#Wow only took 30+ fics to get here

[sturniololoco]

can you please do a younger sister fic where reader is in videos and gets a lot of hate comments?

Hate

Sturniolo Little Sister (SLS) x The Sturniolo Triplets

Warnings: Hate, body shaming, eating disorder, crying, etc.

SLS/N’s POV

“Oh my gosh Chris! Stop! That’s so gross!” I yelled at my brother as he burped in my face.

He laughed in return, trying to shield himself from my solid punch in the arm.

“Alright guys! That has been today’s video, I hope you all enjoys having our special guest in our video today-“ Nick started to say, giving the video it’s usual outro.

I waved to the camera before turning back to Chris and continued beating him up. Matt laughed and joined in while Nick finished talking to the camera.

-

laying in the darkness of my room at 1:30 in the morning, I opens my lap top and went to my brothers YouTube channel.

The video from earlier already had 500k views. Getting happy, I scrolled through the comment section to see what people thought of the video.

Omg yay!

Ew why’d they bring her??

Oh my lord Matt and Chris are so hooooot!!!

wow what a fatty

worst special guest ever

boring next

3467 more ⬇️

I could feel the tears well up in my eyes as I slammed my lap top shut.

I scrambled to the bathroom, trying to forget the feeling of sadness and dread pool in my stomach.

But I was instantly reminded when I made eye contact with myself in the bathroom mirror.

Wow you really are huge, I thought as I turned to my side, examining myself.

I quickly ran to my bed, desperately trying to fall asleep and get the thoughts out of my head.

-

“Woah, you look rough.” Chris said as I walked into the living room, sitting in the couch and pulling out my phones.

I rolled my eyes at him and shrugged, trying to hide my face behind my hair.

“Hey, sis. I made you a bagel.” Nick said, walking into the living room, sitting next to me, and handing me a paper plate.

I took it and mumbled my thanks to him. My brothers dug into their breakfast, but I just looked at mine, not being able to bring myself to eat it.

Do you know how many calories is in cream cheese?!?

-

“Hey, you okay?” Matt asked me, seeing how I had only taken about 2 and a half bite of my bagel.

“What- oh yeah…I’m good.” I say, nodding my head, trying to sound convincing. He gives me a suspicious look but I quickly play it off.

“I’m not very hungry today, I had snuck early this morning before I went back to sleep.” I lied. Matt looked reassured though.

I only had to keep this up till I was skinny and perfect, shouldn’t be that hard.

The only problem would be keeping this from my brothers.

-

it been a week.

A very, very long week.

Keeping this secret from my brothers just kept getting harder and harder, but I was learning.

“SLS/N! Dinners ready!” Nick yelled up the stairs.

“I need to finish up my project, I’ll be down in a second!” I yelled back. It was a complete lie, I finished the project three days ago.

This excuse would usually work, and he’d save my dinner on a plate. I’d then take it up to my room, and throw it away.

I sat on my bed, computer out, acting like I was doing work.

-

“I need to go switch the laundry, I’ll be right back okay.” Matt said as I started to unpack my dinner about an hour later. I nodded and he went into the laundry room.

I had to be quick.

I chucked my plate up side down into the trash, then covered it with wet paper towels so Chris wouldn’t get suspicious when he took the trash out.

I heard Matt begin to walk upstairs, so this gave me even more time to finish the dishes and clean the kitchen.

-

“SLS/N! Come up here please!” I hear Matt call.

he didn’t sound happy thought. I quickly rush up the stairs and walk to my room.

I open my door to see Matt standing there with his arms crossed over his chest, a disappointed look on his face. Chris was sitting on my bed, leaning forward with his head in his hands. Nick was holding my trash can in his hands, looking at me with a scared look in his eyes.

I felt dread pool in the bottom of my stomach.

“SLS/N? When’s the last time you ate?” Matt asked slowly.

he looked up at me and I could see tears in the brims of his eyes.

Then I broke.

“I-I can’t do I-i’t!” I said, crumpling onto the floor in sobs.

Matt rushed to my side, kneeling in front of me. “Shh, it’s okay I’m right here.” He says, whispering sweet word in my ears as I calm down.

“SLS/N…What happened?” Chris asked when my breathing had gone back to normal.

I told them all about the hate comments on the video, how they made me feel, and how they hurt me.

“I just hate the way it made me feel. So I thought that I change, it would be easier.” I rambled, tears still flowing out of my eyes.

“SLS/N, starving yourself is not easier, I promise. You’re not perfect, nobody is, so we can’t always have least everyone. Next time we need you to talk to us.” Nick said, coming over to join us, sitting on the floor.

I nodded my head, my lip quivering, afraid if I said a word, the sobs would come back.

Chris came over, wrapping his arms around us all in a great hug.

“We’re always here for you sis, no matter what.” Chris whispered.

omg I’m so sorry if this was shitty. I think I wrote it 30 mins 😭 I promise better content will be coming starting Wednesday.

@idkwhosnyla @babypat08 @eyelessdemon00 @christopherowensturniolo @sturnsxx @freshloveforthefit @matty443355 @sleepysturnss @emeraldgreenbeautiesstu @sunsetsturniolos @hoesturniolo @x4nd3rsukz @chr1sgirl4life @sstvrnioloo @sturns-posts @chrisstopherfilmed @kylasrealityx @zoeysturnioloooooo @comet235 @islaasblog @sturnioloblogs @defnotayonna @mattsleftnipple03 @thematthewlover @mattsaq

#nick sturniolo #sturniolo imagine #sturniolo smut #sturniolo x reader #nicolas sturniolo #sturniolo fanfic #matt sturniolo #christopher sturniolo #chris sturniolo #matthew sturniolo #sturniolo triplets

[calumsrockstar]

Bunny - Ashton Irwin

a/n: DADDY ISSUES NATION RISE! This is my longest fic until now, and it´s inspired by @rip-quizilla.

word count: 3k

Where you find a mysterious hot neighbor.

Contents: MAJOR AGE GAP (reader is 19 and Ash is 44), perv!ash, spanking, pet names, praise, unprotected p in v, oral (f and m recieving) masturbation (f and m), corruption kink, daddy kink

Older!Ash x Reader

You entered your brand new house, it was small, but spacious considering it was your first. Your mom and your dad finally let you move out, giving you all the privacy you needed.

For the first month everything was normal, until you heard almost every mom in the neighborhood talk about a handsome and mysterious Mr. Irwin. Only to notice that he was living right next to you.

You were curious, since moving to the neighborhood, you´ve never seen what he looked like, your window was right opposite his, but he always kept the curtain closed.

Adjusting yourself, you looked at the mirror and flattened your yellow sundress. It was a hot summer day, and what better way to quench your thirst than to deliver lemonade to your supposedly hot neighbor?

You opened the fridge to get a large jug of your homemade lemonade, and left the house, leaving the front door unlocked.

Walking to his house, you took deep breaths, and knocked on the door. Now you wait.....

A tall man opened the door, looking to be in his 20s. His light brown hair looked soft and curly. his skin sunkissed. "Hi there." He smiled. Making you forget why you were there.

Holy shit.

"Um-hi." You smiled. "I moved here a month ago and I ́ve never said hello, I decided to bring you some lemonade. Some friendly neighbor activity." You chuckled.

He looked you up and down, basically devouring you with his eyes. "That's awfully kind of you." You detected some kind of accent. "It 's no problem." You replied.

"Sorry if this is too direct but, how come i´ve never seen you before?" You asked him. "At my age, I don't go out of my house much honey, I like to read, play music." You raised an eyebrow. "Your age? Like 25?"

He let out a throaty laugh. "You flatter me." Making you smile. "How old are you?" You asked. "If you don't mind me asking of course." He grinned. "Guess."

"28?" He shook his head no. "30?" He shook his head no again. "35?" You asked, hoping you didn't say he was too old. "More." He grinned. "No fucking way." You replied. "40?" He clicked his tongue. "You're getting closer." Your mouth was practically on the floor. "I´m 44, sweetheart."

"What? That's insane." You smiled. "You definitely don't look or act 44." You said. "Hey, how is a 44 year old supposed to act?" He chuckled. "I don´t know, smoking cigars on your front porch, maybe?" You smiled. "I´m young at heart, you know." He leaned down to talk to you.

"How old are you, little lady?" He grinned. "I'm 19." He widened his hazel eyes. "19, wow. Basically a baby." You fake pouted. "I'm not a baby." You smiled, teasingly. "You are to me." He replied. You frowned. Did he actually think of you as a kid?

"What´s a young girl like you doing living all by herself?" He asked. "I just moved out, I wanted some privacy." You replied, making him raise an eyebrow. "Privacy, huh? You sure you´re not gonna throw any parties?"

You laughed. "That's not what all kids do these days, by the way. Maybe in your time, Mr. Irwin." You put your hand on your forehead. "That was rude, i´m sorry." He laughed. "How do you know my last name?" He smiled.

You turned pink. "Well, you must know that women talk about you." He raised an eyebrow. "Do they?" He chuckled. "Yeah, all the time." You replied.

"Can you tell me what they say?" He smiled, making you turn an even deeper shade of red. "Well, they all say you're really handsome and stuff... And how they wonder if you have a wife." You smiled. "No, I don't have one, sweetheart." He grinned.

Oh god yes.

"Oh, that's good to know. I mean, that's cool." You stuttered. Making him chuckle. "Well, I guess I´ll see you around, Mr. Irwin." You said turning your back. "Please, call me Ashton." He blurted out. "What's your name?" He asked. "It´s y/n." You smiled. "Nice to meet you y/n." I hope to see you soon." You looked over your shoulder and nodded.

When you turned around, Ashton couldn't help but look at your ass. It was sculpted and it drove him crazy. He could tell you were definitely trouble.

Ashton closed the door, and smiled. You were the only thing he could think of for hours. He wanted to get to know you, to know what your interests were, your life. He already was utterly obsessed. He felt like a teenager again, with hormones blossoming inside of him.

You were sweet and innocent, like a bunny. Something deep inside him wanted to ruin you.

You could not help thinking of him too. His tattooed arms, his curly hair, how his tank top hugged every place of him. How his shorts were tight around his bulge.

Shit. You wanted to fuck your 44 year old neighbor.

Ashton let his curiosity get the best of him. He finally opened his office window, to see if he could peek inside your house. Fortunately for him, this was the window directly opposite your bedroom.

After a long day, you decided to go to your bedroom to relax. Kicking off your shoes and getting out of your sundress. It was hot, so you absentmindedly left your bedroom window open, not knowing you had a spectator.

"Holy fuck." Ashton thought, his jaw was on the ground. You were wearing a lacy pink underwear set. The dim lighting in your room made you look ethereal.

Ashton was getting harder by the second. He knew this was wrong. Spying on his innocent little neighbor. But at this moment, he could care less.

You took off your bra, slowly. Ashton watched your breasts slip out of them, he thought he was dreaming. You were the most beautiful girl he's ever seen.

You reached in your bedroom drawer and found a pretty pink vibrator that you've stashed there. You laid down, tracing circles over your panties with the vibrator, letting out little whimpers.

"No fucking way." Ashton mouthed. He couldn't take it anymore. He took his cock out of his pants, bubbling with pre-cum. He felt like a pervert, but this turned him on even more.

Little y/n wasn't as innocent as he thought.

Taking off your panties, your pussy was on full display. Making Ashton´s mouth water.

You pressed the vibrator on your clit while you inserted two fingers inside of yourself, curling them. The shock made your back lift off the mattress, with a moan so loud you were sure your neighbor could hear.

All you wanted was Ashton. You wished his fingers were inside of you, you wished he was fucking you.

Ashton started to rub himself, watching intently. So what if you saw? He thought. His cock was throbbing, he was desperate to be inside you. Every muscle in his body ached for you.

You started to squirm, your clit throbbing with pulsing sensations that made you convulse in bed. While Ashton was shivering. This is the most turned on he´s been ever.

"Fuckfuckfuckfuck." You moaned while you bit your lip, feeling that familiar feeling in your stomach. Ashton started fucking his fist, harder and faster.

"Fuck! Ashton!" You screamed when you came. Putting your hand to your mouth when you realized what you said. At the same time, Ashton came all over his hand, panting hard. His curls were sticking to his forehead.

Did she just say my name? She couldn't have.

-----

In the morning you decided to lounge by the pool, and get some sun. You put on your favorite blue bikini and put your hair in a bun and headed out to the garden.

You opened up the door to your yard, secretly hoping a certain hazel eyed man would stumble in.

Sitting on a lounge chair, looking at your phone you noticed a tall figure looking down at you.

"Fuckin´ hot today, eh?" It was Ashton. A shirtless Ashton. Looking you up and down with no shame. "Good morning Mr. Irwin." You smiled. "You're finally out of the house." You added. "I wanted to see you, darling." He replied. Your mouth turned dry.

"You wanted to see me?" You repeated, making him smile. "Why do you want this old man out of your garden?" He chuckled, making you giggle. "Nah, c´mere." You told him, making a "Come hither" motion with your finger.

Just to think those were the fingers that were inside you last night made him shiver.

You tucked your legs in and motioned for him to sit at the tip of the lounging chair. When he sat, you spread your legs to fit around his thighs.

The only thing separating your pussy from his back was a flimsy piece of fabric.

"So, where are you from?" You asked him. "I´m originally from Australia, but I moved here a few years ago." You nodded. "Why´d you move?" You asked, picking at his sunburnt shoulders. "I think I just wanted to move on with my life, start a new chapter." He looked back at you and smiled. "Fair enough." You smiled back.

"I haven't noticed your tattoos." You said, stroking your hands on his arm. "Yeah got a few of them, love, years of experience." He smiled. "This one's my favorite." You pointed at his snake tattoo on his bicep. "It's one of my favorites too."

"Do you have any more tattoos?" You asked, rubbing both of his thighs. "y/n..." He melted into your touch. "I'm just asking." You grinned, placing a kiss on his neck. "Jesus Christ." He chuckled in between shallow breaths. "Are you sure?" He asked. You muttered an "mhm."

"I´ve seen you eye fucking me, Ashton, when we first met, when I was taking out the trash, right back then..."

He stood up, turned to face you, and sat back down."Dirty girl... When I was in college you weren't even born yet." You shrugged your shoulders, smiling. You could feel a wet patch growing in your bikini bottoms.

"I was touching myself thinking of you last night." You whispered, making him grin. "Me too." He chuckled. "You just looked so pretty yesterday... Your window was open." Your mouth dropped. "You perv!" You smiled. "Hey, you´re the one touching yourself thinking of an old man fucking you." He grinned.

"You looked so cute squirming, bunny." This sent shivers down your spine.

"Please kiss me." You pleaded. He wasted no time. He held your face with his two hands and kissed you, the kiss was fervent, urgent. Your tongues battling between each other, barely giving you space to breathe.

"Do anything you want to me, Ashton." You told him. "Anything?" He asked. "Anything." You smiled. "That´s a very bold claim to make." "I mean it." You smirked.

"Stand up." He ordered, doing the same as you. "You brought this upon yourself." He smiled, as he picked you up and threw you over his shoulder, making you scream and giggle.

He unlocked his front door and carried you inside. You observed three guitars and a huge drumset in his living room, complete with 10 pairs of drumming sticks.

He placed you on the couch that was big enough to fit four people, putting enough force for you to land with an "oomph."

"You look so cute, babygirl." He smiled, making you blush. You decided to make a risky move. "Thank you, daddy." You replied, waiting for his response.

You could see his eyes visibly darken, and his mouth turned into a grin. "Holy fuck, y/n." He smiled. "Want me to be your daddy?" He asked you. You could only mutter an "mhm." Your clit was throbbing, practically begging to be touched.

He trailed a finger through your bikini bottoms, making your whole body shiver. "So wet for me, and I haven't even touched you, bunny." He whispered in your ear. "Please, Ashton." You mewled.

He tugged at the strings of your bikini top and undid them. "You have such perfect tits, princess." He said, while fondling them. Placing his mouth on one and nipping at it, making you whimper. "So sensitive, too." He smiled.

Kneeling in front of you on the couch, he tugged on your bikini bottoms taking them off. You clenched your legs together, by instinct, blushing. "No need to be shy, princess." He smiled, gently pushing your legs apart and peppering little kisses on the inside of your thighs.

"Such a pretty pussy." He cooed. "Fuckin´ perfect."

He kitten licked your clit, making you let out a breathy moan. He looked up at you, waiting for your approval. You nodded and smiled, making him grin.

He grabbed your lower back with his big hands and pulled you closer to his face, making you gasp.

His pupils were blown out with lust. Dipping down to face your sex. Without warning, he dives in and you feel him licking a long strip between your wet folds.

"Fuck! Ashton." You exclaim, grabbing his curls and digging your fingers into his scalp. He winced at the pain, but he definitely enjoyed this.

You grind against his mouth, while his tongue draws circles around your clit. Throwing your head back into the couch, your eyes rolled into the back of your head.

The sensation was almost too much. His eyes never left you, enjoying the sight of you convulsing on the couch. Your pretty moans were like music to his ears.

He licks faster and faster. Groaning inside of you. "I'm getting- I'm getting close." You said in between shallow breaths. He starts sucking on your clit harshly, the sounds were borderline sinful.

You felt a tightness inside your stomach, like a cord waiting to snap. "Don´t stop, please." You mewled.

Your orgasm washes over you, making your whole body shake, clenching your walls around Ashton´s tongue. "Oh my God." You smiled.

Ashton surfaced, his lips were puffy and his mouth was covered in your slick. "Hi." You giggled. "Hi." He repeated, smiling. You covered your face with your hands, and blushed.

"Can I taste you?" You asked. "I-um, fuck yes." He stuttered. "Yeah, you can taste me."

He takes off his shirt and gives it to you. "Here baby, for your knees." You smile and bunch up the soft cotton material on the ground.

You kneel down in front of him, pulling his shorts down and snapping the elastic band of his boxers, finally freeing him. His erection sprang up at you. It was the longest and thickest cock you´ve ever seen.

"See how you make me feel, bunny?" He asked, making you smile. You pumped his shaft a few times to test the waters, making him groan deeply. "Fuck, y/n..." He moaned.

You kitten lick his tip, tasting his salty pre-cum, making Ashton´s whole body shiver.

Sinking down, you took his whole length, gagging. Ashton gently grabbed your hair, holding it to get it out of the way. Bobbing your head up and down, swirling circles around his tip.

"Fu-uck..." He moaned. "You're so perfect." He breathed deeply.

Soon enough, he was moving his hips, increasing his pace while his head was thrown back. "Makin´ me feel so good, sweet girl." He groaned.

He pulled himself out of you, grabbing you by the hair. "I´m not gonna be able to fuck you if we continue this." He chuckled. "Want daddy to fuck you, bunny?" He asked, making you nod. "Please, that's all I want, please." You begged, making him smile darkly.

You both stood up. "C´mere." He said, picking you up bridal style. You were still surprised as to how he could pick you up like you were nothing.

Taking you up a big staircase, you found yourself in a huge master bedroom, complete with another drum set, and vinyls hanging on the walls.

He plopped you down on the bed, a bit more roughly this time.

He looked around, opening a few drawers. "What 's wrong?" You asked. "Shit, I don't have a condom." He muttered. "I'm on the pill." You smiled, making him grin as well. "That's all you needed to say." He replied, taking off his shorts and underwear.

He climbed on top of the bed, hovering over you. "Daddy's gonna make you feel good, sweetheart." He smiled, you watched his eyes darken.

He puts a hand on your throat and pushes his mouth in for a kiss, hard, sloppy, hungry.

"You okay?" He smiles. "Yeah, just please fuck me Ashton." You pleaded. "Atta girl." He responded.

He grabbed your hips and slowly pushed himself inside of you, hissing at the feeling. The initial stretch burned, but slowly but surely you got adjusted to his size.

"Fuck, you´re so tight, bunny." He groaned, starting to pump in and out, guiding your hips, making you arch your back off the mattress, if they could, your eyes could roll into the back of your head.

"Please, faster." You exclaimed. You were lightheaded, becoming cockdrunk, letting out little moans that made Ashton go wild. "Want to ruin you, so nobody but me gets to use this pussy."

"Fuck! Just like that!" You exclaimed, feeling the pulsing wave of pleasure continue to grow inside of you, clenching around his cock. "You're taking me so well baby girl, won't last much longer with you clenching around me like that." He breathed rapidly.

"I'm close, Ashton." You repeated. "Cum for me bunny, let me feel that perfect fucking pussy." Those words were enough to make you cum alone.

You felt a familiar feeling inside your stomach. You felt Ashton´s cock twitch inside of you, meaning he was close as well.

You released yourself, gushing all over his cock, "Mphhhh.." You mewled and he filled you up to the brim with his cum, with a deep groaning sound,almost animalistic. he pulled out of you, letting his cum spill all over the sheets.

"Give me a second." He said, getting up and going to the bathroom, retrieving some wipes to help you clean up, discarding them in a trash can next to his bed.

"Was that okay?" He smiled. "It was perfect, Ashton." You grinned, looking up at him, pulling him into a kiss.

"Jesus, y/n, you´re gonna be the death of me." He curled his lips up into the kiss.

#ashton irwin #5 seconds of summer #5sos smut #ashton irwin smut #ashton irwin fanfic #ashton irwin x reader #calum hood x reader #5 seconds of summer fanfic

[jasmines-library]

Can you do a Winchester sister fic pls where the sister gets years taken off her life by saving Dean (how Dean took years off his life to save Bobby in season 5) and she’s running out of time and while Sam is finishing up the poker game against the witch to save her, she dies in deans arms (the sister is closer with Dean and always looked up to him and the boys ofc are always protective of her) but then Sam wins the poker game and brings her back

The Curious Case of Dean Winchester

Note: This one was really fun to write. I hope you don't mind that I added my own little twist onto the episode (S5E7) and that it's pretty angsty: I couldn't help myself.

warnings: Death but only brief, swearing once or twice.

Word count: 2.3K (wow it's been a hot minute since I've written like this and i've missed it)

⛤ SPN MASTERLIST ⛤

“Don’t do anything stupid.”

Those were the last words Dean Winchester told you before you split off to search the other side of town. Of course, that is exactly what you did. 

As soon as Cliff Whitlow, the missing victim, had revealed the man behind his so-called miracle, you knew exactly what you had to do. The man behind the unusual deaths- Patrick, was a witch- a powerful one at that. And you needed a Witch. 

See, Dean had got himself into a predicament. He had made a deal with a crossroads demon so that Bobby could walk again. He couldn’t bear to see him so miserable anymore, so he did what he thought was the right thing to do. Bobby was mad, you and Sam even madder, and you were now running out of time to find a way to get him out of it. It frustrated you that Dean’s impending doom was creeping up slowly on  you, ready to grab him at any second, but no one was doing anything about it. So you took matters into your own hands. 

You took the elevator around the back of the bar down to the basement after bribing the bartender with enough money to make you cringe. It was rickety and jolted unnervingly as it descended, opening up into another bar. Few people lingered around sipping from glasses of spirits that lined the walls, though you paid little attention to them because your gaze had locked onto him. He sat smugly in a secluded section of the room behind a table a poker game had been laid out on. Leaning back on his chair he watched his latest victim bet away his life. He was using magic to enchant the poker chips, grinning as he scooped the man's chips towards him, watching as his face turned ashen and grey. 

“That’s a cruel trick you got there.” You said making your way over to the table. 

“Thank you.” He shrugged, rearranging the black and red chips with a smirk. “I take it you’re here for a reason?”

“I want to play.”

He glanced up at you, raising a brow and speaking to you with a thick, Irish lilt. “You look awfully young for someone trying to get more years… that is unless?”

“I’m not a witch.”

“I see.” you were intriguing him now. “How can I help you?”

“My brother. He made a demon deal. I need you to get rid of it in return for my years.”

The witch tilted his head as he looked at you keely. “Now slow down there, princess. Cancelling a demon deal is a very difficult thing to do. Takes a whole bunch of magic and persuasion to do that. Giving me a few years isn’t going to be enough.”

“30.” You laid down. 

“Tempting.” He hummed, “But I think we can have some real fun with this. What do you say?”

“Whatever. Just help my brother.”

“Good answer. I’ll play for your brother’s deal. You win, I'll try to cut your brother's deal.”

“And if I lose?”

“60.” The staggering number almost made your heart stop, but you were doing this for Dean. Sam needed him. The world needed him. “But it’ll start slowly until you least expect it.”

“Deal. Oh and one more thing.”

The witch leaned forwards in his chair

“Dean can’t play to replace my years with his own.”

“You must be very desperate.” The witch mused, gesturing for you to take a seat as he began to shuffle his deck of cards. “That or you’re extremely stupid. Who knows. But I like you. You show loyalty to your family and that’s very important. Perhaps, once you lose I might even see if I can remove your brother's deal. I’m feeling generous today.”

You narrowed your eyes at him. “Just shut up and play.”

~

“Y/N?”

Dean’s voice made you stop dead in your tracks as you rounded the corner after stepping out of the elevator. He stared at you with an irascible look, though you could see the confusion hidden in his eyes. 

“What the hell are you doing here?” He hissed at you. You were supposed to be across the other side of town. When the three of you split up, you took off in the wrong direction to slip into the bar before your brothers found it. You had taken the receipt from one of the victims' jackets and raced down there in hopes that you would make it out before one of them stumbled across it. I guess you were just incredibly unlucky today.

“Planting daisies.” You said sarcastically as you tried to push your way past your brother so he wouldn’t see your face.  “What’s it look like?”

“So you found the game?” He queried, chasing after you. 

“Yep.”

“Did you stop it?”

You kept quiet and continued on straight. You had lied to Dean hundreds of times before so why couldn’t you bring yourself to do it now?

“Y/N?”

You stopped, turning to face him with a sigh.

“Not exactly…”

You could see the dread on his face now. “What did you do?”

You swallowed thickly. “I played. Okay?”

Dean Winchester stared at you dumbfounded for a moment, his lips twitching as he struggled to process the right words. “And?”

“...I lost.”

Your brother nearly exploded. “Are you kidding me?! The one thing I told you not to do was ‘anything studpid’. And you played some He-witch?!”

“Someone had to do something Dean! I can’t just sit by everyday knowing that you could be dragged away from us any second. I can’t go through that again Dean.”

“You idiot.” He was blaming himself, you could hear it on his tongue; the way he seethed. “Sammy and I are looking for something. We will find something.”

“That’s what you said last time. And I'm sorry Dean, but I can’t. Sammy needs you. The world needs you.”

“And you don’t think we need you?! You can’t go throwing your years away.”

“They’re my years. I can do what I want.”

“How many did you lose Y/N?”

“60.”

~

Sam bustled through the door trying to balance a tray of drinks and a paper bag filled with fast food. He slid them on the counter and tossed his keys beside them as he called out.

“Are you guys home?”

“In here, Sammy.” Dean emerged from the bathroom and Sam could tell his brother was mad. He was wearing that stern look and his voice was agitated. 

“Where’s Y/N?”

“Here.” You bundled through the door, glancing silently between your brothers gripping a candy bar you had wrangled from one of the vending machines. You didn’t really want it you just needed an excuse to get out of the motel room and escape from the tension and side glances that Dean shot your way. 

Sam studied you for a moment as you pulled out a chair to slump on. At first glance he hardly noticed it, but he realised that you looked older. Not by a lot, but you moved differently and your eyes were ever so slightly more creased. 

“Either of you two wanna tell me what happened?”

“Y/N’s got a death wish. That’s what happened.” Dean stated, rummaging in the bag that Sam had brought back from the diner. 

“Oh so I was just supposed to let you die? Again?”

“Yes. Or find another way.” Dean spat back at you but you knew he was scared. Scared and feeling guilty for what your near future might entail. 

Sam blinked as the two of you argued, firing words at each other. “Whoa. Slow down. What happened? Did you find the witch?”

“Oh yeah. Y/N found the witch alright, Sammy. Why don’t you tell him what happened, Kid?”

“I played.”

“You what?”

“I played for Dean’s deal to be spoiled… and I lost.”

“Oh God, Y/N/N… How much did you lose?”

“60…” You started, watching the horror cross his features. “But he’s taking them slowly. Waiting until we least expect it.”

“And there’s the punchline.” Dean could have laughed. 

Sam was in shock, though he understood why you had done it. He understood why you were hurting. He was there when Dean was taken. He saw how broken up it made you and he saw how you clung to him when he returned, hesitant to leave his side for weeks. 

“Oh kiddo.” he sighed “What have you gotten yourself into?”

~

“You know, I still think I should play.” Sam said. The three of you had just broken into the Witch’s flat. Sam and Dean believed that if they got hold of the chips then they could find a way to get you your years back, but you had been caught and the witch had revealed that the chips had nothing to do with it. That was when Sam was given the idea to play for you. In the meantime you could feel your body changing and see the lines being etched into your face. 

“No. No.” Dean cut his brother off straight away. “You’re not good enough. I’m better, Y/N's way better. We both lost.”

“What so I don’t get a say in this anymore? Dean can’t play so I’m the only option we got. I’ve watched you hustle plenty of poker games. Hell, that’s how Y/N learnt-”

“Sammy.” You pleaded. You knew that if this went wrong everything you did would have been for nothing. “Please. No.”

“Y/N. We can’t just let you… you’ll die. We’re going to find you a way out of this. I promise.”

~

“Take it.” The blonde woman, the one from the bar and the witch’s apartment, was perched on your bed as the three of you hustled back into the room. Dean’s fingers instinctively reached for the gun he had tucked in his waistband. “It’ll help.”

Sam took the parchment gingerly, turning it over in his hands before reading the messy handwriting scrawled across the page. “What is this?”

“The most powerful reversal spell you’ve ever laid your eyes on.”

“And it reverses what?” Dean asked.

“Patrick’s work. All of it.”

“You saying she could be normal again?” Your brother’s hand found your shoulder protectively.

“Her and everyone else he’s ever played.” She said before adding “who’s still alive.”

“Why the hell should we trust you?” Sam scowled.

“Trust me, don’t trust me. I don’t care.” She stood and made her way to the door. “The spell is real.”

“If it zaps everyone, doesn’t that include your man?” Dean asked. 

“And me too.” She shrugged, “I look good for my age.”

“Lady, this don’t add up for shit.” Dean said. “Why would you want that?”

“I have my reasons.” her hand went to fiddle with the silver locket around her neck before she fled. “Do it quickly. We leave town tomorrow.”

~

The spell hadn’t worked. 

When Dean tossed the toothpick Sam had smuggled him into the flames he looked up at you with a hopeful glint in his eyes but nothing happened. You didn’t get younger. And Sam was still betting his life away against that witch. 

You could feel it now, the way your life was slowly slipping away. At first you didn’t really notice it, but as soon as you began pursuing Patrick, you knew your end was approaching quickly. You supposed that ‘when you least expected’ was a lot closer than you expected. The thought made you bitter as you shuffled into the car, wincing at the way your joints ached the way they would after a long hunt or session at the gym. 

Dean glanced at you through Baby’s mirror as he sped down the road towards Patrick’s apartment in search of some more of his DNA. His concern grew as you climbed the stairs much slower than you would usually have done and as you entered his room.

The two of you searched quickly, looking anywhere for a speck of something that might contain just a speck of his DNA. another one of those toothpicks or something. Albeit the pair of you were struggling to find anything. 

And then it is you. All at once your joints popped and clicked as your body changed suddenly. You cried out in pain as your brother ran to your side to catch you before you could hit the ground. 

“No. No. Not yet.”

You blinked up at him as you struggled to breath, your heart slowing as your body forgot how to function. 

“Dean…” Your voice faded as he cradled you in his arms. Your breaths slowing and your eyes fluttering.

“No.” His voice broke as he fumbled for his phone. “No you hang on sweetheart. Come on Sammy, pick up!”

There was no answer as Dean’s phone rang and went straight through to Sam’s voicemail. “Son of a bitch!” he exclaimed as he through his phone across the room, tears streaming down his face as he clung to you. Watching your chest slowly rise and fall. Up and down…up and down…up..and…down…up-

There was nothing after that. You lay morbidly still in his arms as your body ceased to function. 

“No! Y/N. I can’t lose you now. Please….”

You did not move and the room was filled with the sound of your big brother’s grief and he sobbed. And then, you took a gasping breath and sat up abruptly in his arms. 

Your body had returned to normal. The extra wrinkles around your eyes and the grey hairs gone. Your breaths were steady and your heart was strong. 

“Y/N/N?” He whispered.

“Dean?” Your eyes searched him. “Sammy did it.”

“Yeah.” He breathed out, squeezing you tightly. “I knew he would.”

Dean’s phone began to ring from across the room. Reluctantly, he peeled himself away from you as he moved to get it, though his attention never strayed far from you.”

“Dean?!” You heard your other brother over the speakers. “Is she okay?”

“Yeah. You did it, Sam. She’s going to be just fine.”

#supernatural x reader #supernatural #spn x reader #dean Winchester #Dean Winchester x Reader #dean winchester x injured reader #Dean Winchester x sister reader #dean winchester x little sister reader #supernatural x little sister reader #supernatural x sister reader #Sam Winchester #Sam Winchester x reader #sam winchester x injured sister reader #sam winchester x little sister reader #sam winchester x sister reader #spn fanfic #supernatural fanfic #death #swearing #hurt/comfort #hurt no comfort #angst

[laurenairay]

you can’t blame a girl for trying - C. Makar

Summary: The night Luna met Cale, she thought her world was going to get turned upside down…so why are all of their dates such disasters? Also known as, the Cale Makar dating fail fic. 4 times a date with Cale failed, and 1 time a date went well.

Word Count: 9.8k words.

Warnings: some bad language, awkward situations, one bloody injury, anxiety, 4+1, fluff

A/N: this has been a work of love over the past few months, a WIP I kept going back and forth from, and I just want to say thanks to @wyattjohnston​ for all of the support and encouragement!

Title credit; Lasso by The Band Perry

also tagging @hockeylvr59​ @fallinallincurls​ @starshine-hockey-girl​

*

Friday night

When I first laid eyes on you, Well, the night just felt so odd, You looked at me and the stars lined up, So I thought I'd heard from God, And I gave him my best shot.

Friday nights were made for dancing, drinking, and letting go of the stresses of the week. At least, that’s what Luna believed. Going out with friends to blow off some steam felt so cathartic, and this evening was no different. She’d come out to one of her favourite bars in Downtown Denver with some friends from work, and she’d danced, sang, and gossiped her heart out, a few shots of vodka easing the way into the weekend. This was her comfort zone for sure, and she knew her confidence turned heads just as much as the loud conversation with her friends did.

A few cute guys had come over to their table, clearly intent on talking to a couple of her friends – which Luna was absolutely cheerleading because get it girls – and she took the time to escape to the bar herself, ready for another drink. It was only when the bartender had taken her order that she noticed a guy staring at her from down the bar. Huh. He was cute, that much was clear even if he wasn’t Hollywood Handsome, and the way his shoulders filled out his shirt definitely caught her eye. Well it couldn’t hurt to hold a conversation of her own while her friends were busy, no? Luna flipped her long dark hair over her shoulder, tilting her head invitingly, and the guy’s eyes widened slightly before he slowly made his away over. She couldn’t remember the last time a guy looked so nervous to talk to her, especially a guy this cute, and it only enthralled her more. When he finally reached her side, she forced down the butterflies stirring in her stomach at just how much bigger he was than her. Wow.

“Hi,” she murmured, looking up at him through her lashes.

“Hi…do you come here often?”

Oh wow.

Luna couldn’t stop her inelegant snort at his cheesy words, grinning slightly at the mortified blush that crept over the guy’s face. “How often has that line worked for you?”

“I’ve literally never used that line before in my life, I am so sorry,” he groaned.

Simply by the horrified look on his face and the stiff way he held himself, it let her know that he was telling her the entire truth. Poor lamb. Somehow it was endearing though.

“I’m Luna,” she mused, holding out her hand.

He quickly took it, shaking her hand gently, yet she could still sense the strength of his grip. Definitely something she appreciated in a man.

“I’m Cale,” he replied, more relieved than anything else, “Do you mind if we forget the last 30 seconds?”

“Oh I’m remembering this for years – you’re not getting out of that embarrassing line that easily,” she smirked.

The guy…Cale…groaned but seemed to laugh at himself anyway, shrugging his agreement. “That’s fair.”

Luna just smiled to herself, taking him in. She tried waving off Cale’s offer to buy her drink as the bartender finally appeared back in front of her, smiling her thanks as Cale just added it to his tab – who was this guy? – taking a sip of her vodka soda while her eyes not-so-subtly ran over the man next to her. Just as cute as she’d thought when she first spotted his eyes on hers, shoulders somehow even broader in the best way, and his blue eyes were both pretty and earnest. Not to mention tousled light brown hair that she just wanted to run her fingers through, and a perma-blush dusting across his cheeks? He’d definitely caught her attention looking this good, even if his clear awkwardness being in this environment caught her attention even more.

What was this guy’s deal?

“You really don’t come here often, do you?”

“I can’t say a bar of this…intensity is my usual forte, no. I’m just here with friends,” he admitted.

Honesty. She could appreciate that. And he was cute…

“So what would be your forte?” she asked smoothly, tilting her head ever-so-slightly again.

He immediately picked up on her change in tone, her lean towards flirting, and it was almost as if his whole demeanour changed; his shoulders broadened as he relaxed against the bar top, his nervousness eased out, and he smiled softly. She liked it.

“Somewhere a lot quieter. Can’t exactly talk to someone properly when I can’t hear them, hm? Can’t appreciate them like they deserve here,” he shrugged, although his eyes locked with hers, intense and intent.

Oh damn. How direct. How perfect.

“Somewhere quieter to appreciate someone? Like what?” she asked, smile curling at her lips, playing along with his flirting.

“A private intimate dinner. Maybe a little light music, just to set the mood. Candlelight, flowers, excellent wine,” he said with an effortless smile.

Oh he had game, finally.

“That sounds much more appealing than this place. I can see why it’s more your forte,” she said as neutrally as she could.

Nice and neutral, just to see what he would do next. Just to see if he would take the bait.

“Maybe I should take you some time then. Take the opportunity to get to know you properly,” he suggested, eyebrow raising in suggestion.

Oh wow. Hook, line, and sinker – she was intrigued.

“I could be up for that,” Luna replied simply, smiling innocently back, giving none of her racing thoughts away.

“Sounds like a date,” he grinned.

*

Thursday night

“So you’re really going out on a date with awkward bar guy?”

Luna glanced away from where she was putting on mascara in the mirror, frowning at her flatmate Elena standing in the doorway.

“Cale?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Weird name,” Elena snorted.

“Rude,” Luna shot back.

Elena just stuck her tongue out in retaliation, making Luna laugh. It wasn’t that Elena was acting strange or jealous – she was protective. The two girls had lived together since college, meeting freshman year and moving in with a group of friends in sophomore year. While everyone else had moved away or moved back home, they were the only two to stay in Denver and they knew each other well enough to not want to separate as well.

She and Elena were two peas in a pod, both outgoing and still loving the nightlife that their chosen city gave them, but still with that comforting balance of girls’ nights in; both sharing so much in common that Luna truly considered Elena to be her best friend. And to be honest, Luna couldn’t fault her friend for being overprotective; it wasn’t like her dating history was all that great, and it could never hurt to have a friend looking out for her. Especially when it came to meeting up with strangers.

“Look, he’s really cute and we’re meeting in a public place,” Luna pointed out, “And he was really dorky with his flirting. Even when he got a little smoother, that blush told me everything I need to know about how little he actually flirts around.”

Elena tilted her head in acknowledgement. “Not a fuckboy?” she asked.

“Not that I can tell. I’m pretty good at spotting a red flag like that,” Luna mused.

“And you normally run headfirst towards those red flags,” Elena teased.

Well that was unfairly true.

“Maybe meeting Cale is the break I’ve been looking for,” Luna said, shrugging.

“For your sake, Lu, I hope so,” Elena laughed.

In the week that had passed since she’d met Cale in the bar, having exchange numbers after talking over a couple of drinks, they’d texted here and there; mostly to confirm what day and time to meet for the dinner he’d romanticised about, but also tentatively getting to know each other. Luna hadn’t been lying when she said that she hadn’t spotted any signs of him being a fuckboy. He seemed sweet, and genuine, and even a little shy, which surprised her considering how attractive he was. Then again, it wasn’t like her to judge a book by its cover, so she was trying to keep an open mind about how such a hot broad-shouldered guy could be so modest.

To be honest, she was looking forward to finding out more in person this Thursday night.

Soon enough, she was happy enough with her appearance, smoothing her floaty silk dress over her curves – apparently their restaurant tonight had a dress code – and by the time she’d slipped into a cute pair of heels, her uber was outside.

“Have fun!” Elena grinned from where she was sat on their sofa, “Don’t forget – no glove, no love.”

“Oh my god, not on the first date,” Luna groaned, feeling her cheeks heat up at the ridiculous advice.

Elena just shrieked with laughter as Luna shut the door behind her, leaving her cheeks still burning as she headed towards the waiting uber. The drive to the restaurant was short, not giving her any time to get too nervous, even though she’d taken even precaution by not giving Cale her address and so on, and when the uber pulled to a stop, she smiled to herself as she noticed Cale already standing in the street.

But when she got out of the car, shutting the door behind her, she noticed that Cale looked frazzled, eyes a little wild, sending a pang of worry through her body. What the hell?

“Uh, hi?” she said, more than a little awkward as she waved hello.

“Hi!” he blurted out, although he didn’t look any less stressed.

“Is everything okay?” she frowned.

“The restaurant we were meant to go to, the one I’d made a booking with for tonight, is closed,” he huffed, running a hand through his hair.

“What?”

How had he been able to make a booking, if the place was closed?

Cale pointed just to the left of where they were standing, and it was only then that she noticed a couple of even-more-frazzled people standing out the front of a darkened restaurant, in the typical white shirts and black trousers of waiters, talking to people apologetically.

“What happened?” she frowned.

“A pipe burst,” he explained, making her groan in understanding, “It flooded the main dining area but also shorted out their booking system.”

“So they couldn’t contact anybody who had reservations for tonight,” she guessed.

“Exactly!” Cale nodded, before sighing, “I just wanted tonight to be perfect, to wine and dine you just as I said, and even that can’t go right.”

The poor guy looked miserable, genuinely upset as well as flustered at the thought of not taking her out on the date he’d promised her, and it made her heart ache a little. When was the last time she’d met such a sincere person?

“Hey, this isn’t your fault. And it’s definitely not their fault, so there’s nothing to blame here other than some shitty pipes?” Luna mused.

Cale huffed out a laugh, nodding his acknowledgement, making Luna smile as he smiled slightly too.

“Sorry for not texting you in time – I only got here a few minutes before you did, and I spent that time talking to the restaurant staff as they apologised,” he winced.

“No harm, no foul,” she laughed, shrugging, “Not all plans go smoothly.”

“Still…we can reschedule? I’ll find another restaurant for another time?” Cale offered.

“We can’t still go out tonight?” Luna asked, confused.

Unless he was trying to think of an excuse not to see her…

“I mean, I don’t think anywhere I wanted to take you will seat us tonight without a reservation,” he explained.

Oh.

Oh.

He really wanted to wine and dine her, didn’t he? Pull out all the stops, everything fancy?

“You know, I don’t need anything high-end to be on a date with you,” she pointed out, “I’d be happy somewhere really low-key.”

“Really? Even though we’re dressed up fancy?” Cale frowned.

Luna looked down at her silk dress and his nicely tailored charcoal grey suit, before shrugging. “So we may be the nicest dressed people in the next place, that doesn’t matter.”

Cale laughed softly, shaking his head fondly. “You might be the most chilled-out person I’ve ever met.”

“And you are adorably flustered over a restaurant reservation,” she teased, earning a fierce blush, “Come on, relax a little. It’ll be fun.”

“I promise I’ll make it up to you,” he insisted.

What a sweetheart. Still incredibly flustered, but sweet.

“Alright, it’s a deal,” she mused, earning a smile, “And I know just the place. Let me just text my flatmate about the change in plans.”

“Ah yeah, of course. Safety first!” he nodded seriously.

Could this guy be any more perfect? Really?

~

To: Elena

The restaurant has a burst pipe.

[image]

I’m going to take him to Tom’s diner down on Colfax.

~

To: Luna

Oh man, that sucks for the restaurant. But thanks for keeping me in the loop.

Hah oh wow, I bet he’ll love that place in his fancy suit.

~

To: Elena

How did you guess he was wearing a fancy suit?

~

To: Luna

I just got those vibes.

Fancy restaurant equals fancy suit.

But seriously, have fun!

And have a chocolate milkshake for me.

~

Luna smiled and tucked her phone back into her handbag, earning a smile from Cale.

“Is your flatmate okay with us changing location?” he asked.

His eyes were earnest, letting her know he wasn’t teasing in the slightest, allowing her to relax slightly. “Yeah, she’s glad I let her know. And she’ll be even happier that you understand that it’s important,” Luna nodded.

Cale just smiled a little wider, looking pleased with himself, making her laugh at his reaction.

“Ready to change things up?”

“I trust you. Can’t be worse than my attempt to take us out to dinner,” he winced.

“Alright, I’ll keep it a surprise then,” she grinned, “It’s not like you could’ve predicted a burst pipe.”

Cale just laughed, shrugging in an easy going way, Luna just smiling as she pulled her phone back out to pull up an uber request. Soon enough the two of them were on their way, and Cale’s eyes went wide when they eventually pulled to a stop.

“Oh man, you weren’t kidding about changing things up,” he said, smiling.

The smile let her know that he wasn’t put off by her casual choice, and she just waved goodbye to the uber driver as she stepped up next to him.

“I figured that a fancy place was off the cards tonight, so why not go for something comfy and casual,” she shrugged, “The food here is great and so are the vibes.”

“Can’t go wrong with that,” Cale grinned, opening the door to the diner for her.

Sure, they might’ve been the only people in the place in a fancy silk dress and effortlessly tailored suit, but that just made it more fun. Luna knew she looked good and she felt good in her dress, so what was wrong with that? It didn’t hurt that Cale looked amazing in his suit too, all the lines accentuating his incredible physique. And maybe tonight hadn’t gone as well as planned so far – but that wasn’t anything a chocolate milkshake couldn’t solve.

“So what’s good here?” Cale asked.

If he was put off by how sticky the table and menus are, he wasn’t showing it.

“Okay, get ready for the burger that will change your life.” Luna said, smiling.

*

Friday morning

To: Luna

Hey, are you free on Sunday?

~

To: Cale

For you Cale, absolutely.

What did you have in mind?

~

To: Luna

I thought it might be nice to visit Denver Botanic Gardens?

It’s meant to be really pretty there.

And I thought it might be good to try something different than dinner.

~

To: Cale

Dinner last week was great, even if not how you planned.

But a walk around the Gardens sounds good to me!

~

Sunday morning

Luna checked out her outfit one last time in the mirror before leaving to catch her bus to meet Cale. She’d decided on wearing a pretty blue sundress, dotted with tiny pale pink flowers – it had a mid-depth v-neck and cinched at her waist, more than enough to let her feel as feminine as she liked without feeling over the top. It wasn’t anything fancy, not like her silk dress from their first date last week, but it was still more than nice enough to show Cale that she’d made an effort.

Her dark brown hair was perfectly straightened, make-up simple but pretty, and her shoes were comfortable to walk around in – she was ready.

Elena wasn’t home right now to tease her or boost her confidence, either of which she could’ve used to distract her from the butterflies she felt in her stomach. All Luna could hope was that this would go smoother than their first date. All of their conversations over text had been so easy since the night of the restaurant fail three days ago, so she desperately wanted that to continue throughout their date today.

Different setting, different time of day, different vibe.

Positive thinking, right?

Thankfully her bus ride was fairly quiet, leaving her as relaxed as she possibly could be as she walked up to the entrance of the botanical gardens. Cale was waiting for her off to the side, and the wide smile he sent her when he spotted her walking towards him sent those butterflies going crazy again. Wow. He looked so good in his white polo shirt and jeans. How was it possible for anyone to make a polo-shirt look that good? His broad shoulders and defined chest filled it out so well, and it took all of her effort not to get caught staring at him.

“Hey, you look beautiful,” he said sweetly.

She laughed softly even as she felt her cheeks heat up with a blush. “Flattery will get you everywhere.”

Cale just grinned. “Good to know. Shall we?”

Luna tucked her hand into the crook of his elbow as he offered it to her, trying to tamper down the giddy feeling rising in her chest. What a gentleman.

The next few hours were spent arm in arm, walking and talking, everything going to smoothly that it felt like she was floating through a dream. The botanic gardens were incredible, she had to give him extra points there for how pretty everything was, and she loved that she was experiencing it all with him. Strolling around the Monet Pond with Cale by her side? Win. Hushed conversation through the Shofu-en Japanese garden? Win. Everything from the orangery to the iris garden to the oak grove, they wandered through and around it all for hours and hours, just talking and laughing, enjoying each other’s company on this beautiful day.

The whole vibe was so incredibly different to their first date, completely different atmosphere, and she loved that she got to see this side of him too. His easy laugh, warm smile, and attentive listening was winning her over quicker than she ever thought possible, if she was being honest with herself, and she couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt this at ease with a guy this quickly. It was everything she’d been wanting for so long, and she almost felt like pinching herself to see if it was all real.

But all good things had to come to an end.

One moment sunlight was streaming down warming their skin, and the next dark cloud cover had rolled out over the blue sky, a gusting wind picking up. Before Luna could even voice her wonder to Cale, a deluge began, rain hammering down in a way that momentarily stunned them both, before they quickly ducked under a tree as refuge.

“What the hell,” Luna gasped, clutching her handbag to her chest, trying not to think about how her dress was sticking to her skin.

Cale still looked stunned, eyes wide as he watched the pouring rain in front of them, before he seemed to shake himself out of his stupor. “Let’s make a run for the gift shop?” he said, pointing to a building in the distance.

“Good idea!”

Luna found herself smiling as Cale took her hand, the two of them wasting no time in breaking into a light jog through the lilac garden, unable to talk as they went because of how heavily the rain was battering down. By the time they eventually reached the visitor center, far from the only people sheltering inside, Luna was completely drenched from head to toe, her dress soaked through and her hair a sopping mess.

Of all the things – a freak heavy rain shower. What were the chances?

Cale guided the two of them to the far side of the gift shop, an illusion of privacy, before stopping to stand in front of her.

“Are you okay?” Cale asked, pushing his dripping hair off his forehead.

She tried to ignore how disappointed she felt when he let her hand go.

“Oh, yeah, I’m fine! Not what I expected to happen today, but fine,” she laughed, “Are you okay?”

“Other than another date going awry, sure,” he said, frowning slightly.

“Two dates in a row where original plans have gone wrong,” Luna mused.

“This has never happened to me before. I swear!” Cale groaned.

“Cale, relax – it’s not like you could control any of it? You literally couldn’t predict that pipe bursting in the restaurant, and you certainly can’t control the weather,” she teased.

“I know, I know,” he laughed, making her smile in return, “I just want something to run smoothly for once, to make a good impression with you, you know?”

Well that was sweet.

“You’ve already made a good impression, I promise. Dressing up all fancy to eat in a diner was a memorable first date,” Luna insisted, laughing softly, “And what we had of this second date was good too…up until we got soaked.”

He winced, nodding his head in acknowledgement. “Shall we do a rain check then? No pun intended.”

As much as she would’ve liked to have continued on with the date, like they had the first time that their original date plan had failed, this time she was soaked to the bone and so unbelievably uncomfortable. And she dreaded to think what her mascara looked like.

“Definitely reschedule. Maybe an indoor one next time just in case?” she mused.

“Yeah that sounds like a good idea,” he said, laughing again, although his cheeks flooded with a fierce blush, “Can I at least give you a ride home so you’re not sitting on the bus soaking wet?”

Oh what a sweetheart.

And absolutely what she needed.

“That would be great,” she nodded.

Elena was going to get a real laugh out of this date, that was for sure.

*

Thursday night

“I can’t say I was expecting you to suggest this for our third date.”

Cale just laughed, nodding his acknowledgement as she waved goodbye to her uber driver, moving to stand by his side.

“I know, it’s not my usual. But I heard good things about this place anyway? One of my neighbours goes out in this area a fair bit and this is one of the bars she always talks about in the elevator,” Cale explained.

He hadn’t waited to ask her out after their failed-date in the rainy botanic gardens – the moment that he pulled up outside her apartment building, he’d asked her to go out with him again, somewhere ‘indoors’ this time as she’d teased. After tentatively suggesting Thursday night then and there, Luna leaving him with a kiss on the cheek, he’d texted her the next morning with a plan, leaving the two of them to resume their easy conversation just like before.

As their date drew nearer that Thursday night, Luna had kept things casual with her outfit again, at Cale’s suggestion, wearing a pretty white blouse over her favourite black jeans, pairing it with a pair of pretty silver hoops, black leather jacket and her comfy black ankle boots. Simple but again it left her feeling confident, which shone through to add that little extra edge. While she had gotten herself ready for the evening, she’d drank a glass of wine with Elena, her flatmate sitting on the end of Luna’s bed to tease and support her, a much-needed girl’s time while she dressed and put on her make-up, so by the time her uber pulled up outside the bar that Cale had suggested, her butterflies were in full effect.

Despite the fact that their two dates so far had each failed to a certain degree, she was still excited to spend the time with him, desperately hoping that for this date things would just run smoothly. She deserved that much, right?

“Hey Cale!” she said with a big smile, as she walked up to where he was waiting for her.

“Hey Luna,” he replied sweetly.

As she leant up to kiss his cheek in greeting, just as she had on Sunday afternoon when he drove her home in the rain, his cheeks flushed a vivid red, only making her smile even wider. If that reaction was anything to go by, he was just as excited to see her as she was to see him, which could only be a good thing.

“It’s good to see you again. I haven’t been here before, but I know there’s definitely indoor seating,” he mused, a playful nod to their interrupted outing four days ago.

“So you haven’t been here yourself?” she teased.

Cale blushed slightly again but shook his head, making her laugh. She already knew he wasn’t a bar person – he’d admitted as much the first time they met. So why now?

“Why a bar tonight then?” she asked curiously, eyeing the expanse of outdoor bench seating and music drifting out from inside the building.

“It’s a pretty casual place, rather than the intensity of the bar we first met in?”

Well that answers that question.

“…and I know you feel comfortable in these situations so I thought I’d push the boat out since my last two attempts didn’t work out well?” he offered.

“That’s really sweet, Cale,” she said, smiling softly, “But I don’t want to be comfortable at your expense. If it gets too much at any point, let me know? I’d hate for you to feel completely out of sorts.”

“Deal,” he nodded, smiling in relief as the two of them finally made their way towards the entrance, “We can do easy low-key drinks, right?”

“Definitely,” Luna replied, laughing.

Cale just smiled a little wider, holding open the door of the bar for her. Immediately she was hit with the familiar scents and sounds and vibe of a well-loved local bar, and she quickly relaxed. He was right – this was definitely her preferred social scene, and the fact that he was willing to be here with her, trying out the bar that was new to both of them? That made her heart beat just that little bit further, she could admit that.

Somehow they managed to snag a table in the corner, leaving her with a view of the entire room and Cale with his back to everyone, both of them comfortable with the situation. It was far from the fanciest place – definitely far from the bar that they’d met in those couple of weeks ago – but it was busy and comforting and had a great vibe. Luna was honestly excited to see how this evening went, eager to see him in this kind of setting, and she loved that he was trying to do something she felt comfortable with. Hopefully it wouldn’t come at the cost of his own comfort, but time would only tell.

“What can I get you to drink?” he asked, resting his forearms on their small table.

Luna happily asked for a glass of wine, figuring it was probably safer to stick with what she’d already started drinking at home, and soon enough he returned from the bar. They eased into conversation as easily as they always did, talking about their week so far, stress from their workplaces, ridiculous stories about Elena and Luna’s work colleagues as well as Cale’s own colleagues. Speaking of colleagues…Cale also finally told her about his job. About the fact that he was a hockey player in the NHL. It blew her mind a little that he had even looked her way that first night in the bar, that he was still interested in little old her, but she could tell that as much as he was trying to downplay his career to her, he was so incredibly proud of everything he’d achieved. Which, yeah, maybe she should’ve recognised him or at least his name from the Cup Championship last year – but to be honest, she was a football fan (go Broncos!) and had never seen a hockey game in her life. For some reason, that admission eased out a line of tension in his shoulders that she hadn’t realised was there, easing her guilt a little for not knowing who he was. If Cale – Cale Makar – wanted to keep his career low-key with her for the moment, then she was absolutely happy to let him do that. It just showed her yet again how much of a genuinely low-maintenance chilled-out guy he was, and it only made her like him more.

One drink turned into two, Luna buying the second round seeing as he bought the first. As she sat back down at their table, she launched into the details of the trip she was planning in the summer to go back home to see her family, Cale admitting he would be doing the same for the first time in a while. Easy, breezy, fun conversation as always. People ebbed and flowed from the bar, filling up the room beside them, but it felt like they were in their own bubble, nothing mattering outside their little table. How did things feel so easy with him, after only a matter of weeks? It felt crazy, if she was being honest with herself, but she sure as hell wasn’t going to complain.

Halfway through the third round of drinks though – he bought this round, taking things in turn again – someone cleared their throat into a microphone, snapping Luna’s attention across the room. What the hell?

“Testing, testing, one, two, three.”

Oh no.

Everything had been going so well…

“Alright, welcome back to Thursday nights at Tavern on 26th! Who’s ready for karaoke?”

Karaoke.

Fuck.

Luna quickly looked over at Cale, who had gone white as a sheet and looked horrified.

“You didn’t know?” she asked, grimacing.

“Not a clue. I’ve never been here before!” he groaned, “And my neighbour has never said anything about karaoke!”

Luna couldn’t help but laugh, a little resigned already. “Well it is our luck, I suppose.”

“Maybe it won’t be so bad?” Cale offered.

“Up first, Miranda with Total Eclipse of the Heart!”

Maybe not.

As the wailing voice started out across the room, a pained look flashed across Cale’s face, making Luna laugh again. “Shall we get out of here?”

“Yeah, I think that’s a good idea,” Cale said, sighing softly, “Sorry.”

“Hey.”

Luna rested her hand lightly on his forearm, smiling softly as he looked down at her.

“Not your fault. You didn’t know,” she shrugged.

“I should’ve looked it up? Checked out the bar’s event page?”

“Who does that for a low-key bar, eh?” she mused. “Why don’t we just go for a walk?”

“So much for third time lucky,” he said dryly, grimacing as the chorus started.

Damn, this ‘Miranda’ was clearly heartbroken and at least one bottle of wine down. At least.

“Date’s not over yet,” she said simply, “Just because we don’t want to stay in this bar, doesn’t mean we can’t keep talking on a walk, right?”

“You are too forgiving,” he said, huffing out a laugh.

“There’s nothing to forgive,” she replied. “Now let’s get out of here before the key change.”

“Oh fuck yes,” he laughed.

He held a hand out to help her up from their table, Luna gladly taking it, smiling to herself as Cale didn’t let go. As he threaded their fingers together, she felt an unfamiliar blush settling dusting across her cheeks, Cale smiling down at her. “Ready?”

“Ready.”

Another date plan fail.

Hopefully the walk would salvage what was left of it, the alcohol in her system making her not want to leave him just yet. But as he said, it was third time unlucky – was that a sign? What was the universe trying to tell her, in making the plans for their third date come to an abrupt fail? As much as his smile gave her butterflies, could she really ignore all of these signs?

For this evening, she absolutely could, she knew that much. Holding his hand while they walked out of the bar felt too good not to.

*

Friday morning

To: Luna

Hey, I’m sorry about last night.

Again.

Can I make it up to you?

~

To: Cale

No apologies! The bar was fun…before the terrible karaoke.

But I’d love to see you again?

~

To: Luna

Fourth time lucky, right?

How do you feel about going on a picnic on Sunday?

~

To: Cale

I can’t remember the last time I went on a picnic.

I’d love to.

~

To: Luna

Okay great!

Leave everything to me.

I’ll pick you up at midday?

~

To: Cale

Okay sure, sounds like a plan!

~

Sunday midday

For once, Luna was driving her old car to their date today – she rarely drove, usually preferring public transport, mainly due to the lack of decent public car parking available in downtown where she spent a lot of her time, but Cale had already promised her that the park he’d chosen had plenty of parking spaces, leaving her able to sing along to the radio as she drove, calming her nerves a bit.

Sure, she’d decided to wear a pretty green dress, floaty and low-cut but still cute, curling her hair to give herself that extra boost of confidence. Sure, Elena had let her borrow her comfy white sneakers, keeping the outfit casual. And sure, she’d even had the chance to facetime with Cale yesterday before his game in Minnesota, knowing they wouldn’t get a chance to speak before their date today. But it was Elena’s hesitant words that had left the usual butterflies feeling a little frantic.

A picnic in a park? The two of you are chancing the outdoors again with your luck?

Because Elena wasn’t wrong. Three dates they’d been on now, and not a single one had gone by without a fail. The pipe burst in the restaurant. The unexpected rainstorm in the botanic gardens. The sudden karaoke in the bar. She could only wonder what today would bring, even as much as Elena tried to hype her up with positive attitude.

As she pulled into the parking lot, spotting Cale easily with his cheery smile and wave, she tried to let all of the worries go. Cale wanted to be here on this date with her. He wanted to be with her, which should be enough in itself, right? Fourth time lucky, that’s what he joked. She could only hope he was right.

“Hey, glad you made it okay,” Cale said, smiling as she locked the car behind her.

“Old Betsy may be getting on in life but she still gets me around,” Luna laughed, shrugging.

“You named your car Old Betsy?” he teased.

Luna fought back the blush on her cheeks. “What, you haven’t named your car?”

“I can’t say that I have…”

From there, their conversation started up as naturally as always, Luna smiling as they walked through the park, glad that there wasn’t too much of a crowd yet, letting him lead her to a shaded area under a tree. Perfect.

“I packed a few things for us – I hope they’re all okay?”

As Cale spread out the blanket he’d had tucked under his arm, Luna opened up the picnic basket he’d been holding, eyes wide as she took in all the tubs inside.

Mini vegetable tarts. Chicken salad. Sliced strawberries and kiwis. Double chocolate brownies. Freshly squeezed orange juice from a deli. If she was being honest, Luna was a little blown away at the thought he’d put into this picnic basket, and she knew by the little smile on Cale’s face that he was pleased with himself – as he should be.

“This looks amazing, Cale. Wow,” she murmured, still a little stunned.

“I hope it tastes as good as it looks,” he mused.

Luna just laughed, shaking her head. If nothing else, the effort would win out over anything else – no-one had ever tried so hard to make sure she was happy. She sat down with her legs crossed, facing him as he pulled out the various tubs as well as cutlery, leaving the napkins in the basket for now, smiling at how happy he looked. He really was so cute, wasn’t he?

“Dig in, please!”

Well he didn’t have to tell her twice.

Between bites of food, talking about their last few days apart including the game that Cale scored the winning goal on, as well as people watching and cooing over cute dogs, the next couple of hours passed easily. Luna found herself basking in Cale’s happy smile, sweet and shy all at once, all of her earlier worries melting away. Here was an amazing guy, who’d planned an amazing date, and everything was perfect. The whole date was perfect, from the location to the relaxed atmosphere, and she couldn’t help the wide smile on her face. Finally. Finally.

Eventually, after they’d faux-battled with their forks for the last strawberry, Cale packed all of the tubs away in the basket, letting them both stretch out their legs across the blanket.

“I can’t believe how full I am,” Luna groaned.

“Me too,” Cale laughed, resting a hand on his stomach, “I may have overdone it with that last brownie.”

“So worth it though,” she grinned.

Cale just grinned back, nodding his agreement. A man who appreciated food – she could definitely appreciate that.

Luna tilted her head back for a brief moment, closing her eyes as she let the sun wash over her and sink into her skin, before she opened her eyes again. Out of the corner of her eye, a large black object flew across her vision, and just as she turned her head to see what it was, she saw it collide with Cale’s face with a crunch.

And then blood started pouring down his face.

Oh god, a drone. A drone had hit him smack in the face, and the crunch wasn’t just the plastic either. Fuck.

“Fuck,” Cale groaned, clutching at his face with wide eyes as he unknowingly echoed her thoughts.

What the hell?!

Without hesitating, Luna pulled out the bundle of napkins from the picnic basket, quickly passing them to him, and he wasted no time in pressing them to his nose with a wince. Oh shit. Oh shit, he was really injured, what the hell was this? Of all the things to happen, even with their track record, this was terrible. Fuck, poor Cale.

“Oh man I am so sorry, a dog ran into me and I lost control…”

The apologetic voice trailed off, just as the two of them looked up.

“Oh god no, I broke Cale Makar,” the man gasped.

Shit. A fan. Now she could see why Cale wanted to keep his career so low-key with her – attention like this really wasn’t what he enjoyed, not in this kind of setting. She could only hope this wouldn’t get plastered all over the internet; they’d spoken before on how much social media could drag people down, and that was the last thing she wanted for him, especially because they were on a date. But what could she do?

Cale winced, shaking his head. “Really, it’s fine. Doesn’t feel broken.”

Luna raised an eyebrow, not believing him in the slightest, but stayed quiet for Cale’s sake. If he wanted to make a fan feel better then that was his choice – and fair enough, the guy looked distraught – but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to make sure he had it looked at properly.

“Let’s get you cleaned up, yeah?” she said lightly, smiling as genuinely as she could.

“Good idea,” Cale nodded, voice muffled through the tissues.

The guy apologised profusely again as they stood up, Cale just waving him off as Luna picked up the basket and blanket, and they started to walk back through the park towards the parking lot. She could see people stopping and staring at them, not just because of the blood staining his white t-shirt, each time Cale’s shoulders stiffening a little more, him looking more and more uncomfortable as they made their escape. Finally, when their path was a little clearer, almost at the exit, she took the chance to glance up at him, feeling a pang of sympathy at how miserable he looked as he held the bloody tissues to his nose.

“Hospital then?”

“No, definitely not,” he groaned, shaking his head, only making her frown.

Why was he being difficult?

“Cale, you really should have that looked at,” she said hesitantly.

“Oh, no, shit, yeah I will, you’re right about that. I just think maybe it might be better to go to the medical staff at the arena? I know there’s some of them working today, and it’ll avoid any fans taking photos.”

That made much more sense.

“Fair enough,” she mused, trying not to grimace at the fact he had to take publicity into account. “I’ll drive us, yeah? I guess you can send someone to pick up your car later?”

Cale just nodded, wincing again, making Luna grimace in sympathy. Thankfully she hadn’t parked too far away from where they’d walked in, and in no time at all, she was buckling her seatbelt, waiting for Cale to do the same before she started the engine of her old car.

“Do you want to call and give a heads up that you’re coming in? So that we’re not held up at the gate?” she suggested, pulling up directions on her own phone.

“Another good idea. You have a lot of those,” Cale nodded, “Shame that I don’t.”

What?

She frowned to herself before his words clicked in her head. Another date gone wrong.

“A picnic was a great idea, okay? Getting hit in the face by a drone wasn’t part of your plan at all and, again, nothing you could’ve predicted,” Luna said firmly.

The last thing she wanted was for him to blame himself. Again.

“I have the worst luck,” he laughed dryly.

Well, yes, it really did seem that way. But she wasn’t going to say that out loud.

“All the food was really nice?” she offered.

Cale laughed for real this time, sliding his phone back into his pocket now that his messages were sent. “Can’t go wrong with strawberries and kiwis together.”

“Right? Perfectly sweet,” she nodded.

“I might have to see if I can recreate those vegetable tarts myself too,” he added.

The hopeful look on his face, that she could see out of the corner of her eye, made her smile, relaxing into her seat as she navigated the street in front of her. This positive attitude was much more like it – and he wasn’t wrong about those tarts either.

“They were so good! You’ll have to let me know if you can find a matching recipe,” she grinned.

She quickly glanced at Cale, finding him grinning back at her, through the blood and tissues still covering his face. At least he didn’t look as miserable as he had done in the park – that was at least a silver lining on the epic fail this date turned into.

Fuck, what was their luck, seriously?

As she dropped him off at the arena gates, several members of training staff waiting their anxiously for him, it was all she could do to squeeze his hand goodbye as he promised to call her, a heavy ominous weight sitting in her stomach. Why did things always have to go so wrong around him?

*

Friday night

“Hey, how do I look?” Luna asked Elena, leaning in her doorway, “Is this date-night-at-home suitable?”

She was wearing a light-knit dress, long-sleeved with the skirt reaching just below her knee, clinging to her curves in the most comfortable flattering way possible. The soft grey material felt right for a meal indoors, her dark brown hair falling in gentle waves in a way that added to the whole vibe, and she could only hope Cale liked it too. She knew she looked good…but was it the right choice?

“Well, you look as hot as always…but really? You’re going on a fifth attempt at a date with Fail Makar?”

Fail Makar. Ouch.

Technically not wrong, but ouch.

This Friday was not Luna’s usual Friday night. Instead of her typical night out at a bar with friends, she was trying something new. Both her and Cale were – rather than going out, Cale was making them a home-cooked meal. After insisting that the trainers had cleared him from serious injury, going as far to promise that he was still okay to play in the two games over the days that followed, he’d asked her out on another date.

Luna had been hesitant, naturally. Not because she didn’t like him, not because she wasn’t attracted to him – both of those he pulled out of her in spades – but because of everything that had happened over their past four dates. She was only mildly superstitious in general, but even she couldn’t deny that there was some serious bad luck surrounding them so far. How bad was she going to let it get before it was irreparable?

But when he had suggested a date night in, him cooking for them, she hadn’t been able to say no. She was so desperate to make this work with him, the sweetest most genuine guy she’d ever met, that she knew she’d have to give him another chance to have a date run smoothly. That didn’t mean it was fun to hear from her friend.

“Don’t be mean,” she frowned.

“Don’t ignore the cosmos and karma and all that jazz,” Elena shot back, raising her eyebrows.

Luna sighed, but nodded. It wasn’t as if she’d been ignoring the signs herself.

“I’m giving it one more chance, or I really will have to accept that this is fate telling me that things with Cale really aren’t meant to be,” she admitted.

Elena’s expression shifted from judgemental to sympathetic. “Hey, I know you like this guy, okay? I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

“I know. And I appreciate that. I just really want this to work out,” Luna sighed.

Cale had kept texting her while the team trainer took a look at his nose – it wasn’t broken, thankfully, but he did have a nasty bruise, which she’d been stupid enough to look through the speculation on the internet before Elena took her phone away to stop her looking at social media. She couldn’t help the guilt she felt for the extra attention on him, attention she knew he hated, even though she knew that she wasn’t directly responsible for the vivid bruising on his face. That didn’t mean it was easy to read all the stupid rumours sprouting out about what could’ve caused it, seeing as there was no evidence of him being hit in a game or practice.

But there wasn’t anything she could do about. All she could hope was that this attempt to get a date to go smoothly for once wouldn’t be their last one – she just didn’t know how much more she could take.

“Well if a stripped-back, low-key, homecooked meal doesn’t work then I don’t know what will,” Elena mused, “If you need an escape at any time, you just text or call me, okay?”

“I will,” she nodded, smiling. That was the friend she knew and loved. “But I have a good feeling about this date.”

“I can only hope you’re right, for your sake.”

Again, Luna had decided to drive for this date, mainly at Elena’s insistence to give herself an out if she needed it, but she only hoped that she didn’t need it. Maybe she’d make sure to only have one glass of wine, just in case.

By the time she’d arrived at the address Cale had given her, parking in the private apartment parking lot, she’d relaxed enough to feel a lot more positive about the evening ahead of her. Cale was a great guy. They would have a good night, she was sure of it. Why should she let the past four fails dictate how this night was going to go as well? As she walked up to his apartment, Cale having buzzed her in like he’d been waiting at the door, she steeled her nerves and untensed her shoulders. He was letting her see a side of him that no-one ever did outside of his team – and maybe not even all of them. Welcoming her into his home? That was special, and she was determined to embrace it.

“Hey,” she said, smiling as he opened the door.

“Hey!” he said happily, stepping aside to let her inside, “You look incredible.”

Flattery, as always. She couldn’t deny that she welcomed it though.

“Thanks! And thanks for inviting me over,” she said simply.

He shut the door behind her, helping her slip off her light jacket, and hung it up on the hooks next to their heads. It was a relief to see that the bruising on his face had almost completely faded, just as he said it had – even though he’d insisted it wasn’t as bad as it had first looked, seeing it for herself fizzled away the last of that guilt.

“It’s really good to see you. Thank you for giving me another chance,” Cale said softly, “I know things haven’t exactly gone how I’d hoped so far.”

“I can’t say that I’ve ever had so much bad luck either,” she mused.

She winced as Cale winced himself, biting her bottom lip lightly.

“I really don’t want to mess things up tonight,” he murmured.

Her heart panged a little at the nerves in his voice, hating that she was glad he felt as nervous as he did. It was a good sign that he cared so much, right?

“We can only see how the evening goes, right?” she said simply, smiling as reassuringly as she could, “I’m happy I’m here with you, if that counts for anything.”

As Cale smiled, she noticed how relieved he looked, making her smile in turn. “It definitely counts for a lot. Um, dinner is all ready, it’s just warming in the oven. And I’ve set up our date just through here.”

Cale guided her out of her entry hallway into the open-plan living room, dining room, kitchen, a gentle hand on her back, pausing in the doorway. Oh wow. As she took in the room with lips parted in surprise, her mind drifted back to the words he’d said to her the very first night they’d met.

~

“Somewhere quieter to appreciate someone? Like what?” she asked, smile curling at her lips, playing along with his flirting.

“A private intimate dinner. Maybe a little light music, just to set the mood. Candlelight, flowers, excellent wine.”

~

It was all here – candles lit around the room, beautiful yellow roses in a vase on the counter, soft music playing from the kitchen that drifted into the dining area. A private intimate dinner – complete with excellent wine, in the glasses he now held in his hands. She hadn’t even realised he’d left her side, too caught up with her memories.

“My god, Cale,” she murmured, “this is amazing.”

“Yeah?” he said shyly.

“Yeah, it is. Exactly how you described your forte location, when we first met,” she said, still in awe as he handed her a glass.

He huffed out a laugh, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand. “I didn’t think you’d remember that.”

“Of course I do. It was one of the things that intrigued me most,” she admitted, making his blush softly, “And then I got to know you even more.”

Cale’s blush deepened but so did his smile.

“I hope I can keep getting to know you, Luna. I know our dates have failed pretty spectacularly so far, but I really like you. I’ve never met anyone as amazing as you before,” he said softly.

Her lips parted at his earnest words, Cale’s eyes watching her intensely, and it was all she could do to take a quick sip of wine. Damn, it really was excellent. He really liked her? Like, really really? Wow. Even after everything, he was happy to be so open with his thoughts and feelings?

“I really like you too. And I really want this to work,” she said seriously, “I just…hope tonight doesn’t have the same bad luck.”

“Me too. The flowers are for you, by the way, to take home with you. And I cooked one of my staple recipes which hasn’t gone wrong so far, and the candles haven’t burned down the apartment while I was getting ready, so it feels pretty good so far?” he said sheepishly.

She couldn’t help but laugh at his expression, forcing down her doubts, letting his increasingly-familiar comforting presence soothe her. So far so good, right? He had pulled out all the stops, recreated their attempted first date in a safe-space setting, and she could definitely appreciate that. The fact that he was letting her see this side of him too, this vulnerable intimate portion of his life? She’d be a fool not to embrace it.

“Shall we?” she said, tilting her head towards the kitchen.

“Absolutely,” Cale nodded.

While Cale pulled out the covered dishes from the oven and plated them all up, Luna sipped at her wine, watching him intently. He seemed so in his element, relaxed in a way she’d never seen him before, and she had to admit that she liked seeing him like this. Maybe this was what they’d been missing, that comforting edge. She could only hope.

“Okay, ready.”

Cale’s cheerful declaration broke her out of her gaze, and she immediately smiled at him.

“It smells amazing, Cale,” she said happily, letting him lead her into the dining area as he carried both plates while she held their drinks.

“Can’t go wrong with coq au vin!” he said simply, although his cheeks were dusted with a pleased blush, “And I made garlic mashed potatoes as well as roasted green beans to go with it.”

Wow.

Just wow.

“Incredible,” she murmured.

Cale just laughed softly, shaking his head as he sat down at the table.

“I like cooking, you know? It’s something that so different to everything else I do, gets me out of my head when I’m stressed with hockey,” he explained.

“I can definitely understand that. How long have you been cooking like this? Because this, and I can tell you this now with sincerity, isn’t just amateur,” Luna mused.

That blush of his really was something. But as he started talking about when he started cooking, mostly with his mom and family, their usual easy conversation started to flow, allowing Luna to sink into the relaxed atmosphere. She shared some of her own family cooking stories with him when he asked, the two of them continuing to talk as they ate, laughing and smiling the whole time, and to be honest Luna couldn’t remember the last time she’d had a date like this. With anyone. It was everything she’d dreamed of, everything she’d ever wanted from the food to the conversation to the vibe in general, and the more that she was consumed by it all, she forgot all about her worries that had built up over the past week.

How could she have doubts about him, when he made her feel so at ease?

After they’d finished eating, Luna helping Cale load the dishes into the dishwasher for later, they moved to the sofa with a glass of sparkling water each, Cale insisting on not drinking now that she’d stopped too. Honestly it felt like a dream. Where had this guy been all her life?

She lost track of time while they continued to talk and laugh on the sofa, the music still playing softly in the background like a damn movie, and before she knew it, the evening was drawing close to midnight, and she needed to get going before she gave into temptation and stayed overnight. That was far too soon for their tentative relationship, she knew that much.

“Did we just have a date that went smoothly?” Cale mused, as he helped her back into her jacket.

Luna laughed but nodded her head. “I think we did.”

Her grin matched his, and she didn’t care if she looked silly because she was just so damn happy. Finally, fucking finally, their date hadn’t failed. The universe had finally worked in her favour, giving her a perfect date with a perfect guy, and she knew that despite everything, the wait had been worth it.

“Call me when you get home? Just so I know you’re safe?” he asked softly.

Those wide earnest eyes were going to be her ruin, she could tell. Fuck it. Here goes nothing.

“Only if you kiss me goodnight before I leave,” Luna said hopefully, far braver than she felt.

Cale’s lips parted in surprise, only briefly, before that familiar sweet smile spread across his face with a blush to match. He didn’t reply to her, just stepping forward to lean down towards her, one hand rising to cup her face just as his lips touched hers. Luna couldn’t stop the soft sound that escaped her mouth at the gentle touch, hands clutching at his shirt as they kissed slowly, sweetly, sending tingles down her spine. Wow. So incredibly worth the wait. After what felt like hours but could only have been minutes, Cale slowed the kiss down to a few last gentle pecks, lifting his head away from her with a stunned smile.

“Best date ever,” he said happily.

She couldn’t agree more.

#my writing #cale makar fic #dating fails #cale makar imagine #cale makar fanfic #cale makar x oc #hockey fic #hockey imagine #hockey fanfic #nhl fic #nhl imagine #nhl fanfic

[fraterfalls]

Hi, I'm new to Blood Brothers AU and I was curious about it. Can you explain about it or show me where I can see the best explanation about it?

ohhh, dear asker, the rabbit hole i'm about to send you down... >:)

alright let me try and explain it in the most coherent way possible, it's late at night BUT i will try my best!!!

explanation under the cut!

(in general, if you're new to the bb au like this asker and trying to find your way around this overwhelming hell of an au we've concocted, i recommend you start here :D)

wow. i tried SO HARD to make this a semi-concise explanation and YET it somehow turned into a mini-fic in itself towards the end there. sighhh... (lol even still, have fun reading!)

first thing's first i need to tell you aboutttt

The Parallel World / "Better World".

in journal 3, ford mentions visiting a parallel dimension in which stan never pushed him into the portal, and instead took his journal and hid it as ford had requested.

^ some screenshots to give you the basic gist of what's going on in that dimension, everything you need to know for the time being. you can read more about it on internet archive if you like

at some point in august i reread this part of journal 3 and became obsessed with the idea of a parallel dimension. i also noticed that apart from mentioning how he never pushed ford into the portal and took the journal in this world, parallel stan is just... not really brought up. at all. ...which opens up some interesting possibilities.

as you can probably guess, this dimension features in the blood brothers au! in my interpretation, the reason stan was never mentioned is because after leaving with ford's journal, he never came back, just seemingly disappeared off the planet. parallel ford... has not been handling this well (and a certain bastard triangle only serves to play up his worst fears!), and because he has such a large student body to attend to and take care of and protect, he represses his issues, buries them under layers and layers of work and responsibilities. nobody even knows he has a brother...

not even his nephew and niece, dipper and mabel. however, they're observant as all hell. as secretive as ford is, they see past his little white lies, they see how he doesn't eat properly and falls asleep at his desk and laughs nervously when someone asks if he's alright. (i haven't talked much about the role they play in this au on tumblr, but rest assured i'll be elaborating more on it in my upcoming fic that may come out sometime within... um... the next few months to the next few decades. they're still the same old mystery twins we know and love, except now they've set their sights on figuring out what their grunkle ford is hiding. very Not What He Seems reminiscent)

alright, now that i've mostly covered the parallel world, time to move on to:

The Portal Stan AU

while i was obsessing over the Better World, a parallel dimension/"alternate universe" which already exists in canon, i started thinking about another AU which is fairly popular in the gravity falls fandom: the portal stan AU. in which stan, rather than ford, gets sent into the portal. thought it was a fantastic concept ever since i first saw it, because it opens so many doors for interesting characterization and also some good ol' angst (and later a healing arc, of course). portal stan has, after all, spent 40 or so years without a solid family base or anyone to care for him. and i can imagine that in those 30 years he spent dimension-hopping, his only thought was to return to his home dimension and see ford again. yes, he was furious and frustrated when they had that last argument, but surely in hindsight he saw how paranoid and jittery ford had been throughout their meeting. he would want to get back and make sure his brother was safe as soon as possible.

and then i had the thought which kicked off this entire au:

what if portal stan fucked up and somehow stumbled upon the parallel dimension while searching for a way home? what if portal stan and parallel ford... MET?

portal stan sees parallel ford and his situation and comes to the conclusion that, without him in the way, ford would flourish. parallel ford sees portal stan and comes to the conclusion that no matter the universe, he somehow manages to destroy stan's life just by being in it. even just knowing that the other exists exacerbates their own insecurities. IT'S SO AWFUL AND SO PERFECT.

also, portal stan couldn't be more desperate to get out of the parallel dimension- partly because he hates the reminder that ford would be better off without him, but mostly because he wants to see his real brother again. however, parallel ford has other plans for him. he's been in denial about the true fate of his own brother for a long time now, but he sees this version of stan and decides he can't afford to let go of him. (his own mental state is too fragile to accept the idea of losing stan again, even if this isn't his own stan. he already let go of him once after the WCT fiasco, and again after the journal incident. thrice is... thrice is too much.)

you may also be thinking "hey, smart guy, i actually DID read that screenshot you posted above while explaining the parallel dimension. it said parallel ford and fiddleford constructed a little something called a Vortex Neutralizer which allows for safe, bill-free multiversal travel. couldn't portal stan just use that to get out of there?"

yeaaah, parallel ford doesn't tell him about that!

he will do almost anything to keep stan with him. he is sinking his claws into that man begging him not to leave-

and stan hates him for it. tears into him with insult after insult. he can't stand this ford, why's he acting like he doesn't have everything he could ever want? (except, of course, he doesn't really hate him. after all, this is still stanford pines, maybe not his ford but he's certainly a ford. same old easily excitable nerd he used to tease back in high school. but stan still has his own ford to attend to, one who needs him more than anything... probably... hopefully, so he shuts out the part of him which is growing fond of parallel ford. tells himself not to think too much about this one. he hardly even knows him. he shouldn't have to bother.)

-

and yeah that's. i think that's enough information to take in in a single post. there's still plenty more going on with the au that i haven't touched on here, but hey that's just the premise! i would link you to more specific posts which will help you further acquaint yourself with the au, but it's. it's 2am and i am incredibly sleepy, so instead i will simply provide you with the link to the blog archive, where you can look at all the posts on here without having to scroll endlessly trying to find specific things. enjoy!!!

if you have any more questions DON'T BE AFRAID TO COME BOTHER ME ABOUT IT !!! i loved answering this ask... <3 been meaning to rewrite a better AU Premise Post than the one i made back in august anyway lol

#asks #lore dump #the premise #<- PART 2 ELECTRIC BOOGALOO #parallel ford #parallel stan #parallel mabel #parallel dipper #portal stan #home world ford

[sylasthegrim]

hi! i’m one of the people who mostly like-not-comment-nor-reblog. wow, even identifying myself as one feels shameful…

anyway, here are some very personal and pathetic excuses for me. (i know that you’re not actually looking for answers to your questions. but i’m hoping that maybe i can help by sharing my side of the view.)

1. paranoia. i’m too afraid to post anything online. mentally unwell in general and too weak to handle the stress.

2. i have too little active followers that my reblogs won’t really matter. it would be equivalent to not doing anything at all.

3. time and energy shortage. i have a 50hr/week thinking-heavy and mentally taxing job and have to take care my household by myself.

these are the main reasons. additionally, english is my second language and i’m not located in neither europe nor north america.

when i open tumblr or ao3, i would want to spend my residual time and energy to the full extent to actually read and enjoy fics… not worrying about writing to a human being in a coherent and non-offending manner.

or, frankly, most of the time i’m just too drained so i would just zone out and doom scroll lol.

i’m not trying to justify anything. i try to be better at actively engaging with creators. i know firsthand how discouraging it is to get nothing or just minimal-effort reactions on works i share online.

sometimes i don’t even click on heart even i liked the thing in fear of it being perceived negatively somehow.

but most of all… i’m sorry. i love your works and try to read as much as i can. i’m sorry for not showing that love. i’ll try harder.

I understand that.

But creators have hard lives too, and still the community demands more and more from us, and we have to work harder and harder to feel like our works matter, even one just one bit.

I can only speak for myself, so I will use my personal situation.

I'm a full-time middle school teacher. I've stopped counting the number of hours I work, both at school and at home.

I'm a parent to a small child. I'm autistic. I suffer from persistent depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder and EDNOS (eating disorder not otherwise specified).

English is actually not my first language either.

I could have all the excuses in the world not to be active in fandom, but fanfiction is my passion and my hyperfixation, and has been for twenty years.

I also want to give back to the fanfic community who has given me so much those last two decades.

In October I posted one request a day, for thirty-one days straight, totaling nearly 45k words. I did it for my readers and followers.

So yes, it feels very disheartening when you put in that amount of work and people don't even take 30 seconds to acknowledge it.

I will speak bluntly. Typing a comment like "I loved this" and hitting send takes five seconds. I just timed myself doing it on laptop.

At one time, one of my regular readers on Ao3 only ever commented with heart emojis, but they did so on almost every chapter, just to let me know they were there and appreciated what I wrote.

So yes, it does upset me greatly when I wrote for hours and hours, had my work beta read by someone else, edited it, made a banner for it on Canva, made sure I used the appropriate tags and still, barely a tenth of the people who liked it took five seconds to actually review what I wrote, one way or another.

I'm not saying this out of anger. I'm saying this out of genuine sorrow and exhaustion.

At the end of the day, why do I even bother sharing what I write if people don't appreciate it? Tonight, I just feel so disheartened...

Fanfiction and fanart are not products to be consumed. They're gifts from the heart of passionate artists.

The answer I just typed is for everyone who will stumble on it: please, please, show appreciation and support to your fandom's artists.

#writer ezran #inbox #hotd fanfic

[codesandstuffs]

Mcyt Yuri Week - Day 3: Hurt/Comfort

(link to ao3 version here, for @mcyt-yuri-week :D)

<File Retrieved...> <Loading...>

HEALTH REPORT COPIED FROM OFFICE OF DR TINA KITTEN DATE: 08 SEP 2023

ER VISIT DETAILS

PRIMARY PHYSICIAN: Dr Tina Kitten

DATE OF VISIT: 08/09/2023

TIME OF VISIT: 14:30

TIME OF RELEASE: 16:45

REASON FOR VISIT: Damage to ribs due to animal incident

CONSENT STATUS: CAN give consent / CANNOT give own consent

CURRENT DIAGNOSIS: Wound with no infection

<End Of File>

(fic below cut!)

Tina was not the sort of person with the disposition of a spy.

Even as a young girl, she’d never really been trusted as an agony aunt to her friends, though they had still shared with her things they knew she’d take care not to repeat. She was just a friendly person, and the idea that someone might have malicious intent was not the first thing to occur to her before - rather, she’d usually first think that it would be really useful to pass on some relevant knowledge or another, and then the next thing she knew she was spilling secrets all over the playground. If any of her friends from then heard that she was now a spy, they’d laugh and never believe it.

Either way, though, she was a spy.

Because even if she was not very secretive, she was both observative and incredibly determined, and it was this that allowed her to both locate and infiltrate the very agency she now worked for. They hadn’t even realised that her chance meeting with a local operative was no accident at all, nor had they figured out that she had been reading through their archived documents for months.

Heck, they probably thought she was completely naive or something! She wasn’t complaining, of course - it worked to her advantage.

The trick was that she wasn’t really hiding her personality at all - she stayed chatty and cheerful, talking about her weekend or whatever her neighbours were up to or the latest news story she’d seen, and she stayed as expressive as she always had been. All she had to do was keep their attention on that and make them think the ball was in their court, not hers. It was easy!

While here, however, treating secret agents and members of the general public alike, she’d found that there was one particular agent who was a bit of a regular patient. Which, when you took into account the fact that Tina worked in an emergency room, was pretty concerning, actually.

This agent - she’d introduced herself as Bagi the first time they’d met, and Tina hadn’t forgotten since - always seemed to be getting into some scrape of another, coming in with gunshot wounds and slight concussions and sometimes even injured friends. It was a clear indicator that she was a field agent of some sort, Tina had decided.

Today was the first day in a while that Tina had a relatively calm morning. She’d had time to grab a coffee and check her emails before lunch, and even afterwards they’d only had one broken leg and an emergency blood test to do.

And then, of course, something just had to happen.

Tina was finishing up the paperwork on the last patient when she heard the too-familiar voice of Bagi heading up the corridor. It had been about a month since she was last here, and Tina really had been hopeful that maybe she’d stopped ending up on violent missions, but of course that was too good to be true.

“Bagi, what are you doing here again?” she scolded the moment the other entered the room. “And why are you covered in blood? Is that yours?”

“No! No, this is - um - horse blood.”

Wow. Maybe it would be easier for Bagi to just admit to her real job. Horse blood? Really? Tina shook her head.

“Did you kill a horse?” she asked, keeping up the stern voice.

“No! It - I tried to save it! I wouldn’t kill a horse,” Bagi said nervously. Tina could practically see sweat on her brow. “It uh - got attacked. By a wolf.”

“Right,” said Tina. “Are you here for, uh - are you injured?”

“Oh yeah!” Bagi lifted up the side of her shirt, revealing a moderately concerning wound. “Can you fix this up?”

Tina sighed. “How does this keep happening to you?”

-

A few hours and several stitches later, Tina finally finished her shift and changed out of her ward clothes. She headed out of the hospital, only to come face to face with Bagi.

“Are we still up for tonight?” Bagi asked immediately.

Right. That was another thing about this agent she forgot to mention - Tina was maybe, sort of, kind of dating her? Like, it was definitely happening, but Bagi skirted about calling it official for what were probably secret agent spy reasons. Tina knew what was going on, though, and Bagi probably knew she knew, but sometimes things were easier to leave unspoken.

“Of course!” Tina said. “As long as you feel up to it, that is. I still think you should rest up.”

“I’ll be fine,” said Bagi, dragging out the word, a huge grin on her face. “See you then!”

And with that, they parted ways, knowing they’d see each other very soon.

-

That ‘very soon’ turned out to be a lot later than Tina expected.

She’d received a half-garbled text from Bagi announcing that she’d probably be late to the date, and then another right after saying that it was probably better they cancelled it, and then another right after telling her not to worry because this was totally just her resting up after the treatment today and nothing else, totally, definitely.

This was definitely one of the moments that Tina wished they weren’t keeping so many secrets from each other. If Bagi was able to be more open about her missions, at least Tina wouldn’t have to worry about her quite so much. At least she could keep an eye on her, even if it was through secretly reading the agency’s classified documents.

So she stayed home instead, crocheting a little beanie she’d been working on for the past few days between shifts and chatting with her friend Mouse over the phone. She honestly didn’t expect anything more than a calm evening - that is, until there was a hesitant knock at the door.

“Hello?” she called, and heard Mouse go quiet in curiosity on the other side of the call.

There was another knock, a little quieter, and Tina nervously got up to at least peek through the peephole.

“Are you about to get murdered?” she heard Mouse ask through her headphones.

“I hope not,” Tina whispered back. She took a look to try and figure out who was out there, eye adjusting to the warped and zoomed out view but seeing nothing out there. “If I do, though, you can have my video games.”

“Yessss!”

With that encouraging exchange, Tina pushed her headphones from her ears down to her neck, unlocked the door and anxiously swung it open. She did have a knife in her back pocket - she didn’t come into this spy business completely unprepared - but the sight on her doorstep had her hand dropping from where it was loosely holding it as she dropped into a crouch immediately.

“Oh my god!” she exclaimed. “What the heck happened?”

And wasn’t this a romance trope Tina had never wanted to actually experience - Bagi was leaning against the wall by her door, squinting out into the darkness and holding her leg, where a scarf was tightly wrapped around something that was definitely bleeding a lot.

“Hey,” said Bagi. “How’s it going, gorgeous?”

With a huff, Tina wrapped her arms under Bagi and carried her inside, kicking the door shut behind her as she went. She carefully took her to the bathroom, where she could at least clean up properly afterwards, before scrambling around the house to lock her door and collect her first aid things.

When she got back she saw that Bagi had made herself comfortable, draping her coat and hat over the edge of the bathtub and already rolling her trouser leg up. Tina placed her things down on the sill by the sink and promptly whacked Bagi’s hand away from her wound.

“Don’t touch that, I’m the doctor here,” she said firmly, and then immediately got to work on properly unwrapping the makeshift bandage so she could take a closer look. “So, got into another fight with a horse?”

Bagi made a few unintelligible sounds before settling on, “I guess that wasn’t a very good excuse, huh.”

“I’m not that dumb, Bagi.” Tina picked out some antiseptic wipes from her kit. “But you are cute, so I’ll let it slide.”

“I don’t think you’re dumb, I just -” Bagi sighed, wincing only a little at the antiseptic. “I don’t really find it easy to lie to you, so I think that makes me very, very bad at it. And you don’t question it, so…”

“Admittedly, it isn’t my business when I’m at work,” Tina said. “But now that you’re here at my house, it is just a teensy bit my business.”

As she said this, Tina finished wrapping the bandages and tied them off as neatly as she could at the awkward angle she was in. Bagi moved her leg around a bit, testing the strength of the bandages or something, probably, and Tina gently whacked her again.

“Let it rest,” she insisted, and then sat back on her heels. “Now, what’s actually going on?”

Bagi sat up straight and took a deep, steadying breath. “Okay. The truth is… Tina, I’m a secret agent. And I know that’s scary, and I know this means I’ve been lying to you this whole time, but the truth is that I really just don’t want you to get mixed up in my job. It’s really dangerous, and - can you ever forgive me?”

“Sure,” said Tina. “I mean, I already knew, so I wouldn’t really be here if I couldn’t.”

“Oh, thank goodness -” Bagi froze and blinked at her. “Wait, what? You knew?”

“Bagi, my workplace gets mysterious donations every month and half our documents are taken away before we can even back them up as patient information. It’d make me a terrible doctor if I didn’t know what was going on.”

For a long minute, Bagi just gaped at her, her own bandaged leg forgotten. Tina took advantage of the pause to tidy up her kit. Finally -

“Why didn’t you say anything?!”

“I didn’t want to make things awkward!” Tina said, shrugging. “Look, I just want to know if you were in a shootout tonight or something.”

Bagi made a face. “What would you do if I said yes?”

“Well, I’d tell you that you need to be more careful, because I can’t date a corpse, okay?”

“Date? Who said anything about dating?” Bagi asked, though she was blushing up to her ears. “I mean, if you want, but - but it’s dangerous to date a secret agent, and -”

“Bagi.” Tina placed one hand on each of the other’s shoulders. “I already knew. And we’ve been dating for about a month now, in case you didn’t realise.”

Bagi’s mouth formed a perfect ‘O’.

“Anyway, you’re going to lie down now,” Tina announced, standing up and offering out a hand. “I’ll lend you something to wear, you’re not wearing blood stained clothes in my bed.”

“Oh, you don’t have to - I can sleep on the couch or -”

“Absolutely not. Wait here, I’ll be right back.”

A few minutes later, Bagi was suitably cleaned up and in fresh nightclothes, having been ferried to the bedroom. Tina had handed her a glass of water and some painkillers and gone back to clean up the bathroom. She picked out something cute - but not too embarrassing - to wear for the night, and was about to get changed when she heard a faint giggling from somewhere nearby.

There was nobody behind her when she spun around to check. There was nobody lurking around any corners. So who…?

The giggle sounded again. “Bagi, hm?”

Tina’s eyes widened in recognition and she pulled her headphones back onto her ears, having completely forgotten she’d left them hanging around her neck this whole time. “Wait, you heard all of that?”

“Yep!” said Mouse, still laughing. “You have a really interesting love life, Tina.”

“Oh my gosh, you can’t tell anyone!” Tina hissed. “This is super, duper, top secret, okay?”

“I know, I know, very dangerous and very confidential. I won’t tell anyone, you have my word.”

Placing a hand on her forehead, Tina groaned. “Okay. Okay. Oh my goodness, I can’t believe this.”

“Anyways, I don’t want to hear you guys cuddling, talk to you tomorrow!” And with that, Mouse ended the call, and Tina screamed as quietly as she could into the palms of her hands.

Well, that was that, she guessed. And she did trust Mouse not to tell anyone.

Having had enough of a rollercoaster of a day, Tina re-entered her bedroom and slipped into bed, trying her best to suppress her blush at literally sharing a bed with her maybe-sort-of-kind-of-girlfriend.

“Good night, Tina!” Bagi said, beaming over at her. “We’ll talk more tomorrow.”

“Sounds like a plan. Good night, Bagi.”

Face warm and excited smile hidden under a layer of blankets, Tina curled up in her bed and pretended that her slow migration over the bed and towards Bagi was entirely in her sleep.

#mcytyuriweek2023 #bagina #qsmp #qsmp shipping #codes does writing

[hlficlibrary]

HL FIC LIBRARY 📚 AUTHOR REC

AO3: 2tiedships2

Tumblr: @2tiedships2

STATS:

📚 Number of fics: 30

📚 Posting Since: 2018

TOP 5 FICS:

1️⃣ Everywhere And Nowhere [M, 16k]

Niall took a seat and said, "Apparently Louis' downstairs neighbor is a fan of giving Louis creepy gifts. Maybe I should go introduce myself and tell him that Louis actually prefers food."

"What has he given you?" Liam asked.

Louis shrugged as it were no big deal. "There was a rabbit's foot keychain on the door a little after he left from introducing himself and there was a small teddy bear sitting by my door tonight. Obviously I can't prove it's from him, but they seem to have his scent. I could be wrong though."

"Wow," Liam said, looking deep in thought. "That's old school."

"What's old school?" Niall asked. "Giving creepy gifts?"

"I've never known an alpha to do it, to be honest, but he's courting you."

Louis couldn't contain his look of disbelief directed at Liam. "He's courting me. Like some sort of romantic shit they'd do in the 1800s or something?"

2️⃣ Quiet People Have the Loudest Minds [M, 38k]

Broadway shows were one of the few things that could keep Louis’ attention for a full two hours without needing to move about. But not tonight.

The alpha next to him was both infuriating him and practically turning him on at the same time. He needed to leave. The alpha, that is. Louis was staying.

Or the one where Louis is a nonverbal omega who has accepted the fact that he will never find an alpha that will treat him as an equal. On the other hand, he’s never met anyone like Harry.

3️⃣ I Wanna Be More Than Friends [NR, 20k]

He hadn't meant to scent Harry. They were best friends and that was it. Scenting best friends wasn't exactly socially acceptable.

"Lou," Harry whispered.

Louis jumped at his name and sat up straighter to provide a bit of distance between himself and Harry.

"You can't scent me, Lou," Harry stated.

Which of course Louis couldn't scent him. They were best friends.

"I mean," Harry continued. "I wouldn't mind exactly, but if I can't scent you, I don't think you should scent me."

"What do you mean you can't scent me? I mean, I get it because we're best friends but..."

"I mean I can't smell you, Louis. I fucking can't smell you. I can't smell anything, okay?"

Or the one where Harry’s an alpha with no sense of smell, Louis’ an omega who isn’t allowed to scent his best friend, and that’s all they’ll ever be. Obviously.

4️⃣ Your Touch Is The Only Thing I Feel [M, 16k]

Liam. Liam was finally here. Louis kept his eyes closed and cuddled farther into Liam’s side, revelling in the pheromones Louis’ body desperately needed. He wasn’t sure how long Liam had been holding him, but Louis figured it had to have been at least an hour by the way his body had loosened. The need of an alpha’s touch seemed to have been temporarily lifted from his mind.

Louis listened to the sounds of the pub around him. It was louder than before he had fallen asleep and he briefly wondered why Liam hadn’t just woken him to go back to their flat.

“Who the fuck are you?”

Louis’ eyes flew open at the sound of Niall’s voice, and the arm that had been around Louis shoulders lifted in the same instant. He missed the warmth immediately.

Louis looked from Niall’s stormy face over to the person who was definitely not Liam. The alpha Liam impersonator, who smelled a lot better than the actual Liam now that Louis was alert, looked back at Louis with wide eyes and familiar furrowed brows.

Or the one where Louis refuses to settle for just any alpha despite intense touch deprivation. Fortunately Harry isn't just any alpha.

5️⃣ I Know How To Whisk (But Teach Me Anyway) [M, 32k]

Louis scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. “I don’t understand. Unmated alphas don’t just go into a rut out of nowhere. Unless…”

Louis grabbed onto Niall’s arm in desperation. “Am I a homewrecker? Does Harry have a mate? Oh my God, was he not flirting? Did the change in his scent not have anything to do with my smell yesterday? Did I just make that up!?”

Louis let go of Niall and dropped his face in his hands. “I knew it was too good to be true.”

“You’re an idiot,” Niall stated. Louis looked up to find Niall rolling his eyes. He snapped his laptop closed and moved to stand up. “I need to get some work done. Why don’t you stay here and think back to ABO dynamics 101.”

With that Niall hopped off the couch and headed to his room. He stopped and turned to Louis before he made it to the hall and said, “Oh, and Lou. You may want to reconsider your outlook on soulmates.”

Louis yelled after him. “Soulmates aren’t a thing, Niall!”

Or the one in which banana bread just might make Louis change his mind about soulmates.

HIDDEN GEM:

💎 The Unfinished Fic (With an Ending) [NR, 4k]

Louis greatly regretted all of his life decisions up to this point. Okay fine, maybe not all of them, but definitely a vast majority. After all, if he’d not told one little white lie about loving cricket just to impress a fit guy at the pub, maybe he wouldn’t be stuck at what was, one hundred percent, the most boring “sporting” event of his entire life.

#1dficvillage #hljournal #hlsource #hlcreators #tracksintheam #trackinghome #1dsource #yourlarrysource #2tiedships2

[ivyroseposin]

Confidence Is Key- A Papa Secondo, One-Shot- Fan Fic

Papa Secondo and Reader (Even though the the character name is Ann )

Summary: Sometimes confidence is key and sometimes it ends up with Secondo and Ann in an office... Doing stuff

Smutty.

Ps- This is the first smut smut that I've done so it wont be the best...

2.7k Words

Here I was at the ministry at 9:00pm waiting for my best friend to show up. Don't know what it was about her but she was always late even back in school every period she was late and one time she had classes beside each other and she managed to be 30 minutes late it didn't make sense. Papa Terzo was hosting his weekly Sunday party that filled what seemed the entire building up. People drinking, smoking and trying to do some very not so PG stuff. I stared around looking for Secondo my all time crush ever since he became papa but it seemed he was no where to be seen. That’s the only reason why I ever came and of course because of my friend…mostly.. 

I stared around the room trying to find V and soon enough she appeared though the crowd looking wonderful as always. “You made it” I said. “Oh gosh if I don't come Terzo may have my head and I simply don't have time for that” She laughed grabbing a drink off the tray. “I would kill to see that” I nudged her shoulder. I would tell her about the rum in the glasses but as her friend I thought it would be funnier to see. “Of course you would but you would also kill to see Secondo naked in which I am terrified that you will actually kill someone to see him naked” She said before downing her drink. “Why must he put rum in a champagne glass is he trying to get people drunk” She grumbled. 

“That man is hot I don't know how you don't find him attractive he is literally a god and a god that I would love to fuck maybe marry not sure where I stand at that but he is a man and I love a man that is hot” I said looking over at her. As always she was now in her world not ever paying attention. Before I could grab her attention in the corner of my eye I saw him. 

I looked over seeing him in his glory with his rob and full make up. I guess it was one of those parties but my god did he look as good as ever. “V its Secondo” I said to her still she was looking around in her own world. “Are you listening its secondo” I nudged her till she looked over at me then up at the balcony. “Talk to him then huh” She nudged me back. I took a chug of my drink my heart beating faster than I wanted it to. “And stop drinking the last thing you need is a drunk Ann talking to that whore of a man” she said reaching grabbing the glass out of my hand. “I'm not bad just a little bit out of control” I replied trying to take the glass back. 

“No but go have fun with him or whatever I'm gonna go find Terzo god forbid this man is somewhere in the middle of this place dancing his life away” She said pushing me away into the pit of people I really didn't want to go through. 

I huffed as I pushed my way through all the dancers. As I got to the middle it was mostly people making out and just standing still. The whole point of being in the middle is to dance not try to make a damn baby. What seemed like minutes I finally made my way through the lust and sweat of people. Wasn't that pretty to say the least. 

“Ann” I heard the familiar voice. I looked up sure enough it was the one and only Secondo calling my name. “Wow you remembered what a shocker” I chuckled. As much as I sounded confident my heart was no longer apart of my body it ran away probably back into the pit of people. “You make it seem like I am forgetful” He said as he leaned onto the balcony “You always seemed to be one” I replied. Seriously have no idea how I was talking to him like this. We weren't like V and Terzo they were best friends. Secondo and I well we just ended up talking at parties that was all. “A shame you think that and a shame you think someone would forget someone like you Ann” He said the last part is a whisper that just was melting my legs. “Dully noted” I smiled as a person walked by with a tray of drinks. “Want one” I asked grabbing two of the tray. “Walk up darling” He pointed to the stairs behind him. So I did walking past another group of people was met with ghouls standing near the stairs. “Water” I nodded as he moved out the way. “Beautiful as always” He whispered as I walked past him. “Didn't take you for a flirt” I whispered. “Always was love” He replied. 

“Why is it that every party you come with a different dress never seen the same one worn again” Secondo asked as I handed him his drink. “Oh c'mon the clergy asking you to party can’t dare to wear the same dress too many hot men'' I replied leaning up against the balcony. “Uh yes of course” He chuckled, leaning beside me. “What's with the fancy dressing and face paint” I asked staring at he beautiful make up he put on. I was seriously down for this man it was concerning and V was correct I would literally kill to get to this man. 

“Father wanted so he said we needed to dress the best for the evening” He replied drinking from the glass. “But its Terzos party isn't Terzo the one who comes up with the dress code” I asked. “Father is weird and said we must be fancy so we dress fancy” He replied staring down at his outfit. I wonder how we would.. you know what never mind… 

“You look good either way” I stared down at his outfit then back up at him. He stared at me with a small smile to his face. His eyes lowering down to my dress then up to my face. “I know I look amazing” I did some sort of pose that was failing miserably. “You do” Was all he said before drinking the rest of what was in the glass.  

The music changed and only got louder words got out to the ghouls that they saw Terzo and V leave the building to go somewhere. Secondo wasn't the happiest that Terzo left his own party but what much could he do. 

“How often does he piss you off” I asked. By now he was much closer to me then before. Since the music was so loud it only got harder to hear each other. “Often but he means well” He chuckled staring out into the crowd. “I must admit as much as I love your parties I prefer Terzo's” I wasn't lying but what I said secondo parties were always filled with more women then men finding men was like finding Waldo. “Oh my darling stabs me right to the heart” he groaned hitting his hand to his chest. “You know how hard it was to find a man like just a man was nearly impossible” I nudged him earning a laugh. “Yeah yeah” he whispered.

I stared into the dancing crowd seeing everyone just enjoying and having the time of their life. As much as there were hot men that I could hook up with the one beside me was really the only one I wanted as cheesy as it may be but the good news of the night was I was never his type and well for that he never thought of me as someone then just a friend at a party. 

“What is on your mind darling” He asked. I could feel his eyes burning on me without having to look at him. “Figuring out who the hell im gonna sleep with tonight” I looked over at him a loud chuckle left his lips. Whatever I had drink was in more control then I was and truly could not care. “A question” I lean closer towards his ear. “A answer” He whispered. “How do you fuck someone in that” I ask. He looked down at his feet then up at the crowd. I have no idea what I was doing and I just might make an embarrassment out of myself. “Not as hard as you think” He whispered.

I couldn't help but look away from his eyes. As much as this drink was making me confident there was no control of the blush that covered my cheeks and him staring at him would only make things worse.”For someone so confident you dont looking me in the eyes” He whispered so close to my ear I could feel his hot breath. I turned my head staring right into his eyes. Only inches or closer then that. “For someone who is so confident and powdered your eyes so yet so soft”. Secondo was always known to be the tough guy and the scary one but his eyes told something much different. I looked away from him yet again my hearting beating faster then ever and a cold chill running down my spine. 

As I his eyes burned into my skin. I watched people dancing away on the dance floor till one spotted my eye. The most annoying human ever to exist.

 “Oh Christ its Gio” I huffed pushing myself up. “Gio” He asked looking up at me. “Come here” I grabbed the collar of his suit pulling him up towards me. I played with the collar of his suit while inching my body closer to him. “Gio is some dude who likes me so very much and I don't like him very much” I explained looking up at Secondo who was much taller than I was, “Your doing more than just trying to get him away” He whispered inching closer to my face. “No I wouldn't dare”. 

I pulled him in closer sliding my hand down his chest down to his hips down to his thighs. “My friend Ann is up there” I heard Gio explain to Water or at least was trying to. “Yeahh she's busy my friend come back later” Water replied “Ann hiii” Was all I heard before the ghouls moved him away. As everything around us happened. There was one thing Secondo and I were good at and that was keep eye contact. “You ok” I asked hovering my hand over his hard that his suit would not hide. “You wouldn't dare” he mumbled. “Your right I wouldn't” I replied pulling away. “Good night Secondo” then I pulled my hand off him walking past him barley being able to walk down the stairs.

“Jesus Christ” I whispered to myself as I turned the hall. I had no idea what I just did and I was really gonna regret this tomorrow and I truly wish V was here at this moment. I rushed down the hall wanting to get away from the music and just people as much as the drinks were affecting me. I wasn't all that drunk and sober Ann was freaking out. 

I walked into an empty room shutting the door before I paced back and fourth. Should have I just left, yes that would have been smart but at this moment I am not. “What did I do” I whispered taking a seat on the couch. 

I sat on the couch thinking what I could say to him or V how would I explain what I did maybe V was right maybe I am out of control when I drink. All the thoughts stopped when a there was a knock on the door “yeah” I answered still sitting. The door opened and around the corner came Secondo. “Don't you have a balcony to attend” I asked. He stayed silent walking towards me. “Or don't answer at all” I chuckled. 

He stood in front of me reaching his hand to my lips pulling on my lower lip. “Just gonna stand there” I asked standing up. “A creep really”. I walked past him leaning against the desk. He turned around watching me. “Nothing” I asked. It was getting weird. 

He stepped closer closing the gap kissing my lips. I kissed him grabbing ahold of whatever part of clothing I could. “You wouldn't dare” He whispered between the kiss pushing me up onto the desk. Moans escape my lips as his bare hand slid up my thigh. His kissed my lips then my jaw towards my neck. His tongue slide down my neck towards my chest. “You wouldn't dare” I repeated. “Oh I would” he replied pushing my dress up pulling down the decent lace thinking no one would see it. 

His lips went up back to my jaw then to lips more aggressive then before. The lust and sweat was now filling the room but this time it was just us and no one else. I lifted his robe placing my legs around his hips. “You say you can fuck in this” I whispered staring into his eyes that had now darken. “Show me”. Without hesitation he unzipped the second part of his suit realising his dick. “Of course you wouldn't wear anything else”. 

I grabbed ahold of his hard stroking him ever so slowly. His head fell back small moans escaping. “Fuck me” I said pulling up my dress more. He kissed my lips bitting down on my bottom lip.With his on hand on my hip and the other on my thigh I felt him slowly slide in me. “Oh god” I moaned. “Fuck my love” He moaned placing his head between my neck as he thrusted into me slowly. “I'm not here for slow and careful” I whispered pulling him in by my legs. “Fucking hell’ He whispered his pace fastening. 

“Oh god Sec” I moaned falling back onto the desk. He grabbed ahold of my neck as he his thrusts turned into pounds. The pencils and pens began to fall onto the desk as he got rougher. “Yes fuck” I moaned. “Jesus christ” he whispered kissing my chest up to my boob and sucking my skin. “Oh fuck” I moaned. I could feel him pulsing inside me and god I wanted all of him.. “God woman you- feel amazing” he barley got out. By now the entirety of the desk was shaking. I pushed myself back up barley pulling him close to my body as he slammed into my pussy his dick only feeling better by the minute. 

“BOSS FATHER CALLING FOR A MEETING” We heard water yell from the other end of the door. “I- IN oh fuck” He whispered into my neck “ILL- B- BE THER- SOON -G- GO AW-AY” He could barley get out. “Oh god im gonna cum” He whispered his pace only fastening. “Cum in me” I whispered. “Fuck Ann” He moaned one last time. 

As he slolwed down I felt the warm cum fill inside me his dick throbbing. “Ohh”I moaned almost feeling to cum. He soon fastened his pace holding my tightly onto my ass. ‘Oh god oh fuck” I moaned. “Cum for me” He said. “Oh oh god” I screamed feeling the release. “Ohhh” I moaned as he slowed down. “Good girl” he said as he pulled me up kissing his lips. “You are magic” He whispered as we kissed again. “A compliant” I laughed as he want onto his knees. We kept eye contact as he spread my legs licking my pussy filled with his and I’s cum. “Christ” I moaned throwing my head back. “You have black makeup all over you” he chuckled standing back up. 

“You have red lipstick all over you and your makeup is smeared” I pointed to his face. “Wait for me my dear I have a meeting” he whispered as he fixed his clothes. “Mhm I’ll be waiting” I replied standing up fixing my dress. “Good” He whispered walking away. I grabbed ahold of his hand pulling him back into me kissing his lips. “Have a good meeting” I whispered letting go of his hand. 

He chuckled turning around and walking out the office. Water and Omega stared at the door. “Gentlemen” He nodded walking past them. “Ann” They nodded walking away. 

Holy shit. 

#papa secondo #papa emeritus smut #papa emeritus ii #papa ii #secondo #ghost band fanfic #ghost band #secondo fanfiction #ghumblr

[magicalcrystalsproject]

💘OneShot the Ball (English version not revised!)💘

Hello guys!! This is a OneShot of My AU!! Hope you like this OneShot!! I made it based on some events from my Magical Crystals planning! Well this OneShot has a little connection with the original fic! It just portrays a random event!!

I posted the original Portuguese version a while ago here on tumblr!! posted this english version on devianart click here and go to devianart i will use it more often than tumblr!

⚠️CRINGE ALERT ALERT⚠️

That night there was a dance in celebration of autumn, everything was well decorated, lively music and various gossips were being brought up to date! Lisa was sitting on the stairs just watching the movement and thinking like a

Castle could be so crowded at just one little autumn dance!

— Is the little Princess accompanied?

'Not as far as I know!' But I think he's late getting ready upstairs!

-Wow!? It was only 17 minutes! You're about 30 and I don't say anything!

"That's why I like you!"

"Come on, let's dance!"

The ballroom was full and very busy, the music was loud and soft and with calm melodies! Loki pulled Lisa close to him and put his hand around her waist. Lisa gently brings a hand to her chest and rests her face on his chest, and he rests his chin on Lisa's head. And they began to move rhythmically to the sound the music played. On the other side of the room Thor was getting drunk next to Juliet who was also getting drunk, both were laughing like fools telling jokes without feeling any with bad slang jokes. Emily walked away disgusted, she couldn't stand to hear ridiculous jokes and feel the taste of breath on her face!

That was totally unnecessary. After so much dancing Lisa was practically tired and so she was heading straight to the royal garden while Loki tried to be superior to Heidmall. Lisa heard someone scream as she turned it was Loki calling her!

— WAIT IT! Please don't leave me here alone!

— Of course I didn't think you were busy, come here then!

“I don't like being away from you and you know it!

— I know, worse than I know, you sweetie!

Lisa and Loki ran out into the garden. That garden was of great beauty (actually it was a garden of a fairy kingdom!) It had an organic layout, it had several species of plants and some animals, with a water source and also with a small stream, there were several statues , stairs covered with flowers and finally it smelled really good (a similar smell to Lisa since she was the Fairy of Nature!) Lisa went to the little stream, took off her shoes, sat down and put her feet in the water and , Loki did the same! Lisa rested her head on Loki's shoulder and they watched the couple of swans.

"I always thought this lake was the real Swan Lake!"

"And why did you always think so?"

Because besides having a Beautiful Princess, there are swans in this lake!

"You're such a cutie hi hi!"

"We're not in there anymore, do you want to dance?"

-Of course I want to!

Loki pressed his body against Lisa's Even though the music was fast, we were dancing slowly in the middle of the Garden, surrounded by plants and some nocturnal animals. Soon they were dancing towards the stream and slowly getting wet, accelerating the rhythm and making circular movements with their hands, they closed their eyes and were ready to kiss until a red-haired and very inconvenient creature appeared:

-Lisa, your mothers asked about you and I said you were here! Would you mind if I mess up dating after getting dumped 4 times in one night for being underage?

— OH MY GOD IN HEAVEN OLIVIA YOU ARE THE MOST INCONVENIENT CREATURE IN THE UNIVERSE YOU TAKEN AWAY FOR THAT BULLSHIT!

— Shut up Horny! I'm talking to my cousin not you!

Lisa rolls her eyes and snorts

— Olivia, I suppose you could go to the salon Nê?

— I don't want not I want to stay with you if you want I call Juliet and Thor they are drunk they won't do anything more right?

-OK!? stay here brat!

— Lisa The horned one here called me Brat!

-The more you are! Go talk to Heidmall he loves to talk!

-Really Loki? Or are you lying as usual?

-No I'm not going there he loves to hear others talk especially with you!

-OK! good then bye Lisa you cute who is dating a sucker hehe!

-Loki you got heavy!

-Do you treat everyone as well as you can?

-It's easy we are all similar and deserve love and respect!

Loki lays down and pulls Lisa, who puts her head on Loki's chest, both of them are watching the stars and the purple sky that reminded a lot of the song Purple Rain! Lisa closed her eyes slowly, because she was tired Loki looks at Lisa with an Admired look and then kisses her forehead and with that Lisa opens her eyes and smiles!

-Let's go back to the salon!

-Okay, let's go then!

-We still have a lot to dance!

-So let's go!

When they come back through the main entrance, everyone looks at them, because it was time for the final dance! Amazing coincidence! And in the final dance Lisa puts her head on Loki's shoulder who pulls her closer and lowers her hand to her waist both accompany the sweet melody of the song, both stare at each other for a few minutes making Lisa blush and Loki kisses her!

-I hate to see people kissing!

-Juliet you hate everything and everyone!

-Shut up Thor you idiot!

-I'm surrounded by idiots!

- Shut up Alicia!

When the Ball was over your Highnesses were already sleeping on the stairs after all they danced a lot even in the swan lake!

–//–

Click here to see the original version in Portuguese!!

#magical crystals project #loki laufeyson #loki #loki fanfiction #loki fanfic #loki agent of asgard #marvel fanfiction #loki x plus size reader #loki x male reader #loki x original character #loki x female reader #loki x reader #loki x mobius #loki x original female character #loki x sylvie #loki x sigyn #loki x bucky #loki x gender neutral reader #marvel x oc #marvel x teen!reader #marvel x platonic reader #marvel x y/n #thor odison imagine #loki laufeyson imagine #marvel fanfic series #marvel fanfic write #marvel fanfic idea #mahou shoujo #shoujo #one shot fanfic

[ufuckingpastry]

I've been feeling in a rough patch lately and most of it's manifested in insecurities and a general lack of motivation to work on any writing projects. I haven't touched PB since I put it on hiatus. I came up with a really fun writing series that just petered off into nothing. I've barely progressed and done anything, even though I'm having all these cool story ideas!

If you've been here for a while, you might've noticed that I stopped writing a couple years back, right around when Homestuck ended. Homestuck was the first major fandom I was in and the first one I posted fanfic for. My AO3 has 50 works just for Homestuck. And, when it ended, it felt like so did my desire to create.

Of course, this was right around my last year of college and ohhhhh fuck that was stressful. Plus I got really into WoW too. I didn’t really have much time to write in general.

I struggled for 3 years feeling like I could barely write anything at all. I was in such a depressive funk at the time, and the feeling like I couldn't create only worsened it. It took me 3 months to write 1000 words.

And then, one day, something amazing happened. I got into dsmp, I got into these characters, and on a whim, I sat down and wrote my first fic for it. In the span of 3 days, I wrote 3000 words! And I was happy! And I posted it and people seemed to love it!

My AO3 now has at least 30 fics just for dsmp, and I've got folders upon folders of other projects and ideas springing up every day for new fics for other smp series!

And yet, I'm starting to see myself falter. With the dsmp ending, and especially ending like it did, it reminds me so much of Homestuck. And I see myself doing the same things and behaving the same way I did 6 years ago. Struggling to write. A lack of focus and motivation to work on any of my projects. An external source of immense stress that makes me feel like I don’t have much time to write anymore.

And it's frustrating on a personal level to see that. Therapy opened my eyes to recognizing my patterns of behavior. I can prevent myself from spiraling. I can recognize when I need a break and I can take that break and barely feel guilty for it. And yet, here I am again. Will it soon take me a month to write 1000 words?

Have I even written 1000 words this very month?

... so I've written 5000.

In 2022, I decided that I wanted to track my yearly word count. I wrote so MUCH in 2021 that I broke 100k words posted on AO3 for that year. But that was just finished works! None of my wips, which I knew I had a lot more of! So I tracked my word count in 2022 and I think I hit around 150k? And that's impressive! That's cool!

So I did it again for 2023. But it's been harder to keep up with that over the last few months. I've been in a limbo of not knowing how many words I've written. Based on the fact that I haven't made any progress on my fics, that number must be very low, I thought.

And then I updated my word count yesterday. And I realized something:

I've written over 5000 words this month. Which isn't a lot, sure, but it's a lot for me. And, you know what? That's on track for January and February. March was fucking wild cuz I broke 14k words in March. And I know from tracking it last year, whenever I get a huge spike of words in one month, it takes maybe another month to recover. So my next month won't be as big or grand, but that's okay.

And that made me sit back and really look at what that means. I've been rping a lot, which is where the majority of those words come from. I wrote 1.5k words in a single DAY and I'm over here wondering why I don't have any words left in me! When I was in my last writing slump, I was still rping. All I did was rp.

I'm still writing, even when I don't think I am. I'm still expressing myself in these creative outlets even when I don't think it's "real writing". And why does it matter what's real writing anyways? Isn't it enough that I'm still doing it?

It is. It is enough. Therapy helped me recognize my patterns of behavior, and sometimes the answer really is to just. Take a break.

It'll still be here when you get back.

#pastry noises #that's a lot of noises huh #long post

[thahiree]

I posted 1,890 times in 2022

That's 1,822 more posts than 2021!

139 posts created (7%)

1,751 posts reblogged (93%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@anakincito

@docdracula

@yelenaisace

@imperialstark

@lvsifer

I tagged 1,317 of my posts in 2022

Only 30% of my posts had no tags

#stevetony - 286 posts

#tony stark - 98 posts

#steve rogers - 90 posts

#fave - 85 posts

#asks - 44 posts

#my asks - 43 posts

#words - 35 posts

#lmao - 35 posts

#my fic - 33 posts

#wow - 29 posts

Longest Tag: 136 characters

#i expect nothing from steve (no shade i love him but 🤷‍♀️) but i need more than earth's best defender!! when he thinks tony's dead lmao

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

For the sentence starters: “Don’t make me fall in love with you.” stevetony, of course <3

"Don't make me fall in love with you. I - " Tony said and then broke off, abruptly turning away from him. His arms came protectively around to hug himself. Steve ached with the need to reach out and touch him, but.

He couldn't.

He couldn't, not when Tony so clearly didn't want him to.

What Tony needed from him right now, what Steve needed from himself right now, was for him to open his god damn mouth and speak for once. It shouldn't be this difficult, it really shouldn't, the I love you too, more than you can imagine was on the tip of his tongue, and yet -

Tony scoffed. "Got nothing to say, eh?" Steve watched him walk over to the bar and measure out two fingers of whiskey. "You keep doing this, you keep, you keep coming back to me only to disappear on me again." A beat, then: "I'm not fucking waiting around anymore. If you don't mean it, just. Stay away."

"Tony," Steve spoke finally.

Tony scoffed again, but remained silent.

Swallowing heavily, Steve went on, "You don't - "

You don't mean that? You don't know what you mean to me? Steve had no idea where he was going with this. In the end, he settled for, "I didn't mean to hurt you, I - "

He winced, even before Tony whirled back around to gape at him.

"And yet," Tony said after what felt like hours, "it's all you fucking do." He took a huge gulp of whiskey. When he looked back at Steve, his eyes were cold. Steve had to stop himself from taking an instinctive step backward. "You know what, Steve, do us both a fucking favor, and stay the hell away."

"Tony," Steve tried again, his throat tight, but it was too late, he could hear the penthouse's front door open behind him. Tony meant it. If Steve walked through that door now, he'd never be welcome here again, he was sure of it.

And that, that wasn't something he could accept.

When he finally moved, it was toward Tony.

50 notes - Posted February 22, 2022

#4

Post EG-AU:The team gets trapped in some “Perfect World” dream type scenarios and they have to pull each other out of their deepest wish. And when part of the team gets to Steve’s it’s him being with Tony of course, but it’s also a Steve that’s open and able to communicate his love with a Tony that not only gets him but is super openly affectionate and Steve knows exactly how to reciprocate.

And real Tony is with the team that finds this scene and is all “-the FUCK is this Cap??”

Steve watching dream! him skip through a sunny meadow with Tony by his side and .....[EXTREME NSFW]....t-touching hands.....

Tony:

See the full post

61 notes - Posted February 24, 2022

#3

From the sentence starters, could you do "Let me take care of you?" thank you so much and i hope you're having a lovely day!!

Thank you <3 Have some post-Endgame established relationship fluff with Tony tricking Steve into letting himself be taken care of lol

~ 2000 words

Also on AO3!

-

"Let me take care of you."

Steve groaned.

Tony smirked and leaned back against his seat, looking really fucking pleased with himself.

"When I said you can wish for anything you want for your birthday," Steve said, crossing his arms over his chest, "I meant making me go to one of your nerdy science conventions or letting you take me on an unnecessary weekend trip somewhere. Not," He paused, grimacing, "whatever it is you’re asking for right now."

"Well, that’s on you, handsome," Tony said, still smirking. "Thinking I want to travel the world when all I want, all I need, I got right here at home?" He paused dramatically. "No, my biggest wish for my birthday is to take care of my man." After a moment’s thought, he added, lips twitching, "You wouldn’t go back on your word now, would you? Honest man like you."

Hilarious.

Steve didn’t bother dignifying that with a response.

Tony winked.

"So," Steve said, setting his jaw, "How does this work, your whole—" He motioned between them. "What do you want from me?" He was self-aware enough to know that he was not good at letting people take care of him. "Please tell me taking care of me doesn’t entail you cooking for me. You can do anything to me, but subjecting me to your cooking? That’s a step too far."

Tony cocked his head to the side, eyeing Steve thoughtfully. The fact that he didn’t even react to the jab about his cooking was worrying. What was he planning?

"You know," Steve continued when Tony just went on staring at him and tapping his fingers in an uneven rhythm against the table (driving Steve insane), "I don’t even know what you’re getting out of this. I sit on my ass all day, while you are in meetings. If anything, it should be me taking care of you—"

"I have to admit," Tony interrupted, pushing his glasses up his forehead and folding his hands in front of him, "that I’m a little surprised by this reaction. I did expect some push back, obviously, but this is veering toward—"

Steve scowled. "I’m not—"

"Mild panic, perhaps? Is that what’s going on right now?" Tony asked, as if Steve hadn’t spoken.

"I’m not panicking," Steve bit out, uncrossing his arms to show just how casual he was about all this. "Just don’t understand what you’re getting out of this, is all."

"Oh, Captain," Tony said, a filthy smirk appearing on his face as he looked Steve up and down. "Plenty of things, believe me." Then his smirk mellowed into a soft smile. "You know, I don’t think you know just how—" He paused, biting his lip. "If I could spend all of my day taking care of you, I would."

Steve blinked at the unexpected romantic sentiment.

Unexpected not because he wasn’t aware of what Tony was feeling for him (that was plain to see, now that Steve allowed himself to look), but because this wasn’t how things usually worked between them. Eight months into whatever this was, and they were still careful with each other, both all too aware just how fast things could go downhill for them, with one single misstep.

What Tony had just done was shockingly bold, but then again, this was Tony Stark.

Tony huffed out a laugh at the look on his face. "Alright, darling, don’t want you talking yourself into a full-blown panic, so I’ll lay out my plan for tonight: I was just thinking we could turn off our phones for the night, open a nice bottle of wine, perhaps take a bath together, that’s all. Feels like we haven’t seen each other in weeks."

Oh.

Somehow it hadn’t occurred to Steve that that was what Tony had meant. He pursed his lips. (Fine, perhaps he had been a little irrational earlier. He wasn’t about to admit it, though.)

Tony snorted. "What did you think I was asking for? Guided meditation? Couple’s therapy?"

Steve narrowed his eyes.

Tony snorted again, pushing himself up from the table and crossing the two steps to reach Steve. Steve’s arms automatically uncrossed to allow him close. "Just want to spend some quality time with my man, that’s all," Tony murmured, his hands trailing up from Steve’s hands to his biceps.

See the full post

70 notes - Posted March 2, 2022

#2

for the random starters: “Can we just not fight today, please. I don’t have the energy.” + stevetony :>

"Can we just not fight today, please. I don't have the energy. I know it's a lot to ask right now, I do, but—" Steve said, trailing off, hoping Tony could fill in the blanks, hoping Tony could understand—

"Fine," Tony said after a moment, eyeing him from afar. His face looked tired, drawn. Fighting to get your team pardoned when they're on every country's most wanted list would do that to a person, Steve supposed.

"We're tabling the conversation for now," Tony continued, reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose. "But this can't go on, we have to - "

Steve inclined his head. "I know, I know, I'm working on it, okay? I'm talking to the team. I'm doing everything I can, believe me." After a moment's thought, he added, "We want to come home."

Tony stared at him a moment longer, then he turned toward the kitchen. "Are you staying the night?"

"Can't," Steve replied, edging closer. "We're headed to—"

"Don't tell me," Tony interrupted, opening the fridge door and sticking his head inside.

Steve shrugged. If Tony wanted to know where they were, he could find out easily. Steve slept better at night knowing Tony could, truthfully. He didn't ever want to be somewhere he couldn't be found by Tony.

"I have a little time," Steve went on when Tony continued rummaging around the fridge, and then did what he had wanted the moment he stepped into the penthouse, taking the two steps toward Tony and fitting himself against his back. He'd never get over the way Tony immediately melted in his hold. This right here was why Steve kept fighting.

Selfish, perhaps, but it was the truth.

Laying a kiss against Tony's neck, Steve whispered, "Come to bed with me. We've talked enough for tonight, don't you think?"

83 notes - Posted February 23, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Sorry for bringing Endgame discourse to your dash in 2022, but Steve should've been the one asking (begging) "Do you trust me?" in Endgame, and that's on that

186 notes - Posted February 20, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#my 2022 tumblr year in review #saw starvels doing that and figure why not #yelling at my longest tag #i said what i said #figured*

[grandly-disfunctional]

One Last Drop: a Bucky Barnes Fic Part 1

Series summary: You left your stale, boring life to become an agent for Tony Stark, and you meet bucky at one of Tony's parties. You wouldn't believe there were some unique answers to your past tied to the one and only Bucky Barnes (non- cannon fic)

Masterlist

Some warnings only apply to specific chapters. This chapter is extremely light, just a little blood

***

You were bloodied and bruised, fighting off a hunk metal with your bare hands.

On a normal Tuesday, you usually found yourself at the bakery, having breakfast, but ever since you got caught in that stupid accident, there was a lot you still needed to know.

"Remember to focus. You're getting too sloppy," Tony yelled from afar.

You threw Tony angry glances every time you got a chance to land a punch or reroute the suit you were training against. Tony looked pleased at times but made stupid comments that, unfortunately, would be your downfall.

You peeled yourself into a sitting position on the concrete of the training yard, rubbing your cheek from the disastrous right hook.

"Y'know, Tony, I am SO much better at this research stuff than fighting. I can handle heels, I can hack into weapons files and collect names and even find intentions, but I will never be good at throwing punches against that suit."

He looked up from where he was typing on his computer screen. "But-" he paused for a second, looking back at his screen- "If I remember correctly, the first time you fought the suit you were down in 30 seconds, but this time you lasted 5 minutes, and even damaged the coordination sensor! That would knock a full-grown adult to the ground in a second,not to mention that i set you against the suit because you couldn't use your powers against it."

You frowned playfully, wiping the blood off of your face from where the blow connected. "You're right, Tony, plus you wouldn't let me have any knives."

"You're getting too good at the knives." He offered his hand to help you up off of the concrete. "Go get patched up, and then you're free to go back to your room or do whatever"

He started walking back to the offices, and you followed him, headed toward the training facilities and locker rooms.

"Alright." You dusted the dirt off of your face and tac suit. As you caught back up with him. "I think I'll head on back down to Brooklyn to pack the rest of my apartment"

"No need, I made sure everything was packed and ready, so it should be in your room"

"Wow, you really do work fast"

"Who do you think I am, Tony Stark? He smirked, and you shot him a look, chuckling as you rounded the corner.

*insert border here*

You finished unpacking the last of your three extra boxes that afternoon. As soon as you pulled apart the cardboard from the last one, someone knocked on your door - two short nocks, a pause, and then another - Natasha. She was one of the first people you met and trained with here at the compound, and you gave Friday permission to let her enter whenever, but she still liked to knock to let you know.

"Hey Nat." You greeted her as she opened the door. She was dressed in a nice outfit: back slacks and a red top with a high collar, hair braided into a bun.

"Hey Y/N." She took a couple steps into the kitchen and living room. "I see you finished moving in"

"Yeah, I just finished," you finished stuffing the cardboard behind the trash pail, and joined her in the living room. "So, what brings you in here, dressed all fancy like that?"

"Ah, the Avengers party in New York." She shrugged, "Tony wanted me and Yelena to come, but she bailed last minute"

"That bites"

"Tell me about it. Something about saving Barton's ass," her Russian accent peeked through her words when she raised her voice, which you thought was hilarious. "Anyway, you are a good dancer, come with"

You were taken aback. "What?"

"Come on, Y/N, it'll be good for you to finally meet the rest of the team"

"Natasha," you wined. "I just moved in, and I don't - I don't have any dresses that fit me anymore," you pouted. The training you've been doing almost daily for the past month or so has built up muscle mass, and you were no longer the skinny popular girl. You were strong.

"You can borrow one of Lena's dresses, just, come with me please," She grabbed your hand and looked you in the eyes.

You took a deep breath in, rolling your eyes slightly. "Fine"

"I owe you big time"

She smiled, a little too much for comfort, but you followed her down to yelena's room, grabbing your makeup bag and favorite pair of stelittoes.

#bucky x reader #bucky fic #bucky barnes #bucky x female reader #tw: blood #avengers fic

[hyperiongremlin]

Modern au chapter 5 is up

Hi! I stayed up all night writing this one, I think it’s the longest chapter of the fic so far. This chapter does contain some triggering content including: the aftermath of r*pe, blood, injury, and discussion of trans bodies. 

because of that content I can only post a sliver here so you will have to read the rest on ao3. 

Link is as always: https://archiveofourown.org/works/37983421/chapters/109687444

“You want shotgun or you wanna sit in the back? Up to you cupcake,” Jack said. Rhys considered for a moment, on one hand the back felt safer, more secluded from outside, on the other hand, Rhys would probably get carsick if he sat in the back.

“Uh front I guess, I’m probably gonna bleed on your expensive seat though” he said, stumbling to the passenger side.

“It’s fine kitten, I’ll get it cleaned later,” Jack said. Tim took the back seat as Jack slid into the driver’s seat.

“Word of warning, he kinda treats the speed limit as a speed suggestion,” Tim said from the back. Rhys laughed a bit.

“The tickets here are so expensive though… how have you not gotten caught?” Rhys asked. Tim snorted and Jack chuckled.

“Oh Rhysie, I’m to much of a badass to get pulled over,” Jack said. Then he floored it, ripping through the residential streets.

“So where’re we going again? I thought we were headed to your place,” Rhys said.

“We are, don’t worry you’re pretty head over it,” Jack said. Rhys blushed. All of Jack’s cute nicknames and sweet talk made him feel something in his chest. As the trio left the city, Rhys’ curiosity flared up again.

“Wow I didn’t think there was anything out here honestly,” Rhys said, well there was one thing out here, the giant blurred out patch on ECHOmaps. A lot had been speculated about that patch but nothing ever confirmed. Military compound maybe? A secret corporate research site? It had long been the subject of workplace rumors. Vaughn, his friend who worked at Hyperion, swore it had something to do with the mysterious CEO of the engineering giant. For his part, Rhys didn’t really care, so long as the car didn’t bump into any escaped experiments on the way to Jack and Tim’s place.

“Long commute haha, what’s it been? 30 minutes?” Rhys said, trying to make light of the situation.

“Oh absolutely, I mean, Timtams how many miles you got on that truck now?” Jack said, flicking the turn signal and turning onto a side road that Rhys hadn’t even noticed.

“Oh man, gotta be a few hundred thousand by now,” Tim said.

“Man, I drive… well drove, s’pose i’ll be finding a new place again, like 10 minutes to work.,” Rhys said, the realization of his impending move coiling around his lungs and splashing in his stomach. He idly gazed out the window and into the thick trees surrounding them. Where were they?

“So Rhys, you’re always talking about work, how’s that going for you?” Tim asked. It was clear he was trying to distract Rhys but Rhys indulged him.

“Oh you know, the same old, one of our board members flipped the fuck out over that challenge from Hyperion, now everyone’s on damage control. It’s really interfering with my attempts to get promoted,” Rhys said.

“Haha classic Atlas, they have their heads so far up their own asses they can’t feel when progress slaps ‘em in the face,'' Jack said, laughing. It was odd that a finance teacher would not only know so much about Atlas’ ineptitude when the Atlas  pr team worked so hard to keep the companies fuck ups a secret, but also that he would even take an interest in the tech world. Rhys, wondering how this had never come up when he talked about work before, decided to pry.

“I mean all the tech world is talking about is how ballsy Hyperion is getting, this Handsome Jack guy set the entire industry on its head, what was it 11 years ago, and…” Rhys started.

“12, kitten, 12 years ago,” Jack corrected.

“Right.. But uh he’s just gotten more and more confident these past years, what do you think about that?” Rhys finished.

“Ho boy, you wanna talk about Handsome Jack, baby? Handsome Jack is the best goddamn thing to happen to Hyperion in all of company history, I mean I’m not sure how much you know about Hyperion stock and earnings and that shit but, it’s frickin’ DOMINATING the market right now,” Jack’s voice rose a bit as he got excited.

“Haha, yeah my friend Vaughn tried to explain all of that to me last time we had movie night but I was sorta too busy trying to watch The Lake, great movie by the way, really fucking scary,” Rhys said.

“Jack… I know you want to keep talking but we need to get Rhys inside,” Tim said, before Jack could chatter on about his corporate hyperfixation. That was something Tim had taught him about when Violet had been diagnosed with ADHD, though for Violet it was unicorns, not the politics of capitalism. Rhys’ thoughts speculating about Jack’s possible ADHD were cut short as he looked out the window. He hadn’t noticed but they were now inside some sort of large structure, filled with cars. Rhys nearly face palmed when he realized that a large structure with cars was a garage.

“I thought you said no hospital,” Rhys said, his voice wavering slightly. His friends wouldn’t lie to him, there had to be some other explanation.

“It’s all good, no one lied, this is just our stupidly large garage where Jack keeps his ridiculous amount of cars,” Tim said, as if that were a perfectly normal thing to say.

“Uh, what? Jack, how can you afford this?” Rhys asked, looking around at the dozens of slumbering vehicles.

#Rhackothy #fic #fanfic #gremlin content #oc #rhys strongfork #handsome jack #timothy lawrence #longfic #hurt comfort #golden threads to a shattered heart

[foxymoxynoona]

saw your answer to an ask about tropes you didn’t like and you answered with CEO trope and i agree!!!! most CEO fics ive come across are just 😐

BUT

there’s ONE exception that you HAVE to give a read and i promise you that it’ll be worth your time:

it’s called Arranged by @obiwrites on ao3 and let me tell you…

it’s wow. WOW. and properly aged too—hoseok in this fic was 30 when he became CEO. AND the writer actually gave us PROPER SCENES where hoseok is ACTUALLY DOING HIS JOB AS A CEO. AN ACTUAL STORYLINE OF HIM BEING A CEO THAT WILL ULTIMATELY ALSO HELPS DRIVE HIS AND OC’S RELATIONSHIP FORWARD.

here let me give you a few excerpts:

1. “New zoning permits, the new building codes and regulations are attached to the back.” He explains and it’s one of the older board members—one he distinctly remembers not being able to stand growing up, that speaks next.

“The plot of land and the area we picked was crucial to the development of the new children's hospital. Not that I’m not thoroughly impressed by how quickly you were able to obtain these considering it took us half a year initially, but… we don’t want a new space.” Mr. Kang says and it takes every ounce of willpower Hoseok possesses not to roll his eyes.

“Which is why I fought tooth and nail for the one we already have. These aren’t new plans, they’re the same ones but altered for the situation. As soon as the board votes we’ll be able to move forward with the new hospital and open on time.” Hoseok says, taking a seat at the head of the table. Today he’d held the meeting in the office—the country club was to wine and dine, in the words of his father. He could touch base on surface level issues at his own discretion, but only actual plans were to be made behind the privacy of closed doors. And in all honesty he preferred it this way.

Outside of the boardroom, Hoseok had to lick every one of these fuckers asses. Make them feel real special and take them on dates, but inside his office? He could stick to data and statistics and he flourished at those.

2. “The resources at my home office are the same resources I have here,” Hoseok says, fighting to keep his temper under control, “Is there a reason you’re likening my proposal to a third grader’s macaroni drawing?”

3. “You’ve barely read through any of the materials I’ve provided. Because if you did you would see that I hardly made any changes. Our original plans encroach on one eighth of an inch on the neighboring plot—therein lies our mistake. Those mistakes, while they should have been caught while going through the company’s equivalent of a strainer, were not made by my employees. They were made by the contractors hired under you. Who should be more than knowledgeable and qualified to know the basics of zoning.” (like you can FEEL his CEO-ness here)

4. (oh and this is my FAVORITE part of his CEO storyline in this story because here OC helps his character growth)

“This entire time—the grooming, the internships, the work… not once did I feel in over my head. I was confident in my ability to do this but lately… I’m second guessing myself.” He scrubs a hand down his face in frustration, “Every solution I offer for this situation gets shot down. They don’t want to hear what I want to say, they want it their way. I’m trying so goddamn hard to please the board and bending over backwards and it just never seems like enough. I don’t know what they want me to do. I’m overworking my team and myself and … and…!”

Hoseok lets out an annoyed growl and you flinch.

“And it drives me fucking insane that Mr. Min still calls me by my first name. I’m not just Hoseok anymore. I’m Jung fucking Hoseok and I’m CEO of this goddamn company so why can’t I stop feeling like some incompetent little kid?” He exhales deeply. “They ask me to come up with a new plan because contractors they hired fucked up the zoning permits so I have to try and pull a new one out of my ass. And try to keep this stupid fucking plot because that’s where they want the hospital and they’re just so goddamn stubborn even though we could find another plot of land for cheaper. Is it inconveniencing to uproot the foundation of this? Yes but what the fuck other choice do we have?”

You wait a beat to make sure he’s finished and when you’re positive it’s the appropriate time, you clear your throat.

“Can I offer you some advice, as a reformed people pleaser?” You ask, leaning on the railing next to him.

You don’t look at each other and you take his silence as a confirmation.

“You’re never gonna make them happy. It doesn’t matter what you give them, how much work you put in. It won’t be enough. But more importantly you feel incompetent because you’re trying to run the company the way they want you to run the company.” You explain and Hoseok turns to look at you, “You feel like a little kid because you’re acting like one.”

“How so?” He scoffs.

You look at him, “You’re taking orders and still trying to impress your daddy and his friends.”

Hoseok blinks at you.

“How’d I do?” You squint at him, “I hit the nail on the head?”

YOU HAVE TO GIVE THIS FIC A READ MISS FOXY.

I actually have had that one saved to read! I'll bump it up my reading list. I have a couple highly-recommended Hoseok fics I need to check out. It'll be interesting to see if I can get past my own hangups --I spent a lot of my job dealing with CEOs and it puts me in a very annoyed, non-romantic headspace haha, I have never once thought 'oh yes I want to romance someone who is CEO.' I want to BE the ceo being romanced!

But yes, I'll give it a read and we'll see if I can get over myself haha. Maybe this story will be like lancing a wound for me 🤣 And the excerpts do look appropriate! Love me some aged-up stories :D

#asks #anonymous #fic recs

[starcasticallyyours]

Jan 4, 2023 - a lovely day!!

I just had a really good day today that I want to make sure I remember so I'm making an honest to god blog, a straight up rambling diary entry. Just like I used to on LiveJournal, wow.

I do not expect anyone to read this. I just want to remember my lovely day. It was filled with nostalgia, good food, history, productivity, genuine exercise(?!), photos, and of course, BTS.

I've been on holiday since December 30th because I have a benevolent boss (perks of working at a small company) who lets our annual leave spill over a tiny bit since it's still "Christmas" break. I was socially engaged the nights of Dec29/Jan1 as well as the afternoon of Dec30, plus I was furiously writing updates for the DnD ficlet collection since it was Tae's birthday and trying to finish up Ch1 of the Regency sequel, Pirate fic, whenever I was at home during this time so it did not feel restful at all. It was only on Jan2 where I could pull a Kim Seokjin and completely sequester myself at home and veg out -- woke up at noon and played Stardew Valley for like, 6 hours. Jan3 required me to be a functional adult again so I cleaned the flat and tried to hash out the pirate fic before realising it was going to take wayyyy more work, so I've earmarked Marryat and Forester books to check out from HK Central when I go to CWB on Saturday. (Apparently Jimin has a massive Dior ad on the Sogo screen, so I will also be going there after my haircut. Whoo!!) Which brings us to January 4th! A Thursday. Historically, Thursdays have been good to me and this was no exception. I woke up later than I intended, around 10 AM, and then the sheer pleasure of being in a comfortable bed without needing to be anywhere stretched my lie-in to 10:30. After the basics of room tidying and washing up, I had leftover pasta for breakfast and played In the Seom while waiting out the 30min I'm supposed to have between eating and taking my Chinese meds. Then it was washing up, getting dressed, packing up the devices after charging them all morning to give myself a little day trip to...

Kowloon City! My childhood 'hood. And now that I've moved back across the harbour, pressing play on The Most Beautiful Moment in Life: Young Forever while walking out the door meant that by the time I got out in Sung Wong Toi station, my earbuds were appropriately blaring Ma City. (Okay, I did repeat Run because that's my favourite title track.) I made a beeline for Islam Food because I haven't had delicious halal Xinjiang cuisine in forever except I was an unfortunate bee with poor scent receptors since I forgot where it was and ended up looping around Nga Tsin Wai for a while... we were on Converse High by the time I found the resto, that's how long it took. At almost 2 PM was nearly full but not proper crowded, and mostly with older people which is par the course for Kowloon City. As a single I got a tiny table in the corner immediately and ordered a classic beef patty + bok choy and tofu soup. If I were with a larger group, I would have also gotten mutton xiaolongbao, scallion pancakes, and a curry so I will have to drag some people here again soon. Food was prompt and only $65 so I was done eating in 20 minutes tops.

Thanks to climate change, it was a balmy sunny afternoon so I stuffed my jacket into my backpack and headed on over to KCP. It's changed a LOT since I was a teenager -- no Park'n Shop in the basement selling eel and chicken rice boxes for $20 anymore, sigh. But I did get a Coco Milk Tea (half sweet, less ice) for $22 which is a VERY good price nowadays, you can't get anything in Central under $27 minimum ($30 on average) for example and it doesn't even taste as good?? But armed with my delicious tea, I was ready to go out the other way into Carpenter Park, which looks literally the same as when I was a kid. I spent a solid decade running around this park. There isn't a bouncy dinosaur anymore so I know it's not exactly the same, but the bicycle paths are the same, the rock garden where Sam filmed his lightsabre battles is the same... and Kowloon Walled City of course is the same.

...from when I was a child, not when it was THE Walled City. (Once, when everywhere at school was occupied, our drama class rehearsed our play in the Zodiac garden much to the tai-tais' collective chagrins.) Full disclosure that I actually came here in mid-December as well to gather inspo and info for my piece for the Ma City zine which is set in 80s KWC, so this time I didn't go look at the exhibits and just went straight to the chess garden since that's the only spot with tables. I set up my laptop and finished the piece to the soundtrack of construction, which I find very appropriate considering the topic. We don't get planes howling overhead anymore, so this will have to do.

Last time, I had to meet friends islandside for dinner so I actually walked up closer to Wong Tai Sin to take the bus but this time, it was only 4:15 and the day was just for me, for me! So after taking some pics in the bonsai garden in honour of Namjoon, I walked back to Junction Road and that was when I started taking pics for nostalgia -- down the street towards Ho Man Tin for the hundreds of times we ran for the bus stop, then up towards Munsang where my old school campus used to be. No, I didn't go to Munsang, I am very clearly an Intl school kid and we were across from them. The buildings are connected to Bethel Seminary which is Grade II protected so still there. I started walking up Junction Road towards Lok Fu when I saw the Stone Houses and stopped by.

These buildings weren't open when I was a kid; I remember passing them but hardly taking notice. Essentially, they are remnants of the oldest tenement buildings in the area, now refurbished as a cafe and museum. The server in the cafe immediately offered me a menu most kindly, but since it was 4:30 and I was already full on tea I politely declined. Checked out the museum though which is small and all in Chinese, no English, but I think the photos and maps would still be worth it for a non-reader. The whole thing strongly reminded me of the Mei Ho House museum and cafe too, even with their menu which is very Hong Kong cha chaan teng-esque. AND they have wi-fi!! So I'm totally planning on coming back for another writing session.

Since it was barely evening, I decided to hike Checkerboard Hill. Back when Kai Tak was still operating, the only way pilots could land planes was to come from the west, over Tsing Yi and Mei Foo Sun Chuen and barely across Kowloon City. With all the urban area underneath, there couldn't be proper signals so what they did was paint an enormous red-and-white checkerboard on the west and south sides of this hill to let the pilots know it was time to make that sharp 47 degree turn into the harbour airstrip. I distinctly recall being a preteen standing in the middle of the asphalt football (soccer to all y'all Yanks) pitch in Kowloon Tsai Park squinting up and thinking, "Why is it painted like that?" Later as a young adult, I found out. Now in my early 30s, I was going to actually go there.

Now ever since my former regular dance studio became a Covid cluster in 2020 and I also joined a choir whose rehearsals took its place on Monday evenings, I am far less fit than I could be. This was evident when I started up this hill -- which was NOT HARD at all, I am just pathetically out of shape. It took less than 15 minutes to reach the summit garden, where I did another confused bumblebee loop looking for the checkerboard and instead found: the electricity station, the weather station, some diligently preserved water tunnels from the 1940s-60s, and an irate woman screaming and swearing at a couple who accidentally took their dogs into the no-pets zone of the park. With the dulcet notes of "diu! bak po!" echoing behind me, I snapped some lovely views of Lion Rock then surreptitiously googled how to get to the checkerboard, discovering that indeed I was supposed to clamber over the stile and carefully tread the VERY narrow ditch outside of the fence (with a super steep slope studded with trees not a foot to the right) to get there.

So I did and the view was beautiful!! I was lucky to reach it at the twilight hour with an orange sun tinging everything as it moseyed on down to the horizon. Facing south you could see all of Kowloon City, all the way to Kwun Tong and Kowloon Bay on the left and Yau Tsim Mong on the right! Directly in front was even the IFC across the harbour. Directly below, Kowloon Tsai Park and those very sports fields from my youth. Somebody named Zach was playing tennis because his partner kept yelling encouragement, but I felt if I cheered "Yeah Zach, you can do it!" back down at them it would be creepy. So instead I took a lot of photos here, including some selfies on the middle layer smack centre of the checkerboard in which it was clear that I truly need a haircut which will happen under Jimin's watchful gaze in CWB come Saturday.

Finally, I climbed down the stairs and was sorely tempted to jump a gate to get into Kowloon Tsai because I know that park like the back of my foot (like, not SUPER well since it's been a long time but I would not get lost; I've run cross country around this park so many times) but in the end was a Good Honest Civilian and went back the way I came. I was feeling incredibly nostalgic at this point, so back on Junction Road I popped in my earbuds and replaced BTS with the Used for that extra mid-2000s angst. Spotify understood the brief and fed me Taking Back Sunday and Yellowcard while I followed the usual path through Morse Park, the way my almost-first-boyfriend Darren taught me in middle school. His favourite band was Jimmy Eat World, so it was perfect. With the memories of Preston's dad teaching me to play baseball on the artificial turf and when Grace came with me to Jusco so we could buy Neopets tamagotchis, I descended into the MTR and took the train home.

(At my stop, I got groceries including sushi for dinner, which I ate while watching Beyond the Star then after a break, took a massage in the chair while playing Stardew because my body is already paying the price for my impromptu hike today. Then I wrote this down before I could forget everything.)

It was a wonderful day, truly. I did everything I wanted to do and a little more, and I know what I want to do again when I inevitably come back. Hong Kong is changing because everything changes, but being in Kowloon City felt like nestling into a warm divot in the blankets. Like Joon said, you couldn't pay me millions to want to be from anywhere else. Like Hobi said, the heat will get to you but it's charged with the passion of its people. I'll be riding and dying in ma city until there's no other choice, which I know is sooner rather than later but for now, it's still Ma City.

#starcastic sighs #in happiness because she had a nice day. #Kowloon City #Kowloon Walled City #Checkerboard Hill #Hong Kong