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slut4barzy · 3 years

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sweethearts at the rodeo

jack hughes / new jersey devils

( synopsis : hughes get his heart broken for the second time )

in dudley, texas only one thing holds importance to the youth in the spring time, and that was the sweethearts of the rodeo dance. every year when the rodeo comes to town theres always a special little dance held for people ages thirteen to twenty to come and have some good clean fun (as the parents like to think). for four years jack has been going to the dance, but tonight this would be his first year going without you.

originally he was going to break his streak and not go. out of fear that he'd see you with someone else, and that would break his heart. but his mom pleaded, begged, and bribed him to take his sister since she was now of age and every girl's first sweetheart dance was like a coming of age in dudley. so eventually he gave in and went in the hopes that he'd see you there all miserable and alone just like he was.

"oh look theres yn!" savannah points out the second the two passed through the double doors of the town’s rec center. “she looks so pretty. let’s say hi!”

there you stood exactly like he didn’t want to see you, all smiley and under the arm of cory wormwood, a kid on his team that he didn’t like so much. savannah tugs on her brother's hand ready to drag them over to where you stood but jack stood firm, "i'm not going over there sav."

huffing she stops and throws him an annoyed look. "are you going to cry again? can you just be cool and say hi. i miss her, and i want her to see how pretty my dress turned out.” he takes his hand out of his sisters hold and crosses his arms over his chest, “you can go see her but i’m not.”

savannah rolls her eyes, scoffing, “you’re such a pissbaby. i’ll be right back.” but she couldn’t make it far because while they were bickering you spotted them and were walking right over. savannah gives him a side eye with a little smirk playing on her lips, “can’t run away now, huh lover boy?” she elbows him and in return he elbows her back harder. “shut up,” he mumbles.

“savannah! i was wondering when you were going to get here.” The two girls engulfed each other as if they haven’t seen each other in forever, which was the truth, because in their terms five months felt like an eternity. “god you look so cute. is that eyeliner you did?” savannah nodded, “ma let me do just for tonight. i tried the technique you showed me.”

savannah always looked up to you. not only were you the only girl close to her age that she can talk to when she lives in a house with three rowdy older brothers, but she admires everything about you from the way you act to the clothes you wear. sometimes jack would joke and tell you to watch out before she ends up stealing your identity but you didn’t care. to you savannah was the doting younger sister that you never had.

“i can tell.” you pick at her baby blue dress, “and your dress! I think you won miss. sweetheart tonight sav.” savannah squeals making jack roll his eyes. “don’t flatter her.” “oh shut up!” savannah interjects.

for the first time tonight you focus your attention to jack. making a face you reply, “why not. with the way your mom was able make a miracle out of an old curtain she just has to win.”

playfully you swat savannah’s shoulder, “your mom made you take this bozo as a date. luke would’ve been better.” she shrugs, “lukes’ date is hannah denver and with quinn away i had no choice.”

“ah,” you respond. “lucky for you i heard a little eight grade boy has been dying to ask you for a dance but he’s just too shy to ask. so i promised i’d do it for him, of course, only if your date doesn’t mind.” savannah gasps her eyes widening looking at jack for approval. he nods of course not wanting to ruin her night.

“who is it?” “billy ryan,” you reply subtly pointing your head towards the direction of the stage. “he’s standing by the stage.” savannah squeals again planting a kiss on your cheek, “i’ll see you two later.” then off she zoom to have her first of many sweetheart dance and leaving two ex lovers alone.

the band stops and soon the first couple of cords to the byrds you ain’t goin’ nowhere begins to play. you clear your throat trying to get the attention of the boy who was staring down at his shows like it was the most interesting thing of the night. he looks up, “what?”

“you’re not going to ask me to dance? you know this is my favorite song.”

he clears his throat, “would you like to dance yn?” you shrug with a soft smile, “one wouldn’t hurt.”

as jack whisked you off to the middle of the dance floor and as you were pressed against him, for a second everything almost felt right again. as if you were still his.

"you look really pretty tonight." you lifts your head from where it was resting on his shoulder and looked him square in his eyes. he didn't know if it was his imagination or the lighting, but you were glowing. a sweet smiles plays on your lips, "really?"

he nods, "mhm."

"thank you. you know you're the fifth boy to tell me so. i must look like a goddess of something."

you rest your head back on his shoulder. maybe it was because of the closeness of you that made him lose himself but he decided to blurt out what was right on his mind.

"we should get back together, you and me. i miss you."

"now hughes you know we can't get back together."

he frowns not liking your answer one bit. was this the same yn that cried the day you broke up with him?

"why not?"

"because i don't want to."

you sigh, "don't take this harshly but i can't go back to dating you. of course what we had was special, but i can’t deal with all the crying and fighting that we did. and don’t get me started on the other girls."

you giggle in what jack thought was a poor attempt to lighten up the mood "plus i like being single. who knew that so many boys were interested in me now that i didn't have hughes's girl stuck to my forehead."

you felt him go stiff and stopped your swaying. placing a hand on his cheek you said, "the offer to be friends is still on the table. you're always welcome by our house for dinner mama said so. even daddy misses you. he says that for once the teams not playing like dog shit this season and wants to let you know you're doing great."

you frown not liking the way he was letting you ramble on. "please say something jack."

he clears his throat, "yeah i-i'll stop by one day. " he stammers. smiling you say, "i'll always love you jack. you were my first love. we’ve been together for five years, and five years is a long time for teenagers to date just one person.”

"yo, yn!" it was cory. the two turned back and saw him standing by the drink table with two of his friends and his bow tie undone from the sloppy smile jack knew he was tipsy.

cory whistled and waved her over, “are you here with me tonight or hughes?” you giggles up putting up your hand, “gimme five minutes okay.”

“make it two” he retorts

“three?” she calls back. “deal!”

you turns back with a huge smile on your face. a pang goes off in his heart cause he knows from now on that smile will never be for him. “i should go now, but i’ll defiantly give you a call about dinner at my house.”

then she stops herself, “unless i forget. then you should give me a call instead.”

“with your memory i’ll give you a call.”

“how about-”

“i won’t forget. i promise.”

“perfect.” rising on the toes of her heels she plants a quick kiss on his cheek. “i’ll see you around hughes.”

and as she bounced back to cory and into his arms jack would be lying if he said tears didn’t start brimming his eyes.

( SEA SAYS 🧚🏾‍♂️ )

don’t you love the way I keep popping up and disappearing? can we just talk about my consistency. i realized i haven’t posted an actual story since march, yum, but you all understand. this isn’t my official coming back because with the spring semester coming up i might just disappear again. as always sorry for any mistakes and i hope you like it.

aren’t you glad hockeys back!

#hockey #hockey imagines #hockey imagine #nhl imagines #jack hughes #nhl #new jersey devils imagines

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theoldaeroplane · 3 years

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HARDWIRED - 8. Wonders

CW: ethnic slur

April is in her truck. Her shirt is wet where she used it to dry herself off, because she was not given the chance to find a towel. She has that disgusting just-woken-up taste in her mouth. Shep sits in the passenger seat, his face pushed up against the glass.

April is in her truck, and Dell and his mother are in the apartment. She is in her truck and not in the apartment because Dell all but shoved her out, and she is not sure if she's grateful to be away from the howling bitch or angry that Dell evicted her and not his shrieking animal of a mother.

His mother.

It defies belief that Dell could be in any way related to that thing. The woman who had broken in and thrown water in April's face looked the part, at least, a stout white women with white hair dyed yellow and a Texas drawl to rival Dell's own.

April takes a brief moment to consider her actions, and decides she does not regret slamming this particular old woman into the wall.

She's thinking about slamming Dell into a wall, too.

---

The problem with April is that---it's a sour truth, Dell thinks---she simply doesn't understand about family. He doesn't fault her for it. The chance to learn was taken from her, and she's only found her blood in the last two years.

The fact of the matter is family's family, like it or not, and anyway he's got to do even more damage control.

So of course April barges back in, dog in hand, just as Dell's started to get his mother to lower her voice. The only good part of this is Shep goes straight to Janet Conagher with a wagging tail, the prior sins forgiven, because of course he remembers her: she was the one who appeared on Dell's doorstep with a puppy he had not known he would be receiving some seven years ago.

All eyes, of course, are on April. She stares them both down, and says: "I have to use the bathroom."

Then she's gone down the hall.

Janet turns her gaze on Dell, the dog's nuzzling gone ignored. "What a nice girl," she says, the words thin, sharp ice. "If you faked your death to spare me that, I'm almost grateful."

Dell's head is throbbing. It's only seven thirty. "I'm going to make us all some coffee," he says, getting up.

---

The fact there is now sugary, junked-up coffee in her hands is currently the only good thing that's happened to April today.

Dell and his mother are on the couch. April is trying to remember if she had seen this woman yesterday, either in that glimpse through the door or in the parking lot. She can't remember. They all looked the same.

Janet Conagher, ne Ringbacker, is currently ignoring her coffee in favor of glowering at the way the dog has stuck to April's side. "Dell, baby," she says, making a point of turning to him, and with the most saccharine voice imaginable, "make Sheppie come see me again. I missed him."

Dell exhales and April is given a flash of an apologetic look before he calls to the dog. It at last seems that April has one ally, though: Shep pricks his ears, but does not move. Dell gives up after a second half-hearted attempt. "Oh, for heaven's sake," says Janet, rolling her eyes. "Shep! Sheppie, baby boy, come see mama!"

Shep does not move. At most, his tail thumps the ground once as Janet's cajoling ratchets up. "Bad dog," Janet snaps, finally. "Stupid thing."

"Don't call him stupid," April says.

Janet acts as if she does not hear her. "Honestly, Dell," she carries on. "I said you should get him trained! He's a working dog. He's not meant to lie around the house. Why, keeping him cooped up in this little apartment all day, he must go mad."

Dell does not, this time, look to April. "Actually," he says, "Shep lives with April now. She's got a beautiful stretch of property---"

"Oh," Janet says, flat. "Until you find a new house. I see."

"Well, no. He's been with her about two years now. Don't see a reason to uproot him again."

"Because he's your dog," Janet says. "Two years! Don't be silly. I got him to keep you company! A man ought to have a dog. You shouldn't be so alone."

Even when she can tell she's kicking the hornet's nest, April can't stand by for much more of this. "Shep is our dog," she snaps. It feels good to say it, surprising her: it's the truth, but neither of them had ever bothered to articulate the specifics. It feels almost as good as the next thing that leaps from her mouth: "And I'm Dell's girlfriend, so he's not alone, either."

That's a word she had never thought she would apply to herself. She's still not sure it belongs on her, but it stabilizes her in the wake of the awful morning.

The way Janet's lips curl would put a lemon to shame, and it's the first thing to lift April's mood all morning. She cannot, however, help but glance Dell's way after she says it, unsure of what she is looking for. He is---as he always is, under pressure---wholly unreadable.

"Dell," Janet says, "is this true?"

"I'm happy to say she's right."

Dell may be unreadable, but something confused and thrilled twists in her stomach at the way he answers: like it's plain as day. It almost distracts her from the sudden, fat tears that well up in Janet's eyes, or at least it does until the bitch begins wailing.

April is so completely unfamiliar with this sort of crying that all she can do is stare. It's the kind of crying she would associate with the sudden death of a child, or the news that the world is ending. It's such an overblown reaction to what was said that she finds herself combing over it again, trying to figure out if something else had slipped past her notice. But, no: Janet starts carrying on exactly as if she's been slapped. Through the blubbering April can get snatches of what she's saying: highlights include might as well be dead and stealing my baby and awful redskin.

April has been called just about everything under the sun by this point, and the insult is more irritant than anything else. She does not expect much else from someone who woke her up screaming about her choice of bed. Dell, though, very carefully sets his coffee down and gets to his feet. The flash of flint in his eyes sets April's blood cold; the last time she saw that was when it was pointed at her, in Coldfront.

But it is not her he turns to. "Mom," he says, all calm, unyielding steel, and even Janet cuts short her howling. "If I hear that word come out of your mouth again, ever, you will go to your grave and never hear from me again. That is a promise."

The whole apartment is still.

"I was only," starts Janet.

"I think it's time you be headed out," Dell says, taking her coffee cup from her and placing it (delicate, firm) on the table. He takes her elbow, too, and April thinks he's a little less delicate and a little more firm when he pulls her to her feet. "And you're going to give my spare key back."

"I don't have it!"

"I know for a fact I locked that door last night."

"Well, maybe your girlfriend," and she sneers, and the light in the word that had come into it when April said it vanishes on Janet's tongue, "unlocked it after."

Nothing more comes from Dell. April watches, dumbfounded, as he not only marches his mother out the door but all the way out to her car; she stands on the threshold, hand tight in Shep's fur, and watches the two of them continue to argue right up until Janet finally climbs into her car and pulls away. The moment the car is out of sight she can see him sag.

---

The only thing Dell wants in the world is to go back to bed. Every step back to the door is leaden, and when he finally shuts it behind him something nags at him. "Gonna have to change the locks," he says, half to himself. "I know she took the damn key. Wouldn't be the first time."

The apartment is still silent. He looks up at last to see April standing by his small kitchen table, studying him like she's going to be quizzed in a moment. God, and he's got a lot that needs saying to her---

"No one's ever done that," she says.

"Huh?"

"No one's ever," and she breaks off, her brow a deep crease in her forehead. Dell fills in the blanks: no one's ever thrown water in my face, no one's ever screamed at me in bed, no one's ever called me a whore. He winces at each one. It makes the other half of the sentence all the more of a surprise. "I mean, I guess June kind of did once, but I think that was because I almost died."

This makes less sense than the rest. "What?"

"No one's ever stood up to someone for me like that," she says, gesturing helplessly, and she looks as surprised as he does.

Dell's heart was already weary with the night before, with the treatment of April by his own flesh and blood, and now it cracks. He checks the lock again, for all the good it will do, and crosses to her. His hands find her arms, warm and solid; all he can think to do is gather her close. It takes her a second, but she returns it, in time.

"I'm so sorry," he says, once, and then again. He's too tired to be angry that he's been put here, that April has been once again dealt a vicious hand and that she's so used to it that it was unexpected for him to defend her. That will come, he knows, but right now he's just---empty. "D'you want anything? Uh, breakfast? Or, the, the shower's---"

In his head he's anticipating her to brush him off, brush the whole thing off in her typical way of not reacting when someone has been monstrous to her; at best he's expecting that she might ask for his mother's head on a pike, and right now he's of a mind to grant her that. It's a startle, what she does ask for.

"Can we go back to bed?" she says by his ear, breath tickling the skin. "We can talk about it later. I think I just want to lay in bed with you."

Wonders never cease.

#hardwired #corgiwrites!#tias hardwired #HI SORRY IT TOOK ME A WHILE A LOT HAS BEEN HAPPENING

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spaceskam · 4 years

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another part of my kid fic universe for @zuluoscarecho ❤️️

warning: mentions of past abuse and deportation

“I spy with my little eye something... brown.”

"Um... Alex's hair?"

"No! His hair is black!"

"Definitely brown.

"Let's say both," Alex chimed in, smiling easily as he listened to Michael and Isaac play their billionth round of I Spy as they made their way to Texas to pick up Isaac's things from his Tía Ellie’s house.

It took a bit more negotiating that expected. Turns out, she’d never directly witnessed Isaac actively using his telekinesis, but she’d been getting suspicious that there was something off about him. She loved him, she’d said, but she was no longer comfortable housing him. She’d been getting in contact with a social worker and Isaac had overheard which led to him hunting down Michael in hopes he’d be a safe place to go. Alex had to take over the phone call at that point.

“Okay, okay,” Michael agreed, humming as he looked around for something brown. His hand was locked with Alex’s, resting on the center console of Alex’s truck. Alex gave his hand a soft squeeze. “My hair?”

Isaac erupted into unprecedented giggles, “Not everything is hair!”

“Well, shit, I don’t know what else comes in brown, dude, the tree trunks?” Michael asked, smile getting wider by the second.

Isaac had only been staying with them for a week so far, but he got comfortable fast. They’d set up his room and he would be starting school that following Monday, so it was clear he had no reason to not get comfortable. Besides, he and Michael had little telekinesis lessons and that seemed to help a lot at making him feel safe there. Alex made sure to add a little more to that safety by working on making sure Daniella had a constant, trustworthy line of communication to talk to Isaac every day. So far it’d been a little rocky, but he was working the little bit of magic he could manage.

He was determined to be a good father figure.

“No,” Isaac said.

“Okay, I give up, what is it?” Michael said.

“My hair.”

Michael laughed and turned in his seat to face him, looking some where in between impressed and baffled.

“You totally tried to throw me off course.”

“Duh.”

“You hear that, Alex? We’ve got a fuckin’ trickster in our backseat,” Michael said, huffing a laugh as he settled back into his seat, “He’s gonna outsmart us all.”

“Wouldn’t shock me,” Alex agreed, pulling his hand to his lips and pressing a kiss to his knuckles. His heart felt so full in a way he couldn’t quite articulate. Michael leaned over and kissed his cheek for extra measure.

“Me neither,” he agreed, looking back to Isaac when he pulled away, “How’d you do in school, by the way? Forgot to ask.”

“Good,” Isaac said, shrugging, “As and Bs.”

“Trying or not trying?” Michael clarified. There was a few seconds of silence and Alex could picture the distinct, guilty grin on his face that mirrored his father’s. “Well, I always say if they know you’re better than them without even trying then you’re doing something right.”

“Okay, no, that’s a horrible lesson,” Alex butted in. Michael scoffed in disagreement as Isaac just let out a soft laugh.

Isaac hadn’t really struggled to understand the fact that two men could be together (another thing they had to thank Daniella for) but it had been an adjustment for all of them and they had a conversation about the barest definition of Michael’s sexuality to nip any complicated questions in the bud. That had been preceeded by a talk with Danielle herself who said ‘that would explain a lot, good for you’.

In times of banter, though, he happily sided with whoever he felt could make the situation funnier.

“Yeah, Mr. Michael, bad lesson.”

“This whole teaming up against me thing is not gonna fly. You both seem to forget I could throw everything with my brain,” Michael said, more pouty than serious and only getting more laughter from the boy in the back seat, “And stop calling me mister, it makes me feel old.”

“You are old,” Alex told him. Michael stuck his tongue out at him, but didn’t argue. They hadn’t quite had the whole alien conversation yet. That felt like more a month milestone or something.

The rest of the drive to Texas went like that, conversation and jokes and listening to music. It took about three songs to realize that Daniella seemed to have only one flaw in raising Isaac and it was his lack of music taste. Alex put on Panic! to educate him.

Around the two and a half hour mark, Isaac had passed out against the window and Michael was laying over the center console to put his head on Alex’s shoulder. It was quiet and peaceful and so damn domestic that Alex could almost imagine they were taking a family trip to Disney World.

“I love you,” Michael whispered for no reason, fueling his little fantasy even more.

"I love you too.”

They arrived outside Ellie’s house around 1PM. The neighborhood wasn’t the greatest thing in the world, but it was nice enough. Lawns were manicured, kids were playing outside, people were walking their dogs. The fact that Daniella had been successful enough to have a house in a neighborhood like that and still got deported was a quick reality check Alex didn’t enjoy.

“Wake up, bud,” Michael said, reaching into the backseat to gently shake Isaac awake. It took him a minute but he rubbed his eyes and slowly came back to life.

They all climbed out of the truck and walked towards the front door. It opened before they could even knock, a small, white, blonde lady on the other side. By looks alone, it was difficult to tell how old she was--she could’ve been 23 or she could’ve been 45.

“Ellie?” Alex clarified.

“Yes, Sir,” she said, eyes landing on Isaac as he hid behind Michael, “Hey, Isaac. You scared me running off like that. I’m glad you’re okay.”

His small hands clutched Michael’s, hanging off him slightly. Michael didn’t seem to mind.

“We’re just here to grab his things or anything you managed to keep from Daniella’s house. We’ll keep it until she’s able to come back,” Alex said. Considering Michael had personal reasons for disliking this woman, it seemed best that Alex took over.

“Right. Everything I could save is in the guest room,” Ellie explained, moving out of the way to let them in, “Could I get you guys coffee? Water? Anything?”

“We’re okay, thank you,” Alex said.

She led them to the small room that Isaac had slept in when he was there, nearly every square inch of the room covered in things. Most of it was small trinkets and personal items and Alex considered that maybe he should’ve asked if he needed more boxes.

“I’ll go get you some newspaper to wrap some of it up,” Ellie said, quickly walking out of view.

“I... I was not expecting this,” Alex said carefully, looking around the room before looking to Isaac. He was still clinging onto Michael, looking either scared or embarrassed or both. Alex managed a warm smile. “It’s okay, I’m not mad. Just surprised, ‘s all.”

Slowly, they began making trips to the truck. Alex had a few boxes and they filled them with newspaper-wrapped trinkets and mugs, handling them all with care. Then they got to the other stuff like his clothes, some of Daniella’s clothes, multiple sheet sets, curtains, a quilt Daniella made from his baby clothes. Then they got his books, toys, etc. It was just a lot. It had the entire backseat full and the trunk not too far off. It took three hours.

“You sure you don’t want anything? I can make lunch,” Ellie suggested. Alex politely declined.

“We’ll pick up something on the way home. Thank you, though, for taking care of him for so long,” Alex said. She nodded, but grabbed his arm to keep him in place after Michael and Isaac said their goodbyes and headed to the truck. “Is something wrong?”

“Be careful with him,” she said, voice hushed even though they weren’t in ear shot, “There’s something off about that boy. Daniella hid it well, but once you have him in your house... Things start happening.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Alex said, again trying his best to be polite. She knew enough, they didn’t need her discovering more.

“Just be careful,” she said sincerely, “I tried bringing him to church but--”

“Thank you for watching him, but we’re good now,” Alex cut her off, not really wanting to hear more. He knew she hadn’t done what Michael’s religious foster family had, but how much longer until she had? That was just something he could keep to himself.

Alex made his way back to the truck where Michael and Isaac were already waiting for him, both silent and probably for two entirely different reasons. So, Alex suggested food.

They ate in silence as well as they started their drive back to Roswell. Isaac looked drained which was probably his main reason for silence, but Michael looked out of it.

By the time they started driving through long stretches of empty desert, Isaac was sound asleep in the backseat. It was when the sun started going down, though, that Michael couldn��t keep it in anymore.

“You okay?” Alex asked softly, squeezing his hand as he heard his breathing slowly begin to escalate. He looked over at him and saw that his bottom lip was quivering and his eyebrows were drawn taut, everything showing that he was trying to not cry mixed with his breathing becoming more and more erratic. A quick look in the backseat proved that Isaac was still asleep.

So Alex pulled over into the desert.

He got out of the driver’s seat and went over to the passenger side, all but pulling Michael out of the truck. He broke down as Alex pressed him into the door, trying to hold his face and get him to calm down.

“Hey, what’s going on? What happened?” Alex asked softly, hands on his cheeks. He hated seeing him like this, yet loved that he was being so open with his feelings. It was a strange juxtaposition.

“After the house he grew up in was foreclosed, but before they had people go in and clean it out, he’d break in to get his and his mom’s things. They wouldn’t let him go in and get his shit after they took his mother, Alex. He had to break in,” Michael admitted, choking on a sob as he recounted it and meeting Alex’s forehead with his own. Alex frowned and that secondhand sadness seeped into his veins. “He shouldn’t have had to do that.”

“No, he shouldn’t have,” Alex agreed softly, weaving his fingers into his hair, “That’s fucked.”

“I feel so guilty,” Michael admitted, “I-I should’ve known about him. I should’ve been easier to reach, should’ve been the first person they called when they needed somewhere for him to stay.”

“How could you? Daniella didn’t tell you,” Alex assured him, “Which, honestly, was probably good for both of you. He didn’t need to get to know you when you were at your lowest.”

Michael sniffled, seeming torn on whether he could agree or not. Alex just continued to do his best at soothing him.

“But it doesn’t matter. We can’t change what happened. He found you, that’s all that matters.”

“God, I can’t... He was so close to ending up like me,” he said, clutching Alex’s shoulders, “I don’t want him going through that shit.”

“And he won’t, okay?” Alex promised, “He’s got us and we’re not going to let that happen.”

“Never let any of that happen,” Michael insisted, “He’s gonna have a good life.”

“Yeah, he is. He’s already got a ton of people who love him and want him,” Alex assured him, “We just need to make sure he knows that.” Michael sniffled and nodded his head. “You’re wanted too, by the way.”

Michael huffed a laugh, “It’s not about me.”

“Kinda is,” Alex said, “And that’s okay. It’s okay to be scared of what might happen to someone else and want better for them. That gives you a drive to be better for yourself.”

Michael breathed steadily a few times and Alex carefully dried his face, grounding each other easily. Alex moved just enough to kiss his forehead and Michael relaxed a little more.

“Sorry,” he said once he calmed down. Alex shook his head.

“Don’t apologize. It’s okay to cry and be sad,” he whispered, “It’s okay to be scared.”

Michael managed a smile and he whispered, “Have I told you I love you lately?”

“Yeah,” Alex said, “But I still like hearing it.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

They met in the middle for a soft kiss that led to another that led to another before they slowly stopped. As easy as it would be to let it turn into something else, the truck was still running and they had a sleeping 10 year old in the backseat.

“You’re gonna be a great dad, Michael.”

“So are you,” he said, his hands sliding up to his neck before he pulled him into a hug, “You’re already great.”

They held each other for a moment before deciding it was okay to let go and climbing back into the truck. Michael leaned back over the center console to lay his head on Alex’s shoulder and wrapped his arms around his bicep.

Alex really started planning that trip to Disney World.

#malex #malex fic #michael guerin #alex manes #roswell new mexico #my fic #i never planned on you

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princessdevy03 · 4 years

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Tumblr Exclusive!!!!

Author’s Note: Happy birthday to @anybodihearme! I know it’s late but it’s done. Don’t fight me! I’ll fight you, damnit!

Birthday Surprise

Kevin leaned his head back and sighed.

The city whipped by outside the window of the Uber Eddy ordered as quickly as the thoughts in his head.

“Rolf has the dogs and Nazz is holding my present from mom...”

“Ed is gonna cut the grass Saturday…”

“Sarah’s gonna make sure the guys at the shop are on schedule…”

“Johnny’s got the shop…”

As the city gave way to the countryside, he closed his eyes to lock away the blue of the sky that reminded him of a certain set of the eyes he hadn’t seen in far too long.

Edd was stuck across the country at his dream job as a director of a biomedical lab in the Pacific Northwest. His and Kevin’s relationship started there because Kevin was stationed at a nearby US Navy base as a Marine, but when Kevin’s dad passed away, he came back home to West Virginia to take over the family auto body shop as his contract was up and decent mechanics jobs were hard to come by without moving down the coast to even more expensive locales.

Edd said they’d make it work, but Kevin was wary.

His career in the Marines took him to Hawaii, Germany, Japan, Korea, Texas, and England.

Every duty station led to new heartbreak as every other guy or girl just couldn’t handle being in a long distant relationship.

Edd was the first who seemed to understand, but he was also the first person that got Kevin to think about life after he couldn’t handle being in the Marine Corps anymore.

The stress of dealing with his PTSD and trying to juggle being a good son, good friend, and a good Marine was tough.

And when romance was involved, his being all in could be the most stressful thing of all.

Edd had always been a bit high strung when it came to how he liked his home to look, how he applied himself to school and work, but his love for his family and friends was easily given as breathing.

So while Kevin would be there with gifts, surprise dates, and mushy compliments, Edd was more likely to suggest getting coffee before spending the day running errands and grabbing a quick bite to eat before Kevin had to be back at the barracks.

But the sudden cross country shift had them rethinking about how to keep the love flowing.

Kevin would send flowers everyday and Edd would call him every night.

Up until about a month ago.

The texts were short, but he’d still get a good morning text and he started sending GrubHub to the shop every Friday with donuts and a box of coffee from Dunkin’.

Kevin would be lying, though, if he said that Edd ignoring his Duo calls didn’t have him feeling some kinda way.

But Edd did suggest that Kevin head up to the dude ranch in the mountains for his birthday to get away from work and his lingering issues with closing his father’s estate.

“I’ll call you when you guys have dinner, and I’ll make something with you and it’ll be like having dinner together,” Edd had said when Kevin finally got a hold of him two weeks ago.

Edd was dressed in his lab coat that looked like it was losing a fight with the chemicals in the lab and he needed a haircut and some sleep if the bags under his eyes were any indication of what he was feeling like at the moment.

Kevin felt a tinge bad that he had a snarky attitude in the texts he had been sending, and Lort his voicemail messages…

Edd’s work was desperately needed in the middle of the current global health crisis they were living in, so he hadn’t been purposely ignoring his man, but he could make time, right?

But with the world being on a tight lockdown, dinner via video call would have to do.

When he got to the ranch, the fresh air had him feeling a bit better.

And the horses…

Growing up, he’d spend at least a week every summer with his whole extended family at the family ranch in Wyoming, so riding horses was second nature to his bike and motorcycle.

When Edd suggested going riding in the Cascades one long weekend, Kevin started falling in love.

Having a long weekend to himself on the beautiful creatures would be just what the doctor ordered.

Eddy knew about this particular ranch from his leadership networking conferences and got Kevin a deal, and let him use his Uber Black membership to get a ride there and back provided Kevin didn’t steal any of the horses.

Once he laid eyes on the black stallion with blue eyes in the field behind his cabin, he knew he was gonna have a hell of a time keeping his promise to keep things on the ranch…

When he walked in the cabin, he was pleasantly surprised to see a shoebox on the bed of his favorite brand of riding boots.

“I wonder what color he got this time,” he chuckled to himself.

For the last five years, Edd would get him a new color of boots for his birthday.

“I think they’re green,” a voice coming from the bathroom said. “I don’t think I’ve gotten you green ones yet.”

Kevin doesn’t remember screaming but it took a good ten minutes for him to stop shaking after he scooped Edd in his arms and tossed him on the bed.

Once his heart beat returned to something resembling normal, he looked into sky blue eyes and frowned.

“You’re here.”

“Yes,” Edd chuckled and Kevin rolled his eyes as he sat up and asked, “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“And ruin the surprise?!” Edd laughed. “Nah.”

“What about work?”

Kevin knew Edd’s work was leading the charge to get the United States out of a pandemic it hadn’t seen the likes of in a good century. He just didn’t like the idea of Edd blowing it off, even if it was his birthday weekend.

“I can’t really do anything about it now,” Edd sighed, feeling a bit guilty about the slightly white lie. “It’s back to the lab techs to sort through the latest findings, so I can take a few days.”

“But just a few?”

“I’m sorry, Kevin,” Edd said softly as he rubbed his arm. “But we’ll make the most of it. I’ll even make dinner.”

Kevin’s stomach growling echoed around the quiet room in response to this as the dinner bell rang.

Dinner on the ranch was simple, you could take a picnic basket back to your cabin or have dinner in the open field off the side of the main house’s commercial kitchen. If you opted for the latter, there was a story time with one of the permanent ranch hands, embellishing the history of the ranch, as everyone ate at the huge picnic tables that circled a large fire pit.

Once the sun went down, the fire pit was lit, small brown paper bags filled with blocks of chocolate, marshmallows, and graham crackers were passed around, and more than a few ghost stories told.

But not a single twang of a banjo was heard, just the soft strumming of a six string guitar dueting with a low harmonica. And the low moo of a cow or two.

Kevin and Edd opted for dinner in the field as Kevin was eager to see the temperament of the horses before trying to pick which one to make his own over the long weekend, after which they fed a snack or two to the horses before they went to the barn for the night. Then it was s’mores and ghost stories with a lil stargazing and a nice, long leisurely stroll back to the cabin.

Kevin honestly didn’t want the night to end, even if his body was nearly begging him to sleep.

Edd’s wasn’t, though.

As soon as they walked in the door, Edd had him pinned against it, deftly locking the deadbolt with one hand, the other undoing Kevin’s pants.

And the breeze blowing through the valley gave Kevin his second wind.

Edd’s beanie was gone as fast as their shoes, they walked out of their pants as Kevin walked them backwards to the bed.

“God, why do you have to over dress so much?” Kevin whined as he undid the buttons on Edd’s shirt, thankful he hadn’t worn a tie.

“You look good, you feel good,” Edd huffed as he undid his cuffs and then batted Kevin’s hands away so he could pull his shirt over his head.

Kevin always thought he looked good, but he looked even better now with his dick in his mouth.

His hands ached as he grasped silky strands as dark as the night sky. The few silver highlights looked like stars, but Edd rather he see color bars.

Kevin squeezed his eyes tight, flashes of technicolor sparking with every jerk of his hips as he fucked his boyfriend’s face.

It seemed cruel, Edd grabbing his ass to take him all the way in, like he didn’t care that Kevin’s yearning and frustrations were aching his jaw, but he loved the man so much that it felt good to do this.

Right until Kevin tore himself away.

Edd sputtered but Kevin grinned.

“Stop your whining, Dork. I brought my chaps and my good sweats.”

“You are not riding in sweats and chaps,” Edd laughed as he shoved him on the bed and went to get his lube out of the bathroom.

“I do what I want!” Kevin protested. “It’s my birthday and I do what I want!”

“Your birthday isn’t until tomorrow and committing crimes against fashion shouldn’t be a birthday wish!” Edd cackled as he leaned against the door and juggled the silicone lube in his hands

“Well, riding your dick is, so get over here!”

Edd couldn’t argue because he really wanted Kevin to ride his dick. If he hadn’t been so shell shocked that he had shown up or so hungry or so eager to see the horses, he’d told him to hop on sooner.

But watching him finally relax and put the stress of work out of his mind was worth it.

Especially since what he had planned would knock him out for the rest of the night.

A ride would mean Edd would have to be on his back, at least to start, so while Kevin flipped their positions, Edd guided him to his side and told him to get his horse ready.

Kevin shrugged his shoulders and went to put his head between his legs, but he nearly choked when Edd started to work a finger in his ass. Edd nearly stopped, but Kevin popped his ass out and Edd’s finger went deeper as Kevin took as much of him in as he could.

“Fuck,” he softly moaned when Kevin spread his leg a bit more, gently massaging the joint where hip met thigh with one hand, using the other as an extension of his mouth.

It was hard to focus in a moment like this but Edd had plans.

And so did Kevin.

When he dropped the lube so he could add another finger in, Kevin snatched it up.

Edd figured he was gonna use it to slick him up and get the show on the road, as it were, but he cried out like a whore when Kevin put his mouth to the tip of his dick, spread his lower cheeks with his greased up hand and whispered, “Get to work.”

“Yes, Daddy.”

His mind was tearing apart at the seams while Kevin sucked him off and played with his ass. He held on by fingering him as fast and hard as he could.

Kevin liked it rough and it was his birthday weekend. The present from Edd’s strong right hand was AMAZING. The left one gently playing in his hair was sending goosebumps all over and when the A/C kicked on, Kevin nearly exploded as the added sensation of cool air on his hot body was absolutely enrapturing.

Edd must have been feeling the same way because he pushed Kevin’s head away from his cock with one hand, but the other grabbed his waist to make him come sit in his lap.

“C’mere.”

Then the room spun.

Well, Kevin thought it did til he realized Edd had spun him around to sit in his lap, but facing away from him and towards the mirror.

And Kevin had never seen Edd’s hands move so fast before.

He gripped the sheets as Edd lifted him up, spread his cheeks, and slowly but firmly pulled him full into his lap, filling him up with everything he had.

The stack of pillows on the bed gave him enough of a cushion to sit up, spread Kevin’s legs, and give the order.

“Ride. Me.”

The visual was mind blowing.

Kevin was flushed, glistening with sweat, his dick throbbing against his hard abs, and Edd wanted a show.

He moved against the fullness in him slowly, enjoying the electrifying numbness that spread all over his body. His fingertips reached for Edd’s hands that were caressing his chest, and that gapped tooth mouth sunk into his shoulder on a whine as he gently kissed his knuckles and started to ride him.

Hands were everywhere, in his hair, turning his face to kiss him senseless, gripping strong arms to hold onto some sense of reality, pawing at his abs, squeezing his chest, playing with his nipples to get him to moan like a slut so in touch with themselves that you can’t help but touch them like they want you to.

But they never broke their gaze in the mirror.

As Kevin lost control, his dick leaking with cum, Edd held on...to his dick.

“Fuck, yes Baby! Just like that!” Kevin screamed as he rode him harder, his movements putting porn stars to shame.

“You gonna cum for me?” Edd whispered and Kevin whined as he nodded, his hand reaching around to grab Edd’s hips to make him fuck him hard and senseless.

“Harder. Faster. Edd…,” his words came out disjointed, but he had to say something! “Dear God, pleeeeeease.”

The bed creaked as Edd pulled him close with one arm, stroked him off with his free hand, and jerked his hips as fast and hard as he could.

Watching the man in his lap jerk once, then twice as he came in his hand was so fucking sexy; jaw dropped, eyes wide in elated shock, legs kicking, both hands around Edd’s one that was stroking him into oblivion.

They had never done it like this before and Kevin wasn’t too sure he’d live til his actual birthday the next day if they kept it up. But he didn’t care. Seeing himself in the mirror like that, as the object of all of Edd’s desires was enough.

That orgasm, tho!

Edd checked his smartwatch then giggled.

“Happy birthday, Kevin.”

Kevin gave him a weak thumbs up as thanks while his thoughts slipped away.

He awoke the next morning, dressed in clean boxers, still slightly embarrassed Edd had to drag him to the bathroom and back again, but no shirt, hearing Edd whisper into his phone.

“Yes, Megan,” Edd said, “I got it all right in front of me. I’m going to see about making some moves later this week but I don’t see why I can’t do it from here.”

“Do what?” Kevin whispered confused and feeling nosy.

Edd squeaked when he noticed he was awake and then said, “I gotta go. I’ll call you Monday with my final answer.”

“Wha? Why are you working?! It’s my birthday!” Kevin pouted. “And that’s my shirt!”

Edd looked down at the shirt he was wearing.

It was an old Marine Corps PT t-shirt Kevin used to wear around Edd’s apartment out west. Actually, the red head left several of these t-shirts in Edd’s apartment when he moved back East and Edd would sleep in them often because it was his way of keeping Kevin close after he left.

“You left it in my house, so it’s mine now,” Edd grinned and Kevin’s ready to fight!

“Stupid dork with his stupid smile,” Kevin thought to himself knowing good and damn well that Edd was right.

“So!? It’s still my birthday,” he half pouted trying to figure out a way to get back at Edd for...working?

“It is,” Edd nodded as he got up to join him in the bed. “What would you like to do today?”

“For you to stop working,” Kevin snarked and Edd laughed.

“I am off til Monday,” he shrugged and Kevin honestly frowned, not that he wanted to talk about it but he did need to know.

“Do you have a ride to the airport?”

“More like,” Edd sighed and then let the words tumble out all at once as he stared holes into his hands, “Iwaswonderingifyouwantedaroommate.”

“Wha?”

“Well, I said-”

“I know what you said, Edd.”

Edd finally looked up at him and he doesn’t remember seeing Kevin ever looking this happy.

“Well, it’s just that, in order for things to keep progressing smoothly, they need a new lab director out here because Dr Stavian is retiring.”

“And they want you to come out and do it?” Kevin asked as he pulled him into his lap.

“Well, yes, but only as an interim because I don’t have my doctorate degree.”

“Yet.”

“Kevin.”

“It’s been like four years, Edd!”

Edd made a face because when he had run into Kevin again after so many years away, he was a year done with his masters program and didn’t have any desire to go back to school. He was just too burnt out.

Kevin figured he just needed a break because he had been in school the entire time he had known him. He couldn’t imagine him stopping forever.

“Listen,” Kevin told him as he gripped his twitching hands still, “You said that Justin said that they’d pay for it when you’re ready and apparently you don’t have much of a choice if you move back this way.”

“But I don’t want to lose you!” Edd protested and Kevin looked at him like he had two heads.

“HOW?!”

“School is an all consuming thing,” Edd sighed. “I can’t really focus on us if I have to go to class, then the lab, then work everyday for the next four years, at minimum.”

“You can if we live together.”

“Wait a min -”

Kevin laughed as he saw the wheels turn in Edd’s head and said, “You just asked if you could move in Mr DoYouNeedARoommate, like I’m gonna let my boyfriend just be my damn roommate. So how hard would it be if you went to school and we lived together?”

“You might have to move actually, because the commute from your place to the lab is like 45 minutes. Add in the campus and you’re looking at a good hour and a half.”

Edd thought he had him til Kevin shrugged and said, “So we move. Be closer to Ma that way anyways.”

“What about the shop?!”

“The further away I am from that place, the better,” Kevin laughed. “It’s one of the joys of being the boss. Besides, Johnny lives upstairs so he keeps the place in line. I just do paperwork.”

“Oh.”

Kevin smirked as all of Edd’s arguments died away.

They could make it work.

“We can do this, Edd,” Kevin said softly as he gave him Eskimo kisses. “Just go back to school and let me worry about the rest.”

“Especially since we ain’t paying for it!” Edd laughed and Kevin snorted.

“Damn straight.”

“I thought you were bi.”

“I’m about to bite that ass,” Kevin grinned but the breakfast bell rang and the smell of fresh bacon had to be indulged.

They took a picnic basket back to the cabin for lunch after their morning ride and used Kevin’s hotspot to look for apartments and houses to rent closer to the labs and university as the ranch’s free wifi was sketchy. A quiet neighborhood not too far from Kevin’s mother’s retirement community seemed the perfect place to start and Edd sent out a few online applications while Kevin made arrangements for dinner.

They rode the black stallion together to a grove of apple trees for a picnic at dusk and discussed the plans they made.

And make out like teenagers.

But the first mosquito bite had them racing back to the cabin as neither wanted to have any more awkward scratches in public than necessary after this trip.

They led the stallion back to his barn and walked slowly back to the cabin, Edd taking note of the constellations overhead.

They collapsed into the bed in a tight cuddle, worn out from their excursions for the day.

“You know, tomorrow is Saturday,” Edd said as they laid in the content silence.

If Edd was mentioning Saturday…

He didn’t know where Kevin got the birthday hat from, but it was a much better outfit than the sweats with chaps.

Especially when one needs to be ready for a day in bed with your homieloverfriend.

#kevedd #reg!kevedd #reg!kev #reg!edd #kevin barr #eddward vincent #for anybodihear me #happy birthday #birthday present #birthday fic

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lipstickbisous · 4 years

Text

the rei brown series (2/3)

OUR LOVE REMAINS.

notes: here’s the second part!! one more after this haha. not much of a plot to these just meant to put you in your feels. butttttt, i did write this from the experience my mom had in the icu when she was a nurse.

this one is your p.o.v. and is a little bit longer but not much

i DID NOT KNOW if anyone would get offended by “latino” or “hispanic” so i used both im sorry.

LISTEN for better understanding.

also u guys REALLY LIKED the din fic so i guess...more of those?

pairing: javier peña x reader

summary: while rethinking all of the choices you’ve made in your life, memories of a certain person begin to flood in.

warnings: MORE ANGST ahahaha, childhood nostalgia, fluff ending

word count: 3.3k (these are not long chapters)

masterlist

you weren’t sure what time it was (you knew it wasn’t too late) and you hadn’t bothered to check as you stumbled through your doorway, one arm holding grocery bags and the other, your purse and papers from work. your hair had been stuck in the ponytail you threw it up in since the morning, but now, it was pulling at your scalp and giving you a headache.

managing to balance on one foot, you flipped the light switch in your entryway and watched as the first floor of your house illuminated in the night. the tiny dog you’d adopted a few months ago came padding out on the wood floors from the dining room, his tongue stuck out with loud pants to relieve himself of the texas summer heat.

with a small “hey, bub,” to your pet, you placed the groceries on the kitchen counter and slipped off your clogs, throwing them at the bottom of your stairs so that you could be reminded to take them to your room when you went upstairs. for now, you reached into the glass cabinet and grasped a dark bottle of wine. the label read a fancy word in french, but growing up in kingsville, you’d never bothered to learn the language of love. you grew up in that rich latino and hispanic culture.

this house had memories threatening to let it crumble, you knew that, but even after your parents had moved into a smaller apartment due to medical reasons and the fact that they couldn’t afford the house, you couldn’t bring yourself to move out of this town and just ditch them there--now the house was in your name. you didn’t know why it was so hard to leave--you’d been able to leave for university, but when you came back the summer after you’d graduated, something stuck. now, it had been twenty years and you had made no attempts to even leave kingsville.

you popped the cork of the wine bottle open and instantly met that musky historic smell of the red alcohol. you had seven wine glasses in your cupboards, but you never had any friends over. you might occasionally invite a few girls you knew in high school, but if you were to hang out with people, it would be at a bar on friday and saturday nights. you watched as the wine splashed around the glass and when it was filled to your satisfaction, you pushed the cork back into its place and left the bottle on the counter.

as you made your way into the living room and collapsed on the couch, the little dog you called yours jumped up onto the high furniture the best he could due to his tiny legs. you searched your couch for the remote, pulling over the cushions and pillows before finding it buried under the arm. you switched the tv on and and flipped through the channels before settling on fifty-one. your dog curled up next to your lap and closed his eyes to sleep.

you didn’t for what you were sure was the next two hours. the movie that had been playing before ended the beginning of a new one had started until you realized your glass was empty and dry and your eyelids were getting heavier. you leaned your head back before rethinking how the day had gone. you’d shown up to the hospital for work at the crack of dawn and spent the next twelve hours wheeling around patients, taking diagnostics, and carrying their dirty dishes.

it definitely had not been the job you imagined when you were ten. you’d played doctor with your stuffed animals and plushes before but in those scenarios, the patients had been obedient in kind. unfortunately, fate had not been so kind and, while sitting in front of the television with an empty wine glass in your hand, your fingers grazing over the sore spot on your wrist. it was sure to be bruised, the one on your calf had turned purple and yellow in the past few days. you hissed when you applied just a bit too much pressure.

i spent four years at a college i hated to have this. you’d put it all on the line to have this job. you thought that by being a nurse in the fucking icu, you’d be saving people everyday. instead, you were groped, spat out, and ignored by everyone there. you deserved a glass of wine every night.

you knew that this was not healthy at all and that you were intoxicating yourself with far too much alcohol but the way your back ached, your calf bruised, and your head pounded drowned out whatever warnings your brain sent you.

suddenly, you managed to catch sight of the atomic clock sitting on your kitchen counter. bright crimson letters read “1:30 am.”, and with a far too heavy sigh that awoke the small dog next to you, you set the glass on your coffee table (you’d grab it in the morning when you weren’t so sad) and flipped the tv off before sauntering up the stairs. even at your age, you had still been terrified of the dark--you could barely walk down to your basement without a flashlight and by yourself--but you found that you were perfectly fine walking in the pitch-black of your upstairs hallway. your dog was quick to follow behind you, jumping onto your bed and waiting for you as you emotionlessly entered your bathroom and looked at your reflection.

who the fuck were you? how much time had passed and yet here you were, in your fucking childhood home all alone? you’d found love with many men over the years, but you hadn’t expected them to last--and they hadn’t. what had you done? had you left some sort of imprint in the world at all? you were never one for kids, everyone you knew was well aware of that, but how were you supposed to live on even when you were dead? in reality, abandonment and loneliness was your worst fear along with--

oh god, you thought in a shriveled voice. you’re gonna be forgotten.

one part that hurt the most was the news. you’d gotten better at keeping up to date with pop culture and politics, and the pablo escobar situation had you worried for one reason and one reason only--javier peña. you’d seen him on the news, the DEA agent who had made it his responsibility and top priority to catch the famous drug lord. it was nice to see that he had gotten somewhere while the only time you’d ever really traveled was to paris for a christmas and then LA to see an old friend who you didn’t even talk to anymore.

this was your life now. mindlessly wandering around your house after work, eating microwaved leftovers and carry-out from the diner.

god, that diner. it had been one of your favorite locations in the shitty town you called home--had been. the first time you went, you were suspicious due to the fact that the actual building was a different restaurant owned by a criminal before it was a diner, but javier had practically begged you to have a late dinner with him after an afternoon spent skipping your last few periods and driving around the outskirts of town in his truck. the wind had been blowing through your hair and you hung your head out of his window, letting your arms wave around, and you could’ve sworn you had felt him looking at you.

that was the moment you were in love with javier peña.

you knew that you had been lying to yourself up until that moment because since the first day you met javier when driving past their ranch and stopping to look at the horses, you’d been in love. you couldn’t even think about how many days were spent writing poetry about him that now seemed stupid and childish. you’d told yourself it was an outlet for your feelings, but you had really written it because you were too much of a bitch to come out and tell javi. maybe that hadn’t been your fault--you’d witnessed, first hand, javier rejecting a girl in sixth grade. you watched her nod and tell him “oh, that’s okay” but then run away into the bathrooms. javier had continued on to tell you about a new foal on their farm.

you remembered the horses. you missed them too. if it hadn’t been them roaming about in the pastures, or the great stallion that caught your attention while on that family car ride, you would’ve never met javier. you weren’t sure if he judged you for it or not, but every time chucho needed help around the farm, and javier was too much of a brat and a teenager to do it, you had gladly offered. so, chucho peña had put you in charge of the foals. there was one in particular, a small one with a white coat, that had piqued your interest. there was a day, one in the middle of the summer if you could remember correctly, where you and javi had just run out to the fields while the rest of the horses stayed in their stables. javi had been excited since his father had gifted him with a new camera, and he had spent all day taking pictures of--and to this day, you still didn’t notice it--only you.

while brushing your teeth, carefully placing a small dot of paste on your toothbrush, you began to scrub in small circles. how long had it been since you and javi had last talked? even then, it had barely been a conversation. a simple exchanged of very few words, a goodbye that went misheard, and that was it. when you had called his home phone the next morning, instead of javi replying like he always did, it had been chucho’s voice instead, muffling an annoyed “hello?” but when he heard the exhaustion and lightness of your voice, he carefully explained that javi had already left.

you hadn’t felt heartbroken--not at first. in fact, there was barely any sadness in that tired head and upset stomach. you were infuriated. how could he? how dare he? he had been such a coward that he couldn’t even say goodbye and it angered you more than you thought it ever would--not that you had ever thought about javier leaving before because he said he wouldn’t even consider it. and now, he had left you alone your fucked up hometown that you’d always told him you hated so much. then, about three days alone without javier (which was something you weren’t used to) you’d realized that there was a large possibility this could’ve been your fault.

had you been a bad friend recent to his leaving? yes, you had been acting distant, but it was due to normal events, such as school and...the fact that you were hopelessly in love with him. it had been harder to talk with senior year ending and college coming up, but you hadn’t never thought he could just turn himself away like that. never.

and not once had javi tried to contact you. he, of course, knew your number by heart, but after all these years, he’d probably had hundreds of girls phone numbers--in fact, you were sure that if hadn’t been a DEA agent hooked with the most dangerous man on the earth, you would’ve expected him to be married already. you had gone to the wedding. you’d seen how the church was decorated, how each and every guest wore plastered smiles--just the idea of seeing javi made you giddy and you’d worn your best dress you could find. even after returning from university, javier didn’t visit or call. you also remembered hearing lorraine sobbing when her groom didn’t show.

javier was not the type of person to stand someone up. you didn’t know what he was like now, but as teenagers, if he ever had a date (which wasn’t often because even if you didn’t know it, he was hopelessly in love with you) he would arrive five minutes early.

the one time javi did have a date, you stayed home and watched one of his favorite movies while crying. you hated to admit that the next day, when he admitted to you he didn’t like the girl that much, you were excited.

suddenly, you remembered how this was completely your fault. you had always blamed javier for never calling or writing, but then you realized that you had never made the attempt either.

“fuckin’ hell,” you whispered and washed off your toothbrush. as a nurse, you didn’t normally cake yourself with makeup, but you did wear the average concealer, mascara, and lipstick or gloss. you took one look at your reflection and noticed that your mascara was currently running. when did i cry? you asked yourself and exited the bathroom, not bothering to remove your makeup.

your room was next door and when you walked inside, your dog was patiently waiting next to your nightstand and- god, did i leave the fucking light on again? you felt like slapping yourself until your head was straight because it wasn’t right to think about someone you haven’t seen in twenty years.

you slipped off your pants, leaving you in expensive panties you’d gotten for no reason at all. you threw off your scrubs, discarding them onto the floor with a light air sound and replacing your shirt with a tank-top. your bed had been so perfectly made that it almost annoyed you. you threw yourself onto your bed and began to rub your eyes. it wouldn’t matter if you messed up the mascara because there was nothing to mess up.

hoping the sleep would rid you of the horrible thoughts, you flipped the lamp next to your bed off and pressed a pillow to your cheek. the small dog at your feet curled up rested his eyes. you did the same.

it would’ve been physically best for your health if you had gone at least six hours of sleeping without any interruption, but one moment in the night, the phone on your nightstand began to blare its ringtone. your eyes shot open and began to burn slightly from a sudden awakening. the sound had scared your dog, who jumped to the ground in protection of whatever the source was until he realized it was the telephone. you groaned with heavy eyelids and looked to the clock. two-twenty five am. as soon as you went to answer the call, it went to dial tone.

more frustrated than before because you really just wanted to sleep, you groaned and flung yourself back into bed. of course, now you were awake.

but then, the phone began to ring again. it had seemed louder this time and your dog barked in the most un-intimidating way possible before you threw a pillow at the spot next to him to get him quiet. you held the phone close to your ear and spoke a tired, “hello?” the line was silent and at first, you were terrified because you could’ve sworn you heard someone breathing. another one of these. “hello?”

part of this was exciting to you. while it was extremely frustrating to be awoken a few hours before you normally rose to get ready for work, your mind was racing during the silent pause between you and this stranger. who could it be? perhaps it was chucho telling you that javier could be coming home, but you cursed yourself for thinking of that man and dismissed the idea. maybe it was your mom calling to tell you how your father had gotten better and, for now at least, the cancer was gone.

“(y/n)?”

―

while the reason behind it remained unclear, you had always loved airports. the cleaning-product smell, the diverse people, the small restaurants, even the feeling of the carpet--or the feeling of that when in an airport, you were going somewhere.

it had always been about going somewhere. javier knew this since fifth grade, that you had always wanted to just leave kingsville, texas. maybe you would move to new york, or philadelphia, or even go to london and paris. they had been silly daydreams due to reading too many of your mother’s travel books, but paris had always looked so nice. maybe even visit mexico--you’d already been well immersed in the culture.

but that wasn’t why you were here. you were here for something that was long overdue.

after the phone call that night, you javier had made sure to call each other every other day at ten o’clock pm. there had been some days where you had to stay late at the hospital or javi was chasing sicarios and didn’t get home until midnight--those nights, you would either fall asleep or just call the next day, but you both had made a good schedule. it definitely hadn’t been the same as when you were teenagers, and you didn’t expect it to be. his voice was much deeper and raspier (you knew it was because of the cigarettes, you could practically smell them through the phone) and his voice wasn’t as...lively anymore. you felt that you couldn’t say much, though, because the years had been rough to you as well.

he had told you everything. your thoughts on how he was living was wrong--he told you of the countless informants and prostitutes, how the colombian sun was definitely hotter than the texan sun and even to him it had made a difference. when you both had too much to drink and were passing back funny stories, his was that he had grown a mustache. you had laughed at that one because if you could imagine the clean-shaved, teenage boy that javier once was with a mustache, it was a hilarious thought.

all-in-all, it had still been painful to talk to someone you knew so well like they were a stranger. at first, you had asked yourself if he’d changed but you caught yourself in the stupid thought. of course, he had changed. it had been twenty fucking years and even you had noticed the faint lines starting to appear around your face.

it had taken almost half a year of phone calls, missed and attended, happy and sad to be where you were now.

the airport bustling had also been one of your favorite things too. the countless and various voices all coming together to make a white noise that was so distinct.

you were standing near the entrance, watching as families reunited, lovers embraced, and yet you stood alone. it had been over ten minutes since when javier was supposed to show. if you were being honest with yourself, what did you expect? he would just appear out of thin air in the middle of a crowd? you hoped the flight from bogotá had been peaceful and well. there hadn’t been any storms passing by, baggage loading problems, or anything that could possibly delay the plane, so there was no reason for javier not to be there.

unless...you began to think and it had been too late to stop yourself from completing the thought. maybe he just didn’t want to.

like when he rejected that girl in sixth grade. like when he left you alone in kingsville. like when abandoned his bride at their own fucking wedding.

suddenly, you felt angry. your blood was boiling, your hands felt hot, the hair on your neck became irritating, and the winter heat of texas began to scorch, even in air conditioning. you ran a hand down your face, feeling two beads of sweat trickle down a path to your chin. your foot, which had been tapping for the past now fifteen minutes turned on its heel as you made your way to the glass doors.

your car was just outside. you wouldn’t even have to walk that far, and then you could drive home, cry yourself to sleep, and call javier about this some other time.

“(y/n)!”

tags: @pascalisthepunkest @javierpenaspinkshirt @gummiishark @cyarikaaa @larakasser @pedropasscals @honeyedspace @talesfromtheguild @absurdthirst

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polygamyff · 4 years

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Epilogue

“Also write down that we both are going to have a brunch in California, meeting business partners. Do not forget Malik, honestly” this nigga forgets things “I have wrote it down, well typed it out. I will be there. Do you want anything for lunch? I am going to pick up a pizza?” Malik asked, I paused thinking do I really want a pizza or not “I don’t want pizza, get me a sandwich. Anything, surprise me” Malik nodded his head as he left my office, that is one thing done now let me get these cheques signed off that need to be done “incoming” the intercom came on out of nowhere, I hate that shit and Ally be scaring me with it. My office door burst open “I got here first!!” Reign screamed, frowning at both Reign and Romano “uhm, what is this?” looking at Jay, he just shrugged “why are you here and not at home?” watching Reign walk around my desk “because I told Jay he had to bring me here and also” Reign tugged at my chair “I want to sit on your lap!” moving my chair back “also I didn’t want to stay with the nanny, she is boring and mom got called in so I said Jay let’s go and see dad and we can sit with him. Romano snitched on us. He told mom, and then mom started shouting on the phone, but I disconnected the phone” Reign climbed onto my lap “why do you listen to these kids?” I said to Jay “she told me she could fire me!” Jay pointed half shouting “I did not say that I just said it nicely. Jay likes me, so what are we doing dad” I sighed out “you know your mom is going to drive me crazy, are you ok Romano. Come here” waving him over, he seems out of breath “you both been running around the hotel again” moving back in my chair “I am tired dad” he whined “he is unhealthy dad, I said it to him” Reign does not stop, wrapping my arm around him “you’re only seven Reign, stop acting grown. He is not unhealthy” pressing a kiss to the top of his head “we said bye to the nanny though, she told me I was naughty but dad! Listen to me” Reign grabbed my head “I am listening, what is it?” looking at her “the baby is annoying, all he does is cry” I chuckled “that is what babies are like Reign, you’re supposed to be a good big sister” Reign pulled a face “I don’t want to be it anymore, can I do something dad! Can I do work with you” I ain’t about to do any type of work now.

I got to laugh, Malik bought pizza for himself and my kids ate it for themselves “uncle, can you take us to get candy?” poking my head up “no, Malik ignore Reign. You sit there and finish that drawing and eating whatever Malik gave you” my desk phone started to ring, picking it up “Maurice” I answered, “I been trying to call your mobile, why do you keep putting it down!” Robyn spat, looking at Reign “your daughter has my phone, Reign! Have I had phone calls on my phone” Reign looked at me with her cute little face and puppy dog eyes “no” she shook her head “she said no” I answered Robyn “don’t let her use you Maurice, you know she did. I specifically told her to not go anywhere, I told Jay to ignore her. I left her with the nanny, and this is what she does!” Robyn is not happy “I know but she is bored at home” I am siding with my daughter, Robyn is not going to like it “but what I say goes Maurice, you know that. My son told me; mommy Reign is telling us to go. You speak to her before I do” I am not the strict one “she is just demanding; she means well Bonita” Robyn scoffed “pootie, no. I got called in anyways, so I will see you tonight” that means she isn’t cooking “uh, ok. I wanted to ask baby; I thought your mom is coming back today?” I swear she was “you want her back because she can handle Reign, but her flight got delayed, I said to her that dick made her late. She is loving this man a little too much” I chuckled “no problem, love you speak soon” Terry is always away now with this new man “love you too pootie” she disconnected the call “Reign-Texas” putting the phone the down “uh oh” she said, she knows “why are you upsetting your mom? Sabes lo molesta que se pone tu mama” Reign got up from the floor “No papi, no yo, estoy Buena” Reign made her way to me saying, she makes me so soft “what am I going to do with you” I sighed out “me estás mintiendo?” I said, Reign shook her head “no papi” I can’t be angry with her “mom said she can’t speak Spanish in the house” Romano shouted “Cállate idiota!” Reign shouted back “it’s because he doesn’t know dad, this is because we know and he don’t” putting my hand over her mouth “ok, no more Spanish now” Reign be getting me in trouble.

These kids are driving me crazy, so I am going home early “did you sign anything or do anything?” Ally asked me “no, sorry. Malik will do it” if Romano holds my hand then Reign has to hold my hand, it’s just a constant back and forth with them “Ally! When are you coming to the home again? Jay misses you” Ally laughed at Reign “he does? Tell me more?” Ally said smirking “well I would but you need to come to my tea party, I invited you” shaking my head “anyways, I am going now. Come on, say bye to Ally” Jay is holding the elevator open for us “taking your damn time!” Jay spat “go and run to Jay” I said, they both let my hand go as they ran off “have a good evening Mr Davenport” one of my workers said “thank you” watching Romano run back to me “what you doing back big man?” picking him up “because then I can hug you in peace, Reign is annoying” I chuckled at Reign clocking him “hey, he cheated” stepping onto the elevator “we all cheated, let’s just go home and you can then explain to the nanny why you left her. And I mean Reign” Jay is laughing “is that because Robyn has scolded you to take action?” Jay asked but he knows damn well Robyn has demanded it “yes, and I have to obey. The women in my life are too demanding. I can’t take it” not even going to lie but I don’t really get to give my attention to Romano as much as I do Reign because she wants it constantly.

Stepping off of the elevator “what is this, daddy day care?” my sister pointed “you made it and yes it is, Malik is waiting for you, but I have to go home. These kids out here playing around” putting Romano down “hello Haviah, come here. Give uncle a hug” my niece looks so damn cute “go and give uncle a hug” my sister said, hugging Haviah “awww you want to come to uncle house today?” picking her up “I am seeing daddy today” letting out an oh “that is ok then you can come another day, Shawn seeing her then” placing her down “yes he is, for the weekend. He is picking her up from here” nodding my head “all is well then, and no. Shawn can drop dead, I am not over it after all these years” Nalah laughed as I walked by her “have a good weekend!” I hope I do; Robyn be giving me orders and we have to do fun things for the kids when I just want to rest “dad, can we go and get some candy. I mean we are already out?” Reign asked “nope, we have things at the house you can pick from, we are going straight home” I am not going to go nowhere.

Walking up the steps “why can’t you just open the baby gate Reign, climbing over it for. It is dangerous” picking Romano and placing him over the baby gate “hey Ramiro, hey little man. I missed you” opening the baby gate, my son in this walker is a nightmare, he is everywhere “awww you coming to me, and nice seeing you here” picking Ramiro out of the walker “thought I would pop in” pressing a kiss to his cheek “say hi to grandma and say sorry to Krista and Selena now!” I said to Reign and Romano, they both out here acting out “I am, Romano you go first!” shaking my head lightly watching my daughter bully him, I am just going to keep quiet on this because I am not choosing favourites “how have you been anyways?” my mom asked “erm ok, just busy with work really trying to get some deal out and meetings. What about yourself?” things have repaired between myself and my mother and that really makes me happy “I am ok Maurice, moving to the new apartment with Malik has been fun. He has done most of the work anyways” nodding my head smiling “well it’s been a long time coming. Both of you moving in together, Selena. Do you accept their sorry? It’s ok if you don’t” she laughed “I do, they are both sorry” Reign stuck her tongue out at me “Reign, shall we go and play in my room now?” Romano asked, “boy room is horrible, let’s go in mine” Reign ran ahead “play nicely please” one of them will be crying soon.

Robyn is back very late; I mean she isn’t even back yet “are you in bed then Mi Amor?” knocking on her door as I walked in “yes dad! No!! Romano can’t come in” she pointed “then I am not coming in either, my boy is either coming in or we both not” Reign scoffed “you make everything so hard dad! Fine” picking Romano up and sitting him at the side of Reign’ bed “so you want a story or just a kiss goodnight tonight” Reign stopped to think “tell us more about granddad” Romano pointed at the picture on Reign’ side table, staring at the picture of my dad and Reign. I do miss that man, a lot “you don’t remember him, the end” I chuckled “why are you so rude? Romano was just a baby still, I mean you don’t remember much either” correcting Reign “but I have lots of pictures and I do remember, he liked me” rolling my eyes “anyways, he was a very strict man” grabbing the seat from Reign’ vanity table “you got to put that back dad” sitting down on it “I always do, so” Romano got off from Reign bed and sat on my lap “he was bought up in a strict household and he did the same with me, he loved me but he showed me everything the hard way and showed me the hard way about things, but the difference with me is I want to show you all love, equally. Nobody is better then the other, not like Reign thinks” Reign’ face lit up “hi mom!!” she spat, Romano straight ran off to her, looking behind me “dad is boring us” my son is such a mommies boy “I can tell, you all should be asleep now. I will put him to sleep Maurice” Robyn said, nodding my head “mom still angry with me?” my daughter is just so grown, and so bossy “she gets annoyed that I let you off, she thinks you are my favourite” Reign smirked “but you’re my favourite, you’re my hero dad” getting up from the seat “stop it now” I said.

Reign is my favourite; she is actually my everything and I adore her so much. She gets my attention the most, this is the reason why she knows Spanish because she spent the most time with me and Robyn is trying to stop that and I don’t want to be like my dad but you do have that child you like the most, Reign is just like me “I missed you Bonita, what happened today? It was your time off” closing the bedroom door behind me “it was an emergency and I was the closest person they could call up on but then I get a call from Jay and I hear Romano telling me they are on a trip” placing my hands at the side of Robyn’ face, pecking her lips “we have head strong kids, Romano is no angel either. He is quiet with it” wrapping my arms around Robyn “we do, them two are like twins to me but did you hear? Ally is pregnant” I gasped “huh, what? I wasn’t told this!” I spat “office gossip doesn’t get around? She literally text me saying, how sweet is that. Did your mom come today? She wanted to see the kids, least your mom comes back. My mother is living her damn life, this home isn’t no hotel” Robyn is funny “let her have fun, she deserves. Grumpy” I always knew Terry would find herself a rich man that would love her.

#Chrianna #Chrianna FF #Fanfic #Fanfiction

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fanfics-for-the-hockey-fan · 5 years

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Ambush - Tyler Seguin

Request: Can you do one where the reader is Jamie Benn’s best friend, but the reader and Tyler Seguin hate each other (they actually like each other). They bicker a lot and then Jamie teases them into confessing?

“Benn, I swear to God if this is a waste of my time I am done with you!” I walked in the front door of my best friends’ home. He is a pain in my ass and had been since the day I met him, otherwise known as his first week in Texas. He had just been drafted and was in town for a rookie camp, they had taken the guys to a grocery store to teach them some health habits. While they were supposed to be doing a learning activity he came to my rescue after he spotted me literally climbing the shelves to reach something on the top shelf. My 5’1” shortness had me constantly struggling to reach things that were high up, so I was used to climbing things. He helped me reach my favorite coffee beans. I thanked him before he asked for help finding things in the store, so I helped and half an hour later we were friends, exchanging numbers before parting ways. We stayed in touch while he played in Kelowna, talking a couple times a week but never moving in a more than friends direction. I was pumped when he made the team, I made it to as many games as I could. I got along well with his teammates, hanging out with Jamie and his teammates when they had down time.

The only one of his teammates I butted heads with was Tyler, who of course became best friends with Jamie. His whole personality just bothered me, he constantly wanted to be the center of everything. He was loud and obnoxious, never taking anything seriously and always having a witty comeback to anything I said. His only, and I mean only, redeeming quality are his dogs. I tried to avoid Tyler as much as possible, hanging out with Jamie when Tyler wouldn’t be around. That was almost impossible so I tried to keep to myself when he made idiodic comments but sometimes there was only so much I could endure before I was pushed to my limit, I knew that it bothered Jamie so I tried my hardest to not fight with him.

Jamie had texted me earlier, asking me to come over after I closed my florist shop for the night. He never said why he wanted “Jamie! Where are you?! Come on man! I’ve been up since 4 since I had to do a wedding delivery this morning.”

“I’m up in my room, come on up! I need your help figuring out where to hang a picture.” I swore under my breath as I headed upstairs checking an email on my phone as I stepped into the room, jumping when I heard the door slam behind me. Looking up I didn’t see Jamie, just Tyler on Jamie’s bed. Actually now that I looked closer, he was handcuffed to the bed. “What the fuck? Jamie! Where are you?”

“You and Tyler need to work things out, I think you guys like each other if you would just sit down and talk without an escape when one of you says something stupid.”

“Why the fuck is Seguin handcuffed to the headboard of your bed? What kind of kinky shit are you into?”

“So that he couldn’t leave until you got here. The key to the handcuffs is on the bathroom counter, the door is locked from the outside so you guys are staying in there until you figure things out. I love both of you guys and your arguing is becoming a pain in the ass. And it makes everyone uncomfortable.”

“Jamie, I swear to god I am going to kill you.” Rolling my eyes, I put down my purse and moved into the bathroom before throwing the key at Tyler and sitting down on the floor. Looking through my purse I found a granola bar since I didn’t have dinner before coming over. As I started eating I looked up at Tyler who was silently watching me. “What? I came right from work and didn’t have time to eat dinner.”

“Jamie is an idiot.”

“Finally something we can agree on.” Tyler rolled his eyes and then promptly ignored me, typing away on his phone. “Telling someone you are delayed for your hookup?”

“No, I was telling Jamie if he is going to leave us locked in here he needs to go let my boys out. Unlike you, I have someone waiting for me at home. Someone who is always excited to see me, you go home to no one.” I tried so hard to not give him the satisfaction of a reaction or responding but what he said was true, I tended to push people away. I did it for one simple reason, everyone in my life left me at some point growing up. So now I just pushed people away before they had the chance to leave me. The only person so far that stuck around was Jamie, I tried several times to push him away but he never budged.

I looked up again, seeing him staring into the side of my head. “What do you want Tyler?”

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. But I do have to ask, why do you hate me?” I froze, not really expecting such a sincere question from the guy who never seemed to take anything seriously.

“I don’t hate you.”

“You don’t act like that.” I gave him a questioning look before taking the last bite of my granola bar, trying to avoid this whole conversation. “You are constantly fighting me on everything I say, argue with me all the time, and most of the time you just avoid me. In case you haven’t noticed, I have been trying to get to know you since a week after I met you. Why do you push people away? I’ve seen you try to do it to Jamie, but when I try and talk to him about it he just changes the subject.” I froze, not hearing the question after he basically said that he was interested in me. When I had first met Tyler I felt a pull towards him, I wanted to get to know him and I knew I would fall for him, and that he would be my biggest heartbreak ever. So I did what I always did; I pushed back, I kept my distance and made it so he wouldn’t like me, I followed every rule I made for myself and none of it was enough to completely remove him from my life. “Andrea?” His voice managed to pull me out of my panic, his eyes soft as he came to sit on the floor with me. “What would be so bad about possibly dating me?”

“Because you would be my biggest heartbreak, and I don’t think I could handle it.”

“How do you know that is how it would end?”

“Because everyone leaves me eventually. My dad left before I was even born and my mom was only there as much as was required by law. Friends always decided that I wasn’t worth the effort, teachers were only there for a year before I had a new one. I’ve never had people stick around growing up so once I had the power to, I was the one to leave. I push people away so that they can’t hurt me, the only person who hasn’t budged yet is Jamie. And I still don’t understand why he is sticking around, I’m not worth it.”

“You are worth it, you are always helping out the wives and girlfriends. Doing arrangements for fundraisers and donating stuff. I know that you take flowers to the children’s hospital twice a week. You do so much for everyone and expect nothing for it. Jamie sees it and I see it, now we just need you to see it. So, Andrea, will you go out on a date with me? I promise I will do everything in my power to not break your heart.”

“I can’t.”

“Give me one good reason you can’t go on a date with me? One good reason and I will go break that door down so we can leave and then I will never bother you again.” I so badly wanted to have a good reason to give him, a reason besides that I was scared of being right. And of being wrong, that it would work out and that pushing people away was never the right answer. Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath I hoped that I wasn’t going to regret this.

“You can take me out for coffee tomorrow.” Opening my eyes I saw Tyler giving me a megawatt smile before pounding on the door.

“You fucker! Let us out. Your stupid plan worked!”

Request are open!!!

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purplesurveys · 4 years

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792

Who was the last person you had an intelligent debate with?: I don’t really have debates with anyone other than Gab or Angela. I’ll have deep discussions with my other friends, but they never turn into a debate.

Who was the last person who cooked something for you?: My dad. Technically he just reheated stuff tonight, but he was still also the one who cooked for us this morning for breakfast.

Who was the last person who you heard singing?: My mom. She does karaoke by herself one or two times a week for funsies and will sing songs from her day for an hour or so, and she did it tonight.

Who was the last person you kissed and it meant something?: Gabie, but it’s been a whilllllle.

Who was the last person you were upset with?: This girl that I’m classmates with for a layout class, Mikee. Horrible work ethic. So just for context, I currently have a grade of INC (Incomplete) for the layout class I took last semester because my prof wasn’t satisfied with our final output, which are a class magazine and a class newspaper; and when you have an INC, you typically have a year to fulfill the missing requirement/s (except in our case, we only have half a year because we have graduating students in the class, including me). Now that we’re inching closer to graduation and the college is supposed to release the official list of graduating students soon, I have to make sure ALL my grades are in. Mikee volunteered to be the one to contact our prof for submitting our work, and even though we’ve finished up and polished our revised outputs, she is taking FOREVER to email the prof for whatever fucking reason. I’m getting antsy by the hour and am desperate for a bit of urgency on her end because if my name doesn’t end up on the list of graduates I definitely wouldn’t hesitate to lash out on her.

Who was the last person you danced with?: Angela, Gabie, and Hans. And some other ADMU dudes I’ve never hung out with other than at that party.

Who was the last person you felt awkward around?: My dad. He made pancakes from scratch earlier and I think his measurements weren’t 100% spot on, because they came out incredibly dense and bland. I was already cranky enough this morning – and I still hadn’t known he made them himself – so I scowled when I took my first few bites because I thought it tasted off and even asked if it was some kind of vegetarian pancake. Once he said he made it from scratch, I felt awkward, shut up, and wolfed my plate down to show him that I enjoyed it and to make up for my horrid behavior just seconds before.

Who was the last person who borrowed something from you?: My mom borrowed my car (which is technically my parents’ anyway because they bought it lmao) to go to work today.

Who was the last person who showed you how to do something?: My dad. I wanted to get reacquainted with making stuff in the kitchen so he showed me how to cook hotdogs properly. I was already making them before, but after one time that one of our stove burners emitted a huge flame when I turned it on, I stopped making any food altogether for a while.

Who was the last person you went shopping with?: My mom.

Who was the last person you had a crush on?: Song Joong Ki hahaaaaaaah.

Who was the last person who made you cry?: The amazing actor from Descendants of the Sun playing the troubled rookie doctor. I looked him up and apparently he’s also one of the lead vocalists of SHINee, so he must be talented as all hell.

Who was the last person you shared a bed with?: Kimi, 45 seconds before he jumped off.

Who was the last person you got drunk with?: Angela, Hans, Gabie, Aids...I don’t remember the others anymore but they were cool and funny people. Idk, we were a big group so yeah.

Who was the last person who touched your hair?: Just me.

What was the last pair of shoes you wore?: A pair of Nikes to walk my dog.

What was the last birthday party you attended?: My cousin’s, aunt’s, and grandma’s. Their birthdays all fall on the same week in December, so it’s tradition for us to go over to my aunt’s to celebrate.

What was the last thing you said to your mother?: Something about thesis. I was telling her that I included her and dad and my four grandparents in my acknowledgments.

What was the last song you listened to?: I was listening to Beyoncé’s Homecoming a few hours ago but I’m too lazy to check what song was it I paused.

What was the last thing you thought about before going to sleep last night?: I wasn’t thinking of anything, I was just focused on falling asleep.

What was the last fun thing you did with your family?: Video-calling other relatives.

What was the last thing you borrowed from someone?: My dad’s earphones...and I’ve kept them for the meantime too lol thanks dad.

What was the last vegetable you ate?: String beans.

What was the last thing you bought online?: A Hydro Flask and several necklaces.

What was the last thing you had to drink?: I don’t *have* to drink it but I did make myself a cup of coffee tonight.

What was the last reason you went to see a doctor?: Had to get my eye checked. Sucks that I couldn’t and can’t have a follow-up appointment especially since my left eye still acts up from time to time.

What was the last non-food item you purchased?: Soju lmaaaaaooo.

What was the last type of yogurt you ate?: I hate yogurt.

What was the last fast food place you ate at?: Jollibee. We didn’t eat inside though, we just got the food delivered to our home. I think the last fast food place I was actually inside of was McDonald’s.

What was the last thing that bothered you and kept you awake?: I haven’t been bothered by anything in a while. Caffeine is the only thing keeping me up these days.

When was the last time you embarrassed yourself? I had sort of a Eureka moment earlier tonight when I suddenly recalled my paternal grandparents’ whole names. I had opted to use their nicknames in my acknowledgments and didn’t think anything of it, but then I remembered what their actual full first names were and then felt embarrassed within myself that I submitted a final draft with their nicknames. HAHAHA it’s a good things are less chill with the lockdown in place so I was able to explain and resubmit with the necessary revisions.

When was the last time you watched a movie with someone?: January-ish. I watched Hello Love Goodbye with Gabie.

When was the last time you charged your phone?: A few hours ago.

When was the last time you were sick with a cold?: It’s been...a while. I rarely get sick with anything so I don’t get to keep track of whenever I do.

When was the last time you spoke to a family member on the phone?: My birthday when my lola called.

When was the last time it rained where you live?: A couple of days ago, I think.

When was the last time you laid awake, unable to sleep?: This afternoon. I wanted to sleep the heat off, but it was just so uncomfortable I just ended up twisting and turning and sweating more. MAAAAAAN I can’t wait for June.

When was the last time you met someone new?: A week or so ago when I went on a following spree on this blog and started talking to a couple of them. Lol following spree in the survey community means following 3 or 4 blogs, but still.

When was the last time you filled up your car with petrol/gas?: Gotta be the first week of March as that was the last time I was able to drive a lot.

When was the last time you ate popcorn?: Some months ago, I’m guessing? There was a brief time that my mom bought popcorn kernels to make bowls of popcorn for us, but we got tired of it pretty easily so there was no reason for her to keep buying more packs.

When was the last time you went to a school event? I went to the Lantern Parade last December, as is tradition for my school’s community. I was mostly alone because my friends had to leave early and Gabie was stuck in traffic all evening and didn’t arrive til like, 9:30 PM, which sounds sad for me lol but it was still a fun experience.

When was the last time you took the trash out?: My parents don’t give me that task.

When was the last time you did anything to change your appearance?: Fucking March, a week before the lockdown. Okodlkjfffjsj don’t remind me I’m still pressed about it. No one got to see my short hair and bangs grrrrrrrr

When was the last time you cooked at home?: A week ago. I reconciled with the kitchen and cooked a couple of hotdogs hahaha. They’re frozen and literally a child could make them, but egh, I wanna have my moment too.

When was the last time you had a sleepover?: Honestly can’t remember. Start of the year maybe?

Where did you last go shopping for clothing?: Feliz. It’s my favorite place to find new clothes so yeah, you’ll always be hearing about Feliz. Where did you last go on a date to?: A study date at Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and dinner at Yabu afterwards.

Where was the last wedding you went to?: 2007, my uncle and aunt’s. I had plans to go to my cousin Joelle’s wedding in Texas this year, but I think they postponed it which highkey ended up working well for them because it wouldn’t have happened under current circumstances anyway.

Where did you last park your car, other than home?: Gabie’s place.

Where did you last leave your keys?: On top of the dining room TV.

Where did your last kiss take place? By Gabie’s front door, I think.

Where did you last go for a walk to?: In front of the house and just a little farther, with my dog. He’s getting older so he gets tired easily and can’t go on the same walks we used to have, but I still make sure he gets his exercise.

Where did you last take a vacation to?: We had a weekend trip to Tagaytay and Cavite but honestly it felt like a quick getaway more than anything else. The last trip that felt like a vacation was when we went to Bicol.

Where did you last go to celebrate your own birthday?: I celebrated it at home.

Where was the last place you had dinner at?: Just at home, again.

Where did you last go to exercise?: I don’t exercise. < Ha, samesies.

Where did you last take public transport to?: Jum and I were going to the Senate building for a journalism class. That was the first and last time I took legit public transport.

Where does the last person you hung out with live?: Upper part of the city.

Where did you last visit for the first time?: Uhhhh I think it was the salon I went to to get my hair done.

Where did you last take a photo?: On the floor of the dining area, to take selfies with my dog.

#survey #surveys

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finderskeepersff · 5 years

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71. Part 2

Who would have thought, Cassius Warren in a whole different country. Like this ain’t no just going to France for a holiday but in Sofia’ home town, I feel scared as shit. She already threatened to kill me, you never know now. I am such weirdo when it comes to travelling to a whole different country, just we never did family holidays and now this. I am nervous as fuck about this shit, I am amazed by it all. The country is different, interesting and a lot to explore. I am going to need some time to get used to this, like for real “it’s nice here ain’t it?” looking away from the window “it’s different, does your family know you are coming?” I mean it is her family, they are a little weird at times “they do, I told them and they are so excited” that is great “will your mom be there?” I expect her to be there “you know she will be Cassius, I don’t think I care to be honest. I just want to see my family, I can’t wait to hug them all. Wait till you see them all” Sofia is way too excited “oh right, so where we staying then?” I never asked that “at my gran gran home, where else?” furrowing my eyebrows “even me?” pointing at myself “I mean if you want to get a hotel you can, but I am staying there with them. She wants me too, me and gran gran are so close. I don’t think she will approve of you staying in the bed with me, we’re not married” this is hell “don’t look scared Cassius, I know this is different but they are going to love you as much as they love me. I mean my mom, she is just her but only I can be mean to you, if they say anything to you then just tell me but they won’t. You will get used to it” Sofia touched my hand, looking down at her hand and she was quick to move it away “you just remembered you’re angry with me huh?” I need some air, this car ride is so long “Henry keeps on calling me, I don’t want to speak to him” I don’t feel like it “Cassius, you need to speak to him. Don’t shut him out like that” I can do what I like.

Twenty minutes later and we are still in this cab ride, this shit is never ending I want to walk and stretch my legs out “oh my gosh, we’re like so close now. We are practically here” I have no idea, I am just sat here accepting my fate, Sofia just said to come and I did. I knew coming here I would feel lost as fuck, I don’t know what I am doing with myself at all and at least in America I am something and here I am just a piece of shit that was fucking both of her grand daughter, see how terrible that sounds, I know she will know and she ain’t going to like me. I will have to hide behind Sofia through it all because if that was me and my family and some guy was coming to my home after fucking with my grand kids, I will whoop their asses because that is my family. I mean if I don’t like it, I will just fly back out “it’s here!” Sofia yelped, looking over at her “where?” this is a very poor part I think anyways “look, it’s here” she pointed at a one storey white home, it’s small in size, even when I was poor my home was bigger “it’s a hut?” I questioned “a hut? Cassius, this is my gran gran home, this is where we will be staying” I feel stressed out already “you have weed here, I need weed. Excuse me, friend. You have weed?” I asked the driver, he laughed as he stopped the car “you can find it, we do have weed here” he said, find it but I need it now “I can’t believe you called my gran gran home a hut, that is so mean and rude” I shrugged “well I mean, am I wrong? Sofia it’s small, you say I can’t sleep in the same bed as you, where the fuck am I going to stay?” Sofia is ignoring me as she got out of the cab and left me to pay, she would do that.

This is not my type of fun, at all “hold him for me, he’s hurting my back” taking Cartier from Sofia “the fuck” moving behind Sofia “its’ my gran gran dog, Albert, hey baby” this dog is malnourished “and this bitch is still alive” and Sofia is touching it, look at the thing “you need to quit it, you will be living with that thing” that dog don’t like me, well I don’t like him already “Sofia, Gran, Sofia is here. She is here” this is where the fun starts, Sofia walked off and left me stranded with the suitcases, I mean these are three big ass fucking suitcases “look at you Erica, you have grown!! Come here” I swallowed hard looking around me, this is going to be so much fun. Sofia barely likes me, her family are going to know the shit I did and there is only Cartier. Cartier lifted his head up “you awake again sleepy head” kissing his cheek, I think Sofia’ Gran has come out. Oh my god, there is so many people coming out of that home, it’s like a circus. I mean not a circus but like there is many people coming out “what we going to do Cartier, we stuck here. Your mom left me here with the suitcases and you, if they kill me here you know I love you” they could easily do that to me after everything I have done to their family, they must know about Celine because her mom would not let that slide at all “oh god” her mom is there and Sofia is still hugging her gran, she hasn’t even moved on yet.

I ain’t about this life, I am meeting the family. I don’t know how to act, I don’t do this. I have never done this, I met her mother but she is a bitch. I feel like running away right now, there is people shouting from the other houses at Sofia’ family but they all know each other “I am back for a few weeks! We will meet up” Sofia said back, oh my god. They are looking at me “Cartier, we doomed bro. You know that?” looking at him, Cartier looked at me “see, you know son we doomed. Like don’t let shit slide, cry if you need too. You don’t need to like them, neither do I” I don’t do meet the family, I don’t do dates, I don’t do family, I don’t do kids, I don’t do wife but here I am, here I stand for Sofia. If she don’t see how much I do love her then maybe we aren’t meant to be “be nice Gran, he is nervous” Sofia said as they walked closer to me, I am sweating a lot and I know they can see that if I feel it so much “don’t look like that” Sofia said to me “this is my gran gran Jackie, my beautiful queen” Sofia kissed her cheek, do I say hi. My brain has gone to shit “you the boy that stole my grand baby heart, this is Cassius” they are a whole army and I ain’t feeling the threat, her gran stepped closer to me and Cartier just like me wanted to run he burst out crying holding me, I want to do the same but I can’t “oh baby, he is cute. I see why you like him” Sofia eye balled me and I did it back to her “he still needs to learn gran, learn how to say hi” Sofia mean mugged “oh yeah, hi erm” I swallowed “Jackie” that is her name, she just smirked at me, am I a freak show because they are all staring at me. Do I get my hand out to her or do I hug her, I decided on shaking her hand “no baby, you come here” Sofia’ gran is short as fuck but her arms extended close enough, I leaned down and she grabbed my face and yanked me down to her, pressing a kiss to my cheek “you got freckles, my eyes aren’t that bad. Sofia he is cute, I like him” my cheeks must be burning up, I just know it because my cheeks are getting warm as fuck and her gran is just staring at my face “he is handsome, I approve” I didn’t know I needed that seal of approval, she let my face go “this is my husband Marcel, come and say hi to Sofia’ husband” I blinked several times at the husband part, don’t they know we not “Cassius” I got my hand out to him, hopefully he doesn’t start kissing me either “Marcel, welcome to Barbados” you can tell this is Sofia’ family, they all have that similar look and I see Cartier in them “hey Cassius, I’m Sofia’ auntie, Auntie Latifah” Cartier is crying his eyes out and trying to move away from everyone and then he won’t go to Sofia “hi” waving back at her “this is my uncles, Daron, and Leyton” Sofia pointed at them, they look mean a little bit anyways “hey” I said to them “Leyton is named after my uncle and you know my brother” nodding my head “so altogether you have two aunties and two uncles?” Sofia never said “I do, we are a big family here” Sofia said smiling at me “and my mom” grace doesn’t seem happy to see me “these are my cousins, all of them here” there is too many of them “what’s wrong?” Looking at Cartier “they nice” Cartier hid his face in the crook my neck “I want to see him” Grace moved forward “I don’t think he’s ready to meet anyone” I said, I hate grace and her little fuck ass shit she does.

Sitting down on the couch, this is so small and so many people and it’s playing with my anxiety, shit is not it. I feel I’m back at Texas with those small ass rooms, I hated that shit “come here Cartier, it’s ok baby. Here is Bubzy” Sofia took Cartier from me and placed him on her lap, he is so sad but it’s new for him. Wiping his tears with my hand “Sofia he is so beautiful” one of her cousin came up to her “can we play with him!” One of the little girls ran up to Sofia also “he’s too small for that, you can see him here” she is so cute, the kids here are very cute but there is a lot of them “cousin, I can’t believe you having another baby too. You don’t wait” Sofia laughed “I know, Cassius this is my cousin Hope, this is Cassius” smiling at her “hey Cass! It’s weird seeing you here” Leyton sat next to me “feel the same way, you never said how big your family is. It’s huge” Leyton laughed “it’s so cool here, so much fun. I’m excited that my sister is here too, I get to see my nephew too. I love it here and I know you will too Cassius. I will show you all of the good places to eat. We live just down the road and” Leyton moved closer to my ear “my gran thinks you both married, heard them speaking about it” this is great, Sofia wasn’t lying when she said her gran won’t let us sleep together if we ain’t “I want to hold him Sofia, look at him Grace. He is so beautiful” I find it very awkward with Grace around, feeling my phone vibrate in my pocket. Getting my phone out of my pocket and it’s Ethan “he treat you well niece” one of Sofia’ mean ass uncles asked, I will take this call after. Sofia looked at me and I just looked at her “he does, he spoils me so much” I grinned at Sofia, Sofia actually touched my hand “what do you do then, you some rich person” Sofia looked at me and then eyed me to look behind, turning my head “erm, accountant” I lied, why the fuck would I tell the truth, I just don’t be feeling their vibe and neither am I feeling the vibe from Grace, with me anyways “nice” he doesn’t look happy with me, I can sense it.

“Aww sweetie, you want a drink?” Sofia’ gran asked “erm, no. Can I go outside to smoke?” I need it “oh you can, use it like your own home” Cartier is knocked out asleep after he had some milk “just go out the back door, you can do it there” Sofia pointed saying, Ethan also keeps ringing “ok, cool” getting up from the couch “pull your jeans up” Sofia said as I pulled up my jeans “I was” smiling at her, moving by the various people, this place is too small and I don’t really like it at all “you smoke” Jackie said, pushing the door open and the breeze hit me, some air that I needed. Stepping outside, jogging down the steps. Some fresh air, the air here is nice. Getting my cigarettes out and pulling one out, I don’t have any weed but hopefully I get to find some here, placing the cigarette between my lips and placing my phone against my ear to call Ethan back. Lighting my cigarette “what the fuck I hear, how are you all the way in Barbados!!” He shouted down the phone, I near choked on the smoke, he sounds so distraught. Moving the cigarette away from my lips “uh yeah, after what happened. I told Sofia, she ain’t happy and she wanted to come and I came to make her happy. But some real fuck shit though, I think her family, some of them don’t like me. Mean mugging me and shit, but I’m here. What is up? You kept calling?” Pacing the around the yard “I got diamonds, now what?” He done it “Mitch, I told you this. I need you to go Atlanta, check over my business” this is cool, you can see the beach from here “I will, I met up with Celine. Like you said, she fought me. Like I was shook, but we agreed on something” placing the cigarette against my lips, she can never leave this life “tell me” blowing the smoke out “she moving drugs” told her I would get her, turning around to pace back towards the house and I have an audience, I froze “mhmm you know what, I will call you back” disconnecting the call.

There is something really weird about her uncles, I don’t know but it’s something about them. Flicking my cigarette onto the floor “you not going to put that in the trash?” One of them said “I don’t know where that is” walking over to them “right there” he pointed “for next time then” I mean what else they want “my sister told us you was with my niece Celine and you used to beat her” furrowing my eyebrows “huh? I don’t know what you mean, I didn’t do anything like that” shaking my head “so you saying my sister is lying to us huh? Your family got my niece pregnant, you and your brother fucked my niece Celine and now you fucking Sofia, you come here” I knew this would happen, I had a feeling “Grace is lying” one of them grabbed my tee “look you my older right, but I suggest you let go of me. I ain’t here for you or anyone but Sofia” he got in my face “Grace hasn’t said anything! My sister told us, cried to us. Don’t let him come in this house but I promised her I would get him, dead like his brother. Celine still told us to leave you alone” I stared in shock until I felt a fist to my face and I just fell bsck a little, I quickly gathered myself in shock that he did that to me. I was going to attack back but I heard Sofia’ laugh, Sofia is in there and I already done her wrong. Seeing him charge at me but I ran, I ran off to avoid getting riled up and hit him back which I don’t want to do.

“Seriously cousin, you laughing but your pum pum must be destroyed” Hope is so stupid “well I think she is going to be small” touching my stomach “she!!” She half shouted “auntie she is having a girl” my mom’ eyes widened “oh, I’m so happy for you” my mom looks like she has so much to say to me but doesn’t know what to say, now that I am here. I smiled as they all congratulated me “I am so happy, I can’t wait to meet her. I have never been so happy” I can’t stop smiling “what has happened?” Uncle Daron asked as he walked back in “they found out I’m having a girl uncle” he gasped “awww my niece, that is beautiful. She will be beautiful just like you” I shrugged laughing “I mean if she looks like her dad she will still be the cutest thing, I don’t mind. I know it’s all so soon, and gran will say it but I am getting it out of the way, you know” Leyton looks so grown, I like it. He looks much more happier “I think you and Grace have so much to speak about and I hope you both can do that, the both of you” my gran has spoken so that needs to happen “we will soon, how was Christmas for you all? Nice?” I don’t know who to speak too, they are all here “it was wonderful, you should have come then too. Bryce was here, he a whole brat” I laughed “you ain’t happy about that?” my grandfather is not pleased “I wanted to whoop his ass” my gran hit his arm “you stop that” I smiled at my grandparents, they are so cute together “Leyton told us you live in a big home in America, is it true?” Hope asked “uh yeah, it’s ok” I don’t want to brag now.

I groaned out tasting my gran gran coconut bread, it is the best “I hope you’re cooking for me tonight, I missed your cooking” seeing my mom making her way over to me “girl, you still gon cook for me” my gran pointed at me, moving Cartier shoes as she sat down. Looking around me, here I am eating and Cassius has been missing outside “erm, Leyton. Can you go outside and tell Cassius I want him please. He should be out back” I shouldn’t neglect him like that “ok” Leyton walked off “my mom is not wrong we need to talk, but it’s nice to see you. You look so well Sofia” my mom said “you mean happier” she nodded her head “I needed to get away from you, even if it wasn’t with Cassius. I needed to get away from you, you was toxic for me. You hurt me a lot, and still till this day no matter I still want you. But you have treated me like shit, you allowed a lot of shit to happen to me. I have my own child I could never do what you have done, I am having my own daughter now and I don’t understand how you could let me go through that, how? As a mother, I would take their pain” feeling tap on my shoulder “he ain’t there Sofia” Leyton said “what do you mean he isn’t there? Go and look properly, he will be around Leyton. Don’t do half assed shit” he can be so lazy at times “I was never made to be a mother, I looked at you and I saw him. Even though you look like us, I do see him in you and I am sorry. But I am in a good place right now, and I will make it up to you. I should have moved here years ago, I should have. But like we don’t need to talk about it now but I will speak to you. To see Cartier, from the pictures and now here. It gets me choked up, he is a mini you. Just like you” I smiled faintly “maybe in looks but he is just like Cassius” hearing Leyton shouting again “I told you he isn’t outside, I walked all the way around the house” seeing Leyton walk in through the front door, frowning “what do you mean? Did anyone see him come in? Did he go to the toilet” getting up from the couch “he might have gone in that bathroom” my mom said, let me check.

Seeing an empty bathroom, I have checked every room and he isn’t here. My heart is in my mouth right now “right, who has seen him? I am not joking right now, where is he!?” walking back into the living room “what do you mean? How you do that!?” my mom spat, walking into an argument “can you just hold off on that, please who has seen Cassius? It’s not a joke, like I need to know where he is” the whole room is quiet, so nobody has seen him. Rushing to my bag “Sofia, your uncle hit him” I froze as I reached into my bag “you what!?” I said looking at my mom “he was just telling me, Daron hit him and he said he ran off” I am in shock right now “what?” turning to my uncle “what?” I said again “he is guilty Sofia, he ran off. He with you but was with your cousin Sofia, you accept that. He hit her” you have got to be kidding me “no, no, no. I don’t care, where is he?” Daron shrugged “I am surprised you’re even alive right now, I am not even joking about that. You don’t know Cassius, how fucking dare you!” my mom grabbed my arm “aye!” my grandfather said “you all calm down now, Daron and Leyton, you both just go. You don’t be hitting people” unlocking my phone wanting to cry “I didn’t say anything” my mom said to me in a whisper, I sobbed out tapping his name “he is bad man Sofia” my uncle Leyton said “no, you don’t know him” hearing the phone ring out “he is out there, he is not from here! If anything has happened to him, I will fucking kill you” I pointed at my uncle “can you both just leave now” my mom said “what’s up?” Cassius picked up ever so calm “where are you?” my voice is every high pitched “where did you go!?” I am here panicking “oh, I found a bar. I am just sat here, the first one I saw. I am not drunk” I breathed out “just stay there” disconnecting the call “y’all are ruining my fucking time, fuck! You don’t know him, any of you” I pointed at them all “Sofia, we don’t judge him. The men are stupid” Hope said “you found him Sofia, baby you go and see to him” my gran said.

I had to bring Cartier with me, he doesn’t know them and I wouldn’t want to leave Cartier with them. My cousins walked with me but I said for them to wait outside, pushing Cartier inside the bar. He better be here, he doesn’t understand how scared I got for him. He doesn’t know this country, it’s a nice place but there is always evil. Seeing the back of Cassius, he is sat with his back facing the door. I am just so glad to see him alive and ok, pushing the stroller closer to him “hey” placing my hand on his back, Cassius looked up at me “hey, you good? Was you crying?” Cassius said as he got up from the seat, he hugged me and it made me even more emotional “I was so scared, I thought someone took you and then I was blaming myself because I made you come here” I am getting emotional again “nah, I am good. I just walked and found this place” he moved back from the hug “your face looks so sore” Cassius shrugged “it’s nothing, I have had worse. You want anything to drink?” he asked and I shook my head, he placed his hands over my face “don’t cry, I am good” he kissed my forehead before letting my face go, turning the stroller around “hey dada boy, you awake” pulling the chair out to sit down, Cartier is actually waving his arm at Cassius, he is happy to see his dad “why didn’t you come inside? Told me at least” Cassius sat back down “too many people there, too many people judging already and I ain’t with it, I was so close to hitting him, beat them but I heard you laughing and I didn’t want to ruin your time here, so I took and ran off. I guess they know about Celine, I would have called you but I just calmed down now” seeing his drinks, he has drank three glasses of something “if you want, we can go to a hotel. Everyone in that room was for you Cassius, they was upset to see me upset. I am sorry, they had no right” Cassius shrugged “I mean, I would do the same. I am the nigga that got with you, and did what I did to your cousin but if I met you earlier she would have been a none factor, it’s just wack that I didn’t but I did it for you, I ain’t beat their asses for you” I breathed out “and that means a lot to me but I won’t have anyone disrespect you, just please don’t walk off like that again. Like, I thought I lost you. My gran wants you to come back to the house” I am not sure if Cassius is tired or tipsy, he is way too calm for my liking but I am ever so sad that this happened.

#Chrianna #Chrianna FF #Fanfic #Fanfiction

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some-cookie-crumbz · 5 years

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Riptide

Riptide - Kidge Month Day 7 Prompt Fill Fandom: Voltron: Legendary Defender Pairing: Kidge Summary: MerMay about two months late, with the added flavor of some Lesbian!Kidge. After a surfing trip goes horribly wrong, Keira Kogane ends up getting pulled into a meeting with some of the creatures lurking in the depths below. Standard Disclaimer: If you read and enjoy this, please give it a like/ reblog so I know if I should write more.

The call of gulls above and the tang of salty sea air were welcoming as she stretched, moaning as her back popped. She turned her attention to the figure hunched over the opened trunk of a Jeep just behind her. "Man, it's been way too long since our last trip out, huh?" She laughed as she walked over, rummaging through the denim shorts she’d tossed on over her suit to pull out a hair tie.

The other woman poked her head out and offered an amused smirk, blowing a few strands of dark hair from her face. "That's what happens when you're in college and being a professional," She indicated each of them respectively as she spoke. She turned her attention back to her Jeep to pull out a long, red surfboard and offer it to her. "Which reminds me. How are your classes treating you, Keira?"

Keira scoffed, rolling her eyes affectionately as she took the offered board. "It's fine. That one group mate I keep getting stuck with somehow is still as annoying as ever, but fine other than that," She waited as her friend got her own board out and allowed her to lead her down to the beach proper. "You know, one of these days you'll have to stop mothering me, Shiro." She shifted to gently bop the other on her hip with her board as they walked.

Shiro laughed, side-stepping a bit to avoid the swat. "Maybe when you start taking care of yourself like an actual adult, I will," She teased back before carefully hopping on one foot to start jogging across the sand.

"Hey!" Keira called after her, giving chase eagerly.

"Come on, let's get in before all the waves are gone!" Shiro goaded over her shoulder.

Keira herself couldn’t help but laugh, feeling more at ease than she had in weeks. She’s always been someone that enjoyed outdoor activities, like swimming and hiking and the like. In the last few months, though, her personal time to indulge had been severely limited due to all the changes she was going through with.

First, she’d been accepted into Arus University, which was already a huge honor. She’d been trying to get in since her sophomore year of high school, and still had to do a two-year stint at a community college back in Texas first. Then, there was moving all the way from Texas to the California coast. She was luckier than most in that she already had a place to stay, settling in a condo with her Nana. It was a bit on the small side and one of her classmates had teased her about spending most of her free time with her grandmother, but it was nice. The condo was small, but Keira herself never needed a lot of space, and the condo had a homey feel to it. She had always been incredibly close to her Nana, who had helped Keira’s mom raise her after her dad died, so living with her just felt like second nature. Plus, Nana had let her adopt a dog, even though it was technically against the condo rules.

Did a part of her thirst for a bit more independence? A little bit, but she already felt like she had a huge amount of that. She was solely responsible for taking care of her dog - though she was almost certain Nana was working with the pooch when she was at school - and she didn’t have any curfew or anything. Nana’s only requests were that she help with the chores and errands, keep up on her grades, make sure she took care of her dog’s needs, and give her a call or text if she was going to be exceptionally late. Ultimately, she was given a lot of freedom to do what she wanted. She just didn’t really have a lot of friends outside of Shiro and her fiancee, Adrianna. Between Shiro and Adrianna both being professionals and having complicated, cluttered schedules, and Keira herself having a huge workload for her classes, coordinating to hand out had been difficult.

So, when her semester finally ended and Shiro offered her a celebratory surf trip, she’d been unable to say no.

Keira laughed a bit to herself as she followed Shiro into an upcoming curl, delighting in the feel of the cool water against her. She pushed herself upright and on to her feet as the curl over took them, carefully sliding one foot to keep her balance. There was a flicker of movement from the corner of her eye before something shoved into her bodily, sending her toppling over and under the water. She struggled and squirmed, eyes slammed shut tight to keep the water from getting in her eyes, kicking out at the feeling of something digging painfully into her right ankle. She managed to clip it with the heel of her left foot and made a mad dash for where she hoped the surface was.

She broke the surface and gasped, sputtering water and flailing her arms around in hopes of finding her board blind. She shook her head to get some of the water out of her face and cracked her eyes, trying to get her bearings again. She could see her own board a floating a few feet away, but panic filled her when she whirled in a circle and found no sign of her friend. "Shiro! Shiro!" She shouted, continuing to look around as she scrambled to her own board, leaning on it heavily once she grabbed it. She stole a quick glance over towards the shore, but there was no sign of her there either. She wheeled back around, terror filling her. What if she got dragged out farther by the undertow? Or if whatever had gone after Keira had gone after the other, too? "Takami, where are you?"

There were a sudden figure erupting from the water nearly a yard away. Shiro’s eyes were wide in a mix of terror and pain as she tried to swim forward. "Keira! H-Help!" She shouted before being dragged back under.

"Shiro!" Keira screamed back, starting to push away from her board when she saw movement to her left. She curled one hand into a fist, preparing to lash out at whatever was coming for her, but was stunned to see the head of a young woman making her way over, watching her with shock. "H-Hey! Help us! P-Please, s-something has my friend!” She croaked out frantically, releasing the board to dive under herself. She would take the sting of salt water in her eyes to help Shiro, damnit!

"You stay put! I’m on it!" The newcomer shouted back, splashing at her and catching her in the face. When she wiped the water away and looked around, the stranger was gone as fast as she’d appeared. Keira clutched at her board, heart hammering away at her throat, looking for any sign of either woman. It felt like an eternity but couldn’t have been more than a minute or two before there were bubbles appearing right beside her and two heads broke the surface. Shiro was wheezing for air like mad, her whole body slumped and exhausted. The stranger had a firm grip on her as she helped to guide her over, moving her left arm to cover the expanse of Keira’s board. "She's hurt pretty bad. She needs you to take her back to shore immediately."

Keira gulped and reached over, clenching one hand on Shiro’s arm to help keep her in place. "T-Thank you, so much!" She gasped, fighting back a sob, as the stranger helped her to redirect her board and get started towards the coast again. "It's gonna be okay, Shiro! I promise!" She vowed, looking over at her friend. It was hard to tell, but she felt her breathing still for a second at the gory mess that was the other’s limp right arm.

It wasn’t until she reached the shore, a crowd having developed and being helped along by a few lifeguards, that she realized that the stranger hadn’t gone ashore with them. She stole a glance behind her, suddenly panicked at the thought that they had been caught by whatever grabbed Shiro, too, only to see what she could only describe as a large, copper fish tail flashing briefly in the air before disappearing under the sea foam.

The next few hours after that were a bit of a blur.

She was asked tons of questions about what had happened before the attack and what it was that had got her. Due to the scope of the injuries, the diagnosis seemed to be that it was a shark attack. Her own ankle had a decent chunk taken out of it, meaning she’d be using crutches to get around for a while, though nowhere near as bad as Shiro. From what Adrianna later told her, whatever it was had nearly taken all of Shiro’s arm off. Once Keira was deemed to be in the all clear and her Nana came to get her, she was discharged with instructions and prescriptions.

Despite knowing it wasn’t her fault, a part of ehr had felt guilty when Nana had hugged her as tight as she could, her whole body shuddering with sobs.

She was given one week of full bed rest so that the stitches she’d needed had time to start the healing process. In that time, her Mom had flown out to help out with things, too. Mom and Nana were constantly on the lookout, offering to help her with every little thing. Certain things she appreciated but sometimes she found it frustrating, being treated like an invalid. Whenever she could, she went to visit Shiro, too.

The other woman was in surprisingly high spirits despite having her right arm amputated, which seemed to leave Adrianna exasperated.

It wasn’t until a month later, when Shiro was officially discharged and Keira herself was sporting a mostly-healed scar, that she heard on the news that the beach was on a temporary shut down after there had been another three shark attacks in the weeks following what happened to them. Thinking about it all again, her mind called up the stranger that had helped them and how they seemed to have disappeared entirely afterwards. The more she turned it over, the more she remembered about them. Bright, honey colored eyes with hair a slightly darker hue that had fanned out against the water around her. There were a few flecks of what seemed like freckles along the bridge of her nose and shoulders and upper arms, but her memory chimed in that they had seemed incredibly glossy to be marks like that. They had seemed much more like tiny, shimmering scales.

And then there was the whole Disappearing-Tail thing she’d seen, too.

Keira glanced down at her ankle curled up beside her on the couch, reaching out to trace the pale, parallel marks of the forming scars. "I had to have been seeing things, right? There's no way she was actually a... I mean, right?" She trailed uncertainly, looking from the mark to her dog curled up on her other side. Kosmo lifted his head, slowly blinking bright yellow eyes at her, before letting out a little chuff of air and laying back down. She laughed a bit herself and reached out, running one hand through his thick, soft fur. "Yeah, right, Kosmo. Just a... Just a trick my mind was playing because of stress." She said it with all the confidence she could muster, hoping to reassure herself through reinforcing the thought.

It worked so well that, later that night, she snuck out onto the beach past the police stationed on watch.

"This is ridiculous. I'm being ridiculous. There's no way that I-!" She rambled under her breath as she carefully jogged to the edge of the shore, the feel of cool water stroking over her feet bittersweet. She gave a quick sweep of the waters in the low light, tightening her grip on her board in preparation of trekking back to her car, but froze when she saw a shape out floating out in the water. She squinted her eyes and tilted her head a bit as the figure turned their head, as if sensing eyes on them, and her breath skipped at the sight. "Holy shit, she's here. Even with the place closed up.” She laughed quietly, feeling a strange sense of delirious glee at the prospect of being right.

She raised her hand and waved, hoping they’d recognize it as a friendly gesture, but then cursed under breath when they ducked back under the water. And this time she was certain that the end of a fish tail broke the surface as they dove.

Keira rushed into the water, mounting her board and starting to swim out to where they had been "Ah, wait, no! Hold on!" She called out, trying to use a volume that wouldn’t get her caught but still be heard. She swam out to where they’d disappeared before stopping, sitting up and looking around. She knew they hadn’t been wearing any kind of scuba gear, and they’d been under the surface for far too long for a human to survive. "So then I was right? Is she really a-?"

There was a quiet plipping sound behind her, followed by a vaguely familiar voice chirping, "Is your friend okay?" Keira shrieked and tried to wheel around, but instead only ended up sending herself toppling over into the water gracelessly. She was under or less than a second before she caught the impression of light from behind her lids, followed by a pair of hands helping to hoist her back up towards her board. "Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to startle you." The stranger said, voice baring the slightest hint of amusement.

Once she upright on her board again, Keira looked down to see long, wavy lines in the patterns of the very clearly mermaid tail, casting an almost silver glow that made the dark green scales seem to glow like precious gems. "Holy-! You're-! Are you a-?"

"Mermaid?" She asked, quirking one brow and smirking. "I dunno. You tell me." And with that teasing remark, they turned their body a bit and sent the lower portion of their tail plopping into Keira’s lap.

"Hokay, whoa. Yeah, this is definitely a... A," She trailed, hands hovering above the offered appendage like she would be burnt if she touched them.

"Tail?" The other prompted expectantly.

Taking the other’s blase approach as an invitation, she reached out to gently stroking the thin fins that made up the very end of the tail, fingers trailing up higher to lightly catch on the scales and glowing portions. The scales felt like smooth, rounded stones, though she had a feeling they could still do damage if they were rubbed at the wrong way. Furthermore, while most of the scales seemed to be composed of an emerald green hue, there were stripes of a nearly black purple color of scales as well. Meanwhile, the strip that was lighting up felt more rubbery and slick, but had a beat to it like a pulse. From what she could see, it went all the way up and around their tail to where scales became flesh. "Yes, that. With fins and scales and," She took a deep breath in, completely mesmerized, "wow."

The mermaid cocked her head. "You sound impressed,"

Keira herself snorted. "Well, uh, yeah," She indicated the tail still settled across her lap and board. When she was only answered buy a blank stare, she indicated more firmly with one hand. "I mean, look at this! Your tail is so beautiful!"

It was hard to tell in the lighting, but she swore the mermaid actually flushed at that. "It’s really not. I mean, my colors are crazy off from the rest of my school, and if you saw my sister's tail you'd be floored! Oh, and my bioluminescence doesn't even have a color, despite me being a full grown," She explained, one finger prodding at the lit parts along her tail.

"Are you kidding me? Your scales may be more subdued colors, but they're gorgeous! Plus, those being a darker color probably comes in handy! I bet you're great at sneaking around at night when the water gets dark,"

"Well... I may be the best night hunter we have," Keira could hear the slightest bit of embarrassed pride in her voice at the omission.

"Well, see? There you go," She giggled, gently giving her tail one last pat before she pulled it back into the water. She was glad when the mermaid didn’t seem immediately eager to rush off. "Thank you for helping the other day, by the way. I wanted to make sure to thank you for that in person. It's been years since the last shark attack on the beach and I wasn't really sure what to do."

Her brow knit at her words and she shook her head. "That wasn't a shark; that was a Galra,"

Keira blinked a bit. "A what now?"

"A Galra. They're kind of like me and mine, but much larger and much more lethal. Most of us just want to live in peace in our waters, but Galra are violent troublemakers," She explained, a small growl bubbling up in her throat at the mention of the other sea dwellers.

"They must be a lot larger considering they almost took Shiro's whole arm off," She commented, the forming scars on her ankle seeming to throb at the mention. She decided to try swaying things to something that might perk her companion back up. "It was pretty brace of you to fight one of those off for me and Shiro. How did you get it to leave, anyway?"

She brightened up immediately, a smug grin turning up on her lips. "Oh, that was easy! My bioluminescence scales are electrically charged and become active when I feel threatened!" She giggled, indicating the lit stripes again. That would certainly explain why she’d felt a pulse in them; it was an electrical current quietly brewing underneath. "I wrapped my tail around the Galra's, charged it up, and zapped them something pretty good. Took some scales off of'em." She shifted closer, settling her crossed arms down on the snout of the board and then resting her head on top. "So, your friend is okay, then?"

Keira smiled and nodded, touched at the mermaid’s concern for Shiro’s well-being. "She's going to be. I mean, she's gonna need a lot of rehabilitation, and'll probably need a prosthetic replacement for her arm, but she's alive and kicking,"

"I'm glad," She said with a relieved sigh, eyes closing in satisfaction. Then, she opened them again and stared up curiously at Keira. "So, what exactly are those things you mentioned? Rehabilitation and prosthetic, I think?"

Keira blinked then laughed, leaning her hands against the back of the board and beginning to explain this or that to the mermaid, who she learned was named Katie, about human culture.

#Voltron legendary defender #Keidge #Kidge #Peith #Kidgemas #MonthofKidge #MonthofKidge2019 #KidgeaPalooza #KidgeaPalooza2019 #Pidge Gunderson #Keith Kogane #Lesbian!Kidge #my fics #Fun Fact: Riptide is the name of my Vaporeon on Pokemon Go

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hunnywrites · 5 years

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Arcade Dreams: Chapter Three

Summary: There’s a new girl working at the Palace Arcade and Hawkins’ Family Video. Billy can’t stand her, and the feeling is mutual. No matter what everyone else seems to think.

Pairing: Billy Hargrove/OFC

It was Monday night. Teddi was bouncing back and forth between the video store and arcade. Some kid was having a birthday party and there were about fifteen eight year olds running around with icing smudged all over their faces. Keith definitely wasn’t going to be the one to handle them. The older kids harassed him, sure, but the little ones terrorized him. Teddi had lost count of how many times she’d seen the elementary kids throwing their shitty prizes at him from across the prize counter or blatantly ignored his pleas for them to stop running and acting like a bunch of “crackheads”. But she’d be lying if she said she didn’t find it a little funny.

So now she was busy following around a group of small children and wiping down the machines after their grimy little hands got cake and god only knows what else on the controls. “Teddi!” she turned to see who had called her, smiling at the two boys who were waving wildly at her from across the room. She made her way over, giving Lucas and Dustin each a high five.

“How’s it goin’ dudes? The crew’s not in tonight?” Mike, Will and the girl who she had learned was named El had been in all weekend, but she hadn’t seen Max in a few days, which was unusual. “Hey, is everything okay with Max? I haven’t seen her tagging along in awhile.”

Lucas made a face. “She got grounded. Two more days until she’s free. Will’s mom just came and picked him, Mike and El up though.” he explained, jabbing a thumb at the front door.

“Yeah, two more days until Lucas can see his girlfriend.” Dustin teased, poking his best friend in the side. Lucas slapped his hands away and muttered a “Shut up.”

Teddi laughed, raising an eyebrow. “Girlfriend? You can’t be dating, you guys are babies!” she couldn’t really be too surprised though. Anyone could see the puppy dog eyes Lucas and Max

had been flashing each other since she’d moved to Hawkins.

“Hey, hey! We’re men.” Dustin corrected her.

Lucas rolled his eyes, turning to Teddi. “So...can we?” He asked. Dustin perked up next to him. About a month ago, Dustin had found a way to trick the ticket counter into giving out more tickets. The gang had made a top secret mission out of it to keep the secret from Keith and the other kids at the arcade. But Teddi had been an important part in their scheme as long as she was willing.

“You know, you guys could always just save up your tickets. Try being patient.” she offered with an amused smile.

Lucas pulled a face. “Do you have any idea how long that would take? We’re halfway there! After tonight that bike is ours, and Christmas is next week. We’re on a deadline here, Teddi!” he reasoned. It was sweet really. There was this little white bicycle that had been hanging above the prize counter longer than she had been working there. The gang had all decided to pool their tickets together and give the bike to El for Christmas.

Teddi looked around the arcade and let out a heavy sigh. “Alright. You have twenty minutes until Keith gets back from his break. If anyone gives you shit just tell them you’re doing me a favor since I’m busy, okay? I gotta go check on things next door.” it was a risky move for the both of them to try and pull this off without the others, but Teddi knew they’d be able to pull it off.

“Yes!” they both cried. “Thank you, Teddi!” Dustin yelled before grabbing Lucas by the arm and pulling him along. Teddi shook her head, turning and heading back to the video store.

Things were quiet over there at least. There was a group of younger girls arguing over what movie to rent for the night and a kid begging with his parents to let him rent Friday the 13th. She decided to start going through the returns when the bell on the door rang and a small redhead ran in with a stack of tapes.

“Maxamillion!” Teddi greeted. While she liked all of Max’s friends, Teddi had a soft spot for her. She was sure that it was because she reminded Teddi so much of herself when she was her age. “I was just asking Lucas and Dustin about you, heard you got grounded.” She said with a teasing, stern look.

Max rolled her eyes and nodded, setting the tapes on the counter. “My mom totally shit a fit. And Billy’s been all pissy because he has to watch me. But these movies were awesome. He even liked them. And he hates everything.”

Teddi raised an eyebrow and looked down at the tapes Max was returning. Black Christmas, Alien, Sleepaway Camp and Carrie. “Wait, you’re Billy’s sister?” how hadn’t she put that together? Max had always said her brother was a dick, and Teddi didn’t know anyone in Hawkins who was a bigger dick than Billy.

“Step-sister.” Max corrected. And speak of the devil, in waltzed Billy himself with a cigarette between his lips and his shirt unbuttoned practically down to his belly button. Teddi scoffed loudly.

“There’s no smoking in here, Hargrove.” she said, her hands on her hips. Billy sauntered over, leaning against the counter and removing the cigarette from his lips before blowing a cloud of smoke in her face. She wanted to smack the smirk off his face.

“Bite me, Larsson,” he grinned. Teddi leaned forward and snatched the cigarette from his fingers, putting it out on the counter with an overly sweet smile. Max watched the exchange with an exhausted look. “...You’re a real bitch sometimes, you know that?” he muttered.

“Yeah? Well, in here you’re my bitch,” he glared at Max when she let out a snort. “You didn’t tell me that Max was your step-sister,” she said, changing the subject. “You’re totally not cool enough to be related to her in any way.” she teased.

Billy rolled his eyes. “Please. What do either of you know about being cool?”

Max gave him an unimpressed look. “She’s way cooler than you.”

“Jesus, will you shut up and get some new tapes already? I don’t wanna hear Susan bitch about how long we took.” Max let out an over dramatic sigh and ran off to find something new to watch for the night. Billy’s fingers were tapping rapidly on the counter, clearly desperate for another smoke.

“...Rough night?” Teddi asked. He seemed a bit more on edge than usual. Paranoid. Like at any second shit was going to hit the fan.

“Fuck off, Teddi.” he spat. She rolled her eyes, but held her hands up in defense before turning back to sort through the returned tapes. Billy rubbed the back of his neck, eyeing her nervously but didn’t say anything.

Soon Max returned with two new tapes, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Poltergeist. Teddi nodded approvingly. “Tobe Hooper, awesome choice. You know, he uses real dead bodies in both of these. They said the Poltergeist set was totally haunted. Makes it like...a million times scarier.” Teddi explained as she rang the movies up.

“Awesome.” Max grinned.

“How the fuck do you know all of this? You’re like a bottomless pit of useless information.” Billy grunted out, pulling his wallet out.

“I read, Billy. You should try it sometime. Five bucks,” she held out her hand. Billy glared at her and slapped the bills into her palm. “Hope you like ‘em, Max! They’re due back Thursday. See you at the pool tomorrow, Hargrove.” Max smiled at Teddi and happily ran out of the store while Billy stuck another cigarette between his lips.

He turned to leave, calling “See ya, weird girl.” over his shoulder before flipping Teddi off and stomping out once again.

Eventually Keith came back and reluctantly handed the bike over to Lucas and Dustin after they turned in their tickets. When he told Teddi she could leave early for the night, she practically jumped the counter. She grabbed her coat and bag and rushed outside, hissing as the cold air hit her bare legs. Summer can’t come fast enough, she thought as she rushed over to her car and got in, cranking up the heat. It was late, and Teddi was hoping that would mean her parents would be asleep by the time she got home.

Things had never been great between her and her parents. It had been the worst when she was little. Once her dad started making good money things eased up because he was never home, and she didn’t care very much if her mother ignored her or not. But now that money was thin Teddi could sense the storm coming. So to avoid it she tried her best to stay out of the house as often as possible.

Unfortunately for her, she noticed the lights were still on in the living room once she pulled into the driveway. She let out a heavy sigh, trudging in and hanging her coat up by the door. Her dad was asleep in the recliner with a beer bottle sitting between his legs. Her mother was nowhere to be seen.

Teddi grabbed the bottle and shut the TV off before gently shaking his shoulder. “Dad, wake up. It’s almost midnight.”

He groaned, blinking up at her and pulling away harshly. “Get the fuck off me,” he muttered before looking around and frowning. “Where have you been all day?”

“Work, dad.”

He scoffed. “Right, work. Laying out by the pool and playing video games all day.”

Teddi rolled her eyes. She didn’t want to argue. She wanted to shower and get in bed. If anything she was surprised he remembered where she worked. That was more than she ever expected from him.

“Don’t you fucking roll your eyes at me. Should you even be awake this late on a school night?”

Teddi headed down the hall. “It’s Christmas break,” She said simply before shutting her bedroom door. Teddi pulled off her boots, tossing them into her closet before plopping down on her bed. “Five more months,” she reminded herself quietly. “Five more months.” Once May rolled around she would graduate high school and finally be free of her parents. She didn’t know in what capacity yet, but she didn’t really care. Even if it meant sticking in Hawkins but living on her own. She just wanted out.

Once the living room light shut off and she heard her parent’s bedroom door shut, she grabbed clean pajamas and headed for the shower. The water was near scalding, but it did wonders to relieve her tense muscles. Unfortunately she found herself thinking about Billy.

Tomorrow she would be helping him teach one of the swim classes. Or watching and learning as he had put it. She couldn’t really picture him teaching little kids much of anything. Maybe how to smoke and swear at their parents, but definitely not swimming. He was too gruff. When he was up in that lifeguard seat he reigned with near terror. Just the day before he had made a six year old cry after he had called him a shitbird for splashing too much. At least she would be there to hopefully provide a more gentle touch to the lesson.

Things between her and Billy were...weird. One minute they were bickering, the next they pretended the other didn’t exist, then they would both be huddled together laughing at this one dad who liked to strut around in a speedo and hit on moms while his kid was in the pool. And this was just over the span of three days.

Teddi sighed loudly and willed herself to think of anything else. Soon Christmas break would be over and school would start back up at least. She could go back to being a friendly acquaintance to the kids in her classes and she’d get invited to parties on the weekend. Not that she’d go, but being invited was nice. And hopefully soon the months would fly by, she’d get accepted into a college and she could get far, far away from Hawkins. But until then she’d have to deal with Billy. Without killing him.

#billy hargrove #billy hargrove fic #billy hargrove x oc

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leggomylino · 4 years

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15 Questions Game

I was tagged by @kpoptrashx2 and @marksloveletters ^^ <3

1) Are you named after anyone?

Not that I know of, the story is my mom was stuck between my irl name, Brittany (no Celi/Cecilia isn’t my real name it’s a nickname I’ve gone by for years so it’s practically my second name that I’ll respond to irl...it was actually my Great (Great?) Aunt’s name so I keep it in her honor bc we look scary alike) and the name Megan. Both my parents liked both and couldn’t choose. After I was born my grandfather looked at me and said, “Oh yeah, she’s definitely a Brittany.” So that became my name uwu

2) When was the last time you cried?

A few days ago. One of my best friends wrote a HELLA sad fanfic and it got me really really emo because I get super attached to characters and one of them died. The whole thing was so heartbreaking and tragic it got me super down, especially because the character who died was my ult bias ಥ_ಥ so I was very depressed for like two days lmao-- I’m still a little sad tbh

3) Do you have any kids?

Nope!

4) Do you use sarcasm a lot?

Yes and no. It depends on who I’m talking to. With myself and people I’m comfortable with, yes, otherwise I’m scared of accidentally upsetting or offending people so I’ll be wary of using it ^^”

5) Eye colour?

Blue/green! My eyes are actually heterochrome, the left is more blue and the right is more green ƪ(˘⌣˘)┐ ƪ(˘⌣˘)ʃ ┌(˘⌣˘)ʃ (...I might have gotten that backwards but I’m too sleepy to check. I actually just went back and tried to check but I’m too sleepy to tell rn LMAO SORRY)

6) Scary movie or happy ending?

10000000000000000000000% Happy Ending ヽ(*￣o￣*)ノ♩♫♪

7) Special talents?

I’ve been told I have a talent for writing? Also I can kinda sing but I’m far too shy and anxious to make a career out of it. My mom was actually telling me the other day she’s mad at me for having such awful stage fright lol

8) Where were you born?

Grapevine, Texas! I now live a bit farther south

9) Do you have any hobbies?

Too many. Reading, writing, video games, drawing, singing, shopping, sleeping, studying other languages, scrapbooking, collecting stuff...sigh

10) Do you have any pets?

I do! I have one doggo that’s the family guard dog c: His name is Cal!

11) What sports have/do you play?

I used to play volleyball and did gymnastics and cheerleading as a child, but I quit due to an injury and having just grown tired of it (p.s. I’m fine now dw lol)

12) How tall are you?

I’m about 5′3″, or roughly 160 cm

13) Favourite subjects in school?

Definitely creative writing/English, and I also really enjoyed Sign Language! I haven’t practiced in a long time, so I’m not fluent but I know enough to kind of get by. Oh, I also really loved Choir! ^^

14) Dream job?

I’d love to be an editor or work on a script for a video game or the like! Otherwise I’m totally content being a housewife oops. I’m not super ambitious, I’d be content with a simple life so long as my family and I are happy <3

I tag @jisungx2 @minniewoos @joully @bopping-to-my-kpop @iiasha @ everyone else that wants to give this a go! ( ˘ ³˘)❤

#tag game #celi answers

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shesahershey · 4 years

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Everything about me!

I'm bored and have nothing else to do, so here's everything about me!

My birthday's November 30th

I have 9 pets

My middle name is Nicole because that's what my mom originally wanted my first name to be

My sign is Sagittarius (not that I care lmao)

My favorite color is purple

I have low iron (I swear, I am going to pass out one day from doing something too quickly)

I have 27 ocs

I am working on a book explaining and following those ocs ( https://www.wattpad.com/story/82557802-adventurers-of-my-mind )

I am a cartoonist

I am Depressed

I am Anxious

I have ADHD

I will play games instead of working

Music is everything to me (I seriously can't do shit without it)

I love all music besides Country and Screamo

I am chill 24/7

Piss me off and I will daydream about hurting you

Hurt me and I will beat the shit out of you

Hurt my friends and I will make sure you are nothing but a bloody pulp on the sidewalk.

Violent when need be

Uses videogames to escape reality and take out violence

The quiet kid

People freak out when I talk

Will do anything to make you feel better

Bisexual

Gender Fluid

9 year old stuck in a 16 year old's body

I can't move on from the past

Childhood trauma

Lost my mom when I was 9

I am TERRIFIED of roaches.

Hyper-spikes when I get little to no sleep

Fandoms I am or was into: Hetalia, Eddsworld, Undertale/Deltarune and the AU's, FNAF Night Guards (idk if that's the right name???) Portal, Subnautica, and Minecraft

Will make inside jokes that only I know (Russian Snowman Cafe hehe)

Steals personalities to make people like me more (or so I think)

Two of my characters are almost carbon copies of other characters that inspired their design/personality because I just wanted them to be subtle nods (I regret it, but what can I do? I like how they are)

I love everyone for who they are unless you are LGBTQ+ Phobes, Terfs, Pedophiles, Beastiality, and Necrophilia. Then you may die in the worse way possible.

I love animals, hurt them and I will beat you with a bat until each and every bone is broken.

I talk to myself (Yourself knows yourself best)

"Anything's better than nothing" is my motto

Curses 24/7

Scars from Depression

Do not say, "Hey, we need to talk." I will go into a panic and think about everything I have done since birth.

Skin is delicious. (I need to stop eating myself...)

Bruises easily

I am thicc

Bust size is a goddamn 36-38 D. (Help me.)

Tiddies either fit the bra perfectly or flop out.

3 curves in my spine (genetics suck.)

Shoulders are uneven (fuck that backpack I had in 5th grade.)

I have had 3 real crushes

I have had 7 or more fictional crushes

Wings are AWESOME

I buy a ton of socks and lose every single one until there's only two or three left

Stuff animals give me life

Borderline hoarder (just for things I like or bought with my money)

My room is an abomination (where is anything??????)

I am a dog person (no patience for cats)

"If I don't align my feet with the tiles, I will die."

Tons of memes on my phone which I will not get rid of

I want to live in 2012

Either great or terrible with lying

I can't stay still

I will stare and space out

I think everyone is watching me so I'm cautious and freaking out about how I do things

I worry a lot

Cold most of the time

I jiggle when I walk

My thighs are too thicc, if I'm not in pants, they will rub against each other and it HURTS

I still have my Wii and my TV is the only one in my house that can play it

I'm somewhat flexible

Sweet treats keep me going

I can cook breakfast and that's it

I want to drive but I'm afraid

I spend almost an hour in the bathroom (I like the solitude)

I'm the opposite of Claustrophobia, I LOVE small places

I want to live in the forest

I am terrified of my family

When I'm sleeping, my legs cannot be close to each other (gotta do that Mario jump)

I will only buy shoes if I really need them

I buy things that make me happy (lots of money, gone...)

"If it still works, don't buy a new one." Is something I say for anything

Will look like a slut if I'm feeling it and then regret it later

I can whistle inwards

I avoid eye contact when talking to people because I feel awkward

I say "Drawl" and "Drawling" instead of "Draw" and "Drawing"

Make a Texan joke or stereotype and I will love it (yeehaw pardner)

Accents are AMAZING

I've made friends online and trust them with everything and love them to pieces

I want to travel and see my internet friends

I stopped biting my nails

I want to animate, but: I can't find the right batteries for my pen, I lost my pen, and my screen is messed up and hardly recognizes my pen

I will not judge you

I have a collection of bottle caps (ready for a fallout baby)

I cry easily

I will scream if I'm excited

My favorite song is "1/4" by VocaCircus/CircusP

I hate realism. (Let me draw how I WANT.)

My real personality? I don't know her

I have 1,945 songs

I live in the past and will not move on

Clay is REALLY GOOD

I lose track of what I'm talking about and switch left and right

I might forget I've said or showed you something and will say it or show it again

Sometimes I see small white lines that crawl around my eyes and then they disappear (it's like looking down at sugar ants)

I have missed out of really good shows, like Invader Zim, because I thought I wouldn't like it, them I'm like, "Hey, that looks pretty cool actually" and then it stops airing.

I have loads of freckles on my face and arms

My hair is curly, but since it's short, you can't really see it

I have a good singing voice

I LOVE pools and water parks

I've always wanted to learn an instrument, but decided drawing and writing was right for me

Hockey is my favorite sport (got that Canadian heart baby)

I've only seen snow twice (Texas sucks.)

My favorite character is Russia from Hetalia (I LOVE THAT BOY SO MUCH)

I want to learn a different language, but Jesus fuck, that takes so much effort

I'm patience

I love puzzle games

My favorite number is 3

I wear oversized shirts and jackets

I do really well in school until I gain the teacher's trust, and then do nothing for the rest of the year because they know I'll do it

I love science

I despise math

All of my oc's are a piece of me, merge them together and you get me

I have dark circles that won't go away

Fluffy things are GREAT

Soft things are BEAUTIFUL

I love galaxies

And that's all I can think of! Hope you liked learning about me!

#this was surprisingly fun #long post #very long post #hersh talks

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alekakers · 5 years

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The Story So Far (or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Existential Dread)

- 32-

When I was a kid I thought of thirty-two as this incredibly significant age. For whatever reason I viewed it as the epitome of reaching adulthood. Of course as a child I thought of everyone older than me as an adult. You know that weird skewed perspective thing, when you recall memories from childhood and even high school kids looked like grown ups. But in my head thirty-two was a mythical age that solidified your status as an adult. An age that once reached meant you were no longer a young man/woman, but a full fledged adult-y adult.

Now as I sit here looking back on thirty-two years of life I can say I had no idea how my perspective on age and life would change over the next couple decades. But in some strange way I wasn’t completely wrong either. I had wanted to do this kinda thing when I turned 30 but that was a chaotic time so I never got around to it. So now with two more years behind me, here is a reflection on a simple life and what I’ve learned from it. Let’s start at the beginning...

- Born On The Bayou -

I was born in the early afternoon in Nassau Bay, Texas. I grew up on the same 25 acre ranch my mom was raised on. 30 minutes outside of Houston, 20 minutes from the Gulf of Mexico, and 10 minutes from the Johnson NASA Space Center where my grandparents were instrumental in the Apollo and space shuttle programs. My grandfather was an Oklahoma farm boy that crossed the Mississippi in a covered wagon who ended up putting men on the moon. My grandmother came from New England and was breaking ground in the country’s fledgling space program when she fell in love with a cowboy rocket scientist and brought my mom into the world. Unfortunately they died when my mom was in college. I wish I could have met them.

My dad grew up in a sleepy suburb outside Portland, Oregon. His mother was an eccentric, loving, and strong-willed woman. It was her grandfather, Aleksander Justice, that I’m named after. A wolgadeutsche immigrant, he moved to America to start a new life for himself and his family. My grandmother was harshly old-fashioned to say the least, but she loved me and my sister with all her heart and was in our lives more than any other extended family member. Her passing a few years ago wrecked me more than I thought it would.

My father’s father was an orphan adopted and raised by his Uncle. As an angsty youth he enlisted in the navy to avoid jail time, served as a frogman in Vietnam, worked as a motorcycle cop for decades to support three kids, helped raise my cousin after my aunt got divorced, and was a volunteer firefighter and loving grandfather and great grandfather when he passed a couple years back. He was and will always be the prime example of the man I judge myself against. I miss him a lot.

- Beans and Cornbread -

My parents met in college and were soon after married and the proud parent’s of a baby boy. My dad was serving in the navy when both I and then my sister, Erin, were born. After his tour of duty my parents moved to the property in Texas that was left to my mom and my uncle. Despite being crazy young, dirt poor, and perhaps in retrospect being wildly unprepared to raise a family, my parents managed to keep us fed and clothed and sheltered. Most importantly they instilled in us the values and morals I still hold dear. Treat others with kindness. Be grateful for what you have. Work hard, try your best, and never give up no matter what life throws at you. In some ways I’m grateful for my modest upbringing and the appreciation it gave me for the little things in life.

Even though my friends lived in nice suburbs while I lived in a run down ranch house, even though they had nintendos and nerf guns while I had cheap plastic toys, even though we ate on a shoe string budget and couldn’t go on fancy vacations, even through the emotional trauma of it all, I still look back on my childhood fondly. I am eternally grateful for those years. Wandering around the pasture. Erin and I letting our imaginations run wild. Going to cub scouts every week. Making our own fun roaming around the church after hours while our mom was there to do whatever she was there to do. My parents scraping every penny to make holidays and birthdays special. I wouldn’t trade all the dinners of beans and cornbread for anything else. I’ll always be a humble country boy at heart.

- Misty Mountain Hop -

Three months after my 11th birthday we packed up the house, loaded the moving truck, and drove half way across the country to start a new life in Washington. My dad had been unemployed for a while and ended up finding a job with the boy scouts in Everett. It would give our family a modicum of economic security and put us closer to my dad’s family in Oregon. It was a jolting transition to say the least. Shortly after we moved puberty hit like a ton of bricks. My early childhood was firmly left in Texas and my teenage years made their angsty debut in Washington.

We moved into a quiet suburb 30 minutes north of Seattle and for the first time our family had a level of comfort we had never had. We could afford name brand cereal! But simultaneously my father’s anger issues were coming to a boiling point. Also my sister and I were diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. It was a very tumultuous time. My defense mechanism was to retreat, and I became terribly introverted and detached, retreating into music and video games. My sister went the opposite direction and became a loud, boisterous spit-fire, finding herself at home in the world of theater. I think we both already had the predilections for these respective personality traits, but the dissonance in the family only exaggerated them.

After a few years we moved into another house around the block. It was around this time that my father’s temper finally became too much and he started seeking help to work through some things. It took some time but I can’t stress enough how much of a different person he was after that. Night and day. I was in high school at this point and it was also around this time that I started to become disillusioned with the status quo of society. The modern school system seemed pointless, I started smoking weed, and music became the end all be all of my existence. It still is. Music is life! I dropped out of high school and decided to live the life I wanted to live.

Throughout my teenage years I played in different bands, experimented with all kinds of drugs, met and broke up with my first true love, entered the work force, and started the slow painful transition from adolescence to adulthood. It was a wild time! While part of me wishes I had stuck out high school, I have never regretted the choices I made. I saw that so much of the reality around me was a construct of our culture and I sought to push the boundaries of that reality. And I’m glad I did. I learned lessons the hard way, on my terms. I saw past so many lies and illusions and fallacies of how we’re expected to live our lives and perceive the world. I created my own world of truths and morals instead of blindly accepting the ones being pushed on me. It was an incredibly eye-opening and freeing time in my life and I credit those experiences for a lot of the wisdom and knowledge that I’ve absorbed.

*Disclaimer: I am grateful that I came out of that time in my life relatively unscathed. I know/knew many people that couldn’t claim themselves so lucky. It takes an incredibly strong will to toe the line and step back without going over the edge. Even though I wouldn’t change a moment of it, I wouldn’t recommend the life I led to anyone.

- Retreat and Rebirth -

After the last band I was in during those days broke up, our collective friend groups started to dissipate. As the realities of adult life started to pull from different directions most people rose to the occasion. I did not. Burnt out from the crazy ride and being overwhelmed by life I retreated to a world of isolation. A little solitude is healthy. I consider myself an outgoing introvert (A term a like a lot). But I took it too far. Unemployed for three years. Letting many friendships dwindle and slip away. Spending my days doing nothing but smoking weed and playing video games. It was unhealthy and I didn’t know how to change. Then the universe decided it was time. Just after my 22nd birthday I finally cut ties with a very close but deceptively toxic friend. After smoking half a pack a day since I was 16 I decided to quit. And I decided to take a break from smoking weed. Then to top it all off my childhood dog that I had had for 14 years died. To this day that remains the most transformational time in my life.

I spent that spring and summer reconnecting with myself and what was important in life. Taking care of my diabetes. Eating healthier. Gardening. I leaned into making mixtapes like never before. It is still my main hobby. Musica es vida! I had what I can only describe as a spiritual awaking. Come fall I was smoking weed again but with a renewed respect for the plant. I had a job doing something I had unexpectedly developed a passion for, cooking. And I found myself coming out of my social isolation. It was like I ended a three year hiatus from the world. I still think of my life in terms of before that time and after.

Then three years after I hit the reset button on life I was ready for another change. I was 25 and the inexorable march of time wasn’t stopping. So I finally moved out of my parent’s house. No shame! Science says that adolescence in modern humans lasts into our early twenties. And I was definitely still weening out of my teenage years at that age and was lucky to have such amazing supportive parents. It wasn’t until 24/25 that the existential dread of life started to set in and I thought, shit I gotta get outta here. December 2012, the apocalypse didn’t happen, and I moved in with my sister in downtown Seattle. She herself had spent the last few years overcoming her own traumas and wrestling with her own demons, and she helped me step even further outside my comfort zone into the greater world. I am so grateful for the two years we got to live together as fledgling adults.

- She Saved Me -

Just shy of a year living among the sights and sounds of the city, I found myself falling into a dangerous rut. I had been at the same job for three years. Commuting between the suburbs and downtown. Six years since my last relationship. Not much of a social life. And finding escape from the dull routine at the bottom of a bottle. Get up. Go to work. Come home. Get drunk and high and play video games or watch tv. Rinse, repeat. I suddenly found myself back where I was. And again I didn’t know how to break the cycle. Then I met the one person that would change my life in ways I never could have expected. The one person that would rock my world, wake me up to the true possibilities of existence, and become the one person that I could truly never live without.

One fall day I walk into work to see a new face. Olivia was her name. Damn she’s cute, I thought. And I quickly became enamored with her personality. But it would take 6 months of quietly pining for her before I had the courage to try my hand. Then on a fateful day in May we spent a whole day together. Then a whole week together. Then the summer that would change my life forever. We fell madly in love. I stopped drinking like a horse. My heart was opened to another for the first time in many many years. My mind was awakened by a mind I so closely related to. My body was refreshed by the passion I had been so long without. It was another rebirth of the soul, the kind that shook me to my very core. I had almost resigned myself to being alone forever, working a dead end job and drinking the nights away. Then she saved me. She remains my best friend, my rock, and my favorite person in the whole world.

- My Place -

Invigorated and encouraged, I found a new job. A slight step up in the culinary sense. Challenging yet rewarding. Olivia moved in with us. Then a few months later we got our own place in north Seattle. Shortly after we got a pupper. It was an incredible time. Feeling truly independent and self-supportive for the first time. Developing an amazing relationship with the person that I quickly realized I could spent the rest of my life with. This was the first time in my life I could attest to feeling the slightest bit like an adult. Of course I had realized long ago that you never really feel like an adult. You don’t just wake up one day like a switch was flipped and go, oh I’ve got it now. Life is a constant journey of growth and learning. We’re all just faking it till we make it.

But this was the first time in my life where I felt like, ah okay this is it, this is life, this is being an adult. Waking up every day, doing your best to navigate life, and constantly trying to figure out what it means to be you, what's important to you. Then life set up to deliver another wave of challenges to overcome. It was around this time that my family experienced a huge upheaval. We almost lost someone very close to us and it rattled me to my core. Then my boss was involved in a car accident and as his assistant I was suddenly interim kitchen manager. A couple months later the owner was impressed enough to make it official and I toke my first salaried job.

I relished the opportunity and strove to run that kitchen the absolute best I could. I went above and beyond. I poured everything I had into it. I learned so much about the restaurant game, management, cooking, and above all about myself. It was an intense period of personal growth. At the same I was coming into my own as a leader and a cook, I was also dealing with multiple family tragedies. And as much as I loved the work, the restaurant, and the owners, the stress of the job started taking its toll. Salary is a double edged sword in any industry, but especially in food service. If you know you know. I was doing my best to soldier on but I got to a point where enough was enough. I had come into some money and decided to take some time off. I left on good terms and will never forget the lessons I learned and the people I met.

- Intermission -

I had just turned 30. I had spent the last two years running myself ragged as the kitchen manager of a bustling Seattle restaurant. I put my blood, sweat and tears into that place. It was time for a break. I invested most of the money I inherited, and then set enough aside to to take some time to live life again. I rested. I remembered how to not be anxious every waking moment. Olivia and I went on a cross country road trip to see the national parks and visit my home town in Texas. I proposed. She said yes! It was so incredibly cathartic and needed. I am still grateful I had the opportunity to take the time I needed to reset.

Later that year it was time to go back to work. I ended up back at the little place in the burbs where I started my journey. I was happy to take the lessons I learned and come back as kitchen manager. It was just what I needed to ease back into the industry. The perfect place to put into practice my new found appreciation for work life balance. Meant to be a temporary step, as soon as I did all I was able to do to help them right the ship, it was time to move on. My father in law put me in touch with the chef he worked with and he brought me on board. It was a significant step up in the culinary scene, and I’ve been tapped to take over for the sous chef.

- And Now For Something Completely Different -

Now here I am. 32 years old. That mythical age I held in random esteem when I was a kid. Looking back on my life and thinking about what I’ve learned along the way. Even though I still struggle with my less savory qualities - I fear change and the unknown. I’m scared of success. I suffer from impostor syndrome and doubt my own strengths. I avoid confrontation. - I’m working on it. For the most part I love who I am. I’m proud of the person I’ve become. But it took a time. And work. I made peace with childhood traumas. I fought through pain, did some serious introspection and soul-searching, and came out the other side a better person for it. I looked inside myself to find the strength to overcome my demons. I think it’s inside all of us. Some people attribute it to a higher power. Some people find peace and comfort in the company of others. Whatever it takes, we’re all capable of making changes for the better.

If there is one thing life has taught me it’s that we are never done learning. We never stop growing. We never “figure it out”. We’re constantly being tested by the realities of life and doing our best to rise to the occasion. At 32 I may be an adult by most standards, but I’m still sorting out what that even means, what my purpose in life is, and waking up every day just trying to be the best me I can be. That’s life. And I’m grateful for the safety and security that gives me the luxury of musing on such ephemeral topics. I’m grateful for every day I wake up and get another whack at this crazy thing called living. I’m grateful I got to exist at all. I don’t spend much time these days waxing on the countless possibilities of the what’s and why’s of reality. At the end of day it’s a mute point. My consciousness still inhabits this physical body in this physical realm, and if I wanna keep seeing how far I can take it I have to play by its rules. Even if I occasionally see how far I can bend them. Whatever comes next, whatever is beyond the great void, my reality exists in the here and now. I’ve come to terms (for the most part;) with my mortality and the existential dread. It reminds me that its up to myself to find purpose in life. So I try to live in the present, to work on my shortcomings, make the best of every day, and treat others how I would want to be treated.

As I stare down the barrel of the “best years” of my life, I am hopeful and optimistic about the future. If not for the world at large (jury’s still out on that one) than at least for my ability to navigate it and make the best of it for myself and others. I'm engaged to my best friend, I'm in a kick ass band making music with some of my oldest friends, and I've got a job that I'm incredibly excited about. Lao Tzu said, “If you are depressed you are living in the past. If you are anxious you are living in the future.” Wise words. But at the same time I think its important to remember where we came from and retain the lessons we’ve learned along the way. As well as looking to the future so that we may live with purpose. I think living is a delicate balance of keeping in mind all that was, all that is, and all that may be. And we’re all just doing our best to find the balance. Do whatever makes you happy as long as it doesn’t hurt others. Try to leave the world a better place for those that come after. Be nice and work hard. Love yourself so that you can love others. Namaste!

- Alek

TL;DR - I just turned 32. Life is crazy. Be nice and work hard. Love yourself and love others. Do your best. Namaste!

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erisgregory · 5 years

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You Were In The Darkness Too, Ch. 2

cross posted to AO3

or start with chapter one

Rating: Teen Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply Category: M/M Fandom: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019) Relationship: Michael Guerin/Alex Manes Characters: Alex Manes, Maria DeLuca, Michael Guerin, Various Manes Family Members Additional Tags: Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Family Reunions,

Homophobia

Summary: Alex has to go to his family reunion, but between his father and all the well wishing matchmakers, Alex really needs a date. A boyfriend, to be exact. So he asks Michael, which is either the best idea in the world, or the worst.

The drive from Roswell, New Mexico to Wichita Falls, Texas was almost six hours, so they would arrive at the reunion at around one if they stayed on course. And Alex definitely panned to stay on course. The cooler could tide them over till lunch which they would eat when they got there. He hadn’t been to his aunt’s house in years, but he had to admit there were a few people he was looking forward to seeing.

Michael was quiet in the beginning as if he weren’t very talkative first thing in the morning. He didn’t say a thing when Alex turned on the radio and found a Fall Out Boy song to listen to. He just looked out the window for the first thirty minutes or so sipping the coffee that Alex had brought him. By the time they came to Lea County Michael was sitting up straight in his seat and looking a good deal more alive.

“Not really the morning type are you?” Alex asked him.

“I know how to get up early, but I’m not crazy about it. Even after years of working on the ranch.” Michael admitted.

That made sense to Alex. He hadn’t always been a morning person, but the Air Force had changed that. Now he rose with the dawn whether or not he had an alarm set. It just became a part of who he was, like making his bed first thing in the morning and keeping his boots polished. He’d thought about relaxing some of his regimen, but then it hadn’t felt right, so he just kept it up.

He was trying to picture what Michael might have done on the ranch and he couldn’t quite see it in his head. Not without more information. “What did you do, when you worked on the ranch, if you don’t mind my asking?”

“I don’t mind.” Michael told him. “I was a ranch hand so it really depended on what time of year it was. Odd jobs here and there mostly. Probably what you’d imagine. Working with the horses and cattle. Keeping the ranch running. Fixing things that were broken. The usual.”

Alex could picture it now. Michael really was a cowboy. The real deal, too. A part of Alex wished he could have seen Michael at work. On a horse, his cowboy hat pulled low to keep the setting sun from his eyes.

“You’re picturing some movie scene cowboy shit right now, aren’t you?” Michael asked, breaking him from his train of thoughts and completely catching on to what he’d been imagining.

“Maybe.” Alex said, a smile twisting at his mouth.

“It’s not glamorous, by any means.” Michael said. “But I liked the work. Kept my hands busy.”

“Do you miss it?” Alex asked softly.

“Nah.” Michael said. “It’s nice to set my own schedule for a change. Choose which jobs to take and which to pass on.”

“I see.” Alex said. He wouldn’t know about choosing jobs or setting his own schedule, he was still pulling desk duty for the Air Force and it looked like that might be his lot in life, at least for now.

The fell quiet again for a while, until Michael finally spoke up about the music. “I’ve been enjoying this walk down memory lane, but I don’t think I can take any more emo alternative shit right now.”

“Is that so.” Alex laughed shocked by Michael’s tone of voice.

“Yeah, we need to expand your horizons a little bit.” Michael told him.

“And just what do you have in mind?” Alex asked, curious.

“Spotify.” He said, holding up his phone. “Where’s the adapter go?

“Did you make a playlist for the drive?” Alex guessed.

“Of course.” Michael shrugged.

Alex laughed. “Okay, it goes here.” And he pointed low on the dash where the adapter plugged in. Then he switched the from am/fm to auxiliary.

Michael plugged in his phone and reached to turn the volume up, causing Alex to laugh again.

“This better be good.” Alex warned.

Michael shot him a grin before hitting play on his phone. The first song was clearly country, Michael said it was Eric Church, but then he promised the playlist wasn’t all country so Alex stuck with it. It was actually really good, had a great beat to drive to.

The playlist lasted them all the way to the New Mexico/Texas border. They listened to Rage Against the Machine, Matt Nathanson, Little Big Town, The Sex Pistols, and Muse. At the border Michael pulled up George Strait and together they sang Amarillo By Morning, despite the fact that they were heading to Wichita Falls. It was hilarious, Alex couldn’t even recall how he would have learned the song. Probably his mom.

They got out a rest stop to stretch and to switch places. The air was warm, but the breeze was fresh and cool enough that it wasn’t uncomfortable. Alex pulled out the cooler and they sat at one of the drab little picnic tables eating grapes and cheese and drinking cold water. It was then that Alex realized he’d forgotten the hard part that was coming up. He’d been so distracted by the good music and Michael’s company that he’d stopped thinking about having to see his family.

Granted there were a few people he’d be happy to see, but it was a chore more than anything else. Even with Michael there as a buffer, and wow, thinking about that made him think that maybe they needed to talk about what being together might look like. What it would look like and also what boundaries they wanted to have. They definitely needed to talk boundaries.

“What’s got you thinking so hard over there?” Michael asked.

Alex offered him a tight smile. “While we’re here, I thought we should talk about what being boyfriends will need to look like and maybe set some boundaries.”

“Well, what do you think it should look like?” Michael wanted to know.

“I’m not sure. Things like holding hands or offering to help each other, get things for each other.” Alex began.

“What about kissing? Boyfriends kiss.” Michael pointed out.

Alex had to think about that. “Not on the mouth.” He said eventually.

Michael raised his eyebrows at that. “Okay.” He said. “This is your dog and pony show.”

Alex huffed a laugh. It certainly was, he thought.

“Anything else?” Michael asked him.

“I think terms of endearment are okay, but nothing gross like baby or sugar. I can’t picture you calling me anything but Alex, but if you have to try to make it believable.” Alex told him.

“Fair enough. Sweetheart.” He teased. Alex just rolled his eyes.

“What about you, do you have any limits we should add?” Alex asked.

“No, I think we’ve pretty much covered everything. Except what if you need to leave or can’t take any more of someone’s company. Should we have a code word?” Michael asked him.

“I don’t know, probably. You’re just as likely to need to leave as I am.” Alex said.

“Okay, then what’s our word? Something we wouldn’t normally say.” Michael said.

“Okay, how about Star Wars?” Alex asked.

“You are such a nerd. Are you sure you’re not going to be talking about Star Wars at some point this afternoon?” Michael shook his head at Alex.

“Fine, you pick a word.” Alex told him. He downed the rest of his water bottle and then narrowed his eyes at Michael wondering just what he was going to come up with.

“Alright.” Michael said, wiping his hands on his jeans. “How about, daisy? It’s simple and neither of us are likely to bring it up in casual conversation.”

“Daisy? Okay. Daisy it is.” Alex agreed with a laugh.

They finished their snack and headed back to the car where Alex passed over his keys. “This is my baby.” He said. “Go easy on her.”

“Don’t you worry.” Michael said with a laugh.

They switched back to Alex’s music for some Green Day and Panic! At The Disco, there was some Better Than Ezra and The Eagles, which they both agreed on.

Sometimes they sang along and sometimes they were quiet. It was a companionable silence though, one that gave Alex time to think. The road continued to stretch on ahead of them, though they were more than halfway there when Alex said, “We should get our story straight.”

Michael turned the radio down. “Like how we met, started dating? That sort of thing?”

“Yes.” Alex said, worried now for the first time about how they were going to pull this off.

“Okay, that’s no big deal, we just tell the truth. Your dad’s going to be there, right? He’s gonna know the truth for the most part, so we stick to that and maybe even mention our on again off again tendencies.” Michael suggested.

“Okay, yeah, okay.” Alex said.

“Hey, listen, we’ve got this, you don’t have to worry.” Michael told him. “Don’t go getting your panties in a twist over nothing.”

“My panties are fine. I’m just concerned that we come across as believable. Even to my father. He’ll be on the lookout for anything out of the ordinary.” Alex explained.

“We will, we just have to act like we’re used to being out together. You need to get in the right headspace for that.” Michael told him.

“Me? Why not both of us?” Alex wanted to know.

“Because I never had a problem being in public with you, but you--” Michael tried to explain but Alex cut him off.

“Got it. Yeah.”

“I don’t mean to piss you off, I just want you to think about it. This isn’t just Isobel, this is your whole family. And I’m fine with that, but are you sure you are? We don’t have to go through with this, you can drop me off somewhere and pick me up after.” Michael offered.

“I am. I have to be.” Alex said.

Michael sighed but reached to turn the music up again. “Okay, just checking.” He said softly.

They arrived at his Aunt Brenda’s house at 1:20 pm and Alex was officially nervous. He turned off the car and took a deep breath, turning to Michael. “Ready?” He asked.

“Ready.” Michael told him.

Together they walked into the house hand in hand in silent agreement, and headed for the backyard, following the sounds of children laughing and general gaity that Alex just wasn’t feeling. Michael gave his hand a quick squeeze as they walked back out into the sunshine, and that was the only thing that could have made Alex feel better just then.

#malex #malex fics #eris writes fics

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