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globalacademichub0 · 4 years

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Caring for Children’s Mental Health As They Return to Pre-School, Daycare, and Summer Camps

A big question folks have straight away is how students will return to school safely throughout COVID-19. Kids learn best when they are at school. However, returning to school wants careful steps in place to keep students and teachers safe. Beside from it, if you are feeling sick or not able to do your academic assignments or any other work given by your school or college, don’t worry. You can hire global academic hub through which you can get your work done before the deadlines. However, you never planned on raising kids amid a pandemic, and there are no easy choices. Here are the guides of infectious disease and public health specialists to help think through the issues confronting parents.

Reopening states once the COVID-19 lockdown raises alarming queries for working folks who rely upon some sort of child care, from nannies to summer camp. Rather than coming back home with a snotty nose, is your kid about to bring back the coronavirus? And the way do you recognize your in-home babysitter or nanny, even your child’s teacher, isn’t a symptom-free spreader? The short answer is that there aren't any simple answers. Each family’s budget and desires and risk tolerance are about to differ. We were stunned to find the specialists were reassuring. In fact, with the correct precautions and observance in place, most of them thought folks could safely have faith in caregivers, day care centers and maybe even counselors at sleep-away camp. Although, some key queries still can’t be answered because of a frustrating lack of analysis. For instance, it’s exhausting to mention what quantity children transmit the disease among themselves or to others. Also, whereas some kid care centers are open, specialists weren't attentive to any studies taking place regarding transmission among them.

Thereafter, the guidance is based on what pediatricians and infectious disease specialists know about COVID-19 and kids. Evidence so far proposes that children and young people are less likely to have side effects or serious illness from disease. They also show up less likely to end up contaminated or spread the virus. Schools give more than just scholastics to children and youths. In expansion to reading, composing and math, children learn social and enthusiastic abilities, get exercise and access to mental health support and other things that cannot be given with online learning. For numerous families, school is where kids get solid meals, access to the web, and other imperative services. Give time to your children and take care of their mental state. Guide them with respect to this pandemic and the way to outlive in it. To remain safe, there are a number of steps schools and families ought to take to assist avoid the spread of COVID-19 between kids:

Physical Distancing

The goal ought to be to remain at least 6 feet apart to assist prevent the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19. However, spacing desks a minimum of three feet apart and avoiding close contact could have similar advantages for students--especially if students wear cloth face coverings and don't have symptoms of sickness. lecturers and workers, who are possibly a lot in danger of obtaining COVID-19 from alternative adults than from youngsters in school, ought to keep the full 6 feet aside from one another and students when possible. Lecturers and workers ought to conjointly wear cloth face coverings and limit in-person conferences with alternative adults. Once possible, outside areas will be used for instruction and meals. Students ought to even have further area to spread out throughout activities like singing and physical exercise.

Cloth Face Coverings & Hand Hygiene

Just put this in their brain and settle their mentality. Frequent hand washing with soap and water is critical for everybody. In expansion, all adults ought to wear cloth face covers. Preschool and basic students can take advantage of wearing masks in case they don't touch their mouths or noses. Secondary school students ought to wear cloth face masks, particularly when they can't remain a secure distance apart.

Classroom Changes

To help limit student interaction outside the schoolroom, schools will have academics move between school rooms, instead of having students fill the hallways throughout passing periods. Permit students to eat lunches at their desks or in tiny teams outdoors rather than in crowded lunchrooms. Moreover, leave schoolroom doors open to facilitate cut back high touch surfaces similar to doorknobs.

Temperature Checks And Testing

COVID testing of all students isn't conceivable for most schools. Taking students' temperature at school too may not continuously be feasible. Schools ought to set up ways to recognize students with fever or other indications of illness. They can moreover habitually remind students, instructors, and staff to stay home in case they have a fever of 100.4 degrees or higher or have any signs of sickness.

Cleaning And Disinfecting

Schools ought to take after CDC rules on appropriate cleaning and sanitizing classrooms and common regions.

Buses, Hallways And Playgrounds

Since these are usually crowded areas, schools will provide bus riders with allotted seats and require them to wear a cloth face coverings while on the bus. Encourage students who have other ways to get to school to use those choices. At school, mark hallways and stairs with one-way arrows on the ground to chop down on crowding within the halls. Outside activities are inspired, therefore students ought to be allowed to use the playground in little teams.

Pressure To Catch Up

Students may not have picked up as much from separate learning. A few students may not have had access to computers and the web. Schools ought to be prepared to alter educational modules and not expect to make up all lost progress. It is critical to adjust core subjects with physical instruction, mental health and other learning experiences.

Students With Disabilities

The impact of faculties being closed might have been bigger for students with disabilities. They will have a tough time transitioning back to school when missing out on instruction time also as school-based services similar to occupational, physical and speech-language medical care and mental state support guidance. Schools ought to review the requirements of every kid with an individual education program before they come back to school, and provide services even if they're done virtually.

Immunizations

It is imperative as students return to school that they are up to date on their immunizations. It'll be critical that students and staff get their flu shot this year to decrease the spread of flu this fall and winter. Make sure the environment and your child is prepared for school.

Behavioral Health/Emotional Support

Your child's school ought to anticipate and be ready to deal with a large variety of mental state desires of scholars and staff. Schools ought to offer mental state support to any student combating stress from the pandemic and recognize students who show signs of tension or distress. Schools can also facilitate students with self-destructive thoughts or behavior to get required support.

Nutrition

Numerous students get solid meals through school dinner programs. More students may be eligible without charge or decreased meals than before the epidemic. Schools ought to give meal programs even in case the school closes or the student is sick and remains home from school.

Eventually, returning to school throughout the COVID-19 pandemic might not feel like normal – at least for a short time. However having school plans in place will facilitate keeping students, staff, and families safe. Faculties ought to additionally prepare to close once more and quickly switch to distance learning if there are new waves of COVID-19 infection. Thereafter, there’s a pandemic disease on your heads but education is going as it should be. If you’re not able to write your essay or any academic paperwork, no worries. With the use of Online Class Help services, you can shape up your academic work before the due date.

#education #mentel #my writing #dissertation #assignment #school #university

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monicalorandavis · 5 years

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I was an intern at Comedy Central and it mostly sucked

File this under the category of “Who Cares?”

Everybody knows interns (at basically every company) are treated like shit. They are used strictly for running errands and little else. It was likely that a TV network should follow suit. To no one’s surprise, Comedy Central treated interns like shit. I was. The interns around me were. I didn’t really think anything of it at the time. I had so little work experience and I was so grateful for the opportunity that I figured it was part of the process of getting to where you wanted to be. It wasn’t until I ran into Joe, an assistant (who had particularly made my life hell) at a party a few years later that I even thought about how mean he had been to me. I wanted to let it go. But he had been really fucking mean and it stung to think about. He wasn’t alone. It was actually a whole group of assistants who I’d felt had humiliated me. I remember going to lunch at the same time the assistants were leaving for lunch. They caught the elevator and I had asked to join, trailing just a step behind them. Joe barked “No”, closed the elevator doors in my face and I heard them all laughing at me on the way down. I stared at the closed doors, shocked. Never in my life had I been treated like such a loser. I was in a fucking teen movie being bullied by complete pricks. And the worst part was, these people were definitely the kids who’d been bullied.

I caught the next elevator and when I arrived on the ground level, they were waiting for me. They didn’t say anything. They looked guilty like they’d realized they’d been mean to an intern who would likely say something to someone in HR and decided to extend me the kindness of waiting for me. Only I didn’t want them to wait for me and I would never say anything. Unlike them, I didn’t like making people feel like shit. We walked to get salads in silence. They resumed their conversation but I paid and left before them. It was so weird after that. For like a day. And then, it started all over again.

There were exceptions during that time and I would like to name them and give them all their credit. Tony, one of the early writer/producers of Workaholics (a gig he got during my time there), was fabulously kind to me. He never made me feel lame or stupid and I was sad to see him go even though I knew writing was his goal. Walter was nice. Gary was nice. Seth. But I have forgotten many people’s names and you’ll forgive me as this was almost a decade ago. That time exists in a haze. I was living downtown with two of my girlfriends in a loft apartment that didn’t have walls. I had no bedroom. Just an upstairs “room” with a bathroom with a toilet but no shower. I paid $500 a month for a glorified port-a-potty and thus, acted like a degenerate. Every night, I either smoked weed until I fell asleep or scoured the streets for a cute boy to spend the night with. It was during that time that I was lucky enough to get an internship at a company that could change the course of my life - Comedy Central. It was a gift to work there and I knew it. I didn’t have any Hollywood connections.This was it. I would take it seriously, I promised myself. So, I did.

Comedy Central used to be the mecca. Before Tosh.0 and Jim Jefferies, it was the home of Chappelle’s Show. I am not exaggerating when I tell you this: that show changed the whole goddamn world and I was no exception. it changed me. It was the blueprint. Comedy could be brutal on white people. It could get real and gross and political and stupid all at the same time. Comedy nerds like me ate it up.

Dave Chappelle’s two season masterpiece of a show infected college campuses in 2004 when it was released on DVD. That was the year I started college. By happenstance, I was part of the DVD revolution. We would crowd into each other’s dorm rooms and cry laughing and then watch the same episode again. It caught fire. Dave Chappelle bridged the gap between black and white, famous and normal while still keeping himself removed from the whole thing, aloof - distinguished...better than us. His skewering of racism was a glass through which we could see in fact, we were all participants in the same system albeit on other sides.

So, Chappelle’s Show was important to me. I wanted to work at a place that had created art. I would try to shine there and let my own ideas blossom into projects.

But in spite of my eagerness, I was aware at the time (as we all were) that Comedy Central had paid Dave Chappelle $50 million for a third season but instead of delivering, he walked off set and fled to Africa. This was the story we were told. This was before Twitter and Instagram. The internet swirled with rumors that he had gone crazy and was going to live in Africa forever. He had abandoned Hollywood for good.

But the whole thing stank of racism, buried just underneath the surface. Why was Chappelle suddenly crazy when he didn’t want a huge sum of money? Yes, that’s a huge sum of money but deep down I thought, those people are trying to exploit him. Intuitively I felt like Chappelle knew he was part of a bigger racial-bridging that was allowing white people access to private areas of black culture. He had invited fans to shout famous lines back at him. Lines that Chappelle himself and other black actors had killed with. But, lines that white fans should never say. They were insensitive to the privilege shared by black people to communicate to other black people. White people want to say the n-word and it’s not theirs to say. It’s a truth other black comedians have shared.

When Chris Rock was caught in conversations with racists who relayed his “niggers versus black people” bit back to him he retired it permanently. The price of being an honest black comedian in this country is that white people can retell your insider information as intel. White people who would otherwise have no interaction with black people now has an arsenal of information. They have evidence that was not acquired through firsthand experience. They have heard the inner monologue of black America and instead of fixing racial injustice, they are repeating their favorite lines. And in spite of all of that, in spite of all the drama between Comedy Central and Dave Chappelle, in spite of the racial implications the media had thrown around, I got a job as an intern in hopes just being in the same office that created Chappelle’s Show could imbue me with some genius or good fortune.

It didn’t.

It was whack. There were like 40 of us on a rotating schedule where three of us would work certain days together and then another three would work another group of days and sometimes you would see other interns on your day because they couldn’t come in on their regular day. Since there were so many interns doing the work that one capable assistant could perform we were all basically twiddling our thumbs, trying to look useful and eager. Some interns dazzled executives with their epic notes on scripts, replete with a solid three act structure and relevant examples, figures, marketing suggestions. Others buried their noses up anyone’s ass who lingered near them long enough, offering to get coffee, lunch, snacks, dry cleaning, children from daycare, gifts for spouses, you name it. I employed none of these strategies. I scoped the most eligible bachelors and tried to dazzle them with my charms. The married ones would have been the smarter bet. Married men are more willing to go out on a limb for a cute, inexperienced graduate with a lot to prove. They won’t cheat but they like feeling important to women still so they’ll toss around bread crumbs. The single ones are still so obsessed with themselves that they can’t see far enough past their noses to help. I was vying for the attention of one executive I was sure would marry me, given I had enough alone time with him in the kitchen, when I learned he was getting engaged. It was devastating. Of course I would choose to be in love with someone just about to propose.

It dawned on me that marrying your way into the entertainment business was sort of gross and I was at Comedy Central to make a name for myself. Meaning, I should make it for myself. Not rely on somebody else giving me a handout. I had to go out and earn my job. Unfortunately, it seemed that only a few at Comedy Central had actually earned their job from sheer hard work. Most people had arrived there from a combination of knowing someone and favors and white privilege that is the winningest cocktail of all time. But, even they didn’t really like their jobs. It made no sense. The ones with the worst attitudes, who were the most lazy, cranky, emotionally unhinged seemed to know the most people. And they hated everything and everyone.

Below them, were us, the interns. And to my chagrin, I’d been wasting entire weeks of time pining over some man who’d hardly noticed me while these nerds were working their asses off. I was light years behind and frankly, unwilling to break my back for a job that didn’t seem like it would ever come my way. I was this sore thumb. I felt like a step sister and everyone else was The Brady Bunch. Primarily, I looked very different than everyone there. I wore ripped jeans and had tattoos and listened to hip hop. Wearing hoop earrings to work basically identified me as a member of the Crips. These people were so white and goofy that the only person of color they’d managed to hire had gone to private school their entire lives.

This sounds bratty already and I swear to God, I am not an ungrateful asshole. I am writing this to say that the experience crushed me a little bit. I left the internship at the end of the summer with no interest in staying in touch with anyone. With the exception of running into Joe at a party, I’ve run into one girl, Sarah, at my exercise class. I reveled when she feigned confusion when I asked if she’d remembered me from Comedy Central three years prior. I thought to myself, “I’m about to ruin this bitch’s day” and I’d like to think that her trembling, noodle-like legs during my class were some karmic retribution for her unkindness.

Besides that, I have no ill feelings towards anyone presently. To be fair, the assistants were only a year or two older than me at the time and wielding an unnatural amount of power. They did not handle power well. Not many do.

#comedy central #dave chappelle #workaholics #comedy #intern #2000s blog

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thetravelerwrites · 5 years

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Jukah Ironblood (Part 3) Lemon

Rating: Explicit Relationship: Male Orc x Female Human Additional Tags: Exophilia, Orc Boyfriend, Daycare, POV First Person, First Person Perspective, Male Reader, Interspecies Romance Content Warnings: Kids, Children, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-Worth Issues, Hyperthyroidism, Graves Disease, Cachexia, Chronic Illness, Sex, Oral Sex, Hair-Pulling Kink Words: 4718

After her car is buried in snow, Briauna decides to stay with Jukah for a few days. During that time, she urges him to connect with his family. The final chapter of @ban23‘s commission! Please leave feedback!

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We got to my apartment just fifteen minutes after leaving the daycare, shaking snow out of our hair and shucking off our coats.

“Hungry, Brie?” I asked.

“Starving,” She said. “But I also want to take a hot shower.”

“I’ll cook breakfast while you wash up. First door on the right down the hall is the bathroom. There’s clean towels and a pack of toothbrushes in there, and I’ll find you something to wear. I’m sure I’ve got a long band t-shirt that would cover most of you.”

She smirked wickedly. “Do you want it to cover most of me?” She pressed her body into my side.

“During breakfast, yeah,” I replied. “After that… let’s play it by ear.”

“If you say so, cariño,” She said, giving me a kiss and squeezing my rear before prancing down the hallway. I followed her and pulled a shirt from my closet, handing it to her and watching her disappear into the bathroom, listening as she knocked about and turned on the water. I smiled and went back to the kitchen.

She emerged shortly, toweling her hair, just as I was plating omelets and toast. The shirt I’d given her fell just half an inch past her buttocks. If she raised her arms straight up, I’d see everything.

“Where do I put my clothes?” She asked.

“Laundry room is off to the right, there,” I said, clearing my throat and trying not to notice how smooth and curvy her thighs were. “Just throw them in the washing machine. Orange juice or milk?”

“Juice,” She replied, taking both plates and putting them on the table and retrieving silverware from the drainboard as I poured the drinks. It was strange how at ease we both were, moving around each other in the kitchen as if we’d been living together for years, despite the fact that we’d only known each other for about a month and she’d never been in my apartment before. It just felt… natural.

“What kind of pie are you making for Kody’s party?” I asked. “We can walk to a corner market not far from here and pick up what you need, assuming they’re open before then.”

“I was debating doing two, actually: a fruit pie and a cheesecake, for people who don’t like fruit pies.”

“Ooh, that sounds good.”

“Thanks. Apple seems to be a universal crowd-pleaser, and I can do pretty things with the crust, maybe little pastry poinsettia flowers as decoration. I was also thinking of doing three different sauces for the cheesecake, so people can pick.”

I laughed. “Damn, you don’t mess around, do you?”

“Not when it comes to desserts,” She said, happily munching on toast. “If I hadn’t gone into childcare, I’d have been a pâtissier.”

I smirked at her. “Well, hell, dating you might actually get my weight up.”

She nodded, sipping her orange juice. “You wanna get fat, I’m your girl.”

I snickered. I finished my breakfast while Briauna was still eating. I stood to put my dishes in the sink and turned to look at Briauna, leaning against the table as she ate and scrolling through worried texts from her family, who lived in a state that didn’t get snowstorms.

The shirt I had given her wasn’t quite long enough to cover her bottom when she sat down. She was also sitting in such a way that I could see between her legs, and she was not wearing underwear. The soft apex of her core was flush against the cool, polished wood of the chair in which she was sitting, the lower parts of her butt cheeks pressed flat. Man, that plump flesh would feel so good in my hands…

I looked away quickly, blushing. “I’m going to take a shower, too.”

“Mkay,” She said, giving me a kiss as I passed and returned to eating her eggs. I switched on the washer as I went.

My heart was thumping in my chest and I felt myself growing hard as I made my way to the bathroom, turning on the water. It had been a few years since I’d been with anyone, and I was a bit pent up. I was hoping Briauna and I would take that step today, so I didn’t want to… take care of it myself.

I undressed and got into the shower, my swollen cock knocking into the doorframe as I got it, making me flinch. My shower was the kind that didn’t have a tub; it was glass enclosed, tiled, and with a drain in the floor. It’s one of the reasons I chose this apartment. I hated baths. It felt to me like I was stewing in my own filth.

The glass was warped and frosted, so I could see the outline of everything outside, including the door opening and the silhouette of Briauna stepping into the room.

“Brie?” I said. “What’s up?”

She opened the glass door and looked at me, all of me, and bit her lip. I fought the urge to cover myself. I had been self-conscious about my skinny body all my life, and I was a little concerned she would be turned off when she saw me naked.

Turned off was definitely not words to describe the look on her face. “It looks like you are,” She said, pulling the shirt over her head, leaving her standing nude in front of me. God, she was gorgeous. “Room for one more?”

I smiled and took her hand, pulling her into the shower with me. “It’s a good thing your hair isn’t dry yet,” I said.

She giggled and kissed me, pressing her warm skin against mine, my arousal trapped between the flesh of our stomachs. It pulsed against her, and she giggled again.

“Can I help you with that?” She asked, putting her hand between us and stroking me as the water cascaded down her body. I groaned and my head fell forward onto her shoulder. I kissed and nipped at her skin. With her other hand, she ran it through my short hair and gripped it, holding me against her neck.

She knelt down while holding my eye and smiling slightly, and oh God, just that single fluid movement was so sexy that I had to brace a hand against the wall.

She took me in her hand, pumping me a few times. Her tongue came out and she slowly ran the length of it over the tip and I gasped.

“Moan for me, querido,” She said, and I couldn’t help but oblige her. A sound escaped out of me that I had never heard myself make before.

“Ay, si, cariño. Te voy a hacer sentir tan bien.”

“Remind me to take Spanish lessons,” I huffed, struggling to stay upright.

“I’ll teach you,” She said, smiling up at me as she stroked me in her hand. “You’ll be cumming in Spanish by the end of the month.”

Before I could reply, she had sucked me into her mouth down to the base and I cried out. I put my hand on her head as she sucked, combing my fingers through her hair and caressing her cheek. The litany of sounds I was making certainly weren’t dignified, but the hell if I cared. It felt incredible. Briauna knew what she was doing, and I was more than happy about it.

She sucked faster, sealing her mouth around me, and I nearly fell.

“I’m going to cum,” I whispered. She didn’t pull away, instead reaching underneath to massage my balls. Lightning struck my body, every muscle in my body wound tight, and I came straight down her throat, gushing over and over. She didn’t spill a drop.

As I was gathering my breath back with my arm on the wall and my forehead pressed into my elbow, I gasped, “You didn’t have to do that.”

“Spunk is bad for drains,” She said. “Wouldn’t want to clog up your pipes, now, would we?” She stood up and kissed me deeply, moaning into my mouth. Then she reached for my soap and started scrubbing me down.

“Don’t you want me to… uh… reciprocate?” I asked as she washed my back.

“I’m going to be here for a couple of days, huh? Plenty of time. No reason to rush it. I just saw you make a quick dash for the bathroom with a blush on your face and thought you could use a hand.” I groaned as she scratched that spot in the middle of my back that I could never reach. “Besides, I wanted to see that cute bubble butt in the flesh.” She popped my left cheek, making me jump.

I rinsed off the soap and turn the water off, stepping out onto the mat and reaching for a towel. She took a second one and ran it through my hair, wiggling my head and laughing.

This felt really good. Just… being close and playing around and just the general feeling of peace. I hadn’t felt like this in… ever. Comfort. That’s what it was.

I bent my head and kissed her, soft and lingering, holding her damp body against mine.

When I pulled back, she laughed, a sweet light in her eyes. “What was that for?”

“Just ‘cause,” I said.

“That’s a good reason,” She said, smiling and kissing me again.

We spent the morning mostly naked, watching Christmas movies while her clothes got cleaned. When they were dry, we both got dressed and headed to the market. Someone had gone to the trouble of shoveling the sidewalk so that people could travel on foot, but most of the cars were still buried, Briauna’s included.

“So what are we looking for?” I asked her.

“Well, you already have flour, butter, and sugar, so we need cream cheese, vanilla bean, apples, cinnamon, strawberries, blueberries, and some cooking chocolate.”

“Gotcha,” I said. “Have you been to this market before?”

“Nope,” She said. “I usually go to the supercenter nearby my apartment.”

I shook my head. “No, no, no, this place is far superior.” I raised my hand in greeting. “Hey, Mrs. Tailor!”

“Hey, Jukah!” The elderly woman at the counter said. “Who’s that with you?”

“I’m his girlfriend, Brie,” Briauna said, waving. I looked at her with an eyebrow raised. She smiled. “Aren’t I?”

I grinned and kissed her temple. “Yes, you are.”

“Oh, isn’t she pretty? I’m glad you’ve got a girl for the holidays,” Mrs. Tailor said.

“Thanks, Mrs. Tailor,” I replied.

“What are we looking for, niños?” Mrs. Tailor asked.

“Oh, hablas español?” Brie asked happily.

“Sí, conocí a mi esposo en Cancún.” Mrs. Tailor pointed at me. “Es muy guapo, te parece?”

“Sí, señora,” Brie replied. “Y él tiene un trasero muy lindo.”

The two of them laughed.

“I feel like you’re laughing at my expense.” I said suspiciously.

“You’re right,” Mrs. Tailor said.

“But in a good way,” Brie said, kissing my cheek.

“So, what are you two looking for?” Mrs. Tailor asked.

“She’s actually making some pies for a party we’re going to. Want to help us pick out the best produce?”

“Pies? Oh, honey, you’re talking my language.” Little Mrs. Tailor hopped off her stool and came around. “What kind of pies?”

Mrs. Tailor spent twenty minutes with us, helping us pick out the best berries and apples, the finest vanilla bean and cinnamon sticks in her store, and packs of cream cheese and graham crackers. She even gave us a discount.

“Aw, you don’t have to do that, Mrs. Tailor,” I said.

“Don’t you worry about it, baby,” She said. “Happy holidays, you two!”

“Gracias! Fue un placer conocerte! Feliz Navidad!” Briauna said, waving at Mrs. Tailor as we left and slowly walked back to my apartment.

“Cuídalo, cariña!” Mrs. Tailor called after us.

“She’s super sweet,” Briauna said, taking my arm.

“Yeah, she is. Mrs. Tailor was one of the first people I met when I came to town, and she’d been looking out for me ever since.”

“Aww,” Briauna cooed. “That’s nice. It makes me happy that you have so many friends.”

I hadn’t really thought about it, but I guess I did have a lot of friends. Maybe I just didn’t think of them as friends because I didn’t think they saw me as a friend.

Ugh. My head hurt.

We got back to my apartment, and she put everything in my fridge. It was around lunchtime, so I made us both a Caesar salad with ham chunks and cheddar cheese, and some garlic toast.

“You’re good with food, too, huh?” She asked.

“Yeah,” I replied. “Since my metabolism is so high, I have to eat a lot, so I figured it was good to learn how to make actual food and not just eat instant ramen and peanut butter on saltines.”

“Smart man,” She said, pinching my left butt cheek, startling me.

“You just like seeing me jump, don’t you?” I asked her, rubbing my behind.

She laughed wickedly. “You have no idea.”

“What happened to the sweet girl I started dating?” I asked her playfully.

“She’s still here. People are more than one thing, you know,” She said, kissing the back of my neck as I set our plates on the table.

“I know,” I replied, smirking at her.

After lunch, she helped me wash the dishes and clean up the kitchen. When we were done, she wrapped her arms around my waist and I held her close.

“So, more Christmas movies?” I asked.

“Actually…” She said, letting me go and walking backward toward the bedroom, tugging me by my shirt. “I have a much better idea.”

I let her lead me to the bedroom and start stripping me of my clothes. She peeled her own clothes off and stood before me in all her glowing, naked glory.

It was easy for people to underestimate my strength because of my size, but I was still an orc, after all. I was easily able to lift her in my arms and throw her onto the bed. She landed with a bounce and a giggle. I pounced and she laughed more as she kissed me.

She pushed me onto my back and climbed onto me, kissing me, pushing her tongue past my lips. I put my hand in her curls and made a fist, tugging up her head so that I could bite at her neck, making her gasp and release her breath sharply. She pushed my arms down and moved up my body, so that her dripping slit was presented to my face. Holding onto the headboard, she lowered herself down so that I could reach that swollen clit with my mouth, and I licked at it hungrily.

She moaned above me as I gripped her thighs, working my tongue up, over, and down her lips. The sounds she made caused my body to react, making my cock harder than I had been that morning in the shower. Her pelvis rocked slightly as I sucked and slurped at her, her moans increasing in volume and pitch. The rocking got faster, and I sucked harder, feeling her sweltering entrance tremble against my mouth.

“Oh, fuck,” She whispered as I pushed two fingers into her wetness. I sucked in her clit, shaking my head as I did so, and she gripped my hair as she came, crying out and falling against the headboard, her face pressed against the wood.

“Oh, sí cariño, que se siente tan jodidamente bien!” She cried, and again I made a mental note to learn Spanish as soon as possible.

She fell sideways onto the bed, on her back, and I rolled over her, rearing up to kneel between her open legs. I let her catch her breath, bending down to take a nipple in my mouth and gently run my teeth over it, pinching the other into a peak with my hand. She whimpered and writhed a little underneath me.

I switched breasts and sucked as much of it into my mouth as I could fit, flicking the tip of my tongue over it. She moaned again, louder, and I let her breast go with a pop. I pulled myself up to kiss her red lips, and she wrapped her legs around my waist, tilting her hips up, silently insistent.

I looked her in the eyes as I pushed myself inside her, and her eyes rolled back in her head as her mouth fell open. At first, my thrusts were tentative, but she opened her eyes, held my head in her hands, looked me in the eye, and said, “Do not be gentle with me.”

I got back up on my knees and grabbed her hips, ramming myself into her at top speed and intensity, and she shrieked in pleasure, holding onto the underside of the headboard. The wet smacking of our bodies as we connected with each thrust spurred me on. I worried that I was being too aggressive, but whenever I’d ease up, she’d shout, “Harder!” And I went back at it with renewed fervor.

I felt her clenched around me as an orgasm shook her body, and she screamed out, telling me not to stop, to keep going, and I listened. I whipped my hips into her as hard and fast as I could, and she begged me to keep going, even as her orgasm ebbed. Her thighs twitched and her stomach spasmed.

“Flip me,” She said, and I pulled myself out, whipped her upside down, grasped her hips, and jerked her toward me. I shoved myself back into her and she groaned with pleasure. I grabbed a fistful of her hair and yanked her face up out of the pillows so I could hear her moans and breathy gasps. I loved those sounds. I wanted to record them and listen to them on a loop for days.

I loved the way her butt jiggled every time my body collided with hers. I loved how she kept swearing in Spanish and how she arched her back when she was close to climaxing. I loved… her.

Now wasn’t the time to declare myself, though. It had only been a week.

I felt the swell of pleasure rising up in me as she clamped down again. She must have realized I was close, perhaps feeling me pulsate inside her, because she breathed, “Cum for me, querido.”

I seemed conditioned to obey any command she gave me, because at that exact moment, I came so hard I saw spots in my vision. I released her hair, letting her fall forward, as I felt every shot fill her up and drip out. I bent over her, braced on my hands, and kissed her back. I thrust slowly to milk out the last traces of pleasure, then stopped while still inside her, breathing hard.

“Don’t move, I’ll clean you up,” I told her breathlessly, moving off the bed and getting a warm washcloth from the bathroom. She was still laying ass-up when I returned and I carefully cleaned up the mess I made. When I was done, she simply plopped over on her side and sighed contently. Giving myself a cursory wipe with the cloth, I chucked it into a hamper and climbed back into bed, snuggling her back against my front.

“You good, sweetheart?” I asked her, my nose in her hair.

“Mmm…” She said sleepily. “I’m great.”

“I’m also great,” I replied, giving her a squeeze that made her squeal. “And I’m hungry again.”

“You did just burn off a bunch of calories,” She said with a smile.

“True,” I said. “Good thing I have some protein bars in my night table.”

She laughed. “Can I get one of those, too?”

I tossed her one, which she made no attempt to catch. It landed squarely on her sternum between her breasts.

“Whoo! Got it between the goal posts, two points for you,” She said.

I laughed at her as I tore open the wrapper of my protein bar.

“Do you always have food stashed in your room?”

“I have food stashed everywhere. Never know when my sugar is going to decide to tank out of nowhere.”

“Doesn’t the medicine help you manage that?” She asked with her mouth full, like a lady.

“To a point,” I said. “It works the majority of the time, but there are some times when my thyroid goes, ‘haha, you’re about to be real tired and grouchy, so buckle up, asshole,’ and I have to put something edible in my mouth with a quickness.”

“Makes sense,” She said. “I’ll just have to keep a fresh supply of cookies and cakes and pies for you.”

You leaned forward and kissed her with gratitude. “You won’t hear me complaining about that.”

After a nap, Brie got up to start on the pies. She taught me how to make a quick crust, and as I worked on crushing the graham crackers, she asked, “So… you haven’t spoken to your family in… how long?”

“Oh, god…” I tried thinking back. “I left when I was nineteen, so… ten years?”

“You really don’t think they want to hear from you?” She asked hesitantly.

“Nothing from my upbringing would suggest otherwise,” I said, shrugging.

“Yeah, but…” She paused. “Ten years is a long time. A lot could change in ten years. People change. Attitudes change.”

I laughed. “You’re not overly familiar with orc culture, huh?”

“I mean… I just think… maybe if they knew about your condition, they’d be more understanding than you think.” She stirred the strawberry sauce in the pan. “I mean, it’s the holidays. It’s a time to be with your family. I’m not saying you have to contact them, but… maybe it’s something to consider?”

I paused in my crushing and sighed. “I’ll think about it.”

She stopped stirring and put her arms around my waist. “Sorry. I don’t mean to insert myself into your problems.”

“No, it’s okay,” I said, kissing her, linking my fingers behind her back. “You’re just concerned about me. It’s sweet and I like that about you.”

“Aww,” She said, grinning. She gave me a last kiss and went back to stirring.

The next day, we carried the pies and sauces, as well as the bean dip I usually made, to Kody’s apartment, which was just a few blocks down the street from my building.

“Hey, guys!” Kody said, giving us both a hug as we came in. “Briauna, this is Jessie, my best friend.”

Jessie came up and gave me a hug, then shook Briauna’s hand.

“Nice to meet you,” Briauna said.

“You, too,” Jessie said, taking a the pies off her hands and setting them on the counter.

Jacob and Emily were already there, and Emily had brought a date. He was a lizardman but not a kobold, like her. He looked a lot like a chameleon, actually, complete with independently moving eyes.

“Taking a break from hibernating, Emily?” I asked as I gave her a hug.

“Yeah, I had Torin wake me up for the party,” She said, jerking her head at the chameleon man.

“He’s new,” I said.

“He’s fun,” She replied, winking at me.

Jacob came up and nudged me.

“Can’t help but notice that Brie is still wearing the clothes she had on at work that last day,” He said with a sly smirk.

I rolled my eyes. “Her car got buried under snow, so she’s been staying with me.”

“Sure, sure,” He said, glancing at Emily. The two of them shared a knowing look.

“Oh, grow up, you two,” I said, shaking my head.

The dinner was amazing, just like every year, and hours later, Brie and I wandered back home.

“That was fun,” She said as I unlocked the door. “I kind of want to fool around, but I also feel like I might puke from eating so much and just want to pass out.”

“I’m with you there,” I agreed. “Even I ate too much, and I didn’t think that was possible.”

She laughed and pulled off her scarf. “I could see my car from the distance. It’s almost thawed out. I was thinking maybe going home tomorrow and packing a bag and coming back to spend the rest of the week with you. Sound good?”

“That sounds great to me,” I said. “But… aren’t you going to see your family for Christmas?”

“I was going to, but I told them about you and they said to stay. Besides, I’ll go see them for New Years. Want to come?”

My head rocked back. “You want me to meet your family?”

“Yeah,” She bit her lip. “Is it… too soon for that?”

I smiled slowly. “Is it too soon for me to tell you I love you?”

She returned the smile. “Nope.”

“Good,” I replied, pulling her into a tight hug. “Because I do.”

“I love you, too, Jukah,” She said, muffled against the fabric of my coat. “So you’ll come meet my family?”

“I’d love to.”

After I took my meds, we both undressed and got in bed, falling asleep almost instantly.

I woke in the middle of the night to her stroking me to attention from behind. I purred appreciatively and rolled over, letting her straddle me and putting my hands on her hips. When she bent down to kiss me, I reached between us and held myself steady as she lowered herself down and took all of me inside her.

She rode me in the dark, moving against the pale light shining through the curtains, glowing against the soft brown of her skin and the curl of her hair. I could hear her stilted breathing and soft moans. She was so beautiful.

I dug my fingers into her hips and thrust up into her, and she fell forward onto my chest, letting me take over. She kissed my neck and sank her teeth into my collarbone, and I groaned, my toes curling. I clapped a hand on her butt, feeling the jiggle, and she yelped and laughed.

She pushed herself up and rocked faster, grinding her body against me as she came loudly, crying out wordlessly. When her pleasure ebbed, she climbed off of me and sucked me into her mouth, bobbing up and down fast, massaging with her hands and clawing at the inside of my thighs.

It didn’t take long before I released, and like before, she took all of it. No muss, no fuss. I lay back with a sigh of relief, and she plopped down next to me, kissing me slowly until, eventually, we fell asleep again, not a word spoken.

As the first light of dawn filtered into the room, I woke up feeling hungry. Brie was still sleeping, the gold light of morning making the dusting of fine freckles stand out on her exposed chest. I looked at her for a moment with a smile on my face, feeling lucky for the first time in my life.

I got up, pulling on my boxers, and walking into the kitchen. I spotted a box of fruit bars on the fridge and grabbed one, scarfing it down to get my sugar up, when my eyes fell on my phone, which I’d left on the kitchen counter.

I picked it up and looked through my contacts, finding the number for the Floodwater Stronghold Communications Center. My finger hovered over the call button for at least five minutes before pressing it. With my hands shaking slightly, I held the phone up to my ear.

“Floodwater Stronghold Communications.”

I cleared my throat. “Yes, can you connect me with Gorcha Ironblood?”

“One moment.”

There was a waiting tone, and then the dialing tone. With each ring, my anxiety rose.

There was a click, and a voice came over the line.

“Do you have any idea what time it is?”

Yep, that was my mom.

“Um… Hey, Mom. It’s, uh… It’s Jukah.”

There was a full thirty seconds of silence over the line before she responded. “Jukah? I… Hi… How are you?”

“I’m good, Mom. I’m good.” I took a deep breath and released it sharply. “Um… I’m sorry it took me so long to get in touch with you, but... Listen, there’s, um… There’s something I need to tell you.”

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My Masterlist

The Exophilia Creator’s Masterlist

#Exophilia #Orc #Orc Boyfriend #My Writing #Ban23 #First Person Perspective #First Person POV #Male Reader #Monster Reader #Monster Boyfriend #Commission

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berriebun · 5 years

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Night Time Surprise

Fandom: Boku no Hero Academia Pairing: Iida Tenya x Uraraka Ochako Rating: SFW Word count: 2,398

A/N: I don’t remember why I started writing this, but I was struck with a very cute idea (probably while I was talking in a server) about how cute it would be for these adorkable first-time parents experiencing their baby’s quirk finally developing.

ao3 link redirect

“Mommy! Mommy look!!” The bright squeals shouted over the other screaming children running around the daycare. Ochako had never really believed her mom when she would tell her that she could always pick her voice out of a crowd, but here was the evidence as the Hero smiled. “I’m super fast! Just like Daddy!! Pchooooo~” The delighted laughter was joined by other kids as the three-year-old ran around the open area of the room, imitating her dad’s movements to the joy of the others.

“Goodness! You sure are, huh!? Daddy will be so proud of you Yuzu!” Ochako laughed, crouching as the little girl with a full head of dark brown hair barreled her way through the other kids, who didn't seem to mind, and into her mother's arms. As it was tradition between mother and child, Ochako quickly activated her quirk and lightly tossed her daughter into the air who squealed happily before her mother bought her fingers together and ended the zero gravity, catching the laughing child in her arms.

The little girl went on to babble about what a fun day she had playing with the other kids as Ochako thanked the counselor in charge and signed her daughter out, leaving the building to head for the train station. Apparently, a lot had happened today during daycare, and while she hadn’t been paying attention to the first half of the story, Ochako gave her daughter her undivided attention as they made their way on to the train home. The little girl tried to pull her backpack off to show her mom all the art projects she had done during arts and crafts, but Ochako told her to wait, briefly explaining in a way she could understand that it was better to show her at home because she didn’t want her to lose all her amazing work.

The entire time that they were on the train, Yuzuki would talk to anyone and everyone who would listen to her. Like any little three-year-old, she was full of so much excitement and energy and none of what she said really made sense but she was still able to share simple thoughts. Ochako was vocally encouraging as her daughter bounced around between her legs while holding her mother's hands, babbling on about whatever came to her growing mind. She would have been worried about Yuzuki having this much energy in the afternoon, but Tensei had assured her that it was an Iida trait through and through, which was both daunting and reassuring to know. She was just grateful that her daughter would definitely use up all this energy before bedtime, knowing that it would help the little girl to go down for the night much more easily.

The house was quiet by the time they arrived home, meaning Tenya was likely still at the agency which was to be expected since he was the leading hero now. Regardless, the mother and child made their way inside and settled in for the evening, ending up in the kitchen after shoes and coats had been removed. Little Yuzuki was sitting at a small toddler table near the fridge with her little backpack upturned over the surface, messy craft supplies littering the floor where they had fallen over the edge.

As Ochako made dinner she listened and engaged her daughter in fumbled conversation over things that had happened that day, delighted that Yuzuki seemed to be making friends with the other children. She was also overly proud when her little girl presented her with a scribbled drawing labeled ‘family’ in wobbly letters, which Ochako promptly pinned to the fridge with a bright sun-shaped magnet.

The closer it came to be dinner time, the quieter the toddler became as her endless Iida energy finally seemed to have dwindled. Though, as the front door opened, a small spike of excitement seemed to charge through the little girl with a squeaky ‘Daddy!’ and little pattering feet fleeing the kitchen.

Ochako was just barely able to make out the gentle scolding of ‘no running in the house missy!’ before laughter and happy toddler babbling took over, while she carefully dropped the seared meat and veggies into the gently bubbling pot of thick gravy. She just placed the ventilated lid over the food so it could come all together when her husband entered the kitchen with their daughter clinging to his hip. They made a complete picture of exhaustion with both of their happy expressions being tugged at by tired smiles and crinkled eyes.

“Welcome home, hon.” Ochako smiled as Tenya approached, stepping over scattered art supplies to kiss her on the cheek.

“Good evening.” He smiled in return, shifting the clinging toddler in his arms. “I saw the report about your rescue mission this afternoon.”

“Yeah, things could have gone a lot smoother but there are just some things you can’t really control. Especially against a Rampage quirk like that.” She shrugs, smiling regardless of the highlighted difficulties she had faced during her stationed hours at Thirteens Rescue Agency. “We still were able to rescue the hostages while keeping the bystanders out of harm's way. We’re going to probably be billed for some structural damage repairs on the building but that shouldn’t be an issue.” She continued as she made quick work of cleaning up after herself and wiping down the counters.

In the meantime, Tenya had moved over to sit on the floor next to the toddler table as Yuzuki went through her show and tell with him this time, with a lot less energy. And with that, they lulled between conversations with Yuzuki about her day and also discussing what had happened on their respective hours at work. It wasn’t all talk though as eventually dinner came and went, and Ochako took their daughter upstairs to put her to bed. The little girl hardly made it through half of the bedtime story Ochako had started reading to her before Yuzuki was out like a light.

Ochako tucked her in, turned on the baby monitor just in case and the night light before leaning down to kiss her daughter on the forehead and leaving the room. She was met at the door by Tenya who seemed to have been watching the entire time and smiled softly at her and then towards their daughter.

“She’s growing up so quickly.” He mumbled as his arms found their way around her waist and shoulders.

“Yeah… Our parents did say that time would slip away from us after the first couple of months. Now look at her. Running around, drawing pictures, and talking. Soon she’ll have her quirk and before we know it, she’ll be off on her own.” Ochako sighed, leaning into her husband and resting her head back against his shoulder.

“If we’re not careful, we’re going to blink and miss it all.” He chuckles quietly, squeezing her closer before releasing his grip and leading her away from the room, closing the door quietly behind them. Together the couple made their way to their own room and contently started going about their nightly routines of getting ready for bed. If it wasn’t for the time, Ochako would have loved to have taken a bath before bed but alas, parenthood accompanied by career work robbed a person of past luxuries that they had taken for granted.

Eventually, both of them settled in under the covers as the room stayed partially lit by a side table lamp while Ochako settled into her pillow with a small novel, hoping to read a couple of pages before officially falling to sleep. There was some shifting as Tenya settled behind her, draping an arm over her stomach as idle finger-tips mindlessly caressed her stomach before falling still around her belly button. As the night slowly crept on, the two of them muttered random sleepy thoughts to each other as Ochako read and Tenya dozed into a combination of his pillow and her shoulder. After a time, she finally puts the book down and settles back into her little spoon position against Tenya’s chest.

It felt like she had only just closed her eyes when she was woken up by a loud crackling sound cry coming from the left.

The clock said it was nearly three in the morning, which meant she had fallen asleep properly, as both she and Tenya scrambled from the bed sleepily. The sound, she was able to figure out, was tear-jerking sobs from the baby monitor she had set up next to the lamp she had accidentally left on. Both of them made their way down the hall and rushed into Yuzuki’s room, Tenya making it to her side faster having a fair bit more energy than herself as she followed.

Whatever their daughter was trying to say to them was lost in the tears and wobbly cries as she reached out and clung to her dad’s pajamas. They only found the source when Tenya tried to rub her back as he normally would, to comfort her, and instead elicited more cries and squirming. Immediately, Ochako reached out and threaded her fingers through Yuzuki’s hair, cooing softly over her cries that everything was okay, and that mommy and daddy were there as Tenya shifted to carefully pull up the back of their daughter's pajama shirt.

From where they were sitting, in the dark, she could only glimpse a scattering of small circles that just barely reflected the nightlight poking through their daughter’s back in a group of four sets. A matching set of two on either of her sides and identical sets of four on either side of her spine on her lower back. Confused and worried, Ochako had Tenya bring their daughter into the hall bathroom and unfortunately had to flip the lights on so they could get a better look. The Iida three all flinched under the bright fluorescences but the parents recovered faster as their daughter opted to keep her face buried in her father's neck.

Thankfully her sobs had died down as Ochako kept brushing her fingers through her hair as she shared a look with Tenya. In the light, it was easier to recognize the holes that were forming in their daughter's back.

“Exhaust pipes.”

“Yeah… She’s got your quirk.” Ochako nodded, pulling her hands away from her daughter's hair just to check the holes properly. There didn’t seem to be anything wrong but Tenya understood what she was doing.

“She’ll be alright.” He assured her, and the sleepy Yuzuki against his shoulder. “It’s going to be mildly uncomfortable for about a week or so, depending on how long the engines take to fully develop. She was probably shocked awake by the sudden protrusion, which probably scared her.”

The set of two pipe engines on her sides sat up near her ribs, and the other set was positioned at her lower back above her hips, thankfully both sets completely avoided her spine. Ochako still wanted to make sure and made a mental note to contact her family-in-law and ask about recommendations for pediatricians who were capable of handling their specific mutation quirk.

With shared yawns, Ochako flipped the light back off and the parents carried her back to her room. This time it was Tenya’s turn to tuck her into bed, reassuring his sniffling daughter that everything would be okay and to sleep on her tummy tonight to avoid being uncomfortable. Ochako watched with a tired smile, listening to Tenya address their little girl so directly as he tucked her in and made sure she had her stuffed monkey toy. He had always told her to resist using a baby voice since it hardly helped with children’s vocal development, but of course, she sometimes gave in when he wasn’t around. A little baby talking wasn’t going to hurt, but she did try to make sure that Yuzuki could pronounce words to the best of her little three-year-old abilities.

With Yuzuki back in bed and thankfully falling back to sleep, the two returned to their own beds and feel into a jig-saw mess of covers and pillows. The following morning found Tenya waking up nuzzled into the curve of Ochako’s shoulder blades and his arm slung over the back of her thighs. The rude awakening had thrown off their positions so much and he could already feel the slight ache in his back in relation to the awkward angle.

Mornings were his forte, as he rolled out of bed and stretched. After yawning, he quietly left the room and went to scoop Yuzuki out of bed to brush their teeth together. She wasn’t too talkative as she squinted sleepily into the mirror and mimicked her dad’s actions with her Alien Queen themed toothbrush. Afterward, Tenya sat her on the bathroom counter and picked up a brush.

“How do you want your hair today, Yuzu?” He asks as he starts carefully running the brush through her hair. Her answer was delayed as she dozed off slightly and yawned again.

“Piggy-tails!” She chirps sleepily as she allows her dad to manipulate her positioning with an assured nod.

“Piggy-tails it is then.”

It’s not until later in the morning, as he’s cooking breakfast, that Ochako emerges from upstairs, dressed in some civilian clothes. Her own hair was loosely braided and tied off in a pink bow with minimal make-up.

“Morning Mommy!”

“Morning, Blossom. Did Daddy do your hair for you, huh?” She asks as she leans down to kiss her daughter's forehead while she carefully ate some eggs with a spoon.

“Mhmm!”

“Morning.” Another cheek smooch from Tenya. “Your oatmeal is warming in the microwave, and there is half a banana on the table already. I wrapped the other half and put it int for Yuzu’s snack.”

Ochako smiles through a smile as she gathers her own breakfast as Tenya finishes his own and joins his wife and daughter at the table.

Their morning goes on as usual, though Ochako tells him that she’s going to be calling his mom sometime around lunch to talk about booking a check-up with someone reliable for Yuzuki now that her quirk is coming through. And thus their lives went on as normal… As normal as they could be anyway! Boy were they going to have one hell of a time once Yuzuki entered her teens though, especially with those Engines.

#penned #iidaocha #iichako #tenchako #iida tenya #uraraka ochako #bnha #mha #boku no hero academia #my hero academia #family fluff #fluffy emotions #good feelings #parents #children #fan child

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youllallriseintheink · 4 years

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Esmerelda the Cursed

Hey. Thought I’d drop a little orginal fiction on you guys, see how you like it. This is a little horror short that I wrote to tell around the fire at a Scout camp back in October. Hope you like it.

(And if you’re just here for Bendy, well, you’re getting more fanfiction tomorrow anyhow.)

---

Have you ever heard of werewolves? Of course you have. Humans that turn into horrid beasts under the light of the full moon, turning on their loved ones in a sick bloodlust.

What you don't know is that those represent only a small portion of the werewolves. Most know their condition and take precautions. They drive out to the woods on the night of the full moon, and spend the night running around and hunting far from humankind. Some even find each other on those nights and form packs- it’s one way to meet friends that can be there for you no matter what the phase of the moon. And so, being a werewolf isn't so bad most of the time. But, it can have unforeseen consequences, as with Esmerelda the cursed.

Esmerelda the cursed had been a werewolf since childhood, and it had never bothered her at all. She was twenty-seven, a schoolteacher, and married to a werewolf from her pack when she became pregnant. She was due on the full moon.

There had been born-wolves before. They were horrible: dumb, and brutish, and miserable creatures. Like a child with the mind of a beast, or beast with the mind of a child. Her pack tried to help her. They gathered herbs that were meant to speed up the unborn child's maturation so that she'd birth him sooner. She wasn't sure it would work. No one was.

Whether by luck or intervention, Esmerelda did give birth early- one month early. It was the full moon, and Esmerelda was chasing down a rabbit when the contractions began. She began to yelp with pain. Other wolves came, worried that she might be injured. Upon seeing her lying in the grass, her water broken, their unthinking animal instinct became to kill her before she birthed a monster.

Her husband, currently a colossal white wolf, put himself between her and the rest of the pack, growling low. The pack hesitated, but then they growled back. In spite of the terrible squeezing pain in body, Esmerelda stood up and ran. She ran, and ran, and ran. She could hear the growls becoming more and more distant.

Eventually, she came upon a cave. The contractions made collapsing inside it seem like the best idea in the world, and so she did, first turning around to keep watch for the other werewolves. And that's when she saw it: the moon was near the horizon. The night was coming to an end.

Now, animals give birth far more easily than humans, werewolves especially. They rarely take longer than an hour. But Esmerelda fought the process with all her might so that her child might not be born under the full moon. The contractions grew stronger, and stronger, but she fought. The moon began to dip below the horizon. She was doing it. In the end, though, it was a losing battle. Her pup was born, a son, covered in hair, with horrible wolflike fur and claws and fangs. The moon set, and none of those features went away.

The wolves of her pack finally caught up to her at this point, their faces full of pity and shame. "Whatever you decide to do with him, we'll support you," they said. But Esmerelda knew that wasn't true. They might pretend to support it, but deep down they’d think her a monster if she killed him now. She and her husband would have to raise him alone.

Esmerelda quit her job to stay home with the wolf boy. She wasn't going to subject any daycare to him. They took down the lovely nursery they had prepared for him and set him up a room in the basement. He bit when she tried to feed him. He growled and yelped instead of crying. He looked at her with hate. And, though Esmerelda hated it, she looked back at him with the same hate.

He remained the family's secret for years. Worries about aggression aside, he could not speak a word by preschool age and so Esmerelda resigned herself to homeschooling him. She'd been letting him out in the yard for an hour a day since he could walk, but it was always late night and always on a leash. He would damage his room less if he had a chance to burn off some energy. His room, as the years dragged on, had become more and more destroyed. The boy would punch and claw at the walls when he was angry, or for the simple fun of it, until the walls grew more covered in his claw marks than she was. To clean his room, Esmerelda had to have her husband forcibly remove him from it. At first, they would simply lock him in the bathroom when this happened, but eventually, they realized that it would save them damages to their bathroom if they just tied his hands together. For obvious reasons, Esmerelda didn't clean the boy's room more than necessary, nor for longer than she had to. It was during one of these processes that he spoke his first full sentence: "why do you do this to me?" He was seven years old at the time. Esmerelda didn't respond.

What Esmerelda feared most was the day that the boy became too strong for her to control. Already, she'd bought a strong chain leash in place of the flimsy cloth one for when he'd go outside, and had insisted that her husband be the one to handle his nightly outings. He told her stories about how he was trying to pull away. Trying to break his chain with a rock. How he had twice killed a neighborhood cat that had approached him in curiosity.

At the age of eleven, the boy finally escaped. It was the night of a full moon. His parents were out. He knew they were out, as he had screamed and screamed and screamed and they hadn't come for him. There had been many nights like this, and for nights like this, he had a ritual. He began to bash at the door, claw at it, push furniture against it, do whatever he could. That night he'd tipped his dresser against it, and was pushing and pushing until finally, a loud crunch sounded and the dresser fell. The boy stared. It had finally happened. He was free.

He tore into the streets, running on all fours. The people shouted "look! A werewolf!" and ran away indoors, hoping to call someone who could help. The little boy saw them run, and his animal mind saw prey. Gums pulled back from teeth, he charged into a crowded area, catching the slowest of the pack: an old man, who had been hobbling along with a cane.

When the animal control vehicle drew near, they saw the boy, still tearing into the man: his arms, his legs, even separating his ribcage to get at the organs within. The dog catcher approached him silently, hoping to capture the beast while he was preoccupied. No such luck. The beast lifted his head while they were ten feet apart and took off into the woods. They tried to follow him with their vehicle, but he was lost. Lost and camouflaged.

Come morning, Esmerelda and her husband came home to find the boy missing and the story of his escape on the news. They were devastated.

As years wore on, though, they recovered. Esmerelda went back to work and had two more children, both normal as could be. She and her husband were scarred, but happy. In the news, they heard of a monstrous young man who lived in the woods with a pack of wolves, attacking people and farm animals. They tried to put it out of their minds. No one had been able to capture him, and they would never be able to control him now, anyhow. Another of their pack gave birth in the moonlight, and Esmerelda could only hope that she was able to handle it better than she had.

Finally, there came a day at parent-teacher interviews where she saw her packmate with a little boy. How Esmerelda pitied that little boy- to have a violent wolf for a sibling was not something she would wish upon anyone! She decided to ask her packmate how her wolf child was doing. To Esmerelda's horror, her packmate smiled down at the little boy. "Oh, it took a lot of patience. But we shave him every night and we're taking advantage of the extra programming here at school, and he knows how to control himself when people run now. All things considering, he's doing great."

Looking down at the wolf-child’s fanged but friendly grin, Esmerelda realized that she had not birthed a monster. She had birthed a child, locked him in the basement, seldom spoke to him, and treated him as the only thing he’d ever had a chance to be. She had taken a human being, and created a beast.

#my writing #werewolves #horror story

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pengiesama · 7 years

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The Care and Keeping Of Your Matchmaker, Chapter Three

Title: The Care and Keeping Of Your Matchmaker (Chapter One, Chapter Two, Chapter Three) Series: Tales of Zestiria Pairing: Sorey/Mikleo Summary: Sorey picks up a new babysitting client for some extra cash. He didn’t exactly count on a six-year-old trying to hook him up with her older brother. (Modern/Highschool AU)

IN THIS EPISODE: Sorey gets invited over for dinner, and Mikleo wants to jump out a window.

WARNING: POTENTIAL BERSERIA SPOILERS

Link: AO3

Read on Tumblr!

–

On Wednesdays, Sorey got a ride from his mother to school. It was at her insistence – with the multiple jobs she worked to make ends meet, they rarely got any meaningful time together. Sorey’s biological father was always coming up with new, creative, and underhanded ways to get out of paying child support, so they’d long since stopped relying on any money from that end. Over the years, they’d learned to scrimp, and save, and go without – but his mother always went out of her way to keep her Wednesday mornings open, no matter what jobs she had on her plate, to drop Sorey off at school on her salvaged, souped-up, beloved, ultra-cool motorcycle. It was a vintage hand-me-down from his grandpa, and the magnificent creature was kept in top shape with his mom’s thrifty gearhead skills. It was his mother’s second son, and Sorey’s own little brother. His loud, fast little brother.

They zipped down the streets, Sorey’s arms wrapped tight around his mother’s waist as she steered them toward his high school.

“I HEARD FROM ROSE THAT YOU GOT A NEW BABYSITTING JOB?” shouted Selene over the noise of the wind and the engine.

“WHAT?” shouted Sorey over the noise of the same.

“I HEARD FROM ROSE THAT YOU GOT A NEW BABYSITTING JOB!”

“YEAH, I GOT A NEW JOB. IT’S FOR BABYSITTING. ROSE SET IT UP FOR ME.”

“WHO DID? I THOUGHT IT WAS ROSE?”

“ROSE GOT IT FOR ME, MOM.”

“OH, THAT’S NICE OF HER. SHE’S GOT THAT BUSINESS SENSE.”

“SHE SMELLS LIKE WHAT?”

“BUSINESS SENSE!”

“OH. YEAH, I GUESS SHE DOES KINDA SMELL LIKE THAT.”

The rush of wind around them filled the silence as Sorey struggled to pick through his mother’s odd choice of metaphor.

“…SO, WHAT’S THE NEW LITTLE ONE LIKE?” Selene prompted again.

Sorey was again silent, trying to figure out the best way to phrase his feelings.

She’s sweet, but keeps trying to hook me up with her older sibling, and not that I don’t totally appreciate the effort because he’s so beautiful I could cry, but he’s clearly so not interested in me, so it’s just kinda pouring salt in the wound when she knocks my ice cream into his lap and insists I help him clean up.

“…FIRST GRADE. VERY SPUNKY.”

All too soon, they arrived at Sorey’s school. They always seemed to have an audience waiting for them on Wednesdays – not that he could blame them, he guessed; his mom’s bike WAS awesome. But he would never have expected so much of his school to be interested in motorcycles. Sorey hopped off the back of the bike and handed his helmet back to his mom. His mom popped up her visor to crack a smile at Sorey, and a chorus of sequels and sighs broke out among the gathered crowd. A few students passed out.

“Have a great day at school, Sorey. Love you lots.”

“Love you too, mom,” said Sorey. He leaned in to give his mother a hug, her leather jacket soft and warm against his cheek. “Have a great day at work!”

As she drove off, Rose strolled up. She rested her hand on Sorey’s shoulder, her face twisted in some sort of profound thought.

“Man.” She whistled low. “I’m more into blondes, but I can definitely see the appeal.”

Sorey tilted his head. The crowd began to disperse, the fainted students were dragged by their limbs up the hillside and, more painfully, up the stairs. “Appeal?”

Rose shook her head. “Someday I’ve gotta give you that birds and bees talk. Anyway, let’s walk and talk – how did the sitting job go? Since you decided not to respond to my texts yesterday.”

Sorey groaned and clutched the back of his neck with one hand, rubbing at the tension there. He didn’t really want to talk to anyone about anything yesterday once he got back from the ice cream disaster. He’d gotten home, contemplated the cold and unfeeling void of the universe, ate some mac & cheese, read a library book, and went to bed; too exhausted to even wake up when his mom got home past midnight. But, Rose was the one who helped him get these jobs, even the disastrous ones; she deserved to know the important details. And if denied, she’d find out anyway. By any means necessary.

So, Sorey spilled the beans. On Maddy, on Mikleo, on dumping ice cream on Mikleo, by Maddy proxy. Rose was absolutely howling by the end.

“Man, Sorey, you could’ve at least gone back home with him to help him with laundry! Maybe loaned him your shirt to wear, maybe help him up to sit on the washing machine while it runs, maybe make out with him a little during the spin cycle.”

Sorey sputtered and turned bright red. “W-why would I need to lend him my shirt, it was his pants, Rose, the pants got the ice cream on them--”

“Well, you didn’t object to the idea of laundromat hanky-panky, that’s telling.” Rose grabbed Sorey by the shoulder, and waited until he looked at her. “Are you comfortable with this client? If you’re legit too embarrassed to go back, or think you won’t be able to do your job with Pretty Prince Prep School flittering around, I’ll assign someone else before the kid gets too attached to you.”

And therein laid the issue. On the way to the ice cream shop, Muse had quietly explained to Sorey about Maddy’s…tendency to drive off babysitters. Her late father had been a stay-at-home parent, and with his passing, she profoundly and loudly rejected any other caretakers. But her behavior toward Sorey, Muse said, was different. She had taken to him like no other. If he got too overwhelmed, Muse assured him that he should always be certain to take care of himself first, but with how good he was with Maddy already – well, Muse would pay him handsomely for his time.

The money was a factor, sure. Twenty bucks an hour was great, and certainly more than most clients were willing to pay. But it was about Maddy, too. Sorey was apparently the first babysitter she hadn’t attempted to murder on sight. What kind of person would he be to abandon her just because he didn’t think he could keep his dick in his pants with her brother around?

“I’m fine,” Sorey assured Rose. “It’ll be fine.”

“Good, because I contacted the client last night and she’s already interested in booking you for the foreseeable future. You got any clients you really want to hold onto or am I gonna have you down as her personal sitter?”

“…Well,” Sorey said. He guessed that would be the case from his conversation with Muse, but it was flattering to hear. “There’s one.”

Sparrowfeather Babysitting Services contracted their talent to private businesses as well, such as daycares. Butterfly Wing Daycare was one of these businesses – a local outfit, run by an older woman out of her home. Tabatha wasn’t just good with children; she was also the only one who could out-smell Rose when it came to business sense. Thing was, Sorey had seen enough Breaking Bad (at Rose’s house, watching an episode or two every so often, getting concerned that Rose was starting to get Ideas) to recognize what a money laundering front looked like. Sorey wasn’t entirely comfortable being used as a chess piece between a highly-motivated high school business tycoon and a maybe-probably mob leader, but the “daycare” part of the business was at least legitimate. They provided high-quality care for low-income children, and Sorey was a regular feature as an after-school helper when he didn’t have other sitting jobs or commitments.

Today, he was helping for a few hours before he was off to visit Maddy’s house – Muse had invited him over for dinner to help him get to know Maddy better, and of course that meant Mikleo was likely to be there too, and that meant Sorey would have to stare his crush in the face the day after he’d dumped ice cream on his crotch in public. He’d loaned him his jacket – not his shirt, quick to push Rose’s laundromat scenario out of his mind for the fourth time that day – to tie around his waist on the walk home which he really needed back, all things considered. He only had the one, and it was still pretty chilly out. He’d have to try to keep clean at daycare today so he didn’t show up a wreck.

Easier said than done, though. Today was a pretty rambunctious group.

Velvet howled in bone-deep fury as Sorey gently bent down to pick up her little brother and her nephew. Both needed a diaper change, but Velvet was quite the overprotective sort, even with someone she knew as well as Sorey. Sorey smiled at her, and made no effort to disengage her dangling death grip on the front of his shirt.

“Do you want to help me change Laphi and Phi today, Velvet?” he asked.

“Pbbblltlt!” said Phi, excited at the prospect. Despite Laphi’s full diaper, he was out like a light, snoring gently behind his pacifier.

Velvet scowled up at him, but nodded, regardless. Baby in one hand, baby in the other, furious four-year-old dangling from his front, Sorey cautiously but confidently walked over to the changing area. Sorey was confident in his ability to wrangle all ages of kids, but sweet babies like Phi were a joy to work with. Phi clapped delightedly at the feeling of a fresh dry diaper on his bottom, and giggled as Sorey buttoned him back into his onesie and tickled his tummy. His single lock of hair curled atop his head like a halo. Velvet yanked at Sorey’s wrist, and he dutifully allowed her to continue tickle duty while he moved on to changing Laphi. Laphi didn’t wake up once through the diaper change, except to sneeze out his pacifier in an explosion of spit and mucus. All kids were pretty gross sometimes, but babies did take the cake. Sorey swapped a fresh pacifier into his mouth without batting an eye, preventing a rude awakening. Laphi slept soundly under Velvet’s watchful gaze, and Sorey skillfully gathered both babies up and settled down into a rocking chair to tempt Phi into dozing off as well. Sweet baby he might be, but he turned into a little terror when he missed his naps.

Velvet was eyeing the free space on Sorey’s lap when another friend came up to play. This friend was wearing a pink witch hat and hauling behind her a battered top-hat-wearing teddy bear, and was a friend Sorey hoped and prayed would behave herself while he was trying to get two babies to sleep.

“I put a curse on you!” shrieked Maggie Lou, swinging her teddy bear down on Velvet’s head. “I am an evil witch!”

So much for that. Velvet roared and tackled her to the ground, barreling them through the block castle Velvet had been building around her babies a scant few minutes ago. It was a situation that required expert defusing.

“Velvet and Maggie,” Sorey said, firmly. “We’ve covered this before. My magic earrings mean that no curses work at daycare.”

Sorey shook his head back and forth to make his feathered earrings jiggle. Phi giggled again and tried to grab at them. Maggie Lou pouted mightily.

“But I got my witch hat on,” she objected.

“Sorry, my magic earrings are a gift from a wise old dragon. They can’t be beat by a witch hat.”

In truth, he made his magic earrings as a fourth-grade art project; with matching pairs for his mom and grandpa. Regardless, they were indeed proven to guard against witch curses. Maggie Lou huffed and hurled her teddy bear across the room.

“Now, that’s not a good way to treat a friend,” Sorey said gently. “Why don’t you go pick up your bear and ask Velvet nicely if she’d like to play with you? I think Velvet might like to spend some time in the pillow pit, since her babies are pretty tuckered out.”

Maggie Lou looked Velvet up and down. Velvet scowled at her right back.

“…MEET ME IN THE PIT!” Maggie Lou screamed at the top of her lungs, and then ran at top speed to belly flop into the pillow nest.

Velvet rolled her eyes and stalked up to Sorey. He leaned down just enough to let Velvet plant gentle kisses on the babies’ heads.

“Thank you for playing with Maggie, Velvet. She doesn’t quite know how to ask people things nicely just yet.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Velvet scoffed. “You had better give Phi his binky when he goes to sleep. I’ll know.”

“I will,” Sorey promised.

Yesterday had been one of the most amazing and most mortifying days of Mikleo’s short life.

He’d had a normal day at school, and a normal music lesson. And then he’d come face-to-face with a living checklist of all the things he found attractive. And then his little sister dumped ice cream in his lap in public, right in front of said living checklist. God, he couldn’t even look him in the eye on the whole walk home. And Sorey just had to be so gentle, and understanding, and apologetic – as if it was his fault Maddy decided to use his ice cream as ammunition – and even loaned him his jacket to cover him up.

Was it objectively creepy that Mikleo went to sleep cuddled up with said jacket that night? Yes, it indeed was. But Mikleo needed some comfort in his life after being publicly humiliated in front of his crush, and if falling asleep while wrapped up in Sorey’s smell was what it took to not feel so personally targeted by the cruel whims of fate, well, what more could you ask of him?

And then his mother just had to set up this dinner thing to let Maddy further victimize him in front of Sorey. Was this her new tactic in getting rid of babysitters? Terrorism by proxy? He thought his mother was sympathetic to his plight – she seemed to recognize how embarrassed he was, and let him eat dinner in his room while she tended to his pants. But now she was just setting up more opportunities for Mikleo to be harassed in front of the most quantitatively gorgeous person he’d ever set eyes on. Maybe he should just go to the university library to study; or more accurately, stare at his books for three long hours, absorb nothing, and slink home under cover of darkness, cursing the machinations of fate.

Alas, he had another music lesson first. And a tutor who’d never let him live yesterday down.

“So, were you too busy cozying up with your baby sister’s new nanny yesterday to do any practicing? Sure seems like it.”

Mikleo glowered at his tutor across his sheet music. His tutor Edna was an old friend of his mother’s; classmates in undergrad, and had known Mikleo since he was nothing but a squalling, red-faced ball of blankets. She was like an aunt to him as much as she was his tutor. Normally he tried to let her teasing roll off him – water off a duck’s back. But with the ice cream wound still raw, it was more like molasses on a duck’s back – sticky, gumming up his feathers, and distracting him even more from whatever etudes he’d been assigned for warmups. Edna’s eyebrows rose at his reaction.

“Youth,” she snorted, after a long pause. She flipped to the next page of music and began to play him in on piano.

Mikleo briefly considered making a crack about her height in response, but decided against it – he wanted to get practice over with as soon as possible, and not be subject to Edna’s “Dagobah Training” (which consisted of being forced to play his flute while carrying Edna around on his back). That would be just the thing he needed Sorey to see after yesterday to really cement him in his mind as a complete weirdo.

“If I didn’t know any better, it would seem as though our little Meebo is trying to rush through his very important flute practice,” Edna said as Mikleo finished another etude. If Sorey got here and Edna called Mikleo that in front of him, he would just pack everything up and flee to the woods. They would hear his haunting flute music on the night wind and remember. “I wonder if it’s because he still needs to pick out a cute little outfit and do his hair for his big dinner date tonight.”

“It is not a date!” Mikleo snapped, finally. “And I’m not eating dinner here anyway. I need to catch the bus to the university soon, so I’m sure Andersen will forgive me for rushing these etudes.”

“Dunno about that. Ol’ Carl-Joachim was a cantankerous windbag, I hear. I don’t think he’d like to hear you tumbling through his tarantella just so you can get tarted up for your date.”

“Well, I’m sure you can pass my apologies to him personally the next time you two meet for your class reunion,” Mikleo said. He paused, and then huffed again. “And, like I said, I’m not going to dinner, and even if I was, it’s not a date.”

With that, Mikleo lifted his flute to his lips to begin again, and took a deep breath.

“Mikleo, come downstairs! Sorey’s here and dinner’s almost ready!” came Muse’s voice.

The deep breath came out as an agonizing shriek through the flute, and Edna gave a devious little grin, even as she rubbed at her ear.

“My, my. A bit early, isn’t he? Best that little Meebo scurry off and pop a breath mint before heading down.”

No, no, no, no. Oh, no. Oh, no, no, no, no. Mikleo wasn’t ready to face this. He never would be, and that was the whole point of him running off to the university library for the rest of his life. Would he be able to escape out his bedroom window? They were on the second floor, but maybe if Mikleo landed in a bush, or rigged a ladder from his bedsheets –

Muse opened the door to the study, smiling as if she wasn’t the warden leading Mikleo to his execution. Mikleo solemnly packed up his flute and papers, rose, and trudged after Edna as she serenely trotted out before him.

“Edna, this is Sorey, Maddy’s new sitter,” Muse said. Sorey smiled warmly, and offered his hand to shake. “Sorey, this is Mikleo and Maddy’s music tutor, Edna.”

“So this is the new nanny,” Edna said, delicately shaking Sorey’s hand with just her fingertips. “Both of the little scamps in this house just can’t stop talking about you.”

“Edna teaches me violin!” Maddy interjected loudly. She was furiously koala-hugging Sorey’s leg. “I like her because I’ll be taller than her soon!”

Edna’s eye twitched. Mikleo was not quite done with being furious at his sister yet, but he felt some affection resurface.

“That sounds like so much fun, Maddy,” said Sorey. “I used to play violin, too. I’d love to see what you’ve learned some time.”

Maddy beamed up at him adoringly. Mikleo was immediately put back on edge. What was she planning?

“Well, would love to stay and chat, but my ride’s here,” said Edna. She fetched her parasol and shoes, and opened the front door – a sleek black car with tinted windows idled outside, in a fashion that could only be called “looming”. Her chauffeur was also looming outside the passenger side of the car; Edna’s brother, a massive bear of a man who nonetheless jumped whenever Edna said jump, and waited around outside for hours when Edna said likewise. He wore a black tailored suit and sunglasses that likely cost more than Mikleo’s monthly school tuition. Mikleo had no idea where he got his money, but figured it was best he didn’t ever find out.

With Edna gone, it now fell to Mikleo to make his escape or face death. Death in the shape of a gorgeous guy who was great with kids, played violin, had pecs the size of Mikleo’s head, and…Mikleo peered down at the magazine clutched in Sorey’s hand. Sorey handed it over to him, almost embarrassed, for some reason.

“Sorry. I came in and saw some Archaeology Today journals on your coffee table. That article on our local university is great – I’d love to check out that online 3-D catalogue of cave paintings they’ve been compiling, if they ever make it available to the public.”

Mikleo knew about that catalogue. In fact, he had helped the graduate students code and compile some of it for college credit. In fact, Uncle Michael was in charge of the whole thing, and would be presenting it at the university’s summer symposium. He would also be announcing at the summer symposium that he would be making the whole catalogue free to the public, because “fuck your capitalist barriers to scientific advancement and fuck you”. Uncle Michael didn’t speak in public often but tended to cap off the speeches he did make with the same thing.

“I could show you the beta,” Mikleo blurted out, his fear of death overcome by the urge to show off a bit. “If you’re interested.”

Sorey’s eyes went wide, and a smile lit bright upon his face. If Mikleo thought before that he could outrun this crush, well, that was all over now.

It was a wonderful, magical evening. It was simply the only way to describe it. Once Maddy had shown off all her toys and her violin to Sorey, she quietly adhered to her bedtime; allowing Muse to carry her off to bed without complaint – and allowing Mikleo to produce his laptop, connect to the university database, and bask gloriously (and gaze adoringly) at the excitement radiating off of Sorey.

“This is going to revolutionize the field! It’s incredible, Mikleo! A full 3-D index of cave paintings across the world, available to the public – you’re so amazing to be involved with this, it must be so exciting--”

Truth be told, Uncle Michael and his graduate students had done most of the hardest work; flattering as it was, Sorey was really overestimating Mikleo’s involvement. Mikleo pushed up his glasses with his thumb and tried to will the redness from his cheeks.

“I mean…I helped with the rendering, and indexing, and the tagging system…compared to the others involved, it’s not much.”

Sorey turned around, that sunshine smile he’d been wearing for the past hour still plastered on his face. Oh, Mikleo’s heart was singing.

“That’s just as amazing,” Sorey said, confident in the statement. “I’ve always dreamed of doing something just like this…travelling across the world, sharing incredible things with the public, really showing everyone how exciting the world around them is…”

Do you want me to get the project lead down here?, Mikleo thought. He’s probably sitting on the floor of his study in sweatpants, eating gummi worms and sending inflammatory emails to the university’s professor listserv.

“I…we could use some more help. Not that I’m behind on my work,” Mikleo clarified. “But there’s still quite a lot of tagging to be done. It’s simple work even for someone not familiar with the subject matter--”

“Oh, I’m familiar with it,” Sorey said, cutting him off. “I recognize most of these. Had a cave painting phase after my dinosaur phase as a kid.”

Mikleo’s eyes narrowed.

“Well, I guess you’d be up to a challenge, then. I’ll get you your own login, and we’ll have a race to tag the rest of the database. Geographical location, time period, subject and medium.”

Sorey’s eyes sparkled. “You’re on. What’s the prize for the winner?”

“Loser takes the winner out for dinner,” Mikleo blurted out.

He couldn’t believe the words that had just tumbled their way out of his mouth. Mikleo felt his whole face redden; his ears and neck likewise. Sorey’s eyes went wide, and his mouth snapped shut. Oh god, Mikleo wanted to take the words back. Maybe Sorey would be willing to pretend he didn’t hear Mikleo trying to make things weird, and Mikleo could keep talking to him about archaeology, and history, and art, and music, and – and everything.

But the sunshine smile beamed forth once more, and Mikleo felt just about ready to float away.

“Sounds great.”

Upstairs, Maddy listened in on the proceedings on the walkie-talkie she had planted in the living room, and smiled a triumphant smile.

#sormik #sorey/mikleo #suremiku #soymilk #soremiku #tales of zestiria #i guess this is my personal tales of zestiria tag now #a tenderly crafted fanfiction

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mosylufanfic · 7 years

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The Permission Slip

Because @anghraine mentioned PTA AU, and her brain went one place and mine went another.

The Permission Slip

Jyn opened the door as quietly as possible and slid into the school library. Not that she really should have bothered with stealth. The big room echoed with chatter and laughter and suddenly, happy shrieking as something went pop!

She leaned her back against the wall, looking around. She vaguely remembered coming here on a long-ago Parent Night. At the time, the posters had been dusty and faded, the shelves looming, and the tables dirty. Not to mention a sour librarian who'd been quick to tell her that Lyra refused to stick to books at her grade level, and hadn't taken it well when Jyn had snapped back that maybe the librarian shouldn't be giving her kid boring-ass shit she didn't want to read.

Now it looked bright and warm, the tables all pushed together at one end, sunlight streaming in through the windows. The new librarian had been making changes. Impressive considering he split his time between here and the high school.

The top half of the shelves were empty, all the books moved down. She wondered where the rest of them had gone. Still, there were enough books to make her itchy. She'd kicked the dust of school off her Doc Martens ten years ago, and while she'd gotten her GED, she still wasn't a fan of scholastic environments in general.

Lyra, she reminded herself. She was here for Lyra. For Lyra, she’d walk over hot coals and swallow live scorpions and -

And take the afternoon off work to tell her kid’s school librarian a thing or two.

She examined one poster that said, "Join the Rebellion - Read!" with a picture of some cheesy sci-fi movie. Then she drifted over to study the certificates and photos mounted above the desk. The photos showed the same man, different ages, but always dressed in a cap and gown. The first one was the cheap plasticky gown that she remembered seeing in people's high-school graduation pictures. But they got progressively fancier until the last picture showed him in the heavy black gown and colorful hood of movie academics. She glanced at the diploma next to it. University of Arizona, Masters' of Library Science, it read.

She snorted.

He was pretty good-looking, though. When he smiled.

A couple of sharp claps brought her head around. At the tables, the older version of the man in the photos called out, "It's ten to five, ladies and gentleman, time to clean up!" He had a faint accent, an angle to the vowels and pressure on unexpected consonants. It was nice. "I want your wrappers in the trash, your crumbs swept up, and all your materials put away. Let's go, vamanos!"

Most of the teachers at Yavin K-8 were pretty casual, but he wore a button-down shirt with a tie. Who wore a tie anymore? And those shiny shoes. Jesus.

He looked around and his eyes met hers. His brows pulled together. "Can I help you, ma'am?"

"Mom!" A tiny rocket in a blue t-shirt burst out of the crowd of kids, sprinted across the library, and slammed square into Jyn's side.

Jyn wrapped her arms around her nine-year-old daughter. "Heya, stardust."

"Where's Bodhi?" Lyra Erso's face scrunched. "Is he having one of his bad days?" she said wisely.

After two tours in Afghanistan, their neighbor and his PTSD had a hard time holding down a steady job, but he could usually manage to look after Lyra until Jyn got home from work. Jyn thought they probably traded off looking after each other, but she still paid Bodhi Rook a little money every week. It was cheaper than daycare, it supplemented his disability checks, and it kept CPS off her back. Wins all around as far as she was concerned.

Jyn brushed her daughter's hair out of her eyes. "No, he's just fine. He had some appointments at the VA today. Remember? I told you I was going to come pick you up."

"Ohhhh yeahhhhhh," Lyra said.

"Ohhhhh yeahhhhh," Jyn mocked her gently.

Lyra twisted around, then peeled herself away from Jyn's side to jump up and down, as if to catch the attention of the man already walking over. "Mr. Andor, Mr. Andor! This is my mom."

She suddenly wanted to tug at the frayed cuffs of her flannel shirt and check her worn cargo pants for dirt. She stiffened her spine. If a woman in honest work clothes wasn't fancy enough for him, screw him and his shiny shoes.

"Yes, I see that, Lyra." He held out his hand. "Cassian Andor."

"Jyn Erso," she said, shaking it. His hand was warm, and more callused than she would have expected from someone who read books for a living.

"Have you come to see what we do in Science Club?"

"Actually, I came to speak to you about this." She rooted in her back pocket and pulled a many-folded piece of paper out, unfolding it so he could see what it was.

Of course, he knew what it was; he'd sent it home two weeks ago.

His eyes dropped to the paper. She thought he might have sighed, but it also might have been her imagination.

"Of course," he said. "I have to supervise cleanup and walk the kids out to the late bus. But after that, I'd be happy to hear your concerns, if you don't mind waiting."

"I got nothing but time," she said.

His brow quirked, as if he could hear the sarcasm she thought she'd buried.

He turned to her daughter. "Lyra, go clean up your spot, please," he said. Without protest she dashed off. "No running!" he called out and shook his head.

"Lost cause," Jyn said. "She came out running and hasn't stopped since."

He looked over his shoulder with something that might have been a smile or might just have been a grimace, and turned back to the kids. Wading back into the fray, he called out, "Poe Dameron, this is not the soccer pitch. You go walk and put that trash in the trash can."

A curly-headed boy looked up with a giant, face-splitting grin. "Aaaaahhh, Señor - "

The librarian said something stern-sounding in Spanish. Poe sighed deeply, but didn't seem abashed in the least. When he dropped a ball of trash into the can, Andor paused in the middle of pulling a tiny pink jacket right-side-out to nod to him.

Jyn noticed that the small acknowledgement made the boy beam as if he'd just been handed the World Cup. Apparently her kid wasn't the only one who thought Mr. Andor had hung the moon.

Feeling extraneous, she looked around and found a chair behind the desk. She settled herself into it, watching him herd children toward the door. Lyra came dashing over again. "Mom, you're in Mr. Andor's chair."

"It's all right, Lyra," Mr. Andor said. "You can stay here with your mom while I take the others out, okay?"

"Okay!"

"I'll see you in a bit." He nodded at Jyn, then reached out and tapped Poe Dameron's shoulder. The boy, who'd been half-draped on the desk staring at the graduation pictures, blinked and grinned again, then rushed to follow Mr. Andor to the front of the line.

Jyn watched the other kids pile out after the librarian, all chattering and giggling and shoving and wiggling and generally being kids. He moved along at the front of the line as calm and cool as a shark with a school of guppies on his tail.

She turned to her daughter. "So, kid, tell me, how was school today?"

Jyn listened to Lyra telling her all about Science Club's latest experiment, and the math test she'd aced, and the deadly dull Social Studies lesson, so dull she'd wanted to fall out of her chair and diiiiiiiiiie. "Oh, and Kyle was being a total jerk to Poe on the playground so I tripped him."

"Did anybody see you?"

"Nope! And Kyle will never admit that a girl took him down, so it was the perfect crime."

"Good work." Jyn held up her hand for a high-five.

Mr. Andor came back in, sans guppies. "Thank you for waiting, ladies," he said. He went behind the desk and pulled out a giant, heavy book with a shiny foil cover that read Guinness World Records. "Lyra, this just came in. Would you like to sit over there and review it for me?"

Her eyes widened, and she took it like she was handling the Ark of the Covenant. Without a glance at Jyn, she took it to the set of tables across the library.

Mr. Andor pulled over another chair and sat down. "Now. How can I help you?"

Jyn tapped the permission slip. It was a list of book titles and a short block of text at the bottom, telling her that she could choose to allow or deny her daughter the privilege of checking some or all of them out from the library. "Like I said. It's this. I'd like to know where you get off, sending something like this home."

He said smoothly, "Mrs. Erso - "

"Ms," she snapped. "Never married, don't care to be."

"Ms Erso," he said. "The books on this list are recent additions to the library." He waved his hand at a shelf behind them, lined with shiny-new volumes. "They are here for your review, if you choose. If you would rather Lyra not have access to them, all you have to do is sign the second line - "

"Lyra is getting access to every book on this list, and every book in this goddamn library. The ones you haven't managed to throw away." She glared narrow-eyed around her, the empty shelves suddenly sinister. "What is this bullshit?"

"We're in a school, Ms. Erso, please don't curse." He studied her. "You want her to read these? You know the topics?"

"Do I know the topic of this book?" She poked at one of the titles, which was It's Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health. "Uh, yeah, I think I can sound out all the words."

"It's just that all the parents who have already spoken to me would rather - "

"Listen, bub, attitudes like that are how Lyra got here. My foster parents told me all the contraception I needed was abstinence, and you see how that worked out for the two of us." She crossed her arms. "I wouldn't trade my kid in for all the gold in Fort Knox, but I also don't want her knocked up before she's legal to vote, like I was. Now maybe that's how you get your jollies, but locking information about her own damn body and how it works into a vault is the opposite of helpful. I don't know the stats - "

"I do," he said.

"Okay, so you know this stuff is basic as hell - "

"Ms. Erso, please - "

"My kid's heard worse and she's the only one here. This stuff is basic as hell. What happens when she wants to know about things you can't even bring yourself to buy a book for? Sex isn't a dirty word, Mr. Andor. In fact, done right it's a whole hell of a lot of fun. But I wouldn't expect you to know that."

He didn't rise to the challenge, at least not with words. But he shot her a single, sizzling glance that made every nerve in her body leap to attention.

Holy shit. A librarian should not be able to look at a woman like that.

While she was still trying to battle back her blush, he said, "As it happens, Ms. Erso, I agree. Every child in this school should have access to these books, to information about their body and their health." He tapped the paper. "This is bullshit."

She blinked at him.

"But this is the bullshit compromise I've managed to drag out of my principal after six months of fighting to be able to buy these books in the first place."

All she could think to say was, "You shouldn't have settled."

"Six months ago, I would have agreed. But would you like to hear some of the other things I'm fighting for?" Without waiting for her answer, he ticked them off on his fingers. "A budget that's not a wad of singles and a coupon to Borders. Permission for a special ESL collection at both schools. Weeding and updating two libraries that still had books about East and West Germany. Computers that aren't from the 20th century. And did I mention the budget? Of course I care about access to information. It's one of the things I care about the most. But right now, I've got to fight the battles I can win." His eyes dropped to the paper again. "Unfortunately, this, I have to count as a win."

She screwed up her mouth. "So your principal is the one I need to be raking over the coals."

"Principal Draven's not a bad man. He's fighting his own battles, is all. It was quite a concession he made, considering this whole thing might be a moot point next month."

"What does that mean?"

"I don't know if you've seen the agenda for the next school board meeting - "

"Hey, buddy, I'm a little busy working my ass off trying to keep food on the table and a roof over my kid's head. I don't have time to read every flyer and email that gets sent home."

"Even if you did, you might have missed it. They've been very quiet about the whole thing."

"What whole thing?"

"At the next meeting in three weeks, the school board is going to vote on an abstinence-only sex education policy for all the schools in Scarif County."

Her mouth fell open. "Fuck that noise!"

Across the library, Lyra looked up, her brows crinkled warily. She'd heard Jyn swear before, of course. Pretty much since birth. But she knew her mom's mad voice.

"It's okay, baby," Jyn called to her. "Just talking. Go back to your book."

Lyra, not actually stupid, looked at Cassian, who gave her a little nod. She went back to her book, shaking her head at the mysterious ways of grown-ups.

Jyn said, "How long have you known about this?"

"Since a faculty meeting at the high school last week."

"And? What are you doing about it?"

"There are some teachers besides me who object. There's one, Leia Organa - she teaches government and history, and oversees the debate team. She's working with her kids to speak at the meeting. But the parents are a harder sell. A lot of them think abstinence-only is the way to go. More so at this age." He waved a hand around the library. "And the ones that don't, well, they don't think they can win the fight."

She pressed her hand to her stomach. "So it's just going to happen."

"It's certainly not going to be brought down by a few teachers." He gave her a long, considering look. "What this really needs is a parent to speak up, and a whole lot of parents behind her."

"Oh," she said. "Wait. Uh-uh. You're not volunteering me for this."

"Why not? You had no problem getting in my face. You were even looking forward to spitting in the principal's eye. What's the problem staring down a school board?"

"It's different," she mumbled. "And it's not just that. You're talking about me going out and, like, inspiring people - I'm not inspirational, okay? I don't have a herd of Facebook mommy friends to whip into a frenzy. I go to work, I hang with my kid, sometimes I drink with my neighbor, and I go to sleep. That's my exciting life. I'm not a hero."

"Don't you know anybody who might be slightly concerned?"

She fiddled with a button on her shirt. "The whole school district is going to adopt this policy?"

"The whole school district. K through twelve."

"My bosses," she said slowly. "They have a foster son up at the high school. You might know him - Finn? Shit, I can never remember his last name. Good-looking black kid?"

"Junior? Transferred in at Christmas? Attached by the hand to Rey Skywalker?" When she nodded, he nodded too. "He's a good kid."

"Considering everything, he's a great kid. Anyway, his foster dads, Chirrut and Baze, they lived in San Francisco during the AIDS epidemic. You wanna talk some war stories. Not to mention, the way they're going, their son and Rey aren't going to stop at hands. They'd probably have something to say about sex ed."

"Okay," he said. "It's a start."

She rubbed her hand over her mouth. Oh, Christ. She was going to do this. How had he talked her into this?

"Do you think this can be done?" she asked him. "You think we can actually yell loud enough to keep this backwards, Puritanical garbage out?"

"I don't know," he admitted frankly. "There's a lot of support on the other side. Plenty of parents, and the big church in town - but I'll tell you what." He leaned forward a little. His hair fell over his forehead and he suddenly looked five years younger. "I like our chances better than I did half an hour ago."

She found herself smiling. He smiled back.

"I have to warn you," he said. "I don't have a lot of personal clout with the school board. Half of them think I'm overpaid and overqualified, and my contract is only for this year. I'm going to do my best work behind the scenes."

"I'll take that," she said. "I'll take whatever you got."

"You're welcome to it."

She found herself asking, "Would you like to come home with me?"

His eyes went wide. "I - uh - I don't think that - "

She squinted at him, then played back her own words and gulped. "Oh my god! I meant for a strategy session over mac and cheese, not - " She stole a glance at Lyra. She was still nose-deep in the book. Still, Jyn lowered her voice. "Not to play the beast with two backs while my kid is in the next room. What the hell do you think of me?"

"I have no idea what to think of you," he said. He'd gone red, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Join the club," she said. "They have t-shirts."

He snorted, very softly, in a way that was almost a laugh.

She rubbed her palms over the knees of her cargo pants. She suspected that she wouldn't have been half so embarrassed if the idea hadn't sounded quite so amazing. She wondered if that was why he'd reacted the way he had

"Look," she said. "You said you know the stats. You sound like you know the players, too. I don't know any of that. And I don't know where to start."

"And we only have three weeks."

"Exactly. So? Mac and cheese and plotting the downfall of the school board?"

"That sounds . . ." He nodded a couple of times, then met her eyes. "Yes. I would like that."

"Good," she said, scrawling her address on a scrap of paper and handing it to him. "Because that's all that's on offer." She looked at him through her lashes. "At the moment."

His eyebrows went up, and just when she thought he was going to poker up on her again, he grinned. It wasn't the triumphant smile of his graduation pictures, or the supportive smile of a few minutes ago, but something sly and sexy and - oh. Oh wow. She might be in over her head.

Her favorite place to be.

She went across the room to tug at her daughter's ponytail. "Hey, kid," she said. "Turn your book back in and grab your stuff. We're bugging out."

"Awww," Lyra said, but she shut the book and carried it to the desk. Cassian - when had she started thinking of him as Cassian? - waved at her from his office, where he was shutting down his computer and packing books and folders into a satchel.

Jyn felt heat touch her cheeks again as their eyes met, and she looked away first, glancing down at her daughter as she wrestled with her backpack.

"Hey, so, um. Mr. Andor's coming over for dinner. Is that going to be weird?"

"Wait, what? Really?" Lyra bounced with excitement, then stopped and peered up at her. "Why?"

"He's going to help me with - uh - with a project. Boring, grownup stuff."

"Do I have to help?"

Jyn ruffled her hair. "Not tonight. You focus on your homework."

Lyra flicked her bangs out of her eyes. "Are you going to start making trouble, Mom?"

"Probably."

She grinned. "Awesome."

"Seriously?"

"Bodhi says you've been cruising too long. He says everyone needs to cause trouble now and then."

She thought of the fight ahead of her, and found herself smiling. "Bodhi may not be wrong."

It took many, many strategy meetings, about a billion emails and phone calls, enough stats and studies to choke a horse, and even a few Saturdays going door to door. But the vote on abstinence-only in Scarif County was deferred twice and finally, definitively struck down in favor of a more comprehensive sex-ed program. Not perfect - what was? - but not as bad as simply telling kids not to do something they were going to do anyway.

After the third, victorious meeting, some said that they'd spotted the school librarian and the fiery parent that had led the charge against the proposal, making out against his car like a couple of horny teenagers.

Even if they were, Leia Organa said, so what? They were adults.

FINIS

#Cassian Andor #Jyn Erso #rebelcaptain #fanfiction #mosylufanfic lives up to her damn name #modern AU #in which I am even more of a freedom-of-speech nerd than usual #and trust me that's saying something #librarians FTW #star wars

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radiocultcontrol · 5 years

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She grew up in a small town much like the one she had ended up in. Where everyone knew everyone and gossip ran like a fire in the dry weeds. Though not everything was gossip, no just the elders did that, nothing better to do with their time. She had grown up in a very active home, her father a police officer for Fredericksburg, Virginia and her mother stationed at the Norfolk Naval Station. Days were long for this family, between each parent having fulltime demanding jobs and three children to care for, things became hard at times.

She was the eldest of the three, a younger brother and sister who accompanied her wherever she went. Whether it is to her school for daycare or out to the woods for her archery lessons. They were forever attached to her hips, well until they were old enough to be off on their own that is. While her parents were away she cared for them with the help of her maternal grandmother. A petite Italian woman who wasn’t all there at times, though she did teach the three to speak her native tongue and to cook and sew. The little red-head did most of the caring for. When her parents were home it was almost always separately, her mother being manly on base for her work didn’t help the distance. Though when her mother was home on leave she taught the young girl many things like how to play the guitar and how to navigate by the stars. She loved those moments with her mother very much.

Though it wasn’t always caregiving for the young girl. She learned many useful skills from her paternal uncle, like how to swear in Gaelic, but mainly how to hunt and skin animals. She relished in the time she spent out in the woods with her uncle and cousins.

When she grew old enough her father began taking her with him out on patrols. She fell in love with the idea of helping those around her, having always been a caring child she began to have a dream to follow in her father's footsteps. To become the best cop she could be. She would tell her father on many occasions how much she wanted to be just like him. It wasn’t enough to look exactly alike with the red hair and pale freckled skin. No, she wanted the uniform to match.

When she reached middle school she had begun to be very active in her school programs and sports. She joined a community outreach program that sent letters to veterans overseas and raised money for the Christmas Cop fund. This only solidified her dream of becoming a police officer. The feeling she got from doing these things for others lit a flame in her. She became more involved with her family and the community.

As she reached high school she joined the rugby team, learning to be a team player was all apart of her long term goals. Yet she hadn’t expected to find such a love for the sport, the roughness, swiftness, and cunning she had known from hunting gave her an edge on the field very quickly gaining the title of team captain. Her teammates fell by her side with the trust that she would lead them in the right direction toward state champions. When her team had won the sense of joy she had received was another fuel to the fire inside of her. The happiness of her teammates gave her a pride she would happily carry onto college and then onto the academy of her choosing.

Though things started to turn for the worst in college. She had fallen into the wrong crowd of friends for her goals. Her rugby scholarship wouldn’t be enough to save her from the turmoil she would go through. Drugs and alcohol became a persistent theme in her two years of college. Partying until the early light of the morning, missing practices and letting her team down. She ended up just barely passing and gaining an associate's degree at the tender age of twenty-one. She spent a year in remission and recovery as demanded by her parents.

Once she was finally clean for enough time she was permitted to join the local police academy after many, many tests. She was twenty-four at acceptance. After five long months, she had finally graduated in the top ten of her class. Being in the academy had given her fire another spitting chance, she had excelled in ways she hadn’t thought possible after her two-year hiccup and she began her career alongside her father.

She spent the next four years striving to become the best cop she could be just like what she had promised as a child. She had made many friends within her station, spending off nights at barbeques and family events. Special unit days at the local eateries and successfully helping in closing cases. But that all changed one fateful day.

During a drug raid, she had begged to be apart of the time she had with her father was gone in nothing more than a few minutes. Amidst a spill of baggies and used needles, she held her father in her arms as he bled from a bullet wound. The fluorescent lighting above burning into her memory as she tried to keep her limbs away from the sharp metal that lay around her, with contents unknown in their clear syringes. They hadn’t known, hadn’t suspected anyone to be armed and they all found out the hard way.

Her father passed as she held him in tears just a month before her twenty-eighth birthday. She mourned with her family, but she was lost without her hero. After he was buried she decided to pack up and leave. Telling her family in a tearful goodbye that she needed to find her fire again. She resigned from her station and left with the memories of her life in the back of her pickup.

She would spend two years on the roads around her, lost and afraid until she happened to find herself with a new purpose. A job posting she never thought she’d apply for, and never imagined she get. The new rookie deputy within the Hope County Sheriffs Department. There she would rekindle her fire, and find a family she would come to love just as much as her own blood. This was where she found her home.

#➵ 𝔸 ℙ𝕠𝕡 𝔸𝕟𝕕 𝔸 𝔹𝕒𝕟𝕘 {ℙ𝕚𝕡𝕖𝕣'𝕤 ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕣𝕒𝕔𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕊𝕥𝕦𝕕𝕪}#I revised a little of piper's background history #just making things more aligned in hopes it all makes sense #it got long #very long

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jimins-crooked-tooth · 7 years

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Apartment 504 — Chapter 3

Summary:

Mark eyed the glass in Jackson’s hand and hesitated. He didn’t know this man. The only time he’d ever talked to him was once when Jackson was intoxicated past the point of coherence, and once after both had returned home at the same time. This man was so loud, so sporadic, so unpredictable, and so unlike anyone Mark would ever want to be around.

But still, after a timid look into Jackson’s hopeful brown eyes, Mark met Jackson’s glass midway, the clink of glass and a shared smile between the two kicking off the start of the night.

More Chapters

[Chapter 1] [Chapter 2] [Chapter 3] [Chapter 4]