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1989dreamer · 5 years

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Chapter 19 of Looking for a Place to Call Home

Sorry, no energy to do edits, so still un-edited. I will try to go over it when I can.

Thanks for reading.

On AO3

~ * ~

The room Derek is supposed to stay in still smells of vomit. Now he’s also supposed to share it with Isaac because Isaac’s house is a crime scene, because Isaac’s dad is dead.

“Are you sad?” Derek asks Isaac. He shrugs.

“I miss the way my dad used to be, but it was so long ago that I think I don’t really recall how he used to be.”

“How did he used to be?” Derek has a giant bag of popcorn Boyd bought him on the way back from the hospital when Erica reminded them that Derek was supposed to be putting on weight. He offers some to Isaac, but he declines.

“When I was really little, my mom and dad would take my brother and me on day trips. We went to fairs and parks. We did a lot of cool things. And then my mom got sick and my dad got mean.”

“Why did you still live with him?” Derek asks, thinking of the one uncle who had nearly beat his wife to death. His mother had stopped it even though it was her own brother—not his uncle Peter. Wasn’t there someone for Isaac?

Isaac shrugs again. “Every time I had the finances to move out, my dad would take them. I could have a jar under my bed or a savings account. My dad always took it.”

“Why did you move in with Erica and Boyd?”

“They were going through their foster parent training and trying to get Erica’s epilepsy under control. They didn’t have resources to help me.” Isaac leans back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling with a blank expression. “They still don’t really. I mean, Erica’s in a trial for her meds but there’s still a copay on that. At least they’re done with the classes. But they still run the only shelter in the city limits.”

“What happens to you now?”

“I don’t know. Stiles promised to help me find my mom’s will, if it existed. I could get the house and the money from my dad’s accounts.” Isaac sits up. “If that happens, then I’m going to pay Boyd and Erica back. They could have the house—it’s so much larger than this one—and most of the money if I get it. They can do so much good with it.”

“Would Stiles help us too?” Derek asks. “Our family had money. The hunters might have taken it though.”

“I’m sure he would. Do you want me to ask him?”

“Please.”

Erica knocks on the door. “Sheriff Stilinski is coming over in a few minutes.” She pins Derek with an assessing look. “He wants to talk to you and your sisters, Derek.”

“What about?” Isaac asks.

Erica shrugs. “He didn’t say. Come on, both of you. We’re having an early supper today.”

On cue, Derek’s stomach gurgled. He’s already put on five pounds since coming back to California. He’s also been eating almost constantly for the past few hours. His healing is working much better today, and he hasn’t had any stomachaches so far. It’s a great improvement over yesterday.

John joins them just as Erica sets a plate heaped with mashed potatoes and gravy in front of Derek. He has a dark blue quilted bag slung over one shoulder.

“Perfect timing!” he declares as he shoves the bag at Boyd and presses a quick kiss to Erica’s cheek. Boyd and Isaac also get kisses.

So do, surprisingly, Laura, Cora, and Derek.

John sinks onto a hastily produced chair between Cora and Laura, groaning as his weight shifts off his feet. A plate is placed before him. “Go ahead,” he tells Boyd. “Open the bag.”

Boyd unzips the bag, and Derek freezes, mouth watering almost instantly. Steaks. John brought steaks. Perfectly cooked, still hot steaks.

Erica laughs at the hopeful expressions on their faces, wiping Cora’s chin with a napkin. She hands one to Derek. “You’re drooling, hon.”

Boyd works his way around the table, thumping two big steaks on top of Derek’s potatoes. His sisters each get three while the humans take one apiece, but Derek doesn’t care. He has plenty of food now. No one is being deprived.

He waits for Boyd to sit down again, but Boyd is busy pouring milk and juice. Erica seems just as un-inclined to eat too, busy making small talk with John.

Derek tugs her sleeve. “Can I eat now?” he asks. She nods, turning back to John.

Derek focuses on cleaning his plate, just as happy to pick up the steaks and tear them apart with his hands as he is that Isaac refills his potatoes when he pauses in chewing meat to lick his plate.

Once everyone has finished their first servings, the werewolves already on seconds and thirds, John leans back in his chair and folds his hands over his stomach.

“I have a proposal,” he announces. “I’d like to adopt you.”

Cora drops her fork. “Why?” she demands before Laura can shush her.

“Well,” John says, scratching the back of his head while he chooses his words, “my wife and I always planned to have more children, but it never worked out. I still want to have children again. I want to be useful again.”

“Would we have to call you dad?” Cora asks, still eying John with distrust.

“No. You would call me whatever you’re comfortable with.”

“What about Laura? She’s too old to be adopted.”

John’s face turns sad even as he smiles fondly at Cora. “You are never too old to find family,” he says. “My wife was adopted when she was twenty-five. We’d been married three years at that point.”

Laura reaches across John to clap a hand over Cora’s mouth. “What about Peter? What happens with him?”

“The investigation is on-going, and I’m definitely not involved, but if Peter manages to not be sent to trial for murder, then I suppose you’d be given the choice to live with him. If he beats the murder rap.”

“Does the Sheriff’s Department know about werewolves?” Derek asks. He thinks they don’t. Stiles hadn’t.

“Collectively? No,” John confirms. “Individually, possibly. No one there now was there when I was. Lahey emptied the ranks and filled them with people he trusted. I’m not sure how Parrish and Stiles managed to be hired.”

Derek scrapes a few more bites of potato and gravy into the center of his plate. He speaks without looking up. “If the people killed are determined not to have been killed by Peter, will he go free?”

John sighs. “Peter admitted, in front of witnesses, that he killed Sheriff Lahey. If those witnesses—” he looks to Erica with a severe frown –“choose to come forward, then it’s very likely that he’ll at least go to trial. No court worth anything will place children with a suspected murderer.”

“Your son is just as much a witness as I am,” Erica snaps. “And he has an obligation to uphold the law. I’d look at him first if any witnesses come forward.”

“John,” Boyd says, “I know you mean well, but you’re still a stranger. Get to know them better before you try adopting them. Let them become accustomed to you first.”

John blinks. “Yes, you’re right,” he finally says after a long pause. “Is there anything I can do right now that would be helpful?”

“You can help me study for my J.E.D.,” Laura suggests.

“Your jed?” Erica asks. “Do you mean your G.E.D.?”

Laura shrugs. “What’s the difference?”

“G.E.D. stands for general education development,” John explains. “I’d be delighted to help you study for it.”

“Can you help us too?” Cora takes John’s second steak, daring him to reclaim it.

“Yes, I can, Cora.” John smiles. “I look forward to it.”

Boyd collects everyone’s plates, setting them in the sink to be washed later. “Is everyone done eating now?” he asks.

Derek is full so he doesn’t ask for more food, but both Cora and Laura accept fourth and fifth helpings.

Erica touches John’s shoulder while Boyd sets out pie and ice cream. “We might need help too.” She looks at Laura and then jerks her head back.

Laura’s annoyance tickles Derek’s nose. Her eyes glow, on the edge of red. “When Cora and I were taken,” she spits, stabbing at her pie, “I was raped damn near every day. Most of the time, I lost whatever baby was conceived. All but one of them. She’s still in New York with the hunters.”

John sits in stunned silence, tears in his eyes.

“We don’t have the resources to go out there and find her,” Erica explains.

“Stop,” John says, putting his hand over Laura’s, squeezing briefly and then pulling back. “Of course I’ll help. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you—any of you.”

Quietly, Laura says, “Thank you.” Then she stands up and marches outside to sit on the porch.

~ * ~

Sonya holds up one finger, on the phone with someone. Stiles waits patiently. Beacon Hills is small but busy. He can understand people calling the courthouse with their inane questions. Finally, though, Sonya is able to hang up.

“What can I help you with today, Deputy?”

Sonya is his dad’s age. It’s weird to have her address him by his title. Then again, Stiles still thinks it’s strange to go into establishments even without his uniform and immediately be called “Sir.” Some days he feels like an imposter in his skin, and other days he revels in the thrill it gives him to be respected.

“I need to see about getting a record.”

“A record of what?”

“A will.”

“Whose will?”

Stiles checks his notes. “Camilla Lahey née Rosen.” He checks them again. “Can you see if her husband, Michael Lahey, had a will too?”

“Are you making the inquiry or are you doing it on someone else’s behalf?”

“I’m making it on behalf of their son, Isaac Lahey.”

“Give me a moment,” Sonya says, typing on her computer.

Stiles drums his fingers on the counter in front of him, studying the clutter accumulated around Sonya. He’s trying to memorize the pattern of the mandala picture taped to the front of her desk when he realizes that she’s been trying to get his attention.

“Sorry.” The apology is arbitrary. Sonya only cares because he’s wasting the precious time she has.

“I found the wills. They’re on the printer, if you’ll follow me.”

She leads him down a long hallway past a few closed offices, signs denoting that the occupants will be back in a month.

Thanksgiving, Stiles thinks. Poor Sonya.

Sonya stops at a behemoth of a machine, plucking the still-warm pages from it as if it will bite her. She efficiently taps the edges together and then sticks them into another part of the machine for it to staple them.

She pauses before she hands them to him. “Are you sure you’re supposed to collect these?”

“Listen, Michael Lahey systemically abused his son in order to control him. I need these wills for Isaac’s sake. I’m not going to look at or read them-put them in a sealed envelope for all I care. These are Isaac’s, but with the investigation going on, it looks suspicious if he asks for them himself. I’m just the middle man.”

Sonya still looks conflicted but she lets the papers go, although she does follow Stiles’ advice and stick them into a Manila envelope, taping over the flap and initialing it.

The relief on her face is evident when Stiles, without checking the durability of the seal, tucks the envelope into a briefcase he brought for this purpose. He thanks her and heads back to his vehicle.

His radio crackles right as he turns the key in the ignition.

“Unit 5, what’s your 20?”

“This is Unit 5. I’m out by the south side of courthouse. What’s going on?”

“We have reports of a 10-79 out in the preserve. Called in by a couple of hikers.”

“Aw shit,” Stiles groans. To Marie he says, “I’m on my way. Anyone else responding?”

“Just you for now, Stiles. Be careful. Whatever caused it could still be there.”

Stiles doesn’t think so. He thinks whatever killed the dead body in the preserve is cooling its heels in the lockup.

He thinks that this is Alan Deaton and that Peter got his revenge.

The whole drive into the preserve, Stiles thinks of the Hales. Of Laura battle weary and still fighting. Of meek Cora who seems afraid to draw attention to herself. Of Derek, tiny, underweight, scrappy. If he were in Peter’s shoes and knew who’d killed his family and hurt those kids, Stiles knows he would do the same things as Peter. Maybe worse. He thinks there wouldn’t have been enough pieces left to find.

Stiles finds the hikers first. A young couple several grades below him at school. Twenty-seven to his thirty-two.

“It’s just up ahead,” Jason Moellers says.

Trish Jenkins nods, adding, “It’s like a wild animal got a hold of it.”

Trish works with tigers at a zoo nearby. Stiles asks her, “Did you recognize the marks it made?”

“No. I mean, maybe?” She sighs. “It was like if a bear and a mountain lion merged to maul.”

Stiles points down the trail toward his car. “There will be other deputies coming. I want you to head back to the start of the trail. Thank you for your cooperation.” He waits until they’re out of sight before he heads deeper into the brush. He finds the body impaled on a low-hanging branch.

It’s not Deaton.

White male, about the same age as Sheriff Lahey, late fifties, early sixties, tall, stocky. Throat ripped out and chest flayed open. Clothing torn to shreds, leaves and debris lining the more superficial wounds like he was chased out here.

Stiles backs away, feeling queasy. He’s positive now that Peter Hale did this. He needs to find out this man’s connection to the Hale fire.

“Who are you?” he asks rhetorically as he grabs his radio. “What did you do?”

~ * ~

MP, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19

#Teen Wolf Fanfiction #Derek Hale #Stiles Stilinski #My Story/My Writing #LfaPtCH

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keiths-stupid-mullet · 7 years

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Okay, serious talking now. What would be the worst point in each paladin to attack. We know about Lance's insecurities, but what else? What about the others? I want to read your opinion because you do awsome meta and character analysis.

???????? Wow, thank you ;A; And I’m not sure if I can answer this well for all paladins but I’ll try^^ [tl;dr at the end because this post has gotten really long]

Let’s start with Lance. Lance honestly has many points to attack, which is probably why this fandom is so focused on langst. It’s easy to create content for that because we have so much to work with:

1. his insecurities about his role on the team and in general

I already wrote a lot about it here (and also here a little), desperately trying to figure out how strong these insecurities are but there is no doubt that they exist^^

2. homesickness

Lance is homesick. Really homesick. He’s homesick to the point that he would leave a party to hang out alone and get lost in his memories:

He is also the one that references his life on Earth the most often. “I missed 14 days for a stomachache in 3rd grade that I never really had”, “That’s the tagline of 6 of my favorite movies” - those are little things, not very important in the overall picture but they prove that he thinks back to his past.

3. fear of death/unnatural things that are dangerous

Lance isn’t afraid of aliens, that’s not what I mean with it - I’m talking about the episode Crystal Venom where the castle was trying to kill him. Here is an analysis on how deeply that episode really disturbed him. As for his fear of dying - he is the one that has been confronted with death the most of all the paladins (excluding Shiro - but Shiro has lost/repressed lots of his traumatic memories). Here’s proof:

S1E1. He thought Hunk had died in the explosion when they were trying to retrieve the yellow lion. S1E4. The explosion nearly killed him - “you would have died if Hunk and Coran hadn’t gotten a new crystal” (Pidge, S1E6). S1E9. He almost got sucked out of an airlock. S2E2. The snake monster thingy got free of the stone and Lance was in the direct line of fire.

He was the one screaming “we’re gonna die, we’re gonna die!!” in S2E5 when they had to hold the lenses for the wormhole maker. Lance is scared of death not despite but because he knows it the best of all of them. He almost died multiple times and he saw his friends almost dying multiple times (the Hunk thingy I included above, when he saved Coran from the explosion, when he thought he had to save Coran in “Crystal Venom”, when Pidge in the cube episode got shot down and didn’t reply to them). Look at his reaction vs the reaction of the other paladins when they thought Allura had died:

They are all shocked and disbelieving, meanwhile Lance:

He’s neither shocked nor disbelieving, he’s just hurt. One of his deepest fears became reality and there is nothing he could do about it.

Next, Keith. He has two major points that you could attack:

1. his Galran heritage/being unsure of who he is

Keith is a character who has learned how to survive on his own through knowing exactly who he is and what he is all about. But when there’s suddenly evidence that shows that he doesn’t actually know who he is, he’s forced to question everything - he tore himself apart over it in season 2, to the point where he got awful nightmares about it:

(the first screenshot isn’t s2 but that’s where it all really began)

Keith was so shaken up that he was ready to leave the team. He felt lost and felt like he didn’t really know who he was anymore - that’s why he was so happy at the end of the Cube episode, S2E4. “We are all connected”. Even if he is different, he is still connected to who he was before, he can still be him. That’s why it hurt me when the Hunk made a joke out of it and the team laughed:

And then there’s Keith:

This was important to him, he had just found a little bit of security again, but this pretty much tore it down again. Keith tries but he doesn’t always understand jokes or hand signs, so what if this has been really obvious to everyone before? If this is nothing new and everyone knew the whole time but still hated the Galra, does it even make a difference anymore?

The Blade of Marmora episode was where he finally found himself again. He awakened the blade with these words: “I know who I am.” And that is true, he acted much more like himself after that again, but him being Galra is still a sensitive topic:

Jokes about that are not appreciated. He has shown that he is okay with joking about things that are important to him when he used the Bonding Moment™ to tease Lance but this is not okay. To a degree, he is still uncomfortable with this part of himself.

2. his abandonment issues

They go deep. Really deep. They probably originated from his dad leaving him and consequently having to grow up without a family, but they bled over to other aspects of his life - namely: friendship.

He immediately thought that Shiro didn’t trust him anymore when he didn’t back him up before the trial. He also readily believed that Shiro would leave him over a “selfish” decision during the trial. And that’s Shiro. Shiro, who would actually fight the entire BoM on his own to keep him safe:

Keith values his friends and trust a lot and he has shown to be very protective of them. And yet there is something in his brain that tells him that they don’t feel the same for him. He was so surprised when Allura apologized to him and even hugged him that he couldn’t even react for a moment.

Every single time a team member casually reminds him that he’s part of the team he gets super happy as if this is something he needs constant confirmation on:

It’s irrational but he has been on his own for so long that he can’t even comprehend that people would actually want him at their side.

Moving on to Shiro. Shiro has one rather obvious thing he’s struggling with and one thing that is a little less obvious:

1. his self image

This is the obvious one. When Keith (and the rest) freed him from the Garrison, he had lost a lot of memories. When he was still conscious he tried to warn them about the Galra and Voltron, but when he woke up again he didn’t know any more than the other paladins. The real conflict began as soon as the aliens reminded him of what he had done, despite him not remembering it:

Look at his face in the last pic. Shiro has no idea what this arm is and what it can do. What it has maybe already done? When the same aliens call him “bloodthirsty” and “champion” again in episode 3, his face says it all:

“no way, this can’t be true… right? right?”

Shiro has done unspeakable things in an effort to survive. For a moment there he wasn’t sure if he really hadn’t attacked a teammate, a friend - in the end he hadn’t, of course, but the damage had already been done. He had been forced to consider if he really would never, under any circumstance, hurt a friend. Maybe the Galra had had enough control over him to force him to do that, he simply doesn’t know.

When Sendak attacked these insecurities it affected him deeply. And the same thing happened with Haggar:

Shiro is scared of who can be or might become - be it from getting controlled by the Galra or from having his “other self” (that doesn’t really exist; it’s all just in his mind) coming to light. That leads us to the second point-

2. not being in control

Shiro isn’t a control freak by any means. He accepts other people’s opinions and had no problem with allowing Allura to come with them on the mission in S1E10. He also let Keith participate in the trials of Marmora on his wish and only intervened when it got to mind manipulation, something that’s extra scary for him because of his experiences. But he panicked when the Black lion didn’t listen to him-

-he got impatient very fast when he couldn’t control Slav’s tempo/actions-

-and he smashed the button to get rid of Sendak’s body when he couldn’t handle his own thoughts anymore:

He’s on the floor, small and defeated. It was a desperate attempt at regaining some semblance of control and it shows in how long it takes him to come back to himself. He dislikes having his team members witness him losing his usual cool, in whatever way it might be - and the team is so used to him always being in control that they are positively shocked when he shows the contrary:

Now Pidge. I struggled a lot with her, for some reason. I could only think of 2 weak points that might be worth exploiting:

1. not getting her family back

The one thing we’ve repeatedly seen her struggling with is not getting her family back. Her family is one of her top priorities - it doesn’t matter if they are on a different mission, Pidge will always be on the lookout for them:

Pidge illegally broke into the Garrison and was ready to leave the team to find them again. She believed the aliens when they said that Shiro hurt Matt and hated him for it, even if she was still able to form Voltron with the team. When she found out that Shiro had actually tried to protect Matt, she cried and hugged him. She would do almost anything to get them back safely, which logically means that the contrary would be one of her biggest fears.

2. her friends dying/losing even more people

She lost Rover and immediately after that Sendak tortured Shiro for her to hear. She devised a plan to get to him and didn’t waste a second acting it out. She was extremely happy when she found Shiro and Keith again in season 2; she was shocked and had tears in her eyes when she thought Allura died. In s2e5 she was also the only one that reacted to Lance’s words when he screamed “we’re gonna die, we’re gonna die!”:

She told him to “hang in there, Lance”. It shows that she really understands his fear of death and shares it, even, to a degree - at least that’s what her face says :P

Hunk’s turn. He has a lot of things that would be possible points to attack:

1. things that cause distress/anxiety/fear

I’m just gonna… list a few here because there are a lot. At the beginning of the series flying was one of these things. Fighting was another one. Unknown locations (like the castle of lions at the beginning) was also one. Not really understanding what is going on (when Lance woke him up from his hypnosis), plans with a good chance of failure, overthinking and always assuming the worst.

2. getting into trouble with authority figures

Unlike Pidge or Lance, he just accepted what Iverson threw at him and didn’t try to stop Pidge from making the situation worse. When they were trying to sneak out, he repeatedly told Lance that it was a bad idea and that they should just go back.

Unlike some of the fears I have listed above, this fear doesn’t disappear over the course of season 2:

He didn’t protest when Sal forced him to work in his restaurant. He ran away and was absolutely panicked that he was followed by the police. Not that he has a lot of respect for Iverson or Varkon the mall Cop, but he really doesn’t want to get into trouble with them.

3. getting betrayed

The show hasn’t really explicitly told us much about it, so take this with a grain of salt^^‘

In the episode Crystal Venom he got attacked by food. When Lance confronted him about how they were just “floating around” while he almost died, Hunk replied without hesitation: “Well I got attacked by food and that’s the scariest thing I can imagine. If we can’t trust food, who can we trust?!” For Hunk, food has always been a comfort - he absolutely didn’t want to sneak out of the Garrison but sneaking into the kitchen was fine because food would calm him down. When Lance got abducted by mermaids, he wanted to deny the food the queen offered him, but he unconsciously started eating as means to comfort himself.

There are so many things that scare him or make him anxious and so few things he can really depend on. Food is one thing, his team is the other. So when Keith suggested not saving Allura, he felt really shaken up over it:

“What if it was one of us, what if it was me? You wouldn’t just leave me, would you?” [a pause where Keith doesn’t say anything.] “Would you?” Hunk repeated that question, he was actually genuinely looking for confirmation.

So, tl;dr:

Lance’s weak points:

his insecurities

homesickness

fear of death/unnatural things that are dangerous

Keith’s weak points:

his Galran heritage/being unsure of who he is

abandonment issues

Shiro’s weak points:

his self image

not being in control

Pidge’s weak points:

not getting her family back

her friends dying/losing even more people

Hunk’s weak points:

things that cause anxiety/distress/fear

getting into trouble with authority figures

getting betrayed

#a² (answered ask)#anon #voltron #lance #keith #takashi shirogane #pidge gunderson #hunk #BRUH THIS GOT WAY TOO LONG #but here anon i hope this is what you wanted #i don't think as much about pidge/shiro/hunk as keith and lance #but i'm still kind of secure in my knowledge about shiro #hunk and pidge tho????? uuuuuuuh well :'D #not all that sure don't hold me to that #meta post

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becuzpurple · 7 years

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Hospital - A One-Shot (pt 1 of 2)

I was asked for some Cuddly/Caring Ed and came up with this idea. The bulk of the cuddles and caring will actually come in part 2, though (sorry!).

I wrote a part of this from Ed’s point-of-view for the first time, which was really weird for me since I’m so used-to and comfortable using Kate’s voice. But she was unavailable (you’ll see why soon), so Ed needed to step up!

Enjoy!

Something was definitely not right. I’d had a stomachache since late morning. It was just below and to the left of my belly button at first, and then it traveled right. Eating didn’t help, and I was pretty sure it wasn’t intestinal pain, either. Painkillers did nothing - it actually got worse as the day went on. It was unfamiliar to me - I’d never felt pain quite like it before.

We’d had plans to visit my parents that evening, and celebrate my mom’s birthday. I wasn’t sure if I should cancel or not, or maybe just stay home and let Ed take the kids without me. But I decided to suck it up and go. At about 4 pm we all piled into the car and made the short ride over to my parents’ house.

My mother loves to cook. And even more than that, she loves to feed people. The old adage ‘Food is Love’ is a motto she lives by. Even though it was for her own birthday celebration, she happily spent all day preparing a delectable feast for her loved ones. She said that seeing her family together around the table enjoying both each other’s company and the meal she prepared for us was all she needed.

But not even my mom’s lasagna could fix this. I didn’t feel like I could keep much food down, so I just picked at it, taking a few small bites here and there. The pain was still getting worse.

Ed said I looked pale. He was concerned, as were my parents. My sister-in-law Amy, a nurse, was the first to mention that maybe I should go to the ER. Once I started running to the bathroom vomiting every 10 minutes or so, I reluctantly agreed with her.

I apologized profusely to my mom for ruining her birthday, and she predictably hushed me, assuring me that my health was infinitely more important than a silly party.

Nate and Lucy stayed with my parents while Ed took me to the hospital. We had no idea how long we’d be there, so figured it would be best if they spent the night with them.

Ed had to pull the car over twice on the way to the hospital so I could throw up.

What is this?

Worry was etched all over his face as he drove us through the stop-and-go city traffic. We didn’t talk much during the drive, but he kept his hand on my knee the whole time.

We were in the waiting room for almost an hour before anyone saw me. It was a Saturday night - the busiest time of the week for an emergency room. I visited the bathroom no less than 6 times to vomit while we waited. Nothing was even coming out anymore - it was all just dry heaves. I was in significant pain, I was miserable, and I was baffled. I came back to our seats from one of those bathroom visits, shaking my head and shrugging, feeling discouraged.

“Has this ever happened before?” Ed asked softly, his voice laced with concern.

“No,” I slowly shook my head. “I don’t know what this could be…gallbladder, maybe? Appendix…?” I felt my eyes go wider as I thought of another possibility. I didn’t voice it, though.

Which didn’t matter in the least, since he’d apparently had the same thought.

“Could you be pregnant?”

——————————————————————————————-

I was finally called back to triage, where I was asked a series of the usual questions:

Describe the abdominal pain. When did it begin? It started late this morning - dull, kind of centered, a little to the left. A few hours later it moved right and down and got worse - much more sharp.

Do you have a normal appetite? Not really. I don’t think I can keep anything down.

Any nausea or vomiting? Yes. I’ve been vomiting every 5-15 minutes for the past few hours.

Are you experiencing any vaginal bleeding? No.

When did you begin your last period? Umm, almost a month ago I think? I think I’m due in a few days.

Do you experience any pain with intercourse? No.

Any dizziness? No.

Any pain in your shoulder or back? No.

I also told the nurse that I’d stopped my birth control pills the previous month. It seemed like something worth noting.

She was the only person we’d shared that information with at that point. It was a decision we’d come to together, at the tail-end of what was honestly the most stressful, intense, nerve-racking, heart-wrenching, soul-baring near break-up/fight I’d ever been through. It lasted days, but in the end we were both clear and honest with ourselves and each other about where we wanted our relationship to go. Not that he hadn’t been forthright about that before. It was I who had been fooling myself, and by extension, him. But now it was voiced. It’s real. We are stronger, completely committed, and in it for the long-haul.

We weren’t exactly trying to get pregnant, but we were no longer trying to prevent it, either. It was a huge step, for sure. Given my age and my past miscarriages, we thought we might need to see a reproductive endocrinologist once we officially started ‘trying’. But we weren’t quite there, yet.

I knew that if I was pregnant, then it was very early, and something was probably very wrong. So, at that point I was praying that it was my appendix or gallbladder.

After another 40ish minutes of waiting my name was called again, finally, and we were led back to an examining room. But before we even entered, I was handed a sterile sample cup and redirected to the nearest bathroom.

I did my duty and returned to the small curtained-off area where Ed was waiting. I changed into the hospital gown the nurse had given me, and then she returned to take my vitals, including my temperature.

“Hmm. 98.5…no fever…” She looked a little surprised by this.

We waited an interminable 15 or 20 minutes, during which time I continued to dry-heave. I’d been given a clean, plastic bucket, but nothing was coming out, anyway. I was miserable. Ed was trying to distract me with stories of his own hospital escapades. He’s broken a lot of fingers and toes! Boys…

Finally, the doctor came back with the results. She glanced at me and then at Ed, and if she recognized him she made no outward sign of it.

“Everything was negative. You’re not pregnant so no ectopic pregnancy, you don’t have a UTI, and there are no kidney stones.”

I nodded. “OK…”

“There is definitely something going on. I suspect it’s appendicitis, but I’d like to run a few more tests to be sure. I’m ordering blood work and an MRI. But first I’d like to do a quick physical exam.”

I laid back and tried not to worry too much while the doctor applied pressure to various parts of my abdomen, observed my reactions, and asked me to rate any pain I felt on a scale of 1-10.

My memory of that night is a bit fuzzy, so my awareness of how time passed is not great. But I do remember waiting around a lot for tests and results and room availability and doctors. My blood was drawn right away, but we waited a while for the MRI to be done. Then we waited some more for someone to tell us…anything.

It was after midnight before Dr. Pianga returned.

“I’m confident that you have an angry appendix. Your white blood cell count is high, which indicates that you’re fighting an infection…although you don’t have a fever, which is atypical. The MRI images clearly show that your appendix is inflamed, and I do see what looks like a blockage in your appendiceal lumen, which is the hollow part of the appendix.”

“Does she need to have it out?” Ed asked.

Dr. Pianga nodded. “Yes, I’m afraid it needs to go,” she said, nodding at him, then me.

“OK.”

“I believe you’re a good candidate for a laparoscopic appendectomy. It’s less invasive than the open surgery, and has a shorter recovery period. It’s actually performed as an outpatient surgery, so you won’t even be admitted. You’ll be home by mid-morning.”

——————————————————————————————-

Ed’s POV

While we waited in pre-op, they hooked Kate up to an IV and started some medicines - antibiotics, a pain reliever, something to stop her vomiting, and a sedative. She became very sleepy, but also really hyper and chatty - even more so than usual. She spoke quickly and emphatically.

“I can’t believe I’m having my appendix out? This morning I had a stomachache and now I’m having surgery? That’s crazy. I’ve never even had surgery before.”

“No?”

“Oh, well I had a c-section. I guess that’s surgery, isn’t it? Oh, god I’m so glad it’s not an ectopic pregnancy. I was really worried that’s what it was…”

“Yeah,” I replied softly, nodding.

“I want a baby, Ed. I want to have a baby…babies!”, she said a little too loudly.

“Shhhh, OK. OK, darling.” I smiled down at her, smoothing her hair back away from her face, and then took a quick glance around to see if anyone else could hear our conversation besides Ebony, the nurse who just re-entered our curtained-off ‘room’.

“No, no…your babies, not just any babies…” she seemed to be under the impression that I might have mistakenly thought she wanted some random, general babies.

I was sat down on the edge of her bed, right next to her, and couldn’t help the smile that broke out at hearing those words.

I softly kissed her forehead, and then took her hand in both of mine.

“I want that, too,” I whispered softly.

I hated seeing her in pain, worried, and so vulnerable. This was new territory for me. I’m not very familiar with American hospitals or surgery procedures, and felt quite out of my element. I wasn’t going to let her see that, though. I knew it was a pretty common surgery, but I was worried, all-the-same.

The possibility of an ectopic pregnancy had scared the piss out of me. The idea of losing our baby before even getting to know him or her? No. Just no. And Kate has had more than her share of losses in her life. It would kill a good part of me if that were to happen to us. To her.

The anesthesiologist came back and administered the drugs via her IV to put her under. Kate looked a little nervous, so I whispered sweet and silly and entirely inappropriate things to her to get her to smile, and she was out almost immediately. Ebony was trying to hold back a smirk after everything she’d just overheard, and wasn’t doing a very good job of it. I grinned sheepishly back at her.

“Will she remember any of that?”

“Probably not. But believe me, she means every word she said. That stuff is truth serum.”

——————————————————————————————-

Pt. 2 - Home

As always, likes and reblogs are mucho-appreciated, as is any feedback you might care to offer. :-)

-BP💜

#becausepurple #becuzpurple #untitled 2-part one-shot!#LOL #ed sheeran #ed sheeran fanfic #ed sheeran love story #teddy sheeran #teddy sheeran fanfic #Ed & Kate #Ed & Kate love story #no smut in this one #not sure abt pt 2 yet #haha #Ed's POV #caring/cuddly Ed

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andhaaam · 5 years

Text

The Masked Man (Short Story)

She was standing in front of a mirror, her grey orbs which could make every man drowned on her charms was blankly stared at her outstanding appearance, somehow looking unsatisfied with her own reflection.

Roseanne Anniston... Is what every woman dreamed to be.

The black velvet long dress that hugged her perfectly sculpted body looked really beautiful with the high hemisphere that reached her upper thigh, thin straps that adorn her smooth shoulders, and also the low cut in the front which enough to expose her cleavage that beautified by a stunning black diamonds necklace were looking really claxy, classy but sexy.

Her raven hairs fell on her exposed backs and with a little touch of a small tiara on the top of her crown, she indeed worth to be jealous by the whole room later.

"You look stunning Rosie"

She indeed looked stunning, who can argue that? With her tall figure and her overall appearance, she looked like a princess from a fairy tale story that every girl wished to be. Even her soft makeup couldn't betray her natural beauty that she didn't try to show. Her plump polished lips and her blushed chubby cheeks looked simple yet sophisticated, but she would look even more perfect if she flashed her magnificent smile in addition.

"Robert, you're here. So glad to see you" For the first time, a smile formed on her lips.

"I'm glad to be the first person to see your beauty, young lady"

"Robert, stop. You sound old"

"I am old, Rosie" The man in his fifties with a bald spot on his head offered her his arm to be linked. "You ready for the party?"

Her smile that beautifies her beauty dropped in a split of a second. The thought of the party that awaits her just making her more and more annoyed.

"Does it really necessary? I mean why do I need to attend that? Rob, I don't know almost 90% of them. Please"

"It's your farewell party, Rosie. Of course, you have to be there"

"I've never asked for a party before"

"But Mrs President wants to throw you one, she wants to remember this moment and what could be better than to share the happiness with people that you loved"

"Let's be honest Robert, it's not my party, it's theirs. How can I love them when I don't even know their existence" Her face fell even more knowing that her father will force her to stay at his side for the entire evening. "Besides, it's not the kind of party that I want. You know... Ballgown and classical music aren't really my thing"

"Cheer up, Rosie. Your friends and some of the minister's son will be there. There'll be a lot of young entrepreneurs too, you can find your Mr Right in there"

"I don't want to fling around on dad's 'work relation', they are boring"

"But you still need to to be there. Do it at least for your mom. Come on, it will be fun"

"Fun? Duuuuuh" She rolled her eyes to the word that won't happen in her evening. "You talk like I've never attended a night bowl party before. It's boring, Robert. Bo-Ring"

"But still... Let's go, everyone's waiting for you"

"Can't I have another option?" Roseanne's forehead suddenly scrunched while she held her belly, "I think I have a stomachache"

"It's a lame excuse Roseanne"

Robert reoffered his arm and looking at his expression, she knew she got no other choices but to link her arm on his.

They arrived at the large stairs with a red-carpeted floor. Her eyes uninterestedly looked down at the crowd who were busy with their peers. And taking the advantages of the unaware young lady, Robert made his move to inform Roseanne's arrival to the person who was in charge of the event.

The sound of violins and the other music instruments that filled the room suddenly stalled, she stood tall alone on the edge of the stairs still dozing about her upcoming boring evening when suddenly the spotlight shone her path down to the ballroom where the real party held.

Knowing her fate, she knew she has no choice but to fake a smile for the rest of the night. The first step she took brought the music to be heard again. All eyes were on her, and every step she took could awe all the guest on the ballroom. She doesn't like the attention but her looks make her got what she hates.

Her parents were already waiting for her on the other edge of the stairs. Roseanne could clearly see how her parents' face filled with happiness through a wide smile that spread on their faces.

As Roseanne arrived at the end of the stairs, her mother immediately gave her a kiss on the cheeks before her father dragged her to a small platform in the middle of the room.

She looked around to find a familiar face but she couldn't spot anyone she knows, not even one.

All the guests at the party look gorgeous with their best dresses and their best jewellery that probably could feed all the homeless at their country. Those socialites were talking with a shy manner while Roseanne knew that they just tried to show off while acting humble. Pft, fake.

She was taken aback when she heard a clink of a champagne glass and a fork. And it was her father who asked the crowd's attention.

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen" The president began his speech with a clear proudness marked on his face. "In this beautiful evening, I want to say my gratitude to all of you who willingly spare your precious time for this small farewell party for my only daughter". He took Roseanne's hand before he continued his greeting, "I'm not standing in here as a president that you all know but I'm here as my daughter's father, as Roseanne's father".

"Dad"

"As we all probably know, my daughter will leave us soon to chase her dream at Stanford. And as a father, I can't be more proud and happier for what she achieved".

Jealous, proud, annoyed, didn't really care, happy and any other expressions that the guests showed gave another odd thrilling to the president. He liked that some of them were jealous of him and his family because Roseanne is a type of daughter that anyone could dream of.

"With all our humility, we want to share this happiness with all you who come to this small event. I don't want anything, I just want we wish all the best for my daughter, your daughter and all the young generation in our beloved country. Cheers!"

"Cheers" As Mr President raised his glass, all the guests followed.

Roseanne has to accompany her mother to personally greet a couple of important guests. Even though she was tired to fake a smile, she still behaved enough as to how a ladylike should be.

"Mom, when this party will be done?" She whispered when they were about to greet a minister's wife. She knew if she stayed there, her mother will start to matchmaking her with the minister's son and she won't let that happen. Never!

"Why, sweetheart?"

"I need to go to the ladies room"

"You can leave, sweetheart. William will escort you"

"Ugh, I know Will will never leave me alone"

"Let's go, Miss Roseanne. I will assist you" The handsome bodyguard outstretched his hand as a sign to let her walk first before he would follow her from behind.

She has nowhere and no one to go, she couldn't drink too much either or else she would start a chaos in the party. And after a quite a long wander around the ballroom, she got even more tired than before. The 6 inches red bottom stilettos were killing her feet.

She stopped and turned around to face her dearly bodyguard.

"Will..."

"Yes, Miss?"

"I wanna go to the-"

"The roses garden, I know miss" He took out a very beautiful black lace mask with scattered Swarovski diamonds that adorn the masquerade mask. "As usual Miss?"

"I swear you're the best Will" She happily took the mask and put it on her face.

"I know Miss Roseanne" He shyly scratched the back of his head when his boss praised him. You know, it's always nice when your boss treats you like a human being, moreover as a friend. "I guess I will wait in here? But please if something happens, you have to call me immediately. And promise don't take too long and too far or I'll be in trouble, miss Roseanne"

"I know, I know. It's not my first time sneaking out of the party like this. Don't worry"

She walked through the roses garden by herself, walked deeper until she reached the angel fountain.

It was her sacred place, her go-to place whenever she felt trapped and suffocated.

Roseanne loves the fountain because she thinks it's her cupid, like a real cupid. She believes in it, she believes that she'll find her right one in there. Because the statement angel of the fountain was sculpted as a cupid with his arrow, but instead of a love arrow, the cupid's bow point is a rose. Like like the cupid was ready to aim the beauty of the flower for what Roseanne has been longing for.

The crickets, the soothing gurgling fountain sounds, and faint violin strings were so calming. She enjoyed her peaceful time until a sweet voice interrupted her moment.

"Is it your private place?"

"Kinda"

"Well, I guess I gotta leave then"

Roseanne didn't expect an uninvited guest like him, and he wore a black masquerade mask just like her. And as much as she wanted to be alone, she could feel something inside her heart that triggered her to share the fountain with the man.

"It's okay, just stay"

He's about to take his step but Roseanne wasn't in her right mind. She insanely asked a stranger to stay with her in a quite isolated area like the fountain.

"Can I?"

"Sure" She gave him her hand which thankfully replied by a warm heat from his palm.

He took a seat next to her. For a moment there was no particular conversation between the two of them. Just their breathings that adding the sound of a faint classic musical instrument that could faintly be heard from the ballroom.

The masked man was drowned in his own world.

Roseanne used to get attention but the man beside her was an exception, and she liked it. He didn't spare her a glance that all men she met always give. He didn't intend a conversation when all men she knew were always trying to extend their uninteresting conversation.

And she liked it. She liked how he treated her.

The cold of the evening breeze breezed a little rougher, caused the roses made a little more soothing sound when it rubbed one another.

The masked man looked at his side and found the girl was rubbing her arms. He took off his suit and politely offered it to the shivering lady without any words.

"It's okay"

"I insist. Wear this"

"I'm totally fine, I don't need your jacket tho"

It was like her words never existed. He suddenly encircled his hand around her shoulder then dropped the suit on her.

He was so close, too close to be exact. The scent of masculine yet calming fragrance hit her nostrils when there was only a couple inches distance between the tip of their noses. She didn't even realize she closed her eyes and took a deep breath of his scent to occupy a small spot of her insanity.

"Done"

With the size of his suit compared to her small figure, the suit obviously covered her like she's been wrapped in a blanket. It felt so warm, not only her body but also her heart.

"Thanks"

"Anytime"

A familiar song could be heard from inside the ballroom which makes a small smile escaped from her lips. 'It must be Robert'

Roseanne mumbled to herself knowing the only his father's man she put her trust was setting her favourite song.

"Pardon?"

"Ahh, nothing... It's just my favourite song is being played"

"Smokes get in your eyes? Isn't it a sad song?"

"Yeah, kinda sad but still a good song. By the way, do you know how to dance?"

"Not at all"

"Great, me neither. Want to dance with me?"

"But we can't dance"

"So what? No one will see us"

He wasn't sure about the idea, he indeed wasn't a type of person who likes to sway his body to the rhymes but somehow, her glistening eyes transferred a little excitement that clearly shown on her grey orbs.

"Everything will be fine. I'm not biting" She chimed before she abruptly took his hands and put it on her waist.

There was barely a gap between both of them, probably only an inch that separated their bodies to touched.

But again, Roseanne wasn't herself at the time. Feeling the comfort that radiated from the masked man, she leaned forward and completely erased the gap between their bodies with her head on his chest and she could tell that his heart was beating normally unlike hers.

"Why are you wearing a mask and coming here alone?" He asked her out of the blue. His left hand was still secured on her waist while the other one was intertwined with her delicate fingers.

"The party is boring. And about the mask, it's just so anyone couldn't tell who I am if I'm creating a mess"

"You're afraid that people will look down at your parents? And that's why you're wearing a mask so no one could recognize you?"

"Kinda..." She looked up and found his eyes were staring back at her. "You're wearing a mask too, why?"

"A man in a suit gave me this. He said I have to wear it"

"Ohh, that must Will"

"Probably"

"William is my bodyguard, tho". She broke the seal in between them when she heard his oddly calm respond.

"You don't have to explain anything Miss" He chuckled when he saw a pout on her plump lips. 'cute'.

Roseanne was on her defensive mode with hands clasped on her back and her feet tapping the ground. If she was the first one who asked his hand, the second time was his turn to outstretch his arm to be taken by the girl.

"I just don't want you to get the wrong idea" She took his hand and back to their previous position. "By the way, what's your name?"

"No one"

"Seriously, what's your name? who are you?" She softly hit his chest.

"Why do you want to know?"

"Just curious. Besides, I think we could be best friend"

"You said you wear it so no one could tell who you are, then so am I"

"Fine... Mr no one!!!"

Rosé felt a little bit annoyed with him. Only if he knew who she is, he probably would immediately tell her his name, or even his bank account. Every man is wishing a once in a million chance to get the experience of getting close to her then there he was, being mysterious which oddly make her more attracted to him.

Normal people will never dance with a stranger in a quiet isolated place like where they were but there they were, glued to each other due to the comfort that they got from their pair.

One song changed into two and they were still swaying their bodies to the melodies. Nothing but comfort was what made both of them refused to stop what they were bad at, dancing.

"You have a comfortable embrace" Roseanne shamelessly mumbled those shameful words to the man.

"Do I?"

"Yeah, did your girlfriend never say that?"

"I've never had one"

She felt a little happiness crept on her heart when he said that but she choked in another second because the other thought that followed on her head.

"Your boyfriend, maybe?"

Her lip sored because she bit it way harder than it should be. She kept waiting but he seemed like he was enjoying her being nervous.

"I'm straight"

"Really?" She exclaimed way too excited.

"Yeah"

Roseanne couldn't hide the grin on her face that widely spread, thankfully her face was on his chest so he wouldn't see the happiness on her face.

"How can you haven't had a girlfriend before?"

"Busy. Just like all of us in here"

"Are you a businessman or a minister's son?"

"Does it matter? What if I'm on of the waiters?"

"No, it doesn't matter actually" She moved both her hands to lopped around him so she could feel more secure and comfortable with the warmth that he had. "Whatever your job is, as long as it's a clean and legal work, it doesn't matter for me"

"I didn't expect that replies from you Miss"

"Why?" She looked up and found him smiling.

Heat crept on her body as his fingers made its move into her cheek, he softly caressed it as if he could break her crimson tinted cheek into pieces. The way his touches touched her like a fragile porcelain china doll and the way his dark orbs peeked through the masquerade mask were waking the butterflies that have been slept way too long on her stomach.

They were drowned in each other's feeling that instantly be felt through the company that each of them gave. They were locked in each other until a cough took them back to the ground.

"Miss, Mr Pre--. I mean, your father is looking for you"

The emptiness suddenly filled her already full heart when she knew her time with the mysterious masked man was about to end.

For a moment she didn't let her hands off of him, and just like Roseanne, he seemed to has no intention to let the woman go.

"I'll be there, Will. Wait a sec" Roseanne told Will to go back to his previous spot at the front roses garden. As much as she wanted to stay the rest of the night with him, she knew that her father should be prioritised. Moreover when she will leave him for the next 3 and a half years. "I have to go"

"..."

"Why am I feeling emotional?" She put her chin on his chest, looking up to the man with pouty lips and sad eyes. "I feel like I'm the Cinderella who left her prince charming to face the awful reality again"

His hand left her waist, and carefully caressed her hair down to stop at her nape. "Be careful" With those two simple yet meaningful words, he took a step behind and made a gap between them for the first time.

"Will we meet again?"

"Probably"

Roseanne took off the masked man's suit that been protected her body from the breezy evening, she unwillingly handed it back to the rightful owner. "Thank you"

"For?"

"The jacket"

"That's totally fine"

"And for making my night a little better"

"..."

She felt a bit betrayed when he gave no response in return. Was she the only one who enjoyed their secret sacred moment?

"So, I'll be waiting to meet you again, I hope it will be soon" Her feet made a step forward then she placed her palm on his left cheek. As she gathered her courage to plant a kiss on his cheek once, a blossom tinted hue couldn't be helped but blushed on her chubby cheeks herself.

"See you?"

"See you"

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