#anyway i feel like i look a lot cooler than I did even a year ago

[bruisedboys]

clingy eddie? it’s not an established relationship and you just spent the whole day together when eddie blurts out "spend the night with me"

or or maybe a flirtatious and confident eddie like "i know you want me as much as i want you"

summer lovin’ — eddie munson

hi anon! I went with the second one and got totally invested, and it ended up being way longer than I expected lolzies … anyway tysm for the ask ily <3

summary: eddie munson is a menace to your heart — a pool party at steve’s brings all the feelings to the surface.

fluff, mutual pining, flirty eddie. gn!reader, 2k words

gif by @kwistowee

You’d barely made it up Steve’s driveway before the kids were piling out of the car, shoving each other like a pack of animals to get out first.

“Alright, calm down, you lot.” Every single one of them ignored you, doors slamming and flip-flops hitting the pavement as they all clambered out, chatting loudly. You sighed. “Not even a ‘thanks for the ride, Y/N?’”

Your efforts went unnoticed as they all traipsed up to Steve’s door and disappeared inside. You were left alone with Eddie in the passenger seat, chuckling at your wasted attempts.

“I don’t think they can hear you, Y/N,” he said unhelpfully.

“You’re no better,” you told him, irritated.

Rolling your eyes, you got out of the car without a word. The sun seemed set out to get you today, its heat like fire on your skin. You’d barely made it two steps up the driveway before Eddie was on your heels.

“Sweetheart, don’t be mad,” he drawled, his voice sticky like the sweat clinging to both your bodies. “I’m sorry.”

His hand landed on your elbow and your skin felt hotter than it already was.

You ignored him for the sake of your dignity. If you looked at him right now, he’d be giving you that tantalising look that was quickly becoming your weakness. Bright eyes with the lids lowered, plush lips pushed into a subtle pout. Plus, he was wearing his t-shirt with the sleeves cut off, the one you hated because of how it made him look. You’d be a melting puddle in seconds.

Eddie was your friend. The fact that you’d kiss him if he asked was beyond the point.

“Whatever, Eds,” you said, pushing past him and through the Harrington’s front door.

Eddie was close on your tail as you crossed through the kitchen and to the back ranch-slider, emerging into Steve’s promised pool party. It was in full swing — Tears For Fears was blasting from somewhere and Dustin was already being playfully pushed into the pool by a giggling Max.

“Y/N!” This was Steve, reclined on one of the deck chairs with a Coca Cola can in hand. “Was wondering when you were coming in. None of these shitheads even said hi to me.”

You smiled. Aware of Eddie right behind you, you crossed the deck to Steve, bent at the waist and kissed his freckled cheek.

“Wouldn’t miss it, Steve,” you told him happily. “Even if it’s only us and a bunch of twelve-year-olds.”

“Fourteen!” Lucas and Max yelled in unison, equally annoyed.

You giggled and took the seat next to Steve’s. Meanwhile Eddie was glaring bullets at the both of you. Why did Steve get a kiss on the cheek? My hair is cooler than his, Eddie thought.

Eddie made a noise somewhere between a scoff and a grunt — it went unnoticed by everyone but you. Your head whipped around but he was already walking away from you.

You couldn’t tear your eyes away as Eddie strolled over to the cooler, dug his hand in and pulled a soda can from the ice. His rings were sparkling with condensation as he popped the can open, raised it to his lips and took a sip. His bicep glistened with sweat and you could see the veins on his wrist from here. You watched his Adams Apple bob up and down three times before he dropped his arm with a satisfied sigh.

Much too late, you looked away. Your face was burning. You pretended you didn’t see Eddie walking closer out of the corner of your eye.

His voice met your ears, smooth and velvety. “Did you want some, sweetheart?”

You chanced a look at Eddie, stomach backflipping. Eddie’s smirk widened because you looked so guilty, your eyes like a puppy’s and your cheeks flushed something awful. He was holding his drink out to you, condensation from the can dripping over his fingers.

“No thanks,” you said as nonchalantly as you could.

You shut up after that, afraid if you opened your mouth again you’d confess all your well-hidden secrets. Maybe ‘well-hidden’ wasn’t the right term, not when Eddie was smirking at you like he knew exactly what he was doing.

Eddie shrugged, downed the rest of the Coke in one and strolled to the edge of the pool, sitting down so his legs dangled in the water. You rolled your eyes though he couldn’t see you, falling back into your chair with a sigh.

“Hey, you okay?” Steve was looking at you weird under his sunglasses. “Are you and Munson arguing or something?”

You shook your head too fast and then hoped Steve hadn’t noticed. “No, no. I mean— yes, I’m fine. He’s just … “ You shrugged. “Well, you know us, always on each other’s backs.”

Steve hummed thoughtfully and gave you a look you didn’t quite understand. A moment later both of you were distracted by water sprinkling over your legs and a loud yell from Eddie.

“Oh, come on, Henderson!”

You looked up. Dustin, chest-deep in the pool, was holding an empty bucket and laughing hysterically, while Eddie was soaking wet and fuming. The mass of water had hit him full blast, only catching you and Steve on the legs.

“What was that for, man?” Eddie yelled.

You watched in amusement as Eddie stood up, still yelling profanities at Dustin, his clothes sopping wet. Your amusement quickly turned into horror when Eddie grabbed the bottom of his shirt and yanked it off with one pull. Your position left you with a perfect view of his tattooed back, wet hair falling over his shoulder and back muscles, his skin pale beneath the dark ink that decorated his torso and arms. The butterflies in your stomach at the mere sight of him were antagonising.

“Bastard,” Eddie said, and he dived into the pool towards a chortling Dustin.

You wanted to throw up. For a second you actually thought you would. Desperate for an escape, you mumbled a hasty, “Bathroom,” to Steve and took off in the general direction of anywhere but here.

In the quiet of Steve’s guest bathroom, you could hear the thrumming of your heart in your ears, butterflies swarming your stomach. Get a grip, you told yourself, it’s just Eddie. But then … it was always just Eddie. Eddie telling you how good you looked in his jacket. Eddie’s hand on the small of your back at the 4th of July Carnival. Eddie calling you by pet names far too intimate for someone who lost their cool at a mere touch.

You liked him, and unless you were terrible at picking up on signals, you were pretty sure Eddie liked you, too. It was a dizzying feeling, liking someone this much. Especially when that someone was Eddie.

You spent longer than you intended in the bathroom, splashing your face with cold water a million times until you could barely feel your skin, drying your hands until they felt raw. When you were finally satisfied, your heart halfway back to its normal pace, you braved your way out to the kitchen.

You efforts were in vain. The moment you stepped into the kitchen you walked right into something tall and Eddie-shaped.

“Woah!” Eddie grabbed your elbows, keeping you from stumbling backwards. He was still shirtless, bare chest inches from your face, his curly hair damp. “Hey, you’re just the person I was looking for! Are you okay?”

The heat returned to your skin tenfold. “Yeah, I’m … I’m okay.”

Eddie’s grip tightened around your arms as he dipped his head a little to get a better look at you. His eyes were set with genuine worry, making them darker than usual. “Are you sure? Steve said you came in here, like, ten minutes ago. Thought I’d come check on you.”

You swallowed, nodded, looked anywhere but his inked-up skin or his kind, pretty face. “I’m fine, Eds. Just got a little hot, s’all.”

You were a horrible liar. You knew it, Eddie knew it.

“Oh,” he said. You waited for him to say, if you were so hot why didn’t you just get in the pool? But surprisingly, he kept quiet.

Neither of you moved. You were hyper aware of Eddie’s hands on your elbows and his chest tattoos on full display. You told yourself you should probably stop standing so close to him, so close that you could smell chlorine and faded cologne on him, but you couldn’t bring yourself to move.

Eddie finally let go of your arms. You followed his hands with your gaze — bad idea. He shoved them in the pockets of his denim shorts, the waistband hanging low on his hips and the fabric ripped enough to belong in a rockstar’s wardrobe. His exposed skin taunted you.

“We better get back out there, then,” Eddie said jovially, rocking on his heels.

“Right,” you said in the same tone, though yours was totally fake. You wished you could die on the spot.

Again, neither of you moved an inch. You couldn’t move an inch, not when Eddie was so close you were breathing each other’s air.

“Hey, sweetheart?”

Eddie’s voice had changed, there was something smug in it, though it was mostly thoughtful. You looked up grudgingly, guessing exactly what his face would look like before you’d looked. He was smirking.

You would’ve burnt him with your eyes if he wasn’t so pretty. “Yeah?”

“I think I might know what this is about,” he said knowingly. He took a step forward, his hands moving to hover just shy of your hips.

Oh, heavens. You prayed Steve’s kitchen tiles would open up and swallow you whole.

“What?” You challenged, though there was no real fire in your tone. You were putty under his gaze.

For your sake, Eddie lost the smirk. He took another step closer, his hands resting ever so gently on your hips. His thumbs ghosted over the exposed skin between your shorts and your top. You could feel your heart in your throat, punching around your airways like it wanted to suffocate you.

Eddie’s face turned serious, almost soft. He was so close now that you could count his freckles. Three, plus two on his neck.

“Can I kiss you?” he asked.

All you could get out was a sort of anguished whisper. “Please.”

When he kissed you it was with all the confidence in the world. You were melting into the kiss in seconds, his lips pressing into yours in a way that somehow made up for the eternity of lingering touches and longing glances.

Your hands hung limply at your sides — you didn’t stop to think as you moved them to touch his arms, his shoulders. You’d always wondered what he felt like under all that leather and denim. Eddie sighed into your mouth, one hand sliding around to the small of your back. He tasted like an awful combination of chlorine and Coca Cola. You should’ve found it grosser than you did.

You pulled away just when you thought you might pass out from lack of oxygen.

“Well,” Eddie said, all breathless and charming and flirty. You couldn’t help but notice his heaving chest, his swollen lips, his wild eyes. You felt a little sheepish that you’d made him look like that. “That was—”

“Ha!” There was a great shout of laughter from the window. “I knew it!”

You and Eddie jumped apart, heads whirling to the source of the noise. Not surprisingly, it was Dustin, ogling at you through the glass, surrounded by Max, Lucas and Mike. Steve towered over them at the back, trying and failing to look like he wasn’t totally invested.

Eddie, always the charmer, flipped them all off, earning him a chorus of childish ‘boo’s and groans.

“Charming,” you told him, smiling all over. “Remind me again why I like you?”

Eddie dropped his hand, his face morphing into mock surprise, dark eyes blown wide. “You like me? Really? I’d never guess.”

You rolled your eyes, face hot. “Would another kiss shut you up?”

#★ mal writes! #eddie munson #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson x gn!reader #eddie munson fluff #eddie munson imagine #eddie munson x fem!reader #eddie munson x you #eddie munson x y/n #eddiesmixtape!

[neverwanttofallasleep]

A Need That Goes Unspoken - Chapter 1

READ THE PROLOGUE FIRST!

Word count: 5,071

For pairings, warnings, and disclaimer - see Masterpost

thank you again @writingcold x

You hear a knock at your bedroom door as you angrily shove the last of your toiletries into your suitcase. 

“Yeah?” You call.

“Can I come in?” Alex calls back.

“Yep!”

He opens the door, humming as he scans his eyes over the mess.

“You almost ready? We’re leaving in 15 minutes.”

You huff. “Yes, Alex. I’m almost ready. Do I really have to come?”

He chuckles and sits down on the end of your bed. “Yes, you really have to. This is the last chance we’re gonna get to hang out for a while. Who knows how long I’ll be gone. I’m gonna miss you.”

You sigh. “I know, I’m gonna miss you too. This summer would've been great if you hadn’t volunteered to be a fucking roadie for the Kiszkas and you could've just stayed here with me.”

“The band has a name, you know. And Danny’s not a Kiszka.”

You roll your eyes. “Whatever. You could just, like, not go.”

“This is such a cool opportunity for me, Y/N. You know I can’t say no.”

You sit down. “I know. Can’t we tell the Kiszkas not to come? So you and I can just hang out? I wouldn’t even mind if Danny came along too.”

He laughs. “It’s their cabin.”

You groan. “I know! But without Ronnie coming it’ll just be me and five stinky boys for ten days. I don’t know if I can handle that.”

Alex hums. “Well, considering that we’re all adults now, I don’t think we’ll be that stinky. Besides, I think it’s only one of those five stinky boys that you actually have a problem with.”

“Yes, and he’s insufferable. It’s going to be a fucking nightmare.”

“It’ll be fine. It’s not like you’re sharing a room. Plus, Eloise and Phoebe are coming up tomorrow. So you’ll have a nice-smelling buffer.”

Jake and Danny’s girlfriends. That does kind of make you feel better. Phoebe is a year younger than you and Danny, so her parents must really trust her to be letting her stay at a cabin with her 18-year-old boyfriend for nine days. Eloise is a year older than you, but the three of you have gotten along well when you’ve hung out. You’re kind of looking forward to getting to know them better.

“What about you? Not bringing Shaun?” You quip.

Alex chuckles. “No, that’s just casual. He’s not the most intellectual company.”

You smirk. Since he’s been home for the summer, Alex has been hooking up with Shaun, the meathead football player in the year above you, who’d shocked everyone by coming out during his senior year. To his credit, he did a lot for breaking the stereotypes for gay kids at your school. Unluckily for Alex, he’d already graduated and didn’t come out as bi until he was in his first year of music school. The same music school that he’s just deferred from to go on the road with Greta Van Fleet. You scowl to yourself.

“Penny for your thoughts, sis?”

“I can’t believe you’re dropping out.”

“I’m not dropping out.” He frowns. “I’ll just start my third year when I get back. There’s no rush.”

You roll your eyes. “You say that as if you’ll come back. Look at Jake and Josh. You’ll get addicted to the lifestyle, and I’m never gonna see you again.” You whine.

He shrugs. “College is already over an hour away, it’s not like we see each other much anyway. If I stay on tour, I guess you’ll just have to come with me. Maybe you’ll meet a nice boy on the road.”

You roll your eyes. “If it didn’t mean I’d have to interact with Sam, I would in a heartbeat.”

“Alright,” he chuckles. “Get your shit together, and let’s get the fuck outta here.”

You wheel your suitcase down the drive, and Alex takes it from you and stacks it in the back of his truck, tetris-ing it in with the bags of groceries, the spare cooler full of alcohol (provided by Jake and his ID), the beach chairs, and his own bags. You settle in the front seat, plugging in your phone. If Alex was dragging you along, you were choosing the music.

It was only a two-hour drive, pretty much directly north through Saginaw, to the Kiszka family cabin. It was a place you’d spent many summers in your childhood, but it didn't quite hold the same excitement it used to. You’ve opted out of going the last three years, instead choosing to spend the time off school with your friends. This summer, however, Alice and Kyle are off on their big Europe adventure. Chloe and her boyfriend are headed to Miami to sunbake for 3 weeks, and Bella is spending her whole summer working at the hair salon. She’s enrolled in beauty school in Detroit starting in September, and is saving for her own apartment.

When Alex had asked you to come with him and the boys to Oscoda, you’d flat-out refused, telling him you’d rather spend the summer in Frankenmuth than spend any more time with Sam than absolutely necessary. With some sweet talking from him, Danny, and Josh, though, and some bribery from Jake in the form of a case of white wine, you’d eventually caved. You’d miss your brother and your friends when they went back on the road. Hell, you already did miss them.

Danny and the Kiszkas had been playing shows on weekends and touring during semester breaks since about halfway through your Senior year. You knew from his blatant absences that Sam had missed his fair share of school. Danny too. They even missed prom. Not like you really cared, although you wouldn’t have minded a dance with Danny before you graduated and potentially never saw each other again. Well, that was probably an exaggeration. But if not seeing Danny meant not having to see Sam, you might just take it.

You know the band is good. You’d seen them play some shows here and there, and most nights you can hear them practicing in their garage through your bedroom window. You’re truly happy for their success. You’re just resentful of the fact that Sam has tainted the experience for you.

The tour is scheduled to resume in the first week of July, which is roughly 2 weeks away. You know you’re going to miss Alex a lot, but despite your ribbing, you really are excited for him. And he was right, it wasn’t like you could see him all the time when he was living in Ann Arbor, anyway. If you had to guess, you were just kind of pissed that he’d be spending all that time with Sam. You knew that was unreasonable. Sam and Alex didn’t have any beef. Part of you just wanted Alex to hate Sam because you did. You’d never ask that of him, though.

Alex must know how salty you are about how coming on this trip, because he really does let you choose the music for the entire drive. You’re not convoying or anything, the others left early this morning. Alex had let you sleep in and waited until late morning to drive up, knowing you’d put up even more of a fight if he’d made you set an alarm. You stop in Standish to get some food and swap out drivers. You’d bargained with Alex that you’d drive the second half if he bought you McDonald’s for lunch, and he’d agreed.

When you finally make it up to the cabin, you can’t help but grin at how pretty it is, and how nice it feels to be back. It’s tucked away on a back street just outside of the township. The road is relatively flat, with forest on both sides, and a small lake at the back of the lot. It’s about two and a half miles from the main beach and the nearest supermarket. It’s walkable, but you wouldn’t want to in this heat.

The boys must’ve heard the roar of Alex’s truck, ‘cause Josh and Danny appear on the porch as Alex gets out.

“Don’t just stand there, assholes! Come and help me!” He calls to them as he opens the truck bed.

You see Josh smirk and Danny chuckle as they head down the steps and tread the gravel driveway toward you. As you go to step out of the truck, Danny extends a hand to you to help you down.

“Glad you made it!” He grins widely.

You’ll never understand why Danny is still so kind to you, in spite of Sam. It makes the whole thing even more frustrating. If Danny can act like a grown-up, why can’t Sam? Ever since Chloe’s party in ninth grade, he’s been a total dick to you.

It started out as just ignoring you, which was bad enough, considering you’d been such close friends only days before the party. But then it morphed into something uglier. Seething looks, snide remarks, and eventually flat-out insults. It hurt, but you gave it right back to him. For the life of you, you couldn’t understand what you’d done to deserve it. Overnight, Sam just changed into a totally different person. He became cruel.

Only to you, though, which pissed you off even more. He acted totally normal around Alex, Danny, and his brothers, if only a little more crabby than he used to be. You imagined that was only when you were around to witness it, though. He was probably his normal, bubbly self, when he wasn’t looking out for you over his shoulder every five seconds.

You give Danny a big hug and head to grab your bags. You all follow Josh into the house, where he points at the bedrooms, indicating who’s sleeping where.

“Danny and Phoebe are in the guest room, and Jake and Ellie are in Mom and Dad’s room. Y/N, you’re in the sunroom. Alex, you’re in with me and Sammy. We’ve got the bunk room.” He giggles.

The infamous bunk room. It’s exactly what it sounds like. A large room, probably once a den, now with all three walls lined with bunk beds. It sleeps 6, and it’s where all the kids used to sleep when you came here in your childhood. When you were really little, you were always afraid of falling out of the top bunk, so Sam would bravely offer to take the top of your set so you could sleep on the bottom. Once the lights were off and he was no longer concerned about impressing his older brothers, he’d get scared, too. He’d crawl down the ladder in the middle of the night, and your parents would find you cuddled together in the bottom bunk in the morning. You smile at the memory, before remembering yourself and scowling. What an asshole. He’d never be so chivalrous now.

You’re excited to sleep in the sunroom, though. It’s a sort of makeshift bedroom, and it was where you and Ronnie had graduated to when you’d decided you no longer wanted to share with the boys. It’s a small room off the main living area, private enough, with a double pull-out couch against the far wall. The best part, though, is the floor-to-ceiling windows on the west wall, where the sun hits perfectly in the late afternoon. You’d used to spend hours sitting in there as a teenager, reading your books and enjoying the golden sunlight.

“Where are the others?” Alex asks Danny and Josh.

“They went to the store to get stuff for dinner. Barbecue tonight.” Danny grins.

Alex fist pumps. “Hell yeah!”

You smile and shake your head, wheeling your bag over to your bedroom.

You settle in, leaving your suitcase open and resting it on top of the chest in the corner of the room. Josh has kindly already unfolded the couch for you and made up the bed. They’re really working hard to get on your good side, and you snicker to yourself. As they should be.

You set your phone charger, water bottle, and book on the small coffee table acting as a nightstand, and take your toiletries to the bathroom, which is over the other side of the house, next to the bunk room. Your only qualm about sleeping downstairs is the shared bathroom. There’s another on the second floor, between the two main bedrooms, which the couples would be using.

You find an open spot on the shelf and unfold your toiletry bag, hanging up the clean, pink towel you’d taken from the linen cupboard on your way through. When you glance around, you see the boys things already scattered around. They’d managed to make a mess of the small bathroom within a matter of hours. You sigh.

When you’re unpacked to your liking, you wander out into the kitchen, to find Josh making cocktails, Danny and Alex perched on the barstools at the kitchen bench.

“Your wine’s in the fridge, lovely, but it won’t be cold yet. You want a salty dog?” He gestures to the open bottles of tequila and grapefruit juice in front of him.

“I think it’s technically a Paloma, if you’re not using gin.” Danny corrects.

Josh shakes his head. “No, a Paloma has to have seltzer in it. This is a tequila salty dog. And it’s a greyhound if you use vodka, which is disgusting.”

Danny chuckles. “Sorry, sir. I’ll check my facts next time.”

You smile at their banter and nod. “Sure. Thanks, Josh.”

Alex hums. “Don’t go too hard, too early, sis.”

You scoff. “What authority do you have? You’re still underage, too.”

“Sure, but I’m still your big brother. Just take it easy.”

You roll your eyes. “Yes, Dad.”

When Josh is done, you all take your drinks and head out to the back garden, seating yourselves around the rickety outdoor dining set. Danny produces a pack of playing cards from his pocket, and you all begin a game of old maid.

You’re down to just two cards left, and just as Alex presents you his hand, you hear the squeak of the sliding back door opening. You all look up to see Jake, sunglasses perched on top of his bucket hat, an open bottle of Jack in one hand and a bag of groceries in the other, closing the door behind him.

“Gang’s all here!” He announces.

“Hey, Jake!” You and Alex call up to him.

“Did you get the olives?” Josh asks his twin, in lieu of a greeting.

Jake grumbles, making his way down the steps. “No, I’ve vetoed the olives. No one likes them except you.”

You grin at Josh. “I like olives.”

“Jake.” Josh groans. “Y/N likes them too. Now you’ve ruined my charcuterie board.”

Jake huffs and heads over to the barbecue to dump the bag, before joining you all at the table. “Whatever. We can get them tomorrow.”

Josh gives you a wink, and lets it lie.

You hear the squeak of the door again, and this time you’re reluctant to look up. You do, anyway. You want to see his smug face drop when he sees you. If there’s anything that’ll make this trip a bit more bearable, it’s knowing that your presence will piss him off just as much as his does you.

Sam emerges from the house carrying two beers, wearing a pair of the shortest red shorts you’ve ever seen on a man, Birkenstocks, and a soft denim shirt. It’s unbuttoned to his navel, showing off a collection of necklaces dangling low on his chest. His hair is so long now, spilling in thick waves over his shoulders. His baby face is still exactly how you remember it, sans the braces, but as his eyes land on you, you see a sour look cross his features. You scowl, refusing to break eye contact. What a stupid fucking outfit. Only Sam Kiszka would choose to dress like a pretentious ‘60s rockstar for a family holiday. Asshole.

“Hey, Sam!” Alex calls out.

Sam immediately schools his expression to look at your brother, greeting him with a smile. “What’s up, Alex? Glad you could make it.”

He doesn’t address you with anything by way of a greeting, and you don’t, either.

He descends the stairs and crosses the garden to take the open seat next to Danny, handing a beer across the table to Jake.

“What are we playing?” Jake asks the group, as he cracks his bottle open.

“Old maid.” You reply, looking only at Jake. “Should we start a new round so you can join?”

Sam scoffs. “Old maid is boring, there’s no strategy. Let’s play rummy.”

“Rummy isn’t a strategy game, either. It’s all just luck of the draw.” You retort.

“Not the way I play it. Feel free to sit out, if you want. I’d prefer it, actually.” He drawls.

You roll your eyes as the rest of the group hums and nods in agreement at the suggestion of the new game, handing Sam their cards to reshuffle the deck. Sam reaches over and snatches your hand away with a smug grin. Alex pats your knee under the table. This was going to be a very unpleasant trip.

After a few rounds of rummy, which satisfied you in the knowledge that Sam had not won any, you all head inside to begin preparations for dinner. The sun is low in the sky, shining just barely through the trees at the back of the house. Peak reading hours, if you could sneak away for a while once you’d made the salad.

You’re stationed at the kitchen bench with Josh and Alex, the other boys outside firing up the grill.

“Tomorrow’s board will be much better, once we get the olives. I won’t be letting those imbeciles go on another shopping trip unsupervised.” Josh hums, as he arranges various cheeses on a large platter.

You giggle. “I’ll come with you. You and I would have a grand old time at the store together.”

“You’d break the budget in one day.” Alex chides.

“But wouldn’t we be living in luxury for that one day, Alex?” Josh replies dreamily. “Think of all the delicious things we could have. Like some good preserves to pair with this cheese.” He gestures to a hunk of blue cheese on the plate.

You nod and hum in agreement as you slice up the cucumber. “I’d kill for some pickles. Like those really big, spicy ones in the fancy jar.”

Alex and Josh both laugh. “Sorry, my love. Can’t agree with you on that one.” Josh chuckles.

Sam and Danny appear at the back door. Sam slides open the screen and silently heads to the refrigerator.

“What’s cookin’ in here, good lookin’…s?” Danny hums, pinching a piece of cucumber from your cutting board and popping it in his mouth.

“Just making a mental list for mine and Y/N’s dream grocery trip.” Josh’s face lights up with realization. “Sam loves pickles too! Don’t you, Sammy?”

“Sure,” Sam says, with very little enthusiasm. 

“There you go. I can justify them now, Y/N. You have my support.”

You stay silent, not wanting to engage in any further conversation with or about Sam.

You continue chopping the vegetables, letting the conversation flow around you. Alex follows Sam back outside with the tray of burgers, but Danny hangs back.

“Can I give you a hand, Y/N?” He nudges your shoulder with his own.

You hum. “I was gonna put out some fruit as well, do you wanna grab the grapes out of the fridge and start washing?”

He nods. “Yes, ma’am.”

The three of you work in silence for a few minutes, before Josh can’t stand it anymore.

“Time for some music.” He declares, and disappears upstairs to retrieve Jake’s bluetooth speaker.

When it’s just the two of you, Danny clears his throat, and you look up from the lettuce you’ve been tossing to see him looking at you.

“What?”

“No improvement, I gather?”

“I don’t know what you’re referring to.” You mutter, going back to your work. You and Danny have never openly talked about your relationship with Sam, to be fair. You’ve skated around it for years. It just goes unspoken that the two of you do not, and will not, ever get along.

“Have you thought about just trying to have a conversation with him?”

You stare at him pointedly. “About what, Danny? The weather?”

He chuckles. “I don’t know. Just something to break the ice.”

“Our relationship has spent the last three years on ice. I don’t think anything will break it now.”

“Yeah, I know. But it doesn’t have to be this way, you know. You’re both choosing this. You could choose not to. One of you just needs to make the first move.”

“Have you tried telling him that?”

Danny sighs. “Yeah. But he’s stubborn. I was hoping some forced proximity might help you two work things out.”

You huff. “What is it we need to work out, exactly? You seem awfully informed. Would you like to share with the class what the fuck I ever did to make Sam hate me so much?”

Danny gives you a sad smile. “I’m hoping he’ll tell you himself.”

You feel your stomach bubble with guilt at that. So there is something to know. Something you perhaps should feel bad about, although you have no idea what.

Your conversation with Danny continues to haunt you throughout dinner, and you barely say a word to anyone. Josh gives you a few questioning looks, but you just return them with a smile. You feel even worse than you did before. You’re on a holiday that you didn’t even want to come on to begin with, now weighed down with the knowledge that you might actually be the intruder. Had you said something to make Sam dislike you? You’d turned over all the possibilities in your head throughout the years, and ultimately come to the conclusion that he was the one in the wrong, not you.

Now, however, Danny had you questioning that. Had you said something hurtful to Sam, or about him, behind his back? You couldn’t remember it, and it seemed out of character for you, but you were wracking your brain for some kind of reasonable explanation.

Your worst fear comes to the forefront of your mind.

That night of Chloe’s 15th birthday, you’d ended up on the back porch, alone, sheltering from the rain, trying to wrap your mind around your kiss with Elliot. You’d heard the back door open, and turned to see Jake, an unlit cigarette hanging from his lips.

“Oh, sorry, Y/N.” He’d said to you. “Was just trying to find a spot to smoke that I wouldn’t get rained on.”

You’d smiled at him. “No problem. I was about to go back inside anyway.”

He’d nodded, pulling a lighter from his shirt pocket. “Don’t go in on my account. How’ve you been, anyway? Haven’t seen you ‘round our place much.”

“Yeah, school’s gotten busy and stuff. I usually don’t see Sam except for Sunday dinners and Thursday mornings.”

“Thursday mornings?” He’d asked you, through a puff of smoke.

“Yeah, we walk to orchestra together.”

He’d hummed. “Oh, yep. Of course.”

You were quiet for a minute, watching him smoke.

“So, what’s going on with you and Elliot, then? He looked pretty happy when you landed that bottle on him.” He smirked.

You sighed. “Dunno, to be honest. I thought I wanted to kiss him, he’s cute and stuff, you know. But when it happened, it was just kinda… dunno. Not what I expected.”

Jake smiled. “No spark?”

You’d nodded. “I hadn’t had, like, a proper kiss, before. So I think maybe I just don’t know what I’m doing.”

“Experience is overrated. When it’s the right person, it’s good no matter what. Even if you’re both terrible kissers.” He chuckled.

“How do you know it’s the right person? Like, before you’ve kissed them? How do you know who to choose?”

Jake had hummed, moving to lean against the railing. He was shoulder to shoulder with you, looking out over the dark backyard.

“It’ll be someone you find yourself wanting to be around, all the time. Like, not just to kiss them. You’ll wanna spend time with them, just hanging out, sharing your interests, y’know. You’ll think about them 24/7, and you’ll hope they’re thinking about you, too.”

You’d hummed, turning to look at him. “Do you feel that way about someone?”

He chuckled. “Yeah, actually. Just trying to get up the guts to ask her out.”

“That’s great, Jake. Who is it? Am I allowed to know?” You’d nudged his shoulder with your own. You appreciated that the twins always treated you like an equal. At almost 18, Jake never talked to you like you were a 15-year-old. He was the same way with Sammy. It made you feel like a grown-up.

He’d blushed. “Eloise Fischer. She’s a sophomore. I think she’s in the same class as Elliot, actually.”

“Oh, yeah! I know her. She’s super pretty.”

“Yeah, I think so.”

“You should just ask her, Jake. No one could ever say no to you. Plus, she’s here tonight. I think I saw her talking with Chloe earlier.”

“Thanks, Y/N.”

You stood in silence for a few minutes, and you’d rested your head on Jake’s shoulder. He really was like another big brother. Between him, Ronnie, Josh, and Alex, you felt lucky that you always had someone to turn to for advice.

Jake had butted his cigarette out on the railing, tossing it into the backyard.

“Do you feel that way about anyone, Y/N?” He’d asked you, as he turned to lean his back against the railing.

You flushed red. “I don’t know. Maybe?”

“Elliot?” He asked, and you shook your head.

“Don’t tell me it’s Josh. You know he doesn’t swing that way.”

You’d giggled and shaken your head again. He looked at you for a moment. 

“Sam?”

You gave a small nod, and he’d grinned and wrapped his arm around you. “I think you guys would be good together. When he figures out what to do with a girl, I’m sure it’s you he’ll be after.”

“Thanks, Jake.” You’d smiled, but you didn’t really believe him. If he was anything like his brothers, Sam would be too cool for you.

You’d never admitted it to anyone else, and you’d gone home that night wishing you hadn’t told Jake, worried that he might let something slip to Sam. As the weeks went on and you and Sam hadn’t fixed things between you, you’d worry over it every so often, only to remind yourself that Jake would never do that to you. You trusted him, and you truly believed he’d never betray that trust. It only made you feel worse when Sam was so cold to you, now that you’d admitted your feelings for him to yourself.

As you get ready for bed in the sunroom, that fear comes rushing back to you. What if Jake had told him? They were brothers, after all. What if he’d told him that very night, and Sam had been upset about it? What if it had grossed him out, and he didn’t want to be friends with you anymore?

You pad out into the kitchen in your pajamas to get a glass of water. The boys are still outside, drinking and trying to get a bonfire going, but you’d retired early. You were tired from driving, you’d told Alex. You’d stay up tomorrow night.

Truthfully, you just needed to get away from Sam and his unpleasantness. You’d tried to kill him with kindness during dinner, heeding Danny’s advice. Your overt politeness hadn’t gotten you anywhere, though, and he’d still given you a salty look when you sat down, and loudly questioned your decision to bring our fruit during dinner as if it was a horrendous, alien concept. You’d gone red and resumed your silence immediately.

You’d thanked him as he cleared your plate, and he looked at you as if you’d grown a second head. He sneered at you when you stood behind him at the fridge, offering to take some of the drinks from him to free up his hands, and snapped at you that he was more than capable of carrying a couple of beers. You’d tried. He was a lost cause.

You take your water to the bathroom to brush your teeth. As you look at yourself in the mirror, you sigh. You tie up the drawstring of your sleep shorts and pull at the hem of your old t-shirt, smoothing it over your stomach. If Sam had known you had a crush on him, you honestly wouldn’t blame him for being disgusted by the idea. You’ve never thought you were ugly, but you certainly are plain. Never able to compare to girls like Chloe or Bella. Girls that radiate confidence and ooze sex appeal. Even girls like Alice and Eloise, who are soft and pretty, never need makeup, and would look good wearing a paper bag.

You run a brush through your hair, pulling it back into a bun, and hunt in your toiletry bag for your toothbrush. You turn abruptly when you hear the door open, and are just as surprised to see Sam standing there as he seems to be to see you.

“Oh, sorry. Thought you were asleep.” He mutters, shutting the door quickly and walking away.

If you didn’t know better, you could’ve sworn he’d blushed. Probably uncomfortable about seeing you in your pajamas. He hadn’t had that privilege since your last sleepover, when he was 14 and you were 15, and you certainly hadn’t come into your curves or breasts yet.

You’re a little shocked that he apologised instead of finding a reason to be shitty at you for being in the bathroom, but you chalk it up to the alcohol. Maybe if he stays drunk for the next ten days, you might both have a better time.

You brush your teeth and take your water back to your bedroom, shutting yourself in for the night. As you lay down in bed and plug in your phone, you see a new text from Josh.

11.23pm Josh Kiszka: don’t write him off yet x

Chapter 2

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#greta van fleet #sam kiszka #josh kiszka #danny wagner #this is fiction #greta van fleet fic #greta van fleet smut #gvf fic #jake kiszka #sam kiszka x reader #sam gvf #gvf smut

[sweetestdesire]

OFF LIMITS

WARNINGS: hair pulling, extreme domination, spanking, mentions of alcohol consumption, innocence kink, etc. 18+ readers only

PAIRING(S): Rafe Cameron x Kook!Reader

SUMMARY: in which Kook!Reader’s best friend’s older brother crashes the party.

Laughter caused Y/N to stir from her afternoon nap and rub the sleep away from her eyes. She'd completely forgotten about the last minute brunch get together her best friend had decided to throw.

They had both been out the night before Y/N had wanted to drown her sorrows from the ending of her relationship and her best friend, Sarah had decided she'd go with her. Y/N didn't have the energy to argue with her and as it turned out, they had a really good night out. Not only did Y/N get to drink her body weight in Tequila, but she also got to dance until she couldn't feel her feet.

She'd decided to have a nap to try and combat the hangover she couldn't shift, even with a pint of orange juice and the greasy pile of bacon that Sarah had cooked for her. Sarah had emerged from her room looking fresh as a daisy, while Y/N looked like she'd been dragged through a hedge backwards. For once, she wasn't fixated on the pain in her heart, but the pain in her head.

"Shitting hell." Y/N sat up in the bed and yawned deeply, as she stretched out her aching limbs and looked around the bedroom.

She knew she couldn't go out to the party looking the way she did. After a quick shower and a good working over her hair, she put on a little make up to hide her dark circles, courtesy of the alcohol and broken sleep. She put on a dark blue summer dress that was a little shorter than she'd expected it to be, but decided to go with it anyway, knowing how hot it was outside and slipped on a pair of sandals then made her way out into the Cameron’s garden.

Sarah, who had a lot more friends than Y/N, was stood by the barbecue talking to a preppy, well built man who was stupidly good looking, but not quite Y/N's type. Sarah was working her magic on the guy and if she was completely honest, it wasn't hard. The guy looked to be completely head over heels for Sarah.

Y/N grabbed a bottle of beer from the cooler and made her way over to her best friend. In the back of her mind, she knew she should probably stick to water, but she'd decided a couple beers wouldn't hurt anyone. She'd drink water in between; it was summer after all.

"I wondered when your lazy ass would wake up." Sarah beamed, pulling Y/N into a bone crushing hug. The coconut scented sun lotion made Y/N feel a rush of happiness; she'd always loved the summer and for some reason, the scent of coconut always brought on summer vibes.

"I feel a lot better." Y/N chuckled. "I needed that sleep."

Sarah introduced her to the man, Topper. The three stood around making small talk as he and Sarah became closer and closer as the minutes turned into hours. Suddenly, Sarah's phone started to ring. She looked at the phone screen and rolled her eye's, but still answered.

"Hello?... I'm at home, why?... Do you seriously have nothing better to do?... Sure, if you want, but bring more beer... We ran out... Yeah, we had a party... I didn't think you'd want to come!... Whatever... See you soon." She hung up the phone and tossed it onto the grass with a sigh and slight growl. "So, Rafe is coming over."

Y/N tried to look as impassive as possible as Sarah announced the sudden invitation of her brother. Y/N had known him for as long as she'd known his sister. They had been in the play area in the local park and Rafe had pushed Y/N off the swing set, making the four year old cry and run over to her mother. They had been inseparable ever since.

As soon as she'd seen him get out of his car all those years ago on the first day of school, Y/N had been blown away. She'd never thought she'd want someone like that ever, especially her best friend's brother. Something had changed over that summer and he looked so different.

She'd sat in the back of his car as he'd driven her and his sister home when Sarah's car needed work done to it. Y/N watched the back of his head and secretly inhaled his intoxicating scent, his aftershave with a faint hint of marijuana and something that was unmistakably him, like much needed rain on a hot summer day.

As the years went by, Rafe had calmed down with the reckless behavior, but not with the attitude. She'd spent the years wanting him from a distance, too scared about what Sarah would say because according to girl code, just like ex boyfriends, brothers were also off limits.

The party had now became a party of four. Sarah, Topper, Rafe and Y/N. They sat around the fire pit drinking beer, Y/ N now on water and chatting. As the night went on, Sarah and Topper went off into the house, leaving Y/N and Rafe outside sitting by the dwindling fire. Rafe glared at Topper as he dragged his sister into the house and Y/N held back a chuckle. He'd always been protective over his sister.

"I really hate like the idea of that douche hooking up with my sister." He said glowering at the embers in the fire. His voice was deeper than usual. "Go in there and stop them, Y/N."

"No fucking way.” Y/N's eye's widened at the thought of catching her best friend going at it with some boy. "Leave her to it, she's a fully grown woman."

"She's sixteen years old." He mumbled, causing Y/N to roll her eyes.

"Well then in that case, so are you." She pointed at him and his eyes finally met hers over the now small flames.

Rafe rolled his eyes at her and shook his head. He lounged back against the pillows and let out a yawn; it was nearing midnight and the air had cooled considerably making it rather chilly outside now, but neither of them wanted to go inside out of fear of what they'd see or hear once they got in.

Y/N noticed him pull his jacket around his body and looked down at the thick oversized blanket that was currently keeping her nice and toasty. Biting her lip, she played with the frayed edge of the blanket. She thought about sharing the blanket with him, but didn't want to seem like a desperate idiot and then thought fuck it, the guy was obviously cold.

She quietly stood up and looked anywhere but at him as she moved over to the small improvised bed on the floor made out of a thick ground mat and big comfy pillows that he was stretched out across and gingerly lowered herself next to him. She placed the blanket over the pair of them as he sat up against the pillows and gratefully took the offering.

"I'm sorry to hear about you and JJ." He said suddenly, making her realize she hadn't even thought about her ex boyfriend since Rafe arrived at the house two hours prior. “I thought you two were in it for the long haul."

"Yeah, me too." Y/N shrugged her shoulders and let out a breath. She didn't like to think about the break up because it had been so brutal and out of the blue. "But what can you do, right?"

"Still." Rafe started and Y/N's heart began to race as he rested his hand on her bare knee under the blanket. "He's a fucking idiot."

He hadn't expected for her skin to be so soft when he touched it. Sure, he'd always thought she was cute. How could you not? She'd always looked so innocent and angelic. He'd noticed how she'd looked at him back in school and if she wasn't best friends with his sister, he would have fucked the shit out of her in that sexy, little cheer uniform she'd worn. That skirt had left little to the imagination with that ass and damn, did she have an ass.

Rafe had spent the best part of a few years trying to control his urges around her, but every time it just got harder and harder, as she grew up her cuteness became beauty and tonight, as she sat next to him with the amber glow of the fire lighting up her features, she looked down right sexy.

He wasn't sorry about her break up. In fact, when Sarah had filled him in about it he'd fucking smiled on the other end of the phone. He'd never liked the Pogue and not just because of the way Y/N's eyes would light up whenever she looked at him, but because his eye's didn't in return. JJ didn't know what a diamond he had and he just tossed her aside like she was nothing.

"I heard about you punching him at the Island Club." She said, turning her head to look at him. "You didn't have to do that." She smiled. "But I'm glad you did."

Rafe smirked at her as he thought back to two weeks ago when he saw the idiot at the Island Club where JJ was always seen waiting tables. He couldn't even really remember what JJ had actually said, just the fact that he'd saw red as soon as he'd heard Y/N's name come out of his mouth and flew at him.

Luckily, the Cameron’s were very friendly with both the owner and the security, so Rafe wasn't thrown out, but JJ was, and effectively banned from ever going in there again.

"You didn't deserve her, you filthy fucking Pogue." Rafe had shouted at him, as the huge security guard dragged JJ away.

Rafe had smirked at him as he'd watched the blood flow freely from JJ's nose and his eyes already blackening from the punch. One punch and he'd fallen like a sack, the sack of shit that he was.

Y/N looked into Rafe's bright eyes and returned his smile as his fingers resting on her knee began to rub in small circles. She looked down at his lips and felt a rush course through her body when his tongue snaked out and over his bottom lip as quickly as it was there it was gone. Before she knew it, they were both so close to each other she could feel his breath cascading over her face, the faint scent of beer and cigarette smoke.

"Y/N.” He breathed out not moving an inch away from her as his hand began move from her knee to her thigh, so thankful for the super short dress she was wearing. 'I've kept my distance from you for years, but I don't think I can anymore. If you don't want this, then please say it now because if I start this, I don't think I'II be able to stop.”

"Are you being serious right now?" Y/N asked, unable to believe what she was hearing. If this was a joke, then it was a really cruel one. "This isn't funny, Rafe."

"I'm as serious as this.” He stated and took her hand then placed it over the erection in his jeans. Even through the fabric she could feel how large it was and she immediately felt her panties become a little damp. "I've wanted you forever, Y/N. Seeing you in school in that uniform was fucking everything. Why do you think I went to all of those football games, for my love of sport? Come on, Y/N, you know I hate that shit."

She was at a loss for words, so she went with her instincts and lifted her leg, sliding over and into his lap facing him. His arms came to rest on her waist and his eyes quickly darted to her breasts and then to her eyes, then to her lips. All thoughts of either of them respecting any kind of code were long forgotten as their lips met briefly as if testing the waters, a light touch of their lips and then pulled away.

"You're so fucking beautiful." Rafe said and pulled her back in for another kiss.

His hands went into her hair and her mouth opened to accept his tongue, slow and sensual as his grip in her hair became tighter. The arousal that he was feeling was way more intense than he'd initially thought and he was finding it really hard to hold back. The way she tasted as she lightly sucked on his tongue before plunging hers into his mouth was stealing his breath and making him crazy.

"You're shaking." Y/N gasped out when he pulled away to run light kisses down her throat. "What's wrong, Rafe?"

The sound of his breathless name on her lips sent his pulse into overdrive and he shook his head, taking her mouth again as his hands caressed her face.

"I've wanted this for so long, baby." He groaned against her open mouth, he flicked his tongue against her upper lip quickly. "I'm trying really hard to hold back; I don't wanna hurt you."

"Don't hold back." She breathed out. "I'm not a fragile doll. I want all of you."

"Are you sure? All I want to do is fuck the living hell out of you." Rafe growled, nipping at her bottom lip.

A thrill swam through her body and she smiled at him. In all of her sexually active years, all she'd wanted was to be taken and fucked mercilessly, especially by him. People assumed that because she looked so innocent that they had to be so gentle with her, but that wasn't the case at all.

"Rafe.” She looked him dead in the eye and then smirked at him. "I want you to fuck me so hard that I can't walk properly tomorrow." She reached down and grabbed the hem of her dress, pulling it up over her body leaving her in her black lacy bra and matching panties.

“Fuck, Y/N.” He grunted, softly.

Rafe reached around and effortlessly flicked open the clasp of the bra that was barely containing her breasts. He slowly pulled the straps down over her shoulders and the bra came off. She pushed the worn jacket away from his shoulders, leaving him in his navy blue polo neck shirt and got to work on removing that, too. She looked down at his chiselled abs, absolutely sexy as hell. Before she knew it, Rafe had flipped her over onto her back.

Leaning down, he took her nipple into his mouth, his tongue swirling around the puckered nub. When he sucked her nipple into his mouth, she cried out and buried her fingers in his hair, something she'd longed to do for years. Rafe ran his hands down her body, taking in every inch of velvety, soft skin as he went. His lips followed suit as he made his way down her body, his tongue leaving a trail of wet heat before dipping into her belly button for a moment.

His fingers hooked into the waistband of her black lace panties and pulled them down over her legs. He quickly unbuttoned his pants and pulled them off in a bid to relieve some of the pressure. He lowered his head to her already dripping pussy and kissed around her inner thighs. She was hairless, waxed to perfection and without a flaw.

Rafe couldn't help himself and went straight for her opening, shoving his tongue in as deep as it would go, which was quite far. He'd been known for the length of his tongue in the past, random girls wanted to hook up with him because of the rumors and he'd almost always obliged, but the only pussy he'd really wanted to taste was Y/N's, and now, he was finally doing it and she tasted better than he could have ever imagined.

He slid his tongue through her folds and up to the swollen bundle of nerves peeking through and slowly licked it like he was devouring an ice cream cone. His middle and index fingers slid inside her and curled upwards pressing against a spot that made Y/N arch her back and throw a pillow over her face to muffle her moans.

Rafe reached up and pulled the pillow away, wanting to see her face and sucked her clit into his mouth. He moved his fingers faster inside of her pussy and sent her into an overwhelming orgasm as her legs shook violently and her back arched. He groaned as he felt her contracting around his fingers. The sound of her crying out his name as she came hard on his face made him even harder, which he didn't even think was possible.

Reaching over for his jeans, he grabbed his wallet from the back pocket, hoping to God that he had a condom. He couldn't take it any longer and he wanted to be inside her so bad. He'd never slept with anyone without using protection, you couldn't be too sure with the girls he usually took home.

Of course, Y/N was different, but he didn't want to over step any kind of boundaries right off the bat. He looked through the black wallet and groaned when he found nothing. He gave her an apologetic look and flung the offending empty wallet onto the grass.

"It's okay." She breathed out and sat up kissing him, her hands caressing his face and running her lips down his neck. "I know about your condom rule." She chuckled. "If it helps, I have some in my purse. Plus, I'm on birth control and it's never failed me."

"The condom rule doesn't apply to you, sweetheart.” Rafe groaned, as her hand delved into his boxers and encircled his throbbing cock, stroking him. "If you're comfortable with it."

"I'm more than comfortable with that." She whispered, as she started to pull his boxers off.

A few awkward movements and chuckles later, they were both fully naked and Y/N looked down at his huge cock with wide eyes. He was definitely the biggest she'd seen outside of porn, but he could seriously have a career in the adult film industry if he wanted to.

"Rafe, are you sure it's going to fit?" She asked, making him laugh and bury his face into her hair as he pushed her back down.

"'I’ll go gentle." Rafe whispered and then looked into her eyes as he slowly pushed his length into her, she was so tight it took his breath for a moment. "At first."

It didn't hurt, but by God did she feel full. With her legs hooked around his waist, Y/N pushed her pelvis up to meet each thrust, their breaths coming more and more shallow as he unconsciously began to move faster and harder within her. Her finger nails digging into his shoulders, the sharp pain making him shudder and take one of her slender legs and lift it over his shoulder, causing him to fuck her even deeper.

Y/N’s eyes wide and her mouth open, he leaned down and shoved his tongue into her mouth and kissed her so dirty, she came immediately all over his cock. The feeling of her walls pulsating around him sent him crazy, unleashing some kind of feeling he'd never known he'd had inside of him before and he grabbed the other leg holding them up, as he pounded into her as hard as he could.

She continued to clench around him, her orgasm hitting her so hard she had never felt a sensation like it and she screamed out as he let go of one of her legs and reached down and began to furiously rub at her now fully engorged and over sensitive clitoris. A strange feeling overcame her and she began full on gushing from her pussy all over him and he growled.

"Fucking hell, Y/N." Rafe grunted and kept on rubbing until she violently shook, her body arching up off the make shift bed. He quickly pulled out and flipped her over so she was on all fours. He was so close to cumming, but he didn't want to. Not yet.

Rafe leaned back onto his knees and looked at her ass, the soft flesh highlighted by the dim light of the fire that was only just still lit. His hands ran over the soft globes before him and he bit down hard on his lip as his hand slid down to her now thoroughly dripping snatch and ran his fingers through the sopping folds.

He looked down at the drenched sheet that was covering the mat on the floor and couldn't help but smirk to himself. He'd never made a girl squirt before and it was a major boost to his ego and also made him fucking hornier than he'd ever been before in his entire existence.

Moving his now soaked fingers back to her ass cheeks, he squeezed them hard and made her moan into the pillow that she had buried her face in. He thought back to when she used to wear that cheer uniform and he'd always stare at it as she walked through the halls. The way it slid up as she did her cheer routines at football games.

The amount of times he'd go to watch her and then pick up a random girl to fuck afterwards while he closed his eyes and pretended they were her. Now, she was here, bared in front of him and it was almost overwhelming. His hand struck down on the fleshy globe, just testing what her reaction would be.

"Fuck, Rafe." Y/N moaned out and swayed her ass at him. “Do that again."

She cried out at the painful pleasure as his hand slapped her ass again, and again. Each hit sending tingles straight to her clit as he delivered blow after blow. JJ would never do it, no matter how much she'd asked for him to. Rafe seemed to know exactly what she wanted and delivered it much better than any kind of fantasy she'd had about him. There were so many fantasies she wanted to act out with him.

As the tremors overtook her body, she fell back against him into his lap, his hand still stroking her and his mouth now whispering dirty, dirty things into her ear as the orgasm took over her body. He held her close in his arms as she caught her breath. One arm wrapped around her and the other stroking her hair. Turning her face to him, he pressed his lips against hers making her quickly turn around in his lap and guide his cock into her.

With her arms draped over his shoulders, she slowly began to ride him, teasing him with a gentle slowness. She watched his facial expression, his eyes glazed and hooded with arousal and his mouth slightly open revealing a little of his teeth before they bit into his full bottom lip.

Unable to take any more of Y/N's relentless teasing, Rafe held onto her ass cheeks and held her body up as he began to thrust into her at a hard and fast pace. Her breathless whimpering becoming louder cries just egged him on, making him fuck her harder.

He could feel it, the build up of his own orgasm and he knew he couldn't hold off for much longer, not with the fast pace that he was going at and it was pretty obvious that Y/N was close too, pushing down on his shoulders as she bounced on him to meet each of his thrusts effortlessly.

Dipping his head, Rafe took her nipple into his mouth, lightly biting down, making her cry out and felt her pussy contacting around him once again. He fucked her even harder as he began to throb and let out a groan as he exploded inside of her. Her tight pussy milking the cum out of him.

With his head resting against her breasts as he caught his breath, his fingers began tracing patterns on her back and she pressed a kiss to the top of his head. She lifted up slightly, letting his softening cock slip out of her swollen pussy and took a moment to let the events of what had just happened sink in.

She wanted to feel bad about violating some kind of girl code, but she couldn't and she didn't really want to think about that right now, especially with Rafe's arms wrapped around her and him pressing chaste kisses to her chest.

"Holy fucking shit." He breathed out. "That was fucking mind blowing."

"Rafe." Y/N looked down at his smiling face and felt something shift. "You're amazing."

He chuckled as they both stood, gathering their discarded clothes and throwing them back on. They kept throwing each other almost shy smiles and Y/N couldn't believe this was the same guy that just had his cock buried so deep in her pussy, which now just felt kind of empty.

Once fully dressed, Rafe walked over to her, pulling her into his arms and took her mouth in a slow, passionate kiss that turned her legs to jelly. She grinned at him as he bit his lip and then pulled him towards the house. Rafe followed Y/N and watched her ass as he followed her up the stairs.

The faint sound of music and the odd sound of a moan and then laughter came from his sister's room, but Rafe felt too content to care about it in that moment. He also felt like he kind of didn't have the right to give her or Topper shit anymore, since he'd just had the best sex of his life with her best friend.

Closing his bedroom door, Rafe stripped down to his boxers and crawled into the comfortable bed, marvelling at the softness of the sheets as Y/N went into the bathroom to wash up. He watched her as she tied her hair into a bundle on the top of her head. He noticed that she didn't have any make up on and instantly decided she'd never looked more beautiful.

As she got into the bed, they both turned onto their sides facing each other and shared a smile. Both too spent to try and do anything sexual, for now anyway. Reaching over, he took her hand and laced their fingers together.

"I don't know if you feel the same, but I'd like to take you out, if that's okay with you?" Rafe asked, seeming almost shy, which was the second time she'd noticed him do that tonight. She liked it. It was like a whole other side of him she'd never seen before.

"I'd like that a lot." Y/N's heart melted at his sweet smile. “We should probably tell Sarah at some point, though.”

"I know.” He sighed and pulled her into his arms. "It's me she'd kill though, so don't be too worried about it."

He pressed his lips against hers for what was probably the thousandth time that night and held her close as her breathing started to even out and she fell asleep, with him following shortly after.

Rafe did know one thing, though. If his sister did kill him, it'd be totally worth it.

-

TAGLIST: @lovedetlost @valeriiecameron @tee-swizzle @onmykneesforrafe @outerbankspov @ailee-celeste @starkeyobx @adventuresinobx @pankowperfection @drewbooooo @blueicequeen19 @maybankslover @penny4yourthoughts @variety-fangirl @fangirlwithlou @thecameronchronicles @lafantasiaworld @drewspisces

#drew starkey #rafe cameron #outer banks #outer banks fanfiction #outer banks fic #outer banks smut #obx smut #outer banks imagine #rafe cameron fic #rafe cameron x y/n #rafe cameron fanfiction #rafe cameron x you #rafe cameron blurb #outer banks rafe #rafe cameron smut #rafe cameron x reader #rafe cameron imagine #rafe outer banks #rafe x reader #rafe obx #rafe fanfiction #rafe cameron one shot #obx rafe cameron #rafe cameron outer banks #rafe cameron x kook!reader #rafe cameron x female reader #rafe cameron x fem!reader

[th3-wh0le-c1rcus]

Drunk Words Are Just Sober Thoughts | Nikki Sixx

WARNINGS ~ Just a lot of mentions of Nikki and the boys being drunk

TYPE ~ fluff oneshot

READER ~ fem

SUMMARY ~ Nikki’s drunk as fuck and lets our some feelings he’s been holding in for a while 

“Alright there’s a good 20 minutes before we get on stage, has anyone seen Nikki?” Vince was frantically pacing around, nervous about where the bassist was. Mötley Crüe was having their first concert in years and peoples expectations were high. 

“Last I heard from him was he was looking around the place with Y/N.” Tommy said “Maybe he finally got the balls to fuck her!” Mick scoffed at his vulgar comment. 

“I mean they have been best friends for so long and the romantic tension between them is fucking killing me, man!” Vince said. “Honestly I hope Nikki and her ARE fucking.” 

Mick, very clearly unimpressed, rolled his eyes. “Can we just focus on finding him please? Vince you check the dressing rooms, Tommy you come with me.” 

“Aww man why do I have to go with you?” Tommy complained.

“Because you’re fuckin incompetent and you’ll probably break something.” Mick replied, irritation still lingering in his words. 

———

Nikki and you were in fact together. Not doing anything inappropriate, just two best friends sitting in silence, backstage in a little room you found. Nikki was drunk out of his mind and you hadn’t drank a single thing. You were gonna have to drive the boys back to their hotel anyway, so it’s a good thing your will was strong.

You had only been sitting together for a good 15 minutes but the awkward silence was driving you insane. In the corner of the room the was a small record player which was currently playing a Twisted Sister song, and even that wasn’t enough to lighten the atmosphere.

“Sooo Y/N” Nikki finally spoke up, words slurred, barley audible. “How’s it with whatsisname? You guys break up yetttt?” 

“No Nikki we’re still together.” You said bluntly. He had been trying to get you and your boyfriend to break up for ages, practically since you first introduced him to him. Why? Why did he care so much? Your boyfriend was a great guy so why did Nikki hate him so much? It just didn’t make any sense.

“Awhhh damnnnn you two should totallyyy end it…” He said, a crooked smirk across his face.

“I don’t get why you care so much man, he’s not a bad person.” 

“Ooookay well you don’t know THAAAT. Plus I’d be waaay better than that fuckin pussy.” What. 

“What do you mean by that Nikki?” You asked, a look of concern appearing. Nikki scooted closer to you on the couch you two were sitting on. He didn’t touch you or try to touch you, but the closeness and the uncomfortable eye contact was enough to make you want to look away and get you just slightly flustered. 

“I meannnn I’d be a way better boyfriend then whatever the fuck you’re dating. I’m 100 times cooler and hotter.” What the fuck was he suggesting? Calm down Y/N, he’s drunk. He’s not implying anything he just needs some water and some rest.

“Uhhh I don’t know…” You mumbled, looking down and fidgeting with your sleeves. 

“Oh come onnnn admit I’m waaaay better than that bitch, he’s a boring lameass.” He want boring! Sure he wasn’t as risk taking, impulsive, dramatic or dangerous as Nikki, but he was domestic and kind. Even if it did get annoying sometimes “Y/N?”

“I mean, well, I don’t know?? Why are you saying all this?” 

“‘m must tryna get you to see how boring your relationship with that fucker isssss you should just date me insteaddddd ya know.” Wait what. Your head shot up and you looked directly at Nikki. What he fuck was he saying? You didn’t want to ask but you were curious. 

“Umm… Uh…” Was all you managed to get out. Now it’s not that you were uncomfortable, you just secretly hoped the rest of the band would come looking for Nikki and drag him out of the room because you couldn’t handle all this. Yeah you were uncomfortable as hell.

“Oh Y/N can you not fuckin seeeee? I fuckin like you.” There it was. But it wasn’t true. Even if you wanted it to be true it wasn’t. He was wasted, beyond fucked. Nikki needed to get on stage in 10 minutes, you had no time for this. You had to admit, it saddened you a little bit. Deep down, your relationship with your current boyfriend WAS boring. He WAS a lameass. You honestly would have much preferred a cooler more adventurous boy like Nikki. To be even more honest, you would have just preferred Nikki in general. But again, he was drunk as fuck and you couldn’t take his word for it. Nor could you take advantage of it. You didn’t know for sure that he was being serious. “Please Y/N cmonn-”

Footsteps.. and the door swung open

“FUCK THERE YOU TWO ARE!”

“Oh heya Vince.” You waved, secretly relived he was here to take the bassist away from you finally. 

“YOU GUYS I FOUND EM” Vince yelled to who you assumed was the rest of the band.

“Awh you guys weren’t fucking?” Tommy said, with a fake disappointed tone and face. “Damn I was rooting for you two! Now cmon shitface we got a crowd of minds to blow.” 

They all got up to leave, Nikki making a sad expression and eye contact for a brief moment. It made your heart hurt. You could’ve handled that situation better. Just before Tommy left, you grabbed his arm to talk to him.

“What did you mean by that Tommy?” You asked curiously.

“By what?” He asked.

“That you were… rooting for us?”

“Well, I mean, cmon Y/N you two clearly have the hots for each other, especially Nikki. Dude all he talks about is you!” You blushed a little at the thought. Maybe he was telling the truth… “And plus you guys are literally perfect for each other. Don’t you wanna live that rockstar’s girlfriend life?”

He did have a point, dating Nikki would be a nonstop adventure. It would be like a movie! It made you happy to even think about it. Just the thought of him gave you butterflies.

“Tommy, Nikki told me something just before Vince came in.”

“Oh yeah? What was it?”

“He told me that.. well that he liked me.” Tommy’s eyes lit up, like he had been betting money on the hope that you and Nikki would end up together. “BUT HE WAS DRUNK AS FUCK! So… I don’t know if he was being serious or the alcohol just got him.” 

Tommy’s expression got slightly sadder, like he was more disappointed that you even dared THINK Nikki wasn’t being genuine. He put a hand on your shoulder and gave you a pat on he back. 

“Well you know what they say, drunk words are just sober thoughts.” And with that he walked out the door to catch up with the others.

——

The concert was amazing, opening with Looks That Kill and ending with Home Sweet Home. A perfect, perfect night. And while you were singing and dancing the whole time, that little part of your brain couldn’t stop thinking about what Nikki had said, and what Tommy had added.

“Dude all he talks about is you!”

hmm..

“Drunk words are just sober thoughts.”

hmmmmmm…

——

Waking up to a hotel room full of smelly, hungover, groaning dudes wasn’t fun, but someone had to make them breakfast since they were physically incapable of doing it themselves. They all slowly came out of their rooms and sat down on the couch. And you couldn’t help but slightly avoid Nikki out of embarrassment. Not look at him, or say good morning to him. And he took notice of that. After the boys had finished eating (it took them a good hour) they all waddled back to their rooms to go back to sleep. All except Nikki. Well shit. I mean you couldn’t really escape somewhere, he’d probably follow you. You just leaned against the countertop nervously and watched him stand next to you out of the corner of your eye. You covered your face with your hair to avoid attention but we all know that never works.

“So how trashed was I last night?” He asked. 

“Uhhh you were pretty drunk yeah,” You answered, looking away.

“Did I uh, say anything interesting?” Did he remember? He didn’t sound genuinely confused… more like he was trying to get you to admit something. Like a parent trying to get their kid to rat themself out.

“Nope.” You bluntly responded. You did NOT have to remind him of what he said last night.

“Hmmmm are ya sure? I distinctly remember saying somethin about you…” Uhh shit… what were you supposed to say? “I know you remember Y/N, and frankly I’m shocked I remember it too but I fuckin meant it.” 

No he didn’t.

He didn’t mean it.

He’s messing with you.

But what Tommy said…

Oh fuck…

“Y/N I fuckin like you. And I don’t give a shit about your douchey boyfriend alright? I’ve seen the way you act around him now. Bored out of your mind, wishing you were with someone else.”

“Yeah alright fine, I’ve lost interest in him. And I DO wish I was with…someone else. He’s boring as hell and I’d much rather be with someone who actually enjoys what life has to offer and doesn’t just want to settle down. Happy?” You blurted. And you didn’t mean for it all to come out. You had never said that about the man you always called the love of your life. But Nikki’s words were driving you mad. And it all overflowed and spilled out of you. 

Nikki, still standing next you, lowered his face right next to your ear, where you could feel his breath on your neck, sending shivers down your spine. And he whispered, “And would that ‘someone else’ be someone like me?” Yes. Was that… not obvious? Or was he still trying to get you to admit it.

“Maybe.” You said turning your head in embarrassment.

“It’s a yes or no baby cmon.” He coaxed. God why did he have to be like this.

“Yes. It would be someone like you.”

“Would the someone like me be… me?” God fucking damnit stop it!

“Yes.” You mumbled, hoping he wouldn’t hear it.

“Mmm what was that? Couldn’t quite hear you.”

“YES FUCK I WOULD RATHER YOU THAN HIM NIKKI, I WOULD RATHER YOU MORE THAN ANYONE, GOD.” 

And no one was more shocked than Nikki. Not even you. Though keeping his cool, his heart was racing and his hands were already feeling sweaty. 

He turned around to face you and put his hand on your jaw, forcing you to look up at him. To look into those beautiful dark eyes.

“Been waiting a long time for those words to come out of your mouth darling.” Before you could reply he pulled you into a deep kiss. One hand on your waist and the other moving to the back of your neck to keep you up. Despite the shock and adrenaline rushing through you, you closed your eyes and placed your hands on his chest, enjoying the moment while it lasted. And once you had both pulled away, you were a blushing mess. Had you really just done that? Kissed your best friend of many years? You didn’t want to ruin the relationship you two had but now more than ever you could not deny the feelings you had for him. But it just felt… right. Like you had just found the last piece of a puzzle. 

You were silent for a moment, not being able to comprehend what was happening. Sure it was just a kiss but the tension made it billions and billions of times more dangerous and exciting. 

“So how about we go and tell that little boyfriend of yours some news hmm?”

#ace writes trash #mötley crüe #motley crue #motley crue imagine #nikki sixx #nikki sixx imagine #nikki sixx x reader #vince neil #tommy lee #mick mars #glam metal #nikki sixx fluff #lowkey hate how this turned out but i don’t care

[unbearableblog]

I’ll be honest. I hated what I wrote. It didn’t feel good enough, not even close in description to the universe I had in mind. I was exhausted and thought that every sentence gave away that English was not my first language, and sounded like it was written by a third grader. I didn’t want to write anymore. I could have done better. I felt like everyone who read it could tell what a bad writer I was. But now that I took a break, I read it again and imagined that I just stumbled upon it on Tumblr. I looked at it from what it was, not what I thought it was meant to be. And it was.. fine. Just like any other fic I read (and I read a lot). I found a post here recently that your art doesn’t seem good to you because it’s you. It always feels like the people who post on the internet are so much better, cooler than you, and have some sort of secret knowledge that you don’t. That’s how I feel about all the writers I follow. And then they post something about their life or struggling and it makes me go “What? They? Struggle? They have a life and it’s not perfect?” Anyway. I’m glad you enjoyed my work if you did. If even for a moment I invaded your brain with my universe and it made you happier, I did my job. I am not sure where to lead Chapter 2, because part one already kind of went in it’s own direction a bit, but I guess that’s what happens when you write. I’m sure I’ll figure it out. I would never believe that I even put anything online if you told me 3 months ago, not to mention that people would like it and even ask for more (unbelievable)!. I really appreciate this and all of you. I hope that this year I’ll have a lot more to spoil you with. Happy New Year! And god knows, maybe soon we’ll get season 3!

#carmen berzatto fanfiction #fanfiction #fanfic #writing #writer #writer life #writers on tumblr #writeblr #writer problems #ao3 writer #writers block #writer things #imposter syndrome #archive of our own

[sonic-adventure-3]

I accidentally drew the same goddamn pose 3 times lmao. Why is posing legs so hard i always fall back on posing them in the shape of a 4. Also, new freak!! Her name is Jerryjack. More about her + individual images + couple other things below the cut vvv

I don’t think I’ve posted any drawings of her other than her first, but i’ve been drawing rig a lot more like this rather than that first one. More graphic head shape, more upright ears, one eye hidden, mouth hidden by scarf, what have you. I think she looks cooler and is way easier to draw like this, but is a little less sonicy, im sure I’ll find a balance sometime. Rare carrion non-blep, this pose is cool but i did not even try cleaning this up lol.

And jerryjack!! She sucks so bad i love her. They’re Rig’s best friend, known each other since they were kids and learned the trade (killing) under the same mentor. She’s 11 months older than Rig, so she’s about 25ish. She hates consistency, commitment, seriousness, kids, stagnation, compassion, anything boring, and many many other things. She loves anything fun, stirring shit, lying, inflicting blunt force trauma, herself, lockpicking, and money. She’s purely self-interested and does everything she does for funsies. She’s not a part of the postal crew cause she thinks it’s boring and is allergic to commitment but hangs around and ‘helps out’ sometimes. She’s a hitman on her own, and has way more connections through that than rig, occasionally floats jobs her way. Also sometimes places bounties on her when shes mad. Or just cause.

Unlike Jerry, Rig is a very routine and organized person. She wakes up every morning at 6 sharp despite not being a morning person. Miraculously, she and jerry lived together for 2 years and during that time rig ate microwaved oatmeal every single morning and got groceries on tuesdays. All this is to say Rig is very methodical and likes routing and things that are expected. So Jerry lost their shit when rig called them randomly and casually told them that she’s starting a non-euphemistic postal service and also spontaneously took in a couple kids. Naturally, she’s very wary of squabble and carrion, especially the latter. Assassin recognizes assassin, silly recognizes silly, they try to kill each other and then become besties (who still periodically attempt to kill each other). As for squabble, she’s surprisingly fun to interact with, so jerry warms up fairly quick and becomes a truly awful influence on her.

Here’s the first drafts and base. She’s obviously a jackalope but calls herself a hare for some reason. Is part of that reason because i couldn’t think of a pun name other than jack like jackrabbit and ‘jack the jackalope’ sounded a little too stupid for my taste (as if ‘jerryjack’ isn’t stupider)? Ummmmmmm.

Anyway, i decided to nix the asymmetrical antlers cause theres a limit to how much asymmetry i should stuff into a set of characters, carrion’s already got the lopped off ear and etc. the back and tail marking is supposed to emulate ribs

I’m still super duper undecided on jerry’s outfit and colour scheme. Every outfit ive thought up so far feels way too simple or untethered to reality in comparison to the postal crew’s, however i think the postal crew is a bit too complicated (or way too complicated in squabble’s case) and too grounded for sonic, so. Idk what to do abt that. And as for their colour scheme, as seen above her first drafts have the same red and green of the postal crew, but seeing as she doesn’t work with them it’s definitely the better choice to diverge from that. Saturated orange is the most tense and unsettling colour to me so i think it suits her off putting nature, but the white and orange combo reminds me intensely of like. 1960s egg chairs. WAIT and ulala space channel 5. And various stupid tech startup kitchen gadgets. Just generally a combo with a lot of nonthreatening and safe associations rather than the warning sign i want. Idk man i’ll workshop it eventually.

Also, cloak rig. Her previous red coat was stupid. Not sure how much smarter this is but it looks cooler. Still doesn’t usually wear it other than in towns to hide her wings or when it’s cold. Also also this is the same fucking pose again

#Sooooooo sleepy rn #so if anything is incoherent it’s cause i’m so sleepy always and forever #doodles #ocs #oc posting #sonic oc #rig the fox-bat #carrion the cat #jerryjack the hare #super awful at getting stuff out of my head so idk how well i explained them or got across their vibe #i like my ocs so much man. so much #i need to post about them more #my art

[knightsofsomethingorother]

What I like about the Knights: Bedwyr/Bedivere

I have had brainworms about this man since I first read the scene in good old Morte when I was 14 years old where he lied about throwing Excalibur into the lake. TWICE. And he only tosses it in after Arthur straight up threatens to kill him if he tries that shit again. Iconic. As such most of my love for him stems from Malory's interpretation specifically, which is funny because this motherfucker is only in the last few chapters.

To expand a bit on him lying at the end. We don't really know WHY he didn't chuck it. We know he thinks it'd cause problems, but no specifics. Did he want to use it himself? Did he think it'd help the kingdom to keep around? Was it ultimately sentimental? Selfish or selfless? Who knows!

In the older works he pops up in, he notably doesn't have any outstandingly special powers unless you count him being really good with thrusting weapons, which I don't because A) it can be read as him just being really quick and precise (which I personally find a more interesting interpretation, hard work and skill honed over a long time is way cooler than magic), and B) he gets power-creeped hard - and even then most writers either don't know or forget he's really good with swords and spears. My mans had his thunder stolen BAD.

In fact, he was the OG Prettiest Guy Who Isn't Arthur(tm), but then more Prettiest Guys Who Aren't Arthur(tm) kept getting added. So he's, unfortunately, usually shoved into the background unless someone else (usually Kay) drags a spotlight over to him.

Sidenote, I fully believe that Bedwyr and Kay are married. But really I'm just happy any time they appear together. A lot of the time the knights don't really feel like they're even friends in the 'normal human' way instead of the 'operating under 10 layers of chivalry and posturing' way, and at the very least Kay and Bedwyr actually enjoy being around each other.

Also, this motherfucker was there FROM THE BEGINNING (both in-universe and as like... a concept (he predates Jesus by a few hundred years)) and is usually the last guy left alive. But he's never a major player in anything except chucking the sword in a lake at the end. At most he's helping Kay with something or doing his job. A job he did presumably well because he held his position as Marshall for several decades and only lost it because everybody mcfucking bit it all at once.

If you want to look through a metanarrative lens, he's cursed to witness events and never influence them, but he gets one act of agency at the very end, which he gives up out of either fear or loyalty. And his reward is that he's left alone with a flippant order from his king to do whatever he wants. A lifetime of service rendered completely null and void by the complete loss of everything and everybody that he's ever known.. A lifetime of service to a system that was ultimately the root cause of the tragedy. And goddammit that's some spicy stuff to work with.

Anyway, my grand thesis statement is this: He exists in a sweet spot where he'd be an excellent POV and can be built on without in any way upsetting preestablished characterization. He's a relatively normal guy among complete and total freaks of nature (affectionate) who manages to outlive all of them. And the few things that are relatively set-in-stone about him (Close to Kay, only has one hand, there from the beginning, chucks sword into lake) are enough of a foundation to make him really interesting. To summarize:

#arthuriana #bedivere #bedwyr #arthurian shitposting #long post #blog post #The sheer potential this man holds is unparalleled #also my love for this character runs parallel to why I like a lot of the more concept-heavy parts of homestuck #because I have very specific brainworms that feed on the deconstruction and reconstruction of narrative roles

[aloneinthehellfire]

Chapter 1: Secrets, Secrets, Secrets...

Raining Hellfire: Season One | Season Two

Word Count: 4260 words

Warnings: swearing, reveal of sister, threats, s2 billy just being s2 billy, mentions of running away, implied neglect, keeping secrets, school fight, mentions of stalking, talking about love, trauma, visions, poor decisions pretty much

[A/N: whew I hope you like this chapter. i think this might be one of the shortest word counts so prepare haha]

Secrets, Secrets, Secrets...

“You have a sister?”

“No way that’s your sister.”

“I didn’t see that coming.”

You couldn’t focus on who was saying what. Your mind was trying to make connections, not fully understanding what your eyes were telling you.

When did Max get here? Why didn't they call you? And how-

Your thoughts were cut short as the driver finally exited the vehicle, the blaring music switched off as they opened their door and stepped out into the sun.

Nearby, a group of girls physically swooned at the sight of the handsome boy arriving, his jean jacket not making him any less cooler. He just had an aura of confidence that made every girl want to date him and every guy want to be him.

“Okay, who’s that?” Lucas raised his eyebrows, looking intimidated.

“Let me guess, Y/n’s long lost cousin.” Mike suggested. If it was meant to be funny, he failed.

“Shit.” You turned around and moved so that you were hidden behind Eddie.

“I assume you know him too.” Eddie chuckled half-heartedly, his hand gently brushing against your leg.

“I… I have a lot to explain-” You began until Dustin joined you, looking panicked.

“Uh, I hate to say this but he’s coming over here.” The boy stated quietly.

“Oh, god no.” You groaned. You reached down to your right and began picking up bags, throwing them towards the kids and they caught them with confused looks.

“This isn’t even my bag!” Lucas exclaimed, swapping with Will.

“Just go to school, okay? You’re gonna be late if you don’t leave now anyway but trust me… you don’t wanna stick around for this.” You glanced between each of them with pleading eyes.

“Uh… okay.” Mike shrugged, nodding at you, “Let’s go.”

Will walked side by side with Mike, Lucas letting out a sigh of frustration but following close behind. That just left Dustin.

“Dustin, please.” You knelt to the boy, matching his height.

“Tell me later?” He smirked and you held out your hand. You both executed your handshake perfectly before you gave him a quick nod.

“Yeah. Now go. They’re like halfway there.” You said and he turned his head, yelling for his friends as he ran to catch up with them.

You let out a sigh and glanced to your left to see the guy still making his way toward you, a smug look on his face.

“Eddie…” You started but he held out a hand, stopping you.

“Whatever’s going on, I’m not leaving.” He declared, taking your hand. The concern on his face just made you want to grab his hand and run away with him.

“Please.” You whispered, moving your hand away, “I don’t know what he’s going to say but I’d rather find you later and tell you myself.”

He glanced at the boy who had stopped for a second to flirt with a girl he came across. Eddie let out a sigh.

“Fine. But you tell me everything. And if he hurts you-”

“I’ll be fine. See you at lunch?”

“I’ll be there.” He gave you a kiss, a little longer than just a quick peck and you had a feeling it had to do with the figure approaching.

Finally, Eddie grabbed his things and made his way inside the building, looking back at you until he was behind closed doors.

“Wow, isn’t he just cute.” The mocking laugh echoed around you, releasing the memories you had locked up years ago.

“Billy.” You took a deep breath before turning to face him.

He’s definitely grown up since you last saw him, his features more defined. And he definitely suit the mullet, there was no denying it.

“Long time, no see.” He snickered, chewing on his gum. At least, you figured it was gum.

“What are you doing here?” You cut straight to the point, not letting him see how insecure you felt right now.

“No one told you, huh.” He remarked, taking a step closer to you. It took every bone in your body not to flinch. “Let’s just say, our parents liked eachother a little too much.”

“What the hell does that mean?” You could feel his breath now. He was chewing tobacco, not gum, and the fumes made you feel sick.

“You’re smart, Y/n. Figure it out.” He said with a smirk, lingering a little too long on your name, taunting you.

The bell chorused from the school halls.

“Saved by the bell. Talk to you later. I’m sure we’ll be seeing a lot of eachother from now on.” Billy announced.

With a jeering grin, he brushed past you and headed toward his new school. Your school.

And just like that, California found you again.

The lunch bell sounded and you heard sighs of relief from your peers, grabbing their bags and escaping before your teacher remembered the algebra homework. Usually, you’d be rejoicing too but ever since you ran into your past this morning, you felt numb. Like none of it was real.

You walked down the hallway a little slower, not even bothering to dodge the sea of students swarming around you. Billy’s words replayed in your mind.

You already knew what he was telling you; his dad and your mom. You figured your parents had split after you left, your father only stuck around to leech off of everyone. And if Billy’s dad was with your mom… it meant his own mother had left him for good. You couldn’t imagine the toll that had on the boy.

“Woah!” Someone said as you accidentally crashed into their shoulder.

“Sorry.” You mutter, moving away as quickly as possible.

“Wait, wait.” They caught up to you, blocking your path.

You stare up at Steve Harrington, wearing some dark shades despite the fact that you were inside a building with barely any natural light.

“Hey.” You hug your torso, shifting your feet.

“What? No comment on the glasses?” He takes them off, raising an eyebrow of worry for not teasing him.

“Look, I’m gonna be late-”

“It’s lunch.” He stopped your escape plan. “And I just wanted to check on you. I saw you with the new guy.”

He looked around at the other students like you were passing enemy secrets.

“I’m fine.” Your voice betrayed you.

“Usually I’d be good with that but…” He sighed, pulling you to a corner. “What happened?”

You didn’t know why you were confiding in Steve Harrington. You were still mad at him for what happened but part of you just wanted to talk. You couldn’t care less who it was to.

“Billy.” You finally sigh, “Billy Hargrove. He’s from California.”

“You knew him.” Steve nodded, remembering the vague description of your past life.

“Yeah. And… my sister’s here too.”

“Really?”

No one would have ever expected Steve of all people to be the one to know about your family. When you first came to Hawkins, he took you under his wing. You helped him with his essays and he helped you settle in. It was a perfect thing you had. Trust was built and you finally let someone in.

“Yep. Judging by how she reacted, I’m pretty sure she wants nothing to do with me.” You said sadly, the image of your sister skating away flashed across your eyes.

“No. Don’t say that.” Steve lowered his voice as people passed by, “She’s probably just as confused as you are. God knows if I had a sibling and reunited with them years later I’d be freaking out a little.”

“Yeah.” You rubbed your temple, feeling a migraine, “You’re right. I’m just… processing everything. Wasn’t expecting California to show up in Hawkins, you know?”

“Don’t let Billy get to you either. I have no idea who he is but I already don’t like him.” He scoffed, folding his arms and leaning against the wall behind him.

“Why? Is he stealing all the ladies from a guy who already has a girlfriend?” You pouted sarcastically.

“There she is.” Steve pointed at you with a smile, making you laugh.

“Thanks, Steve.” Your voice was genuine.

Steve cleared his throat in surprise. “You’re welcome.”

His attention was caught by the sight of Jonathan and Nancy walking together, discussing some Halloween party. He stiffened, looking back at you and trying not to show that he was distracted.

“I should probably go.” You eventually conclude, adjusting your bag’s strap.

“Are you sure?” He asks, sending a quick glance to his girlfriend who was busy chatting.

“Yeah.” You smile as he sends you a look of disbelief, “She’s your girlfriend, Harrington, I’m not gonna be mad at you for wanting to spend time with her.”

You roll your eyes as he puts on the sunglasses again.

“Okay, but… you’re double sure?”

“Jesus Christ, Steve, yes, I’m sure. I’m supposed to be meeting Eddie anyway just go.” You groan, pushing him away.

He sends you a grin before sneaking up on Nancy and lifting her up. You took the opportunity to quickly walk past as she was distracted.

“Hey! Wait up.” Jonathan called out, cringing from Steve and Nancy’s make out session.

You notice the look on his face as you slow down to join him.

“Still not over her?” You ask sympathetically.

“I…” He just sighed, shaking his head. “It’s fine. Yeah, it’s fine.”

“Clearly.” You laugh softly and he smiles.

“She’s with Steve. They’re happy.” He justifies with a sad nod.

“Hey, you going to that Halloween party?” You change the subject hoping it would help but it just made him cringe more.

“God no.”

“Why not?”

“Because I don’t feel like third wheeling everyone.” He sent you a look and you blushed. You still weren’t over the fact that Eddie was your boyfriend.

“How about we go together?” You suggest, earning a curious look. “Eddie isn’t going, he and his friends have a club that night which is just perfect for them. Spooky vibes and all.”

“And you’re okay with that?”

“Uh... yeah? I don’t think couples have to spend every waking minute with eachother.”

“Fair enough.”

You both ended up outside, Jonathan fishing out his keys. You knew he had free periods for the rest of the day so he probably was just gonna spend them at home. “So… party?” You mime dancing and make him laugh.

“Yeah, okay.” He finally agrees and you pump your fist in the air in victory.

“Cool, meet you at yours then? I’ll be at Eddie’s tomorrow so I can easily walk there.”

“Yeah, sounds good.” He stopped, turning back to you, “How the hell did you manage to convince me to go to a party I’m clearly gonna hate?”

“I guess it’s just my natural charm.” You smile sweetly and he shakes his head, walking to his car.

Turning to the field, you saw a figure dressed in black patiently waiting at your favourite bench. You mentally shook off the nerves and made your way over, sending him a shy smile when he looked up.

“Hi.” You greeted with a tight smile, claiming the spot next to him.

“Hey.” He smiled back, clasping your hand rested on the table, calming your nerves.

“So… I have a lot to explain.” You said with a low chuckle and he nodded, leaning into you.

He wasn’t rushing you, sitting beside you and waiting with a sympathetic smile. He was showing you that he was listening. Deep down, you knew that he wouldn’t judge you.

“I left my family behind in California.” You began, starting from the piece of information Eddie already knew, “Something… something bad happened. And I- I had to leave.”

You took a deep breath, Eddie rubbing your hand.

“My parents, they sent me to Hawkins. I was in a lot of trouble and they didn’t want me around anymore. No one did, I guess. Other than Max. She- I never wanted to leave her. I had this plan, when I graduate, to go see her again. I’ve been saving up ever since I got here, enough for two bus tickets out of California, away… away from that damn house.” You admit, gaze drawn on a splintered piece of wood so you could focus on your words.

“Billy- the guy from this morning? I knew him back in California and… and I’m pretty sure our parents are together now. Which is just- I can't even begin to explain how weird that is. My mom always found his dad charming so, I guess, they acted on it. And now he’s… here. With my sister and... and it’s just a lot for me to process right now.”

“It’s okay.” Eddie consoles, “I get bad parents, I do. Believe me. And… your sister is here. Which is good, right?”

“I guess.” You sigh, slumping against the bench, “If she ever wants to talk to me again.”

“It wasn’t your choice to leave her, Y/n.” He gently brushes your cheek, bringing your eyes to his. “If she’s anything like her sister then she’s more than smart enough to know that.”

You smile against his hand, “I’m not sure how I feel knowing that she’s living in the same house as Billy.”

“What’s his deal, anyway?” He asks, scrunching his face. It was funny how he had the same reaction as Steve. Neither of them had even uttered a single word to Billy and already hated him.

“To put it nicely?” You say, swallowing the lump in your throat, “He’s a bit of an asshole.”

“What?” He responded with so much sarcasm it made you laugh. The laughter was cut short when you were reminded of your past with Billy. You needed to tell Eddie; it wasn’t a secret you wanted to keep from him.

“And, uh…” You started, forcing yourself to face your boyfriend and take his hand, “Billy. I knew him since I was a kid. Our families were neighbours so we spent a lot of time together and… we-”

“Yo! Eddie, you wanna see this!” Someone interrupted, shouting in your direction.

Eddie gave the guy a confused look before turning back to you. “Just ignore him... what were you saying?”

“Uh… Eddie?” You patted your boyfriend’s arm, your eyes glued to the scene that was screaming for his attention.

“Yeah?”

“Isn’t that Jeff?” You say in horror as you watched the 15 year old kid from Hellfire Club get beaten by some jocks.

“Shit!” Eddie jumped up, looking back at you before he ran off. “I-”

“Go! I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay. Bye.” He said, taking off toward the fight and joining his friends in aiding the young boy.

The jocks were outnumbered 2:6, meaning that you didn’t have to worry. Plus, you were relaxed knowing that you had taught Eddie a few moves to protect himself. After the last fight at the school, the one where you proudly punched Tommy’s smug face, the principal had been very clear about your punishment if you were involved in anything like that again.

So, you collected your things just as the school bell rang out. Eddie had a few things to do after school and although he hadn’t explicitly said what it was, you trusted him. He was probably setting some things up with his friends for Hellfire Club.

You were just upset that you didn’t tell Eddie the full truth about Billy.

After school, you decided to take a walk to clear your mind. You figured you could head to family video and pick up a movie to watch tonight.

You finally picked out The Empire Strikes Back, remembering how the kids practically begged you to watch it with them sometime. You were sure that their parents didn’t let them watch the Star Wars movies very often so you were more than happy to let them sit at yours and watch the movies they were obsessing over.

As you heard the familiar bell ring when exiting Family Video, you spotted two kids hidden behind a car, one with a pair of binoculars.

“What the-” You said to yourself as you made your way over to the familiar boys.

“Oh ‘cause you’re such a threat?” Lucas mocked, looking to his friend.

“That’s right.” Dustin replied with a smile, “She will not be able to resist these pearls.”

He made a weird sound, Lucas reacting with disgust.

“Who’s not gonna resist?” You ask from behind them.

You appearing out of nowhere caused a scream to escape Lucas’ mouth, Dustin jumping slightly as he grabbed his heart.

“Are you a wizard?! Oh my god, I think I can taste my heartbeat.” Dustin gasped.

“What the hell are you guys doing?” You wondered, not ignoring how suspicious they looked.

“Okay. But do you really want to know?” Lucas questioned, turning to you with a guilty look.

“Ten o’clock. Ten o’clock.” Dustin exclaimed, getting Lucas’ attention and cutting off whatever you were about to say.

“What?” Lucas reacted immediately, grabbing his binoculars.

“Why are you-” You looked out to where they were investigating, seeing the familiar Camaro come to a screeching stop outside the arcade.

Max quickly exited the car, turning to respond to the shouts from within the vehicle.

“They’re arguing. They’re arguing.” Lucas shared. You shook your head, having a clear view of the events unfolding. You hated that Max was stuck with Billy. You hated even more that they were step-siblings now.

“Oh my god. I see that. I don’t even know why you need those.” Dustin complained, “God, you’re so stupid.”

“You little stalkers.” You whisper, crouching to hide from view.

“Firstly, you’re gonna need these babies one day and I won’t let you use them.” He taps his binoculars with two fingers, “Secondly, we are not stalkers.” Lucas responds, still looking through the binoculars.

“Yeah 'cause watching a girl from a distance with binoculars without her knowing doesn’t scream ‘stalker’ at all.” You mutter as Billy angrily drives away from Max, her flipping him off as he disappears into the distance.

“Woah. She’s definitely your sister.” Dustin commented, earning a small smile from you.

“She’s gone inside.” Lucas sighed, putting his binoculars down.

“What? I never would have known if you didn’t point that out.” Dustin’s sarcasm wasn’t lost on Lucas as he punched him in the arm.

“Okay, creeps, show’s over.” You say, finally standing back up and taking a few steps before you noticed they weren’t following. “Hello? Am I invisible or something?”

“Uh, well, you see, Y/n. We, uh…” Dustin kept glancing at the arcade, Lucas smiling sweetly at you.

“No.” Was all you said, “No. No. That’s just weird, I’m not going to-”

And that’s how you ended up hiding in a booth at the arcade.

“I hate you guys.” You grumble, slouching in your seat with your arms crossed, sat opposite the boys. They had argued with you, saying that you needed to be on their side so Max didn’t see you. You’d rather her notice you sat with them than discover you hidden away like criminals.

“She’s incredible.” You heard them both mutter as they peered over their seats to Max playing a video game.

“Oh, god.” You sigh, hiding your face in your hands.

“She’s… Madmax.” They said and you almost slammed your head onto the table.

“You guys are disturbing.” You shook your head.

“What’s disturbing about young love?” Dustin queried, a giddy smile on his face.

“Love?” You looked up at them, Lucas grimacing.

“Ew, no. She’s just… a potential candidate, right Dustin?” He elbowed his friend, frantically nodding.

“Yeah, yeah. That’s what I meant. Not love, that’s… gross.” Dustin shook his head so much you were afraid it might fall off.

“Okay, let me get one thing straight.” You leaned in, lowering your voice to a whisper. “If you, and I mean either of you, treat this like some game to see who can get to Max first… I will end you.”

“Nice joke.” Dustin laughed unevenly, his chuckles turning silent when he saw the look on your face.

“You two are definitely sisters.” Lucas whispered, leaning back in his seat.

“Wait, so you haven’t seen your sister in years and neglected to tell us that she exists, but we have to listen to your warnings? How is that fair?” Dustin looked to Lucas who nodded along with his words.

“Don’t underestimate the things I’ll do for my sister.” You mutter, slumping back into your seat. You picked up a fork from the table, twisting it in your left hand to distract your thoughts.

“Y/n, Y/n, Y/n.” Lucas reached across the table, grabbing your right hand and holding it in both of his.

“What is happening right now?” You looked to Dustin who just shrugged.

“I just want you to know… that no matter what happens, you’ll always have a special place in my heart.” He said solemnly, patting your hand as if it were a break up.

“Lucas… Lucas, Lucas...” You leaned closer as he smiled, “I… I will happily stab this fork through your hands if you don’t let go of me.”

You flashed a smile at him and he quickly retracted his hands, cradling them like he was going to lose them.

“She…” Dustin burst into a fit of giggles, barely able to speak, “She… just rejected you so hard… oh my god, I’m so glad that I didn’t miss that.”

After a while, you had decided to leave, Dustin and Lucas too busy laughing and fighting to notice.

You made a quick exit to the door, leaving the building and walking across the town, hugging your jacket as the wind began picking up. If you had stayed there any longer, you probably would have gone up to Max and talked to her. But you didn’t want to ambush her. She should come to you when she’s ready.

Turning the corner past the grocery store, you made your way up the hill and stopped. It was another 10 minutes of walking until you got home and you desperately needed music. You knelt down and unzipped your bag, pulling out your Walkman and checking the cassette tape. It was an Iron Maiden album, ‘The Number Of The Beast’, that Eddie had put in there from the last time he borrowed it. Usually, you’d be listening to your favourite song and letting your thoughts drift away until all you heard were the soothing lyrics. However, you’d been searching for that tape for almost year and still hadn’t found it.

You stood back up, headphones resting on your shoulders as you fiddled with the tape, trying to skip through to your favourite song.

“Y/n”

You span around, gripping onto your Walkman so tight your knuckles turned white. Your eyes couldn’t believe what they saw.

You weren’t in Hawkins anymore. At least, not the one you remembered. Thick black vines slithered across buildings, a dull red hue painted across the sky. You didn’t move.

“Y/n”

Your gaze fixed on the figure stood at the bottom of the hill, their long arm outstretched to you. Unknowingly, you gravitated towards the silhouette, ignoring the screams in your mind with each step. The Walkman had dropped from your hands, clattering to the ground. But you didn’t care.

At just a few feet away, you finally came to your senses.

“Y/n?”

A voice rang out again yet it was different. It didn’t belong to the figure in front of you. So you ran.

When you had finally left the silhouette in the distance, you halted, catching your breath and staring at the scenery in confusion. Where were you?

You took a few cautious steps, peering through trees now surrounding you. You were… at the Byers house.

What is happening? you asked yourself mentally, stepping through the trees until you were in the clearing. It wasn’t long until you noticed another figure.

You jumped back before seeing that it was Will Byers.

“Will?” You questioned, mostly to yourself. But the boy didn’t respond. He was distracted.

You walked until you were a few steps behind him, letting your eyes drift to his point of focus. A gasp left your lips.

In the distance, dark clouds loomed over the town, flashes of red burning the sky. It wasn’t until you took note of the shadow in the sky that you something truly terrifying.

"Y/n!"

A silent scream escaped your lips before you were suddenly pulled back into reality.

“Y/n? What the hell is wrong with you?”

“What?” You blinked and found yourself stood next to your bag, holding your Walkman with ‘Run To The Hills’ blaring out through the headphones wrapped around your neck.

“I called to you like three times.” He said, his voice rough. You turned to the voice and found Billy stood next you, his car parked in front of where you stood, car door still open.

“I, uh… I zoned out.” You let out a shaky breath, looking at the boy you left in California. “What do you want?”

“I come in peace.” He replied with a dark chuckle. His voice was hard but there was something different in his expression. Could the smirk on his face be hiding concern? “I just saw you standing by the side of the road looking like a mental patient and figured you could use a ride.”

“Um…”

You wanted to tell him no, to stick your middle finger in the air and tell him to go away. But your shaking hands messed with your brain, telling you, ordering you, that you shouldn’t be alone.

So you did the one thing you always told yourself you’d never do.

“Yeah, sure.”

You got into Billy’s car.

Chapter 2: The Scariest Night Of The Year ->

taglist: @gnnnne / @beepisbeep / @paintballkid711/ @eddiesbirdie/ @livasaurasrex/ @darktimelegends / @jackierose902109

#stranger things #eddie munson #stranger things x reader #eddie munson x female reader #fanfic #nancy wheeler #stranger things reader insert #dustin henderson #eddie munson x reader #lucas sinclair #will byers #mike wheeler #billy hargrove #max mayfield #steve harrington #stranger things 2 #st2 #stranger things imagine

[maybebecomingms]

715-husband

January 29, 2024

I was thinking back to a church small group I was in over 10 years ago where the leader had unexpectedly become a close friend of mine. (People also sometimes got us confused for each other, too, which baffled me. I always thought she was way cooler and prettier than me, and I didn't understand why she liked me at all!)

Anyway, I was thinking about how we shared really personal stuff about our sex lives with each other at the time. She was a registered nurse (physician's assistant now!) and I remember my first post-nuptial pregnancy scare. I had an IUD, and she said "Sam, you know it's like a bowling alley in there, right? Nothing's gonna stick."

I remember talking her down off the ledge from at least one pregnancy scare, too (she did later go on to have one child). I remember talking about my frustration when my ex husband mistakenly assumed I was some wild, adventurous woman in the bedroom because of my "past," when I was mostly just terrified. "It's like... slow down, boy scout," she lamented. I remember her talking about how she underwent an entire physical therapy program in attempt to treat the chronic pain she had with sex. I often thought about doing something similar.

Anyway, she's divorced now, too.

I was thinking about how apparently evangelical folks experience vaginismus at a rate THREE TIMES higher than non-religious folks. I was thinking about how the Christian literature that was our church's bread and butter taught that women *might* enjoy sex, and that's cute and all, but men literally require it and will wither and die if you say no even once. You are defiling your marriage and denying Christ. Among this advice was that it's a woman's job to give hand jobs if she is postpartum and cannot safely have intercourse. As if she is somehow at fault for having pushed a whole 'nother human out of her body and owes him one?!

I was thinking about how viewing porn and masturbation are grave sins in those circles, and if you're going to utilize either, you might as well be cheating on your spouse. Don't get me wrong - I know both can be harmful under certain circumstances, and that porn especially can cause one's partner to feel betrayed. But to say that taking care of your own needs is sinful and forcing your exhausted wife to do it for you is godly seems more than a little fucked.

I was thinking about all of these things and sometimes I'm impressed that I found my way out as well as I did. That it wasn't a whole lot worse than it ended up being. I didn't need physical therapy, or any sort of special equipment. I just needed to feel safe and try things out on my own terms.

I hope my friend was or is able to do the same, if that is something she wants to do.

And I hope everyone influenced by purity culture is able to break free, whatever that looks like for them.

#divorce #exvangelical #ex christian #purity culture #vaginismus

[thelampisaflashlight]

I Am All Eyes

[Hoping to escape his past and begin anew, a young man takes a chance on an AD in the local newspaper, only to find he has, perhaps, bitten off far more than he can chew. A reintroduction to my OC, Quincy, and how he came to be the abbey's librarian. This fic will consolidate the events of the first two original ficlets I did with Quincy and diverge from the original plot from here. Not suitable for younger audiences.] Below the cut.

For what it's worth, if Quincy had to choose how he was going to die, death by satanic cult is a vastly cooler way to go out than he would have personally imagined for himself.

Kneeling at the base of some... big titty goat person -pretending not to see how worn the bronze in that particular area is- surrounded by a circle of cloaked figures that look like they walked off of the set of some old school horror flick, Quincy's mind, of course, drifts to the worst case scenario.

A million thoughts send his head spinning; When he'll die, and by what means, and one thought that he refuses to acknowledge, because-

"It's like that one scene from that music video I saw yesterday-"

Yeah, nope.

Not the time to be thinking about hockey bukkake.

He pinches his eyes shut and tries to focus on the present.

He hears the click of boots on the black marble beneath him.

He's fucked.

He's so fucked.

Everything he's ever done leading up to this, to the moment he said screw it and shook off the mounting anxiety in his chest and pushed open those ornate wooden doors to take shelter from the coming rain he'd sealed his fate.

He shouldn't have come here to begin with.

He shouldn't have called to arrange an interview with some... some shady lady who called herself something as weird as Sister Imperator.

Why'd he think it was a good idea to respond to an AD in the newspaper anyway??

Who even reads the paper anymore?!

Quincy.

Quincy reads the paper -for the crossword puzzles and the horoscopes, and to groan at this one columnist who always has the shittiest takes in the opinions section- because he's a giant nerd.

...and because he has a friendly competition going with the old man who runs the newspaper stand across from his apartment.

Point is-

He just wanted a job in his field, okay?

He spent years studying to become a librarian, but he’s been stuck working at a dive bar since before he could even drink himself, and he’s kind of tired of coming home smelling like spilled beer and vape smoke -the ban on “electric cigarettes” indoors hadn’t quite hit his area yet, and Quincy was sick of having to smell the pungent aroma of cereal scented clouds of vapor.

All that money wasted on getting a higher education, and he’s somehow still stupid enough to stumble upon a cult in broad daylight and embarrass himself in the process no less!

Lord, he wants to cry.

He must look so pathetic down on his knees, because one of the hooded figures offers-

A tissue?

Quincy sniffles.

“First day jitters, huh?” Another says, taking a packet of little bear shaped cookies from their pocket and pressing it into his palm, “Don’t worry, you’ve got this!”

What?

“It’s a lot to take in, huh?”

“I thought-” Quincy looks up at them confused, “-what is this place? I-I was called to… for a…”

He digs into his jacket pocket and pulls out the newspaper clipping, “A-A woman called, S-Sister Impera… Impera…”

“Oh, hey! Someone actually took the job offer! Fucking finally…” someone sighs, placing a hand on their chest, “I’m getting tired of trying to organize that place myself…”

“I… Huh.”

Huh.

With one stiff pull, Quincy is back on his feet, a bit wobbly, but, at least he’s standing.

He feels like a newborn deer surrounded by… surprisingly nice wolves.

“What… what is this place exactly? The AD said it was… um… a-an abbey? A church thing, so… and, and what is that?”

He eyes the statue again, face warming as he takes in the carefully crafted areolas....

What?

They’re massive and very aesthetically pleasing to look at!

“Oh, that’s Baphomet!”

“Bapha-who-ha?”

“Baphomet, he represents the balance between opposites, although, I think the Papa Emeritus that commissioned it just really liked the idea of having a statue with big ol’ boobs in the foyer to be honest…”

Quincy bites his lip.

Ah.

“It used to have a huge schlong, too, but I think they had to remove it back in the 60’s? 70’s? So it would be less, uhh, sinister?”

Quincy opens his mouth, and physically has to stop himself from asking what they mean by “sinister”, instead asking, “W-Where is Sister Imperator… So I can speak with her?”

“Her office is on the third floor, last door at the end of the hall.”

“Third floor, gotcha. And the elevator is…?”

“Out of order until they get the stains off the wood paneling.” the figure who explained the statue says, “However, there are stairs at the end of the hall that will take you up to the second floor, then you just have to head down to the end of THAT hall and take the left up another staircase and, boom, you’re there.”

“That’s a lot of stairs.”

Despite this, at no point does Quincy have the thought that he could just leave now.

Just, not show up to the interview.

For all his earlier hesitance and regret... he just keeps walking.

As he passes door after door, pausing briefly to admire the architecture -the woodwork is gorgeous to say the least- and breathe in the age of the building itself…

No, that thought doesn’t occur to him until he’s actually sitting in the interview, with an older woman in a modest black dress and a tight bun that makes Quincy’s head hurt imagining the pull of it as if it were tearing at his own scalp.

Sister Imperator.

She’s… a lot more intimidating in person than she sounded like she would be on the phone.

She'd sounded rather jovial and kind during their initial conversation, but now, Quincy isn't so sure.

He blames it on nerves.

She adjusts her reading glasses and sets his paperwork down.

“Well, you certainly have the necessary qualifications for the job, although, I do have to wonder… you’re leaving a job you’ve had for nearly a decade now for one that pays…” she folds her hands on top of the desk between them, “I have to ask, what made you answer our advertisement, Mr. Byrne?”

“I attended university with this specific line of work in mind.” Quincy replies, sitting up straight, “A-Although I’ve been working as a bartender for some time now, and I would be making more if I continued to do so… I decided some time ago that I needed a career change.”

“Any particular reason for that that you would be willing to share?”

Quincy shakes his head, “It’s… a personal matter, and won’t have any bearing on my performance.”

“I see.” she looks back down at his paperwork, “Right then, just a couple more questions.”

Quincy nods.

“Full disclosure before we begin, as you’ve probably already guessed based on aesthetics alone… we are a religious organization, no less legitimate than, say, the catholic church, but not quite so… Mn, prominent.” she says, clearly choosing her words carefully, “Will this be an issue for you, Mr. Byrne? We can assure you, that you needn’t subscribe to our views in order to work in our library, it is merely a matter of comfort for yourself, and to avoid the possibility of you treating our clergy discriminatorily. You may also choose not to answer.”

“I’m not particularly religious.” he replies, “I was raised Christian, but I suppose these days I would be considered an apostate? Yes.”

“And as far as your views on our religion thus far?”

“I will admit I was… taken aback… by what I saw in the foyer, but I have no ill feelings towards the people here.” he thinks back to the kindness he was shown earlier despite his obvious apprehension and doubt, “They, your clergy, have been… nice.”

“That is good to hear.” she says, smiling, though Quincy could have sworn he caught a glimpse of something… dark in her gaze before he spoke.

“Onto the next question: We have several semi-permanent residents here, so it is likely that you will be encountering them quite often-”

The rest of the interview goes…

It goes fine.

Quincy doesn’t have an expectations, but when Imperator quietly leans back in her chair, he thinks he definitely didn’t-

“Can you start tomorrow?”

“Y-Yes, but, don’t you have other applicants to-”

She shakes her head, “You’re the only one who replied, and I think it would be ridiculous to let you go.”

He swallows, “So then… I got the job?”

“Yes.”

Quincy visibly relaxes.

“How about a tour of the building?”

.

.

“And this is the dining hall.” Brother Elijah -the figure who had given him the bear cookies earlier, now dressed in a much less ominous, but still quite formal looking cassock- says, gesturing through the open doors to a surprisingly quaint looking dining room, “If you bring food with you, you can eat it here on your break, or you can take it outside and eat in the courtyard, that’s what a lot of us do when it’s nice outsi- Are you quite alright, Mr. Byrne?”

“This place is… way bigger than I expected.” Quincy breathes, “How are you not tired?”

Brother Elijah sets his hands on his hips, looking confident, “I can run the length of this building three times over in twenty minutes or so.”

“I timed it once out of curiosity!”

“I’m… whoo…” Quincy sits down on a nearby bench, Brother Elijah stands beside him, hands behind his back, “I don’t know when I got so out of shape.”

“Ehn, it happens. Once you hit thirty-five or so-”

Quincy coughs, “I’m twenty-seven.”

Brother Elijah’s eyebrows hit the ceiling, “Really?”

“I don’t know whether or not I should be offended, how old are you that you think thirty-five is old anyway?”

“Forty-eight. I’ll be forty-nine in August.”

Quincy makes a face.

“No…”

“Yes, actually!”

“You look younger than me!”

“I have a great skin care routine.” He shrugs, “I think it’s probably because I still have my hair intact, no gray hairs either… Ah, apologies…”

Quincy runs a hand through his hair, through the white patch in the front, “Ehn, I like my hair.”

An awkward silence fills the space between them.

“Um… Do you… Do you like working here, Brother Elijah?” Quincy asks when he’s finally feeling less winded.

The older man nods, “I’ve been here for quite some time now, and I don’t feel I’ll be leaving anytime soon. I have friends here, and, well, it’s certainly an interesting place to live.”

“You live here, too?”

“Many of us do.” he says, looking a little somber, “Some people come to us because they have nowhere else to go, and others, like myself, simply wanted a fresh start… If I might pry a little, could I ask you something?”

“Mn.” Quincy nods, “Go ahead.”

“Are you at all superstitious, Mr. Byrne?”

“Like, do I believe in ghosts and the supernatural? Or… like fortunes and such?” Quincy asks, crossing his legs, “I’ll admit I enjoy reading my horoscope in the paper now and then, but, well, I’ve never really put much stock in the paranormal.”

“I see.” the man smiles, unlike the sister’s smile, it seems wholly genuine and kind, “And what is your star sign?”

“Capricorn.”

“Ah, yes, the sea goat. An interesting one that, being an earth based sign, yet being depicted by a creature you’d sooner see in the water than on land.” He chuckles, “And what did the paper tell you today?”

“I think it was, ‘Something you lost will be returned to you.’, though it hasn’t happened yet, so…” Quincy shrugs, “Though, I don’t recall anything I could have lost either.”

“Is there anything you were hoping to have given back to you?”

“Nothing immediately comes to mind, no.” He says, standing up slowly, “What about you?”

“Hm?”

“Your star sign?”

“I am a leo, if I’m remembering correctly.”

Quincy hums, “I think your fortune for today was 'A new business venture will yield unexpected results’ or something like that… It’s all a bit silly, huh?”

“Indeed it is.” he laughs, then pauses, holding up a hand, “Listen.”

The sounds of a bell tolling echoes through the halls.

It chimes once.

Twice.

And then a third and finally time.

“3 o'clock on the dot.”

“It’s that late already?” Quincy blinks, “It feels like I only just got here…”

“Do you have somewhere else to be at the moment?”

“No, not really, I, uh, I worked closing at my old job last night.” he explains, “It’s been a while since I’ve really been up and at 'em at this time.”

“Ah, I see. We can finish up the tour when you return tomorrow.”

“Thank you, I look forward to it.”

Despite parting ways with Brother Elijah, Quincy finds himself lingering outside of the abbey, waiting for his ride to show up.

He hadn’t wanted to drive all the way out here in his own car… at least not yet, for a variety of reason, but mostly because he hadn’t wanted her to see him leave, to question where he was going or, worse yet, follow him there.

It would be easier to cuts ties with her, with the rest of them, too, if he could just… disappear.

Truth be told, he’d had to stop himself from asking Brother Elijah how one might go about moving into a place like the abbey.

He’s certain if he asked, he might be understanding of his circumstances, but Quincy…

He’d rather not get into all of that on the first day.

“Just… see if you like it, and go from there.” he tells himself, closing his eyes and letting out a deep exhale, “Just gotta wait it out.”

Checking his phone for the first time in hours, Quincy feels the tension build behind his brow as he sees how many missed calls he has, how many texts…

At some point, he’ll have to decide whether to just block them all or change his number.

Turning off his phone, Quincy sits down on the steps and waits.

It’s oddly peaceful out here, and the air feels crisp and clean.

It’s… it’s nice.

Watching the grass roll on a nearby hill, he can’t help but think…

“Shawn would have liked it here.”

He’s glad when the rain picks back up before the car arrives.

.

.

The abbey’s library is absolutely stunning.

He’d said as much when Brother Elijah brought him there after his interview, and, even now, nearly a month into his work, Quincy finds it just as magnificent and fantastical as the first time.

However…

“20 down, 6 letters, an old English word for church…”

Although Quincy loves the library, it’s not the most lively place.

Clergy come and go, and some linger to study books about this or that, Quincy isn’t sure what the primary focus of their research is, but much of it involves skimming through heavy resource books that are all written in some archaic language he cannot begin to understand.

Thankfully, the spines are labeled in English, or, at the very least, Latin.

A bell tolls, signifying midday, and the assembled clergy begin closing their books, setting them off to the side, shuffling their notes and gathering their belongings to leave.

Quincy nods to them as they depart, and receives small waves and warm smiles in response.

The siblings are always very respectful and polite, to the extent that it makes him a little nervous.

Despite having left the faith years ago, Quincy had grown up Christian, and is still struggling to unlearn the more “us or them” teachings his church had beaten into his head as a child and young teenager.

It is not an easy thing to do, and his mind often swirls with negative thoughts and feelings that he tries not to let color his opinions of the people around him, but he has to try.

Quincy stretches, then stands slowly, rolling up his sleeves.

“Right, let’s get to it…”

Tidying up the library requires Quincy’s full attention, having not fully acquainted himself with the layout, he can easily sort the books themselves by their DDCs but…

“Why are none of these shelves labeled??”

“Mn, I believe it’s because the late Papa Emeritus III found the placards too plain, and thought that they ‘detracted from the aesthetics’…” Brother Elijah had told him during lunch one afternoon, “Which is… funny, considering I do not think he spent much time actually in the library… at least not to utilize the resources there.”

“What was he doing then??” Quincy had questioned, “Just sitting about?”

“Ah, no…” Brother Elijah trailed off, “Well, kind of. He was fond of… roleplay so to speak.”

Quincy is still not entirely sure what he meant by that.

What kind of so-called “roleplay” could you even do in a library??

He’d tried to ask Brother Elijah exactly that, but the older man waved him off, saying it was better if he didn’t know.

The same day, whilst cleaning, Quincy found a desk towards the back of the library, out of view, with… decidedly nail shaped indentations on the surface, as if someone had been gripping it tightly.

He’s still not sure what to do with this information, nor certain how or why he thinks it’s connected to the dead guy’s… roleplay.

Returning to the present, Quincy finds himself on the second floor, a single book remaining in his hands; It’s old and worn, and the sticker label marking where it belongs has long since faded beyond his ability to read.

He flips it open, examining cover to cover trying to find some marker or indication of where it belongs, but everything written inside -and indeed it is written, handwritten in a brownish ink- is in an illegible cursive scrawl.

If he didn’t know better, he’d think he accidentally snatched up one of the siblings’ notebooks, but the book was simply too old for that to be the case.

The paper, the bindings…

It’s a very old tome indeed.

Another bell tolls.

“I’ll figure this out later.” he tells himself, descending the staircase and depositing the book at the front desk beside his crossword puzzle, grabbing his bag and departing from the library… only to find the hallways packed with clergy members and much chatter.

Quincy hops to see over the crowd, but he can barely see passed the wall of people.

“What’s going on?” he asks, tapping the shoulder of a nearby sibling.

“The ghouls have returned!” they announce excitedly, “They’re finally back!”

“The what now?”

“The ghouls!”

Quincy blinks, “That… clears up absolutely nothing.”

“The ghouls are high ranking members of the church.” a now familiar voice explains, “They’re essentially celebrities here.”

Quincy tilts his head up in the crowd, making eye contact with Brother Elijah.

“So they’re kind of like… the 'popular kids’ here then?”

Brother Elijah chuckles, “Mn, not quite. They do have a rather large following, but that’s only natural, they are musicians after all, and everyone gets at least a little excited to see their favorite ones.”

Quincy hops to see over the crowd again, catching a glimpse of… well, more tops of heads, and one face towering above the assembled clergy.

He makes the briefest of eye contact with the man; He’s tall and lean, with a narrow face and long brown hair that looks oh so soft, and when he locks eyes with Quincy, it may be his imagination, but there’s the slightest hint of…

…Anger?

Quincy shivers, grateful, suddenly, for the wall of people between them.

He’s certain the other had scowled upon seeing him.

It could just be nerves, or his mind playing tricks on him and seeing hostility where there is none, but he doesn’t try to jump up to confirm either theory.

“Are you alright?” Brother Elijah asks, peering down at him worriedly.

“Ah, just… wondering when the crowd will clear up.” he says, waving off the other’s concerns, “I wanted to go eat my lunch.”

“If you say so.” he hums, “Here, I’ll clear a path. Stick close.”

With that, Brother Elijah begins pushing his way through the crowd, and Quincy grabs the band around his cassock to keep them tethered together so he doesn’t get lost.

It doesn’t take long before they’ve popped free into the main corridor, taking the opposite path from the… the ghouls?

“W-Why are they called ghouls?” Quincy asks, letting go of Brother Elijah’s belt, “Is that, like, a status thing?”

“In a sense, yes.” he says, smoothing his uniform, “It’s hard to explain, and I’m not entirely sure how much I can tell you about that, honestly.”

“It’s another one of those, 'You have to be in the know.’ kind of deals, yeah?”

He nods.

“It’s better if, for now, you just make yourself aware of their presence and avoid them when you can.” he goes on to say, “They’re not bad people, nor particularly dangerous, but they can be a bit… much.”

“You forget I used to work in a bar, Brother.” Quincy points out, “I’ve likely dealt with similar or even worse.”

“Still… I think it would be better if you didn’t involve yourself with them more than you have to.” the other states, his brow furrowed.

He seems genuinely worried about the idea of him interacting with the ghouls, but that just makes Quincy… curious.

However.

“Mn, I probably won’t see them, so it’s fine.” he says, “One of them, the really tall one, he gave me an odd look and, frankly, I don’t want to find out what it means..."

“Ahh, that would be Mountain… He’s a fairly easygoing person, but he can be rather… abrasive at first.”

“His name is… Mountain?”

“Yes. Actually, all of them have sort of-" Brother Elijah searches for the right word to use, "-nicknames?”

“I se-” Quincy’s stomach growls loudly, cutting himself off.

Brother Elijah smiles.

“Come now, let’s get some food in you.”

.

.

Returning to the library after lunch -mostly simple, easy to eat snacks like fruit or cheese for Quincy, and a sandwich from the kitchen for Brother Elijah- Quincy settles back behind the front desk, pulling out the book from earlier and tries to glean any new information from it that he can.

The letters seem to swirl on the pages nonsensically at first, but the longer he focuses on them, the more recognizable the shapes become.

He can tell which are meant to be lowercase 'q’s, 'p’s, 'g’s, and 'y’s now at the very least.

But none of the words are familiar to him.

He sets the book down again, taking out his crossword again.

“13 across, 7 letters, a rumbling during a storm…”

“Thunder.” a low voice booms, “…do you always do puzzles while working?”

Quincy startles, almost falling out of his chair, but a long arm reaches across the desk, grabbing the back of it.

"Ah."

Quincy's eyes widen.

"You should be more careful."

It's... it's the man from before.

It's Mountain.

"I-I'm sorry-"

“You need not apologize to me.” the tall man sighs, “But, really, you should pay more attention to your surroundings, how could you not hear me come in?”

Quincy squirms in his seat, he feels like a little kid caught doing something wrong.

“I… I was distracted.”

“Yes, by your puzzle.” he states coolly, gesturing at the paper, now spread out across the floor behind the desk, dropped in his fright.

“I’m sorry.” he apologizes again, “I-I… were you trying to get my attention? I’m sorry…”

Mountain frowns, righting the chair and pulling Quincy back towards the desk in one fluid motion.

Why is he so strong??

Why is he so… fucking tall??

Quincy gulps.

“I just wanted to say hello, but you seemed to be off in your own little world, so I thought I might snap you back to reality before someone more important found you goofing off on the job.” he chastises, clicking his teeth for emphasis, “You haven’t been here nearly long enough to get away with this sort of thing, so you have to be careful, yes?”

Quincy nods quickly, “Yes, Sir.”

Mountain’s face contorts more, if possible, becoming even more annoyed.

“Don’t call me 'sir’.”

“What… what should I call you then?” he asks, side-eyeing the massive hand still latched to the back of the chair.

“Mountain.”

“Mountain… I’m…”

“Quincy Byrne.” Mountain drawls, tilting his nametag upwards with a single, large finger from his free hand, “I want us to be friends, so, be careful not to get yourself into trouble, alright?”

Friends?

He-

With that, Mountain releases him, standing to his full height, and ascends the stairs to the second floor, leaving Quincy to babble uselessly.

“What.”

What was that?!

Despite Mountain having righted his chair before leaving him, Quincy still bails out onto the floor with a loud crash.

“Ow…”

“…Are you alright?” Mountain calls from the upstairs railing.

“Y-Yeah, I’m great.”

Quincy sits on the floor for a moment, trying to regain his composure.

What even…

Grabbing his paper from the floor, Quincy goes to stand, bumping his head on the underside of the desk.

Thud.

A loud sigh echoes through the silence of the library.

Oi.

“Be quiet down there, some of us are actually trying to get work done.”

Quincy bristles, “I-”

“Shhhh-”

Did he just shush him???

Ugh…

Quincy picks up his chair and sits back down, about to toss his paper in the bin, when…

“Oh, 20 down…”

“Cirice.” Mountain says from somewhere above, “And do learn to read in your head.”

Quincy bites his tongue to keep from screaming.

#lamp writes #shitghosting #nameless ghouls #mountain ghoul #sister imperator #ghost band #ghost bc #the band ghost #ghost band fanfic #ghost band oc #the sleep with dewdrop route is a joke but if people choose it I will write it lmao #quincy adventures

[duhragonball]

Super Dragon Ball Heroes 25-28

Hey, Janemba’s back in black.  Let’s see if I can knock this one out before I go to work.

Last time, “Dr. W” lured Xeno Goku and Xeno Vegeta to Hell, where he fought them both to a standstill, then sent all the data he collected to Janemba, who is now somehow back and ready to kick some ass.  I don’t understand why this was even necessary, since Dr. W was doing just fine on his own.

I feel like a pair of Super Saiyan 4′s ought to have an easier time against Janemba than this, but his color scheme is different, and he does have all of that data to warn him about things like “Goku punches a lot” and “watch out for Vegeta’s rapid fire attack that never works.”

Then all the other good guys teleport in, and I guess this was Fu’s plan?  He used Bojack and Turles to keep them busy while he birdnapped Tokitoki, then he sent them all to Hell, where Janemba would be ready to finish them off.

Oh, and Xeno Trunks can do Super Saiyan 3.  You know, they could let Xeno Pan do all sorts of crazy transformations, just like everyone else in this show, but they don’t, because Toei’s a bunch of assholes.

Then these two show up.  Their names are Putine (left) and Salsa (right).  it is impossible for me to take Salsa seriously, because his dour expression is a little too dour, to the point of self-parody.  Also, his edgy hood has cute ears on top, like he took some Pikachu merchandise and dyed it black to complete his aesthetic. 

Putine and Salsa are demons who fought against the Time Patrol some time ago, but this time they offer a way to destroy the Universe Tree that’s currently threatening the multiverse, so they all join forces to defeat Janemba.  But Janemba won’t go down so easily, even in a six-on-one affair.

Then Salsa suggests that Xeno Goku use the same trick he used to defeat “the dark dragon”, and I finally realized he was referring to the Shadow Dragons from GT.  Which trick, though?  Fusion?  The bullshit spirit bomb?  Swallowing a Dragon Ball?  A lot of those things only worked because of GT Logic, but this isn’t GT, so we have to be careful.  Eating a Dragon Ball might actually kill a person here.

Turns out they were referring to the dumb bit where everyone lends their energy to Goku to charge up his Super Saiyan 4 form.  This is one of the stupidest bits from GT and the only consolation I have is that Vegeta Blue hates this crap even more than I do.  Xeno Vegeta seems to have no strong feelings about it, as he just stands beside Xeno Goku and accepts the same power-up. 

I guess I should talk about the worlds these characters come from.  Obviously, the concept here is that we have a set of Time Patrol characters who look like they’re from Dragon Ball GT, and a set of “main” characters who look like they’re from Dragon Ball Super.   But it doesn’t quite line up that way.  Xeno Goku remembers fighting the Shadow Dragons, but he clearly never vanished for 100 years with Shenron like Goku did in the finale of GT.  This partnership with Xeno Vegeta doesn’t work in the GT continuity, because they were only both SSJ4 for a handful of episodes.  After that, Vegeta powered down, and then Goku didn’t return to Earth until long after Vegeta’s death. 

On the Super side of things, the Goku and Vegeta in SDBH have different clothes on than what they wore in Super.  They remember the Tournament of Power, but they also remember the movie villains like Cooler, Bojack, and Turles.  Curiously, none of these characters seems to remember Janemba, so I don’t know what to make of this.

Anyway, the charge-up works, and Xeno Goku and Xeno Vegeta work over Janemba, then finish him off with a double Super Dragon Fist.  Does Xeno Vegeta have no pride at all? 

Wh-what if we intertwined our ki dragons together in the same villain?  Ha ha, just kidding... 

...Unless...

So with that nonsense out of the way, Putine teleports everyone to the Universe Tree.  No one questions how she knows where to go or what to do.  Then again, I guess this is the only lead they have.

Meanwhile, in a different part of Hell, we see a prisoner...

And it’s Hearts.  And he’s pretty happy, apparently.  Sheesh, does anything bother this guy?

At the Universe Tree, Vegeta tries to blow it up with a ki blast, but the tree just soaks it up like everything else.  Then Fu shows up and mocks their attempts to stop it.

Towa is also here, and she arranges for most of the good guys, and Putine and Salsa, to be teleported away.  She leaves Goku and Vegeta to fight Fu by themselves, although Fu doesn’t understand the purpose of this.

Fu seems to be more than a match for them, in part because he’s infused himself with Cumber’s dark ki, which corrupts the minds of those who come into contact with it.  You know, except for all the times fighters would hit Cumber and that didn’t happen. 

We see Cumber trussed up in a machine that presumably siphons off his power and sends it to Fu, or the tree, or whatever.  I’m starting to see why people ship Cumber and Fu.  All they ever do is get into these kinky situations.

So Fu uses Cumber’s power to make Goku and Vegeta go feral, but instead of turning on one another, they both go after Fu anyay.  Fu hits them with a big attack and that snaps them out of it, so what’s even the point?

So Goku convinces Vegeta to fuse with him, since Vegito can protect himself from the Cumber effect.  Apparently Salsa left them a pair of Potara Earrings to use.   Uh-huh....

Meanwhile, Towa explains her plan to the other good guys, whom she has trapped in a field of Cumbers’ energy.  Is Cumber that powerful?  Cooler defeated him, after all.

She informs them that she “created” Fu.  I’m pretty sure she just had a baby with Mira, but she created Mira as well, so you can never be too sure with Towa.  Fu represents the data Towa has collected from a multitude of powerful figthers.  Mira had a similar deal, so I’m pretty sure she just means Fu inherited the same chimera DNA Mira had. 

Towa then pulls some sort of dark energy out of her captives and explains that this is the “Dark Factor”, a power that once inhabited Mechikabura before his death at the hands of Trunks.  When he was defeated, Mechikabura released the Dark Factor and it went into the Time Patrollers who were there at the time.  Towa apparently arranged this so she could retrieve the Dark Factor when the time was right.  Her aim is to put the Dark Factor into Fu, which will allow him to become the new Dark Emperor, Mechikabura’s successor. 

Well, now it makes more sense why they did the special in Episode 20.  They were doing more than reintroducing Fu and the Time Patrol after all.

Xeno Goku briefly escapes from his bonds, but then Mira shows up and cuts him off.  He also brings Xeno Goten and Xeno Gohan to this place, since they had to pull the Dark Factor out of their bodies as well. 

Then they all get sucked into a time hole or something.

Back at the Universe Tree, Vegito and Fu continue to fight.  Fu is impressed with Vegito’s power, but Vegito says that Fu never knew how strong Vegito was, because all he ever did was observe him from the shadows.   Fighting Vegito directly is a whole other story.

Then Fu says the Universe Tree is finally ready, but when he goes to check on it, he’s horrified to discover that it’s withered and dead.  What could have happened?

Super Shenron happened, that’s what.  While Fu was screwing around, Beerus, Champa, Whis and Vados arranged for the Super Dragon Balls to be collected, so they could wish for the Universe Tree to be destroyed.  Well, I guess that wraps up this caper... or does it?

#dragon ball #super dragon ball heroes #2023dbapocryphaliveblog #goku #vegeta #trunks #pan #gohan #goten #putine #salsa #janemba #dr. wheelo #fu #towa #mira #hearts

[melloween-candie]

High regrets [C.G]

Drugged Up Carl Gallagher x Drugged Up Fem Reader

Requested // Request Rules

"hi!! i love your fics!! carl x reader getting high, carl telling reader he loves her, reader isn't sure if she loves him back?? we need more angst in this world"

A/n - When I first read this plot I was like- This is really cute!!! Lol I love it. Thank you for requesting this! 💕

Also, just letting y'all know- I used First person point of view in this. If you guys didn't read my other fics- I normally write in second person point of view. I wanted to do more first person fics.

Anyways hope y'all like it!!!

Submitted by Anon

Warning! Weed, underage smoking, mentions of thief, mommy issues, like one cuss word

Word count: 1,417

Shameless Masterlist

Fandom Masterlists

/"Talking"//Thinking//Muttering-Whispering/

***Y/n's Pov***

Carl and I were once again Skipping Class. We would do this every time one of us had a bad day or when we just got bored. This time we were bored.

"Hurry up slowpoke!" I was practically leaving him in the dust as we skated toward our usual spot.

There was a huge tree under an abandoned bridge. There was a small old little swing there. I'm pretty sure people forgot about this place. But this was our spot. Carl and I found it at the beginning of freshmen year. It wasn't far from our school, so it was perfect.

We would come here so often to the point where we made a little tree house. Of course, Carl did all the building, but I did all the decorating. It was perfect! It had a small cooler for our drinks and a few boxes that acted like cabinets for our snacks.

Of course, it had a lot of holes and other flaws, but the pillows and blankets made it comfortable to step and sit in.

"Come on, Carl! Get up here!" I yelled in excitement.

"Okay, okay!" He said as he climbed up. "What was it that you wanted to show me?"

"This!" You pulled out a weed pack. "This is the last pack of weed in my house. My mother is going to flip when she finds out it's gone- I hate her, so LET'S HIT IT!!!"

"Umm, sure? Okay, why not." Carl said as he grabbed the packet and pulled one out. He placed it in his mouth and asked- "Did you bring a lighter?"

I don't know why I found that attractive, but I did. Which honestly just made my feelings for him more confusing. I mean, normally, I would only see him as a friend, but... I don't know. Maybe the stress is just getting to me.

I ignored the thought as I grabbed the packet out of his hands, taking one out for myself.

"Y/n?"

"Huh?" I looked at him. "What?" I asked as I placed the joint in between my lips. I didn't even realize I zoned out.

"Never mind. I have one right here." He said as he pulled out a lighter from his pocket.

"Do you always carry a light?" I asked.

"Ha, I carry more than just a light." He said, smirkingly. I just rolled my eyes as he lit my joint.

I inhaled the smoke into my lungs and started coughing as Carl puffed out perfect circles like it was nothing.

Carl then took the joint in-between his fingers and asked - "Look, Y/n, why do you want to do this so badly? I mean, you were never the type to do this stuff, to begin with?"

I took the joint out of my mouth. I looked at him dead in the eyes and said - "Shut up. Let's just enjoy this moment, okay?" I felt kind of bad for sassing him, but I didn't want him to know. So, I just placed the joint back into my mouth, inhaling its substances once more.

Time skip!~

***Narrator's Pov***

The packet was now empty. Y/n and Carl were on their last joint. Of course, Carl did most of the smoking, whereas y/n only did two. Obviously, she quickly got stoned. Carl didn't want her to get too stoned, though, so he made sure she didn't do too much. After all, this was her first time. Whether she liked it or not.

Carl was still somewhat sane; however, his face was completely flushed while Y/n was in a state of awe. They were both laying down on the floor of their tree house.

Carl was looking at Y/n as she was staring at the ceiling. Her eyes were slightly red, and her mouth was somewhat opened. Clearly, she wasn't paying attention to anything.

Carl took that moment to appreciate her face. Slowly without thinking, he moved a strand of her hair away from her face. She looked at him. He smiled - "You're so pretty. You know that?" He said in a giggly voice. "I love you, Y/n." He smiled at her so sweetly.

Now here's the thing that Carl didn't fully know. Y/n may have been in a state of bliss, but she wasn't deaf.

Her small smile faded as her brain processed what he said. Her face became more flushed as she got up. "Wha- what?"

She was feeling dizzy but, more importantly, scared?

Before Carl could even react, Y/n got up. She held her head, trying not to tip over as she bends over, picking up her book bag. "I-I got to go..."

Then she left. Carl didn't even get the chance to process it all. Maybe he shouldn't have smoked the rest of that pack.

The next day

***Carl's Pov***

IDIOT! STUPID! DUMBASS! I can't believe I said that to her! HOW STUPID COULD I BE!!

My mind was in a complete spiral, as for my face- well, it was completely red. Red from blushing out of embarrassment and red from me hitting my head against the wall for the fifth hundred times this morning.

Great, just great. Now I'll forever be stuck in the friendzone with her- NO worst, she'll completely ignore me and pretend like the last couple of years meant nothing.

My breathing started to get more complicated. I could feel the tears trying to leak out as I sat there on my bed in complete anguish relishing in the thought of Y/n friend zoning me forever.

Time skip!~

I finally managed to get myself together. At least enough for me to look somewhat presentable for school.

Ow fu*k! Why does this hurt so much?

My heartbeat only grew faster with each step; I got closer and closer to her locker. I wanted to explain myself, and I praised that maybe I might actually get a good ending to this, or at least a decent one. I even practiced all night for that rejection, my only goal now is to make sure we stay friends at least.

Though as I got closer, I couldn't help but squeeze my chest. I could have sworn you were able to see my heart pounce out of my chest with each heartbeat now as I was right around the corner from her locker...

And there she was... standing there. She was so pretty- what no! Stop that... I slapped my cheek, trying to knock myself out of it. I can't get a boner now. That would just be too embarrassing.

I thought as I walked up to her, leaning against the locker next to hers. I tried not to look like a fool as I said - "Hey! Wha- What's up, y/n?"

I really hope she didn't hear that stutter...

A part of me wanted to play it off completely and pretend like yesterday never happened, but the other part was stronger...

"So, listen, about the other day... I didn't-"

"Stop." She said, putting her finger on my lips. "Carl, I like what we have, but... I- I think we need some time apart..." She said as she held her head low. Walking off to her next class.

I felt completely crushed. It was as if she was breaking up with me even though we weren't even dating. I mean sure the entire school thought we were and now with that statement, I'm sure our school bloggers will be blogging about this.

It only took her 15 words to destroy me. She didn't even let me explain or express my feelings for her completely. She didn't even want to hear it...

Breathing became the hardest thing to do at that moment. I felt the tears again, but I didn't want to let them fall. I crushed up my knuckles, my nails dugged into my skin pretty deeply and at that moment I felt so angry. I smashed her locker. It left a dent as I stormed off.

I didn't mean to, at least I didn't mean to hit her locker, but I didn't feel okay with being brushed aside. So I followed her, perhaps this time she'd give me a chance to explain.

I know that's a little toxic, but I really didn't want to let her go or let this chance slip. I mean, I couldn't help but get this feeling that there would be no next time for us... but who knows?

A/n

Ughhh! This is kind of embarrassing to admit, but I've never done this kind of stuff before, so I'm sorry if stuff doesn't add up or their reactions to the substances don't make sense. I was mainly around alcoholics, so I kind of just went with my knowledge on that and went with it. Hopefully, it doesn't sound too bad or unrealistic. Anyways stay safe! 💕

#shameless #carl gallagher #carl gallagher x reader #reader insert #shameless fans #fanfic #fanfiction #angst #rejection #friendzone #sad boy

[pagerunner-j]

Still thinking about Barbie, the movie, and Barbies, collectively, and the very particular quirk of my childhood experience with the doll.

Here's the thing: I grew up in the '80s. (Yes, I'm old, hush.) I had several Barbies, and you'd probably recognize a few of them. Peaches & Cream Barbie even made it into the opening sequence of the movie, after all. That one was, justifiably, a classic.

But my favorite Barbies as a kid looked like this.

Yes, that's an officially licensed Barbie doll, made by the Takara company for sale in Japan. For several years there, from the early '80s to 1986, Japanese Barbies looked like they'd walked straight out of an anime, big, cartoony eyes and all. They came dressed in a variety of fashions, of course, just like their American counterparts, but it's hard not to highlight the traditional kimono. A friend of mine's dad did regular business trips to Japan, and he'd bring home dolls for her, so I got to play with her Barbies during visits to her house, and I always thought they were so much cooler than mine.

Years later, after the advent of the internet and, crucially, eBay, I decided to do some research and see if I could finally snag one of these dolls for myself. To my disappointment, I discovered that Takara no longer held the Barbie license, and the company that produced Japanese Barbies thereafter made the dolls look just like ours.*

*eta: Addendum here: Bandai had the license for a few years after Takara did, and their Barbies looked a lot like Takara's, although not exactly. The last thing I found said those were made until 1989. Correct me if I'm wrong about what happened after!

Returning to the main point, though--

But then I also found out what Takara had decided to do.

They'd lost the Barbie license, specifically. Mattel didn't have any ownership over Takara's doll design, since, after all, she didn't look like Barbie. There wasn't anything preventing Takara from producing the same dolls under a different name.

So this happened.

Meet the Takara Jenny. Same look, new name, new slogan ("Jenny is another yourself"). And without the restrictions of conforming to someone else's license, Takara had the license to do what the hell ever. Traditional dresses? Frothy, elaborate Lolita designs? Friend dolls modeled after famous J-pop singers? Why the heck not?

Takara did feel compelled to come up with an explanation for the name change, I note, beyond "Mattel won't let us call her Barbie anymore." The excuse they eventually went with still amuses me. I'll just quote Wikipedia for brevity:

Prior to 1986, the doll was known as Takara Barbie. In 1986 Takara ended their licensing agreement with Mattel, and, as they owned the rights over the Takara Barbie's design, came up with a new name for the doll. The explanation given for the name change was that Jenny was the name of a character Barbie portrayed in a play, also titled Jenny. The play was a success and Barbie had become so associated with her character's name that she decided to change it to Jenny. Jenny's boyfriend was renamed from "Takara Ken" to "Jeff."

Alas, alack, no more Kenergy for Jeff. Ah well.

(Seriously, though: Imagine that your girlfriend gets so carried away with a famous role she played that not only does she change her name, you have to, too. Poor Ken!)

Anyway: Takara Jenny's had a longer run than the Takara Barbie (interrupted during a discontinuation, but I hear she's back in 2023!), although of course Barbie still reigns supreme in the fashion doll world, and even in Takara's stable, their original fashion doll, Licca, was always more popular. But I've got a soft spot for the Jenny. After all, I'm a Jenny, too. And I still think the doll design is cute as hell.

Now, for an anime movie where Stereotypical Jenny looks like this...

Edit: Okay, I have to add this video. New Licca and friends, including Jenny!

#barbie #takara jenny #takara barbie #Youtube

[souryogurt64]

what happened on your bad date

I'll take any excuse to tell an excruciatingly detailed and pointless story

So to preface this, this guy was someone I initially met IRL. The following is for drama and context, because otherwise I feel like how this played out doesn't make sense.

He was a bartender somewhere. I was interested in going swimming over the summer there with my friend when she mentioned it because 1) Pete Wentz would fake complain constantly on his LiveJournal about how sooooo boooooring and laaaaaame it was there and how the girls were just soooo baaasiccc but soooo hootttttt then brag in interviews about how he had mindblowing sex in semi-public or whatever there. So as you can imagine, it was imperative I see this for research purposes.

[I think either Pete is not as cool as he thinks he is or it must've been cooler at the time.] Anyway 2) There is a pool on the roof and I'm an Aquarius. Literally nobody else was ever in the pool because they're too cool I guess

But anyway, there was this really hot bartender there and once I ordered a drink and he told me he didn't think I'd like it and made me his own concoction. I did not like the drink he made me because he asked me if I liked coconut and I hate it but I said "Yes" because I was so flustered, but I pretended I loved the drink. It was the kind of thing you think about forever. But I used to wash glasses at brewery and I would watch all the guys flirt with every girl, so I knew it wasn't like, real.

So, I saw him on Hinge quite a bit later. His pictures were very professional which should have tipped me off but I was feeling a bit la-la about him. I definitely felt like I was batting out of my league-- a few of my friends told me I wasn't, but they're your friends and they're supposed to say that.

Anyway, I messaged him and I mentioned the drink thing. As more context, I had to take a vow of abstinence and take pregnancy tests every month while on Accutane, two months before, and for three months after, so this would be my first date in about a year.

He pretty much immediately asked me to go to a (nicer than I'm used to) bar. He picked the place and time and asked me to go out on a weekend. Initially I wanted to be realistic and just hope I got a reliable fwb out of it, but a guy had never asked me out like this before so I was like "maybe he remembered me and felt the same way."

In retrospect, he did this because he thought I must've been someone I'm not and I would expect that level of effort. But because I was so excited and I had met him organically and not on an evil app, I started to get even more lala and think that maybe this would be real or whatever. His profile said he was from South Carolina which I thought was kinda hot.

I had been approached by guys multiple times there and had always run away or ignored them because I expected they were going to be like, well, what happened on this date. But because of where he was from plus him being the bartender, I was starting to convince myself that he was normal or something. Very naive.

So we go on this date and the first five minutes are an immediate disaster. I had looked at the menu ahead of time and I wanted one of the most expensive drinks because it looked fruity, but I didn't want to be rude so I tried to get there before he did so I could open a tab. This was my first time at a bar where you don't have to open a tab so the waitress didn't understand what I was trying to do. (For the record, I actually ordered something a lot cheaper.)

He walks in seconds after this and is like "Why is your wallet on the table, is this some kind of power move" which is incredibly rude but anyway he was very insistent about paying. Important later.

After this he starts by asking the weirdest thing about me. The weirdest thing about me is probably what I'm into in bed, but I wasn't about to say that, and I'm not a very good liar either, and he was not impressed with my answer.

After this, he noticed I was wearing a little cross necklace, because it goes with the dress and is probably the nicest piece of jewelry I own. He asks me if I'm religious very confrontationally, and that's like kind of complicated. Also incredibly rude.

Then he asks where I work and I tell the truth. This is immediately a problem, because he tells me before he was a bartender, he used to work in film. I should have figured this out based off the photo quality, but I'm a little slow. He also started bringing up that being surprising for my age because I was so young and he went on about it for too long. He was 28, I'm 24.

It also comes out that he is NOT actually from South Carolina he was born in Russia or something then moved there as a kid then lived in LOS ANGELES for 10 years and then left the film industry and moved to Chicago to start bartending and (these were not his words) he's clearly a huge playboy. So this is NOT a normal person this is a freak

After this, though, the date was actually going really well and was very enjoyable, except for when he kept trying to drop names of all these different celebrities and (I quote) "billionaires" he worked with to impress me. I didn't know who any of them were except Tom Felton and he was very perplexed by this and kept trying to do it harder until it got me going and it just wasn't happening, which goes back to him thinking I must've been like. The typical clientele of that establishment

He also insisted we go to multiple bars and I thought this was incredibly weird. Also at this point I realized I had not eaten and was incredibly drunk. Usually when I go out with friends or on a date I have 2-3 drinks over the course of several hours, and am a little tipsy but that's it.

I only had 2 over a 3 hour period, and was probably the 3rd most intoxicated I have ever been in my life. I thought it would be fine if I stopped drinking and just had water but I was getting progressively worse. In his defense, he asked if I needed food and I said "No" because I didn't want to eat in front of a boy. I'm pretty sure I started to brown out but I was trying really hard not to let on to where I was at.

Anyway we're at the last bar and I'm feeling really bad. At this point in the date, I really did want to see him again and keep hanging out but I just felt awful so I started hinting that I wanted to go home.

Because I was so drunk, I don't remember exactly what order this happened in or what happened between these, but somewhere at this point it devolves into the most bizarre 10 minutes of my life.

He tells me he's been to rehab twice and I think he maybe said he went to one of those wilderness camps and I was like "why are we both drunk then" and he was like "well it's okay because it was for drugs" and like whatever not my business. Except he also started psychoanalyzing me and tells me that I'm probably into him because I'm sexually repressed because I was raised super religious and go for him because it seems rebellious but he's "non threatening" and I "think I'm bisexual." And I was drunk enough to say "I am bisexual" and he got really affronted by this.

This was all true, but it hurt my feelings and was rude and weird. I also considered this a huge red flag because Hey Chris spent like half of his book about being a sex addict talking about women like this so I was like absolutely not. I think he was probably as drunk as me to be honest but was handling it a lot worse

The most freak behavior out of him though was that he tried to be like "So how did we split this, how many did you pay for" as if he hadn't insisted. So I paid for his last drink and-- freak part incoming-- he leaned over to watch me write the tip. I was so drunk and so weirded out by this I couldn't do any math in my head so I tipped way too much and he grabbed the receipt and got super offended by this for some reason.

Anyway despite this being insanely rude, he starts trying really hard to get me to not leave or get me to take him back to my place. He asks if he can kiss me and I say "Yeah," mostly because I was trying not to turn this into more of a huge production that it already was.

Shockingly, he was a very good kisser and it did feel pretty electric, but I had never been kissed in public before and I hated it. And also he was clearly bad news so I kept pulling away. At this point he was like "I've never had a date go like this before, I've never had a girl leave like this, this has never happened to me before, never" and I just remember how truly shocked he looked.

Anyway I fled the scene. The end

[disgruntledkittenface]

snippet

thank you @louisandtheaquarian and @nouies for tagging me to share a snippet! I finished a draft of the first chapter of the fic I’m working on and I think it’s rough but I reallllllly like the story

“So you all live here in Southampton?” Harry asks, looking around as Zayn and Liam nod.

“Not me,” Louis says, trying to subtly inch away from Zayn, who still has his arm around his shoulders. “My dad has a place here, but I live at my mom’s house in Sag Harbor.”

Harry rests his hand on Louis’ knee, as if to comfort him. No one he’s ever had a crush on has been able to read him so well, so quickly. He angles his body toward Harry, finally disentangling from Zayn, who’s distracted by something over by the game of cornhole.

“It’s really nice,” he says, keeping his voice down so only Harry can hear. “Our house is on the water, and the downtown area is really nice. It feels like a small town. Well, that’s kind of true everywhere in the Hamptons…”

“Yeah, there’s lots of…” Harry gestures vaguely with his free hand. “Like small businesses and American flags and people saying hello on the street.”

“See,” Louis says, tilting his head. “You already get the vibe, you know the area.”

“So why’d your mum pick Sag Harbor? Because it’s a good place to raise a family?”

“Yes and no,” Louis admits, smoothing his hair off his forehead. “It is good for families, but since the divorce, she does whatever she can to avoid my dad. She doesn’t even come out to the house in the summer, she always goes to Europe. I think she’s in Saint-Tropez right now.”

“Oh, I love it down there,” Harry says, grinning. “We try to go every year. There’s this great little Moroccan restaurant that’s a little off the beaten path, Salama. You should tell your mum to go there.”

“Oh,” Louis says, his back stiffening as he realizes that the restaurant Harry is talking about is closed. He doesn’t want to say anything in front of his friends, so he just nods. “Yeah, yeah, I will.”

“Uh, didn’t that place shut down, like, five years ago?” Luke laughs derisively from the log across the fire. “Thought you said you go every year, dude, how did you not know that?”

“Oh, shit, that’s right,” Harry says, rubbing his fingers over his mouth as he appears to remember. “Now that you say that, it’s been longer than I thought since I’ve eaten there.”

“I don’t even know if she’s still there anyway,” Louis says to Harry. He’ll have to murder Luke later. For now, all he wants is to talk to Harry outside of a tennis lesson. “She could be eating Moroccan food in Morocco for all I know. She only checks in, like, every other month.”

“One time, my parents went to Croatia for a month,” Harry says, a laugh bubbling in his voice, “and no one told me. I thought I just kept missing them at breakfast.”

“Oh my God,” Louis laughs. “Really?”

“It’s the God’s honest truth,” Harry insists, holding up a hand as if to swear it.

They huddle together by the fire, and Louis tells Harry more stories about the lengths his mom goes to in order to avoid his dad, and how she ends up avoiding him in the process. The party continues around them, and after a while Harry finally gets up to get a drink. He cracks open a can of beer on his way back from the coolers, bumping into Luke and spilling about half of it on him. Louis hides his laugh behind his hand as Luke’s date dries him off with a beach towel. He almost never gets to see Luke get any karma. There’s a twinkle in Harry’s eye when he sits back down next to Louis, and Louis starts to suspect that Harry spilled the beer on purpose, but then Luke starts cheering at his phone, distracting him.

I’ll tag @crinkle-eyed-boo @allwaswell16 @louandhazaf @kingsofeverything @haztobegood @beelou @wabadabadaba @neondiamond

#my apologies to hot luke in this fic!!!! #an american tragedy au

[dirtwatchman]

PARTIES: @dirtwatchman and @vanoincidence TIMING: Early March SUMMARY: Van and Caleb are missing their friend and decide to have a day without her. Things get a little tense between the two. CONTENT WARNINGS: No triggers just lots of corpse talk.

Van frowned at her phone screen. “Did Erin tell you that she was going to a coffin convention?” She pocketed the device, stuffing her hands into the pockets of her jacket afterwards to keep them warm. “Who has a coffin convention, anyway? What do you think that looks like?” The Common was practically abandoned, all except for the few individuals who braved the cold. She wasn’t sure how Caleb had convinced her to leave the house today, but after Erin said she would be leaving town for awhile, Van felt the need to keep him company. It wasn’t her job as a twenty year old, but in reality, she felt like he was the closest thing she could get to a brother, even with the twenty-two year age gap. 

“Yea, it was a weird conversation.” What was a coffin convention anyway? “I didn’t even know those things existed.” He had been working with her and her dad for so long and yet he’d never heard a word about them before. But he was on the other side of things most of the time. “Depressing? Or…comfortable? I don’t know, it depends on the coffins, I guess.” Caleb leaned back against the bench they were sitting on, looking around the park and wondering why he had chosen this place. Van had to be freezing. “Do you want my jacket or something? I kind of forgot how cold it was out here.” A feat in itself considering the few people around were crunching through the snow. Speaking of forgetting, though. “Oh, hey, I brought you something though.” He grabbed his cooler from the side of the bench and brought out a few of the spicy pickles they were both fond of, holding them all out to her. “You know, since you’ve sacrificed so many.”

“I didn’t either, but I guess they do.” Van frowned. She knew that Erin would be coming back, but it still felt weird having to say goodbye to her. “Maybe it’s both? Do you think that instead of hotel rooms, they tell them they have to sleep in the coffins? You know, to test them out?” She wasn’t sure why a live person would need to test out coffins, especially because once somebody was dead, they didn’t know the comfortability of where they were laid to rest, but Van liked the idea that maybe there was some care involved when it came to things like that. “I have these.” She reached inside her pockets to display the electric hand warmers she’d bought off of Tik Tok Shop. “I’m testing them out to see if they are like, actually worth anything.” She hadn’t decided quite yet. “Besides, if you give me your jacket, you’ll be cold and then I’ll feel bad.” As he reached to the side, Van leaned over to look, eyes growing wide at the sight of the spicy pickles. “Dude, these had to of cost you a fortune.” Only because she was running up the price at the store she bought them from– something about needing to keep up with demand. She had half a mind to start ordering them online. She took one of the packages and grinned at him. “Erin’s gonna be so upset, missing the spicy pickle parade.” 

For a split second, Van’s question had him envisioning Erin trying out different coffins to see which one she would want to sleep in for the night. He was chuckling at the very idea but he shook his head at the girl. “It’s a convention, not a house of horrors. I could see that happening if the convention was here maybe.” His thoughts went from Erin trying out the coffins to Caleb doing so himself and for some reason his smile slipped. Why was the thought so heartbreaking? Maybe it was because he was never actually going to be in one himself if things didn’t get too messy in his eternal life but he was going to have to watch almost everyone he loved laying in one. He shook the thoughts from his mind, not wanting to envision that for a second longer than he already had. 

“I don’t really get too cold. The Maine weather has seeped into my bones over the years. You know, I’m always outside anyway.” Which was the truth really. His job required a lot of outside time. Not to mention, he liked the outdoors anyway. Caleb tried to play off the price of the pickles with a wave of his hand, not ready to admit that he might have spent the whole portion of his last brain sale to get them for her. “It’s her loss for going to try out coffins, that’s what she gets right?” He flashed her a smile. “But maybe we can save her one.”

“I don’t know– dead people seem like a house of horrors, right?” Maybe that wasn’t appropriate. “Like, think about it– every horror movie starts out with spooky shit like coffins.” She had no reason to believe that that was what Erin was actually doing, but the vision she’d created was better than the alternative– that Erin had decided to leave on her own omission instead of staying put like she’d always promised. Van splayed her fingers through the air, stretching them out to ease the anxiety that was starting to build in her chest. 

“You’re so cool, pretending you’re not cold. It’s 2024, being a macho man isn’t like, a thing anymore. It’s weird, Caleb.” She stared at him for a brief moment, trying to deliberate whether or not he fell within gen-x standards or if he was a millennial. Her go-to insult was identifying those older than her as a boomer– it always seemed to ruffle feathers, no matter what. “Yeah, I guess so.” Van let out a scoff at Caleb’s consideration for Erin. “No way! She left, so she doesn’t get these.” She motioned towards the pickles. “This is totally her loss.” 

Ouch. She couldn't have known how much that comment would sting and yet he bristled slightly when she said it, his mouth moving before he could stop himself. “They’re not horrors.” Frowning at his own words, Caleb couldn't understand at first why he had even snapped at her like that. He was dead, yes, but that didn’t mean she was calling him a horror in any way. Plus, he kind of was a horror, wasn’t he? He’d said this much to himself over the years, thought as much about the other undead sometimes, and yet he took offense as if it were one of her playful jabs that had hit the wrong deadened nerve. It hit a little different when someone he cared about was saying it. He had made himself sensitive by thinking of everyone in coffins and now this, he needed to chill out. “I mean, you’re right, coffins are associated with horrifying things but the dead…they’re just dead. There’s not much else to it.”

The zombie rolled his eyes at her, his lips twitching up once more as he tried his best to move past his little slip up. “I’m not pretending, but fine, go ahead and freeze. But let me ask you, since when have I ever pretended to be a macho man?” He was a nervous ball of lankiness that let fear and anxiety turn him into the biggest doormat. There was no way anyone thought of Caleb as anything remotely resembling macho. The only reason he had any muscle at all was due to the years of digging graves. “Alright, they’re yours, you have the final say. We’ll just have to rub it in her face when she gets back instead.”

Van was a little surprised at the way Caleb snapped at her. She held her hands up in defense. “I was thinking like, horror movies! You know, being followed by dead things, or like– haunted!” She had some respect for the dead. After all, both of her parents had fallen to the tragedy of it all. The moment with the gifted pickles was gone and there was an air of uncertainty and awkwardness that hung over them now. She looked down at her hands, kicking the toe of her shoe against the small platform of concrete that the bench was resting on. “Yeah, I guess so.” The dead were dead, no matter what. But did Caleb know about the things in Wicked’s Rest? Had he seen the horrors? Experienced them the way she had? If he had, would he have tried to correct her the way he did? She wasn’t sure. 

She shrugged, “I think it’s like an trait that all dudes have, you know? Even if you think you unlearned it, it’s still there.” She pointed at herself as she continued, “sometimes I find myself like, getting super jealous of other girls, and I guess that’s my toxic trait.” Mostly because those same girls had bullied her in school, but that wasn’t necessary to bring up. Van relaxed slightly as the conversation dipped back into familiar territory which, ultimately came down to making fun of Erin. She took her phone out of her pocket and sent a quick photo off to the older woman before stuffing it back into her pocket. “I hope she enjoys her coffins with no pickles.” 

The way she was scrambling to ‘fix’ her comments had Caleb closing his eyes briefly. He hadn’t meant to make her feel bad but his response had been too harsh. Yet he couldn’t explain to Van why the comment had hurt him the way it had. In that moment, he realized how much easier life could be if he could tell the people he cared about that he was dead. The few who knew were easier to be around just because he could talk about it freely but with Van and Erin he always felt like he was on some sort of ledge ready to topple over, ruining their view on life with the truth. It was the last thing he wanted for them, to change what they thought about the world…what they thought about him. 

And then he realized why things could have gotten a lot more awkward from there. He swallowed thickly, his mind going to her parents as it dawned on him just how little she had meant about the horrors comment. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to snap at you. I know you didn’t mean anything by it.” He wanted to continue, to say that he knew what it was like to be likened to such a thing, but he stopped there in hopes that it was enough to clear the air between them.

Now he was wondering how many times this toxic masculinity had come out in him. Her words made sense even if Caleb was a coward most of the time and he was only trying to be nice to her. He supposed it leaked through along with his need to please everyone around him. “Okay, I can see your point.” Because he couldn’t argue that he really didn’t need the jacket at all without explaining why. “But why exactly do you get jealous of other girls?” He didn’t feel like there was a need for that but he also wasn’t Van. He couldn’t know what was going through her mind.

Caleb apologized, and Van felt smaller than before. She wasn’t sure if she deserved any kind of apology, or if it was even necessary. She wasn’t sure why she felt that way– maybe because she was always saying things without thinking, and that usually got her into trouble. “I um, I get it, you know? Like, you work… with dead people, I get that you’re sensitive.” A bit of the conversation reminded her of Regan and her chest twisted– an onslaught of unresolved feelings over the woman who would be leaving both her and Jade, just like Erin had. 

Van stammered slightly as she tried to explain herself, “I don’t know, I mean– have you ever looked at somebody else and been like, oh my god I want to be her, or I guess– him– them, I don’t know.” She shrugged, kicking the toe of her shoe against the ground again. “I think it makes sense when you’re like, young, and you were young once, so a part of you should definitely get it, you know?” She flashed him an uncertain grin. 

She didn’t get it though. That was the thing, she couldn’t understand why he was sensitive to the topic. Yes, he worked with the dead and tried his hardest to give them respect but on any given day Caleb was cracking their skulls for his own personal gain. That wasn’t respect, that was the plot of a horror story. Which was exactly why her words had gotten under his skin. 

It was time to let it go though. Dwelling on it wouldn’t do either of them any good. “Hey, it’s all good. Truce?” He looked at her, a hint of amusement in his eye as he raised his pinky finger. He hoped the tension was dissipating with his gesture, he could feel it slipping from his own shoulders as he let it all go. It was over now. Or so he hoped.

He raised an eyebrow at her insinuation that he was old. It wasn’t anything new with Van and it never offended him too much but he did like to mess with her when she did. “You know, you’re going to be my age one day and you’re going to hate when the kids start saying stuff like that to you. I’ll be off to the side laughing the whole time.” A chuckle left him but the smile started to fade as he thought about her reasoning. “I get that. I think we all want to be someone else at least once in our lives. There’s no shame in that. Sometimes there are people who seem to have it easier and it’s okay to want easier.”

Van hesitated for a moment before giving him a firm nod. “Trucies.” She lifted her own pinky, tapping it against Caleb’s before leaning back into the bench. She was used to overstepping, and most of the time, people called her out on it. Sometimes she cared about what they had to say, and other times she didn’t. This was one of the times she did. She didn’t want Caleb to be upset with her. 

“When I’m your age, who’s to say you won’t be like, dead. I mean, it’s good though, right! Dying of old age and not…” Van pondered for a moment, thinking of the least likely scenario. “Scurvy, or something. It’s a good thing you’re not a pirate.” She sighed, shifting around the cooler of pickles so that they now sat at her feet instead of next to her on the bench. “I think that one day I want to be who I am and not somebody else, but other times I look at people who are way cooler and wonder if I could be them one day.” Maybe it was a little too deep. With a huff, Van leaned back into the bench and lifted her gaze to the sky. “Maybe I’ll be cool and old or something.” 

“Oh, ouch.” His tone was light, Caleb keeping himself in check after his outburst earlier, but again his mind went to what life would be like in the future. But he didn’t want to think about the fact that he couldn’t possibly stick around for much longer or people would realize he wasn’t aging or the fact that he was going to miss a lot in the lives of most people he cared about. So he tried to shake it off, keeping the airyness of his tone. “I’m only going to be in my sixties when you’re my age, you really think I’m going to die that young? I’ll just have to make sure I’m taking my vitamin C supplements so I can stick around and bug you about this. I’ll be the old man laughing about how you thought you’d be rid of me by then.”

His hands went to his jacket pockets as Caleb leaned back on the bench with her, his gaze locked on the top of her head. She really didn’t realize how amazing she already was, did she? Van was that person who could make him laugh even on the worst day but then pull on his heartstrings in the same breath. She was a little out there but unapologetic about it. She was the one who would give him a spicy pickle while trying to make it seem like the biggest inconvenience just because she knew he liked them. There wasn’t much she could do to be any better.

“I really hope that one day you can be happy with who you are. But for the record, Van, I already think you’re one of the coolest people I know.” He waited for a moment before he added the next part, not wanting to get too mushy on her. “I know that doesn’t mean much coming from an uncool geezer like me though.” He grinned then, reaching ground to grab their stuff in his hands. “Come on weirdo, you’re going to freeze if we stay out here any longer. Let's go get you a hot chocolate or something.”

#Threads #Thread: Van #Horrorfied