#i am now on said packed train and they just announced 'there are no working toilets on here. hope this is not an inconvenience :)' HELLO??

[jakeperalta]

trying to catch a busy train from london euston feels like an sas who dares wins challenge

#this is a post for my british followers xx #the station was super busy and the moment the platform became available (under 10 minutes before it leaves) #it was as though every single person there started running in one huge mass to get to my train (which doesn't have the option to book seats) #i am now on said packed train and they just announced 'there are no working toilets on here. hope this is not an inconvenience :)' HELLO?? #how are you making us pay so much for this????? #uk trains my worst enemy #talking

[overtrred28]

Stargirl | matildas x original character fic [part six]

Words; 2.5k

Pairings; matildas team x astrid taylor (OC)

Warnings; none

A/N; same as the sydney FC games I won't be going off real games for the new club, it's just easier to make them up and it's easier to find the tillie's ones to go off.

masterlist

Astrid felt a weight lifted off her as she walked away from the Sydney FC training grounds for the last time. Although she hadn’t been there long, this place had given her an amazing start to her footballing career. She had been able to play the game she loved and continue to succeed at a higher level. But it was time to go. 

The offer they presented her with hadn’t changed and it wasn’t going to work with how she wanted to continue to learn and grow as a player and a person. So here she was, telling them she was officially leaving and moving clubs. The staff said they were sad to see her go, which she appreciated. She felt really bad for leaving the girls she had become close with on the team. She told them shortly after telling the club, sending out a group text since they were all on a break currently before pre-season started again. The influx of goodbyes and well wishes she received warmed her heart and brought up her feelings about leaving again, but it was what was best. 

She had called up Lisa again, telling her what club would be best for her and Lisa was very happy and excited to get things rolling. Lisa was the main point of contact with the club, organising everything official while Astrid worked on packing up her life in Australia and moving across the world. Cortnee had been helping her, though there wasn’t much to pack in her apartment, a lot of her old stuff still back at home, which she was going to go and get before she had to leave next week. 

It had been announced on social media that Astrid was leaving Sydney FC but it had not been shared what Swedish club she was joining, and the response from her fellow Matildas was incredible. They were all so happy for her and how quickly she was advancing as a professional footballer. 

She had just finished her lunch when her phone rang, Tony’s contact appearing on her screen. 

“Hello?” Astrid spoke after answering the call. 

“Astrid! Hello, it’s Tony.” The man called out, happiness evident in his voice. 

“Hi, Tony. How are you?” Astrid moved to sit on her couch. 

“I am very well thank you. And you?” He asked politely. 

“Yeah, I’m good, thank you.” Astrid smiled to herself. 

“Good, good. Now first I wanted to congratulate you on your move to Sweden! I may be a little biassed, but it is a beautiful country and I think you will love it!” Tony’s laughter flowed through the speakers. 

“Thank you, I’m looking forward to it. I think it’ll be really good for me and my career.” Astrid laughed slightly at her coach's excitement. 

“Yes, yes I agree.” He cleared his throat. “Now I was calling you to talk about the upcoming camp next month in June, I’m sure you heard about the games against Spain and Portugal.” Tony waited for Astrid to respond. 

“I did. I think those games will be good for us, looking at next year with the world cup.” She swallowed nervously for what he might say next. 

“Yes definitely. Well I just wanted to let you know that you have been selected for the team for this next camp and we look forward to seeing you next month in Spain.” Tony was smiling on his end as he heard the young player let out a soft sigh of relief. 

“Oh, thank you. Thanks so much Tony.” Astrid was beaming now. “I won’t let you down.” 

“I know you won't, Astrid. You’ve been working exceptionally hard these past few months and it really showed in your performances last camp.” Tony could tell how excited she was, obviously not suspecting to be chosen, which was the opposite to the coaching staff’s opinion. “I can’t wait to see what you’ve got for us when we see you again. Keep working hard and we’ll see you soon.”

“Of course. Thank you, again. See you in Spain.” The call ended and Astrid lept up from her couch, letting out a squeal and doing a little dance around her living room. Although she was officially a part of the Matildas, there could be a time where she didn’t get these calls so it was a big relief when she did.

A week later and her parents were dropping her off at the airport with her life packed up into two suitcases and carry ons; this drop off felt very different to the ones in the past. The whole morning had been emotional for Astrid as they left her family home, driving past all the places she had grown up visiting, playing football and making memories. She knew she would be back one day, but the ticket in her bag said ‘one way’ so that day was very unknown.

Her parents had gone through security with her, wanting to spend as much time together as they could before she boarded her flight and went off to her new home. The hugs goodbye at the gate were long and full of whispered “I love you’s” between Astrid and her parents. Her flight was called and it was time to go. 

She managed to hold in her tears until she got to her business class seat, grateful she was sitting alone and could hide behind a small screen, wiping her eyes before anyone could see her. She was sad to be leaving home and her parents, they had such a strong bond, but this was going to be one of the best decisions of her life, and she knew that. 

The flight to Dubai went quite quickly, considering Astrid slept for the majority of it, it was a red-eye so she expected to fall asleep at some point. The layover was only 2 hours and she spent it rechecking her luggage for the next flight, her parents not trusting it wouldn’t get lost, grabbing some food and walking around the airport until she was boarding the flight to Stockholm Sweden, the closest airport to Hammarby and her new housing. 

This flight, though shorter, felt long without her sleeping it away, getting through a few movies and TV episodes before she finally landed in Sweden. She switched her phone on again as soon as she entered the airport, ready for the influx of messages from her parents checking in on her and from Kyra who was waiting for Astrid at arrivals. She collected her bags quite quickly and made her way to where Kyra and Courtney would be waiting. Charli wanted to be there to welcome her too, but being 5 hours away in Rosengård and having a game that day proved to be a little difficult. But they were going to see each other soon so they didn’t have to wait that long to reunite. 

Astrid could feel Kyra blowing up her phone in her pocket but she couldn’t check it with three bags in her hand and trying to find her way through an airport that was in a language she didn’t understand. She followed the crowds of people and eventually found herself near the exit. 

“ASTRID!” Two loud voices mixed together and stopped Astrid in her tracks, turning her head rapidly to find the point of the noise. She didn’t find it but she did find two girls running straight for her and she let go of her bags to meet them in the middle. The three of them hugged tightly, swaying slightly as they laughed. 

“I can’t believe you’re really here.” Kyra said with a wide smile on her face. 

“I know, me either.” Astrid shook her head, looking between both of her friends, this is where it begins. 

Eventually they picked up her bags and exited the airport to a taxi waiting to take the girls back to Kyra and Courtney’s place. Astrid was staying over for the night until she picked up her keys tomorrow for her place just down the road.

The girls took Astrid sightseeing for the rest of the day to try and keep her awake, she wanted to regulate her body clock as soon as possible and avoid jet lag. They cooked dinner together and spent the evening catching up and watching movies until they all decided to go to bed. 

The next day was spent moving Astrid into her own place, thankful it came furnished and all she had to buy was necessities and decorations. The three of them had exhausted themselves by dinner time and decided just to order in and sat in Astrid’s living room this time before Kyra and Courtney left for the night. Astrid was used to living by herself so she didn’t mind the silence, but it felt very different being in a new country where she didn’t fully understand the language yet. But the club had set up language lessons for her to attend while training so she could understand the basics which she was more than grateful for. 

The day finally came for her to officially sign her contract with Hammarby IF and receive her new kit so she could begin training with the team. She was handed her new jersey, flipping the back to reveal ‘Taylor’ above a massive 13, happy because it was her Matilda’s number but just flipped. And also happy because of the 13 and the fact her last name is Taylor; I mean it was just meant to be. 

She took some photos for social media so the club could officially announce her addition to the team and then got shown around the centre and where she would train with the team. It was beginning to feel a lot more real and she could feel her heart growing with excitement and anticipation for what her time here could look like. 

Safe to say her time at Hammarby was going to be good, and she had only just started. Training was already going great for Astrid, and being with Kyra and Courtney really helped, like having Cortnee at Sydney FC helped her last season. She had already felt her skills improving and it had only been a few days. Astrid was hyper focused while in training, working hard on her passes, taking constant shots at goal from both feet and ramping up her fitness during gym sessions. Astrid felt like she had something to prove here. 

She didn’t though, not to anyone that mattered. Her new coaches were very impressed with her ambition and her teammates were grateful to have her on the team. 

They had their first match since Astrid joined and she didn’t plan on them using her at all, happy to just watch the team flow and play like they had been since the season started. But it was getting close to full time and neither team had yet to score. The coaches had instructed a few of the subs to get warm, that included Astrid. 

After a few minutes she was replacing the current left forward, running onto the pitch and giving Kyra a high five who was further back as the left midfielder. From their matches at training, Kyra and Astrid found that when they were on that left side together they were a pretty good duo, despite not really playing together on the national team yet. Being friends might have helped but they had this connection where they didn’t need to say anything and the passes between them were flawless. And it was working during this game right now. 

Kyra stole the ball from the other team, dribbling it around her matched player and running it down the field. Astrid had seen her coming and ran closer to the box. Kyra struck the ball hard, it flew in the air and landed at Astrid’s feet. She took a few short strides but she had space so she swung her right foot at the ball towards the goal. The goalie had gone for it but it slipped past her fingers as she jumped for it, turning her head as she fell, watching the ball sink into the back net. 

The small home crowd cheered and Astrid ran towards Kyra as soon as she knew it was in. Astrid reached Kyra and jumped onto her, screaming with joy that she had scored for her first time on her new team. The team jumped onto the pair, Kyra holding her tight and shaking her as Astrid erupted in laughter. 

The match ended, Hammarby had won 1-0 and the whole team was ecstatic at their new teammate’s goal that got them the win. Kyra and Courtney were probably the most proud and Astrid couldn’t wipe her smile off her face. 

The team had celebrated in the change rooms for ages before they all showered and decided to go home, tired after the tough game but still buzzing with joy. It seemed as if Charli could sense that they were done because as soon as Kyra, Courtney and Astrid had begun walking home, she was calling her.

“WHOOOOOOO!” Charli screamed as soon as Astrid accepted the facetime, all three girls jumping back at the sudden noise. 

“Oh my god.” Astrid shook her head at Charli. “What a way to start a call.” The youngest girl spoke. 

“Well I’m just super happy for you guys. You should’ve seen me when you scored that goal, Astrid. I was off my couch within seconds screaming at my laptop.” Charli laughed and Astrid smiled. 

“Thank you! That’s so sweet Char.” Astrid pouted at the screen, her head whipping fast to Kyra when the girl took her phone from her. 

“Excuse me, I don’t know if you saw but I actually assisted that soooo…” Kyra teased and Charli just stared at her. Courntey and Astrid laughed beside each other as they walked. 

“Yes I saw. Well done Kyra.” Charli smiled at Kyra, sarcasm hiding in her voice which made Astrid snort, snatching the phone back from Kyra who scoffed. 

“Ugh, I miss you Char, I’m stuck with these losers now.” Astrid rolled her eyes playfully. 

“That’s so rude.” Courtney expressed from beside her. 

“You can get to training on your own now, Asteroid.” Kyra crossed her arms as she walked. Astrid’s jaw dropped and turned around, walking backwards to look her in the eyes. 

“That name is reserved for Macca and Macca only.” Astrid pointed at Kyra. Charli was laughing through the phone and Courtney slapped a hand over her mouth to hide her laughter. 

Astrid’s tough facade eventually cracked and she couldn’t help but smile at the brown eyed girl who was running back up to her, wrapping an arm over her shoulder. 

“I’ll let you guys go and celebrate. I’ll catch up with you later, okay?” Charli’s voice flowed and a smile appeared through the phone. 

“Okay, I’ll call you later today Char.” Astrid nodded at her. “Love you.” Astrid spoke first, Kyra and Courtney shortly behind with the same words. 

“BYEEEEEE” Charli excessively waved through the camera, the other three girls following her actions. The call ended and Astrid put her phone away, adjusting her kit bag strap before holding her arms out ready for Kyra and Courtney to link their arms with hers. They walk arm and arm back to their places, Astrid inviting them to come round later after she’s called her parents so they can have their post match dinner together. 

Astrid was feeling so grateful for how her life here was progressing already. She was with two of her bestfriends, she was improving on her football and she was enjoying her new home. 

to be continued...

#auswnt #kyra cooney cross #matildas #alanna kennedy #auswnt x reader #caitlin foord #charli grant #mackenzie arnold #sam kerr #steph catley #matildas x reader #courtney nevin #cortnee vine

[sunflower1experiment]

“Fufu, and some beef stew. Have you had some?”

Rengoku watches the smaller woman, “Woah…” his eyes sparkle. “Careful it’s hot.” She casually takes the doughy form of bread and starts forming it into a ball, “Now rip it off and eat it with the beef stew.”

He does so and well, his reaction was the same. “TASTY!” But she gently pats his back. “I need criticism dearest.” Rengoku nods, “Alright well it’s delicious but I feel bad that your hands were burnt for the sake of quenching our hunger.” The woman could only let out a light chuckle.

“It’s part of my culture.” They lean their heads together while he compliments her amazing cooking, beautiful hair. “I’m glad knowing I can feed you and Grace your beautiful warmth Kyojuro.”

“Little flame anything you do makes my whole life aflame! You’re my fire to the wood! Without you I’ll never be warm!” His lover lets out a giggle, “Oh my.”

“What is it?” His adorable stare and golden retriever vibe made her chuckle happily. “It’s like how we first met. I made you Fufu and beef stew and now I’m here married to you and remaking this for our anniversary.” Kyojuro hugs her close. “As I said before.”

She nods, listening closely. “I wouldn’t dare miss our anniversary for the world.”

As the two stayed together they ate their meal in silence: though she was always embarrassed eating with all the noise he just yelled “TASTY!” For both his own and her sake, even if it was always his signature words for eating it still made her feel less embarrassed.

Once they finished she packs the utensils with him and they cleaned together. His soft gaze never left her small form, she was so gentle and strong when it came to cooking and always so soft during their time together. Always so sweet, not one to raise her voice, the last time she did it was really during a song or just to announce she was here.

“What’s up?”

“I was just recognizing how lucky I am, you keep blessing me and yet I always leave.”

This causes the woman to tilt her head, “You’ve been blessing me since the day I laid eyes on yours, your beautiful hair and amazing voice. Though I do tend to worry when it comes to the yelling.” Kyojuro lets out a laugh.

“Forgive my yelling! It was a mere complications with work and training. I try to lower it at home.” She shrugs, “I like it, I only worry about your voice. You do drink water a lot yes?” He nods then hums when his lover shares a kiss with him. “And I wouldn’t have it any other way Rengoku Kyojuro.”

“Hmm…pop quiz which comes first.”

“Kyojuro….don’t do that.” He laughs lightly. “I’m sorryyyy.”

“Mhm, ya handsome cutie.” She pats his hair gently.

#x black reader #x black fem reader #reader is black #black reader #rengoku x you #rengoku x reader #rengokukyoujorou #rengoku kyojuro #rengoku x black reader

[tracksidequeen]

This One Means Forever

Summary: A story about a difficult ‘goodbye’ between two people who are soul-bound for a lifetime.

Pairing: Toto x Assistant!Reader

Words: 2.4K+

A/N: I wrote this as a last piece before I decided to quit writing on Tumblr back in June, but I couldn’t finish it. It meant too much. How ironic that the piece that signified my leaving now announces my return. I hope you like it. This one means a lot, some might say ‘forever.’

*****

There you are for the last time. You enter the doors of the Mercedes Headquarters for one last time to pick up your belongings from your desk. The lobby that once seemed big and intimidating, suddenly looked so small. You look around in admiration, and greet Gloria who had been the hostess for all the six years you’ve been working alongside Toto as his assistant. These people weren’t just your colleagues, they were your family. Mercedes became your family, but sadly enough family is not a prerequisite for staying forever.

With a heavy heart you walk up the stairs, seeing people walk by with smiles on their faces, greeting you and congratulating you for taking on the next adventure in your life, telling you how much they will miss you and how much they had enjoyed their time with you. “Darling, you’ll do amazing, but please don’t forget us!” Walter gave you a strong hug, but instead of saying words of consolidation you merely gave him a little smile. You were the one in need of consolidation.

You were never good at goodbyes. Preferred to skip them, ‘who knows if it’s a goodbye, maybe I’ll see them again,’ you’d always say to your mum when you were younger. 

There it was, your beautiful little corner in the office space, close to the window overlooking the pond in the park, close to the window overlooking Toto’s office, and close to the rest of all your colleagues who’d you had spent countless hours with talking about everything and nothing.

With sad smiles your colleagues watch you pack up your stuff. You take the sticky notes off your computer; the ones Toto hated so much because they said they’d made your desk look like a mess, but it was just convenient and he ‘shouldn’t mess with a system that works.’ You take from your drawer the book that Toto gave you ‘the psychology of money’, said it’d give you a peek inside his brain as so you’d not judge him so harshly on a decision he had made, and he was right - like he was with many things, whether you’d like to admit it or not. 

“Are you going to be okay?” Janice’s words snap you out of our train of thought and she looks at you with concerned eyes as you’d been staring for must have been a minute at the book you’re still holding in your hand. “Yes, yes, leaving is never easy, but I am okay.” You smile at her, but only half of those words were true. How could you be okay, when the man you’d been working for so closely for the past six years knows of your leaving, and hadn’t said a word to you in the past week. At the time you needed him most, he was nowhere to find. “We’re all here for you darling,” she says with a consoling arm on your shoulder. “Need some help with that?” “No, I got it cov-” Mid-sentence you see Toto walk in with determined steps into your direction but he halts the moment he sees people around you.

As usual, Toto fills up the room with his presence and everyone notices him as they all turn their head and watch him - just stand there looking at you. 

“Everybody, out.” Like a herd of sheep you all start moving towards the door, but he looks at you with piercing eyes. “Not you. I need to speak with you.”

The whole room follows his order without asking as much as a question, and they leave you behind with Toto. The distance between you must have been less than a couple of meters, yet he felt so far away and out of reach. The things you felt and wanted to say, yet there was no way you could let them out. Not with him, right here, at this point in time. It was simply too late.

“How are you feeling?” he asks as he walks up to you and scans the mess on your desk were cleaning out. “Do you care?” Without waiting for his reply you turn around and start gathering the papers on your desk as he watches you in silence. But his silences always speak a million words, and the frown on his face is noticeable when you look at him in the corner of your eye. “Of course I care. What makes you think otherwise?”

Frustration builds in your body, your stomach feels as if it is in a knot and on the verge of crying you turn to him. “Toto, what do you think? Huh? How do you think I feel.. how I feel when the man I that has been working by my side for the past 6 years, the man that took me under his wing when I was a college graduate, the man that gave me my career, the man that made me realise what I’m worth, the man that saw my potential before I even knew it myself.” The tears are streaming down your face. The salty taste of them coating your lips makes your screams sting even more. You walk up to him, standing right in front of him, invading his sacred personal space; and you look up at him. “How do you think I feel when the man that I love refuses to speak to me moments before I’m about to leave?”

He shakes his head and you notice his eyes getting red, but he turns around. 

“NO, Toto!” A desperate yelp escapes your mouth. “This is not fair.” 

“Right, this is not fair,” he says as he turns around, and you see the man you’ve called the stone cold Wolff for half a decade lower his walls and the tear streaming down his face hold all the words unsaid. With a fast pace he walks up to you and embraces you in his arms. His head nuzzled in your hair and under his breath he whispers, “I love you too.” Softly you kiss him on his temple and rub your fingers over the nape of his neck to calm him down. “I love you too,” you hear him whisper over and over like a mantra, finally realising what those words can mean when said about the person you hold sacred in your heart. 

He emerges from the crook of your neck, eyes watery, nose red, and a sad smile on his face in mockery of himself, but he doesn’t hide it. He’s good at hiding his emotion and keeping a poker face, says it’s what makes him a good business man. But with you- with you he never tried as so much to hide it. He was comfortable enough to show them. To trust you with them, as you did with him. 

“It’s painful to say goodbye to someone you don’t want to let go, but even more painful to ask someone to stay when you know they want to leave,” he says with tears in his eyes. “But I will never forgive myself if I won’t try. So, please, please, will you stay?” “Toto, don’t do this,” you cry. “Only if I could, but this is what I need, and it is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do.” He holds your hand, and kisses them over and over. “Toto, don’t make this harder than it needs to be. Just leave, without looking back. Rip off the bandaid. I don’t want to say goodbye, because this one means forever.” He stops his kisses on your hands and squeezes them tightly under his grip. “You’re wrong. We’ll meet again. In a moment we’ll least expect it. One day in the future I’ll recognise your face and my heart will feel the same joy as I have the last six years. You and I will meet again, I’m sure of it,” he says while tangling his fingers in yours, pressing the palm of your hand against his. “How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” 

Softy he places a kiss on your forehead and you look up at him. “Would you have changed anything?” He looks at you questioning. “..in the past six years, would you have done anything differently?” “No, they were perfect,” he says softly. “They were, weren’t they?” you smile at him but he tilts his head. “Well, the only thing I would’ve done is find the balls to tell you I loved you a bit sooner, and maybe not in the state of a sobbing mess I am now. But now you know.” “Now I know, and you know too,” you smile. “Oh, I already knew..” “What?!” you ask bewildered and you feel your cheeks become red. 

“C’mon, I knew you had a crush on me way back when I was your mentor in college.” He says squeezing your cheek. “Sure, but that was a crush, and there was nothing either of us could’ve done about it.” “Well...” he says teasingly. “There were things I could’ve done-” “Toto!” “No, no true. But then when you started working here, and remember when we had our team dinner in Singapore, about a year after. I asked Gloria to have you seated next to me because I - well, I just wanted to be in your company and Gloria’s immediate reaction was if we finally confessed our love to each other.” He chuckled, “she knew very well that I had no clue what she was talking about and we never spoke a word of it ever since, but I started noticing it in you, very subtly. You’re good at your poker face” “You’ve thought me well,” you joke. “But I always appreciated your professionalism despite the feelings you might’ve had.”

“Better than I did at least,” he chuckles. “Better than you did? How long have you had these feelings?” Somehow it felt easier to talk about this as they held less value for the future, you were leaving anyway. “The summer of 2018, when we all went to the beach... and I disappeared for the rest of the summer. I was scared of how I felt, so I just threw my money at it and rented a yacht for the summer.” “That is the most Toto-esk thing I’ve ever heard, and stupid for that matter as well. Why didn’t you just tell me?” He shook his head, “because I didn’t want to lose you.” 

“You see the irony here right?” you joke with a soft voice. “Here we are four years later telling me you love me...” “...moments before I’m about to lose you either way.” He finishes your sentence with pain in his voice, and suddenly the conversation that was easy to have left a bittersweet sting in your heart. “Only in the agony of parting do we look into the depths of love,” he said with a poetic voice. “Well, whoever you’re quoting-” you sigh. “-the asshole was right.”

“I think it’s best if I go and let you pack in peace,” he says as he adjusts his posture and lifts his chin. “I love you, dear. Wherever you find yourself in the world from this moment on, I don’t ever want you to forget that.” You give him a tight hug, and as he presses the air out of your lungs you say “I love you.” 

You watch him walk towards the door, and he turns around one last time with a smile on his face. “Don’t forget the top drawer,” he says pointing at it. “It’s the moment that changed my life.” Without having as to what he’s talking about you watch him leave. His footsteps muffling softer and softer away in the hallway until he’s really gone. Just like that.

First thing you walk toward your desk and open the top drawer. In it is an envelope that reads: ‘Yours dearly, Toto.’ Slowly you take it our of the drawer as if it is the most fragile object in the world. His words repeat in your head while you open the envelope, ‘It’s the moment that changed my life.’ 

What you find in it is a square piece of hard paper, a polaroid, you realise as you take it out. You look at the picture that signifies a pivotal moment of his life. On it is a couple on the beach, a man with the brightest smile on his face looking into the eyes of the woman sitting on his lap, who looks back at him with eyes of admiration. In the backdrop a beautiful sunset painting the ocean warm orange and shades of pink, but they don’t realise it because they find the beauty of a million sunsets in each others’ eyes. You knew it firsthand because that was the summer of 2018. When he chased you throught the sand and pulled you on his lap, and looked at you the way no man had ever before; right at the moment Gloria took a picture of the both of you. Capturing the moment that changed his life, the moment he fell in love with you.

You press the polaroid against your heart and a tear streams down your cheek. You look at it once again, and notice there is something handwritten on the back of it:

“This is not a goodbye, my dear, this is a thank you. Thank you for coming into my life and giving me joy, thank you for loving me and accepting my love in return. Thank you for the memories I will cherish forever. The bond we have created and the love that I feel for you is not broken by this goodbye. It will last for a lifetime, so this is not a goodbye. Merely a ‘till see you again’; and until that moment comes, keep your head up and your heart strong. I will never be far, just look in your heart and I will be there guarding over your soul. I love you forever more. Yours truly, Torgy.”

Sobbing you run to the window in hopes that Toto is making his usual round in the park, and as you hoped you see him. He’s standing by the pond, looking up at the window; waiting for you. You lock eyes, mouth the words, ‘I love you,’ and you see him say it back.

Only if you could hear him say it. Just one more time.

---------

a/n: Thank you for making it all the way to the end, and thank you for bearing with me - or lack there off - for the past few months. You all mean so much to me, and I saw all the engagement with TSQ even though I was virtually away. I appreciate you all so much <3 I’ll try to write and post more regularly from now on, and consistency is coming back ! 

Much love, TSQ

#Toto Wolff #toto wolff x reader #Toto Wolff x you #toto wolff fic #toto wolff fics #toto wolff one-shot #toto wolff fluff

[afi-mukami]

Did she see something more?

Final Fantasy VII

AerTi

Teen and up

Tifa disagrees with the other members of the Avalanche about the way the organization works, so she leaves the scene to vent her feelings. Her legs take her to Sector 8, where she accidentally runs into a woman selling flowers.

The door of 7th Heaven slammed shut. Harder than I meant. My feet tucked down the stairs to the hard-packed sandy street. Corners of my eyes tried to get wet, but I wiped them with my hand. I had to take a deep breath. It would have been better to even stop for breathing, but my feet pushed forward. Ahead. Ahead. To the station and to the train leading to the upper level of Sector 8. I did not know if some people starred after me. I crashed into the bench just as the train jerked off the station.

A whirlwind of thoughts swirled in my head that did not wanted to calm down, even as I tried to relax and closed my eyes for a moment.

“I already investigated it. The bomb doesn’t have to destroy the entire reactor to shut it down,” Jessie said.

Barret crossed his arms and nodded. Wedge's gaze shone in a strange way. In a different way than ever before. Biggs looked more insecure. I got up from the table and pressed my palm against the wooden board. My fingers swept the pit that numerous pots had slowly consumed into it.

“A lot of people live near Mako reactors. People who can die if something goes wrong. The Avalanche is not a terrorist organization, although Shinra wants to say so.”

I emphasized every word, but Jessie gave me a look that did not require words to support it. I heard her voice in my mind. Don't fuss now. Let us take care of this. I shook my head at her.

“Jessie can do it. It doesn’t go wrong,” Wedge said.

“I think we’d do well to go through all the possible chains of events yet, because there may be factors here that we don’t—” Biggs started, and I just had time to nod to him as Barret slammed his fist on the table so hard that the board popped against my hands.

“Jessie has thought about this and shown her bombing plan to me. It's bomb-proof!”

"We cannot sacrifice innocent people!" I said.

“No one is innocent in this war,” Jessie said. "I thought you were involved in this, that your background -"

"I'm involved with all my heart in Avalanche. I don’t want to see Shinra destroy everything we love.”

“Then there’s no problem,” Barret said.

"If people die because of us, that's the problem."

“No one dies. The plan is perfect.”

I stared at Barret. He had his stubborn look. The hands crossed again, which was an achievement in itself with the weapon that replaced the right arm. Only sunglasses were missing, with them his wall would have been perfect. My throat squeezed, my breathing became heavy and my field of vision began to quiver. No, not in this company. I was stronger.

My legs worked before my mind got along, and the door of 7th Heaven slammed shut. Harder than I meant.

The train pounded at a steady pace from the slums of the Seven Sector. The identity check swept through the cart with red lines, but I barely paid attention to it. I rubbed my temples and focused on staring out the window, even though there was only darkness.

It had been foolish to rushed out this way. Not like me. I wanted to think I was calm and sensible, accepting. I am not a drama queen. My chest was still squeezing as I thought what the bomb might do.

The train slowed down. Arriving at Sector 8, the announcement said in the same voice as on each train. The voice of a faceless woman, probably someone from Shinra. The blackness behind the train window changed into rows of buildings above which the evening sky could be seen. The stars were indistinguishable as they were covered under the orange night light of Midgar. The view was mixed with a green hint of Mako.

Twitch and stop. People got up from their seats. I followed suit and walked to the station now at a much slower pace than I had arrived on the train. The rush flowed somewhere on the tracks as my shoes hit the cobblestones. Some of the hair had escaped from my dark brown ponytail and the wind swept them to my face.

I pushed my hair out of my field of vision and let my gaze run through the landscape. People here were better dressed than in the slums. The scent was more pleasant too. Now a little damp but not stale, the air maybe a little fresher. Admittedly not at all like in the mountains of Nibelheim.

My heart pounded. I immediately pushed the memories aside. I could not stop at them now. I could not stop at all, so I set out to leap off the station. To wander aimlessly through the streets with several cafes. Full of people, whose face had no worries at all. People who did not count their gills when they bought another pint. People for whom tomorrow was a new opportunity, not a struggle.

I stopped at a corner and took a breath. I absorbed the coolness and let it filled me. There was magic in the evenings and nights that was not reached during the day when the rough light revealed every detail. Twilight, on the other hand, wrapped everything above a veil of mystery and made the world softer.

"Are you lost?"

The sound was friendly, even soft, but it had a nasal tone. Customer service voice. I turned around and forced a smile on my face. The green gaze examined me. As the woman turned her head, her long bangs, divided on both sides, waved for a moment to cover her eyes, but soon her eyes watched me again. The light brown braid swinged in her neck, emphasizing the femininity of the delicate red lips. I had not seen this woman before, but a basket of flowers on her arm told me enough.

“I guess you could express it that way too,” I replied and did not even know why.

"Where are you going?"

The woman pressed the flower basket against her stomach, and the hems of her pink dress followed the movement. I quickly looked up back into her eyes, where curiosity radiated. It was impossible to say which part of it was genuine and which was carefully considered. On the other hand, I was not a potential customer, so she had no reason to use her sale tactics for me.

As I changed the weight from one leg to the other, and the woman mirrored my gesture. The braid swung from side to side, and her head turned obliquely. A smile danced on her lips.

“Not really anywhere,” I replied.

“Oh, then you’re really lost,” the woman said, smiling. "Sometimes the right path is found when you wander far enough, and sometimes you have to go far to see close."

I blinked my eyes and smiled again. Something in this woman made me smile genuinely. She made my curled upwards instinctively.

"You’re probably right,” I said.

"Do you want a cup of coffee?"

The woman leaned closer to me, and the scent of flowers flooded against my face. I had to gather all my willpower not to close my eyes and take a deep breath. I did not even remember the last time I smelled something as sweet.

"Aren't you in the middle of work?" I asked and tried to keep my face still. It was hard when the scent of lilies exuded from the flower basket. The scent, which did not suit the urban environment of the Sector 8 at all, not to mention the slums.

"A break would be nice."

I shrugged. Of course, I could measure the streets alone all evening or even the night, but it would hardly make me feel better. Instead, a friendly chatting at the corner table of a nice cafe might be a whole other thing. That would feel normal. Something that had disappeared from my life long ago. Besides, I could not say I would have spent time in cafes with girls ever. My childhood friends were all boys, and Jessie was not the type who I could ask to have coffee with me. Coffee dates among women were things that happened to others.

“Maybe I could use a coffee break too,” I finally replied. Far after too long a silence, but the woman looked as if she had not bothered at all about my quietness.

“I know a nice place. I go there sometimes to sell flowers to customers,” the woman said, pointing to a side street. "By the way... I'm Aerith. I didn't remember to introduce myself earlier.”

"Tifa."

Aerith nodded at me, and her forehead hair swinged again. There was a light laugh hovered on her lips as she steered me away from the hustle and bustle of the main street. The houses were so close together that the alley did not look outright inviting, but 7th Heaven was not in the best possible area either. Still, the bar was more of a home than the apartment building I had been settled into.

A bell tinged as Aerith pushed open the cafe door. The place was lit by lanterns instead of Mako energy lamps. It was hard to even imagine such a place on the upper levels, where much more Mako energy was utilized than in the slums. My heart jumped, there was still hope.

Maybe Aerith had read my previous thoughts as she guided us to the corner table. The waitress immediately rushed to take our order and carried the cups in front of us quite quickly.  There was air of good service and peace in the cafe. I did not want to know how expensive the coffee would be.

I crossed my legs and leaned my elbows on the table. I pressed my chin against hands and a curl of hair ran past my cheek. I did not bother to swipe it back. It was so short that it never stayed put. I breathed warm room air filled with the rich scent of coffee. It mixed with the summer glow swaying from Aerith’s flower basket, which was almost more intense than the dark drink in front of me. Lightness hovered over me and dragged me along as if I had been drinking alcohol instead of coffee, even though I had not even tasted my drink yet.

Aerith spun a spoon in her latte and seemed to have disappeared to another planet. The gaze of the green eyes wandered somewhere beyond reality, but still smile did not leave her lips.

"Stagnant, quiet moments are the best, aren't they?" Aerith asked, and her gaze brightened again. The green gaze stuck to mine, and something warm flowed to the bottom of my stomach.

“Sometimes they are,” I replied, finally lifting the cup of coffee to my lips. Dark and tasty. The products of this cafe were made from quality beans.

"What do you do for a living? You don’t actually look like you’re working here in the Sector 8,” Aerith said. The spoon was still spinning in her latte.

“I work in a bar at the Sector 7,” I replied. I almost already opened my mouth but decided at the last minute not to say anything about Avalanche. I could never know who was listening in the shadows, and besides, I did not know Aerith at all.

"Sounds exciting. I sometimes go to bars myself to sell flowers, but I usually come here to the upper levels.”

I nodded. Certainly, flowers got a better trade here. I could not even imagine our customers buying a bouquet of lilies. When I did not say anything, Aerith started talking about her customers and the nightlife in the Sector 8, which sounded quite lively. But drunks were drunks even when they were rich, and people needed places to relax. It was easy to identify with her stories.

"Well tell me, Tifa, do you have someone special in your life?" Aerith asked suddenly and leaned forward. The elbows dug into the tablecloth and her latte swayed. Her lips curled to a smile the way that made my heart flutter.

"No, not really."

The first months in the slums were the heaviest. I had imagined that in Midgar, Soldiers would appear everywhere, but you did not actually see them in the streets. Still, my gaze fetched blond hair, and I turned my head as soon as one flashed in the corner of my eye. Although the years had rolled by and we had never been immensely close, I wanted to think that our paths could still cross.

Months passed and our paths did not cross. Barret hired me to 7th Heaven, life settled down, I got into Avalanche, helped people in the slums, built a community where everyone cared for each other, I found my place, I found my purpose, I found my own life. I never found him. Maybe he had died in some battle before he had time to rise to the level of Sephiroth. Maybe that was better. After all, we all knew that Sephiroth was not the kind of hero he had been painted in the headlines in my childhood.

One day I realized I had not looked for him in the crowds for the longest time. I focused on what was here and now. That was good.

"And now you lied." There was no accusation in Aerith's words. She laughed but got soon serious. “I had one. A Soldier.”

The word pounded in my chest. The pounding was followed by such a throbbing that I heard nothing else for a moment. The voices in the bar disappeared, even though people were still having their own conversations around us. I swallowed two times and took a deep breath. I should not let my imagination fly. The past was gone, and it was better to focus on the future. And yet the thought tickled my mind downright embarrassingly.

“But he disappeared five years ago, so no more of that,” Aerith said, waving her hand at the air.

A thousand questions raced to my lips at once, but I swallowed each one. Aerith had no obligation to answer me, there was no need to say anything more. We were just two women who had met by chance in an evening in Midgar. We would probably never meet again after this. Still, I wanted to… If I did not ask but just lead the discussion to the right direction… There was nothing wrong in that. Such was only considered polite. If I kept talking, no embarrassing silence would arise.

"A Soldier?" I repeated. "I knew one who came to Midgar years ago to become a Soldier."

“Really? Did he succeed?”

"I do not know. I have not heard from him in a long time nor have seen him in years. I wish we had met again, but…”

"In my experience, the Soldiers are terribly busy… I could have stayed staring at those blue eyes forever, but there was never enough time."

My chest jumped again. I was fairly sure my heart wanted to throb out through my throat. Would it be possible…?

“But that’s about it. It’s not worth longing for the Soldiers,” Aerith continued before I had time to say anything. She reached out her hand over the table and grabbed my wrist. “Believe me, you deserve something better. The world still has something to offer you.”

"Yes, it is better to leave childhood friends as childhood friends…"

"I have heard that childhood friends are special though," Aerith said. She tilted her head like she was thinking. "Maybe it's still better to keep your eyes open for opportunities."

"You're definitely right."

Aerith smiled again. She smiled a lot. The pink lips curled sweetly, seductively even, while the long lashes over the green eyes fluttered. Those eyes were as deep as the world itself. You could almost thought that there was Lifestream swirling in them.

“I think there are plenty of opportunities for you,” Aerith said.

The words floated in my ears as warm fingers brushed my wrist. Should I have jerked my hand farther? Maybe, but I could not even move. There was something hypnotic, soothing, and stopping about Aerith.

I had to concentrate so I could grab the coffee cup with my free hand. It trembled against my lower lip as I lifted it up. The drink had cooled, and the taste refracted in a more bitter direction, but I downed most of the coffee. The cup slammed against the table a little harder than was appropriate at the same moment as Aerith let go of my hand.

I watched how long fingers snatched a yellow lily from the flower basket. Aerith got up, walked around the table over to me. Her scent of flowers danced over me and enveloped me in pleasant memories of a time when I sometimes went to pick flowers from the fields near Nibelheim. My eyelids slid shut and I swam in the scent.

Aerith's fingers brushed my hair, my ears. The flower slid behind my ear.

“Perfect,” Aerith whispered straight into my ear and breathing swept the skin of my neck. As the cold and hot shivers ran down my neck all the way to my toes, I opened my eyes. The green gaze was closer than ever before, and yet I could not get my eyes off her slightly open lips. No lipstick, the glow was Aerith’s own, and was highlighted by a colorless lip balm. Like a pink flower bud that was about to open to its full glow.

“A lily should bring you good luck. I hope you find what you are looking for.”

Aerith's whisper could barely be heard, but still it lifted goosebumps to my skin. The voice wiped my cheek, the heat swept my ear. My heart continued it bouncing.

“Maybe we’ll meet again,” Aerith added and straightened up. She grabbed her basket of flowers and waved her hand goodbye. She had disappeared from the cafe before I had time to properly realize that she was really gone.

"The payment, please."

The waitress appeared as if from scratch next to me.

I glanced at the untouched latte and my half drank coffee. A smile climbed to my lips, though I realized I should have reacted differently. My stomach itched. Aerith had used me, but the anger did not pulsate inside me. Instead, even previous despair had swung away with Aerith.

I checked what I needed to pay from the receipt and counted the appropriate number of gills on the table. I did not wait for the change but rushed into the damp twilight. I did not even see the hem of Aerith’s the pink dress.

My shoes creaked as I headed my steps back to the station. I would still get to the last train of the evening. I already knew I would not find Aerith anymore, so I might as well return home. Maybe she was never there.

When the train arrived at the Sector 7, I was no longer sure of anything. The evening was foggy. Maybe I had not really met anyone, maybe I was just sitting alone ventilating my mind. When I touched my ear, I understood the truth. Aerith had really passed my life. Maybe our meeting had meant to happen. A reminder that there was still a lot of good in the world to fight for.

No one else got out of the cart, and the station was quiet as I stepped into the orange light and was going to head towards the home. I had stepped down the stairs when I noticed someone leaning on the bench. Not sitting on it but leaning on it. A young man laid on the ground with a huge sword in front of him, dangling his head between his shoulders and leaning his back on the bench seat. I had not seen him before, and by nature he looked like a soldier. Maybe one of Shinra’s ranks have had too much fun and zonked out.

For a moment I thought I would pass the man. Shinra had not brought anything good into my life, so I was not in debt. Still, my legs were nailed to the ground. I stared at the light spiked hair, and my chest flicked again. I could not help but squat next to the man.

"Hey, are you okay?"

His head rose, and fuzzy blue-green eyes swayed as they looked at me. I was not sure if the man really saw me. His lips tried to form words, but I could not understand. Words got stuck in my throat as tears popped into my eyes and blurred the view.

Aerith had known something. I was sure of it.

#final fantasy vii #final fantasy vii remake #ffvii #ffvii fanfiction #aerti #tifa lockhart #aerith gainsborough #afi writes

[highwaytothedangerzone502]

Foxtrot Alpha Alpha - Excerpt

The sequel to "India Lima Yankee" is here! Well, almost. I'm in the process of developing an actual plot line for it, but I wanted to give y'all a sneak peek at a chapter I have written out. Enjoy!

Word Count: 1354

Warnings: Mention of near-death

Notes: I might be changing the callsign of Hangman's "past," but for now, I'm using my favorite callsign for her.

Summary: After the special training detachment, Hangman planned to enjoy his time off on sunny North Island and spend time with the Daggers, but his plans are wrecked when his past comes to haunt him.

Chapter Songs: History This Everyday Love

****

Juliette

"I got it!" Juliette hollered to Rooster, who sat in the nursery, attempting but failing to put together the extravagant cribs that Sarah Kazansky had gifted the couple upon the announcement of her daughter's pregnancy. Jules shuffled to the door and, ordering Raptor and Lightning to stay back, swung it open, grinning at the man before her. "Hey, Hangman."

In his endearing Texan drawl and with his ever-present smirk, he replied, "Hey, Princess."

The two had formed a close friendship ever since the special training detachment mere months ago, and Rooster didn't know it yet, but Juliette planned on making Hangman one of the twins' godfather. She'd seen him around her nephews at family barbecues and how wonderful he was with kids. She had swiftly made up her mind about it afterward.

"How are my three favorite people?" Hangman asked, gently hugging Juliette and being careful to avoid her growing belly. Then he knelt down to pet the excited German Shepherds.

"Nauseous, as usual, although it's slightly abated for now." Juliette moved aside to allow him entry. "Come on in. Bradley-"

"Hangman?" Rooster sounded from behind, his voice growing closer as he walked up behind his fiancée. "What are you doing here?"

"Princess said you needed help-" Hangman held out his arms- "so here I am."

Rooster looked down at Juliette. "Honey, I meant competent help."

"Any man who saved your life is competent in my book," she responded matter-of-factly, patting his cheek. "You work well together when you're not at each other's throats."

"And here I thought we were making headway, Bradshaw," Hangman teased. "Hell, I even brought sustenance."

Hangman lifted a six-pack of beer, and Rooster raised his eyebrows. "Sustenance or a bribe?"

"Both."

Rooster grinned. "Well, I guess some help is better than none. Come on."

"Before we get started-" Hangman pulled out a carton of ice cream and handed it to Juliette- "I brought something for you too."

Juliette greedily snatched it up because despite having chills from all the nausea, something about the sight of the ice cream made her appetite return. Shooting Hangman a thankful smile, she hurried to the kitchen and ripped off the lid. Juliette grabbed a spoon and plopped happily on the couch, nausea miraculously gone, although she wouldn't complain or think about that too much. After all, she welcomed the reprieve.

For the first hour, Rooster and Hangman seemed to be getting along. Juliette even swore they clinked beer bottles a couple of times. Of course, once that initial hour passed, she could hear some of their frustration coming out. Biting back a smile and having killed half the ice cream carton, Juliette got up from the couch to put it away. As she shut the freezer, the doorbell rang. Knowing precisely who it was, she threw it open joyously.

"You're just in time for the entertainment!" Juliette whispered drolly, moving aside for Ghost to step in.

"I always did have perfect timing," her friend joked, shrugging off her jacket. "Who else is here?"

"Hangman. He's helping Rooster put the crib together, and I use the term 'help' loosely."

Distaste flickered across Ghost's face at his name, but she refrained from remarking about it. The two girls made their way to the couch and sat down. Raptor and Lightning lay on their feet. Ghost asked, "So, how's the nursery coming along?"

Juliette opened her mouth to answer but stopped short when she heard Hangman demand in annoyance, "Bradshaw, is there anything you're actually capable of doing?"

Rooster responded with equal irritation and without a beat, "Putting up with you."

"It's not my fault the instructions are in Chinese and that you can't find the ones in English!"

"There are pictures for each step!"

"They're not clear enough!"

"Come on, we're smarter than this," Rooster said. Juliette could hear the confusion in his voice.

"Clearly, we're not," Hangman retorted before laughing mischievously and adding, "What does this look like?"

"You have the mind of a child."

"And yet, I'm still more intelligent than you."

"That's rich coming from the guy who forgot the word for 'sting ray' and called it a 'sea pancake.'"

"What does it say about you that you knew exactly what I was talking about?"

"That I am fluent in child from having worked with you for so long."

The boys continued their jesting while Ghost and Juliette eavesdropped, smothering their laughter at the continuous insults the boys hurled at each other. Another hour passed before Rooster and Hangman emerged from the nursery. The latter zeroed in on Ghost the moment he laid eyes on her, but he swiftly shifted his gaze to Juliette. 

"So-" Jules began, barely holding back her amused smile and feigning ignorance- "how's it coming along?"

"We're getting there," Rooster blatantly lied. "We're taking a break to go get dinner. What do you ladies want?"

"I'll defer to Juliette," Ghost responded. "Whatever she craves is the best way to go."

"I am craving seafood," Juliette admitted shyly, not wanting to force anyone to eat something they weren't in the mood for. "Is that okay?"

"Seafood it is, Princess," Hangman promised, bowing his head. "What would y'all like, and from where?"

"If you go to Pappa's Seafood, Rooster knows my answer," Jules said, standing up and stretching. "Crawfish platter."

"Ooh, what's on that?" Ghost asked.

"Fried crawfish, crawfish etouffee, and French fries."

"How big is it?"

"Enough for one person."

Ghost looked at Rooster. "Make that two crawfish platters."

"You got it," he said. He kissed Juliette and bid Ghost goodbye before strutting out the door. Hangman pecked Jules on the cheek, nodded his head at Ghost to acknowledge her, then followed Rooster.

Juliette waited until the door shut behind them before saying, "Want to take a shot at putting the crib together?"

"Absolutely," Ghost agreed, following her friend to the nursery. The girls entered a chaotic scene. Bits and pieces were scattered across the floor in no particular order, some were put together but with no obvious evidence of where they belonged on the crib, and Juliette could only be thankful it belonged to only one crib instead of two. At least the second remained safely in the box. 

"We have our work cut out for us," Ghost mused, sitting on the floor in the middle of it all. Juliette gently lowered herself to the ground across from her. "At least they had the sense to leave the nails and bolts in the packaging."

"I knew I should've supervised them," Juliette remarked, shaking her head. "Damn nausea. Okay, where are the instructions? The English ones, I mean. I'm sure they're around here somewhere. Rooster probably set them down in some weird place. I'd say grab them from the second box, but I don't know where they are, and I don't want to risk adding-" she motioned at the parts strewn about- "to this insanity."

"You stay seated. I'll get up and look around," Ghost ordered, pushing herself up. 

Juliette watched her friend, unable to hold back the question that had been on the tip of her tongue since Ghost's first day when she ran into Hangman. Leaning back on her hands, she asked hesitantly, "So... are you ever going to tell me how you and Hangman know each other? Because you are obviously more than old acquaintances."

Although Ghost didn't face her, Juliette saw the girl's shoulders sag. "How'd you know?"

"Because I called Rooster the same thing when Phoenix and Hangman picked up on our chemistry the day he arrived for the special training detachment."

Ghost scoffed. "Hangman and I don't have chemistry."

Uh-huh, and Rooster and I aren't about to have twins. Juliette disagreed with her friend but kept the opinion to herself. Now was not the time. "So what is it?"

Ghost sighed and shut the top dresser drawer she'd been searching. Facing Juliette, the female pilot said sadly, "He and I grew up together. We were best friends."

"Something obviously changed," Jules replied, bracing her elbows on her knees and leaning forward eagerly. "What happened?"

Ghost's face hardened. "He nearly got me killed."

****

Tags: @lgg5989 @shanimallina87 @polikszena @summ3rlotus @souslesyeuxde @gleasonmalfoy @icemansgirl1999 @supernaturaldawning @thedarkinmansfield @lyannaforpresident @lapilark @getmyprettynameoutofyourmouth @simpofthecentury @shadeops21 @pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy @double-j @picklejuicesposts @bradshawsandbridgetons @majdoline @jakexfmc @catsandgeekyandnerd @peachiicherries @multifandomcnova @fandomsstolemylife00 @bookloverhorses @nicangelinee @mak-32

If you're on the tag list, it's because I copied from the India Lima Yankee tag list. If you don't wish to be tagged for this story, just let me know :)

#top gun #maverick #iceman #rooster #hangman #phoenix #bob #coyote #payback #fanboy #tgm #tg2 #top gun maverick #foxtrot #alpha #forever and always #romance #navy #pregnancy #friends to enemies #ghost

[moshintheteagaiwan]

T.Kettle Part 6: The Visit From Upper Management

Now I am no stranger to getting visits from head office reps. I happened all the time during my run at Teavana, just as it does at most retail stores. When I was at Teavana it was usually just the regional manager, who at the time was a real piece of work. He was the type of person that made you nervously sweat just from walking into the store, so you know, not a very good manager.

He was an average sized man with a shiny balled head and I remember he had this ability to make it seem as though he was staring into your soul. He had these big wide bug eyes and when he would speak to you, his stare got deeper and his eyes got wider every second. He was a real putz.

I remember he used to give the female staff members a hard time for "not looking work appropriate" either cause their skirts or shorts were too short or showed too much cleavage or whatever. Again, he was a putz. But I remember the day we were expecting his visit and we saw him walking on up the hallway to the store wearing a collared gold shirt and tiny black tennis shorts that were so short they barely covered his thighs. I looked at him and said to my co-worker, "so she got in trouble for showing to much leg, and here he is with a full on hairy man legs and shorts so tight they outline his package?".

We were glad the day he announced he was leaving the company.

So when I was given the message that the head of operations wanted to come and visit the store, I wasn’t too worried. The store had only been open for a few months now and he likely just wanted to meet me and the team and see how things were going, especially since we were a “special” store. By that I mean, my store was the closest of any of the other stores to head office and the warehouse. Actually we were within a twenty minute driving distance. This meant my store would be able to get supplies or assistance more easily then other stores. I know how that sounds considering how long it took for a proper ice machine and a locksmith.

It also meant that we were the first store to try new ideas and products before being sent off to the other stores. Often times we would just have things dropped off to us by reps from head office since we were so close. But what made this upcoming visit different and more worrisome was that not only would the head of operations be there as well as the rep who had initially trained me, but so would the head of accounting as well as the head of tea development and merchandising. I had a whole pack coming to visit my store. Great!

I had to make sure that the store was perfect as you could imagine. I had to make sure all the shelves were full of stock, which wasn’t easy considering all the issues surrounding getting stock. Luckily about a week before their visit I was informed that a store from another province was closing and that the merchandise stock from their store was going to be sent over to my store. I had no idea what was in it or even how much there would be, so when the boxes arrived it was kind of like opening a present on Christmas morning.

This is what the company did whenever a store closed. Instead of selling the store stock at a reduced price, they had the staff box it up and ship it out to other stores. And as you can imagine when the stock arrived it wasn’t very well packaged or organized. This was no exception. I received around four large boxes full of stock. However, many of the unpackaged, ceramic, display pieces has been wrapped in paper towels and stacked on the bottom of the boxes. This resulted in countless broken mugs, creamer and sugar sets, and other damaged product I wouldn’t be able to use. I boxed all these items up and set them aside to show management when they visited.

But now it was the big day of the big visit. I was really nervous like you would expect anyone to be. Luckily it was a very quiet day so there weren’t any customers to get in the way. This was especially good since I only had enough hours to book only myself in at the time, with no counter coverage since at this time the company only allowed me equal number of hours as the mall was open to book my team. Meaning at the time the mall was open for only 9 hours per day, 63 hours per week, which is all I had to book my team with. And since I needed to book myself in for a minimum of 40 hours per week to keep my salary it left very little to use.

All four reps arrived at the same time. They all walked over to me at the tea counter and gave a quick introduction and shook my hand then they scattered around the store like ants looking for sugar. The rep from accounting walked over to the tea bar and started picking up spoons and checking under towels, and looking through boxes of hot cups? What was he looking for? He looked like Sherlock Holmes trying to find a clue.

The rep from tea development and merchandising nosed around the tea wall and picking through stock on the shelves. He was the least talkative of the bunch and dressed in leather boots, with bleached denim jeans and matching denim, button down shirt. The head of operations was very easy going and easy to talk to. However, he wasn’t happy when I showed him the box full of broken and damaged stock sent over from the closed T.Kettle store. He immediately pointed the finger to the rep who trained me as she at the time was the only one communicating with all the stores on daily operations due to lack of a proper regional manager.

He was pissed but thankfully not at me. I asked him what should be done with all the odd pieces that could no longer be sold due to the other half of sets being broken or missing. I was told to leave them in the backroom and they would send me a communication. They never did. After a few months I ended up throwing out anything broken and letting my staff take home any odd pieces they wanted. Until they day I left, the box of broken product was never discussed again.

After roughly 30 minutes, the group said their goodbyes and left. No comments at all other then “everything looks good”.

Odd considering usually when higher ups visited stores they usually had a list of changes they wanted done, or had some tips or advise to give. Nope, not this time. I never saw most of them again after this, besides the head of operations who would pop in on occasion to say high and grab an iced tea. The one thing that did come out of this meeting was the news that we would soon be carrying and serving T.Kettle brand Matcha. This was exciting and something that customers has been demanding. Soon a communication would going out to each store with more details and tea bar instructions for making Matcha...

to be continued...

#tea #teablr #loosetea #t-kettle #tkettle #t.kettle #teastore #iced tea

[glassesandswords]

I was too excited for Hange’s birthday and I also am bummed that I wouldn’t be able to post this on fifth September (it’s too long), so I decided to share with you guys a sneak peek into the Erurihan fic I’m working on for Hange’s Birthday Bash Event! 

---

As the days grew colder and snow covered entire towns in a white, powdery blanket, the annual winter holidays were finally announced for the Survey Corps. Cadets and officers alike packed their belongings and loaded them on hired carriages with enthusiasm, the thought of warm home-cooked meals and the smiles on their family’s faces by the fireside clouding their minds. 

Gazing at the departing crowd through the frosted glass of Erwin’s office, Hange hummed.

“The year flew by real fast this time. Say, what are you both going to do for the next fifteen days?” 

“There’s a lot of paperwork I have left to do,” Erwin said, buried in said paperwork, “Including the signing of the official death certificates of the soldiers who died in the recent expedition. Needless to say, I’ll be coming here everyday, holiday or not.”

“Being a commander sure is tough, huh… What about you, Levi?”

Levi did not look up from the three steel mugs he was pouring hot tea into. “I don’t have anywhere to go other than the training grounds.”  

Hange raised an eyebrow, “Even during the winter?” 

“Of course. The holidays are not an excuse to dawdle around. A soldier must be prepared at all times. You best keep that in mind, Shitty Glasses.” 

“Who do you think I am?” Hange protested as they saw Levi place a cup of tea next to Erwin who muttered his thanks while poring on a document. “I too have grand plans that I’m working on.” 

“Is that so? And what might those be?” Levi asked, eyes narrowed as he handed Hange their cup. The heat of the piping hot tea seeped through the mug, warming Hange’s cold fingers instantly. They took a long sip, relishing the searing heat on their tongue, as they let Levi’s question simmer in a dramatic pause.

“It’s top secret.”

“Knowing you, it’s yet another reckless plan to get a pet titan for yourself.” 

“Hange is tasked with the development of a special target restraining weapon that can capture titans alive without any casualties,” Erwin replied without missing a beat.

“Too soon! Erwin, I was planning to let him go in circles for a while! Stop ruining the fun.” 

“Sorry.”

Levi hummed, refilling Erwin’s half-empty cup before taking a sip from his own. “How far is it coming along then?” 

“I just got done with the test blueprint and approved it from our trusty commander here," Hange lightly patted Erwin's head, "I’ll be working on the nitty-gritties of its construction and figure out what materials we’ll need so that we can calculate the number of sponsors we’ll have to lick the boots of to get it done by the next expedition.” 

“Sounds quite troublesome.” Levi refilled Hange’s cup. “I don’t know how you two manage to get out of those meetings with even a shred of your dignity intact.” 

“You know how it goes, Levi," Hange shrugged, "Anything for the cause, dedicate your hearts, yada yada.” 

Levi let out a sarcastic huff as Erwin shot Hange his steel sharp ‘Commander’ glance before returning to the contracts on his desk. Hange stared at the tendrils of white steam from the surface of the golden tea curl in the air. They opened their mouth, hesitated, and closed it again, wondering whether they really wanted to go ahead with what they had in their mind or not. 

“Why do you look so constipated all of a sudden?” Hange’s indecision was not missed by Levi. “Spit it out.”

That was enough for Hange to gather their courage. 

“Say, are you both free three days from now?” they posed a nonchalant question.  

“Mmm... not really,” Erwin hummed thoughtfully as he approved a receipt. “But I must be done with the immediate paperwork by then.” 

“You, Levi?” 

“Depends on why you ask.” 

“You’re free then!” Hange blatantly ignored Levi’s narrowed gaze. “Great! I recently came across a research that said that working in one place for too long can dampen productivity. So, in order to get us all fired up again, I propose a short trip!” 

“A trip?” Levi repeated unsurely, as Erwin paused his paperwork and turned towards Hange, wondering what they were up to this time. 

“Where?”

“To the illustrious hub of science and engineering,” Hange beamed at them, splaying their hands forward and accidentally spilling some tea on the carpet, much to Levi’s dismay. “To the Industrial City!”

---

The whole fic will (hopefully) be out on my Ao3 on September 10, right in time for Hange's Backstory Day in the Hange Week '22 (for more deets on that, check here).

Thanks for reading!

#hange zoe #erurihan #snk #aot #levi ackerman #snk veterans #HangeBirthdayBash22 #hanji zoe #erwin smith #levihan #eruri #eruhan

[cierrabiscuits]

Hawks X Reader PT.1 Time After Time

Hello! This is my first fic I've posted in awhile! It feels good to be writing again! Hope everyone enjoys. There will a part 2 uploaded soon! (灬♥ω♥灬)

Word count 2.4K Content Warnings-Structure Fire involving reader, slight angst. Not edited

Title and story inspired by this song

F/N - Friend Name Y/N- Your Name L/N- Last Name

~~~~~~~~~~

 “Get this report done L/N. This is super important to me." Your boss barked at you.

 “I will do my best!” You said giving a soft smile. 

 “I'm counting on you. ” And just like that you were left alone in the office building.

 “Yeah, asshole.” You mumble as you put your chin in your hands. "If its so important why aren't you the one staying late?"

 Staying late wasn't the end of the world by no mean. But being alone in the creepy office building is enough to give anyone the heebie jeebies. The office lights went off leaving your computer monitor the only light source. You pulled your phone and headphone so you could listen to music instead of the silence of the deserted office. Sadly winging the report was out of the question. So real effort had to be put in. You crack your neck and start typing. You just hoped to be done before the last train home left. After a few hours you look up to see the clock was nearing 9PM. After a few more adjustments the report was done and sent to upper management for finalization. 

 “I’m all done.” You announce to the empty office while stretching in your swivel chair. “Now Y/N let's get the hell out of this creepy office”

 You shut your computer down and begin to pack up your things one by one into your work bag. Before leaving you took a moment to look at the street life. Your office had a great view of the Tokyo nightlife below. The massive LED sign on the building across you was playing a fight Endeavor had a few nights ago. Something come into your vision that catches you off guard. The office building across from you has flames reflecting off it. You at first thought it had something to do with the LED sign, until you see smoke rising into the air above you. It took a few moments before you were hit with the realization, the floors below you were on fire. You could see people on the street below panicking and running away. You were frozen in fear. If the fire was below that  means there was no way out going down. The fire alarm begins to blare, making your ears ring. You need to do something quickly. You pull your phone out to call emergency services.

 “What is your emergency?” The operator asked calmly over the phone.

 “My name is Y/N and the office building I work in is on fire.” Your mind was spinning a million miles an hour.

 “What is the building's name and address and what floor are you on Y/N.” The operator asked 

 “I don’t know the specific address, but I’m on the 10th floor of the Tokyo Commerce building. The fire is below me. I am unsure what floor it is on.” You bite your nail trying to ground yourself. 

 “Stay calm, Y/N I am sending emergency services out right now. Get as close to the floor as you can and wait for rescue.” The call was cut off. You looked at you phone screen and see the low battery symbol flashing. You mentally scold yourself for not charging it.

  You look around the room as your survival instincts kick in. You run over to the door that leads to the higher floors. You pulled the handle but it is locked. You looked around the office for anything that could break the door handle but saw nothing. You run to your desk and rip a piece of your jacket off to make a face cover to filter some of the smoke that was pouring into the office. You take a step back and stumble, landing awkwardly on your foot. You wince at the discomfort beginning to form in your ankle. Tears pricked your eyes as the pain progressively got worse.

"Calm down Y/N, think." A lightbulb went off in your head. You crawled over to your desk and grabbed a flashlight out of your desk, you always kept it in case of power failure. You click the small on button and flash it in the window in hopes someone may see it so they can save you. It was your only hope. You hear sirens in the distance, but the office was filling up with more and more thick smoke by the second. Your lungs begin to burn from the thickness of the air. A sense of helplessness washed over you. If this where you died? In the floor of your shitty office job.

“Help me someone.”  You whimpered out. Your blood pressure was rising from the pain in your ankle, causing your head to spin. 

 Your consciousness becomes hazy when you hear glass break. You pry your eyes open to see a silhouette in the smoke. It looked like an angel.

 “Over here.” You let out one last plea. Your eyes shut from irritation. You felt something soft wrap around your head to stabilize it. 

 “I’ve gotcha.” A reassuring voice puts you at ease. You feel your body lift off the floor of the office and into the arm of the unknown man. “ Ready to fly?”

 “Fly?” Your eyes shot open despite how irritated they were to see the number two hero Hawks smiling down at you.

 “Yes sweetheart, you ready?”  He did not give you time to answer as he clutched you close to his body and jumped into the cold night air. You watched his crimson wings spread, veiling you from the burning building. You gripped his beige jacket for dear life as you floated down. “That was a smart idea with the flashlight. My feathers were having a hard time pinpointing you thanks to the smoke.”

 “Oh thanks.” You see why your co-workers are obsessed over Hawks. He looked like an angel and smelt like heaven laced with smoke. The rushing wind caused your makeshift mask to fly from your face. Hawks looked down at you with wide eyes. Like he saw a ghost. Once he landed on the ground he stared at your face for a few seconds before snapping out of his trance.

 “Hey, can we get some assistance over here?” Hawks yelled at the first responders who rushed over to you with a bed. Hawks gently laid you down as they hooked an oxygen mask to your face. “I’m going to help evacuate the area in case the building collapses.” You see his wings open and in a split second he disappears into the smoky sky. Why was he looking at you so intently? 

 The night has taken a toll on you mentally and physically. You had enough energy to answer and few questions for the first responder until the world turned black.

~~~~~~~~~

 You woke up to the sound of a machine beeping and the faint floral smell. Your head was aching and your foot was throbbing. 

 “Y/N you're awake!” You felt a pair of arms wrap around you, gripping you just a little too hard.

 “ F/N, where am I?” Your eyes struggle open due to the bright fluorescent lights.

 “You're in the hospital hun. The doctors said you were really lucky, the worst injury you have is a sprained ankle after a few days you should be able to go home. I was so worried. I’m glad you're safe, Y/N.” You watched tears of relief flow from your friends eyes.  

 “Thanks F/N, that means a lot.'' You look around the room and notice the large bouquet of flowers and a small teddy bear sitting on the nightstand. “Thank you for the flowers as well, that is ver sw-” 

 “Actually those aren't from me. ” Your friend smirked. “Y/N spill the details, how did you swoon Hawks.”

 “Huh?” Dumbfounded by the information your friend just gave you.

 “Hawks dropped these off yesterday, the nurses told me. I am so jealous Y/N!” You felt blood rush to your face at your friend's words.

 “I'm sure he is just being nice. Do you know if anyone else was rescued or was it just me?” You ask to change the subject.

 “You were the only one in the upper floors, security was able to evacuate the lower floors before it spread. The fire chief said It was an electrical fire that got out of control quickly. Some luck you have Y/N. But you have to tell me about Hawks. Did you get his number? Tell me!” Your friend interrogated you.

 “Sorry to interrupt, visiting hours are now over.” A nurse came in and informed your friend. You mentally thank the nurse for rescuing you.

 “Well that's my cue to go. If you need me I'm just a phone call away. Get well soon! And don’t think this conversation is over Y/N ;) ” And with that your friend left you in the uncomfortable silence. 

 You turn on the small Tv that was hanging on the wall and flip through the channels, any noise was better than this suffocating silence. You pass a news channel that was covering the story and decide to watch it.

 “We are outside of the now burnt Tokyo Commerce building. Reports say a small coffee pot caused this big problem. Luckily no deaths occurred thanks to the fast work of the pro hero Hawks. Those who were rescued by him and sent to the hospital with minor injuries. This was Tokyo 5 news, reporting.” The TV screen changed to commercials.

 “Minor injuries my foot!!” You curse out  “Literally I can’t even move it.” Speaking to the air you attempt to move your foot. 

 “I think the whole point of you being here is to not move that foot and let it heal darling.” Caught in the act you turn to see none other than pro hero Hawks standing in the open window seal. 

 “Uh right. Wait, why are you here?” Hawks climbs into the hospital room and shuts the window behind him.

 “I needed to return this little guy, plus I needed to talk to you.” He handed you the flashlight you used to beacon him, as he pulled a chair beside your bed.. “Why were you in the building so late?”

 “My boss wanted me to finish a report. I was getting ready to leave but the fire had already broke out” You answer honestly. 

 “I see.”  The room became silent. Hawks looked like he wanted to say something, but was holding back.

 “Thank you again for saving me, also thanks for the bear and flowers. I didn’t know you bought your damsel in distress gifts.” You joked with the pro hero to break the silence. 

 “No problem. I figured you could use a companion while you're here.” Hawks sent a feather to the night stand where the bear was and placed the plush gently in your lap causing you to smile. “I wish I could stay longer, but I’m on night watch. I’ll be back to see you soon Y/N. And be easy on that foot” He stood up from the chair and walked over to the window to open it.

 “Whatever you say, Tweety Bird.” Your remark caused him to roar out laughing. You normally don't joke with people you barely know. But Hawks made you comfortable and he seemed to be around you as well.

 “Tweety huh. Well I’ve been called worse I guess.” Hawks jumped on the window seal. He looked at you one more time. “One more thing Y/N. Have you ever played  hero rescue?” He looked at you with a serious expression. 

 “Is that like an xbox game or something?” You gave him a confused look. 

 “Not quite.” His phone began to beep. “Duty calls.” Hawks' facial expressions seemed sad as he took off into the night.

 “Be careful.”

 You still did not understand why Hawks were being so kind. He spoke as if he knew you personally. Not that you were complaining. What girl your age didn’t have at least a little crush on the hero? But it still did not make much sense. You lifted the bear to get a better look at it. It reminded you of the one you had as a little girl. It was the last gift your mother gave you before she passed. The bear was your only childhood friend for as long as you could remember. Your father was always working and did not have much time for you. He worked for the hero commissioners office, meaning you spent many days in the huge office building while your dad finished work. You and the bear would explore the building and its few doors that would be unlocked. You clutched the bear close and let your heavy eyes close for some much needed rest.

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

 “Don’t go too far Y/N, I’ll be done soon.” Your father said while typing on his computer.

 “I won’t!” You ran out of his small office and down the vast corridors of the hero commissioners building. 

 Many people had gone home for the day, so it was empty for the most part. You stumbled across a hall you have never been down. You tried to open a few doors but they wouldn’t budge. You got to the last door, it was already open just a bit. You pushed on the door gently to open it and took a small step inside. The room was dimly lit. You saw movement  towards the back of the room that made you take a step back.

 “Hello, who's there?” You said with a fear laced voice. After a few seconds you heard footsteps coming towards you. You clutched the bear you had in your hands close to you and shut your eyes. The footsteps stopped in front of you and when your eyes opened you saw a boy with messy blonde who was just a little taller than you. 

 “Hi.” He said shyly. “Who are you?

 “I’m Y/N, my dad works in this building. Who are you?” 

 “My name is Keigo.” 

 “Where are your parents at?” He looked sad when you asked that.

 “They aren’t here.” He looked at the floor while he answered.

 “Oh okay. Umm do you want to play with me?” You asked to change the subject.

 “Sure!” The boy named Keigo came closer to you and the red wings on his back became prominent.

 “Wow you have wings! So cool!” You gawk at the boy.

 “Yup, they are going to help me become a hero one day!” He said proudly and spread his small wings. 

 “Let's play hero rescue then! I’ll hide my bear and you have to come rescue it!” That night you and him played until your father called for you. From there on out  you played with the boy every night. Until one day he vanished. You went back to what was once his room everyday hoping he would show back up. But it was empty every time.

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

 “Keigo?” Your eyes opened to the bright fluorescent lights of the hospital room. It finally hit you. The boy from all those years ago was Hawks.

#bnha hawks #hawks x reader #hawks x y/n #keigo fluff #hawks fluff #mha fluff #bnha fluff #hawks x female reader #bnha angst #mha angst #takami keigo x reader

[be-events]

shortly before the news is broken publicly, trainees and staff from all three companies had received an announcement regarding the merger and creation of the new AXIS LABELS parent company with strict instructions not to leak the information outside of the building. the trainees in particular were informed about the new facility and the expectation that they will spend some of their time at the new building, working with other coaches and trainees to build their skills while still upholding the individual company's values and identity. that said, it's a few days longer before the shuttles that they were promised show up, let alone the training facility's doors open.

on saturday, july 15th, all trainees are instructed to attend the grand opening of the new training facility with shuttles provided for the first time. no one is permitted to stay behind this time and it's whispered that there's some big announcement like the other times trainees have been gathered together like this. they're not far from the truth.

as the trainees file into the new facility, groups of ten or so are met by the new axis labels staff to give them a quick tour of the new building and provide them with new cards that will allow them into the facility should the receptionist not be around to buzz them in. they make sure that each trainee is acquainted with the space and answer as many questions as they can before taking a break for lunch, leading all trainees into the new, massive cafeteria. more than one person notes that the food here is incredible.

following their lunch break, the trainees are instructed to follow signs pointing them to a large, open practice room with enough space for each trainee to find a seat on the floor. a few familiar faces to all trainees appear among the coaches, the most respected of the LIME ENTERTAINMENT, SR MEDIA, and STUDIO DELTA staff chatting amongst some unfamiliar faces while the trainees get settled in. finally, they seem satisfied with the crowd in front of them, and the coaches break away from the pack to allow one particular stranger room to speak.

"hello," she introduces herself to the trainees as they quiet and listen for further instruction, "my name is kim jaekyung and i am the new director of operations for axis labels. it's my job to make sure that we are running an efficient, cost-effective operation in this new joint venture. in particular, i am assessing the personnel of your new sister companies and your own company. from the ceo and executives all the way down to the newest trainee, i want to make sure that we're making a worthwhile investment in everyone here."

murmurs of unease spread through the crowd. even the coaches seem a bit anxious.

"this is not just a test of you, the trainees we've acquired as part of this merger, but also of the staff who are supposed to be teaching you. should we find room for improvement in the existing systems, we will address it. your coaches have also expressed a desire to test your adaptability and teamwork skills with this evaluation. now, everyone up on your feet. we're going to be splitting you up into small groups."

upon prompting from jaekyung, the coaches start interacting with the trainees, each calling a handful of names over to them and dividing up the crowd into small groups. all of the groups have a mix of members from all three companies.

when things settle down again, jaekyung continues her announcement. "if you don't know your teammates, now is the time to introduce yourselves. your task for the next few weeks is to use your open practice time to create a performance with the help of your training staff. inspired by studio delta's method, we're giving you all creative freedom regarding what in particular you'd like to perform. it can be a cover of a senior group or an original song. all we ask is that you show us both dancing and singing or rapping, whichever it is you're stronger at. the staff are at your disposal to help you perfect your performances. at the end of the preparation period, myself and the CEOs will be reviewing your performance and making any necessary decisions at that point."

her eyes seem to linger on some of the staff, a small, critical frown on her lips as she surveys the crowd before her. "please do not let one another down," she finishes before her part of the announcements are done.

OOC:

this event is for trainees only and will run until august 23 at 11:59pm. any threads or solos posted after the deadline will not count toward points. please send in your points submission before this deadline.

please use the hashtag #BE:ICEBREAKER for all posts relating to this event.

the groups for the evaluation are assigned by the coaches and are as follows:

GROUP A

lee chaerin

lee nayoung

han saem

GROUP B

lee noel

moon saea

min hyejin

song chaeyeon

GROUP C

lee seojun

shin eunae

park dohyun

yeom sarang

GROUP D

seo junho

shin yuji

zhou renyi

FOR +3 POINTS IN ANY PERFORMANCE SKILL (SING, DANCE, RAP) & +2 TRAINEE POINTS please write a 4-post thread with another trainee about your muses preparing for the evaluation. *this may be collected up to 2 times FOR +2 TRAINEE POINTS TO DISTRIBUTE POINTS, please write a 300+ word solo about your muse' performing at the festival's performance with their team. BONUS: FOR +5 SKILLS OR ANCILLARY POINTS, please write a 4-post thread with another trainee OR a 200+ word solo about their first impressions of the new training facility or reaction to the news of the merger.

when you’ve completed all options that you’d like to participate in, please sent the following form to our points submission blog:

SUBMISSION TITLE: MUSE NAME - COMPANY - ICEBREAKER EVALUATION

preparation 1: +3 points to distribute to any performance skills, +2 trainee points to distribute to any trainee skill(s) [ link to thread ]

preparation 2: +3 points to distribute to any performance skills, +2 trainee points to distribute to any trainee skill(s) [ link to thread ]

performance: +2 trainee points to distribute [ link to solo ]

bonus: +5 points to distribute to any skill [ link to solo/thread ]

#BE:EVENT #BE:ICEBREAKER

[bike42]

Transfer Days: Thursday and Friday

It shouldn't be that difficult to travel from the west coast of Ireland to Northern Scotland, but it is. There is a Ferry from Belfast, but it only runs late at night and gets to a southwestern port of Scotland, so we’d still burn a day traveling to Inverness! So we opted to fly, but flights out of Shannon had only two options: 7 am (would have been 4am departure from the Falls Hotel) or 5 pm. That option meant a lot of waiting on our hands. We arrived at Shannon at 10am with most of our group. We said goodbye and they checked in, cleared security and prepared to fly home. We couldn’t even check in for our flight until until 3pm. We found a nice table and passed the time playing cribbage - I got skunked by JT in back-to-back games, catching up my blog and reading. At 3pm, we checked in, cleared security, I figured out the VAT tax refund kiosk and got €18 back from my scarf purchase. We went to the bar and ordered pints of Guinness for a last, sad round while we tried to watch the cricket game on TV, then it was time to board our AerLingus flight to Heathrow. I’d booked these via British Air, and there was not even a business class - just one large packed plane full of people. We took our places in the 10th row and realized how spoiled we’ve been flying Delta Plus or First Class most of the last couple of years! It was a short one hour flight to London - no service other than the stewards with a cart of “Duty Free Cigarettes” that they were selling!

We arrived at Heathrow and figured out to clear customs and made our way via train from Terminal 1 to Terminal 5. That took about an hour, and we had two hours between fights. We found that our next leg to Edinburgh was a bit delayed, so we grabbed a burger and walked the designer shops in the terminal until they around a departure time and gate for our flight. This time we were sandwiched into the 17th row! We arrived in Edinburgh about 11pm, so late that they had us unload the plane via the stairs and load a bus to drive to the terminal. We claimed our bags and grabbed a cab for the very short ride to Moxy - a new funky Marriott brand that had a hotel a half mile from the airport. It was about midnight when we climbed into bed for a short nights sleep. We were glad we weren’t staying there long - it was a very comfortable bed with awesome pillows, but a tiny room with no closet and a tiny bathroom. Yoga wouldn’t have been possible in that room!

I’m not sure what I was thinking booking a hotel at the airport when we had 8:30am train reservation at the city center train station, but we had a lovely 30 minute cab ride into the city Friday morning and saw some of the sites of Edinburgh. I’m sure our cabbie would have pointed out more sites, but we really struggled to understand him!

We arrived at the train station in plenty of time to figure out how to print out our pre-purchased tickets from the kiosk and get the lay of the land. They didn’t announce our departure platform until 10 minutes before departure so we had a fast hustle to platform 16 but knew how to work the turnstiles and stash our suitcases so we were better off than many! On the first class train car, we shared a table with a nice couple (Jerry and Sherry) now living in Delaware, originally from California. We passed the three hours on the way to Inverness, swapping stories and hearing about what they had planned for their two weeks in Scotland. I remarked to Jeff that it was refreshing to connect so well with a couple after so many frustrating attempts at conversation with some of the others on our M&M trip - that was a tour of odd ducks (probably what they thought about us too no doubt). When we arrived in Inverness, Jerry offered to grab a cab that could take us to our rented cottage, but it was just a half mile and it was a nice sunny day (again!) so we opted to walk. We may see them tonight at one of the pubs they’d researched for music tonight.

We had an easy walk across the River Ness to our VRBO cottage and found the key in the lock box - always a relief. It’s a really cute little place with bed and bath upstairs and a tiny little kitchen and living space downstairs. A welcome change after two weeks of hotels. This is now our SEVENTH accommodation and we’re getting good at packing up and transferring - packing cube system is working well.

We were starving - only had an energy bite and a pack of shortbread cookies so far today and it was after 1pm. We walked around the corner and had a great lunch and then walked across the street to the grocery store to buy some provisions to make our own breakfasts for the next two mornings (no more big Irish Breakfasts for us!). Back to the cottage, Jeff plopped down on the leather sofa and declared it perfect for napping. These two days of travel, even with lots of downtime have worn us out so it’s good to have this time before jumping into phase three of this journey!

I did a yoga session while JT rested and worked on a Spanish lesson. At 7p we headed out again. The couple we’d met on the train said there would be live music tonight at Hootenanny’s or McGregor’s. We had dinner at McGregor’s which was a more modern place. We chatted with a nice couple from the Chicago area - again, I was relieved to be able to connect with another couple after last weeks’ tour - feeling hopeful about next week’s tour! The music there, however, was disappointing. A talented guy on piano, but doing covers of older American songs (particularly bad rendition of Folsom Prison Blues). After dinner and some yummy Scottish stouts, we headed to Hootenanny’s. A Scottish trio was just setting up to play, so we had single malt whisky (no “e” here in Scotland), and snagged to seats in front. The music was all instrumental - a talented guy on an accordion and he tried to chat up the audience but it fell a bit flat. I liked his kilt though - looked like it could have been a Carhart!

The town was hopping as we walked back to our cottage just before 10pm. Glad we’re in a quieter neighborhood!

[daisyvstheworld]

Day 17 - Jan 17 - Grindelwald/Jungfraujoch

I woke up super early for NO REASON bc I didn’t even make my original train. I was sad that I was leaving so I took my fine time. I pooped and then I packed up, went down to breakfast at 7:10ish. The breakfast buffet was so nice!! The restaurant was super pretty and the mountain was just appearing as the sun was rising. There was an omelette station but I just got scrambled eggs, some mini waffles (bad), fruit, cheese to sample, and coffee. Turns out they had yogurt lol I didn’t have to buy yesterday. Wish I had known.

I was originally planning to get to the train station for the 7:48am departure but I took too long to eat and poop again, and then the front desk wasn’t open so I couldn’t check out until 7:55am :( the lady said the bus ran every 15 mins but I waited and it never came so I just walked down to the Grindelwald station and waited for the 8:18am departure. There was a huge group of Korean tourists that all went WHAAAA at a flock of birds flying away

Anyways that group left on a different train and I hopped on mine. Once I got to the terminal, it looked like there were only skiers and I was like uhh wtf am I not supposed to be here.. but eventually I saw 2-3 other tourists. The lockers didn’t work so I had to pay 10 francs to put them in the peoples back office -_-

The view up was soooo pretty!! It’s kind of cloudy today but I think it’s supposed to clear up a bit at the top. Idk I hope so at least.

I went to the bathroom once we got to Eigergletscher since the next train wasn’t departing for 20 mins and literally when I got out of the stall, a bunch of people were waiting in line and then this huge ass group of like 40 Korean tourists showed up at the ticket line I was like wtf

We got on the tram and it was a 30min or so ride up, through a tunnel in the mountain.

OoF this altitude!! We took a stop at Eismeer and of course it’s cloudy and shit so you can’t really see anything but you can see how vast the snow valley is. And it’s windy so it was cool to see the little snow storm

Once we got to the top; the swarm of Korean tourists began hahah I did the tour a little out of order because it was so chaotic but it worked out! My selfie stick really came in clutch

Unfortunately it was super cloudy and windy so you can’t really see much 😭😭 but I got some cool photos and they even had a little picture op showing that this was a film location for Crash Landing on You.

The Lindt workshop area didn’t appear to be open and Restaurant Crystal looked closed too but I found out it just opened at 11am so I just waited a couple minutes for it open and ordered my alcoholic coffee and cheesecake 😊 took my Pepcid AND lactaid like a responsible asian. Lowkey I was hoping the sky would clear up a little before I left 🥲 it did not lol so I left.. a little disappointing but tbh I should’ve checked. When I checked, it said it was gonna be sunny but it LIED or I forget when it was supposed to be sunny and I left too early.. but I rather go to Lausanne than wait for the chance of it potentially clearing up even though it looked very unlikely. NEVERTHELESS, I am grateful for the opportunity and it felt cool to just be at the top. It does have a kind of surreal splendor being that high up surrounded by snow and winds. It feels like I shouldn’t be there considering how wild the weather is. Wish it was a little/lot clearer but no regrets!!!

Ok I’m on the last train rn to Lausanne.. and oh my god. Taking trains in Switzerland is nice but sometimes you gotta pray your train is on time or you’ll mess up your ENTIRE schedule. I’m done with transfers now but I just took 3 trains to get to where I am now. If I missed any of them, I’d be panicking.. the train from Interlaken to Spielz was stressful bc we just stopped 10 mins out from the station to wait for an oncoming train??? So the announcer said we’d be a few minutes late and I was like BRUH we’re supposed to arrive at 1:51 and then I’m supposed to catch a different train at 1:54!!!! What do you MEAN A FEW MINUTES LATE

Luckily we were on time or just a minute or so late and it’s a small station so I just sprinted across the platform and got on the next train. I’ve had to take out my passport every single time they check my ticket, but luckily I think I only have to do it once more after this when I take this train later to get to Geneva. It’s been snowing all over the country, it’s quite pretty!

I got hungry and ate the last pretzel bread, but as I was eating I realized that this bread is like 3 days old.. like I brought it all the way from Salzburg, Austria… oh well, it’s in tummy now. Along with the random shit I had for breakfast, a coffee with whipped cream and Williams, and a cheesecake. Lol.

JESUS CRISTO

Je is back on the train to Geneva - it’s 6:15pm. I have sweat so much today. I am wearing SO MANY LAYERS. I went from being in -18 degree weather to like 35/40 degree weather carrying all my bags and walking up hills. To say I was sweating at the Olympic Museum is a SEVERE understatement. I thought I was gonna have a freaking panic attack, but I didn’t wanna waste time by taking layers off bc the museum was closing in 2 hours. The museum was suuuuper cool!! Gave a history of the Olympics going back to the origin in Athens and moving to modern Olympics who apparently a French man brought back in the early 1920s, ain’t that wild! He was very much about the unity of art and sport. There were exhibits on the development of Olympic sport, the host cities, the demonstration of art and culture, ALL the torches from the ceremonies displayed, and the stories behind them all. I wish I had more time bc it was truly so cool. Then they had an exhibit of artifacts donated by athletes and the games. The last one was more interactive and shows the athletes village, their nutrition/health/well-being, and a zone for people to play games and such. Quite cool, quite cool indeed. Again, wish I had more time. But I rushed the last bit to make sure I had time to walk through the gift shop really quick, go to the bathroom, and grab my stuff. I took a couple of quick photos at the Olympic park and started back. I feel so musty at this point (and hungry) that I just wanted to get to Geneva. I walked back to the metro and hopped on the Ouchy line back to Lausanne Gare. It’s only 2 very quick stops, but when we hit the first stop, this man came SLIDING into the door and ended up not even getting in. His foot didn’t make it through the train door, only the station door. It looked so painful though - he was a pretty skinny man and I think he slipped on accident. He got up pretty fast though. But I gasped really loudly bc it felt like a cartoon in a movie.

Anyways I got on the train. It’s quite packed. I wanted to eat but I don’t wanna eat in front of all these people so I guess I wait until I get to Geneva.. and walk 10-15 mins to my hostel 😭😭.. and check in… 😭😭😭

I have done so much today. I’ve taken 7 trains today. Plus the metro. I’m so tired 😭

#winter2023 #europe2023

[livingwithlosingyou]

Living with Losing You - 10/15/2022

I WON!!! 

How!? I don’t even know. I am so competitive. 

Okay, so today was insane. I was non stop. I can’t wait to go to bed, but I really wanted to type this all out. 

I woke up to the blaring sound of my alarm at around 7:47am. I had to be at the race technically by 8:30am, but really just before 9am. So I quickly got dressed and packed some stuff to bring to the race. I really was note sure what I was going to do today, or how I was going to approach it since I hadn’t been training. I always tell myself I can just “run it for fun” but I ALWAYS end up pushing myself and get too competitive. 

I grabbed the address from the email that I got and it took me to a weird entrance where the gate was locked. Luckily your aunt was working the event (it’s also why I did it in the first place) so I called her and she walked me through where I should go. Unfortunately by this point it was already 8:45am and I didn’t want to miss the race, so I parked on the other side of the fence, hopped said fence, and ran almost a mile to get to where the actual race was. On the way I ran into your aunt and we asked the chief of police and another office if it was okay, and they said since it was on the property I could park there. More on that later. 

I run up with a couple of minutes to spare and start doing some dynamic stretching that was being led by one of the vendors. Then, the played the national anthem, and it was go time! 

I started near the front, and basically stayed there. I was definitely in the top 10, but I am not sure of the exact results. I can’t find them on the website. I was the #1 girl though! I averaged about 7:10-7:20 pacing for most of it, which I was impressed with all things considered (I didn’t really train and I was up and out super late last night). The run itself was so pretty though. It helped distract me from the pain. In those moments that I felt like really slowing down. I imagined you cheering me on. Also, the fact that your aunt invited me I felt like I needed dot make her proud. She was pretty excited that I was the first female. I mean, I was especially excited when I found out there were little cash prizes for the top finishers overall for men and women, and then the top finisher for certain age groups. I also got a participation medal (love that for me), a nice shirt, a tumblr, and a bunch of other fun swag. They announced me and I had to go onstage since I was the top emailed finisher. I will say, it felt good. I felt like a bad bitch, and I also love that for me. It’s the little things. 

 I ended up staying back a little but to help your aunt clean up, pass out the prizes, etc. I was funny because those two policemen I referenced earlier approached us and your aunt was like “you cant tow her now cause she won” and then the chief said, “isn’t there a fence between where you parked and here?” To which I replied, “Maybe”. He asked me if I jumped it, and I said “Allegedly”, which was one of your most utilized words. It was a funny interaction. He said he likely got it on video, and I told him he would want to watch that back. I had to top it again to get back to my car too. It was all super funny. 

Right after the race I realized how hungry I was, so naturally I went to the GF bakery since it’s my last day to (sad face). I ordered a few things and gave a nice tip. Then, I came back to Beth’s, watched the finale of She-Hulk, and just sat and relaxed for a little bit. I wanted to nap, but I knew I wouldn’t have time. 

I then showered and quickly got ready yo go to the studio. I had to pack some stuff because I was going to Mark’s for dinner right after. Like I said, SUPER busy, I am super tired. 

Today our focus in the studio was a song called “Make you Mine”. This is the song that I first wrote to James / about James to try and tell him how I was feeling. It’s a very cute song. He would be sop happy with it, and I am sure so proud of me too. Just as we did yesterday, it was hours in the booth doing take after take. I do enjoy it, but it can be tiring on the voice and just overall. Some of you may be thinking, “Wow, she ran a 5K then sang isn't that bad?” For me, I believe it helps me. It opens up my airways more. I really can’t wait to hear how this song comes together, but also how the James song is coming along too. It has been helpful to work on music. 

I was supposed to have a hard stop at 5:30pm, but I ended up leaving a little later due to some difficulties with figuring out the beats, notes, etc. Once we finished what we needed to I ran to my car and went right to Mark’s house. There, I was greeted by his sweet elderly neighbors and a couple of friends I have met before. Mark cooked AMAZING wagyu steak / pork ribs. On top of that he made twice backed potatoes. The neighbors brought over homemade unsweetened iced tea. It was a beautiful night, so we all sat on the deck and watched the UK game. Once it reached about 8:50pm, I headed back to your mom’s.

I was definitely supposed to run a few errands / get some laundry done today, but they did not happen. I washed my face make up on my eyes with my shampoo because I feel like besides the wipes, it’s the only things that works when comparing to a soap bar. I had no time to do laundry. I got home after 9am and your mom was already sleeping, so I figure I can do these tomorrow. 

Anyway, unfortunately I got it in my eyes to the point I turned on and jumped in the shower to make it easier to get out. Honestly my eyes still kind of burn. I put some drops in, by likely I just need to go to bed, which I will do here very soon. 

I still can’t believe that I won that race. It feels good. 

Only a couple more days here, and they’re filling up fast. I have gotten so used to being out here that it’s going to be strange to be back in SD. I am curious to see how that goes. 

I went into the room today where you took your life. It’s taken a few times for me to not feel completely uncomfortable. I have gone up there a grabbed items here and there that I needed (sweaters, etc.) I like wearing your clothing. I mean, I’d wear it before this all happened as well. 

I should be getting brunch with your dad and then heading to a fair with Finley. I am going to record Sunday evening. At least that’s the plan for now. 

SO bittersweet. I am excited to see my animals though. 

I love you more than I can ever put into words, James. 

Rest in Peace, James Burton Nichols

10/1/1993 - 7/16/2022

[valentin-talbot]

Rush and Pause

Time: Afternoon, 10th of June Place: Heathcote House Status: Closed, Discord Chat with @alastair-talbot & @soleil-timide

Valentin

The moment the last morning suitor for his sisters had left, Valentin had grabbed his hat and a bag with mysterious content and dashed out the door, telling his family that they should have lunch without him because he had something to do.

 It was just as the desert was cleared off the table that he came back. Sweaty. Hat in hands. Mysterious bag gone. And a big, big grin on his lips. "I have wonderful news," he said, basically dancing into the lunch hall. "Or terrible news. Or. Well. News." The flush on his cheeks was heavy and deep-pink, though for now the running could be blamed. "I'm going back to St Maur tomorrow."

Florence

It was most peculiar of Valentin to rush away as he did. Florence couldn’t help the worried glances she shot at the door every now and then. Would he return, was everything alright? it was impossible to think on the gentlemen who had paid them visits in the morning, not with Valentin possibly in trouble.

When Valentin came in, announcing that he was to leave, her fair brows shot up. “Tomorrow?” It was so soon! There were still events to attend, and already he was leaving? He seemed too happy for something to be wrong, but still the questions fell from her lips: “Is everything alright? Has something happened?”

Valentin

"I'd leave today if there were any more trains," he admitted, dancing towards the serving table to pick a bowl of blancmange. "As it is, I'll take the day to pack and write letters. I should also finally buy that scarf I've been eyeing all Summer and, oh! Dinah! I must go see her. If I leave with nothing but a letter she'll be terribly upset, now that her Prince might propose any day... Ah, zut... Florence! You wouldn't mind taking over for me, would you? Make sure she makes the right decision and says the right things and dresses in her best way and all that?"

He plunged the spoon into the blancmange, picked it up -- but before it could reach his mouth, he spoke again, answering his sister's concern: "Everything! Everything happened and everything's all right! Everything!" He was dancing closer, gesticulating with spoon and blancmange. "I'm finally getting my chance at apologising. I'm finally getting my chance at having my best friend back."

Alastair

Alastair, like his sister, raised his eyebrow and looked up from the daily paper, a little confused. "Tomorrow?" he asked at the same time as she did.

Ah, an apology, then he was going to meet with the Forester boy he asked to give him a chance. Well, there the meeting wasn't all for nothing and he smiled again into the paper. "I am glad to hear that. Good luck, Valentin."He said genuinely, honest. Little flicker of happiness inside. "When do you plan to come back?" was instead the question in reply , which interested him a bit more than what he was going to do.

Valentin

"Oh." When was he going to come back? Valentin had not considered that. At all. His first instinct was to say: When everything is resolved. But... What if that wouldn't happen? What if the chasm between him and Benny would only grow? If they were to actually fight? To actually fall apart, salvageable? "Oh." He sank into a chair.

"Maybe I won't." He looked at his brother. "Because-... Because if it all goes wrong, maybe I-, I-... Maybe I'll just resume work." Because if it all went wrong, he wasn't sure if he could face society again. Because if it all went wrong, he could no longer pretend to be looking for a wife, believing in love. Could he?

Alastair

Oh, Alastair didn't mean to raise any doubts. "I'm sure everything will be fine," he assured, as was expected of an older brother. He didn't know for sure, but Benny had told him he missed him, and Valentin felt the same. So it was settled, hopefully. 

Don't think too much about it. If you can apologize, everything will be cleared up after that," hopefully. He put the paper aside, "What time will you leave tomorrow, do you want anyone to accompany you?"

Florence

Florence couldn’t help it. She looked from one brother to the other as they spoke, feeling very much an outsider. At least Alastair knew what was going on. At least Valentin wasn’t alone in whatever sort of endeavor this was. “Alastair is right,” she chimed in. “It will turn out alright.”  Surely it would if all he needed was to make an apology.

“I’ll take care of Lady Dinah here, and the baroness can chaperone for me, so perhaps Alastair ought to go with you?” It was a gentle suggestion, an attempt to keep her brothers from being alone.

Valentin

His siblings' words were kind, but rang hollow. They knew too little about this. This fight. This situation. This fear instilled once you opened up about your emotions for the first time and were rejected not just for your person but for the mere existence of your emotions in the first place. He smiled all the same. "Thank you.”

 "Oh gosh! No!" He didn't mean to sound that defensive and alarmed but, well. "No. No, it's fine, really. I can go home by myself. Alastair has ... too many plans here anyway. And really," he smiled at his sisters, "who would fend off all those suitors if we left you both alone, right?"

#alastair #florence #june 10

[meetmyothersouls]

ooo what do you think about writing one of Timmy having a one night stand w a fan for the first time?? maybe from his pov (love reading your work!!)

Thank you! I’d love to! I don’t get to write much Timmy POV! ❤️ This one is long and went into a fun direction! Hope you like it!

One Night Stand

Timothee’s POV

Warnings: light smut

If I were being completely honest, I was getting kind of sick of Q&A’s. Don’t get me wrong, I love my fans. I love their questions. But after the 20th one that month. I was ready for a break.

“This will be the last one for awhile,” Brian, my agent, told me as we were walking into an auditorium. I looked at my shoes while we were walking. The building was empty and a calm sort of quiet surrounded the place. I didn’t hear the quick walking or the shuffling of papers. I didn’t hear the sound of her muttering to herself as she planned for her day, but I did feel her slam against me, and I felt her cup of hot coffee crush against us and cover her papers with hot liquid.

“Shit, I am so sorry!” I said bending down to help her pick up the papers now soaked with brown liquid.

“No, no, it’s my fault. I wasn’t looking.”

Her voice was beautiful. So beautiful I had to look up and take in the creature that produced such a sound. She looked stressed, but she was radiant. She tucked her hair behind her ear as she continued to pick up papers and attempt to wipe off the coffee. Her shirt dripped onto the floor and she still hadn’t looked at me.

I handed her her some papers as she stood up. “I’m Timothee,” I told her, my tone apologetic, “again I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it, I have to go!”

It was rushed, but she said it sweetly.

I didn’t get her name. I wasn’t even sure if she knew who I was. She didn’t act like she did, as arrogant as the thought was. In just those few seconds, she had my mind reeling. I found myself walking away from Brian to see if I could catch up with her. I jogged in the direction she went to no avail. Brian caught up to me as I was standing in another vacant hall.

“Tim, what are you doing? And what happened to your fucking shirt?”

“Did you see that girl?” I asked him.

“The one with the coffee and papers? Yeah I seen her.”

I shook my head, smiling at the floor. We walked back and I grabbed a new shirt I packed in a duffel bag. The Q&A started and i was late taking my seat due to the encounter and the coffee shirt. I had a hard time not rolling my eyes as I sat down.

‘The last one,’ I kept telling myself.

Keeping my train of thought was hard. I kept rambling and spacing out and finding myself thinking about the girl in the hall for the duration of the Q&A.

“Alright, everyone we’re about to wrap up, but we’ll take one more question!” The host announced.

I was looking down at my fingers, pulling at a hangnail that had been bothering me, when I heard her voice, again.

“I have a question for Timothee.”

That voice. Her voice.

My head shot up and I had to suppress the huge grin my face was attempting.

“I’d love to answer it.”

She still had coffee on her shirt and she took a minute to respond. She held up her coffee stained papers and waved them a little, as if reminding me that she was indeed that girl. She smiled and I was lost in it. Lost in her stunning beauty. Her smile made her eyes light up, and it would surely bring any man to his knees to worship her. This is what Shakespeare and all the great poets wrote about.

A tap on my knee pulled me out of my trance. Had she asked her question? The crowd was quiet. How many minutes had gone by. “Uhm, I’m sorry can you repeat the question?”

She smiled again. God damn that smile. I willed my self to focus and not lose myself again.

“Im sorry, Timothee, that’s all the time we have,” Brian whispered to me.

“Hang on, let her repeat her question.”

As I looked back people began filing out and the room started to clear. I lost her again. Fuck.

I got out of my seat and pushed through the crowd. I spotted her walking down the hall, the opposite direction of everyone else. I had to take my chance. I ran toward her.

“Hey!”

She turned around and I could smell the coffee on her. Her shirt was still wet and clung to her stomach.

“Hello, Timothee.”

“Please, ask me your question. I’m sorry I — you are breathtaking and I just,” I shrugged and sighed, “what was your question?”

A chuckle came out of her as she tucked her hair behind her ear. “I asked you if you felt connected to the struggle of your character. I’ve studied your work and I know how much you put into each character and the emotional weight of this film hit me hard, this one had to have taken a toll on you.”

What a question. I had to try and think of an answer that didn’t sound idiotic. I stared at her. She smiled. Fuck.

“Walk with me and I can tell you about it?” I asked.

“You sure you have time for that?” She asked, “your agent seemed..like he’s in a hurry.”

“He’ll be fine.”

We went out the back door of the building and walked. She seemed like she knew where she was going. I took her lead.

“What’s your name?” I asked her.

“I think you owe me an answer to my question first.”

“Fair enough, to answer your question: yes I did connect with my character a lot. I’ve had to overcome struggles of my own growing up in this industry and while they might not have been to the caliber of my character’s, I was able to take my own personal experiences and place them inside of this and build off of them. I guess maybe my personal struggles laid the foundation, and the script and story of my character was bonus material that I needed to capture the emotion.”

She looked at me then at her feet and smiled.

“My name is y/n,” she said.

The sun was staring to go down and we were still walking. My phone rang, but I ignored it. “You should probably head back,” she said.

“I should probably buy you a new shirt since I ruined that one.”

She laughed. God what a beautiful sound.

“I was my fault I wasn’t even looking,” she said, “the hotel I’m staying at is right here anyway, I can change there.”

It was starting to sound like a goodbye, but I didn’t want it to end.

“I’ll go with you.”

She didn’t hesitate to say “okay.” She led me to her hotel. And I had no intentions of what happened next.

Her hotel room was messy and cluttered, like she had been staying there for awhile.

“I would have picked up, but I wasn’t expecting a visitor,” she said nervously. She picked up a shirt and went into the bathroom to change.

She came out with her hair up and now wore a tank top. I must’ve been staring because she looked at me and a blush creeped onto her face.

“I meant it when I said you are breathtaking,” I said as I took a few steps toward her. “Do you mind if I just…” I took a risk and placed a kiss on her cheek.

She turned her head just in time to attach her lips onto mine as I pulled away. The kiss wasn’t hurried or rushed like our very first conversation, it was slow and purposeful. A single peck turned into an open mouthed make out. My head was spinning, was this even really happening?

I pulled away. “Why’d you stop?” She whispered, her face was still inches from mine. I only smiled before her lips came crashing back onto mine. I began leading her backward towards her bed. She nodded, answering a question I hadn’t yet voiced.

I hardly knew her, but I couldn’t stop. Our movements echoed each others perfectly and every second felt right, as if we’d known each other for a few years instead of a few hours.

“Can I —” I started as she let herself fall onto the mattress.

“Whatever you want,” she said, “I’m yours.”

I undressed her. She allowed my hands to explore her body. Then she undressed me. Slowly, unhurried. I kissed her everywhere I could place my lips. She sighed and let out small sounds that only a lover would have the pleasure of hearing. I laced my fingers with hers as I pushed into her. She closed her eyes, and leaned her head back into her pillow. I placed small kisses along her neck as I thrusted into her.

I’ve had sex before. But this wasn’t that. It was in that moment that I learned the difference between “fucking” and “making love”.

It didn’t last long enough. I could have stayed inside of her for hours. I turned my phone off and I stayed the night with her. We woke up in each other’s arms and it was still dark. I didn’t check the time or my phone and neither did she. Not as she turned over to kiss me, not as she climbed on top of me and rode me into a pleasure I had never experienced before. She was breathless when we finished. She laid back at my side and fell asleep.

I woke up to an empty bed. It was cold and the room was cleaned. There wasn’t clothes everywhere like there was the day before. There wasn’t any sign of her left in the room. I laid my face in her pillow and I could still smell her, the only remaining trace of her that let me know I hadn’t dreamed the whole thing.

She left a note.

People destined to meet will do so, apparently by chance, at precisely the right moment. I hope we meet again

xo, y/n

@dayafied @soulofendlessbook @fashphotolife @ifuckinghateme1 @chicchanelcigs @mxciscastleintheair @marvelmaniac2000 @weasleytwinscumslut @scentedkittenperfection @imnotoverlyobsessive

#timothee chalamet #timothee chalamet x reader #timothee chalamet x you #writing #timothee blurb #timothee chalamet imagine #timmy chalamet #smut #timothée chalamet

[raineydays411]

My Father's daughter pt1

Summary: After the disastrous gala, you get an unexpected visit from your “mother”and her family. 

A/n: Hello so I feel like the mom character should have a name, so from here on out, your mother's name is Christine. Also i hope y’all like this one cause i feel like it’s going kinda slow.

Growing up was rough. 

Because your mother decided that you and Tony weren’t worth the effort, you had to mature pretty quickly. You’re father had fallen into this deep depression, where he can barely take care of himself. You had to make sure that your father woke up on time for meetings, made sure he ate, drank water, and inevitably had to make sure that he didn’t choke on his own vomit when he got shitfaced. 

Needless to say, you were very mature for nine years old.

But then, a light in the form of Virginia Potts came into your lives. She saw the way you had taken on the role of Tonys caregiver, and was heartbroken. At first she thought it was just pure negligence from Tonys end, but as she spent more time with the both of you, she realized that Tony loved you more than anything in this world. So she stuck around. 

At first you were weary of her. Not really trusting towards older woman, or motherly figures as you were scorned once. But she never gave up. Not on you or your father. No, she stayed even when you would run away on under her watch. She stayed even when you would try and steal your fathers cars for a quick joy ride through Manhattan. And she stayed when you broke down after your mother had people come pick up all her belongings from the Tower, not bothering to come herself and say goodbye. 

She didn’t leave. She held you as you screamed and sobbed as the men packed away everything she owned. She held you even when you squirmed and scratched at her arms to get away. And she held you as you gave up and silently cried then eventually fell asleep, tightly clutching her midsection. 

That's when you started to come around. You stopped running away whenever your father would leave you with her, wouldn’t talk back when she asked you to pick up a mess, and you even helped her out when some creep intern decided to put the moves on her during a company meeting. 

It wasn’t until your father went missing when you truly saw her as someone you could trust. It was the worst three months of your life.  Another parent gone suddenly from your life. You were relocated to mansion in Malibu, a big empty place where the halls echoed as you walked through them. ANd you had thought that Pepper was going to stay back in New York, she wasn’t your assistant after all. You were shocked to see her at the airport, suitcase in tow with a determined look.

Seeing the look of surprise on your face she stated,

“ I’m not going to let you do this alone.” ,then grabbed your hand to lead you through terminal.

You were grateful that she only acknowledged your tears when you were in the privacy of the private jet. She rubbed your back as you let the tears run down your face. The whole three months that you were in her care, your perspective changed.

She asked about your day, made sure you ate, tucked you in and held you whenever you had nightmares. With in that three month period, Pepper showed you what it was like to have a mother again. And she never let you down. 

Then your dad came home, and your family was complete. You were ecstatic when they started dating and even more so when your father announced that they were going to get engaged.

And even though it took years, you finally trusted Pepper enough to see her as your mother. You were happy. 

Which is why you were extra pissed when you came home from your mother-daughter day and saw your biological mother with Bruce Wayne in the common room. They were sitting on the couch and were getting glared at by the Avengers that were home from missions,(Natasha, Steve, and Sam). 

“Dad, what’s going on?” You ask, looking past the hopeful and curious gazes from the couch. 

“Kid, I think you better sit down.” Tony said through slightly clenched teeth. His face was grim, as he looked past you and made eye contact with Pepper. They had a silent conversation with their eyes, and she nodded. She squeezed your shoulders and took your bags, then with a quick glare she had the rest of the room cleared except for the four of you. 

You took a seat across from your mother, Christine and Bruce. She sent a smile your way and was met with a blank look, “ Dad, what’s going on?”

He sighs and makes his way over to were you were seated, “I don’t know, Christine, maybe you should explain.” 

His tone indicated that he knew why she was here, but wanted her to sound stupid. Pepper came over and sat on the t other side of you. 

Christine glanced at the Pepper and cleared her throat, “Perhaps should be kept between family?”

You scoffed, “ Considering that Pep has been around longer than you ever have been, you have no right to decide who’s family to me and whos not.” 

You see Pepper sit up straighter with pride and mother slump. 

You sigh, “ What are you doing here?” 

She looks at Bruce, who you honestly forgot was still there, “ Y/n...I want you to come home with us.” 

A silence filled the room. You felt Pepper tense up at the words and saw your dads and clench into a fist. 

You however just stared in utter disbelief. 

“What.” 

“I know it's far fetched.” Your mother starts, ignoring your scoff, “ But i really do think it would benefit you to come to Gotham with us, and get to know your siblings!” 

You were seething. 

“My siblings? You mean the family that you left us for.”

“Y/n that’s not-”

“No, You think that you can just waltz into my home, after nine years of absolutely no contact, no birthday cards, not even a text to let me know that you were alive, and expect me to what? Just welcome you into open arms? Leave MY family and go live with you?? Really?”  You say with a scoff.

“Y/n there is a ot of factors you are not considering” Bruce chimes in for the first time.

You turn your glare onto him, “ And what you’re just okay with the fact that your wife has a whole other child who she just fucking abandoned?

“Language.” Your father mutters causing you to roll your eyes. 

“Well, I can’t say this didn’t come as a shock.” Bruce states, “ But, I also know that I love my wife, and that I would welcome you to our home.”

Your throat was hurting with the amount if times you’ve scoffed, “ And I appreciate that, really, but I would never leave my family. Especially not for her.”

Christine's eyes start to tear up, “ Y/n please, a girl needs her mother.”

Those words triggered the anger inside you. Your blood boiled and you can tell that she knew she messed up. 

“Oh? Is that right? What about when I was six and I waited for you to come and take me to that mother's day dance, only you never showed up and I went with my nanny. Or when I was eight and you promised that you would take me to get my ears pierced but then you got a phone call and left so dad took me?” 

You saw the tears run down her face as Bruce looked like he was thinking about something.

“Oh and what about when I was nine. I was nine and you promised to take me to the park. You remember that? Cause I do.” 

Tony tenses next to you, knowing what you were about to say.

“Y/n I can never apologize enough but-” You cut her off

“I was NINE and your promised to take me to the park” You continue, “ But you left. And this time you didn’t come back.” You finish and lean forward, “ Tell me, why the HELL would you think that I would want to come live with you and your fucking family?”

The room was once again engulfed in a tense silence. The only sounds were the sniffling of your mother. 

“You’re my baby girl...my petal. I love you and always have...” She starts, “ My biggest regret is leaving you that day and you have to know that Y/n.”

You feel tears start to rise, a knot in your throat. 

Peppers hand squeezes yours and you calm down and say

“Then you’re gonna have to learn to live with it.” 

Then you stand up and walk right out of the room. Leaving the adults and marching straight to the training rooms to let out some steam. 

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

Back in the common room, a tense silence weighed on the adults. It seemed like no one knew exactly what to say, or they didn’t want to speak up.

Only when Tony cleared his throat did Christine speak up again.

“I didn’t come to cause any trouble.” she said quietly.

“What did you think would happen?”Tony says crossing his arms, “Surely you didn’t expect her to leave with you?”

“No Tony I didn’t. I just thought she would’ve considered it. I am still her mother.”

Pepper snorted, causing the attention to turn to her.

Christine's eyes narrowed, “ And who exactly are you to my daughter?”

Tony tensed, knowing not to mess with Pepper especially when it came to you. He sat back and waited for mamma bear to come out.

Pepper sent a glare her way, “ Me? I’m just the woman who has been raising her for the past nine years.”

Before Christine can get another word on Pepper continued on,

“ I don’t know who you think you are, but you have put Y/n and Tony through a lot of turmoil throughout the years. And now you think you can come in here and demand forgiveness from them?? That’s not happening.”

Bruce started to speak up, “I understand the pain you're family must have gone through, and I am sorry about my...unknowing participation, but Christine is willing to work on her relationship with her daughter.”

Now Tony started speaking, “why? Why now? Y/n is practically an adult, she doesn’t need you anymore. Not like she did before.”

“I’m her mother.” Christine said stubbornly, “ She’ll always need her mother.”

“And she has one. Just not you.” Pepper said standing from her spot, “ I think it’s time for you two to leave. I have to go comfort MY daughter.”

And with that Pepper made her way to the door where you disappeared, knowing exactly where you are. But before she left, she turned and said

“It was lovely to meet you Mrs. Wayne”

and left, leaving Tony to show them to the elevator.

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