#holding myself accountable i will do this over the next couple weeks | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

fanfictionalraven · 2 months

Text

Reno - Before

Title: Reno - Before

Summary: What actually happened in Reno…

Characters: Reader, Dean Winchester, Reader’s father, Bobby Singer, John Winchester, Sam Winchester,

Word Count: 3,648

Warnings: Mild smut

Author’s Note: This story was originally posted by myself under the account Winchestersgirl92. It was published in 2017. Italics are flashback.

Read Reno here.

“Dad, come on!! I turn 18 in a week!!” You plead, following your father through the den of Bobby’s house. “I can handle myself!!” He sighs as he tosses his gun into his open bag. He turns to face you, gently placing his hands on your shoulders.

“I know you can, Y/N. But I promised your mom I wouldn’t take you out until you were 18. I didn’t get to keep a lot of the promises I made her, let me keep this one,” he says.

“Way to lay on the guilt trip, Dad,” you say, rolling your eyes. He smiles widely and kisses your forehead before turning back to his bag. You sigh, crossing your arms over your chest as you watch him. “Just be careful. You don’t even know this guy.” He lets out a laugh and glances back at you.

“No, but Bobby does and if Bobby trusts him then who am I to argue?” He asks. You frown and nod again, knowing he was right. Bobby had recommended this other hunter when your dad had called him about the case suggesting the two work together. The other hunter had two sons. One was apparently a couple of years older than you and would be going on the hunt as well while the other, a couple years younger than you, would be staying with you and Bobby. The old grump of a man you considered your uncle steps into the room then and smiles over at you.

“Why don’t you go out back and work on your birthday present? Give your old man a little peace,” he suggests. You stick your tongue out at him before turning for the back door. You hear Bobby and your dad laugh and you can’t help but smile as you make your way out to Bobby’s old salvage yard.

Pulling your hair up into a bun, you stride across the yard to the old Mustang waiting on you. You’d been in love with the old car for years and Bobby had made a deal with you. If you were able to get it running, it was all yours. You were close, you knew it. You’d pulled piece after piece from the other cars laying around and Frankensteined the engine back together. The only thing you were missing was a spark plug. One damn little spark plug was all you needed and your dream car would be complete. However, that seemed to be too much to ask.

“Need some help, darlin’?” An unfamiliar voice asks from behind you. You look back to find a young man making his way over to you. You frown at the smirk on his face and roll your eyes, looking back at the engine.

“No thanks,” you tell him. He stops next to you and you cut your eyes over at him. “Look, darlin’. I’ve built this engine myself. Just because I’m a woman –”

“Hey, whoa,” he says, raising his hands slightly. “I never said you couldn’t do it yourself. Just asked if you needed some help.” You watch him for a moment, trying to determine if he’s serious. The smile he’s giving you seems genuine, even if there is a trace of something in his eyes you can’t quite place.

“Sorry,” you mumble. “You one of Winchester’s boys?”

“Dean,” he introduces himself, holding his hand out. You place your hand in his and shake it briefly. “Guess that makes you Y/L/N’s daughter.”

“Y/N, yea. You’re the oldest, right?” You ask. He smiles and nods. “My father better come back alive.”

“Don’t worry, Sweetheart. We know what we’re doing,” he tells you, laughing lightly. You nod slightly, watching him, before you look back at the engine again. “You’re not coming?”

“Dad promised Mom I wouldn’t hunt until I was 18, which is a week from today but he’s not letting up,” you say, leaning in and tightening a bolt. “You wouldn’t happen to have a spark plug for a ’65 Mustang on hand, would you?” You ask, looking up at Dean. He laughs and you smile when he does, noting the way his face lights up.

“You know, I had one in my pocket just this morning and took it out,” he says. You laugh and shake your head, standing back up straight. “You telling me there ain’t one out here?”

“I have turned this yard upside down and I swear there is not a single spark plug left,” you tell him. He nods as he looks around. His eyes land back on you and you see that flash of something in his eyes again.

“Why don’t you buy one?” He asks. You sigh and pick up a rag, wiping your hands off.

“Bobby doesn’t want me to spend any money on it. Period. It’s my birthday present, I just have to get it running without spending a dime,” you tell him. Dean lets out a laugh and shakes his head.

“Sounds like Bobby,” he says. You smile a little and nod.

“Dean!! Come on, we’re getting ready to go,” a man calls from the back door of the house. You both look over and Dean nods, waving his hand slightly in acknowledgement. The two of you make your way back to the house and Dean holds the back door open for you.

“Y/N, this is my dad John and my little brother Sam,” he says, pointing to the other two men in the room. John barely acknowledges you but Sam gives you a smile which you return politely. Your dad holds his arms open and you rush into them quickly. He presses a quick kiss to your temple.

“Be careful,” you tell him, quietly. He nods, letting you go. He smiles at you as he throws his bag over his shoulder, following John towards the door. Dean comes over next to you and pats your shoulder.

“He’ll be fine. I promise,” he reassures you. You smile slightly and nod. He gives you a quick wink before running out the door with his father and yours.

Three days later, the three men return to Bobby’s a little beaten and a little sore but victorious. You’re surprised when you’re just as relieved to see Dean as you are your father. You’re in the middle of cleaning up a particularly nasty cut on Dean’s left calf when he pulls a small box from his pocket and holds it out for you. Without saying a word, you take the box and open it. You look up at Dean quickly and he winks. Breaking into a wide smile, you turn the contents of the box over into your hand. A spark plug.

“Dammit, Y/N!!” Dean groans through gritted teeth. You roll your eyes, swerving to miss another pothole.

“Stop being a baby, Dean. You’re acting like you’ve never been shot before,” you say, smirking over at him. He shoots you a glare.

“This ain’t Speed, Sweetheart. You don’t have to drive like a freakin’ maniac,” he says, looking at the wound on his shoulder. You glance at it too and hide your frown.

Of course you were worried. Dean was your best friend and the only thought scarier than losing him was the thought of losing your dad. The two of you had been working a case in Reno, a poltergeist terrorizing an abandoned hospital. It had left one teenager dead and another seriously injured. Turned out, the old hospital was also the hang out for a local gang who didn’t take too kindly to a couple of strangers on their turf. Dean’s shoulder had gotten clipped when he pushed you out of the way as you both ran from the building.

“Hey,” Dean says, seeing the concern on your face. “I’m good. I’ve had worse, you know that.” That same old something flashes in his eyes.

“I’m not worried about you. I’m worried about the upholstery you’re bleeding all over,” you lie as you pull into the parking lot of your motel. He lets out a laugh and shakes his head as you bring the car to a stop outside your room. You kill the engine and rush from your side of the car to his, reaching to help him as he gets out.

“I’m fine, Y/N. Just open the door,” he tells you. Rushing ahead of him, you unlock and push open the door, allowing him to walk in first. He sits on the edge of one of the beds as you start to dig through your bag. You find your hunter’s first aid kit, a needle, thread, and bandages, then grab the bottle of whiskey from the fridge.

“Do I need to cut that shirt off or can you strip?” You ask, walking over to him. He smirks up at you.

“Never knew you were into that, Y/N,” he says. You shoot a mock glare at him but can’t keep it up, breaking into a smile. He chuckles then starts to pull his good arm out of the shirt. It’s sticky with sweat and blood so you reach to help, pulling it over his head before carefully sliding it off his injured arm. He only winces once and you consider that a major success.

You carefully examine the damage as he takes a long drink from the bottle you’d brought. The bullet had entered his right shoulder and, thankfully, had gone straight through the soft tissue. There didn’t appear to be any bone or nerve damage. It was through-and-through so you wouldn’t be stuck digging a bullet out. A few stitches and Dean should be good as new.

You take the bottle from Dean and “sterilize” the wound earning a pained hiss from your patient. He takes another long drink from the bottle when you return it to him. Squinting, you carefully thread the needle. Dean takes a deep breath then nods, setting his jaw, and you steadily run the needle through his skin, closing up the wound. After the first few stitches, you catch Dean watching you, that something in his eyes once again.

“What?” You ask, watching your hand make another stitch.

“You’re cute when you’re focused,” he says. Your hand hesitates for a moment before continuing with its task. “The way you bite your lip like that-,” you release your bottom lip quickly, not even having realized you were biting it to begin with. “Kinda makes me wanna try.” Your hand slips and you look at him quickly. The look in his eyes sends a shock wave coursing through your body.

Over the past several years, Dean Winchester had looked at you in many ways. He’d looked at you in pride when you’d completed your first successful vampire kill. He’d looked at you in joy when you understood one of his dumb movie references. He’d looked at you in anger when you’d run off to crack a case on your own and nearly gotten killed. He’d looked at you in pain when Sam and John had their last big fight before Sam left for Stanford. He’d looked at you in sorrow when some idiot had broken your heart. He’d looked at you with that same, indescribable something he’d been looking at you with since the day you’d met. But never could you remember a time when Dean Winchester looked at you in pure, unadulterated lust.

Shaking your head, you manage to break eye contact with him and look back at his wound. You notice his eyes leave you as he attempts to pull himself together.

“Stop distracting me, idiot,” you say, trying to laugh off the sudden palpable tension in the air. Dean clears his throat as he looks around the room.

“Sorry I bled all over Roxy,” he says. You let out a laugh and shrug, moving to sit behind him on the bed.

“Payback for that time I bled all over Baby,” you tell him. Your hands quickly start to stitch up the exit wound on the back of his shoulder. Dean glances back at you, trying not to laugh.

“Yea, Dad was pretty pissed about that,” he says. You roll your eyes.

“Your dad is generally pretty pissed about anything that I do,” you say, looking up at him now. His green eyes are watching you and there it is again. Not the lust but the…something.

“He doesn’t like you,” he says plainly. You nod slightly. That was no surprise. You knew John Winchester didn’t like you. You didn’t know why but frankly you didn’t care. “Wanna know why?”

“Why?” You ask. Okay, maybe you cared a little bit. After all, he was your best friend’s father and you’d never done anything to offend him. Not that you could remember anyways. You set the needle and thread aside before picking up the bandaging.

“Says you’re a distraction,” he starts as you carefully wrap his shoulder. “Says I care about you too much and I’m gonna end up getting myself killed for you.”

“You keep trying to take a bullet for me and he’s gonna be right,” you tell him. You finish wrapping the wound and pat his shoulder gently before pushing yourself up from the bed. You feel his eyes on you as you walk across the room, stashing the supplies back in your bag. “You should go get cleaned up.” You hear him stand and make his way across the room. The bathroom door clicks closed and you let out a breath. “Pull yourself together,” you mumble.

It wasn’t the first time you’d seen Dean without his shirt on and to be honest he’d seen you nearly naked before as well. However, it was the first time he’d looked at you like he wanted to rip your clothes off piece by piece. The look in his eyes had left you shaken. Of course you found him attractive, you weren’t blind. But you’d never cross that line for many reasons. Firstly, he was your best friend. You couldn’t stand the thought of jeopardizing the relationship you had with him. But most importantly, you were hunters and hunters couldn’t have relationships, period. Your parents had both been hunters and your mother died trying to protect your father. Dean was already taking bullets for you, you shudder to think what would happen if you were a couple.

“You gonna ask me what I told him?” Dean asks suddenly. You jump, startled, and spin to face him.

“You keep sneaking up on me like that and you’re gonna get shot again,” you tell him. He’s standing just outside the bathroom door, still without a shirt. The blood that had obscured his chest was now gone leaving you with a perfect view of him.

“Well?” He asks. You look at him, confused. “Are you going to ask me what I told Dad or not?” You roll your eyes and sit down on the edge of the bed before starting to take your boots and socks off.

“I imagine you told him that he was right and you should never see me again. That I am a terrible hunter and distraction whose ass you are constantly having to save,” you say, smirking at him slightly. He breaths a laugh then walks over and squats down in front of you. He takes your hands in his and you watch him, curiously. “Dean?” He looks up and…something.

“I told him I was gonna marry you,” he says like it was the most natural thing in the world. You feel your eyes widen and your heart jump into your throat before it quits beating altogether. “I told him that meeting you was the best thing that had ever happened to me. That I don’t care about anybody the way I care about you.” You’re still staring at him, waiting for the punch line. This was obviously a joke; a really cruel joke that you were going to kick his ass for later, but a joke nonetheless. He’s waiting too, waiting for you to say something. You shake your head slightly, trying to gather your thoughts.

“Wh – what are you saying?” You ask him. He looks down at your hands, still held firmly in his.

“I’m saying…we’re in Reno, Nevada. There’s a chapel right across the street. You’re my best friend. Let’s get married,” he says, looking up into your eyes again. And then you do the only thing you can think to do. You kiss him.

You’d imagined this very moment so many times and yet your wildest fantasies could never have prepared you. His lips are soft against yours, just slightly chapped. Dean lets your hands go and slides one of his into your hair as his mouth starts to move against yours. Your hands find his neck, your nails gently scraping at the edge of his hair. You lay back on the bed, pulling him with you. His lips leave yours eliciting a whimper from you at the loss. He chuckles and moves to your neck, kissing, nipping, and gently sucking.

The two of you work in unison, inching slowly up the bed together until your head finds the pillows. Dean’s fingers slip under the edge of the Zeppelin shirt you’d stolen from him. They barely graze your skin before he starts to push it off of you, forcing you to raise up off the mattress slightly. Once your shirt is removed, one of his hands comes to the small of your back, supporting you, while the other works quickly to unhook your bra. He tosses it and lets you fall back onto the pillows.

His eyes meet yours and he holds your gaze as he slowly descends on one of your breasts. You gasp, arching up into him as his mouth works over your nipple. His hand gently kneads your other breast and you’re nearly breathless. He switches after a moment, his eyes never leaving your face. You groan when he nips at the skin and push back on his shoulders, gently.

“You have to stop that,” you tell him. He laughs lightly then comes back up to your lips, kissing you fervently. Your hands slide down his torso and you make quick work of his belt and the button on his jeans. You hear his boots hit the floor just seconds before you manage to get his zipper undone. A few shimmies of his hips and his pants are off. Your hand slips into the front of his boxers and he grunts, his hips bucking instinctively.

“No, no, no. Ladies first, Sweetheart,” he says, sitting up out of your reach. You smile and watch as he slowly, tortuously unbuttons your jeans. You raise your hips and he pulls them down with your underwear in one motion. You feel a heatwave roll through your body as his eyes rake over your naked frame slowly. His eyes meet yours as he climbs back over you and there it is again. Something.

4:13 AM

Time was passing slowly. You knew because you’d watched every minute tick by for the last two hours. Dean had been softly snoring next to you for nearly that entire time, his arm draped across your waist. You were still trying to figure out what had happened. One minute you had been cleaning Dean’s wound the next he was proposing to you. Nothing made any sense.

4:14 AM

You hadn’t exactly given him an answer but you were sure he was probably going to take you kissing him like that as a yes. And, God, did you want to tell him yes. Of course you wanted to marry Dean. He was your best friend and had been for years now. You knew exactly how you felt about him and now you could guess how he felt about you.

4:15 AM

John’s words echoed in your mind. Dean was going to get himself killed for you. You knew it was true. It had been true before any of tonight’s events had taken place. Hell, he’d taken that bullet for you earlier and it wasn’t even the first time. The thought of losing Dean by choice hurt; but, the thought of losing him by death hurt a hell of a lot worse.

4:16 AM

You feel Dean stir behind you and you freeze. He moves closer to you, pressing his still naked body against yours. His snoring resumes and you sigh. This wasn’t going to be easy. It was probably going to be the hardest thing you’d ever have to do. But you needed to be sure that Dean stayed alive and if that meant you couldn’t be in the picture any longer, then so be it.

4:17 AM

You raise his arm up carefully and slip out from under it, replacing your body with a pillow. Quickly and quietly, you make your way around the room, gathering up your clothes. You watch Dean as you get dressed without making a sound. Your boots you leave off so you can slip out the door noiselessly. You steal one last look at the man sleeping in the motel room bed and…

4:18 AM

You walk out of the room, leaving him in your past.

As you get into the car, you catch sight of the wedding chapel across the street that he’d mentioned. For a moment, you can see it. You can see yourself walking down the aisle. You can see Dean smiling at you, willing himself not to cry. You can see the two of you reciting vows and exchanging rings. You can see him carrying you out of the chapel and back across the street for a quick honeymoon. You can see a house and a picket fence. You can see Dean gently caressing your pregnant belly with that same something in his eyes. And in that moment, for the first time in six years, it occurs to you.

Was that something…love?

Read Reno - After here.

#fanfic #fanfiction #reader insert #supernatural #spn #dean x y/n #dean x you #dean x reader #dean winchester #sam winchester #bobby singer #john winchester

93 notes · View notes

bigwishes · 1 year

Note

Hey man I got a wish, but not for me. My best friend is pretty small and nerdy and gets picked on by the powerlifters for it. They always say he's so small and boyish it makes me mad! I wish that he'd be able to take their strength and manliness and become the massive hairy athlete they wished they could be! But could you make him not realize it until those jocks are all drained? I want them to realize though to show them actions have consequences.

Sure we could go and do that for your friend. As far as I can tell there are 3 major bullies were dealing with here, there are a couple more but 3 main guys we can use to set an example. So why don't we get started with seeing your mate at the gym. I see your mate is a real twunk, not skinny enough to be a twink, not enough much to be a hunk, well that's all about to change. He hasn't even started lifting yet and already Trev is walking over to say hello, well you know what I mean by hello.

"Oi what up itty biddy?" Trev laughed placing his big meaty paw of a hand on your mate's shoulder

Instantly something was wrong as Trev tried to pull his hand away but couldn't.

"Alright Trev, fuck off let go" "I, I'm tryin tiny, I can't" The muscles in Trev's whole arm began to pulse and shake as veins enraged and enlarged looking like thick ropes. The movement of the muscles looked like a pumping motion headed towards his hand. Trev's body began to shrink and with each passing second he was looking less like a "big Trev" and more like some middle ages accountant. At the same time your buddy's body began to enlarge as the muscles all over his body began to inflate, but not all of the muscle from Trev flooded into your friend, some seemed to be lost in the transfer. Trev was finally able to let go, he was left standing there holding onto his clothes so they don't fall down on his tiny hairy body.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME" Trev screamed "I dunno Trev could you piss off so I can work out please"

Trev scrambled away like a rat and left your friend to his weights.

There we go, your buddy is looking much larger now, massive and strong. To the average bloke this would be a fantastic body but we aren't done just yet.

Next up we got Teddy, a guy just as big as Trev is...or rather was anyway, can't wait to see what happens to your buddy next.

"Surely that can't be you itty biddy? Its only been a week since I last saw you" "Stop calling me that shit teddy, Im tryin to work on myself, get bigger" "Well it looks like you already got bigger mate, what you on?" "Fuck off Teddy. I'm gonna get big the natural way"

Well, your friend is gonna get big in a (super)natural way. Teddy walked off to lift his own weights but he could still be seen in the corner of the gym, just in eye sight of your mate. Teddy struggled to lift his warm up weights, he was sweating bullets after just 2 reps and with every rep his body got smaller and smaller whilst you mate got bigger and bigger.

Your friend is looking ultra swole now, You can see his body begin to get tight and struggle to move with the moment he used to have, but your buddy has no idea what is going on. Lastly we have Greg, over by racks about to do the best deadlift of his life. His enormous muscled frame bent down, grabbed the bar and threw it above his head as light as a feather. As the bar passed over his body in swiped away all the strong muscle leaving skin and bones, like some magical form of a real life magnetic sketch pad eraser had been used on Gregs muscles leaving a blank slate. By the time the bar reached the top he had transformed into an inflatable strongman's toy a kid would buy at the fair.

Your friend finally saw what had happened to him in the mirror of the gyms, he smiled feeling his biceps, his pecs, he was slightly bigger than his perfect size but no one would make fun of him in the gym again, and then along came Greg's muscles.

Your buddy felt his body become tight, his skin groaned as it and the muscles beneath it expanded. He ripped off his shirt or rather obliterated it to free himself from the constricting pressure. He watched as his new defined six pack started to bubble and swell outwards into a huge roided gut. His shoulders traps and pecs began to swell up around his neck and his lost more mobility of his body with each passing second.

His enormous body continued to swell each second forcing him to get bigger and bigger. Sweat began to run down from his pits and down his sides, sweat from his neck and chest ran down his pecs and around his massive roided bloat. He groaned feeling his roid gut become tighter as more and more muscle was packed on. The three bullies began to lose all their body hair as it sprouted over your mates body. his pits were full of hair and musk and a grand stink stuck to him like glue. A puddle of sweat had formed under his ridiculous frame.

"WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED TO ME" you mate yelled before he had a chance to assess his body that consisted of the muscle of 3 seasoned powerlifters along with all the muscle the 3 of them still would have earned in a few years, people began to notice him, some even began to giggle and laugh at how his muscled ass had began to split his gym shorts.

Your friend began to move as fast as he could, waddling out of the gym leaving a river of sweat behind him.

---

Well there you have it mate, no one is gonna laugh at him for being small ever again, but he's probably got a few new worries other than being embarrassed at the gym. You are such a great friend wishing to give your friend a perfectly massive body like this, maybe I should reward you and make you twice as big for being so generous... Who would complain having their muscles blown up like that, I know I wouldn't.

#male transformation #muscle #muscle transformation #male tf #reality change #tf story #gay transformation #muscle morph #transformation

336 notes · View notes

theycallmebecca · 9 months

Text

Drabble: Smooth Hips Turner Gets Caught

Here is the promised follow up to my drabble Smooth Hips Turner. I did a poll a couple weeks ago to determine what the plot should be and almost half of the votes were for her brother to find out about them dating.

I'm not a drama writer... I'm a romantic comedy writer... so I had some fun.

I'm also checking off a couple squares on my @the-slumberparty bingo card: Sports AU and Night Club.

Title: Smooth Hips Turner Gets Caught

Pairing: hockey player!Cole Turner x female reader

Rating: PG-13

Warnings: language

Disclaimer: This work of fiction is not to be reposted, used or translated without my permission.

Usage Disclaimer: This work is for fans only. This author does not give permission for it to be shared, spoken of, referred to in any public manner (podcast, tv, online, etc.) that wants to either make a celebrity uncomfortable, mock fan fiction/fandom in any way, or the author themselves. Requests can be made, but it is unlikely the author will change their mind. If no response is given to a request then the answer is a solid no, not interested and the work cannot be shared, spoken of or even referred to, regardless of the manner or context.

IS SMOOTH HIPS TURNER IS OFF THE MARKET?? The superstar goalie was seen canoodling at a local club with an unknown female while out with friends over the weekend. Our body language expert looked at the photos and said the relationship looks serious and predicts that there will be wedding bells in the off season for the pro.

"Fuck," Cole cursed as he looked at the social media post.

"All my social media accounts were already private," you reminded him. "And I changed all my profile pictures to the beach as soon as I saw that post."

"Someone will recognize you though and sell your name and any dirt they have on you to the tabloids," he sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Fuck. Your brother."

"Excuse me?" you asked with a laugh.

"Not literally fuck your brother," Cole replied with a grin. "But fuck, I wanted to tell your brother myself. But if he sees those photos, he's going to know."

Before you could respond, Cole's phone dinged and he glanced down at it, his eyes going wide as he looked at the message. Swallowing, he turned it towards you so you could see the message that had come in from your brother.

YOU'RE SLEEPING WITH MY SISTER????

CALL ME THE FUCK RIGHT NOW!

"I'll call him," you offered. "And I'll tell him to mind his own fucking business."

"No," Cole said, shaking his head. "I have to do this. I should have done it before now."

"You aren't having this conversation without me," you told him. "I get that he is your best friend, but he's my brother. And I get that he's my brother, but you're my boyfriend. You are not excluding me from this!"

"Alright, alright," Cole said, holding up his hands. "I'll call him now."

He sat down next to you on the couch and chose to video call your brother.

You weren't sure what to expect when your brother answered, but based on his text to Cole you weren't expecting the shit eating grin you got.

"Turner. Sis." He greeted you both. Then, to Cole, said, "So you finally grew a pair and asked her out, huh?"

It took a second for you and Cole to figure out what he meant by that but you started laughing while Cole just stared back at him in shock.

"Oh don't pretend to be shocked I knew," your brother told him. "You were fucking obvious, man. It was a relief when she went away to school because you weren't distracted all the time if she was home."

"You knew the whole time?" Cole asked, dumbfounded. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"Uh, because it was my sister," your brother replied. "I wasn't going to encourage that when you didn't stand a chance with her. And after, well you lived in two different places and lived very different lives."

"So you aren't mad?" you asked him.

"That you guys are dating? Absolutely not," he replied. "I am annoyed that I found out from the fucking internet though!"

"It's not how we wanted you to find out," Cole said. "I was going to talk to you next week when my team was in town."

"You were?" you said, looking at Cole.

"I was," he replied, looking back at you.

Smiling, you leaned in and kissed him.

"OH YUCK! GROSS!" your brother complained. "Just because I'm ok with it doesn't mean I want to see it!"

"Say bye to your brother," Cole told you, pulling his lips away from yours.

"Bye, butt head," you called.

Your brother was still protesting when Cole ended the call and dropped the phone onto the floor.

#navy and roo sleepover #theycallmebecca #theycallmebeccawrites #Cole Turner #Cole Turner fanfiction #Cole Turner fanfic #Cole Turner fan fiction #Cole Turner x you #Cole Turner x female reader #Cole Turner x y/n #becca writes drabbles

55 notes · View notes

bengiyo · 11 months

Text

La Pluie: Thoughts on the Queer Subtext and More Patts Reflections

It feels a bit weird to begin this post talking about the queer subtext in a show full of men kissing each other, and implied sapphic love. Still, I have thoughts about Warun and Yad, and how their relationship represents a break with traditionalism as well. There are many articles and historical analyses about the “surge” in divorce in America once it became legal for women, and especially for women to have their own bank accounts. I personally don’t think traditions are useful at the point where they continue to harm people asked to uphold them. Yad and Warun also seem to be reconciling that reality for themselves.

Warun and Yad

I posited in Episode 5 that Warun might be queer based on my read of his mannerisms. I think that read holds even through Episode 11, but I think it’s good for the show not to confirm his queerness in any way. Because this show has not had any form of overt homophobia, it would confuse any of the previous messaging to make his queerness text. However, his line, “I can’t change myself,” reads so loudly as queer to me that I can’t let it go.

With Yad and Warun, we had two people come together and form a soulmate marriage and successfully raise four children together. However, they ran into the kinds of problems many couples do, principally over work and family time. What fascinates me is that Yad is the primary breadwinner for their family. She is becoming a powerful tech executive and doesn’t want to forego her career because of the goals she has for her family. Is she not supposed to provide the best financial outcomes for her children?

Warun has become the primary caregiver, and he worries that the boys are not getting the connection with their mom that both she and they need. As I watched their fight, I thought about Nagisa in his (2020) and his fight with his wife, who was also the primary breadwinner of their couple as well. Eventually, they realized they couldn’t be the partners they wanted to be to each other and separated. I think, because Warun was the caregiver, he didn’t want to feel like he let his boys down and ended up giving Tai a huge complex.

I think it’s extremely lovely of this show to show that Warun and Yad were better once they separated from each other and let go of the idea that they’re supposed to be married forever because of their rain connection. (@liyazaki) I love that they still find meaning and connection in their rain connection and hold it significantly between them. I love that Nu is completely unbothered by their connection, and only wants to find his place in this family.

Tai

Oh, Tai. This was not a great week for him. Despite showing some wisdom with Lomfon, and reconciling with his brother, he continues to hold onto this false notion of love.

I will say this plainly. I think Tai has been an asshole for the last two episodes, and it was time for the narrative to gently, but firmly, pull his head out of his ass. He has punished everyone in his life because he’s mad at his parents, refusing to form any meaningful relationships with many people because he’s not allowing himself the complexities of human connection.

I am glad that he was forced to confront the chip he carries around on his shoulder and recognize that his parents faced a terrible internal struggle. He needed to see that it was unfair of him to punish them for dealing with something that difficult. I also think it’s useful for him, with all of the mess he’s created, to have the support of his closest brother.

Now, he’s got to make things right with Patts, but he doesn’t have the benefits of the rain connection to find him. I’m eager to see that boy run around and do the goddamn work required to be in a long-term relationship with someone next week.

Tai is learning the hardest lesson we learn as queer people: the rules and traditional expectations of relationships don’t fit for us. We have to figure out our relationships ourselves and do the work.

Patts

You know I was going to defend my boy!

I think it was excellent of the show to have Patts go to Tai and see him being chummy with Longfon. Though I think Patts’s friends were wrong about him needing to go reconcile with Saengtai, Patts isn’t the kind of person to just let his problems fester. It’s not in his nature. He must go to him. He has to see Tai talking to Lomfon and misunderstanding it so that he makes the only reasonable choice and attempt to move on. I love Patts. He will always try to do the right thing even if it hurts.

My man ugly cried next to a window as his friends held him because he’s done everything he possibly could and it still wasn’t enough. He asked last week and I’m still asking, “Why is it so hard to choose me?”

Reading Patts as bisexual, I like the choice for him to walk away at this point because it’s exactly what he told Saengtai. Tai said he wanted Patts to see his actions over any words he won’t speak. I don’t care that Tai was clearly trying to fix things for Tien. If he was going to fix any relationships, he needed to go to Patts first.

On to the Finale!

I may be limited in my commentary next week since I’ll be busy, but I am genuinely excited about this finale. Tai is finally being forced to grow up and stop waiting for love to fall into his lap. I’m ready to see that boy Japanese BL Run for his love.

Tagging @lurkingshan, @neuroticbookworm, and @wen-kexing-apologist for chatting with me while I got these thoughts out.

#la pluie #la pluie meta #ben writes

69 notes · View notes

tiredly101 · 1 year

Text

Latino flavor (400+ Follower’s Special)

Pairing: Striker Human!Wally Darling x Goalie latino!Male Reader / Human Goalie!Howdy Pillar x Defense!Gepeto Verinechi

Human Soccer Au, We fucking made it to 400+ in my account and so here is the fic that has been sitting in my drafts for weeks-! I’m a latino myself so I enjoyed writing this and yes my first language is Spanish sooo enjoy! Don't know where the hell y'all came from but I don't mind one bit! Picture isn't mine btw

Wally loved watching M/n's futbol games, loves the way his eyes would just glaze a darker shade of color in determination, loves the way he could go from standing normally to throwing himself on the ground and stopping almost every ball from entering the net, loves how in each game you would cross your arms and with both hands do a sign to which recognized him for and he mostly loves the way the crowd cheers everytime M/n enters the field.

Sure Wally Darling is a striker, the one of the opposite team M/n played for but he couldn't help but crush over him. After all no one but M/n could stop his goals and he loves seeing that soft smile he gives Wally everytime he does as if saying "Next time?"; Even though it wasn't smug, of anything it was encouraging and because of that he put more effort. M/n still blocked any, if not all, of his goals.

They had a game, Welcome Home 9 and Hidden Pictures 13, it was a nerve wrecking game but Hidden Pictures managed to pull up. Wally knew that M/n was tired from only his pose and that is the only reason he managed to score so many goals long side his teammates but then, Gepeto, their striker started gosling the living hell of their goalie, Howdy, and slowly the score ended like that.

The stadium was on fire by the end of the game, tears flowing down their face at the winning of Hidden Pictures and Wally couldn’t help but smile at M/n doing his signature cheer.

“Good game,” said M/n in the locker room while patting Wally in the back who blushed softly at the contact. Wally’s eyes traveled until they landed on Howdy and Gepeto blushing softly while holding hands, big smiles on their face.

Gepeto was an amazing defense while Howdy was a great goalie and they made the most adorable couple. Wally’s eyes went to M/n’s figure; he wanted with M/n what Howdy had with Gepeto, he wanted M/n. M/n finished changing into some fitted jeans shorts and a loose merch shirt of Wally’s team and he walked towards M/n in a shy manner.

“Hey M/n, I had a question to make you,” said Wally making M/n smile while turning his way. M/n smiled softly while turning around to meet with Wally’s blue eyes and Wally smiled weakly, already feeling how his legs were aching from being up for so long and M/n’s tights were burning from all the bruises that were being formed while he looked at Wally but neither seemed to care.

“So I was thinking that we could, maybe, if you’ll like, go out with me, perhaps in tomorrow?,” said Wally while fiddling with his hands and M/n smiled while lifting up Wally’s face with his hand and before Wally could question it he pressed a feather light kiss on his cheek.

“Me encantaría ir en una cita contigo Darling…” Wally has never being happier of knowing spanish in his whole life

I loved writing this and I’m willing to write a second part for it but let me know if you’ll like a second part!

#Welcome Home #wally darling x reader #wally darling x male reader #Howdy pillar x oc #howdy pillar x gepeto verinechi #tiredly sammy writes

104 notes · View notes

boxwinebaddie · 3 days

Note

hi uncle nina! sorry if this is kinda overbearing, but you havent posted anything today so i just wanna check in and make sure youre doing okay! <3

oh my god, sweetheart!!! this is not overbearing AT ALL! this is extremely thoughtful and makes me feel extremely validated. <3

i'm sorry for causing concern, but ty for being concerned about me.

because the school year is coming to a close, things around me at work have been pretty intense, so i've been tossed around like a ragdoll the past week and haven't had much time to write as a result. i also haven't been sleeping very well and rush a lot in the mornings, so i've forgotten to take my mood stabilizer the past couple of days which makes me v sluggish, zombie-ish and unpleasant in general. :/

...when i am like that, as a weird way of sparing you, i suppose, i try not to post on here too much because it feels quite shitty indeed for you to get a notification for my blog just to watch me bitch n moan.

however, i have taken my medication today and feel bad for fumbling kyle week...as we know i'm not really good at holding myself accountable or making deadlines. oddly enough, it's not that i don't want to answer my questions, it's just that other than not being able to really find the time recently, i just can't find the right...words?

( this ask is long and irrelevant, but read if you wish. ilysm. )

or, rather, i don't feel knowledgeable enough the subjects to answer? specifically in the areas of my tsot/tfbw styles and ncuniverses, i feel a little insecure because i don't know sp or the games as well as many other people do, so i'm trying to speed watch episodes/watch speed runs of the games online so i can at least keep some canon intact?

i also am finding that creating and understanding how high fantasy universes work is...difficult? lmao? also because i did crazy stuff with mutations and science and politics in my tfbw ncuniverse, that's also complicated and out of my wheelhouse...tldr: i have big ideas, but i'm not very good at backing them in fact or doing analytical stuff.

but...iiiiii need to, lmao. mental illness, but if i make a universe it has to be fully realized, it has to all make as much sense as possible, echo the canon, enhance it, feel real and be fluid...so if i'm not around too much it's because i'm trying to bolster myself with my sp knowledge ( ik, i'm a fake fan ) and watch/read/research high fantasy concepts and superhero/scientific fiction/dystopian stuff...so if anyone has any recommendations for me to watch or learn from in those realms, i'd appreciate it. again, this is intense...but i care a lot about my craft.

and specifically crafting something worthy of all of you, that makes sense, lives and breathes, reflects the show we love & is interesting.

ANYWAYS!!!! with that said, i got a cool ask about whether or not i have a gunslinger kyle? which? not yet? BUT YOU'RE A GENIUS BABY I AM SOOOOO ON IT!!! please let me cook and watch some things because actually, oh my god, i am very down. i'll update you. i might make a board to gather ideas, omg, omg, it'll be SPICY.

i got an ask about princess kylie, which, bless you, i am also still developing her character, i am going to pour over the books, watch some GOT, do some mapping out, watch some intricate dnd play throughs...and have some answers for you very soon: hang on, baby.

( she's little, bitchy, prissy and does need to be babysat, i'm afraid. )

got some on jersey i'm excited about! sorry for writing that ask meme about the sour skittles like that, again, writing has been trying for me lately and i had a concept that i wanted to share but wasn't sure how to express that. if you guys are alright with getting my asks in the form of notes some times i would appreciate it! anyways, keep your eyes out for some of those...if kyle week runs into next week, sorry.

idk...this is so long. all this to say...i'm really sorry? i haven't been a very solid creator lately, but i'm a little unstable rn. but i am working on it and i hope to be back on the horse by tonight and share my notes at least and show you guys how my brain is working.

in the mean time, please direct as many questions as you would like in the direction of riley, teri and ana who not only are epic writers but have been an epic support system/helping me get back into things.

thank you for caring, thank you for reading...keeping up with this blog and the questions and creating constantly is sometimes challenging, but very rewarding. i promise that i am not neglecting my asks or all of you because i don't care, its actually because i care very much and only want to give you stuff that is awesome and cool and well researched. so, again, just give me a second to get my barings and while it kind of eats at my bad bpd brain i might try and share stuff with you guys that's half baked because the feedback might help.

tldr: i love you, this made no sense, i'm a mess, but i am fine.

miss you and love you. happy kyle week.

-uncle nina

#sorry this is such a mess #tldr i am busy and a little unstable and my writing has been blah but i'm very into intense world building rn #and i want to do more research and figure stuff out before i try to randomly dish out answers #but i'm thinking now that maybe i should just tell yall what i'm thinking and see how you feel? idk #i do work hard on my character stuff so i hope u enjoy it #but yeah high fantasy is specifically hard for me so i'm watchin movies and reading books and stuff which is dorky #accuracy means a lot to me and its the only way i get relaxed when i feel comfortable in my characters and worlds #political stuff and sciencey stuff is also hard #i also dont even know how accurate that is to the tfbw plotline in actual sp so im trying to watch the show and play #the games idk im worried none of this is canon enough #bc i dont want it to all be fart jokes and asisnine but i do want them to be accurate to the show at least a little #nina stop bastardizing the sp canon #otherwise i am excited to answer my kyle questions i promise i have just been frazzled ill try to do stuff tonight #thanks for sticking with me and i really hope this makes sense i feel like i sound crazy i just...want to do good work #thats all i dont like to do work that feels shitty or lazy and in order to not do that i take a while to think

7 notes · View notes

fascinationuniformed · 8 months

Text

On why I have slowed down, and plans for the future

Oh, hey. Look at that. I have been so focused on my day job (more on that later) that I hadn't even realised Patreon changed layouts and UI. Neat. I hate it.

Okay, so. To the point.

As you may or may not know, my day job involves running a small design business. Over the last couple of years, I was able to juggle the workload of this business and all my other projects such as Fascination Uniformed and others quite well.

However, a good problem has reared its head. Since my dad passed away in February, I found myself increasingly busy. Not just "oh, I am busy, but can draw some more in the evening" but more like "I need to work longer, at all hours, all the time" and I am constantly playing catch up. Part of it is learning to deal with the good news of doing better with the business, the other is... well, dealing with my own mental health. The passing of my father has made me less capabale at keeping too much information in my head as it used to be the case, and now I am having to learn entirely new systems to hold myself responsible, accountable, and happy.

So, Fascination Uniformed has suffered. My other projects have suffered. Hell, my garden has suffered too.

So, what am I doing to correct this?

First of all, on top of my day-to-day and the process of buying a house (wahoo for me), I am doing an audit of all ongoing, present, future, and required tasks. My day job takes priority, but I am also trying to organise my other projects.

I have always been unwilling to use "productivity software" of any kind because I hate the UIs and I often find that they are more work than keeping stuff on a whiteboard. However... I may need this now, to be honest. So I welcome options.

I am hoping that by the end of the week I'll have a sort of plan.

What does it mean for Patreon and Fascination Uniformed?

First of all, I am finishing or starting a lot of the promised sketches and commissions. Once that is out of the way, then I'll start thinking about developing my own website and an alternative system of patronage. While Patreon has served me well, I am starting to smell the same shite that has made Twitter, Deviantart and other platforms very hard to work with. So, come next year, I will have some sort of website that will house galleries of all my work, but will allow you to do donations as of when. I think I would rather you do that, than for something like Patreon to continue to get worse and worse. Early stages, early ideas. Once I have some, I'll ask your opinion first and foremost.

So, yeah. I am sorry I haven't got any art for you at the moment. But, if you've been following me a while, you know that I go through periods of over production and periods of drought.

The good times will return. Until then, I appreciate your attention, your patience, and your support.

#blog #update

23 notes · View notes

scholastic-dragon · 2 years

Text

Flufftober Day 14: 20 questions

Male!Werewolf (Henry) x Fem!reader

Word Count: 8k (I didn’t mean to make it thing long I couldn’t stop myself)

Warnings: I have no idea what type of job the reader has in this fic, it's like in romcoms where the girl has a corporate job but you have no idea what she does, (in case it wasn't obvious I have no idea how corporate jobs work, please don't take this seriously, it's just for fun) swearing, gross flirting co-workers, talk of werewolf mating seasons, a pubes joke, tension, spelling mistakes, girl boss in power, a lesbian couple (not a warning i just love them)

Summary: after getting to know your werewolf coworker through a series of ups and downs for weeks, you sit down and play 20 questions.

You hated your supervisor.

You'd been working at your standard desk job for over 3 years, and yet this bumbling idiot took your promotion right out from under you after only 1 year of employment.

Now he was the head manager of the entire floor.

Great, another sexist pig in power.

Well, not a pig, more like a wolf. A werewolf to be exact. He's out and no one seemed to mind, he never showed his wolf form in the office and never did any "animal like" things that would make him seem off.

He acted like a normal man. But he was already being favorited because of his species.

After another boring meeting, you and your assistant Jess were eating lunch in your very small office.

It was big enough to hold one ikea desk, one swivel chair for you to sit in and two very uncomfortable upholstered chairs for your clients. There was also a cheap bookcase on the wall adjacent to your desk, and the windows on the back wall were big and wonderful, if only they weren't on the side of the building opposite of the sun.

You shoved another handful of fries into your mouth, rolling your eyes at Jess's comment.

"I agree with you," You mumbled around your food. She takes a large bite of her burger, hand coming up to cover her mouth as she spoke.

"Like, I've never seen him actually work, he just wanders around all the halls. I know he has an office but God knows what he's doing up there, it's certainly not all the hard shit we do," She shook her head.

"Amen to that," taking your napkin you wipe away the excess ketchup on your lip.

There was a knock at your door, seeing Olivia who worked in accounts.

"Guys," She excitedly came in, sitting next to Jess. "You're not gonna believe what I just overheard the others talking about,"

"Well go on!" Jess playfully hit her knee, offering her some of the spare fries in the container. She happily took some.

"You know how the current senior manager is going away to another company?" She licked the salt from her fingers getting excited. "Well, they're going to open up the promotion to all levels of the building!"

You and Jess gasp, hand covering your mouth.

"Meaning that-"

"We all have a shot at getting it!" Olivia excitedly finished, stomping her heeled feet on the carpeted ground. "But there's more, two people are getting promoted!"

"Holy shit," You smile, wiping your hands from the fast food grease.

"That would literally save my ass," Jess laughed. "I could finally pay off my car with that salary,"

All three of you laughed for a moment before Jess cleared her throat looking between you both.

"I hope there's no hard feelings if only one of us gets it," She states. You and Livia share a look, leaning back in your chair.

"There won't be, because we are above all those self obsessed men who throw tantrums when things don't go their way. If one of us gets that promotion, we will be happy in knowing that their will finally be a woman in power in this building," You smile at them, enjoying how Olivia's back straightened as you spoke.

You knew one of the men would get the promotion, but they'd be just dumb to ignore all three of you. With how they treated the employees in the building you knew while 2 positions were open, you three only had a chance at one spot.

You all laugh, Olivia checks her watch, grimacing as she stands adjusting her pencil skirt.

"I have to get back, my breaks almost over, I just really wanted to tell you guys,"

"No problems here," Jess smiles, reaching out and gently rubbing her arm.

"You are welcome anytime," You smile, waving as she closes the door behind her. "If anyone deserves a promotion it's Livia," You comment pointing a finger at the door.

"She literally solved the pay roll issue last year and kept the company from going bankrupt, how the hell is she only on level 3?" Jess shook her head, finishing her burger and crumbling up the wrapper.

"How the hell are any of us on level 3?" You ask, more as a rhetorical question, staring out the windows into the parking lot. "We should all be on level 5, or at least 4. Why haven't we just quit yet and started our own company?"

"Because we're all broke and there would only be 4 of us to start a giant company," Jess answered, smacking her lips, it's clear she's asked herself the same question and everytime gets disappointed by the answer.

"As frustrating as it is, I think it's strangely addicting," Jess adds on, crossing her legs, staring off into space. You sigh, finishing off your fries, glancing at her.

"What'd you mean? How is it addicting?"

"We love what we do, no question about that," She waves her hands about, leaning forward, as if it was some secret between you two. "But what if the struggle makes it...I don't know....fun almost? We work twice as hard and getting that reward is always that much sweeter because of it,"

You scoff, using your tounge to pick out food in your teeth. Seeing the bewildered look on her face, you smile at her.

"What?" She laughs, noticing you staring at her. "It makes sense, right?"

"It absolutely makes sense and it reminds me of how smart you are. I'm glad we work together,"

It was her turn to scoff, looking away and shaking her head.

'"Work together' yeah that's a fun way to put it. I work for you, not that it's bad, but my family isn't exactly jumping for joy when I tell them I'm just an assistant," Jess's face fell, this had always been the hardest part of both your jobs.

Wanting to be more, but being stuck with the label "assistant" and whenever someone hears that word you can see the respect leave their actions and words when they speak to Jess.

"Then well just have to fix that," Pushing your chair back, you stand, a determined glint in your eyes. "We're gonna work our asses off and get you that promotion,"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You and Jess stood at the printing machine, waiting for all your recent, and very annoying, reports to be done.

It was a small room, beige walls and a gross faded greenish gray carpet and cheap lights. It's more of a glorified broom closet.

You were facing the machine, making sure everything printed correctly. Jess was leaning against the table next to the machine, hands against the edge of the plastic, looking out to the door.

"I really think we could do it,"

"Make the copies?" You tease holding up half the stack of papers. "I agree,"

"No, the promotion," She turns to you, still leaning on the table, hearing a small groan in protest from the moving weight. "You are one of the best on this level and if you get promoted you're gonna need an assistant and I'm the only one who can do it so we're basically in this together,"

"I thought you didn't want to be an assistant anymore?" You ask, flipping through the copies in your hand.

She sighed. "Honestly, fuck what my family thinks, I'm happy in this company and if that means staying here as an assistant, then so be it," She was nodding aggressively to herself, trying to believe the words she was saying.

"How about," You slowly say, thinking of your words carefully. "We work together to build the other up, and regardless of who gets it, we will support and love them. And so long as one of us makes it, the other should too. Or at the very least try to get the other to be their assistant," You shrug with a small laugh, trying to not make the moment bittersweet.

"Being your assistant is better than anything else I've ever done, you treat me as your equal and not your employee," She rubbed her hands up and down her arms.

"Because you are," You force a hard tone, letting the words sink in. "You are my equal and without you I would've drowned in work years ago," You both shared a smile.

You both obviously want the promotion, but there will always be that little bit of guilt that the others can't be with you. They deserve it as much as you.

Jess opens her mouth to say more but stops, glancing out into the hallway from the open door.

"Hello, Ladies," It takes all your willpower to not gag or groan at the voice. Aiden, the second higher up to Henry. Assistant to the manager, an absolute asshole.

"Aiden," You say curtly, not looking away from the machine.

"Jessica, you're looking gorgeous as always," You could hear his disgusting tounge wet his lips. Even not looking you could tell he was eyeing her up.

"Funny, you said the exact same thing yesterday," she crossed her arms, openly glaring at him.

"Because it's true?" He laughs, coarse and rough, not at all a nice sound. "You are beautiful," His shadow moves across the wall getting bigger, you know he's stepping toward her.

Thankfully the printer is done with the copies, you rip them from the machine, whirling around and shoving half of them into Jess's arms.

"So sorry, Aiden but we have to go finish these reports," Grabbing her arm you lead Jess out of the printer room and to your office.

The farther away from him you both get, the more relaxed Jess's breathing is. Fianlly you reach your office, closing it tightly behind you.

Jess practically threw the papers on the desk, spraying them out across the wooden surface. She sits down in the chair in front of your desk. You perch on the corner, looking down at her, setting your stack neatly next to you.

"I hate him," She mumbles.

"You should report him to HR, he's creepy and doesn't do any of his work," You add, she nods.

"I'm going too," She rubs her temple. "Honeslty if I didn't need the money and love you, Livia and Tory I would've quit a long time ago,"

"Why should you be the one to quit?" You ask, she peers up at you, brow raised. "He's the creep, he's the one not doing anything. You love this job, you're amazing at this job. You shouldn't leave, he should. He's the one making everyone uncomfortable. He's the one who should be miserable and punished,"

Jess looks up at you with a wide smirk. Leaning back in the chair with a glimmer in her eyes.

"What?"

"You're gonna win that promotion," She nods, accepting her statement and standing. Taking a hairtie from her wrist she puts her dirty blonde hair up into a messy ponytail. "We are gonna report that asshole to HR and work our asses off for the next 3 weeks and we are going to win this promotion," Taking off her blazer she rolls up her sleeves and starts laying out the reports.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"And then tomorrow you have a lunch meeting with the Gray family at about 1:30 and then you're free the rest of the day," Jess taps her tablet with her apple pen, scrolling through your schedule.

She followed you through the office building to the break room. A room with the best A.C in the world that constantly made the room colder then Antarctica. The walls are light blue, with chipping linoleum flooring, a cheap fridge and a coffee pot that does not brew coffee.

As you pushed the door open, you notice that the fridge is open, someone is bent over rummaging through its contents.

As you approach the person to politely ask if they could hand you your lunch, Jess inhales and grabs the back of your sweater.

"Y/n, Jessica, funny seeing you both here," You close your eyes with a soft groan, turning to see Aiden sauntering in the room with a smug face. "I've actually been wanting to talk to you guys,"

"Well we're really busy-" You try to cut him off, not having the energy to deal with this today.

"You're gonna find time," He states, his grin gone, now replaced with a snarl. "You, little Jessica, reported me to HR, why would you do a thing like that? What, I can't talk to my co-workers?"

"You don't talk, you flirt and it's disgusting," Jess says, holding the tablet tightly to her chest.

"What did HR say?" You tilt your chin up, challenging his attitude.

"Nothing, I told them it was a lie and that Jessica here constantly throws herself at me and I simply reciprocate, they let me off Scott free," He gloated.

You glanced to Jess, seeing her face fall, eyes wide in disbelief.

"Oh, now you're speechless?" He laughs, taking a step closer to you. "Now that you know you can't do anything about it, are you finally gonna go out with me?"

"No, and I will report you to the floor supervisor myself if I have too," You stand your ground, trying not to cringe at the horrible smell of his instant coffee breath.

"He won't believe you, he's a guy, and guys help each other get laid,"

"You're-"

"Going to sleep with me?" He interrupts, licking his lips. "Oh, I know you will, you-"

"Aiden!" The person who had their head in the fridge stands up. It's Henry, the floor supervisor. He slams the fridge door closed, causing the three of you to jump.

"Henry...." He nervously laughs, brushing his blonde hair back. "I...um,"

"Don't," he holds up his hand, stopping him. "Take a piece of advice Aiden, when a lady says 'no' you take the hint and leave,"

"Listen, Hen," Aiden starts, trying to act like friends and not employer and employee.

"Mr. Beckett," Henry stands firm, eyes hard as stone.

"What?" Aiden nervously laughs.

You and Jess take their distraction to sneak away from Aiden and more toward the door.

"As your Boss, you will call me Mr. Beckett or Sir,"

"Yes, sir," Aiden peeps, face turning red.

"You are to return to my office immediately and wait for me and HR to discuss your insistent and disgusting flirting with your coworkers," Henry holds up a single finger, silencing anything Aiden would even try to say. "Now, go,"

Not wanting to face further embarrassment, Aiden nods and silently walks out of the room with his head down.

As soon as the swinging door closes, you and Jess sigh. Wiping your forehead with your sleeve you gently rub her shoulder.

"Ms. L/n and Ms. Bow," Henry says gently, taking a step forward, but still leaving a large space between you. "I am so sorry about him, I knew he had been reported and did flirt with a few of you, but I didn't know the severity. He will not get away with this and he will be punished and I am terribly sorry for this,"

He doesn't wait for you to say anything, nodding his apology and leaving the room.

"That was unexpected," Jess says, taking a seat at the table and chair in the corner, setting her tablet and pen on the plastic surface. You follow, sitting down and exhaling shakily.

"Yeah," You didn't know what to say, your hands were shaking and sweat clung to your neck and shoulders.

"He knew our names," She comments, thinking, tapping her nails on the table. "We only met him like one time, and yet he remembered,"

"He also did hesitate to reprimand him, his own assistant and he looked like he was ready to fire him on the spot," You add.

"It was kinda funny how quickly Aiden backed down, he shut right up," Jess giggled softly.

"Maybe it's a werewolf thing," You both stare at each other for a moment before bursting out unto laughter.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The 3 weeks leading up to the big promotion went by extremely slowly and yet in the blink of an eye, it was Sunday night.

You, Jess, and Livia were all crowded into Tory's small one bedroom apartment. Sitting around her living room eating Chinese takeout and watching The Masked Singer.

"Does anybody need anything?" Tory asked, peering around the kitchen wall, finally fixing herself a plate.

"We have everything we need, Tory," Livia answered, looking over her shoulder at the brunette. "But if we need something we can get it ourselves, come on and sit,"

Tory was the nicest and most thoughtful person in the office. While normally very shy and quiet, she had a huge heart and could complete virtually any task without issues. The saddest part about working with her was knowing she worked in the mail room.

She was completely qualified to work at level 3 with the rest of you, but because of her calm demeanor, HR felt she'd be better suited for sorting mail.

She finally came into the living room, sitting on her sofa with Livia while you and Jess sat on the floor in front of them, using the coffee table to hold your plates.

"Can you believe tomorrow is the big day?" Jess smiles, glancing back at the others.

Ever since Aiden got reprimand by Henry, he stopped flirting and talking to you altogether. In fact, it's been about 2 weeks since you last saw him in the office.

Since then, Jess had really come alive, finally owning up to her own talent and really shining through.

"It's gonna be an interesting day, that's for sure," Livia added, shoving an egg roll in her mouth.

All 4 of you had been working your asses off trying to prove your worth and importance in this company. Unlike most of the men in the office, you all helped each other in anyway you could. As bittersweet as the moment was, you couldn't be happier with your friends.

"I wanna make a pact," Livia says, setting her plate of food on the side table to her left. "No matter which one of us gets that promotion, we will still be friends and hold no grudges against each other,"

"Are you just saying that because you're notorious for holding grudges or-" Tory started, pointing a fork in her direction. Livia punched her arm, stopping her sentence. All four of you erupted into giggled, putting down your plates and silverware and turning to face each other.

"Let's interlock pinkies," Livia states, holding our her hands. After a few minutes of awkwardly bent arms, you all had your pinkies interlocked. "We promise to not blame each other but the men in the office if we do not get this,"

"Agreed," Jess and Tory agreed simultaneously, giggling at each other.

You looked at all your friends, such amazing people, all equally deserving of this promotion. It broke your heart to know how low the chances were, but with how hard you'd all worked, it'd be foolish of your superiors to ignore all four of you.

The next morning came far too quickly for your liking. It was all a blur, getting up and making breakfast, taking a shower and putting on your nice blouse.

Now you were standing outside your office waiting for the meeting to start. You glanced at your watch again. 9:57 AM.

3 minutes.

"Nervous?" Jess comments, looking up from her tablet. You force a laugh, bouncing on your heels.

"That's an understatement,"

"Well if it isn't Ms. Bow, and Ms. L/n," Approaching your office, George, was a known cheat and slob, it was truly a wonder how he got hired. "I hope you're ready for this meeting," He smiled with crooked teeth.

"We are, actually, thanks for checking in, George," Hiding the nervousness in your voice you stare him down.

As always, he clears his throat and lowers his gaze to the floor. George talked a big game but crumbled under any form of pressure. "You're going to loose that cocky attitude when I get that promotion," his tone didn't match his nervous posture.

"Maybe you'll be sorry," at that he looked up. "Maybe if you actually did your reports instead of having your team do it, you'd actually get-"

You watch started beeping, you glanced down. 10:00.

"We have to go, we'll see you in there," Was all you said before walking down the hall with Jess.

People were filing into the room, it felt way more crowded than normal. It was a large room, the whole back wall covered in windows with green carpeted floors and a huge table.

You took a seat at the table and Jess, being an assistant, had to sit in a chair pushed up against the wall behind you.

A gentle hand touched your shoulder, pulling out the chair next to you and sitting down. Glancing over, you sigh, seeing Livia dressed in a golden yellow dress, smiling sweetly at you.

"Nervous?" She nudges your arm, you scoff leaning in to whisper back.

"Is it that obvious?" You both laugh quietly, then you take a moment to look at her hair. Normally she had it in an afro, showing off her tight curls and being proud of it, but today they were in several small braids then spun up into a tight bun. "You did your hair,"

"Uh yeah," She looks away, almost embarrassed, her hand comes up and touches the side of her head. "Tory helped me with it after you and Jess left her apartment,"

Even with her dark completion you could see her cheeks and ears turning red.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," Henry stood at the head of the table, in front of the windowed wall. "Let's begin?"

The first part of the meeting started the same as all the others, going over budgets, the profit margins, and employee of the month.

"Now that I've bored you all to death, let's talk about the two promotions that recently opened up." The whole room perked up a that. Your chest tightened, under the table, Livia grabbed your hand, squeezing it tightly. "The first position is for floor supervisor, and HR believes it should go to..."

Everyone leaned forward, waiting on baited breath as Henry clearly enjoyed the suspense. "George McCain, congrats,"

Your heart sank, shoulders slumping. The room cheered as George stood, across the table from you with a stupid grin.

Henry took a step around the table to shake his hand. "Congrats on becoming the level 2 supervisor,"

The room went silent, it took everything in you, Livia and Jess to not laugh.

"I'm-I'm sorry," George shook his head, "level 2? I thought-"

"Oh, I'm sorry for the miscommunication, the former supervisor had left for maternity leave and decided to go down a different career path," Henry didn't even try to hide his smile, as if he was enjoying seeing George suffer.

"Right," George silently sat down, face pink with embarrassment. Henry walked back around the table, clapping his hands together.

"The next position open is Senior Floor Supervisor," Henry smiled as he spoke, making eye contact with everyone in the room before looking back down at his folder layed out on the table. "I'd like to say something about this person," He cleared his throat. "They've worked harder than anyone else on this level, and truly deserve this promotion and I'd like to apologize that it hasn't come sooner. With that said, congratulations to..." His eyes wandered the room before landing on you, his eyes softened and he smiled. "Y/n L/n,"

Your heart stopped, you're sure your lungs stopped as well, breath getting caught in your throat. You're aware of the small claps from your coworkers, and Livia squeezing your hand and rubbing your shoulder.

Henry walked around the table, ignoring all of the glares from the upset men on the floor.

Snapping out of your daze you stood as he reached your chair. You shook his hand, unable to hide your wide smile.

"Congrats, Y/n," His other hand came up, cupping your hand in his large ones.

"T-thank you, Sir,"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next few days were even more stressful than the 3 weeks leading up to the meeting. You had twice as much paperwork to do and had to deal with even more rude glances from your coworkers, but you were mostly used to that by now.

Henry came around your office a lot more, and he wasn't as bad as you originally thought. He was polite and respectful and never made you feel uncomfortable.

One day, as you were filling out another stack of reports, Jess knocked her head and opened the door.

"Hey, Jess, what's up?" You say, glancing up at her then back to your paper.

"Mr. Beckett is here to see you," She tilts her head toward the other side of the door.

"Uh, show him in," You nod. Jess glances behind her, nods and then opens the door more.

Henry walks in the room, wearing his classic gray suit with a dark blue tie and a warm smile. Following him is a very timid skinny man, his hair was thin and covering his forehead, almost covering his eyes and his fave was covered in pimples. He looked like a teenager.

"Mr. Beckett, what can I help you with?" Interlocking your fingers and putting your elbows on the desk you lean your chin on your fingers.

"I came to see how the paperwork is coming and show my new assistant around," He proudly looks back, to which the young man turns bright red and gives you a shy wave.

"Well, it's nice to meet you," You smile at the assistant then look back to Henry. "And I'm almost done, I'm on the last two pages,"

"Excellent, there's no rush," He waved a hand dismissively, putting his hands into his pocket.

"If I may ask," You glance between him and the young man. "Why do you have a new assistant?"

Henry sighs. "I fired Aiden, and needed a replacement,"

"F-fired? Like he doesn't work here at all anymore?" Your eyes went wide, he simply shook his head.

"Yes, after hearing about how horribly he treated all the women here I called HR only to find he'd been reported 3 other times and they did nothing, so I fired him. I will not work with a man who disrespects women that way," His tone hardened, clearly upset at loosing him, they seemed like good friends.

"I feel like apologizing only for the reason of loosing your assistant, but-" You started.

"Please, don't," He holds up a hand, smiling warmly at you again. "You have nothing to apologize for, neither of you do," He adds, glancing over his shoulder, at the door.

Jess jumped at being noticed, opening the door more. She'd been listening in, holding the door open just a crack.

"You can come in Ms. Bow," At his word, Jess creeps into the room, coming and standing behind you. "Anyway, I-" Henry starts, being interrupted by his phone ringing. "Excuse me," He says, pulling it out of his pocket, his face hardened at the caller ID. "I'm sorry, I have to take this, I'll be right back,"

He heads for the door, his assistant starts stuttering, reaching a hand out.

"Stay here, I'll only be a moment," He says, one hand on the door, he nods to you and Jess. "Don't worry, they don't bite," He winks and then closes the door.

The assistant doesn't turn back to you or Jess, he's clearly out of his element.

"What's your name?" You ask, he jumps at your voice, clearing his throat.

"Noah,"

"How old are you?" Jess asks, leaning against the back wall, crossing her arms.

"I'm 19," With every second your gaze stays on him the redder his face gets.

"Why did Mr. Beckett hire you?" You ask, not being rude, it didn't make sense, as horrible as Aiden was, Noah was not a good replacement.

"Well, I'm his nephew, so-"

"His nephew?" You and Jess repeat, perhaps a little too loudly, he visibly shudders at your tone.

Before you or Jess can ask him anything else, Henry opens the door, smiling and shoving his phone back into his pocket.

"Alright, now-" He stops sensing the tension and how Noah's shoulders are trembling. "Everything alright in here?"

"May I have a word with you? In private?" You ask, Henry clears his throat, glancing at Noah before nodding.

Jess led Noah out of the room, closing the door behind her. You sigh, standing up and rubbing your hands together.

"I don't want you to take this the wrong way," You walk around to the front of your desk, Henry is silent giving you time to speak. "But why did you hire your nephew for the job when there are a dozen more than capable-"

"It wasn't a matter of being capable," He interrupts, even then as he held up his hand and thought about his words he didn't come across as rude. "I-I....uh...okay, yes I did hire him because he's my nephew but not because there aren't capable options on this floor it's for my sister."

"Your sister?"

"Yes, my sister is really struggling with money right now and has a job lined up at the end of summer. I gave Noah this job because he wants to help her, it's only for the next few months until fall starts, then I will pick someone else," He comes closer, not wanting anyone else to hear about his sister even though it's just you two.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know," You shake your head, unable to think of anything else to say.

"It's alright, there's no way you could've known," He ran a hand down his face, it was clear he needed to get that off his chest. "Just, just try to not assume I'm like the other assholes on the floor, okay?" He laughs, putting his hands in his pockets.

"It's a force of habit," You laugh.

"Then we'll just have to break it,"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"It's almost sad having you leave this office," Jess places another cardboard box on your desk, looking around the room.

You closed the now full box in front of you, turning around and walking up to Jess, taking her hands.

"It'll be okay, now that I'm a supervisor I can work on getting you a promotion, I promise, you won't stay in this position much longer," You squeeze her hands, she looks to the floor avoiding your gaze. You knew she believed your words, but it was nearly impossible to actually picture it happening.

Her lip quivered and her face turned red.

"Jess," You coo, wrapping your arms around her, she hugs you tightly, crying softly into your shoulder. "I know it's going to be different with the promotion but-"

"It's not that," She sobs softly, pulling away and wiping her eyes with the butt of her palm. "Jack broke up with me last night, and my grandma is coming to town next week, and I'm behind on my bills and now I don't work with you and everyone else is so mean here," She hiccups, burying her face back into your shoulder.

You'd only known Jack for a few months, he seemed a bit standoff-ish but like a decent guy, apparently that was wrong. Her grandma would flip out if she knew Jess didn't have an "actual" job and was behind on her bills.

If this had happened a week before you'd given her the week off, let her rest and give her a small loan to help. But she wasn't your assistant anymore and HR would surly find out if you did.

"I'm so sorry, Jess," You move her to sit in one of your chair, pulling out a box of tissues from your desk.

A knock at your door startles you both, Henry pokes his head into the room with a smile. He pauses upon seeing Jess.

"Oh, I'm sorry, is this a bad time? I can come back-" He starts, pointing out the door.

"No," Jess stands, sniffling loudly and wiping her face. "No, it's okay, you can talk to Y/n," She says, going to your bookcase and carefully putting them in the empty box.

"I actually came to talk to you," He says, hitting his palm with an envelope.

"Me?" She nearly drops a small stack of books, glancing at you then to Henry. "Why me?"

"To give you this," He steps forward, handing her the envelope.

Jess starts to open in, still sneaking glances at you, you simply shrug unsure as to what was happening.

"I know how close you two are and you've deserved this for a very long time," Henry says, getting excited.

Jess pulls out a small stack of papers, unfolding and reading them. She gasps, eyes going wide, more tears filling her eyes.

"Is this real?" She asks, voicing quivering.

"Very," He smiles, looking to you. "Senior Floor Supervisor Y/n, I'd like you to meet your new assistant, Ms. Jessica Bow."

"What?" You gasp, hands covering your mouth.

"I pulled a few strings," He shrugged. "And I know how important this was to the both of you. You both deserve this,"

"H-how, how can we ever thank you?" Jess stuttered, flipping through her her employment contract.

"There's no need-" He laughed, amused that she felt the need to do something for him.

"No, this is big, we really thought you were an asshole like 2 months ago and you're like really nice, you need to come to get drinks with us this weekend," Jess started sobbing, wiping at her eyes.

You and Henry stared at her in disbelief at how blunt she had been.

"Um," He cleared his throat, looking to his feet, suddenly bashful.

"You are welcome," His head snapped up to meet your eyes. "To join us for drinks, if you want, we go to the small burger place down the block and get drinks every other Friday,"

He nods, not breaking eye contact. "Okay, I'll see you then,"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"And here I thought you were going to actually relax with us tonight," Jess snorts, sipping her drink, earning a laugh from Livia and Tory.

"This is me relaxed," Henry argued, trying to seem firm even if he laughed.

All five of you were sitting at the bar of your favorite restaurant, you'd already had dinner and were now on your second round of drinks.

Livia and Tory were dancing in front of the jukebox along with some other people. After Jess poked Henry one more time on his outfit she joined the others on the dance floor.

"Do I still look that uptight?" He asked you after she left, laughing softly. You looked him up and down, he was wearing nice dress pants with a button up shirt.

"Yes and no, she's probably saying that cause you tucked your shirt into your pants." You sip your drink, giggling as he pulled his shirt out from being tucked. As he lifted you saw a little glimpse of the skin on his hips.

"Is that better?"

Maybe it was the drinks, or maybe the ambience of the bar with the red and gold lights that made his eyes shine and skin glow. Maybe it was the way his hair had curled against the base of his neck instead of being combed back.

"Almost, you should probably roll your sleeves up too," Part of you wants to see how far he'll go. He glances around as if he's doing something he shouldn't, then starts to roll his sleeves up to his elbows.

His forearms are tan and have a thin layer of dark hair on them. You take a long sip of your drink.

It's then you notice he's only drinking a water, and has been the whole time. You raise a brow as he takes a sip, he knows immediately why you're making a face.

"What are werewolves not allowed to drink?" You tease, glad that he laughs and didn't take offense.

"Werewolves can, but designated drivers can't," He simply responds, shrugging.

Your heart warms for a moment, he'd come out to have dinner with you and your friends and stayed to have drinks but isn't even drinking to ensure you all get home safe.

"What?" He laughs, noticing you staring very intently at him.

"You're just not how I thought you'd be," You whisper, feeling your face heat up, from the drinks or his warm gaze you aren't sure.

He's about to say something else when Jess comes back from the dance floor giggling and throwing an arm over your shoulder.

"Look, at Tory and Livia," She laughs, pointing. You leaned to look past Henry, who also turns.

Tory and Livia are slow dancing, holding each other close and staring lovingly into each other's eyes. Livia closes her eyes and leans in, kissing Tory.

"I knew they liked each other," Jess says, downing the rest of her drink.

"Everybody knew," Henry laughs, taking another sip of his water and smiling at you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next month flew by, you'd moved into your new office, celebrated Tory and Livia moving in together, and Jess finally being able to pay off one of her loans.

The leaves had fully turned, changing from greens and turning the ground orange. The sky was constantly gray and covered in clouds.

Like tonight, you were staying late to finish the reports on the floor. The sun had just set, the clouds turning from pink to purple.

It softly started to rain, padding softly against your window. It calmed you, the large room, the warm lamp beside you, and the comfort your favorite sweater brought you.

There was a soft knock on your door, you peered up, smiling at Henry walking into your office.

"Working late?" He pulled out the chair from across your desk, crossing his legs.

"Could ask you the same thing," You smile at him, still filling out the paperwork.

"I wanted to ask your opinion on something," He waits for your nod to continue, you do and he sighs. "Noah's mom got the job and he is now enrolled in college and I'm in need of an assistant-"

"I'm flattered, truly, but I'm afraid I cannot accept," You playfully interrupt sighing dramatically.

He laughs. "You are far too qualified to be my assistant, but I have two options and I'm wondering who I should promote,"

"Who are the candidates?" You glance back down to your work, still filling it out as he spoke.

"Jeremy in accounts, he's helped me more than once and is a great worker," You scrunched your nose. "But I can see he's a bad candidate," Henry laughed, rubbing his hands together. "Or I was thinking about Tory,"

You head flew up, mouth agape. "You want to make Tory your assistant?"

He nods. "She doesn't belong in the mail room, and I wouldn't be doing it because I pity her or because were friends or anything like that, it's because she is truly far too talented to stay in the mail room." He rambles, leaning forward, uncrossing his legs and resting his elbows on your desk.

You stare blankly at him, pen held tightly between your fingers, face blank.

"Y/n? Are you okay?" He asks, voice going quiet incase he overwhelmed you. "Was it something I said?"

"You said we're friends," You mumble, unable to go higher than a whisper.

He nods. "Yeah, I consider you my friend," His face lowers seeing the apprehension in your features. "Am I wrong to assume that we were friends?"

"No, no!" You snap out of it, raising your hands and shaking your head. "It's just...we've hung out and stuff, but I still barely even know you,"

"Why don't we change that?" A mischievous glimmer shines in his hazel eyes. "We're both going to he here for another hour, so let's play a game," He offers with a smile.

"A game?"

"20 questions, well each go and learn about the other." He shrugs, trying to play off how excited he clearly was.

"Okay, I'll play, can...can I ask you questions about being a werewolf?" You lower your voice, hoping your question didn't offend him.

"Yes, you can,"

"Alright, who's going first?" You ask, capping your pen and putting it in your pencil holder, then stacking your papers and moving them to the side of your desk.

"Ladies first," He gestures to you, smiling wide.

"Oh such a gentleman," You tease, humming as you think. "Let's start simple, what's your birthday?"

"September 7, I'm a virgo,"

"You're into astrology?" You gasp in fake surprise. He laughs.

"When you're whole life revolves around the cycles of the moon, you get sucked into stuff like that,"

"Where were you born?"

"New York," You groan playfully, rolling your eyes. "But not the main city, more country and rural," He tries to defend himself. "Not all New Yorkers are bad,"

"No, of course not," You smile at him glare, biting your lip as you think. "Do you have any siblings?"

"Yes, two sisters, one of them is married and has a baby on the way and the other just got a new job and has Noah," He smiles more to himself, it's clear he cares for them very deeply.

You can help but ask. "Are they werewolves too?"

"Yes, my whole family is," Short and simple.

"How old were you when you turned?" You didn't want to push but you were curious, you'd never known a werewolf before and he wasn't what you were expecting.

"I started showing symptoms at 16 but didn't fully turn until I was 17," He answers almost proudly.

"So you were a late bloomer?" You laughed at his groan, face turning pink.

"Yes, I was a late bloomer, ha ha, very funny," He laughed along with you, showing he wasn't offended.

"How does someone become a werewolf?" You didn't realize it, but you were leaning over your desk, trying to get closer to him, excited to hear his answers.

"Well," He thinks for a moment, smacking his lips. "Well, it varies from family to family, or person to person. In my case I was born into a werewolf family, my mom, dad and sisters were all werewolves, it's in our DNA. But there are ceremonies that I believe can be performed to turn people, like Vampires but less bloody," You only focused on one comment.

"You can turn someone?" You ask clearly too excited as he raises a brow at you.

"You sound like Bella from Twilight," He laughs, covering his mouth with his hand.

"What's wrong with liking Twilight?"

"Nothings wrong, I'm just curious if your going to go out looking for your Edward Cullen." He mocks, rolling his eyes.

"I've always been team Jacob, actually," Your eyes meet, and for a moment, he's all you see. His warm smile, the softness of his eyes, the way a strand of his hair curls against his forehead even though he combs in constantly.

You clear your throat, feeling your face getting hot.

"What color is your fur?"

He laughs at your diversion. "Gray, but a bunch of different shades, it's darker on my head and back and lighter on my hands and stomach."

"Does the carpet match the drapes?" His face turns bright red, closing his eyes and he laughs. Your hand comes up to cover your mouth.

"If I had, as you so elegantly put, carpet, then yes it would match," At your confused eyebrow, he sighs. "When you grow up covered in thick fur and hair you try and get rid of it wherever you can," He quickly says, rubbing the back of his neck, feeling himself start to sweat.

"What's the worst part about being a werewolf?" You bite your lip, enjoying having him be so honest and open.

"Uh, this is going to be embarrassing," He runs a hand down the side of his face. "Every May, we....uh well werewolves..." He sighs, face redder than you thought possible. "You know, it's spring time, and there's a lot of pheromones going around..." He's stumbling and moving his hands around and not meeting your eyes.

It clicks in your head.

"You go into heat?" Your jaw drops.

"We like to call it a werewolf period, it sounds less primitive and animalistic," He still hasn't met your eyes.

"What's that just, like, wanting to sleep with a bunch of people?" You joke, wanting to lighten the mood.

"No it's different, it's not about the sex it's about the closeness of the other person. They are to me as I am to them. They accepted me, body, mind and soul and I accept them. It's....it's more of a longing," His eyes finally left to yours, the sincerity in them makes your heart melt.

"That's actually really sweet," You whisper, unable to look away from him. "So you just, long for a real relationship?"

He nods. "It's the basis of life, finding a mate, and spending the rest of your life with them,"

"What's the difference between asking someone to be your mate versus your girlfriend?"

"Asking someone to be a mate is our version of proposing, not that we can't or won't propose, but that's what it means to us. We want to be with you for as long as you'll have us," He leaned his chin on his hand, elbows resting on the table.

"Do you imprint on people?" You laugh at his immediate reaction. His face fell, hair falling in front of his eyes, shoulders slumped.

"God, no, and if we did it wouldn't happen to babies," You both laugh.

"How do you know if you've picked the right mate?"

He shrugs, "You don't, it's a matter of trusting each other," again your eyes meet and your chest tightens. "You have to get to know each other, learn to trust each other, learn how to care for them, and grow in love with them. You have to fight everyday for them, showing them how much you care,"

His tone changed, no longer stating facts found in old library books but something he felt. Has felt for a long time.

You stare for a few moments, he raises his eyebrows, motioning for you to continue. You blink, looking down at your desk before smiling. Leaning forward on your elbows you smile and whisper.

"Why haven't you asked me out yet?"

His face turns red, looking away for a moment, then looking back up to you.

"I was worried you wouldn't want to go out with me, you didn't exactly treat all the male employees well, I figured I wouldn't have a chance," He shrugged, ears turning pink. "I wouldn't get a chance unless you asked me,"

You got his implication, licking your lips, ready to take the leap.

"Final question-"

"That was your final question," He interrupts. You blank, thinking back, you blushed harder, realizing your mistake.

"Wait, some of them were rhetorical questions and jokes, that doesn't count!" You protest, feeling defeated.

"They 100% count," He laughs, nodding his head. You sigh, unsure of what else to say. You were so close.

"My turn," He brings you out of your train of thought. Reaching across the table to grab your hand, squeezing your fingers and smiling warmly. "Will you go on a date with me?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tags: @turtle-babe83 @thelaundrybitch @flufftober

#my works #flufftober #flufftober day 14 #day 14 #20 questions #monster lover #monster x reader #werewolf #werewolf x reader #werewolf imagines #werewolf imagine #werewolf headcannons #henry the werewolf #henry x reader #x reader

166 notes · View notes

jake-whatthefisgoingon-kiszka · 3 months

Text

Above Snakes

Part 2 and it took me forever and a day… hope you enjoy 🫶

Pairings: Sam Kiszka x Danny Wagner ***slash

Warnings and tags: 18+ only!!!, adult content including: lots of swearing, drinking and talk of smoking, some suggestive talk, eventual smut right now they’re just pining idiots, cowboy AU

Word count: 5.5k

“Got to be faster than that big man!” Sam hollered from where he sat perched on top the rails of the pens, watching in amusement as Danny tried and failed over and over again to rope the steer.

“You could get off your high horse and come help me, you know I’m new to this shit” Danny huffed begrudgingly.

“I know, s’why I’m teaching you, and sounds like you're learning pretty quickly with those pretty new words you’re picking up too!” Sam cackled again like a pigeon with his chest puffed out teasing him from above- and if Danny could throw a rock at him and get away with it right now he would. Danny grabbed his reins and turned his already tricky horse just as he rolled his eyes and gathered up his rope to attempt his lasso again.

Just as Danny had his back turned to him and was trying to concentrate again, Sam reached out into his pocket and pulled out a particularly long piece of snake skin he’d found on the walk over this morning. He tossed the discarded skin onto the ground in front of Danny’s horse, spooking it to high hell. Sam burst out into laughter when the horse reared up and bucked Danny off, sending him tumbling to the dirt.

“You two better be getting everything done today otherwise I’m not letting either of you go to that auction tomorrow”. Jake walked up, scolding their shenanigans.

“Don’t even with me, you want me to sell those horses more than I do” Sam jumped off the fence and kicked the snake skin away as Danny settled his horse.

“Actually that’s Josh” Jake countered, “jus came back from his office, he wanted me to remind you rent is due”.

“Yeah yeah I know, was gonna go by the bank to get the cash when I was in town”. Sam whistled and called over a couple of the cattle dogs they had running around to help him herd the steer back into the holding pen while Danny guided the horse out the gate of the corral.

“Well if you’re going by the bank then take him with you” Jake spoke to Sam first then turned to Danny next. “Josh has your check in the office. Our business account is there so they should be able to cash it for you”.

“Jesus can’t even go get lunch by myself these days anymore can I?”

“It’s been a week Sam, you two haven’t learned to get along yet?” Jake let his eyes linger on Danny, who when he noticed he was being watched blushed a slight shade of pink only visible underneath the bright beating sun.

He shrugged his shoulders and continued getting the horse ready to be put up while they were gone. Jake had a good question though. In a week's time Danny couldn’t tell if he’d made any progress at all with getting on Sam’s good side. He’d managed to get Sam to agree to let him come along with him to the auction tomorrow, though he figured even if Sam wouldn’t admit it he really needed the help and Danny had been putting a lot of time into those horses with him.

During the days, they’d work their asses off together around the ranch. Sam was a tough guy to work with. He didn’t have much patience, and he was meticulous, wanted to get the job done quick and right the first time around so they could move on to the next task at hand. Danny struggled to keep up the first few days, but Sam did show him little tips and tricks he’d picked up, and Danny was grateful for that even if Sam only helped him so that he wouldn’t have to keep dragging him along.

In the evenings Sam was almost a whole other person. Probably partly to do with the occasional smoke they shared in his lawn chairs in front of his house. Even when they didn’t partake, Sam seemed calmer at home. He was reluctant to show Danny at first, but he even had a little raised garden around the side of his house he’d built and had been growing a variety of herbs and vegetables. Experimenting with what grew well during each season, and even trying different things he’d never heard of before. He’d found out that he liked just about anything, but the satisfaction of eating something you grew with your own hands really helped everything taste better too.

Danny didn’t complain about anything Sam cooked either, partly because it was free meals, but mostly because he enjoyed the time with Sam when he was like that. Carefree and happy, though he still had a sassy remark for just about anything Danny said. That didn’t bother Danny either, because the more time he spent with Sam the less his attitude got on his nerves, and the more he started to think that Sam’s constant need to bicker and make a joke out of a situation was actually pretty cute.

“You goin to Chelsea’s?” Jake asked Sam, making Danny snap out of his thoughts.

“You ask me like there’s really any other options” Sam snarkily replied as he snatched the work truck keys from Jake’s palm and tossed them over to Danny.

“Tell Suz I said hi?”

“You know you can come in and tell her yourself right?”

“You know I can’t. That bastard’ll have her by the neck if he sees her talkin’ to me”. Jake grit his teeth, his hand forming a fist at his side. Danny watched the conversation with more questions forming, but he could tell that Jake didn’t want to get into it with either of them so he just kept quiet.

Once they had everything put up and Danny slipped into Josh’s office to grab his check, he and Sam were back in the truck headed down the highway towards town.

“Diner first?” Danny asked as they neared the turn. He’d worked up quite the appetite this morning and with his first check in hand he’d be able to pay for their lunch today.

“Hell yeah I’m fuckin starvin” Sam answered him in his usual manner though he did have the shadow of a carefree smile on his lips. He had his foot propped up on the dash, his boot leaving a dusty footprint on the already dull cracking thick plastic. Danny had cranked the heater up in the truck as soon as they got in, so Sam had stripped his jacket off about halfway through the trip, leaving him in his faded gray t-shirt with a cracked red, white, and blue Rolling Stones logo. A few locks of his hair hand fallen from his bun and were framing his gentle face.

Danny smiled to himself as he kept stealing peaks in Sam’s direction. “What’re you smiling about over there?” Sam questioned with a mischievous quirk of his brow which only made Danny’s lips pinch into a tighter smile. He scoffed at Danny’s silence and reached up to pull his hair loose thinking it probably looked a mess and that was why Danny was staring at him. Only every time Danny got the chance to see Sam with his hair down it made him feel a certain way he couldn’t quite describe.

Focusing back on the road as he started to slow down, he tightened his grip on the steering wheel to prepare to make his turn. He cleared his throat, but kept his eyes trained on the road, as he began to ask Sam a question he’d been wondering earlier. “So, if your brothers pay you, and you also lease from them, why don’t they just take your rent out of your paycheck?”

Sam clicked his tongue and sat up in his seat, “you’d think that would be easier right? But they don’t want to make anything easy for me. Says I’ve always been given everything and I need to learn responsibilities some way”. There was the bratty side of Sam coming out again. Danny could see where Josh and Sam were coming from, he was an older sibling too, and he’d always felt a sense of responsibility with that.

“They’ll see when I bring them a big check tomorrow that I’ve learned well enough”.

Danny nod his head though he wasn’t exactly sure what to expect from this auction tomorrow. He’d never been to one before, and although Sam had this was going to be his first time selling, so they’d both come back with more experience under their belts hopefully.

“Another thing” Danny spoke up again just as they started to pull into the gravel parking lot of Chelsea’s diner, the sight reminding him of what else he’d heard Sam and Jake talking about. “What’s the deal with Suzy? She just a waitress or what?”

Sam chuckled, impressed that Danny had picked up on his slight mocking to Jake. “Yeah she’s just a waitress” he replied as the truck rolled into a parking spot, “and she’s Jake’s highschool sweetheart”.

“Wait….” Danny threw the gear shift into park but left the truck idling as he sat back and faced Sam again, “she and Jake?”

“Oh yeah” he chuckled some more, almost as if he was glad Danny had asked so he could finally spill the gossip. “They dated for three years, went to prom together, the whole thing. Call it kitten love, but I’ve never seen Jake so into another girl like that before”.

“But,” Danny tried to piece the story together himself, thinking back to the last time he and Sam had lunch together and Sam mentioned she was married, “did they break up or something then?”

“Yeah you can say that. Basically Jake left for college, they sort of lost touch for a bit, and while he was gone her family set her up with Tom, the sheriff's son. They got hitched quickly and Jake wasn’t invited to the wedding, but he showed up anyway and started a fight at the reception. Only time he’s ever been arrested, though I’m surprised they didn’t press any charges. He just sat it out in a jail cell for the weekend, nearly gave our mom and Josh a heart attack too”.

“Wow, I didn’t realize there was so much history with him”.

Sam’s laughter died down at Danny’s comment and he popped the door open, waiting for just a moment for the truck to be shut off and Danny to follow him inside. “Yeah, don’t we all have a little bit of history?”

“Hey Sammy, you back with your friend?” Suzy greeted them from behind the counter with her brightest smile.

“Can’t seem to shake this one. Think he’s a bit of a sadist or somethin” Sam hollered back over to her, not caring who in the diner heard him or shot Danny a questioning look. Of course Sam found that amusing.

“Be right with you boys” she giggled, knowing Sam was only showing off, and they moved to sit in her section again.

“You’re buying today right?” Sam questioned matter of factly as he plopped down into the booth across from Danny.

“I was going to offer, but then you said something about bringing home a big check tomorrow” Danny replied, just as Suzy rounded on them with a pair of menus.

“Wow, your hairs gettin’ pretty long these days huh?” She commented, even reached over to twist a lock in her fingers then toss it over his shoulder like it was nothing to touch him.

Danny’s fingers twitched in his lap underneath the table. He wanted to brush Sam’s hair back, feel its glossy strands get caught between his knuckles as he combed his fingers through it-

“Yeah, I’ve been thinking about cutting it. Gets in the way all damn the time”.

“What?” Danny let slip aloud from where he’d been trying to mind his own business staring at the menu. Sam glanced over at him with curiosity over Danny’s sudden outburst. “Sorry, I was just surprised you would consider cutting it… the long hair suits you”.

“Coming from you” Suzy turned towards him, clutching her notepad to her chest and popping her hip, “Mr. Long dark curls. Not a lot of guys ‘round here sport that kinda look”.

Danny shied away from her gaze this time, his eyes flicking up to meet Sam’s again, “maybe we could start a club or something?”

“A club of good looking men?” Suzy giggled, “how do I get an invite to your next meeting?”

“Easy,” Sam cut back in to answer for Danny, “just give Jake a call. He sends his regards anyways”.

Suzy’s smile slipped for a second, only a second, before she pulled it back on- only this time it seemed a bit more fake. “Well, good to hear. I’ll give you a few minutes”.

Danny waited until she was back behind the counter to lean over the stained laminate table to whisper “she didn’t seem very thrilled to hear that”.

Sam shrugged, picking at the corner of his menu that was cracking and peeling up to expose the cardstock underneath. “Yeah, Jake’s kinda a touchy subject with her. Guess that’s why she likes me so much. I’m about as close as she can still get to him”.

Danny thought that notion was a little weird, but the flirtatious dynamic between the two started to make a little more sense. A certain level of respect started to fill Danny, because every time he came in here Sam looked just as thrilled to see Suzy as she was to see him. Though for her it was never really about him but about his relation to her past love.

Did Sam have a long lost love he thought about the same way? If not, when would it be his turn to return those feelings truthfully?

Still trying to decide what sounded good off the surprisingly diverse menu, Danny flipped through the slightly sticky pages. He wasn’t very focused on reading though, because every few seconds his eyes would drift back up to Sam who was lounging against the booth with one arm propped along the back just staring out the windows at the all too familiar small town streets.

Despite Sam’s idiosyncratic personality, Danny had found himself watching him closer and closer as the days they spent nearly sun up to sun down together went on. Of course that was partly due to having to learn the job from Sam, who pushed Danny to learn quickly and effectively so as to not drag him down. Also because he was starting to gain a certain interest in Sam that he didn’t quite understand just yet.

Of course from the moment he met Sam he noticed that he was outwardly attractive, at least until he opened his mouth and all hell came spilling loose. Not that swearing and back talking made anyone less attractive (in fact that might be quite the opposite Danny was also learning), but he just wasn’t expecting it from Sam’s otherwise innocent looking surface.

Suzy came back, still smiling though a little less flirty, and took their orders. Danny did end up paying this time, but Sam still pulled out his old leather wallet that was hardly still pieced together down the middle, and tossed a few more bills onto the table to add to Danny’s already generous tip.

Sam made his withdrawal from his account at the bank then wandered outside and around the sidewalk while Danny stayed to go ahead and open up an account. He wasn’t sure how long he’d be staying out at the ranch, or in town, but he figured while he was getting paid he might as well get one anyways.

“So what’s the plan for tomorrow?” Danny questioned once they hit the highway back out of town. Sam hadn’t offered to drive this time, which Danny was thankful for because he would’ve had to politely decline if he had. Instead Sam seemed more quiet than usual and Danny wandered if maybe it was nerves about all they had to do for the auction. He figured the best he could do is strike up a conversation about it if that’s what was on Sam’s mind.

“We’ll get up at the ass crack of dawn, head out to the stables to start rounding up. Jake’s letting me use one of the ranch’s trailers so we gotta be careful to not fuck it up or anything”.

“Okay, early morning got it, and the auction is what two hours away?”

“Yeah, unload as soon as we get there and we should have a couple of hours before the bidding even starts. The actual auction shouldn’t take too long, but depending on how it goes I might have quite a bit of paperwork to do after. Then head home. Should make it back just about dark”.

“So just another day?” Danny tried to joke, though Sam only huffed through his nose. “Cool, I’m excited”.

“Yeah?” Sam turned to look at Danny now, like he was surprised to hear Danny even still wanted to come with him after how hard he’d been working him. “It’s like you said, just another day of work”.

“Sure, but it’s still going to be new to me, and I’m glad I’ll be there if you need any help”.

Danny let his eyes shift from the road to Sam, catching his glare that seemed to soften slightly with the meeting. It was just a few seconds of contact, but Danny felt like they were finally starting to connect a little, and then Sam turned back away.

“Thanks, I’m excited too”.

Sam was nervous, but he didn’t want people to notice so he overcompensated by being extra bossy the day the auction finally came around. Danny was used to it by this point, quietly getting every little task no matter how hard or ridiculous done that Sam asked of him without complaint.

His continued obedience was starting to get a little annoying at this point actually. Not because he’d expected any less of Danny- no he had the build for a cowboy that was for sure and Sam had caught himself looking quite a few times- but because he hadn’t found a single flaw in him. As Danny continued to pick up skill after skill at the ranch, Sam started to worry that soon he wouldn’t be the top dog around here anymore, and his sometimes not so favorable attitude might become more of a problem with the others if Danny was always showing him up with that stupid little crooked smile.

Nevertheless, Danny was a lot of help and Sam was liking having him around more than he cared to admit.

After what felt like the longest morning of his life, and an even longer silent drive to get there, the auction was over in the blink of an eye. Sam did better than he’d even hoped for. Though he wouldn’t have been upset if he didn’t end up selling all four of his colts, he still expected to. All four sold easily and he even had some buyers asking if there would be anymore he’d be selling soon.

After exchanging his information with a few ranchers in the area, introducing Danny along the way, Sam pulled him into the offices to get the auction fees paid and make sure all his information was correct for the checks.

“I’ll drive back” Sam called out after they’d finished everything up and secured the now empty trailer. Danny gave him a look of hesitation as he reached into his pocket for the truck key. “What? You think I’m going to kill us both in a wreck with these in the glove box?” Sam questioned with a wide smile as he waved his envelope full of receipts and payment over his head. Danny raised his brows like he wanted to give him a cocky answer for once, but tossed him the keys anyway.

“You drink Daniel?” Sam questioned, ignoring the fact that Danny was clutching the passengers side door handle like his life did depend on it. “If not, you better start while you’re in this profession”.

“I do enjoy the occasional beer” Danny replied, loosening up and settling into his seat as they hit open highway.

“Good, cause as soon as we get back we’re going out to celebrate!”

“Yeah?” Danny replied, wondering exactly where there was to ‘celebrate’ in Sam’s hometown.

“Yep! And I know what you’re thinking where the fuck is there to have a good time in that podunk town?”. Danny’s smile faded, because that’s exactly what he was thinking and it was kind of flustering that they were actually thinking the same thing.

“The answer is there is a bar. It’s downtown, got one old ass pool table, a scratchy jukebox, and really cold beer”.

“Well, it’s not like I’ve got anything else better to do. Count me in”.

“Damn right you don’t! And when we get back don’t let Jake try and tell you otherwise. He gave you the day with me which technically makes me your boss right now, and I say we’re going out to celebrate!”

Danny’s smile returned, and if he’d been anyone else Sam might have gotten pissed off at his eagerness to play along. “Alright boss” he replied in a slightly teasing tone. “Let me just cancel the rest of my evening real quick”.

Danny reached into his jacket pocket like he was going to pull out his phone, but then a look of realization washed over his face.

“What’s that?” Sam questioned as he watched Danny pull out a folded piece of paper from his pocket he must have forgotten was in there.

“A flier I picked up earlier” he replied, reading over the piece of paper before Sam snatched it from his hands and held it over the steering wheel.

“Hey! Hey! Watch the road!” Danny panicked, worried less about getting his paper back and more about Sam focusing on driving.

“Rodeo?” Sam raised his brows, leaving one hand on the wheel and using the other to pass the flier back.

“Yeah… Did you see the cash prizes listed on here?” He held the crumpled paper up again to reread it himself, “second and third $200 and $300 and first place $500. I could use some of that”.

“So what? You’re some big rodeo star now?” Sam chuckled, though it wouldn’t surprise him if Danny could easily pick that up too.

“No, but who knows with a little practice maybe? It’s only twenty bucks to enter. If I lose I lose, but if I win…”

“You that strapped for cash?” Sam questioned a little more seriously, because if Danny was indeed having money problems then he would actually feel like an asshole for flaunting his earnings today right in his face.

“No not really, but my grandparents' care is expensive. Their social security pays for most of it but my parents foot the rest of the bill. If I could help them out some then it would be worth getting knocked around a bit by some bulls”.

“Well, don’t let Jake see you entering. He doesn’t like rodeos” Sam warned him, deciding if it was for a good cause then he’d help him out with it.

“Why's that?”

“A while back we had some guy big into bull riding. He wasn’t too good but he kinda did need the cash” Sam started to recall while he swerved into the left lane to pass the only other vehicle they’d seen on the highway for about thirty miles. “Well he went out and got hurt at a show but didn't say anything. Next day at work he ‘falls’ off a spooked horse and gets admitted to the hospital with two broken ribs. Josh’s insurance had to pay for it since it was reported as an on the job injury. When he got better Jake made his life on the ranch a living hell and he ended up quitting about a week later. Since then Jake’s just kinda been an ass to anyone who says they compete in those shows”.

Danny took one last look over the flier before folding it back up and sticking it back into his pocket. “Well, I don’t want Jake to get mad at me”.

“Just don’t get caught. Remember I said we keep all the real mean ones out in the south pens? Those are perfect for you to practice on and Jake hardly ever goes out there. Tomorrow I'll come up with an excuse for us and you can show me what you’re made of”.

“You’d do that for me?” Danny questioned. Partly because he wanted to sound grateful for the help, but also because he wanted to see if Sam would admit he was finally starting to enjoy his company.

“Would I miss the opportunity to see you flying off a bulls back in .02 seconds? Fuck no” Sam laughed making Danny roll his eyes.

So much for wishful thinking.

The rest of the drive back wasn’t as long and tense as the ride over was. Understandably so Sam was a lot happier and more chatty now than he was earlier in the day, which made the end of the trip go by quickly. Next thing Danny knew they had unloaded the trailer at the ranch and were hopping back in the truck bound for downtown and to drink the rest of the night away.

Sam was right, the bar wasn’t much. Adequate seating for the size of the town, with a less than adequate selection of booze, but it would do.

Barreling through the small crowd of what looked like towny regulars, Sam headed with Danny on tail to a small table in the back corner near the door to a small outdoor patio. A few older gentlemen said hi to him on the way and he waved and smiled back like they were all familiar faces. As soon as they were seated a cute little barback in nothing but tiny jean shorts and a tank top despite the still chilly late winter weather came bouncing over.

“Sam! Haven’t seen you in a while” she smiled down at him as she pushed a strand of long straightened and bleached hair behind her ear.

“I know, haven’t been in much of a social mood recently,” he flicked his charm on for her, eyebrows dropping and eyes narrowing in on her while his lips curled mischievously at the corners, “but that could be changing”.

Danny sat back and watched them interact just as he had the first time they went out to lunch together. Sam was a flirt with just about anyone outside of work, and here at the bar his demeanor seemed even more provocative. It was driving everyone, including Danny, absolutely wild with a want to get close to him.

“What can I get for you?” She asked him first then let her eyes flick over to where Danny was sitting across from Sam, not even trying to hide the way she looked him up and down with a bite of her lip.

“Two shots and some beers. You know what I like” Sam ordered for the both of them and she left for a moment before quickly returning with all he’d asked for.

Sam shoved one of the shots in Danny’s face and he got one good whiff of the clear liquid before he was already able to tell what it was. “Tequila?” He took the shot hesitantly, knowing he probably shouldn’t have too many of these if he was going to drive them both home tonight.

Sam waited for Danny to bring the shot glass to his lips before he picked up his own and they both tossed their heads back. He was able to take the shot with a straight face but Danny winced a little as the alcohol burned its way down his throat.

“You think that’s bad you should try some of Josh’s moonshine”.

“Josh makes moonshine?” Danny questioned as he washed the shot down with the beer. “I guess I kinda thought he was a little too respectable for that”.

Sam snickered at Danny’s naive assumption of his oldest brother, “on the surface maybe, but Josh has quite a bit going on behind the scenes that he only thinks we don’t know about”.

“I don’t think I want to know” Danny chuckled, causing Sam to lean over in his hair to get closer to him and see why he was laughing, “something tells me being in on all the Kiszka Ranch secrets would put me in a tough spot someday”.

“What about you Daniel,” Sam turned the subject around onto him instead, “you have any secrets?”

“If I did, why should I tell you?” Danny replied, matching his stance by leaning in even closer, so close that their forearms nearly met in the middle of the table.

“I’ll tell you one of mine if you tell me one of yours”.

“Okay, you go first”.

“Hell no! I asked you first”.

“I can eat a whole can of frosting”.

“That’s stupid, doesn’t count”.

“Fine, I like you”.

The quick back and forth stopped with Danny’s confession and Sam sat back in his chair. Sam took a drink of his beer to give himself a second to think of what to say now, while also trying to hide the blush he could feel flooding his cheeks.

“Why's that a secret?”

“It’s not,” Danny replied after taking another drink as well, “I just wanted to see what you would say”.

The blush didn’t go away no matter how hard Sam tried to will it to. He couldn’t tell if Danny was just fucking with him and that was making him nervous. What exactly did he mean by he liked him?

“Another round boys?” They were interrupted before Sam could say anything he might regret.

Sam ordered two more shots, though this time he didn’t even attempt to turn on his flirty persona for her. “Ugh, I hate this song” he complained after they’d had their second helping of tequila.

“What kind of music do you like?” Sam’s head was spinning with questions- suddenly he was more interested in getting to know Danny than ever, but every question he really wanted to know he was too scared to ask.

“I like a little bit of everything” Danny replied, seemingly unphased by his ‘secret’ reveal only moments ago, and Sam’s lack of a proper response.

“I’m so tired of hearing pop music everywhere. Where’s the real thought behind it? Music used to be so expressive and now it’s just another instrument of capitalism, pumping out mindless song after song of nothing but sex”.

“What’s wrong with songs about sex? She Goes Down Motley Crue, Pour Some Sugar on Me Def Leppard, Love in an Elevator Aerosmith-”

“Alright alright I get it” Sam cut Danny off and stopped him from continuing to ramble off names of songs from some of the popular bands Sam was alluding to with his comment about music not being what it used to.

“Are you sure? I can keep going? I quite like songs on that subject actually” Danny joked, feeling more and more comfortable with teasing Sam a little now that he had some hard liquor in his system. “In fact you’ll know I’ve had too much to drink once I start singing along to early 2000s pop hits”.

“You’ve got to be kidding me” Sam rolled his eyes but a genuine smile did start to spread across his face, “I do not want to see that”.

“What! Didn’t you say there was a jukebox somewhere in here?” Danny grabbed his chair and twisted in his seat to pretend to look behind himself for one. “There’s no way you don’t like Beyoncé”.

“You turn that shit on and I’m leaving your ass here to go home and drink in peace”.

“Alright,” Danny gave up turned back around. “Tell me something about yourself then”.

“What do you want to know?”

“Everything”.

Sam’s heart throbbed. What he would give for Danny to really be interested in learning everything about him. “My favorite color is green, my birthday is in April, I like dogs, all animals really, I like to garden”.

“Is that all?”

“What more do you want to know?” Sam finished his beer and set it on the table before crossing his arms.

Danny glanced over to the bar, making eye contact with the barback and raising his bottle to signal they needed some more. “Hmm let’s see, what side of the bed do you sleep on?”

Sam’s fingers tightened around his grip on his bicep. What use would Danny have with that kind of information? Whatever the reason, he wasn’t going to let Danny know his questions were even fazing him. “Left, what about you?”

Danny smiled, nodding his head in approval, “right”.

“Are you a shower in the morning or shower in the night kind of person?”

“Depends on how dirty I get” Sam answered, turning the charm he used with others on Danny to see how he’d react. “And I can get very dirty. I’m not afraid of making a mess”.

“I’m not afraid of messes either” Danny met his energy, though neither of them were confident enough yet to actually make a move.

“Well now that the air is cleared on all of that. I need another shot”.

#greta van fic #Greta van fleet #gvf #danny wagner #sam kiszka #sanny gvf

11 notes · View notes

mycurrent-hyperfixation · 2 years

Text

Take A Chance On Me - Chapter Four (Eddie Munson x Reader Series)

Series Summary: Corroded Coffin is lacking only one thing that could help them win the upcoming Battle of the Bands; original songs. So when a new band comes to town with a lead singer that looks all too familiar and a repertoire of original songs up their sleeves, Dustin concocts a plan that will get you to spill all of your songwriting secrets to Eddie. It’s just a few dates, right?

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Masterlist

Word Count: 7.0K

Pairings: Eddie Munson x Reader, Eddie Munson x fem!Reader

Tags: fluff, 10 Things I Hate About You AU

A/N: I have finally returned from the land of the shadow banned accounts so I am so so sorry for the unexpected hiatus in this fic! Firstly, my sincere apologises for the word count I literally just couldn’t bring myself to chop this chapter in half cause it would have felt way too disjointed. Do you guys mind big word counts or do you prefer smaller ones? Secondly, I just want to say a big thank you to all the constant people who comment on my works each week. I don’t respond to them since Tumblr won’t let me comment from my secondary account and I don’t want it to seem like I’m just some random person replying to all your comments, but I need you all to know that I literally combust with happiness whenever I get a single comment notification. Lastly, just so everyone knows I will be using more modern songs as the 'original' songs for this series but I'll always have the original artists at the bottom of the chapter. As always, I love and appreciate you all so much!

“Is there fuel in it?”

“Of course there’s fuel in it, Robin.”

“Just checking.”

You turned your attention back to the open bonnet of your car, hoping that even though you were quite useless when it came to the mechanics of motor vehicles, you would somehow be able to identify the problem. The sun was beating down harshly upon the back of your neck as Robin continued to stare over your shoulder, her presence both oddly calming and slightly agitating. Letting out a sigh, you turned your gaze away from the engine, bringing your hands up to rub at your weary eyes.

Everything had been fine only moments before. Everything had been working just as it was supposed to as you had leisurely made the turn out of Hawkins, Blondie blasting from the radio as Robin insisted on turning the volume up even further. It had begun as a sputtering, something that had mildly concerned you at first but which had mostly been drowned out by the music. But then the sputtering had turned into a quite visible cloud of steam emerging from your engine, the volume of the radio doing little to fix the problem this time.

“We’ll have to find a phone and call a tow truck,” you finally announced.

“But we’ll never make it to the competition in time!” Vicki protested from where her and Meg were lazing in the shade of the car’s shadow.

“Well, me staring at the engine isn’t making it any more fixed so we don’t really have any other options.”

“Maybe we can call a taxi and just leave the car here for now,” Meg offered, shielding her eyes from the sun as she looked up at you.

“You want to take a taxi all the way to Fort Wayne? I can’t afford that,” Robin said, and by the way her breathing had begun to quicken as her figure stalked back and forth in front of you, it was made abundantly clear that she was panicking. “And we’re in the middle of nowhere! It’s going to take us ages to even find a phone and by then we’ll have probably died of heat stroke and nobody will even find our bodies because we’re in the middle of nowhere and-”

“Robin,” you said gently, grabbing onto her shoulders to hold her in place. “Nobody is dying of heat stroke, okay?” Robin nodded. “Now I’m pretty sure I saw an emergency phone a couple of miles back so I’m going to start walking and you guys stay with the car, okay?”

“Okay,” Robin said placidly, and it was only after several seconds that she finally seemed to register what you had actually said. “Wait, I’m not letting you go for a stroll down some deserted road by yourself!”

“I’ll be fine,” you laughed, beginning your walk in the direction you had just come from. You didn’t get very far before Robin appeared dutifully at your side, upkeeping her pace with yours as she rambled.

“But there’s probably creeps hiding in the bushes by the side of the road just waiting for people to walk past so they can kidnap them and take them back to their evil lairs and-”

The beginnings of a smile had begun to make their way up your features at the apparently untameable imagination of Robin Buckley. Her wild theories and preposterous scenarios could all feasibly come true, but it was the sheer theatrics and animation and Robin-ness in which her sentiments were delivered that had you stifling a laugh, altogether quite thankful that it was her that you had found yourself stuck next to on a deserted road.

But then your attention wavered away from Robin, captured instead by a black dot cresting the hill in the distance. It was faint at first, barely there at all so that for just a moment you wondered whether the Indiana sun was starting to get the better of you. But as it grew closer it also grew bigger until the unmistakable shape of a car came into view.

You watched as it meandered closer, it’s exterior black and its frame slightly larger than what you had expected; a van most likely, you thought to yourself, a van that looked oddly familiar. The sound blasting from the open windows reached you far before the van did; some concoction of drums, an electric guitar and what you assumed to be a man screaming into a microphone.

Faintly you realised that Robin had stopped rambling, her gaze now following yours. The both of you watched on as the van neared you, passed completely by, came to a screeching halt so that distinct tire marks were left on the road in its wake, and then swiftly reversed.

Eddie Munson smiled widely at you from the driver’s seat, an unlit cigarette perched between his lips.

“You ladies come here often?” he said with a grin.

You rolled your eyes and turned away in an attempt to hide your smile.

“Our car’s broken down, dingus,” Robin replied for you.

Dustin and Mike peered around Eddie from where they were sat in the driver’s seat. It was clear that they too were equally surprised at this sudden reunion. Dustin’s eyes went wide as his gaze connected with yours before he turned to look at Mike with a devilish grin.

“Oh, look at that, so it has,” Eddie said sarcastically. “I didn’t notice, what with all the beautiful ladies standing in front of it.”

“Are you going to help us, Munson, or are you going to let us stand out in the sun all day?” you asked.

“Well, since you asked so kindly, how can I refuse?” he said with a grin, pulling off to the side of the road. When he hopped from the driver’s seat the cigarette had migrated to sit behind his ear as he sauntered his way over towards you. “A gentleman like me could never refuse a couple of damsels in distress, anyway.”

“Who’s he calling a damsel?” Meg growled. Eddie flicked his gaze towards her with something close to fear behind his eyes.

“Let’s take a look then,” Eddie said, making his way over to the opened bonnet.

He peered inside, one of his arms coming to rest upon the frame of the car, the other reaching upwards to the opened bonnet as he leaned forwards. Parts of his hair dangled in front of his face as he studied the car’s interior, the pick that hung from a string around his neck swaying before him.

The image of Eddie Munson like this, standing so confidently whilst peering into your car’s engine, caught you wholeheartedly off guard. The shirt he was wearing had clearly been personally modified, the sleeves ripped clean off so that you were met with the unencumbered view of Eddie’s arms. There was the sight of the muscles in his forearms going taut as he leaned even further forwards. There were the tattoos that covered them, the dark ink a stark contrast to his pale skin. There were his hands—because of course there were always his stupidly attractive hands—gripping onto the lip of the car frame, his usual stack of silver rings still prominent upon each finger. You watched them as they worked, periodically leaving the rim of the car to tinker at something inside. They moved fluently, just as they had across the strings of his guitar that day at the Hideout so that you found yourself fixated upon them.

Suddenly your heart was racing and your stomach was fluttering and your breath was leaving you all at once. Your hands were shaking slightly and your mouth had gone completely dry and you began to wonder if maybe Robin had been right, maybe you did have heatstroke. Maybe you were seconds away from passing out and there was nobody but Eddie Munson there to catch you. But then the image of falling into Eddie’s firm chest, his bare arms catching you, flooded your mind and you found your symptoms only worsening.

“How do you know Eddie Munson?” Robin whispered to you, pulling you out of your reverie.

“Oh, um,” you began, hastily trying to compose yourself as a vibrant blush crept upwards to your cheeks. “I don’t really know. We went to school together and we just seem to keep running into each other, I suppose.”

“Uh-huh,” Robin replied, eyebrow quirked upwards.

“What-” you began, but before you could finish Eddie was turning around once more, wiping his hands on the bandana that was seemingly always hanging from his back pocket.

“I think it’s your cooling system. When was the last time you filled up your coolant?”

You continued to stare at Eddie, suddenly quite incapable of intelligent thought. Eddie chuckled slightly.

“When was the last time you serviced your car?” he asked instead, the small smirk that rested comfortably across his lips only making it harder for you to focus.

“Um,” you managed to say, wracking your brain for the answer to Eddie’s very simple question. “Not too long ago. Maybe a couple of months.”

“Hmm, they would have topped it up for you then and you shouldn’t have gone through that much by now. My guess is you’ve got a leak in the cooling system and the car’s overheated.”

“Is there anything you can do to fix it?” you questioned.

“Nope, I left my spare bottle of coolant at home, unfortunately.” There was that damned smirk again. “The car will probably start up again once it’s cooled down a bit but you’ll have to see a mechanic about the leak.”

“How long will that take?”

“Could be hours in this heat.”

“Hours?!” Robin burst out. “We’ll never make it to the competition in time!”

Eddie opened his mouth, but before he could utter any words Dustin was calling from the car, his head poking out of the opened window.

“Why don’t you ride with us?!”

“I was just about to suggest that, thank you, Henderson!” Eddie called back through gritted teeth.

“No problem!” Dustin called back, completely missing Eddie’s sarcasm.

“Are you sure?” you questioned. “There was an emergency phone a few miles back. I can just call us a taxi.”

“No, no, please, I insist,” Eddie continued, completely unsure as to how it was he had gotten so close to you. He didn’t pull away however, completely transfixed by the soft smile that you were directing up towards him. “It’ll be a bit cramped in the back with all of our equipment and all the boys, but I think we can all fit,” he said, flicking his gaze towards the ground as he brought one hand up to rub at the back of his head sheepishly.

A sigh of relief escaped from your lips.

“You’re my hero, Eddie Munson.” Eddie’s breath hitched in his throat. “For a second there I really didn’t think we were going to make it to the competition.”

“Well I couldn’t let that happen now, could I? Not when I have to beat you.”

You tilted your head back slightly as a laugh erupted from your throat. Eddie marvelled at the sight of it.

“Alright, ladies,” Eddie called to the rest of the girls. “Your chariot awaits.”

You rounded the side of your car, opening the boot before extracting the guitars that laid within, distributing them to their owners as you slung the case of your own around your shoulder. Eddie bowed lowly as you all passed by him, gesturing towards his van dramatically, catching for just a second the small smile that upturned your lips.

“Henderson! Wheeler!” Eddie yelled as he trailed behind the four of you. “Get in the back!”

“Aw, come on, man!” Mike whined before he was quite unceremoniously thrown from the van by Dustin who seemed all too eager to give up his seat. He winked at Eddie as he passed him, the gesture causing your eyebrows to furrow slightly in confusion.

Eddie flung the back doors open and, without a word, outstretched his hands towards you as you unslung your guitar from your shoulder and passed it to him. Your hands brushed for just a second as the instrument was transferred between you, and although the touch was fleeting it had your breath quickening nonetheless. Once all of the guitars were situated safely within the van, Eddie hopped back out and surveyed the vehicle with his hands placed upon his hips.

“Alright so we can fit two other people up front with me. And then if everyone else squishes we should be able to fit everyone else back here.”

“This doesn’t look very safe,” Robin said, her eyes scanning the back of the van and noticing it’s distinct lack of seatbelts.

“I’ll take the back,” Meg instantly volunteered. “I don’t trust these dweebs with my guitar,” she whispered to you as she hopped inside, causing a slight snicker to escape your throat.

“I’ll keep Meg company,” Vicki added, looking up towards Robin beside her. “You should feel safer in the front.”

A violent blush invaded Robin’s cheeks as Vicki entered the van. The sight of it had your snicker returning, Robin so completely love-struck that you had to drag her away to the passenger door.

“You hear that, Robin?” you began, opening the door before hopping inside. “Vicki wants to keep you safe,” you finished in a whisper.

“Oh, shut up, she was just being nice,” Robin responded, finally gaining control of her body once more as she squeezed in beside you.

The van was tightly compact, not just in the back where Dustin, Mike and Gareth were continuously fighting about the crowded conditions, but in the front as well as you had so quickly come to realise. You had shifted as far as you could against Robin who was currently cramped against the side door, but still it didn’t seem to make a difference; your other side was still firmly pressed up against Eddie’s.

He seemed unfazed by the contact as he drove, although in truth his heart was pounding violently within his chest as he tried against all hope to get his breathing under control. The wind rushed through his hair from the open window, the breeze slightly cooler than it had been before so that he could not quite understand why he seemed to be sweating so much. The music from the radio wafted lazily between you, the volume having been turned down to a far more respectable level.

“I’ve got some more cassettes in the glove box if you guys wanted to change the music,” Eddie said.

Robin leaned forwards, opening the glovebox before rifling through it, her face contorting into a look of disgust.

“Music, Munson. We need music,” Robin said.

“That is music, thank you very much, Buckley.”

“Just leave it, Robin,” you said with a laugh.

The rest of the ride was quiet, partly because Robin had found an ACDC cassette that she deemed tolerable but mostly because the boys had fallen asleep in the back at some point throughout the drive. You looked back to where Dustin’s head rested upon Mike’s shoulder, a sliver of drool falling from the taller boy’s mouth, a gentle smile finding its way onto your features at the sight. When you turned back around you could have sworn you saw Eddie’s gaze flick away from you, but then his eyes were seemingly fixated upon the road and you dispelled the thought from your mind.

But now with the silence lingering quite prominently around you as you only continued to grow closer and closer to the venue, you could feel the nerves that had wracked your body for the entire week slowly start to return. Your hands grew sweaty, your breaths coming out just a little shallower the further that you drove.

In the end, you only noticed the incessant bouncing of your leg when Eddie took one hand off of the steering wheel to place upon your knee. The touch surprised you, but you did not pull away. It was nice and it was warm and it was so very comforting as the skin of his palm connected with your own so that your nerves were soon forgotten as you slowly turned your gaze upwards towards Eddie. He was already looking at you, a soft smile placed across his lips.

“Are you alright?” he asked quietly, his gaze periodically flicking back to the road, his hand remaining upon your knee.

“Don’t worry, I always get like this,” you responded, offering him a small smile in return. “I’ll be fine once we get on stage.”

Eddie nodded, a short and yet comfortable silence lingering between you.

“Well if you need to get your mind off of it, I’m great at chatting,” Eddie added.

A soft chuckle left your lips.

“Thanks, Eddie,” you responded, your voice coming out as barely more than a whisper. Without realising it, you pulled yourself slightly further away from Robin.

And instead of focusing on what was to come—the crowds and the people and the judges—you instead pulled your focus to Eddie; so warm and so solid beside you. You focused on the way that his hand had still not left your knee, quite sure that he had forgotten that it was there, the skin of his palm warm against you, the cool metal of his rings a stark contrast. You focused on the way his hair lifted slightly in the breeze, on the way his finger tapped lightly upon the steering wheel to the beat of the music, on the soft smile that upturned his lips whenever he glanced back down towards you.

And it was nice.

It was so very nice that it terrified you.

---

In the span of a single second as the van rounded the corner and the venue finally came into view, your nerves returned all at once, hitting you with such force that you were quite certain that if Robin and Eddie did not have you squished between them you would have likely passed out. There was the venue with the sign above its door advertising the competition. There was the car park sprawled in front of it, filled to the brim. There was the line of people waiting to get inside; a line that was so long it had begun to wrap around the building.

“Oh my god, look at all those people!” Gareth exclaimed excitedly as he scrambled forwards to see out the windscreen better, earning him disgruntled groans from everyone else as he trampled over them.

“Oh my god, look at all those people,” you whispered, quite sure that you were mildly in shock. You could feel Eddie’s gaze as he turned to look down at you, his hand which had been fused to your knee the entire drive squeezing slightly in reassurance. Turning your head upwards, some of the pressure in your chest alleviated as the image of his smile came into focus.

Eddie pulled swiftly into the carpark, rounding the building until the stage door came into view. A few people, most with guitars strapped to their backs and cigarettes dangling from their lips, lingered by the door. As Eddie parked, his hand finally departed from your knee, leaving behind the cold absence of his touch that you found yourself missing more than you would have liked to admit.

As soon as the car was stationary the back doors flung open, Meg and Vicki eagerly putting as much distance as they could between themselves and the boys, Meg hugging her guitar protectively to her chest. You couldn’t help but laugh as you and Robin hopped down from your seats and rounded the van.

“I swear I was going to die of gas inhalation in there,” Meg began, taking large lungfuls of air.

“One of them would not stop farting,” Vicki elaborated. “And I’m positive it was Gareth.”

“It couldn’t have been that bad,” you said, reaching inside the van to extract yours and Robin’s guitars only to begin hastily retreating as soon as they were in your grasp. “Nope, never mind, that’s fowl.”

“Told you,” Meg said.

“You and Vicki can have the front seat on the way back then,” you responded.

“Oh, well I wouldn’t want to interrupt your alone time with Munson,” Meg teased.

“What?”

“You two were practically cuddling like the whole way there,” Vicki added.

A small blush began to creep up your neck as you turned away to hide it.

“Yeah, well that front seat isn’t as big as it looks. Robin and I were also practically cuddling the whole way there as well if you didn’t notice.”

“And I enjoyed every second of it,” Robin said with a smile.

Meg shrugged her shoulders, her features nonchalant. “Whatever you say.”

“I think the bassist is into me,” Gareth said in a hushed tone as the boys began unloading their things from the back of the van. Each of them looked up at Gareth, looked back towards Meg, and then burst out laughing.

“Sure buddy,” Jeff said with a look of pity evident upon his features.

“No, seriously,” Gareth tried again. “I was getting a real vibe from her in the van.”

The boys laughed again as Eddie locked up, slinging the case of his guitar gently across his shoulders as they each set off towards the venue. He looked back towards where you were enamoured in a conversation with your bandmates, wanting to linger until you caught up. But after catching Dustin’s eye at his hesitation and after the boy offered him a completely unsubtle wiggle of his eyebrows, Eddie turned on his heel and walked away with a roll of his eyes.

“So none of the boys struck your fancy then, Meg?” Robin questioned. You each watched as the boys began the walk over to the venue, following behind them.

Vicki let out a violent laugh that had Eddie looking back towards you. He flashed a smile when his eyes caught your own before returning back to his conversation.

“Gareth’s leg brushed up against hers once and she told him to move it or he’d lose it,” Vicki elaborated.

As the venue drew closer your nerves began to increase, so much so that you could barely register what the girls were saying anymore. The worker stationed outside of the stage door was tall and awfully intimidating so that you stuttered slightly when you told him the name of your band. Eddie had already disappeared inside, and you suddenly wished that he was still there, standing beside you, maybe with an arm around your waist to ground you.

The man took his time scanning his list, looking up periodically to glance over you and the other girls before shaking his head slightly. He didn’t try to hide his disdain, yet you so wished for him to at least just hurry up lest Meg—who was quite obviously seething beside you—say anything she shouldn’t.

In the end, he grunted in what you assumed was a begrudging admittance. You walked forwards, the darkness of the hallway disorientating at first, walking only a few steps before Meg’s voice filled your ears.

“Are you not going to tell us where to go?” Her voice was antagonistic and everyone, including the doorman, was well aware of that.

His voice came out as something close to a growl. “Green room’s down the hall.”

“Descriptive,” Meg said with a scoff before she followed you inside.

“Save the enemy making for the other bands, Meggy,” Robin said, slinging an arm around the girl.

The hallway was long, numerous doors branching off from it in a way that made you fear that one wrong turn might get you lost forever. You swallowed nervously, the dryness in your throat worsening as your hands gripped tightly to the strap of your guitar case.

But when you turned the corner, there Eddie Munson was, and everything for just a moment felt like it was going to be okay. The door to the green room was opened as you walked through, the room slightly smaller than you had been expecting considering how many other bands were squeezed inside. Most kept to themselves, talking to their bandmates or tuning their instruments. Eddie looked up from where he was unlocking his guitar case, a wide smile growing upon his lips.

“I was just about to come find you. Thought you might have gotten lost.”

You smiled back up at him, the racing of your heart easing slightly. But before you could respond, somebody else was talking over the low hum that filled the room.

“Sorry, ladies. Groupies aren’t allowed backstage.”

The smirk was the first thing you saw, so arrogant and pretentious and condescending that you instantly wished to wipe it from his face. The boy was tall as he sauntered towards you, a lit cigarette dangling from his lips. He didn’t try to hide as his eyes raked over you, taking their time lingering across certain areas of your body so that your skin instantly began to crawl.

“We’re here to play, asshole,” you managed to respond, your voice coming out far more venomous than you had intended.

“Hmmm, that’s funny,” the boy continued, earning a few snickers from the boys that stood behind him: his bandmates, presumably. “I thought the standards for this comp were a lot higher. I guess they do have to fill some sort of diversity quota though.”

The group of boys behind him burst out laughing, one of them leaning forward to slap their ringleader on the shoulder encouragingly.

Two growls sounded from behind you. One you had heard only moments before and which undoubtedly belonged to Meg. The other was unfamiliar. Turning your head slightly, you found Eddie standing right behind you, his gaze murderous as he stared at the boy. Now that you had noticed him you couldn’t quite understand how you had failed to recognise his brooding presence, heat seeming to emanate from his skin that was now only separated from yours by a few inches.

The low hum of conversation that had filled the room had now ceased as every other band turned their attention towards you. And whilst you had been expecting to be one of the only girl bands within the competition, you were wholeheartedly surprised to find the room completely void of any other women.

“You talk a very big game for someone who’s going to get beat by a diversity quota then,” you said back.

And then you were walking away partly because the situation was in no way helping your nerves but mostly because you were quite scared of what would happen if you stayed. The looks in Meg’s and Eddie’s eyes when you turned around were so venomous and so hostile that you didn’t want to stick around to see what would happen should they become unleashed. So you grabbed Meg’s hand and linked your arm with Eddie’s and practically dragged them away to the corner of the room.

“Where’s a good place around here to hide a body?” Meg mumbled, her gaze still turned towards the boy as she allowed herself to be dragged.

“If we just get him to the van we can drive to the middle of nowhere and dump it,” Eddie responded.

The seriousness behind their tone had you slightly concerned.

“Just ignore him,” you said, physically grabbing Meg’s head and turning it away from where she was still staring. “He’s just trying to intimidate us. Plus his public display of assholery will just make it more embarrassing for him when he loses.”

“I agree,” Vicki spoke up.

“I have to say though,” Robin began. “’Diversity quota’ is kind of a cool name for a band, right?”

---

You were to be the last ones to perform because of course the world was so hellbent on prolonging your battle with your nerves. Your palms had begun sweating again and now your hands had begun to shake slightly so that the simple task of tuning your guitar had taken far longer than it should have.

Eddie and the rest of the boys had continued to stay by your side for the remainder of your wait within the green room, his dark eyes periodically glancing up towards you and offering a reassuring smile. Once or twice, when your breathing began to grow ragged or your sweating became worse, his hand would find the skin of your knee once more, the small squeeze that he would give somehow always managing to elicit a smile from you.

One by one the different bands shuffled out for their sets, and although you were yet to see the crowd, the deafening screams that would trickle down the hallway after every song never failed to knot your stomach. The rest of your band had left some time ago, opting instead to join the crowd and scope out the competition, most of the boys trickling out behind them. Eddie had stayed, although why you weren’t quite sure as he continued to turn the tuning pegs of his guitar even though you were certain it had been in tune for some time.

“Come and watch my set,” Eddie said into the silence that hung between you as you strummed half-heartedly at the guitar in your lap.

“Of course I will,” you responded with a small smile. “I’ll try distracting you from the crowd so you mess up.”

Eddie pulled his head back and barked out a laugh.

“And how will you do that exactly?”

“Well I’m hoping the sheer presence of my beauty is just going to do the trick. So like you’ll see me in the crowd and you’ll be so stunned that you’ll just drop your guitar or something.”

“And if that doesn’t work?” Eddie said, chuckling.

“If it doesn’t work I’ll be very disappointed. But then I can always resort to a cheeky flash, you know?”

Eddie barked out another laugh.

“I’m afraid if you do that Gareth and Jeff might just explode.”

“And you wouldn’t? I’m offended.”

Eddie was quite certain that in such a situation he would simply keel over and die, but he refrained from saying so, too busy admiring the smile upon your lips. It was wide, encompassing a large portion of your features so that he hoped it was a sign he was succeeding in distracting you if only briefly. Flashing his own smile, he jumped up from where he had been sitting and grabbed your hand in his as he pulled you upwards, guitar and all. You groaned slightly, helping him lift you in no way so that the ascent was slower than it needed to be. But when you finally stood up, for just a moment, you were held tightly to Eddie’s chest and the feel of him against you instantly had a raging heat rising from your neck as the two of you pulled away.

“Come on,” Eddie whined. “We’re on soon and I need my groupie in the crowd.”

“If you call me that again, Munson, I will shove your guitar so far up your-”

“Okay-okay,” Eddie hastily interjected, a large smile spreading across his lips.

---

The crowd was packed as you weaved your way through it, keeping your eyes fixated on the fiery redness of Vicki’s hair as you made your way towards her. Meg and Robin were by her side, each of them talking as Eddie’s band came on stage and began setting up their instruments.

“Look who finally joined us!” Robin screamed excitedly upon seeing you, one arm extending into a sideways hug as she pulled you in towards her.

“What kind of bands are we up against?” you questioned, your gaze wondering over to where Eddie was plugging his guitar into an amplifier.

“Some are such a snooze-fest,” Robin responded.

“They’ve mostly just been covers so far,” Vicki elaborated.

“Any originals?” you questioned.

Robin, Meg and Vicki shared a look, something you couldn’t quite decipher passing between them.

“What?” you questioned.

“Mr Welcoming from the green room did an original,” Robin said.

You couldn’t quite help the groan that left your lips as you begrudgingly asked, “Any good?”

“It was absolutely horrendous,” Robin immediately responded.

“It was alright,” Meg spoke up, earning another groan from you.

“But we’re still better!” Robin added.

You opened your mouth to respond but before you could Eddie was tapping the microphone, grasping the attention of everybody in the room. You could tell he was slightly nervous from the small falter in the smile he offered the crowd, but he still held himself tall and confident, something you instantly envied about him.

“Hello everyone. We are Corroded Coffin and this is Master of Puppets by Metallica.”

Your brows furrowed slightly, utterly shocked by their choice of song. That album had been out for little more than a month, and if you remembered correctly from when you had briefly played it during a shift, the title song of the album consisted of insanely fast and practically impossible chord progressions. You had been there when Eddie had purchased the album merely a few weeks ago; the memory of the interaction causing both a smile and an eruption of embarrassment to course through you. You couldn’t quite help but begin to worry.

When the song began, your breath seemed to leave you all at once as the room erupted with the sound of Eddie’s guitar. His hands were a blur as they danced across the strings, the sheer electricity behind his playing causing your heart to beat rapidly within your chest.

In the end you realised that your worry had been unwarranted, for they played the song masterfully. It was a good song choice, you had to admit, for its fast tempo and exhilarating combination of guitar and drums caused the crowd to erupt around you.

Your gaze was seemingly transfixed upon Eddie for the entirety of the set, your eyes flicking over Eddie’s form until they came to rest upon his arms; the curving of his muscles so oddly transfixing. And even though the crowd was quite dense and even though it was hard to see him all that clearly upon the stage, you still found your gaze hovering across each black mark that littered his skin, lingering slightly at each flex of his muscles.

And then of course your gaze flicked lower as Eddie’s fingers raced across each string, once again becoming mesmerised by their mastery of movement. When Eddie’s eyes finally found yours amongst the crowd, the smile that he flashed you made something constrict in your chest. And just as you were about to smile back, Eddie’s wide grin instantly dropped from his face just as you felt something touch at your waist. There was a breath now, so close to your ear that it sent shivers up your spine as you froze in place.

“Can I buy you a drink?”

It was the same guy from the green room. You could instantly tell from the condescension that seemed to drip from his every word. Without thinking, you instantly recoiled from him, whipping around and pushing him away from you, garnering the attention of the other girls.

“Don’t touch me,” you spat.

“Hey, I was just trying to be friendly,” he responded.

“Let’s just go,” Vicki whispered into your ear.

You so hated the idea of running, especially with that wide, toothy grin that you hated so much still fixed across his features. But then you heard it; the missed note. Whipping your head around you found Eddie’s gaze still glued to you, his face void of emotion yet his hands still moving across the strings. You could see the looks of panic within the eyes of Jeff, Gareth and Mike as they all looked towards Eddie, and you knew in that moment that you couldn’t continue to stand there within the crowd with this boy so close to you.

So you lifted one hand, upturned your middle finger and grabbed Vicki’s hand in your own partly because you didn’t want to lose the other’s in the crowd and partly because you needed it to stop shaking so badly. Your breathing seemed to ease the further away from the boy you got until finally the crowd dispersed and you were making your way backstage. Somewhere in the distance you registered the last few notes of the song being played, but then Eddie was before you as he rushed offstage, his eyes blown wide as he bent down slightly to inspect you.

“Are you okay?” he said, practically breathless.

“I’m fine,” you said, your smile becoming more genuine the longer you looked upon him.

“I’m gonna kill-”

“I’m fine,” you repeated. “Now I’ll just have someone to sing to.”

Eddie furrowed his brows, severely confused as Robin let out a loud laugh.

“He’s going to think you wrote it about him,” she said.

---

The stage lights were blinding as you stepped out of the shadows; the beating of your heart instantly increasing, your breathing becoming more ragged. You tried to smile, you really did, but you could feel it falter somewhat as your gaze came to focus on the crowd; all those eyes staring straight back at you. It had looked big when you had been among them, far bigger than the cramped space of the Hideout. But now, standing above them, the sea of eyes staring back at you seemed almost never-ending.

Gripping tightly to your guitar, the coolness of the metal soothing against your hands, you tried to turn your focus to the ground, instead concentrating on the multitude of wires that ran across the floor, careful to avoid them as you made your way across the stage. You refused to look up, focusing your attentions instead on setting up your amplifier and readjusting the microphone.

When everything was ready, you glanced back one last time to each girl. Robin and Vicki offered you wide smiles that eased your breathing somewhat and Meg gave a curt yet reassuring nod. With one last breath you turned your head back around, a wide smile plastered across your lips as you stared out at the crowd.

“Hello everyone,” you called, and the room responded with a round of cheers. You opened your mouth to continue, but before you could a loud wolf whistle erupted throughout the hall. The crowd laughed.

“This one is dedicated to all the boys out there who can’t take a hint,” you continued on trying to act unperturbed. Another round of cheers came from the crowd, this time sounder slightly more feminine. You smiled. “And let’s also dedicate it to whoever it was that whistled, although I’m guessing you don’t know how to take a hint either.”

The crowd erupted in more laughs this time and you couldn’t help your smile from growing.

“This one’s called You and Your Hand.”

You pressed your lips up against the microphone as Vicki begun the song. As soon as your fingers touched the strings of your guitar, it was almost as if the room disappeared. For just a moment it was simply you and your friends playing in the comfort of your garage; no crowd, no judges, no expectations.

“Check it out, going out on the late night

Looking tight, feeling nice, it’s a cockfight.”

As your eyes scanned the crowd, they found Eddie’s somewhere near the front. He was smiling widely at you, banging his head slightly along with the beat. You offered him a smile in return. But then your eyes were leaving his, instead coming to linger upon that same condescending grin that was still fixed in place.

“That’s when dickhead put his hands on me

But you see

I’m not here for your entertainment

You don’t really want to mess with me tonight.”

You revelled in the sight of the boy’s eyes going wide, one of his friends leaning in to whisper something in his ear that had him furrowing his brows. In that moment all of your nerves left you, a surge of confidence running through you that had your smile growing and your body dancing to the music. His grin, slowly but surely, dropped from his features, instead morphing into a scowl. The sight of it only had you smiling wider.

“Keep your drink just gimme the money

It’s just you and your hand tonight.”

In the crowd, Eddie had entered the room with the sole intent of connecting his fist with a smirking grin. But now, as he looked up at you dancing across the stage, he found himself altogether quite breathless and his mind altogether quite blank. You were staring at the boy as you sang—as you practically spat each word at him—and he knew somewhere in the back of his mind that he would be able to follow your gaze to find the boy if he so wished. But then you were smiling and laughing and clearly having so much fun that Eddie found himself unable to move forwards.

“In the corner with your boys you bet up five bucks

To get the girl that just walked in, but she thinks you suck

We didn’t get all dressed up just for you to see

So quit spilling your drinks on me.”

Eddie couldn’t quite help the laugh that escaped from his throat. And because it was so abundantly clear to everybody in the room that you were singing to a particular person—not that you were trying to hide the fact whatsoever—slowly, every gaze in the room turned towards the boy. His smirk was wiped from his face now, a venomous glare in his eyes that he directed up towards you and as you simply continued to smile back.

“You know who you are,

High-fivin, talkin shit but you’re going home alone, aren’t ya?”

When the cheer erupted from the crowd the boy finally begun to make his escape, an embarrassed scowl covering his features as he tried to push his way through the throngs of people that surrounded him. And you only continued to smile and dance as he left, completely consumed in the song now.

When the boy had left and the song was coming to a close, your eyes scanned the crowd once more before coming to rest upon Eddie. And for just a moment, as you smiled so widely down at him, Eddie could have sworn that his heart skipped a beat.

---

Songs Used:

- Master of Puppets by Metallica

- U + Ur Hand by Pink

---

Taglist:

@alicetweven @theh3aven @manamitoyota @mimiluvsualot @cherrypieyourface @kaqua @c0untryclub @goldencherriess @emotionaldreamer @givemethesleep @milkiane @miscreantsnopossoms @legendaryfestsoul-blog

Series Taglist:

@grungegrrrl @thirddeadlysin @boomitsallie1 @renaroo123 @wordsthatwaterflowersinyoursoul @annnnn91 @bakugouswh0r3 @aivilovio @wannabewiedzma

#eddie munson #eddie munson x reader #eddie x reader #eddie munson stranger things #eddie munson fluff #stranger things #stranger things s4 #stranger things season 4 #eddie munson x you #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson x fem!reader #eddie munson x female reader #steve harrington #dustin henderson #joseph quinn #Joe Quinn

150 notes · View notes

scabopolis · 1 year

Text

fic recs: l/v fic fest, "I love a man in uniform"

In anticipation of the upcoming 2023 Logan x Veronica "New Year, New Fic" fest, I bring you a small selection of fics inspired by the site of Logan in uniform. Again, the kind of uniform is up to you. The sky is the actual limit.

Day 1 of the challenge is February 1, 2023 so be sure to check out the #2023 LV New Year here on tumblr or the AO3 collection for more fic and art.

As a reminder, there are so many fics that fill these tropes. These are just a smattering, so make sure to make note of the ones you love the most and next week, when the challenge starts, maybe go drop those you love a kudos, a comment, or both to share the joy.

To begin, let's start with the inspiration fic for the prompt and then we'll add a few more.

These are mostly all Logan in a Navy uniform, so I'll be excited to see if there are ways we can open that definition up in the next week!

Fic: Metal Under Tension by @machawicket (AO3 account required to read) Rating: T and/or M depending on your POV Tropes and Themes: Reunited after 180-days, Veronica climbing Logan like a tree, these two are OBSESSED with each other Read if: You want to be transported back in time almost 9-years to that post-movie time when macha kept us all very well fed with fic inspired by the movie and what came after. This fic is romantic, and funny, and touching, and man. WHAT A TIME!

Fic: The Long Way Home by @absolutelyiris Rating: E because of those two-weeks of bliss iykwim Tropes and Themes: Idk, man, this fic is perfect to me - (but also it's a movie compliant fic, with chapters 1 and 2 showing snippets throughout the film, and chapter 3 post-Logan's deployment) Read if: This fic messes me up in the best way and somehow I'd FORGOTTEN ABOUT IT which is why these kinds of challenges are the best. The part of the chapter when they're back together but he's about to leave for 6-months. AGGGH! I can still feel it in my gut.

Fic: Every Belt That Hit Someone (is Still Made to Hold Something Up) by @igrockspock Rating: E for sex and for some violence and some swears Tropes and Themes: This fic is perfect (I've said that twice now and idc), snapshots of Logan's life pre-movie, some of the most developed Logan/Carrie dynamic, THE BOOK SCENE Read if: You've somehow managed to never read this before and you're curious what all those weird fragments I just mentioned even mean.

Fic: The Crowd by @ghostcat3000 Rating: M for "genteel smut" as GC calls it Tropes and Themes: Another reunited after 180 days fic (I CAN'T HELP MYSELF I LOVE THEM ALL), they don't have sex in public but it's a close thing, appropriate (as in inappropriate) jokes about the uniform Read if: Look, this fic makes me happy. Do you want to be happy? Then read it.

Fic: Waste of Breath by @bryrosea Rating: M Tropes and Themes: It's called growth!, starts one year post-s3 through Logan returning from deployment, every single moment makes me want to set myself on fire and then read it again to experience it all over (too much?) Read if: You want to feel like you're inside Logan's heart and head.

Fic: Blackbird by AliLamba Rating: T Tropes and Themes: AU where Logan and Veronica are at ballet academy, battle couple but in the art of dance, found family and friends as family Read if: Okay, technically Logan wears ballet costumes not uniforms, but again, I hope this goes to show how open to interpretation these tropes are. Also, if you're looking for a completely alternative world fic, then this one is top notch. Romantic and clever and takes me right back to being teenager and loving Center Stage.

#2023 lv new year #logan x veronica #veronica mars #logan echolls #lv fanfic #lv fanfic recommendations #vm fanfic #veronica mars fanfic #otp: the one person

35 notes · View notes

rosebury-archives · 6 months

Text

CalmWriMo 2023 Wrap Up!

It is done! It has been done for like four days! IT IS DONE!

I have taken part in @winterandwords' CalmWriMo, here's my goals and how I did!

At the start of November, I sat on 81450 Words for my project To Put On An Act. My current word count is 111793 Words!!!!! WHAAAAT!!!!!! It's safe to say that I reached my writing goal! But what else did I do?

Get to Chapter 16 OR write 30k words - safe to say that I reached both of these goals! I'm currently working on Chapter 18, and I've written 30343 words. Yippie!

Plan later chapters post breakup - eh. I collected some ideas and have a rough plan but there's still some proper outlining missing. I do have a little bit of a better picture now though!

Post progess more frequently - This worked semi well? I would've loved to post more logs to be honest but. Oh well. I did post a couple logs though, and I want to try to make this a habit, maybe to at least yell on here once a week (if I do happen to write that week of course).

Make some Moodboards - I did that! I've not posted them here yet but I did make some little moodboards for a bunch of the characters :)

Make an intro post for this account - did that as well! Yippiee!

Plan for another mysterious project - heheheheheheeheheheh >;)

Now the other, just as important part of CalmWriMo, the Calm. I was not as calm as I should've been. Let's see. What's the goals.

Get more sleep - ahahah. uuh. ahhahehheah. hm. well. let's move on.

Be less anxious/worried about What The World Thinks Of Me - hm. Well. Well? I mean I guess. I think it's fine. I still think every single person in the world is better than me but it's okayyyy I'm alive what more do I want.

KILLING THE CRINGE - happy to report that the cringe dies again every day

Read More - OOOOHHHH LOOK SOMETHING I DID!!! Listened to my audiobook in the beginning of November, however, I did not finish it. Oh well! Instead I did some reading of fellow writers on Wattpad. Some of these really are the most written stories of all time, but there are some real gems hidden in there that I can learn from. Also great for networking [wink]

Less Stress about posting - no stress at all I Am So Calm. I actually caught up to my posting schedule! I took it slow and posted every two weeks to give myself some time, and now I can go back to my regular weekly schedule! I think it's fine. i think I'm fine. I can post when I want and do what I want.

ALL IN ALL! THIS WAS GREAT!!! THIS WAS GENUINELY SO GREAT!!!! I'm really proud of myself and what I did this past month, I got a lot done, I feel motivated, I feel excited! I can't believe I've already hit over 100k words, and at this point I have no idea when this will end, but I'm just really excited to see what the future will hold for TPOAA.

Having a goal for the month really did help me to get a gentle kick in the ass and to sit down and write. I was writing an average of 2k words a day and I hope to kind of keep that even if I don't have a goal set for the month.

If it wasn't for my incredibly draining job, I probably would've been able to hit an even higher word goal, but I genuinely think this was the best I could do and I'm so genuinely proud of myself. Maybe next year I'll aim even higher? Who knows!

Great job to everyone else who took part in CalmWriMo/NaNoWriMo, no matter if you hit your goal, you did great and I'm so proud of you and I kiss you btw. Also thank you winter tumblr dot com for coming up with this idea and making my first steps into the world of November writing challenges a little easier!

remember that Alex and Youngbin love u all <3

#nanowrimo 2023 #nanowrimo #calmwrimo 2023 #calmwrimo #writeblr

3 notes · View notes

catierambles · 1 year

Text

Public Relations Ch.9

Pairing: Clark Kent/Superman x Charlotte Danvers (OFC)

WC 1965

Warnings: None

@kingliam2019 , @greensleeves888 , @peaches1958 , @brattymum96 , @ouroboros113

Charlotte called who led the Rental and Real Estate subsidiary in the morning, letting them know about the frequent breakdown in Clark's apartment of the water heater and the landlord's refusal to replace it. Turns out there were a lot of things he refused to do, and that included basic upkeep. Even if that wasn't the case, on a gut feeling, Charlotte had Accounting look over the books and found that he was skimming off the top, taking the money set aside for repairs and replacements and pocketing it. He gave some sob story about needing it for medical expenses, but that was quickly disproven and it turned out he was just greedy and liked to bet on horses, though he never picked good ones. He'd have a lot of time to kick that habit after he went away on embezzlement charges.

Clark stayed with her while the water heater was being replaced, and when he went back to his apartment, he would admit to missing waking up next to her every morning. They hadn't broached the subject of him maybe moving in, mainly because while they weren't hiding their relationship, they weren't obvious about it either, and they had wordlessly agreed that it just was too soon to think about living together.

Weeks turned into months and they fell into a comfortable rhythm, sometimes he stayed the night at her place, and she did eventually spend the night at his. She hadn't said anything about the size of his apartment the first time she was there, but then again he didn't think she would. She didn't throw her wealth around or hold it over people, and she definitely didn't look down at people for their lack of wealth. It was very obvious to him early on that she based people's worth on their character and not the numbers on their bank statements.

Clark was at his desk when an email went out sent by Perry, scheduling a meeting for himself, Lois, Jimmy Olsen, and a couple other key members of staff for that afternoon. It didn't say what the meeting was about, but the Editor In Chief made particular note in the email that it was of high importance and mandatory. That afternoon, they filed into the conference room, Perry already in there and leaning against the podium at the front of the room.

"I know this meeting is short notice," Perry said, "But I was just notified this morning."

"Notified of what?" Clark asked.

"The ownership of The Daily Planet has changed hands." He said, "Wayne Enterprises no longer holds our leash, and everything was finalized overnight with the lawyers."

"Who owns it now?" Lois asked.

"I do." They turned at the voice, seeing Charlotte standing by the doorway.

"Ms. Danvers, you didn't have to come here yourself." Perry said, but she waved it away with a gesture.

"I wanted to take a look around." She said, "And besides, I kind of wanted to break the news myself."

"Well I'm sorry for stealing your thunder." Perry said.

"I would have been here sooner if it hadn't been for traffic." She said.

"This is what you couldn't tell me about?" Clark asked and she gave him a brilliant smile.

"Surprise!" She said and he snorted, shaking his head with a smile. "Oh, speaking of surprises, you have a birthday coming up. Right, Clark?" He just nodded. "June 18th?" Another nod. "Wonderful."

"Charlotte, what're you planning?" Clark asked, well aware the others were watching the interaction curiously. Save for Lois, who already had a peek behind the curtain, so to speak.

"Oh, nothing." She said innocently, but he wasn't buying it and the look he gave her said as much. "Anyway, yes, the acquisition of The Daily Planet by Danvers Enterprises was finalized last night after a long string of late nights crossing the t's and dotting the i's."

"You don't dot your i's." Clark said and she rolled her eyes at him.

"You know what I meant, Mr. Literal." Charlotte said, "Well, it was more a trade than a flat out handing over or buyout. Bruce got something in the deal that wasn't monetary."

"What did Bruce Wayne get?" Lois asked.

"One of my wind farms up north." She said, "Well, formerly mine."

"So," Jimmy started, "Who's packing up their desk?"

"No one." Charlotte said, looking somewhat surprised at the question. "That's not how I do things. I mean, if people want to leave on their own once it's made public, they're free to, but I'm not firing anyone. In fact, I'm going to be bringing in a couple different teams I already have in other segments and chances are more people are going to be coming on. There's going to be some restructuring and people will get shifted around, but layoffs are never on the list of things to do when I adopt a new company."

"Adopt?" Perry asked, perking a brow at her wording. "Like we're some poor puppy you found at the pound?"

"Okay, think of it this way instead." Charlotte said, "Me taking ownership of a new company is a bit like…getting a car restoration project sight unseen." Clark snorted softly at that and she winked at him. "I have a basic understanding of what condition it's in based on the seller's listing, but I won't know what I'm dealing with until I get it and look under the hood or up on a lift."

"You restore cars?" Jimmy asked, missing the point of the analogy.

"Classic cars." Clark said, "You should see her collection." He paused, "I have an idea, Perry, how do you feel about the automotive guys doing an article about Ms. Danvers and her classic car collection once the acquisition goes public?"

"I like it." Perry said, "Would be a good way for the other teams to get to know their new boss and no one has done it before that I'm aware of."

"Mr. White, you're still their boss." Charlotte said, "I'm just…I don't know, the mechanic, going back to my analogy, but yeah, we can do that. Anyway, getting back on track, I don't know what condition the project is in until I get my hands on it. I don't know what the previous owner has done to it, or not done to it. Looking "under the hood", so to speak, of The Daily Planet, Bruce Wayne didn't even so much as change a spark plug. He did you all an extreme disservice by being as hands off as he was. I get it, he wanted you guys to remain independent and not have anyone think he was trying to influence the news cycles, but after taking apart the engine…you all are in rough shape and are in desperate need of a tune-up, keeping with the car analogy."

"How so?" Perry asked, pushing away from the podium and crossing his arms over his chest.

"There's nothing wrong with physical print, really, there isn't, but it's a dying medium. Physical media as a whole is going the way of the dodo. Music, movies, books, and news are all going strictly web based, but looking at the Planet…it's clinging to print. I'm going to have people come in and explain further and lay out a game plan, but that's the long and short of it. We need to get you guys modernized and fast." Charlotte said and there was a moment of silence as they processed. "Listen, I'm not going to just shake things up and then kick you out the nest, not sticking around to see if you fall or fly. I'm going to be with you every step of the way through the transition."

"You are." Lois said, "Personally."

"Of course. Again, car restoration project analogy. You want to make sure something is going to work, you do it yourself and you stick with it. Once the Planet is purring like a kitten I'll ease up a bit, but until then, I'm all set and ready to get my hands dirty." Charlotte said, "But like I said, people are going to be coming in to explain the plans more in-depth. This meeting was just more of a "welcome to the family" type deal. So, you know, lunch is on me."

Charlotte stayed at the Planet for the rest of the day, sitting off to the side on her phone, but Clark knew her too well to think she wasn’t paying absolute attention to the going ons around her. She was, and she was taking notes, either mentally or on her phone. Probably mentally. He knew she hated typing anything longer than a text message on her phone. Going over to her, he leaned against the empty cubicle where she was sitting.

“Hey, Charlotte?” He asked and she made a noise acknowledging his presence. “Why did you buy The Daily Planet?”

“You asking as a reporter or just you?”

“Just me.”

“I didn’t buy it, I traded for it. Money never changed hands.” She said, “But I know what you meant. I saw potential.”

“You saw potential.”

“That’s right.” She said, “The Daily Planet is already highly respected around the world, for its steadfast adherence to the truth and integrity. It just needs to be brought current a bit, things added to reach a wider, busier audience who don’t have time to sit down and read a newspaper or article online.”

“No other reason?” He asked and she looked up from her phone and at him with a small smile.

“Clark, sweety, honey-lamb, baby-kins. You don’t influence my business decisions.” She said, “Personal, yes, to a degree, but not business. I didn’t acquire The Daily Planet because of you. Although, it is kinda cute you thought so. Truth be told, I looked into getting it before we started dating.”

“I just know that that’s what people are going to be saying if we go public with…us.”

“When.”

“What?”

“You said “if we go public”. It’s “when”, not “if”.” She said and a small, slow smile pulled at his lips, “And I know, and I don’t care. I know the truth, and furthermore my Public Relations office does too. If a formal statement needs to be released, then so be it, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

“Lois Lane knows about us.” He said, “Among other things. She’s that friend here that I told you about when you asked me who knew.” He watched her look around the room before her eyes finally settled on Lois talking to someone.

“She’s pretty.” Charlotte said and turned her attention back to him, “Should I be worried?”

“About Lois?” He asked and gave a quiet snort, “No, I don’t see Lois like that.”

“How’d she find out about you, then?”

“Something happened that required me to use my heat vision to cauterize a wound and save her life.”

“Yeah, that’ll let the cat out of the bag.”

“Besides, Lois is a good friend, but she and I don’t…connect like you and I do.”

“No chemistry?”

“Not like that.”

“Clark!” They heard and looked over, “Leave Ms. Danvers alone! She doesn’t need you bothering her!”

“It’s fine, Perry!” Charlotte called back, “I don’t mind.”

“I should get back to my desk.” Clark said, “I’ll talk to you later.”

“Talk to you later.” Pushing away from the cubicle, he went back over to his desk and sat down, his cell phone dinging. Pulling it out of his pocket, he saw the text from her about how his butt looked in the pants he was wearing and smiled.

“Anyone else picking up on the sexy tension between Clark and Ms. Danvers?” He heard Jimmy ask Lois and Lois snorted. “What?”

“Nothing, Jimmy.” She said, “Just…get back to work.”

#henry cavill #clark kent #superman #public relations fic #my writing

10 notes · View notes

bomberqueen17 · 2 years

Text

alive

i'm back in buffalo and at work.

i don't remember what i updated here vs. not. i was helping M-L move; took Saturday off (babysat the CSA stand at the farm from 10-1, but that hardly counts as working since I could sit down. i got a pair of BIL's shorts with a split seam mended, which was nice; hadn't sewn anything in over a week otherwise.)

cut for meandering; I can't remember this week so I'm trying to write down what actually happened just so I can have an approximate accounting of it. I'm also sort of venting so this is not the most like. Dry factual recounting of events. But it's why I'm so tired and short-fused this morning, and why I'm in so much pain.

Oh yeah. I was trying to recount to Dude what had been going on and I just couldn't remember the chronology but it's that I went Monday night to buy the rug with M-L, went to the new house with her and Roommate was there and we chatted, had dinner on the patio of the bar next to her apartment, then went back to the farm; Wednesday I borrowed the farm minivan and I now genuinely don't remember whether we filled it or not. Did we take over a load of stuff?? What did we do Wednesday?? I don't remember. Oh yessss thanks past me for writing it down-- we went and collected a futon a friend was giving away, and I insisted on throwing several large awkward things into the van from her apartment as well, and then we brought that over to the house, and for dinner we had cold sandwiches and milkshakes from the local convenience store/ice cream shop. And then she was busy Thursday and I was busy Friday (or was I?? did I go pack things Friday?? I genuinely don't remember that either) and I didn't go over again until Sunday, when I brought the minivan over in the morning and we spent all fucking morning packing things and loading it-- ok I spent the morning loading it, M-L was feeling quite poorly and mostly lay around but I kept the momentum going and once I'd hauled everything down the stairs she did help me put it into the minivan, and we hauled a huge load of stuff over to the house and unloaded it.

(Wait no I *did* go over Friday. I made dinner at the farm, left half of it on the stove for BIL and his stepdad who were doing construction work, and took the rest with me and we ate in M-L's apartment, sitting on her bed because that's the only place to sit. I wound up frying the tortillas to be nachos because they were shredding so badly, they must've banged around Farmsister's fridge a while. I think we just packed boxes though, didn't take anything out of the house. Yes, I had to consult my text messages to find that out.)

Anyway, Sunday we were halfway through unloading the minivan, when M-L noticed that her second-storey porch had been ransacked. The metal garbage can had been thrown down the stairs. the lid was lying upstairs. The birdfeeder was gone, except for a few metal clips scattered around. The chairs had been dragged around, and the tops pulled off the little tiki lamps on the end table. And the baby gate that was affixed to prevent the dog wandering down the stairs had been torn out and thrown down the stairs.

A bear. A black bear had come up on her porch and had stolen all of the bird feed. We never found the feeder, or the emptied bag, or a single black oil sunflower seed. Notably this is the first time since they hung the birdfeeder that the roommate, who has a Great Pyrenees, was not present overnight; she went to her family's farm in PA for the weekend to help with planting.

As I was helping M-L investigate this, I discovered something they'd already known, which is that the third step down on that flight of stairs is, for no reason, three inches narrower than the rest of the steps, and so if you walk down the stairs without looking, your foot will skid out and you will fall down the stairs. So I did that, though I caught myself after a couple of steps (as I'd been holding the handrail, I am normally quite a cautious stair-climber).

So, I fucked up my shoulder and the big toe of the other foot, and that was awesome. I took a bunch of Advil and walked it off, and that cemented our decision not to try to go back to the apartment and put anything else into the minivan, because we didn't have time before the big family Sunday dinner that's started to be tradition.

And then I found that night that it's not really possible for me to sleep with this shoulder injured, as my back wants me to be a side sleeper, my left hip cannot be lain upon, and now it's my right shoulder that also cannot be lain upon. So I couldn't sleep on my back, my right side, my left side, or my front (which fucks up my back something awful).

But time marches on. I dragged myself up Monday morning and went to M-L's house again. It took forever to load the minivan as usual, because half of what we were doing was dragging packed boxes out of the apartment to make room for ourselves to work, and then the other half we were still finding things to put into boxes. (M-L had hoped to get more of that packing process done; among the things we removed was all the shit she stored in the hallway, so there's room to stage boxes outside of the apartment, but she had not yet availed herself of that. Fortunately she was overall a bit perkier on Monday, because I was not capable of dragging her ass at that point and could not have kept momentum up on my own. Probably helps that I broke down weeping in her kitchen shortly after I arrived, because I was attempting to mildly complain that all the things I'd managed to make myself ask for help getting done at the farm had been promised nicely enough but absolutely nothing had gotten done as promised and so I'd just gone through an entire cycle of visiting without achieving any of my own goals, as all of them had required help and none of my help is willing to prioritize me. One of the tasks, I have been asking consistently for help with since March and I'm starting to think I'm not going to get help, but I can't think how else to get what I need. Maybe if I spend a few hours moving several tons of lumber one board at a time, then I'll only need help from one person with a tractor instead of three people, and I'll be able to get that?? I don't know; I can't drive the tractor so it's still not like I could do it without help. It's a thing that only I care about, so it's absolutely not going to get done unless I do it, but also I can't do it alone, so I was in rather a bit of despair and also the advil hadn't kicked in so I was not able to achieve the Amusing Kvetching effect I was going for and wound up sobbing instead.)

Part of the annoying thing was that I'd packed enough boxes to stack floor to ceiling in her spare room way back in early May for her landlord to come repair something {I'd also entirely cleaned her kitchen, and on Friday that was the first thing I did again, as she'd clearly loaded the dishwasher one time subsequently and run it and then stacked every dish after that in the sink so that it was again in the condition it had been in May last time I did this, why are you like this}, and then she'd thrown so much junk in front of them that we couldn't get those boxes out. So on Monday finally we broke through the debris there and were able to reach those boxes, which went a long way toward filling the minivan. We also threw a couple of delicate things and an awkwardly-shaped baker's rack into my Subaru, and by 11:30 we were ready to go over to the house.

And my shoulder was just about done. It can bear weight, but only in a few positions. I'm quite certain I know what's wrong, it's a mild sprain which I've had happen before, and that means the ligaments are a bit stretched, which means the joint will slide into an improper position and then normal amounts of strain are quite painful. It's annoying, and takes forever to heal, but it is not any of the far worse things that can go wrong with a shoulder so I won't complain that much. It just sucks.

I texted Farmsister, who'd said she could spare a few minutes to carry boxes. She doesn't have the time to come stand in M-L's living room and coax her into functionality, nor does she really have the personality for it, but straightforward clear-cut work like this? Easy as pie. So Farmsister showed up, about half an hour after we got to the new house (we occupied ourselves unloading a few light things and unpacking boxes; it was imperative, we felt, that we not have boxes littering the kitchen, as roommate already lives there and is gonna have to be able to eat).

It took her ten minutes to help M-L unload the minivan. Ten minutes flat, and then they moved several awkward bits of furniture up the stairs to the bedrooms with very little difficulty.

So we unpacked a bunch of stuff, and then Farmsister took her minivan back and left M-L her Jeep, and all was right with the world, and the best part is that Farmsister agreed to come over on Friday, when M-L is getting a different friend to help her load furniture into a Uhaul; FS doesn't have time to help load, but she can meet them at the house and do what she'd just done, which was be brains and muscle to get awkwardly-shaped heavy things into the house and into their proper resting places. So that is scheduled and I feel better, because the friend M-L is having help her load the furniture is a nice enough guy but I don't know how he is now, I only remember him being our older sister's friend when they were all teenagers and he was just sort of a goofball then. Presumably he's more sensible now but I haven't seen him since like 1993 so I think I can be forgiven for not fully believing that he's really a competent adult, LOL.

Thee very last thing that happened is that I then used the bathroom for the first time, and fucking snapped a plastic bit of plumbing attached to the toilet handle when I went to flush. Come on!!!!! Argh.

So we went to the nearest shopping plaza and M-L bought me a Chipotle burrito, which was all I wanted in the world, and then she girded her loins and went to the hardware store to learn about toilet repair, and I got onto the highway and drove home.

I was so sleepy, but I listened to that Beyonce live at Coachella thing, which was at least high-energy, and that got me there eventually.

I arrived to a pile of boxes of all the retail therapy I did last week. Also a delighted cat and a happy Dude, who'd set out a small wheel of Brie to get up to temp, and had a baguette and some dried fruits and nuts and things for dinner, and had made margaritas that were chilling, and in general had prepared for my arrival. That bit was nice at least.

The retail therapy was a bit disappointing. I got new glasses, which was very exciting, but of course now I have to adjust to the updated prescription, which is work. I bought myself several new pairs of pants, accidentally I thought one size too big, but they fit, which is, well. It ought to be neutral and I ought to be glad I accidentally bought the right size, but really I'm not pleased that I'm such a large clothing size now. Fine fine fine whatever. Except I also indulged and bought myself a hoodie, and when I opened the package, it was the first thing I saw-- a plastic bag labeled with the label for the hoodie, but very clearly containing a man's brimmed hat instead, which is an understandable but frankly asinine warehouse mistake.

Also got myself bras that are in fact the correct size (though putting them on is agony with this fucking shoulder), but the fit... well, they make my boobs point 45 degrees outward from center, which is just a bizarre look. I don't know why bras that size do that, except that the cups are likely designed to be set farther apart. I like my bust to sort of point forwards-ish, so as not to impede the free movement of my arms any more than they have to, so having them thus directed so weirdly and artificially outwards is pretty inconvenient. But, they fit, so I'll keep them, because beggars can't be choosers and at a 40K US (by their sizing calculator) I am absolutely a beggar in this scenario.

The silver lining is that Cashmerette has finally released a bra pattern. The company founder is almost exactly my dimensions-- an inch shorter, a size smaller overall, but very similar proportions-- so their patterns are literally made for my body type like, expressly, and it's stunning to realize how many people are shaped exactly like I am, or close to-- enough to make that an extremely reasonable average point to start from! though she isn't the fit model for their patterns nowadays, and grades between sizes for herself when she makes them, but like-- yeah! There's an entire collection of us who are all within a few inches of that exact size and shape. It turns out that's a very normal and average way to be. And it's a way that literally no other clothing or pattern manufacturer even seems to realize it's possible to be, even as an outlier, so it's downright revolutionary to encounter that.

The extra nice thing is that the bra pattern is not expressly for the subscribers of the club but is free for the tier of membership I'm at, which is super exciting for me.

The bad thing is that it's for an underwire, and since I haven't found an underwire bra that wasn't constant active agonizing torture in over a decade (going for two, now), I'm extremely skeptical about this. I just don't wear them, because they don't work. I cannot believe that this pattern claims it can easily make such a thing work for me. Even ones that seem to fit me well enough are agony after about twelve minutes. I am just not in any kind of mental place where I can believe this will work out. But in a moment I'll go take a look at that pattern, and see.

Not that I have the fucking time to sew shit, but. We'll see.

#about the author #life updates #farm life #moving is hell #yeah everything hurts and i'm dying

28 notes · View notes