#my little Claire's shopper

[sefirots]

babyroth with piercings I'm going to commit nibelheim

#ffvii #ever crisis #sephiroth #guys. GUUUUYS. HES SO CUTES. #who allowed him to get these. whadda hell. #does this mean he and genesis can match now. #guys its over for me. game of the year. #my little Claire's shopper #final fantasy 7

[jo-harrington]

Peak Sales Hours (Eddie Munson x Store Manager!Reader)

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader

Summary: After his first Black Friday, Eddie is exhausted and takes comfort in his new relationship with you.

Previous Part: Promotion

Warnings/Themes: Established friendship/new relationship, fluff, hurt/comfort(?), idk it's a lot of comfort, working in retail hell, Eddie works at Tape World and Reader is the Store Manager at Claire's in Starcourt Mall, angry customers, weariness

Note: So...hi guys. Welcome back to the Store Manager Verse. This little installment is sort of skipping a step. I had a whole thing planned and half-written of Eddie and our favorite SM actually confessing their feelings and being fluffy...and it's still gonna happen I'm just...on day whatever of work and have a big deadline and have had sleep for lunch the past I-don't-know how many days.

And it just took me back to the countless Black Friday and Peak Holiday shifts where all I wanted was to get back home. So here we are.

You can find my masterlist here.

Please do not interact if you are not 18+.

Enjoy!

___

Never, in his entire life, had Eddie Munson felt more akin to the heroes from his favorite fantasy stories.

Long journeys and harrowing battles.

Deep wounds and comrades lost to the beyond.

Hoards of villains and the promise of a better future if only there was hope.

Taran. Aragorn. Luke Skywalker. They had seen it all.

"What's taking so long? I just need a gift receipt!"

But none of them had ever worked Black Friday.

He had experienced Black Friday before, as a shopper.

Thanksgiving hadn't ever been anything magnificent in the Munson household, especially after his mom died. Wayne and Rick had always tried to make it still feel special for Eddie, with hearty midwest comfort foods.

There would always be a full belly and an even fuller heart with his uncle and his almost-step-dad around. Eddie could never complain.

Then after a late afternoon dinner, Wayne would pack up a plate of leftovers to make his shift at the plant that paid time-and-a-half, plus a little something extra from the plant manager, cash in hand. By the time Eddie woke up the next morning, Wayne would pull up with a box of fresh donuts, honk three times, and they would be on their way to the Kmart on Rt 9 and get some steeply discounted goods with Wayne's holiday pay.

It was always a madhouse, but Eddie could swiftly dodge screaming kids, empathize with over-caffeinated employees, and wait in long lines if he and Wayne didn't need to fret about things like work boots and gloves, t-shirts and underwear, and usually one nice little Christmas gift for each of them.

This year, of course, had been a little different. Wayne had been a little disappointed--he would never admit it, but Eddie could tell--that their tradition would be forsaken for Eddie's shift at the mall. But your addition into the Thanksgiving festivities had been a welcome one.

Eddie had extended the invitation weeks ago, when you mentioned you wouldn't be able to make it home to spend the holiday with your family thanks to work.

You, of course, promised to pull your weight--

"It's always really casual," he tried to ease your worries as you began to fret over what kind of dessert Wayne and Rick might like. "You don't even need to dress up. Come in your pajamas. Rick makes a really good pumpkin pie, and I have my mom's old scalloped potato recipe that will literally put you in a food coma."

"What about turkey?" you asked.

"We don't really do turkey." He shrugged. "There's only three of us. So we do different things every year. Rick usually catches some kind of fish if it's warm enough. Wayne has a good recipe for fried chicken. We were thinking of doing meatloaf..."

"I can do the meatloaf!" You perked up immediately.

--only to show up laden with a roasting pan for the meatloaf, a plastic-wrapped gravy boat full of some kind of mushroom gravy, a salad, and a casserole dish overflowing with green beans, cream-of-something soup, and heaps of french fried onions.

Eddie, of course, scolded you as you shuffled through to the kitchen, much like he had the first time you showed up for dinner at his place. But he also placed a soft peck on your lips, which earned him a bashful smile as you shoo'd him away.

That was a new development to your...friendship, if you could even call it that anymore. There really hadn't been time to discuss the logistics between the frenzied makeout session in his van outside of the Hideout this past Tuesday night and Thanksgiving dinner.

Now that he had been trapped at the cash wrap, ringing out ungrateful customers for the past 8 hours, he was almost loathing his past self for wanting to be a little discreet in front of Wayne and Rick. For not...making himself have the "what are we" conversation with you, because your lips had soothed every frazzled nerve he had the other night.

Knowing that at the end of the day that he wasn't going through it alone, that his girlfriend was also in the mall suffering through the mass chaos and that he could go upstairs and steal a kiss whenever he wanted...well it certainly would have done him a world of good to mentally prepare him for this.

For the entirety of his time working at Tape World, he thought he had been doing a pretty good job. Sure there were some hard days, some rude customers. But at the end of the day, an 8-hour shift was an 8-hour shift, and he was only selling tapes. Not...ending world hunger.

"Ah you say that now," Kyle told him on Wednesday as they were putting together cardboard "dump bins" for the discount tapes that would be placed every 10 feet in the store. "But Black Friday is a beast, and Christmas Eve is worse. You're honestly lucky you only work here and not at, like, Radio Shack or something. My buddy Todd has seen some shit.

"Actually, I'm almost regretting scheduling you as a mid but I needed a second key." Kyle rubbed the back of his neck. "Peak Hours. Mid's a rough shift for Black Friday weekend."

"I'll be fine," Eddie scoffed. "I've done mid shifts before. I'm almost excited. How bad could it get?"

Famous. Last. Words.

He had barely been able to squeeze into the store when it was time for his shift, the line for the cash wrap blocked the way to the stockroom door. As soon as people saw his name tag, they started shouting at him to open the other register, how they needed help; he could barely get a word out to explain that he wasn't clocked in yet. They didn't care.

He was no longer Eddie Munson, Tape World Keyholder and your boyfriend, probably, maybe...

He was a body who could unlock the electronics case and ring them out.

He was a husk who said "welcome in" and "thanks have a great day" and smiled until his face started hurting.

And for the first time since he had gotten this job back at the beginning of summer...it really fucked with him.

His legs were cramped from standing at the Cash Wrap for so long, he wasn't sure which of the associates had his keys, his hair was damp with sweat even if he threw it into a some haphazard bun hours ago.

He'd been yelled at by more people than he could count, counted so much change the edges of his fingers were pretty much stained from all the muck and grime on everyone's money, and had made so many returns from people with buyer's remorse that he was sure they had given more money back than they had made in sales today.

Eddie hadn't even gotten a chance to take his lunch out in the mall and pay you a visit like he typically would. He had just collapsed in the little metal folding chair in the break area of the tiny stock room. Kyle had clapped him on the shoulder with a quick "good job kid" as he left for the day and Eddie hadn't even moved.

"Alright Ed," Paulie shuffled over as Eddie wrapped up the last in a long line of transactions and was about to wave the next customer over. "Quitting time."

Eddie sighed and backed against the counter as Paulie counted him down. The adrenaline of the day finally started to wear off as he came to realize that it was all over, and a weariness unlike the one he had been feeling his entire shift settled deep into his bones.

He went through the motions as he went back to the stockroom to grab his jacket and punch out. He wove his way through the still-crowded store and out into the mall, sighing in relief as the cooler mall air hit him.

It was gonna be a mercy once he got out to his van. He'd drive home with the windows down.

His ears rang as he headed towards the employee entrance and he wondered if it would be worth waiting in line at the Orange Julius before he left or if he should just stop through the McDonald's drive thru or something on his way home.

"Eddie."

But then, he didn't really need to stop for anything. There were leftovers from Thanksgiving dinner at home. He could smoke a little bit, make some kind of meatloaf sandwich, and then sink into his bed.

"Eddie."

And sleep until...

Fuck.

He was gonna have to do it all again tomorrow. And the day after that.

He thought back to his favorite fantasy heroes and wondered how they did it. How they put themselves through endless journeys, practically sacrificed themselves time and again.

And he could barely make it through a shift at the Starcourt Mall of all places.

"Eddie!"

He crashed right into your hands as you planted them on his shoulders and prevented him from absolutely barreling into you.

"Jesus are you ok?" you exclaimed and pulled him off to the side of the walkway to get out of the way of foot traffic.

Was he? Probably not.

"Yeah," he shook his head and answered. He finally looked at you, finally actually saw you. Dressed in your Teen Vogue best, as you called it, although a little worse for wear, if the eyeshadow smeared where it definitely shouldn't be and your jewelry all askew was any indicator. "Yeah I'm fine.

"You sure? You looked like you were in a trance," you explained. "I've been calling your name for a little while."

"Oh shit," he sighed and ran a hand over his face. "Yeah, no...it's...It was just a long day."

You didn't hesitate. Your arms immediately wrapped around him and you pulled him in. Pulled him back from whatever precipice he was about to launch himself off of, and straight into the comfort of you.

---

Before long, Eddie found himself in your apartment, fully upside down with his legs propped against the wall as he enjoyed the Blizzard he'd picked up on the way.

"You know just cuz you can hold it upside down, doesn't mean you're supposed to eat it upside down," you laughed as you filled a pot with water and put it on the stove.

"And what are you, the Blizzard expert," Eddie scoffed. "If you'll recall I was the one who took you to Dairy Queen for the first time."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." You rolled your eyes and turned to grab some cans from the cupboard.

You had offered to make dinner--again--while he vented about his shift. Nothing as spectacular as what you made for Thanksgiving dinner, but it left the leftover meatloaf for Wayne to take for his lunches.

"You're lucky I like your spaghetti sauce," Eddie grumbled, a little sad that he couldn't have his meatloaf sandwich.

So he talked as you ran to your bedroom to rid yourself of the remnants of who you became when you were at Starcourt, and as you emerged the person that, he liked to believe, was reserved especially for him.

He told you about the back to back returns he had dealt with when he came back from lunch as you dropped dried pasta into the boiling water and grated garlic into sizzling oil.

He complained about the man who demanded help from a manager only even though all he wanted was a special edition cassette deck that had all the bells and whistles and anyone with keys could help him. His voice got louder and meaner as he quoted the jackass verbatim, but the sharp strike of your wooden spoon against the side of the pot brought him back down to earth.

And as he finished up his story about having to count Sam's register three times because he forgot that there were large bills under the cash tray, you joined him on the couch with a bowl of steaming hot pasta for each of you.

He righted himself and discarded the empty blizzard cup on your coffee table.

"First Black Friday in the books," you announced and you passed the bowl to him. "I'm proud of you."

"Proud?" Eddie groaned. "Seriously? It was a disaster."

"They always are," you explained sagely.

"You survived," he pointed out.

"So did you."

"Barely."

"So?" you asked and twirled noodles on your fork expertly. "Doesn't that count? This is, like...my 5th Black Friday? My 6th? I count each one as a victory. And so should you."

You leaned over to kiss his cheek, then clinked plates with his in a salute, and then the two of you fell into contented silence as you ate.

As Eddie worked ravenously through the layers of starchy, cheesy, garlicky goodness, he realized that the weariness that had settled within him after his shift had started to alleviate. How he felt more like himself now that he was sitting next to you, basking in the warm glow of your company.

He briefly considered this ritual the two of you had been engaging in for months. The way you shared stories and foods and got closer to one another. He had always been a little worried that things would change if he ever got his wish, if this friendship with you ever became more.

But it was like nothing had changed at all.

He wanted to ask, was tempted to ask, what this was? If this was a date, like all the dates that weren't dates hadn't been before? If you were his girlfriend now?

But then...he recalled the time that you had a bad day and you immediately found relief in him, how he thought that he didn't need to be your knight as long as he could be your home.

And Eddie realized that whatever the two of you decided it would be, whether you were still just his friend, or if you were his girlfriend, or maybe...maybe something else...

You, too, would always be his home at the end of a long battle.

---

Next Part: Disaster Preparedness

Tag List for Store Manager Verse is still temporarily suspended. Thank you for understanding.

#Eddie munson x reader #Eddie munson fic #Eddie munson stranger things #stranger things fic #Eddie munson #Eddie munson fluff

[faef43]

PLS LOOK THE REBLOGGED POST I MADE OF THIS POST TO CONTINUE MY TIPS

HERE ARE SOME TIPS PLUS STORES TO AVOID

ALWAYS ADDING MORE SO CHECK BACK

I’ve been lifting for awhile and have collected some good tips and tricks on how to not get caught or be put in a system

-CAMERAS/MAIN TIPS-

I mainly lift small things like makeup, jewelry, small skincare, rings, pins, if it’s a good day maybe small lotions, but lifting clothes tips are coming soon!! (fixing spelling/grammar errors <3)

First of all, wear a mask and if you can style your hair in a way you usually don’t or use a beanie, bucket hat, baseball cap, never a sun hat way too suspicious. Ex. for hair: braids, space buns, slicked back, etc. I wouldn’t suggest lifting if you have brightly colored hair unless you want to go as far as to wear a realistic enough looking natural wig. Never wear sunglasses with a mask or a hat on, very suspicious, they will catch on. While finding blind spots never just turn around to face the wall and start stuffing your pockets and bag(s), instead stand at a 3/4 angle and be slick, I suggest lifting things while walking through a crowed isle, section, or doing it while walking, this one usually works if you have something small you can make it look like you’re adjusting your sleeves. ALWAYS GRAB 2 OF THE ITEM U WANT 2 LIFT, make the second one less apparent you have it, but if you take two and always keep one apparently in your hand, the cameras will be fooled. You have to have some sort of fingernails to scratch off price tags/barcodes/stickers, trust me when lifting you don’t want those on there. Take them off, rip them up and stuff it in your pocket or stuff somewhere non apparent, never throw them on the ground, super obvious. Don’t wear all baggy clothing, it’s really suspicious, always do the half half trick, half of your outfit baggy, half tight. Ex. Really tight shirt, hella baggy pants, really baggy hoodie, tight ass jeans or leggings. That way they won’t suspect you. If doing the baggy hoodie, always wear a secure sports bra underneath if u wear bras, great for slipping stuff into when pretending to adjust your bra, make sure your double of the product you want to lift is visible. By all means do not steal from target, they have high trained LP, workers that dress up as normal shoppers that they send to areas where they seek suspicion to spy on you, they keep you in a data base and share info/pics of you with other targets, cameras are nearly always monitored, store security is present, they let you walk out with things but eventually will confront you. The decision to call the police has already been made, target is a scary place, if you are gonna lift do only a 3-6 dollar thing, only once. Their employees count clothes for dressing rooms often times, pretty scary place stay safe. Some cameras are smoke detectors/speakers,boxes on the ceiling ect. Usually they’ll have some sort of light that’s always on, they look a little chunky or too far away from the ceiling. Claire’s has a ton of these so be carful, but their earrings don’t have any censors on them so they’re a great store for beginners. Interact with this post and I’ll add more too this blog♡ . -CLOTHING TIPS- If a clothing store does not have fitting rooms, don’t even try, they’ll immediately catch on+security cameras are your number one snitch. You’re gonna want to pay attention to if store employees suspect you. Ex. Fixing up areas that you’re at or around u, constant asking if you’re finding everything ok, maybe they’ll offer a store basket or bag, asking if you need anything in specific, any constant attention really. If they are leave the store, come back like a week later and try again. Your gonna wanna bring a hook with you to remove ink tags/clothing alarms while in fitting room, keep it down and try to pick a fitting room away from others to avoid suspicion. Some stores have employees stand in empty stalls next to you and listen so be aware and careful. If there are price tags try stuffing them behind the mirror or on in the landings on the floor, they’re sometimes rubber, don’t leave shit on the floor, if they already suspect u, they’ll check the fitting room when you come out. As for the alarms/ink tags, put them in ur pocket and discreetly shove them in another piece of clothing, remember to ALWAYS CHECK POCKETS ON CLOTHING.im abt to max out, look at repost of this from me 4more

ALWAYS CHECK POCKETS/COMPARTMENTS ON CLOTHING. Other lifters could have stuffed clothing alarms or price tags in there, be safe and check before trying to lift. No as where to conceal these clothing items, if you have the baggy hoody, (I suggest wearing a baggy shirt underneath too, always wear that sports bra if u wear bras{binders can also work it’s just hella uncomfy I’ve tried it})put 1-3 tops on under ur baggy T then put ur hoodie back on. Make sure they don’t count items b4 going into changing rooms. If they do, try taking a hoodie on some sort of hanger, taking it off the hanger, putting 1-2 shirts on the hanger, then put the hoodie/zip up back on. Great for lifting, if they confront you say you didn’t know and you were just tossing things in the cart, get out of there fast afterwards. It’s suspicious if you come in with a ton of clothes then don’t buy anything, sometimes you gotta buy some to win some. (Ex. I’m wearing 3 shirts under my og shirt which would add up to about 35 bucks, I buy a cheap tank top for 15, they don’t suspect me and I get freebies)

[claireinnc]

December

December brought lots of new experiences and fun times. We enjoyed a meet up with friends, Lizzie and Graham and their delightful young son , Everett ( who is just so cute) at Gibson Mill. On our trip to England, we had picked up an English bear for him. I think he enjoyed the wrapping paper more than the bear...fairly typical of babies. I'm sure he'll get some hugs later on.

As a Christmas gift my class, I bought a different type of bear - Paddington. It was by chance that I had seen these bears in Kohl's and had done the same gift last year. So we headed to the store to see if they were stocking him again and fortunately they were. We almost emptied the shelves, much to the amusement of many around us including the cashier.

The children were delighted with their gift. I was delighted with their joy at receiving Paddington. Their reaction was priceless!

As Christmas approached, we ventured out to Concord Mills for a bit of retail therapy. As we weren't going to be able to send wrapped presents to everyone, it felt even more important to go and share in the spirit of Christmas shoppers doing their bit for each other. a Christmas coffee and cake at Starbucks was our treat.

We decorated our flat with minimal cost and invited Claire and Jimie over to share an early Christmas dinner. We attempted a traditional Christmas dinner, even managed the pigs in blankets and had been able to bring over some mince pies and a xmas pudding from England, so it felt fairly similar to 'traditional'. Claire brought the crackers...hence the hats! With much laughter, great conversation and full stomachs, the evening flew by - an enjoyable evening was had by all.

Claire and Jimie not only turned up with beers for Richard, but a very thoughtful gift in addition. A supply of British goods, something that was much appreciated and warmed our hearts.

I was so glad that I had actually made the effort to decorate for Christmas. It just made it feel a little better. Knowing we were not going home was hard and despite the fact that we had a great trip to look forward to, it didn't sit comfortably being away from family.

Pre Christmas celebrations also led us to Kannapolis to watch Fox N Vead perform. Holly had sorted tickets through her daughter and had offered us the chance to join them all for the evening. I hadn't heard of them before, but the evening turned out to be a lot of fun. Starting with a bite to eat at the local Mexican cafe, we then joined a group of youngsters to be entertained by this country/rock band from Concord. It had been a long time since I stood in front of a stage amongst a crowd (fortunately not a huge one) and enjoyed the beat of drums and guitars. It was like a trip down memory lane to college days!

#teachertravelsnc #northcarolina #concord #foxNvead

[the-werewolf-prince]

Chapter 2 Page 16

A little sneak peek in Claire's Grimoire. My take on the Vitruvian man.

All new VIP tier patrons can recieve a copy of TWP issue 1 (Autographed or unautographed) while supplies last!!! Receive other awesome rewards including Behind the Scenes, early access to merch, a production credit & exclusive art, starting at $1.00 a month! Thank you for reading & your support!

Or purchase a copy of the Werewolf Prince issue one on my etsy!

The Werewolf Prince is a passion project 10 years in the making. It is a silly, derivative, and sincere story born from my love of monster of the week TV shows, survival horror video games, gothic literature, campy films, seinen manga, 90's animation, shonen anime, and homoerotic art throughout history. I truly hope you enjoy it. And please, let me know your opinions in the comments. Stay Classy

Art, Characters & Story © Sorbet Mystery

Read the comic! A free way to support the comic is to enjoy it and subscribe! leave a comment, share with someone you enjoy reading comics with!

Webtoon: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/the-werewolf-prince/list?title_no=393305

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#lgbtq comic #the werewolf prince #werewolf #werewolf prince #werewolves #gay art #sorbet mystery #wolficorn studios #gay artist #werewolf art #werewolf wednesday

[august-grey]

read on ao3

masterpost

July 1986

As anyone who has ever worked in retail could have predicted, Alice hated her job. Well, hate was a strong word for how she felt about Claire’s. It was more of a mostly apathetic disinterest, sprinkled with small moments of horrified fascination and hair-ripping frustration. Alice contemplated this as a little boy, no older than maybe three, smeared a tube of lipgloss in concentric circles around his face, from chin to eyebrow and back again. His mother paid him no attention as she made a mess of the earring rack that Alice had so meticulously organized that morning.

She should stop this, right? Just because the mother couldn’t be bothered didn’t mean she should just let the kid continue to paint his face with Lip Smackers and—

“Well, did you find anything? I’ve been waiting ten minutes now.’

Alice startled at the harsh voice and whipped around. A extremely disgruntled woman stood before her, arms crossed and tapping her foot impatiently. Oh, right. Before getting sidetracked by the little make-up artist, Alice had been standing in the stock room, pretending to search for something she knew for a fact the store didn’t have. Alice should know, she’d been the one to stay late the night before spending hours past closing doing inventory. She wasn’t sure how she got roped into that one, but luckily Steve had volunteered to keep her company while she sorted through the mounds of sparkle and spandex.

“Unfortunately, as I told you before ma’am, we’re all sold out of the patriotic scrunchies. Nothing red, white, or blue in sight. Maybe we can find something else that can work?” 

“No! You don’t understand, we need to perfectly match Stephanie’s leotard! She’ll look ridiculous performing at the 4th of July carnival in a scrunchie that doesn’t match her costume!” The woman grew more shrill with each word, clutching a glittering tutu to her chest, eyes brimming with tears. Alice felt a short surge of panic at the woman’s irritated tone, before shifting her brain into problem-solving mode. Years of talking her mother down from non-emergent emergencies has prepared her for this. Alice needed to deescalate. 

“May I?” She held her hand out for the costume. Reluctantly, the woman handed it over to her. It was your standard dance costume; shimmering blue top with a skirt held straight out with layers upon layers of red and white tulle. Alice ran her fingers across the fluttering silver sleeves. That was it. “I think I have an idea.”

Alice led the woman to a rack of headbands and plucked one from the display. She held the starry, silver headpiece up against the costume and raised her eyebrows at the woman, waiting for a reaction. To Alice’s immense relief, a slow smile spread across her face. 

“Yes…yes I think this will do. Young lady, you really have an eye for this sort of thing.”

“Oh, really, it’s my pleasure. Let’s go get you rung up and—“ Alice lost her train of thought as she caught a glimpse of what was happening outside the glass storefront. She could have sworn she had seen her brother’s signature baseball cap race by the window. And sure enough, a moment later, there was a flash of familiar blue weaving between the small crowd of shoppers. What were they up to? Alice’s customer cleared her throat. “Uhh….I’m so sorry, Maggie will help you get that bagged up at checkout! MAGGIE, I’M TAKING MY 15!”

“You already took your 15…and you’re off in like a half hour!” 

“I’m taking another! Cover for me, please, thank you!” With that, Alice sprinted out of the store. Where did they go? There, skulking suspiciously behind the mall directory, were Steve and Dustin. Alice quietly approached them from behind, taking care not to blow their cover from…well, whatever they might be hiding from. Alice knew by now not to question her brother’s antics.

“What are we looking at?” She whispered and placed a hand on Steve’s shoulder, trying to raise herself up to see past him at the subject of their spying.

The boys jumped in unison and swung around, Steve’s fists raised in automatic defense. Upon seeing that it was just Alice, Dustin slapped a hand over his heart and slumped against the map kiosk. Steve unclenched his hands, running one through his hair and letting out a breath.

“Jesus, Alice, you gave me a heart attack!” Dustin, seemingly fully recovered from his cardiac episode, scolded Alice. “You can’t sneak up on a scouting operation like that!”

Alice threw her hands up, “How was I supposed to know! I thought we were still decoding, not stalking potential communists today.”

“Robin’s doing the decoding, we’re on espionage duty.” Dustin smirked smugly, brandishing the binoculars he had slung around his neck. Ah, right. Robin. 

To be clear, Alice didn’t have a problem with Steve’s fellow ice-cream slinger. She’d known Robin from school, of course. They’d shared a few classes over the years and had been in band together since middle school; Alice considered Robin a friend, though they had never been particularly close in school.

No, the problem wasn’t Robin herself. It was Alice, and she knew it. The only transgression Robin had made was being in the right place at the right time, sliding perfectly into the empty slot Alice had left when she initially refused to help Dustin with his Russian translation. By the time Alice finished her shift yesterday, Dustin had roped both Steve and Robin into his harebrained scheme and Robin had somehow translated half the message despite not knowing a lick of Russian. 

Seeing the trio working together without her left Alice with a pit in her stomach. All she had wanted was a normal Summer. That’s what she and Steve had talked about, right? Taking a few months to be kids for the last time, not having to think about monsters, or other dimensions, or college. But now there was the potential of a whole new threat and Alice wanted nothing to do with it. She hated that Dustin had accidentally intercepted that message and as much as she tried to get him to let it go, he was as determined as ever to find out what it meant, even if it meant leaving Alice out. 

So now, not only were they on the precipice of a whole new danger that was probably  going to ruin her nice, uneventful summer, but Alice had pushed her brother so far away he had found someone to fill her gap. 

“Whatever, did you find anything?” She once again attempted to peer around the pair of boys in front of her. 

Dustin and Steve shared a panicked look before moving together to obstruct Alice’s view. She scoffed and pushed past their poor attempt at blocking her to see— a Jazzercize class? Cheery music spilled from the room across the pathway; a dozen or so women in vibrant, skintight spandex gyrated their hips to the rhythm, led by an equally enthusiastic man at the front of the pack. Alice turned back to the boys, truly questioning their sanity. Surely that couldn’t be what they had raced all they way across the mall to find. 

Their expressions were intentionally unreadable, so Alice focused on the weaker of the two. She narrowed her eyes at her brother until he finally cracked, an amusing mixture of embarrassment and shame spreading across his face. 

“Oh my god, you actual perverts.”

“No! Alice it’s not what it looks like—“

“You don’t understand, he had a duffle bag!”

***

Twenty minutes later, Alice found herself sitting cross-legged on the counter in the back room of Scoops Ahoy, listening as Robin excitedly explained how she had cracked the code. It was brilliant, of course. Alice had made sure to let Robin know she was a genius, earning a wide grin from the girl. 

Now the trio before her were animatedly discussing the next course of action. Alice thought this was the perfect time to hand their information over to the authorities. Get Hopper involved at the very least. Dustin disagreed. 

“We need more proof.” He argued, slapping the table for emphasis. “There’s no way we can go to Hopper with a notebook full of Russian riddles and expect him to take us seriously. We need to figure out what they’re up to. Tonight.”

Alice shook her head. “No, absolutely not. It’s stupid to go into this blind, Dustin. These spies, or whatever…what if we’re walking into some kind of, I don’t know…drug mafia or something?”

Dustin threw his hands up and began pacing the small break room. 

“We’ll be careful, Al. They won’t even see us up on the roof.” Steve laid a reassuring hand on Alice’s bare thigh. A pleasant jolt went through her body, giving her a slight shiver that could surely be written off as a chill from the ice cream freezers nearby. Hopefully. She shook her head at Steve’s words; her mind wasn’t going to be changed that easily.

“I just think we’re messing with something best left to professionals…not a bunch of kids.”

Robin appeared on her other side, leaning against the counter to look up at Alice with her big, doe eyes. “Listen. Alice. Can I call you Alice?”

“Yes?”

“Alice, aren’t you the least bit curious about this whole…conspiracy we stumbled into?”

“I mean, yeah, of course I am. Just not curious enough to go traipsing into enemy territory like it’s nothing.”

“And we won’t be! We’re going to be hundreds of feet away, two stories up. Just, observing. Completely out of harm’s way. Can I ask you something.” She said this as less of a question and moreso a prompt for herself to continue without waiting for an answer, leaving Alice openmouthed. “Alice, do you really think we’ll get any answers if we turn over this investigation to the Hawkins police? Because I’ll tell you what’ll happen. We give them what we have, they’ll either believe us and take over, and our answers’ll now be considered classified information, strictly forbidden from meddling teenagers. Or they won’t believe us and we’ll still be forbidden from meddling, now with the attention of the people who can actually stop said meddling.”

“If we simply gather just a little more evidence, safely and from afar,…we can satisfy our own curiosity and then I promise we can present our findings to the chief and let him take over.” Robin concluded her attempt at convincing Alice with an expectant look. Alice kept her mouth clamped shut, not ready to give in yet. 

Aside from being murdered by evil Russians for sticking her nose where it didn’t belong, the last thing Alice wanted was to let everyone down. It was easy to say no to Dustin, but when Steve and Robin were in on it and, admittedly, very persuasive, Alice felt her resolve slipping. 

Fortunately, Alice was also very stubborn. She tore her gaze from Robin’s puppy eyes, slid down from the counter, and turned toward her brother. He’d stopped his incessant pacing and had settled in one of the metal chairs surrounding the small table in the middle of the room. 

“Can we talk? Alone?” Not waiting for an answer, she took Dustin by his collar and led him straight to the service hall behind the ice cream shop. Once the door was firmly shut, Dustin yanked himself from his sister’s grip, straightening his shirt.

“You can’t just drag me around by the scruff of my neck like…like I’m a kitten or something, Alice!” He half-shouted, shooting his sister an incredulous glare.

“I can and I will, especially when you’re hellbent on sending yourself on yet another suicide mission.” She shot back. “It’s like you want to get yourself killed!”

Dustin let out a frustrated groan, and resumed his earlier pacing, furiously walking the length between the doors lining the long passageway. Crossing her arms, Alice leaned against the door to wait out her brother’s tantrum. After a few moments he finally stopped in front of her, mimicking her pose.

“You want to know what I think?” He asked, an air of arrogance lacing his voice. 

“No.”

“I don’t think you’re really upset about dangerous Russians or whatever. I think you’re feeling left out. We’re down here working together and cracking secret spy codes and you’ve been all alone working upstairs and missing out on it. And you know what else?”

She pursed her lips in response, refusing to satisfy him with an answer. Dustin went on anyway. 

“I think you’re scared that Steve and Robin are getting close.”

“That’s just…just absurd. No. Why would I be scared of Steve making friends?” Alice pushed herself away from the door, lowering her voice and praying that Steve and Robin couldn’t hear them from the other side. “In case you couldn’t tell, I like Robin. I want them to be friends! It would make my life a hell of a lot easier if they’d just get along instead of constantly antagonizing each other!”

“That may be true, but I still think you’re afraid. You might like Robin, but you like, like Steve.” 

Alice looked away. She’d never admit it to Dustin, but he wasn’t wrong. It didn’t matter either way, though. She’d missed her chance with Steve. Much to her dismay, it had been almost a month since prom and Steve never brought up their almost-kiss. To be fair, Alice didn’t exactly broach the topic herself, but that was beside the point. Steve clearly regretted what had almost-happened. Or he changed his mind. Or Alice had completely misread his intentions and he was now doing his best to spare her feelings. Or maybe…maybe he had found someone better suited for him. Whatever the reason may be, the Steve ship had sailed and she was still on land. And that was okay. Really, it was.

“Steve’s my best friend, of course I like him. Just like I like Nancy and—“

“—That’s not what I meant and you know it.” 

She ignored him and continued, “But you’re right. I guess I’m just feeling a little left out. Replaced, I guess. Like you guys don’t need me for this particular…adventure.”

“That’s dumb.”

“Excuse me?”

“I said you’re being an idiot. Of course we need you, Al. The only reason I didn’t ask you to help again is because you seemed really freaked out about it yesterday. We’ve been through a lot the past couple years and I…I didn’t want to push you. Come with us on the stake out, okay? If you’re up for it, I mean.”

“You just don’t want me to try to stop you.”

“No, I want you there. I’ve learned my lesson; I can’t hide anything from you without things going to shit. Alice, something is happening. I knew it from the second I intercepted the message. I could feel it, Al. This is big, really big. And I don’t want to go into it without my sister.” Taking her hand was a bit much, in Alice’s opinion, but it worked for him somehow. “Plus you should know better by now; you can’t stop my shenanigans, you can only prevent them from killing me.”

Rolling her eyes as a means to prevent the tears welling up in the corners of her eyes from spilling, Alice pulled her brother into a hug and planted a kiss on the top of his hat, trying not to think of the last time it was washed. Dustin was a little shit and far too perceptive for his own good, but sometimes he knew exactly what Alice needed to hear. 

***

“Remind me again,” Alice asked, keeping her voice low. “What are we looking for, exactly?”

She was soaked to the bone; the cute ensemble she’d carefully put together that morning for work was plastered to her skin, the jacket she tented over her head was doing little to keep the rain off her face as she tried to make out the scene below her. It was a nearly impossible task in the torrential downpour, she could barely see Steve mere inches away from her let alone the figures moving two stories beneath them.

“Kaufman Shoes and Imperial Pan—” Robin’s voice rose over the pounding rain, a clap of thunder cutting her off. The four of them were pressed together, shoulder to shoulder, at the edge of Starcourt’s roof. Having never been on a stake-out before, Alice wasn’t sure what to expect that night, but she had at least pictured it being dryer than this. 

Squinting to read the sides of the boxes being carted off the truck in the loading dock, she held her hand out for the binoculars Dustin was hogging. He ignored her, focusing on his task . 

“There! With the whistling guy, 10 o’clock!” Sure enough, Alice was just barely able to make out a black blob vaguely in the shape of a panda on the side of one of the boxes being wheeled into the mall.  

“What do you think’s in there?” Steve questioned.

“Guns, bombs?”

“Chemical weapons?”

“Chopsticks?”Alice deadpanned. Dustin shouldered her, knocking her lightly into Steve. 

“Whatever it is,” He began, “They’re armed to the teeth.” 

A shudder ran down Alice’s spine. Now that she knew what it was, Alice could just make out the rifle in the hands of one of the guards. Goddamnit.Dustin was right, this was something. No way did a shopping mall need armed guards to receive restaurant supplies. From either side of her, Dustin and Steve began to squabble over the binoculars. Steve had reached his arm around her to pull them away from the younger boy, but Dustin stubbornly held them tight. 

Just as she was going to tell them to knock it off, the binoculars clanged noisily against the side of the building, drawing the attention of the men below. The heavily armed Russian guards, Alice amended in her mind. Before she could react, Steve grabbed her by the shoulders and yanked Alice down; half of her back on the cold, wet roof, the other flat against his chest. She could feel his heart beating wildly against her shoulder blade, matching the pace of her own. For a few moments the four of them stayed like that; silently laying in the rain. 

Alice knew it wouldn’t be long before someone would come to investigate the ruckus they’d caused. Rolling off of Steve, Alice brought herself to a crouch and peeked over the edge of the roof. One of the guards was gone. Shit.

“Come on, we gotta go.” Pulling Dustin with her, she made for the door leading back inside, Robin and Steve close behind. The group made quick work of the stairs leading back to the maintenance hallway, listening closely for pursuing footsteps. Only when the familiar door to Scoops Ahoy was in sight did Alice feel like she could breath again. 

“Well, I think we found your Russians.” 

***

“Call me crazy, but I’m not sure I feel a hundred precent comfortable with guiding a 10-year-old through an air duct labyrinth. Not this particular 10-year-old, anyway.” 

Looking up from her mountains of ice cream, Erica Sinclair shot Alice a condescending smirk before shoveling another spoonful into her mouth. This was absolutely ridiculous. Alice had literally changed this kid’s pull-ups, and now she was about to send her through the bowels of the mall with only a couple teens on the other side of a walkie-talkie to lead her. 

“Erica, we need you to take this seriously, what we’re doing is going to be extremely risky. You realize your mother would literally murder me if anything happened to you, right?” She tried to appeal to the much younger girl, half hoping she’d get scared and back out. 

“That sounds more like an Alice problem than an Erica problem. I’ve got a lifetime of ice cream on the line, here.” Alice buried her head in her hands. What were they doing? They couldn’t just send a kid into a den of gun-toting Russians. Surely someone else had to see that this plan wasn’t viable. She turned to her coconspirators, searching their faces for any hint of hesitation. 

As much as she loved Robin, Alice didn’t completely trust her judgement in this particular situation. The girl had thrown herself into decoding secret Russian codes and espionage work, because she was “bored.” No, Robin was in too deep to consider throwing their best idea out the window, especially considering the amount of money she had just spent on the blueprints of the mall.

Dustin was just as bad, if not worse than Robin. He was dead set on getting into that room, finding whatever damning evidence needed, and becoming an American Hero. That only left—

Steve was manning the ice cream counter, busy serving the few customers that had trickled in as they tried to bribe Erica with ice cream. Mumbling a quick excuse about getting water, Alice pushed herself from the booth and crossed the shop, joining Steve behind the counter. He raised a brow in her direction as she leaned against the wall, before hastily finishing up with the last couple people in line.

Instead of joining her after ending the final transaction, Steve began preparing another order. Carefully rinsing his scooper, he expertly piled perfect mounds of black raspberry and mint chocolate chip into a waffle cone before topping it off with a dusting of cookie crumbs, straight from the bottom of the bucket. 

Alice accepted the cone with a smile as he held it out to her. Settling in next to her, Steve waited patiently for Alice to blurt out whatever was on her mind, as she was apt to do if he held out long enough. She hated when he did that.

“I don’t like this.” She grumbled between licks of her cone.

Steve furrowed his brow. “The ice cream? It’s your favorite.”

 Alice rolled her eyes, and gestured toward the booth currently being occupied by the rest of their ragtag group. “No, this. This whole situation. I’m trying really hard not to be like, a bummer or like I’m trying to ruin anyone’s fun. I want to figure this shit out as much as any of you, but I just…”

“You’re scared.” He supplied after she trailed off. Alice nodded, feeling silly. They’d fought actual monsters less than a year ago, a little reconnaissance mission should be easy game. Admitting this to anyone else would be mortifying, but opening herself up to Steve was almost an impulse at this point. 

“It’s stupid—“

“Being scared isn’t stupid, it’s what keeps us alive.” He asserted, not giving her a chance to argue. “You just happen to be much better at self-preservation than the rest of us dummies.”

“So here’s what we’re going to do, we’re gonna set some ground rules, okay? Just to make sure we’re being as safe as possible and get that kid, and ourselves, home in one piece.” Alice nodded, encouraging him to go on. Holding up three fingers, Steve ticked off his rules. “One, any signs of commies, any at all, we’re out. Erica shimmies her way back to Scoops and we get out of there, okay? Two, if at any point you feel overwhelmed or get a bad feeling, I’ll call it off. You just say the word and we’ll go straight home, no questions asked.”

“Dustin would never forgive me.”

“Then the little shithead could deal with me.” 

Though she still wasn’t entirely convinced, Alice could admit she was feeling a lot less panicked having Steve in her court. Knowing that they’d hightail it at the first sign of trouble was definitely comforting. “What’s the last rule?”

“Last rule…” He hesitated, shifting uneasily beside her. In a quieter voice he said, “Listen, I know I don’t have the best track record of winning fights, but in the unlikely chance things go south…I won’t let anything happen to you, to any of you. You don’t have to worry; I can protect you.”

Immediately Alice shook her head. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust his word, she knew Steve would put himself between her and danger at any turn. It was just…the last time he did that, he nearly died fighting off a pack of demodogs and Billy Hargrove. At least once a week Alice woke up in a cold sweat, heart pounding from the nightmares that plagued her sleep. Steve’s body limp on the Byers’ living room floor, Dustin and Steve ripped to shreds by the demodogs in the tunnels, Steve not making it back to the bus after using himself as bait in the junkyard. So no, there was no way she was going to let him play hero this time. 

 “It’s not fair to put that on yourself, Steve. It’s not fair to any of us. If we’re doing this, we’re doing it as a team. I’m just as responsible for you as you are for me.” Steve pressed his lips together in a clear attempt to keep himself from interrupting. Alice continued, “You’re just as important as any of us. I really don’t know what I’d do if anything happened to you, so no self-sacrificing bullshit, okay?”

Instead of answering, Steve simply stared out into the parlor. Alice tried to read his face, wondering if she had said something out of line. Before she could really worry, Steve nodded. 

“Okay, we’ll have each other’s backs, yeah?” Alice grinned up at him, relief washing over her. He smiled back, nudging her with his shoulder. “Now eat your ice cream before it melts all over my clean floor.”

#stranger things fanfiction #stranger things #Steve harrington #Steve Harrington x oc #Steve Harrington x ofc #Steve Harrington x original character #Steve Harrington x original female character #Steve Harrington/oc #Steve Harrington/ofc #Steve Harrington/original character #Steve Harrington/original female character #henderson oc

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hermes mini kelly 10

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Retail Therapy - Luke Patterson

Julie and the Phantoms

Request?: Nope.

Word Count: 4.8K+

Summary: Alive!Luke x Alive!Reader/ Alive!JATP x Reader. After a fight with your parents, you go out for a little retail therapy and meet a certain Rockstar. I think I will prolly do a part 2 or more let me know if you want one, btw this is not proofread or edited. Luke sings to you in this chapter and he sings ‘Can’t take my eyes off you’ by Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, so you can listen to that if you want.

Warnings: I don’t think there’s any.

-

“Julie please, my parents and I just got into another huge fight about my art and I need moral support.”

“But my dad wants me to watch Carlos and I can’t bail again.”

“Please just get here! I need you, Jules,” Y/N radiated distress and it was clear to all the people in the Claire’s she was currently in.

“Fine, I can call my tía. I’ll be there in an hour, but you owe me an ice cream cone!” Julie said laughing, Julie had been Y/N’s best friend since they met in the seventh grade when they both accidentally wore the same shirt three days in a row and became friends, they often would laugh about it. Y/N told her where to meet and thanked her friend quickly hanging up the phone. She heaved all her shopping bags up and looked around.

“Why am I even in this store?!” She hmphed loudly drawing the attention of the other shoppers once again. She marched out of the store towards the food court where she was meeting Julie. A new store caught her eye and she stopped for a minute debating if she had enough room for more bags. She quickly made her mind up deciding that she could make room, after all, she had her dad’s Platinum Amex and she was not going to waste this opportunity. Y/N walked quickly to the entrance of the quaint book store. She turned into the book store slamming into something, it was just her luck to run into a wall today and I mean why not seeing as the rest of her life was falling to pieces around her. She fell onto her back looking at the ceiling her bags scattered around her. 

“Oh my god! I’m so sorry! Are you okay?” A boy came into her sight. He had shaggy brown hair and was wearing a light yellow apron with a name tag. Guess she didn’t run into a wall after all, but again that was just her luck. Her eyes began to water as all the emotion crashed upon her like a tsunami. She gritted her teeth pulling herself together.

“I’m fine,” Y/N looked at his name tag. “Luke.”

“Woah how’d you know my name?” Luke stepped back and Y/N let out a breath of laughter.

“Nametag,” She said as the tears began to pool in her eyes.

“What? Oh my god, why are you crying?” Luke looked at her panicked, he didn’t do the best around crying girls. She held up a thumbs up. 

“I said I’m- I’m,” She coughed lightly trying her best to get out the words. 

“Here let me help you up,” Luke stuck out his hand to her nervously. She grabbed it and using her other hand tried to wipe the onslaught of tears off her face. Luke kept a hold of her hand pulling her to the back section of the store. 

“Um you can stay back here as long as you’d like,” He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and accidentally running into the desk behind him knocking a book off the desk he looked at it quickly.

“Here you can read this maybe it’ll make you feel better,” he picked the book up shoving the book into her arms. He ran out of the room quickly.

“Oh? I- Thank you!” Y/N called out into the store. Luke ran back into the room his arms heaving all the girl’s bags.

“How were you carrying this much?” He wheezed dropping the bags by her. She laughed wiping more tears away and smearing her mascara. Luke backed up again.

“I have to get back to work but just leave when you want and if you need anything I’ll be up at the front counter,” he nodded at the girl giving her a thumbs up, and walked out again. She sat at the back of the store composing herself. She picked up the book looking at the title. It was ‘The Outsiders’ and a pretty beaten up copy at that the book was filled up with loose pages, she flipped through it and set it down on the table next to her. She turned to grab her bags. She didn’t notice but the book slipped off the table into one of her bags. She also didn’t notice her journal/ sketchbook drop from her purse as she grabbed everything trying to flee as quickly as she could. She collected the rest going out into the main store and heading to the counter.

“Thanks again for the help,” She leaned on the counter gazing at the boy in front of her.

“No problem, um you can come back anytime, that is if you want to of course no pressure,” Luke stumbled over his words.

“Of course, yeah,” She nodded, but she was not going to come back, not after that humiliating experience. He smiled dopily at her.

“Can’t wait,” he leaned on the counter as well.

“Um yeah,” she felt a twinge of guilt at the totally sweet look he was giving her. Her phone chimed loudly and she pulled it out.

“That would be my cue to leave,” She turned quickly dashing out of the store making her great escape.

“Bye then,” he waved confused. Y/N pulled out her phone checking the text.

‘Where are you? I got here 10 minutes ago.’ - From Julie. Y/N sighed speeding up her strides to get to the food court quicker. She spied Julie sitting at a table in the middle of the court. She made her way through the throng of people and sat down at the table setting her bags down under it. 

“What happened?” Julie asked eyeing the girl.

“I had a bit of a break down in a store, but a nice employee helped me out so I’m good,” Y/N laughed quickly.

“Are you okay, your eyes are really puffy. Do you need eye drops?” Julie stuck her hand in her purse and Y/N stopped her laughing again.

“I don’t need anything I’m good I promise, I just want to spend time with my best friend,” Y/N laid her hands down on the table in front of her. Julie rested her hands on top of the girls.

“If it’s any consolation I am supportive of your art,” Julie smiled sweetly. Y/N’s heart melted at the girl’s words, it did mean a lot to her.

“Thanks, Julie, now if you could convince my parents to do the same then that would be a dream come true,” a weak smile crept its way onto Y/N’s face. Julie squeezed her hand.

“How about we go get that ice cream and we can talk a bit and walk around, I think we both need it,” Julie stood up interlocking her hand with Y/N’s and pulling her towards the creamy treat.

-

It’d been a few weeks since the mall incident and things were not getting any easier for Y/N. Fights seemed to be on the daily now and the yelling was beginning to drive the girl insane. So she spent as little time as possible at her house only going over to sleep and do school work, other than that she was at the park painting or reading through the book that had slipped into her bag. She had planned on returning it to the booking clerk after she had read it, but now it had been three weeks and she had yet to. She would have hung out with Julie, but she was busy with her new band and nonstop rehearsals, they were set to debut at a spirit rally at school next week and they needed to be perfect. She still hadn’t met the band, but she had permission from Julie to crash anytime she wanted and she was planning on taking full advantage of this pass soon.

Her favorite pass time though was reading the book though so she had kept it, she loved to just read and look at the little notes and doodles in the margins, it really gave her a view of what was going on in Luke’s head. Although sometimes it was hard to decipher the hieroglyphics that was Luke’s handwriting.

She had discovered that the writings of S.E. Hinton were not the only thing hidden away in the eggshell-colored pages, there were journal entries and songs. She didn’t feel comfortable reading through the entries but she sure did love reading the works of musical genius, Luke’s, songs. They were so well written and heartfelt it helped her understand this boy that she barely knew, this boy so full of passion, feeling, emotions, and kindness.

And that’s where she was now reading a song of loss and regret under the cloudy sky. One that she related to personally, it reminded her of her parents and that even if she was having a hard time with them she would always love them even if they weren’t in the picture.

“If you could only know I never let you go,” she hummed along to the words, and sure she didn’t know the tune the words were initially meant for but she could sure try and make her own melody. But her phone interrupted her startling her out of her own little world within the words. She hurriedly wiped at her tear-stained cheeks and took the device out. It was 4:30, Julie and the Phantoms were at rehearsals right now and this was the perfect opportunity to infiltrate the jam session, so Y/N hopped on her bike and sped towards the Molina residence.

-

Y/N stopped on the cobblestone path leading to the studio loft and set her bike against the stone wall. She could already hear the music drifting from the open window of the studio. She crept to the porcelain white door and stood on her tiptoes looking through the long windows. Y/N could see Julie on the piano and three boys surrounding her. There was a tall lanky one wearing a pink shirt and had a fanny pack slung across his chest, he had blond hair and was on the drum, there was a raven-haired one clad in flannel and leather he was on bass guitar and another one that wasn’t facing Y/N, from what she could see he was a brunet and was wearing jeans and a blue sleeveless hoodie, and he was on a guitar she thought. Julie looked up and jumped a little but she just laughed it off stopping the music and gesturing for Y/N to come inside. Just as Y/N was about to move away from the door the brunet turned around her her heart stopped she could hear all the blood rushing and it was deafening.

It was Luke from the bookstore. Y/N felt herself pale and she quickly hid from view she slid down to sit against the door and the pavement, her eyes darted around looking for a place to hide, any place at all. But before she could move the door gave way and she fell onto her back. Julie had opened the door at the whole band formed a circle around the starfishes girl. Luke broke out into a fit of giggles.

“We have got to stop meeting like this,” he managed to get out through the laughter. Y/N deadpanned and scoffed.

“Tell me about it,” she sighed. Luke came to a stop and offered her a hand. She did not grab the hand though instead opting to roll onto her stomach and push herself up. Luke lowered his hand awkwardly and Alex snickered.

“You two know each other?” Julie asked looking between the pair.

“Kind of,” Y/N shrugged looking at the dopey grinned boy. “We met at the mall a few weeks ago, you remember Julie we had an ice cream cone that day.

Julie nodded and looked at Luke.

“Oh, so this is the guy you stole a book from!” Julie laughed at the panicked face you made. Luke sent Y/N a confused look.

“Oh my god! I’m so sorry I’ve been meaning to return it,” Y/N dug through her backpack and pulled out the book victorious. She handed the book to Luke quickly and added a quick explanation and a sorry.

“Hey it’s okay, you kind of left something too, I had been wondering where it had disappeared to though,” he laughed and snatched Y/N’s journal from his bag handing it to her. Throughout their exchange Julie, Alex, and Reggie just stood awkwardly shuffling their feet.

“Oh! I thought my dad took this... Oh My god wait please tell me you didn’t look,” Y/N paled again. Luke and Y/N stared at each other for a minute silently.

“Um only a little,” Luke looked down to the ground guiltily. Julie coughed and clasped her hands together.

“Why don’t we play something for Y/N while she’s here!” She said sitting down at the piano. The rest of the boys picked up their instruments, Alex sitting at the drums, Reggie standing with his bass next to Alex and the door, and Luke standing next to the piano and the couch. Y/N took a seat on the couch farthest away from Luke, she was feeling a bit awkward.

“So this is Bright,” Julie said to Y/N as well as making the boys aware of what they’d be playing for her. Julie played the first notes on the piano taking a breath and smiling, she was really in her element right now and it showed.

“Sometimes I think I’m falling down. I wanna cry, I’m calling out,” Julie sang out hitting each note with perfection. Y/N got goosebumps on her arms while listening to Julie’s voice, it was really breathtaking.

“For one more try, to feel alive.” The boys still hadn’t played their instruments and Y/N looked at each of them confused. Luke sent her a wink and threw his guitar over his shoulder with finesse. Y/N smiled brightly and gave him thumbs up. She reached into her bag pulling out a paper and a pen. She wrote a 9.5 

“What?! I deserve a 10,” Luke frowned strumming a note as Julie sang, “Life is a risk but I will take it, close my eyes, and jump.”

“It’s because you’re a show-off,” Y/N held out the f sound. Luke laughed and threw his head back.

“I’ll you show you what showing off really looks like,” he grinned at her. Just ask he said that Julie sang, “Come on let’s run!”

And that's when the boys hopped into action the music hitting Y/N like a wave. Luke played the guitar his hands moving effortlessly on the frets, he had so much passion in his eyes and Y/N couldn’t tear hers away. Luke looked at her holding her gaze intently.

“Life is a risk but we will take it, close my eyes and jump,” Luke’s voice came out gravely and husky, giving Y/N goosebumps once again. Reggie sang along with him dancing around the middle of the loft. Y/N felt like the breath was knocked out of her, the band was, to put it simply, dazzling. She had so many thoughts for them but she knew she it’d be impossible to tell them how amazing they were in words. Luke walked closer to Y/N kneeling in front of her while still playing his instrument. 

“Come on let’s run!” Luke sang to her, the rest of the band along with him. He hit the high note with ease and Y/N breathed in deeply. Luke continued to sing, but he pulled her up quickly and they danced together, it was a mess of rocking together and lots of spinning on Y/N’s part while Luke jumped up and down still having to play. Reggie came in and joined them, and he and Alex shared a look. They all jumped around in a circle and Y/N jumped onto the couch singing along with the chorus.

“Shine together bright forever!” Y/N picked up her water bottle using it as a mic. Luke couldn’t keep his eyes off her, she was electric. 

“In times that I doubted myself, I feel like I needed some help,” Luke sang and the only instrument playing was coming from the piano. Luke walked up to the couch below Y/N and they stared at each other.

“Stuck in my head, with nothing left,” Luke sang to her. Julie shot Y/N a look telling her to sing with him.

“And when I feel lost and alone, I know that I can make it home,” Y/N sang nervously fearing she’d mess up the words, but Luke just smiled at her and Y/N instantly felt at ease. Y/N looked away from Luke for a minute nodding at Julie and they sang together.

“Fight through the dark, and find the spark!!” Julie raising her voice and held out the note. Luke still couldn’t pull his gaze away and he lifted Y/N off the couch spinning her and making her squeal, she was set on the ground and she started dancing again. 

“We will fight to shine together! Bright forever!” They all sang out and the song ended. Y/N laughed with glee and jumped up and down.

“You guys are amazing!” She smiled at Alex and hit Reggie’s shoulder, feeling at home with the guys already, even if they only met a few minutes ago. 

“I’m gonna run inside the house and grab some snacks and we can hang out!” Luke ran to the door and exited. Y/N laughed, he didn’t even ask if she was free, she was but still. She enveloped Julie in a hug and they laughed together. Y/N’s phone rang in her pocket and she pulled it out and looked at the screen, her mom was calling. A deep frown set into her face and she clutched the phone.

“I’m gonna take this,” She said and made her way out sitting against the stone wall and taking a deep breath trying to prepare herself. She hit the answer button and held the phone to her ear.

“Hello?” She whispered.

“Y/N Y/L/N, you need to get home right now, you have been gone long enough. Get over yourself, you will not become an artist and you will do what we say we are your parents,” Y/N’s mom and dad said, not even letting Y/N get a word in. She breathed in deeply and shut her eyes tight willing herself not to cry.

“Mom, Dad, I’m not coming home,” Y/N got out her voice faltering. Her dad scoffed.

“Don’t be ridiculous you will come home immediately,” Her mom sighed. Y/N shook her head even though her parents couldn’t see.

“I’m not coming home not again and not ever, not until you support me,” she almost lost herself there but she shut her eyes again keeping the tears at bay, she wouldn’t cry for something she needed to do.

“I’m gonna be staying somewhere else from now on, I’ve already got all the stuff that I need and you won’t see me again until I prove you wrong.”

“People will like my art and even if they don’t I like my art and it’s what I’m passionate about and I won’t stop, I won’t give up, I can’t,” Y/N hung up the phone not even giving them a chance to respond, she clicked into her settings turning off her location and stuck her phone next to her. She brought her knees to her chest and she breathed deeply, she heard someone taking a seat next to her, she didn’t look assuming it was Julie.

“I know what it’s like,” Luke laid his head against the wall and put his hands at his sides. Y/N’s head shoots towards Luke.

“It’s you! I thought you were Julie,” Y/N said. Luke started to get up.

“I’m so sorry I’ll go,” he stood up all the way. Y/N grabbed his hand and pull him back down they were now sitting shoulder to shoulder and looking at each other. Y/N breathed in deeply again the tears finally going away.

“Stay.”

“I didn’t mean to eavesdrop drop, by the way,” Luke laid his hand on top of her hesitantly. She laughed shaking her head.

“It’s okay, can you tell me about it?” She asked him referring to what he said earlier. He nodded slowly trying to articulate what he was thinking.

“Okay, but bear with me I’m gonna start at the beginning,” he stated and Y/N intertwined their finger hoping to make him more comfortable.

“My mom and dad bought me my first guitar when I was about 8,” he started squeezing her hand.

“When you said beginning I didn’t think it’d be beginning, beginning,” she laughed. He sent her an annoyed look and she giggled laying her head on his shoulder.

“They didn’t get me into lessons but my neighbor ended up teaching me, I knew immediately that music was what I wanted to do and my parents didn’t quite feel the same but they let me continue playing regardless, but then I started a band called Sunset Curve when I was fifteen, that’s when they tried to take my guitar away,” he deflated slightly and Y/N nestled into him a bit more.

“Of course I hid it where we were practicing and didn’t tell them where, but the fights got so bad that I ran away, on Christmas Eve.”

“Now I’m staying here, but I get how it feels to not be supported by the ones who matter most, so if you need someone who knows what you’re going through you can come to me if you want,” he said facing her as she took her head off his shoulder. They were centimeters apart at this point, they were practically breathing in each other’s air.

“You’re staying at Julie’s?” She asked their noses almost touching.

“Yeah in the loft with Alex, he’s not living at home either, his parents weren’t cool after he came out to them,” he said sadly his eyes fluttering shut. She studied his face, he had freckles that you could only see close up, and there was a small scar just on the bridge of his nose.

“It’s cool that you guys have each other,” Y/N interlocked both their hands.

“You could have us too,” he whispered. “If you want us.”

“I’d really like that I think,” she moved in closer, her lips ghosting over his as he whispered, “I’m glad you want me, us.” They knew each other better than anyone, sure they hadn’t been together long but they’d seen into each other's world through music and writing and art, they saw the most intimate parts of each other. A crash from the garage and Alex fell through the crack in the door and he shot up looking like a deer in headlights. Luke and Y/N jumped away from each other and Y/N hit her bike knocking it over and the contents of her other bag on it spilled out, a mess of clothes and tampons came out and Luke looked horrified. His eyes fell upon a single bra and he stumbled back covering his eyes. Alex ran back into the studio slamming the door behind him. Y/N quickly scooped up her stuff putting it back into her bag making sure to zip it up this time. Luke still was on the ground covering his eyes.

“You can look now,” Y/N let out an airy laugh. Luke shook his head.

“I’m too embarrassed,” he sat up still covering his eyes. Y/N scooted over to him so that she was sitting in front of him on her knees, she brought her hands up to his slowly moving them away. She and Luke looking into one another’s eyes for the millionth time that night. She slowly tore her gaze away and stood up.

“I should probably go find a hotel to stay at,” she whispered picking up her bike. Luke jumped up grabbing her wrist.

“You can stay here! I mean if it’s okay with Julie, we’ll have to ask,” he said holding onto her hands and grinning at her.

“It’s okay with me!” They heard Julie’s voice from inside the studio. Y/N laughed pulling Luke into a tender hug, he didn’t hesitate to wrap his arms around her hips. She rested her head in the crook of his neck and whispered, “Thank you for everything Luke.”

“You’re welcome,” he kissed the top of her head lightly pulling her in tighter. Drops of rain began to dribble into them until it was a downpour. Luke tried to pull her inside but Y/N pulled him back and they spun together in the rain. Y/N let out a joyful and bubbly laugh that had Luke laughing along with her.

“Sing to me music man,” Y/N spun Luke around and dipped him. He grinned at her and began to sing.

“You’re just too good to be true,” they spun together again.

“Can’t take my eyes off of you, you’d be like heaven to touch, I wanna hold you so much,” Luke spun Y/N in and they rocked together. Y/N slid her arms up around Luke’s shoulders and they smiled at each other.

“At long last has arrived and I thank God I’m alive,” he smiled to himself at the line. Y/N spun away and jumped in the rain and a puddle of water exploded under her baby blue converse.

“You’re just too good to be true, Can’t take my eyes off of you,” and the lyrics were true for Luke he could pull his gaze from the magnetic girl in front of him. She held out her hand and Luke grasped it as she spun in her back hitting Luke’s chest. Luke sang more to her and he was almost to the chorus now.

“There are no words left to speak. But if you feel what I feel, please let me know that it’s real.”

“You’re just too good to be true, can’t take my eyes off of you,” Luke hummed and Y/N got ready to sing the chorus with him.

“I love you, baby!” They both sang out at the top of their lungs.

“And if it’s quite alright, I need you baby! To warm a lonely night!” Y/N sang out Luke practically had heart eyes. This wasn’t like before in the studio during Bright, Y/N wasn’t hesitant at all she had the aura of a thousand burning stars and the confidence to show it.

“I love you, baby! Trust in me when I sayyy!” Y/N sang again and Luke continued this time.

“Oh, pretty baby! Don’t bring me down I pray,” Luke spun down onto his knees and held his hands out to Y/N.

“Oh, pretty baby, now that I found you, stay! And let me love you, baby!” Luke sang pulling Y/N in they were once again close, chest to chest the rain streaming down their faces and their foreheads pressed together.

“Let me love you,” Luke sang in a whisper. Y/N hooked her arms around his neck and their lips were close, but not close enough to connect.

“You’re just too good to be true...” He closed in, their lips connecting for half a second but once again they were interrupted by a car beeping from in front of the house. Y/N pulled away quickly and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

“That’s probably Julie’s dad with the pizza,” Luke said sadly knocking on the white door for the rest of the teens to come out.

“That was quite the show you two put on,” Reggie said as they came out. Y/N blushed which is something she didn’t normally didn't do so you knew she was very embarrassed.

“Shut up, dude,” Luke punched Reggie’s shoulder. They all began walking to the house, the rest of the teens holding umbrellas but Luke and Y/N were still exposed to the weather. They lagged behind a bit and Y/N took Luke’s hand into hers. They got to the door and they were the only ones out there. The rain pitter-pattered against the covering of the porch. Y/N and Luke faced each other and Y/N smiled at him.

“Thanks again for everything, Luke.”

“It’s my pleasure,” Luke stepped up to her.

“How did you know that was my favorite song?” She grinned at him.

“I have my ways, star,” he cooed and Y/N smiled at the nickname. She stood on her toes and pecked him on the cheek and she dashed inside. Luke stood there alone and touched his cheek softly and grinned, she’d be the death of him, but he was ready to do anything for her. He was falling, and falling hard for that matter.

-

Thank you for reading and let me know if you want a part two, and feel free to enter my taglist link in bio!

#charlie gillespie x reader #luke patterson x reader #luke patterson x you #luke patterson x julie molina #luke patterson #luke patterson x oc #jatp luke #luke jatp #luke julie and the phantoms #julie x luke #julie and the phat ones #julie and the fat ones #julie and the himbos #julie molina #jatp juke #jatp alex #carrie jatp #jatp julie #reggie jatp #jatp netflix #jatp fanfic #jatp fanfiction #jatp fandom #jatp fanart #jatp #luke x reader #jatp au #reader insert #jatp reader insert

[alj4890]

Angst Prompt

(Liam x Riley) with the prompt of Riley getting shot in another country while Liam was in Cordonia and it have been ordered by King Bradshaw as requested by Anonymous.

A/N Oof. What a way to knock me off my fluff kick, LOL. This isn't a part of my AU's but let's see what I can do for your prompt, Nonny. This takes place after the Bradshaw/Isabella mess but before Barthlemy's challenge. I guess I will ruin that brief moment of peace, LOL.

@gkittylove99​​​​​​ @krsnlove​​​​​​ @kingliam2019​​​​​​ @texaskitten30​​​​​​ @hopefulmoonobject​​​​​​ @yourmajesty09​​​​​​ @mom2000aggie​​​​​​ @ofpixelsandscribbles​ @twinkleallnight​

Masterlist

News

The Royal Palace, Cordonia...

"Here we go, princess." Liam settled his seven month old in her swing. "How about you help your father with reading through these proposals the Council is considering?"

Eleanor smiled around the teething ring she had put in her mouth.

Liam pressed a quick kiss to her cheek then started the swing.

He settled behind his desk, finally feeling a sense of calmness. With all the ups and downs he had gone through since his brother's abdication, he rested in knowing that he, his family, and country were at last entering into a season of peace.

He intended to keep it that way.

The gurgles and coos from Eleanor drew his attention. She waved the teething ring a few times before putting it back in her mouth.

He chuckled at her antics.

He was enjoying these few days of one-on-one time with his daughter. Riley had been asked to be the guest of honor at Lancelin St Clair's fashion grand opening. The renowned designer had created a place where his creations could be not only sold, but created specifically for the customer.

Lancelin had completely renovated a four-story building in Paris's Faubourg Saint-Honoré district, turning each floor into one with a definite purpose. The first floor was a shop that housed various sizes of his most popular creations. The second floor was part runway/part design on demand for the shopper looking for something completely original. The third floor would debut his new bridal line. And the fourth was set as his personal work area/apartment for when he needed to stay late and work on his designs.

All this was to be shown to the public to set off Paris's fashion week.

Since Riley had walked his runway during Liam and Madeleine's engagement tour, he had invited her to be part of his grand opening. Ana De Luca was traveling with Cordonia's queen to do an exclusive spread of Riley in some of the dresses Lancelin had made specifically with her in mind.

It was just the sort of news the people of Cordonia would enjoy after months of uncertainty.

****************

"I really don't want to go without you and Eleanor." Riley told Liam the night before she left.

"I don't want you to either." He held her close. "But I have to meet with the Farmers' Association about the progress of the apple orchards." He pressed a tender kiss to her lips. "I've already had to reschedule twice with them. They need to see I take their concerns seriously."

"I know." She sighed. "And I know that Eleanor would distract everyone from Lancelin's moment." She eased out of his embrace. "This will be the first time I go out without you or any of our friends."

Liam took her hands and tried to ease her worries. "You will do great." He smiled at her. "You charm everyone you meet. I believe I am proof to your effect."

Riley shook her head before kissing him. "If anyone is the charmer, it's you."

He chuckled while tugging her toward their bed. "Do you want me to find someone to go with you? Penelope or Kiara perhaps?"

"No thanks." She snuggled closer to him. "I wish Hana was well enough to go. She was looking forward to it."

Liam gently rubbed her back. "With Maxwell in Hollywood and Drake in Texas, we don't have anyone left."

"I wish Olivia was back." She muttered.

"Amalas needed her expertise." Liam reminded her.

"I know." Riley sighed again. "If I can't have you with me, I do tend to depend on the others to be there. I need to learn how to stand on my own."

"The world will once again be amazed by Cordonia's queen." He kissed the top of her head. "You'll see."

********************

Liam glanced at his desk clock. It was nearly time for Ana's live report of Lancelin's grand opening.

His princess had fallen asleep in her swing, drawing another smile from him as he carefully lifted her out. Cuddling her close, he sat down on one of the sofas and turned the television on.

Finding the right channel, he relaxed as the first images appeared.

Cordonia's Queen Riley has been given the honor of walking the red carpet first. Lancelin St Clair awaits, giving her the shears to cut the ceremonial ribbon.

He readjusted Eleanor in his arms as he watched his wife's bright smile flash towards the cheering crowd.

Ana continued to detail what they would soon see when shots rang out.

Liam stood up, causing Eleanor to whimper at being rudely awakened.

Ignoring her fitful cries, he watched as the camera caught his wife and Lancelin falling to the ground.

Then the feed went dead.

"BASTIEN!" Liam shouted over Eleanor's wails.

The head of the King's Guards hurried inside while talking on his phone. Regina rushed in behind him.

"Give me the baby." She insisted, gently taking the fussy little one in her arms. She left the study, allowing Liam to be able to focus on what Bastien was saying.

"And the shooter?" He asked. "I see. Where is her majesty being taken?"

Bastien wrote down the information. "Keep me updated."

Once he ended the call, he faced Liam.

"What happened?" He demanded.

Bastien cleared his throat. "A lone gunman shot both Riley and Mr. St Clair."

"Is she alright? Have the plane prepared. We must get there as quickly as we can!"

"Sir," Bastien hesitated. "I must insist you remain here. The gunman was killed by one of our guards. We don't know if there is another and--"

Liam shoved past him and called the airfield. Declaring it an emergency, he then rushed to tell Regina.

"Liam." She teared up as she took his hand. "Be careful and call as soon as you know more."

"Your majesty, I insist you remain here while I go to Paris." Bastien followed after him. "Once my team has investigated, I can then guarantee your safety--"

"Do you honestly think I give a damn about my safety?!" Liam rounded on him. "My wife was just shot! She is alone in another country and hurt. If you think I will sit here behind these so called protective walls, then you do not know me at all." He went back to his study and quickly packed his briefcase. "Now get me to the airport."

*****************

Early evening, Paris...

"Her majesty is at one of the private hospitals." Bastien explained as the car continued through the city. "Interpol is working with us to identify the shooter."

Liam stared blindly out the window. "Is my wife conscious?"

"She was." Bastien tried to explain. "She lost some blood from her wound and--"

Their car stopped at the front entrance.

"Liam!" Bastien shouted as the king didn't bother to wait on guards or to check that it was safe.

The young king ran inside, pausing long enough to ask where he should go.

"Je suis le roi de Cordonia. Ma femme a été amenée avec une blessure par balle. Où est-elle? Est-ce qu'elle va bien?" He said quickly.

"Elle se repose dans la chambre 138, Votre Majesté. Dr Miller a dit--" the receptionist blinked when he took off running once more.

Liam slid on the freshly waxed tile floors, barely catching himself as he followed the signs.

A doctor and nurse were just leaving Riley's room when he arrived.

"My wife," Liam gasped, trying to catch his breath. "Is she alright?"

"Oui. She was struck in the shoulder." He paused as both King's Guards and Interpol Agents joined them. "We removed the bullet while she was unconscious."

Liam reached for the door handle as the others began to question the physician.

He paused at seeing his wife laying there, looking so fragile.

One of the first things he had first noticed about her was her inner strength to face any obstacle she encountered. He realized he had taken that he had taken that for granted. The only other time he had seen her like this was when she collapsed during Eleanor's birth.

Liam knew there were only a few things he feared in this world. But those few things centered on something specific: his family.

He could face an entire firing squad and not bat an eye. But let it be Riley or Eleanor that was to be threatened, and he could not take it.

He collapsed in the chair by her bed and pressed a kiss to her fingers. Bowing his head, he waited by her side until she awakened.

****************

A few hours later...

Liam stood up when Riley became restless. Soft cries escaped her lips as she slept. He reached for the buzzer.

Explaining that his wife was in pain, he waited for a nurse to come in.

Bastien entered first.

"Have you learned anything about the shooter?" Liam asked in a low voice.

"We have." Bastien stopped the nurse.

He and an Interpol agent patted him down and checked the IV bag of morphine he held.

They stepped back and allowed him to tend to Riley.

Liam watched him replace the bag that had been on a slow drip.

"Can she have more?" He asked as she cried out again.

"Yes sir." He showed Liam the button he could push if she needed more, reassuring him that it wouldn't administer any past the dosage she could have. He increased the flow and left.

Riley's eyes barely opened. "Liam?"

He went back to her bedside. "I'm here, my love."

"My shoulder." She sucked in a painful breath. "What happened?"

"A man was in the crowd." Liam gently explained, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "He shot at you and Lancelin and--"

Her eyes widened. "Lancelin! Liam, he was bleeding so much!"

Bastien cleared his throat as he stepped forward. "He is in intensive care at another hospital, mam."

He pointed at the right side of his chest and mouthed lung to Liam.

Liam frowned some before turning back to Riley.

"Where's Eleanor?" Riley asked, turning her head. "Did you bring her?"

"No. Regina is watching over her at home." Liam eased down on the bed. "Do you need anything? Is there something I can do to make you more comfortable?"

"No." Her eyes filled with tears as she looked up at him. "Liam, if...if I had died...you...my baby..." She began to cry.

Unable to take her in his arms, Liam did his best to comfort her. He wiped her tears while speaking in a calming tone that he wouldn't let anything happen to her. That she was safe. That they would soon be home with Eleanor.

Riley tried to calm down but she shook her head. "We'll never be truly safe, will we?"

Liam paused in his assurances. He felt exhausted from the trials they continued to face. Should he now fear peace, knowing it would end horribly in some new threat?

Running a hand through his hair he spoke of what he did know. "No one is ever truly safe, my love. Even if we were locked away somewhere, accidents can happen. Sickness can strike. Bad things happen just as good ones do."

She sniffed and closed her eyes. "I know you're right," she opened her eyes and met his steady gaze. "I just wish we didn't keep having trouble."

"I do too." He cupped her cheek and softly kissed her. "All I need to know to make it through our trials is that you and Eleanor are taken care of." He struggled with swallowing. "I should have been there today to protect you."

She weakly raised her hand and caressed his cheek. "Then you might have been hurt or..." She couldn't finish that sentence. "I can't lose you, Liam."

He nodded, kissing her again. "I refuse to lose you." His words came out in a harsh whisper. "I will find who did this and will make certain they never do so again."

Riley rubbed her cheek against his hand and closed her eyes.

Liam relaxed once he saw her drift into a peaceful slumber.

"Sir?" Bastien motioned for him to step outside.

"What did you find?" Liam asked.

"The man was a hired gun from America." Bastien began. "But he was born in Auvernal."

Liam's eyes narrowed. "And who hired him?"

"King Bradshaw."

********************

Cordonia, a week later...

Riley was rocking back and forth with Eleanor sleeping in the crook of her good arm. She heard voices outside the nursery door. Curious, but unable to hold her daughter properly, she remained where she was.

A few moments later, Liam slipped quietly inside and smiled at her.

"Is she down for the night?"

"She fell asleep long ago, but I wasn’t ready to let her go." Riley let him put Eleanor in her crib. "I missed her so much. I'm so thankful to be home with you both."

"Nowhere near as much as I am." Liam wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I heard voices earlier. Is everything alright?"

He nodded. "Everything is fine."

Riley chewed on her bottom lip. "You never told me what was found about the gunman."

"There wasn't much to discover." He told her.

"Was he just some crazy person or was he hired by someone?" Riley prodded.

Liam let her go and motioned for them to leave the nursery when Eleanor made a disgruntled, sleepy noise.

"I don't want you thinking anymore about this." Liam insisted. "We are taking care of eliminating the threat."

"Eliminating?" Riley's brow furrowed. "But that means he was hired--"

"I want you to rest."

His nearly cold evasiveness alarmed her.

"Liam," she reached for his hand. "Please talk to me. I can handle whatever you have found."

Remembering how upset she was in the hospital, he averted his eyes. "We'll talk about it tomorrow."

Her lips parted to insist. She shut them when he escorted her to their chambers.

"Do you need anything?" He asked after helping her change.

"No." She murmured.

He covered her up and began to leave the room.

"Where are you going?" She sat up in surprise.

"I have somethings that require my attention in the study." He explained. "I'll be back in an hour or so."

She quietly watched him leave, feeling even more uneasy than before.

*****************

A little after three in the morning...

Riley awoke when she felt the bed dip down.

"Liam?"

"Forgive me, I didn't mean to wake you."

She checked the time. "Are you just now coming to bed?"

"Yes. It took longer than I planned." He stretched out beside her.

"What did?" She demanded, turning a lamp on.

She gasped when she noticed his bruised face and bloody knuckles.

"What happened? How did you--"

"It's nothing." He winced as he tried to get comfortable. "I'll be fine."

"Liam!" She snapped. "Talk to me." Her eyes narrowed. "Now."

"I took care of the one who tried to take you from me." He snapped back.

"So there was someone else involved?"

"Yes. And he will never have a chance to hurt anyone again." Liam declared.

Riley gently touched his face. "Liam, you didn't..."

"I wanted to." He admitted. "I was so close to beating Bradshaw to death." He closed his eyes at that memory. 

It would have been so easy. A few more strikes, a quick twist and the king that had caused Liam’s world to nearly crumble would have had his last breath.

 "I allowed Interpol to take him." He opened his eyes and stared up at the ceiling. "Olivia found all the evidence we needed to make certain the only way he will ever leave prison is to attend his own funeral."

Riley blinked back tears.

She then punched Liam in the arm.

"Riley!" He sat up when he noticed her shaking with rage. "What--"

"How could you?!" She screamed. "How could you risk your life when you already had everything in place to arrest him?!"

"He tried to kill you!" Liam yelled back. "All because we caused him embarrassment." His eyes narrowed. "Did you think I would do nothing to the man who set out to take my wife from me? Take my daughter's mother?!"

"He wasn't worth you taking a chance on him having a weapon or one of his guards kill you! What would Eleanor and I do without you here?" Tears fell, nearly blinding her. "How could you risk our family?"

All of Liam's anger disappeared at hearing that she had his own fear. Gently pulling her close he silently held her as she cried. His own tears mingled with hers as he thought of a life without her.

The sun was beginning to rise as their tears came to an end. They still held to one another, speaking in low tones of their life together. An occasional hitch in one's words caused the other to try and comfort the one temporarily unable to speak.

As light crept through the drapes, the two remained upright, still clinging to the one they loved.

Riley lifted her head off his shoulder. "Eleanor will be awake soon."

"Yes, she will." Liam pressed a kiss to his wife's forehead. "You should rest. I'll take care of her."

"I'll help you." She hugged him close with her good arm. "I don't want to be apart from either of you today."

His arms tightened around her. Unable to say all that filled his heart, he simply nodded while muttering that he didn't either.

She pressed a tender kiss to his lips and smiled. "It's a new day, my love. A new day just for us."

#choices the royal romance #choices the royal heir #liam x riley #king liam #liam x mc #trr liam #trr riley #trh liam #choices stories you play

[thetomorrowshow]

Slower Than Words Ch. 26

First  -  Previous  -  Next

Me, writing this chapter: I am going to create a situation that is so awkward,

cw: food

~

~SHARON~

welcomes you

Remus eyed the sign suspiciously as he drove past. It was set low in the ground, as if it had sunk a bit over time. It didn’t look familiar at all—none of this did. Did he have the wrong place?

Patton shifted a bit in the seat beside him, looking around with interest. They’d reached their destination, after all. Remus couldn’t help but doubt himself. There were other Sharons in the country, after all. Maybe they’d just gone to the wrong one.

Something about this city called to him, sure. But that didn’t mean anything—the cult had called to him too. Remus’s instincts weren’t the best.

He was roused from his thoughts when Patton softly tapped his shoulder. They were passing a grocery store—Save A Lot. It was time for lunch, wasn’t it?

Remus pulled left into the parking lot of the store, which was fairly empty for midday Friday. Only three cars, and a fourth pulling in at the same time as them. Remus parked in between two of the other cars there (mostly because he could) and hopped out, taking a moment to stretch before entering the store. Patton got out too, walking around to the driver’s side while Remus continued to reach toward the sky.

Patton led the way, holding the door open for Remus, who looked up as the bell jingled. An older man waved from behind the counter. A shopper milled about in the nearest aisle. Classic rock played quietly in the background. It was nice, in a weird way. Very peaceful. Very easy.

Pat headed for the bathroom and Remus watched him for a second, before turning down one of the aisles at random. They probably needed some fruit or something. He followed the aisle through to the small produce section on the other side of the store. Another employee leaned against the meat counter on the other side of the section, eyes glued to his phone. Remus froze and stared at him, waiting to be told that he wasn’t allowed back here. Nothing happened.

Remus fully exited the aisle and checked out the fruit. Oranges, apples, different apples, a handful of pineapples. The oranges were the cheapest, and Patton needed citrus too. There was a vitamin in citrus, right? Vitamin D? C?

Whatever it was, he was pretty sure that Patty needed it. He needed every vitamin, actually. Remus picked up an orange, about to pull a plastic bag from the roll.

“Oh my gosh. No way!”

Remus dropped the orange, spinning on his heel and straightening up. His heartrate spiked, breathing quickened, and he stood at attention, keeping his eyes on the linoleum floor.

“Remus?”

He chanced a quick look up, forcing his eyes almost immediately back down. He saw . . . a woman. Young, probably about his age. Tall. A shopping basket over her arm (probably why he hadn’t heard her coming. No squeaky wheels). Smiling. She was completely unfamiliar, but by now the watery reflection of the lights on the floor had gotten into his head where he was. In a grocery store. In his hometown. Not back there.

With effort, Remus wrenched his head up, meeting the woman’s eyes. “H-hey,” he said, clearing his throat. “What’s up?”

“So it is you!” The woman laughed a little. “I haven’t seen you in years. How’re your parents?”

This woman knew him. So he had definitely lived here. But this wasn’t a very big city, and if she knew him, then she had to have known his family, right? Why would she have to ask him how they were? Had they moved away? Cold clutched at his heart as he considered that option. They can’t have. He can’t have lost them before he even found them.

“I-I dunno, just got in town. Haven’t even dropped by yet.”

The woman nodded. “Where do you live now?”

“Other side of the country,” Remus hedged, “Desert-y place.”

“Oh, I grew up in Arizona,” the woman said, almost commiseratingly. “So hot. There were days that I’d just go stick my head in the freezer.”

Remus laughed nervously. “Yep, wish—wish I coulda done that.”

“Mhm. Really, I haven’t seen you since—gosh, since we graduated! You didn’t even come to the graduation itself, I heard that you skipped town practically the day after school got out.”

Okay, someone he’d gone to high school with. Remus remembered being sorta close with the other kids on the soccer teams, but he mostly hung out with the stoner kids to annoy his parents. He couldn’t see how he would know this chick. Maybe they’d been lab partners? Or maybe she’d been someone he hung out with?

The woman seemed to be casting around for something to say, her eyes eventually falling on his face. “Wow, that mustache has really filled out, huh?”

Remus’s hand flew up to smooth it unconsciously. “Yep, this is a couple years’ hard work,” he boasted. The woman chuckled.

“No offense, but it used to be this terrible shrimpy little thing,” she said. “I remember prom night when you picked me up you were all grumpy because your mom made you shave it off. You didn’t even talk to me until we got there!”

Oh shoot.

Oh no.

This was an old girlfriend.

Remus hadn’t dated anyone in years. He’d tried for a while, those first months in the cult. But the gals weren’t interested and the guys were too scared, so he’d given up. He hadn’t really minded it, honestly—he had dated all through high school, but looking back he only did it to make his parents mad. They didn’t want him steady dating until he was an adult, and definitely didn’t want him dating dudes and stoners, so he had done both over and over again between the ages of thirteen and eighteen.

Now, though?

Maybe it was just the cult stuff talking, but Remus wasn’t interested in a partner. The romance part sounded cute (he’d never admit it, but part of him really wanted to curl up with his partner and watch a romcom, teasing each other lightly), but the rest of it sounded like way too much of a hassle. He didn’t have the time, not when he was carrying the load of three different people’s trauma. And while he had a feeling that the commitment might help ground him, he just wasn’t interested in the rest of it. If that made sense. Heck, this was his own head and it didn’t really make sense.

Anyways, he remembered this woman, just a little. Not much about her, or how well they worked together, or if they had truly been in love. He mostly remembered that he had left without breaking up with her, without even telling her goodbye.

“Yeah, I was a terrible kid,” he said, secretly waiting for her to agree with him. Instead she shrugged.

“Sure, you were always hanging out with weird people,” she replied, “but you were very kind. I definitely don’t think we were meant for each other, but I had fun with you.” She winked and Remus almost physically recoiled. He didn’t like when people winked.

A hand tapped his elbow and Remus jolted, turning his head. Patton was there, smirking a little bit.

The woman’s eyes traveled between them, clearly trying to figure out their relationship. “Boyfriends . . . ?”

“Kidnapper and victim,” Remus said, turning back to her fully and smiling toothily. He felt a little bit more in control now. She barely seemed uncomfortable, instead sharing her own smile.

“Right. Well, tell your parents I said hi,” she said, waving slightly. Remus noticed the ring on her wedding finger, but before he could ask, she answered.

“D’you remember Claire, from the swim team?”

Remus opened his mouth to lie, but she continued to talk.

“Well, after you left, she comforted me and helped me decide what I wanted to do for the rest of my life, and the answer turned out to be her!” the woman laughed at her own joke, and Remus laughed along, not quite sure why. It was obviously a practiced line, and he didn’t really find it funny either.

The woman reached out and patted him on the shoulder, a warm look in her eyes. “Seriously, it was great to see you. Everyone was really worried about you, we thought you’d died in some ditch. Take care!” And with that, she was turning down another aisle, quickly out of sight.

“Who was that?” Patton asked as soon as Remus turned to him. The smirk was gone, his eyes now wary.

“A friend from when I was a kid,” Remus signed distractedly, looking at the oranges again. He grabbed two, then a third one just in case and led the way back to the cash registers. On the way he snagged a package of beef jerky, grimacing at the price.

That was the weirdest encounter he’d had, probably ever. At least it was proof that they were in the right place.

-

“No clue where we are,” Remus sang under his breath, checking the street signs as they passed a church. The area looked vaguely familiar, so that had to mean something, right? Apparently not, because after the grocery store experience, everything looked familiar. He pulled to stop in front of a stop sign, patting Logan’s car as it groaned. For a moment, he let his eyes close and his head rest on the steering wheel.

Patton tapped his arm, waiting for him to look. “Trust your instincts,” he signed, finger-spelling the last word. He smiled softly at Remus, then turned back to the window, pulling the patched hoodie closer around his shoulders. Remus took a deep breath. He could do this. He’d survived a cult. He’d saved a whole kid from the same cult. He was awesome.

Remus took his foot off the brake, letting the car carry him from street to street, waiting for something to happen. If this didn’t work, then he’d go street by street, knocking on every door until he found his parents and brother.

Then, as he turned right in a somewhat busy intersection, his hands spasmed. Muscle memory took over, and he turned right again onto a smaller street. Memories of driving this road far too fast in the darkness of late nights and early morning flooded his mind, overlapping and playing simultaneously. In the memories, he followed this street through, then turned left at the end of it.

So he did, his arms turning the wheel almost without conscious input. Another two turns, and he was Euclid Ave, a street name that made his heart jump into his throat. Just two houses down, there it was.

150 Euclid Ave.

Suddenly, the home phone number was on the tip of his tongue—he’d memorized them together. He recalled his parents, sitting on the sofa, clapping for a miniature version of him reciting the full address and phone number.

He stared at the house so hard stars appeared in his vision, surprised to feel almost nothing. It was familiar of course, just like everything else, but it was also . . . normal. It almost felt like he’d never left. Or like he’d gone back in time, back to when this was right. Back to when this was who he was.

“Home?” Patton asked out loud, the middle of the word slurring a little. Remus’s eyes misted a little bit.

“Yeah,” he managed. “Home.”

-

Knock-knock-knock.

Remus rocked back onto his heels, shooting a reassuring smile to Patton. He could do this. No sounds came from inside the house, but there were two cars in the driveway, so someone had to be home. Hopefully both were his parents, then he could see everyone together.

But his brother could drive now, right?

They were five years apart. When he’d left, his brother had been in middle school. Now he was probably in college. If he was away at school, he wouldn’t be home right now, would he?

Remus knocked again.

Now there was sound from inside, the creaking of footsteps on floorboards, the running water. Adrenaline suddenly pumped through his veins, and the wild thought of running back to the car crossed his mind. He could get out before they ever knew he was here, just leave and nothing would change.

Did he want it to change?

Click-click. The door unlocked.

Swung open.

Remus composed his face the best he could, trying to smile and look as normal as possible. He could do this. He could do this.

He looked up.

A face, lined, clean-shaven, framed with close-cut dark hair that was greying at the ends. A face that Remus saw from the stage of a talent show, sitting in the audience, smiling and clapping along with his clarinet rendition of Jingle Bells.

The shoulders were broader than Remus ever thought his own would be, proved otherwise by time. Remus saw the shoulders from the closet of his parents’ room, where occasionally on Sunday afternoons the boy was allowed to try on suit coats that swallowed him completely.

The left hand had a simple silver band, one that Remus could see resting on the aluminum foil ring holder he’d made in class as a Father’s Day present. He’d always been afraid that it would catch his fingers when they played the hand stacking game.

Remus’s eyes traveled back up the arm, the shoulder, the neck, the face, back to the eyes. Blue, almost grey, a color that neither he nor his brother had inherited.

“Hey dad,” he croaked. “I'm home.”

The eyes widened.

~

Taglist: @enragedbees @gotta-love-alejandra @bunny222 @basiic-emo @patt0n-sanders @rosiepupper @fangirlgeekandfreak @dn-fan21 @that2000skid @remy-the-lemon-berry @itsadastraperaspera @xionbean @sanderssides-angst @hell-yea-we-gay-tonight @maybedefinitely404 @broken-pencils @thewhimsicallibrarytech @doomllily @hereissananxiousmess @judyismydog  @arodynamic-enby @at-that-one-nerd @therapysides @awkwardandanxiousfander @thekitchenpan @im-an-anxious-wreck @larkiaquail @anteonnix @fantasticfander21

#slower than words #thomas sanders #sanders sides #sanders sides fic #sanders sides fanfic #remus sanders #ts remus #patton sanders #ts patton #angst #sanders sides angst #poor patton was a side character in this chapter #we'll be back to check on him next one #i hope logan's okay #remus's back must hurt so much #i'm so excited for the end of this story #i just realized that there's only like two or three chapters left #four if i need to stretch it out #things are about to resolve :) #sanders sides fanfiction #the oc's name is stacie btw #they didn't date long - maybe for two months #anyhow that's all folks! #love you guys

[artificialqueens]

Galactica, Chapter 62 (Group Fic) - TheDane/Veronica

A/N: Click here if you’re looking for previous chapters (or here if you’d rather read on AO3). 💫

Last Chapter: The assistant gossip network continued to do its thing, while Courtney lived her best life, Sutan offered Violet some wardrobe assistance, and Bianca planned a coming out.

This Chapter: The Galactica Holiday Party has arrived, and not everyone is prepared...

***

“Remember to find your light!”

Gigi turned her head, trying as hard as she could not to squeeze her eyes shut, the studio lights blinding.

“I said find it, not stare into the sun!”

Gigi blushed and moved her head again, doing her best to try and follow the instructions Sutan kept giving her.

They were in a photo studio in the Bronx, Gigi to get her first pictures for her portfolio taken, while Symone had practiced how to shoot in swimwear, her friend now waiting with her phone for Gigi to finish up.

Gigi had watched Symone move around, completely enthralled by how elegant the other model already was, Sutan barely correcting her.

“Straighten your back!” Gigi did as she was told, a pair of black jeans hugging her body, the long sleeved black shirt she was wearing clinging to her arms.

“Excuse me...” The photographer, who had introduced herself as Widow, looked out from behind her camera, “can I do my job in peace?” Widow smiled even though her tone was clearly sassy, her teeth blindingly white, her black box braids collected in a high bun. She was wearing a black leather jacket and jeans, big red earrings hanging from her ears.

“You know what I hired you for,” Sutan smiled back, and Widow rolled her eyes, making Gigi giggle.

“Yes sir, right away sir,” Widow teased.

“Don’t give the models any ideas with your attitude.” Sutan grinned, his sleeves rolled up around his elbows, refocusing on Gigi who had tried to hold the position he had asked for.

“No, not like, you have to be more.” Sutan moved his shoulders, and Gigi tried to copy it. She knew they were doing this shoot so she could get an idea of what she looked like, so she could train what Sutan called her inner photographer, but it was really difficult.

“No, still not right.” Sutan stepped on the set, getting next to Gigi, the scent of his cologne instantly catching her nose. “Your strength is in your lines Gigi, so you have to stand tall. Use those legs of yours,” He smiled, tapping his own left leg and moving it forward, mirroring what Gigi hoped she was doing. “Try this.”

Gigi moved her leg to copy Sutan, her entire center of balance shifting.

“There we go!” Sutan grinned. “Good job. Now hold it, and find your light.”

***

Violet tried to turn to the side, watching her profile in the big mirror on the back wall of the dressing room.

Her and Sutan had each been swept up by a personal shopper the moment they stepped inside Barney’s, Violet whisked away to the woman's clothes department where everything was outrageously expensive and completely new.

Violet was wearing a beautiful red dress, the hemline just off the floor, her cast barely visible if she stood completely still, which suited her perfectly well.

Violet had every plan to get to the Christmas party, sit down, and then hopefully not move again for the rest of the night, Jovan’s offer of bedazzling her crutches still making her shiver.

“So, what do we think?” Violet’s shopper smiled, the woman standing behind her, her pile of rejected dresses four times the size of the approved ones for the upcoming events, but she couldn’t help being extremely critical, not when everything was so stupidly expensive.

“Well…” Violet looked in the mirror. The dress suited her, even though it didn’t sit snugly at her waist, but that wasn’t something a loose loop stitch couldn’t fix so she could undo it again later and hopefully keep the dress longer. It hadn’t been Violet’s intention to lose weight, and if she was being honest, she had actually expected to gain with a broken foot, but it seemed like that hadn’t been the case, her appetite even worse than usual, her pain killers often making it feel like she had knives stabbing her stomach.

“I’ll take it.”

Violet knew that the dress would be approved by Fame, and loved by Sutan, the low neckline and the opportunity for matching underwear always a treat.

***

“Kat? Are you gonna be okay?” Trixie asked, voice soft.

They were sitting in a little cafe across from her doctor’s office. They’d just gotten the official news - she was pregnant, no doubt about it. She’d put on a transparently false, cheerful face while they were there but barely said two words since they’d left, a croissant and mango smoothie sitting in front of her, untouched.

According to the doctor’s best estimate, she was 14 weeks along, which already limited their options, a fairly invasive procedure now the only way to go if they didn’t want the baby.

She looked at him, blue eyes clear, and said, “I don’t know.”

Trixie nodded, taking her hand in his and holding it lightly. He didn’t want to push her too much, could tell that she was in a fragile state of mind.

“Well...I’m here if there’s anything…Anything I can do.”

“Got a flask on you?” she asked drily, then closed her eyes, immediately chagrined. “I’m sorry, that’s not funny.”

“It’s a little funny, babe.” He pressed a kiss to the back of her hand, the two of them sitting side by side, their fingers intertwined.

***

Roxy looked up as Courtney rounded the corner from Miss Fame’s office, flashing her a bright smile. She had just gotten yet another delivery--Roxy was fast becoming BFFs with Greg, the Marie Claire office runner.

“Hey Rox! Whatcha got for me?”

“Hi, Court,” Roxy said, eyeing her suspiciously before handing over the bag, wondering why she was so perky today.

Courtney looked inside the bag and saw what Roxy had already - a large black velvet jewelry box.

“Open it,” Roxy said, and Courtney pulled it out, peeking inside before snapping it closed again. “Come on, you’re not gonna show me?”

A smile pulled at Courtney’s lips, and she leaned forward onto the reception desk, voice low, saying, “You wanna know something?”

“Yes, of course!” Roxy perked up. Was Courtney finally about to admit to her affair with Bianca Del Rio? It was gonna be a hell of a lot easier once she didn’t have to pretend to be in the dark anymore.

“You know how I said that I’ve been...uh...seeing someone who works at Marie Claire?”

“Yeah…you gonna tell me who?”

“Well, no,” she said, and off Roxy’s annoyed scoff, added, “But...we’re coming to the party tonight...together.”

“Oh really?” Roxy’s eyebrows shot up. This actually was pretty decent information, given the potential shit storm it could cause. The drama of Miss Fame’s assistant dating one of her best friends, and them showing up together to a company event? Absolutely delicious.

“Yeah, so...I guess you’ll find out soon enough,” Courtney said, eyes twinkling with mischief.

“I guess I will,” Roxy agreed, smiling placidly, already typing out a DM to Bob.

***

Fame breathed a sigh of relief as the car pulled up to the hotel she had chosen for the Galactica Christmas Party. The facade was decorated with dripping ice crystals, lights and fake snow making it the winter wonderland she had envisioned. The red carpet had been rolled out, guests already posing for photos and talking to reporters about their clothes, Fame recognizing the signature cameras from E! Network and one of Vogue’s journalists.

She had gotten the confirmation from Shangela that the string quartet had shown up, the musicians hired for the lounge area while the caterers had set up shop in the enchanted forest filled with actual pine trees, the bar carrying a line of gins specifically brewed for the event.

“So,” Patrick lifted an eyebrow, a curious expression on his face. The majority of Fame’s skirt was in her husband's lap since she refused to let the silk anywhere near the bottom of the car. “how are we feeling?”

“Me?” Fame smiled, leaning over to press a kiss against his cheek “Quite content.”

***

“Are you sure I can’t talk you into walking the carpet?”

Sutan looked over at Violet, the two of them on the bottom of the steps leading up to the hotel, Raja and Raven already halfway inside. Raja was in a tight-fitting emerald green suit with a deep cleavage, her hair twisted into a gorgeous updo, while Raven was dressed in a floor length gown in matching green, the two of them looking absolutely stunning together.

“Yes.” The message was clear, and Sutan could feel the tiniest curl of irritation in his stomach. Violet was beyond beautiful, her usually pink nails carefully painted the same red shade as her dress, a tiny purse slung over her shoulders, her black hair curled and spilling over her shoulders and back, her posture perfect even though she was leaning on her crutch, only one of them allowed to come along.

He wanted those pictures of them together, even if it was selfish.

“Lovely eyes-”

“I said no.” Violet’s tone left no room for argument, and Sutan pressed his lips together, taking a deep breath through his nose not to let his irritation win out.

“Sutan,” Violet reached out, gently touching his arm. “This isn’t a you issue, it’s a me issue. I’d love to go up there and be on your arm like a dainty little princess or trophy-”

“What?” Sutan raised an eyebrow. He had never thought of Violet as a princess, or even dainty, the muscles he knew she had and the iron will he had seen her possess over and over again so much more attractive than any trophy girlfriend could be. “That’s not what-”

“I know,” Violet squeezed, underlining her words, “But I’d honestly rather jump into traffic than talk to a single one of those reporters, and risk showing up in any of their publications.”

Sutan snorted, Violet’s dark sense of humor as always getting to him. He knew it also had to do with her relationship to her family, Violet’s choked hospital confession still rumbling around in his head, what little he had managed to piece together telling its clear story of a gossip magazine-obsessed mother, his girlfriend posing for his own mothers old canon camera at Thanksgiving without any issues.

“Okay, but promise me,” Sutan took a step, bringing them closer, his hand finding it’s now familiar place on Violet’s waist, “that I can get one soon.”

“A photo?” Violet raised an eyebrow, their hips almost touching, her free hand on his chest.

“Mmh, just for the two of us.”

“I’ll consider it,” Violet smiled, her fingers gently rearranging his tie, making sure it was sitting completely straight. “If you promise me that we can get a cab home.”

“A cab?” They had arrived with Raja and Raven, a driver coming back to pick all four of them up at the end of the night, “Why?”

“Because you, Mr. Amrull, look fucking fantastic tonight,” Violet looked up at him, a smirk on her lips, “and I wanna make out in the backseat.”

*

“You ready?” Bianca asked, looking over at Courtney as their car pulled up to the curb.

Courtney glanced outside, where a crowd of photographers and reporters were gathered, stomach seizing with the reality of what she was about to do, wondering if it was a mistake. Even walking the carpet with Bianca instead of taking the normal entrance with the rest of the support staff suddenly seemed audacious.

“No,” she admitted, looking back at Bianca apologetically. “I’m sorry, I-”

“Would it help if I told you how absolutely gorgeous you look?” Bianca asked, reaching out to take her hand.

Her outfit for the night was probably the most conservative of all the dresses Dan had pulled for her - a black dress--low cut, but not in a slutty way with a little bow at the front and full circle skirt, paired with a pair of Bianca’s beautiful multicolored Louboutins and simple, classy jewelry--including a glamorous strand of pink pearls that Bianca had sent over earlier in the day.

In spite of her nerves, Courtney couldn’t help but smile a little at the compliment, proud of the care she’d taken with her hair and makeup, hoping to make Bianca proud. She tucked a stray curl behind her ear and responded with a cheeky, “Look who’s talking…”

Bianca grinned, and Courtney was once again struck by how fantastic she looked, in a red silk organza cocktail dress, the floaty feminine fabric accentuating her curves perfectly, a deep v-neck giving the perfect peek at her cleavage.

“What if we just stayed in the car for awhile?” Courtney suggested, fluttering her lashes.

“I promise to make it worth your while later, angel.” Bianca squeezed her hand, pulling her in close. “But right now, I’m pretty excited to show you off. So whaddaya say?”

Courtney took a deep breath, the churning in her stomach now a combination of nerves and excitement.

“Okay.”

Bianca signalled to the driver, who quickly got out and walked around to open their door.

“Here we go…” Bianca gave her hand one final squeeze and got out, giving the flashing cameras a polite wave before reaching back in to help her out.

Courtney’s mind was a mess. She suddenly had so many concurrent anxieties, like tripping on the carpet, or being dragged to filth by come gossip rag, or, given how lightheaded she now felt, fainting, here in front of all these people. She tried to steady herself, and Bianca’s arm slid securely around her waist.

“I’ve got you, don’t worry. You look amazing,” Bianca murmured in her ear.

Bianca led her down the carpet--a true professional, posing and smiling, calmly directing Courtney so that she knew where to stand and where to look, chatting jovially with reporters.

“Who’s your date, Bianca?” one of them asked boldly.

“Wouldn’t you like to know!” Bianca joked back. They’d discussed this ahead of time - better to keep Courtney’s name out of things for the moment, given her job title. Courtney understood, and agreed, and was even a bit relieved. For now, on gossip sites and fashion blogs, she’d just be ‘BDR’s latest blonde,’ and she was very much okay with that. After all, the people that mattered to both of them would know, and that’s what she cared about.

“Well, is it serious?” another piped up.

“You tell me,” Bianca said, and then Courtney really thought she might faint, Bianca pressing a sweet kiss to her cheek as about a billion flashbulbs went off in their faces, murmuring, “You’re doing perfectly, angel.”

She turned to Bianca, gazing at her with breathless admiration, feeling like the luckiest girl in the entire world. And then she took Bianca’s face in her hands and impulsively kissed her, right on the mouth, soft but sure. So what if it was only a fling? Courtney didn’t care anymore--she would remember this high for the rest of her life.

Bianca smiled against her mouth and whispered, “Well, that’ll make headlines...”

“Oops,” Courtney whispered back, both of them giggling.

They broke apart, matching grins on their faces as they looked into each other’s eyes, until Bianca turned back to the sea of paparazzi, now in a frenzy, shouting out questions too fast for Courtney to even process the words.

“That’s enough for you demons!” Bianca called, gently pulling Courtney up the steps, giving one last smiling wave at the top, Courtney’s hand still clasped in hers.

*

“Are you done?”

“Nope!”

Raja hid her grin, her shoulder touching Raven’s as they posed for the camera, her fiancée radiating excitement as she chatted and flirted with the photographers.

Raven had always adored the camera, and if there was a journalist behind it, she was practically in love, getting caught by the paparazzi a treat for her each and every time it happened.

Raja didn’t feel the same thrill, didn’t care as much about showing up in gossip magazines and websites since she had gotten more than enough of that in her youth, but she couldn’t be truly upset when it generated so many great pictures, Raven often looking sexy as sin when she got caught leaving the gym.

“Raja! Over here!”

Raja turned her head, the photographer catching her attention, and that was when she saw them, Bianca coming up a little ways behind her.

Seeing Bianca on a red carpet wasn’t strange, but what was frankly bizarre was the familiar blonde at her side.

Raja had expected Fame’s assistant to be somewhere in the crowd, since it was a company party and a big treat for the staff, but what the fuck was she doing on the red carpet? The support staff was supposed to enter the party through the normal pedestrian entrance.

And then, Bianca put her arm around Courtney’s waist, kissing her cheek as she giggled girlishly.

Oh, fuck.

This was not good. Frankly, Raja wasn’t shocked that Bianca had been messing with Courtney, her behavior at the meeting last week making it painfully obvious that she liked her. But this, this was next level.

Just when she thought it couldn’t get any more embarrassing, Raja witnessed something that made her blood run cold. Courtney grasped Bianca’s face in her hands and kissed her on the lips, causing absolute chaos from the group of paparazzi around them.

“Holy shit.”

“What?” Raven looked up at her, a concerned and confused expression on her beautiful face.

“Wait here.” Raja released Raven, leaving her behind on the carpet, prepared to ambush Bianca the second she got to the doors.

Bianca had done a lot of stupid shit over the years - they all had - and dating bimbos wasn’t a new thing for her, but making out with Fame’s assistant in front of the paparazzi?

That was a new level of braindead, even for her, and Raja had to stop it right now.

*

The moment Bianca stepped off the carpet, she felt someone grab her arm and roughly yank her into the lobby.

“Bianca!” Raja hissed, pulling at her arm. “Come here!”

“Ow!” Bianca laughed at Raja. “Let go of me, you fucking mountain gorilla!”

Just because the woman towered over her was no reason to be intimidated, and it was gonna take a hell of a lot more to bring her down at the moment than Raja looking at her like she was insane.

Beside her, Courtney let out a small gasp, and Raja tried to recover, putting an arm around Bianca’s shoulder and giving Courtney the most sugary-sweet, fakest voice she could manage to say, “Hey there Court, can you give us a minute? I have to chat with Bianca about something important. Great shoes, by the way.”

“Oh...yeah, alright. Um…” Courtney backed away, trying to give them some space. “I’ll just wait over here, then-”

“Perfect!” Raja dragged Bianca to the other end of the lobby, away from any reporters.

“This oughta be good,” Bianca grumbled, though she was still too hyped from the carpet to manage to be truly annoyed.

“What,” Raja pushed Bianca into a corner, inches from her face, her voice filled with venom though her eyes betrayed her geniune concern, “the actual fuck do you think you’re doing, Bianca?!”

“Wanna be more specific?” Bianca asked, tilting her head, an impish smile on her face.

"It's bad enough that you're fucking Fame's assistant, but to parade her around on the red carpet? Without even bothering to give us a heads-up? Are you insane?" Raja’s teeth were clenched, clearly trying to keep her voice down.

"Please. Our relationship has nothing to do with-"

"Relationship? Are you actually calling this a relationship?"

"Yes!" Now, Bianca was starting to get annoyed. Who the fuck did Raja think she was talking to?

"Oy, this is so much worse than I thought,” Raja groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Please don't tell me this is why you bailed on the tasting menu."

"So what if I did?"

"Oh god."

"Fuck you!"

"And what did you expect to happen, Bianca? What's your great master plan with this childish stunt?"

“Well...to be honest, I didn’t know she was gonna kiss me on the carpet,” Bianca admitted, a giggle slipping from her lips. “It was kinda cute, did you see?”

“I...am going to slap you.”

“Come on, Raj. I did give this whole thing a little thought.”

“Really? It doesn’t fucking seem like it!”

“Well, I have. Look, I know she’s gonna be pissed, but I also know she’s not gonna cause a scene in the middle of the party. And then after tonight, she’s got almost a full week to cool off before she has to see me again,” Bianca said, punctuating her statement with a charming smile. Bianca was no idiot. Of course she knew that Fame would be irritated, maybe even angry, but she figured that this was a situation where it would be easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. And besides, if she had to endure her friend’s wrath for awhile in exchange for being free to put her relationship with Courtney out into the open, then so be it.

“That’s what you think will happen?” Raja huffed. “Bianca, please, Fame hasn’t seen you guys yet. If we get Courtney out the back door, we can make an alliance with Patrick to get Fame drunk and unplug the wifi tomorrow so she doesn’t go online. It’ll be like it never happened, and we'll never speak of it again.”

“Raj, listen. I know this might be a real clusterfuck, but I’m willing to accept the consequences.”

“Oh jesus help me.” Raja groaned. “I hope she’s worth it, Bianca.” She pulled away, shaking her head. “I really hope she’s worth it.”

As she walked away, Bianca took a deep breath, looking back across the lobby at Courtney, who was doing a terrible job of trying to look casual, the anxiety on her face clear as day. Bianca sent her a big smile, reaching out a hand, and Courtney rushed toward her.

“Was she mad?” she asked, brows creased with worry.

Bianca cupped her face lightly, stroking her cheek, and promised, “Not at you.”

“Okay.” Courtney bit her lip, and Bianca leaned in to kiss her cheek.

“Shall we?” she asked, gesturing to the ballroom.

“Yeah...in a minute…” Courtney said, immediately adding, “I’m sorry.”

“Take your time, angel. There’s no rush,” Bianca promised. “In fact, if you’d rather get out of here and go somewhere else-”

“No, no, no…” Courtney laughed, taking her hand. “I’m fine. Let’s go in.”

#rpdr fanfiction #thedane #veronica #galactica #trixya #bitney #vitan #raja x raven #gigi goode #raja gemini #widow von du #violet chachki #katya zamolodchikova #trixie mattel #roxxxy andrews #courtney act #miss fame #bianca del rio #raven #lesbian au #m/f au #fashion au

[isitgintimeyet]

Road To The Aisles

AO3

Previous

Happy Sunday. Hope it’s a good one for you. 

So, potential crisis averted, time for some more wedding planning type stuff.

Thanks to @mo-nighean-rouge, @wickedgoodbooks, @happytoobserve and to you all for reading, liking, reblogging and commenting.

Chapter 18: An Exquisite Ensemble

Anthony Marantino: "You want pasta, you go to Little ltaly. You want wedding, you go Wang."

Sex and the City

Claire staggered into the living room, her arms full of magazines which she unceremoniously dumped onto the coffee table.

Jamie raised a quizzical eyebrow. “Little light reading there, Sassenach? Bit different from the usual blood and gore.”

He picked up an issue of You and Your Wedding and flicked through the glossy pages, pausing on a page entitled ‘The Ultimate Guide to Bridal Lingerie’.

“Mebbe I’ll jes’ be having a look through these meself. Some interesting articles here,” he said as his eyes focused on an Agent Provocateur demi cup plunge bra with matching thong.

Claire sighed. “Geillis got them for me. She can’t believe that I haven’t bought my dress yet. She reckons it’s the single most important choice I make.”

Jamie tore his attention away from the magazine. “I canna believe it either. I thought ye’d be sorted by now.”

“But it’s because everyone tells me how important the dress is. What style do I go for? How am I expected to know? And when we look back in thirty years’ time, I don’t want us to laugh at my choice. So, Geillis is taking me shopping. And apparently, we’re not coming home until the dress is chosen.”

“Weel, I know ye’ll be stunning whatever ye wear.”

He stood up and stretched. “I’m off fer a quick shower before Geneva drops William here. I’m that sweaty from the gym. And Geneva wants tae talk about the bairn’s first day at nursery tomorrow.”

“And,” Jamie paused and turned dramatically in the doorframe. “Fer yer information, the dress isna the most important choice, Sassenach. Ye already made it when ye said yes in Ned’s office.”

Claire settled herself on the sofa and picked one of the magazines at random. Opening Brides magazine, she studied the images, hoping for sudden inspiration. So many decisions… long, short, slinky, strapless, ivory, blush, white. And how would she manage in one of these frocks all day, she asked herself. How would she even go to the loo?

She was normally so sure of her decisions, but this was totally outside of her comfort zone. Claire sighed again. Thank goodness for Geillis. Without her, Claire had a feeling that she would be totally lost in this minefield of satin and lace.

The sound of the doorbell pulled Claire from her musings. Abandoning her magazines, she made for the front door, only pausing at the bottom of the stairs to call for Jamie, with no response -- the sound of the shower drowning out her summons.

She pasted a cool, polite smile on her face as she opened the door to Geneva. The smile as she bent to greet William, squirming in his car seat, was, however, full of genuine warmth.

Claire straightened up. “Hello, Geneva. Please come in.”

Geneva led the way into the living room.

“Jamie’s just having a shower,” Claire explained as Geneva placed the car seat on the floor and began to unstrap the baby.

Geneva turned to respond and noticed the selection of bridal magazines strewn across the coffee table.

“Little late in the day to be having second thoughts about the dress,” she commented, idly picking up one of the magazines.

“No,” Claire quickly clarified. “I’ve not bought the dress yet. I’m going this week with my best friend.”

Geneva appeared stunned. “But… surely not. You need at least four months for a bespoke gown. I suppose one could get away with three months… if one was a standard sample size, for example.”

She eyed Claire’s hips disparagingly.

Claire smiled politely and tried to remain calm. “Oh, I don’t want a bespoke or designer dress. I think Debenhams has a good selection.”

Geneva barely suppressed a shudder.

“Oh, off the peg.”

She closed her eyes and shook her head dramatically as if trying to remove this incredibly distasteful image from her brain.

Claire said nothing in response. There was nothing to say. This was her wedding, planned exactly how she and Jamie wanted and no snide little digs from Geneva would make her change a single thing about the day. Yes, it would be totally different from any wedding Geneva may plan… a different groom for example…

Geneva finally managed to overcome her abhorrence and opened her eyes. She glanced at the magazines once more before lifting the edge of one to reveal a set of photos underneath. Deliberately she picked them up, slowly studying each glossy image, the photographer capturing different aspects of the subject’s character reflected in those amber eyes -- the laughter, the dreams, the warmth, the knowing glint.

“You've been photographed by Simon Winchester?” Geneva asked, somewhat incredulously. She touched the photograph’s watermark as if to check it’s authenticity. “But he rarely does private commissions.”

“Aye, weel…” Jamie entered and immediately picked a slightly disgruntled William up, lifting him high in the air and blowing raspberries against the baby’s tummy.

William, content to be the centre of attention once more, chuckled happily and pawed at his father’s face.

Jamie continued as he snuggled the baby close to his chest. “Weel, it was fer our latest advertising campaign… in Japan. We decided tae use Claire as our model. Her eyes match the whisky. And I canna think of a better combination… the wildness of the heather clad hills, the powerful complex flavours of the dram and the beauty and honesty of those eyes. The windows to the soul, are they no’?”

Geneva bit her lip as she carefully placed the photos back on the table.

“What a wonderful idea,” she exclaimed, her tone giving an indication of her true sentiments. “Congratulations, Claire, what an exceptional opportunity for you to work with such a talented photographer. And, I must say…”

She glanced down at the photos again.

“... he really is a master of photoshopping techniques.”

Jamie made no response, trying to ignore that comment, born out of simple jealousy, and considered moving the subject on to William’s first full day at nursery. He looked across at Claire, a small amused smile playing across her lips as she watched Geneva studying the photos. She was obviously willing to rise above Geneva’s petty spite… Jamie decided he wasn’t. He wanted Geneva to know what he thought.

“No photoshop needed at all, Geneva. ‘Tis all natural. And I ken they’ll be a big hit in all the Japanese advertising… those eyes… seen and admired by millions.”

He paused for a moment to let his comments register with Geneva.

“Right, so, William’s first full day at nursery. What do I need tae know?”

**********

“She said what?” Geillis spluttered as she quickly put her coffee cup back on the table. “Photoshop, how dare she? That’s pure spite, that is. She’s only jealous because Jamie wouldna have ever wanted her tae do that. Sae, what happened then?”

“Well, that was pretty much it. Jamie put her right on the whole photoshopping thing and then they started talking about William.”

“But, come on, Claire,” Geillis persisted. “Admit it. Ye must have had a wee bit of satisfaction from it. Rubbing her nose in it, like?”

“Well, I didn’t rub her nose in it. I played it low key. But,” Claire smiled at the memory. “Yes, it was really damn satisfying. Especially when she’d already made snide comments about me not going for a designer wedding dress, but an ‘off the peg’... and cast dubious glances at the size of my hips.”

“But G,” she continued. “Does it bother you, as my maid of honour, not having an expensive designer dress?”

Geillis patted Claire’s hand comfortingly. “Dinna fash. This is yer day and ye’re going tae wear whatever ye want. It doesna bother me at all. All I want is tae see ma best friend wed the man that she loves. And I will wear whatever ye want me tae wear.”

“Mind ye,” Geillis added with a wink. “With ma natural style and grace, I could make a bin bag look haute couture. Now, come on, drink up. We are no’ going home until we’ve found the dress fer ye.”

**********

Claire perched awkwardly on the upholstered chair in the changing room, trying hard not to look in any of the many mirrors, currently reflecting her underwear-clad image from every angle. Although -- she sneaked a peek -- at least she had remembered to wear one of her better (and matching) sets of underwear for this occasion.

It had been an inspired decision of Geillis’s to book an appointment with the store’s personal shopper, resulting, clearly, in a better class of changing room, complete with plush upholstery, gilt edged mirrors and a proper wooden door, rather than a curtain not quite wide enough for the frame.

The personal shopper (“Och, call me Diane, I’ve a feeling we’ll be here fer hours!l) had gone on a quest for an assortment of gowns, with Geillis in tow, unwilling to trust Diane’s professional instincts.

A tap at the door heralded the arrival of the frocks. Geillis led the way, followed by a long rack pushed by Diane, a plethora of sequins, satin and lace cascading from the hangers. Claire’s heart sank at the abundance of frills.

Geillis gave a shrug. “They werena all ma choice, ye ken.”

Diane gave a bright smile. “Och, I ken ye said simple but there’s nae harm in looking, is there? And ye canna always tell until ye’ve the dress on.”

Claire began rifling through the dresses, muttering to herself as she passed each one by. Suddenly her hands stilled, and she took a step back, casting her eyes up and down the dress now on display.

“This is it.” Claire stated simply.

“Ok,” Diane began to remove the dress from its protective plastic. “Ye canna say this is the one, but it’s a start. Ye pop yerself behind that screen and we’ll try it on ye.”

Claire felt a thrill of excitement as she watched Diane unzip the dress and then slowly lower it for her to step into. The ivory fabric slid easily over her curves as the zip was fastened once more.

“Like a glove,” Diane breathed as she beckoned Claire from behind the screen towards the full length mirrors.

Claire gazed at her reflection. The ivory satin overlaid with a delicate lace skimmed the contours of her body. The Bardot neckline enhanced the smooth, creamy skin of her shoulders. A trail of tiny buttons led down her back towards the swell of her bottom. Gently fitted to her curves, it fell to the ground before flaring out slightly into a small train.

She tentatively took a couple more steps in the dress, testing the freedom of movement. Geillis watched, her eyes glistening with moisture.

“Christ, Claire,” Geillis exclaimed. “It’s breathtaking.”

Claire turned to her. “This is it,” she repeated.

“I’ll admit, ye look awfa bonnie in that dress, but ye canna be trying on jes’ one dress.” Diane gestured to the large rack.

Claire sighed, unwilling to take the dress off. Finally, she agreed, allowing Diane to put it back in it’s plastic covering and continued to rifle through the rack. Towards the back, she pulled out another hanger and passed it to Diane.

“I’ll try this one on then.”

Claire twirled in front of the mirror, watching the full skirt float around her before coming to a halt to critically study the dress.

It was, in Claire’s mind, undoubtedly a very nice dress. She had always been very fond of the Grecian style and in many ways it would be a more practical dress -- definitely easier to go to the loo and she wouldn’t have to wear a strapless bra with it. And yet…

She looked across at Geillis, who smiled politely. “Aw, it’s a nice dress, but…”

Claire smiled. “I know. That’s how I feel.”

She turned to Diane. “I know you think I should try on loads more dresses and really look around, but I love that first dress so much. I feel wonderful in it. Nothing’s going to be better than that.”

“And ye look so beautiful in it, Claire. I ken ye’re making the right choice.” Geillis agreed.

*********

Claire sipped her coffee happily. “I can't believe how easy that was. That dress is everything I wanted. And I can pick it up next week.”

“Aye, no’ much more tae do today.”

“What do you mean? Oh, of course your dress, Geillis. I was thinking bronze, satin… you can choose the style.”

Geillis licked the smears of chocolate brownie from her fingers. “Och, I ken exactly which dress I want. I’ve done ma research, ye ken. No, I mean ye, we still have the get yer underwear. A little gift for yer husband tae unwrap on yer wedding night. Start yer married life with a bang.”

Claire laughed. “And I suppose you have just the items in mind.”

“As a matter of fact I do… demure yet sexy, innocent yet hot, virginal yet wanton. Yer man will thank me right enough.”

“Well, lead me to this magical lingerie.” Claire began to gather her bags up, preparing to leave the café.

She paused. “And G, thank you for this, for all this. You’re my best friend and I can’t think of anyone better to share this with.”

Instinctively, Geillis gave Claire a warm hug. “Ye’re more than a friend, Claire. Like it or no’, ye’re family.”

#outlander fanfiction #outlander fanfic #Road To The Aisles #Chapter 18 #Jamie Fraser #Claire Beauchamp #it's all about the dress

[killherfreakout]

I'm on your blog most days and I've always wanted to ask but am too shy and you've probably answered this at some point but I was wondering if you didn't mind sharing your top 5 fav films and why? Or maybe some of the best directors and why you love them? You can ignore this if you want. Obviously NO pressure

hiiii ! oh my goodness, first of all: this is so sweet of you to come by and that you look at my blog aw 🥺💓 and of course i can share some of my fav movies! please, don’t hesitate to ask me, i could go on and onnnn about them!!! :D

i post (rb) way more movies on my film blog: @screenwrite​ if you aren’t following already too :)) + i don’t think i’ve ever posted my letterboxd on here but you can follow me if you’d like to see my reviews !

as for my favorites: they always change but i have a tag for some that i especially love that i’ll link here ! i made a different top 5 in this ask a while ago, but i have a full new answer under the cut hehe ✨ (it’s...long ajfakdks)

fav films:

so some of my all-time fav classics are Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and Dead Poets Society — i just love and relate to the characters of Cameron Frye and Neil Perry (respectively) so much. and they really feel like teen movies that just make sense, you know? i just could watch these two films over and over and never get sick of them 💓

Miss Stevens — this movie.....wow. yes, it has Timothée Chalamet so ofc i love it, but honestly the entire movie is just subtly brilliant. the writing, the performances, the moments of magic and the raw, real characters and stories they tell. absolutely touching and incredible, if you are to watch anything from this list i would say this one 🥺

these two probably come as no surprise: Lady Bird and Frances Ha — they were both written by Greta Gerwig and in my opinion are some of the greatest screenplays ahhh i’ve read the one for LB and some of her adaption of Little Women, and as a(n aspiring) screenwriter myself, her way with words in the medium is just sublime. and the two films are about not really knowing how you fit into the world, but knowing exactly who you are and not changing that for anything. i can quote both of these from start to finish too ajcjfksk

also not surprising are prob Rise of The Guardians and Coraline. my fav animated films, they are just so much fun and make me Feel something i can’t describe, are beautifully made, and keep me in a dreamy state after watching ✨

one of my recent favs!!! is Teen Spirit (2018) dir. Max Minghella — it is just one of those movies that could have been a basic and boring take on the story of an upcoming musician, but it felt so fresh and new, and the music and cinematography was AMAZING i absolutely love it, it’s just my perfect kind of movie!! haha

fav directors:

some badass wonderful talented amazing female directors: Augustine Frizzell, Crystal Moselle, Ava DuVernay, Julia Hart, Lulu Wang, Desiree Akhavan !!!! i know i’m missing so many more ahh but!

Olivier Assayas has just this...calming but haunting vibe to his films? it’s hard to describe, but it just pulls you in so easily (Clouds of Sils Maria, Personal Shopper)

Yorgos Lanthimos. his films are just...mind blowing. eerie and out there, but something so familiar and close at the center. absolutely must see The Lobster and The Favourite !

David Fincher does a lot of dramas/mysteries and has a unique touch to all his films that are probably too dark too see anything in them anvjdks (The Social Network, Gone Girl, Fight Club, etc.)

Drake Doremus is (i think i’ve said this before lol) the king of heartbreak films. he’s not afraid to show the ugly side of relationships and how love always prevails in the end. i would recommend Like Crazy and Equals !

Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners, Blade Runner 2049) + Nicholas Winding Refn (Drive, The Neon Demon) have similar styles that i really dig. they are both quite visually striking and have lots of suspense with great pay off. Refn has more of a colorful eye and it’s refreshing and super cool !!

i feel like a bit of a fake cinephile when i say i haven’t seen many Agnès Varda, Mia Hansen-Løve, and Claire Denis films, but i think they are amazing filmmakers and really admire their craft and can’t wait to dive in to more of their films !

(if you read this far: hi thank you for indulging me, if you ever want to talk about these or want to share your favorites pls feel free i would LOVE that!!! 🥺💕)

#i love asks like this don’t worry!!!! 🥺❣️ #i got SO carried away sorry ajdjfkdk #caroline talks movies #anon #ask #:')

[magnoliasinbloom]

12 Months

AO3 :: Before

July

It is the little things.

The little things start to irk Claire. Like globs of shaving cream in the sink, copper hairs dotting the bathroom counter. The way Jamie’s clothes lie next to the hamper instead of inside it. He never shuts the door behind him, making her stand up to close it all the way. Most discomfiting of all: a jealous streak, one she discovers when he speaks sharply to the cashier at the nearby coffee place, the one who dares to smile a little too brightly and whose eyes linger too long on her.

God knows she has her faults, too. Claire lets dishes pile up in the sink until it’s like playing Jenga. She forgets to take out the trash until the bin is overflowing. There’s leftovers in the fridge that don’t get thrown out until they’re fairly moldy. She’s an impulse shopper at the grocery store instead of sticking to Jamie’s methodical lists. She’s forgotten to pay the water bill twice already.

They soon realize the honeymoon cannot last forever. She’s been tidying up the place all day; he is at the clinic all day, and she is on summer holiday. It’s the least she can do, she feels, since she’s not working at the moment, but would still appreciate a helping hand here and there.

“Could you wipe off the bathroom mirror, change the bog roll sometime?” she asks, and she can’t control the ice in her tone.

Jamie is immediately incensed after a long day. “Could you then maybe grab a broom every once in a while? My socks pick up all these long curly hairs everywhere in the house.” He wants to take the words back when he sees the expression on her face; he knows she’s feeling nauseated and exhausted, and she’s still trying to clean.

“Oh, do you want to talk hair?” Claire snaps back. “I’m not the one who shaves daily and leaves a sodding mess behind each time.”

What starts as a biting comment about cleaning develops nonsensically into a shouting match about how Headmaster Christie practically hugged her at the end of year ceremony Jamie attended to support Claire.  

“He did it just to rile me up, Sassenach. Did ye ken he was at veterinary school but flunked out? He was always a spiteful wee thing. When he saw I was yer husband I bet he just—”

“Yes, you’ve told me a million times about vet school! What does that have to do with—” Claire gestures wildly but Jamie takes hold of her wrists and interrupts her tirade.

“Sassenach, mind the bairn. It’s not good for ye to get yer blood pressure up so.”

“Then bloody stop bringing up fucking Tom Christie every single time! Can’t you see it’s you who’s jealous, you rutting bastard—” She yanks free of him and shoves an accusing finger in his face.

“You foul-mouthed shrew!”

At each other’s throats, neither has noticed Adso weaving between their legs until Jamie almost trips and with a roaring expletive, sends Adso scurrying under the couch. Claire demands he apologize to the cat; Jamie refuses, calling it an idiotic thing to do, and both finally spring apart. Claire takes the couch, and Jamie sits at the kitchen table with his back to her.

Neither speaks for the longest time. Jamie huffs every few minutes; Claire tries to stop the tears from coming, fearing he will see it as manipulation. But all it takes is a soft sniff from her and Jamie is at her side, arms around her and lips in her hair.

“I am so sorry, mo nighean donn. I seldom lose my temper, and generally regret it when I do. Please forgive me. I said more than I meant.”

“I’m sorry too, Jamie. I was so very rude to you…” Their apologies are lost in a flurry of kisses and embraces. Adso peeks from beneath his hiding spot, the fight clearly over. Jamie reaches down to rub around Adso’s ears, an apology in itself, and all is forgiven as far as the cat is concerned.

Jamie suddenly lifts her from the couch, her arms tight around his neck. “Come to me, Sassenach. My whisky-eyed lass, my love. Let me take ye to bed.”

And he does.

#outlander #outlander fanfic #outlander au #jamie and claire #12 months july #this is my other fave

[01sentencereviews]

2010-2019

top 25, by release date:

Halloween II [Director’s Cut] (2010, Rob Zombie)

Black Swan (2010, Darren Aronofsky)

4:44 Last Day on Earth (2011, Abel Ferrara)

It’s Such a Beautiful Day (2012, Don Hertzfeldt)*

Frances Ha (2012, Noah Baumbach)

Spring Breakers (2012, Harmony Korine)

The Bling Ring (2013, Sofia Coppola)*

Stranger by the Lake (2013, Alain Guiraudie)

Under the Skin (2013, Jonathan Glazer)

Maps to the Stars (2014, David Cronenberg)*

Unfriended (2014, Levan Gabriadze)

88:88 (2015, Isiah Medina)*

Happy Hour (2015, Ryūsuke Hamaguchi)*

Personal Shopper (2016, Olivier Assayas)*

Elle (2016, Paul Verhoeven)

Moonlight (2016, Barry Jenkins)*

The OA, TV Series (2016, 2019; Brit Marling + Zal Batmanglij)

24 Frames (2017, Abbas Kiarostami)*

Twin Peaks: The Return (2017, David Lynch)*

Assassination Nation (2018, Sam Levinson)

An Elephant Sitting Still (2018, Hu Bo)

“Beychella - Coachella Live Stream” (2018, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter)*

Vox Lux (2018, Brady Corbet)

“Fleabag” @ Soho Playhouse Theater (2019, Vicky Jones)

“The Irishman” @ Belasco Theatre (2019, Martin Scorsese)

+++, in alphabetical order:

“Adele - Hello” (2015, Xavier Dolan)

American Honey (2016, Andrea Arnold)

Annihilation (2018, Alex Garland)

The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story (2018; Scott Alexander + Larry Karaszewski + Brad Falchuk + Nina Jacobson + Ryan Murphy + and Brad Simpson)

Big Little Lies, Season 1 (2017, Jean-Marc Vallée)

Blade Runner 2049 (2017, Denis Villeneuve)

Boyhood (2014, Richard Linklater)

Breaking and Entering (2017, Kelley Dong)

Call Me by Your Name (2017, Luca Guadagnino)

Cameraperson (2016, Kirsten Johnson)

Carol (2015, Todd Haynes)

Certain Women (2016, Kelly Reichardt)

Citzenfour (2014, Laura Poitras)

Climax (2018, Gaspar Noé)

Cosmopolis (2012, David Cronenberg)

End of the Century (2019, Lucio Castro)

Everybody Wants Some!! (2016, Richard Linklater)

First Reformed (2017, Paul Schrader)

The Gay and Wondrous Life of Caleb Gallo, Web series (2016, Brian Jordan Alvarez)

The Girlfriend Experience, TV Series (2016-17; Lodge Kerrigan + Amy Seimetz)

Girlhood (2014, Céline Sciamma)

Girls, TV Series (2012-2017; Lena Dunham)

God’s Own Country (2017, Francis Lee)

Gone Girl (2014, David Fincher)

"Grimes - Oblivion" (2012, Emily Kai Bock + Claire Boucher)

Heaven Is Still Far Away (2016, Ryūsuke Hamaguchi)

High Life (2018, Claire Denis)

Holy Motors (2012, Leos Carax)

The House That Jack Built (2018, Lars von Trier)

If Beale Street Could Talk (2018, Barry Jenkins)

In Chris Marker’s Studio (2011, Agnès Varda)

Interstellar (2014, Christopher Nolan)

Inside Llewyn Davis (2013, Ethan Coen + Joel Coen)

"Kelela - Frontline" (2018, Claudia Matè + Kelela + Mischa Notcutt)

The Knick, TV Series (2014-15; Jack Amiel + Michael Begler)

Knife+Heart (2018, Yann Gonzalez)

Lady Bird (2017, Greta Gerwig)

“Lady Gaga - Telephone ft. Beyoncé” (2010, Jonas Åkerlund)

The Leftovers, TV Series (2014-15, 2017; Damon Lindelof + Tom Perrotta)

Lemonade (2016, Kahlil Joseph + Beyoncé Knowles-Carter)

The Love Witch (2016, Anna Biller)

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015, George Miller)

Magic Mike XXL (2015, Gregory Jacobs)

Margaret (2011, Kenneth Lonergan)

Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011, Sean Durkin)

The Master (2012, Paul Thomas Anderson)

Melancholia (2011, Lars von Trier)

Mistress America (2015, Noah Baumbach)

mother! (2017, Darren Aronofsky)

Mountains May Depart (2015, Jia Zhangke)

“My First Film” @ Metrograph (2018, Zia Anger)

Nasty Baby (2015, Sebastián Silva)

Neon Bull (2015, Gabriel Mascaro)

The Neon Demon (2016, Nicolas Winding Refn)

No Home Movie (2015, Chantal Akerman)

Nocturama (2016, Bertrand Bonello)

The Ornithologist (2016, João Pedro Rodrigues)

Pain and Glory (2019, Pedro Almodóvar)

Palo Alto (2013, Gia Coppola)

Paterson (2016, Jim Jarmusch)

Phantom Thread (2017, Paul Thomas Anderson)

Post Tenebras Lux (2012, Carlos Reygadas)

The Real Housewives of New York City, TV Series (2008-present; Andy Cohen + Megan Estrada + Pam Healey + Lisa Shannon)

“Robyn ‘Call Your Girlfriend’ Official Video” (2011, Max Vitali)

RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars, Season 2 (2016; RuPaul)

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010, Edgar Wright)

Shoplifters (2018, Hirokazu Kore-eda)

The Social Network (2010, David Fincher)

A Star Is Born (2018, Bradley Cooper)

"Star Wars: The Force Awakens Trailer (Official)" (2015)

Stray Dogs (2013, Tsai Ming-liang)

Sucker Punch (2011, Zack Snyder)

Support the Girls (2018, Andrew Bujalski)

Tangerine (2015, Sean Baker)

The Tree of Life (2011, Terrence Malick)

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010, Apichatpong Weerasethakul)

Under the Silver Lake (2018, David Robert Mitchell)

World of Tomorrow (2015, Don Hertzfeldt) 

World of Tomorrow Episode 2: The Burden of Other People’s Thoughts (2018, Don Hertzfeldt)

Young Adult (2011, Jason Reitman)

#best of the decade #twin peaks #it's such a beautiful day #the bling ring #maps to the stars #88:88 #happy hour #personal shopper #moonlight #24 frames #beyoncé #halloween ii #black swan #4:44 last day on earth #frances ha #spring breakers #stranger by the lake #under the skin #unfriended #elle #the oa #assassination nation #an elephant sitting still #vox lux #fleabag #the irishman #lists #personal #best of

[yourstreetserenade]

So as I mentioned I do have a holiday fic which I’ll be posting in December, until then though I thought I’d share the details on another holiday fic idea I had. I had two ideas and I debated on which story to write and in the end, I decided that the following idea would be more time consuming and I just didn’t have it in me. So the following is my nixed holiday fic idea.

It was a future fic in which Brittana were celebrating their first holiday season as a married couple. The gist of it was this...as a newly married pair Santana would introduce Brittany to a long standing tradition in the Lopez household: Black Friday shopping. 

Santana would explain that she and her mother, Maribel, take their Black Friday shopping very seriously. Every year, no matter what, Santana and Maribel would meticulously map out their plans weeks in advance, scouting ads for the best deals at the best stores. Even though Santana lives in NY with Brittany and there are better shops in the city, it’s a very important mother-daughter tradition that they do their shopping in Lima at the one huge outlet mall. It’s their turf. So Brittana fly back home to enjoy Thanksgiving with both of their families and it’s over dinner that Whitney learns that Brittany is going to join Santana and Maribel for Black Friday shopping. Feeling as if they should include her as well, the Lopez ladies extend an invitation to Whitney. Later that evening, after filling their bellies with food they prepare for retail war.

Whitney and Brittany are a little taken back by how serious Santana and Maribel are about this. They have laminated maps of the mall, food rations in their bags, mace (in case they encounter any unruly shoppers), perhaps Santana even has a set of brass knuckles (which Maribel confiscates from her daughter). Santana and Maribel approach Black Friday with as much intensity and detail as a military maneuver. Whitney and Brittany side eye how ridiculous they are but they overlook it, Brittany loves Santana and Whitney is just jazzed to be included.

So at midnight, Thanksgiving night, the four women set out on their mission and head to the Lima mall. There’s a few very specific deals they have their eyes on but Maribel has her eyes on a very expensive, very rare handbag. I don’t know handbags, it can be whatever. Hermes, Gucci, whatever. The ladies all agree, the fancy handbag is the priority. 

Our characters walk into Lima Mall to utter chaos. Their friends and neighbors have turned savage, Santana and Maribel are nonchalant about this, after all, they’ve done this all their lives. Brittany and Whitney are a little out of their element however, perhaps a little bit overwhelmed and maybe even slightly amused to see the usually calm, professional and articulate Maribel Lopez go absolutely apeshit on someone over an air-fryer. The four ladies navigate the mall without incident and manage to bag some sweet swag. Eventually they take a break, refueling with protein bars between stores, it’s then that Santana and Maribel break it down for the Pierce women. Santana explains that everyone in town - everyone in the mall - knows the Lopez women run that mall each and every Black Friday. The name Lopez strikes fear in most people so for the most part all soccer moms and dads know not to mess with them when they’re after a deal but there’s a couple of families in town that like to play and butt against them in a bid to win more power.

‘’The Cohen-Changs and the Fabrays,’’ Santana identifies the two other mother-daughter pairs she and Maribel have been warring with for decades.

‘’You mean our friends?’’ Brittany would ask. 

To which Santana would reply, ‘’They’re not our friends, at least not on Black Friday.’’

Because what happens in the Lima Mall stays in the Lima Mall and it turns out that outside of Mckinely and outside of the Glee club the Lopez’s, Cohen-Changs and the Fabrays have been in competition to be the best, most badass Black Friday deal shoppers. Years of sabotaging each other, one-upping each other and so on. Brittany laughs, but Santana is straight-faced.

‘’Babe, this isn’t a joke,’’ Santana declares. ‘’Our three families have had bad blood for years, okay? You’re an official Lopez now which means you’re a part of this. This is important information that you need to know. Now I haven’t seen the Fabrays or the Cohen Changs today but that doesn’t mean they’re not here. This handbag is the holy grail - the it item of the season. My moms wants it but word is the department store has a very limited stock. We gotta make sure we get our hands on one before either of those bitch ass families do!’’

Meanwhile! Interspersed with all of the action scenes in the mall there will be a handful of cutaway scenes that take place in the parking lot as Brittany’s dad and Santana’s dad wait for the women in the Pierce family’s old minivan. Lots of silly banter, with Santana’s dad being the serious straight laced one and Pierce being...Pierce. 

The four ladies gear up at the mall, arming themselves with walkies and essentials before storming the department store in question. They wade through the mass of people, elbowing and kicking and screaming and through team work they manage to get their hand on the very last handbag - the handbag of Maribel’s dreams. There’s a moment of celebration between them all until they realize - where’s Brittany?

It seems in the kerfuffle to get their hands on the bag Brittany has vanished, swallowed up into the crowds.

The three women are confused but don’t panic until they hear a message over their walkies. It seems someone has ‘’intercepted’’ Brittany. 

‘’You hand over the bag, we hand over your wife,’’ says the person who has taken Brittany and is using Britt’s walkie to make demands on the Lopez-Pierce women.

Santana doesn’t need to be told who it is, she already knows. ‘’Fabray,’’ Santana seethes.

Insert a FaceTime call. Santana and Quinn glare at each other down via their devices. ‘’What do you want, Quinn?’’

‘’I think I’ve made my demands fairly clear, Santana. I want the bag. The choice is yours, you can either trade the bag for your wife or you can keep the bag and suffer the consequences. Who knows what horrible things will be inflicted upon Brittany in the meantime.’’

‘’Hey, babe,’’ Brittany would greet Santana, pushing up against Quinn in order to be in the video frame. ‘’Quinn just bought me a bunch of churros!’’ 

‘’Brittany, go sit down!’’ Quinn shoves a perfectly safe, perfectly intact Brittany away because obviously this is more of a mind game than a lethal game, but Quinn and Santana are both playing up the intensity for all it’s worth, cause comedy. ‘’As I was saying, Lopez, if you want to see your wife again, you’ll hand over the bag. She’s being held captive at an undisclosed location. You have two hours to make your decision. I’ll contact you again with the location of the trade off, if you dare contact mall security, well...I can’t promise Brittany’s safe return.’’

‘’Quinn, can we go get some Panda Express?’’

‘’Yes, Brittany, we can go get some Panda Express.’’

End call. 

Insert some crazed primal scream from Santana. Because of course! 

Of course Fabray would play it like this. Of course Quinn would be after this hot bag and of course she would play dirty. This was Quinn’s plan all along, Santana concludes, Quinn would let Santana, Maribel, Whitney and Brittany do the dirty work of actually going through the great unwashed crowds, only to ‘kidnap’ Brittany for the trade off. Quinn would get the bag without having to do any of the work. Evil genius! Santana is mildly impressed but she isn’t about to submit. Maribel is worried and Whitney is on edge so Santana takes the lead in this.

‘’Here’s what we’re going to do - we’re going to play along,’’ she tells her mother and mother in law. ‘’We’re going to make Quinn think we’re going to meet for a trade off but it’ll be trap. We’re going to walk away with Brittany and the bag. They’re somewhere in the mall and we just have to find them.’’

Then insert lots of little scenes as the ladies make their way through the mall, perhaps even bumping into other Glee characters (because everyone is home for Thanksgiving and there’s literally nothing else to do in town). Maybe there’s a short montage as they travel from level to level, occasionally stopping to buy and eat a hot cookie as they search for Quinn’s makeshift lair in the mall. 

Eventually all of their running around and clue collecting leads them to believe that Quinn is keeping Brittany in the back stockroom of a Claire’s (which is really sort of a nod to the fact that Claire’s used to sell a lot of silly Glee merch back in the day, like there were Rachel and Quinn themed makeup ‘’palettes’’ lol - also does anyone wish they could go back in time and actually buy all of the dumb Glee merch just to have for shits and giggles and nostaglia, sometimes I do, I remember once going into a Barnes and Noble and seeing a backpack with Finn’s face on it, god, 2009 was a simpler, stupider time and I miss it). Anyway! They make their way to the Claire’s in the mall, bust into the back stock room to find Brittany - again perfectly safe and totally nonchalant. And because they outnumber Quinn they’re able to take back Brittany...briefly.

Once they defeat Quinn (who is left beneath a huge pile of headbands or something) they make their way out back into the main walkway of the mall only to find some giant dance mob demonstration happening with carollers and all kinds of nonsense. It’s there that Brittany gets ‘intercepted’ once again!

They may have just defeated Quinn but they forgot about their other bitter rival: one Tina Cohen Chang. 

‘’I’m gonna kick your sneaky ninja ass when I see you Tina,’’ Santana declares over FaceTime.

Tina isn’t amused. ‘’First of all, racist, second of all, how does it feel to lose your wife not once, but twice, Santana?’’ 

‘’You should know by how I handled Fabray that I don’t negotiate with terrorists, Chang.’’

Thus begins another mission through the mall to find Brittany and again Santana, Whitney and Maribel have to navigate through several stores which have turned into complete war zones. Soccer moms fighting over big screen tvs and people punching each other out over shoes, etc. As they move through stores, kiosks and the food court Santana is in a rage. This wasn’t how their first joint Black Friday as a married couple was supposed to go, she should’ve known once she brought Brittany into the fold others would use her as pawn to gain more power and knock the Lopez family down. Revenge for all those years of the Lopez family tricking, manipulating and fighting dirty on every Black Friday for the past ten years.

Maribel honestly doesn’t care at this point. ‘’Look if they want the bag we can just give them the bag, I’m tired, I just want to get Brittany so we can all go home.’’

But Santana isn’t having it. ‘’No, we’re getting Brittany but we’re not handing over that bag, mom. This mall is our turf - we run it. Retaliation must be swift and brutal. Gangland rules. We figured out where Quinn’s hideout was, we can find Tina’s too and then I’m going to bust a metaphorical cap in her metaphorical ass!’’

After some brief brainstorming Santana decides to make some calls. Insert Face Time with Mercedes, who’s bleary eyed because unlike her idiot friends, she’s at her family home in Lima in bed where all the normal people are Thanksgiving night at 2am.

‘’If Tina were to set up a secret ninja liar in any store at a mall, what store would it be?’’ Santana would ask in greeting.

‘’What the hell are you talking about?’’ Mercedes would scramble to look at the time. ‘’What, it’s 2am, what’s going on - oh wait. Black Friday. Let me guess.’’

‘’Tina has Brittany and she’s holding her hostage somewhere in the mall unless I hand over a Hermes bag!’’

‘’It’s too damn early for any of this nonsense, I’m hanging up.’’

‘’Wait, no, Mercedes, I need your help.’’

‘’Well, junior year whenever Tina and I would hang out at the mall, her favorite store was always Hot Topic.’’

‘’Of course, goth phase era Tina. Why didn’t I think of that?’’

And this of course would be a nod to the Hot Topic tour the cast did when the show first started. They surround the corner Hot Topic to find Tina holding Brittany captive among a bunch of emo shit. Then begins a brief but hilarious tussle between Santana and Tina who is eventually restrained and tied up using like, tattered emo black lace tights.

The gang of ladies walks out of the Hot Topic, again to madness going on all around them within the mall. There’s fist fights, there’s screaming, maybe even a small fire, the residents of Lima have mad this Black Friday and the mall is a warzone. People have gone straight up gorilla and now the mission is to escape the front doors but before they can there’s another interception!

Except this time it’s Maribel and Whitney who are whisked away, vanished into the crazy crowds. Brittany and Santana are confused but once Quinn and Tina join them in their spot, our pair realizes neither Quinn nor Tina are responsible for their moms going MIA. One, they’re standing right in front of them so they couldn’t have and two, they’re not that organized or powerful.

Who could it be this time? And why take their mothers?

The answer comes when they get a FaceTime call from someone from their past. The only person who could and would hire henchmen and go to crazy lengths to get her way. Sue. On screen Sue is sitting in a chair, petting a cat, full villian mode.

‘’Let me guess, you want the handbag?’’ Santana huffs. ‘’Why, it isn’t even your style, what the hell would you want with it?’’

Sue shrugs. ‘’When I travel by plane I tend to get sick in the air and I’d like to use it as my primary vomit bag. If I’m flying first class I’d prefer to vomit in style. I’ve been watching you, your friends and family run around the mall all night, sandbags. Quinn and Tina are amateurs but you know that unlike those two boobs, I can do serious damage if I so chose. So hand over the bag and I’ll hand over your mothers.’’

End call. Brittany and Santana, as well as Tina and Quinn converge to discuss. Yes, Tina and Quinn kidnapped Brittany earlier but those were harmless power plays, but Sue? Who the hell knows what she’s capable of, Quinn reminds them, after all, she almost shot Brittany out a cannon junior year. Sue could ship their moms off to some deserted island or frame them for tax fraud or waterboard them or all kinds of crazy shit.

‘’I’m not handing over this Hermes bag so Sue can puke in it during plane rides,’’ Santana declares.

‘’She has our moms, Santana,’’ Brittany urges.

‘’Look, I got you back twice, didn’t I? I’ll get our moms back.’’

‘’Yeah but what were you up against? Tina? Quinn? No offense, ladies, but you never stood a chance. But Sue? She’s like a legit Disney villian, Santana.’’

Thus begins ANOTHER trek through the mall, this one takes them through employees only section, security camera rooms and air vents. Like all of the action movie tropes, but in this instance played for laughs and all taking place in a shopping mall. Eventually it all leads to a big showdown on the mall rooftop where Sue is leaning into the villian role, even going so far as to tie up Maribel and Whitney to chairs and putting bags over their heads.

‘’Tweedledee, Tweedle fakeboobs, you’ve arrived,’’ Sue greets them.

‘’Here’s the damn bag now let our moms go.’’ Santana tosses the bag in Sue’s direction like this is some kind of mob pay off or drug deal.

Sue inspects the bag and then nudges the moms up and our of their chairs, the moms blindly walk towards their daughters. Lots of hugging and embracing as they work to release Maribel and Whitney of their blindfolds and hand restraints. All the while Sue stands tall, observing the tiny dots of people exiting the building with shopping bags in tow. She has a long and ridiculous spiel about consumerism, american greed, materialism and such. ‘’Look at those unwashed idiots, screaming and trampling and stabbing each other and for what? Big screen TVs and seventy five percent off of mom jeans at Old Navy. Have they no sanctity for the holiday? Then again this holiday is based on a false narrative to erase the very real pillaging and destruction of a native culture so perhaps this…’’ she makes a wave to the barbiac acts and people below them. ‘’...is very much in line with what the holiday represents. Either way, I’m off to spend the next two weeks on my private island so I have a plane to catch and a bag to vomit into. Always a pleasure, Lopez, Pierce.’’

And with that Sue zooms off - taken away by some helicopter that swoops in and scoops her up and all of them are like ‘what the hell’ cause where the hell did the helicopter come from. It’s no matter because they start their way back down off the roof and into the mall. Their all a little worse for wear, some have limps or bruises or small injuries from the evening’s events but they all survived Black Friday at least. Wearily they go down and collect their belongings from where they had hidden/stored them earlier before all the action went down and slowly they FINALLY make their way out of the mall after several hours inside.

The four women enter the Pierce minivan, injured and disheveled. Santana’s father and Brittany’s father jointly turn in their seats.

‘’You girls have fun with your shopping? You get any good deals?’’ Pierce Pierce asks.

‘’I think my ear is broken. Can ears be broken? I got punched in the ear earlier and it feels broken to me,’’ Santana states dryly and to no one in particular.

‘’Honey,’’ Maribel sighs to her husband in the driver’s seat. ‘’Just get us home.’’

Cut to later that night (or technically it’d be the wee hours of the morning, since they start Black Friday shopping at midnight, so when they arrive home it’d be 3 or 4am). Whitney and Pierce have retired to their home. Maribel and Santana’s father have gone to bed as well. Santana and Brittany are in Santana’s old bedroom. Brittany has stitched Santana’s little scraps and bruises up as they prepare for bed.

‘’I’m sorry we all got kidnapped so much tonight,’’ Brittany says.

‘’Babe, it’s not your fault.’’

‘’I know but I feel like me being there got in the way of you and your mom doing your thing, you know?’’

‘’I mean, Black Friday shopping has been a mother-daughter tradition for us since forever, but you’re my family, Britt, that means you’re a part of all the traditions now too, if you want to take part. Although I’m guessing after tonight you’ll never want to go Black Friday shopping with us again.’’

‘’What, are you kidding? If you ask me tonight was a blast! I mean yeah I was a little worried when Sue took our moms for a second but it was also kind of cool, the four of us being a family and doing family things. Like battling the crowds and all of the insanity was a lot but it was also kind of fun. Plus, it was super hot how you got all take chargey and came to rescue me.’’

‘’Hot huh?’’

‘’Totally hot. All that smoldering and chest-heaving…’’ Brittany makes a show of fanning her face.

Santana does her bashful thing but relishes the attention and the kisses and affection Brittany lays on her.

‘’But it also meant a lot to see that you would go to the end of the earth for each of us, all of us and that’s really what this season is all about,’’ Brittany continues, hugging and smooching on Santana. ‘’Family.’’

Cut to a month later. Thanksgiving and Black Friday have passed. Brittany and Santana are once again back in Lima with their families to celebrate Christmas. Everyone is happy and enjoying themselves but Santana’s a little sad she couldn’t give her mother the beautiful rare handbag she had wanted. Maribel waves her daughter off, yes they lost the bag but it doesn’t matter. They still have their tradition and their bond, and now they get to share the experience every single year with Brittany and Whitney now too.

‘’As wild as it was that night, it’s also felt like an adventure with those two along for the ride. I may not have a purse or any material thing to show for the experience but that doesn’t matter. The experience was a gift in itself. Now I have another daughter, now you have another mother, that makes this mother-daughter tradition we have even more wonderful. Plus it means we have an extra two pairs of hands so it’s easier to loot stores.’’

Insert some sweet brief exchanges between Brittany, Santana, Whitney and Maribel who have bonded over the hell that was the first annual Lopez-Pierce Black Friday Shopping Extravaganza.

...

There would be lots of little details and kinks to work out, not to mention a ton of interaction between Santana-Whitney, Whitney-Maribel, Maribel-Brittany in between all of the running around. The characters would have to be moving through the mall constantly and, it would be a lot. Also I don’t know if anyone has noticed but I tend to write things that are very contained. Bachelorette takes place in the span of one night, so does You Instead, IWLTM takes place over the course of one summer. I have this habit of containing the characters either within a space of time or in a specific physical area or both and making that work is always a tricky thing. I just didn’t feel like creating another sprawling fic like that so, I opted for something a little more simple.

I doubt I’ll ever use this Black Friday fic idea but I feel like if I ever had the time to devote to it, it would be a fun and hilarious ride. I wish I could take you readers on it, but, I hope you got a chuckle out of this maybe?

Anyways, if you go Black Friday shopping, be safe and don’t get kidnapped! :)

#brittana #santana lopez #brittany s. pierce #i'll never write this but imagine the comedic possibilites!