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lmelodie · 1 year

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Long Day?

OK YES, I KNOW. I accidentally posted this recently with the latest CS art drop because the queue got all messed up somehow. But it's here for real now! It being random BlackIce fluff drabble. This is very bare bones writing wise, just because the concept itself doesn't have a lot of substance, but it's a concept that hasn't been able to leave my head recently.

With every new chapter of Chance and Choice I get out, the closer we inch to the canonical post breakup meet and I'm getting all my fantasies about them being happy and nice to each other out before the angst drops. Very difficult to follow your own canon when you wanna skip all the growing redemption arc steps and get to the happiness.

Jack frost x OC (for anyone unaware lurking in the tag)

The heavy footsteps sounded off of the porch stairs into the surrounding snow. They made their way in a huff to the front door, and the man attached to them was too tired to care about being sneaky right now.

He reached out and jiggled the doorknob expecting the door to swing open. But when it didn't his scowl only deepened, a fitting match for dark circles under his eyes.

Locked? Since when does he keep this locked? Whatever, I don't have time for this.

Today Killian was not in a mood for semantics, he needed to get straight to the point. He quickly bypassed the lock by deconstructing his form into a mass of shadows and slipped through the gap under the door instead. Briefly thinking about breaking a window, but ultimately that was too much work. Silently reforming on the other side, all the lights were on downstairs which means he’s here.

Good. All of that would've been for nothing if he wasn't.

“JACK! Jack Frost, you better make yourself known!” he yelled into the open first floor, a small demonic reverb added to his voice.

Now for step two, to remember where he keeps the good alcohol. Making his way down the entryway with the same fast and heavy steps he finds the kitchen and makes quick work in starting the search for the booze.

“Kills?!” Jack calls out from somewhere else in the house.

Killian pays no mind to him and doesn't answer back. Instead, he continues opening and closing random cabinets, growing more frustrated with each one that passes without premium alcohol in them. He really should know where all of his stuff is by now, but god dammit he is too tired to remember where off the top of his head.

Eventually after another moment he found the jackpot. A floor cabinet near the fridge held all the top shelf liquor a snob like Jack would own, and that Killian himself was not willing to pay for.

"Killian, I know you're here! What are you doing?!" Jack's voice rang out closer than before now accompanied with fast approaching footsteps.

The redhead however still doesn't care. Kneeling on the floor he spots a half empty bottle of Evergreens whiskey (a very potent fae brand), and promptly pops the top open and starts sipping. NOT downing the whole thing, but just enough to help the process along quicker.

It was then that Jack sped walked his way into the kitchen, and abruptly stopped in his huff. Finding the sight of his partner on the kitchen floor drinking up all his good booze, at three in the afternoon. Definitely not the most unusual thing he’s seen him do, but more annoying than anything else.

"What the hell?!" He throws his arms open in exasperation, "That's the good stuff, Kills! I have those saved for special occasions only.”

Killian shoots Jack a steely glare from over his shoulder as he pulls himself off of the floor. He holds up one finger in Jack's direction, taking another longer sip from the bottle. Jack can only watch out of morbid curiosity, indignance painted on his face.

“You have something I want,” he growls in a low tambor.

His tone sounded more like a threat than anything, with every word enunciated. He has a very dark, determined look in his eyes and Jack knows that this kind of behavior can only mean two things. Either he’s messed up and he’s about to really enjoy this next part. Or he's messed up and he’s about to die. The fear of not knowing what exactly he’s done to warrant whichever choice is palatable.

“Now, I don't know what youve heard. And I will be honest here, I don't know what I did. But w-whatever it is, I'm sure it was blown WAY out of proportion!”

He punctuates the sentence with a nervous chuckle, very put off by Killian still not giving him any context and now coming closer. And with each step he becomes less and less confident that he WONT be receiving a deadly fate. Jack tries to instinctively move back a couple steps, but it was too little too late, he was already far too close for comfort. Killian sets the glass bottle down on the countertop, halfway between setting it down and slamming it.

“Listen! I haven't finished writing my will yet, and I was going to leave everything to you anyway! And-and you need my signature on all that paperwork if you want any of my SHIT—!”

In one fell swoop, Killian stooped close to the ground, got a hold of Jack by the legs and hoisted the man up onto his shoulder. Always heavier than he looks. But now with both arms securing Jack from on high, Kills starts making the trek to their final destination just in the other room.

Jack, completely red in the face, and after the moment of shocked silence, instinctively went combative.

“KILLIAN! YOU KNOW I DON'T DO WELL BEING MANHANDLED! I WILL start ice blasting my way out and I am not afraid of taking you down with me!!”

But as much of a big game as he was talking, Jack wanted to do little else than to just be carried around his own home. Flustered and embarrassed? Yes. Completely opposed? No. But he still thrashed a little bit and endlessly complained the entire way to the living room.

And when faced with the couch in front of him, Killian tried his best to untangle Jack from himself as much as possible before unceremoniously body slamming him onto the cushions. Tossing aside his beanie, before Jack can recompose himself and even think about escaping, Killian quickly crawls over top of him. Blocking out any escape routes.

“I haven't slept for the past week and a half and it's just now catching up to me and I feel like I've been bit by a bus,” Killian explains in the same dark warning tone, “I've been making night terrors all week and I just need one hour where nothing happens.”

And yet again, before Jack could protest any of this, Killian flopped the rest of the way down laying directly on top of Jack. Making himself very comfortable and making it very clear that he was going to be napping with Jack as a pillow. He turned his head to the side, putting his ear onto Jack's chest. The sound of his spiking heart rate through his ribcage was soothing to him.

After the moment of surprise had passed, Jack laid there for a second more. His face still incredibly flushed but overall thrown for a loop that he’s chosen neither the sexy nor deadly options. But confusion aside, Jack gathered his wits and tried to brute strength his partner off of him. Attempting to tip him over off the edge of the couch and onto the floor.

“And as much as I would love that Kills, I really would enjoy doing absolutely nothing with you. But I have snow business to attend to!”

Jack did not get very far in his attempts to shove him off however, before Killian pushed himself and subsequently Jack further into the couch. Squandering his tiny bit of progress.

“I wasn't asking,” Killian mumbles, adjusting himself somehow even closer to his partner.

Curiosity for why about all of this suddenly popped into Jack's head. No sleep for the past week? And night terrors the entire time? Killian usually loves making night terrors, but there are notoriously draining. Forcefully putting someone in a terrible dream state and then keeping them there for an extended amount of time? And doing that for a week and half straight? He must be all kinds of drained, physically and magically.

“Was it really that bad?”

“Maybe..” Killian responds, barely audible.

And Jack knows that Maybe is boogeyman code for Definitely. He deliberates back and forth on this idea for a moment. He really does have a lot shit to do, it's almost November for sky's sake! But ultimately, he cannot say no to him. Especially not since he’s already very trapped and can't do much about it one way or another.

“Ugh fine, you creep,” Jack sighs, putting one hand in Killian’s hair and the other arm over his shoulders, “But you only get thirty minutes.”

“Fifty.”

“Thirty five.”

“Forty five.”

“Deal.” Jack agrees, adjusting himself, “You're just very lucky that I happen to like you sometimes.”

They both smile, out of view from the other as Killian falls asleep. Jack followed suit not too long after that, and both stayed asleep for the full hour.

#musings #nonart #The Santa Clause #the santa clause 3 #jack frost #OC #BlackIce

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fnf-writingz · 3 years

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Okay I really wanted to request this soo tomorrow (8 June) is my birthday and I was wondering what Garcello and if u could add ruv too I'd love that, would do when its their S/O birthday

casually queues to post on your birthday- happy birthday!! take these two lovely lads as a gift! my birthday is coming up in a few days, so this was fun to write!

~ Garcello and Ruv (Sarv makes a big appearance-) Celebrating Their S/O's Birthday ~

GARCELLO:

He would probably panic for a bit because he wouldn't know what to do-

He's never had to celebrate someone else's birthday, and he rarely celebrates his own birthday

He probably asks around on what he should do, poor man works himself up

He actually tries baking for once! Granted it ends up a bit burnt, but it works

He doesn't know how to decorate your apartment so he literally just tosses blankets around hoping it looks nice

He probably pulls out the arts and crafts and makes you a nice little cup or something along those lines

He also draws you something! (Tis a personal HC of mine that he likes art-)

Forgot to mention that he preps for this celebration while you're out of the house, probably working

So, you come home from work to all the lights off

All of a sudden, different colored clouds of smoke appear, making a pretty smoke show

He's standing in the middle, and he grins at you, mumbling, "Happy birthday, sweetheart." before walking up to you, pulling you into a hug

"I told you to not smoke in the apartment-" "It looked pretty sick though, right?"

You just shake your head and smile at him

He starts showing you everything he made, making you sit down and relax while he brings the cake out

He cuddles you close, singing to you before you blow the candles out

He also gives you the gifts, hoping that you liked them

You just give him a kiss on the cheek and tell him that you love it

Rest of the day is probably spent watching movies together

The drawing he made definitely ends up on the fridge

RUV:

He would also panic a bit-

He usually just hangs out with Sarv during her birthday, so he doesn't know what other people do for their birthday

Sarv basically becomes a co-party planner

She helps him decorate around the church, they fill it up with tons of balloons and streamers

He also tries his best to bake for you, but it turns out really charred and gross so Sarv just takes over food duties

Meanwhile, he's sneaking around and stealing stuff from stores that he thinks you'd like

Like straight up just snatches stuff and leaves

I feel like he'd try to make you something in the church, like a little plaque to put up

Sarv helps him wrap the gifts up because they look like a disaster otherwise

You end up coming home to the two of them still finishing up the decorations-

They both look at you before Sarv just tosses confetti in the air

Ruv will just walk up to you and pick you up, spinning you in a circle before wishing you a happy birthday

He takes you to the dining room while Sarv gets the food ready

They both sing happy birthday to you before you blow put the candles

They let you pick which gifts to open, Ruv being kinda nervous on how you'll react

If you ask how they were able to get it for you, he'll just shoot you a look like "Don't question it."

Of course you'd probably scold him for stealing stuff for you, but he just pats your head

For the rest of the day, Ruv just lets you do whatever you want to do

As long as he gets to see you happy and smiling, he'll be happy too

#fnf garcello #fnf garcello x reader #garcello #garcello x reader #fnf ruv #fnf ruv x reader #ruv #ruv x reader #ruvyzvat x reader #crimsonboii

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onceuponaloonatic · 3 years

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(i just read most of surrogate au on a road trip i Love) do you want to do chaeyoung is hanging out with jihyo and baby nico but jihyo has to run in for a work thing or smth and so chaeyoung is left alone with nico. chaeyoung however has Zero childcare skills and is so clueless. queue chaeyoung getting nontoxic paint and trying to paint with 2 month old nico, its literally all smears and both are covered in paint from head to toe by the end but sana and jihyo both love it and take one of the "artworks" and frame it.

thank you so much !! sorry for the wait !! also i only have three asks left so if you guys have any ideas please send asks!!

“Who’s the cutest baby in the world? You are.” Jihyo smiled as she tickled Nico’s stomach, earning her a giggle in response. Nico had just started giggling a few days ago, right after her second month of life had officially begun. Needless to say, her parents could not give enough of it. Sana had taken countless videos the first time Nico giggled, and had sent all of them to Jihyo. Now that Jihyo was watching Nico, she couldn’t get enough of her baby girl giggling. “I love you.” Jihyo kissed Nico’s cheek.

“Babe if you give her too much attention she’s going to be spoiled.” Chaeyoung giggled from the couch. She had received most of the videos from Jihyo, and she thought it was adorable how in love with Nico Jihyo was. She also knew her girlfriend needed this time with Nico. She hadn’t been able to spend much time with her lately and Chaeyoung knew it was eating at Jihyo. “I think it’s too late for that.” Jihyo picked Nico up and carried her to the couch where she sat next to Chaeyoung. She quickly settled Nico before leaning into her girlfriend. “You’ve seen how Sana is with her. Sana is like obsessed with Nico.” “Don’t pretend you aren’t too.” Chaeyoung giggled. “You are just as in love with her as Sana is. She’s my competition for your heart.” Chaeyoung smiled when a tiny foot kicked her arm as Nico wiggled in Jihyo’s lap.

“You know I love both of you right? It’s not a competition. I love both of you.” Jihyo nodded, resting her head on Chaeyoung’s shoulder. Chaeyoung’s arm snaked its way around her waist and Jihyo smiled. “I know. Don’t tell Nico though, we have a bet going.” Chaeyoung laughed as Nico’s foot kicked her again. Chaeyoung took her free hand and grabbed Nico’s foot, squeezing her clothed foot. Nico’s toes curled reflexively, gripping onto Chaeyoung's hand while she played with Jihyo’s shirt collar. Their perfect moment was interrupted when Jihyo’s phone rang. Jihyo sighed, moving Nico to one arm to pick up the phone. Chaeyoung squeezed Jihyo’s waist before letting go, moving to take Nico from her girlfriend. Nico giggled as Chaeyoung lifted her up as high as she could before bringing her back in. Jihyo eyed her with an amused smile while she talked on the phone, but it was quickly replaced with a look Chaeyoung knew all too well. “Your boss?” Chaeyoung asked once Jihyo was off the phone. “It’s Saturday. My boss knows I don’t work weekends.” Jihyo sighed. “But there’s an emergency in the case, if I don't fix it we might not be able to get the conviction.” “I get it.” Chaeyoung smiled. “You have an important job. Nico knows that too. I’ve got her, go.” “Thank you so much. I love you. You're the best.” Jihyo gave Chaeyoung a quick kiss before getting up to get dressed. “I know. I’m the best girlfriend in the world. It’s a curse.” Chaeyoung said dramatically. Jihyo laughed as she quickly threw on work appropriate clothes. Once she was dressed she pulled her hair up in a quick ponytail before moving to say goodbye. “Be good for Auntie Chaeyoung Nico.” Jihyo kissed Nico’s chubby cheek. “And you, no roughhousing.” “Can’t make any promises.” Chaeyoung giggled. “I’m serious. I should be back after lunch. You have Sana’s number but in case your phone dies it’s on the fridge. Her bottles with instructions are in the fridge. Sana wrote them so they should be pretty through but if you have any questions I’ll keep my phone on and Momo calls herself the master of bottles, she doesn’t need to eat until after her mid-day nap but if I’m not back by then you’ll need to take care of it. She needs to nap at eleven thirty, and she should be awake by one. The baby monitor is on but if there’s any issues with it-”

“Jihyo, it’s okay. Seriously you and Sana both spiral so much. It’s going to be okay. Nico and I have hung out before. I love you, have fun at work.” Chaeyoung giggled, kissing Jihyo one more time.

“Thank you. I love you too. Bye Chae, bye Nico!” Chaeyoung had to practically push Jihyo out of the apartment. “It’s just you and me kiddo.” Chaeyoung giggled, kissing Nico’s cheek before taking her over to the couch. She sat for a few minutes before Nico started whining. Chaeyoung quickly went through the usual list of Nico things but it quickly dawned on her why Nico was whining. “You're bored. Alright, let’s find something for you to do.” Chaeyoung went over to the baby bag Sana had packed and looked through it. She found a toy for Nico, pulling it out and giving it to Nico. Nico felt the toy, but immediately threw it. “Alright not that.” Chaeyoung sighed. She had spent time with Nico before, but not alone. She actually had never watched kids alone. Her best friend growing up babysat a bit in high school for some extra money, but Chaeyoung only went with her once and the kid was ten. It was nothing like taking care of a baby. It was a little overwhelming. So Chaeyoung did what she normally did when she had no idea what to do. Google.

After a quick “what to do with a two month old” google search and looking through a few articles she came to the conclusion she had no idea what she was doing. She had already tried toys, Nico had quickly rejected that. Sana and Momo handled tummy time so Chaeyoung didn’t want to do anything that would be wrong or confusing for Nico. Nico’s nap didn’t start for an hour, and she clearly wasn’t hungry. “What do you want to do baby?” Chaeyoung sighed, thinking about what to do. “You could help Auntie Chaeyoung with her work, would that be fun?” Chaeyoung’s answer came with a tiny kick to the arm and she took that as a yes. She carried Nico over to the makeshift paint station she had in the corner of their living room. Before she moved in, Jihyo had an old piano she had inherited from her family there. Now the piano sat on the other side of the living room and Jihyo’s dead plant that had been sitting in her living room for way too long had been replaced. Chaeyoung liked the change, it felt a lot more homey. “Alright let’s see. Here, this is non-toxic. Have you ever painted before?” Chaeyoung asked. “I’m guessing you haven’t. Your mommies are kind of boring. Let’s change that.” Chaeyoung smiled. “Do you know what color this is? This is red.” Chaeyoung smiled, getting some red non-toxic paint and putting some on her paint tray. She moved Nico so she was using one hand to support her body, Nico looking at her curiously. Chaeyoung put one finger in the red paint, showing it to Nico before putting it on the blank canvas. “Want to try?” Chaeyoung grabbed one of Nico’s hands and put it in the paint before putting it on the canvas. Nico giggled as a tiny hand print appeared on the canvas. “Like that? Let’s get some more colors yeah?” xx

Jihyo got through her work as quickly as possible. She wanted to be back before Nico’s nap in case Chaeyoung had trouble putting her down and she wanted to spend time with Nico. Thankfully, she got through it all quickly. She rushed home as fast as she could, noting she got home a couple minutes before Nico’s nap was supposed to start.

“Chae? I’m back!” Jihyo called when she entered the apartment. She took her shoes off before going into the living room. She saw her daughter and girlfriend sitting at Chaeyoung’s painting station. Both of them were covered in paint somehow but both had huge smiles on their faces. Jihyo couldn’t help herself but take a picture. “Hi baby.” Jihyo greeted after taking a picture.

“Oh hey! Nico look Mama’s back!” Chaeyoung giggled. “We made art.” “I can see that.” Jihyo smiled, taking Nico from Chaeyong and giggling at how much paint was on the denim dress Sana had put on her that morning. “Let’s go get you clean and then take a nap.” “I’ll clean up here.” Chaeyoung smiled. Jihyo nodded and carried Nico to their bedroom. She undressed Nico before putting her in the sink and gently wiping the paint off of her. She put on Nico’s pink frog print pajamas before sitting down on the bed with Nico in her arms. She rubbed Nico’s back and hummed to her as she waited for her to fall asleep. Nico was out quicker than Jihyo had ever seen her, and Jihyo gently put her in her crib before going back to her girlfriend. “She asleep?” Chaeyoung asked. “She fell asleep faster than she ever has with me.” Jihyo smiled, sitting in Chaeyoung’s lap. “Cool. Look at the art we did.” Chaeyoung showed Jihyo the canvas, which was covered in paint smudges and tiny hand prints. “Aww. We should hang this in the new living room.” Jihyo giggled.

“Hmm.. I think we should put it in Nico’s new room. The nice thing about moving is she will have her own room with us too.” “We could do that. Or you two could make a smaller one and it could go onto our new fancy fridge.” Jihyo offered. “Oh, sounds good. I meant to ask, would you prefer purple or blue for Nico’s new room? I was thinking we could do a sky theme with clouds and stars, but I wanted to ask your opinion first.” Chaeyoung asked.

“Chaeyoung, you really don’t have to-”

“No no no. You agreed to give me complete creative control of Nico’s room when you decided to give her her own room. It’s part of being my girlfriend.” Chaeyoung wrapped her arms around Jihyo’s waist.

“I was going to say, you don’t need to paint my daughter’s room. It’s a lot of work-”

“I know. But we can do it together. Nico deserves the world.” Chaeyoung kissed Jihyo’s temple. “Plus painting is kind of sexy, isn’t it?” “I can’t believe you.” Jihyo rolled her eyes, but couldn’t fight the proud smile on her face. Even if she was faking annoyance, she loved how much Chaeyoung loved Nico. When they were first dating, Chaeyoung had seemed apprehensive about Nico. Jihyo and her were already dating when Jihyo found out Sana was pregnant, but their relationship was only a few weeks old and definitely not in a place to be having kids together. Chaeyoung was younger than her too, so Jihyo was worried about how she would be with Nico. But ever since Chaeyoung had met her, she had been in love with Nico. And it seemed the longer they were together, the more Chaeyoung fell in love with Jihyo’s daughter. Nico was important to Jihyo, and so was Chaeyoung. She couldn’t help but be filled to the brim with happiness seeing them get along. “Love you too Hyo.”

#twice #surrogate au #jichaeng #park jihyo #son chaeyoung #nico #minatozaki sana

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shannygoatgruff · 3 years

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Only Fan(s) - A Thriller

Genre: Thriller

Pairing: Modern Ivar/OC

Warning: Language, sex, stalking, obsession, kidnapping, sexual assault

Rating: MA+18

Summary: Sometimes OnlyFans subscribers want a little more than internet pictures. Sometimes they want to be your ONLY fan…

Header by: @flowers-in-your-hayr

Thanks to @xbellaxcarolinax for being my beta.

Disclaimer: This story will deal with some topics that might be a little uncomfortable for some people. As always, I’ll try to tackle the hard stuff as tactfully as possible.

a/n: I wrote this months ago and let it sit on the shelf. I’m finally ready to dust it off and give it another go...so let’s see what it do...

Part iii - Trifecta

Torren Sykes hadn’t lived what anyone would consider an exciting life. In fact, in her twenty-three years, she had only just left her mom’s double-wide trailer in East Bumble Fuck less than a year ago. Not quite 365 days later, she still didn’t have a pot to piss in, nor a window to throw it out of.

Truthfully, she usually didn’t know where she would be getting her next meal - that sort of thing wasn’t really a big deal to her. She actually liked the mystery of it all. There was something undeniably sexy about not knowing what the day would bring - who she would run into, or have to take something off of to survive. If someone else had to get hurt so she could make it through another day, such was life. She’d won. Those other people just needed to be better at playing the fucking game, plain and simple.

Besides, pulling a caper or two kept her on her toes. She learned how to pull off the best of them from her mother. It’s not like adulting was one of Leslie’s strong suits.

If only her mother had been more like her Me-Maw, now that woman was a saint. For reasons that Torren never cared to ask, she lived with her Me-Maw until she was five years old. Leslie would periodically visit her to drop off the obligatory present on Christmas or her birthday if that bitch remembered. Not that they were ever good presents – just some cheap ass, unwrapped items she happened to pick up at the dollar store. Torren couldn't remember a gift that she had received wasn't still in the plastic bag with the receipt in it.

Cheap, whore.

Just once she would have liked a real baby doll from Toys-R-Us, instead of those cheap, hard, plastic dolls that the hand molds weren't cut out evenly, and the jagged edges cut the shit out of her face when she tried to sleep with it. But, that was Leslie. Torren didn't choose her; Leslie sure as shit didn't choose her daughter.

It became painfully clear to Torren that her mother didn’t want anything to do with her after her Me-Maw died. Unfortunately, she found herself as her mother’s unwitting roommate at a very young age, forcing the girl to spend a lot of time alone.

By the time she turned nine, Torren was convinced that her mother was a prostitute and she was a trick baby. It was the only explanation she could come up with seeing as how her mother never worked but always had enough money to pay the rent, keep the lights on, and have plenty of booze, chips, and hot dogs in the fridge.

Not that Torren had many other life experiences with a working parent to compare her situation to, but it just seemed pretty fucking difficult to have a job if one were passed out drunk all the fucking time. Besides, who had time to work when during your waking hours you were spending them with one of your many, many boyfriends?

Torren used to wonder if one of the multitudes of men that would traipse in and out of that trailer were her father - but the more she got to know what type of person Leslie was, the more she realized that whoever that guy was, had gotten the hell out of dodge.

Lucky son-of-a-bitch.

But for all of Leslie’s flaws, she did manage to impart her three philosophies of life onto her daughter - the three things that Torren still lived by to this day. It was the least she could do. God knows that whore sure as fuck didn’t do anything else for her.

Mama’s Life Lessons #1 - There is no such thing as too much black eyeliner

As trivial as it sounded, it proved to be a precious lesson. Shortly after she had moved into the trailer, Leslie had forced Torren to sit on the bed and watch as she got ready for another one of her "dates". She had told the little girl that beautiful eyes were the one good gene that ran in their family. “You got to learn how to work ‘em,” Leslie exhaled a long plume of smoke at her reflection in the vanity mirror, “You listenin'? This's important. This right here," she held up the black liner pencil, “is gonna be your best friend.”

Of course, Torren had no idea what she meant. How was a pencil going to her friend? She didn’t really care so much as what her mother was saying to her at the moment, it was more of the fact that she was actually talking to her that made Torren hang on to every word.

That’s why she picked up the black liner pencil from her mother's cluttered vanity table and leaned over to look in the mirror. She tried tracing her bottom lid, the way her mother had done, but at six it was a little easier said than done. She had just learned how to color inside the lines with a fat crayon; mastering the art of applying liner would have to wait a few more years.

Leslie, however, was not willing to wait that long, "What the hell's amatta wit'chu, Dumbass? You doin' it all wrong," she said snatching the pencil from the girl's hand. Grabbing Torren roughly by the chin she said, "Gotta teach you every goddamn thing. Hold still." She mumbled more curses and said something about her good-for-nothing mother not teaching her brat anything useful.

By the time she had finished cursing her name, Leslie roughly turned her daughter's head toward the mirror, "Yeah you got those eyes. Now, learn to use ‘em.” Leslie dropped the pencil onto the vanity before picking up her drink and shooing Torren away.

That was the day that Drew Watkins bought her an ice cream. It had to be the eyeliner. It was a true fact, not just another one of her mother's drunken theories. Eyeliner and her eyes...she didn’t know how she used them, but they worked.

From that day on Torren opted to never step foot outside without heavy black liner again.

Mama’s Life Lessons #2 - As long as there are men around that want to fuck you, you will never need to work

It wasn’t like she going to go out and get a real job. She wasn’t raised with much of a work ethic. She was too young to remember if her Me-Maw worked and what she gathered from her mother was that there would always be men around to take care of her.

Leslie told her that she didn’t need to work because working a man was a full-time job. If she were doing that right, she wouldn’t have time for a fucking 9-5. It didn’t matter if he was in a relationship, gay, or the fucking Pope. As long as he a dick and she could bend over, and her eyes were done, her rent was as good as paid.

If she wanted more than just the basic bills paid, she would have to rethink what all she was willing to do - but just make sure she didn’t do too much otherwise she couldn’t guarantee a steady paycheck every week.

This sage advice didn’t make much sense to 8-year-old Torren, but as the years progressed she started to work it into one of her life’s mottos. She would never want for anything. She could always rely on the kindness of strangers and when that got to be too boring, she could always take it, just to spice things up a bit.

Mama’s Life Lessons #3 - If you want something do whatever it takes to make sure you get it

As a child that grew up with the television as a babysitter, Torren Sykes knew that she was destined to love Ivar “Lothbrok” Ragnarsson since she was a little girl. Ever since that day she turned on the TV and saw this adorable blue-eyed boy drawing Mickey Mouse ears saying, “I’m Ivar Lothbrok and you’re watching the Disney Channel,” she knew that he had to be hers.

He was co-starring on a show called The Baker Boys, about three foster kids, who had come to live with a family that owned a bakery. Ivar’s character was named Simon Baker - a mischievous kid that lived with his grandmother until she died and never felt like he fit in with this cookie-cutter family.

His life was just like hers - minus the cookie-cutter family that loved him and all. She was actually with more of an alcoholic whore that didn’t give a shit if she lived or died, and not pulling stunts in a bakery with flour and messing up orders like him, but she still saw them as kindred spirits.

When the show got canceled she was devastated. How dare the world try to keep her from her man? Didn’t they understand this was love? Didn’t those people at Disneyland know that he was the only person in the world that understood her?

As if on queue, she happened to find the Season 2 DVD box-set at the library one afternoon. Her mother had kicked her out of the trailer because she had a date and couldn’t have the dumbass child around fucking things up for her. Torren had nothing else to do - at 11-years-old, she had no money, and nowhere to go. At least the library was air-conditioned.

She wanted that box-set. Slipping it into her backpack unnoticed was the easy part. Trying to get it past the alarms would be harder. She watched for a while, paying particular attention to the way the check-out system worked.

When the librarians changed shifts, she let a smile cross her lips as she picked a few random books from the shelves.

Her beautiful eyes went as big as saucers when the alarm buzzed, and the young male librarian looked down at her, still clutching the large reference book to her check. Carefully she had stepped across to the other side of the alarm sensor waiting to collect the books she was checking out.

“I’m sorry, you can’t check out reference books,” the young man said, blinking his hazel eyes at Torren, the corner of his lip tugging into a smile.

She let a pout fall on her lips as she lowered her large eyes down to the book in her arms, “Oh...sorry.” She handed the book back, “I didn’t realize I still had it.” And like that, she walked out of the library with her prize.

She had stolen for Ivar...now if that wasn’t love what was?

The only thing that had threatened their love through the years is when Ivar got married. It damn near broke Torren’s heart. How could he be so cruel? She didn’t give a fuck that the marriage was short-lived. She even understood why he had to do it. He had gotten that bitch pregnant, and he didn’t have much choice. But, he cut her deep.

Didn’t he know how much she loved him? Didn’t he know that she stuck by him when he had joined 6cess and had seen him in concert 3 times? She still had the autographed photo of the two of them from the signing at Spring Hills Mall - when she was wearing that blue midriff cardigan and ripped jeans and he had his arm around her. That shirt brought out the color in his eyes. She even wore Happy, which he said was his favorite perfume. She thought it smelled like Comet, but she stole a bottle of it from Macy’s right before the photo-op to smell good for him.

And he went and pulled this shit?

Besides, Johnny Law said that she was still too young for him and that he could get arrested for being with her. She knew that he had to pretend to have a normal life so that no one would know about their love affair. She was just understanding like that. It gave her time to grow up a little more so that when they could he be together, the law wouldn't be standing in their way. She really didn't give a fuck, but she suspected he did. Why else hadn't he come for her?

Torren didn’t even like their music. She wasn’t a boyband kind of girl, but for him, she would make the exception. She was more of the gangsta rap or heavy metal type girl. But if Ivar was serenading her, she’d listen to sappy, wrist-slitting, emo, shit rock all fucking day long, because she loved him.

She hated that he had gotten that whore pregnant, too. She understood that he had to pretend that they had a normal marriage. She knew that when he was fucking that bitch, he was really imagining it was her. The years apart had made him a master at hiding his true feelings for her. He couldn't give anyone cause for suspicion. If he let on the truth he could risk losing everything…his house, cars, job, and his kid. That whore was trying to keep them apart. But, she was just a small obstacle that posed no real threat to Torren.

She did not doubt that she would be his daughter's new mommy. The kid would probably be sad at first that she wouldn't be with that other woman like Torren had been when her grandmother died. But, the kid would get used to it. Torren was going to be a whole hell of a lot better at being a mom than her piece of shit mother was to her. That was for damn sure. She was going to teach her stepdaughter all about eyeliner, and how to dye her hair.

She was going to teach her what party clothes every woman should have in her wardrobe and how to get a man to do whatever she wanted by just batting her eyes at him. She would even share her secrets on what pills to mix and what dosages to give for submission, making a man catatonic, and if she was really good, she'd teach what to put in a drink to kill someone. Hell, she even planned on giving the child her most discrete drug contacts. That would of course have to wait until she was older – at least 13. She was going to be such a good mommy.

Ivar's daughter was going to love Torren as much as Torren loved him. They were going to be the perfect family.

Torren was as hopelessly devoted to Ivar as he was to her. He had waited for her to become legal. Just months before she was old enough to legally consent to sex, and get married without parental permission, his marriage started falling apart. She knew that Ivar was trying to make a clean break from his wife, and get his daughter used to the idea of them being apart before he could come home to her.

Torren had been thoughtful and respectful enough to give him that space to make sure everything was right before she stepped into the role of the new Mrs. Lothbrok. He had to test the waters, make sure that she still wanted him as much as he wanted her. He had to get back into the swing of things…have sex constantly to make sure he could keep up with her. She knew that "the prude" wasn't doing it nearly as often as he needed to - why else would he have an Only Fans page?

Torren was the only one that could feed his appetite, and he hers.

Now, they were both finally ready. She was mature and developed. She knew what she needed, and it was him. He had his fun before her, but now he was auditioning again and getting everything back on track for them. He had a great relationship with his daughter and his dumb ass ex-wife finally understood that their relationship was a fling that went too far.

His face told her everything that her heart already knew. He loved her.

Why else would be looking at her like that? She could feel herself blush when he smiled on Instagram like that into them. Then he gave her that smile. That was her smile; the one that he reserved for her during their private times. Yet, there he was doing it in front of an audience of millions, and he didn't care who saw it. He had to let her know that it was time for her to come home. It was like a sleeper cell being awakened.

She didn't have a choice. She did what any other woman in her position would do. She packed a bag, threw it in the car she stole a few days before and drove. Armed with her trifecta of knowledge and determination, she prepared to face the obstacles that were bound to get in her way. There was nothing that was going to stop her from getting her man.

Nothing.

Part ii || Part iv

Tags: @ideagarden-blog1 @youbloodymadgenius @xbellaxcarolinax @a-mess-of-fandoms @didiintheblog @conaionaru @peachyboneless @flowers-in-your-hayr @heavenly1927 @zuxiezendler @waiting4inspiration @saldelys @didiintheblog @revolution-starter

#OnlyFan(s)#modern ivar #shannyland #trifecta

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calpops · 4 years

Text

falling facade | c.h.

part six: falling feelings

part one: falling flowers | part two: falling freedom | part three: falling fears | part four: falling failures | part five: falling fame

5k words

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“What’s this?”

Calum’s attention swiftly turned from cleaning his house and getting it ready for his parents arrival to Arden. She stood in the kitchen, facing the fridge with a timid hand outreached to the door. He knew exactly what caught her attention and prompted the question. He bit back a smirk as he left the throw blanket he was folding in favor of sidling up to her, hip pressing into the cabinets and a nonchalant hand finding the cool marble of the countertops. Her fingers lingered on familiar paper and she turned to face him with a raised eyebrow.

“Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten your own work,” Calum teased and let his smirk come back full force.

She let out a small giggle through her interrogation and shook her head. “Okay wise guy. Why is it on display on your fridge door?”

The paper placemat Arden had quickly drawn Calum in in red crayon and sharp lines laid under a magnet on the face of his fridge. He had fished it out of his wallet the night before, not having forgotten it in the folds but keeping it around in an attempt to remind himself of what was real. Their time at the diner was the first of many escapes. It was a comfort to know something honest and authentic stayed with him when he was forced to lie through his teeth; to fabricate stories during interviews, to pose for social media and paparazzi. It was of him and drawn by her in a moment that no one else got to share. It was theirs and theirs alone.

“Because I’m still waiting for a painting to put on the wall. I thought that’d be a good place holder and reminder,” he said and shot a pointed look at the blank living room wall; the empty space above the fireplace begging for life of lively colors and loose waves created by Arden’s hands. It was front and center. A place Calum would be able to see it from almost any position in the living area of his home. He continued in a teasing tone, “you should really get to it.”

Their conversation on the beach about the Clifford house hallway once being lined with Arden’s art only to be replaced by band accolades hadn’t escaped Calum. His request of a painting reminiscent of sunset on the beach wouldn’t go forgotten or be replaced. Arden nodded, the motion was slow and her gaze was indecisive, fingers abandoning the placemat to curl at her sides. A forced shrug lifted her shoulders.

“You know painting is just a hobby for me, right? They’re nothing special,” she said, her voice became meek and her eyes averted his gaze.

Calum was picking up on subtle queues. Her usual ability to hold eye contact faltered when anything about her life was in question. The strength of her words felt weak and weary as if there was a weight crushing her; taking away her usual eloquent articulation and animation. Calum eyed her for a moment, took a peek at the drawing on the fridge and turned back to her.

“Just a hobby,” he replied to the first half of her statement. “That you enjoy and are really good at.”

She smirked, finally looked directly at him once more and raised an eyebrow in challenge. “I also enjoy dancing while I clean and singing in the shower but I assure you I have no rhythm and am not the Clifford sibling blessed with vocal abilities. Sometimes we just do things; whether we’re good at them or not.”

Calum didn’t know if he had the ability to challenge her further, to push her and make the strength in her voice falter again. So he changed the subject and took her mind away from replaced paintings and feelings of inadequacy and back to lighthearted teasing tones that lifted weight off the reality they were living. Just like moments in the car where their situation became a joke, Calum changed gears in hopes it would make her smile and quip back at him.

“So you won’t be singing at our wedding then,” he said with an over dramatic sigh and side eye; found that his plan rewarded him with a smile and a laugh.

“No, I’ll save that for you,” she replied and twisted the ring that Calum was becoming accustomed to seeing on her finger. The diamond was still much too gaudy and unlike her but it felt familiar and Calum was unable to picture her without it. “If you’re lucky maybe I’ll show you my dancing on our honeymoon.”

Now Calum’s cheeks were warm and tinting with a blush that spoke of the implications her words held; watched as she skipped away from him with a sarcastic laugh following her to the living room where she finished folding the abandoned throw blanket. Calum didn’t have a comeback or rebuttal though his thoughts were filled and alarm bells tried their best to ring through the haze. He shook himself, tried to blow those thoughts away and nearly jumped at the sudden knock on the door. For a moment he feared it was their parents arriving early, interrupting their plan to work out what details they would and would not share with them during their suspected inquisition. But he rationalized and realized it was Michael, he was to arrive early to be in on the details. He wasn’t sure if Michael’s arrival was better or worse.

***

Calum’s arm found its way around Arden’s shoulder in an all too natural sense. It fit a little too perfectly, was a little too easy and normal. Eyes were on them, parents and siblings; eyes that questioned and eyes that knew but had inklings of wonder clouding them. Michael had agreed to keep up the charade though he made a point that he wouldn’t like it and they both owed him big time. Calum’s arm around Arden was all part of the act but Calum could tell Michael was pondering why it was so easy for them to pull off. He could also see the doubt in his sister’s frown and hoped the panic wasn’t so clearly written on his face. He knew he wasn’t standing with his usual confidence, posture a bit slumped and weight bearing into the cabinet behind him. But Arden eased into his side and loosely held his hand; helped to settle the nerves that simmered and sparked with their families arrival.

“What’s this?” His sister Mali asked, repeating Arden’s earlier words verbatim, touching the same place mat secured to the fridge in the same exact way.

A small grin captured the corners of Calum’s mouth. There were a lot of things he felt he wasn’t prepared to answer or could have thought out more, but Arden’s art wasn’t among them. He knew exactly what to say.

“Arden drew it. On our first date,” he offered and felt the shift of Arden moving to look up at him.

“First date?” She wondered aloud, eyes meeting and holding gazes as she arched her eyebrow in question and amusement.

“At the diner,” Calum began and blew out a breath, hand gliding down her arm as he got lost in the role; caught up in a new game where control really did land in their own hands. He offered truths veiled with something more and something less. He shifted his gaze back to Mali who was eyeing them both; sizing them and their story up. “She told me to sit still and hid it from me until it was done. I’m keeping it up until she gives me a real painting.”

Mali nodded but her eyes squinted and lips pursed for a moment. She took a few seconds to accept the truth and offer a smile before wandering off in search of Duke; past their parents congregated in the dining area. Calum let out a deep breath, all the nerves that felt on the edge of exploding calmed at his sister’s acceptance. Neither Calum or Arden moved from their position, his arm still held her close and her hand didn’t drop from its hold. If asked by Michael later it would be out of necessity. If Calum was honest with himself it’d be a source of comfort.

“Here I thought our first date was the wedding,” Arden whispered, nose twitching as she blushed a timid pink. She stayed quiet so no one else could hear her words but her eyes were wide and told Calum truths no one else would understand. “Your way we got engaged before we even started dating.”

She let out a small giggle and the sound was enough to collide with Calum’s nerves and make the slight alteration of the truth come to life and feel real. Maybe their first date was the wedding, maybe it was an escape in a run down diner, maybe it was a night under the stars during a dying party where inhibitions roamed free. Maybe they hadn’t been on a date at all. What Calum knew was whether the scenarios were real or fake there was something building within him that he couldn’t control or deny.

“We didn’t need to date before we got engaged,” Calum whispered back, eyes averting to the dining room for a split second to ensure their privacy. Their parents still lingered and made small talk; Michael did his best to act as the host. “It was love at first sight, right?”

Arden shook her head, tendrils of hair fell into her face that Calum felt comfortable enough to push back behind her ear this time. She bit her lip and pushed away from the counter their backs were pressed against; Calum worrying for a moment she was also pushing away from him, but she stayed under his arm and her hand firmly held his.

“I’ve known you most my life. I don’t think we fell in love when we were six.”

“Love at second first sight then,” he amended with a laugh; wondering if there might be some validity to that statement.

During their time in the face of the facade Calum often found himself thinking of the first night he had seen Arden again. The house party was ingrained in his memory and the subtleties of her under moonlight stayed with him in vivid flashes and familiar words. He hadn’t known it upon second first sight, not in that split second when their eyes met across the yard and she offered a recognized head nod, but it started to become apparent with backs pressed to the siding, drinks gone empty and pouty lips begging for a favor.

Calum let Arden lead him into the dining area where they were met with an unexpected outcome. Mali’s slight doubt and questioning was drowned out by the belief of their parents. The stories they fed them seemed to win them over; made them excited at the prospect of their children finding each other and falling in love. Though it was quick and unprecedented—with phone calls and circumstances that felt nothing short of suspicious—their parents were blinded by what they assumed was their children’s happiness. Happy. Proud. Excited. All of those words floated around them in a barrage of parental chatter. Calum felt the shift in Arden before he saw it; the way she stiffened against his side, her hold loosening on his hand and the shift of weight from one foot to the other and back again in a rhythmic sway of uncertainty. He wondered if it was anxiety, if the situation wasn’t okay, if there was underlying guilt brimming to the surface.

They made it through dinner, most of the time was spent in a haze that passed over Calum’s thoughts as he drifted from checking the rigid posture that captured Arden and the beaming smiles that their parents graced them with. Every intone of excitement, every near teary eyed admission of pride and pitch of happiness in their voices had Arden lurching. It was minimal and went past the others but Calum caught the subtleties; the slight twitch of her arm or the purse of her lips, the downcast gazes of shiny eyes. His own nerves had calmed but he worried for Arden. It was her want to keep up the charade but he had to wonder if her mind was changing and what that meant for the rest of the visit.

It wasn’t until after dinner when the dishes were done and everyone had split up into smaller groups that Calum sensed something was completely amiss. Arden was in the living room with Mali and her mom—he’d heard her voice just moments ago—but when he rounded the corner she was gone. Before he could ask, before he could even form the thought to ask, Mali was answering for him.

“She took Duke out,” Mali said as she stood and gestured to the sliding glass doors that lead to the backyard. Calum was quick to head over but his sister stopped him short with a low murmur and hand on his wrist. “I know management has a hand in this.”

Calum knew his surprise showed; jaw slackening and an air of disbelief leaving him at the unexpected cornering. Mali could read Calum like a book and they’d never been ones to keep secrets. She was a bit more comfortable reaching and pushing for answers than Calum was but knew when to let up. Her touch fell and she nodded out the door.

“But I know you’re doing what you think is best.”

Calum swallowed down a lump in his throat and exited the house with Mali’s parting words ringing through his mind. The yard was empty, the sun was setting low on the horizon and casting glimmering specks of light against the water in the pool. It reminded him of the sunset dancing along the beach. Of Arden in the water and his towel. Of moments that were too real to be part of the farce. She was nowhere in sight and the usual jingle of the tags on Duke's collar couldn’t be heard. He figured she must have gone to the front yard or up the street to give the old dog a good stretch and walk after dinner. He rounded the side of the house and stopped short. She sat in a familiar position; back pressed to the siding and face turned to the sky. Duke was settled in her lap and nosing his concern into her stomach. Her hands slowly pet him and Calum came to see the glint of a fallen tear tracking down her cheek.

“Arden,” he said her name softly, his own worries etched into his voice. He didn’t want to startle her but she turned to him quickly and wiped at the tear, tried to pretend it wasn’t there or that he hadn’t seen it. She was making to get up but Calum settled down beside her and she stilled. “What’s going on?”

She sighed and he heard the brokenness of her breath. The fracture between the inhale and exhale. “Pretending is just a lot harder than I thought.”

Calum’s chest tightened and his fingers curled into his palms at her response. Her voice was shaky and her hazel eyes were distant. He didn’t understand what she meant. It all seemed to be going well—their parents weren’t as probing as they thought they’d be, they weren’t disappointed in their rash decision or the way they painted the engagement; with glints of the truth and softened edges of drunken escapades.

“Why? They’re all okay with it. Happy even,” Calum offered in an attempt to soothe whatever was bothering her.

Pretending for their parents had been her idea; a request so as not to disappoint her parents with a drunken story and fake relationship. They curated pieces of the truth together and kept to their guns. It was working. But she was cracking and Calum didn’t know why.

“Did you hear them?” She asked and shook her head as Duke nuzzled in even closer, feeling her distress and wanting to offer comfort as well. “They said they’re happy… and proud. The only thing they can be proud of me for is something that’s not even real.”

Calum blanched at that statement. He felt the wind knock out of him and suddenly all the subtleties of Arden at the table began to make sense. It was his turn to shake his head, not able to grasp why she would feel that way. But the shine of her eyes and the bite of her lip spoke volumes of the sorrows she was feeling.

“They didn’t say that’s all they have to be proud of,” Calum reasoned, knowing her parents and the love and pride they had for both of their children and all of their accomplishments.

“I know,” she seemingly agreed and let out another breath. “But they didn’t say they were proud of anything else. Because there’s nothing else.”

“That’s not true,” Calum denied and knew he shouldn’t tell her her feelings were wrong or invalid but they sounded like intrusive thoughts and self doubt; something he’d struggled with himself and would’ve liked to have someone to put them into a new perspective. “You went to university, you travelled, made amazing art—there’s plenty more than us for them to be proud of.”

Arden didn’t say anything for a moment, content to take comfort in the affection Duke was showing her. Calum saw the wavering of her jaw and contemplation cut across her face. She took another few seconds to pull her thoughts together before turning to look him full on, familiar eye contact bringing her fully back to him. He preferred when their gazes didn’t break—liked the strength he could find in hazel even when the subject was delicate and breakable.

“Michael never told you why I really came to visit, did he?” She inquired and Calum realized he hadn’t even asked.

He was too caught up in getting to know her and playing the game that he forgot it all started with a visit. He forgot she had been dodgy in answering that first night at the party. He was sure there was more reasoning than missing Michael for her sudden appearance in a place she so vehemently avoided and seemingly despised.

“No,” Calum answered. “I didn’t ask either. I figured you’d tell me when you were ready.”

Her shoulders slumped as if the weight of the story was bearing down on her at the prospect of telling the truth. Eye contact was steady as she opened up and revealed pieces of her past Calum had only been left to wonder about.

“I was supposed to be figuring things out here. Trying to get my life together and make decisions. Michael was trying to help.”

Calum nodded his understanding. There was a time when he had decisions he needed to make too; two paths unwound at the same time and no right or wrong answer had seemingly been in sight. He’d done the same, sought out his family and then listened to what was inside of him. It took time and then it was sudden, the band was the path he followed and it was a choice he had never regretted. He wanted Arden to follow a path like that too, to wherever she was seeking and find whatever she wanted in life.

“I get it. I know how difficult that can be,” he said and watched as a look of disbelief cut across her features and settled in the way she stared blankly back at him.

“How would you know?” She asked and though the question may have seemed accusatory or like he could never understand, her tone verged on begging to know if he really did and how it was possible. “You had the band. Isn’t that what you always wanted? Didn’t you just… know?”

Calum let out a small and almost sarcastic laugh and quieted when he realized Arden was serious. He realized she didn’t know the choices he faced. They weren’t exactly close during their teenage years; the formation and come up of the band had divided their worlds even more so. It was hard to think of those times, after the weeks Calum had spent with her and all the bits and pieces of their pasts coming back it pained him to think they had been so close yet so very distant from each other for years.

“I had the band and I had football. I had to choose,” he explained and caught her attention as he noted the arch of her eyebrow and the stall of her hand petting Duke.

“But you had options,” she mumbled. “Either would have been something to be proud of.”

“Neither had that certainty, the band might not have succeeded, my football career could have burnt out before it really began. I had to make a choice and then I had to take a chance.”

A breeze passed between them as Arden contemplated his honesty. The situations weren’t carbon copies of each other but they were similar enough Calum felt empathy rattling his ribcage and putting a pang of pain through his heart. The crumple of her face and the stray tear she didn’t bother to brush away left Calum breathless and wanting to reach out. He was hyper aware of everything; their parents in the house, Michael, alarm bells ringing so clearly in his mind, but drowned them out in favor of following his initial instinct. The pad of his thumb was gentle across her cheek, she didn’t say anything, didn’t flinch or question the action. His hand and heart fell as she slightly pulled away and abandoned his gaze to stare up at the night sky. She shifted and settled, sighed once more and geared up to voice her thoughts and struggles by sinking into the comfort Duke provided.

“I wish I had something more solid, something I want. All I have is half a degree and no fucking idea what I want to do with my life. I dropped out of university and travelled to ‘find myself’ but really just ran away. I have nothing that I’m good at.”

Calum was about to interject and remind her of paintings that once hung in the hallway and a place mat posted on the fridge. Her hand finding its way to his knee stopped the words from coming out and he had to wonder if that was her intention. One breath and it was gone.

“At least, nothing that I’m so passionate about that I know it’s what I want,” she said in one fell swoop and surprised Calum. “I don’t have a dream that I'm chasing. If anything I’m only trying to move out of someone’s shadow and doing a bang up job of it. Now I’m caught behind two and stuck in lies that will never end. That’s nothing to be proud of.”

Calum’s throat tightened at the unexpected honesty and turn the night had taken. Only minutes before they were surrounded by family and mindless small talk—or so Calum thought. It was about the engagement and the band and in that moment Calum realized anything to do with Arden outside of their situation hadn’t been brought up. He couldn’t imagine feeling casted into the shadows. His heart ached for her and the struggles she felt she was facing alone.

“I’m sorry for asking you to pretend with our families,” she added, head shaking slightly. “That wasn’t fair. I should just toughen up and tell them the truth. And don’t worry, I’ll tell them it’s my fault and I asked you to go along with it. You shouldn’t have to take the fall for my lies.”

She made to move as if to get up but Calum was quick to stop her; just a light touch and slight shift stalling her intent and bringing them closer. Duke was in her arms but found his way to the ground and stalked off back into the house. A belated moment and skipped heart beat gathered courage for Calum and helped words come out that he had been thinking for weeks. Words that settled in the back of his throat and burned sugary sweet.

“What if it’s not all pretend?”

“What?” Arden was quick to respond and panic—the fear that captured her eyes was unsettling. “Calum, what do you mean?”

She was poised and waiting for his answer as his mind went into chaos. He wasn’t sure he was ready to face everything that came with his own truth but the words came out too soon to stop them. His thoughts were tangled now, fleeting visions of real moments dancing around his mind.

“That we’ve been real… with each other. All those moments away from it all. Those were real. Weren’t they?”

They were real to him—and so were the feelings that followed and defined those moments. The alarm bells rang in full force as she tilted her head and the minimal distance between them felt craterous and minuscule all at once. Peaches invaded his senses and the taste of sugar was just a breath away but it was blown away by approaching footsteps. Arden moved away on instinct and Calum wondered if alarm bells rang in her mind as well. She settled back on the grass just in time for Michael to round the corner and come into view with his arms crossed and a ghost of a smirk disappearing from his face. Calum and Arden both looked up at him in silence and waited for him to speak first.

“Everyone was wondering where you guys wandered off to,” he began and then shot a pointed look at his sister. “Mum and Joy are talking about wedding dresses. Told them I’d find you, they thought you wouldn’t want to miss it.”

“Right, thanks for the heads up,” Arden said around a sigh and began to stand.

She shot Calum a glance as Michael began to lead her back to the house. Calum was quick to get up and follow her into the conversation of possible bridal styles and centerpieces. Duke had found his way to his usual perch on the couch and perked up when Calum and Arden walked in. Calum took up Arden’s side as she broke into the discussion by clearing her throat to announce her presence. The mothers turned to look at her; eyes alight with wedding wonder and idle chit chat being broken.

“I don’t know how to say this,” Arden began and Calum’s stomach sank as he realized the truth was verging on her lips. His hand reached out for hers, in solidarity, to show that he would stand beside her no matter what she decided. They could weather the storm better together than stranded and alone. “But Calum and I aren’t getting married.”

Instant regret flooded Arden’s eyes as the room fell silent and shock hung thick within the air. She tensed against his side and turned to look at him with a pleading expression that Calum could only interpret as reversing the statement and making the visible disappointment and heartache vanish from the room. He hoped it was what she wanted.

“Not yet, anyway. We rushed the engagement, clearly. We don’t want to rush the wedding too. We want to enjoy some time together without the pressure of planning. We’ll let you guys know when we’re ready for that,” Calum jumped in smoothly as he watched the panic disperse from Arden’s eyes and felt the appreciative squeeze of his hand—a signal and a thank you that reassured him his hope was correct.

Everyone simmered at his explanation; they called Arden’s statement complete theatrics and not a funny joke though they were laughing, Calum guessed it was more so in relief than in good jest. Michael was the only one who didn’t wear a reaction so clearly on his face, just an arch of a questioning eyebrow at the initial honesty of Arden he hadn’t been privy to. Calum knew some explaining to Michael was due—and that Mali wouldn’t be so easily satiated with the on the fly explanation he had come up with.

The rest of the evening went by in a blur of nerves that kept both Calum and Arden on their toes. They tried their bests to remember the odds and ends of what had already been said. Mali pulled Calum aside for a moment as the night was dying down and a bite of fear coursed through him as he knew her suspicions were sharp and came with merit.

“I still don’t know what’s really going on,” she began and offered a sympathetic smile that helped to calm his nerves. “But I can tell there’s something real there. Just be careful, okay? I don’t want to see either of you ending up hurt. Especially not by each other.”

Calum took her words for all they were worth but only slightly nodded to show he had been listening. He still couldn’t manage to give her the answers she was seeking but the nod acted as much more than a method to show he was listening. He understood. He confirmed. He agreed. The last thing he wanted was for this entire situation to end with hurting hearts.

The hole of lies and half truths they were falling into was being dug deeper and deeper; no landing was in sight. He swept the room as everyone prepared to leave or settle in for the night and his stare landed back on Arden who hadn’t peeled her eyes away from him since his saving moment. It took one look to realize that falling was okay, as long as it was with her. As long as it was real. Calum had started to speak his truth to her and now he could only hope that all of the falling feelings that consumed him were somewhere within her as well.

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ibijau · 4 years

Note

i would give my left arm for a continuation of your sangyao “why do i remember kissing you” scene. PLEASE let meng yao be happy or i’ll cry ;-;

a continuation of this

“That’s the most stupid idea you’ve ever had,” Jiang Cheng said, which is a little harsh, but Nie Huaisang nods and puts the bottle back on the ray.

Jiang Cheng rolls his eyes hard from where he’s leaning on the shopping cart.

“No, grab the fucking vodka, you idiot. I’m not going sober through a party where Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji are there. But you plan, about Meng Yao? That’s stupid even by your standards.”

Nie Huaisang shudders at the idea of Wei Wuxian flirting with everyone to grab Lan Wangji’s attention, as if he doesn’t have it already, and of Lan Wangji’s cold anger making the temperature drop. When he’s done hooking up with Meng Yao, Nie Huaisang is so taking care of these two, if only so they’ll stop ruining every party.

He grabs two bottles of vodka, and some whiskey too before motioning for them to move to the sodas.

“My plan is excellent, you’re just jealous ChengCheng.”

“It’s terrible,” Jiang Cheng insists, dropping some coke in the cart. “Can’t you just say you like him, like a normal person, ask him out on a date… you know, something normal?”

Trying to decide between two flavours of likely repulsing energy drinks, Nie Huaisang shrugs.

“What would you know about normal.”

“Rude. I’ve probably tried to understand that bullshit more than any of you,” Jiang Cheng snaps, pushing him aside to pick one of the energy drink packs. “And I can tell you this: being straightforward is the best way to go. Or else, you’ll just end up like Wei Wuxian and his walking ice-cube. Talk to Meng Yao, tell him you like his butt or… whatever it is you like about him anyway.”

“The dimples,” Nie Huaisang mutters. “And the fact that he’s my only friend with a brain.”

“Again, fucking rude.”

Nie Huaisang shrugs. He’s aware that actually, most of his friends are probably near geniuses. Wei Wuxian has three degrees and is working on a fourth while also doing volunteer work. Lan Wangji is a music prodigy who’s been doing concerts since he was six along with his brother. Even Jiang Cheng, always accused by his parents of underperforming when they were alive, managed to finish his degree with honours while taking over their business after their untimely death. If anything, Nie Huaisang himself, who’s been lingering in art school and is in no hurry to graduate, is the idiot of the group so he probably shouldn’t make judgements.

But there’s just something about Meng Yao’s sharp mind that sets him aside from everyone else. It’s a practical sort of cleverness which the others lack. Meng Yao always knows how to get the best price on things, he knows which bars are safe and which aren’t at a glance, how to defuse a fight (or start one without getting involved), what to wear on any occasion. It’s like Meng Yao could be thrown into absolutely any situation and always land on his feet, looking like he belongs there and knows exactly what to do.

He’s also normal smart on top of that, which is nice. Nie Huaisang has never found anyone else as excited as him to chat about the pre-raphaelites, not until meeting his brother’s roommate.

“I can’t just tell him I like him,” Nie Huaisang sighs, pushing the cart toward the queue for the cashier. “What if he doesn’t like me back?”

“He does,” Jiang Cheng retorts. “And even if he doesn’t, at least then you’d know and be able to move on. What’s your stupid plan of making out with him for a stupid bet even going to accomplish, uh?”

“It gives me an exit,” Nie Huaisang explains, as if it’s obvious. It certainly is to him. “I get to kiss him, and then if he seems to be having regrets after, I can just say that hey, guess what? It’s fine, it was all fake for money, we can stay friends! It’s a foolproof plan.”

Jiang Cheng considers that for a moment, and grimaces.

“I still think it’s stupid. Just tell him that you like him. If he likes you back, good. If he doesn’t, we have vodka. If he doesn’t like you back and he’s an asshole about it, then he was never worth your attention and I’m sure Lan Wangji will gladly break his nose for making you cry.”

“Not taking romantic advice from the aro guy,” Nie Huaisang replies with a pout. “Just… are you going to place the bet for me or not?”

Jiang Cheng rolls his eyes, and grumbles, and makes a whole damn show of expressing how much he hates the idea, in case it wasn’t clear enough yet, but… of course he agrees to help. That’s just how he is. For all of his advice about just saying things, Jiang Cheng can’t do anything without pretending that he’s forced to act against his better judgement.

A number of hours later, Nie Huaisang is standing in his brother’s bathroom, numbly trying to brush his teeth and wondering if Jiang Cheng didn’t have a point yesterday about how stupid his plan is.

Well, no. The plan was great. Nie Huaisang got to make out with the guy of his dreams, first where everyone could see them so he’d get some sweet extra cash, and then after in Meng Yao’s bedroom until they kind of fell asleep. That part of the plan went great.

No, the problem is that Nie Huaisang panicked this morning when Meng Yao asked why they kissed last night. It’s just. It’s just that Meng Yao seemed so shocked by the idea, as if it’s something he’d never have considered while sober, and Nie Huaisang was still a little out of it because he too drank too much and slept too little, so he tried to play it cool, and…

Heavens but the expression on Meng Yao’s face when he said it was just for a bet, the tone of his voice when he asked if he should expect his share of money, that was…

Nie Huaisang sighs, and presses his forehead against the bathroom’s mirror. The glass feels almost too cold against his skin, but that’s nice, that’s grounding.

Jiang Cheng was right, he should have just told Meng Yao that he likes him instead of trying to be clever. He’s ruined everything now. Whatever Meng Yao felt before, he surely hates him now because if there’s one thing he hates, it’s feeling used by other people. With how many times Meng Yao complained about that aspect of his old friendship with the Wens, back before he moved in with Nie Mingjue, Nie Huaisang should have known not to pull this sort of bullshit, but…

Well. He’s the idiot in their group of friends, isn’t he?

In the bedroom next door, Nie Huaisang hears movement. Meng Yao seems to be getting up from his bed. Nie Huaisang tenses, fearing that the other man will come talk to him and tell him to get out of the flat… but he doesn’t. Instead, he hears footsteps going toward the kitchen, ignoring him entirely. Maybe it’s worse than being kicked out.

It takes Nie Huaisang a while to calm down, but eventually he makes it to the kitchen too. He’s hoping to grab some water before being ordered to leave. He was supposed to help Meng Yao clean the flat before Nie Mingjue’s return, that was the deal, but he’s not sure Meng Yao will want his company after this. He’s not sure what Meng Yao will want in general.

When Nie Huaisang steps into the kitchen, he finds that what Meng Yao wants, apparently, is breakfast. He’s put water to boil, bread in the toaster, and he’s looking in the fridge for something to put on it.

“Strawberry or apricot?” He asks without turning to look at Nie Huaisang.

“What?”

“Jam, for the toasts. Strawberry or apricot? It’s all we have.”

“Whichever one has no mold on it,” Nie Huaisang mumbles, because he’s been at his brother’s flat for breakfast before, thanks.

Meng Yao checks both containers, and grimaces.

“Strawberry it is. Sit down, it’ll be ready in a moment.”

Nie Huaisang obeys on sheer instinct, carefully watching Meng Yao as he rummages through a cupboard for their box of tea.

“I thought you’d be wanting me gone,” Nie Huaisang says, because he’s really an idiot and can’t keep his mouth shut.

Meng Yao drops the box of tea on the table, and turns away to check on the toasts.

“Not until this flat is clean. I’m not dealing with this mess alone.”

That does sound fair. Nie Huaisang promised to help after all, and he probably deserves to do it as punishment or something.

They have breakfast in silence, and then get to cleaning, still in silence. After a while, Nie Huaisang starts wishing they had music at least. Not two seconds later, Meng Yao turns on the radio. It’s that classical music station Nie Mingjue likes, because he’s such an old man that he still has a radio and really does listen to that kind of music. They’ve both teased him about it, and as they hear some Bach ring into the quiet flat, Meng Yao and Nie Huaisang can’t help trading a brief smile.

It gives Nie Huaisang some hope. He ruined something last night and this morning, but he didn’t ruin everything.

It takes some hours for the flat to return to its normal state (parties with Wei Wuxian are always a mess) but they manage anyway. When they’re done, Nie Huaisang feels a little calmer. Sure he fucked up, but Meng Yao seems less upset about it now, so they’re probably fine. They can pretend this never happened, and go on with being friends as long as they never talk about this again.

That’d be a good plan.

Instead, Nie Huaisang looks around the now clean flat, and like the complete idiot he is, lets his mouth say words without having his brain check them first.

“So, any chance we might make out again someday?” he asks.

The way Meng Yao tenses instantly and scowls at him is just awful. So much for not ruining everything.

“What, do you need more material for that bet?” Meng Yao snaps. “Is there money on the line if we last more than one night? I’ll want fifty percent of profits then.”

Nie Huaisang winces.

“I’m not asking for that, I swear! It’s…”

He takes a deep breath, wondering how to explain the situation, and then…

Ah.

He can’t believe he’s about to take the advice Jiang Cheng gave him yesterday. But at this point, he really has nothing left to lose, right?

“A-Yao, I like you a lot,” he sighs. “I really do. I have for a while. The bet was just a good excuse, I’ve wanted to kiss you for a while. I think you’re really handsome and clever and I want to go on dates and stuff, I just wasn’t sure you’d want that too so I thought I’d… test the waters, you know?”

The intensity of Meng Yao’s stare is such that Nie Huaisang has to look down. Or maybe it’s just that he’s too embarrassed by his own words to bear to look at Meng Yao’s reaction. Nie Huaisang is never one to be direct if there’s a chance to make things convoluted, and to open up like this and just say things, with his words, that’s just…

“You’re an idiot,” Meng Yao says, his tone so flat it’s impossible to judge how he feels.

“Yeah, I know. Listen, it’s… it’s fine, don’t worry, I’ll show myself out and I won’t bother you again and…”

“I think it’s best if you leave, yes,” Meng Yao agrees. “But be back at six.”

Nie Huaisang’s head snaps up to look at his friend. He didn’t remember that they had plans for that night.

“You’re taking me on a date,” Meng Yao announces. “Somewhere nice, to apologise for being so stupid.”

Nie Huaisang blinks a few times, while Meng Yao smirks.

“Buy me flowers too. Maybe chocolate as well.”

“You’ve watched too many rom-coms,” Nie Huaisang retorts, feeling a smile creep on his face. “You really want to go on a date with me?”

“I never say anything I don’t mean,” Meng Yao says, which is an awful lie as they both know, but Nie Huaisang is willing to pretend, just this once. “Now fuck off, I need to take a nap and shower and get ready for my date.”

Nie Huaisang grins, and almost runs out of the door. It’s almost two, he’s only got a few hours to plan the best date Meng Yao has ever had.

#sangyao #nie huaisang #jin guangyao #mdzs #mo dao zu shi #jc is at least aro and probably ace too but he's still figuring out that bit #nhs is just very stupid #I feel very weird writing modern aus and also I don't know anything about alcohol and I've never been to a party in my life :)#jau writes #semicryptid

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caroline18mars · 4 years

Text

A Man On Fire - Chapter 81

“Everything’s ready outside” walking back inside the kitchen, he was met by a spoon full of homemade guacamole “taste! Needs a lot more garlic, doesn’t it?” she puffed a strand of hair out of her eyes looking a little bewildered. “It’s absolutely perfect..” he licked his lips and then looked at the kitchen counter with a million pots, pans, bowls with the most delish food “wooow, wait a minute, you’re cooking up a feast and it’s just a little evening with friends” grinning he took another scoop of the guacamole. “I know but..no, I don’t know, I just thought it’s easier to talk with some good food..oh I still need to make the mozza bowls, arrghh” she spun on her heels but he grabbed her arm “will you just chill? You’ve done more than enough so you go take a nice shower, make yourself even prettier than you already are, I’ll take all this outside in the meantime..oh and stop being nervous, they’ll adore you, trust me”. He pulled her in his arms to plant a soft kiss on her lips that got too deep too quickly “stop it, I’m sticky” she pulled back, waving her fingers covered in guacamole and tomato sauce in front of his face, which was his queue to slowly put two of her fingers in his mouth, ohhh god, erotic much? She already felt her stomach tingle “Oh no you don’t, I know what you’re up to mister, no way, you’ll just have to wait until your bedtime”. That sexy, silly pout of his, walk away now or find yourself shoved against a kitchen counter while he takes you from behind, just the thought of her body being completely owned and possessed by him had her all moist, “Ok ok ok, I don’t like it, but ok” he let her fingers slip out of his mouth and reluctantly let go of her. “Good boy!” she quickly wiped her hands on a towel and hopped on out the kitchen, Jared had a grin from ear to ear until she was out of sight and was met again by a kitchen that looked like a bomb had exploded, sighing he opened the dishwasher door, it’s only fair, she cooked, you clean.

Hair, outfit..hmm, I don’t know, should I wear th.. her thoughts were interrupted by the doorbell, ok leave it, it is what it is, you did your best, nervously she walked down the stairs, Jared was on his way to open the door when she walked down, wowww, she looked absolutely breathtaking. “You look..gorgeous” he smiled up at her, the fact that his friend were on the other side of the door completely forgotten about, “thank you! Uhm floppy hair, your friends are waiting” she giggled. “Heellooo sexy” a skinny, dark haired girl jumped in his arms, purring in his ear, a few friends he said..god, I hope there’s enough food for everyone, she took the last steps and slowly walked up to the bunch of people trickling inside. Should I introduce myself? Stop being so awkward De Robiano, just smile and act confident with the emphasis on ‘act’, “you must be Jared’s new flame” one of the girls noticed her standing behind Jared, “I’m Harper Coco, nice to meet you” she extended her hand, too formal maybe? I’m just not a hugger. The girl lifted her eyebrow at Jared like this was probably the most awkward way that she had been greeted in her entire life, yep Harper, you fucked up, what was it your mother said ‘you can never make a first impression twice’?. But after a few seconds she took Harper’s hand and lightly shook it, ugghh fishhands, Harper uncomfortably pulled back her hand, luckily Jared saved the day “alright alright, you know the way, we’re in the garden” he pointed at the back of the house. “You ok?” he whispered as the gang headed towards the back of the house, “yep, I’ll just go get the bottles” she smiled but he could see the nervous clench in her jaw, “it’s gonna be fine, trust me” he kissed the tip of her nose.

By the time every guest had a drink and something to eat, it was an hour later and the excited conversations were flowing around the table, with all her walking in and out there was only one spot free tucked away at the end of the table. Plopping down on her chair, she took a sip of her wine and tried to follow the conversation, but they were all so wrapped up in each other that she couldn’t get two words in, Jay looked completely in his element though, talking and laughing. Stop stressing, just enjoy the moment, enjoy your man who is in his element like you’ve never seen him before, she leaned back, lit up her cigarette and took a sip of her wine, the weather here reminded her of those Italian summer evenings in a way but did she warm up to LA yet? Nope! Not really, this just wasn’t her home..yet..would it ever be? Come on, make an effort, your man calls it home, then surely you can too. While the rest of the table was reminiscing about previous tours and things only they could know, the guy on her right gave her a friendly smile “so, how’s LA treating ya?”. She gave him an equally friendly smile back “I’m still trying to find my way round I guess..it’s not New York, that’s for sure!” he had really friendly eyes and seemed pretty genuine which was so refreshing in LA-la land. “I’m sorry, where are my manners? I don’t think we’ve been introduced, I’m Harper Coco” she extended her hand which he grabbed and gently shook “Oh you’re right, sorry, I’m Cooper..I’m with Marie-Lou” he pointed at one half of the twin sisters who are curling around Jared. “Aha..” she looked to get a better look of the girl but nah..still ordinary, oh for crying out loud Coco, stop it, for all you know she might be the sweetest woman alive “..and what does Cooper do, besides being Marie-Lou's boyfriend?” she turned her attention at the man again, “I work for a local art dealer”. Her head shot up, he really had her attention now “oh! You buying or selling? Contemporary or classic?” she took another drag of her cigarette, “I’m a buyer and I also scout new talent, shame that you signed with Charles already” he gave her a coy smile “your work is so, so..amazing!”. What?? A fan? “you know my work?” she said genuinely surprised, “know your work? Oh Harper, you really are too precious, how can anyone not be a fan of your work? everyone in the business is asking where Charles has kept you hidden for so long? Your work is such a breath of fresh air..it’s shocking and relevant and completely..” he rambled but paused to find the right words “new..it’s unlike anything anyone has ever seen before”. A warm blush crept around her cheeks, she never knew what to do with compliments of this magnitude “Uhm..thank you”, she wanted to shout at him that she was in a complete panic now that all her inspiration seemed to have dried up but she kept her cool and gave him a grateful nod instead.

”Excuse me a second, I think everyone is ready for a second round of drinks and nibbly things” she got up from her chair, oh come on Jay, get up for a second and help me, talk to me, I just want a few minutes with you, but he didn’t even notice, too wrapped up in his conversations. “Need some help?” Cooper spontaneously got up as well and followed her back to the house, in the kitchen she started rummaging through the fridge, taking out a huge pitcher of L’americano cocktail and then started taking out what seemed like a hundred different bowls of delish food “oh my, a crazy talented painter and a cook as well, Jared is a lucky man”. She never was good with compliments and this man was full of them “thank you, you’re too kind, but why don’t we take all this outside and then you have to tell me all about your job” she blushed and stammered as she handed him the pitcher. Walking back to the table with her hands full, she stopped behind Jared’s chair “Jay, can you make a bit of room and take these?” but he didn’t seem to hear her and the tray was getting really heavy. “Jay?” she kicked his chair a little to make him notice her but like this afternoon he was too wrapped in his bubble of friends, and it was exactly the same girl, Chloe?? Who had to make him aware that she was standing right behind him. “Oh sorry, didn’t see you there” he turned in his chair to take the tray from her, maybe she’d expected him to say something sweet or pull her against him for a second but there was none of that, trying not to look too frustrated she hurried back to her seat. “Try not to stress, I get the same thing with Marie-Lou, she forgets who I am when this bunch gets together, I only decided to come along when I heard who Jared’s new girlfriend was” Cooper shrugged when she sat down again. “I’m not stressing, anyway, let’s talk about you and your job” she quickly pushed a piece of bruschetta in her mouth.

”She’s awfully quiet, isn’t she? She didn’t even try and engage in the conversation” Chloe put her arm on Jared’s back as she stared at Harper sitting by the pool while the party was just getting started. Jared felt so lightheaded, he had way too much to drink “Harper? Oh Chloe, you don’t know what you’re talking about, she’s just got a lot on her mind..she’s been through so much with her family..and she’s still getting used to LA”. Chloe shifted in her seat not too convinced “whatever, just sounds like she's a lot of work, to me..anyway, come on old man and dance with me” she shot up, grabbed his hand and started yanking it. “No, leave it Chloe, I’m gonna check on Coco” he got up but then he watched her get up too, putting her phone to her ear she hurried back to the house, “oh come on, let her take that call, in the meantime you and I are gonna hit your cute improvised dancefloor right now” she pushed him in the direction of the pool. “We haven't talked since..well you know since that horrible night, you didn't return any of my calls, and I can understand why but believe me I've been so worried about you, I just wanted to see how you're holding up?” her brother's voice wurmed itself into her ear, why did she have to pick up? Sighing she sat down at the bottom of the stairs “I moved to LA..to get away from..them” she nearly puked the word “she's..gone way too far, Arno..listen, I know that you're trying to keep me part of the family but you're wasting your time..you heard what she said, she doesn't consider me a part of the family anymore so there's no real point in calling me”. This was a night to forget as soon as possible, who am I kidding, these last couple of days..this whole idea of following her lover to LA was something to forget all about as soon as possible, “you're still my little sister, Coco, that will always make you part of my family..how's LA treating you? And Jared, how is he?” he was determined to keep their conversation going. “Jared has been nothing but kind to me..LA on the other hand..” she pinched the bridge of her nose, no don't dive into all these negative emotions, just try and keep a cool head about it, it's only been days..oh god, I miss New York, I miss getting inspired. “Jared is great, you deserve each other so much, and as far as LA is concerned, it's just a city, and it's only been what? A couple of days? Give it a chance, you've lived all over the world in the past, surely LA will grow on you just like the other countries and cities did” bless him, he was trying to lift her spirits, whether it was working was a whole different matter. “I know..” she sighed, “and how's the painting going?”oh no, straight to the sore spot, “fine..just fine..” she lied, but he was having none of it “ok, out with it, Coco, what's going on?”. Harper bit her lip, should she? “nothing, just a little painter's block, nothing major” oh all those little lies, that is so not you Coco “listen Arno, I've gotta go, there's a party going on here tonight and Jared's gonna start looking for me soon, so..I'll call you next week if that's ok for you?”. Arno was very understanding about it so after saying their goodbyes, she threw the phone next to her, so glad she could stop lying, sighing she put her head on her crossed arms, oh Jared it would be so nice if you would actually come looking for me right now..but you're not are you? Just goes to show how different we really are, you have a life and I don't and boy did the truth hurt right now.

#jared leto #jared leto fanfic #jared leto fanfiction #fanfic #fanfiction #fic #30secondstomars #30 Seconds To Mars #30 secondstomars fanfic #30stm fanfiction #a man on fire #chapter 81 #Harper Coco #Harper and Jared #caroline18mars

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kaqeyamatobio · 4 years

Text

right here, right now.

kageyama x female reader (self-insert)

angst to fluff, post-breakup, college!au haikyuu

2.2k words

‹ warning: no honorifics, written in lowercase, reader’s pov, poorly written ›

─

"you're really going, right? tomorrow for karasuno’s reunion?" sugawara's voice is hopeful. patting my hand as a sign of encouragement, his eyes are sparkly and his eyes are always kind. you can never reject sugawara. he's always been a really kind senior to me, or probably he just got this effect on people.

"i don't know, sugawara. i really want to meet all of you, i also miss the all of the seniors- but i don't think i'll be brave enough to face him." letting out a sigh, i shifted in my seat, fiddling with my own cup of hot chocolate that i got earlier before bumping into sugawara in the queue.

this is what i'm scared of the most.

encountering karasuno volleyball club members randomly, and not being able to accept their invitation whenever they're hanging out. and it's all because of him.

"how long has it been? since you talked to kageyama?" sugawara asked carefully, trying to look my eyes as if saying his name would make me explode. well it actually would, one day i'll finally explode whenever i hear his name ring in my ears. i shook my head, blinking repeatedly at the bittersweet sound of his name.

"3 months? more than 3 months? i didn't count. i was too hurt to count, i think? i don't know how to explain it but it hurts me really good." i let out a bitter chuckle, looking up at the bright sky while avoiding sugawara's gaze on me, and yup. he’s worried like he’s my own mother.

"how about the others? you still talk to-"

"yes. yes, yes, i still talk to all of them. yachi and yamaguchi actually went out with me yesterday to watch some movies, and tsukki texts me often since we're in the same course together. you know? i was surprised that tsukki would join something art related in college. our first year of college is ending and he manages to shock me with his random behavior” sugawara laughed at my remarks about tsukki, nodding his head as we share the missing pieces in our lives ever since college started.

ever since i started drifting away from people.

─

i finally agreed on going to karasuno's reunion tomorrow.

sugawara wouldn't stop pestering me about it, not to mention hinata and nishinoya who were also pestering me through texts and instagram which kinda makes my head hurts. it's not like i want to forget all of my high school friends, but since most of my memories with them also include kageyama in it, i just want to forget all of the memories i had with him.

he was my high-school lover. at least we were like lovers. that’s what i thought, lovers. until college started and he started hanging out with another pretty girl in his class, until he invested his time in someone else rather than me.

it hurt me like crazy. the day i caught him lying to my face saying that he’s going to be at the library which is very unlike him and i found him accompanying the girl to the art supply store- it was my favorite art supply store too.

my breath hitched at the thought of him with someone else, grunting and stuffing my own face with my pillow- trying to block out my own thoughts which is 100% not working.

i hate sleeping like this.

i hate closing my eyes but my head is still loud with my own thoughts, and it wasn’t positive. it’s always filled with heartbreak, with pictures of him leaving me without explaining why. without telling me what i did wrong.

what did i do wrong?

─

i arrived at daichi’s house, bringing 2 bags full of snacks and hangover cures, just in case something went crazy later.

“hey! you’re here!” hinata were already shouting, greeting my by giving me a hug. nishinoya followed after, and i was greeted with daichi and asahi’s warm smiles. and it indeed felt like home.

“i’m glad you came. how are you?” daichi asked after embracing me with a hug, not forgetting to mess with my hair.

“surprisingly well! you?”

“going to be messed up knowing that thesis is coming up” he said making me laugh, patting daichi’s back, following all of the boys to daichi’s backyard where yachi and kiyoko are already grilling meat and vegetables.

“hey, sit here!” inviting me to sit beside her, yachi gave me a glass of fruit punch, nudging me lightly.

“you’re finally ready to meet him” kiyoko stated, making me flustered and gloomy at the same time, which resulted me shrugging my shoulder.

“i don’t think i am, i just miss all-“

my words are cut off when i see kageyama walking to the backyard, settling beers down on the table and apologizing to everyone that he’s late. am i getting all of this lovestruck feeling again?

“yeah, you’re not ready” yachi shook her head, panicking and grasping my hand. kiyoko only laughs a little, preparing a glass of drink for kageyama.

kageyama approached our table, obtaining his drink from kiyoko and bowing to me and yachi. leaving soon afterwards, and our eyes didn’t even meet. i didn’t even get the chance to greet him.

“i wanna go home” i whispered softly but enough for yachi and kiyoko to hear it. biting my own lips, i fiddled with my fingers— not paying attention to everyone’s stories, and i didn’t even realize that all of us had formed a circle to talk better.

“how about you, y/n?” tanaka asked, nudging me since he’s sitting beside me and yachi. raising his eyebrow at me who’s confused.

“how about what?”

“college”

“oh.. oh! umm i’m actually doing fine-“ my sentence got cut off by tsukki who chuckled loudly.

“yes, fine crying whenever she’s working on her assignment” he teased, resulting in me throwing a piece of green bean to his head, laughing for the first time tonight.

“really?! didn’t expect that from you!” asahi also raised his eyebrow at me, and before i got the chance to answer, tsukki already answered for me.

“yeah. we’re in the same literature class and the same art course. she’s always talking about coping with sadness and heartbreak. once i caught her crying because we were talking about a volleyball setter who fell in love with someone on the crowd— she’s probably still crying and thinking about kageyama, but she’s a strong one.” my eyes widened, kageyama who’s sitting across from me seemed like he don’t even care, listening to tsukki’s snarky story and looking at me uninterested. i sighed softly, trying to reason with tsukki’s remarks.

“no, actually. i’ve been watching and studying about romance novels and movies. i find it fascinating how love works, sometimes it’s beautiful and sometimes it hurts like hell. there’s no in-between. i find it odd that people love romance novels, it hurts my head.” i laughed bitterly while locking eyes with kageyama, but laughing when i saw nishinoya hitting tsukki in the back of his head after.

“how about you, tanaka? i heard you’re going to finally ask kiyoko out again. ready to get rejected again?” i teased, nudging him back.

and at least it was fine.

it was fine for a couple of minutes.

─

“hey.” his voice was too familiar. i know his voice unconsciously.

“hi”

fuck. i hate it. i hate this. my voice is softer and sadder than what i intended it to be and once again, i’m wondering why yachi told me to get the drinks at the fridge when it’s stacked back there in the backyard.

“need some help?” kageyama asked, opening a small carton of milk which made me want to smile. he’s not a drinker, he didn’t even drink that much when we know that we’re already legal to drink.

milk will always be his favorite.

“i don’t know why yachi sent me here, we still have a lot of drinks back there”

“can we talk, then?” kageyama asked, already finished with his small carton of milk, throwing it to the trash.

i nodded hesitantly- following him to daichi’s garden, which is actually quite far from the backyard, giving kageyama and i the privacy that we need.

“how have you been, y/n?” he asked after we both sat down in the bench, and i can only sigh. i don’t have any comments.

“i’ve been good”

“not really according to tsukki’s story”

“he’s making it up, tob- kageyama.”

“we both know he’s the most honest person in this house right now”

kageyama chuckled bitterly as well, i didn’t even dare to look at his eyes- instead i just hugged myself, trying to warm myself up due to this atmosphere and the damn weather that’s oddly cold.

“how about you?”

“i’m doing great with college. national team is doing amazing as well, and i got offered to play in europe” kageyama smiled, nodding his head slowly, giving me short glances every so often.

“are you going, kageyama?” i asked softly, trying to convince myself that he’s not leaving me again for the second time.

“yes, we’re leaving in 2 days. we’ll be in europe for 10 days only, though. but i might get offers and matches if we win. i get to take another person too, and i have someone already” and i feel like i’ve been suffocated.

i nodded, closing my eyes for a short time while looking at the sky.

“i’m happy for you, really” i smiled, this time i feel like freezing too and kageyama seemed to notice- frantically taking off his denim jacket, draping it on my smaller body.

“why didn’t you tell me you were cold, stupid?” kageyama huffed, pulling me closer to him and giving me a hug in attempt to warm me up.

i didn’t want to hug him back, but it was an automatic response from me. i was grasping his black shirt and i didn’t realize i’m crying already. fuck. i bottled it up, and it’s my time to explode.

“hey, y/n? what’s wrong?”

“please don’t leave me again” i whimpered quietly, tightening my hug on him.

i’ve lost all of my sanity and all of my guards are off tonight.

“what-“

“i can handle you breaking up with me but i can’t handle having you completely gone from my life especially if you have someone else, tobio. i really can’t. i’m happy for you i really am, i’m proud of you for achieving your dreams and going overseas for matches- but i don’t wanna lose you, tobio.” calling him tobio for the first time in months made me relieved but also in pain.

“you didn’t give me a chance to speak-“ i pulled away from the hug, wiping my own tears, standing up from my seat.

“i don’t think i could ever hear it. i shouldn’t have come today, i shouldn’t have go. i thought meeting you would resolve my feelings for you but no, tobio. i can’t get over you, i will never get over you, and it would be better if you didn’t say that you’re leaving. i can’t- i love you too much“

“stop it, y/n” kageyama also stood up, hugging me tighter this time, the sound of our friend’s laughs are faded since all i can hear is his breathing and his heartbeat.

“i’m glad if our feelings are still mutuals”

i stopped crying, looking at kageyama with my teary eyes, he wipes it with his thumbs. i can’t say anything right now.

“i’m sorry. it won’t be enough because i know i was so stupid and you deserve better than me. i’m sorry for not spending my time with you as i used to, i’m sorry for ignoring your texts and calls whenever you’re worried about me, i’m sorry about all of my wrongdoings. i’m sorry. i’m really sorry.” it’s kageyama’s turn to divert his eyes from my gaze.

“why didn’t you say this sooner?”

“i’m too scared of losing you too. we both have the same fear. i didn’t know what’s better for us.” kageyama fixed my hair, putting a strand of hair behind my ear.

“you’re really a different one, tobio” i smiled, tears still staining my eyes- but kageyama is always there to wipe it away.

“y/n, can i kiss you?” kageyama asked, licking his lips while holding my face with both of his hands.

i nodded my head, putting my hand on his hands, feeling his lips on mine after months of heartbreak and pain. after thinking that the both of us are never meant to be. after being tired of our fears.

“and i hope you don’t mind that i looked through your schedule and that your semester break already started, thanks to the courtesy of smart tsukki, because we’re going to europe.”

i smiled, shaking my head and pulling kageyama to kiss my again, transferring his warmth to my body.

“i don’t mind. did you tell tsukki? i’m surprised he wants to help you.”

“yes. he suggested this, actually. and everyone knows, this reunion is actually my plan. i know you wouldn’t stand hinata and nishinoya pestering you into going, i’m also glad sugawara bumped into you, he can bother you too and it worked.” kageyama laughs, giving me another peck on my lips.

“you’re evil”

“y/n?”

“yes?”

“i love you. this is the first day that i will love you recklessly and carelessly, and i’ll continue to love you forevermore” kageyama’s words shocked me, earning a smile from me and a kiss.

“and i as well, will love you forevermore, tobio kageyama.”

and he’s mine. again.

AAAAHHHHHH thank you so much for reading the whole thing!!! i am going to cry this is so poorly written and i wrote this at 4am and i was half sleepy, i haven’t got the time to edit this but i hope dearest readers who are here enjoyed it!!! T_____T

#kageyama x reader #tobio kageyama #kageyama #haikyuu #haikyuu!#kageyama fluff #sugawara #hinata #nishinoya #tanaka #daichi #asahi #kiyoko #yachi

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adorkabletodd · 5 years

Text

Red as Ruby (Jason Todd x Reader)

This is part 2 of my first fanfic called Green as Emerald if you’d like to, go ahead and read the first part

I was feeling a little inspired so I decided to sketch my man

Soulmate AU! Whenever you lose something it’ll end up in your soulmate’s hands/possession. You’ll never find it again until you find your soulmate. Things you forgot existed also goes to your soulmate and vice versa.

Warnings: more curse words than before Word count: 1680

---

It’s been 3 days since my encounter with the famous Red Hood, and so far I’ve tried my best to avoid alleyways that reek of mob gangs.

Lately, I’ve been occupying myself with twice the amount of work. I kept telling my brain that it’s for the good of my job but I know deep down it’s just an excuse to make me forget about that stone Red Hood was wearing.

Honestly, I shouldn’t believe that he really is wearing my stone, right? Lots of people probably own the same green emerald that I used to have! Though I couldn’t help but wonder.

Besides my parents, only a few of my friends would confirm that they do believe in the miracles of finding a soulmate but some hadn’t had the opportunity to ever experience them.

...What are the odds of Red Hood being mine?

“You seem to be deep in thought, (Y/N).” I turn my head to the source of that voice and saw Garrick, my co-worker. A good guy, though I wouldn’t say we’re anything more than friends.

“Hey. Sorry, been doing a lot of thinking lately. What’s up?”

“Package just arrived for you in the mail. Sent all the way from Star City by someone named Connor Hawke” Garrick handed me a small packaged.

“Thanks, Garrick,” I gave him a smile as I take the package from his hands. I didn’t think Connor would reach out to me so soon. Connor was one of my closest friends back home, we went to the same high school together and I always find myself comforting him whenever he had trouble with his dad. He in return helped me throughout the loss of my parents. There’s a lot of mystery to that guy after he dropped out of school I rarely get to see him but there are times where he would always find me in the most unexpected times.

Grabbing a scissor from my desk, I rip the package open and was astonished to the remaining things inside. There were a bunch of old pictures of us together back in our high school days, and a note from Connor.

‘ Found these old photos of us when I cleaned your old apartment, I thought you might want it back. Good luck in Gotham (L/N), seriously, you’re gonna need it. Don’t be a stranger.

PS. I also found this little treasure of yours.

- Connor H.‘

One item that stood out was what looked like a tip of a familiar pocket knife buried beneath the photographs. I held my breath once I cleared away the photos.

The pocket knife was a beautiful ruby red with a single black streak printed on the back. The handle still has those rough scratches and a couple of marks that resembles the letter ‘J’ at the bottom. God, I can’t believe I accidentally left this behind. I used to bring this everywhere I go. It became a handy tool though I don’t recall how I gain the possession of it in the first place.

By the time I didn’t realize it was already half past 5 pm. I’ve completed all of my assignments, would love to get an early leave before it gets dark.

---

On my way home I remembered that I haven’t restocked my fridge yet, right on queue: my stomach grumbled. Guess I accidentally skipped lunch again. Just across the street, I saw a fast food restaurant called the Bat Burger.

“…”

Ah hell, why not? I mean it’s not like Red Hood would mindlessly hang out in a food joint named after him and his vigilante group.

When I entered, the place seemed so flashy and colorful. Like straight out of a comic book kind of atmosphere. A lot of pop art style no doubt. Once I finally ordered I made my way near a windowed booth. A sigh of exhaustion escaped my lips, I was ready to dig into my dinner when suddenly a man sat across from me.

Startled, he seemed to be in alert. This man wore a black shirt underneath his dark gray jacket and a red cap. Even though he seems to be hiding his face with that cap, I can see the clear blue of his eyes.

“Um... Can I help you?”

When he noticed my presence, he hunches over his shoulder attempting to hide his face even further. “Sorry, didn’t mean to invade your space but could you pretend like we’re a couple of friends having dinner for just 2 minutes? Then I’ll go and you can just pretend I was never here.” Before I could even question what he meant two other men barge in from the entrance. The man in front of me held his breath waiting for an impasse. I tried my best to avert my gaze away from their peering eyes. Sliding my fries over to him slowly.

The two goons didn’t seem to notice the man in front of me before heading back outside. Once they’re gone the man made a cautious check over his shoulder before exhaling a sigh of relief. “Thanks for playing along.” He was about to reach over my fries and quickly I slap his hands away.

“Just because I helped you doesn’t mean you can actually take my food.”

He raised both of his hands in defense before letting out a soft chuckle. “Well, sliding your fries over to me, I thought you sincerely meant to share me some food.”

“What exactly was all that about?” I found myself saying the question out loud.

“Let’s just say I had a job that I needed to take care of, wasn’t as sneaky as I turned out to be.”

His hand started to fidget on the knot of his jacket string. “This your first time eating here?”

“Oh let me guess, you’re a regular here.”

“My brothers and I always come here to mock our dad, a lot of our... inside jokes came from this place.” The man took off his cap and rake his fingers through his messy hair. I notice the white streak on his jet black hair and the look just made him stood out.

“I’m Jason, by the way. Jason Todd.”

“(Y/N) (L/N).”

Normally I wouldn’t get too comfortable with sketchy guys who came to me for cover. But I gotta admit, this man is ridiculously handsome. “Not that it’s any of my business but, it’s not really safe to be alone at night in Gotham.”

“When isn’t it good time to be safe in Gotham, honestly? And I can take care of myself if that’s what you mean.”

“Oh, I have no doubt about that,” Jason smirked, his eyes gleamed with mischief.

I didn’t know how but the conversation between us continued naturally. It’s rare to find a guy like him to connect with. He’s not like anyone I’ve ever met before and from a glance, you can tell what a sly asshole of guy he can be, weirdly I don’t mind getting to know that part of him. If he’ll let me.

When I finished my burger, I wiped my lips with the napkin and slide the remainings of my french fries left to him. “Here, I’m too full to finish this, you can have the rest.” Jason looked at me doubtingly. “Seriously. Here, you’ve been a good company.”

“Well, it’s nice to know you don’t hate me yet.”

“Keep that annoying face of yours and we’ll see.”

I grab hold of my bag and place my phone inside. “Nice knowing you, Jason.” I gave him a small smile before sliding out of the booth. To my satisfaction, Jason smiled back.

Walking towards the exit, I was about to reach my hand to the door when I heard Jason’s voice.

“(Y/N), wait. You dropped – ...This.”

Turning back I saw Jason lean down grabbing something, in his hand was the red pocket knife Connor sent me.

“Oh! good lord, not again!” I really need to keep an eye on this thing. I don’t want to lose it for the second time. “Thanks. I don’t know what I would’ve done if I lost this.”

“Does it mean that much to you?”

“Well... Not really, this thing helped me out when I needed a little tinkering. It’s one of those stuff where you can’t really let go when you have it, you know?”

“Yeah... I do.” Jason looked at me, surprised.

He looked at me as if I made him realize something, the way his eyes softens as my fingers traced the small scratches of this red pocket knife.

“You should head back. It’s getting late.” Jason said quietly.

A part of me didn’t want to leave him behind, but another part told me that I should be on my way. “Yeah... Thanks again for this, see you around Jay.”

With that, I made my way out. Urging myself not to look back. Though my eyes couldn’t help but glance back to the restaurant window, I noticed. The time I spent talking with Jason felt like we were the only ones in the room. And we were.

---

The sound of jingling key echoed the empty hallway as I unlock my door. Once I entered I turned the lights on and place my bag on the kitchen island. I made my way to the fridge to grab myself a bottle of water when I suddenly heard a single tap sound from my window.

I became anxious with the thought of someone breaking in. Cautiously I close the fridge and try to reach into my bag to grab the pepper spray. Every second I feel my heart race faster and my eyes scanned on the darker parts of my living room waiting for something to strike.

I came closer, and closer to my bag when suddenly a figure emerges from the shadow.

My mind became blank and the bottle dropped from the numb feeling in my hand.

I was face to face with Red Hood.

“Hello, angel. I believe you have something of mine.”

---

Oof I had to cut that cuz it’s getting way too long.

Hope you enjoyed it and I have a feeling I’ll be writing part 3 to conclude this Soulmate AU.

#jason todd x reader #red hood x reader #dc #jason todd #batfam #x reader #red hood imagine #soulmate au #red hood x you #red hood x y/n

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late2theshow · 4 years

Text

Catradora Fluff in Highschool AU form coming soon

started this chapter and never finished it but I’m going to post it.

Any parent fears when their child brings home their first boyfriend or girlfriend to “hang out” the dreading sound of the bedroom door closing and what could be going on behind that said door. Or in the few minutes left alone on the couch. It wasn’t something Angella looked forward to when it came to Glimmer or Adora. Glimmer had the little habit of not telling her mother certain details and it made her untrusting of her daughter’s words. When she would say she would go out. Angella and Micah would instantly fear it was because of “boys” but, it wasn’t, at least not all the time. Angella did suspect Glimmer had a boyfriend she wasn’t telling her about, but she couldn’t get that information out of her if she tried. She couldn’t even get it out of Adora, and she wouldn’t try to. Going between the two sisters like that would be inexcusable as a parent. Worried or not, she wouldn’t get Adora involved in that.

Adora was something else. Her official “date” was no boy. Which came as a relief but not a shock. Adora never showed interest in boys and after the lake house incident; she was most likely to never have an interest in them in her young adult life. But now at seventeen, she was smitten with her old friend Catra.

A very pretty young smart mouth. According to Glimmer, she was a “mean girl” type with a mix of troubled teen angst. The Hispanic beauty was kicked out of her old school allegedly, and is in a gang allegedly, and is related to Mexican drug cartels, which is odd since she is Puerto Rican, but either or, she was polite and respectable in their house.

She came off as nervous and shy in her presence; which all be it was a good sign. Her accent was posh and elegant and typically came with undeserved respect in some of her inner circles. This supposed tough girl seemed to have fallen into the same group of people who fear Angella for the fact she sounds like the queen of England; apparently.

With all that side she couldn’t help but have a warm smile on her face. She watched from her patio screen the sight of her adopted daughter Adora with her date in the backyard. It wasn’t what she would have dreaded. They weren’t getting too cuddly on the swinging bench or snogging under a tree. It was much simpler than that. And much more childlike in innocence. But—slightly annoying. As Catra and Adora went to Target and bought two toy plastic lightsaber toys and was playing to like to five-year-old boys. It was funny. Two high school senior girls playing with toys for a date. All her worries left her.

Adora was special in many ways to her. She was her beautiful adopted daughter. Two years younger than Glimmer and she had a rough life before she and Micah had her. She was sweet and loving and kind. And she was indeed a young lady; who now finally has romance on the mind. She watched as Catra and Adora kept batting the swords against each other and giggling to each other. It was such a kiddie type play date. Still 100% better then Adora just ushering Catra up to her room to do whatever. She fears that every time Glimmer brings a boy over. And almost on queue Glimmer comes into the kitchen and chimes in with.

“Why are you watching Adora and Katherina act like six-year-olds?” Glimmer questioned. Going to the fridge for a Juicebox. Angella quickly replied.

“I’m not watching them; I was doing dishes!” Angella lied.

Glimmer snorted and walked over to her mother “When did the sink move to the patio screen doors?”

Angella gave her a smirk “touché, but dear daughter it seems you were watching them to” she raised a brow.

Glimmer huffed “I wasn’t trying to—it's hard to focus on homework when you two dorks running around outside”

“Dorks?” She questioned with a laugh “Your sister isn’t a dork”

“Mom, look outside again”

“Well better this then them running off into her room with the door closed and kissing”

Glimmer held back a laugh “Mom. They haven’t even kissed yet”

Angella blinked in surprise. She didn’t want glimmer to air out all of Adora’s secrets or pry into anything else, but she was tempted to ask more “Oh, really? Has this been something Adora has mentioned recently?”

“If you don’t mind giving me extra in my allowance, I can spare some details”

“Glimmer” her mother sternly said.

“Mother?”

“Okay, fine” giving into a petty bribe for details on her adoptive daughter’s romantic life. Glimmer cleared her throat and started to give Angella her answers.

“No kissing, both are either too stupid or shy; my guess is both. But Adora isn’t sure if Catra likes her like that enough and even though they are totally crushing on each other—plus! Catra makes her freakin lunch and Adora hangs on with her in the art room during lunch now; they have it super bad for each other!”

Angella grinned at this realization. Her sweet Adora was too shy and also this new girl was equally on the bashful side. She peaked out through the patio doors to see the two still playing like children. She ducked back into the kitchen before she got caught watching.

She smiled and held back a laugh “Okay, Glimmer you earned your allowance bonus; but I can give you one more advance if you answer me one more question”

“What is it?”

Angella let out a playful laugh before finishing with “Who are you pining for right now?”

Glimmer deadpanned and she told her mother she had homework and rushed upstairs to avoid talking to her anymore.

Angella then called to her “If it’s Bow then I’ll be very happy!”

She heard Glimmer growl in embarrassment as she slammed her bedroom door.

#catradora #fanfic #she-ra and the princesses of power #High School AU

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xellandria · 5 years

Photo

A friend of mine is running a D&D one-shot this weekend which meant creating another character. I was sort of grasping at straws (I don’t want to use the tabaxi rogue I’ve got waiting in the wings for if/when my character in the campaign game we’re in dies for a one-shot) but then I was like “wait, what if I just played another character that sort of exists already?

In BA, Alex is an incubus who falls in love with a human woman who is killed by a covetous evil vampire (warning, art at that link is from 2002-2004 and is *real* bad). When I was writing out Alexus’ backstory to fit the old character into the new world, I was like “phew, let’s be real—this backstory is like 20 years old and it is showing the hell out of its age; this woman was created and immediately fridged explicitly to fuel some manpain” but there wasn’t much point in going into detail since backstory is basically irrelevant in that game so I just was like “yeah she disappeared one day and nobody knew why and he eventually kept traveling but still keeps half an ear to the ground for news.”

Anyway so instead of being a character that exists solely to be fridged, now Mephala gets to exist on her own for a bit! She, uh... well she’s more of a person now but the covetous evil vampire is still there to some degree Also since Alex turned into a half-elf, Mephala gets to be the demon(-like creature) instead. Good trade.

Mephala - level 5 Tiefling Sorcerer (Divine Soul) Str: 8 (-1) Dex: 10 (0) Con: 12 (+1) Int: 14 (+2) Wis: 14 (+2) Cha: 18 (+4)

In the D&D universe, she was apprenticed to a goldsmith(/guild artisan: jeweler, in D&D background terms) who was sort of also a kind of parental figure (cos she didn’t have those for some reason I guess?) when she and Alexus met and became close, but one of the dudes in her town was all Frollo from Hunchback of Notre Dame up in here and was like “yo you’re an evil hellspawn but also I want your body?” and she wasn’t super into him. At one point he cornered her and she straight up told him to get bent and he got real mad about it (as whiny pissbabies are wont to do) and yo! turns out he was some sort of creature in disguise or something? I am slightly unclear on that part cos I’m not super familiar with D&D monster lore and stuff but anyway in the encounter he cut the shit out of her shoulders and throat but at some point her innate magic sorcerer powers kicked in (because the player’s handbook tells me this is how sorcerers work) and either massively fucked him up or killed him (again, unclear and at this point irrelevant). She also kinda fucked up herself at the same time (did he have like, acidic blood or something? did she just fireball herself in the face? I DON’T KNOW, MAN!).

She ended up staggering off into the woods and fleeing her town because the whiny pissbaby dude/monster was like, the D&D sheriff or something (Viktor, the OG covetous vampire dude, was the chief of police in her town in BA) and she was pretty sure she wasn’t gonna be able to get a fair trial or anything there. She desperately wants to return, but hasn’t quite worked up the nerve yet. Reason for being an adventurer TBD, but apparently the one-shot is going to be a heist so I guess she’s trying to save up funds to get protection or a better shot at biasing the law in her favour or something? idk man, lol.

Aside from the obvious ones on her face, neck, and torso, Mephala’s got lots of little scars on her fingers from learning her trade, which she is actually pretty good at (I guess she was less an apprentice and more of an established/senior journeyman when The Incident happened, really). Most of the jewelry and metalwork she wears is her own work, as is the pendant that Alexus still carries around for luck. She was never super outgoing but is extra wary of strangers nowadays, and makes liberal use of Thaumaturgy’s “change your eyes for a minute” ability (in conjunction with her cloak) when in crowds or unknown situations. When she does, the right eye typically ends up kind of cataract-clouded; she can still mostly see out of it but it did get damaged somewhat when she took that hit. She avoids speaking whenever possible because her vocal chords also never quite recovered from that day (aka I don’t want to be the face of this game’s party, I mean what).

Design-wise, I really wanted her horns to be something that wouldn’t interfere too badly with a hood but that isn’t the curled ram-ish horns I used for Delenda; with a big and drapey enough hood, these seem to work for that. The scarf was important for covering her neck because she doesn’t want to show off the claw/handprint on her neck, but leaving off the left sleeve displays the clawmarks on her shoulder, and basically nothing below the waist got refined at all. I’d like to keep working on it, but the game is on Sunday and I have a commission in the queue, so I had to stop myself at some point, lol.

Alexus’ pendant is a wire-wrapped fluorite heart; I’m not sure what sort of stone Mephala’s arcane focus is (the smaller teardrops and oval cabochons and such are probably enamel and coloured glass). I was thinking labradorite cos those can look super sweet and reasonably magical, but I couldn’t find any that were big enough when I went looking through ebay and etsy earlier.

She’s a divine soul sorcerer instead of some other kind of sorcerer largely because I don’t actually know what anybody else in this one-shot is playing (well, I know we have two rogues but) and I wanted to make sure we had at least one healing spell available, lol :x

#xellafail #sketch line city #dungeons and dragons #tiefling #original characters #(my oc tag is so shoddy I'm so sorry self and also anybody else who wants it at any point)#mephala

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littlemulattokitten · 6 years

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"Barista writes bad jokes/poetry on cute regular customer’s cup" sirius-hermione

Idk if I’m ever gonna expand this more or not, but uh...here I guess. It’s long so, you know, below the cut.

Alright, so the whole barista gig was kind of an accident.

He never planned on keeping the job, let alone taking it to begin with, or enjoying it for that matter, but the added income was nice. Very nice. Rugged barista by day, suave bartender by night. And all the tips he could flirt out of his patrons.

When Marlene had called him a few months prior, flustered and with the droning of a busy coffee shop in the background, he'd never planned on being her backup barista because he “already knew health and safety regulations, and could pick up new recipes like some sort of mixology savant". Still, a few hours later he'd been wearing an apron, a headset, and making drinks faster than Marlene’s most seasoned barista.

He begrudgingly admitted to enjoying the busy afternoon and once they worked out his schedule around his first job, she printed off his new hire paperwork. His roommates -Remus and James- got a nice chuckle out of his drink-industry dual-career. He practiced his rude sign language vocabulary in retaliation.

It wasn't until three months into the day job that Sirius got jarred out of the rhythmic monotony of making caffeinated drinks when he glanced at the morning queue and saw the single most adorable creature he'd ever seen. He was so stunned that he'd nearly burned himself on the steamer, and then he lost his rhythm, second guessing the recipe for the drink he'd been making on autopilot a moment before.

“Um...Hi. Sorry, I rarely come here,” he heard her say to Marlene at the counter. “Ah...I'll take a venti mocha with 3 pumps of peppermint syrup, an extra shot of espresso, and extra whip please.”

He'd been vibrating with impatience while Marlene took her sweet time entering the order into the computer before asking the beauty's name.

“Hermione, but...um...just ‘Mione is probably faster to write? M-I-O-N-E.”

“Helen's daughter,” he said aloud, unthinkingly. She turned towards him and he tried his damndest not to trip over his words. “Are your parents history buffs or Shakespeare fans?”

Everything from her wild curls to her whiskey-brown eyes brightened when she gave him a perfect, albeit small, smile. “Both.”

He grinned and got to work on her drink, taking care to craft it with more than his usual attention to detail. She blessed him with another smile when he called her name - her full name.

“Thank you,” she said.

“Anytime, love,” he replied.

Marlene threw him odd looks until the rush died down, long after the lovely Hermione had left the shop. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you look at a girl like that before, Sirius,” she said as she helped him wipe down the drink station.

“Do you know her?” he asked.

Marlene shrugged. “I know of her. That is, assuming there’s only one Hermione at HU.”

Sirius nearly dropped one of the milk cartons he was restocking his under-counter mini fridge with, and he did fumble with the fresh whipped cream canister that fell over as a result. “She goes to Hogwarts?” he hissed, only just remembering that he couldn’t shout when customers were around. “What does she major in?”

Marlene frowned in thought while trying to scrub a dried pool of hazelnut syrup from the counter. “Creative Writing, I think? Something in Arts & Humanities. She might a double major actually. Lils told me that people call her mad, but that she’s a really sweet girl so long as you aren’t in her way. That said, I’m pretty sure Malfoy’s been chasing her tail this term. He was in here talking about a ‘feisty little bint’ that would ‘come around eventually’ the other day.”

“Which Malfoy?” he asked. “Draco, Lucius, or Abraxas?”

“Draco mostly,” she said. “Abraxas didn’t sound disinterested, and Lucius was dreadfully bored by the whole discussion.”

“As he should be,” Sirius grumbled under his breath. “He’s engaged to my cousin.”

“He made a comment about being engaged and they teased him about it,” said Marlene.

Sirius gave a noncommittal grunt. “Well, I hope that she doesn’t ‘come around’ to either still-single Malfoy triplet. She deserves better.”

“You don’t know her,” Marlene said in a sing-song voice.

No, he thought. I don’t. But I want to.

Tags: @weestarmeggie17, @ibuzoo, @meowmerson, @shayalonnie, @kyoki777, @disillusionist9, @aconitumluparia, @stefartemis, @accio-echo, @moonnott, @ariel-riddle, @ozzymandius, @serpentinred, @nerysdax, @ninjafairy86, @laisvega, and anyone else. I’m sure I’m forgetting people or not remembering mutuals who are Sirimione fans.

#Sirimione #Sirius Black #Hermione Granger #fanfics #Coffee Shop AU #Barista AU #SBHG #SBxHG #Sirius Black x Hermione Granger #hp fanfiction #Anonymous

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passionate-baker · 5 years

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Italian Adventures Part I: Florence

Friends, welcome to Part I of our Italian Adventures: Florence!

I’m so excited to share this travel guide with you! It has been such a long time in the making and I’m dying to tell you about all of our favourite places in the Tuscan capital.

Let me just start with this statement: we adore Italy. If Italophile is a word - which google has led me to believe it could be - then Boyfriend & I would definitely be described as such. We love the vibe, the food, the wine, the museums, the language, the atmosphere, the gelato, everything. This is the case for Italy as a whole, yes - but Florence in particular has something that other Italian cities just can’t compare with.. and I’m not just talking about the world’s best cheesecake - but there’s more on that below.

There’s a huge amount of recommendations in this post. I’ve streamlined the recs into six sections: Stay / Coffee / Eat / Drink / Museums + Attractions / Places to See. The first four are self-explanatory, but the difference between the last two sections is an entry fee; Museums + Attractions are all paid entrance, while the Places to See are free. If you have any doubts about any of the places listed below, just know that we’ve been to each & every single place a whole bunch of times (some an embarrassingly large amount of times), so you know you can actually trust us when we say they’re reliable.

Happy travelling, friends!

STAY

Leonardo House // we’ve stayed at Leonardo House on our last two visits to the city, and - unless we win the lottery and splurge on a fancy hotel - we’ll definitely be returning again! It has an amazing location, it’s extremely budget friendly, and the manager is so so lovely. It’s more of a hostel than anything else, so it’s more pared back than what you might be looking for, but the private rooms are clean and quiet. Honestly, it’s the location that has us returning time after time - it is literally less than a three minute walk straight into the centre of the Duomo complex - what more could you ask for?

COFFEE

Caffe Gilli // we have a copy of Ruth Orkin’s fabulous American Girl in Italy photograph & I’d wanted to visit the spot it was taken in since the first moment I saw it. That place is Caffe Gilli. We were so far from disappointed upon walking in the doors that we went back for our morning hit every. single. day. and then some. Pro tip: drink your coffee & eat your pastry at the bar, it costs much less! .. and before you ask: yes, we tried to capture our own take of the iconic photo, and also: no, you cannot see it. A must-visit.

La Rinascente // to be honest, I can’t actually remember what the coffee is like in Rinascente - but that isn’t why you should go there anyway. The cafe boasts a rooftop terrace - La Terrazza - that has a breathtaking view over the Duomo complex. It is the ultimate place for a romantic coffee date. Shout-out to Boyfriend’s parents for recommending!

EAT

4Leoni // we are obsessed with 4Leoni. It is hands down our favourite restaurant in Florence, and we have been back an embarrassing amount of times. The food is always impeccable, the location is stunning, the staff are extremely friendly, it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg, and it’s home to the best baked cheesecake the world has ever seen. I’m not even exaggerating a little bit. A definite must-visit.

Il Santo Bevitore // okay fine, we are also mildly obsessed with IlSB, and have returned a few times now. The food is always exceptional, and there is a level of perfection & professionalism about the place that 4Leoni can’t quite compare with. The menu is inventive, unusual - on our last visit there was a strong Japanese influence to the meals - and leaves us wowed every time. Our most recent culinary highlights included: an n’duja pasta starter that left Boyfriend drooling, & a mouth-wateringly thick steak that was cooked to absolute perfection. Another must-visit.

Trattoria Giovanni // I can’t remember exactly what led us to this restaurant, but we had an unexpectedly fantastic meal. The atmosphere wasn’t as comfortable as either 4Leoni or Il Santo Bevitore, but the place can’t be faulted on the food. We shared a delicious cheese board to start, and had two absolutely perfect pasta dishes for mains - braised beef cheek for him, and wild boar for me. Overall, a surprisingly good find.

O’Munaciello // pizzeria in the Oltrarno. A large, quirky room decorated with fairy lights, candles, and puppets. A real no frills place, but the pizza is reliably good and not too expensive.

La Carraia Gelato // our favourite gelato in city, and arguably the best of the bunch. We are repeat visitors and are forever opting for our fave flavours: nocciola & pistacchio - so. good.

DRINK

Il Santino // extra chic wine bar connected to Il Santo Bevitore. An amazingly tiny space with a small handful of tables clustered together & stools lining the bar. The room is dark & moody, the vibe casual & hipster. The menu is minuscule and sans prices, but after a brief chat with our extremely knowledgeable waitress, we were brought the custom made charcuterie & cheese board of our dreams. We lingered over our tiny table with our various glasses of wine - which were paired with our food by our waitress - for as long as was socially acceptable. If you read our Edinburgh Guide, the place has the same kind of feel as Smith & Gertrude (but so much nicer and friendlier). We loved every single second, a definite must-visit.

La Ménagere // I’ll be honest, I only wanted to visit LM because of the powers of Instagram. I saw it on my feed, I loved the style, & I had to see it for myself. The space itself is beautiful, and it melted my insta-eyes as soon as we reached the door. Initially, I had to drag Boyfriend inside - he isn’t as easily influenced as I - but once we spied the cocktail list, peace was restored. An ice cold margarita served in a silver chalice for me, an old fashioned garnished with shavings of chocolate for him. They were, honestly, the best cocktails of our entire lives. Win-win!

5 e Cinque // one night, after dinner in 4Leoni - which is literally a stone’s throw away - we wandered in here for a glass of wine. We enjoyed two glasses of the most delicious Sangiovese ever, for an incredibly reasonable price. Although we had just eaten, everything on the dinner menu sounded so enticing that we vowed to return.

Bulli & Balene // the perfect spot for an Aperol Spritz. I think we went to B&B every single day we were in Florence. Both as a pre- & post-dinner at 4Leoni drink, as an afternoon pick-me-up, as a “hey, that place was nice!” stop-off on a wander around town, as a perfect spot to people-watch over a glass or two, you name it. Added bonus: drinks are excellent value!

Archea Brewery // we love wine & all - don’t get us wrong - but sometimes you just need a good beer, and this is the place for that. We visit every time we’re in the city & have yet to leave disappointed. Think dark cavernous room with a cozy atmosphere and a relaxed vibe. Pro tip: go for the own brand lager, it’s delicious! A beer lover’s must-visit.

Antica Sosta degle Aldobrandini // a perfect people-watching spot. Small bar, cheap food, located across the road from the Medici Chapel, with cold Becks in fridge. We’ll take two, thanks.

MUSEUMS + ATTRACTIONS

Santa Maria del Fiore Complex // obviously, everyone visits the complex for one reason: the Duomo. The Cathedral itself is breathtakingly beautiful & probably worth some of your precious time, but definitely don’t miss the chance to climb the Duomo. If you’re an art history nerd like me, be sure to check out the Duomo Museum at the back of the complex - amongst other things, they have Michelangelo’s Florentine Pieta (!), and an exact replica of Ghiberti’s Gates of Paradise that you can actually look at without being hassled by hundreds of tourists. Pro tip: buy your ticket for the complex (you have to by an all-in-one ticket) the day before you plan to climb the Duomo; that way you can beat the majority of the queues by getting there before the ticket office opens for the day. For sure, a must-visit.

Uffizi // like the Louvre, this is one of those museums that you just can’t miss. It’s home to some wonderful pieces of art by the greats: Botticelli, Da Vinci, Caravaggio etc, the list is endless. It always takes longer to work through the circuitous layout than expected, so be sure to allow extra time.

Accademia // obviously, when in Florence, you have to visit Michelangelo’s masterpiece: David... or more specifically speaking, you have to go marvel at that perfectly sculpted specimen of man. I made several return trips around the pedestal just to fully appreciate how beautiful he is. And to check out his butt, of course. Wowza.

Boboli Gardens // although undeniably beautiful in their own right, we only bought tickets into the gardens for one reason: the Buontalenti Grotto. The grotto is at the end of the Vasari Corridor - which I’ve never had the opportunity to visit but would absolutely love to - & is honestly like something straight out of my imagination. We stood outside the gates staring in for an embarrassing amount of time - the sculptures inside are beyond amazing.

PLACES TO SEE

Loggia dei Lanzi // my favourite sculpture in the entire world - The Rape of the Sabine Women by Giambologna - is located in the Loggia, not a stone’s throw from the Uffizi. Basically, the Loggia is a free, open-air sculpture gallery filled with unmissable pieces of art. Whenever we visit, I stand mesmerized under Giambologna’s masterpiece before moving on to gawp at Cellini’s selfie in the back of Perseus’s helmet. For me, this is a total must-visit.

Palazzo Michelangelo // everyone recommends walking up here and it is easy to see why: you get to see beautiful Firenze from on high! The bridges spanning the width of the winding Arno, the red rooftops capping the city, the Duomo. Pro tip: head up there super early to avoid the crowds... or brave the crowds & go for that magical time right before the sun sets.

Fiesole // we actually have Boyfriend’s mom to thank for telling us all about the small hilltop village of Fiesole, about a 20-minute bus ride out of the city. The bus ticket was super cheap (like, €1.50), and the journey alone was worth it - it takes these winding roads out of the city going up, up, up, leaving you gaping out the window at the views of Florence below. The village is adorable, and very quiet in comparison to the busy streets of Firenze. We hiked up towards the Monastery of San Francesco to get that view over Florence. Perfection!

Palazzo Stozzi // a breathtakingly beautiful space in the heart of the city. Used largely as an exhibition space - when we visited they were just about to start a Marina Ambrovic show - but open to the public to walk around.

Bremen, Germany // Paris, France // Amsterdam, Holland // Copenhagen, Denmark // Cork, Ireland // Edinburgh, Scotland // Westport, Ireland // Barcelona, Spain // Munich, Germany // Vienna, Austria // London, UK i - ii - iii

#florence #italy #travel

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barelyfoundnotebook-blog · 6 years

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Lunch Rush Crush

My first attempt at writing fanfiction, so i chose Solangelo! It took me so long to post this and I am so sorry for that. I always accept criticism and hope you enjoy! (All mistakes are mine, please forgive me)

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

In Will’s two years of experience, noon was the worst time to enter the dining hall that he and his group of friends so graciously dubbed ‘The Trash Can.’ The name had nothing to do with the food--which consisted of a Popeyes, a McDonalds and a little Chinese joint that had the best fried rice for miles around--but the size of the building. The Trash Can was the size of high-school cafeteria, with most of the space being used to queue, leaving behind a square of tightly packet tables and booths.

Will detested greasy fast-food and preferred to run back to his dorm to grab lunch. However, he didn’t have to time nor the energy to walk two-and-a-half miles to get the beautiful salad sitting in his fridge. This situation and Will’s unwillingness to miss a meal uncovered the only option he really could find.

Will had no choice but to eat in The Trash Can.

Popeyes by far had the shortest line, so once Will had his tray of greasy fried chicken and fries (plus a puck-like biscuit that he was definitely going to ignore), he searched for an empty table. Eyes half open, he scanned the crowded room, spinning in a small circle to take in the entire space.

Will was about to give up and take his food outside, when a group of women holding take-out containers stepped away from a wall, revealing a chair. The wood was stained at the top and bathed in the light streaming in from a window. Before anyone else could take the gods-sent chair, Will went for it.

Skillfully avoiding bumping into anybody, Will made it to the table, slamming down his tray and falling backwards into the chair. Sighing loudly, the blond put his face in his hands, rubbing at the corners of his eyes tiredly. Will was in his own exhaustion-and-stress induced world, mind swirling with terms and facts Will wasn’t sure he was going to remember in an hour.

“Uh ... hello?” someone said, his voice rich with the barest hint of an accent. Will jerked up and stared at the person sitting across from him. The man was undeniably beautiful, albeit a little tired looking. He had fluffy black hair and dark brown eyes, all contrasting with his pale skin.

Will smiled bashfully. “I’m sorry, this was the only place to sit. You want me to go?” Will gestured vaguely into the crowd of hungry college students.

The man shook his head, spinning a ring around his finger.

“I’m Will,” he held out a hand. The man didn’t reach out, instead sticking his hands into the pockets of his aviator��s jacket. Will dropped his hand. “Thank you, by the way.”

Finally, the other man spoke. “It’s not a big deal. I’m Nico.”

Nico, Will thought, beautiful. Still smiling, Will began to eat. He did not pay careful attention to how he ate in order to appear more put-together to Nico, not at all. Will also did not stare at Nico’s face and hands, because that would be creepy and rude.

When Nico sat back, however, Will could not hold back a startled gasp at what he saw. “Where did you get that shirt?” Will exclaimed, leaning forward to admire the artwork. “The Hunters of Artemis haven’t released any merch yet, as far as I know. Did you make that? It’s beautiful, where can I--“

“Hold on, I can only answer one question at a time, Will.” Nico rolled his eyes and pushed his tray out of the way. “Now, go ahead.”

Will took a deep breath. “The Hunters of Artemis don’t have any merch at all. How do you have that?”

“I designed it.” Nico dropped his voice to a whisper, “But, they are planning on releasing the shirt to the public pretty soon.”

“How do you know? Do you know the members or something?” Will asked sarcastically, raising an eyebrow at Nico.

Nico crossed his arms. “Actually, I do. They happen to be some of my closest friends.”

“Proof or you’re lying.”

“What are you,” Nico asked, “a third grader? I said I know and I have the shirt, so why would I lie?”

Will laughed. “I’m going to guess some sort of art major, maybe graphic design, and anyone with any art skill can make something like that.” Nico pursed his lips, dark eyes never leaving Will’s face. “So, Nico, I’m going to need a bit of proof.”

Nico shook a finger at Will. “You sound like a lawyer.”

“Not a lawyer, but hopefully a doctor.”

“I don’t like either.” Nico pulled out his phone. “But if you want proof, you’ll get proof.” Nico handed will the phone, a picture of Nico and three girls on the screen. “There I am, with Bianca, Zoë, and Thalia. Happy?”

Will’s jaw dropped. “H-how? They’re, like, so secretive and never take pictures with fans, so why would they ... ?” Nico smiled, it was closed mouthed and barely there, but Will loved it.

“Bianca’s my sister. My name is Nico di Angelo.”

“Oh.” Will stared down at the phone. “I knew that. You look just like her, only, well, shorter.”

Nico scowled. “I am not short.”

Will held up the phone. “She’s at least five inches taller than you.”

“I’m sitting!”

“So is she.” Will shrugged. “You might just have really bad posture. Looking at you, I think that’s what it is.”

Nico scoffed. “My posture is better than yours, dork.” He held out his hand, palm up. “Give me my phone.”

Will took Nico’s hand in his and brought it closer to his face. “How’d you get this?” Will traced his finger along the small, red-tinted cut.

“I was cooking and got a cut?” Nico said, wincing. He tried to pull his hand away, but Will tightened his grip. “Leave it alone.”

“I can’t. If you aren’t careful you could get it infected.” Will tilted Nico’s palm and inspected it further, pushing on the skin around the cut. “Seems be on the cusp of infection, already.”

“Damn, really?” Nico yanked his hand away, rubbing his wrist. “What do I do, Doctor Will?”

“Doctor Solace.” Will hummed and took out a sheet of paper and a pen. “Here’s what you should do. I’m going to write down a list of instructions to, hopefully, clean up that cut.” Will slid the paper towards Nico. “My number is also there. If anything gets worse you can text me.”

Nico picked it up, cheeks slightly pink. “You give your phone number to anyone with a scraped knee?”

Will shook his head, “Nah. Just the ones I’m particularly worried about.” Nico stood up and pocketed the paper, gathering his tray and trash. “Hey, Nico.”

“What?”

“It was nice to meet you. I really hope you call me.” Will took his own tray, gave Nico the Solace’s trademarked Dazzling Smile and said, “See you around.” With that, Will threw away the remainders of his lunch, and walked out of The Trash Can in a much better mood than when he entered.

Later that night, Will received a text from an unknown number. There was a picture of a poorly bandaged hand with the caption ‘Good enough, Doc? Think I’m gonna make it’

Will shook his head and replied, ‘I don’t know, think I’m going to have to come take a look ...’

‘Alright, big-shot, if you can do it better, my door’s open.’

Once Will received an address, he gathered Band-Aids and Neosporin. Doctor Solace (Will liked the sound of that a bit too much) had lives to save.

#solangelo #first fic #nico di angelo #meet-cute #will solace #college #pjo #hoo #i tried #Always take criticism #bianca is alive #and in a band #with Zoe and Thalia #idk how to tag #first posted writing #all mistakes are mine

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