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seriesxwriting · 11 months

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He makes me smile

Pairing- rafe Cameron x fem!reader

Series- outer banks

Summary- you and Rafe are broken up but one happy birthday text could change all that.

Warnings- kissing, I’m guessing swearing, drinking? Mention of drugs.

“Y/n!!” “Hey girl get into the party” I giggled opening the door wide to let my friend in. “Happy birthday girl ugh I haven’t seen you in ages” she wrapped her arms around me tight squeezing me. “I’m so glad you could make it Jade” I rubbed her back grime closing the door. “Your not even drunk yet are you? Come on it’s almost one it’s not even your birthday anymore and your not drunk?!” She exclaimed dragging me by my wrist towards the garden.

I stepped out to join all my friends as they were drunkenly dancing. It made me giggle and feel a bit warmer inside. I didn’t really feel like drinking I wasn’t in the mood. Evey where I step in my house I remember how Rafe was here for my party a year ago. And now he wasn’t. But drinking would be the best way to forget about that. “What he having? Oh you have rum!” Jade squealed reaching over for it.

“I’ll have the rum” I laughed under my breath. “Y/n! This is our song come and dance!” Nelly yelled from the dance floor. “I’ll be over in a moment hun” I yelled waiting patiently for my drink. In that moment my phone dinged. My eyes dried and my lips parted as a shock wave came over me.

“Who’s that- you look like you’ve just seen a ghost” Jane stopped what she was doing. “It’s um- it’s Rafe” I stuttered staring at my phone in disbelief. “Did I just hear the name Rafe?” Evie stopped as she was walking past with Izzy. “He- said happy birthday” I swallowed still not knowing what to do or even say. In fact my whole body was stand still and couldn’t be moved.

“No- no no no no no no” Izzy shook her head “he’s just being a dick and trying to lead you on” she explained giving it straight to me. “What do I say” I looked at them blankly. “Just put T-Y” Jane shook her head holding two drinks in her hand. “I’m just going to say thank you” I bit my lip while typing the message. “You really should wait till the morning, leave him waiting a bit” Evie told me shrugging her shoulders. “Too late”.

“What did you say?” She replied sipping her own drink. “I said thank you rafe” “no! Why’d you say his name now you made it personal” Jane gritted her teeth together before shaking her head and holding my drink out. “It is person- it always will be with him” “it doesn’t matter actually, put your phone away and get pissed with me, I half and halfed your drink”. I was about to turn my phone off before Rafe sent another message and my phone dinged. “What’d he say?” Izzy asked reserved, squinted one eye.

“He asked to meet and talk at our spot” “he knows your at a party you put it on your story” Jane reminded me with a lifted up eyebrow showing that she clearly wanted me to say no or just ignore him. But I didn’t. “I just need to see this through, it’s been a long time” “you mean you just need to see him” Evie folded her arms. “I haven’t seen him in a long time” I bit my lip. “Y/n please don’t ruin your birthday with that Twat” Izzy begged me fluttering her eyebrows.

“I’ve already said yes, I won’t be long our spot is like a five minute walk from my house” I smiled confidently, happily. “Your making a mistake girl you can do so much better” Betty told me appearing from nowhere to re fill her drink. “Exactly!” “But what if I’m not, I just need to talk to him clear things up but I’m not going to let him push me around” I explained starting to walk backwards. “Do not walk out of that door y/n y/l/n” Jane put her finger out at me.

The warning meant nothing, I turned around and bolted out of my garden and through the house to my door. I could hear people chasing me but I didn’t have time to check who. “I need to see this through, I’m sorry, love you I’ll be back soon byeee!” I shouted as I slammed the door behind me and in the girl’s faces . I took a deep breath looking at the dark night sky before setting off. It was only a little walk, down to the field next to my house. When I got to the road I saw rafes dirtbike out the front.

Turning down the slip road I walked with my heart punching my chest. The nerves were piling up. Then I saw him. He was sprawled out across our bench on his phone, his helmet under his arm. He looked hot. I brought my hand up to my mouth and made a coughing sound to let him know I was there. “Y/n” he jumped up scanning me with his eyes. “It’s like two degrees why aren’t you wearing a coat?” “I don’t plan on staying long Rafe, I have a party to get back to”.

“I know- it’s shit timing from me, but I’ve been building up to this for a while” he blinked looking across from me. “You don’t have to be scared of me y/n you can sit down” he backed away sitting down on the other end of the bench. “I’m not scared of you Rafe” I sighed making my way over to him. “I’m scared about why you asked me to come” “why do you think” he sighed sitting back but keeping his eyes on me. “You don’t want to know my answer, it doesn’t put you in a very good light”.

He sighed sounding stressed. “because I made a fucking mistake” “I know you did” I shrugged honestly feeling my body start to shiver. Rafe noticed too, that’s when he began removing his coat and jumper to give to me. “I don’t need them” “stop being like dat, before you catch a cold” he rolled his eyes thrusting them towards me. I bit my lip taking the jumper off him and throwing it on my back. “That’s all I’m taking” “still stubborn” he smirked, i couldn’t help but smile.

He just had some effect over me, when he smiled it made me smile. He makes me smile. “Seriously y/n- I miss you and I’m genuinely ready to put that shit that pushed you away- away- in fact I’m ready to burn it” “your ready to stop going out and doing coke with your friends?” “Yes” rafe nodded looking serious dead straight into my eyes. “Your ready to stop doing weed?” “Yes” “what about starting fights? Misbehaving, leaving me on delivered?” I folded my arms sitting back on the bench.

“Lying to me, ditching me, coming home late…” “y/n I’m not going to sit here and lie to you, I’m not going to say it’s going to stop all at once all together but i promise that I will try my best to be the person you want me to be and with time all that shit will be behind us” Rafe explained cutting me off, he slid over to me putting a hand on my thigh for comfort.

“Rafe- I want to believe that’s true, you don’t know how much I want to, but I can’t go through this again I can’t be happy and then have you tear it away from me again rafe” I shook my head feeling the tears prick in my eyes. “My life since you, has only gone down hill and I’ve realised that you are my person I don’t- I don’t know how to prove that your the only person I want for the rest of my life” he sighed putting his forehead on top of mine.

“After everything that happened- do you really expect me to trust you” I asked him softly feeling one of them tears fall down my face. “No- but I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I didn’t try and get you back” he whispered wiping my tear off my face with his thumb carefully dragging it across my soft skin.

“I want things to go back to how they were Rafe, but is there too much history?” I swallowed nervous to know what he thought. “The history is what’s going to make us stronger y/n”. I looked up at him sadly not knowing if that’s what I believed. “You don’t- have to decide now, take as long as you need god knows I took my time realising that I wanted you” “but that’s not fair Rafe” I shook my head.

“That’s me leading you on- i didn’t like when you did that to me and I’m not about to do it to you” “so- what do you want to do?” He asked slowly. I swallowed sitting forwards looking Rafe in the eyes. “I want a trial, I don’t want labels on anything but I want to give it a month and if you’ve earned back my trust you can make me your girlfriend after that- if you haven’t, we are done- done done” I folded my arms seriously.

“So- your giving me a chance” “mmh” I hummed as a smiled unfolded on my face. “You won’t regret it” he told me taking my hand and laying a kiss on it. “Come on Rafe I hated your lying not your kisses” I rolled my eyes and held my hand behind his head pushing him towards my face. I felt a laugh vibrate from his lips as they met with mine. I usually knew him to be more rough but he was ever so gentle with me. When we pulled away he leant his forehead on mine.

“So what’s your plan for the rest of the night” I whispered brushing my fingers through his brunette hair. “No plans” he chuckled shrugging his shoulders. “Wanna come back to my motive, you can stay?” “You- sure?” He chewed his lip pulling away slightly. “You will get some dirty looks obviously, my friends all do hate you but I’m sure you’ll grow on them”. Rafe through his head back laughing “challenged accepted.”

“I know you don’t want labels, but your mine right?” “I’m yours rafe, for now” I giggled, he smirked shaking his head. “For the rest of our lives babe”.

For more like this try my Masterlist

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rockstar-pornograffitti · 1 year

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Blackrose’s and Rockstars

Part:I

Glenn Tipton X OC {Isabella Blackrose}

Warning(s): None.

Plot: Isabella “Izzy” Blackrose is the co owner of a pub in a small town in the worcestershire country side. One day a rockstar walks in and her whole life changes.

Please feel free to like, reblog and comment on it, it’s much appreciated, enjoy! <3

Isabella’s POV

Today sucked, yesterday sucked, this whole week sucked, hell this whole month and year sucked. Yet I power on. I power on for my mum and my family legacy if not for that I would have given up a long time ago.

Two years ago, my dad passed away and when he did I abandoned school in Birmingham to come home. I knew I needed to be here for my mum, to help her run the pub in his absence. I don’t regret my choice, because I know it’s the right one, still doesn’t mean I don’t wish I didn’t some days and today is one of them.

Nothing went right for me today. I slept through my alarm and I had to rush off to get here in time, in the process I managed to spill my tea all over myself, staining my shirt.

Then once I got here one of my bartenders was fighting with another over some bloke,and I had to break it up. Then my third bartender, the one who also runs food and drinks to the tables, called in sick and I had to fill in for her. Not to mention the order I got delivered was all wrong.

I haven’t had a second today to catch my breath, and the day is far from over for me. After all, in about two hours the after work and supper rush will come through. It’s a weeknight so the evening and night should be all to bad, since it’s a small down and everyone here is pretty working class meaning they can’t afford to fuck around on a week night. It will get dead at about eight o’clock and that’s why during the week we close my eleven.

I tuck that one annoying strand of my ginger hair behind my ear. It fell out of my messy bun ages ago. I just haven’t had the time or bothered to fix it. Just then I hear the bell on the door ring, signifying someone has entered the pub. I look up, with a smile on my face expecting to see someone I know or recognize. After all, this is a small village and I grew up here my whole life. I’ve seen every person who lives here at least once, especially considering this is the only decent place to eat or get a drink in the whole village.

Yet I don’t know this man. He’s got long hair that is heavily highlighted with blond, so much so you can barely see the darker colour underneath. He definitely stands out. You never see a bloke with long hair around here, and definitely not one of his age. He’s not young, he’s Middle aged I’d guess. Though time has definitely been kind to him.

He’s wearing a simple outfit though, not something you’d expect from someone with hair like that. He’s wearing an oversized plain black t-shirt, some jeans and a pair of trainers. He’s not wearing much accessory wise, except a sliver watch, a silver pinky ring and a pair of round sunglasses.

Despite not being able to see his eyes, he’s very handsome and intriguing. I wonder what his story is, did he just move here or is he just a passer through?

He takes a seat at the bar and I take my opportunity to see if I can solve any of this mystery as I serve him.

“Hello, welcome. What can I get you?” I greet him with my usual smile.

“Hello. Just a pint of whatever’s popular.” He replies, returning my smile and man does he have a beautiful smile.

“It’s a lovely place here.” He comments as I begin filling up a pint glass with our best seller.

“Thank you, I own the place. Well, I co-own it.” I tell him as I set the pint in front of him. “That will be £3.”

“Oh really? Well you’ve done a great job.” He says, reaching into his back pocket and pulling out his wallet, before pulling out a £5 pound note and handing it to me.

“It was all my dad really.” I admit as I ring him up and pull out two one pound coins to give him as change.

“Keep the change, love.” He says waving me off, “In that case you’ve done a great job preserving it.”

“Oh- Okay, thank you.” I say taken slightly aback, no one in this town has exposable income, so that never happens here. I mean yes it’s only two pounds but still.

“Are you new in town?”

“Yes actually. I moved into the big Georgian estate house nearby.” He tells me and I must admit I wasn’t expecting that from him. He doesn’t strike me as someone with a lot of money. He certainly doesn’t look the part with the long hair and rather plain clothes. Then it hits me. The long hair.

He’s most likely a rockstar. It would explain how he can afford to live in such a big house, you can make a lot of money doing that if you’re in one of the bigger bands. I'm trying to rack my brain. Is he familiar to me?

I happen to be a fan of rock, but I'm mostly a fan of the 70’s stuff like, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. In fact those are my three favourite bands. I do enjoy a bit of 80s metal as well but more like the glam metal stuff then the true metal. So it’s possible he’s in a band I’m not a big fan of there for I didn’t recognize him.

“Oh, well I guess I’ll be seeing more of you then. I’m Isabella, or Izzy Blackrose by the way.” I say introducing myself to him hoping he does the same and his name seems familiar to me.

“It’s nice meeting you, I’m Glenn Tipton.” He says back.

Glenn Tipton. I sit and ponder that name for a second in my mind to see if I recognize it, then it hits me. He’s the guitarist of Judas Priest.

“You’re the guitarist of Judas Priest then?” I ask just to confirm though im sure it comes off like me being a fangirl or something similar.

“Well I was, I'm not sure there really is a Judas Priest anymore though.” Glenn tells me sounding rather not happy about the last bit, and in a way I feel for him. I’m sure the band was his life, and must be an adjustment for it to be over.

“Are you a fan?” He asks, looking at me curiously.

“Honestly? Not really. I like rock and metal, that's how I know. I'm more of a 70’s gal then an 80’s gal though, unless it's glam.” i tell him, feeling a bit bad about that he seems like a nice bloke. “I'm sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it, love.” He laughs, “I was just going to offer an autograph, is all.”

“Oh, well thank you.” I say, feeling relieved he's okay with that, not that he'd really necessarily care as i said before he seems really nice and chill. He didn't walk in here with some rockstar attitude or saying im so and so, and he has my respect for it.

Then an idea hits me. Since he's offering anyway, why don't I take him up on it for the bar? I mean I could always use some new decor and would it be cooler than a signed photo of a famous customer?

“Actually if you wouldn’t mind I'd like a signed photo, for the pub. The decor is lacking a bit.”

“I'd be happy to love.” He smiles at me, “we can do it now if you have a camera, and I can come by and sign it whenever it’s developed.”

“I’ll just go get my camera real quick, it’s in the back.” I tell him to disappear into the back room where the office is and nicking my camera making sure it has film, which it does.

“Smile.” I tell him as I aim the camera, giving him a second to compose himself which he does rather fast. Something I’m sure he’s learned from years of having his photo taken as a rockstar.

He smiles at me and lifts his half gone pint in one hand, and I think that’s a pretty fitting pose for the wall of the pub. I snap a couple for good measure then lower the camera.

“I’ll give you a ring when they are developed?” I ask, I’m sure he’ll come back. This is the only restaurant or pub for miles, but I just want to make sure I don’t forget the photos or something when he does come around again. Also he’s cute, I’m not saying I’d go after him because why would someone like him want me when he could get a model or something, but it’s still nice to have a cute blokes number.

“I’ll give you my number.” He tells me, as I reach text to the till where I Keep a couple extra pens in case my waitresses lose one and grab a napkin handing it to him.

I watch as his long fingers grip the pen and he gracefully writes his number on the napkin. His handwriting is oddly neat for a man.

“Here you are love.” He says, handing me back the pen and napkin containing his number.

“Thank you.” I say taking it and gently folding the napkin pocketing it.

“Well I best be going.” He says looking down at his watch, then downing what’s left of his pint. “My ex should be dropping off my son soon.”

Oh so he’s single, is the first thing that comes to my mind as he says that statement. It’s only natural, he is very cute and nice. Not that he’d ever be interested in me, but a girl can dream.

“It was nice to meet you.” He smiles as he gets up, “I’ll be looking forward to your call.”

“It was nice meeting you too, please feel free to come by whenever.” I say with a smile, as he turns to leave. I must admit, I’m rather looking forward to seeing him again soon.

#judas priest #Glenn Tipton #judas priest fanfiction #glenn tipton fanfiction #blackroses and rockstars #glenn tipton x OC #the bitch writes

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dani-dabbles · 1 year

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Blanket of Comfort (a Shadowhunters fic)

READ ON AO3

“Oh my god, Simon. What are we going to do?” Izzy asks standing at a loss in the middle of their apartment near tears. The cries coming from the back bedroom seem to fill the entire space, leaving little room for other conversations or even private thoughts.

“I- I don’t know. We’ve fed him, changed him, rocked him. I even played the guitar and sang for him. And he cried louder! Honestly I’m slightly insulted. I mean, not to toot my own horn hear, but I always draw a crowd at Hunters Moon so I think I can handle a simple lullaby lik-“

“Simon!! Focus. Do you have any other ideas? What could we be forgetting? Did we do something specifically that would’ve upset him? Or does he just hate us? Oh my god, what if he just hates us ?!” Now Izzy does sob, sinking to the couch and crying into her hands.

Simon darts over to her, kneeling down. “Come on Izzy, don’t cry. The baby is doing plenty of that for everyone.” He jokes trying to make her laugh. Izzy just huffs. “Besides I’m a vampire and you are a Shadowhunter, and yes it’s a little unnerving that we’re currently being bested by an infant, but we’ve dealt with worse. I have faith that we can get through this too.”

Izzy looks up at him, eyes bloodshot and sniffling. “I told you I would be bad at this,” she says trying to mask the anguish she’s feeling. “I don’t have much baby experience and I should have known I wasn’t ready for this.”

“Hey,” Simon sighs out cradling her face in his hands, “You are doing fantastic. You had him laughing so hard earlier. I’ve never seen him smile that big. And I took pictures as proof.”

Izzy laughs, just a little bit, before it quickly falls to a frown. “Simon, we need help. I know I said we could handle this on our own. But he’s been crying for over an hour and won’t sleep. That’s can’t be good, right?”

“You now they won’t mind if we ask for help. They said so themselves.”

Izzy slumps in defeat and grabs her phone that’s sitting on the end table. She quickly types a message and tosses her phone down on the couch. “Ugh. I feel like such a failure. I should be able to handle this.”

Simon climbs up to sit next to her wrapping his arms around her and nudges his nose to her cheek before placing a gentle kiss there. “Isabelle, you are the most amazing person I know but asking for help doesn’t make you a failure.” He then places another kiss to her temple. She turns to kiss him fully on the mouth letting Simon’s presence permeate her anxiety and replace it with calm. The sound of a portal opening and conversation coming through it causes her to draw back from Simon and look over her shoulder.

“...I mean honestly Magnus, you conjured half his bedroom into their apartment, and you still managed to forget his blanket?”

“Hey! I was distracted .”

“By what?”

“ You , darling.”

“I was just getting dressed!” Alec says exasperated.

“Exactly!” Magnus teases back with undisguised lust in his eyes.

They are fully standing in Izzy and Simon’s apartment now and the portal closes as Alec rolls his eyes, “You’re impossible.”

Izzy rises from the couch, walks to her brother and hugs him. “I’m so sorry to interrupt your date. I didn’t want to bother you but Max has been crying for over an hour and I think he hates us!”

Alec laughs a little as his sister’s fear but hugs her back. “He doesn’t hate you. And you didn’t interrupt. We were just taking a stroll down the Seine when you text.”

“And the reason he’s crying is because I forgot his favorite blanket.” Magnus says as he holds up small plush navy, white and gray chevron blanket. “He can’t sleep without it. I’m so sorry we left it behind and caused you this unnecessary stress.”

“Yeah, don’t worry Iz, Max will always love his Aunt Izzy” he flicks his eyes to Izzy’s vampire boyfriend also standing there “...and Uncle Simon.”

Simon beams brighter than the sun.

“You’re sure?” Izzy questions, afraid to believe that the blanket’s absence was at fault and not her.

“Positive.” Alec reassures her with a quick peck on her forehead.

“Okay, Give me that.” she demands and grabs the blanket from Magnus. “Now shoo! Get back to France and don’t come back until tomorrow afternoon.”

Magnus and Alec chuckle.

“Okay, Okay.” Alec says hands up defeat. “But we might just steal a quick kiss from him before we leave.”

They follow Izzy back to the bedroom to find the still crying Max in his crib. Izzy walks over, picks up the chubby blue baby and shows him his blanket.

“Look what we have Maxie!”

His pudgy fingers grab for the well loved fabric. He buries his face in it and snuggles into the crook of Izzy’s neck. From the doorway, Alec and Magnus watch with content smiles.

Max instantly sets in Izzy’s arms. She sways back and forth a minute ensuring he is asleep. Before she places him back into his crib, his dads approach.

“Goodnight Blueberry” Magnus whispers, kissing his dark curls before leaving the room.

“Night my little terror.” Alec says affectionately bending to place his own kiss near the stubby horns among the unruly hair. He then gives Izzy another reassuring kiss on her forehead before exiting the room to join his husband.

Simon steps into the room after Alec and Magnus’ departure. He watches as Isabelle gently lays their nephew back in his bed making sure the blanket stays in his clutches. Then Simon comes up behind her, wraps his arms around her waist and kisses behind her ear.

“See. You got this.”

“We got this.” she says turning in his arms to grin at him.

They stand in silence for a few more minutes basking in the peaceful quiet and watching Max snore slightly.

“Hey Simon,” Izzy finally whispers.

“Hm?”

“I can’t wait for this to be our child one day.” They have never really discussed it, but Izzy thinks that’s where they are headed and she is pretty sure - she hopes- Simon wants the same. So she throws the statement out there, her heart quickening slightly, hoping it’s not a bomb that’s going to explode and ruin everything.

She doesn’t turn to see Simon’s reaction but waits for his response.

“You have no idea how much I anticipate that day Isabelle Lightwood.” he breathes out and holds her a bit tighter.

For now, they are content with being Max’s favorite aunt and uncle - no matter what Jace and Clary claim.

#dani-dabbles-fic #shadowhunters fic #shadowhunters #sizzy fanfic #malec fanfic #prompt writing #ao3 writer

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angstysebfan · 3 years

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The Past Can Break You - 9

Pairing: Bucky x Reader

AU: Avengers

Summary: You and Bucky have been dating for aa few years. As far as you’re concerned he is the one. But what happens when a blast from the actual past shows up?

A/N: Ive seen a lot stories of Bucky getting his first love from the 40′s back. And I’ve always wondered... what would happen if he was dating someone already? Reader is from this time. Not proofread.

Warning: cursing

Third Person POV

The party is in full swing at the compound. Tony took out all the stops. Claimed it was to celebrate Natasha’s birthday, though her birthday wasn’t for another month. Most people didn’t mind since they loved to dress up and get shit-faced.

Dot held onto Bucky’s hand as he walked around the large room. She was both nervous and excited for this party. She hoped that this was only the beginning for her and Bucky. She also hoped that this would finally get Bucky to make a move other than hugs and hand holding.

She couldn’t understand why he was dragging his feet. You have been gone for a month and Bucky seems to have gotten over it, at least she thinks he has, but he still won’t even kiss her. What happened to this man that he lost his charm from the 40′s? It was driving her crazy, especially since she put in so much work to finally get him. She decided that tonight, she doesn’t care if she has to drug him, he will be hers.

The couple walks up to Steve, Tony, Sam, and Nat, who are all in conversation. “Hey guys, you remember Dot,” Bucky says to the group.

They all nod and give her a small smile, except Natasha. Dot was honestly terrified of the woman. First of all she was gorgeous, which annoyed Dot because she was used to being the most beautiful. But what scared her the most is when Bucky told her she was a previous spy. She has killed people, and she was really good at reading people. Dot couldn’t help but wonder if Nat had caught on to what she did to you.

“Jamie, can you come dance with me?” Dot asked.

Bucky looked at her and saw her giving puppy dog eyes. He had to fight everything in him to not roll his own eyes. He cleared his throat, “Uh, sure Doll. Steve, Nat, why don’t you join us?” Bucky asked with pleading eyes.

Nat did roll hers but grabbed Steve’s hand and walked out to the floor. The music changed to a slow ballad and Dot wrapped her arms around Bucky’s neck. “I saw a video that people dance like this now. Especially when they are dating,” she says.

Bucky furrows his brows, “Uh, I haven’t asked you out yet,” he said.

He heard Nat clear her throat and stuttered, “Though I will soon, Doll. I just needed some time.”

Dot scoffed, “Come on Bucky. It’s been like a month, I think it’s time for you to move on. She is gone, and honestly good riddance. She wasn’t very good for you, ya know. She was way too jealous and couldn’t handle that your past with me. It was honestly pathetic,” she said.

Bucky tensed at Dot’s words, ready to ream into her when there was a loud explosion the caused everyone on the dance floor to fall to the ground. Bucky sat up when the dust settled and looked around. He saw several soldiers standing, armed. In front of them were 2 people, John Walker and... you armed with guns and 2 swords attached to your back (your specialty).

You look around the room filled with frightened people and scoff, “What’s the matter? Never saw anyone crash a party before?” you shout to the crowd.

Natasha stepped up, “Y/N, what are you doing? Why are you with Walker?” she asked.

You looked at Nat with a smirk, “Well, after the man I loved cheated on me with his blast from the past, I decided that there might have been a reason. I looked back on my life and found that no good deed truly goes unpunished. So fuck good deeds!” you shout.

You look at Bucky you is staring at you in disbelief, “Hello Buck. I would ask if you missed me, but I saw you dancing with your slut and figured, nah,” you sneered.

“Y/N, please. Let’s talk this through. Whatever you thought happened did-”

“Do you honestly think I will believe a fucking word you say Barnes? I’ll answer that, nope! But don’t worry. I have a new man now. One that appreciates me completely and doesn’t screw around with ex’s. You’ve met John, right?” you ask pointing to John behind you.

John walks up behind you and wraps his arms around your waist, kissing your neck. Bucky tenses, wanting to pull John away from you. You however ignore your him and look around the room until you see her. Cowering on the floor. You walk slowly over and squat in front of her, enjoying her shaking in front of you, “Hello Dolores,” you say.

Before she can respond to get away, you grab her by the hair and pull her out in front of everyone.

“Oh Dot, isn’t this what you wanted? Everyone to know who you are and who fuck? That’s right people, this woman here,” you say pointing to Dot, “fucked this man here, while he was dating me,” you said laughing.

“I-I...I didn’t. I swear... I didn’t” Dot said shaking.

You glared at her, “Oh Dotty, come on, Doll. We both know what I heard,” you said.

Natasha stepped up again, “Y/N, what the hell are you doing! We had a plan! Why are you doing this?” she yelled frustrated.

You looked from her to Bucky, who looked distraught.

“Eh, I didn’t want to wait for your plan. So I came up with my own plan. Which reminds me, Johnny... where is that book?” you ask sweetly to John.

John gulps and walks up to you to hand you a book. You show the team who’s eyes widen. You look directly at Bucky, “Oh baby, I was wondering if the Winter Soldier would like to play,” you say shaking the red book with the black star.

Bucky froze in fear. His heart is completely broken. You, his love, the woman he would kill for, is wanting to turn him into the monster.

Chapter 8 / Chapter 10

Oh man. Things are going to get exciting! And yes in this case John Walker is just a bad guy, never tried to be Cap or anything for the sake of this story, but everyone still hates him. Feedback is appreciated.

Permanent Taglist: @hailmary-yramliah @tuiccim @comedictragedy @cap-n-stuff @thefridgeismybestie @swiftmind @aleaisntcreative @lookiamtrying @pinknerdpanda @morganclaire4 @iamvalentinaconstanza @verygraphicink @im-squished @joannie95 @peace-love-hobbitness @connie326 @amandamdiehl @harrysthiccthighss @its-izzys @roserose26 @rebekahdawkins @elegantobservationstudentsblog @broco8 @shinykoalacat @white-wolf1940 @jessyballet

Story Taglist: @afuckingshituniverse @wintrfld @cherries-and-berries @ilovemarvelanne1 @lilli2411 @minty-fiction @peakywitch @blue-mostacho @r0bbieshapiro @uncreativezx @sarahjoestewy-blog @geekanista @imtaashu @vicmc624 @browneyedgirl365 @happinessinthebeing @leyannrae @austynparksandpizza @aliloz-3 @starkleila @440mxs-wife @miniaturestudentspyhound @inhumanwithpowers

PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF I FORGOT YOU

#bucky #Bucky Barnes #james bucky barnes #james buchanan barnes #james barnes #Bucky angst #bucky barnes angst #bucky barnes x reader #bucky x reader #bucky x you #bucky x y/n #bucky x dot

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khaleesiofalicante · 3 years

Text

ALEC WEEK - PARABATAI DAY

“I made eggs!”

Alec looked up to see Jace standing in front of the stove, making sandwiches with eggs and ham.

He didn’t even know they had ham. But that’s mostly because he avoided the kitchen like the plague, thanks to Isabelle.

“You look tired,” Jace pointed out.

For a 13-year-old, he was annoyingly perceptive.

“Didn’t sleep well,” Alec yawned as he sat down on the counter.

“Nightmares?” Jace asked, suddenly looking concerned.

Alec didn’t have nightmares. But it made him sad to wonder why it had been Jace’s first thought.

Did Jace have nightmares? What were they about? What did he do when he had them? How did he cope?

See! This is exactly the kind of stuff parabatai should know about each other!

“Listen,” Alec said. “I want to talk to you about something.”

“What’s up?” Jace asked, now focused on frying the bacon.

“It’s about what you said last night,” Alec said carefully.

“Oh,” Jace looked pleased. “Well, I’m glad you want to talk more about it. Did you know more than 30 different waterfowl species live in New York? We are practically living in a hell dimension!”

“Uh,” Alec said. “It’s not about the ducks.”

“Huh,” Jace looked disappointed. “What is it about then?”

“Do you not remember what you asked me last night?” Alec asked, suddenly worried.

Was it a joke? Or maybe Jace didn’t really mean it? Has Alec been overthinking this whole thing?

“Are you talking about the parabatai thing?” Jace inquired.

Alec nodded.

“What about it?” Jace asked and suddenly his eyes sparkled. “Ohhh do you wanna discuss where we should get our parabatai runes?”

“Actually,” Alec said. “I’ve been thinking it over.”

“Why?” Jace’s eyes narrowed. “You agreed last night.”

“I know,” Alec looked away.

“Alec,” Jace almost whispered. “Do you not…Do you not want to be my parabatai?”

“It’s just that...I don’t w-”

“I get it,” Jace interrupted and flopped an omelet on Alec’s plate. “You changed your mind. That’s okay.”

“Jace, I just-”

“It’s fine!” Jace shrugged and turned around.

Alec saw him gripping the frying pan a little too tightly. He wasn’t wearing any mittens.

“You’ll hurt yourself!” Alec rushed to him.

Jace removed his hand and it looked red – but it wasn’t burnt.

Alec quickly removed his stele from his pocket and drew an iratze on Jace’s hand.

“There,” he said.

That seemed easy. The need to protect Jace was...almost instinctual. And there weren't even parabatai yet.

Everyone made it sound like it was a big deal. But it seemed so simple to Alec.

“Why do you not want to be my parabatai?” Jace demanded suddenly.

“I…” Alec faltered. “People…People might talk.”

What if they saw him watching Jace train? What if they saw Alec stealing glances? What if they punished Alec? Or worse, what if they punish Jace?

If someone ever found out about Alec…About he was and who he liked…They might start spreading nasty rumors about the two of them.

Alec had seen it happen before. He didn’t want it to happen to them. He felt like his family has been through enough.

Being Alec’s parabatai seemed like an unnecessary baggage. Jace had enough baggage.

“Oh,” Jace said. “Oh.”

“I’m sorry,” Alec said, not knowing what else to say.

“It’s-It’s okay,” Jace replied. “I understand.”

“You do?” Alec asked, his stomach clenching.

Did he? Did he know?

“Of course people would talk,” Jace said. “Why would you want to be the parabatai of someone damaged like me?”

“What?” Alec blinked.

“I watched my own father die,” Jace said quietly. “I never knew my mom. I didn’t have any friends until I came here. I’m a weirdo. People might say things about you if chose to be my parabatai.”

“People are stupid,” Alec said without hesitation. “You’re not damaged.”

Jace was quiet. It was a little unsettling.

“I mean sure you’re a little weird,” Alec chuckled. “You do talk awful lot about ducks and-”

“They are a real threat!” Jace argued.

“I’m serious,” Alec said. “Yeah, you’ve been through a lot. Maybe that’s exactly why you need a parabatai. So, you’ll have someone to take care of you.”

“I don’t need anyone to take care of me,” Jace almost snapped, but his tone came out petulant and worried.

Like it should be.

There. There he was.

“Your bacon is burning,” Alec pointed out with a grin.

Jace muttered a curse and turned the stove off.

“See,” Alec pointed out. “I told you.”

“Sure, that’s why I need a parabatai,” Jace rolled his golden eyes. “To save my bacon.”

“And to save you from other stuff,” Alec pointed out gently.

“I don’t need to be saved,” Jace crossed his arms adamantly.

“Then why do you want a parabatai?” Alec asked.

Jace looked surprised. As if he hadn’t expected anyone to ask him that.

“I don’t know,” Jace said.

“Well, if you don’t know why then maybe you shouldn’t have one,” Alec said.

“Why do you want one?” Jace demanded.

Alec thought for a while.

Not about why he wanted one. He knew why he did.

Alec knew his future. He knew what awaited him. He might never find love. He might never get married.

But a parabatai… he still had a chance. He still had a shot at forming a bond that might last forever. He still had a chance to experience some kind of love, even if it was only from his parabatai.

But he couldn’t tell Jace that of course.

“It’s nice to be chosen,” Alec said, which wasn’t completely untrue.

Jace frowned.

Alec waited. Patiently.

If he was going to be Jace’s parabatai, he felt like he had to get used to it.

“The Codex said parabatai bonds are eternal,” Jace said quietly. “I want a bond like that. People keep leaving me. I want someone who will stay.”

Alec’s heart broke. He had thought that he was the only teenager with insecurities. But apparently, he was wrong. It made him worry about Jace – who seemed fragile underneath all the confidence. He wondered if Izzy was like that too.

He had thought of Jace as the sun. Bright and beautiful and always shining.

But Alec had forgotten that while it was rare, solar eclipses still did exist. Sometimes even the sun got blocked out too.

“Hey,” he said gently. “Hey.”

Jace looked up reluctantly.

“Entreat me not to leave thee,” Alec smiled.

Jace blinked.

“Entreat me not to leave thee,” Alec repeated.

“Don’t leave me,” Jace said, his voice barely a whisper.

“Okay,” Alec smiled.

Jace pulled him into a hug, burnt bacon and breakfast all forgotten.

“But what about you?” Jace asked, pulling back suddenly. “You said people will talk. What did you mean?”

Alec hesitated.

He could tell Jace. After all, he was his parabatai. Or he was going to be.

Alec didn’t understand the point of having a parabatai if you couldn’t be honest with them.

But his need to hide was more persistant than his need to be honest.

He could tell Jace. But what if Jace was disgusted?

Worse, what if Jace stopped talking to him.

Imagine being promised that they will love you for the rest of your life and then one day they suddenly abandon you? Just liked that? Because you wanted to be honest? You wanted to be free?

Alec couldn’t think of anything worse than that. He hoped it would never happen to any parabatai ever.

“Just stuff,” Alec said instead. “People might say you’re better than me.”

It wasn’t completely untrue either.

“People are stupid,” Jace repeated Alec’s own words. “Besides, I wouldn’t have asked you to be my parabatai if I didn’t think you were amazing.”

“You think I’m amazing?” Alec asked, surprised.

“And then some,” Jace grinned.

Alec grinned back.

“The bond is between you and me,” Jace said. “Let’s not let anyone get in between, okay?”

“Okay,” Alec promised. “No other people.”

“Or ducks,” Jace added.

“Or ducks,” Alec giggled.

“Are you okay now?” Jace asked.

“Yeah,” Alec nodded. “Sorry about all the drama. I talked to Izzy last night and she wasn’t very helpful.”

Jace laughed. “Izzy doesn’t believe in parabatai bonds. She is the last person you should have talked to!”

“I know that now,” Alec rolled his eyes.

Jace put the pan back on the stove. “What did she say?”

Alec hesitated, but decided to be honest. He had to start somewhere, right? “She said parabatai bonds are gay.”

Jace laughed harder.

Alec didn’t know Jace knew that word. Or Izzy.

It was like curse words. No one said it in front of children but the kids seemed to know it anyway. Alec didn’t see the point in not using them.

“Yeah, she went on about how they are too intense and soulmate-y nd weird and gay,” Alec said, laughing nervously.

“Izzy is hilarious,” Jace said simply.

“You know,” Alec tried to sound nonchalant. “Other people might say it too. Say it’s gay.”

“So what??” Jace asked munching on bacon. “Maybe all good things are a little gay.”

Alec laughed then. And he knew he wouldn’t stop – not as long as Jace was there by his side.

This one is for @beclynn-herondale - happiest of birthdays to this beautiful, fierce and talented *insert a vegetable of choice*

#alec lightwood #jace herondale #parabatai #alec week #malec month #tsc #dani writes stuff

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bqstqnbruin · 3 years

Text

Always be my plus one - part 3

Ok, look, it's 4 am, there are going to be typos, and we're just going to have to deal with it. I also tried to find a gif that was Tyson and Cale but I couldn't find one in the gif insert thing on here so I just went with this one (it feels weird to change it up but like, oops)

I make no promises that you aren't going to be mad at me for this part so have fun !

This is shorter than the last part, coming in at around 5k words.

The only warnings I have here are implied sex.

Translations for the Italian in here: "tu sei uno stronzo" - you're an ass(hole)

stronzino - little asshole

Also want to thank @justjosty @zinka8 @hockeylvr59 @hockeywocs anons and I'm sure I'm forgetting people for helping me write this part but ily all I'm just dumb and tired

Read the previous part here!

Series masterlist

____________________

Valentine’s Day

The Feast Day of St. Valentine is traditionally celebrated in the Western Catholic Church on February 14, to honor the patron saint of love. Though not traditionally celebrated as a Catholic holiday, millions of people celebrate the day of love with those who mean the most to them. While pessimists of the day say it’s a ‘holiday made up by greeting card companies,’ approximately 190 million Valentine’s Day cards are sent in the United States alone, not including cards given by school children to their classmates. Couples enjoy the holiday with a romantic night out, presents, flowers, chocolates, etc., while those who don’t have someone or don’t care do whatever they want without the pressure of living up to a holiday that doesn’t mean very much in the grand scheme of things.

=============

February 12, 2022

“Where are you going tonight?” Matthew’s voice came through his younger sister’s phone. He had called early in the week to see if Anne could babysit Harper so he and Stephanie could do something for Valentine’s Day without having to shell out an extravagant amount of money on a sitter.

“I’m, uh,” Anne hesitates, “going out with Tyson. Sorry.” She hears Matthew let out a sigh on the other end. “Hey, stronzo, why don’t you ask Lucy? Her and Jason never do anything on Valentine’s Day.”

Matthew starts talking about how the last time he asked Lucy last minute to watch his daughter, despite their girls being best friends, she ended up going on a fifteen-minute rant. While Anne gets her heels on, staring at herself in the mirror and admiring the floor-length, red dress she had on the slit going up the side for no one but herself, Matthew continues to tell her about how his twin goes on and on about needing a schedule at all times, how she can’t just drop everything in a moment’s notice because he wants to do something with his wife.

“Hey, Matthew,” she cuts him off, trying to shrug her coat on, “Why didn’t you ask Lucy or Sebby after I said no earlier this week?”

“Because I didn’t think you actually had plans.”

“Again, tu sei uno stronzo.”

“I am not an ass!” he detests.

“Fine, you’re a stronzino, happy?” Anne hears him stammer again, not letting him get a word in, “I have to go, I’ll talk to you later, ok? Ask Ma, Dad’s off in Florida right now so she would probably love to have Harper for the night.”

He lets out another sigh, Stephanie’s voice coming through in the background despite Anne’s inability to understand what she was saying. “Fine. Have fun with Tyson. I don’t need another niece or nephew around Halloween, though, ok?”

“Don’t be gross,” she says, hanging up and finally heading out the door.

Her cousin Adriana was getting married to her soon-to-be wife, Izzy. Her family had no idea that she was the only one who still talked to them, her mother having a fight with her brother after their parents died when Anne and her siblings were younger and vowing to never talk to him again. So far, the stubbornness that seems to run through her mom’s blood going strong since it had been over a decade since she had last seen her brother. Anne was invited to Uncle Frankie’s daughter’s wedding, but no one else in her family.

Adriana and Izzy had this Valentine’s Day-themed wedding, everyone asked to wear red or pink in theme with the holiday, Anne not doubting that there would be paper hearts and cut-out cupids as the decor. The wedding gift she bought them, one of the first things she found on their registry that Anne could afford, was shipped to the apartment they already shared two weeks ago, Anne just needing to remember the card.

She was fully prepared to just sit in the corner with a bunch of people she didn’t know and watch as her cousin got married to the love of her life. Anne wasn’t sure that that side of her family would recognize her after how many years, guaranteeing her to spend her time on the sideline.

Anne slips into the back of the church, seeing no one she knew or recognized to even go up to and sit with them. Everyone was dressed in red, pink, and black. A bit too much for her own taste, but at least she looked good in red and would have worn the color anyway. ‘Note to self, no themed weddings,’ Anne thinks, not particularly fond of the lack of color or real choice that everyone had in figuring out what to wear.

A blonde boy in a red suit walks by her, too far past her to get a good look at him. There was something about him that caught her attention. Anne knew that walk, but she had no idea where she knew it from. It didn’t stop her from admiring him from afar, though, the short blonde hair and the obviously fit physique under the suit captivated her for whatever reason, leaving her practically unable to pay attention to the ceremony in front of her. Not that she cared, at this point she was just there to enjoy the free food she knew would be good at the reception later.

Anne sat at the table against the wall, her cousin not bothering to make a seating chart and just leaving it up to the guests to sit where they pleased. That meant she didn’t have to talk to anyone she didn’t want to, being virtually left alone at a wedding where she knew no one.

“Anne?” a familiar voice snaps her out of the trance she fell into watching Ana’s sister and brother-in-law, Catie and Danny dancing with their two daughters, remembering seeing their pictures on Facebook when they were born, not realizing how much they had grown.

She turns to the man in the red suit who had her attention throughout the ceremony. “Cale?” she smiles at him, not sure how the two had missed they would be at the same wedding this weekend. Since New Year's Eve, the two of them had been texting, calling, FaceTiming, they had hung out, spent the night with each other, Cale insisting he buy her dinner at least once a week. The only reason they weren’t dating each other was because neither of them had said they were. They both said they were busy this weekend, but who would have thought they would end up at the same place. “What are you doing here?”

“Izzy’s brother and I grew up playing hockey together. I grew up with her. What are you doing?” he asks her, taking the seat next to her.

“Ana’s my cousin. Her dad is my mom’s older brother.”

Cale smiles at her, Anne’s heart racing at the sight of it. “So I get to meet your family?”

Anne shakes her head. “I’m the only one here,” she tells him, explaining the family drama that went on between Frankie and Teresa.

Cale looks down at his lap, his hands fidgeting with the hem of his suit jacket. The red bowtie, red pants, red jacket even against the black shirt were so much Anne couldn’t tell if his cheeks were red because of the reflection of his clothes or for another reason. “Tyson’s met your family, hasn’t he?”

She nods, taking his hand in hers. “I told you, Tyson and I are just friends. I needed someone to come with me to a family thing, so he came with me.” Cale nods, not entirely sure that something wasn’t up with her and Tyson. Something was off, there was something he was sure Anne was leaving out, but he wasn’t sure. “Hey, I’ve seen Tyson, what, three times since New Year's? All of them when I was with you. I like you, Cale.”

Cale leans over for a kiss, his hand grazing Anne’s thigh, sending a shiver down her spine. “How about we dance like we did on New Year's?” he asks, standing from the seat, shrugging off the red jacket before he extended his hand out to her.

She rolls her eyes, getting up with him anyway. “I told you then, too, that I don’t like dancing.”

“And yet,” he says, pulling her close, his hand finding the small of her back while he presses his forehead against hers, gazing into her eyes, “you danced with me all night then, and you got up to dance with me tonight.”

Anne laughs, knowing he was right, burying her face in his shoulder, swearing she heard some camera’s clicking, probably the wedding photographer hanging around somewhere and taking pictures of the guests dancing.

“I know I have to say this about the brides when they come in,” Cale whispers in her ear, “but you are the most beautiful girl here.”

Anne could feel herself blushing, her mind flashing back to New Year’s Eve when Tyson told her she looked beautiful. He seemed so genuine saying it, Anne thinking back and not sure if he meant it or was actually pretending. But with Cale, she knew. Cale meant it. “You’re not so bad yourself,” she tells him, ghosting his lips before kissing him.

Being with Cale felt fine. Not perfect, but fine. It was right, but not correct, and Anne couldn’t figure out why.

Everyone starts clearing off the dance floor, the bridal party getting ready to come in. Cale takes Anne’s hand and leads her back to the table where he left his jacket, some other people finding their home base at the same table. Cale knew one of the men at the table, probably from their little hockey group that involved Izzy’s brother. The bridesmaids and bridesmen, as the DJ put it, started coming in, Cale leaning back with his arm slung around the back of Anne’s chair. She leaned back into him, his fingertips dancing up and down her arm as they watched everyone come in.

They watched Ana and Izzy dance their first one as wives, Anne’s stomach starting to make noise as they waited for the food to come.

Cale leans over, nervous about what he was about to whisper in her ear. “Are you hungry for food or maybe something more?”

Anne felt her entire body go numb at his words. They had been seeing each other for a month and a half already, so was what he was insinuating really that strange of an idea? “That depends.”

“On?” he asks, nibbling on her ear before kissing the skin right behind it, losing any sense of care over who at their table was potentially watching.

“On how long you think we need to wait before we can slip out without it being rude?”

Cale inhaled sharply, wishing he could say right now. “At least until they cut the cake. Unless,” he says, his hand moving up her thigh, slowly in case she decided she wanted it to stop, “Unless you wanted to try to find somewhere to sneak away to now.”

“Not for our first time,” she tells him, reaching up to cup his cheek. “And not with my family around,” she laughs.

“I’m fine with that,” he tells her, kissing her. “Your place or mine, though?”

“Well, I drove myself here.”

“And I got a ride.”

Anne smiles, crossing her legs in hopes that whatever she felt would be stifled by that simple action. “So it looks like it’s going to be mine.”

They spent the rest of the night waiting for the moment the cake was cut so they could leave as planned, Cale’s hand never leaving her leg unless he really needed both hands to do something.

Anne could feel her heart racing as she watched Ana and Izzy smash their cake in each other’s face, Anne looking over to Cale and smiling. “You wanna go?” she asks, her keys already out of her bag and in her hand.

Cale drags her out without saying a word, Anne leading him to her car. He walks over to the driver’s side, his arms wrapped around her waist with her back pressed against her car. “You’re sure about this?” he asks her, his eyes flicking between hers and her lips.

“Yeah,” she says, kissing him before he opens the door for her. She couldn’t wait to get home, sure she broke a few traffic laws as she sped back to her apartment with Cale sitting next to her in the passenger seat, his leg shaking the entire time.

They got to the elevator, Cale leaning against her against the wall with his lips pressed against hers, Anne’s hands already working to unbutton his shirt. Cale’s kisses trailed down her jaw to her collarbone, his grip tightening on her waist.

Anne pulled away to lead him down the hallway, practically running, partially due to anticipation for what they were about to do, and because Anne could feel a breeze on her back, indicating that Cale had already unzipped her dress. That, coupled with the fact that Cale’s shirt was already open, his jacket in his free hand, Anne had no desire for any of her neighbors to be given the chance to see her and however Cale was to her already getting naked before closing the door.

As soon as she unlocked her door, Cale had her turned back around, kicking the door closed as he carried her to her bedroom, Anne able to feel everything about him against her body. Cale laid her down on her bed, his lips never leaving hers as he positioned himself over her, sliding her dress off while she did the same with his shirt. Anne’s breath hitched at the sight of him, his body perfect while he stared her down, the first time she saw the typically innocent boy she had been seeing with a mischievous grin covering his face, his eyes darkening at the thought of doing what they had both been wanting to do all night.

“You’re sure about this?” he asks one more time.

Anne nods, taking his face in her hands. “Yes, Cale. I’m sure.”

=============

February 13, 2022

Anne woke up the next morning, the events of the night before rushing back despite finding the space he had occupied in her bed empty. Her dress was on the floor, Cale’s red bowtie somehow having ended up on her night stand. Maybe he left it there as an excuse to see her again, making a mental note to put it in the living room so she would remember it the next time she saw him.

He had slipped out at some point that morning, Anne playing the voicemail that he left her while she slipped on a t-shirt to cover herself. “Hey, Anne. Sorry, I couldn’t stay, but morning skate was calling. I,” she hears him sigh, knowing he had a stupid grin on his face for whatever it was he was about to say, “I can’t wait to have another night like last night with you.”

It was her turn to have the stupid smile on her face as Cale continues, “Um, anyway, I’ve got something going on with JT and some of the other guys tomorrow for Valentine’s Day, a, uh, charity thing? I think? So would you be free this weekend for a proper date for the holiday? You know, not as crowded, not as much pressure, ideally the same outcome, if you’ll allow it? Oh, hey Tyson,” she hears him say, figuring that he was calling her on the way into the rink despite her being unable to hear Tyson. “Yeah, I’m planning Valentine’s Day with Anne. No, not tomorrow night, this weekend. Uh, Anne, I’ve gotta go, but let me know about, say, Friday night? Alright, talk to you later. Bye.”

Valentine’s Day date with Cale? Part two, more like, but still. Anne liked the sound of that.

“So, uh,” Tyson starts, already dreading what he was about to hear from his teammate given what he had heard him say into his phone. “You and Anne?”

“Yeah,” Cale breathes out, chuckling at the thought of what happened last night. “We, um,” Cale couldn’t even get a full sentence out, acting like a child who just got the toy he had been begging his parents for on Christmas morning. He couldn’t remember the last time he was that happy. “We spent the night together last night. I left from her place this morning.”

More of their teammates were filtering into the locker room, looking at Cale’s face turn bright red while Tyson stood there with him looking like he just about wanted to die. “Ok, but did you spend the night, or spend the night?” Ryan asks.

Cale started to stammer out nonsense, not really wanting to divulge the private details of his and Anne’s night despite the guys teasing him and congratulating him for what he wasn’t saying.

“Guys, keep it civil. Anne wouldn’t want us talking about any of this,” Tyson pipes in, Cale letting out a sigh of relief as the guys disperse to get ready for morning skate.

“Thanks,” Cale tells him, going off on his own to get his gear on.

JT appears by Tyson’s side, a stupid smirk on his face. “Would Anne not want us talking about anything, or would you not want us talking about anything?”

“Well, Anne definitely wouldn’t.”

“Oh, come on, we both know Cale would never.”

“Doesn’t mean I want him to have the chance.”

“You’re treading in deep water, dude,” JT sighs.

Tyson looks at him, hating that he knew what he meant. He had barely seen Anne, despite her brother’s texts from the night before asking if Anne really couldn’t watch Harper because of the two of them going out, Tyson going along with the lie just in case. “I don’t know what you want from me.”

“It seems like you don’t know what you want from Anne, either,” JT shrugs. “But Cale does, and he got it.”

=============

February 14, 2022

12 hour shifts were the only shifts Anne knew. And they were the shifts that Anne detested the most. She was fine the first ten hours, but the last two always seemed to suck more than anything, leaving her exhausted for the rest of the day, into the night, depending on when she got home in the first place.

All she wanted to do was order dinner from the Thai place down the street, having it delivered despite her really not needing to since it was within walking distance, plop herself on her couch and watch whatever reality TV Lucy had texted her that she thought Anne would like. Anne knew she would turn it off after a single episode and switch to Food Network, but at least she could tell her sister she tried.

Anne walks to her apartment, dragging her feet to her door when she sees someone sitting on the ground, his head down looking at his phone. “Tyson?”

He gets up, grabbing the two bags he had with him as the smell of food filled her nose. “Happy Valentine’s Day, my fake girlfriend,” he says, raising the bags while Anne opens the door to let him in.

“I’m confused,” she tells him as he sets everything down.

“Well, Matthew called me on Saturday asking if the two of us were sure we couldn’t watch his daughter, and I figured he might as well have some sort of photographic evidence as proof of us spending Valentine’s Day together,” Tyson explains. “So, I figured I’d go all out: flowers, dinner, and a present. You know, really convince them that we’re together.”

Anne stares at him for a second, not sure why her heart was racing at the thought of him going out of his way to keep up this facade with her family. “I don’t think I like that you and Matthew are so ‘buddy-buddy.’ Or that fact that he didn’t believe me the first two times I told him I was busy on Saturday night. And I thought that you guys had a charity thing tonight?”

“Oh, you didn’t know?” Tyson asks, handing her the container of food as she joined him on the couch, the Thai food she was planning on ordering right in front of her. “We have a groupchat. Yeah, it’s me, Sebby, Lucy, and Matthew.”

Anne scoffs, rolling her eyes at his failed attempt at a joke. “And let me guess: you gossip about me the entire time.”

“Actually,” he says, his mouth full of food, “you never come up. They think of me as the fourth sibling. The name Anne means nothing.”

Anne laughs, Tyson admiring the way her eyes closed as her smile grew. God, he wished he had gotten to her before Cale did. Why did he have to leave her alone at all on New Year’s Eve? If he were by her side the entire night like he had wanted to be, then he wouldn’t have to pretend to be her boyfriend, he could actually be getting somewhere with her.

“Hm,” Anne hums, swallowing her mouthful of food. “You said flowers and a present. When do I get those?”

“You can get them now on the condition that I can take a video to send to your siblings,” he offers, pulling out his phone and pushing the bag with the flowers and gift behind him. Anne rolls her eyes, smiling and nodding while he starts the video. He hands her the card first. “Read it.”

Anne pulls it out of the envelope, glitter getting everywhere and making her cringe, knowing that it would be impossible to get off her scrubs later on. It was covered with roses and hearts, bringing her right back to the wedding that weekend. “No one has ever made me feel like this. To the woman I love: Happy Valentine’s Day,” Anne reads, feeling a lump forming in her throat. The card was so corny, a little too corny for her taste, but coming from Tyson, she didn’t know why she loved it. She shakes her head, laughing at Tyson. “I love you, too,” she lies.

Tyson swallows hard at her words, wishing she meant them, pulling out the flowers from the bag and handing them to her. She looks down at the flowers, trying to figure out what they are before looking up at him. “Queen Anne’s Lace?”

“Queen Anne’s Lace for my Queen, Anne,” he tells her, cringing at his own words.

Anne giggles, placing them in her lap. “And my favorite flowers, anyway. Thank you, Tyson.”

“Wait, I have one more thing,” he says, hoping that the camera wasn’t shaking too much while he reached for the gift he bought her.

He hands it to her, a small red box wrapped with a gold bow. She unties it carefully, opening the box and gasping at the sight of it. A golden necklace with a white enamel heart as the charm, a golden pattern outlining the heart. “Tyson, it’s,” she starts, unable to find the words, “it’s beautiful.”

He stops the recording, figuring he had enough to hit send to his ‘girlfriend's' siblings. “Let me put it on you,” he says, Anne turning around and moving her hair out of the way. “I thought you would like it.”

Anne studies his face, the smile plastered on it despite her knowing that he didn’t mean it. “You didn’t have to do this.”

He shrugs, grabbing his food off the table and staring at it now in his lap. “It was fun. I’ve never had a girlfriend who I could buy presents like this for. I mean, I still don’t, but I have you.”

“Oh, come on. You, Tyson Jost, have never had a girlfriend? Look at you,” she says, praying that she was careful with the words she chose. “You’re gorgeous, you’re sweet, you’re funny, you get along with everyone you meet.”

Tyson hated hearing Anne go on about him, knowing that she was just saying it as a friend instead of something more. He scoffs, trying to save face from whatever pain or other emotion he was feeling. “Come on,” he says, not believing her anyway.

“I’m serious!” she insists, reaching up and starting to fidget with her new necklace. “Any girl would be lucky to have you as her boyfriend. I’m lucky to even have you as a fake boyfriend.”

Tyson nods, turning his body to face the TV instead of Anne. “So what are we watching?” he asks, changing the subject and putting his feet up on the table, Anne doing the same.

“Whatever’s on Food Network?” she suggests, holding the remote in the air pointed at the TV.

The two of them settle in, Tyson not paying attention to the show she had turned on. “Hey, what’s that?” Tyson asks, racing over to the red fabric that was on Anne’s coffee table.

“Oh,” Anne blushes, taking it from Tyson. “This is Cale’s. He, um, let it the other night,” she explains, Tyson watching her turn his teammates bowtie over in her hands.

“So you and Cale are doing pretty well?” he asks. Anne looks at him, not sure if she really wanted to tell him about it. “Come on, we’re friends. You can talk to me about anything.”

“I mean,” she says, putting down the bowtie on the table, not taking her eyes off of it. “We’re together? I think?” Tyson already hated that he even offered to listen to her talk about her and his teammate. “I like him. A lot. And I know he likes me, but,” Anne lets out a sigh, not sure where to even take her sentence.

“But, what?” Tyson asks.

“I don’t know,” she shakes her head, looking confused. “Everything is great, but it’s, I,” she stammers. “Something is off, and I can’t figure out what.”

Tyson stares at her for a second, trying to figure out what to say. “It’s probably just that it’s new,” he shrugs. “Everything seems weird when you’re still figuring it out. You and Cale will be ok,” he tells her, hating hearing those words come out of his mouth.

=============

February 19, 2022

Anne stared at herself in the mirror, the black turtleneck she borrowed from her sister coupled with a beige skirt and black tights on her as she got ready for her date with Cale. He was bound to show up any minute, promising each other they weren’t going to do gifts due to a general lack of time on both ends. She didn’t believe that he wasn’t going to get her a gift, however, sneaking out to the bakery down the street and buying some pastries that the two of them would like, giving them an excuse to both show up back at her apartment. And if he didn’t give her a gift, then she got the pastries all to herself.

If not, she could share them with Tyson, who had been showing up at her place or asking her to go to his place any free chance they both had.

She heard Cale knocking at her door, Anne rushing as fast as she could in her heels to answer. Cale was standing there, a black crewneck similar to her own turtleneck, paired with dark jeans, black boots, and a grey coat. Cale kisses her hello, one hand behind his back with the other resting on her hip. “Every time I see you I don’t think you could get more beautiful, and yet, you do.”

“You’re cheesy,” she jokes as he kisses her forehead, Cale laughing against her skin. “But you,” Anne says, resting her hands on his chest, “get more handsome every time I see you, too. And, you’re hiding a present behind your back, aren’t you, even though we said no presents.”

Cale laughs, closing the door behind him. “Maybe I saw this and had to get it for you,” he admits, kissing her again and holding up the bag near her head.

“Should I open it now or should I do it later when we come back here?” she flirts, holding the bag in her hand.

“Oh, we’re coming back here?” he teases her, trailing kisses down her neck.

“I might have gotten some dessert for us so we had an excuse to relive last Saturday. Plus, you left your bowtie here,” she gestures to it, still sitting on her table, “And I was thinking maybe you wear that tonight instead of keeping it off?”

Cale raises his eyebrow at her, a silly smile on his face. “And what else would I be wearing?”

Anne shrugs, pretending to act innocent. “I was thinking only the bowtie,” she tells him, feeling his grip around her tighten at the thought.

Cale kisses her again, unable to keep his hands off the girl in front of him. If he could, he would forget dinner altogether and just go straight to dessert, but he knew Anne wasn’t that kind of girl, and he wasn’t about to force her into anything she didn’t want. “Hey, I like that necklace you’re wearing,” he says, twirling the charm around in his fingers. “The heart is perfect for Valentine’s Day.”

She reaches up and takes his hand in hers. “Thanks. My sister got it for me a few years ago for my birthday,” she lies. She couldn’t tell him that Tyson had gotten it for her for Valentine’s Day.

#tyson jost #tyson jost fic #tyson jost imagine #colorado avalanche #colorado avalanche imagine #colorado avalanche fic #avalanche #avalanche imagine #avalanche fic #tyson and anne

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doc-pickles · 3 years

Text

that was our place, I found it first

in which alex and jo both struggle with their new realities and that overwhelming sense of deja vu....

hey hi hello this isn’t new (it’s been on AO3 for a hot minute) but I hadn’t shared it here so enjoy. and everyone say thank you to olivia rodrigo.

It’s three weeks into his stay in Kansas when the weight of his new reality hits him square in the chest. He’d wrangled both kids inside and sent them to wash up, quickly changing out of his scrubs before meeting Eli, Alexis, and Izzie at the dinner table. He’s about to ask how the day has been for everyone but he’s stopped dead in his tracks, the words slipping from his mind.

“Hey, you're invited to Mer's for Thanksgiving.”

“Really?”

“I'm invited and, uh, I'm bringing you.”

“The attendings are gonna be weird if I'm there.”

“No, they're not.”

“Just go without me. We'll meet up after.”

“You think I wanna be there if you're not.”

“You're sweet.”

“Okay, screw it. How about we get takeout chicken and eat it in the car like we were raised to do?”

“I think I love you.”

“Yeah, yeah, settle down.”

The sound of his daughter’s voice brings Alex back to the present, eyes moving from the platter of fried chicken in the center of the table to Alexis who’s staring at him in confusion. He quickly plasters a smile on his face, making a joke at his daughter’s expense that makes both children giggle loudly. Dinner passes by quickly and soon both kids are off to bed, visions of a bright eyed brunette intern closing Alex’s mind as he cleans the kitchen.

“Auntie Jo!”

The exclamation from Zola sends all three Grey Shepherd kids hurtling across the room to wrap their arms around Jo’s legs. Struggling to keep her balance, Jo let out a laugh as she listened to each child bombard her with questions. She hadn’t seen them for almost two months so the attack was unavoidable but not unwanted as she let the kids contagious joy bring a wide smile to her face.

“Hey, glad you could make it,” Link appeared in the doorway of the kitchen, Scout wriggling in his arms. “I’m not much of a cook but there’s fresh coffee and donuts. I got them from that place that’s on...”

Link’s voice faded out as Jo’s eyes settled on the pink bakery box behind him, the children clinging to her forgotten as her mind drifted.

“Cheers to an incredible day. You deserve it. Actually, I helped, too. So cheers to us.”

“Hey, powdered sugar's your favorite.”“Yeah, no. This is great. Thanks.”

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“So it’s been a long morning around here,” Link, oblivious to the far off look in Jo’s eyes, finished his thought off before turning back to his friend. “Can I get you some coffee? You look tired, no offense.”

Jo nodded her head, shaking off the last foggy visions of the supply closet from her mind as she hoisted Ellis onto her hip, “Coffee sounds perfect, thanks Link.”

“You know, maybe we should just head down to the courthouse, make things official.”

Alex’s head snapped up from the bowl of cereal in front of him, eyes wide as he stared at Izzie who was packing lunches for Eli and Alexis. Her comment was nonchalant, eyes not even leaving the lunch bags in front of her as she continued the thought.

“It might make things easier than going through a big fuss, plus it’s close to the hospital so it wouldn’t be super out of the way,” Izzie finally looked at Alex who was staring at her in shock still. “What do you think?”

“I don’t even know if my divorce has gone through yet, I think getting married is jumping the gun a bit Iz,” Alex forced the words out of his mouth, heart pounding loudly as Izzie began to laugh. “What? What’s so funny?”

“I meant go down to the courthouse to get you on the kids paperwork,” Izzie stifled another laugh as Alex let out a breath of relief, his heart rate coming down significantly. “Geez, what kind of backwoods tacky idea is a courthouse wedding anyways?”

Alex’s mind began to drift as visions of vampire teeth and fake blood on a day not too long ago filled his mind.

“For better or worse...”

“For better or worse.”

"...for richer or poorer...”

“For richer or... pregnant.”

“What?”

“I'm pregnant.... Ha! Scared you! I got you so good.”

“Wait. You're not pregnant?”

“No. Oh, my God, you should've seen your face.”

“... so I told Jenny we’d swing by around 8,” Izzie looks expectantly to Alex, who’s coming out of his mental dog and still staring into his cereal bowl. “Alex? You okay?”

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine,” his eyes flit to the living room where Eli and Alexis are playing a game, loud peels of laughter coming from them. His heart twisted for a moment, picturing Jo between the two children playing along with them as if it were the most natural thing in the world. “Yeah I’m good.”

“You’re just the cutest baby in the whole wide world aren’t you,” Jo’s voice was a soft coo as she rocked a drowsy Scout in her arms, the loud voices of his cousins outside drowned out as they stood in the living room. “You’re gonna be handsome just like your daddy and so smart like your mama. I don’t know what those two are gonna do with you.”

“You’re a natural you know,” Jo’s head popped up, meeting Amelia’s gaze as she leaned against the doorframe of the living room. “He won’t even fall asleep for Maggie.”

“Well Auntie Jo just has the magic touch,” Jo pressed a finger against Scout’s cheek, the infant curling closer to the new source of warmth. “Maybe that’s why OB sounds so appealing, all the babies I get to hold and love on since I’m clearly not having any of my own anytime soon.”

A low chuckle left Amelia as she crossed the room and grabbed Scout from Jo, the little boy nuzzling into his mother’s chest contentedly, “Don’t count yourself out. I wouldn’t put it past you to become a mom sooner rather than later.”

Jo watched Amelia walk towards Scout’s room, her mind thinking back to a time when having her own kids wasn’t just a far off dream.

“I'm ready. I mean, let's do it. Let's make a baby, right now.”

“Are you out of your mind? We’re not having a baby!”

“I want to have kids with you. I love how much you care for Kimmie, and it really makes me want to have kids with you. And if it's okay with you, I would really like to take your last name. Because I've never had the last name of anyone who's loved me.”

“I'm sorry I talked about kids on our honeymoon. It was stupid. It was just... you were talking about the future and snow stuff, and it just popped into my head. Like, I could see our kids playing in the snow, having fun, which is... You know, kids, snow. It makes sense.”

“Alex, shut up, please. I-I have an idea, a big idea, and I love you, and I will love all of our children, or at least one child eventually.”

“We're in the baby hat place? Are you pregnant and you didn't tell me?”

“She asked me if we wanted kids, and I said yes because we do. And she's making the hats extra big because I had an extra big head.”

The thoughts in her head overwhelm Jo, heart beating erratically as she collapses onto the couch in a fit of tears she hadn’t realized were falling. Eventually Amelia comes back, silently bringing Jo into her embrace as her tears fall. She doesn’t know how long she sits there crying, begging any higher being that would listen for Alex to come back so they could have the family they so desperately wanted.

“There’s a storm brewing! Expect two to three days of nonstop rain and wind in the North Eastern Kansas area, this storm is not letting up.”

Alex’s eyes floated to the window of his office, the news report blaring from his laptop fading as he focused on the rain hitting the glass. He’d lived in Seattle for a large majority of his life, he should be more than used to the sight of rain. Instead though the water dripping down reminded him of another storm years earlier, a storm that changed his life.

“Listen, I have to tell you something.”

“No, you don't.”

“You don't even know what I'm gonna say.”

“I think I do, and you shouldn't.”

“Jo…”

“I'll mess it up, Alex. I mess everything good in my life up, and... we work as friends really well, and... and I don't wanna mess that up.”

“You won't mess anything up.”

The memory fades from his mind as a knock sounds on the door of his office, one of his attendings hurtling questions at him a mile a minute. Jo’s bruised face and beaming smile haunt his thoughts for the rest of the day though, the feeling of her lips on his haunting him as he attempted to keep his head screwed on straight.

“Watch out Seattle! Another super soaker is in the area. Local officials are advising everyone to stay off the roads until this storm passes. If you have an emergency or need to leave…”

“Great, we’re going to get the whole of Seattle’s dumbasses in the ER tonight,” Bailey’s voice broke Jo out of her trance as she stared at the TV in the attendings lounge, fingers absentmindedly twisting the necklace around her neck. “Wilson, keep an eye on the NICU for me. If the power goes out we’ll need to keep an eye on those babies.”

Jo nodded, leaving the lounge in a daze as her mind brought up her first Seattle superstorm and a night not unlike tonight that changed everything.

“Last night, before the tree, you asked me a question. You wanted to hear me say the words. So I'm... Saying them right now.”

“I don't hear anything.”

“Shut up.”

“Okay, but…”

“I'm... I'm serious.”

“Fine.”

“I love you.”

The words still echoed around her, the storm drowned out by the look on Alex’s face as they finally shared a kiss that felt like it was years in the making. That night changed everything for them, it started them off on a crazy eight year rollercoaster that despite its tragic ending Jo wouldn’t change for the world. As she walked the halls of Grey Sloan she was reminded of countless memories between them, their whole relationship playing out in the hallways of this hospital. A light feeling settled in Jo’s chest, the memories for once bringing a smile to her face instead of sending her into a crying fit. Maybe that dreaded sense of deja vu wasn’t always a bad thing…

#jolex #jolex fanfic #Jo x Alex #Jo wilson #Jo Karev #Alex Karev #grey’s anatomy fanfic #grey’s fanfic #grey’s anatomy #nina writes #jolex fanfiction

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rhosyn-du · 3 years

Text

Never make a mess when a total catastrophe will do - Chapter Two

Pairings: Jimon, past Clace, background Clizzy, a bunch of other minor background pairings Rating: Explicit Art: @cor321 Beta: @all-thestories-aretrue Tags: Alternate Universe - College/University, fake dating, oh my god they were roommates, friends with benefits, idiots to lovers, pining, miscommunication, holidays, drinking games, mistletoe, symbolically significant Oreos, domestic fluff, brief mention of past character death, Jace’s self-worth issues deserve their own tag Summary: What do you do when you find out your sister is not only dating your ex and love-of-your-high-school-life but is also bringing her home for Christmas? Bring your annoying, hot, annoyingly-hot roommate as your fake boyfriend to show them you're totally fine with it, obviously! There's no possible way this could backfire. Link: AO3 , Tumblr Master Post

Chapter Two

They didn’t talk more about it later. Jace barely saw Simon at all over the following couple weeks, in fact. It’s not that he was intentionally avoiding Simon, but they both had final exams to study for, and Simon was wrapped up in guitar ensemble rehearsals for the winter concert on top of that. If Jace had spent a little more of his study time in the library than was strictly necessary and that just happened to prevent any further discussions of dispays of physical affection and practice dates, that was entirely beside the point.

What Jace hadn’t counted on was how unprepared he’d feel pulling up outside the Queen Anne style townhouse he’d called home for most of his childhood. He suddenly wished he’d let Simon talk him into driving together and using the drive as a last minute planning session, even if it meant they’d need to coordinate their trip back to Boston. As much as he’d been avoiding talking about their plan, it really only occurred to Jace on the drive how much he wished they actually had, you know, a plan.

“Wow,” Simon said, hopping out of the hand-painted van he’d parked right behind Jace’s car. “Is that an actual turret?”

“Yup, gotta love those late 19th century architectural fads,” Jace answered as he pulled his suitcase out of the trunk. “The house belonged to Maryse’s grandparents, and I’ve never been able to tell how much she actually likes the style and how much is just childhood nostalgia, but she hasn’t even changed much of the interior except for renovations and repairs.”

“I have a hard time imagining growing up in a place like this,” Simon said as he joined Jace with his own suitcase in hand. “And it’s not like my mom’s house is tiny or anything, but this is just...” He waved a hand vaguely at the house. “A lot.”

He didn’t ask why Jace was sharing a tiny apartment furnished entirely secondhand if his family lived in a house like this, and Jace didn’t offer an explanation.

“You don’t need to be nervous,” Jace said, even though there was plenty to be nervous about. “I promise the house doesn’t bite.”

“Yeah, less worried about the house than the people in it,” Simon told him.

“I thought you were, like, the parent whisperer,” Jace teased. “Isn’t that why you offered to come with me? Because you make a great boyfriend? Trust me, as long as Alec and Izzy think you make me happy, they’ll love you, and you know more about comics than anyone I’ve ever met, so Max will love you regardless.”

“Okay,” Simon said, releasing a heavy breath. “Okay, thanks. You’re right, I just got a little intimidated by the house, but this is all going to be fine.”

“Maryse is probably going to hate you, though,” Jace continued, keeping his face carefully deadpan. “She hates everyone we bring home. It’s like a rite of passage. But you’re great with parents, so I’m sure you’ll at least avoid intentional food poisoning.”

Simon stared at him in horror, and Jace couldn’t keep a hit of a smile from breaking through.

“I hate you,” Simon told him.

“If it makes you feel any better,” Jace said, “I’m pretty sure the food poisoning wasn’t actually intentional.”

“Wait, there was actual food poisoning?”

“Come on,” Jace said, heading toward the door. “I want to get inside before we freeze to death.”

“You are such a dick sometimes,” Simon muttered, catching up to him.

Then, he slipped his free hand into Jace’s like it was a totally normal thing to do, and Jace had to catch himself from tripping over the steps.

“Careful,” Simon said, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. “I’m not going to make a very good impression on your family if you fall and break your neck before we even get inside.”

And there was just nothing to say to that, to how uncomfortable it wasn’t to have Simon’s hand in his like this, to the way it made him want. So Jace simply rolled his eyes and pushed open the front door, letting the scent of home wrap around him like a warm blanket.

“Okay,” Simon said quietly as he surveyed the entryway, complete with antique chandelier. “Feeling a little intimidated again.” And it was so easy for Jace to just give his hand a reassuring squeeze.

“Hey, you made it,” a warm voice greeted them. “With as bad as traffic has been, we thought you’d be another hour at least.”

“Hey, man,” Jace said, dropping Simon’s hand so he could pull his brother into a hug. “People must be staying home for the holidays this year, because we barely hit any traffic at all.” He glanced around. “Where is everyone?”

“Iz should be here any minute, Max is holed up in his room playing video games with his friends, and Magnus is helping Mom with some last-minute grocery shopping for dinner tomorrow.” Alec held out a hand to Simon. “I’m Alec, since Jace apparently can’t be bothered to make introductions like a civilized person.”

“It’s okay,” Simon said, giving his hand a quick shake, “I gave up on the idea of Jace being civilized the first time I saw him eat pizza that had been sitting out on the counter for three days.”

“That was your pizza,” Jace pointed out.

“Yeah,” Simon said, “which I was going to throw away because I forgot about it for three days.”

“On the subject of uncivilized,” Jace said, turning back to Alec, who was looking just a little too pleased, “you really sent Magnus shopping with Maryse? Buddy, if you decided you don’t want to marry the guy, just break it off with him. You don’t have to throw him to the wolves like that.”

Alec’s tiny smile became a little less tiny and a whole lot softer. “Magnus and Mom have actually been getting along lately. She wanted his opinion on wine pairings, so they went to the store and left me here so I can pull the bread out of the oven when it’s done. It’s very weird, but also nice.”

“That does sound very weird,” Jace told him, “but I’m glad things are working out and Maryse has found some level of chill somewhere.”

“Hopefully that means I won’t get poisoned,” Simon said.

Alec snorted. “If you want to avoid it, you should probably avoid mentioning you know about that. Or any other embarrassing family stories Jace might have shared with you.”

“And don’t eat anything Izzy hands you,” Jace added. “Anything she cooks probably won’t kill you, but the taste will make you wish you were dead.”

“So, I should just fast while I’m here,” Simon said. “Good to know.”

Jace led Simon upstairs to drop off their bags while Alec checked on the bread.

“Just toss your bag anywhere,” Jace said, opening the door to his old room. “We can argue over who gets which side of the dresser later.”

“Sure,” Simon said cheerfully, “as long as we can be civil deciding who gets which side of the bed.” He stopped just inside the doorway. “Wow, okay. The apparently very small bed.”

And this really was something that should have occurred to him, Jace realized. It wasn’t that he hadn’t considered that he’d be sharing a bed with Simon. They’d even talked about it, briefly, and agreed it was no big deal. But Jace hadn’t considered exactly how much smaller his childhood bed was than the generous queen he slept in back home. It was technically large enough to fit two grown men, but only technically.

“Don’t worry,” Jace said, falling back on his trademark bravado, “I won’t get mad if you cuddle me in your sleep. I know you can’t help it if your subconscious recognizes that I’m irresistible.”

“I’m more worried about your freakishly sharp elbows,” Simon muttered.

“As long as you don’t snore or steal the covers, you won’t have to worry about my elbows,” Jace told him. He was planning to keep his elbows, and the rest of him, as far away from Simon as possible. Which, given the size of the bed, was maybe three inches.

“Dude, I do not snore,” Simon protested. “You know that; we live together.”

“You absolutely snore after your fourth drink.”

“I wasn’t planning to get drunk with your family,” Simon said, tossing his bag onto the bed.

“You say that now,” Jace said, leaving his own bag next to the door. “But wait until you get the full Lightwood Christmas experience before deciding you want to spend the whole thing sober.”

“If your family drives me to drink, you don’t get to blame me for snoring,” Simon countered. Which was probably fair, but Jace was saved from having to admit that by the sound of voices coming from downstairs.

“That’d be Izzy,” Jace said, “and we’d better get down there before she accuses me of trying to hide you from her.”

“Jace,” called a singsong voice, right on cue, “quit making out with your mystery hottie and get down here so we can actually meet him.”

“You should be careful making demands like that,” Jace called back. “What if I’m not wearing any pants?”

“We’ve all seen it. Get your ass down here “

“I like your sister already,” Simon told him.

“You say that now, but wait until she decides you count as family. She won’t be any better with you.” He took Simon’s hand. Because it helped sell their relationship. Because he could. Simon laced their fingers together, and Jace tried not to feel any way about that at all as he led Simon back down the stairs.

They only made it a couple steps before Simon came to a complete stop, almost causing Jace to trip the rest of the way down the staircase. He heard Simon mutter a soft ‘oh crap’ at the same time a bright, redheaded whirlwind came rushing up the stairs at them.

“Oh my god, Simon?” Clary grabbed Simon into a giant bearhug, effectively tearing his hand out of Jace’s. “You’re Jace’s mystery boyfriend? How did I not know about this? You didn’t even tell me you were dating anyone, you jerk! What happened to best friend gossip privileges?”

Clary pulled back from the hug, and now that Jace could actually see her face, he could see the hint of concern she was trying to hide under her wide smile.

“Clary. Hi,” Simon said, eyes wide. “I was going to tell you, I swear. It’s just, this is kind of new and so...” He trailed off, looking panicked. His eyes caught Jace’s. “But, uh, yeah. This is Jace. My boyfriend. Jace, this is my best friend, Clary Fray.”

“Yeah,” Jace said, looking between the two of them and feeling more than a little out of his depth. He’d planned for things to be weird, but not this weird. “We’ve met.” He flashed Clary a smile. “Fray, huh?”

She nodded. “I couldn’t keep his name. Not after...after everything. Fray is the name Mom used before she married Luke. It’s the name I remember her having when I was little, so.” She shrugged. “I filed the paperwork to have it legally changed the day I turned eighteen.”

“It suits you,” Jace told her, and let himself be pulled into a tight hug that he suspected was as much because she needed one as that she was glad to see him. Clary had never told him much about the biological father she barely knew, but she’d told him enough to know that Clary held him responsible for her mother’s death, even if the courts had cleared him of any wrongdoing.

“Thanks,” Clary whispered, before surreptitiously drying her eyes on his shoulder and pulling back to flash a smile that was less forced than Jace expected. “So, tell me how this happened without me hearing about it.” She bumped Jace with her shoulder. “And if it’s so new, what possessed you to subject Simon to your family holidays?”

“Hey,” Izzy said, walking up behind Clary and wrapping her arms around her girlfriend’s waist. Jace had to admit, they looked...well, right together. “That’s my family, too, you know.”

“Oh, I know,” Clary said, offering a soft grin over her shoulder. “And the fact that I’m here should tell you exactly how much I love you.”

“Fair,” Izzy said, then looked at Simon. “So, how’d my brother convince you to join this circus?”

“We made a trade,” Simon said, straight-faced. “I put up with his family for Christmas and he puts up with mine for my cousin Rachel’s wedding.” He leaned in and told Izzy in a stage whisper, “Also, I’m weak for his smile, but don’t tell him I said that, because he will abuse it.”

“You say that like I don’t already abuse it,” Jace said, sliding his arm around Simon’s waist in a mirror of Izzy and Clary’s pose. “And to answer your earlier question, us being officially together is new, but we’ve been sort of on the verge of dating for ages. Practically since we started sharing an apartment last year.”

Clary let out a peal of delighted laughter. “Oh, you’re the roommate. It makes sense now.” Before Jace could ask what made sense, she was pulling the both of them into a tight hug. “I’m really happy for both of you.”

“If I’d known you were going to be this excited, I definitely would have mentioned it sooner,” Simon said, pulling back from the hug.

Jace tried to catch his eye, wondering what on earth was going on. He knew both Clary and Simon well enough to know he was missing something, but he had no idea what it was. Simon ignored him, and that just made Jace more suspicious.

“Come on,” Izzy said. “You can have your hug fest later. Right now, I want to help Alec get things set up in the kitchen and maybe surprise Mom by getting dinner started before she gets back.”

Jace and Clary exchanged a panicked look, and Jace frantically searched his mind for excuses to keep Izzy busy. He didn’t actually want a repeat of the food poisoning episode, after all.

“Actually,” Simon said, turning a bright smile on Izzy. “I was kind of hoping you’d be willing to show me your Lego Star Wars collection before we get too wrapped up in family stuff. Jace mentioned you have the deluxe Imperial Star Destroyer set from the early 2000’s, and I’ve never actually seen one in person.”

“Oh,” Izzy said, looking torn. “I’m not sure—”

“We can help Alec in the kitchen,” Clary said quickly. “You two go do your nerd thing. I knew this was inevitable when I finally introduced you two anyway. And this way I get the chance to harass my bestie’s new boyfriend without him in the way trying to keep me from learning the embarrassing details.”

“You know, on second thought—” Simon began, looking slightly panicked.

“Come on,” Izzy interrupted, smiling brightly and grabbing his hand.

Simon flashed Clary a betrayed look, then looked to Jace for support. Jace simply smiled at him.

“Don’t worry, love muffin,” he said mildly. “I’d never intentionally embarrass you.”

“I want you to know that I hate both of you,” Simon said before allowing Izzy to drag him back up the stairs.

“My collection is all still in my old room,” Izzy said. “Clary and I have been looking for an apartment big enough I can actually move the rest of my stuff out of here, but so far we haven’t found anything in our price range.”

Jace turned back to Clary. “Exactly what kind of embarrassing stories were you hoping for? Because I have many.”

Clary shook her head. “I’m pretty sure I’ve got more embarrassing Simon stories than you do. I’ve got almost two decades worth. But I was actually hoping to talk to you alone anyway, and this seems like the best chance we’re going to get.”

Jace followed her down the stairs and into the study. “Sounds serious. You planning to give me a shovel talk?”

Clary laughed, shaking her head. “No, I know you, remember? I’m not worried about you hurting Simon. Well,” she amended, “not any more than I am about him hurting you.” She met his eyes with a soft smile. “You might be the only person I know with a heart as big as Simon’s, as much as you try to hide it.”

Jace looked away. It had been two years since the last time he’d seen her, and she could still see right to the heart of him. He didn’t want to know what she’d see if she kept looking. “Clary—”

“Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me,” she teased. “But I didn’t actually bring you out here to talk about Simon. I wanted to apologize.”

Jace frowned, looking back at her. “You’ve got nothing to apologize for.” He was more than a little grateful not to have Clary grilling him about his entirely fabricated relationship, but he wasn’t sure where this conversation was going.

“No, I do,” she insisted. “I promised to keep in touch when you moved away, and I didn’t.”

“It’s not a big deal,” Jace said, even if maybe it had been at first. Those first few months at school had been hard. Jace always thought he was used to being alone, especially after his mother’s suicide, but he found out just how much he’d come to rely on his new family when he didn’t see them every day. They’d kept in touch, of course, but with Izzy immersed in her studies and Alec all wrapped up in his new relationship with Magnus, it wasn’t anything like what it had been when they were all under one roof.

For a while, he and Clary had been in touch nearly every day, sometimes texting multiple times a day. Jace told her about his classes and how much he liked Boston, and Clary told him all about trying to narrow down which art schools she wanted to apply to. It was almost the same sort of easy friendship they’d had before he left, after they agreed they were better off as friends.

But after a couple months, Clary’s messages came less and less often, and eventually stopped altogether. Jace tried not to let it bother him, but he started drinking a bit too much and going to a few too many parties. Which was how he’d met Maia, his attempts at flirting somehow leading to him getting his ass handed to him at beer pong, and soon he found himself with an entire group of new friends. Although Maia insisted for almost a year that she and Jace were merely antagonistic acquaintances.

Clary gave him a look that told him she knew exactly how full of it he was. “It was a shitty thing to do, and I was a shitty friend,” she told him. “Especially because I did it on purpose. Izzy and I started getting close and I started to have feelings for her, and I didn’t know what to say to you about it. I didn’t know how to even talk to you about what was going on in my life without mentioning that she was becoming such a big part of it.”

“You didn’t actually have to hide it from me, you know,” Jace said. “I was surprised when Izzy first told me, but I’m mostly just glad you’re both happy. And seeing you together, I know you both are.”

“Thanks,” Clary said. “I didn’t want to hurt you or make things weird. For a while, I thought I could just ignore what I was feeling, but Iz is just... She’s not someone you can ignore, you know?”

“Oh, I know exactly how hard my sister is to ignore, believe me.” Jace stopped, considered, then admitted something he had never said—would never say—to another person. But this was Clary, and he knew she would never repeat it. And even if she did, he could always play it off as part of the act. “She and Simon have that in common. You know, I actually thought I hated him at first? He’s so enthusiastic about everything, and so sincere, and just.” He shrugged. “Not the kind of person I thought would ever do it for me.”

“But he won you over with his boyish charm?” Clary guessed.

“Mm,” Jace agreed. And the way he loved without reserve. Not just his family and friends, but his music, his favorite films, even the crappy nachos from the 7-11 down the block from their apartment. Simon loved every part of life, and being around him, Jace could almost imagine what that felt like. “Well, that and his abs.”

“Can’t forget those,” Clary laughed.

“Not with how often he eats breakfast shirtless,” Jace agreed. “Come on. If we aren’t in the kitchen by the time Izzy gets back downstairs, you know she’ll try to help Alec herself, and I was kind of hoping for dinner to be edible.”

~~~

Dinner was surprisingly painless. Maryse was more relaxed and happy than Jace had ever seen her, and he couldn’t help wondering how much of that was related to the very unsubtle smiles she kept exchanging with Clary’s stepfather. Even Max, who was deep in throes of preteen scorn, grudgingly admitted that Simon being in a band was “pretty cool” and joined in on some of Simon, Clary, and Izzy’s excited nerd talk that went entirely over Jace’s head.

After dinner, they retired to the living room for eggnog and carols. Jace limited himself to a single cup of Magnus’s infamous eggnog, knowing better than to let himself get drunk when he was putting on a show for his family. Or sharing his tiny bed with Simon.

As usual, Jace let himself get pushed over the piano to play. He felt something in him settle as soon as he rested his fingers on the keys of Maryse’s baby grand, the feel different and so much more familiar than the ancient keyboard he had back in Boston or the well-used uprights in the practice rooms at school.

When Jace had first come to live with the Lightwoods, he’d been afraid to touch the piano. His mother had put him in lessons as soon as he was old enough, but she hated to listen to him play and often chastised him for not being a better player, saying he should be better at it with how talented his father was. Now, he understood that it was just another manifestation of the combined grief and mental illness that led to Celine’s death, but at the time he’d hated how awful he was at playing, no matter how much he enjoyed doing it.

But Maryse knew he played and encouraged him to use her piano. She told him that it had been her father’s, and though she’d taken lessons herself as a child, she’d never really loved it the way he had. She said that the instrument deserved to be loved, and as long as Jace loved playing it, she didn’t care how good he was or wasn’t.

It was the first time he’d really felt like this could be his home.

“Okay,” Jace said after the third version of O Tannenbaum with ridiculous altered lyrics—this one courtesy of Simon rather than Max or Clary, about an ill-fated toad who chose the wrong moment to cross the street, “I think my fingers are done for the night.”

“Oh, come on,” Clary said. “Simon and I have at least a dozen more of these we came up with when we were kids.”

“When we were little, I only knew the lyrics to the Christmas songs they played on the radio, so Fray made up silly lyrics to the other ones and told me they were real,” Simon explained. “And it made her so happy that I went along with it even for the couple I did know.”

“There will be plenty of time for more singing tomorrow,” Maryse said. “But if I know this one,” she continued, smiling at Max, “we’re all going to be dragged out of bed at the crack of dawn for presents.”

“Mom,” Max whined, “I’m not a kid anymore. I know the presents will still be there whenever I get up.”

“I seem to remember someone who looked an awful lot like you waking us up before sunrise last year,” Magnus said with exaggerated confusion. “Perhaps you have a twin I haven’t met?”

Max fixed him with a withering look. “Last year, I was eleven. This year I’m twelve,” he said, as though that explained it.

“Well, I’m glad to hear you’ve grown out of it,” Alec told him. “Because I intend to sleep in. And if you try to get me out of bed early, I’ll remind you of this conversation.”

“Oh, no need for that, darling,” Magnus said cheerfully. “I’ll just barricade the door before we go to sleep so he can’t get to us.”

“Brilliant,” Alec said, giving Magnus a frankly sappy smile. “I knew there was a reason I loved you.”

“And on that note,” Jace said, “I think I’m going to head to bed before I die of sweetness overdose.”

“Oh, please,” Magnus said, giving him an unimpressed look. “We all saw you and Simon making eyes at each other over those cookies you were frosting earlier.”

“It’s true,” Izzy said before Jace could protest. “You don’t get to tease Alec about being a sap anymore, not now that we’ve all actually seen you with someone you love.”

Jace froze, his mouth half open, then quickly snapped it shut. It made sense that Izzy would assume. He’d brought Simon home for Christmas, after all. That was the story they were selling even if they hadn’t actually discussed it, even if it wasn’t something Jace had said or even implied. And whatever he did feel for Simon, it certainly wasn’t love. It was, at best, a friendly crush. A very intense friendly crush.

Izzy seemed to realize her mistake, glancing between him and Simon with a look of dawning panic.

“No, you’re misunderstanding how this works,” Simon said easily, because of course Izzy’s words hadn’t sent him into a panic the way they had Jace. “Jace gets to tease Alec, and you, and you both get to tease him back.”

“Yep,” Clary agreed. “Those are the rules, because that means I still get to tease Simon.”

“Please,” Izzy said. “Clary and I are too sophisticated to be sappy.”

“I’m pretty sure I heard you call Clary ‘cuddle bug’ earlier,” Alec said.

“And I definitely saw you laugh at that terrible joke she told at dinner,” Jace added.

“She ate one of the cookies you made,” Max accused.

“Yeah, sorry, cutie,” Clary said. “We’re really pretty sappy.”

“Fine,” Izzy huffed. “But I just think you’re all jealous because I’ve got the cutest girlfriend.”

“Yes, Izzy,” Alec said drily. “You’ve uncovered my secret. I’m extremely jealous of your girlfriend.”

“I knew it,” Izzy said smugly, as though Alec had been perfectly sincere.

“Definitely in danger of dying of sweetness overdose,” Jace said.

That set off another round of teasing, this time with Izzy throwing in not so subtle attempts to drag Maryse and Luke into it. Jace wasn’t sure why Izzy was so determined to make the two admit there was something between them. It was obvious there was just from the way they acted around each other. Maryse would tell them when she was ready, just like she had when she and Robert filed for divorce.

It was almost another hour before Jace finally made his way up the stairs toward his room. He was surprised when Simon rose to follow him, but didn’t say anything until they were back in his room.

“I’m surprised you didn’t stay to nerd out with Clary and Iz some more.”

“I get to talk to Clary all the time,” he said with a shrug. “Besides, it’ll be easier to keep up the whole fake boyfriend thing if I don’t let her get me alone. She’d definitely figure out something’s up if I let her start grilling me about our relationship. Also, you don’t get to call me a nerd when you know just as much about Star Wars as I do.”

“It’s impossible to grow up with Izzy and not know way too much about Star Wars,” Jace said, pulling off his shirt and tossing it over a chair. “Are you still sure about doing this? Neither of us counted on Clary, and I’ll understand if you want to back out.”

“Huh?” Simon said, sounding distracted. Jace turned to look at him and thought he detected the faintest flush on Simon’s cheeks when he met his eyes. “I mean, yeah, no, I’m not backing out.” He gave an uncomfortable shrug as he pulled a set of pajamas out of his suitcase. “The last thing I want is to have to explain this whole thing to Clary.”

“Good point,” Jace agreed, turning around to put on his own pajama bottoms. It was tempting to watch Simon change, but it was also a very bad idea. “I don’t want to think about what she’d have to say to both of us if she knew.”

There was a beat of silence before Simon asked, “So, do you, um, have a preferred side of the bed?”

Jace turned to look at him, only a little disappointed to find Simon fully dressed in his pajamas. As usual when someone asked a question he didn’t want to think about, Jace flashed a smirk. “In a bed this small, I usually just take up the whole thing.”

“Well, unless you want me on top of you, you should pick a side,” Simon said, unimpressed. “Because I’m not sleeping on the floor.”

“I’ll take the left,” Jace said quickly, trying and mostly failing to avoid thinking about exactly how much he did want Simon on top of him. “I’m just gonna hit the bathroom real quick.”

Which was how Jace found himself locked in the tiny guest bathroom, lip caught between his teeth as he frantically tugged at his cock. He hadn’t planned on jerking off, but he couldn’t get Simon’s words out of his head, and he sure as hell wasn’t getting into bed with Simon half-hard, which was really the only other option.

He could picture it far too easily. Simon pressing him into that ridiculously tiny bed, hands gentle but firm, mouth just a little bit desperate.

He came to the thought of rutting up against those ridiculous abs.

By the time Jace cleaned himself up and returned to his room, Simon was nestled under the covers on the right side of the bed. Seeing him like that made something in Jace’s chest clench, and he flipped the light off just so he wouldn’t have to look anymore.

“‘Night,” Simon said as Jace slid into bed, taking care to stay entirely on his side.

“Don’t even think about snoring,” Jace answered.

He lay in the dark for a long time, staring into the darkness, listening to the sounds of the city that didn’t quite drown out the soft breathing of the man beside him. He tried not to think about how easy and relaxed the night had been, how perfect it would have been if only half of it weren’t a lie.

#shadowhunters #shmb2021 #jimon #jimon fic #jace wayland #simon lewis

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mackeydoodledoo · 3 years

Text

The Star Athlete x The Pro-Box Fighter

Pairing: Izzy Garcia x (FemKnight!)Reader

Summary: It follows a girl: Y/N Y/L/N, who currently owns the "Pteradon Champion Zord", along with its DinoSoul Key, who is currently a Professional Box Fighter. The youngest ever to be a pro. What she doesn't know is that she is a direct descendant of the supposed Mythical "DinoSoul" Tribe. [Equivalent to the Ryusoul Tribe]. Her partner, she calls him, "buddy" as she doesn't have a proper name for him. The two of them embark on a journey to figure out who she is, finding an old flame and developing a new crush in the process.

Warnings: Box Fighting, BLOOD, Near-Death

A/N: I know nothing about Professional Box-Fighting, so if the Box-Fighting scenes are inaccurate, I’m sorry. R is 18 and Izzy is most likely between 16-18 if I had to guess Izzy’s age and anything romantic between Izzy and R is consensual.

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As the next couple of days go by, you and Izzy meet up for both of your daily work outs and for Izzy to practice for her own competitions, she wanted to work with not only her cousin Lily but you as well.

"Hey, where's your cousin?" You ask, "I Thought you told me she was going to be free this morning?"

"I did, I guess it was an emergency" Izzy grimaces at her thought, "I got mad the last time she didn’t show up for my training session."

"Well, things happen," you say, gleefully, "Let's stretch while your coach runs her errands. It's extremely helpful."

You motion for her to begin following your movements to stretch out your muscles for today's workout session.

As you seat yourself next to Amelia, you could feel her leaning over.

"You look good Y/N," Amelia says

"You too Ameils," you say back

As you see Izzy come out for her competition, she looks up and spots her friends, especially you. You give her a thumbs up and a wink, hinting to her that its a "good luck wink".

"What was that?" Amelia asks

"Just.. A good luck wink Ameils," you say, noticing Amelia's change in tone, "Not very sure why you're on edge about it."

Your focus never left Izzy as she preps herself and her javelins for the javelin throw event.

"Now in the first round of the javelin event , we have, Izzy Garcia!" The announcer exclaims

You and the team cheers as she take a javelin. You watch her shake off her nerves and beginning to prep her wrist for the throw. You watch intently as Izzy gets her running start, seeing her use your technique that you taught her your first training session with her. It lands farther than the throws during your training sessions. You and the team applaud for her loudly as others do as well, but not as enthusiastic.

After Izzy's competition, she is given the gold medal in the javelin event. She looks at you whilst you were watching her. She mouths 'thank you' to you. You mouth 'you're welcome' to her back. After the awards ceremony, she hugs her step dad, Javi and then her teammates. Then Lily; for helping her with her afternoon sessions. When she turns to you, her hug was more tighter than the others' hugs.

"Thanks for waking up at 5 am to train me," Izzy smiles

"Always Izzy," You smile, "Always happy to help."

“Izzy Garcia was it?” a voice asks

Izzy turns to the direction of the voice: a well dressed man goes up to her and shakes her hand.

“That was a fine race you ran kid,” He smiles

“Thank you,” Izzy says

“I was also impressed with your race I’d like to offer you a full ride scholarship to Pine Ridge’s Upstate College.” He blurts out

The both of you stand there, in awe that Izzy is getting the recognition for her outstanding athleticism as she deserves.

“Can I have time to think on it?” She asks

“Of course,” He says, “Your deadline is the beginning of your summer vacation.”

He turns on his heel and begins walking away. You turn to her, kind of dumbfounded that she didn’t accept the offer right away.

“Why didn’t you say yes?” Izzy’s dad comes up to her

“I wasn’t sure if I’m ready for it yet.” Izzy says nervously

“Not ready?” He sighs, “You’re more than ready pumpkin. You proved to them you were the best!”

“Mr. Garcia is it?” You call out to him

“That’s right,” He says, “You’re Y/N Y/L/N, Izzy couldn’t stop talking about you.”

He goes to shake your hand and you shake his hand out of respect.

“If you don’t mind me saying,” You start, “It is Izzy’s choice to accept the scholarship or not. However, I think it’s great she’s getting recognition for her athleticism.”

After the competition, Izzy’s dad invited you to a celebration dinner at Izzy’s favorite restaurant. You park your car in the parking lot and get out just as Mr. Garcia comes up to you.

“Izzy’s told us so much about your winning matches whenever she gets the chance to watch them,” Mr. Garcia smiles

“Is that so?” You ask, smiling whilst looking at Izzy, “Well, I’ve also taught Izzy some of my basics to my style of box-fighting and she’s picked it up fast.”

“Izzy’s also told us about how you’ve been coaching her in the mornings too,” he adds, “I appreciate you waking up early to train my daughter.”

“Always happy to help Mr. Garcia,” You smile

Izzy wanted a ride home from you, so you ended up driving around for a little bit.

“Your dad sure seems very enthused about your sports accomplishments,” You sigh

“Yeah, he does not talk about Javi’s accomplishments at all,” Izzy sighs with you

“Javi’s a great musician,” You state, “I’ve seen BuzzBlast videos of him jamming out with different instruments. Color me impressed, I only know three.”

“Wait, you’re also a musician?” Izzy asks, turning to you

“Well, not professionally,” You answer, “Before I went into pro-box fighting, I wanted to be a musician. However, I was also worried I wasn’t going to be able to make a living off of it, so I turned to Boxing instead. I do still play bass guitar and drumset though.”

Izzy doesn’t answer but you could feel her nodding at your slight past facts about you. Once you pull into the Garcia’s driveway, Izzy turns to you again.

“Thanks for the ride Y/N,” Izzy smiles, giving you a quick kiss on your cheek before hopping out of your car

You watch Izzy enter her house just so you know she’s in her home safely, you head back to your own home; thinking about Izzy’s cheek kiss she gave you.

The only thing that was left for the week was your upcoming boxing match. You personally asked Izzy to coach you as you prepare for your own competition. As you throw your signature; 'rapid punch', you felt a strong ache in your upper left arm. You immediately stop and Izzy brings an icepack and places it onto your sore spot on your arm.

"Thanks Izzy," You sigh

"You overworked yourself," Izzy states, "Let's call it a day."

You instantly agreed to it. Izzy threw a towel around your neck to cool you down. You begin unwrapping your left hand wrap but when you went to reach for your right wrap, you drew your arm back.

"Here, let me," Izzy says, kneeling at your side

As you watch her unwrap your hand, you thought back to the first morning training session you had with her, you were in Izzy's place and she was in yours. You didn't realize you let out a small giggle, making Izzy look up at you.

"What?" she asks, smiling

"I'm just thinking about our first morning training session," You smile, "You were barely paying attention to my wrapping tutorial, and now look at you. Maybe I'm the one that needs a lesson or two."

"We'll see after your match," Izzy says, now helping you get dressed

She helps you hoist your sore arm through the arm hole of the shirt. However, once you got it through, you still felt Izzy's hands gently placed along your waist. Hoisting your right arm through its sleeve, you turn to Izzy, facing her. Your arms resting on her waist and hers resting on your arms. You took notice of how Izzy was looking at your lips then back up to your eyes. Your head leans down instinctively as hers meets yours halfway. Her hands slowly move around to the back of your neck as you could feel yourself getting goosebumps just by the movements of her hands and her smiling in the kiss. Not caring about how sweaty you were, you wanted to never let that moment go. It was only ruined by both of your communicators going off. You didn't realize how long the both of your guys' lips were locked together until you almost gasped for air. The two of you smiling at each other before you decided to answer your communicator.

"What's up Zayto?" You ask, answering your communicator

"A sporix beast was spotted near the park," he explains

"We're on our way," You say, looking at Izzy one more time, the moment she looked at you before you kissed her was on your mind. But snapped back into reality as the two of you decided to talk about it another time.

After the sporix beast was defeated, Void Knight managed to get the sporix glob before any of you could reach it. You remember you have to do something ack at your apartment. So Izzy wasn't able to catch you to talk about your guys' kiss before you two left to defeat the monster. And you were kind of relieved. You weren't sure why you kissed Izzy. But, you weren't complaining about it either.

"Hey partner! Welcome back!" he says

"Hey buddy," You smile

"How did your training session go?" he asks

"Good," you say

"That's it?" he asks

You nod, "Well, if you really want to know, I kissed Izzy."

"YOU WHAT?!" He yells, but immediately regrets it as you shush him

"I kissed Izzy," You say, once more

"How did she react?" He asks

"She didn't push me away," you say

"She's so into you!" He teases

"Is she?" You ask

"And you're so into her!" He adds

"Listen here bud," You begin, but not knowing what else to say

"You have to tell her how you feel," He suggests

"How?" You ask him, "I have a match tomorrow and I have a sore arm, on my way home all I could think about was Izzy. I need to focus bud. Okay, I'll ask her to get brunch with me. A thanks for her helping me."

"There you go," he says, "Then after the fact, tell her how you feel!"

"Thanks bud. I'm going to-wait, did you make me food?" you ask, inhaling a delicious scent through your nose

"Yeah! Your favorite!" He says, "Well, now that you mentioned your sore arm, I'll pull out some bath salts and run a hot bath when you're almost done eating."

"Hey bud, actually, get that bath started right now," You say, stretching your arm, "I've heard from Amelia once you should wait 30 minutes to get in water."

"Y/N... It's a bathtub!" He says

"But, I'll still take my bath first!" You say, "Change that, I need a shower. But I can do all that. Just get that bath started bud!"

"On it!" He says as you follow him into the bathroom

Your partner was given to you by your mom on your 5th birthday. Yes, he's able to talk to you. However, little did you know, on your 13th birthday, your mother had driven off of a cliff on a very rainy evening. Trying to get home in time for your birthday. Since then, you've disliked your birthday; a reminder of the day your mom died. However, oddly being raised by a Champion Zord was difficult. But, you and your partner are inseparable. He was like your second family.

After your shower/bath, you reheated your food that your partner made for you. You throw on the news via your phone and watch a recap of your fight from earlier that day.

"How's your arm?" he asks

"A whole lot better," You answer, "Thanks bud."

The next morning you get to the arena early to get in your "cold morning stretch". You'd often do this on match day to relax yourself and to get a feel of the ring. You have a tendency to analyze the ring whenever you get in there. You don't come up with the 'winning strategy'. All of that come up on the fly as you're in the ring, facing your opponent.

"Hey Izzy!" You call her over, watching her run over to you

"Wait! No admittance!" The security guard states, stepping in front of Izzy

"C'mon Mark, she's with me, let her through," you sigh

As Izzy walks past him, you take her into your arms; hugging her. Once you let her out of your arms you look over her shoulder and see the team.

"Hey guys! Glad you could make it!" You say, hugging each of them, "Welcome to The Pine Ridge Arena!"

you enter the ring, stripping off your robe, you look around the crowd, spotting Izzy; giving you a thumbs up. You smile at her but then spot Amelia, who didn't look amused at all. You also give her a smile out of your love for your still having a friendship with her. You look ahead to your opponent for the night; quite larger and more muscular than you already are.

"Y/L/N and Hall," The referee starts, "No head blows not any blow below the waist."

"Got it ref," You reply

"Whatever ref," The opponent growls

The two of you take a couple of steps back from each other, preparing the first round of your match. But, this time, Izzy was watching you in person over seeing it on her Television at home.

"Come on Y/N. You've got this.." Izzy whispers to herself, but hoping her words of encouragement would reach you

The bell rings and you get into your initial stance. Hall immediately throwing out a punch, to which you ducked. You send a punch to her shoulder, making her stumble backward. However, she sweeps your feet and you're knocked onto the ground, wheezing for air. Using your arm strength to push yourself back up you hear the ref's whistle.

"Foul!" he calls

Izzy comes up to you as you wheeze for air.

"Deep breaths Y/N, remember?" Izzy says, gently stroking you arm

You nod, not able to form words, still affected by the sweep you were just under.

"Hey, you got this okay?” Izzy smiles before sitting with your teammates again

You force yourself to stand back up, going into your starting stance for the second round to start. Although you already feel winded and weak, you were still able to dodge Hall's punches and throws. However, she gave you a suckerpunch to your stomach, sending you back onto the ground; Izzy and your teammates watching in pain. As you hit the ground; your chin hitting the ground first, you struggle your way to stand back up.

"1,2,3-" The ref began counting before you picked yourself back up

You took a low blow to your side. However, you managed to get yourself back up, despite the fact you took a low blow. You put your hands up into their initial stance as you pant for oxygen. You could hear Izzy and the rest of the team cheering for you. You took this last one minute break to get your mind together. You really wanted to look at Izzy and watch her encourage you and boost your confidence. But, hearing her was enough for you.

"You got this Y/N!" Izzy finally screams out

When the bell for the third and final round sounded, you took a deep inhale of breath to get more blood flowing in your veins, to your arms. You immediately dodge a punch Hall flung at you, sending out your own right against her shoulder. The punch was enough to send her whole arm to fly back; obviously not enough to break it. That wasn't your goal. Breaking your opponent, let alone accidentally killing them is never your goal. you send another punch to Hall's side as you begin your signature move; keeping it all above the waist. As you sent your final punch to Hall's other shoulder with as much force as you could give out; she falls back.

"1,2,3,4,5!" The ref calls, "Y/N Y/L/N is the winner!"

The whole crowd cheers as paramedics begin taking a look at Hall's injuries. Izzy comes running into the ring as you begin to falter; holding you up as the ref holds your other arm up high into the air. The whole team cheers for you outside of the ring as a medal goes around your neck.

After paramedics had checked you out, you head to the locker room to change into sweats. Each time your even so slightly moved your limbs though, it was hellfire to you.

"Need a hand?" Izzy asks, standing in the doorway to the locker room

"Sure," You sigh

"Your opponent really took that last hit, so they're going to take her to the hospital," Izzy says, helping you get your legs into sweatpants

"I hope she'll be fine," You sigh, "I'd immediately retire from boxing if I ended up killing an opponent."

"Well, so far you haven't," Izzy states, getting your head through a hoodie you packed

Izzy takes your duffle bag and puts it around her, "I'll help you get home."

"Thank you Izzy," You sigh, having your arm sling around her

Her arm coils around your waist and her other hand holding onto the hand that's slung around her shoulders. Everyone applauds you as you emerge from the locker room, with Izzy under your arm. Javi helping you with the other side of your body.

"That was a real match you had there," Gale states

"Oh, hey Gale," You sigh, "Did you come to the match?"

"That I did kiddo," She says, "Hey, I'm going to give you three weeks for everything in your body to recover. But, someone will need to help you out as you recover."

"I'll do it," Izzy jumps the chance

"Alright, done," Gale smiles, "See you in three weeks kid."

"My manager," You explain to Javi and Izzy

Three weeks huh? Well, at least Izzy will be by your side while you recover. But, the downside to that is that you'll miss out on taking on sporix beasts.

"She really took a beating huh?" your partner recaps

Izzy nods, "Well, I also volunteered to keep an eye on her."

"Good," he says, "You know, there was one time she couldn't stop talking about you."

"Bud!" You try to scream but wince in pain

"Is that so?" Izzy asks, smiling at you

You could feel the heat go into your cheeks; flushing a deep pink as you try to look away to avoid eye contact. Izzy breaks eye contact as she ooks at her communicator go off.

"Go," you say, "I'll be fine."

She makes her leave from your apartment, going to catch up with the other rangers

Part 4

#izzy garcia #power rangers #power rangers dino fury #amelia jones #ollie akana #javi garcia #zayto #female reader #power rangers imagine #izzy garcia x reader

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iamtrebleclefstories · 3 years

Text

it’s all because of you

So I FINALLY finished Coco’s bday fic. Sorry it’s so late, but I hope you enjoy this one-shot @cicinicole-14

Alex tells Jo about Eli & Alexis immediately after finding out about them

—————————

“Hey so, I wasn’t able to find the chips that you wanted but I did buy some of that ice cream we both really love,” Jo walked into the loft and paused when she saw the distraught look on Alex’s face. “Oh God. What happened? Is something wrong? Did something happen with Meredith’s trial? Alex?”

“Huh?” Alex looked up from where he’d been staring at the floor for the past thirty minutes after he made the phone call that rocked his entire world.

“Alex, what’s going on? Who died?”

“No one—no one died,” Alex shook his head.

“Then why do you look like you’ve seen a ghost?” Jo placed the bags of groceries on the counter and moved to sit next to him on the couch. “Alex. Baby, what’s going on? You’re worrying me. Please tell me. I want to help you.”

“I... I don’t even know how to say this,” Alex buried his head in his hands. He let out a nervous breath. “I have kids. Two of them. Twins.”

“What?” Jo’s eyes bulged. “Oh my God. Who did you—when... Alex did you cheat on me? Or was this when we were broken up? I won’t yell, just please tell me.”

“No, no, Jo!” Alex’s eyes shot up to her terrified expression. “I didn’t cheat on you. I didn’t sleep with someone else. Not even when we were broken up a few years ago. Babe, I haven’t been with anyone other than you in the past eight years.”

“Oh,” Jo sighed in relief. “Okay. So, how...”

“You remember the embryos?” Alex stared up at Jo who looked like she might puke at any given moment. He hated that he was doing this to her. She had just gotten better after a tough depressive episode. Jo didn’t deserve the stress of this burden that was his to bear. But he also knew that she deserved the truth and he’d be damned if he wasn’t completely forthcoming with the one person who’d been there for him through it all. “I called Izzie. I told myself it was just for the trial. To get Mer a letter of support. And at first, that’s exactly what it was. But then we started talking and it felt nice, normal. I felt all the nostalgia while talking to her and I can’t lie to you Jo, but it made me kind of miss her.”

“Oh God,” Jo pressed a hand to her mouth and ran to the trash bin and threw up. She felt Alex come behind her, held her hair, and rubbed her back lightly as he waited for her stop vomiting. Jo took a deep breath and straightened her back. She leaned against the wall and slumped down onto the floor, eyes closed. “You’re going to leave me, right? You’re gonna leave me for Izzie and the babies she has with your face on them. It’s over isn’t it?” Jo lost her fight with her tears. “Well it was good while it lasted, wasn’t it? I should’ve known. You can’t hold on to anything you don’t want to lose.”

“Jo, baby, I’m not leaving you. I swear to God. This doesn’t change the fact that I love you more than life itself, or that I want to be your husband and grow old with you. This changes none of that,” Alex crouched down in front of her and squeezed her knee. “Let me finish what I was trying to say.” Jo nodded at Alex to continue. “Then she told me all about her job as surgical oncologist and all of the things she’d accomplished. I told her how proud I was and shared that I got into peds and that I’m Chief of Surgery at Pac North. I told her all about how I’m cleaning the place up. Then she asked me if I’d met anyone and that’s when I told her about you. About how we met and fell in love and got married, and she was happy for me, for us. Really happy. She was asking me to send her a few of our wedding pictures when I heard them.”

Alex clutched Jo’s hands tightly within his own, “I heard kids laughing in the background, so I asked her if she had kids. She said yes. She has five year old twins, Eli and Alexis Stevens. They’re mine. She used our embryos.”

“She used the embryos. They’re five years old,” Jo repeated, attempting to process the information she’d just been given while staying strong for Alex. “So, it turns out when I found that form all those years ago, you already had not one, but two Izzie babies crawling around with your face on them.”

“Yeah,” Alex had a pained look on his face. “I’m sorry Jo. I should’ve—I should’ve called her years ago. Before we—because then I would’ve—“

“Before we got married,” Jo looked at Alex intensely. “That’s what you were gonna say right? You wish you would’ve known before we got married, or better yet, before we got serious, so that you could be with them. So that you could be their dad and be with Izzie and have the family you always wanted.” Jo wiped a couple tears. “But you didn’t call. I told you to call her two years ago and you didn’t do it. And now you’re stuck with me.”

“Jo, you know that we were never not serious. From the minute I kissed you, I knew you were it for me. I’m not stuck with you. I chose you and I’ll always choose you,” Alex shook his head and stared at their joined hands. “I gave up my rights when we got divorced, so she had every right to use them. But I just keep thinking about how I have kids and I never knew. I just wish I would’ve known. I would’ve done things differently. I wish Izzie would’ve told me. But she didn’t, so now I’ve lost five years of my kids’ lives and I don’t know how to even feel about it. I don’t know if I’m allowed to feel upset about it. I’m basically just their sperm donor.”

“Of course you’re allowed to be upset, Alex,” Jo placed a hand on his cheek. As much as Jo was in pain and as scared as she was to lose him, Jo knew that she had to be there for her husband. “When you and Izzie made those embryos, it was always under the understanding that you’d do it together. You never thought she’d use them after the fact.” Jo took a deep breath. “So, are you going to do anything about this? Are you going to meet them?”

“I don’t know,” Alex shook his head. “Iz said I could go see meet them. They live on a farm in the middle of freaking no where Kansas. They don’t know about me, though. Izzie never told them and they never asked. It’s just her and the kids. Well, she’s got this detective boyfriend now, but he doesn’t try to pretend to be their father.” Alex ran a hand over his face. “It doesn’t matter right now, though. What matters is Meredith’s trial. I can’t—I can’t focus on that and focus on the trial. After the trial is over, maybe I’ll revisit this, but I can’t Jo. I can’t.”

——————

In retrospect, Jo thinks maybe she should’ve thought things through a little better before packing a bag and flying out to Kansas in the middle of the night. It was an impulse decision, and like most impulse decisions, probably not the most wise one. But as soon as she touched down in Kansas at 8am the next morning, Jo knows that she made the right choice.

Jo walked out of her terminal and hailed a cab to take her to the nearest coffee shop or diner. She got dropped off at a small local diner that looked like it had been frozen in the 1960s. Finally mustering up what little courage she had left, Jo took her phone out of her pocket and dialed the number she had been dreading to dial. It rang four times before someone answered.

“Hello?” It was a woman’s voice in the background. “Hello? Can I help you?”

Jo cleared her throat, “Hi. Is this Izzie Stevens?”

“Yes, this is she,” the woman on the other line responded. “Who’s this?”

“Hi. This is uh—Jo, Jo Karev.”

“Oh my goodness,” Izzie’s gasp of surprise was heard over the line. “Jo! Alex’s wife Jo?”

“Yeah. That’s me,” Jo let out a breath. “Look, I don’t want to cause any issues or problems. Alex doesn’t even know that I’m calling or anything, but I was hoping you and I could meet. I’m here in Kansas.”

“You’re—you’re here?” Izzie asked, some shuffling being heard in the background. “Yes, of course. Where are you? Where should I meet you?”

“I’m at a diner in Kansas City. I can send you my location, if you’d like,” Jo suggested.

“Yeah, that’s perfect. I can be there in an hour,” Izzie replied. “I’ll see you soon.”

“See you soon.”

—————

“Jo! What the hell? Where are you? I’ve been trying to get a hold of you for the past ten hours. I woke up and you were gone,” Alex shouted angrily over the FaceTime call. “You didn’t leave a note or anything. No one knew where you were.”

“I know, I’m sorry,” Jo sighed. “I didn’t mean to scare you. There was just… something I had to do.”

“Where are you? Please tell me. Jo, I don’t want to lose you, ever and right now you’re scaring me,” Alex’s brows furrowed. “Just… tell me you’re okay. Tell me that you’re not gonna leave me or hurt yourself.”

“What? Alex, no,” Jo shook her head. “I would never leave you. And I wouldn’t hurt myself. I swear.” Jo bit her lip nervously. “I’m not in Seattle. I caught a flight in the middle of the night last night, to Kansas.”

“Kansas?” Alex’s eyes widened. “What—why—what are you doing in Kansas?”

“I’m in Baldwin City,” Jo answered simply, knowing that Alex would immediately know the exact reason.

Alex’s face grew serious, “Why are you there Jo?”

“I spoke with Izzie. I’m actually in a guest room at the farmhouse right now,” Jo confessed. “I just… I couldn’t stand around and watch you feel conflicted. The trial was a week ago and you still haven’t made a decision about what it is that you want to do. And I’m not trying to rush you, I swear. But, you’ve been there for me when I needed it. You spoke for me when I couldn’t speak for myself. You reacted when I couldn’t demonstrate things effectively for myself. So, I wanted to do this for you. I wanted to come out here and talk to Izzie and tell her all the feelings that you’re not quite sure how to express.”

“I never asked you to do that for me,” Alex had an unreadable expression on his face.

“You didn’t have to,” Jo looked at his face over the video call expectantly.

“So, what’s the verdict?” Alex asked after a couple moments in silence.

“You have really cute kids. Your son looks exactly like you and your daughter might as well be a miniature evil spawn from how Izzie described her,” Jo chuckled and averted her gaze from the screen. “I didn’t meet them. Just Izzie. I didn’t think it would be right for me to meet your kids before you do or before you even knew I was here.”

“Izzie wants me to meet them?” Alex questioned.

“Your kids want to meet you,” Jo stated quietly. “They know about you. They’ve seen pictures. Izzie asked me to send her a few pictures of us two when she and I met. She texted me about an hour ago. Eli and Alexis are very eager to meet Dad and JoJo.” Jo watched as Alex’s face contorted in a variety of emotions. “I bought you a ticket to Kansas City Airport. It leaves first thing tomorrow morning. I hope you’ll take it.”

—————

“JoJo!” Alexis shrieked as Jo opened the loft door, throwing her arms around her stepmother’s now protruding abdomen. “I missed you!”

“I missed you too,” Jo placed a light kiss on the young girl’s forehead. She laughed at Alexis’ widening eyes as her tiny hands were met with strong, powerful kicks. “And it looks like someone else also missed you.”

Alexis pressed her face up to Jo’s belly, “Hi baby. I missed you too.”

“JoJo!” Eli jumped forward and squeezed Jo as best as he could with her round belly in the way. “I couldn’t wait to see you!”

“And I couldn’t wait to see you,” Jo ruffled his hair as he and Alexis went off to play in the living room.

“Hi, Jo,” Izzie smiled warmly.

“Iz!” Jo wrapped Izzie in a hug. “How was your flight?”

“It was pretty smooth, which is surprising considering these two are definitely all Karev,” Izzie and answered and pointed to the twins. “I was convinced they’d pull off some prank or joke that got us kicked off the airline forever.”

“Well, I’m glad the kids didn’t cause you too much trouble,” Jo laughed. “Sometimes I get really worried about this kid’s temperament because Alex and I weren’t exactly the most well-behaved children. At least the twins have you.”

“I wasn’t exactly the best example either,” Izzie shook her head. “I got pregnant at sixteen. As long as I can make it through their teenage years without Alexis getting pregnant or Eli getting someone pregnant, I’ll consider that a victory.”

“Setting the bar really high, I see,” Alex spoke from behind the two women as he walked inside the door with grocery bags in his hand. He leaned down to kiss Jo. “Hey, babe.” And gave Izzie a quick hug. “Hey, Iz.”

“Daddy!!” Alexis and Eli shot up from the couch as soon as they noticed their father had walked through the door and begun to place the groceries on the table.

“Hey kiddos,” Alex lifted the two of them up in his arms and peppered light kisses on their faces. “I missed you guys so much.”

“We missed you too, Daddy!” Alexis squeezed her dad’s head tightly. “Two months is too long.”

“I agree,” Alex grinned.

“You know, that was actually something I wanted to talk to you two about,” Izzie sat down on one of the stools at the table. “I broke up with Carter last month.”

“Oh my goodness. I’m so sorry, Izzie,” Jo placed a hand on Izzie’s arm.

“No it’s okay. It was a mutual thing,” Izzie waved it off. “Anyway, I don’t really have anything left for me in Kansas and my mom is here in Chehalis. Also, you guys have a baby on the way and I’d really love it if Eli and Lex grew up next to their sibling. So, I was thinking that maybe the kids and I could move back to Seattle.”

Jo and Alex exchanged a look before simultaneously answering.

“Yes! That’s a great idea!” “We’d love it if you moved back.”

“Really?” Izzie beamed. “That’s amazing! Okay, I’ll start making arrangements for the move and look into buying a house here. I can’t wait to tell the kids!”

“We can’t wait for you guys to make Seattle your home,” Jo made a little noise of excitement.

————

“What?” Jo asked as she looked up from the book she was reading later that night to find Alex staring at her strangely.

“Nothing,” Alex shrugged and placed his hand on her stomach. “Just thinking about how much I love you and how grateful I am that you’re my wife.”

“Really now,” Jo hummed. “You do know that it doesn’t matter how many sweet words you say to me tonight, we are not having sex. The twins are asleep on the couch in front of us.”

Alex laughed, “I’m not trying to get in your pants.”

“Huh. What a miracle,” Jo raised an eyebrow. “You’re always trying to get into my pants.”

“That’s true,” Alex smiled smugly. “I normally get in them, too.”

Jo slapped his shoulder playfully, “Perv.”

“Seriously, though. I’m very grateful for you,” Alex brought Jo closer to him and looked deeply into her eyes. “If it weren’t for you, those kids wouldn’t be knocked out on our couch and snoring like truckers. If it weren’t for you, I probably never would’ve gotten the balls to go meet them or maybe I would’ve met them and done something stupid in the process. But you went to Kansas and talked to Izzie and assured me that this was a good thing. And it is. It’s the best thing. We have a family, Jo. A real family. And it’s all because of you.”

“I love you,” Jo replied, eyes shining. “And I love our kids.”

“I love you, too.”

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wyattnadir · 3 years

Photo

Well, no one here is getting out alive This time I've really lost my mind and I don't care So close your eyes And kiss yourself goodbye

tl;dr: wyatt, along with andy & wes, raid a warehouse belonging to The Rogues. Wyatt shoots four rogues and takes one hostage.

tw: violence, gun violence, blood, graphic descriptions of murder (tw bad writing read at your own risk)

It is rare to see the Jeep with all of its parts attached. Doors and a soft top pulled over the roll bars hold in the silence of three men on a mission. Wyatt killed the radio on the first ten minutes of the drive and now he wishes he had the wind blowing against his skin. Every part of him is ready for what is about to come. Has been ready since he saw Reina’s burning house, since they’d left Blake on the side of the road to die, since he’d let them get away after running Izzy off the road. Wyatt’s bones have for this moment; have felt the magnetic pull towards their destination. The thoughts have been all consuming for months and every passing moment Wyatt let go by without getting his hands on them, they’ve become more endlessly violent.

Tonight they’re going hunting.

Wyatt kills his headlights before pulling off the road. Whatever he feels towards the rogues, he neatly packs away. Iris and Izzy and Reina get their own boxes inside him. He knows Andy and Wes have motives fueled by people they care about. He knows they’re carrying that rage inside with them. Wyatt puts his on a shelf to save for later, when he will really need it to push him forward. But for now, this can’t be more than a job. A job that Wyatt is very good at--quick and efficient. A job that requires focus. So that’s what he does. He focuses on the click of his clip locking into place. He focuses on the last draw of a cigarette before he crushes it under his boot. He focuses on the sound of nothing as the world disappears on the other side of orange ear plugs.

In and out. Clear the building. Send a message: Game Over.

He moves swift and silent past empty rooms, flashlight braced across his wrist moving over every corner. He is on a clock tick tick ticking down as he races the brutal sounds already echoing through the rest of the warehouse. When he finds the first locked door, Wyatt steps back, braces himself against the opposite wall and bolts forward, his foot landing flat against the cheap plywood surface. In the narrow field of his flashlight, Wyatt can make out five bodies. The morning guard shift, all startled awake by the cracking wood. He wonders if they know they’re already dead.

Perfect.

Wyatt takes aim. Two shots straight into the temple of the first man who tries to charge him. In the tight space, the shots echo and reverberate off the walls. Wyatt smirks under the splatter of blood that sprays across his face when he sees the next closest man clutch his ear. He goes down next and Wyatt invisions his number going up.

Two down.

“Who wants to live?” Wyatt asks the remaining three. “I need one witness.” The three men don’t move. They’re half dressed in a dark room with the only light a concentrated beam moving between them. Deer in the headlights. Literally. When no one speaks, Wyatt pulls the trigger again. In the darkness, the blood that coats the wall behind the dead man looks like his shadow fled his body before he fell.

“You gonna let me pick?” he asks knowing he won’t get an answer.

Wyatt doesn’t know who almost killed his family or who put Iris in the hospital. He doesn’t know who ran Izzy off the road and shot him. And at the end of the day, he doesn’t really care. Any warm body will do the trick. His head nods from side to side as he recites, “Eeny meeny miny moe,” and aims a shot at the ground. This one hit the ground harder and faster than any of the dead ones, shouting and clutching his bloodied mess of an ankle. The last man charges him before he can lift the gun back up to eye level. Wyatt’s shoulder hits the door frame and drops his flashlight at the same time as his finger pulls the trigger.

BAM.

Blood pours from the Rogue’s mouth as he falls against Wyatt’s chest, fingers grasping at his shirt too weak to hold on. Even in the dark he can see the man’s eyes widen with terror. He’s seen that look before.

Dead man walking. Dead man fighting. Dead man clinging. Dead man dying.

Wyatt’s fingers grip his hair, pulling the body off of him and tossing it to the ground. He taps him in the head once more to make sure he doesn’t somehow get back up. His old boots track through the pool of blood coating the floor as he approaches the souvenir he’s planned to take home with him. He crouches down, shining the flashlight in his eyes. His face is painted with blood. Streaks cut down his cheeks, tears washing away a narrow ravine through the gore. He moves the flashlight down the length of his leg to the mangled mess of bone and flesh that used to be his ankle. “They’re gonna chop that off, man,” he says, pulling the plugs out of his ears and shoving them in his pocket. “Meant to shoot your foot. Sorry. Hard to aim in the dark. High pressure situation, you know?”

Wyatt stands up, surveying the rest of the room, making sure no one was hiding in an upper bunk. “I know. I know. But really, prosthetics these days? You’ll never know the difference probably.” He settles after a full rotation around the room, looking down at him. “I mean, assuming we don’t have to cut anything else off.”

Wyatt’s boot heel comes down hard against the man’s head and the room goes silent.

He hoists the final body over his shoulders, listening to the shallow sound of unconscious breath. He’ll wake up before they make it back to Olympus. And if he’s smart he’ll keep his fucking mouth shut. Wyatt can taste blood on his lips and he can feel it in his hair. Outside, the humid night air makes it feel more sticky soaked against his chest.

The body falls to the ground with a thud, carelessly dropped in the dirt by the jeep.

The fabric of his shirt peels off his skin as he yanks it over his head. “Change quick. Toss your clothes inside and torch the place. We gotta shove this guy in the back and clear out quick. Anyone gets a speck of blood on my seats and you’re paying for new leather.”

#-1 #-2 #-3 #-4 #-5 #selfie #one shot #tw blood #tw murder #tw gun violence #tw graphic violence #tw gore #tw limb amptation

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julessworldd · 4 years

Text

I love them Poly!Guns x reader

I seen where someone wanted more Poly!Guns, so you asked so you shall recieve. Who doesn’t love Poly!guns anyways.

Summary: The reader’s mom and sister show up unannounced, planning on taking the reader back home. Tabloids showed up her in her hometown, the family was worried about her in LA. I always wondered how Poly realtionships work when telling the parents, so here’s my take on it.

Warnings: The boys being protective, silly with the reader. Cussing, arguing, implied smut. Think that’s all, sorry if I missed any

I moved to L.A. the day after graduation from high school, and had been saving money since I was 13. Living in a small town Colorado, where you’ve gone to school with the same kids since Elementary school, becoming a townie scared me. Since then, I’ve not talked to my family that much. I met the boys one night after a show, Izzy bumped into me while walking down the strip. We all became friends and then our little thing started, we dated each other. It had been a thing for two almost three years now, I loved every minute of it, and loved my boys as well.

Duff and I were making breakfast as slowly each boy came down, pissed that they had to start their day. “Did you open that one envelope? Looked like it was from home”, Duff asked. “I’m not sure how they found me. I’ve not gave them my new address”, I laid eggs on a plate. “Why don’t you talk to them anymore?”, Duff asked again. “Just don’t. I’m the black sheep of the family, babe. I never wanted to stay in Colorado,work on the family ranch or get pregnant with a shitty high school football player. They didn’t like it so I left after graduating.”, I said. “I’m glad you left”, Izzy passed by us. “I’m not saying I’m not glad she left, but it’s weird that the envelope has stayed on the counter, unopened”, Duff said. “Fine, I’ll open it after I eat and shower”, I groaned. I know Duff was only being nice, but I didn’t like hearing from my family. There was knock on the door, “Come in”, I said, sliding into some black skinny jeans. “Hey”, Duff said, shutting the door behind him. “You’re really determined to have me open that aren’t you, baby”, I smirked. “Yes. It could be a death in the family and you wouldn't know it”, Duff stubbed up. “Alright”, I slides my finger under the seal and opened the envelope.

Jacqueline Bennett

It was my mom’s name and my childhood home’s address. “What the hell do you want?”, I groaned. The doorbell rung, “You expecting anyone?”, I asked Duff. He shook his head no. “Y/nn!”, Slash yelled. I dropped the letter on the dresser and headed downstairs. “Think it’s you with the visitor babe”, Duff said, following suit. “Who knows”, I said. I made it downstairs, in the living. I looked up, it was my mom and older sister, Kelly standing in front of the door. “Mom. Kelly. What are you doing here?”, I swallowed. “We came to bring you home”, My mom said. “No, you’re not. I have a life here and did you forget I’m 24”, I said, crossing my arms across my chest.

The boys stayed silent, watching me and my mom go back and forth. Kelly was checking Izzy out. “I left for fucking reason and swore I would never move back. Leave mother!”, I ran upstairs, slamming my door.

Izzy’s pov-

Y/n’s mom and sister stood there in shock, tension was tight. I stood up from the couch, “I’ll go check on her” I reached her door, heard crying. “Y/n. It’s me, Iz”, I said. A little ‘come in’ was said, she was crying her eyes out before I walked in. “Hey baby. Wanna talk about it?”, I said, shutting the door, her back was turned to me. Y/n jerked up, “Why does she think I need to come back home? It’s hell there, Izzy. I’m overlooked there, they forget my name, if I’m sick or not. My siblings have families and have good careers, I have five siblings, I’m just the second middle kid. Please don’t let her take me back”, She cried. “We’re not gonna let her. You’re 24, you have your own life. Screw what your siblings have, you have us, friends, free travel when we’re on tour. They’re stuck in some hick town while you get to see the world, don’t worry about them. I’m not being mean, but they really don’t care. Just worried that you’re with five guys instead of one. It’s not their business how many people you date or have kids with, you’re an adult”, I said. Here lately every magazine has been exposing our relationship with each other. Y/n has been called a groupie, whore that can’t be satisfied by one guy. Guess it made it to Colorado.

Y/n calmed down and was sitting on my lap, brading a strand of my hair. “Think I’m gonna take them on the patio, I hate that you guys were stuck between it.”, Y/n said. “Okay, I’ll have Duff take them out. Give you a little more time”, I said, walking to the door. “Thanks. Hey Izzy?”, Y/n asked. “Yeah?”, I turned back at her. “I love you”, She smiled. “I love you too, princess”, I smirked. “Hey Duff”, I said, locking eyes with the tall blonde. “She okay?”, Duff started to worry. “Y/n asked if we could take her mom and sister to the patio. She wants to talk to them in private. Can you take them out there please?”, I asked. “Of course”, Duff said. I watched as Duff brought them through the kitchen and out to the patio. Y/n’s mom gave me the stank eye. “Izzy, are they out there?”, Y/n asked. “Yeah. You gonna be okay?”, Duff answered. “I think so. I love you, Duffy”, She kissed his cheek. “I love you too, Princess”, Duff kissed her lips. We both watched her go out there. “We’re not letting them take her back”, Duff said. “Oh hell no!” Axl and I said at the same time. “She won’t go down without a fight”, Slash said. “Okay, lets quit being peeping toms”, Duff said. We all went downstairs.

Y/n’s Pov

“Okay tell me how wrong I am being with them?, I sat down at the table. “Why are you with them? Do they pay you?”, My mom asked. “Because I love them very much, I feel safe and loved by my boys. No, I don’t get paid to have sex or whatever crazy ass thing you’re thinking”, I giggled. “Are you together or it’s a groupie thing?”, Kelly asked. “What’s a groupie?”, my mom asked. “Someone who has sex with a couple members of a band or the whole band. No strings attached, some have girlfriends or are even married. But when on the road, they get lonely and their girl isn’t there to you know?”, I said. “And Kelly, we’re together”, I said. “Okay, huh. What made you get into a relationship with them?”, Mom asked. “I don’t know, it just kinda happened. Nobody hasn’t spoken up and said they wanted out and to be with another person.”, I said, looking at her face. Confusion and disgust was all over her face. Kelly was from my time, understood what groupies were and sure she’s married but she was passed around the offensive line and the quarterback in high school.

“What it is called? When you go out with multiple people, honey?”, My mom asked. “Polyamorous”, I sighed. “Poly what?” “Poly means multiple”, Kelly said. “Right. Mom, I know this isn’t something you wanted to hear that your daughter is in love with five guys. I didn’t think I would either but life put it that way. I’m happy with them, they all make me smile in their own way. I get something different from each other. You don’t have to worry, this might to be anything any longer, but let me enjoy it while it’s still a thing”, I said holding her hand. “Guess, we didn’t see that way. You do glow more, I’m sorry for never realizing how unhappy you were back home. I love you so much, Y/n. Please keep in contact with us okay?”She smiled. “Okay, you two want to stay for lunch?”, I asked. “No, thank you sweetie. We’ve been here a week trying to find you. Our plane leaves in a few hours”, My mom stood up. “Sorry, you didn’t find me sooner”, I sighed.

“Can you at least meet them? I’ve met half of their parents”, I smiled. “After our tiny argument?”, Mom asked. “They don’t care, come on”, I giggled. They were just spooked that their girlfriend was yelling at a random lady in the living room. I would be too, if their mom came in guns blazing.

“Boys. I want you to meet my mom, Jacqueline and my sister, Kelly. Sorry about earlier”, I said. They were at the table, Duff was digging something out of the fridge. “This is Izzy, Slash, Axl, Steven, and who is gonna hit his head is Duff”, I pointed at each of them. “I am not! Son of a-”, Duff groaned, after hitting his head on the edge of the counter. Kelly giggled. “You didn’t bust it open this time, bonehead”, I rubbed his head, for any nics or blood. “I hated having staples in my head”, Duff raised up, rubbing his head. “I know you did, I hated them too”, I giggled. Duff had pulled me into his side and brushed a piece of hair out of my face. I caught my mom smiling at us. “Honey, I hate to leave but we have a plane to catch”, My mom said, tearing Duff and I apart. “Right. I’ll walk you out”, I said. “Axl, what are you doing?”, I asked as the red head followed us. “I have to get something out of my car, babe”, Axl smiled, grabbing my hips. “Not now”, I whispered, feeling his bulge poke my ass. “Not my fault you and your sister have ass”, Axl smirked, passing me to go to his car. “I’ll kill you”, I mouthed as I approached their rental car. “It was nice seeing you, sis”, Kelly smiled. “You too. How are the kids?”, I asked. “Good, growing like a weed. Conor almost passes me”, Kelly said. “Wow, that means he towers me”, I giggled, thinking of my nephew. Kelly was 5’8, means Conor is at least 5’10, and I’m still 5’3. “Yeah. Annie starts 3rd grade next year, they miss their Auntie Y/n a lot”, Kelly gave a small smile. “Next time, if we’re close to home I’ll see what I can do to come see everyone. Tell everyone I love them.”, I said, pulling Kelly into a hug. “I love you, Kelly”, I whispered. “Love you too, kid”, She tightened the hug. “Okay, my turn”, My mom whined. “You’ve changed into a beautiful woman, Y/n. Your Dad would be so proud of how you’ve grown, he misses his buttercup a lot. Call him when you can, okay?”, My mom said. “I will, Momma. I love you and Dad”, I smiled.

I watched them as they drove down to the neighbor, going to the airport. “You okay, Y/n?”, Steven asked. “Mhm, oh yeah. I’m good, Stevie”, I smiled. I walked over to Steven and smiled. “You forgot something?”, Steven smirked. “My good morning kiss”, Steven pouted. “Nobody got theirs, Stevie”,I giggled, leaning up to kiss his lips. Steven opened the door, there stood Izzy with his arms crossed,pout on his face. I pulled him down to kiss him, “There you, big baby. That better?” “Very much so”, Izzy grinned. I laughed, walking upstairs. Slash pulled me to his lips, “You’re off your routine girl” “Sorry Slashy”, I rubbed his cheek. “Are you still gonna kill me?”, Axl asked, smirking. “No”, I kissed him. “Good girl”, Axl smirked, smacking my ass. Duff’s back was turned, I wrapped my arms from behind. “Hey Baby”, He said. “Hi. You wanna a kiss?”, I asked. “Mhm, I’ll take a makeout session instead”, I knew he was smirking. “Put me on the counter and I’ll deliver”, I smirked as he picked me up. I kissed him. “Hey Y/n, is it weird I find your mom sorta hot?”, Axl yelled from upstairs. “Very! She’s bitcher than I am”, I yelled back, rolling my eyes. “I like your bitchyness, it’s hot”, Duff pulled me into him more. “You’re fucking crazy”, I said. “That song is about you, you know?”, Izzy smirked. “Fuck you, Izzy”, I flipped him off before hopping down from Duff’s arms. “You did last night, hot lips”, Izzy said as he disappeared upstairs.

#poly!gunsn'roses #guns n roses x reader #duff mckagan #Izzy Stradlin #axl rose #steven adler #slash

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jobrookekarev · 3 years

Text

I Could Have You Back With One Simple Thing Chapter Two

Chapter Two of Two: Be Here

Words: 4596

Summary: Jo snuggled further into the couch, her head resting on her arms as she curled around the armrest. She was flipping through channels on the TV, trying to find something to watch when there was a knock at the door. It was probably just Link and she made her way over to the door and undid the locks before she pulled the door open. Except it wasn't Link on the other side of the door.

It was Alex.

Fandom: Grey’s Anatomy.

Relationship: Alex Karev/Jo Wilson.

Characters: Jo Wilson, and Alex Karev.

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences.

Additional Tags: Potential Pregnancy, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Tears, Pregnancy Tests, Reminiscing of The Past.

Read at AO3

Read at FFN

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Jo snuggled further into the couch, her head resting on her arms as she curled around the armrest. She was flipping through channels on the TV, trying to find something to watch. It was late, and after the long emotional turmoil of the day, she and Meredith had mostly just laid around watching TV. She was grateful that Meredith was there. Even when she had been page for an emergency, Meredith had made plans with Link to have him come over and look after her. They were trading Jo off like a child, but she didn't mind because she was lonely, and it felt nice to be taken care of. Now, Jo was alone in the Loft, waiting for Link to arrive.

She was well taken care of, which wasn't a surprise. Ever since she showed up on Alex's doorstep after her fight with Jason, she had been well taken care of by him and by her friends that had become her family. Jo thought it would all go away when he left, but she was glad that it didn't. Meredith had even helped her schedule a meeting with her therapist earlier that afternoon and another one scheduled for later in the week. Although she wasn't sure if it was just because she was sick or because of the emotions of everything. Regardless, Jo knew when she needed to talk things out, and therapy always helped.

She curled up again and pulled Alex's blanket up and tucked it under her nose where she could smell him with every breath. She kept the TV on and closed her eyes. She wasn't sure what she should think of as she fell asleep, but her mind drifted to all of the babies in the nurseries and the ones in the NICU. Most of the happy memories from her residency were in the NICU or the nursery with Alex and the babies. A twinge of sadness went through her at the thought that she wouldn’t have a baby of her own in the nursery any time soon. She could still have a baby, but it wouldn't be the same. It wouldn't be Alex's baby. Yet, she still dreamed of a baby with his smile, his brown curls, his brown eyes, and his crooked smile.

A knock broke into her mind as she woke up. As she was startled into consciousness, she suddenly felt the couch and the blanket underneath her, and she opened her eyes to see the TV. She must have fallen asleep and hadn't realized it. Whoever was there, knocked on the door again and it was probably just Link.

She slowly got up, hugging the blanket around her as she went over to the door. Her nausea had come back, and for a second, she thought she should turn around and just yell at Link to use the spare key so she could camp out in the bathroom again. Yet, she made it to the door and undid the locks before she pulled the door open. Except it wasn't Link on the other side of the door.

It was Alex.

Jo's lips parted as she just stared at him. There he was, right in front of her. He just stood there, his hands in his pockets, his head tilted down before he looked up at her and she could see the pain in his eyes. She took in the sight of him, his brown curly hair was a little longer than usual and was peppered with grey, but his facial hair was the longest she had ever seen it. It was practically a beard. It was all gray with little tufts of brown in it, making him look older than he was. His eyes looked older too. The dark circles on his eyes were darker than she had ever seen. The lines on his face were deeper, but that could be due to the distress written across his face. She always knew that Alex didn't sleep well when they were apart and it had been a month since he slept in their bed next to her. She didn't blame him for not learning to sleep without her, as she still couldn't sleep without him.

She knew exactly what was running through his head and she could see how he was thinking of the right words to say. She remembered the night that he first admitted his feelings for her and how it took him a moment to get the words out of his head before he finally said it. Jo had never been one for words of affirmation. She loved being told that she was loved, but she needed actions. The action of him pulling her body against him, of kissing her, was how she knew he loved her the first time.

Yet, he was back. He was here, standing in front of her. That meant something to her. Looking at him now, she knew that she still needed time to forgive him. He would know that, but coming to Seattle, showing up on her doorstep. It was the beginning of something. It was a step forward to her. It wasn't a lot, but it was a little step towards repentance for leaving, and Jo took a step towards him too. Regardless of everything, she loved him, and she would always give him a second chance if he could back it up with the actions of commitment to her.

She was overwhelmed with feelings of love for him. She was so happy that he was back, that he was standing there in front of her, and she could reach out and touch him. Yet, she was still so hurt because him showing up now didn't change anything. It didn't change the fact that he left, that he abandoned her for another woman, that he cheated on her. He left for two kids who sure as hell needed him, but she needed him too, and just because she was an adult didn't mean that she needed him any less, maybe that was selfish to say, but that was how she felt.

Alex seemed to read the expression on her face and finally seemed to find the words to speak to her.

“I'm back, Jo. I'm back in Seattle. Permanently. I bought a one-way ticket back, and I, I don't know, but umm, I’m back. I'm home. At least I want to be. Look, when I left, I thought that I was doing what was best for everyone, for the kids and for you, but I was stupid to leave you. I just thought that you had just got out of treatment for your depression and I didn't want to break you again. I didn’t want to move you away from your support system in Seattle, your home. You worked so hard to make a home here for yourself. You have your friends, Link, and Meredith, and everybody else. I thought that it would be easier with a clean break, that you would move on and that you would find someone so much better than me. You deserve so much better than me. I know you could do it without me because you always have. You are so strong, Jo. You’re the strongest person I know. I knew that you would be fine without me, that you would be amazing. I didn't want to drag you out to Kansas because I knew you'd be miserable because I was so miserable.”

Alex’s face contorted into a grimace and he looked like he might cry. He had only ever cried a handful of times throughout the relationship and seeing his eyes fill with tears made her heart clenched. The pain that was on his face she felt in her heart because even though she was so angry, and hurt, and betrayed, she still loved him, and she wanted him to be happy in Kansas. After everything they’ve been through, she loved him too much to wish him the kind of misery that she saw across his face.

“God, it’s so hard without you, and I’m so lonely. I love my kids, I do, but every day when I'm with them, I’m just so lonely. This just sucks, and I’m so lonely, and Kansas is freezing cold all the time, and there's snow, and every time I look around, I expect to see you by my side, and you're not. I miss you because you're my other half, Jo. I'm sorry, it's not fair to you for me to just walk out of your life and then just walk back in, but I can't do this without you, Jo. I can't go through life without you. I am so sorry that I left. I know that I should have talked to you about all of this, about the kids and Izzie and everything before everything. I'm so used to taking care of everyone myself. I just made the decision for you without a second thought, and I never should have done that. I just didn’t want you to be torn between my kids and your life here like I was and I know that I was stupid to choose them over you, but they're my kids.”

“No, no,” Jo said, shaking her head. “Of course, you chose them over me. They're your kids, Alex. You should be a part of their life. You're their dad, that's what good dads do, and I know that you're a good dad because you dropped everything to be with them. I know you fought so hard for them and I know that means that you hurt me in the process. When I read your letter you were right, I understood why, because it was for your kids, but they could have been ours. You think I wouldn't have loved your kids as much as I love you because I would have! I am still so hurt, so angry that you just didn't ask me to go with you! I would have helped you, Alex. I would have moved Heaven and Earth with you so you could be a part of their life if you would only ask me to. God, you're such an asshole and you're so blind to everything that's in front of you. You think it has to be one way or the other all the time, but it doesn't. You could have had us both. And that's what hurts the most because I'm barely keeping it together without you. I've missed you every goddamn second of the day, I wake up, and I roll over, and I expect to see you next to me, but you're not. I go to the hospital, and I expect to see you in the halls, but you're not there, and I miss you so goddamn much that despite all the hurt you've caused, I am so happy you came back to me.”

Jo reached forward and rested her hand on his cheek, touching him for the first time. He leaned his head into her hand, closing his eyes for a moment. He was real. He was in her arms again. He came home to her. When he opened his eyes again and looked at her, he still seemed a little lost, but he held her hand against his cheek as if she would slip through his fingers like sand.

She didn't know what to think. Of course, Jo still loved him. She figured she would love him for the rest of her days, but she wasn't sure she could trust him again. She wanted to trust his big speech and she wanted to trust him. She always knew that if Alex was ever going to leave her, he would leave for Izzie Stevens, and he did, but then he came back. It wasn’t for their potential child, but for her. Alex came back because he still loved her, and surely that meant something. She didn't know how they would move forward together, but she would be lying if she said she didn't want him back, just as much as he was desperate for her.

“I, I don't know what to do because I know I screwed up with you. I threw away everything that we had. All of the good that was in my life was because of you. I know that I didn't think it through like I always do. I can't live without you, Jo and I know that's selfish, but I want to come back. I need you and I know you need me too. I want to be there for you again. I know it’s wrong to say to you after everything I've done, but it's true. You've been through so much and I've only added to the hurt in your life and it's only right that I fix it. I want to fix it. I want to take it all back, but I know I can't, so I just, I want to be there for you again, Jo. Let me be there for you. Let me love you again. I know that you're not pregnant and I don't care. I’m not back because of a baby or anything else. I’m back because I love you. I’m standing here on your doorstep begging for you to take me back and you have no reason to. So if you tell me to go, I'll go, but if you let me stay, I swear to God I'll stay for the rest of my life. You can handcuff me to your wrist or tie me up in the Loft, but I swear to God I don't want to go anywhere if I'm not with you.”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out something holding it out to her. It was his wedding ring. He held it out to her and she could still read the inscription on the inside.

‘I won’t go anywhere without you.’

Those were the words that she had said to him, that was her promise to him. It was similar to the words he had inscribed on the inside of her wedding band. ‘Nowhere except home with you.’

That was what they had promised each other. To always come home to each other and to never go anywhere without the other. She knew that he left without her, and that was his fault. He broke their promise, but he came back to her.

She looked down at his hand. His fingers were so big compared to hers. Yet, they were agile and precise in surgery and when he wrapped his arms around her waist or brushed his fingers against her cheek. He was so warm and familiar and she danced over to his ring finger as she held the ring against the tip of his finger.

“Your back,” Jo whispered, looking down at his finger.

“I’m back. I came back to you,” Alex whispered to her, his words like a promise, one that she desperately wanted to believe.

“You're getting a tattoo,” Jo said, looking back up at him. “My name, tattooed around your ring finger because I never want you to forget that I am your wife. You said forever and always, as long as we both shall live, you're mine, Alex Karev. Do you hear me? Your mine!”

“I'm yours,” Alex agreed as he looked up at her and he smiled that stupid grin that she always loved.

It was both infuriating and adorable because she could see it on his face that he was so head over heels in love with her. He was stupid and thoughtless sometimes, but he was her stupid and thoughtless idiot, and she would bang him over the head every time he needed it, so long as he always came home to her.

Jo looked down at his ring finger. There was still a tan line where the ring sat on his finger and she wondered if he only took off the ring to hand it to her. The second she slipped the ring onto his finger, Alex moved to hold her waist. His big strong hands on her waist were holding her, grounding her, in possession of her. Alex holding her was so comforting. She let him pull her in as she wrapped her arms around his neck and just seemed to melt into his embrace. He relaxed against her as she hugged him close. Jo was still worried that he would disappear under her fingertips, and she grabbed onto his jacket and buried her face into his shoulder. But he was there. He was home. Alex came home.

She pulled back just enough to tilt her head and lean in and kiss him. She reached out to put her hands on his cheeks to hold his face before he tilted his head and leaned into her. It was everything and Jo melted into his lips letting all of her fear and her anger and everything go as she was filled with love for him. This love was treacherous, but then again, it always was. She had been through the doubts and the fear that he would choose Meredith over her or that he would leave her for Izzie, and he did, but he always came back.

She knew that despite still scared being, she knew that he would earn back her trust again. She knew he would never make that mistake again, and he would never leave her. He broke her heart and then he came back and fixed it. He had grown up so much in the time that she had known him, and since they got together after he admitted that he found her ex-husband and swore that he would never ever hurt her. He did things that were wrong, he did things that were stupid, and yes, he hurt her, not physically but still. Yet, despite all the things he did, he always put in the work to try and be better and to love her the way she deserved to be loved, and she loved him enough to forgive him or to at least start to.

Jo pulled back when she felt like she couldn't breathe, but Alex chased her lips with a little smile and he kissed her again. She missed the taste of his lips and the soft love that came with kissing him, but there was one last thing she had to do. She pulled back again, and he kept his hands on her waist as she reached out to grab his hand. She felt the ring against her fingers as she pulled him into the Loft over to their bed. Alex got a smirk on his face, but she shook her head and pulled him over to the cabinet where she had put her rings down for the pro bono surgery day. She grabbed the rings from the dresser and handed them to Alex before she pulled open the cabinet drawer and pulled out the envelope.

“I never filed them, I never signed them, or sent them back to you. I never even looked at them,” Jo said, handing him the divorce papers before Alex looked down at the papers and the rings in his hand.

“We're still legally married,” Alex said, he still had that happy grin across his face and he chuckled as he shook his head. “After spending a year thinking we were married, when we weren't, then finally going to the courthouse, and then I leave, and I come back, and all this time we were still married.”

“I couldn't end our marriage because I'm still in love with you,” Jo said, rubbing her finger over the empty space on her ring finger where her wedding rings used to be. “A part of me still hoped that you would come back to me.”

“I never stopped loving you. It’s you, Jo. It’s only ever been you. I love you,” Alex said, stepping forward and wrapping his arms around her as he kissed her again before he pulled back and Jo held out her hand.

He slipped the rings back onto her finger and it felt like they had never left her hand. After admiring her rings for a second, they looked down at the divorce papers. They had to get rid of them, but throwing them in the recycling or shredding them didn't feel fitting for their grand reunion. They needed to burn them and Jo looked over the sink. Alex seemed to read her mind as he smiled and pulled her over to the kitchen. He filled up the sink with a little bit of water as she grabbed the lighter.

Together they lit the papers and watched them burn. It seemed fitting to burn the divorce papers, and Jo leaned into his side as his fingers squeezed her waist. However, the fire got out of control, and Alex dropped the burnt papers in the sink, but unfortunately not quick enough for the fire alarm to go off, and both of them raced around as Alex fanned the smoke away while Jo opened a window.

“Maybe that wasn't the best idea,” Alex said as he waved the smoke away with a magazine.

Jo couldn't help but just laugh. “At least it’ll be a good story to tell.”

Alex looked over at her again, his eyes so full of love as he walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He seemed to need to have his hands on her and she didn't want him to let her go ever again. He leaned in to kiss her, pressing his body against her, and she felt every inch of him. This kiss was full of passion and love as he pulled her back over to their bed. Just as the back of his legs hit the mattress and as he was about to pull her down, her phone dinged, and she reluctantly pulled back.

“No,” Alex whined, trying to pull her back in. “You can't pause now.”

“It's the hospital,” Jo said as she looked at her phone, and Alex just groaned and buried his head into her shoulder, kissing her neck with hot lips.

It was the labs that she had sent in earlier, and Jo looked them over to see if she had an elevated white count that would explain her symptoms, but instead, they were normal. Jo paused for a second, her breath hitching in her throat as Alex's lips smiled against her skin, thinking that it was his doing. Instead, she looked further down at her labs to where they had highlighted her hCG levels.

“I was wrong,” Jo whispered, his face still buried in her shoulder as he held her tightly.

“About what?” Alex whispered in her ear, a little unsure, but she smiled because she could imagine how happy he would be when she told him.

“I got a blood test yesterday, but the lab was backed up, and I wanted to know, so I took a pregnancy test. Anyway, they finally got around to it and sent me the lab results. My levels are lower than expected because it's early or something, but I was wrong. I am pregnant.”

Alex froze up in her arms and she couldn't help but smile as he pulled back to look at her. His eyes were wide as he looked down at her stomach as if he could see the baby inside her.

“You're pregnant? Actually pregnant! We're going to have a baby!” Alex said, his smile was so wide and the excitement seemed to radiate off of him as his eyes sparkled in delight.

“Yes, we're going to have a baby!” Jo said. letting herself smile as well, and she could feel the happiness swell inside of her. “We're going to be a family, you and me, and all of our kids.”

“All of them?” Alex said, still smiling but looking a little hesitant as he raised his eyebrows at her.

“Yes,” Jo said with a quick nod. “I don't know if I'll be a good stepmom, but I want to meet your kids, and they should know their sibling.”

“You are going to be the best mom and the best stepmom in the world. I just know because you know what being a bad mom looks like, and you know how to do right by our kids.”

Hearing him say that as someone who knew her and knew her own history with her foster parents in her biological mother meant the world to her. Alex looked down at her stomach again and Jo pulled up her tie dye sweatshirt. She wasn't showing at all, but Alex still put his hand against her bare skin, and he got down on his knees as he pressed his lips against her stomach. He whispered something she couldn't hear against her skin as he talked to their child. It was a moment that she had imagined for years. Even before they had discussed getting pregnant, she knew that he would do this.

“How far along do you think you are?” Alex asked, looking up at her, as he kissed her belly again before his eyes flashed up at her.

“I must only be about eight weeks. You haven't missed a moment of it,” Jo said as she tilted her head and looked down at him and she ran her fingers through his hair.

“Thank you,” Alex said, tears collecting in his eyes as he just stared up at her. “Thank you for telling me. Thank you for having Meredith call me when you thought you were pregnant, even though you didn't know for sure just, thank you for letting me be a part of our child's life from the very beginning.”

“Of course. I know you, Alex, and while I think you were a shity husband to me. I knew that you would do everything in your power to be there for our child. You deserve to be a part of our child's life, no matter what. Our child deserves to have two parents who love them, even if they don't love each other,” Jo said, as the tears sprang in her eyes as well, she was so happy that he wouldn’t miss a single moment of this.

“You're wrong, Jo. I do love you. I never stopped loving you, and I'm sorry, I'm so sorry I left. I'm going to spend the rest of my life making it up to you if you'll let me?”

“You're such a dumbass, I just burned our divorce papers. I'm pretty sure I'm stuck with you for the rest of my life,” Jo said, but she smiled because she was happy to be stuck with him.

“I love you, Josephine Karev,” Alex said, getting up again as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her for a kiss.

“I love you, Alexander Karev,” Jo said, let herself get lost in his lips as he surrounded her with his love.

It wasn't all worked out yet, they still had to figure out things with Izzie and the twins, but for now, Alex was here with her. Jo chose to live in this wonderful moment. Because despite everything, despite him leaving, he was back. She knew that Alex would move heaven and earth to make it up to her. He was head over heels in love with her, if anything, that was obvious, and she was helpless but to let him love her for the rest of her days.

……………………………………………………………………

AN: I've said it once to the Jolex group chat and I'll say it again, I am incapable of writing a sad ending. Hope you liked it!

#jo wilson #alex karev #jolex #grey's anatomy #grey's anatomy fanfic #otp: home and heart #my work #my writing #my fanfiction

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highfunctioningflailgirl · 4 years

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My Lethal White episode 1 recap

After having had a lot of fun recapping episode 2, I went back and did episode 1 as well. It got a bit out of hand and is a loooong post...

Under the cut, because, evidently, there will be ALL THE SPOILERS! 🚨

*SQUEEEEE!!!* THEY’RE BACK!!! 🤗💃🏻🙌🏼 (Yes, I’m still squeeing, although this is a rewatch)

Let’s look at the title sequence, shall we? They’ve added a few new details: There’s the wooden cross from the dell, the White Horse of Uffington and Robin’s Houses of Parliament guest pass. The child from Billy’s memories and the pink blanket. Someone’s already mentioned the ‘whore’ swirling in the coffee cup, and then later we have a fencing icon in the pint. Cool hints. 😎

Cut to tired, head-achy Cormoran at the wedding. Strike has a slightly different haircut, and I wonder: they dye Tom’s hair darker for the role, but he has a glint of natural first grey at the temples that I’ve seen on Tom pre-Strike. How did they keep that? (Sorry about the hair kink digression…☺️)

Pet peeve of mine they carried over from Career of Evil: in the book, Donald Laing slashes Strike’s palm, but it didn’t happen in the series. There was no blood on his hand when he called Robin, and his glove was intact. And yet, Strike has his hand bandaged. I know it’s a silly pet peeve of mine, but stuff like that pulls me out of the moment. And Strike wouldn’t slap on a bandage just for a little bruising. *steps off soap box*

“You look beautiful.” - “And you look terrible.” - “It’s this jacket, needs taking in.” 😂

“I want you back.” - “What?” Augh, the double meaning of it all, Strike’s softness and Robin’s initial uncertainty of what he means. 🥺

When she realizes that Matt deleted Strike’s messages, there’s a tear spilling from her eye, and she quickly wipes it away. 😢 Such good acting. Such a brave girl.

A few of us have already addressed this in the chat: did Matt BLOCK Strike, or delete his calls and messages? Or both? They’re frustratingly unclear about this detail, and it makes a difference in terms of Strike being able to reach her or not. (I’m a continuity nerd, sorry)

Sarah standing next to Matthew. *gags*

Robin looks so beautiful! And so very sad. (Holliday is acting her heart out of this season, can’t say it enough). This is award material, hands-down. 🏆

Her look across the room at Cormoran while they’re eating! And he’s… just been staring at her all through the meal? Good god. These two.

If Cormoran falls asleep before dessert he’s got to be really, REALLY tired.☺️ Poor baby.

We’ve got to work on your fine dining skills, Cormoran darling! It’s very cowboy and rugged, handling cutlery like that, but you would SINK during an aristocracy under-cover op. Maybe the Comte de la Fère is available for a lesson?

The first chords of The Calling’s “Wherever you will go”. Ack. They really went for the original, and as someone who’s always been ridiculously in love with that cheesy song, I AM HERE FOR IT.

Cormoran walking slow-mo past the bridesmaids, looking at Robin dancing with Matt The Twat. My heart…💔

When I’m gone you’ll need love to light the shadows on your face… *sniff*

Cormoran’s FACE during the dance. I can’t. He looks like a puppy about to get shot. 🥺

(and what a juxtaposition to the little lady with the funny hat bobbing happily next to him, to everyone looking awww and being completely ignorant of the drama that’s playing out. Ugh. I’m dead.)

Matthew moves like someone who’s (painstakingly) learned exactly one (1) dance, and for their wedding only, and why is he even smiling so proudly? They must’ve just had the biggest row in history? Is he really so full of himself?

Even Robin is smiling, although staring longingly at Strike. I bet they did that so Strike would be a little mad at her and want to walk away.

AND HE DOES! 😟 You can just see the “Fuck this” from the book crossing his face as he turns around and leaves. Ack. I’m dead again.

If I could then I would, I’ll go wherever you will go

(Perfectly placed, kudos) 👏🏼

And she runs after him, looking like a fairy-tale princess. Did you see how frigging COLD it must’ve been, judging by her breath?! Poor Holliday must have been freezing to death during the shoot. And then to pull off such a heartbreaking scene…

(Also, the lawn in the park? A shitload of rolled sods. No grass looks this lusciously green in winter, and you can see the edges everywhere. Some landscaper had a field day there!)

“Are you sure?” - “Yeah. I am.” About WHAT, you idiots?! *wrings hands* To her coming back to work, of course, but there’s so much more to their statements. And I’m sure that non-book-readers thought they were about to kiss and elope, but - alas! - we know that’s not going to happen.😔

But at least we get The Hug™️, and it’s everything we hoped for: Robin crying, digging her fingers into his jacket; Cormoran closing his eyes… God help us, we are all DOOMED sailing this ship! 🙈💔

I was a little miffed upon first watching that they faded out of that hug so quickly. That was it? No, it wasn’t, as we now know, and I love, love, love that we’re getting all these extended flashbacks that reveal more and more of what happened to us!

ONE BLOODY YEAR LATER (I still can’t get over that time jump)

Lol at the subcontractor crashing his moped into the cab! It was only briefly mentioned in the book, and turning it into an actual dialogue was a fun idea.😂

And there’s Denise (that IS her, right?), completely uninterested in doing her job. Good grief - Strike and Robin are BAD a picking employees! 🙈

Robin looking not-jealous-at-all at Strike walking off with Lorelei. Ouch.

I like Lorelei, btw. They chose the actress well, and she’s nice and mature. Which doesn’t mean that I’m not secretly flinching every time she kisses Cormoran. It’s just not right.

Billy. Joseph Quinn does an incredible job playing him. 👏🏼 As dangerous as he appears at first, his despair and his efforts at holding himself together are heartbreaking. That battle he wages against his mental illness is on full display, and his scared big eyes are killing me. 🥺

Cormoran is admirably unfazed by Billy’s appearance - is that his Army training kicking in? Robin, though, is shaking but braving it out, recording with her phone although her hands are trembling. Good acting by Holliday.

Good riddance, Denise.

The good ole’ pencil trick. “I didn’t know people still did this.” 😌

I was surprised that Cormoran chose to simply break into the house on Charlemont road. It’s breaking and entering for no good reason. Could’ve been anybody’s home.

He’s not going to- EWW! He’s sitting down on that filthy couch. And plucking hairs from it. EWW!🤢

Robin: “...and some porn.” 😂 Says it as if it’s what they always find. The usual. Men… 🙄

Who’s the guy taking pictures of Cormoran? I seriously don’t remember this from the b- Oh, WAIT! Reporter guy. Patterson. Yeah. Him.

The CORE members are as cliché in their looks as are Chiswell’s upper class folks. It’s all a bit on the nose for my taste, but then clichés are clichés for a reason.

Cormoran needs to work on his disguises. Not fitting in at all with the CORE crowd, age-wise or in his look. No wonder they don’t trust him. He does it better in the books.

Oh Robin. I actually think you need a lot more therapy to work through your shit.

Ah, here we go. Seaborn bacteria. But first, Matt’s got to be a prick again. 🙄

Chiswell with his arrogance and his rudeness and his finger-snapping. *shakes head* I think if Cormoran hadn’t known he could make some serious money with this case, he may have walked out on him.

Btw, the “large” jacket is making Strike look slimmer instead of bigger. 😄 They’re so desperately mentioning Strike’s largeness, as if beating it over our heads could actually make us not see barely-6-foot and slender Tom Burke.

“Couple more potatoes wouldn’t hurt.” And his FACE! 🥰

Glenister is a really good actor. I always listen to the Strike audiobooks that he narrates, and I was worried hearing his voice in the show would be confusing, but it’s not because he sounds so different. Can’t wait for him reading “Troubled Blood” to me! 🎧

Is it a coincidence that Drummond’s art gallery has a painting of a horse in its front window? I think not.

I love that soft blue shirt they put Cormoran in. Makes him look very huggable. *blushes*

“Not sure I would make a convincing goddaughter either.”😂

So in England you can just walk up to a minister’s house and ring the doorbell without any security people stopping you? Interesting.

Chiswell just shutting the door in Cormoran’s face. RUDE.😠

The brown contact lenses. 👀 Okay, they make her look different, but not THAT different. It’s her sudden posh accent that’s the real stunner.

The panic attacks. Holliday plays them so well, I almost feel like I can’t breathe myself. 😧

I was expecting the Houses of Parliament to look a little less like a stuffy basement full of old junk. *ducks*

Barclay! Definitely looking more attractive than his description in the book. And I thought I’d gotten food at understanding Scottish. I haven’t. *turns subtitles on*

Izzy is the only Chiswell offspring who doesn’t make me want to immediately vomit.

“Venetia. Like the blinds.” Oh God. 🙈

Winn is such a creep. 🤮 Poor Robin. GET AWAY FROM HER YOU LEECH!

Of course Matt doesn’t want Robin to wear the Green Dress. Twat.🙄

The house warming party. I always wonder why Robin doesn’t have friends of her own. I have a feeling Matt has something to do with that.

The earrings. So we will see Robin finding out Matt’s cheating on her! I can’t wait for her to rip him a new one! 😈

Robin calls Cormoran - and it’s not Coco but Lorelei who picks up. That’s a smart change from the book. And it makes her the rebound girl. Which she doesn’t deserve, but it is what it is.

“And she bakes.” 🥴 Is it just me wondering how Lorelei got that cake into the tin without ruining the icing?!

Flashback to The Hug™️. God, their faces are so close. Cormoran is so soft. Nnnnhhhggggg.

Enter the plaid shirt. Lumber!Cormoran is a good look on him! 😍

The Armchair of Sadness™️. Of course that’s where the devastating phone call to Robin’s house happens! The disbelief and disappointment on Cormoran’s face is heart rending. 😢💔

@lulacat3 and I have already established the continuity error with Cormoran’s facial injuries suddenly missing when he’s reached the pub. (And they should still be there; he’s still wearing the plaid shirt from that same evening.) If I were the makeup person I would have been deeply regretful of having missed dabbing fake injuries on Tom’s face again.

The Uffington Horse. Robin’s in appropriate Wellingtons, weather jacket and a beanie for their outing. Cormoran is wearing what he always wears, and Tom clearly wishes he had a beanie. At least he gets to wear a t-shirt under his eternally blue shirts this season. REVOLUTION! 😄

Sure. Let’s just go and dig for a corpse with a shovel so conveniently available! Just the two of them - one delicate Robin and one invalid. And then Robin finds the bones after ten seconds of digging. No further comment. 🙄

But I like the change with Cormoran’s leg. As stupidly heroic as he acted in the book, I like it better in the show where he has to acknowledge his handicap and Robin takes charge.

The bones. Dun-dun-DUN!

(Good first episode, although all in all the pacing wasn’t quite right yet, and compared to the book it all felt a bit rushed. I liked episode two better.)

#lethal white #cormoran strike #lw #lethal white episode 1 #cb strike #bbc strike #spoiler alert 🚨

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justimagineitblog · 4 years

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“You Used To Love Me” Michael Gray Fan Fiction - Chapter 4

A/N: Hi loves! Chapter 4 is a longggggg one so strap in and get some rum, whiskey, tea, coffee, water, hot chocolate, whatever works and settle in for this one x

When I walk into the pub, Tommy freezes in his spot.

He hasn’t seen me yet since Michael’s gracious return this morning. And I guess he assumed I wouldn’t be coming in for this shift.

He feel him watching me nervously as I begin my usual work routine, setting up the bar, straightening out all the chairs, wiping down all the tables. I can’t even bring myself to look at him.

“Izzy I-“

He stops immediately when I shake my head. With tears in my eyes threatening to spill already.

“I can’t, Tommy” I breathe

He nods sullenly, walking over to place a gentle hand on my shoulder.

“We had no idea about Gina… he’s just shown up after 6 fucking months and-“

“Tommy, please” I cut him off “I can’t talk about it-”

“Okay” he steps back, giving me some space “But just listen to me, just for a moment yeah? You’re still our girl. Our family. We’re all on your side, eh. Me, Poll, Arthur”

I nod, closing my eyes.

Of course they are. They’re just as shocked as I am. Up until this morning we were all in the dark about Michael. Where he was. What he was doing. I guess in a way, we all still are.

“I know” I sigh. Hearing him say those words stings, when I know that in 6 hours time I’ll closing up the bar for the last time and handing him my apron.

“Poll got a call this morning, from Michael, saying he was arriving to Birmingham in an hour, with someone for her to meet. First time she’d heard from him since he left. She’s been crying, I saw her. Says she can’t believe her own son would do something like this. Say’s she keeps seeing your face when you first saw him again-“

“Did he say why?” I question, un able to help myself from asking. It’s not like I haven’t been wondering that all day anyway.

Tommy shakes his head “Poll lost her shit. We all did. Told Gina all about you. About you and Michael. But he just fucking stood there… like a fucking ghost”

“Yeah, I know the look” I reply, flashing back to the cold, dead stare in Michael’s eyes.

“You know you don’t have to work tonight you can go home eh, try and rest, I’ll see you tomorrow night”

I clench my jaw, wishing he’d never said that. I can’t avoid it now.

“I won’t be in tomorrow, Tom” I begin, looking up at the ceiling and hoping that some God might just finally strike me down once and for all.

How am I supposed to do this.

I thought I had reached my limits of what I can bare this morning, but life seems to have decided that today is my ultimate test. If my sanity is still remotely in tact tomorrow, it will be a fucking miracle.

“If you need to take a few days Izzy it’s fine, Finn can cover for you. It’s about time he start leaning how to pour beer anyway-“ Tommy replies sympathetically, not understanding what I’m trying to say.

“No, Tom, I won’t be back tomorrow because I’m not coming back” I hold my breath “Today is my last shift”

Every word was harder than the next, as I forced myself to drag them up and out of my mouth.

Part of me wants this. Part of me want’s to run away from any place where I might see Michael. Jesus, I can’t believe I’m even thinking this but maybe this was the silver lining in him having the audacity to ask me to quit to stay out of his and Gina’s way. Because I won’t have to face seeing them together either. But actually say it, doing it, and breaking it to Tommy like this is incredibly painful.

“Oh” he breathes slowly.

Slowly, I begin to undo my apron. I can’t do this. I need to get out of here. I need to go home. Let my bed and whatever alcohol I have swallow me up. I don’t know how long for. And I don’t care.

“I’m sorry” I say in a harsh exhale as I hand him the apron.

He shakes his head, looking down at the floor almost like he’s to ashamed of how his cousin has broken my heart to look at me. He reaches for my hand to squeeze “No, I’m sorry”

Unable to hold back the tears that have been biting at my already red and glassy eyes, I quickly rush past him, my hand slipping out of his grip.

~ 3 DAYS LATER ~

The next 3 days are a drunken stupor. Coming in and out of consciousness. In and out of sleep, to eat a mouthful of something before washing it down with another mouthful of something strong.

It’s not until the 4th day when I’m woken at 7am by the sound of kids laughing and shouting as they play a game of cricket below my window. I try to muffle it by smothering myself with my pillow, but irritation and anger when it doesn’t go away draws me out of bed. I shuffle over to my window and slam it shut, earning looks from the children, before they forget seconds later and go back to playing.

From there I head straight to the kitchen. An Irish coffee constitutes as a nutritional breakfast, right?

As I let the kettle boil, I open my cupboard for my tried and true whiskey. And I find it… but I find it empty. Luckily that is, knowing in the back of my mind that I’m one more drink away from a hospital visit. But in that moment, I could have smashed the bottle over my kitchen counter in a tired, hangover fuelled rage.

Don’t they always say the cure for a hangover is more alcohol? Or have I just been around drunks at the pub too long?

I sigh. The pub. Over the past few days I have racked up a decent amount of memories that I wish to never remember. One of them, was seeing Michael… shortly followed by seeing his new wife Gina… then coming up at a close third is having to tell Tommy that I was quitting without any explanation why. That’s what the alcohol was for. To forget all that.

Now that I don’t have any alcohol left to immediately distract myself, I’m forced to really take in my surroundings. I look at my kitchen painfully as I count the bottles on my counter. Five. Empty. Bottles. I drank all that.

Jesus Christ, maybe I really am a Shelby.

God Michael would die if he saw this. Part of the reason he cherished me was because I wasn’t like his family. I loved them. I fit in with them. But I still had ‘a humanness to me’, as he called it one day. ‘A kindness.’ He said I kept him soft in a world lacking it. He’d only seen me truly drunk once. I was never a big drinker. I guess I’m not that girl anymore. Just like he’s not the Michael I knew anymore. I guess the only commonality we have anymore is our… dissimilarity.

The irony.

Unable to drink now, and sure as hell not leaving my apartment in this state, I spent the rest of the day moving slowly. Picking up whatever pieces of myself that I can. Showering. Changing clothes. Cleaning up what looks like a bomb site.

When night falls, and I realise I haven’t been shopping days and don’t have enough food to make anything decent, I decide it’s time to leave the house. Beside’s, everyone is going to be inside eating with their families and loved ones, and it’s dark enough anyway to hide myself in the shadows to avoid being seen.

With my biggest coat wrapped around me tightly, and an over the phone take away order placed at a restaurant down town, I head out into night. The cool, night air feels nice, like a splash of cold water on my face, and I’m so sure that I won’t have to face anyone that I begin to relax.

But of course I couldn’t really relax, could I. Because sitting inside the restaurant with a friend, is Polly Gray.

I pause in my tracks, almost tripping over from stopping so suddenly. I want to turn around and run the other way, immediately. And nothing is stopping me, besides the fact that I have nothing to goddamn eat.

“Fuck” I hiss to myself as I keep my head down, angling it away from her as I quickly slip into the restaurant doors.

“An order for Isabelle” I say urgently in a hushed voice at the counter as the worker greets me.

“Good evening ma’am” he grins eagerly as I hand him the money.

“I’ll just get your change” he nods joyfully and I grab my food. Daring to turn around, I peak over my shoulder to find that Polly is already looking at me. Once we make eye contact her eyes widen in shock and begins to stand up, making her way to me.

“Shit, shit, shit” I hiss, grabbing the food from the man quickly and beginning to walk out of the restaurant.

“Ma’am your change!” He calls after me

“Keep it!” I call back as I pick up the pace, jogging out the doors and into the street. I hear Polly’s voice call after me, and I hold my food close to me as I keep jogging, praying she will give up.

“Isabelle stop!” She shouts, and I slow to a stop. My head falls back as I sigh in defeat.

She finally catches up to me and I turn around to face her, but avoid eye contact.

“Izzy it’s me, what are you doing?” She asks as she catches her breath, staring at me in bewilderment.

God I can’t do this. I can’t. I’ve missed Polly so much. I’ve missed Tommy. I’ve missed the pub. Arthur. Finn. Michael. But I can’t be around them. Michael asked me to stay out of his and Gina’s way. I can’t do that if I’m still seeing everyone in the family. And it’s breaking my own heart.

“I just can’t talk right now Polly” I shake my head, praying for this to be over. For her to just accept that and go back to her dinner.

“Isabelle I’m worried about you, no one has seen you for day’s. Tommy said you quit the pub… Isabelle did Michael put you up to this-“

“No” I cut her off immediately. I’m lying. I know I am. But what difference does it make if I tell her Michael told me to keep out of everyones way. That will only make her and everyone hate him even more. And I can’t stand to see them all lose Michael the same way I did. I would never wish that upon them.

“Just talk to me darling-“

“No Polly,” I snap. Not out of anger, but out of sadness. Pain. I know what I have to do. What I have to say to make her stay away from me and fulfil Michael’s wish. But it’s going to kill me to do it. I take a deep breath as she waits for me to speak nervously. What’s that saying. Be cruel to be kind? I have to be cruel, I have to pushing them away. It’s easier to push them away. It’s better for everyone. Then Michael can live with Gina, the Shelby’s can be at peace without me around.

“I don’t want anything to do with your son, or your family. Have I not made that clear enough. I am not your family. I am not a Shelby. Now please leave me alone”

Polly stares at me, mouth open but no words following. I fight to keep her eye contact. To not falter. So that she think’s I’m serious about this. But it hurts. Never did I think I would have to be breaking her heart like this. I can see it breaking, I can see it in her eyes.

Is this what I looked like? Is this what Michael saw when he broke mine?

“I have to go” I manage to say before turning on my heels swiftly, leaving her standing in the street alone.

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