as she repositioned (Y/n)’s arm over her shoulder. Then she and Seb began walking (Y/n) back into town.

Leah made to follow, but as they were leaving, the police from the the next town over had arrived and they needed her statements as a witness. Never mind that she was covered in her own blood and her girlfriend was being dragged away to the clinic with a concussion. Once the officers were satisfied, they took Kel away with promises to be back for (Y/n)’s statement and to see if any charges would be made. For now they were just going to take Kel back to a hospital in Zuzu City since they may have broken a rib or two in the fight. After that, they were going to be free to go.

Leah wasn’t too worried. She didn’t think Kel would come back after the beating (Y/n) and Abigail gave them. She watched the police car drive out of Cindersaps, taking her disgruntled ex away.

“Leah, I’m sure you want to get to the clinic but you should really clean up first.” Caroline had said patting the younger woman’s back. “(Y/n) will be fine.”

“Yeah, Harvey and Maru got her. Take some time to process.” Elliott smiled.

Leah could only nod tiredly. She trudged over to her cottage to shower and change. She still couldn’t believe how quickly things got out of hand. She looked at her bandaged nose in the mirror, hissing when she gingerly touched the bridge of it. She was wary of Seb setting it himself, but Harvey said he had gone a great job. Once she was physically put back together, Leah quickly made her way to the clinic.

“Where is she?” She asked immediately upon arriving. She sounded a little congested thanks to her clogged nose, but she was easily understood. Robin was still in the waiting room and filled her in.

“Harvey and Maru are talking her through concussion care. She’s okay, but I don’t think she’ll be allowed to work for awhile.”

“Oh no,” Leah sat down, resting her elbows on her knees and covered her eyes with her hands, “This is all my fault.”

“Aw, don’t say that sweetheart. You know that’s not true.” Robin frowned, taking a seat beside her, “(Y/n) would hate to hear you think like that.”

“(Y/n) loves her farm! If she can’t maintain the upkeep...” Leah continued, teary eyed, only to be silenced by Robin.

“I’m going to stop you right there. Nothing is going to happen to the farm. Abi, Sam, and even Seb already told (Y/n) in no uncertain terms that they were going to pitch in while she recovers. Everything is going to be taken care of.” Robin assured.

“Still none of this would have happened if-“

“If you hadn’t broken up with your ex? Moved to Pelican Town? Got a crush? Leah, you can’t punish yourself for moving on with your life. You’re allowed to be happy.” Robin chided gently. “It was hard for me and Sebastian’s father to see eye to eye at the best of times. Now I have Demetrius and although he can be a bit annoying sometimes with his tomato bullshit, not a day goes by that I’m not grateful I took that first step because I love him.” Robin smiled.

Leah’s nose hurt like hell as she tried to carefully wipe the tears from her eyes and Robin rubbed her back affectionately. Once Leah had calmed down, Robin stood and stretched.

“She’s been wondering where you are. The doc is keeping her for overnight observation, but your welcome to stay with her. I on the other hand, am apparently too old for this much excitement and need to go home.”

“Thank you Robin, for talking to me.”

“Anytime,” Robin grinned, “now go get her.”

Leah made her way into the back area of the clinic and nearly ran up to Harvey, Maru, and (Y/n). (Y/n) was signing to Maru while she relayed the information to Harvey as he examined (Y/n)’s well being.

(Y/n) was relieved to see Leah and eagerly motioned her to come sit on the edge of the bed she was sitting in which Leah did happily.

“Leah, how’s the nose?” Harvey asked while he finished up (Y/n)’s chart.

“It’s fine. Just, really sore and tingly.”

“So not fine.” Maru chuckled. “I’ll get you some pain meds.”

“Ah, thanks Maru.” Leah smiled sheepishly.

“Well, Ms. (Y/n),” Harvey sighed, turning his attention back to the farmer, “you and I are in for a long night. I’ll be waking you up every hour to check your pupils to see if your condition changes at all.” Harvey stood and stretched, “Ms. Leah, feel welcome to stay as long as you like. It can’t hurt to keep an extra pair of eyes on her.”

“I could stay overtime, Harvey.” Maru said as she came back with two pills and a glass of water for Leah.

“I seem to recall you talking about a time sensitive experiment this morning.” Harvey recalled, making Maru smack the side of her head. “You’re right! I got to go now! Good night everyone!” Maru called behind her as she rushed out to the waiting room then out of the building.

“I’m going to take the first of my many naps lined up for tonight. I’ll see you ladies in about an hour. Try to get some rest.” Harvey said before leaving to walk up the stairs to his apartment.

Finally Leah and (Y/n) were alone again. (Y/n) sunk down into the covers and sighed deeply. She turned to face Leah, concerning the sculptor by how small she looked.

“You’re not too upset with me, are you?” (Y/n) asked, surprising Leah.

“I’m not upset with you. Why would I be upset with you?”

“I just beat the crap out a person. Sure they are your ex, but you cared about them at some point so it must have been hard to watch. I can’t imagine what you must think of me now.” (Y/n) whispered, she was so quiet Leah had to lean closer and even then she was straining to hear.

“(Y/n), I like you. Nothing that happened today changed how much I like you. It certainly didn’t make me like you any less,” Leah rested her hand over (Y/n)’s cheek, “Kel made their choice when they decided to come to Pelican Town and confront us. I wish it hadn’t gone down the way it did, but that’s not our fault. I’m just glad you’re okay.”

“I’m glad you’re okay too. I was worried.”

“I wish we could start this day all over,” Leah moaned, “First day as official girlfriends and we get into a fist fight.”

(Y/n) laughed lightly, closing her eyes to combat the pain that came from her jostling. “Abigail thought it was a pretty great date activity.”

“She would think that.” Leah rolled her eyes, “she also eats rocks.”

“Well, think about it this way. Until I’m allowed to take up all my farming duties again, you can do whatever you want with me.”

“Whatever I want, hmm?” Leah tapped her lips with her index finger, “would it be to forward if me to ask for a kiss?”

“You may, just be careful with my split lip. I won’t be able to explain what happened to Harvey if you make it worse.” (Y/n) said.

“One gentle kiss, coming right up.” Leah wiggled on the bed’s stiff hospital sheets until she laid face to face with (Y/n). Their lips met in a soft brushing that was almost ghost like, but rather than leaving them with a chill, warmth bloomed between them.

“Wow.” (Y/n) grinned.

“If you thought that was good, wait until I can get more involved with it.”

“So confident. I like it.” (Y/n) squinted, “could you turn the light off? It’s really starting to hurt my eyes.”

“Of course.” Leah got up and switched off the half the lights to keep their side of the room in darkness but allow Harvey to still be able to see when he came back.

“Now come cuddle, please.” (Y/n) asked sleepily reaching her arms out.

“Nothing would make me happier.”

Leah kicked off her boots and shimmied under the sheets to join (Y/n) and wrapped her arms around her. Leah let the exhaustion of the day roll over her and she had nearly let sleep claim her before her eyes shot open and she propped herself up on her elbow to lean over (Y/n).

“Did I really sign a ‘fuck you’ when we first met?!” She asked, appalled.

(Y/n)’s response was to laugh sleepily into Leah’s chest.

#stardew valley x reader #stardew valley oneshots #sv leah #stardew valley leah #leah x reader #sv leah x reader #stardew valley leah x reader #stardew valley

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wyn-n-tonic · 3 years

Text

I Don't Count

Word Count: 1,479 Warnings: Drinking. Mentions of a car accident (briefly). Soft caretaker baby Will Miller. It's just fluffy. Author's Note: Fully formed this out of my need for a hug and comfort and decided I wanted to write it for the only blonde haired, blue eyed man I'd ever let get in these guts.

MASTERLIST

The Millers still had a landline. Of course they did. Benny’s big brother was very staunch about his boundaries. If he wasn’t going out after work, his cellphone went off as soon as he walked across the threshold. If you needed to reach him for any reason after that, you could call the house phone.

“But it better be a goddamn emergency,” he’d always say.

She bit her thumbnail as it rang, leg bouncing to a nonsensical rhythm. A drumming only she could hear. Once, twice. It was her last ditch effort to reach her best friend, to hear his voice telling her everything is okay. Three times and,

“Hello?”

Not Benny.

She contemplates hanging up, her voice stuck somewhere in her chest. This was most certainly not an emergency no matter what the bottle she’d been nursing had to say about it. But she can’t. Can’t speak. Not to Will, not about this.

Can’t let the phone fall from her ears. Can’t even breathe.

“Shane,” he sounds concerned, “are you okay?”

“I uh—“ the breath releases, “I was looking for Benny.”

A small laugh on the other end, “it’s Tuesday, Sunshine, he’s at the gym.”

Sunshine, his nickname for her. It started out as Sunshane but he got pissed at the autocorrect of his own brain, stopped fighting it after a while.

A sharp sound rings through, a whistle to get her attention.

“You didn’t answer my question,” it’s warm, “are you okay?”

She sniffs, “yeah, Billy—“

Another laugh, both disbelieving and amused, “you can’t lie to me. What’s going on?”

“Just…” another swig, “have Benny call me when he gets home, okay?”

“Are you drinking?” Not amused.

“I’m an adult, Miller, I drink.” It’s harsh.

“Yeah,” another disbelieving laugh, this time at your boldness, “but you sound like shit. Why are you drinking?”

Because I’m forcing my feelings for you onto others and I have the gall to be shocked when it blows up in my face.

“Look,” she’s pacing the kitchen, “just have Benny give me a call when he gets home. I’m really sorry t—“

“Did that fucking boyfriend do something?”

There it is, the sob she’d been swallowing.

“Give me half an hour,” he whispers down the line, “I’ll have my cell if you need anything, okay?” —————

The bottle’s gone when there’s a knock at the door.

She jumps but settles back against the couch, believing it must be coming from somewhere deep within the wine soaked sponge of her brain.

But there it is again, “it’s me, Sunshine,” coming from the other side.

She stands too quickly, blood rushing to her head as her right foot struggles to come back to life. He knocks again, nothing if not persistent.

“Don’t make me bust down this door, you know I can do it.”

She fumbles with the chain lock with wildly inebriated fingers, scratching desperately with her nails to get it through that little fucking hole. It springs free and she’s working at the deadbolt, much simpler, before throwing the door wide to the man on the other side.

“Would you really have busted down my door, Miller?” She slurs out, ever the lightweight.

He shrugs, “yeah but… I would’ve built you a new one so…”

“What's that?” She notices the bags for the first time, swinging idly at his side.

“I figured you were about halfway through the bottle earlier when you called, based on how the swish of liquid sounded on the pho—“

She rolls her eyes, “it's fucking creepy how you do that.”

“—so I brought cheeseburgers.”

She launches unsteadily toward him, wrapping her arms around his midsection.

“May I come in?”

His scent fills her senses, fresh laundry and a hint of Tom Ford as she nods against his broad chest.

Letting go, she stumbles back into the tiny apartment, the couch taking over the entire wall of the living room, and plops back down with her feet tucked under her as she makes grabby hands for the bag in Will’s hand.

He catches her out of his peripheral while he refastens the lock on the door, “can you be patient?”

“Absolutely not,” she whines out, “I'm starving.”

He toes his shoes off at the door and pads to the front of the couch, in front of her, and kneels down. He reaches into the bag and hands her a burger, “I got you two singles because I know you feel self conscious when you try to eat a double. Even when you’re alone.”

“But I’m not alone,” she mumbles through a bite, wrapper torn in half as soon as it touched her hands.

“I don’t count, I’m just Will.”

She almost chokes at that, because he does count.

“I'm really not trying to deep throat a fucking Big Mac in front of my best friend’s older brother.”

“Oh,” he stands and kisses the top of her head, “Is that all I am?”

Absolutely not.

She watches him walk into the kitchen, the clinking of glass and the sound of the tap rushing back out to meet her.

Thoughts swim in her drunk mind, the events of the day—the phone call, the fight, the follow up text messages. Colin’s raised voice still ringing through her ears as he accused her, “I don’t know if it’s Will or Ben but you’re fucking one of them and I’m done!”

“You wanna tell me what happened?” He’s soft, pulling the wrapper from her hands and pushing a glass of water in place of it.

“Um, ya know,” she swallows hard around the lump building in her throat again, “just what typically happens with men in my life.”

He looks defeated, apologetic. Colin’s not the first to accuse her of being with a Miller. It’s been a theme of the last three—Ryan, John, Adam—and this makes four. Four men that William Miller wishes he could add to his confirmed kills list.

That’s not what she wants to hear right now though, no matter how safe his words of protection always make her feel. Because it doesn’t matter.

“I'm sorry,” his heavy hand falls on the bare skin of her calf, sending a bolt of electricity through her body.

She was relieved.

Colin wasn’t right but he wasn’t far off from the truth she’s been hiding.

She’s in love with William Miller.

“Hey, Sunshine” his rough thumb across the smooth skin guides her back, “where are you?”

The alcohol has her still, a looseness in the hurt of her heart that makes up her mind before she fully realizes the words are already coming out of her mouth.

“He’s not wrong, Billy. None of them have really been wrong.”

He laughs, fingers stilled on her leg and she is aching for the movement to return as his stare seeps through her pores.

“You and Benny got something you need to tell me?”

Her breath is shaky.

She trails her fingers along his wrist before placing her palm on the back of his. Now or never.

“I think it’s more like you and I have something to tell Benny.”

He pulls away, blue eyes piercing through her, “you're drunk, Shane.”

“Just enough to not give a shit anymore,” she whispers, lifting herself up to her knees and pressing closer to him, “I know how we look at each other, Will.”

“Benny will kill us.”

She giggles, “I’ve been to his fights, my money’s on you.”

His heart swells as his laughter jumps up to meet hers. This is the first time they’ve been alone together, properly alone, since he realized his love ran deeper than that of just a friend.

When he realized on the last mission that he just really missed the smell of her hair when she gives him a hug. Or the way she laughs the hardest out of everybody whenever he tells a dumb joke.

He came home and, to stop himself from being reckless, made sure that he was only ever around when Benny was. He didn’t want to fuck up Benny’s friendship, that was something his little brother could excel at on his own.

But now, with her full lips inches from his, he decides.

It’s a decision he made less than an hour ago when her name popped up on the caller ID—she’d only called the house phone one other time, a car accident, and that same worry seeped beneath his skin again.

Her fingers run through the soft hair on the side of his head, his lips heavy against hers as he pulls her in and pushes her down.

He breaks away, “Are you sure?”

A question that dies with a crash as she tugs him back to her and he melts against her warmth when—

Her phone vibrates.

Got a figure like a pin-up, got a figure like a doll…

Benny.

#charlie hunnam #triple frontier #triple frontier fanfiction #william 'ironhead' miller #william miller #will miller #ofc #original female character #oc #original character #fanfic #fanfiction

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ddixons-angel · 3 years

Text

Prove It

Requested by @pastanest

I’m trying to roll out these requests as quick as possible but writer’s block is not allowing that... sorry for the wait!!! I’m also trying a new thing with super long intros apparently haha hope you like it!

Prompts: 8. “Why do you even care? You barely know me!” 22. “I never knew I mattered this much to you.”

Reader cares for Daryl but he pushes her away because he’s afraid to get too close to anyone.

Season 2; The Farm

A tragedy. That’s the only word that could describe the situation, a horrific, devastating tragedy. So many things had happened in the last five days alone. Things were quiet on the farm, peaceful with all things considered at the end of the world. That was until two men came running across the field of your best friend’s farm, one of them carrying an unconscious boy in his arms. The others from their group had arrived at the farm the day after Hershel had stabilized the boy; after losing Otis. That was when you found out that they were trying to find a little girl, Sophia. She had gotten lost in the woods. When you heard about this and saw how distressed Carol, the girl’s mother was, you had to step in and help, despite Maggie telling you not to.

“There’s a little girl lost in the woods, we have to try and find her,” that’s what you told Maggie.

With that mindset, you had volunteered yourself to their search party. You knew that Hershel wasn’t going to like it, but as you were able to convince Maggie, she reassured you that she would talk her dad into it. You didn’t wait for his approval though, you knew that every second that little girl was in the woods alone it was dangerous for her. The world proved to be a much more dangerous place now and it could only take a matter of seconds for something horrible to happen.

You knew that the group that arrived at the farm knew this too, and that’s why it rubbed you the wrong way when you found out only a single person seemed to take the search seriously. You understood why Rick, the father of the boy, couldn’t go out to search as he had given a lot of blood to his son the night previously, but you didn’t like how no one else looked like they wanted to go out to find Sophia. Although, the one person who actually cared about the search seemed to be the best candidate since he was a hunter; he knew the woods better than anyone on the farm. Daryl Dixon wasn’t the friendliest of the bunch though, he’d brushed you off when you asked him to take you on the search.

Being as persistent as you are though, Daryl telling you that you’d just be a burden and to stay behind on the farm didn’t sway you. Instead, it made you more motivated to prove him wrong.

“You’d have a better chance shooting me with that crossbow before you can stop me from looking for this little girl,” you told him.

That either convinced him to let you follow along or he just didn’t care to stop you since he didn’t say anything else afterwards, even with you following him. Even though you two didn’t converse at all during the search in the woods, you began to admire him. He was motivated, determined to find Sophia as if she were his own daughter. That was certainly a trait that no one else in his group seemed to have. The determination you saw in him inspired you and that’s what made you go with him again into the woods. You had to find that little girl.

The only difference this time was that you two had taken horses; you were aware that Hershel had one he liked to call Nervous Nelly, but you weren’t sure which one that was. There were a bunch of horses in the stable so you didn’t think that Daryl would have taken her. Unfortunately, that was the farthest from the truth when you heard the horse he was on let out a frightened neigh. The next thing you knew, you were hauling him back to the farm after he’d impaled himself with one of his arrows. Daryl told you to leave him alone after Hershel helped patch him up, but you wanted to help him. You felt guilty that he got hurt even if you did help him back to the farm. Even if you had just met Daryl a few days ago, seeing him hurt like this pulled at your heart and that’s when you knew you were starting to really care for this man.

Your care for him only strengthened when you went over to his tent where he insisted on staying to help him with whatever he needed. You wanted to help Daryl, nurse him back to health no matter how much he told you to leave him alone. When the sun went down, you told him that you would be back the next day to help him again. Unfortunately, you saw him near the horse stables the next morning, persistent on going out to find Sophia. You ran over to stop him, you knew he wasn’t in any condition to go out there with his injuries and you hoped the news that Rick and the others had put out a proper search party would be enough to convince him.

Before you could get to him though, Shane, the man Otis had risked his life to save, came rushing towards the group with a bag of guns, handing them out to “fix the problem at hand”. You heard from Maggie that Glenn, the young man she had gotten quite close to, told them all about the walkers in the barn that morning; you took an educated guess that that’s what the problem Shane was referring to. Before you knew it, guns were going off as Shane had ripped off the chained locks on the front of the barn. Walkers filed out of the barn into the line of fire, each one dropping dead after the other. The storm of gunfire had ended and you thought that was the worst of it, but you were wrong. A single snarl sounded from within the barn and out stepped the corpse of a little girl. Carol, let out a heartbreaking cry, letting you all know that this little girl was Sophia.

The atmosphere on the farm was different now. No one was okay after what had happened, not you, not Maggie, not Beth, not Daryl. He’d moved his tent further down the field, isolating himself from the group, from the farm, from you. You wanted to talk to Daryl, maybe help him through the pain he was going through with losing Sophia. He didn’t seem to have anyone else who was close to him, not even in his own group, and that’s why you were now making your way to Daryl’s tent. You weren’t going to let him push you away, he needed someone to be there for him, you were sure of it.

“Crossbow?” you call out the nickname you’d gotten used to calling him.

You sigh when you don’t hear him respond, you had predicted this already. Daryl had always been a man of very few words in the days you knew him, so it wasn’t a surprise to you when he ignored you.

“Hey, Crossbow, I know you’re in there.” you say, stopping just outside his tent, “I’m not leaving until you talk to me.”

“Leave.” he says after a few minutes, he had to get how persistent you were by now.

“I’m not leaving until you talk to me,” you repeat.

“I did talk to ya,” Daryl says, “I said leave!”

“You know that’s not what I meant.” you say, sighing softly.

“The hell d’ya want?” he asks, his voice rough.

“I want to make sure you’re okay.” you tell him.

“Okay? Ya wanna make sure I’m okay?!” Daryl snaps as he storms out of his tent, glaring at you, “ we jus’ found out Sophia’s been in that damn barn this whole time, how the hell can anythin’ be okay?!”

“Daryl...” you call softly, you see the hurt in his eyes and it breaks your heart.

“We went out lookin’ for that lil’ girl every damn day! I almost died tryin’ to find her, but she was right under our damn noses! So, tell me, how d’ya expect me to be okay!” Daryl yells, huffing in anger as he gets in your face.

You stay silent as Daryl continues to yell at you. Even when he was shouting directly at you, you could feel that his words weren’t directed to you. He was just shouting in anger, frustration, sadness, you could hear it in his voice. He needed someone to vent to and even if it was just yelling, you knew it would help him to let his emotions out. In a weird way, you knew that you were still helping him and that comforted you, even enough for a tiny smile to pull at your lips.

“The hell is wrong with ya?!” Daryl growls when he sees the small smile on your face, “‘m yellin’ at ya and you’re smilin’ ‘bout it?! What the hell ‘re ya smilin’ for?! Are ya happy we found Sophia dead?!”

“No!” you say immediately, a frown now on your face, “I’d never be happy about that.. I just...”

“What?” Daryl says in a dangerous growl.

You sigh and look down, “I’m just glad you’re letting out your emotions... that’s all.”

You dare to look back up at Daryl when you hear nothing but silence. He was staring at you in disbelief, as if he was processing what you had just said.

“Never knew I mattered this much to ya,” Daryl scoffs, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

“I do care about you, Daryl, a lot. I know I just met you a few days ago so you might not believe it, but it’s true. I knew it the day you got hurt...” you speak again when Daryl doesn’t respond, “I wanted to be the one who got hurt instead of you...”

“Bullshit...” Daryl mutters after taking in what you just told him “tha’s all bullshit an’ ya know it!”

“No, it’s not!” you insist.

“Yeah? Then prove it! Prove ya ain’ jus’ some lying bitch, spewin’ shit outta yer ass to make me do whatever the hell ya want me to do!” Daryl shouts angrily.

You frown at his words. You had a feeling that he felt like the group had taken him for granted and those words he said were more for them to hear rather than you. Still, that didn’t mean they didn’t hurt.

“How?” you say.

“What?” Daryl frowns at you.

“You said to prove that I care about you, so tell me how I can prove it to you,” you stand your ground.

He scoffs at you, running his hand through his hair in frustration, “go out there an’ bring me a walker.”

“W-what?”

“Ya heard me, go out there an’ bring me a walker! Ya said ya wanted me to let out my emotions, right?! I can do that by killin’ a damn walker!” Daryl yells.

You stare at him, shocked and dumbfounded by his request. Whenever you came across any walkers in the woods, you killed it without any hesitation, but you never brought them back to the barn. Otis was the one who did that which is how the barn was full of walkers in the first place. You knew that Daryl knew this was hard for you and that’s exactly why he asked you to, he wanted you to give up proving that you cared for him. He just always seemed to underestimate your determination to prove yourself to him.

“Okay,” you say, then you start to make your way back towards the barn.

You hear Daryl scoff, as if he already believes you had given up, “hey, woods are that way.”

“I need a snare pole, jackass.” you retort back without stopping your steps.

You don’t look back to see Daryl’s reaction, you just keep heading towards the barn. You remembered that Rick, Hershel, and Jimmy had walkers on snares near the barn so you pick one up just before heading out towards the woods. You had your hunting knife equipped in case you ran into more than one. You pass Daryl’s tent just before you enter the woods and figured that he went back into his tent when you didn’t see him outside. You sigh to yourself as you think that this is definitely the stupidest thing you ever did for a guy you met just a few days ago but here you were, hunting down a single walker in the woods.

After around an hour, you finally hear the familiar sound of walkers snarling about in the forest. You take a breath as you carefully step towards it, you whistle to get its attention then twist the bottom of the pole to widen the loop. You step with the walker, taking a step back whenever it takes a step towards you, you couldn’t take your chance and let it get too close. It reaches for you and you catch the walker’s head in the loop of the pole. Quickly, you twist the bottom of the pole the opposite way and that tightens the loop.

“Okay...” you say breathlessly, trying to calm your nerves; hopefully Rick or Shane wouldn’t be on the lookout and shoot you once you emerge from the woods.

Unfortunately, as you try to drag the walker back to the farm, you hear more snarls from behind you. Two more had come out and were now headed straight towards you.

“Shit...” you say under your breath.

With one hand still on the pole, your other hand reaches for your hunting knife. You pull it out and glance back and forth between the walker you’d caught and the two heading in your direction. When they get closer, you kick one away, leaving the other to lunge towards you. You let out a grunt as you stab it’s skull then pull out your knife, letting the walker fall to the ground. Your grip was still tight on the snare pole as you ready yourself for the other walker you’d kicked away. When you try to stab this walker though, you’re only able to get its cheek, and so it grabs you with both its hands.

You whimper when both of the walkers growl at you, wanting to rip your flesh from your bones. You do your best to compose yourself, tightening the blade in your hand, you stab at the free walker’s eye and it stills. However, as you were being backed up by both walkers, you weren’t able to see the half of a log that protruded from the ground. You trip over it, falling back with the walker caught on the snare pole.

You groan in pain from the fall then you push yourself to sit up. You furrow your brows when something didn’t seem quite right. The walker you’d caught had fallen right on top of you so it should have started devouring you, but you were still in one piece. You look at the walker and that’s when you see the arrow piercing its skull; Daryl.

“Ya mus’ be some kind o’ stupid...” you hear him say as he emerges from the woods, eyeing you.

You push the walker off of you and get up from the ground as Daryl reaches down to pull his arrow from the skull. He seems to be avoiding eye contact with you now as he wipes the arrow on his pants.

“Thanks for saving me...” you say, slightly embarrassed.

Daryl hums in acknowledgement, “ya really tried to bring me back a walker?”

“I wanted to prove to you that I really do care about you,” you say with a smile, “even if it was one of the stupidest things I’ve ever done.”

“Why d’ya even care? Ya barely know me!” Daryl says, raising his voice slightly, “ya really are some kind o’ stupid, ain’t ya? Ya almost died for someone ya hardly even know!”

“I don’t know, okay! I just do! You’re nothing like anyone I’ve ever met before, I mean, you’re right, I barely know you but there’s just something about you... maybe the fact that you’re so damn selfless that you’re willing to throw your life away for those people... or maybe because you don’t think you deserve to be cared for... I don’t know what it is... I just know that you’re in my life now, and I want to care for you.” you rant; you didn’t even know where all of that came from, but you knew everything you just said was true.

Daryl stays silent and you didn’t expect him to say anything to your rant. You sigh then pick up the snare pole, you twist the bottom of it so that the walker’s head falls out of the now loose loop.

“Alright, time to find you another walker then,” you say nonchalantly, but before you can walk away, Daryl snatches the snare pole from you, “hey, I need that!”

“No, ya don’t,” Daryl mumbles, “you’re coming back to the farm with me... don’t make me use this on ya.”

Although his words were threatening, you sensed no hostility from him. Instead, you felt that his tone was lighter, cheerful even, as if he was trying to joke with you. This put a smile on your face as this was Daryl’s way of slowly letting you in. From what you could tell, Daryl wasn’t the kind to just tell you that you were his friend or anything of the sort, he just showed it in his own way. You had a feeling you would have a lot more time to figure him out, and possibly get closer to this man you truly and deeply cared for.

“Hey, ya comin’ or not?!” Daryl snaps when he sees you just standing there.

“Coming!” you call out, then you rush over to follow him back to the farm.

---

Writing snarky Daryl is always so much fun hahaha hope you all enjoyed this as much as I did writing it! ^^ Please let me know what you thought~

Taglist (please let me know if you’d like to be added/removed!):

#Daryl Dixon #Daryl Dixon Fanfic #Daryl Dixon Fanfiction #Daryl Dixon Imagine #Daryl Dixon X Reader #Daryl Dixon/Reader #Daryl Dixon & Reader #TWD #TWD Fanfic #TWD Fanfiction #TWD Imagine #The Walking Dead #The Walking Dead Fanfic #The Walking Dead Fanfiction #The Walking Dead Imagine

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kiljoius · 2 years

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The View From Down Here - Chapter 15

Small Town

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Ao3

Harvey gets Charlotte's number and Shane wonders why everyone likes her so much.

Summer 20

Harvey stood outside the Saloon, practicing some deep breathing before he went inside when a figure pushed past him. He whirled around to face the intruder to find Shane shoving his way into the bar with an irritated “hmph”. He pulled his head back, shaking his head as he recomposed himself. Not unusual behavior from Shane. He grabbed the collar of his shirt and straightened out, then pushed his way in as well, scanning the room. She expressed that she came here most Friday nights, but wasn’t sure where she was. He began walking to the bar, receiving a warm welcome form Gus, “Doc! What brings you here on a lively night?”

“Hello Gus, just looking for someone.” Harvey nodded. Gus gave him a smile.

“Farmer?”

“Correct.” He nodded again, his eyes following Gus’ hand as his thumb pointed rightward, towards the pool hall. Harvey snapped his gaze up to find Charlotte laughing with the town rat pack. He took another deep breath.

“Need a beer, doc?”

“No, no,” Harvey held up his hand at Gus, shaking his head, “thank you.”

As he approached the group, Abigail eyed him, greeting with a smile, “hey, it’s the doctor.” Everyone stopped their conversations to turn to him, looking confused. Not normally one to be shy, Harvey couldn’t help but feel a lump in his throat as he searched for words.

“What’s the doc doing at the bar?” Sam piped up, grinning. Sebastian lowered his eyes at him. Harvey opened his mouth to answer-

“Yeah…what are you doing here?” Sebastian asked, coolly, interrupting Harvey’s attempt at speaking. Sebastian hopped off the side of the pool table, walking towards Harvey.

“Jeeze, you all gotta interrogate the guy?” Charlotte laughed, standing up to greet him. She offered open arms for a hug. “What’s up?”

Relieved, Harvey accepted the hug. “Apologies for catching you off guard, can I speak with you for just a moment?”

“Sure,” Charlotte raised her eyebrows as they pulled away, following him out of the pool hall.

“What’s that about?” Sam asked incredulously, scanning his friends faces to find them equally confused.

“No clue!” Abigail raised her hands in the air.

As the pair got out of earshot from the rest, Harvey leaned down to speak to her over the music, “I forgot to ask for your number the other night.”

“Oh!” Charlotte laughed, grinning up at him. He could detect the faint smell of beer on her breath, possibly cigarettes as well due to Sebastian, causing him to wrinkle his nose. He exhaled and did his best to ignore it. “You want my number? Can’t you check your records?”

“That would violate our patient/doctor relationship,” he chuckled, albeit seriously. “You are under no obligation to provide me with your number, but I thought I would ask due to our friendship previous to becoming your doctor.”

“You’re so funny.” She shook her head, holding her hand out. He glanced at the hand, then back up at her with a questioning look. She raised her eyebrows again at him, blinking slowly. “Your phone? So I can put my number in?”

“Right!” he exclaimed, digging for his phone. “My social skills are rusty.”

“Couldn’t tell,” she teased with a grin, “you wanna hang around for a bit? Play pool? Loosen up?”

“Can’t.” He held up his hand to her dismay. “I appreciate the offer.”

“No worries.” She shook her head and patted his forearm, taking a step back.

“I would like to see you again, though,” he spoke confidently now, grasping her hand as it retreated from his arm. She froze at the touch, surprised by his forwardness. She looked up to meet his eyes. They were very warm, seemingly genuine.

“You have my number,” she breathed out as he released her hand. He nodded and turned to make his leave, her eyes following him on his way out. She felt her cheeks redden and she smiled to herself, making her way back to the pool hall. Her head lifted to meet the gaze of Shane, in his usual spot up against the wall. She felt guilt hit her in the gut as his eyes dropped back down into his glass, her smile immediately dropping and her pace slowing.

He told you not to talk to him anymore.

“What the hell was that?” Sebastian hissed as she entered the room. She lowered her eyes at his questioning, sitting down next to Abigail.

“Why are you so concerned?” Charlotte snapped back, Abigail and Sam bouncing their gazes between the two as each spoke in amusement

“That doctor, what did he want from you?” Sebastian questioned, crossing his arms with a disapproving look.

“Yoba, Sebastian. Not that it’s really your business, but he came to get my number.” She rolled her eyes, leaning back into the couch, feeling incredibly uncomfortable now.

“Why?” Abigail and Sam spoke at the same time, but with less judgement than Sebastian.

“So we can hang out? It’s not hard, people.” Charlotte was now uncomfortable and annoyed, her voice rising. “He’s an old friend.”

“The doctor is?” Abigail raised her eyebrows, head tilted.

“We went to college together…” She rubbed her forearm, looking away from the group.

“No way,” Sam clapped, chuckling, “small world.”

“Very.” Charlotte huffed, looking back up at them, specifically eyeing Sebastian. “Anyway, I’m tired. I think I’m going to head out.”

“Already?” Abigail rose up as well, grabbing Charlotte arm. “Don’t let this bring you down! I wanted to play the Prairie King together!”

“Next Friday.” Charlotte smiled down at Abigail, patting her hand. Abigail rolled her eyes and fell back into the couch, a mini fit of sorts. “See you guys.”

“See ya!” Sam called as Charlotte turned, looking for Shane once more. This time he wasn’t looking at her, and seemingly hadn’t moved except to get a fresh beer.

Do not go over there.

She listened to the voice and sighed, making her way out of the bar.

Summer 21

“Haven’t seen Charlie around lately, hm?” Marnie mused as she set the table, eyeing Shane.

“Yeah!” Jas added, hopping into a seat, “I wanna to show her what I wrote in cursive!”

Shane ignored the two, staring down at his phone. Swiping through pictures, he breathed a deep sigh. He brought his beer to his lips and drunk deeply as they chatted, possibly talking to him, but also possibly not. Things had been tense for the last couple of weeks, but were slowly calming down, back to normal.

“She didn’t even go to the Luau, I was sure she was going to bring something from the farm,” Marnie sighed, doling out helpings of dinner.

“Is there another party soon?” Jas asked, grabbing a fork to start digging in. Marnie tsked her before she could shovel the food in, leaving Jas looking a bit guilty. “Oh, sorry Auntie.”

“It’s alright, dear.” Marnie nodded, taking a seat at the table. Shane rolled his eyes as his aunt began say grace, and purposefully grabbed a fork to start eating in the middle of her prayer, even though he wasn’t hungry. Jas obediently kept her eyes closed and head lowered, but while Marnie finished up, she opened her eyes to glare at Shane. Jas lifted her head now too and Marnie smiled at her. “Go on. Next event is the Dance of the Moonlight Jellies in about…” Marnie glanced at the calendar, “seven days.”

“Oh yay!” Jas exclaimed, clapping her hands before grabbing her silverware, turning her attention to Shane. “Can we go Uncle Shane? Please?”

Shane looked down at his young goddaughter and let out a sigh, nodding. Jas squealed with excitement, unaware of Marnie’s gaze as she pondered how her nephew would respond.

“I hope Farmer Charlie is there.” Jas shoveled mashed potatoes in her mouth, causing some flecks of food to spray across her plate as she attempted to eat and talk at the same time. This statement caused Shane to wince at the thought, hoping she wouldn’t be there.

“Jas! Swallow before speaking.” Marnie scolded, tapping the end of her fork on the table. She turned her eye to Shane, pulling her shoulders back a bit as she picked at her green beans, still left over from when Charlotte had dropped them off. “Have you seen Charlie in a while, Shane?”

“Why are you guys obsessed with that girl?” Shane snapped, his first words of the evening. He rolled his eyes as he poked at his food, hunching over to create a barrier from the judgement Marnie was serving.

“It was nice having good company.” Marnie’s voice lowered as she squinted at him, passive aggressively taking a chomp out of the green bean. Shane didn’t bother to look up at her, feeling the hole she was burning into him with her eyes just as fine. When the landline began ringing, Marnie rose to answer it, finishing the conversation. “Well, either way it will be a good time.”

“I didn’t see any baby jellies last year,” Jas mused, “I wanna see some babies this time.”

“Here’s hoping,” Shane mumbled, grabbing his beer to finish it off as he eyed Marnie. He glanced down at a dent in the wall next to the receiver and cringed, dropping his eyes back down. He couldn’t escape thinking of her.

Hopefully she continues her hiding game.

“All done!” Jas shouted, holding up her plate with a grin.

Marnie nodded and whispered, “you’re excused,” and off she dashed. Once she finished up her call, she turned her attention to Shane, her look hardening. “Why are you being like this about Charlie? You guys used to love t-“

“Don’t,” he snapped, folding his arms, “just don’t, okay Marnie? She doesn’t remember me.”

“You haven’t made any effort to help her remember,” she snapped back, “you know she would be elated to realize it’s you.”

“It’s better this way.” He shook his head. “Look at me, Marnie. I’m a wreck. When we were kids…we were young, healthy. She missed me at my best, and now here we are…at my absolute worst.”

Marnie frowned, reaching across the table to grasp his hand. “Sweetie.”

“Please, Marnie,” he retracted his hand, using it to rub his eyes, “can we not? It’s depressing.”

She softened, pulling her hand back as well. “Fine.”

“Fine,” he repeated, grabbing his plate to dump it in the sink. He heaved a great sigh, placing his palms on the edge of the sink, glaring down at the dishes. “If it had just been a few years earlier…then maybe. Now, the longer she doesn’t realize it, the better off we both are.” Marnie remained quiet, and Shane felt a pang of guilt because of it. He turned around to see the back of her head hanging sadly, and he forced himself to stop next to her, placing a kiss on the top of her head before retreating to his room to sulk.

He pondered Marnie’s words as he fell onto his bed, stomach tightening at the thought of Charlotte remembering him. He could just imagine the look of disgust she would have if she realized who he was. That energetic, youthful boy who chased her through the forest, dunked her under water and let her get revenge, explored hidden parts of the town. It felt like a dream now, a far away, distant memory that didn’t actually happen.

He thought of the way she would tease him, get her face real close then yank it away, leaving him blushing from the tops of his cheeks to his neck. The way she would call him out for it, tell him to do something about it, nudge him to the edge. It didn’t feel real. He ached for that relationship back, he wanted her to talk to him like that again, and this time he would do something about it. He’d grab her cheeks before she could yank away and he’d kiss her. Gently, slowly, teasingly. Then he’d pull away and see if she did anything about it.

But she wouldn’t. Because she was seeing the doctor now. How could he be so stupid, fantasizing about these things? There was never a scenario where he would have been good enough for her, especially not now. He was too fucked up in the head, even before his friends passing. Dr. Harvey was a fucking doctor. Can’t do much better than that in this town. Shane was just the town drunk, embarrassing himself and others daily. The stock boy at JojaMart. The deadbeat guardian of a little girl everyone loved and hated to see neglected. And she was a fucking scientist. She may have given up some of that life to run the farm, but the fact remained she was too high class for him.

None of it mattered anyway. He heaved himself up onto his palms and looked at his top dresser drawer.

Time to fade away.

Summer 20

“Hello Gus, just looking for someone.” Harvey nodded. Gus gave him a smile.

“Farmer?”

“Need a beer, doc?”

“No, no,” Harvey held up his hand at Gus, shaking his head, “thank you.”

“What’s the doc doing at the bar?” Sam piped up, grinning. Sebastian lowered his eyes at him. Harvey opened his mouth to answer-

“Yeah…what are you doing here?” Sebastian asked, coolly, interrupting Harvey’s attempt at speaking. Sebastian hopped off the side of the pool table, walking towards Harvey.

“Jeeze, you all gotta interrogate the guy?” Charlotte laughed, standing up to greet him. She offered open arms for a hug. “What’s up?”

Relieved, Harvey accepted the hug. “Apologies for catching you off guard, can I speak with you for just a moment?”

“Sure,” Charlotte raised her eyebrows as they pulled away, following him out of the pool hall.

“What’s that about?” Sam asked incredulously, scanning his friends faces to find them equally confused.

“No clue!” Abigail raised her hands in the air.

As the pair got out of earshot from the rest, Harvey leaned down to speak to her over the music, “I forgot to ask for your number the other night.”

“Right!” he exclaimed, digging for his phone. “My social skills are rusty.”

“Couldn’t tell,” she teased with a grin, “you wanna hang around for a bit? Play pool? Loosen up?”

“Can’t.” He held up his hand to her dismay. “I appreciate the offer.”

“No worries.” She shook her head and patted his forearm, taking a step back.

He told you not to talk to him anymore.

“What the hell was that?” Sebastian hissed as she entered the room. She lowered her eyes at his questioning, sitting down next to Abigail.

“Why are you so concerned?” Charlotte snapped back, Abigail and Sam bouncing their gazes between the two as each spoke in amusement

“That doctor, what did he want from you?” Sebastian questioned, crossing his arms with a disapproving look.

“Yoba, Sebastian. Not that it’s really your business, but he came to get my number.” She rolled her eyes, leaning back into the couch, feeling incredibly uncomfortable now.

“Why?” Abigail and Sam spoke at the same time, but with less judgement than Sebastian.

“So we can hang out? It’s not hard, people.” Charlotte was now uncomfortable and annoyed, her voice rising. “He’s an old friend.”

“The doctor is?” Abigail raised her eyebrows, head tilted.

“We went to college together…” She rubbed her forearm, looking away from the group.

“No way,” Sam clapped, chuckling, “small world.”

“Very.” Charlotte huffed, looking back up at them, specifically eyeing Sebastian. “Anyway, I’m tired. I think I’m going to head out.”

“Already?” Abigail rose up as well, grabbing Charlotte arm. “Don’t let this bring you down! I wanted to play the Prairie King together!”

“Next Friday.” Charlotte smiled down at Abigail, patting her hand. Abigail rolled her eyes and fell back into the couch, a mini fit of sorts. “See you guys.”

“See ya!” Sam called as Charlotte turned, looking for Shane once more. This time he wasn’t looking at her, and seemingly hadn’t moved except to get a fresh beer.

Do not go over there.

She listened to the voice and sighed, making her way out of the bar.

Summer 21

“Haven’t seen Charlie around lately, hm?” Marnie mused as she set the table, eyeing Shane.

“Yeah!” Jas added, hopping into a seat, “I wanna to show her what I wrote in cursive!”

“She didn’t even go to the Luau, I was sure she was going to bring something from the farm,” Marnie sighed, doling out helpings of dinner.

“Is there another party soon?” Jas asked, grabbing a fork to start digging in. Marnie tsked her before she could shovel the food in, leaving Jas looking a bit guilty. “Oh, sorry Auntie.”

“It’s alright, dear.” Marnie nodded, taking a seat at the table. Shane rolled his eyes as his aunt began say grace, and purposefully grabbed a fork to start eating in the middle of her prayer, even though he wasn��t hungry. Jas obediently kept her eyes closed and head lowered, but while Marnie finished up, she opened her eyes to glare at Shane. Jas lifted her head now too and Marnie smiled at her. “Go on. Next event is the Dance of the Moonlight Jellies in about…” Marnie glanced at the calendar, “seven days.”

“Oh yay!” Jas exclaimed, clapping her hands before grabbing her silverware, turning her attention to Shane. “Can we go Uncle Shane? Please?”

Shane looked down at his young goddaughter and let out a sigh, nodding. Jas squealed with excitement, unaware of Marnie’s gaze as she pondered how her nephew would respond.

“I didn’t see any baby jellies last year,” Jas mused, “I wanna see some babies this time.”

Hopefully she continues her hiding game.

“All done!” Jas shouted, holding up her plate with a grin.

“Don’t,” he snapped, folding his arms, “just don’t, okay Marnie? She doesn’t remember me.”

“You haven’t made any effort to help her remember,” she snapped back, “you know she would be elated to realize it’s you.”

Marnie frowned, reaching across the table to grasp his hand. “Sweetie.”

“Please, Marnie,” he retracted his hand, using it to rub his eyes, “can we not? It’s depressing.”

She softened, pulling her hand back as well. “Fine.”

None of it mattered anyway. He heaved himself up onto his palms and looked at his top dresser drawer.

Time to fade away.

#sdv shane #shane fanfic #sv shane #stardew valley #stardew valley shane #stardew valley fanfic #sdv #stardew farmer #sdv shane fanfic #shane fan fic #stardew valley shane fan fic #sdv fanfic #sdv fan fic #archive of our own #The View From Down Here #my fic

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wittykitty21 · 3 years

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Falling Together

//Shanexfarmer HarveyxFarmer Sebastianxfarmer??

TW !! Talk of self harm, suicide, drinking, abuse, death!!

Chapter Two; Warm and Cold Welcomes

As I walked into the Stardrop Saloon, Emily immediately ran over and hugged me.

“You’re here!! You’re really back! I knew it was you the second I felt your energy hit the earth here.” She beamed. I hugged her back, I felt so accepted and warm here. She began introducing me to everyone, including a hot lean alternative guy with black swooped over hair, grey eyes and dressed all up in black along with a girl with purple hair and dressed in a black shirt with a frog printed on it. I assumed he was Robin’s son she had previously told me about.

“Heyyyyy Guns n Roses, nice taste. I’m Sebastian and this is Abigail. Abigail smiled and waved a little shyly at me. Sebastian continued,“ Sure mom’s told you about me. What’s your name?” he looked flirtatious towards me, but before I could tell him, a flash of blonde hair ran over to me and i was immediately lifted at least two feet off the ground into a hug.

“EVIEEEEE!!!!! I can’t believe its you!! We have so much catching up to do since we last made mud pies together. ” He smiled and put me back down. Me being slightly startled from his energetic golden retriever personality. Sebastian was laughing at the startled expression I had.

“Awww Sam, missed me pushing you over and you crying when I beat you in video games? “ I smirked.

“You know it! I’ve gotten pretty good over the years, you owe me unlimited rematches. And - Hey, I don’t think you’ll be able to push me over anymore, short stack. “ Sam was around 6′0 ft, and I had stayed at a measly 5′3 and a HALF since I was 13. I was happy Sam was the same overly optimistic ray of sunshine he had been since a kid.

“Jeezzzz Sam give her some breathing room. Sorry about him, he’s always like this” Abigail chuckled.

Sebastian slid back into the conversation, “So, Evie, is that your real name or is that your nickname?”

“Oh, yeah. I just go by Evie. My full name is Evangeline Eliza Jones-Destriu. I hate how long my name is.... and the fact my parents chose to hyphenate my last name.” I smiled weakly.

“Well a cute name to match a super cute girl with awesome fashion sense! “, exclaimed Abigail. “You have to show me where you get your clothes from.”

“As long as you show me where you got that frog shirt from, frogs are like one of my favorite animals.” I said excitedly.

After playing a little bit of pool with my new friend group, everyone else from the town started pouring in. I went up to Marnie, who was talking to Lewis. As I approached she immediately recognized me and hugged me.

“Evangeline!!!! Oh my goodness. You’ve become quite the beautiful young woman. You look so much like your grandpa. I’m sure hes so proud of you for taking over the farm. I’ll be here to help you as much as you need getting started. When Shane gets here you should say hello to him.”

“Shane? “ I squinted a little, confused.

“My nephew, you two were best friends whenever you spent the summers here.” she said a little worried. She noticed the bruise too, I tried to hide it behind my hair but I was starting to think it was inevitable.

“I’m sorry Marnie, I have memory problems. I’ll talk to you more about it in private when we catch up, but if you point him out to me I’m sure I’ll remember his face. I’m just not good with names. “

Marnie seemed a little sad that I hinted at the fact life hadn’t been very easy for me. “He’ll be here in a bit, he’s almost always at the saloon after work. He’s usually over there near the fireplace and bar. If you want you can come over for dinner on Sunday, I’m sure you havent had a good home cooked meal in a while since living in the city.”

I smiled widely “I’d absolutely love that. I was just telling Lewis today about how much I missed your cooking.”

As I said that, a man in a tattered up hoodie, dark black-purple hair, who was quite broad shouldered and had a dad body walked inside the saloon. He looked void of emotion and tired. Emily wasn’t phased by this, she smiled and treated him like everyone else in the warm happy way she did. He looked almost angry at her for her being nice to him. That’s when Marnie said “Well there he is, that’s my Shane.”

Maybe he just had a bad day, I thought. I thought about getting him something to eat to maybe cheer him up a bit. After all, I knew all about having bad days. So I walked over to Emily, and he peeked up at me, seeming annoyed. This built up anxiety in me, but my therapist said I needed to overcome my fear of upsetting people after all I’d been through. So I asked Emily,

“Hey what’s Shane’s favorite food?”

“Oh, he loves pepper poppers. Um.... Evie, hes a little..... rough around the edges.” she smiled “but he has a good heart. He has a goddaughter named Jas, and he took her in.”

I nodded, and she handed me a plate of the spicy food. I walked over cautiously to him, he smelled like beer and whiskey. I slid the food beside him and he looked up at me kind of dazed, probably from the alcohol.

“Hey, I’m new in town, I don’t know if you remember me but I’m-”

“What the fuck do you want? I don’t fucking know you, so piss off and leave me alone.” He spat at me and didn’t even look me in the eyes. I stood back shocked, feeling tears well up. Emily went pale, Marnie, Sam and Sebastian saw the look of hurt on my face. I immediately turned around and went back to Emily.

“Hey you okay? I’m sorry, he’s not normally that harsh. Here,” She said as she handed me a bottle of wine. “its on the house. I should’ve told you he’s uh, an angry person.”

I couldn’t speak, the feeling of panic and tears welled up in my throat and I knew it was visible on my face. I just looked at her and nodded. “I’ll be alright, thanks Emily. I just wasn’t expecting that. I’m gonna head home.”

I took the wine and Marnie tried to stop me and talk to me, she saw the tears starting to come down and gave me a quick hug. As I turned to leave I felt like i was being watched, and I locked eyes with him. A sudden wash of recognition and regret hit his face. He saw he made me cry and i knew now he knew who I was. He put down his beer and looked like he was about to walk over. I almost ran out the door, and started sprinting towards the forest with the wine in hand. As soon as I knew I was out of earshot, I broke down. I looked for the pond my grandfather used to take me to when I was sad.

---Back at the Saloon while Evie is in the woods, Shane POV--

Marnie walked over to Shane. “What has gotten into you? You grew up with that girl!!!! You made her cry after she wsa just trying to be nice to you.”

“I-I didn’t recognize who she was until she left. I’m going to find her and apologize, I’m sorry Marnie. I’m just--” he sighed. God. I always fuck up. He thought.

Marnie patted him on the shoulder “I know Shane. Just-- try to remember you’re not the only one who’s been through a lot. Okay?”

He nodded and left the Saloon to find and apologize to Evie.

--Back to Evie in the woods, Shane POV--

I sat down at the edge of the pier and downed the entire bottle of wine. I hadn’t imagined something so small would make me relapse. The alcohol made me feel warm so i took off my long sleeve shirt and kept on my large band tee. The bandages and stitches itched with my mistakes. So I took them off. They probably needed a little air anyways. The vertical cuts that were held together with thread still looked pretty bad and they bled a little as I unraveled the wrapping, but they were at least mostly closed up with scabs. Around the wounds were bruises from Daniel, my ex -fiance. I could still see the finger marks were he had grabbed me on my arm. I cried somewhat loudly and just laid and looked up at the stars for a while. I started feeling dizzy, and tired. And the comforting numbness washed over me as everything faded into darkness. I thought I heard someone walking towards me but I didn’t care. They could kill me and I’d die happy right there.

--Shane’s POV finding Evie--

I knew where she was going, the same place she went when she snuck out of her gradfathers when she missed her dad. I heard loud crying, like someone was in pain. It had to be her, I was already tipsy and quickened my pace towards the loud cries. Suddenly it stopped. Oh Yoba. Oh no. Why did it stop?

I didn’t want to frighten her, so I tried to walk a little loudly. I saw a figure laid out on the pier, close to the edge of the side, she was about to roll off into the pond. “Evie? Hey.”

No response. Oh fuck. As i got closer I saw the empty wine bottle, and i felt a pang of guilt and worry.

Wait. What the hell? I turned on my phones light and shined it on her, she passed out from drinking. But- what was......

I saw cuts on both her wrists that were obviously a previous suicide attempt, they were stitched together, but she also had dark bruises of all colors on her arms, and she had cried off her makeup, revealing a darkened eye as well.

I felt like I had just walked in on a crime scene. I never thought I’d meet someone more messed up than me, much less a childhood friend. What the hell happened to her? I tried shaking her awake and calling her name but she didn’t wake up. More panic and anxiety came over me. I picked her up gingerly in my arms to bring her to the clinic, she was so small and soft. She smelled like strawberries and vanilla. Shane studied her features. She had the same freckles, same button nose, same long eyelashes and dark hair as he remembered her having as she had when they were little. She was gorgeous too. How could anyone hurt such a beautiful fragile girl? What the hell is wrong with me? Why am I thinking this way? Get a grip Shane.

I called Harvey, “Hello?” A groggy mans voice answered.

“Hey uh Harvey, the new farmer girl, she’s actually a childhood friend of mine. I found her passed out drunk on a pier and she looks like she’s already been in bad shape. I can’t wake her up, I’m bringing her as we speak. She already has stitches and-- She’s just in a really bad way.” Shane’s voice quaked a bit at the end of his sentence.

“Okay, oh Yoba, thats not good. Hurry here as fast as you can okay? I’ll get things ready for her so I can immediately work on her. Is she breathing? “ The words Harvey said made me panic more. Fuck. I didn’t even check to see if she was fucking breathing. I looked down and she was breathing gently and normally.

“Yeah she is, I think she’s just really drunk. I’m not sure.” I said back.

I carried her in, set her down on the hospital bed. Holy fuck. I hadn’t noticed how bad she really was hurt. She hid all of it with clothes and her long hair. She looked like she had been beaten over and over again over the past month. Even her eye and jaw had small bruises that had healed. Who did this to her? Then I saw the cuts. They were worse in the florescent lighting. Those were definitely on purpose.

Harvey looked pale at the sight of her. “Okay, here, see if she has any emergency contacts on her phone. I’m going to get fluids into her. Aside from that, looks like all of this was from previous incidents.” and he closed the curtain leaving shane in the little area next to the room. She didn’t have but a few contacts saved. One of them was Daniel, as I selected his contact I noticed the number had been blocked. The picture of him was a guy with blonde hair and blue eyes, the athletic type. Looked like a general douchebag. A text came in from a random number.

“What the fuck? You think you can just run away from me? Restraining order is just a piece of paper. I’ll find you. I know you’re probably shacked up with some scumbag, you whore. Not even your father wanted you, your mom died and its your fault. You’ll never find anyone better than me.” It read. That had to be him. The whiskey helped fill me with rage, I typed the number into my phone and left to the lobby to call it.

It rang a couple of times before a condescending voice answered,

“Come crawling back already psycho? You should’ve done a better job at trying to off yourself bitc-”

I cut him off, “Don’t contact her ever again. Or I’ll fucking kill you.” I hung up. And blocked the number. Why was I doing this? She was practically a stranger to me now.

I shook my head and left her phone with Harvey. I needed to sleep. I’d have Marnie call Harvey tomorrow to check on her. I looked at her one last time before I left, I remembered we’d have sleep overs, and she still slept curled up on her side.

I went home and told Marnie, she shook her head.

“I’m sorry, Shane. I should’ve told you. Her father deserted her, he mother fell into drinking and killed herself. Evie found her when she was 18. Her grandfather died the same year. She has no one. I don’t know why she has bruises, but I suspect thats why she came here so far away from the city. Please be kind to her. ” She looked worried.

“I-I...... yoba. I had no idea. She hadn’t-” I said then Marnie interuppted me.

“She didn’t come here probably because I wanted to run away from whoever hurt her that bad.”

I hardly slept that night, I got up for work in the morning and looked at the clinic on my way.

I’m so sorry Evie. I need a fucking drink.

#sdv #shane x farmer #stardew valley fanfiction #stardew valley #stardew #shane stardew #shane fanfiction #fanfic #fanfiction #series #writer #stories #angst #TW #read with caution

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walkerwords · 4 years

Text

“Moment of Clarity” Rick Grimes x F!Reader

Summary: After arriving in Alexandria, Rick is on edge. The two of you had been together since the fall of the prison and after noticing his stressed demeanor, you decide to steal him away for a bit to try to see what is going on inside that head of his.

Word Count: 3958

Warning: None

Song I Wrote To: “So Will I” by Ben Platt

Note: Set pre-negan, I just really wanted to write a cute little moment with Rick. I realized I don’t write him enough, but complain that there aren’t enough rick imagines so here ya go! NOTE: this is only a one-shot.

----------

Alexandria was a lot more than you had expected.

Since the only experience you and the rest of the group had when it came to “communities” were Woodbury and the nightmare that was Terminus, everyone was on edge.

You had been with the group since Atlanta and you and Rick had only grown closer since the day he stepped out of that truck and took Carl into his arms. Your romantic relationship with the former deputy had began on the road after the fall of the prison. You were worried about sharing your feelings with him because of what had happened to Lori, but the two of you just...fit and everyone else had seen it too.

When Rick had first kissed you, it had taken you by surprise. You, Michonne, Carl, and Rick had been hiding out in a house when you had broken down in a spare room after everything had happened. Rick had found you and calmed you down and took you into his arms. As soon as you stopped crying, you pulled out of his embrace and then, without warning, Rick had taken your face in his hands and kissed you, pulling him against his chest.

It was after that moment that you knew you were his forever. After Terminus, when you had seen him running from the slaughterhouse. You had run to him and you swore then that you’d never leave him again.

Finding Alexandria had seemed like a dream. You hadn’t felt this safe and secure since the prison. Not to mention the reality that the safe zone was so...normal.

The leader, Deanna, had welcomed you and your band of misfits easily. When she had interviewed you, you had Judith with you, giving her dad a break. You kept the child close to your chest as if shielding her from the stranger before her. Deanna had asked you routine questions and then eventually had you ask Daryl to join her.

As you passed Dixon outside, he had pressed a kiss to Judith’s brow before entering the house and the sight alone had brought a warm smile to Rick’s worried face because he knew that no matter what happened next, his family would remain by his side.

You assured him that night that he was right and that if he needed them to, you, Daryl, Glenn, Maggie, and the others would by his side when something went wrong or if Alexandria was not what it seemed. And so far, you had kept that promise.

You lay alone in the bed you shared with Rick. His constable uniform was draped over the chair in the corner and you couldn’t help but smile at the memory of the first time you saw him in it. Michonne and Rick were natural-born leaders, but there was something so odd about seeing them in a uniform like this.

They were warriors and while you knew Rick was glad to always help people, he had admitted to you last night that he was feeling like a fraud with the jacket on. You understood that. It had been a long time since he wore a uniform, since he had held any authority that he didn’t have to take for himself.

Rick was the best leader any of you could have asked for, but you knew it weighed on him heavily. Especially after losing people like Lori, Shane, and more recently with Tyreese and Beth. However, he did seem to forget that nobody expected him to be perfect, not even you or his children. You were hoping to make him see that which is how you found yourself planning to steal him away for the day.

Getting out of bed, you got ready for the day. Deanna still had your guns, but she still allowed you to carry your knives. As you strapped them to your thighs, you headed downstairs.

Carl and Judith were at the table with Michonne. You ruffled Carl’s hair and kissed the top of Judith’s head. “Good morning,” you greeted.

“Sleep well?” Michonne asked. You nodded, taking a seat next to her and grabbing some bread off the table. Olivia had brought some over the night before.

“Better than I have in weeks. I think my body has finally realized a Walker isn’t waiting in my closet,” you said. Michonne laughed.

“I hear that,” she said. “I guess we all have some adjusting to do.”

“I keep forgetting we’re not still on the road,” Carl admitted, leaning back in his own seat. “Do you think we’ll be able to stay?”

“I don’t see why not, but we never know, Carl,” you said and he nodded.

“I know, I’m just tired of running.”

“Me too, kid,” you told him honestly. Carl was one of the only people who knew you as well as his dad did. He had to grow up very fast after the Turn and then when Lori died, he developed steel-like skin and never looked back. At times, it was hard to remember he was still just a teenager.

“Do you have any plans today?” Michonne asked.

“I was thinking of looking around some more,” you said with a shrug. “Do you know where your dad is, Carl?”

“He went to talk to Deanna early this morning. He said he didn’t want to wake you,” Carl said. You smiled slightly. Even in the Apocalypse, Rick Grimes was still a gentleman. “I don’t know when he’ll be back.”

“Ah, don’t worry. I’ll find him,” you said, getting to your feet. “Be good for your brother, little one,” you said to Judith as she wrapped her little hand around your finger. Your heart melted at the action and gave her another kiss before waving to the others and heading out your door.

The rest of Alexandria was waking up for the day and your new neighbors waved to you. You awkwardly waved back, but kept your focus on your search for your boyfriend. Walking down the main road, you scanned the many houses.

Carol was speaking to Olivia on her porch as she fiddled with the cardigan around her shoulders. You and Daryl had both scoffed when you had seen her trying to play Martha Stewart. You knew why she was doing it, but it was too alien to see a woman like her so...clean.

Speaking of Daryl, he was once again in Aaron’s garage, the door open, as he worked on his new bike. “She’s looking good,” you said, approaching him. Daryl looked up at you, a screwdriver locked between his teeth. He grunted in greeting. “How long till she’s up and running?”

“Not much longer,” he said, taking the tool from his mouth. “Ya want first ride?”

“Obviously,” you said with a bright smile. Daryl rolled his eyes, but you could see the small smile on his face. “You seen Rick?” He nodded, pointing down the road.

“He and Glenn are down by the gate. He’s tryin’ to convince the Monroe moron that we need more watch points,” Daryl explained.

“How do you think that’s goin’?”

“Like I said, he’s a moron,” Daryl said with a scoff.

“Fair enough.” You knew he didn’t like Spencer. Hell, nobody did, but he was Deanna’s son and you all had to get along with him. Except for Daryl. He had nearly sucker-punched the guy a day earlier when he tried to make unwanted advances on Tara which were obviously futile. Spencer backed off immediately, but then and there was when Daryl labeled himself as the group’s main protector and nobody argued with him.

“Ya alright?” Daryl asked, wiping the grease from his hands as he stood.

“Fine, why?”

“Dunno, ya got that look on yer face,” he said, flicking the hair out of his eyes.

“What look?”

“The look that means yer up to somethin’,” he teased.

“So, my usual face?”

“Exactly,” he said and you bumped his shoulder.

“Asshole,” you muttered. “I’m gonna go meet up with Grimes.”

“I’ll come with, I gotta talk to Glenn,” he said as he followed you. Your friendship with Daryl was something you cherished deeply. He had had your back since the quarry. His brother, Merle, had liked you too and since losing the older Dixon, the two of you had naturally gravitated towards one another.

Walking down the street with him, however, felt...odd. It felt like something out of a bad movie. Two people who had seen enough horror to last a lifetime walking down a road with manicured lawns and laughing children seemed like some kind of long-winded joke.

“Judith was restless last night,” Daryl said suddenly.

“Yeah, makes sense. New place and all. She’s never actually been in a proper house now that I think about it.”

“This place is good for her,” he said. “She and Carl need it.”

“Then let’s try to make it work, okay?” Daryl nodded, chewing on his thumb. Something he had made a habit of. It drove you crazy, but you had come to accept his odd quirks.

As you arrived at the gate, you could practically feel the tension rolling off both Rick and Glenn as they stared at Spencer. Nicholas stood behind his friend glaring down Glenn and you knew it was only a matter of time before those two got into it again.

“We’re not a military base, Grimes,” Spencer was saying as you and Daryl grew closer.

“No, you’re just an idiot,” Glenn said with a smile and Daryl snorted next to you, grabbing the others’ attention.

“Alright,” you interjected, “break it up boys. I think there is enough hostility in this world already.” As soon as Rick saw you, he visibly relaxed. Spencer took a few steps back as you walked up to Rick and he opened his arm to you. “Hey, you.”

“Hey yourself,” Rick murmured. You looked back at Spencer and Nicholas.

“I’m stealing him away for a bit, try not to need anything,” you said as you tugged him towards the gate.

“What are you up to?” Rick asked, letting you lead him away. From the back of your jeans, you produced his colt and offered it to him.

“I grabbed this on my way to see Daryl,” you said. “Are you up for a walk?” Rick took the gun and holstered it before glancing up at the walls and then back at you. You knew he was feeling claustrophobic and a smile slowly spread across his scruffy face.

“Absolutely,” he said, turning to Daryl. “We’ll be back in a bit.”

“Alright,” Daryl said with a nod. Spencer and Nicholas watched as you took Rick’s hand and led him out of Alexandria, Glenn locking up behind you.

“Where are they going?” Spencer asked.

“Out,” Daryl said with a shrug.

“It’s not exactly safe…” Nicholas added. Daryl just stared at them for a moment.

“They have weapons, they’ll be fine,” he said before turning and walking over to Glenn. “Idiots,” he said as he met Glenn on the way back up the road. Glenn laughed and grabbed Daryl’s shoulder.

“See, this is why we’re friends,” Glenn said. Daryl rolled his eyes.

“Whatever.”

————

In the hot Virginian sun, you and Rick walked the perimeter around Alexandria.

Taking his hand in yours, you let them swing between you as you kicked at the dry leaves that littered the forest floor. “You know,” you began, “I checked on Carl last night before I went to bed and it was so weird to see him tucked into an actual bed.” Rick chuckled, nodding his head.

“I thought the same thing that first night. I hadn’t seen him that comfortable since this whole thing began,” Rick said.

“Well, Alexandria is secure, Rick,” you said, “It’s about damn time he’s felt safe. Noah and Judith too. The prison, while it was safe, there was always the threat of the Walkers breaking down the fence and of course, the Governor. After all the time on the road, they deserve a bit of normalcy.”

“Normal, right,” Rick laughed. You rolled your eyes, knocking his shoulder with yours.

“Okay, smart-ass. As normal as we can give them,” you said. Rick smiled at you, but then his face fell back to his usual worried expression. “What’s going on in that head of yours?” you asked.

“I just sometimes think this place, these people,” he said, “it’s just a bit too good to be true.” You nodded, understanding completely. Everyone in your group had been skeptic from the moment Aaron had brought you in. It felt like slipping into a Twilight Zone episode.

Oddly, Michonne was the one that was urging everyone to give Deanna and her community a chance, and considering she had immediately seen what Woodbury was from the start, you trusted her judgment. However, you knew that Rick still had his concerns.

“Are you thinking about leaving?” you asked and your tone wasn’t accusatory or filled with malice. You were genuinely curious about where his head was at right now. Rick mulled over your words for a few moments before shaking his head.

“No, but I can’t think of letting my guard down. A place like this can fall at any moment and if it does, we need to be gone before that can happen,” he explained. Rick’s thumb began creating circles over the back of your hand as you walked.

“I know you’re worried,” you said, “and I hope you know that if it ever came to that, that I would be by your side. I’d go with you without question.” Rick smiled over at you and then pulled you into his side.

“How did I get so lucky?” he whispered in your ear.

“The world ended, baby,” you told him with a wink. Rick chuckled and kissed the side of your head. “And whether you like it or not, you’re stuck with me, Grimes.”

“I got no issue with that, (Y/N),” he said.

“But you still have concerns,” you said. It wasn’t a question. Whether he realized it or not, you could read him like a book no matter what. “Our people are going to be fine. You have to give them more credit.”

“They aren’t who I’m worried about,” he revealed.

“Then what is it, Rick?” you asked, pulling him to a stop. He sighed, glancing around at the trees as if he could see the answer between their trunks.

“What if…,” he trailed off, trying to collect his thoughts. You waited patiently. “What if I lose myself again? After Shane and then Lori… Our family needs me now more than ever and what if I can’t handle it?”

“That’s not going to happen, Rick,” you said. “And if does? We’ll handle it. Nobody expects you to be perfect all the time. We’ve all seen what this world has done to people. It has taken something from all of us, but we’ve always come back. Hell, we know loss too well.”

“I feel like I’m not doin’ enough,” he admitted.

“It’s all in your head,” you assured him. “I know none of this has been easy, but I am not going anywhere. Do you hear me?” Taking his face in your hands, you made him look you in the eyes. “I’m. Right. Here.” Rick nodded and leans his forehead against yours.

“I know,” he whispered. “This place is going to need a lot of work, (Y/N). We need to teach them how to survive or more people are going to die. And if we can’t? I don’t know how I’m going to keep them safe. I failed too many of us already.”

“Is this about Beth?” you asked. Rick’s eyes fell close at her name. Beth’s death had affected all of you. Maggie, Rick, and Daryl had taken it particularly hard. You knew Rick had seen Beth as his responsibility for a while now. They had grown closer since he had saved her father from the Walker bite.

Rick hadn’t hesitated when Daryl had located the youngest Greene at Grady. He had done everything he could to get her back. You still remember the relief on his face when Dawn had let her go and he took her in his arm and kissed her head. Then everything had gone wrong with the exchange and you had to watch as Daryl nearly shattered right then and there in that hallway. “It wasn’t your fault, Rick,” you said softly.

“I should have… I should have never trusted the deal. We should have gone in there fully armed and taken her back. I told Daryl and Maggie that I would bring her back to them.”

“Nobody could have predicted what happened to her,” you said. “Beth was as strong as anyone I knew and I miss her with everything I have, but her death was not your fault.”

“He cared about her,” Rick said and you knew he was talking about Daryl.

“I know.” Rick leaned heavily on you as you ran your hands down his back. “You can’t carry the weight of everyone’s pain on your shoulders, Rick.” He pulled back and looked down at you, scanning your face with adoration in his eyes.

“You always do know the right things to say, beautiful,” he whispered. You smiled up at him, letting your hands trail down his neck. He glanced at your lips, but before you could pull him to you, groans reached your ears. Rick sighed. “Never a good moment, huh?” he asked as he stepped back and pulled his knife from his belt as the Walkers stumbled towards you.

“Wouldn’t be a good date without Walkers,” you joked, unsheathing your own weapons.

“Is that what this is? A date?” he asked, with a slight chuckle.

“What can I say? I’ll take what I can get,” you said before going after the Walker closest to you. It lunged at you, but you were faster, driving your blade into its skull before it could grab hold of your arm. Rick was taking out two on your left as you kicked out at the one that snuck up on your right. It fell to the ground and you drove your knife between its eyes.

Rick shouted behind you as he fell to the ground with a large Walker falling on top of him. You ran over and tackled the creature, rolling it off of Grimes. It snapped its jaws at you but you jammed your knife into its mouth, cutting through the rotten pallet. Black blood dripped onto your face as you shoved it off of you. “Ugh!” you groaned as you sat up.

“Are you okay?” he asked. You nodded, trying to wipe the thick substance from your face. “Here,” he said, offering his hand. Rick helped you up and examined your face, trying not to laugh.

“It’s not funny,” you said with a scowl.

“No, no, definitely not,” he said as he took the canteen that hung around his shoulder. “Head back.” You tilted your chin to the sky as he poured cool water on your face, rinsing the foul blood from your skin. “Thanks for the save.”

“And look what I got for it,” you said with a pout. Rick used his sleeve to wipe the blood from your face and then rinsed your hair out as well.

“Not really how I imagined washing your hair,” he said in a low voice.

“I’m sure we can do something about that later,” you said as you shook out your hair and looked up at him. He was still trying not to laugh and eventually you gave in, laughing along with him. “Okay, maybe it’s a bit funny.” Rick began laughing louder as he slung the canteen back over his back. Taking you in his arms, he smoothed your hair from your face and tilted your chin up.

“It’s very funny,” he said as he leaned in and kissed you softly. You melted into the kiss, clutching at his wrinkled shirt. Even with the many corpses that surrounded you, you never felt happier than when you were in his arms. Rick’s hand cupped your jaw as he kissed you deeper, sighing between your lips.

When he pulled back, he slid his hands down to your sides and began swaying back and forth. “What are you doing?’ you asked.

“Dancing with you,” he said with a smile.

“You’re insane, you know that?” you asked, but rolled your hands over his shoulders and played along.

“I know.” He leaned his head on top of yours as you swayed. Dropping your head to his shoulder, you breathed him in. You never thought that you would ever have this, have something like him and every moment you spent together, it made you feel whole.

Rick took hold of your arm and spun you out only to spin you back into his chest. You giggled as he took hold of you again. “Only you would want to dance in the middle of woods surrounded by dead Walkers.”

“Don’t act so surprised, (Y/N). You knew what you were getting into when you kissed me the first time.”

“Actually, you kissed me.”

“Did I? Huh,” Rick said with a cheeky smile. “That makes sense, I always was a good judge of character.”

“Keep telling yourself that, Grimes,” you said, tapping his nose playfully. Suddenly, his expression turned serious again.

“I should have told you before, (Y/N),” Rick said, tilting his head and sliding his hand up to caress your cheek.

“What?” you asked.

“I love you,” he said softly. As soon as the words left his lips, you were near to tears. You had waited for him to say those three words for a while now. You had wanted to say it first, but you didn’t think he was ready yet and you didn’t want to push him. “I love you so much.”

You took his face in your hands as well and as a tear rolled from your eye, you smiled. “I love you, Rick Grimes. I have for a long while.”

“I’m sorry it took me so long to say it,” he said.

“Don’t apologize,” you whispered, “but say it again.” Rick grinned at you.

“I love you,” he said with a kiss to your forehead. “I love you.” He kissed your cheek. “I. Love. You,” he said as he placed a firm kiss on your lips. You threw your arms around him as he lifted you up. You wrapped your legs around his waist and he backed you up to a tree. He kissed you fiercely, trailing kisses down your neck and back up. He made the circle three times before you were breathless.

“I hope this means we can make this work,” you said as he peered up at you.

“I think we can,” he said. “And like you said, we’re stuck with each other now.”

“No going back,” you promised.

“No going back,” he repeated. You leaned down and kissed his softly, just the slightest pressure on his lips.

“You know,” you whispered, “I kind of miss the beard.” Rick let out a laugh as he grabbed you around the waist and threw you over his shoulder. “Rick!” you yelled out as he gripped the back of your legs.

“I think I’m going to want that shower now,” he said with a grin. You laughed at that, running your nails down his back. “Come on, beautiful, let’s go home.”

Rick set you down and took you by the hand and together, you headed back to Alexandria with a new outlook on your future. Because no matter what happened next, you would face it together with your family behind you. Always.

TAGS: @felicisimor @thanossexual @yes-sir-hotchner

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gendercraft · 3 years

Text

When I Fell Overboard [Chapter Eight: Never Been The Type To Trust]

Read on ao3

Synopsis: Sebastian struggles with his relationship with Maru as she strives to get close to him. Meanwhile, he and Elliott get closer and closer.

Trigger warnings: Panic attacks, fighting, snapping, potentially unsympathetic Robin, crying, food mention, let me know if I missed anything please

Fall came around full force. Nearly overnight, the leaves turned red and orange and yellow, crisp breeze carrying them across the cobble walkways. Pierre and Caroline had Abigail help them hang a huge sign above their entranceway advertising their ‘one of a kind’ and ‘Joja-free’ pumpkin seeds. Gus brought out a new menu, similarly pumpkin themed, but Sebastian couldn’t say he hated the spiced pumpkin mead.

He and Elliott spent most days together. Any time he had to pull himself away, either to get some alone time or catch up with Abigail and Sam, they stood behind Elliott’s closed door with their arms wrapped around each other, Sebastian safely cradled against Elliott as they promised to meet again soon.

Sebastian was falling hard. Every time he saw Elliott, he couldn’t help but smile. Elliott would do something small, like whisper an “aha!” when he figured out how to fix a plot hole, or accidentally burnt himself with his raspberry tea, or made too many crab cakes and had to share, and all Sebastian could think was, “I love you.”

It was becoming a little bit of a problem. Elliott showed no signs of feeling the same way, gave Sebastian no hints, nothing to work off of. He eventually broke and spent a good twenty minutes venting to Sam and Abigail, who stared at each other, and then him, and then each other, then Sam sighed and left the room.

“What’s his problem?” Sebastian asked, face hot.

“You. You’re an idiot.” Abigail grabbed her drumsticks. “Come on, if we start he’ll come back in.”

Abigail was spending a suspicious amount of time with Maru. Occasionally Abigail would come over while Sebastian was working and stay shut inside Maru’s room until he finished, sometimes for hours. There was an awful lot of laughing, though Sebastian couldn’t understand why.

He eventually accepted that if she and Abigail were going to be friends, Maru and Sebastian had to be a little more than civil. Not quite friends themselves, but close. So when Maru reached out, he forced himself to stop snapping back. He still didn’t like that she was so insistent on them having a good relationship, didn’t understand why she didn’t already have enough—you’re stealing my best friend and you want me, too?—but he had to let it go. He couldn’t lose Abigail. He’d die.

“Is it cool if I invite Maru with us to the saloon tonight?” Abigail asked during band practice one day.

“Sure,” Sebastian mumbled. “Oh, and Elliott gave the okay for next week.” Sebastian asked if the three of them could use his cabin to rehearse one day so they could see how their songs would sound how they were meant to, on the piano.

“Awesome.” Sam plugged his guitar into the amp with a wicked grin. “I am ready to give my mom a headache.”

Sebastian rolled his eyes.

After practice, they headed out to the saloon, an order of pizza and a round of beers already waiting for them. Sam gave Shane a cheerful wave and a smile, who returned it with a grunt.

Abigail hopped onto Journey of the Prairie King, cussing the arcade machine out while Sebastian killed Sam in pool. Elliott showed up to drink his share of the beer and wrap his arms around Sebastian’s shoulders from behind. Sebastian blushed under everyone’s stares, but couldn’t bring himself to push Elliott away. It always made Sebastian so happy when Elliott touched him, a feeling of me, he’s choosing me. He could have anyone else right now and he’s choosing me.

It was hard to push aside the dread piercing Sebastian’s stomach when Maru came through the saloon doors. He focused on the game, not meaning to ignore her but trying to act casual and, well, taking it too far.

“Hey, Sebastian.” Maru smiled.

He glanced up. “Hey.”

They stared for a moment, then Maru stepped aside to join Abigail at the machine.

“So how are things going with you?” Elliott asked, giving him space to shoot.

Sebastian bent over the table slightly with his pool cue. His tongue poked between his lips as he analyzed the set up, then moved and shot, hitting three of his balls into the holes and knocking aside two of Sam’s.

“Damnit!” Sam side. “Fuck, Seb.”

Sebastian grinned. Then he remembered Elliott’s question and it faded. “Right. Um… fine, I guess? I mean, she’s here, right?”

Elliott nodded slowly. “Right… is she still asking for your help with the robot?”

“Yeah. Every other day, pretty much.”

“Why don’t you help her?” He rested a hand on Sebastian’s shoulder.

“She doesn’t need my help,” Sebastian muttered.

“I think she does,” Elliott said gently.

Sebastian shook his head and leaned against the pool table while Sam considered his move with a snail’s pace.

“What does it matter?” Sebastian asked in frustration. “I thought you were staying out of it, remember?”

Elliott smiled nervously. “Right.”

They played a little while longer, until Sebastian won and they were all tipsy. They stumbled out the saloon doors, milling around for a second while they figured out who was going with who.

“Did you still want to see those videos of the Stardew caves?” Abigail asked, shyer than usual.

Maru nodded with a smile. “I have a good computer. Wanna spend the night?”

She nodded. “Sebastian, you coming?”

“Uh…” He glanced to Elliott, tipsy enough to allow the hope to show plainly on his face.

Elliott laughed and wrapped an arm around his waist. “You can spend the night with me. You know I never mind.”

“Well, I’m going to my own house,” Sam said, holding his hands up. “Have fun.”

Maru, Abigail, and Elliott laughed, and they all split ways. Sebastian slipped his hand into Elliott’s when they were out of sight.

Elliott smiled at him. “Want me to read to you when we get home, my dear?”

Home.

Home home home.

Sebastian nodded. “Yeah.”

Then Sebastian saw it. He looked up and Elliott was smiling softly, his brows relaxed, eyes sparkling. He was… happy to see Sebastian.

Elliott chuckled. “What?”

“Nothing,” Sebastian murmured. “Just…” He bit his lip. How could he say this? He forced the words out, “just… happy to… to be… you know, to be with- with you.”

Elliott brightened. “That is so sweet! Sebastian!” He squeezed his hand as they stepped onto the beach, kicking sand as they went. “Before we head inside, do you want to go on a walk?”

With the alcohol buzzing pleasantly in his head and the moon hanging above them, there was absolutely nothing Sebastian would rather do. He nodded.

They strolled along the sand, headed towards the tidepools on the other side of the beach. When they arrived, Elliott broke off, and Sebastian missed holding his hand but it was worth it to watch him run around the tidepools, picking up shells and holding them to the starlight. He came over to Sebastian with a small, smooth black and purple shell and held it out to him.

“Reminds me of you,” he said sheepishly, and that was it, Sebastian was in love.

He cradled it in his hands, staring up at Elliott with the widest grin.

Kiss him.

Sebastian’s grin weakened. He couldn’t do that. He could never do that. What if he read everything wrong, and Elliott didn’t like him at all? Sebastian wouldn’t survive the embarrassment—or the guilt, if Elliott didn’t feel the same but kissed him anyway to spare Sebastian’s heart.

“I had a really good time with you tonight,” Elliott said softly. He stepped closer and fit his hand into Sebastian’s. He cupped Sebastian’s face. “I always have a good time with you.”

Sebastian couldn’t speak, just smiled up at him, eyes damn near close to watering.

“I was worried, with Maru being there. You guys always have so much- so much friction, and I know it upsets you. I don’t want anything to upset you. Maru is truly trying though, and it means a lot that—”

He stopped. His face flushed, eyes widening.

“I mean…”

Sebastian frowned. “What are you talking about? What does that mean?”

“No, nothing.” He brushed Sebastian’s hair back. “It was nothing.”

Sebastian took a step back. His hands trembled. “Have you been talking to Maru?”

He hesitated. “Sebastian…”

“Have you been talking to Maru?” He asked harder. “You promised you wouldn’t meddle in my relationships.”

“I- I know. And I’m sorry. But after we started getting close, she came to me, and she was so upset, Bastian-”

Sebastian shook his head, eyes squeezed closed. The shell fell to the sand. “You promised me. Why would you… I can’t believe you’d…”

“Please don’t be upset,” he begged. He stepped closer, and Sebastian stumbled back. “I just want you to be happy.”

“That’s none of your business!” Sebastian exploded. “I told you not to get involved, it’s none of your business whether Maru and I get along or not! I can’t believe you’d- you’d-”

Fuck, now his eyes were watering. Shit. He shook his head and turned, stumbling over the tidepools.

“Sebastian! Wait!”

“Just leave me alone, Elliott!”

He stormed away.

He was grateful it was so cold, because his body was hot, sweat pin-pricking his brow. He slammed the door open to his house and stormed towards Maru’s room. He banged on the door until she answered.

“Sebastian?” Her anger faded. “What is it?”

“I can’t believe you’d talk to Elliott behind my back,” he snapped. “You’re really so desperate to have a relationship with me that you’d trick me into it?”

“Seb?” Abigail peeked over Maru’s shoulder. “What’s wrong?”

He couldn’t even get the words out anymore. Part of him knew he was overreacting, knew he’d regret this, but his stomach boiled and his chest was tight and he was so, so angry, so upset that Elliott and Maru would…

He squeezed his eyes shut.

“Sebastian, you need to breathe,” Abigail said firmly.

Her cold hands cupped his face. He blinked his teary eyes open.

“Whatever you’re mad about, it’s okay,” she soothed. “You can figure it out.”

He turned and hurried away. He barely managed to get his bedroom door shut and locked before he sank to the ground, hands trembling and body numb.

He’d never been the type to trust people. In all honesty, he probably doomed his and Demetrius’ relationship from the start. Maybe he doomed his and Elliott’s, as well.

All he knew is he didn’t trust Elliott anymore, and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to.

#stardew valley #sdv #sebastian sdv #elliott sdv #elliott/sebastian #when i fell overboard

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maybeimamuppet · 3 years

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let's get together

quick tw for:

alcohol, abuse mention, eating disorder mention, suicide mention

Janis first thinks she might be in love with Cady Heron on April 21, 2018.

Cady had missed her art show. She had lied to her face, said she couldn’t come. She was supposed to be out of town. And now they’re screaming at each other in the middle of the sidewalk for the whole neighborhood to see.

Janis doesn’t really know why she feels the way she does. If, say, Damian missed one of her shows, she’d be disappointed, sure. If he lied about what he was supposed to be doing while he missed her art show, she’d be angry, and hurt. She is now, but it feels more intense for some reason.

It’s not until Cady yells, “It’s not my fault you’re, like, in love with me or something!” that it finally hits her. Janis feels her chest go cold. Because Cady might be right. She feels tears tracking down her face now, tries to choke back sobs.

She vaguely hears Damian holler, “Oh NO she did not,” and the beeping of the Jazzy reversing. Janis storms over to grab her painting from the basket, throwing it to Cady as hard as she can.

“Here, you can have this. It won a prize,” she spits, clapping a hand over her mouth before any sobs can escape.

Cady tries to reach out, calling her name softly, but Janis steps away before she can.

“No, it’s fine. Really, it’s fine. Go be fine.”

She goes over to cling to Damian again, burying her face in his hair and finally letting her cries escape as he drives away. She thinks she hears Cady call her name again, but she can’t be sure.

“And I want my pink shirt!” Damian yells loudly behind them, making Janis jump. “Sorry, sweet. Let’s get you home.”

Janis looks up again for the first time when the Jazzy comes to a stop, surprised to see Damian’s house in front of them. “Why- you didn’t-“ she stutters, confused.

“I’m not leaving you alone after that, Janjan. Come on, let’s go in,” Damian says, grabbing her hand and leading her in. “I gotta go put the Jazzy in the garage, you go change.”

She trudges heavily up to his room, still crying gently. She has a pair of pajamas that she keeps at his house in case of emergency, but she just takes the bottoms and one of his big sweatshirts instead. She needs the comfort and he won’t mind.

She moves to the bathroom to take of her makeup, then back downstairs to wait for Damian to come back. She finds his mom instead, waiting for them in the kitchen.

“Hey, honey, how did it- oh, darlin’, what happened?” She asks, reaching out for a hug but not forcing it. Janis just sinks into her arms and bursts into sobs again. Ms. Hubbard hushes her gently and rubs her back, holding her so close. Janis is thankful, she could use a mom right now and Ms. Hubbard is second only to her own.

“I don’t-I can’t talk about it right-right now,” She chokes out.

“I understand, hon. Shh,” Ms. Hubbard soothes. Damian comes back at this point and takes over the hug so his mom can move again. “What kind of milkshakes do y’all want?”

“But it’s eleven at night,” Janis mutters, confused.

“Honey, you need a milkshake. Any kind you want.”

“Do you have Oreos?” She mumbles.

“Jan, you’ve known me for, like, fourteen years and you practically live here. You know we always have Oreos,” Damian chuckles into her hair, still holding her tightly. “I’ll have strawberry please.”

“Okay. I’ll bring them up in a while, you guys go get comfortable,” Ms. Hubbard says, rubbing Janis’ back one last time as they go.

“Thanks, Ma. Love you,” Damian says over his shoulder.

Damian gives her the good blanket to curl up with, letting her wrap up in it before pulling her close again so they can watch a movie together.

“Do you wanna talk about it?” He asks softly as his mom comes up with their milkshakes. Oreo vanilla for her, strawberry for him. She pecks them both on the forehead before she goes again, telling them to come find her if they need anything.

Janis is quiet for a second, sucking down her shake furiously so she doesn’t start sobbing again. “I think- think Cady might be right, Damian,” she whispers eventually.

“Right about what?”

“I think I do love her,” she chokes out, hearing Damian inhale sharply next to her. “And she-she used it against me. She meant it as an insult. Like it’s a bad thing I might like her that way.” She can feel the tears burning behind her eyes again.

“Oh, Janjan,” Damian hums sadly, leaning against her.

“Why does this always happen? What did I do in a past life to deserve all this shit?” Janis sobs.

“I don’t know, Jan. But I do know you don’t deserve this, Cady had no right to say that to you. And I know that one day, some girl is finally going to love you the way you deserve to be loved. She’s going to treasure you, and value you, and treat you right. We’ll make it through this,” Damian says, and Janis looks to him when she notices he sounds choked up.

“Why are you crying?” She asks, now trying to comfort him.

“I hate seeing you hurt,” Damian chokes. “I’m hurt too. Cady lied to me too, but she hurt you more. She hurt my best friend and that just makes it worse.”

“Dame, you’re allowed to hurt too. You’re right, she did shitty things to you too. I just- something has to give here, none of us can keep going like this. It’s like she’s not even the same Cadd-Cady anymore. She hurt my best friend too. I’m not gonna stand for that.”

Damian rubs his eyes with a sleeve, sniffling slightly. “You’re something else, you know that?” He asks with a watery chuckle. “We can talk about this more later, we’re both exhausted, sweets. What movie should we watch?”

“You pick.” Janis says, cuddling into his chest. He always smells like cinnamon cookies, and it always makes her feel better.

He brings up Mary Poppins and settles in, holding her close. By the time Supercalafragalisticexpialidocious is playing from the TV, they’re both sound asleep, dreaming of happier times.

They’re both a little broken, but they make each other feel whole. Their parents always joked that they were platonic soulmates, and they’re starting to believe them.

———

Janis realizes she’s definitely in love with Cady Heron on May 12, 2018.

Cady had burst into the gym flanked by her Mathletes, fire of adrenaline burning in her eyes, and marched her way up to Janis and Damian to apologize. Or try to, anyway, since she got called up to claim her crown before she got a chance.

Janis watches her confusedly climb the steps onto the stage, watches Shane Oman place the tiara on her head, watches Cady start giving an impassioned speech. She laughs a little when she hears an obviously high Regina pipe up from the crowd at something Cady says.

She’s just been staring for a while, not quite listening, but snaps back when Cady looks her way and continues speaking.

“What is my fault, though, is how I treated my friend, Janis. So... I’m sorry. I lied to you and I left you out, and if we’re not friends anymore, I understand. And I’ll still treat you with dignity.”

Looking at her up there, lights shining off her auburn curls as she shatters her crown in a powerful display and hands pieces to everyone, Janis feels a sinking in her gut. She’s in love with this tiny powerhouse, and has been for a long while.

The object of her affections suddenly appears in front of her, handing her what remains of the tiara, by far the largest piece. Maybe this means something? She turns and tries jokingly to put it on Damian, but he takes it and places it on her own head. “She gave it to you, Jan,” He says, spinning her back to face Cady.

“Caddy, for what it’s worth, I’m sorry too. I should never have made you part of my revenge plot in the first place,” Janis mumbles, barely hearing herself over the music.

“I forgive you if you forgive me, Jay,” Cady offers with a grin. “Friends?” She adds shyly, still afraid she’ll be rejected.

“Friends,” Janis agrees. But I wish we could be more. “Do you want to go get waffles with us? We were about to leave anyway.”

“Um, sure,” Cady says, glancing somewhere to her right. Janis looks over and sees she’s looking at Aaron in the lion suit. Aaron. Of course. “Let me just go let someone know where I’m going real quick, I’ll be right back.” Cady bursts out before she dashes over to him.

Janis watches the whole interaction, feeling her heart sink when Aaron kisses Cady goodbye before pushing her gently back over to them. Maybe it’s better like this. Aaron is a great guy, he’d be able to give Cady what she deserves. Maybe Aaron is better for her.

“Let’s go!” Cady cheers, taking both their hands and leading them towards the doors, waving towards the Mathletes and the Plastics as they pass.

“I call shotgun!” Damian calls, running towards Janis’ truck. Janis is driving, obviously, so Cady slides into the back.

Janis has only been driving for a few minutes when she suddenly hears a sniffle and quiet sob come from behind her. She glances up in her mirror and sees Cady is crying.

“Guys, I’m so sorry,” she sobs.

Damian unbuckles his seatbelt and clambers into the back to pull her into a hug, Cady leaning in and sobbing into his blazer. There’s nowhere for Janis to pull over, so she just pokes a hand behind her for Cady to hold while she drives with the other.

“I should- should have apologized so much sooner, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry,” Cady continues sobbing. “I’m sorry about e-everything. The party and-and the Book, I shouldn’t have let it get this far- I’m so sorry,”

“Little Slice, it’s okay, we forgive you,” Damian comforts, hushing her gently.

“It’s not okay! I was so horrible,” she chokes, her voice breaking on the last word. “Damian, I’m sorry, I never apologized to you either. I should never have turned my back on you like that. And I’m so sorry about the Burn Book, I never meant it like that-“

“Caddy, shh,” Janis hushes from the front seat, pulling into a parking space at IHOP. She unbuckles her belt and joins them in the back, squishing Cady between them as she continues letting out choked sobs. “You’re acting like we didn’t play a part in this. You can’t convince me you haven’t been hurt by this, too. I never should have let you get involved with them in the first place, I never should have made you get revenge on Regina for something she did to me. I manipulated you, and I understand why you did what you did. I’m sorry.”

Damian pipes up again, adding, “Yeah, sweets. All of us did shitty stuff, all of us regret it. I’m sorry for my role in getting you to join them, and I’m sorry for yelling at you after your party. We’ve all apologized now. We can acknowledge we hurt each other, but I think now it’s time to move on and start fresh, okay?”

“Okay. Thanks, guys,” Cady snuffles, hugging them both quickly before sliding out after Damian and leading them into the restaurant.

Janis sits across from the two of them once they get their table, allowing her to watch her crush a little closer. For whatever reason, Cady was given a kids menu and didn’t say anything. She just colors in the pictures quietly with the crappy crayons, showing Janis once she finishes with a proud smile. For only having two colors available, she actually did quite well.

After they order, Damian teaches Cady how to build a tower out of the coffee creamers, going so far as to steal some from the other empty tables to construct their empire. Cady’s sweet giggle once the tower inevitably falls only melts Janis’ heart further.

“So what mischief did you get up to while you were suspended, Cads?” Janis asks while they eat, realizing too late that may not be the best topic to bring up. Oh well.

“Um... I just spent a lot of time in my backyard eating ice cream. I was grounded too, so I couldn’t really do much,” Cady mumbles, but she doesn’t seem too bothered that Janis asked. “There’s a little cardinal that nested outside my bedroom window though, he’s cute. I named him Charles.”

“We love a backyard ice cream picnic,” Damian chimes in absentmindedly, making them all burst out laughing.

They continue catching up as they stuff themselves full of waffles and pancakes, laughing as Cady gets whipped cream on her nose and doesn’t notice for a solid twenty minutes.

“I have to get home soon,” Cady says sadly after a while. “I’m still grounded.”

“I’ll take you, let’s go. You got everything?” Janis says, holding out a hand to help her out of the booth.

“Yeah,” Cady says, grinning at her slightly. “I do.”

The sun is just below the horizon as they exit, painting the spring sky in pinks and purples. It feels like a new start.

“I love you guys,” Cady says softly, holding both their hands again.

“We love you too,” Janis answers.

How could I not?

———-

Cady first thinks she might be in love with Janis Sarkisian on June 28, 2018.

Her boyfriend has just moved across the country for college. Aaron had already decided on a school in California before they had gotten together, and Cady wasn’t about to try and stop him from going. He has a good soccer scholarship, and he’ll be happy there. She’s proud of him.

But it also means she’s alone now, a lot. She has a lot of time to think. Cady loves Aaron, she knows she does, but their whole relationship feels almost... superficial, somehow. Now that he’s not around all the time, some of the things they felt for each other seem to be fading.

Cady’s also been thinking a lot about Janis, which scares her. Some of it is similar to how she felt about Aaron when they first met. She thinks about Janis’ gorgeous tawny eyes, how expressive and beautiful they are, how large and cute they are in her face. She thinks about her long, two-toned hair, about how soft it must be and wonders what it smells like (which is a little creepy, she notes). And god, Janis’ smile. When she genuinely smiles and her whole face lights up, that’s one of Cady’s favorite things by far.

But some of it is different. She thinks more about the little things she likes, too. The way her tongue always pokes out to the side when she’s trying to concentrate. The way she’s lactose intolerant but refuses to acknowledge it, no matter how much she regrets the ice cream later. The way she decorates her clothes and room and everything she owns to express who she is. Janis spent so much time hiding herself, now she makes sure she’s heard even without speaking.

Cady hauls herself from her bed, deciding to make a list to comfort herself. She grabs her old calculus notebook, flipping to an empty page and starting to scrawl down the pros and cons to a theoretical relationship with each person.

Aaron, to her, represents safety. Security. He can give her a normal life, the kind in a Hallmark movie. Aaron loves her, Cady loves him. They have similar interests, and are willing to learn about the ones they don’t have in common. They could be happy for a very long time together. They could support each other, keep each other safe. She does want that. She’s dreamed of it for a long time.

But that’s not all she wants. There’s parts of Kenya still so deeply ingrained in her. It’s practically part of her DNA. She wants adventure, excitement in her life.

And that’s where Janis comes in.

Janis is a blazing supernova, a ball of passion and righteous fury. She cares so deeply about everything, sometimes to a fault. She forgave Cady for everything, and was actively working to build trust and friendship between the two of them again. She was willing to listen to Gretchen and Karen’s apologies earlier this month, taking time to explain that she understood why they did what they did, but that it still hurt her and might take her some time to forgive them fully.

Janis also makes her feel seen. Janis had spent weeks doing research on autism when Cady had finally told her and Damian about her diagnosis the day after Spring Fling. She was always asking for Africa stories, and was one of the only people who seemed genuinely interested when Cady started telling them

spontaneously. Janis just wants to know about who she is as a person. Because she genuinely cares.

Cady looks down at her lists, and the conclusion seems fairly clear. She’s almost definitely in love with Janis Sarkisian.

“Ah, shuck.”

———

Cady realizes she’s definitely in love with Janis Sarkisian on August 1, 2018.

She and Aaron have a long talk over the phone. Aaron confesses that he doesn’t think the distance was working, which Cady agreed with. He wants to focus more on school and finding himself without being tied to someone else for a while, which Cady understands. She asks if they can still be friends, and he agrees readily.

Cady confessed she thinks she has a crush on someone else, but didn’t specify who. Aaron immediately catches on, however.

“Is it Janis?”

“Um... yeah,” Cady mumbles, wondering how he knew. She doesn’t think she’s acted as if she might like a girl at all, let alone her best friend. But she might as well tell him. He’s trustworthy, and it feels weirdly freeing to admit she’s crushing hard on her art freak.

“I figured. You guys are really compatible, you’d be cute together,” Aaron says.

“Do you think she likes me too?” Cady asks shyly. She doesn’t know why she’s talking about this with her very, very recently ex-boyfriend, but neither of them seem to mind.

“I’d be shocked if she doesn’t. You’re very likable, Cady.” He responds with a chuckle. “Um, I have to go now, I have a club meeting thing to get to. Sorry.”

“It’s okay! I should get going too. Um, you were a great boyfriend, by the way. Bye,” Cady hums, the emotions hitting her now.

“You were a great girlfriend. I hope Janis gets to experience it, too. Bye, Cady,” Aaron says, finally ending the call.

The tears come at this point, and Cady can’t quite figure out why. She saw this coming, knew it couldn’t go on much longer if her crush on Janis continues. But it’s sort of the end of an era for her, which is always sad.

Her first instinct is to text Janis.

africabytoto: Hey can I see Pancakes??? I’m sad :(

gaylien: yeh sure hold on lemme go find him

gaylien: Sent a picture: chongy boi

gaylien: u doing ok?

africabytoto: Yeah, I’m okay. Just going through it

gaylien: do u wanna come sleep over? my mom won’t care. i don’t like being alone when i’m sad

gaylien: we have ice cream

africabytoto: Haha what kind?

gaylien: chocolate chip and watermelon sorbet

africabytoto: Be there in ten. Thanks, Jay.

gaylien: np, see u soon :D

Cady grabs her backpack, filled with sleepover stuff for the summer. She switches out the pjs inside for fresh ones, and makes sure she has everything she needs before grabbing her phone charger and jacket. Her parents are out of town for the week, so they won’t mind if she spends the night elsewhere so long as she’s safe.

She decides to walk over to Janis’ house, tears still streaming gently from her eyes. It’s a warm night, and she’s comforted by the sight of the beautiful sunset.

The tears have stopped by the time she knocks on the door, but it’s still very obvious she was crying recently. Janis pulls the door open after a few seconds, cat trotting up curiously behind her.

“Aw, Caddy, what’s the matter?” Janis asks sadly, pulling her into a hug as soon as she steps inside.

“Aaron and I broke up,” Cady chokes out, trying not to cry again.

“Oh shit. Come on, let’s go upstairs,” Janis says, stopping in the kitchen to grab the ice cream and spoons before pulling her up the stairs by the hand. Cady smiles as she spies Janis’ door, covered in little doodles and stickers. On both sides, which is very Janis.

Her whole room is, really. All the walls are covered in extravagant, colorful murals Janis did by hand, but the furniture is plain white. Black and purple accents dot the room, and she has plain black bedsheets. It’s comforting, but Cady finds herself staring intently at the pride flag pillows resting at the head of the bed.

“So what happened? You two were the only happy hetero couple I’ve ever remembered seeing, like, a week ago,” Janis asks, pulling Cady to sit by her on her bed.

“We both just had too many other things going on, I think,” Cady answers quietly.

“He’s about to start classes and sports and clubs and stuff. Plus the distance. And, um, I’m kind of crushing on someone else.” Why would you say that? Stupid with love, Cady, come on. “It was a mutual thing, and we’re still friends, but it’s still sad, you know?” She sniffles.

“Yeah, I get that. I’m glad you’re still friends, he’s one of the only men I can tolerate,” Janis says, opening the chocolate chip pint. “Anyway, my little Caddy has a new crush? Do I know who it is?”

“Jan, no, you haven’t taken your lactose things yet,” Cady says desperately, trying to take the spoon so she can’t eat it yet.

“I’ll be fine, let me live,” Janis says, taking a large bite to spite her. “Now spill, who’s this lucky dude?”

“You’re gonna regret that later, I’m not gonna help you,” Cady huffs, crossing her arms.

“If I eat the watermelon stuff instead will you tell me who you’re crushing on?”

“No. But... maybe I could give you more details.”

“Fine. I’ll take what I can get,” Janis pouts, switching pints and handing Cady the clean spoon so she can have some too. “Now spill, come on. Damian hasn’t had any drama for ages.”

“Well... um... it’s not a guy,” Cady starts. Janis gasps, nearly choking on her bite of sorbet until Cady thumps her on the back.

“You like girls?” Janis coughs, sounding a little hoarse.

“I like a girl. And that’s... scary. I’ve never liked a girl before, I don’t know what that makes me,” Cady says, now freaking out a little. All her parents ever told her about were gay and straight, what does it mean if she’s both?

“Hey, Caddy, whoa. There’s a lot of things you could be, and you don’t have to pick a label right away. Or ever,” Janis comforts. “Have you looked into it at all?”

Cady shakes her head quickly, prompting Janis to go grab her laptop and start typing frantically.

“Okay, here. I did this a lot in middle school. You can scroll through this list and see if anything jumps out at you. And it’s okay if nothing does, either,” She says, passing Cady the computer.

Cady dries the moisture from her eyes and starts scrolling, reading the terms and their definitions. She remembers Karen telling her she was something called... pot? No, pansexual. She reads that, and it sounds close but not quite right.

Gretchen had also come out as something called bisexual, so she scrolls and finds that. Bisexual sounds much closer, but she decides she wants to do more research on her own time before coming to any concrete conclusions.

“Um... I think I just might be queer, for now. Bisexual sounds right too, but I want to look into it more before I decide anything,” Cady hums nervously.

“That’s fine, you do this on your own time. I’m proud of you, Peanut,” Janis says, pulling her into another hug.

“Peanut?” Cady giggles.

“Oh, um, yeah. Because you’re so little compared to me. Do you not like it?” Janis asks.

“No! It’s fun, I like it. But I’m not that small,” Cady huffs indignantly.

“You’re seven inches and, like, forty pounds smaller than me, Cads. You’re teeny tiny,” Janis teases.

“I’m fun sized! It’s not my fault you’re a giant,” Cady pouts.

Janis just laughs at that, squeezing Cady before letting her go and taking another bite of sorbet. “Now, tell me about this mystery crush girl,” She says with her mouth still full.

“Um,” Cady hums; trying to figure out how to describe Janis to Janis without her catching on. “She has... blonde hair,” she decides is safe. It’s technically not a lie, part of Janis’ hair is blonde.

“It’s not Regina, is it?” Janis interrupts.

“No, it’s not Regina. And you know she’s been trying to make herself better, don’t be mean,” Cady scolds gently. “Anyway, um. She has brown eyes,” She adds after a beat. It’s a little more risky, but Janis is oblivious as all hell so she decides she can probably get away with adding that detail.

“It it Karen?” Janis interrupts again.

“Would you stop interrupting, you little weasel? No, it’s not Karen, she’s dating Gretchen anyway,” Cady huffs, teasing Janis a little, but not in a mean way.

“Oh yeah. Sorry, continue. Gotta make sure this chick is good enough to date my best friend,” Janis says as she flops down on the bed.

“Oh boy, uh... she’s really nice. Forgiving. She’s passionate, she really cares about stuff and it’s really adorable. And she’s very unique, I’ve never known anyone like her. She’s really strong, too. She’s been through so much stuff she didn’t deserve. She’s tough, but she cares a lot. She’s a good friend,” Cady concludes.

“She sounds great, Cads. Do you think she likes you back?”

“I doubt it,” Cady says sadly. “We all went through a lot last year, y’know? I don’t know if she could see me that way after everything I did.”

“Well, she’s a dumbass not to, Kitkat. You’re great,” Janis answers, not knowing she’s insulting herself. “D’you wanna watch a movie?”

“Thanks, Jay,” Cady says. “A movie sounds good, just nothing scary this time please.”

“Fine,” Janis huffs. “Have you seen The Lion King yet?”

“No, what is it?” Cady asks excitedly. She loves anything to do with lions.

“Oh boy. Buckle up, Peanut. You’re gonna love this,” Janis says myseriously. Disney and lions? Perfect Cady combo.

“Okay,” Cady says nervously, since Janis still hasn’t told her anything about it.

Usually Cady has to fight to stay awake this late at night, but she’s totally enthralled in this movie. It’s both her favorite things combined, and she can feel a new hyperfixation building as it continues.

“That was the best!” She squeals excitedly once it finishes. Janis was right, she did love it.

“I’m glad you liked it,” Janis laughs. “Did you bring pjs and stuff?”

“No, I forgot,” Cady lies. Janis let her borrow a hoodie for a few minutes when she got cold a while ago and she almost refused to give it back.

“That’s fine. Here,” Janis says, digging through a drawer in her dresser for a pair of shorts that could be tied to fit Cady and one of her big sweatshirts.

“Thanks, Jan.”

“No problem, there’s extra toothbrushes and stuff in the bathroom if you need one.” Janis responds, pulling out another set of pjs for herself.

Cady goes to get changed and brush her teeth, removing her contacts and putting her glasses on as she shuffles back into Janis’ room and lies down next to her on the bed. As far as Janis knows this is still totally platonic, so she takes Cady’s hand gently as they scroll quietly on their phones next to each other for a while.

Cady (as always) gets sleepy first, taking her glasses off and settling in under the duvet to go to sleep.

“Goodnight, Janis. Thanks for making me feel better,” she mumbles tiredly.

“Anytime, Caddy.” Janis says back, still holding her hand as she drifts off to dreamland.

———-

Janis first thinks Cady might like her back on October 17, 2018.

It’s Janis’ eighteenth birthday, and her plan is to have Damian and Cady over to watch movies, play games, and eat an ungodly amount of food. A perfect evening.

Her mom took her to the grocery store earlier and let her go wild, and she wound up buying enough food for about 20 people to be split between the three of them. Janis had said she didn’t want presents this year, so this (plus letting Janis have a sleepover on a school night) was her mom’s gift to her.

Janis is just finishing setting up the TV in the basement for their festivities when the doorbell rings, and she hears her mom chatting happily with Damian and Cady for a while before she sends the two of them down to her.

Cady, adorably, is wearing a party hat and jumps into her arms as soon as she sees Janis. Damian is also wearing a party hat but looks much less happy about it.

“Happy birthday, Jayjay!” Cady cheers excitedly from in Janis’ arms. “You’re eighteen now! You can buy fish from Petco!”

“Oh yes, that’s the whole point of turning eighteen. Nice hat, by the way,” Janis teases, reaching up and flicking at it.

“Thanks! I found a pack while I was shopping for stuff for your present,” Cady says, brandishing a nicely wrapped box.

“Aw, Caddy, I told you guys I didn’t want anything,” Janis mumbles shyly.

“I know, I know, but you never told me when your birthday was last year so I missed it! I had to get you something,” Cady says. “Don’t shake the box, by the way, it’s a little messy.”

It’s good she said that, because Janis was definitely about to. “Well, now I’m scared,” Janis jokes, tugging lightly on the ribbon and pulling the lid off. “You got me sushi?” She asks once she sees what’s inside, touched that Cady remembered her favorite food (even if it does make a bit of an odd gift).

“Uhhuh! I learned how to make it just for this! Oh, but don’t worry, I did a lot of research and I went to good places to get the fish so it won’t make you sick,” Cady chirps. “Do you like it?”

It’s a little rough, but cute. Cady tried to shape the sashimi pieces into little animals, doing a good enough job that Janis can tell that one is a monkey and the other a lion, sleeping with blankets made of the fish. There’s also a few maki rolls, but one is overstuffed with rice and another has veggies poking out the ends. It’s obviously an area of expertise Cady hasn’t mastered yet, but Janis is touched that she even tried to learn how to do something so difficult just for her.

“I do, thank you, Caddy. This is adorable,” Janis says, almost choked up. She picks up the little lion and bites one of its feet. “It’s really good, Cads, this is so nice of you.”

“You’re welcome! Now it’s time for me to kick your ass in Mario Kart,” Cady cheers, causing both Damian and Janis to choke on their respective drinks.

“You fucking- what? Since when do you swear?” Damian asks, still spluttering slightly.

“Since a while ago, I just don’t do it a lot. I don’t like how it feels.” Cady says, which is totally reasonable for her.

“Alright, Peanut, I’d like to see you try,” Janis challenges, handing her a controller and sitting on the couch.

Cady takes off her hat so she won’t poke Janis with it and decides to sit on her lap so Damian can have room. Janis inhales sharply when she plops herself down gently, but relaxes again and pulls her closer to rest her chin on top of her head so she can see the screen.

For someone who touched a remote for the first time less than a year ago, Cady is actually remarkably good at Mario Kart and does indeed kick Janis’ ass several times over, before eventually letting Janis win one since it’s her birthday.

Eventually Cady gets bored and hands her controller to Damian so he can have a turn, going to grab some of the snacks and returning to her perch on Janis’ lap. She munches happily on her bag of chips, cheering the birthday girl on and feeding her some so Janis can still focus on the racing.

After several more laps, Cady insists they do Janis’ birthday cake. She gets very excited when she’s given the privilege of lighting the candles, doing it very carefully so nothing else gets burned. Cady takes a deep breath to sing Happy Birthday, barely getting a syllable out before Janis claps a hand over her mouth.

“No singing, Caddy. That’s the rule for my birthdays,” Janis says, letting her go.

“Oh, sure, you’re all nice to her,” Damian jokingly pouts. “I tried to sing to her last year and she almost bit me.”

“I don’t like the birthday song, you were asking for it. Have some cake, dork,” Janis says, cutting the pieces entirely too large and handing one to both of them.

“Happy birthday, Janjan,” Damian says, mouth full of cake.

“We love you!” Cady adds, also with a lot of cake in her mouth.

“I love you too, you losers. Let’s get back to it,” She says, leading them over to watch Nightmare Before Christmas.

It’s only Wednesday, so they still have to get to bed pretty early so they can be ready for school the next day, but Cady takes the cake. By ten, she’s totally passed out on Janis, having spread her legs over to Damian’s lap a while ago. Janis and Damian decide to get in a horror movie while she sleeps, since they scare Cady the most.

Once they’re thoroughly freaked for the night, they look to each other concerned, wondering how they’re going to get Cady to bed without waking her. Janis eventually curls her up so more of Cady rests on Damian’s legs so she herself can get up, then she scoops Cady up like a bride to carry her over to the air mattresses they have set up.

She puts Cady down as gently as she can and tucks her in tightly, but once she goes to pull away Cady suddenly snatches her hand, her eyes not even fluttering. Janis can’t leave.

“Dame, can you push my air bed over for me? She won’t let me go,” Janis whispers.

“Lesbian activity,” Damian teases, pushing one of the other beds over against Cady’s.

“Shut up, she doesn’t even know I like her,” Janis huffs. “She doesn’t, does she?”

“Somehow, no she doesn’t. You haven’t exactly been subtle about it, Janjan. You got lucky crushing on the most oblivious person on Earth,” Damian laughs.

“I guess. Not like it matters, she’d never like me back anyway,” Janis says dejectedly.

“Are you hearing yourself? Look at her,” Damian demands gently, gesturing. Janis lies down next to Cady, the redhead immediately nuzzling closer, nosing her way into Janis’ chest and sighing contently in her sleep.

“She’s just cuddly,” Janis insists, curling protectively around Cady.

“Because she likes you, dumbass,” Damian says. “I’ll make a bet. When you start dating you owe me twenty bucks, and if you’re not together by this time next year I owe you twenty. Deal?” Damian says. It’s a good bet, Janis either gets a girlfriend or twenty dollars out of it, so it’s not like she’ll cheat to get the money.

“Deal. Now go to bed, loser, we still have school.” Janis pouts, pulling Cady just a little bit closer.

“Okay. Goodnight Janjan, I love you. Happy birthday,” Damian says, coming to kiss her on the forehead and tuck her in like a mom.

“Love you too,” Janis says as she falls asleep, curled around one of her favorite people.

——-

Cady first thinks Janis might like her back on January 3, 2019.

One of Cady’s resolutions for the new year was to come out to her parents. She had settled on the label of bisexual in November, but she was afraid to let people know unless she knew how they would react.

Janis was the first person she told once she had decided on a label, followed quickly by Damian. They both had embraced her wholeheartedly, Damian joking that they now had a full “gay-fecta”, with a lesbian, gay, and now a bi.

Janis had also made it very clear that she was only to come out whenever she felt ready, that she didn’t owe that to anyone but herself. Cady had thought on that for a while, coming to the rather upsetting realization that Janis didn’t get to come out on her own terms. Now she’s trying to protect Cady’s ability to come out on her own.

Cady thinks her parents will be accepting. They’re zoologists, they studied animal mating habits in Kenya for thirteen years, for crying out loud. Many species exhibit homosexual behaviors, so they know it’s a natural thing. She’s just not entirely sure how they’ll react to her coming out specifically. That’s what worries her.

As always, she reaches out to Janis first. She sends a text telling Janis that she’s ready to come out to her parents, and asking if Janis would be willing to be there to support her in case things go wrong. She waits anxiously for a response, biting her thumbnail.

Jayjay: of course i will, caddy. i’ll be over in ten. proud of you, peanut 📷️‍📷📷

True to her word, Janis knocks on the door almost exactly ten minutes later, bundled tightly in her coat and holding a little bi flag in her hand.

She hands it to Cady as she enters, following her up to her bedroom and laughing as Cady waves the flag excitedly before putting it in the pencil holder on her desk.

Janis makes light conversation to distract Cady until her parents get home, at which point she notices Cady start wringing her hands in front of her and biting her lip.

“Hey, Caddy, look at me. You’re gonna be fine. Your parents love you a lot, it’s gonna be okay. And I’m here on the off chance it’s not, okay? And remember, if you’re not ready, nothing says you have to do this today,” Janis comforts, massaging Cady’s arms lightly.

“Okay. Thanks, Jay,” Cady says, taking a deep breath and hugging her tightly for courage before leaving Janis alone in her room to go confront her parents.

She finds them in the kitchen putting away groceries. “Mommy, Daddy, can I talk to you really quick?” She asks shyly, shuffling her feet.

“Always, Binti. What’s up?” Her dad says, coming to ruffle her hair.

“Um... I’m bisexual,” she says, closing her eyes tightly for a second.

“Okay. We’re having curry for dinner,” her mom says, putting another can into the cabinet.

“That’s it? That’s all you have to say?”

“Binti, we love you for who you are, and it’s not like we could change this if we wanted to, anyway,” her dad says. “You know how common this is in the animals, you loved to study them.”

Cady shudders, trying to stop her mind flashing back to some of the more gruesome mating rituals she saw in Africa.

“And besides, Binti, this doesn’t change anything about you, it just changes our expectations of who you might bring home to dinner. Speaking of, was this discovery prompted by anyone in particular?” Her mom asks slyly, coming to pull her into a hug.

“Um, kind of, but it’s not- we’re not, like, dating or anything,” Cady admits.

“Oh, I hope it’s that Janis girl. She’d be a good fit for you,” Her dad says. “Is it?” He adds, noticing how violently Cady is blushing.

She nods. “Um, actually, she’s upstairs. Can she stay for dinner?” She squeaks. Her parents laugh and agree, giving her one last good hug before returning to their tasks.

“Okay, grool, love you bye.” She spits out, turning on her heel and dashing back up the stairs.

She gives a relieved sigh as she enters her bedroom again, Janis looking up from her spot by the door as she enters.

“How’d it go?” Janis asks, approaching cautiously. She was listening for raised voices, but she didn’t hear any which she took as a good sign.

“Good, I think,” Cady breathes. “My mom just said ‘okay’ and then said we were having curry for dinner. They said you can stay if you want, by the way. Then my dad said they loved me and that it doesn’t change anything about who I am.” She finishes, deciding to leave out the part where her parents suggested they should date. For now.

“Good! I’m so happy for you,” Janis cheers, picking her up by the waist and spinning her around a few times, grinning at Cady’s delighted giggles. “I told you it would be fine.”

“You did. Thank you for being here anyway, Jay. I really appreciate it.” Cady says, pulling Janis into a hug. “Can I ask you something?” She asks after a beat.

“Sure,” Janis asks, kind of nervous.

“You don’t have to answer if it’s too personal or anything but... how did you come out to your parents?” Cady asks softly, leading them to sit on her bed.

“Oh. No, it’s fine, I would’ve told you eventually anyway. Um. I was thirteen, I came out the summer after everything happened with Regina. I told my mom and stepdad at the same time, I just sat them down one day and told them that Regina had been right. I was gay after all,” Janis says, not looking at Cady. She gets it, it must be tough for her to say.

“I had spent so long agonizing over it, I hadn’t slept for almost a week before that. I always kind of knew deep down that I was a lesbian, but I just really didn’t want Regina to be right. Anyway, I told them one night, kind of out of nowhere. My stepdad didn’t take it well,” She says, pausing to take a deep breath. Cady rubs her back comfortingly.

“He-um. He hit me, and called me a d-dyke, and then he left. My mom just hugged me while I cried and said it was okay, that she still loved me. She got the divorce papers the next day.”

“Oh, god, Janis-“ Cady starts to say.

“Don’t be sorry. I’ve had enough sorry for like, seven lifetimes. There’s nothing in here that you need to apologize for.” Janis insists, continuing when Cady nods shyly. “So, um, anyway. It was really hard for a while. My stepdad fought really hard for custody of Julie and kind of took most of my moms money, and Julie was too little to really understand what was happening, so she blamed me for her dad leaving. She was with him for half the time at first, but once she got a little older we told her what happened in more detail and she said she didn’t want to see him anymore.”

“You’re really strong, Jay. I hope you know that,” Cady says, crying a little that her best friend (and potential love interest, maybe?) had to go through so much. Especially so young.

“I think I’m learning that. Thanks, Cads. So now you know more of my tragic supervillain backstory, can we watch movies until your mom finishes cooking?” Janis asks, wiping the tears from under Cady’s eyes gently.

“Yeah, what do you want to watch?”

“Ooh, I have an idea,” Janis says excitedly, dragging Cady’s laptop closer to bring up Love, Simon. “We should watch a bunch of iconic gay movies to celebrate you coming out.”

“Okay,” Cady giggles, cuddling into Janis’ side as she hits play.

“I really am so proud of you, Caddy,” Janis says after a long while, pressing a light kiss to the top of Cady’s head on impulse.

“Thank you, Janis.”

———-

Janis and Cady finally admit their feelings on February 10, 2019.

It’s Cady’s eighteenth birthday tomorrow, and she’s having what she calls “a party, but not like that”. Basically, she’s inviting the former Plastics, current Mathletes, and her art freaks over to her house for a little thing. Her parents were going to be out of town until tomorrow afternoon, but allowed her to throw her party as long as she was responsible about it. It was a long weekend, so they all had tomorrow off school to recover.

Janis and Damian show up first, insisting on arriving early to help her set up. Cady opens the door to find them both standing there, once again in party hats, and both of them blow noisemakers in her face the second they see her.

“Happy birthday, bitch!” Damian calls, picking her up and spinning her around.

Janis grabs her as soon as Damian puts her down, pulling her into a tight hug. “Happy birthday, Peanut!”

“Thanks, you guys,” Cady giggles. “What’s that?” She asks, pointing to a cloth-covered rectangle.

“Nothing,” Janis teases. “That’s your birthday present, you’ll get to see it later.”

“Janis! I told you not to get me anything,” Cady whines.

“I didn’t. I made something,” Janis retorts. She goes to put the gift in Cady’s bedroom before joining Cady and Damian in the kitchen.

“Are you doing alcohol tonight? I brought some in case,” Janis says, pulling a bottle of vodka from her bag.

“I told people they could bring some if they want, but nobody who drinks gets to leave,” Cady says. “How did you get that?”

“My mom bought it. She’d rather know I’m being safe with stuff, I guess,” Janis shrugs as she puts the bottle on the counter. “Are you not, like, a little worried about mixing the Plastics and the Mathletes tonight?” She asks, trying not to freak Cady out.

“Um, a little, I guess,” Cady says. “But Regina really has improved, and so have Gretchen and Karen. They’re a lot less mean than they used to be.”

“Fair enough, I guess,” Janis responds.

Damian finishes hanging the rest of the decorations while Cady and Janis finish putting out all the snacks, Cady eventually going to greet everyone else at Janis’ insistence.

“Yo-yo, Africa, happy birthday! We brought booze!” Kevin G. calls as he enters with Marwan and Tyler.

“Hi, guys,” Cady laughs at their dramatic entrance. “You can put your stuff on the counter in the kitchen.”

The Plastics enter fashionably late, as usual, but not so late that Cady was worried.

“Happy birthday, Cady!” Karen and Gretchen call, immediately wrapping her in a tight hug. “Thanks, guys. Everyone else is in the living room.”

Regina shuffles up after they leave, hugging her much more gently since she still has to be pretty careful of her spine. “Happy birthday, I brought schnapps,” She says. “Is Janis here, by the way?”

“Um, yeah, she should be in the kitchen,” Cady responds as she takes the bottle, just a touch worried.

“I might talk to her. I still need to apologize for... everything,” Regina mutters nervously.

“She’d appreciate that,” Cady says with relief.

She locks the door since the last guest has arrived, grabbing the dish for everyone’s keys and following after Regina.

Damian suggests they play spin the bottle, which is immediately shot down by everyone else. He pouts, but seems to be fine with it upon taking a second look at everyone present.

Gretchen and Karen brought some kind of Jenga but with challenges and shots involved, and everyone seems much more willing to play that. Cady wasn’t planning on drinking tonight, but she figures she might as well give it another go today. It’s her eighteenth birthday, she should live a little.

After several rounds and entirely too many shots, Kevin insists on playing Just Dance upon spying the disc, and they decide that whoever loses each dance has to take another shot. Very quickly, they lose track of who’s who and decide to switch to truth or dare.

Tyler gets dared to make out with Marwan, which he doesn’t complain about since they’re dating. Kevin has to eat a whole raw egg, and Karen gets dared to spell ‘orange’ out loud. It takes a while. Damian has to tell the story of the time he kicked some of Janis’ baby teeth out learning a new tap routine when they were little, causing Cady to almost cry with laughter.

What Cady doesn’t like so much, however, is everyone daring her to go confess her feelings for Janis. She has to do several forfeit shots in quick succession, which gets her tanked pretty quickly. After a while, her brain feels a bit loose and she’s trying desperately to keep it together. She taps out of the game after downing about three shots in a row and goes to her guitar, wanting to play Africa, a song she does not know how to play.

She doesn’t have the muscle control to play the right chords anymore, but doesn’t really care. She’s also very tired, deciding she should just take a little nap on the ground and play herself to sleep.

Janis is finishing setting up a fruit tray when none other than Regina George walks in, seeming uncharacteristically nervous.

“Sarkisian, can I talk to you?”

“Uh... I guess, yeah,” Janis says, leading them to the garage for some privacy and crossing her arms over her chest.

“Um... I know I should have done this a long time ago. Like a really long time ago, I just wanted to find the right words, I guess. I wanted to apologize, for everything,” Regina mutters. “I’m sorry for everything in eighth grade, and I’m sorry for not doing anything about it after. I never meant for all of this to happen, which I know you probably don’t believe. It just... spiraled out of control and I was so drunk with power I didn’t want to stop it. I don’t expect you to forgive me or anything, but I want you to know I’m trying to get better. To be better. I, um. Found some things out that kind of explain why I was... like that, but I don’t want to try to excuse anything I did. I hurt you the worst.”

Janis exhales heavily, not having expected that. “Wow, um. Yeah. I don’t think I’m ever gonna be able to forgive you, Regina. But, I don’t hate you anymore or anything. I haven’t wanted to hate you for a long time, but I felt like I had to since you wouldn’t change. I can see you’re trying to improve now, though. I think I can try to just... let everything be in the past, I guess. And, I’m sorry for everything last year, the bars and stuff. I shouldn’t have done that.”

“No, Janis, you had every right to try-“

“No, I didn’t. Yeah, what you did sucked. I almost killed myself because of you. I missed a lot. But once I realized you weren’t gonna do anything anytime soon, I should have taken it for what it was, I should have tried to move on after. I shouldn’t have gone for revenge. I needed to work on myself, too.”

“Okay, um. Thank you for that,” Regina says, shuffling her feet. “Janis, there’s something else.”

“Okay,” Janis says gesturing for her to continue. She’s glad Regina is finally apologizing, but she really does not want to be here any longer.

“I like girls, too. I knew I did the whole time. I started everything to get the attention away from me. God, I’m so sorry,” Regina chokes.

“Hey, whoa, don’t cry,” Janis says. “Listen, I appreciate effort more than anything, and I’ve been able to tell you’re really trying to change. You haven’t done perfect, but we can tell you’re trying. Um, if you don’t mind, you said you had learned things that explained why you were...”

“A massive bitch?” Regina finishes for her.

“Yeah,” Janis laughs. “If you’re okay to share, I’d like to hear that.”

“I owe you a better explanation, at the very least,” Regina says.

“Hey, no you don’t. You apologized. That’s all you’ve ever owed me,” Janis responds quickly.

“Thanks, Janis. But really I should do this,” Regina answers.

“Okay, shoot.”

“Okay, so you know my dad was a dickhead, yeah?” Regina asks, continuing when Janis gives a passionate nod. “It took me a long time to recognize he wasn’t normal, that he was, um. Abusive. He was really manipulative and controlling, nothing Kylie or I did was ever good enough for him. I was scared, a lot, and I wanted to feel control somewhere so I started lashing out and stuff at school. It got out of control really quickly, and nobody tried to stop me. Except you.”

“You were my best friend, I didn’t like seeing who you were turning into,” Janis answers, gesturing to Regina again.

“I wouldn’t either. And then, um, you know most of what happened between then and now since it was happening to you, but basically when I was in the hospital recovering from the bus they called in a mandatory psych evaluation, because of the whole rumor that I jumped it front of it. And I was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and anorexia nervosa. I’m getting treatment and I’m in a lot of therapies and stuff now,” Regina finishes, heaving a sigh.

“Damn, Regina. I’m sorry, that’s... really rough,” Janis breathes, not knowing quite what to say.

“Don’t be sorry. I hurt you because of it, and I don’t want to try to excuse what I did,” Regina mumbles. “Honestly, I’m kind of thankful for the bus. The doctors said if it had been going any faster it would have killed me, they wouldn’t have been able to get me back. I think it must’ve been some kind of sign. I don’t know how much longer I could’ve gone on the way I was.”

“I’m glad the bus was the catalyst to get you the help you need, but I’m still sorry you got hit by it. You didn’t deserve that. Nobody does.”

“Thanks, Sarkisian. You should get out to Cady, she’s probably missing you. We’ve been talking for a while,” Regina says.

“You think she misses me? She’s got all her other friends out there,” Janis says with a sigh.

“Yeah, but you’re in love with each other,” Regina retorts, causing Janis to choke on air.

“She-you-I-what?! I’m not in love with her!” Janis demands vehemently.

“Janis, I’ve seen how you act around her, how you look at her. Don’t even try to deny it.”

“Fine. But she doesn’t like me back,” Janis pouts.

“Yes, she does. She acts almost exactly the same around you as she did around Aaron. Cady looks at you like you hung the moon, she’s always trying to make sure you’re okay and happy. She never shuts up about you, honestly.”

“She doesn’t?” Janis squeaks, flushing violently.

“God, no. It’s getting really irritating,” Regina jokes. “Seriously, Janis, you should tell her. You guys deserve each other.”

“I’ll think about it. Later, ‘Gina,” Janis calls as she heads to the living room, grinning to herself slightly.

The gang is just wrapping up a game of truth or dare as she comes in, everyone except Damian and Tyler obviously very inebriated and starting to scatter around the house. Damian is drunk but not overly so, and Tyler seems to have gotten away with just getting tipsy.

Damian stops her on his way to the kitchen muttering, “Cady’s like, fucked up, you should take care of her,” as she goes by.

Sure enough, Cady is holding her guitar as she lies on the ground, strumming random chords as she tries to play a song. Janis just watches her for a while, wondering how long it’ll take Cady to notice her.

She sits on the couch and continues her observation, until Cady suddenly bursts into tears.

“Hey, whoa, Caddy, what’s wrong?” Janis asks frantically, going to pull her small friend into a hug.

“I’m, like, really drunk,” Cady hiccups. “And last time I was really drunk I was really mean to Janis but-but I really like Janis. Like, in the gay way. But I’m bisexual. She’s just so pretty- her eyes, have you seen her eyes?” Cady continues. Janis is very confused for a second, Cady is either crying too hard to recognize her or too drunk to care that she’s spilling her guts to her crush. Maybe both.

“I can’t say I have, no.” She’s seen them in the mirror, but not the way Cady’s talking about.

“They’re so big, and pretty, they look like-like chocolate and I just wanna stare at them forever. And Janis is so soft, her hugs are the best and she always cuddles me even though she doesn’t usually like to be touched. She makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. And-and she’s so nice,” Cady chokes out, suddenly crying much harder.

“Is she? Oh, honey, don’t cry,” Janis asks. Cady’s very drunk, her words are slurred together with a mix of alcohol and emotion.

“I fucking- I hate honey. It makes me uncomfortable. But Janis is like... anti-honey. She makes me feel so safe. Janis forgave me even though I hurt her a whole lot. I was really mean, but she forgave me and now we’re best friends but I have a huge crush on her and Janis will never like me back because I was so mean,” Cady wails, sniffling as she burrows into Janis’ shoulder. Janis makes a mental note that Cady is a very emotional, clingy drunk.

“I think she might like you back, Caddy,” Janis mutters, flushing bright red. Cady really thinks all this about her? Damian always says drunk words are sober thoughts, so maybe she does.

“Noooo. Janis is too good for me. I just hope she’s happy,” Cady says, starting to calm a little. Janis must still have that effect, even though Cady can’t tell it’s her. “Wait, but don’t tell her I like her, she’d be mad.”

Janis just blinks for a second. “Okay, I won’t, Caddy. But I think she’d be really happy if you told her how you feel. I think Janis has a crush on you, too.” Janis says, kissing her hair.

“Really?” Cady asks excitedly, like a little kid. God, she’s so cute.

“Really. You should go tell her,” Janis says, letting Cady go and pushing her gently towards the hallway once she stands.

“Mmkay. Janis? Jaaaaaaaniiiiiiis?” Cady calls as she stumbles down the hall.

Janis sneaks into the kitchen and takes a couple shots of the now nearly empty vodka she brought for Dutch courage, flipping off both Damian and Regina as they waggle their eyebrows at her before she leaves in search of her favorite redhead.

She’s getting progressively more worried when she can’t find Cady, apologizing profusely when she finds Gretchen and Karen making out in the guest room before heading to check Cady’s bedroom.

Luckily, she finds her there, alone and now drinking some water. That should help her sober up enough to talk. She knocks lightly on the doorframe before stepping in.

“Hey, Jayjay! I was looking for you. But now I’m here. What’s up?” Cady asks once she sees her, deciding trying to stand is still a little too risky.

Janis makes her way over to the bed, sitting next to Cady and lacing their fingers together. “Someone told me we should talk,” she says quietly.

“Yeah, we probably should,” Cady says. She’s still slurring her words, but much less. “Janis, I really like you, I have for a long time, and I understand if you don’t like me back. I don’t want to lose you as a friend-“ Is all she manages to get out before Janis cuts her off with a soft kiss, taking her cup and placing it on the nightstand.

They pull back after a second, but neither of them move away or open their eyes. They’d never know which of them leaned in the second time, maybe it was both, but this time they don’t stop.

Janis gasps a little as Cady flicks her tongue against the seam of her lips, and Cady takes the opportunity to deepen the kiss. She groans sweetly when their tongues meet, wrapping her arms around Janis’ neck and playing lightly with the baby hairs at the nape of it. Janis shifts them so Cady is lying on her back, Janis hovering above her and moving to cup Cady’s jaw with her hands.

She suddenly snaps back to her senses when she feels Cady tugging at the hem of her shirt, pulling away suddenly. Cady just whines and reaches for her again, but Janis blocks her with a hand gently.

“Caddy, listen, I want this. More than anything, I want this. But you’re very drunk, and I’m not entirely sober either. I probably shouldn’t have even kissed you. We can talk about this more tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay. Will you stay with me?” Cady asks, pulling her best puppy eyes. Janis supposes a cuddle couldn’t hurt.

“Sure,” she says, finding one of her own hoodies and some sweatpants in Cady’s dresser, putting them in her arms and sending her towards the bathroom. “Go get changed and brush your teeth and stuff, I’ll be here when you get back.”

Janis brought a sleepover bag, figuring at least one of them would be drunk enough to necessitate a sleepover. She changes into her pjs quickly, sitting on the bed and finishing what remains of Cady’s water to sober up more herself.

Cady comes back in, still stumbling slightly. Janis jumps up to catch her before she can fall, holding her tightly and trying not to look at Cady’s bare legs. “I don’t wanna wear pants. I’m too hot,” Cady whines, leaning more heavily into Janis.

“You don’t have to, I guess. As long as you’re comfy.” Janis chuckles. “Oh, you didn’t take your makeup off. Come here,” she says, grabbing a few of the makeup wipes from the pack on the desk and wiping tenderly at Cady’s face.

She can’t resist leaning down to peck Cady’s lips one more time once she finishes, and Cady’s wide grin when she does makes Janis want to kiss her for the rest of time.

Janis gets comfy on the bed first, knowing Cady will just worm her way in wherever she can fit. Sure enough, once she gestures for her, Cady wriggles in and presses as close to Janis as she can.

Janis tangles their legs together and pulls her a little closer, deciding she’s probably allowed to do that now. Cady leans up for a sweet kiss before she buries her face in Janis’ chest, mumbling a “night night” quietly into her shirt.

Janis just kisses her hair before nuzzling her nose into it, inhaling the comforting scent of cherries. “Goodnight Peanut,” she whispers.

Cady wakes up to a pounding headache and aching belly, wrapped tightly and securely in a familiar embrace. I am never drinking again, she thinks as she opens her eyes, wincing at the sunlight streaming through the window before turning to look at the person spooning her.

Of course it’s Janis. She’s a little worried that she can’t remember much of last night, but judging by the fact that they’re both still clothed, it couldn’t have gone too far.

She goes to check herself in the mirror, surprised to see she didn’t sleep in her makeup like she usually does when she’s drunk. For some reason she’s not wearing pants, but she has a top on, Janis is fully clothed, and neither of them have any marks so she’s not too worried about it.

She dons some bottoms and shuffles down to the kitchen to find some Advil, wandering past all of her guests at some point on the way. She grabs a tray and fills several cups with water, leaving one and a few pills near each of her friends.

She finds Regina alone on the couch, curled up under a soft blanket. She looks remarkably soft, almost cute. Adorably, she finds Damian cuddled up with the Mathletes, all four of them squished together on the floor under another larger blanket. Gretchen and Karen are on the guest bed, and she makes sure to close the door quietly so she doesn’t wake them.

Janis is awake by the time she returns, sitting up still under the duvet and rubbing her eyes. “Morning, Caddy,” she says as Cady enters, downing the medicine and water she hands her in one go. “Um... how much do you remember from last night?”

“I remember bits, I think. I remember Kevin crying because he couldn’t figure out what the volume of the Wii was without measuring it,” Cady says with a giggle.

“Do you remember anything that you did with me?”

“Um... no. Why, what happened?”

“Nothing bad! You just, erm... toldmeyoulikedmeandIlikeyoubackandwekindofmadeoutforawhile.” Janis bursts out.

“Whoa, slow down, what?” Cady says, hungover brain trying desperately to keep up.

“You told me you had a crush on me, but I don’t think you meant to, you were very drunk. And uhm... I really like you too, and we kissed a few times but I stopped before we went any further. Listen, I get it if that was just, like, a drunk thing and you don’t actually feel-“

“Janis, hey. Of course I actually like you. I wish I had told you when I was sober and that I could remember more of our first kiss, but I’ve been crushing on you for a long time. I thought you wouldn’t like me back,” Cady says, coming to sit next to her on the bed.

“Oh. That’s... um. That’s neat,” Janis squeaks, flushing scarlet.

“You little dork, I just told you I have a crush on you and all you have to say is ‘that’s neat’. You’re too cute,” Cady coos, squishing her cheeks.

“Hey! I am not, I’m a tough punk! You’re supposed to be the cute one,” Janis pouts.

“Thanks, Jay,” Cady giggles.

Oh, that beautiful sound. Janis doesn’t think she’ll ever get tired of it. “I really wanna kiss you again,” she mumbles, trying not to stare.

“Go right ahead,” Cady purrs, leaning in. Janis meets her halfway, tangling one hand in Cady’s hair and gripping her hip tightly with the other. Slowly, Cady shifts so she’s straddling Janis, wrapping her arms around her neck and angling her head to deepen the kiss.

Eventually, they unfortunately have to break apart to breathe, lingering close and looking into each other’s eyes.

“What are we, Janis?” Cady asks quietly after a beat.

“Hmm... Girlfriends sounds nice. I like girlfriends, can we be girlfriends?” Janis says suavely, pulling her closer and nuzzling their noses together.

“I would be honored to be your girlfriend, Bluejay,” Cady chuckles.

“Bluejay?” Janis squeaks. She likes that name quite a bit.

“Yeah! Because I call you Jay a lot, and bluejays are one of my favorite birds,” Cady chirps.

“I’m into it. Can we be kissing again now, though, please?” Janis asks. Cady just leans in again, pressing their lips together softly.

Damian comes bursting in a few moments later, saying, “Caddy, everyone else went home and I can’t find Janis, do you know- OHMIGOSH!” Before leaving abruptly, slamming the door behind him. They can hear him squealing excitedly all the way downstairs.

Janis and Cady look at each other for a second before bursting into laughter, wiping tears from under their eyes. “I guess he would’ve found out one way or another,” Janis says once they’ve calmed down.

“Yeah, I guess so,” Cady giggles, still trying to stop laughing. “Hey, wait, you never gave me the thingy you made for me.”

“Oh yeah. I guess since it’s your actual birthday now you can have it,” Janis teases, shifting Cady off her gently and going to grab it.

Cady wiggles excitedly once she has it in her hands, pulling the cloth covering off and gasping at what she sees. It’s a collage, hundreds of photos of her with her favorite people in greyscale cover the large canvas, and Janis has painted her name in perfect golden cursive in the center.

She notices a heart painted just underneath her name and looks closer, seeing that it frames a photo of her and Janis. It’s one of her favorite pictures of them, from one of the days Janis had insisted on trying to teach her how to paint. Cady had gotten a little frustrated and started a paint fight instead, and Damian sneakily snapped the picture while they were wrapped up in each other, smiling brightly and looking into each other’s eyes.

“I was going to try to tell you how I felt today, anyway, you beat me to it. Do you like it?” Janis hums nervously, biting her lip.

“Oh, Jay, I love it. It’s beautiful,” Cady says, tracing their faces tenderly with her index finger. She puts it gently to the side, making grabby hands for Janis. “My second favorite birthday present.”

“Second? What was your first?” Janis asks confusedly, nuzzling into Cady’s neck and sitting on her lap this time.

“You, goofy. You’re my favorite present,” Cady says like it’s obvious, and Janis has to choke back a few tears.

“Oh. I guess I am a good present,” She jokes, pressing a kiss to Cady’s cheek. “Now come on, Dame and I want to take you for some birthday breakfast.”

“Ooh, yay! Can we get smoothies?” Cady asks excitedly, bouncing up and down once Janis removes herself from her lap.

“Whatever you want, Peanut. Get dressed, I’ll meet you downstairs,” Janis laughs, turning to go.

“Janis?” Cady calls just before she reaches the door. “One more kiss?”

Janis might have to talk with her about the puppy eyes. Those are dangerous, she thinks as she walks over, kissing her forehead, both cheeks, then her nose, and ending with a lingering one on her lips. “Better?”

“Uhhuh,” Cady smiles. “You can go now, I’ll be down in a second.”

Damian is there the second she hits the bottom, snatching her into a hug and calling, “Hey, what the fuck?! When did you and Caddy happen?” very loudly in her ear.

“Jesus, Dame, volume. And who says we’ve happened?” Janis teases.

“I walked in on you two- canoodling!” He insists, waving a finger in her face. “You can’t tell me it hasn’t!”

“Last night. She told me she was crushing on me while she was drunk and we kissed. We became girlfriends this morning,” Janis says, ending his torment.

“Aww. Yay lesbians,” Damian coos.

“Caddy’s bi.”

“You get what I mean. Yay sapphics,” he huffs, pulling her into a hug again.

“Yay sapphics indeed,” Janis says, smiling widely. She has a girlfriend now.

“You know what this means?”

“You’re gonna be the most annoying third wheel of all time ‘til we find you a boyfriend?”

“Yes. Buuuuut, you have to give me my money now,” Damian singsongs, doing a ridiculous little dance. “Pay up, my good bitch.”

“Ah, fuck.”

-----

thank you for reading! big thanks to @meangirlsbway-incorrectquotes for letting me use one of their posts as inspiration!

I wanted to note that I put the dates in as they are because I head canon these characters as being about my age, so they would've graduated in 2019. I'm aware the dates make them a bit old, and that it might mess up the canon timeline or things I've mentioned in previous works. (also yes, one of the dates mentioned is my birthday because I am lazy). if you think they're a different age, feel free to ignore the dates.

I also wanted to make it very clear: just because a person has bpd does not mean they will act like regina george. if you have bpd, this was not intended to be offensive in any type of way, I just think it's a possible explanation for her behavior.

happy transgender day of visibility!

lots of love, ezzy

#cadnis #cady heron x janis sarkisian #paint by numbers #cady heron #janis sarkisian #damian hubbard #regina george #gretchen wieners #karen smith #mean girls #mean girls musical #mean girls broadway

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dirt-cup-draco · 4 years

Text

Bucky x Reader-Holding You

@wreckofawriter‘s cliche month

“What are you two doing here?” Bucky seethed, grabbing Rebecca’s arm as you two sauntered about the junkyard, drinks in hand and inhibitions slipping away.

“Same as you,” Becca sneered, ripping her arm from her brother’s grasp. “Having a good time. It looks like you need to try harder,”

Bucky growled, a noise low in his throat that only meant trouble but it made your stomach twist in knots and your heart rate rise to dangerous levels.

“H-Hi Bucky,” You stammered, trying to distract from the tension and get a word in between the two large personalities you were stuck between. Being a Barnes meant being brash, stubborn and the life of the party and Becca and Bucky had those traits in spades.

Bucky’s attention was drawn to you and he let out a groan. “Why you trying to get into trouble Becs?”

“God, you sound just like dad! Besides, Y/N is here and you’re not yelling at her!” Becca pouted. At nineteen, her teenage rebellion phase was going stronger than ever. Steve saw Bucky in her and you wondered if it was part of the reason the boys you were both so protective of her, keeping her from Bucky’s mistakes in the fear she would repeat history.

“That’s because she can take care of herself!” Bucky argued and you were halfway between laughing at Becca’s put out look and fainting from the praise aimed at you from Bucky.

“She” You cut in, waving your hand between the two. “Can speak for herself. She is also going to go get another drink while you two argue. Where’s Steve?” You asked Bucky and you tried to keep the nerves from causing you to waver. You always got so nervous around him. Tonight, you refused. You would be as cool as a cucumber, damn it.

“Oh um, check all the dark corners. Or just look for a lone shadow I guess,” Bucky said, his attention still focused on berating his baby sister for following him to a party that was very much not meant for the company of two young girls like yourself. Becca always hated that. She would be damned if she let anyone else tell her what to do or how to live her life. You could tell Bucky admired it as much as he hated it.

She really was just like him. Yet, you could pick the two of them apart so easily. Bucky was surprisingly, not as rough around the edges as his sister. She had ideas, always had, and they drove her to being the person she wanted to be without apology. Bucky was the same in many aspects, but he could be who he wanted to be because he was a man. Becca had to fight her way to be accepted as the loud and proud woman she was. There wasn’t a submissive bone in her body.

Bucky eye’s were lighter in color, sharp and observant but mingled in was the childish splendor that never seemed to leave. His cheeks were adorably rounded and his hair cropped short but it only accentuated his best features. You smiled into you drink thinking about the shape of his nose, the rosiness of his lips. To say you had a crush would be a devastating understatement.

Grabbing a lukewarm drink from the bin a few feet from the fire pit you watched as people mingled, some sitting and chatting while others danced about. A few even ducked and darted behind and between the junked cars in a tipsy game of hide and seek. You shook the water from the bottom of the bin off your hand and noted that the ice had been long since melted, a shame.

Your eyes were peeled, searching for Steve but it seemed like he was nowhere to be seen. He liked to stick close when Bucky was getting up to all that Bucky did but he wasn’t a fan of cheap thrills or getting his hopes crushed by another shallow dame. It made sense that he was somewhere further in the background, uninterested. You wanted to be spending your time with Bucky, but you feared he would grow weary of you following him around like a love sick puppy. Steve made good company and you were growing used to avoiding Bucky at the blonde’s side.

Your search for Steve however was cut short as a tall man with boyish features approached you. His red hair curled around his ears and it bounced as he jogged to you. His cheeks were round, fair skin covered in freckles. It seemed his entire body was as you connected the dots that trailed down his neck and underneath the collar of his shirt that hung from his willowy form. His eyes were a dazzling shade of emerald and his smile turned golden and blinding from the firelight. “Care to dance?” The stranger asked, hand extended.

You peered around you, determining that it was in fact you who he was talking to. You considered politely turning him down but then you caught sight of Bucky chatting up some pretty blonde. You sighed, but put on a smile. “I would love that,”

He took your hand and swept you into the crowd with a celebratory “I told you boys she’d say yes!” that made you giggle.

Three (or for, or five) drinks later and an hour of dancing and you were feeling absolutely dead on your feet, head floating on your shoulders as you tried to focus. You were on the grass, earth spinning about but your hand was clasped with another’s and your back was supported by a sturdy chest. “Hmm, when did we stop dancin’?” You wondered aloud, not quite remembering how you ended up on the ground.

“Oh you sweet thing,” Shane, that was the pretty boy’s name, laughed warmly in your ear before pressing an affectionate kiss to your temple. “You really are a lightweight,” It seemed you had stopped some time ago as you focused on the embers of the bonfire, the flame burning lower than you remembered as the junkyard grew darker. You remembered feeling light, Shane spinning you around and sweeping you off your feet and now, your feet were resting.

“Shhh, that’s a secret,” You mumbled to Shane, peering at him in the dying light of the fire. “I’m supposed to look impressive,” You muttered as he grinned, nudging his nose against yours. His hands were large against your hips, trailing up your sides.

“Impressive for who?” He whispered, hand against your cheek as he nudged you to angle yourself towards him. You shifted then, moving in the handsome stranger’s lap so that you were facing him, elbows on his shoulders and nose against his.

“Someone who doesn’t want me,” You pouted then, lip wobbling as you thought about how nice Shane was, how he made you feel special and wanted, but how it all felt wrong. You wanted it to be right, you had thought that since the moment he’d asked you to dance. He was sweet, fun, respectful. What was to stop you from wanting more with him?

“Is it that guy you were lookin’ at before we danced?”

You nodded slowly, mind catching up as your tumultuous feelings and Shane rubbing your back helped you sober up. “Bucky. My stupid, lovely Bucky. Except he isn’t mine, he likes everyone else and I’m just Becca’s friend,”

Shane didn’t know Becca but just smiled as you rambled on. “He’s a handsome fella, good guy too from what I know. We run into each other every so often. Steve’s a doll, been lucky enough to spend a night with him,”

“You like Steve?” You gasped, eyes bright. “I love Steve! He’s so good, isn’t he so good? You should date Steve!”

Shane laughed warm and hearty, reclining back as you stayed put. “I wouldn’t mind it but I don’t think that’s gonna work out, he’s steered clear of me since then... You’re pretty cute too, wouldn’t mind taking you out,”

Bucky cursed as he stubbed his toe against an engine that had been left to collect dust in the yard. Hopping on one foot he surveyed the area through squinted eyes. The party had died down significantly and he had found Becca and Steve on the hood of a rusted car, watching the stars and talking about nothing in particular.

That was the sign that they were both thoroughly tired and his cue to go and search for you. He hadn’t seen you all night long and now as he couldn’t find you, he was growing worried. Bucky had been hoping to dance with you at least once tonight but then he had gotten into it was Rebecca and the chance had left with you when you’d gone to search for Steve.

What worried him more was that Steve told him that you’d never found him. What had you been up to all night? He skirted around the form of some passed out fool and walked closer to the dying firelight, taking long looks at the shadows in it’s vicinity and hoping that one of them had the white blouse you’d worn that night.

That was his favorite top. It was well fitting and simple. The rosy colored buds of flowers made up the patter of the shirt and it brought out the tone of your skin and the warmth of your smile. You were as pretty as any flower he’d ever seen, prettier even. It hadn’t been until two years ago that he’d really taken notice. It had been a hot summer’s day and Becca was wanting to celebrate her birthday with him, Steve and you. You’d all gone for a swim.

You had glowed in the sunlight as you ran around with his sister, splashing playfully in the water. “When did Y/N get so pretty?” He’d muttered, accidentally catching Steve’s ear. Bucky hadn’t heard the end of it yet, and it didn’t help that his eyes always seemed to be following you. So why couldn’t he find you now?

He was about to call your name but was interrupted by two people speaking in low voices. Bucky could make out the frilled edge of your blouse. Your hands were planted on someone’s chest and your hair hung around your face as you giggled.

“...You’re pretty cute too, wouldn’t mind taking you out,” The soft slur of the man’s voice floated up into the night air and Bucky sighed. He knew that voice.

“Come on Y/N! Time to get out of here,” Bucky interrupted, hands finding your underarms as he hauled you up from Shane’s lap. The redhead darted up, a frown on his face.

“Jesus, Barnes. Give a guy, and girl-” He added, nodding to you as you pulled yourself from Bucky’s grasp. “-some warning next time,”

“Yeah,” You said indignantly, fighting the urge to crawl under Bucky’s arm because it was what you wanted or go back to Shane’s side to make a point. Instead, you remained between the two. Your time spent talking to Shane had let you sober up and your mind was clear again and all was well despite the pounding that begun in your temples. “We were busy talkin’”

“Right.” Bucky laughed. “Talking,”

Shane opened his mouth, a bashful expression on his face but you cut in sooner. “We were! And so what if we weren’t? You’re Becca’s older brother, not mine,”

Bucky felt like the wind had been knocked from his lungs and Shane let out a whoop of laughter.

“Oh buddy! She got you there!”

“Can it, Murphy,” Bucky blushed. Was that all he was to you? Becca’s brother? He understood if you didn’t feel the same, but he had at least hoped you two were friends. Even when you were all kids and he used to grab Steve and book it down the street so you and Becca couldn’t follow the pair of them to their “Super Secret Boy’s Only Hide Out”, which had only been an alley that didn’t get much traffic from trouble or citizens alike. The name had needed work. Despite his childishness, he’d always come back with Steve after they’d gotten bored and you’d all eat ice pops on the porch as friends.

“Yeah, Murphy,” You giggled and Shane rolled his eyes at his last name, tucking you under his arm and ruffling your hair.

“Whatever, kid,” He scoffed.

Bucky felt that familiar jealousy rise up and he glared. “I was just coming to see if you were coming back home with us all, but if you’d rather stay here then I don’t care,” He did care.

You looked between Shane and Bucky for a minute before you pat Shane’s cheek. “Tonight was fun, don’t forget me, yeah?”

“Never, ever, sweetheart,” Shane winked. “I’m sure I’ll see you around,” He said pointedly, glancing at Bucky before strolling off himself.

“Lets go,” Bucky muttered, already four strides ahead of you before you could even process his words. You had to jog the last few steps to get to him. You grabbed his arm, digging your heels in as you brought him to a stop.

“Why’re you so pissed?” You asked, eyebrow shooting up to your hairline as Bucky grunted.

“I’m not pissed.”

“Riiight,” You rolled your eyes in disbelief, trying to ignore how he hooked his arm in yours as you began walking again. You didn’t mind the proximity to him, even if he was being a bristly jerk. “Or did you forget the part where you pulled me off of Shane?”

“You got me there,” Bucky winced. He’d been jealous, what could he say? “I’m just tired?”

The suggestion fell flat however and you laughed softly. “You’re a miserable liar even after all of these years. You should’ve learned when you tried to convince me that it wasn’t you who had cut my ponytail while I’d been sleeping over”

“You might’ve believed me if I hadn’t been holding the scissors,”

“Maybe, but I’ve come to notice you sound like you’re asking a question every time you lie, like you can’t quite believe it yourself,”

“You’re drunk?”

You laughed as Bucky tried to wiggle his way out of the conversation, only now noticing his quite obvious tell.

“I’m plenty sober now, thank you. But, for a moment there I could barely remember my own name let alone what Shane and I were doing on the ground,” You laughed lightheartedly but Bucky tensed up.

“What do you have against him.”

“Nothing?”

“The truth, Bucky,” You sighed. “Please? I’m not interrogating you, I just hoped we were beyond lies,” Thankfully, the pleasant buzz was still in your system and your fun with Shane had given you the confidence to speak openly and honestly with Bucky. You hadn’t stuttered yet!

“You like each other,” Bucky stated and you paused in your steps.

“I barely know him,” You pointed out. “We had fun, he’s a friend. I can tell you right now that we weren’t serious about a thing all night- we didn’t even kiss. He’s a nice guy, we were just talking.”

Bucky just shrugged.

“Look,” You sighed. “I know you’re protective over Becca and I can see why you see me the same way, but I meant what I said earlier. You’re not my big brother Bucky and-”

“You really think thats what this is about?” Bucky gaped at you, nearly tripping over his own two feet as you both dodged a spare tire laying around.

“What else could it be?” You asked, exasperated. You stood beneath the moonlight, arms crossed tight over your chest as you glanced at Bucky. There was a lonesomeness in your eyes that he found he could understand. It was the look of someone who had lost hope for something different from the ordinary. But what was unchanging in your life that troubled you? He couldn’t recall Rebecca mentioning anything.

“I- You- You really don’t know?” Bucky stammered.

“Don’t know what?” You asked, feeling a bit frustrated. You didn’t like being out of the loop especially when it came to Bucky. Had you messed up somehow? Did he think you a fool?

“Oh, doll,” Bucky laughed. “You’re going to be the death of me,”

“Buck, just tell me!”

Bucky just laughed harder and smiled wider, his hand easily finding yours as he pulled you against him. “What I have against Shane Murphy, is that he got to hold you all night long and I didn’t and I’d have kissed his ass if he kissed you because I didn’t have the guts to do it,”

Your surprised gasp was swallowed as Bucky brushed his lips against yours, an experiment that left you weak in the knees. He pulled away to gauge your reaction but you chased his lips, gripping the back of his neck as you brought him to you again. “The night isn’t over yet,” You sighed as he trailed desperate, open mouth kisses against your jaw and neck. “He’s not here, and you’ve got me all to yourself,”

Bucky’s arms were comfortably tight around your waist and you ran your fingers through his hair, wanting to memorize as many sensations as you could before this moment was over. Bucky was paying particular attention to a spot on your neck that had you gasping softly, hot breath coming from parted lips, when he heard a strangled noise and a boisterous laugh.

“Fuck,” Bucky cursed on a panted breath, head falling to rest on your shoulder.

“You owe me three bucks and some gum,” Becca beamed at Steve and he rolled his eyes.

“Rather owe it to you then cheat you out of it,” He muttered with pink cheeks, embarrassed at finding you and Bucky in the middle of something but glad you two were finally realizing what had been between you for the past couple years.

“You were taking so long, we got worried,” She explained. “You both have the terrible habit of waiting forever. I swear, all I hear from Y/N is how she would kill to be one of those girls you take to dances and Steve only ever hears how pretty you think she is.”

Bucky grinned, looking down at you as you hid your face. “You had a crush on me?”

“You had one on me?” You countered back and his smug look turned sheepish.

“Glad that’s settled,” Becca chimed in again and you giggled as she looped her arm through yours, tugging you forward. “Now lets go home,”

Bucky wanted to steal you from his sister’s side but he held back as he strolled behind the both of you, Steve elbowing his side in congratulations as he followed after you. You looked over your shoulder, shooting him a smile and a playful roll of your eyes as Becca whispered rapid-fire about something he couldn't make out. It made his heart skip a beat.

Take that Shane, she’s mine. Bucky thought proudly as he followed Steve, having fallen a few steps behind. Bucky couldn’t get the thought of you out of his head, nor could he forget the feel of your lips against his. And god knows I’m her’s.

Bucky realized that the night truly was over as he dropped you off at home, wishing it didn’t have to end so soon after you two had only begun. Yet, when you kissed him for a long moment before racing indoors he knew that it wouldn’t be for long that you two would be parted and he would be holding you again.

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#bucky barnes #bucky x reader #bucky barnes x reader #winter soldier x reader #fluff #cliche month #week 1 #best friend's brother #rough age timeline thing blegh #idk how i feel about this one #R O U G H TIMELINE

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