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a-is-for-abel · 3 years

Text

"“I’m moving.” He froze, glancing up at his friend. The other boy’s eyes were gleaming with suppressed sobs, breath hitching and jaw clenched. “Mom got a job in another state and we’re moving in a month.”

Inspired by this prompt by @givethispromptatry

Sand and shells crunched under the belly of the kayak as it ran aground. With a wobble and a curse he tumbled into the water, paddle floating away from him and kayak shooting off in the opposite direction.

"Fuck."

He scrambled to collect both, tossing the paddle up onto the beach and grabbing the handle at the bow of the kayak to tow it onto shore.

"You're late."

He rolled his eyes and glanced over his shoulder to see Warren in all his cut-offs and sandals glory. "And you're early."

Warren crossed his arms. "I'm literally the most on time, dude."

"Whatever, just-- Help me grab the stuff."

He popped open the watertight chamber in front of the seat and reached into the belly of the kayak, all while Warren struggled to pull the backpack out from under the cage of bungee cords at the front.

"Just unhook them, dude," he said, his cellphone and two unopened cream sodas finally in hand.

"Don't tell me how to do it."

"It's not going to--"

"Shit!" Warren yelped, recoiling and clutching his hand.

"Told you."

Warren flicked him off, but turned to do what he said anyway.

"Come on, suns gonna start setting soon." He grabbed his backpack from Warren and stuffed the drinks and his phone inside.

"What? Afraid of some gators?"

"No," he said. "Rather a gator than my dad."

Warren grimaced. "He still got you on that curfew?"

"Yup."

He picked his way through the mangrove thicket that cut the beach off from the rest of the spoil island. The roots of the black mangroves jutted up like fingers through the sand and the stilts of the red mangroves tried their best to snag his feet as he ducked under the sprawling web of an orb weaver hidden in their midst. Thankfully, it cleared out past the initial wall of foliage, becoming more barren with only the occasional thicket.

He remembered when his dad had led them through here the first time and explained that the mangroves kept the spoil islands standing. That when hurricanes and storms threatened to wash them away, their roots would act like a little army, keeping off any barrage and harboring whatever took up shelter under them.

He frowned. His dad and him hadn't come out here since--

"Fuck, fuck, fu--" Warren sputtered behind him, high-pitched.

"Web?" he asked, glancing back to see Warren flinching away from a tree.

"Yeah, fuck--" Warren brushed his arms off frantically and patted at his hair. "Fucking spiders all over the fucking place, man. They call it Mosquito Lagoon, but it really should be spider god damn la-- Fuck!"

"Nice one, ‘spider god damn la-fuck’ really has a special sort of ring to it."

Warren shot him a glare and dusted off his shoulders and the front of his shirt with quick flicks. "You owe me for psychological damages..."

"Come on, we used to come out here all the time."

"When I was like ten! And with your dad!" Warren cowered away from another web that sprawled from a lone tree. "And I didn't have as much free real estate for a spider to like, you know-- Crawl all over me or whatever."

"Free real estate?"

"Yeah, you know the whole--" Warren gestured vaguely. "The meme."

"God, please stop," he groaned. "That shits like, what, twenty-seventeen? That's like ancient history, man."

"It's a classic."

"Sure," he muttered. "A classic."

"Whatever, man, you're just not cultured."

He scoffed. "That's definitely it."

The other end of the island unfolded into a drop-off, all coquina and shells packed tightly together and built up into a mound that cut off abruptly into nothing. It was the highest point of the island-- of most of the spoils out here honestly-- even though it's small cliff had been eaten away and eroded over time, shrinking and shifting as the island shrank with the waves.

Dropping his backpack, he sat and dangled his legs over the edge, shoes knocking back against the coquina with a scratchy rasp. Warren plopped down beside him, keeping his legs folded and away from the plunge. Not that it was much of a sheer cliff. Only about eight feet down at the most, but enough that it felt like a lot. Compared to the average of three feet below sea level for the rest of the mainland; eight feet felt pretty fucking huge.

The tide lapped at the base of the island, the water hissing and coiling, writhing and alive where it squirmed through the holes bored through the coquina face and back out with a soft crackle. Crabs, tiny and mottled, darted in and around the rocks and he could see finger mullet, their scales flashing as they turned and twisted with the waves.

"You tied up your kayak, right?" Warren asked.

"Naw, but it should be fine. I pulled it up pretty far."

"I'm not sharing if you get stuck out here."

He frowned, shooting Warren his best puppy dog eyes. "You'd leave me out here?"

"Yes."

He chuckled. "Fair."

Seagulls drifted in lazy circles far overhead, the occasional cry working its way down to them as the birds banked with the wind, following the gusts up to where they could catch a glimpse of a meal beneath the water. One wheeled down in a sudden arc, wings folded close to its side as it plummeted, beak first, into the water with a snap and then back out with a spray.

"Man, tough luck..." Warren said. "Hate whenever they miss. Makes me feel kinda bad."

"They're just gonna go do what the rest do and steal some fries at the jetty once they realize it's easier than doing this."

"Yeah, but it's like-- I don't know, man. Just wish he'd get a win."

"You don't even know him!"

"I feel like we have a connection." Warren pointed at where the seagull had gone back to patrolling the waters. "Me and seagull number one thousand and three, we're like this--" He crossed his fingers.

"Shut up," he snorted.

They watched the seagull try again and fail.

Warren started up a running commentary after the third attempt, cupping a hand over his mouth to imitate the slight grain of a sports announcer's microphone as he dramatized the whole thing. When the seagull finally managed to snag a fish Warren cheered, arms thrown up in a touchdown motion that he copied with a grin.

"Hell yeah, dude!" Warren high-fived him.

"Where's all that enthusiasm for when you're at my games?" he asked.

"Come on, dude, you know I always cheer the loudest. You're just too far out on the field to hear me."

"I'm sure that's what it is."

"Whatever, man-- What'd you bring anyway?" Warren grabbed his backpack and began rummaging through it. "Oh shit! Gummy bears, dude! And the good kind, hell yeah!"

"Yeah, grabbed them before I came here. That's why I was late, idiot."

Warren tore open the package. "Crimes forgiven, man. This is worth it."

"Give me that--" He pulled his backpack out of Warren's lap. "I also got some soda, but I guess all you care about is your precious little bears."

"Naw, naw-- Hand that over."

"Rude much?"

"What? You want me to kiss you on the lips for it first, bro?"

He laughed. "Now, that would be the polite thing to do."

Warren puckered his lips at him and then snatched the soda. "Fuck off."

"Not even a little kiss?" he teased.

"You dragged me out to spider-fuck-nowhere, while it's ass fucking hot out and where it smells like rotting fish taint-- Just to watch the fucking sunset, when we could have sat on my roof and done the exact same thing-- You expect a kiss for that?"

He shrugged. "Yeah. Bro code."

Warren snorted. "Hand me a bottle opener, dip shit."

He popped open his own bottle and passed it over to Warren, who struggled for a moment before finally getting it with a triumphant 'whoop'. The mixture of saccharine flavored soda and the slight rotting stench of algae, and whatever else the lagoon had to offer, wasn't exactly pleasant, but it wasn't terrible. It was familiar.

It was homely in it's off kilter sort of way.

"So, why'd you bring me out here anyways?" Warren asked.

He sighed and kicked his heel back against the coquina. "I’m moving.”

Warren sucked in sharply and he glanced over at him.

He rubbed the back of his neck and looked down at the water below his feet. "Dad got a job in another state and we’re moving in a month.”

"Dude…"

"I didn't know how to tell you. I just--"

"Is that why you decided it'd be a good idea to sneak out and go to that dumb party with me?" Warren asked, frowning.

"I figured it would be one of the last chances I had to do something fun, you know. Here. Before I just-- Leave all this shit forever. I mean, we're moving to fucking Ohio, man. Where the fuck am I gonna find a party on an island out there?"

"Right…"

"And look, fuck my dad--"

"Jake--"

"No, fuck him-- He didn't even--" he huffed. "Things were looking up, man. Varsity lacrosse in sophomore year, that's huge, dude. And I wasn't just the fucking loser kid in the back of class anymore and he just--"

"Works rough here, dude..." Warren cut him off, sighing. "Space programs taking a shit. Whole island's taking a shit, really. Plenty of people left the first time NASA tanked, remember? It's just… it happens, man."

"So, you're just fine with it then?" he asked, brows furrowing. "We're never going-- I'm never going to see you again and you're just okay with that?"

"It's not forever!" Warren said, throwing out his hands. "There's planes, man! It's the twenty first fucking century. We got phones, dude. We'll stay in touch."

He grit his teeth and looked down.

"Jake, bro. C'mon-- Look at me."

He met Warren's eyes.

"It's gonna be okay, dude." Warren said, smile wide, and he could see the little falter at the edges, but he didn't call him on it. "Look--" Warren held up his bottle. "We'll cheers on it."

"Cheers on what?"

"To staying in touch, to meeting up in the future. To staying friends and all that, I don't know."

"To you finally getting a boyfriend?"

"Actually, you know what, I'm not going to miss you at all."

"Come on--" he grinned, nudging Warren with his shoulder. "You'll miss me."

"Yeah," Warren chuckled, looking down with a small smile. "I will..."

His fingers tightened around the glass bottle in his hand, bottom lip threatening to worry between his teeth. "Look, let's do your dumb cheers thing before it gets too sentimental or whatever."

Warren sighed, seeming to shake himself off before raising his soda bottle above his head and towards the slowly setting sun. "To us."

"To us?" He wrinkled his nose. "Isn't that kinda cheesy?"

"Just shut up and do it."

"Fine..." he grumbled with a grin, raising his bottle to clink against Warren's. "To us."

//photo credit// me and my phone c. 2020 //

#writeblr #writing community #creative writing #fiction #prompt fill #prose #writers on tumblr #short story #writing #my writing #original work #sorry for the cursing #miss the spoil islands and the lagoon #Florida

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lady-grace-pens · 3 years

Text

Wip Excerpt: HTKAG

In light of this wip hitting another 10k word goal recently (currently sitting pretty at a whopping 120k/150k 😅), another excerpt is due! This babe I wrote today, buut I actually loved it so much I knew I had to share it with y'all right away. That all being said, let's stop wasting time and get straight into it!

Our scene begins with Allister entering a restaurant to have dinner with Mikko, Fingal, and Perci, but Perci is late.

—

Upon telling the hostess Fingal’s name, she leads me away to the right half of the room. Off in a booth stowed away in the corner sit Mikko and Fingal jabbering away mid-conversation. Once they notice me, they stop and smile.

“Hey! There’s the man of the hour,” Mikko exclaims, throwing his hands in the air.

“Not late, am I?” I grin, taking a seat beside him.

“Nope. Right on time to get some drinks,” Mikko starts smouldering at our hostess.

“With what money?” Fingal retorts with a glare.

Mikko blinks, struggling to come up with a defense. It seems he mustn't have anticipated Fingal to interrupt his attempt at flirting…

“Wha - With our money, of course,” he laughs, trying his best to make a smooth recovery.

“Aye. Which is why we’re not using my money to buy alcohol while a minor is here.”

Mikko doesn’t reply. Then again I suppose he doesn't need to, his confusion is written all over his face.

“Don’t tell me you forgot about Perci. He’ll be here any minute.”

“Oh! Fuck, that’s right. Him. Well obviously he won’t be getting any. And come on! You know how fast I can down a beer Fin! It’ll just be a few. Just a few rounds! Don’t be an ass.”

“Watch yourself Mikko, it's not polite to use such language in the presence of a lady.” I chime in, giving the hostess a polite smile.

“Oh I’ll show you what’s not polite-” Mikko says before slapping my head.

I try to hit him back, but he catches my hand before I can. Before we know it, we’re caught in a ridiculous slapping fight, both laughing our asses off.

“Not in a restaurant, not in a restaurant!” I speak through gasps, trying to end things.

Mikko obliges, tossing his hands back in his lap.

“A waiter will be right with you,” the hostess makes a case to look at each one of us except for Mikko before finishing her sentence, “... gentleman.”

Much to my surprise, Mikko doesn’t seem to be affected by that backhanded insult. Instead he kicks his knees up against the table and rests his head back, totally listless.

“Mikko, I would’ve thought you’d be more offended by that.”

“Huh? Why would I be offended at something when it’s true?”

“I’ll say. You and Al couldn’t be any more opposite. If there’s anything larger than the truth, the fact that you’re not a gentleman is way beyond it.”

“Exactly. And Mikko, you are aware of the fact that she was just a hostess, right? It isn’t even her job to serve us drinks.”

“I... “ Mikko laughs before leaning over the table again. “Listen. You two just don’t get it, do you? No. You don’t. Allow me to be the one who graces your palettes here, eh? Let me tell you what I’m gonna do. Okay? I’m gonna give you a tip. A piece of advice that will change your lives forever. All for free! You don’t even have to pay me. All you gotta do is listen. Got it? You both ready?”

Fingal and I share a look. I can tell we’re thinking along a similar vein of confused intrigue. We should most likely stop Mikko here, as whatever will come out his mouth won’t be anything good. However, we’re both too stunned to stop him, so…

Mikko beckons us to lean closer to him. Fin and I oblige. We’re almost touching heads when at last our dear mentor speaks once again, in a hushed voice. “It’s not about what you say. It’s about how you say it.”

…

There are no words. For about a minute straight Fingal and I are just staring at each other wearing the same expression that exudes two questions. ‘What the fuck? You’ve heard that too, haven’t you?’

Soon after that’s established and our shock subsides, we burst back to life. Fingal starts us off with, “Dammit Mikko. What the fuck? Where did you learn that? Who taught you that?”

“Some guys from the bar! Why, what’s wrong with it?”

“Which guys from the bar?”

“I don’t see how it-”

“Mikko. Which guys from the bar taught you this?” Fingal insists, a flash of anger showing in his eyes.

Mikko seems to notice this, and complies straight away. “Leo, John, Peter and Paul!”

Fingal buries his head in his hands. This sparks my curiosity. I haven’t heard these names before, but Fin clearly has.

“I can’t say I’m familiar with them, who might they be?”

“Bar friends-” Mikko starts, only for Fingal to finish for him.

“Jokesters. Jerks. Cheapskates always looking for a laugh. Assholes. Can’t wait to give them a piece of my mind.”

Mikko shrinks away from Fin. His head is turned away from me, but I don’t need to see it in order to know how stunned he is. It’s expressed flawlessly through the abnormal quietness of his voice. “Fin? What’s up, why’d you-”

“Because those dicks have been filling your head with shit like this every damn time I turned my back, Mikko! Dammit, this - this is why you always get rejected! Universe, I just wish you would’ve checked with me first about things like this. Not some strangers you barely even know, yet idolize them anyway.

You wanna know how you get a girl Mikko? Huh? You be nice. You be nice to them, you talk with them, and you listen. Compliments and flirting, all that helps, of course, but not forever! And you sure as hell can’t build a relationship strictly off of it. Okay? Standards and expectations vary from girl to girl, but with each and every single one there are a few things that you just have to do. Be nice, have respect, help them just for the sake of helping them! Don’t expect anything in return. Overall just - just be a decent fucking human being. That is how you get a girl.”

Mikko sits there, staring at his brother. I can’t help but do the same. In every respect, Fingal is right. Of course he is. It’s just… rare that we see him so worked up. I can hardly believe my eyes. I can hardly believe my ears, I… I can’t imagine how Mikko must be feeling.

Oh so gradually his head sinks down into his lap. He slumps over, and I swear I can see fractions of tears reflect the golden light radiating above us.

“Can’t believe I’m actually telling you this when you’re eighteen. Fucking eighteen,” Fingal scoffs, crossing his arms.

“I’m sorry-”

“Don’t be. I’m not mad at you. This is my own fault, I blame myself.”

“Aw, come on man! That’s even worse,” pouts Mikko.

Fingal then turns to me with an abruptness that makes me jump. “Al, what’s up? You’ve been quiet for a while. You can back me up on this, can’t you?”

“I…” I force a chuckle to try and lighten the air some. “I don’t think that I’m currently in a position to give advice like this, to be honest with you.”

Fingal leans his elbows on the table, holding his head with one hand. “Why? Something happen with Maddie?”

“Oh, did it ever,” I shake my head.

—

Aand that's all you guys get for spoiler reasons! Lmao

(also because that's all I've written today but shhhh don't tell anyone)

Buut yeah. Legit I swear I didn't mean to go so hard on feminist Fingal 😂 I mean don't get me wrong here, he's absolutely right and I'm keeping it in. But still, the words just kept on coming and coming and we ended up with this

y'know

yeah

writing is super fun sometimes

Plus tbh, writing the part where Mikko is stroking his ego and whispers his ‘top secret trick to get women’, I was literally laughing out loud 😂 like he's just so wrong, and I love how horribly Mikko fails in life. It's just super funny to me, I enjoy it a lot.

Fingal, however, clearly does not enjoy it, lmao. Legit I had no clue he could be so protective until today! Especially over Mikko. I mean I always knew their dynamics, but today… it really hit home for me.

Go back and look at the line of dialogue Fingal says right after Mikko apologizes (a rare occurrence, actually).

It’s just one little piece of dialogue, barely a few sentences! Yet I feel like it hits you. You know? It reveals so much about his and Mikko’s vibes, their situation. A pair of brothers poor and orphaned by their birth parents and raised by their grandmother, who is only growing older and weaker each year. Fingal, the eldest, having to take responsibility often. He feels pressured to raise his little bro, and feels like he's failed when Mikko turns out to be the way he is. Ya know? It's just one little thing of dialogue but I feel like it makes you feel the pressure Fin has to bear in a situation like theirs. Even if it’s only for a moment.

And Mikko! While he does incite a lot of the comic relief in HTKAG, I wouldn’t call him a strict comic relief character because that's never what I had in mind while writing him. He and Fin actually play a vital role in the plot of the story! Much more than what I can currently reveal to y'all.

Buut anyways, I'll stop rambling now. I really hope you guys enjoyed this little excerpt just as much as I adored writing it :)

—

taglist (let me know if you want to be added or removed!): @vampire-with-a-pen @writingonesdreams @justyouraveragewriter @kazenokaori @dahladahlabills

#creative writing #writing #my writing #my wip #my writing wip #wip #wip excerpt #writblr #writeblr #writers of tumblr #writeblr community #writing excerpt #writing community #wip: htkag

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amjcpvr · 3 years

Text

Green Apple, Sadly.

“Green Apple for sure!” He calls out.

Guessing Skittle flavors is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my fucking life.

“Wrong!” I cackle and he continues to name the rest of the flavors, one after the other until he only has one choice left.

“Damn it, it was orange!” He cries and I laugh at him.

He scrunches his eyebrows at me, immediately bringing his competitiveness out. I smile, because this is definitely the Changbin I know.

He yells at me to close my eyes and I laugh before obeying and putting my palm out.

“If you get this right, I will say it’s wrong anyway,” he jokes, I hear the class go silent and he laughs nervously as he faces the professor.

“Haha, just kidding, guys, it was a joke,” I can’t help but to laugh because I can just see him fidgeting in his seat after suddenly being the center of attention.

“Grape!” I easily say as I swivel the small candy in my mouth. He groans and marks down another tally mark for the amount I got correct.

“Ten for ten!” I brag to him and he just rolls his eyes with a small smile.

I am about to place another skittle in his hand when he opens his mouth with his eyes closed.

“I think my sweaty palms are taking away the flavor, put it in my mouth!” He exclaims as he eagerly opens his mouth even wider.

My eyes widen and I tense up for a moment.

I have never felt this way before. My stomach begins feeling queasy and the back of my neck begins sweating like crazy.

I gulp and smile nervously.

I toss it into his mouth, carefully planning every angle so I don’t have to touch his lips.

“Strawberry?” He asks unsurely and looks at me with hopeful eyes.

I shake my head no with a big grin and he stomps his feet childishly.

He begins whining and I feel my chest squeeze. What was this feeling?

————————

“Hey! I’ve been meaning to introduce you two!” Changbin runs up to me and I smile the best I can because I already know what’s coming.

“This is her, babe,” He continues and the beautiful girl standing next to him smiles brightly. She’s everything he told me about.

I feel my lips shake and I clear my throat and try to compose myself.

I guess it’s my fault for working at a movie theatre.

“Nice to meet you! He literally never stops talking about you! Boy is whipped!” I try joking and it seems they both buy it.

They burst out into laughs and share a sweet kiss.

I hear someone clear their throat and their attention goes to my coworker now, Jisung. Who is also Changbin’s friend.

“Bro, order or get out of the line,” Jisung sternly says but Changbin takes no offense and instead laughs before ordering and I am finally free from that torture.

Why me?

————————

“Go team!” Someone sarcastically comments as they spot the baseball team walk by with their letterman’s jacket on. The school had organized a send off for their upcoming competition.

I keep my eyes wide as I search for the only guy I care for on the team. I start to get worried because he does not show up at all and almost the whole team has passed already.

Finally, I see him in the back walking with his girlfriend and Jisung. My smile shrinks visibly but I cannot take my eyes off of the sight anyway. He looks amazing in that jacket and he walks confidently, taking in his sudden moment of fame.

We meet eyes and he smiles widely. I want to look away but I can’t. It’s like he has bewitched me.

He raises a hand and waves it wildly. I send him a small smile and two thumbs up before mouthing out a ‘good luck’ and he responds with a loud ‘thanks’.

Something about that interaction is unmatchable to anything else. How was he able to spot me in such a huge crowd? Why did he reply to me when he was with his girlfriend?

He shouldn’t give me false hope.

————————

“They say you find your soulmate before you even turn 21,” he randomly comments as we sit beside each other studying.

“They say you should shut up and study,” I groan back. I am currently stressed with all these numbers and signs and this stupid calculator that has one too many functions.

“Do you think you’ve found yours?” He asks as he doodles around his notes, completely ignoring my words.

“I think you should study,” I repeat. I really do need to study because I’m failing class, but of course there is another reason for why I want him to be quiet, as well.

He seems to be bringing this type of thing up a lot nowadays and I am not comfortable with it at all.

“I think I’ve found mine,” he cryptically says but even the little ant walking on the table knows who he is talking about. The sparkle in his eyes gives it away easily.

“I’m going to my dorm, bye,” I comment and leave.

I should’ve never let the feelings get to me.

————————

“I don’t appreciate you talking about me behind my back,” I growl as I stare at him and even though I am mad pissed, I am also strongly hurt.

“I’m sorry. You’re right,” he easily accepts defeat and that just makes me even more mad.

“What were you talking to Seungmin about?” I ask as I increase our distance each time he wants to decrease it.

“It’s n-nothing,” he stutters. That means whatever they were talking about would make me very disappointed or even more pissed.

“Tell. Me.” I demand and he sighs.

He lowers his head as if he is ashamed of himself and takes a deep breath.

“He told me it looked like you were coming onto me and, honestly, I felt it too,” he whispers out. The answer is barely audible and I have to lean in to hear him clearly, but when I hear what he says I become a statue.

It is true. It is a hundred percent true and I have no right to call him out for it.

“Are you fucking kidding me, Changbin?” I have no right, but I do it anyway.

“I know! I’m sorry, I really am. I was stupid to even think about it,” he hurriedly says before I can burst on him.

“Is that why you’ve been asking me all these stupid questions? Our first impressions, soulmates, ideal type of boyfriend?” I roar as this time I walk towards him and he backs up.

“I can’t believe you think of me like that,” I laugh cynically and shake my head.

“I’m just an easy girl who loves breaking relationships up, huh? You happened to be my next victim so you were trying to catch me before I began to ruin your relationship. Thanks a lot,” I continue and glare straight at him.

His back hits the wall and I realize that he is not trying to defend himself and he’s just taking the hits.

“Don’t ever talk behind my back again,” I say and then I am out of there as if I was never there.

I realize that I need to maintain my distance from now on.

For everyone’s sake.

————————

“Does it hurt?” Jisung asks me out of nowhere.

I look at him weirdly and question what he means with my eyes.

“When he talks about his girlfriend in front of you?” He clarifies and I nod to acknowledge that I understood now.

“Yes, but it wakes me up. We’re so close to each other that sometimes I forget he’s taken. It makes me remember I have no chance with him and to stay in my lane,” I reply with a shrug as if my heart isn’t breaking into a million pieces just by thinking about it.

When he talks about her his eyes light up and he can go on for hours about her. He’s so proud of her and so whipped for her. She is everything to him. I stand zero chance. Always did, always will.

“That sucks,” he comments and ruffles his hair.

I chuckle. Oh yes indeed.

————————

“Dude, why have you been so distant?” He asks. We are currently in our criminology lecture and the professor is going on and on about how his wife is cheating on him.

“Honestly?” I ask him. I didn’t want to tell him the truth but that’s all I could tell him. No more lies.

I’m going to look like a fool, completely going against everything I had yelled at him for only a couple weeks earlier. But around him, I am always the fool anyway.

He nods as if that was an obvious factor to include.

“I…” I hesitate and look away from his stare.

He always looks at me straight in the eyes and I hate that about him. He never gives me an opportunity to defend myself. He knows I am weak to his beautiful dark eyes.

“I started catching feelings and I couldn’t handle it. It would just bring problems to everyone, so I decided to put some space between us,” I say looking straight back at him. He wants the truth? Well here it is.

He sits there shocked for what seems like forever before he finally clears his throat and looks away.

I gulp because even though I seemed sure of my decision and insisted on telling the truth, I was very insecure from that reaction.

He doesn’t say anything for the rest of the class and when it finally ends we leave without saying goodbye to each other.

This is for the best.

————————

“Congratulations, you guys made it! Good luck in your next semester, or in life, whichever is next for you all!” The professor ends class and I smile.

Finally, we can have time off, something I’ve longed for since Changbin and I had parted ways.

After the day I confessed, we stopped, everything.

No more sitting by each other, no more catching up, it was like we were never even friends.

I still see him sometimes, but always from afar.

I look over to him. He’s sitting beside Jisung, finishing up something on his laptop before closing it and standing.

I stay seated and pull my phone out pretending to be busy.

“I’ll, I’ll catch up to you later,” he tells Jisung and I gulp as I feel Jisung turn to me.

Jisung simply agrees and exits the lecture hall.

Finally, I stand and begin walking across my row to exit the room.

I see him out of the corner of my eye, getting closer, so I increase my speed.

Things were finally going to be okay again, why did he want to ruin it?

“Hey! I’m sorry!” He yells right as the door closes. I run out before he even has a chance of speaking to me.

I see Jisung standing by the door and he only hands me a tissue before walking away.

I hurriedly run in the opposite direction before Changbin could find me again.

Now, it was truly over.

Finally.

Sadly.

#stray kids #changbin #seo changbin #spear b #jisung han #skz han #skz changbin #j.one #3racha #stray kids angst #skz angst

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vegalocity · 3 years

Note

Starrosefics, asking for 23/42 for Spicynoodleshipping and 72 for Mabifica, please? (All are from the 76 Kisses.)

Prompt meme || @starfics

Shorter Mabifica because longer spicynoodles Both under cut because i respect your dashboards

72. When One Person’s Face Is Scrunched Up, And The Other One Kisses Their Lips/Nose/Forehead

The epic highs and lows of competeitive gaming

“WHAT?! OH COME ON!”

“Oh wow I won? Interesting. I thought you were the Gravity Falls Smash bros champ!”

“Rrrrrr Best two out of three!”

“NONONONONONOOOOOOOO”

“Oh! Win to Northwest again! Do you maybe want to switch characters? I know the princess is an intimdating foe. I can play the little pink blob if you'd like.”

“Don't mock me Paz.”

“OKAY HOW DO YOU KEEP BEATING ME?! YOU DON'T PLAY SMASH!”

“Maybe you're losing your touch.”

“RAAAAGGGHHH”

“....You've been training with Dipper in those discord calls you guys don't let me crash so I don't 'derail the conversation with lovey dovey talk' haven't you?”

“He plays different than you, but if you've beaten Mario you can beat Princes Peach.”

Mabel moaned in agony, sliding down in her seat until the majority of her legs were hanging off the couch and her head was the only thing on the backrest. “You hustled me! You hustled me just to humiliate me. And Dipper helped you! I am betrayed, I am bereft. None shall get past my stone wall again. I'll never love another again.”

Pacifica began to laugh because really, how could she not? Mabel treating a video game like a deeply important telenovela event that had things riding on it beyond pride was too good.

“Oh come on, I've been practicing basically since last summer, if anything it shows how good you are!” Mabel scrunched her face up into a pout. And Pacifica laughed again.

She watched Mabel's out wobble, no doubt she wanted to find the humor in this too, but wasn't done pouting yet. So Pacifica leaned in to kiss the tip of her nose. She finally smiled back up at her.

“I guess I'll see you in the next Gravity Falls Tourney in a couple of weeks huh? May the best player win.”

“Oh, I will.”

Mabel squawked in outrage.

23. Exhausted Parents kiss // 42. Sated Kiss

I still don’t have a name for this kid so you’re just gonna have to bear with me (Content warning for more internalized abelism)

It wasn't exactly a secret that Red Son was a doting father, if he were the type to carry one of those 'picture laminate' wallets he'd have filled it to the brim with pictures of their little girl from age six hours to current day and would take them out to gush about her regularly, possibly even to their enemies. But thankfully he kept all of THOSE on his phone and that would inevitably save their baby girl some grief when she grew up a little more and entered her teens.

Honestly, it was literally one of the best things about him because Xiaotian could NOT get enough of watching how his husband—whom had entered his life shreiking with fury and intent on nothing but destruction and his own untimely death—would happily sing along to the cartoon opening theme songs with their little rascal or blow raspberries into her belly as she squealed with laughter.

Neither of them really got stuff like that in their childhoods, so it was rather important to both of them that that sweet little bundle of energy and crayons got as much affection as they could possibly give her without smothering her with it entirely.

There were some hiccups of course, how could there not be? She couldn't stand anyone touching her from her shoulders up, so her hair was oftentimes messy as she could only sit through one hairbrushing in the morning and one at night. Though her arms were too short to be able to brush her own hair yet she kept asking.

She'd only recently started speaking actually, apparently she'd decided she didn't want to talk until she could spew out full sentences, which was certainly something when it happened. Heavens knew when she was three and hadn't spoken a word, everyone had been trying to coax her to talk. Usually just trying to prompt simple words, but everyone had been taken aback when Tang was slowly pronouncing the name of the hero of the story he was telling her, and she responded with her first word “Why” followed quickly with “-are you talking so slow?”

Most problematic was that she had very sensitive hearing. Which could be a problem not only in this city, but also in this household, granted Red Son could go from talking at a normal volume to borderline shouting without being aware of the volume shift at all, and he was always extremely distressed when he thought everything was normal, didn't see Xiaotian trying to catch his eye to tell him to tone down, and get blindsided by his darling baby cry out and clap her hands over her ears and curl up as though she were in physical pain. Xiaotian ended up taking a pair of headphones that had gone dead in an ear, yanking out the wire and adjusting them to her little head. It didn't get rid of the days where their baby would curl up in the far corner of her bedroom, hands clasped over her ears because everything was too loud for her, and those days were always guaranteed to end with Red Son spiraling into the idea that he was a terrible father and wasn't meant to take care of people, but they were less frequent.

And then there came today. Red Son was sitting in the chair he favored most, scribbling into a notebook about some project or another, and their daughter was sitting on the floor, happily coloring one of the characters in a cartoon she loved. And as she concentrated on the crayon drawing, she began to rock back and forth. It was adorable, and Xiaotian didn't want to interrupt his two favorite people while they were both in the zone by announcing dinner time—though Dinner was ready—so he was planning on just lingering in the doorway for a few moments longer. But Something about it had caught Red Son's eye.

“Sweetie? What are you doing?”

She yelped and stopped, both drawing and rocking.

“Nothin' just drawin'.”

“I see that, You were also rocking in place, did you know that?” She seemed to shrink and Xiaotian probably should have cut in now, but something held him back. Let it play out.

“s'okay I'm just weird.” She didn't see Red Son flinch, but he did.

“Who... who told you something like that?”

“They say it on Alice's Adventures. Weird is when you do something that other people don't do and it makes you stick out. Right? And I never seen nobody do it. So I'm weird.”

Red Son took a moment, long enough for their daughter to turn back to her drawing, and stood up from the chair, striding over to sit across from her on the floor, notebook propped up on the coffee table. And as she started to rock in place again, he joined her.

Xiaotian almost wanted to cry.

He gave them a couple more moments. “Okay gremlins, dinner's ready!”

Thier daughter leaped to her feet and made a small happy squeaky noise as she raced to the dining table. “Dinner! Dinner! Dinner!”

Red Son was slower to join, realization hitting him and reflexively he began to fluster. “How much of that did you see?”

Xiaotian met him halfway across the room and tried not to look too giddy. “Enough that you are getting so laid tonight once she's in bed.” for now he settled for a quick kiss. “But only if you stop calling yourself weird and acknowledge the real word for it so that shit doesn't rub off before we can get her tested.”

“Fine.” Red Son looked away, gaze now fixated on the little girl already happily rocking back and forth at her space at the dinner table. “She's probably Autistic and she probably got it from me.”

“Which means...?”

“Don't push it Noodle Boy.”

Red Son stopped rocking only when he was alone, and it was great to see, the stim was doing more to reign in his temper than even Xiaotian had thought, and of course, it was an unequivocal delight to watch him and their baby side by side sitting on the floor, either of their projects laid out on the coffee table, and rocking back and forth in rhythm with eachother.

Send me stuff!

#Mabifica #Spicynoodleshipping #Vega writes stories too #Letters to vega #Starsfic #Anonymous #no beta we die like men

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chocolatemillkk · 6 years

Text

Intimidated (JM)

Request: Can you do a jack Maynard imagine were he meets your parents and your older brother and sister and they get protective over there younger sister and question him and he admits he loves you and you overhear it all

"So?" I ask my boyfriend. We wait on the platform for the train to take us to my parent's home on the outskirts of the west end, where I grew up. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm alright," Jack nods but I notice the way he clutches his duffel bag tighter than normal.

I lean my arm on his shoulder and bring my face closer to his. "You sure? My siblings can be a little intimidating. I just want to give you fair warning."

"I'm sure it's alright," Jack bluffs. "We've been dating for six months now so-"

"Oh," I laugh, cutting him off. "My college boyfriend in second year. We dated for a year before he came around and my sister got her claws so deep he literally avoided me for a week before I had to pull it out of him."

"Wow," Jack breaths as our train comes into the station and to a stop. The cart is pretty empty and we find a row of seats to ourselves.

"You're tougher than him though," I push his shoulder with mine.

"I am?" Jack responds.

"Yeah," I kiss his cheek and he turns to look at me. We gaze at each other like it was our first date and the anticipated kiss was finally happening; but with Jack, it was like that. Every time I saw him after a day of work, or woke to him on any morning, my breath would catch for a second. I felt like I was falling for him for the first time every damn day.

"Something on my face?" I ask with a teasing smile, not breaking eye contact with Jack.

"Yeah, actually there is." Jack leans in so our foreheads touch. "Such beauty."

I throw my head back and laugh, not minding the other strangers on the train. "You're full of shite!" I exclaim.

Jack chuckles, "It's one of the many charming qualities you love, isn't it?"

My laugh dies down as I shake my head. The L-word makes the moment tense and Jack quickly catches on. We hadn't said it to each other yet, which may have been weird...but I couldn't tell. I'd had boyfriends who said it two months into dating and others who'd taken a few more. I wasn't worried because I knew we were very much in love. But not hearing it also made me quite uneasy, especially when Jack used the word so casually as he joked.

After a moment, Jack puts his arm around me and I rest my head on his shoulder. We stay that way, comfortably snug like pieces of a two-person puzzle until the last stop is called and we have to grab our bags to exit.

"That's my brother's car!" I shout as we leave the station, I recognised the ugly shade of blue anywhere. "Ben!"

"Y/N," my brother spots us, a smile blooming on his face. We shared the same smile and the same gap in our teeth but Ben looked nothing like me otherwise. "The last time I saw you-"

"I was in diapers," I finish my brother's famous line. Anytime more than a month went by, it was criminal of me not to have seen him.

"Hey," Jack says as my brother and him do the hand-grabbing, back-thumping hug.

"If you two actually hugged, how many inches would your masculinity shrink?" I say.

"Oi," my brother ruffles my hair. "There are children around."

"Really?" I open the car door, expecting Ben's step-daughter inside but find no one.

"Yes, you're the abnormally tall child. Now get in." Ben gets into his driver's seat and I hop into the passenger, shooting Jack a questioning smile. He flashes me an I'm okay so I settle in, flipping through the radio stations.

"So...Jack," Ben starts as we head to our family home. "How do you put up with this crazy one all the time?"

Jack laughs awkwardly and I can tell my brother is checking him out in the rearview. "You should ask how she puts up with my crazy really." Jack responds.

My brother laughs and I let out a small sigh in relief, knowing Jack was in Ben's good books for now. The formal interrogation would start later.

"How's the family?" I ask Ben.

"Great, not that you ever visit."

I flick Ben on his arm in response.

"The wife's at work though so you might only see her tomorrow," Ben continues.

We talk some more about his step-daughter who was only two and a half and Jack joins in on family as we drive to our own.

•••

My mother loves Jack as soon as she meets him and my dad eyes his nose ring but warms up to him after he mentions that his dad attended the same university as him-my dad still had a few of his school paraphernalia mixed with our own school photos and family vacation snapshots.

My sister Amy, on the other hand, gives him a warm and welcome smile but I was used to her routine. She was sweet but cautious, eyeing him while he talked to my dad.

"Doesn't seem your type," my sister says after. We wait for the kettle to boil in the kitchen while everyone gets to know one another in the living room.

"What are we gossipping about?" Ben joins us.

"Not gossipping, Amy was just being judgmental again." I roll my eyes.

"He's good looking, I'll give him that." Amy continues.

"Y/N lands a pretty boy," Ben agrees. "Not her usual type."

"That's literally what I just said," Amy looks at me but I'm saved by the kettle and begin pouring out my cup of tea.

"Does Jack take sugar?" Amy says his name like he was a school crush and Ben snorts.

"How are you two older than me?" I ask.

"We're teasing," my sister says. "We love you and he clearly makes you happy-we see that."

"We just don't know him," Ben finishes.

"Well then get to know him," I walk out and miss the look the two exchange.

"Oh thanks love," Jack takes the tea from me and makes room for me to sit.

"Dinner is in an hour!" My mom exclaims.

"If was a long ride," I use as an excuse but she huffs and goes into the kitchen.

"How is it being a Youtuber?" Amy asks eventually.

"As if you haven't watched his videos," I tease.

"I want the bts!" Amy shrugs and we laugh.

They talk some more and it's pleasant enough that I feel like I could leave Jack alone with them. The day was taking a toll on me.

I pat his leg and head to the kitchen to see if dinner needed an extra pair of hands. My mom shoos me off and recruits my dad for help so I sit on the stairway and scroll through my phone for a bit. That is, until I hear the inevitable.

"So what are your actual intentions with our sister?" I hear Ben ask. I put down my phone and strain to listen, ready to move in at any second.

"Uh-"

"Because if you plan to hurt her, maybe string her along for a few months and-"

"I would never," Jack gets in.

"Good," both my siblings echo.

"You two have been going out for...?"

"Six months or so," I hear Jack's strained voice.

"Hm," Amy says. "You two don't live together right?"

"Not yet," Jack says and my heart skips a beat. He wanted us to? We'd never talked about it but I spent most weekends at his place anyway.

"Soon?" My brother asks.

"I hope," Jack chuckles. "I'm serious about your sister bro. I would never hurt her-you can trust me on that. She means everything to me."

My heart melts at Jack's words.

"She knows this?" Amy asks.

"Well-yeah..." Jack trails off.

"Y/N is our baby sister," Amy reitterates. "So we want what's best for her."

"Nothing against you," I hear Ben say. "But if you hurt her in any way-"

I get up from my seat and walk to the bottom of the stairs. It was getting heated and I was a second from moving in.

"Listen," I pause when I hear Jack's voice. "I don't know what I would do if I ever lost Y/N. She really is everything to me. I-I love her."

I'm glad my hand was gripping the banister so hard because I almost fall over hearing those words I'd waited to hear but trusted were there.

"Y/N/N," a small voice calls out. I was so engrossed in the conversation happening in the living room I hadn't noticed my niece standing at the top of the stairs. She rubs her sleepy eyes and stares at me.

"Ohh you're awake!" I scoop her up and place her on my hip. "Let's go distract dad from scaring my boyfriend off okay?"

She blinks slowly at me and buries her sleepy face into my shoulder as I walk to where the interrogation was going down.

Ben jumps out of his seat as soon as he sees us and takes his daughter from me. Amy gives me a mischevious smile as she says something about dinner and exits. I'm left with Jack alone.

"You weren't lying about how intimidating-"

"You love me." I interrupt Jack. "You love me?"

"You heard that," Jack gets up.

"The last bits," I say.

Jack rubs my arms. "I feel like you already know it. I don't know why I never said it out loud-I was scared you might not feel the same way. But yeah, I love you. Like crazy."

I cup Jack's face, "When did you know?"

"A couple months ago," Jack curls my hair behind my ear. "It was a Saturday morning. You were complaining about my shower or something and you were wearing your shorts and a tank top while you braided your hair. I was still in bed-it was 8am-but you were buzzing about with all this energy but then you crawled back into bed with me and put your head on my chest and I knew it then."

I bite my lip to keep from tearing up but Jack knows me too well because he swipes at my eyes.

"I love you too," I say and Jack's smiles in relief. "I knew it a few months ago-on my birthday-when you got piss drunk and then tried to seduce me at Conor's while he attempted to sing Beyonce."

"That's a terrible moment to fall in love with somebody," Jack groans.

"It's part of the charm," I smile as I lean in and kiss him.

"And that's what you love about me?" Jack remembers the moment from the train.

"Mhm," I hum and tiptoe as Jack kisses me again.

"Should I turn around and pretend I didn't see this or act casual?" My dad's voice behind us interrupts the moment.

I turn, blushing, and give my dad a look. "The third option-make everything awkward!"

Jack laughs as does my dad but I roll my eyes and grab Jack's hand.

"We'll be out back," I drag Jack with me as we step outside, away from my overwhelming family for just a small moment of privacy.

#jack maynard imagines #jack maynard imagine #jack maynard #youtube imagines #buttercream imagines #buttercream gang #fic

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mrtroy · 6 years

Text

Happy Birthday, Bro

Hey Bro –

In honor of your thirtieth birthday, I fired up the YouTube and gave a listen to Tim McGraw’s “Next Thirty Years.” I had to get into a reflective mood to write you a little note, and I figured no better way to do it than with what I’m sure is probably your 2nd or 3rd least favorite song of all time…

This correspondence can only get better from here, right?

In case you have a lot going on and don’t have time right now to read a few thousand words about yourself, I want you to know how much I love you and how I proud I am that you’re my brother.

If you do have a few more minutes, there’s more to it than that.

It’s hard to know how to start this note because I had never gotten to this point in my head. Somehow we’re both in our thirties now. You’re married. You and Kaitlin have been together for more than a decade. She feels like my sister. When we come to visit your house, I get excited the way I used to when we’d visit Grandpenny in Bethany. Coming with Mom these last few Mother’s Days has turned into the type of tradition that I’d always hoped we’d build. And it’s actually happening. It’s so cool.

I don’t know exactly what I expected growing up, but as I was talking to a stranger on an airplane this week, she said that her seven and ten-year old boys have a plan to always live and work and be together their whole lives… I laughed as she said it, but then I realized that subconsciously, I think I had always kind of figured our lives would play out similarly. When Mom would remind us that we were the only brothers either of us were ever going to have, I always envisioned us in close proximity to one another. I always figured I’d be able to see you every day if I wanted.

And then life happened. I went away to school. Then you went to SLU, I started working and before I knew it, you were in St. Louis for good. I look back on yours and Mom’s trip to Colorado when I was out there with Baseball Youth, and it was like I’d forgotten how much fun we could have together. I look at all your ridiculous pictures you took of me on the Rose Bowl trip and I forget what it must have been like for you to all the sudden just never have your brother home.

When I went to Nashville, I felt so disconnected from you. I didn’t know how to keep in touch. I was so busy trying to make a life and a career that I didn’t really think about you much. It’s embarrassing to admit, but it’s true.

All of this to say, I’m so glad we’re in a good rhythm of communication now. I can’t wait to walk to the train each evening after work and call you. I love the days when you get a good price on chicken thighs at the grocery. I don’t always know how to use – or even know what all the tools are that you’re always buying at Home Depot, but I love hearing your reasoning for buying them and your excitement to make something with them. It is pure joy for me to have you teach me about soccer, to hear you lament Spurs latest match (did I punctuate that right?), or laud Harry Kane. For some reason, it’s so gratifying to me that your interests are all yours. That for every hour you heard me carrying on about baseball, golf or business, you weren’t afraid to dive into your own interests and make them ‘your things.’

It has been inspiring to see the way that you love and support Kaitlin. There was an afternoon just before I moved into Central West End where Kaitlin needed you. The day got to her and she went into your room and started crying. We had been doing something in the family room, and you immediately stopped what you were doing and went to comfort her. You calmly shut the door to your room and for the next fifteen minutes or so I could hear you just calmly talking to her. I couldn’t make out what you were saying, and that obviously wasn’t my business. I marveled at how collected you were. Clearly you didn’t get that from Pops (sorry, Pops), and it even seemed different than the way Mom would handle something like that. I realized, it was your way. I hadn’t seen that side of you before. It made me pause. And then smile. I hope that, if given the opportunity to react a certain way in a situation like that, I respond with the same grace you displayed in that moment.

I don’t know if you’ve been following along much on Facebook, but it has been excruciatingly hard to watch Aunt Karen’s battle with cancer these last few weeks and months. But, there’s something I hope we can learn from it in our next thirty years. (I think we’re about half way home in this note – I had to circle back to the Tim McGraw lyric to continue with the theme I introduced early on. Sorry)

As I have watched Aunt Karen fight these last few weeks, it has been amazing to me to observe how her kids have supported her, and each other. Di and Alicia have helped keep many people informed via social media. Di is as raw in her emotions as you’d expect. Alicia, as goofy and upbeat as you ever might hope in a time such as this. Kevin, I know has been sending a lot of private messages and keeping other people in the loop. Not to mention taking two trips down there to see her. Dan doesn’t say much, but he’s in every picture, there, present, supporting everyone in his way.

I hope that as life challenges us, I hope we will stay current with each other, and stay unified our the support of family and each other. I hope you will continue to pick up the phone when Mom calls. I hope you will continue to send Pops pictures of your latest projects, or what you’ve spent all day grilling.

I hope that when someone asks how you are, that I will always know. And, not just know in the sense that sense that my stock answer is, ‘he’s good.’ If you’re not good, I want to know. You don’t have to tell me every detail, but if you need to, please know that you can.

I hope that you will keep telling me the things you’re learning. From windshield wiper repair to coaching quiz bowl. I hope you will never feel like there’s a topic from a podcast that I don’t care enough to hear about, or some obscure tidbit about the Premier League.

My life is a relational one. I get so much joy in sharing in the lives of the people I care about. And no one’s more than yours. I don’t do things the way you do things. You’re hands-on. You dive in. I watch. I observe. I reflect. But I hope that we will always cherish the ways in which our differences make us uniquely us.

I don’t often feel qualified to give you advice. You rarely need it from me, but I’m gonna give you some today. Consider it for a few minutes, if you might.

Invest more in every relationship in your life. I realize that there are a lot of people you come in contact with every day, and to be blunt, I know there are a good lot of them you don’t much care for. But even still, pour into everyone you know. You have so much to offer them, even if they don’t provide you much in return. It’s not always what you get from them, but what you can give them. You are a great friend to your selected few, but I have seen your circles shrink in the past few years. I hope as the seasons of your life change and more people come into your life, I hope that you will open your heart to them and pour into them. This may not mean having potlucks at the house every week, but the little opportunities you get each day to either reach out, or retract, I hope you’ll reach out. Say hi to Bob when he’s ambling around in his driveway. When Mom wants you to guess what she heard on the radio today – and it could literally be any of three million things – humor her, and guess a couple things good spiritedly. Keep fighting for the kids who don’t care about math. Keep inspiring the teachers who may have forgotten why they teach. Don’t let the years under your belt harden your heart.

And with that, I’ve said all I want to say.

It’s been a blast so far, Bromar Garciaparra (Brośe Canseco also received consideration).

I hope we can do it even better in our next thirty years.

Love,

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