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eddiemunsons80sbaby · 7 months

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Everybody Hurts

Chapter 7

Pairing: EddieMunsonxReader

Summary: You needed to escape, escape from your life, your messy divorce, and all the pitying looks. Looks you couldn't ignore when everyone in town had known you and Cam, had known your shame and failure. So, you took the first job you could get, teaching third grade in a town called Hawkins. Little did you know, you were walking right into another messy situation, a messy situation with big brown eyes and long dark waves. But he's resistant, at times unbearable and you start getting curious about the town's past, his past, especially when things don't start adding up.

18+ Only for eventual smut

Next chapter: 10/11

Word Count: 5.7K

Masterlist

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Posting today because my daughter's birthday is tomorrow. We have family coming over right after work and I don't want to forget.

“Hey Lance, can you wait just a moment? I’d like to have a word with you,” you called out as the dismissal bell rang and your class leapt from their seats, backpacks on, ready and eager to get out the door and seize what was left of this beautiful day.

Lance, sandy haired, blue eyed bully that he was trudged toward your desk with clear annoyance on his face. In your eight years of teaching, you had never met a child you didn’t like. Sure, some of them were tougher than others but a lot of times it was simply because they needed some love and attention or they were struggling due to a learning disability and their frustration came out as misbehavior. Sometimes it was a struggle to control their big emotions and they would have to work through various coping strategies, learning the proper way to handle those big feelings raging in their small bodies.

You’d always been good at building relationships with kids, letting them know how much you cared about them, that you were on their side, and you wanted them to do well. You were skilled at getting to the bottom of the behavior so they could be successful whether that meant lunches with you so the kid could talk things out or tutoring after school so they could become proficient with the skills they were missing. It was something you took pride in, the thing you felt was most important about the job you’d chosen.

No. You had never not liked a student before but Lance, he was pushing it. He was so damn hard to like and that made you feel uneasy. It gave you that sick, twisted feeling in your stomach. What kind of teacher didn’t like all of their students? What kind of human didn’t like a child? Because that was what he was at the end of the day. Yes, he was mean. He was a bully. But he was still just a boy and you couldn’t stop trying to reach him no matter if it felt like slamming your head against a wall.

“Yeah Ms. Campbell?” he asked, his tone meant to convey to you that he was bored with this conversation already and would like nothing more than to be done with it so he could leave. “Whatever it is, you better hurry. My dad is going to be waiting for me outside and he’s going to be mad if I’m not out there.”

“I am sure Mr. Johnson will understand that I needed a minute to talk to you,” you assured him, but you weren’t actually sure of that.

Mr. Johnson seemed to think his time was far more valuable than anyone else’s as evidenced by the way he kept glancing at his watch last month when you’d met about Lance’s behavior that hadn’t yet changed. It was apparent in the way he’d dismissed his behavior as just ‘boys will be boys.’ The very reminder of that conversation made you cringe. There was nothing worse than a father who wanted to perpetuate the stereotype that cruelty and violence were okay, that being a boy was a valid excuse for being a bully.

“You know, we have talked multiple times about the way you speak to and treat Charlie. It’s unacceptable, Lance. This classroom is a safe space for every child who walks through that door and you’re not making this a safe space for him.”

“Why should I?” he snorted with a roll of his eyes. “Charlie’s nothing but a freak and everyone knows it.”

As soon as he said that word, you felt your face flush hot with anger. It was like a volcano buried in the depths of your soul was suddenly brought to the surface, threatening to erupt all over this child. Eddie’s face as he spat that word, as he stated that was how the whole town saw him, flashed before your eyes and you had to remind yourself that you were speaking to a nine year old. This kid was not speaking about Eddie but you refused to allow another child to grow up with the same tormented look in their eyes, the same armor coating them to keep them safe from the hateful words spat by ignorant people.

You closed your eyes, inhaling slowly while mentally counting to ten. You had never raised your voice at a student before and you had no intention of starting now, no matter how frustrating Lance was. You were the adult here and you were going to act like it. You were not going to lose your temper no matter how badly you wanted to. Opening your eyes, you plastered a smile on your face, folded your hands on your desk, and decided to try again.

“Lance, that is not a kind word and it is not one that I want to hear in my classroom ever again. Just because someone is different from you does not make them a freak. Charlie has the right to feel comfortable in his learning space and I will not have you making him uncomfortable anymore. If you continue to do so, then I am afraid that I will have to…”

“Then maybe he shouldn’t dress like that and maybe he should cut his hair if he doesn’t want people calling him a freak. He brings it on himself,” snorted Lance, cutting you off. “My dad says freaks are asking for it. He says we have to put them in their place or they can hurt people like that freak did when he was in high school.”

“What are you talking about?” you asked, completely baffled by this abrupt shift in conversation. Mr. Johnson had to have been in high school at least ten years ago. What did that have to do with the conversation you were having today?

“Eddie Munson,” the boy spat, his eyes flashing with a rage he shouldn’t even be capable of at only nine years old. Rage for a man he couldn’t possibly even know. Rage that made your blood run cold. You’d never seen such hatred in a child’s eyes before.

You were stunned, struggling to process the name this child had just spat out. Eddie hurt people? Sure, he could be a jerk. He could be angry and surly and unpleasant to be around but you couldn’t see him hurting people. It didn’t make any sense and why would a student in your class even know about something like that? Your heart gave a painful tug at the very idea that Eddie was capable of harming another person because it couldn’t be true. What was this kid talking about?

“How do you know Eddie?”

“Everybody in Hawkins knows Eddie. He’s the psycho freak killer who got off without being punished because the chief likes him. He killed my dad’s friends and he never went to jail,” Lance hissed at you, his small fists clenched at his sides, making you feel uneasy in a way you never had before. “Charlie has long hair, he wears shirts with all those satanic bands on them, and he plays that evil game just like Eddie. I’m just making sure he knows that I know exactly what he is and I won’t let him hurt anybody like Eddie did.”

“Killed…no…that can’t be right. Lance, I think you’re confused. You’ve heard things and you twisted them. I don’t think you know what you’re talking about,” you insisted.

“I know exactly what I’m talking about,” Lance shot back confidently. “You can ask anyone in this town. Everyone knows what he did. Everyone knows he’s a murderer.”

He snatched up his backpack from the floor and began heading out of the classroom. You couldn’t just let him go but your brain was struggling to form words, to rationalize what you should say, to grasp the enormity of what this kid had just dumped on you. You scrambled, trying to come up with something to turn this around, to make him see that he couldn’t possibly be correct because this couldn’t be true. It just couldn’t.

“Lance, we’re not done talking,” you called out finally but he was already gone.

Eddie? Eddie killed people? No. There was no way. Lance had seemed absolutely convinced but could you believe some nine year old who had clearly inherited his dad’s high school grudges? Perhaps he’d just overheard a conversation and misinterpreted the information. Kids did that all the time but the rage and hatred that was on that little boy’s face had been positively terrifying. You were definitely going to need to keep a really close eye on the situation with Charlie.

You’d thought it had been simple childhood antics, a boy who was pushing the limits to see how far he could go or a misunderstood hatred based on lack of personal connection, but this was something far deeper. This was something that had been spurred on by his father who was holding onto an ugly hatred that ran deep. Lance seemed to think he was on a mission to keep the town safe from someone dangerous. He was determined and absolutely convinced that Charlie could become a monster of some kind. It could turn nasty really fast if you weren't careful. You would have to sit down with the principal and let him know what was going on, maybe get the boys to see the counselor together to see if they could work out their issues before something happened that couldn’t be taken back, couldn’t be fixed.

Poor little Charlie. You knew that his dad was in a band. He loved to tell you about sitting in on their practices. He was even learning how to play the drums just like his dad. Music was vital in their home. It was life. That was why he was always wearing heavy metal shirts. He was emulating his dad, like most boys his age, because he adored his dad, idolized him.

His dad also played DnD. You knew this because Charlie loved to talk about his dad and his friends teaching him, about how he was developing his own character and soon they were going to let him sit in on campaigns. It was all he’d talked about at recess earlier, choosing to sit with you instead of running around the playground after Lance had embarrassed him yet again. You’d sent Lance into the office but the damage had been done and Charlie didn’t have the heart to keep on playing like a carefree kid when he was anything but. You were determined to stop this from continuing. You would not watch this sweet child have his spirit shattered by some mean bully.

You despised people who judge others based on how they looked or the things that brought them joy. Jesus, it was just a game, some silly, nerdy game that hurt no one. And who cared what kind of music anyone listened to? Would Mr. Johnson tell his son to put you in your place if he knew you enjoyed listening to heavy metal on occasion? There was nothing that felt better when you were angry than cranking up some head banging riffs and losing yourself in the fury and passion of a metal song. Maybe you should show up to work in your Black Sabbath shirt and see if Lance had anything to say to you, see what Mr. Johnson thought, if he had the guts to bully you.

But this revelation about Eddie had your stomach twisted in knots, nervous you were going to lose the apple and cashews you’d had for afternoon snack. You’d been alone with him twice now. If he was some monster wouldn’t he have tried something? He’d had the perfect opportunity. He’d had you in his van, alone. And yeah, the group knew you were with him after the bonfire but no one had known you were with him a couple days ago when you had gone to look at his uncle’s car. He could have driven you anywhere, done anything he’d wanted to you. He was strong. You hadn’t been able to push him away from your bike. He could have overpowered you easily and played innocent when you were proclaimed missing. If he’d gotten away with it once, why wouldn’t he do it again?

Brown eyes, dark with anger, appeared in your mind, an icy shiver trailing along your spine. But they were quickly replaced with the way they melted when the two of them were talking about music, the way they looked wounded when you’d insisted he hated you, the way they crinkled in the corners when you got that rare smile out of him. You just couldn’t picture that man doing something so awful.

But you didn’t know him, not really. You’d only met him a few days ago so how could you be so sure? And why the hell did it bother you so much to think he wasn’t a good guy? He was just a guy, a guy you’d met through other people, a guy who’d been rude and condescending to you. But he was also a guy who’d driven you home from the lake and waited to make sure you’d gotten in okay, who’d reached out to help you find a car knowing you needed one, who offered to fix it for you. The two sides of him were so contradictory.

The simple answer, the smart solution to all of this, would be to just stay away from him, avoid him completely. No point in taking chances if he could be dangerous. It was what you should be doing anyway but you didn’t want to. And yes, it would make hanging out with the rest of his friends hard, people you’d come to adore already if you refused to be around him, but you also couldn’t stand the thought of never seeing him again. Those dark messy waves, those big doe eyes, those lips that were as plush as a pillow. You couldn’t bear the thought of never making him laugh again, never making that smile break through the storm that was hovering just behind it.

Shit. You had to know what the hell was going on in this damn town. You were so tired of all this cryptic bullshit. You shoved your stuff into your backpack quickly, locked up your classroom, and raced out to your bike. There was some kind of dark secret in this town, skeletons in the closet that haunted this place and your new friends and you were going to figure out what it was.

__________________________________________________________

You stuffed your bike into the rack and raced up the steps of the Hawkins Library, determined to find answers to the questions that had been bubbling within you since the bonfire. A nagging sensation, like something was just beyond your reach, something you could grab if you could just stretch your arm a bit further consumed you. You felt driven to chase it, to pursue it, to look under every single rock if you had to. Like if you could just find this answer, you could make it all make sense, you could crack the enigma that was Eddie. You could understand what was going on with your new friends, possibly even help them somehow.

“Back again?” asked Marissa, the librarian, glancing up from her desk over those horn rimmed glasses. “Did you already read your books? If you liked them, I would be more than happy to recommend some other reads for you.”

“No, actually, I was wondering if I could have the key to the archives?” you asked carefully, not wanting to make her suspicious. You didn’t know why. You had every right to look in the public archives. That’s what they were there for. “You know, I’m new here and I’m curious about the town. I just wanted to do some research about the local history of this place, have a look at old news articles and stuff? If that’s okay?”

Marissa’s lips pressed together, her eyes glancing down quickly as she removed her glasses, allowing them to rest against her chest as they hung from the chain, “Ahh, so I am guessing you’ve started to hear all the stories, huh?”

“Stories?”

“Well, most people don’t want to comb through the archives of some small, boring town so I assume you have a reason. I am guessing you’ve heard about the murders ten years ago? It was awful. This whole place lost its mind, bunch of vigilantes out in the streets ready to hang that poor Munson kid.” Marissa sighed, shaking her head. “Chief Powell had a difficult time trying to keep everyone in line. There are still people around here who think that kid did it. You know, he was different, not what people in Hawkins could understand so they condemned him immediately, guilty without a trial. But I never believed it. His uncle used to bring him in here when he was younger and he was always sweet as pie to me. He would just devour books. I was always trying to find new things for him. He was hard to resist with those big old brown eyes. He loved fantasy books, anything with dragons and magic and far off places. I think he just needed an escape. Poor thing had a hard time of it, growing up with his dad going to jail and his mom ODing.”

You gasped, the sound far louder than you’d meant it to be, echoing throughout the library. A sudden pain tore at your heart, crushed by those words, every breath feeling like a struggle to fill your lungs completely. That was why he lived with his uncle. No wonder it had been such a sore topic for him. No wonder he’d gotten so angry when you’d asked about it. You ached for that sweet little boy who had been through more pain and trauma at such a young age than most experienced in their entire lifetime but had it made him into a killer?

“So, if you don’t think it was Eddie, who do you think did it?” you asked, your voice wavering on each syllable as you struggled to gain control of your faculties.

Marissa shrugged, “I don’t know for sure. Nobody does. Chief Hopper came back and saved the day. We all thought he’d died in a mall fire the year before but he’d been concussed from the blast when the propane from the gas grills in the restaurants exploded inside. He didn’t know who he was and wandered around, winding up in some other town or something until his memory came back? That’s what we were told anyway. I don’t know. None of it really made sense to me but everyone was so relieved to see him, it didn’t really matter. So anyway, he came back, took back his place as chief, and he cleared the Munson kid within a week. Made a lot of enemies that day, let me tell you. The town is fairly split where Eddie’s concerned. But if you’re asking my opinion, I think it was that Carver kid. He died in the earthquake but he had a gun and threatened poor Lucas Sinclair and Max Mayfield. I think he lost his damn mind and went on a killing spree. I mean his girlfriend was the first victim which is pretty fishy. And she was found in Eddie’s trailer. I’ve always wondered if her and Eddie had something going on that they were keeping secret and that kid found out about it and just snapped. I’m telling you something was up with that boy but that’s just my opinion. Some people turned that boy into a martyr but I never did like him. He was always a bully, thinking he was so much better than everyone else around here and he made that Munson boy’s life a living hell from the time Eddie moved to Hawkins. Never passed up a chance to throw a cheap shot his way if he could or have that awful Andy hold him down so he could get in a few punches.”

A mall fire? An earthquake in Indiana? A police chief who died but came back with a story of memory loss? A young boy who disappeared, they had a funeral for because they found some other unidentified boy in the quarry, but he came back too? A girl dying from exposure to toxic chemicals? A bunch of unexplained murders? A group of raccoons going rabid enough to attack and leave a man scarred? This was all completely unbelievable, like some movie plot for a government conspiracy story or some teenage dystopian novel about an apocalypse. You needed to get into those archives because none of this was adding up to anything that made any sense.

“But if you want to read about it for yourself, here you go,” Marissa told you, pulling a key off a hook in front of her and holding it out. “Just a bit of warning, the murders were pretty gruesome. The pictures are hard to look at. It was…” She shuddered, closing her eyes against the images she’d brought up for herself. “It was like something out of a horror movie. I don’t know how a human being could do something like that.”

You swallowed hard, squeaking out a small thank you as you took the keys from Marissa. As you made your way down into the basement you began to second guess yourself. Was this really a good idea? Maybe ignorance would be better. What you didn’t know couldn’t hurt you. What if what you found was awful? What if what you found gave you no choice but to leave Hawkins and start all over again? To leave the new friends you’d found, the new job you loved, to leave Eddie?

You knew it shouldn’t matter. You barely knew any of these people but you already felt a gaping hole where they should be at the thought of losing any of them. You felt a gnawing ache, a dull pain that stretched across your chest at the idea that you might never actually get through those defenses of Eddie’s because everything in you told you that underneath all of that armor was a guy worth knowing. There was no way all of those people would still hang with him, be loyal, stand by him if he wasn’t. That was why these allegations seemed insane to you.

You looked through the small cards, relieved to find you were alone. You didn’t need anyone else seeing what you were doing and asking questions. You were going to need to use the microfiche. A small town like Hawkins hadn’t quite jumped on the internet bandwagon yet. Big city libraries had them but the internet hadn’t quite made its way everywhere just yet. You and Cam had just gotten a computer before the divorce and having access to all that information had been intoxicating. You’d lost yourself for hours just exploring the world wide web.

Marissa had said the murders happened ten years ago so that would have been 1986. You figured you would start in January and work your way forward. You grabbed all the cards from that year, placed the first one in, and began scrolling through articles, not finding much at first. It was all the normal small town news. Lots of articles about the Hawkins Tigers basketball team having a stellar season. Clearly high school sports were a big deal in this town. There was a headline about a llama loose in the town and how no one seemed to know where it had come from. There was an article about town speed limit signs going missing. Nothing that screamed murder town.

Then you hit the end of March and there it was, Local girl found dead in Forest Hills trailer park. Your eyes moved left to right, devouring the entire article as quickly as you could, hungry and anxious to make some sense out of any of this.

In tragic news, Hawkins High student and beloved cheerleader, Chrissy Cunningham, was found dead at Forest Hills Trailer Park last night. The police are not releasing any details at this time, saying only that they are investigating and interviewing those close to her. We spoke to Chrissy’s close friend, Becky Jenkins, who was grief stricken at the news.

“Chrissy is, like, the kindest person ever. Everyone loved her. I don’t know who would want to hurt her. Who would do something like this to Chrissy? She’d never hurt anyone. And it doesn’t make sense. Why would she be at that trailer park? She doesn’t hang out with anyone who lives there, none of us do.”

As to why Chrissy was at Forest Hills the night of her murder, that answer remains unclear. A source within the coroner’s office informed us that her murder was quite gruesome. He has never seen anything like this in his career. Her limbs were snapped, her jaw broken, and her eyes had been cut out of her head. With this disturbing news, Hawkins is sounding more like Haddonfield. Could we have our own bogeyman wandering our streets?

You sat back, swallowing down the bile that had collected in your mouth. Limbs snapped? Eyes cut out? Jesus Christ, the person who did this was absolutely sadistic. There was a picture of Chrissy in her cheerleading uniform at a basketball game, a huge smile on her face. She was so pretty. She looked so sweet. Who could possibly do something like that to this girl? Your heart broke at the thought of the life this girl would never get to live, a life cut short, far too short in such a violent way. There was no mention of Eddie. You scrolled through until you came across another headline, another murder.

Another horrifying murder has hit our quiet town. Fred Benson, another Hawkins High student who worked on the school paper, has been brutally slaughtered. Him and another school reporter, Nancy Wheeler, were at Forest Hills trailer park. They informed an officer that they were checking on their friend who lived there, which was why officers let them through the barricade.

At some point later that night, Nancy noticed that Fred had gone missing and informed the officers who had been under the impression that the two teens had already vacated the premises. They began to search for him, finding his body in the middle of the road just outside of the woods. His injuries were identical to those of Chrissy Cunningham’s, limbs snapped, jaw broken, eyes gone. Is it possible our town is becoming the victim of a serial killer who is just beginning their spree of violence?

Nancy’s name jumped out at you from the sea of words on the screen. So Nancy knew one of the victims and had been with him right before he was murdered. Could the friend they were visiting in Forest Hills be Eddie? Still no mention of him in the article. If the police suspected him at this point, they were keeping it close to the vest. You didn’t have to scroll very far to find more. The very next headline was another murder.

Lock your doors and don’t venture out after dark Hawkins residents. It’s official. We have a serial killer loose in Hawkins. The murder of Patrick McKinney makes three in just three days. Police received a frantic call from the home of Rick Lipton, which has been abandoned since the drug dealer was sentenced to time in prison.

Upon their arrival, they found Jason Carver kneeling in the sand, cradling the body of his friend whose injuries were horrifyingly identical to the two previous murders. Mr. Carver told an outlandish story about demon possession, saying his friend floated in the air before his bones snapped and his eyes burst. It leaves this reporter to wonder if the trauma he has experienced with murder of his girlfriend and one of his best friends has caused him to lose touch with reality.

The police are currently looking for Eddie Munson who Jason Carver told them was present at the scene of the crime. He is considered a person of interest and wanted for questioning. It has now been revealed that the body of Chrissy Cunningham was found in his trailer only lending to the suspicion of his involvement in these horrific deaths.

As this town already knows, this would not be Eddie Munson’s first run-in with the law. It has also been brought to our attention that he currently leads a cult, called Hellfire, that he has been initiating young freshmen into. Could he be murdering these victims in some twisted satanic ritual? Chief Powell will be holding a meeting at town hall tonight to answer questions and hopefully shed some light onto this very dark situation.

The chair skid across the floor as you jumped back and up, as if you could distance yourself from this information you wished you didn’t know. Why had you gone digging? Why hadn’t you left it alone? The cheerleader was found in his trailer? Was it the same one you’d sat in, just yesterday, with him and his uncle? Had you been sitting in the same place where a girl had been brutally tortured and murdered? Had you been sitting across from the guy who’d done it?

And what was with this Jason guy saying his friend floated up in the air? Like he just hung up there and his bones broke and his eyes disintegrated without anyone touching him? Was the guy disassociating, losing his mind like the journalist thought? It was possible. That was a lot of loss to process in such a short amount of time, his girlfriend and one of his best friends within days of each other. And not just a death, the most gruesome and horrific death imaginable? Could his mind have twisted what he saw, trying to make it more tolerable? But Marissa had thought Jason was the killer? Was that possible? Was he fabricating stories, planting seeds, to get people’s eyes off him? And what better scapegoat than the guy the town already saw as the outsider?

You inhaled slowly and sat back down. There were more articles and you read every single one, searching for anything that would show Eddie’s innocence. One focused entirely on Eddie, but it wasn’t a positive one, all about the Hellfire Club that he was apparently the leader of. The town appeared to think it was some kind of cult that worshiped Satan and did rituals sacrificing virgins or something.

You flashed back to the eighties, the height of the Satanic Panic that you remembered all too well. Headline after headline about these demon worshiping freaks who played a game that promoted ritual sacrifice, murder, and, gasp, homosexuality. Those poor kids that got accused of that young girl’s murder, just like Eddie. Presumed guilty with no actual proof. People would come up with any kind of bullshit to demonize what they didn’t like or understand. Heaven forbid they actually educate themselves or try to have an ounce of tolerance for anyone who was different from them, who didn’t fit in their little Stepford Wives neighborhoods.

Another article talked about the earthquake that rocked the town shortly after the murders. Massive fissures straight down the middle of the road, the library destroyed, over twenty people dead. It had been believed that Eddie had died in the earthquake but then a month later, there was another article about Chief Hopper’s miraculous return. Quickly following was Eddie’s return from the grave as the Chief cleared his name, claiming Eddie had solid alibis for each of the murders. A lot of people rose from the dead in this place.

There was also an article about Max Mayfield’s miraculous recovery, waking from a coma, after a close call with the Hawkins serial killer. Her broken bones healed after multiple surgeries. She had regained most of her sight but her eyes were forever scarred from the trauma of her close call with a violent madman. That definitely explained the sunglasses that she wore all the time. However, there was no explanation as to how she had escaped this crazed murderer or who it was.

It was like being inside of a tornado, the thoughts swirling violently through your head. Everything was spinning, moving, filing in, but none of it was making any sense. This did not add up. Your brain was working overtime to make all of this information fit into a logical picture but you couldn’t. Had the town of Hawkins really bought this crock of shit? These explanations were weak, full of holes. How had this town just gone on with their lives and accepted these flimsy explanations? You felt like you had more questions than answers.

You knew where she was going to start to find some answers though. Nancy’s name had been right there in bold, black print. She’d been at one of the murder sites. She’d personally known one of the victims. Your new friend knew a lot more than what she was sharing and you intended to find out exactly what that was.

You knew you couldn’t call her tonight. They were all at Eddie’s weekly gig with his band at The Hideout. Max had tried to call you last night to invite you but you’d politely declined, needing a break from him and his constant mood swings. Needing a break from your intensifying feelings for him too. Besides, you were pretty sure he wouldn’t be amused if you showed up. If he’d wanted you there, he would have invited you himself and you weren't holding your breath for that invitation.

But tomorrow after work, you were going to get to the bottom of this. You would show up on Nancy’s doorstep and demand that she tell you what in the hell was going on. You needed answers. You weren't going to rest until you found out exactly what had happened in this town a decade ago. Because one thing was obvious, the events of the past were still haunting this place and the people who lived here today.

Chapter 8

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cosmicanamnesis · 1 year

Text

everybody loves a coffeeshop au pt. 3

[part 1] [part 2] [part 4] [read on ao3]

October 11th

"I have returned with spoils!" Eddie announced, carefully pulling the door of the tattoo parlor open as he balanced six drinks in his arms, using his chin to keep them from moving around too much. He was immediately rushed by the receptionist, Barb, who held the door open and took the top drink carrier from him to lighten the load. "Thanks, B."

"No problem," she smiled.

"One of those is yours," Eddie nodded as they set all the drinks on the front desk.

"The one with the teabag in it?"

"Oh, I would imagine," Eddie grabbed the large latte and moved it over to the other drink carrier to run everyone else their drinks.

"Ed-man! Thanks bro, sorry to make you do the caffeine run again," Argyle, his boss, yelled as Eddie made his rounds.

"Hey, it's no problem. I gotta do something while I'm here," Eddie dispersed the drinks to everyone, giving Argyle his weird fancy latte thing first.

He'd been officially working with the Three of Cups crew for all of nine and a half hours and he'd already done the coffee run twice. He was newer than their other apprentice, whom he had apparently relieved of this particular duty.

Yesterday it was whatever, he expected to be doing menial work before he actually got to learn or practice anything. Today was… different.

"Hey, Barb, question," Eddie said, sliding back up to the front desk and pulling his hot chocolate out of the carrier.

"Hm?" Barb hummed, sipping her drink.

"The baristas at the Waystation. You know any of them?"

"Not personally. Why?" Eddie leaned against the desk and sipped his hot chocolate. It tasted better yesterday. "Eddie, you're blushing."

"Hm? Am I?" Eddie felt his cheeks with the back of his hand. Sure enough, his face was very warm. Barb laughed.

"Is there a cute barista over there or something?" she giggled.

"Yeah… Or something." This time Eddie could feel his face flush.

"What's her name?"

"His name, um… Oh my god, I don't know. I didn't catch it."

"Well," Barb said, laughing hard. "I'm sure they'll send you back out tomorrow."

Eddie looked forward to the caffeine run every single day after that.

October 15th

"His name is Steve," Eddie said as Barb held the door open for him.

"Steve, huh? That's a pretty boring name for the alleged single prettiest man you've ever seen," Barb said, putting air quotes around the last part.

"God, he's so hot, B." They had started developing a regular dance with the coffee order, Eddie going around delivering drinks to their owners and coming back up to the desk to gossip with Barb for a minute. This time, she was on the phone when he got back up to the front.

"Yep, you are all confirmed. Ah huh. Yup, no problem. Mhm, bye." She hung up the phone and turned to Eddie, pushing her glasses up. "Okay, I'll bite. Describe him."

"I'll do you one better," Eddie smiled, digging his phone out of his pocket. He fiddled with it for a minute and passed it to her.

"Eddie,” she scolded, taking his phone. “You snuck a pic- oh my god."

"Right?"

"No. Oh my god. Eddie, do you know his last name?"

"Are you kidding? I barely know his first name."

"Fair. But I'm pretty sure this is Nancy's high school ex."

"You're fucking joking. No way."

"I promise you I would not lie about this. Hang on. Send me this picture, I'll ask her."

Eddie hadn't met Nancy yet, but he'd heard about her. She was Argyle's boyfriend's other partner, and she and Argyle were "the very best of bros" according to him. Barb was Nancy's… Something. Eddie wasn't sure, given the situation, if they were romantically involved or just long-time best friends, and he didn't feel like he was in a position to ask. Either way, it was this game of relationship telephone that had Barb working as the receptionist at Argyle's tattoo parlor.

He did as she asked and sent her the picture of Steve. It was a nice picture, Eddie had to admit. He wasn't a photographer by any means, but it was a clear side profile of Steve prepping espresso shots. It was probably the nicest picture he'd ever taken of anyone.

Barb, still staring at her phone, started tapping the desk to get his attention.

"I knew it! She says yes, that's Steve and yes, he's bisexual so go ahead and shoot your shot."

Eddie almost choked on his hot chocolate.

"Woah, B, I think you might both be jumping the gun there," he said, clearing his throat. Barb set her phone down and looked at him incredulously.

"Please, Eddie, you practically had hearts in your eyes when you came in."

"I- I did not," Eddie stuttered, face growing warmer with every passing second. Barb was just staring at him, one eyebrow cocked.

"Okay, Eddie, sure."

November 18th

"I literally have no idea what's happening." Eddie had done the coffee run basically every day for a month and every signal he got from Steve was contradictory to the last.

"Do tell," Barb asked. Nancy was standing behind the desk with her today, just visiting. Eddie had met both her and Jonathan a few times by this point, and god he was glad she was there today.

"I don't get it. He is always the one taking our order. And I keep thinking I catch him looking at me, but he never says anything! And I think he might be dating one of his coworkers? They're like, weirdly friendly with each other. But then he smiles at me like… I dunno. And sometimes he'll grab the door for me if they aren't busy… Nance. Level with me. What the fuck is he doing?"

"Well," Nancy laughed. "I'm pretty sure he isn't dating anybody right now, but I haven't actually talked to him myself in years so I could be wrong. If he's flirting with you, he's being very subtle… Maybe he's worried that you're straight! It's not like you go around waving a pride flag or anything."

Eddie thought for a minute, holding his cup to his lips but not actually drinking from it.

"I mean, okay, that's fair. What do I do? Barb, how can I make myself look more gay?"

Barb stared at him for a long moment, flicking her gaze over all of him that she could see from her side of the reception desk.

"Hang on," she said, getting up and sliding past Nancy, heading back to the break room. Eddie and Nancy shared a moment of confusion while Barb was gone. She came back a minute later and walked right up to Eddie, pinning something to his vest.

"Oh, yeah, that might do it," Nancy nodded.

"What? What did you just put on me?" Eddie pulled at his vest, looking for the new pin.

"Pronoun pin," Barb said, tapping on it. Sure enough, there was a small red button with He/Him in white lettering sitting amongst the rest of his collection.

"Why did you have this?" Eddie laughed.

"I volunteer at the Pride center at the college. I've got every pronoun you've ever heard of and probably some you haven't on a pin in my backpack."

"Huh. Alright."

"It might take a while for him to notice," Nancy warned. "If he really has been checking you out, maybe sooner rather than later, but be patient with him. He had a couple concussions in high school."

"A couple?"

"Yeah. Sports, and he got into a lot of fights."

"Lost a lot of fights," Barb corrected.

"I mean. I think he won… one or two, maybe, but yeah."

It took almost no time at all, in fact, for Steve to notice the pin. A few days later, the next time Eddie's coffee run overlapped with Steve's shift, he caught Steve's eyes flick down to the pins on his chest while he dropped his change in the tip jar. Eddie tried to flash him his sweetest smile, but he wasn't exactly a naturally charming guy. Nevertheless, even though Steve kept up his streak of not saying anything, he could barely keep his eyes off Eddie to the point that he nearly burned himself cleaning the steam wand. Eddie politely pretended he didn't just watch the whole thing happen.

December 3rd

"He talked to me," Eddie said, almost shaking with excitement but determined not to drop anything.

"Oh yeah?" Barb smiled as they went through the routine.

"Yeah! Is it supposed to snow today?"

"What?"

"I- Okay, I promise it's related, hang on." Eddie had never handed everyone their drinks so fast. "I don't know what version of Steve Harrington you guys knew in school, but this Steve is kind of a dork."

"You say with all the love in your heart, I'm sure," Barb smiled, leaning back in her chair as Eddie came around to stand behind the desk with her. "I just checked. Yes, it's supposed to snow, but not till tonight."

"Steve says sooner."

"What, does he dabble in meteorology or something now?" Barb chuckled.

"Nah, he just asked if it was snowing yet because I guess all the early bird old people with trick knees have been bitching all morning."

"He talked to you… About the weather?"

"Yeah, see? Dork! But it was like, a whole conversation, and he started it!"

“Alright, a win is a win I suppose,” Barb shrugged as the phone began to ring. Eddie took that as his cue to actually go do his job.

About half an hour later, Barb spun around in her chair and yelled at him to get his attention.

"What?" Eddie looked up at her. She smiled, pointing out the front window as fat snowflakes started lazily drifting down.

"Snowing," she added, in case he didn't get the message.

"Well, I'll be damned…"

After that, making small talk with Steve seemed easier. It was never anything serious, always "how's your day" and such, but they were talking. To Eddie, talking to Steve felt as natural as breathing. It never felt awkward or embarrassing. Something about him just drew Eddie in. Steve has that effect on people, Nancy assured him.

December 15th

"Dude, I swear on my mother, if you don't ask him out, I will do it for you."

Eddie was lying on Gareth's bedroom floor telling him for the hundredth time about his crush on his regular barista. Gareth was sitting on his bed, trying in vain to do homework.

"It's not that simp-"

"Oh, shut the fuck up with the it's not that simple crap! It really is that simple! Give him your number, say you wanna hang out!"

"Oh, and what, bring him back to my house so Wayne can scare him off?"

"I don't know, go see a movie or something! Jesus, Ed, it's like you've never dated anyone before."

"I've never been the one doing the asking, no!"

"Oh my god you're gonna give me an aneurysm."

December 30th, Morning

Okay. This was it. Today was the day. He had a plan. He was gonna give Steve his number and invite him to the party. Easy peasy. Nothing was going to stop him.

Except Steve not being there.

Well, shit.

"How'd it go?" Barb asked, already at the door.

"It didn't," Eddie grumbled.

"What do you mean?"

"He wasn't there."

"What? Why? He's normally there on-"

"Yeah, B, I know. He wasn't there."

"I wonder if he's sick?"

"He seemed fine yesterday… Oh, great, thanks Barb, now I'm worried something happened to him."

"Sorry," Barb gave him a sympathetic smile and sipped her drink.

Eddie did his best to combat any anxious thoughts that came up during his shift and go about his day as normal.

"Eddie!" Barb yelled, almost a moment too late as Steve walked past the shop about halfway through Eddie's shift.

When Eddie looked up, Steve was backtracking, looking in the window directly at him. He flashed Eddie a smile that made his heart skip and waved before going, presumably, to the Waystation.

"Argyle, can I-"

"Hit him with your best shot, lover boy," Argyle said, holding a thumbs up to him from across the room, not looking away from the client in his chair. Eddie bolted immediately, grabbing his coat out of the back and rushing out the door.

He stopped just out of view of the coffee shop to steady his breathing. This was it. It had to be.

Alright, Munson, go time.

And oh god he actually flirted a little bit on purpose. Success.

Except, no. He was halfway back to the Three of Cups when he realized he forgot what he originally went in for. Shit.

When he finally got back to the tattoo parlor, he pressed his back to the front door, counting his breaths. Barb raised her eyebrows at him. He couldn't help it, he broke out into a grin that made his cheeks hurt and nodded at her, their silent conversation probably confusing the hell out of the clients waiting in the lobby.

He checked his phone once he'd shed his coat in the break room and found a text from an unknown number. He texted back right away and saved the contact.

my coffee guy<3

--------

appreciating all the love, guys <3 i am accepting title suggestions somebody please help (this will go up on ao3 once i have a name for it lmao sorry)

tagging: @original-cypher @avacrebs @dangdirtydemons @rainydays35 @changenamelater @phantypurple @alienace @renaissan-vvitch @krazyperson @dreammetheworld08 @steddiereid @kittsu-makes-glass @i-must-potato @jaywhohasthegay @steveisabicon @henderdads

#steddie #steddie ficlet #steddie fic #stranger things #steve harrington #eddie munson #i suck shit at tagging #also sorry to the two people whose tag links dont work for some reason?#dont know whats going on there #text

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specialagentlokitty · 2 months

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BAU headcannon: Reader who is Muslim and wears a Hijab

Please If your comfortable could you maybe write something where the BAU gets a new member who happens to be Muslim and wears a hijab, like what they would do or say if someone says something about it.... Or just in general how they would interact with her. - Anon💜

A/N: as I am not Muslim and I don’t know much about the culture or about wearing a hijab I’ve tried my best to write this as a headcannon, I hope it’s alright!

You’ll always be sure to get a warm welcome from Garcia, never fear because she’ll be happy to be your best friend from day one

Everybody else is happy to have a new helping hand on the team

The team, especially Hotch will try make any accommodations that you may need, especially for Muslim holidays

Thankfully Reid is well versed in many things, which means that he also knows exactly what to do in any kind of situation that may come up

There may be a lot of questions, the team don’t want to seem rude but they want to get to know as much about your religion as possible

At dinners, especially at Rossi’s you can be sure it is a 100% safe place and everything will be suitable for you

Undercover for whatever reason? Don’t worry you’ll always be paired with one of the ladies

They are extremely protective off you

They will not tolerate any discrimination against you

Someone’s says anything rude, offensive or racist? They’re ready to jump in

Derek is straight in front of you, telling whoever it is to start on him and see what happens

Emily is quick to shut them down, threatening them if she has to

JJ is right there beside Emily or Derek, ready to do whatever it takes to get this person away from you

Rossi is next to you, waiting for you to let him know he can jump in, he’ll be furious but he’ll follow your lead

Hotch is straight to getting ready to get this person fired, he doesn’t care about how far he has to dig in order to do it or how many heads he’s gotta go over

Reid isn’t much for confrontation but so help anybody who dares to speak ill to you, he will reign down hell of facts with some threats slipped in (and he’s already texted the whole team)

Garcia is immediately researching this person and any dirt on them she’s sending straight to your phone for you to use

After they’ll all check on you, make sure you’re okay and if they stepped out of line when defending you they will apologise

They know you can handle your own, but they don’t let any kid disrespect their family

They are all ready to join in on your holidays as well, learn about them and take part in them

They won’t make you take part in any holidays or events you don’t want to or can’t take part in

Rossi will learn to cook your dishes

Reid will learn how to speak and read your language so you aren’t alone (it wouldn’t surprise me if he already knows it though)

Garcia please oh please take her shopping with you, show her all your favourite outfits, show her EVERYTHING

JJ wants to know all about your home, your family, friends

They are all so down to go visit your family if you wanted them too, or come with you somewhere

You don’t feel comfortable going somewhere but need to go? Text anybody on the team and they’ll rock up so fast

They’re a huge family

Guess what?

You’re part of that family too

Oh and food

Please make them food, they’ll be so hyped to try your dishes

Be prepared for them wanted to help too, especially Rossi and Garcia

#criminal minds #criminal minds imagine #criminal minds x reader #criminal minds x you

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carsonsbackwardscap · 4 months

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What's the word again?

GIF by @storiesofsvu2-0

Alex Blake (x reader?) Summary: Alex finds out asexuality is a thing! Word Count: 1.818

author's note: asexual!Alex is my new roman empire. first time writting Alex so I'd really like to read your thoughts! not a lot of romance this time, but ther is some fluff. Alex and reader are sweet and I enjoyed writting this so there might be a ch2 idk.

What’s the word again?

Alex knows how to socialize. She’d learned the rules a long time ago; catalogued and memorized the expected behavior to each specific social situation as she handcrafted her own guidebook to human interactions. Some things changed here and there over the years, but mostly she did fine. Alex Blake knows how to socialize.

That doesn’t mean she has to like it.

She especially dislikes it when it comes to teenagers. Something about that particular age group always has her on edge, as if she’s about to get caught on a lie anytime. She’s not quite sure what she would be lying about, though.

Arguably, social interactions weren’t her strong suit, but she did just fine most of the time. Being so good with words certainly helped. The fact that she stopped caring so much about what other people thought of her helped even better.

She could hold her own with people her age, most of them having grown up on the same social environment and signing off on the same silent agreements of social interactions she unwillingly did. Kids could be unpredictable, but they had a genuine and straight to the point attitude she found easy to bond with, always enjoying her time with the tinny humans who had yet to learn all the unnecessary red tape. But teenagers? She had a tough time being around teenagers when she was one of them.

And it seems it didn’t get any easier now.

Which is why she was currently standing in an empty bathroom, staring blankly at her reflection as she tried to drown out the sounds of the party going on outside.

The university she was teaching at since she left the bureau had organized a week of immersion in the college experience to last year high school students of all over the state. For a week, they were no longer high school kids, but college students. Which might have been a great experience for them, but for Alex? Not so much. This farewell party marks the end of what had to have been the most overwhelming week of her career as a professor.

At least it’s almost over… She thought as she washed her hands one last time before heading back, a task that would’ve been a little bit easier to accomplish if a certain psychology professor had managed to show up on time for once.

Not that Alex had any right being upset about it, she hadn’t exactly told Y/N how important her company was, that she provided a source of safety and familiarity crucial to surviving gatherings like this one. Y/N knew the week had been less than pleasant for Alex, but she didn’t realize her presence had been the one thing keeping Alex afloat on more than one occasion.

“Figured I would find you here…” The teasing but gentle words pulled her from her thoughts.

“Punctual as ever, I see.” She shot back with an amused glint in her eyes, Y/N’s mere presence already brightening her mood.

“Please, you can’t make an entrance if you arrive before everybody else.” As Alex chuckled, Y/N held out her hand. “C’mon, assuming you’ve been here since the start, only about half an hour longer and we can ditch.”

They made their way back to the party and closer to the table filled with snacks and non-alcoholic drinks. As Y/N poured them both a glass of orange juice, Alex whispered, “You don’t have to leave just because I want to, I know you enjoy having them around.”

“Even I have had my fill.” Y/N puts on her most over the top grimace. Alex doesn’t buy it for a second. “But, yeah, they’re pretty fun.”

“How has any of this been fun to you?”

“They are teenagers!” She gestures excitedly to the room. “They are a whole subculture on their own. Then there are subcultures within the subculture…”

“Nerd.” Alex teases, if only to spare her from how cute Y/N looks when she’s starts rambling.

“Said the linguistic professor.”

“Fair enough.”

“It did surprise me that you don’t like them. Sure, to me they’re an endless source of entertainment, but I thought you’d be at least interested. I mean, if you pay attention, you can see it’s almost as if each group has its own vocabulary…”

“Yes, and I understand not one of them.” Alex lets out a nervous laugh as she remembers the countless times she’d felt lost among her temporary students. “I feel really old saying that.”

“You should.” Y/N deadpanned, earning a harmless slap on her shoulder as Alex rolled her eyes and redirected her attention to the group of high school students they were supposed to be interacting with.

Y/N wasn’t wrong, though. Alex did find the diverse ways the teens talk to and about each other rather interesting. It’s just… she would appreciate it a lot better with she didn’t have to participate. A particular incident has been hunting her thoughts for the past couple of days, and it just happened Y/N was one of the best – and only – people she could talk about it with.

“If you’re done judging me…” She sees Y/N mouthing a never, but just rolls her eyes and keeps going, “There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you about.”

She pauses for a second, not sure how to word the question properly. She’s curious but doesn’t want to overstep. Maybe she should have just googled it. Y/N is the kind of person one can ask pretty much anything to, as long as it’s in good faith, she never takes offense. It’s one of the things Alex loves about her. That and how Y/N always knows when to prompt her further and when to wait and give her some time, as she’s doing right now, quietly sipping on her drink as Alex gathers her thoughts.

“Do you know anything about asexuality?” Y/N nods and Alex thinks she might need to give her some context. “I overheard some of the kids talking about it and I am curious as I don’t think I ever heard of it before and I’m pretty familiar with sexual diversity…”

“Yeah, it’s a slightly smaller group within the LGBT+ community. There are nuances to it, but the definition is pretty straight forward, I guess, it’s the lack of sexual attraction to other people.”

She had figured out that much, being a linguistic and all. She doesn’t need a dictionary. She is not sure what she needs. She needs to talk about it, needs to understand. She needs to know what it is about that word that has her feeling like her word is about to crumble.

Alex knows her frustration is misplaced, though, so she tries to communicate better.

“Could you explain it to me a little better? How does that work?”

“Are you asking the psychology professor or the LGBT advocate?” Y/N smiles at her and she feels a bit of tension leave her body.

“Both?” She smiles right back.

“Well… Let’s start with what you already know. Think of asexuality as something separated from homo, bi, hetero… as in it’s not exactly about who you feel attracted to, but about how much or how often. An asexual person would experience less or no sexual attraction regardless of gender. They could feel no sexual attraction at all, they could feel some sexual attraction depending on the context or they could even feel a lot of sexual attraction just not often. Am I making sense?”

“In theory…” The answer slips past her lips without much thought, Y/N looks at her questioning and Alex tries to come up with a better one. “I just didn’t know this was a thing that happened.”

Y/N just hums in agreement.

Isn’t that how everyone feels? It’s what she really means to ask. She is not ready for that answer, even if she already knows it.

Silence falls over them again, but this time the thoughts running around Alex’s mind are darker. The conversation somehow leading her to what felt like a lifetime ago, when she’d first discovered that there were girls who liked girls and that she’d been spending way too much time admiring her best friend’s beautiful eyes. The feeling somehow so similar and yet so different. Terrifying in a whole new way.

“It’s okay, you can ask. It’s you and me.” Y/N’s gentle reassurance snaped her out of that train of thought.

“Is it a condition? As in a psychological disorder?” She didn’t know what answer scared her more.

“No. I mean, it could be resulting of trauma, sure, but then most of our sexual preferences are, to some extent.”

“Fair enough” Alex felt her body relax once again as she decided that the time for spiraling out would come later, now was time for answers. “Psychological explanation, please.”

“Good old sublimation, I suppose. Libido being channeled somewhere else.”

“Simple like that?”

“Simple like that.”

Alex nods and doesn’t say anything for a while. They stand shoulder to shoulder in comfortable silence watching the crowd.

“Has it been half an hour yet?”

She doesn’t miss how Y/N failed to check the clock.

“Yeah. Let’s get you home.”

The ride to Alex’s house was a short and quite one, Alex lost in thoughts as she looked out the window and Y/N more than happy to let her be, well aware there was something deeper about Alex’s “curiosity”.

“Could they fall in love?”

“Of course. Sexual and romantic attraction are two completely different aspects of the human experience. They can be correlated but aren’t necessarily.”

Alex nodded and hummed contemplatively, before turning her head to look at Y/N and giving her a smile.

“If we can have sex with people we don’t love, we can love people we don’t have sex with.” She shrugged. “I just always assumed we all felt the same thing, you know?”

Sensing Alex was in a better mood, Y/N jokes, “I mean, think about it, you go months without seeing your husband and you’re fine. I go one week without sex and I’m crawling up the walls.” Her expression of horror against the very idea making Alex laugh. “We are all different, some of us just like to have words for it.”

Alex is linguistics professor.

Y/N parked in front of Alex’s house and turned to look at her.

“I have a few articles I could send you that might help you understand it all a bit better. Some online blogs as well, could be nice to have a more personal perspective.”

“I would like that, thank you.”

“I’m also here to talk. About anything. Anytime.”

Alex chuckled. Y/N knew her way too well in such a short time.

“Send me those links, will you?” She winked at Y/N, who just shook her head and smiled at Alex’s stubbornness.

Alex all but ran over to her door. She had a lot of reading to do.

#alex blake #criminal minds #alex blake x reader #alex blake fanfiction #alex blake headcanon #asexual alex blake just makes sense #ed tries to writte #trying to get over writers block please help #ace!alex

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heartsandmuses · 3 months

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weekly lineup

for @stonyauniverse january week 3 // "nice try, canon"

for @warmandfluffybingocards // square: "free space"

marvel cinematic universe. tony stark/steve rogers. rated g. 1k.

canon-divergent au where steve and tony are still alive to lead the next generation of avengers.

— — —

Tony’s favorite thing about spending Sunday mornings in the Compound was watching Steve post the weekly team lineup.

“Alright, no pushing and shoving, this’ll be up here all week. You can take a look at it whenever you need to, okay?” Steve reminded everybody, though his gaze drifted pointedly toward the kids—the newer recruits—who were practically bouncing in their seats out of pure excitement. Slowly, Steve grabbed a Mjlonir-shaped magnet and stuck the roster in its usual spot on the fridge, backing a few steps away before he said, “Okay, it’s up! Go ahead, everyone. And remember — if your name’s at the top, you’re on-call this week, if you’re at the bottom, you’re on the reserve team, and if you’re not up there at all, you’ve got the week off.”

The words were like a starting shot, and despite Steve’s warning to take things slow, Peter, Kamala, and Kate all made a mad dash towards the list. Honestly, Tony was surprised none of them had knocked over any of the kitchen stools in their haste, though it seemed like Peter nearly tripped over himself on the way, his spidey-senses catching him just in time.

Steve looked over at Tony as if to say, can you believe this? even though he’d witnessed this exact scene play out countless times before. Tony just smiled behind his mug of coffee and offered a fond shake of his head to reply, I know.

It was a good system they had going on. Now that the rotating lineup of Avengers was growing every day, only about half the team needed to be on-call anymore, barring an actual end-of-the-universe level threat. And with so many newer, younger team members coming in, it only made sense to pair each of them up with a more experienced, more seasoned pro to learn the ropes. They trained together, they went on missions together, they learned from each other, and the next week, the newbies were partnered with someone else to repeat the process. It allowed them to hone different skills with different mentors, and see which personalities and powers meshed well together.

It was certainly working out well so far, Tony had to admit. The newer Avengers were already starting to show a ton of improvement from all of the practice and mentorship, and the older ones benefited immensely from the occasional time off. Even if all the gods and super-soldiers around here weren’t slowed down by age, they still could use the rest — missions could be just as emotionally and mentally draining as they were physically, sometimes even more so.

In any case, it sure made things a lot easier than being on-call—and on edge—24/7. Besides, there was something to be said about having a general work-life balance, something that Tony wouldn’t have even dreamed of back in the early days. Now, he was finding that it wasn’t so bad, taking some time for himself. For the people he cared about.

He exchanged another glance with his co-captain.

“Come on, move over, I wanna see!” Kamala said, stuck peering over Peter and Kate’s shoulders, the shortest of the three of them.

“Aha! I got Natasha!” Kate said, finally moving out of Kamala’s way to give Nat a high-five.

“I’m with Thor!” Kamala announced, once she found her name on the roster. “Oh, this is gonna be so cool!”

"I've got Captain Rogers!" Peter glanced at Tony with a bright grin. “And— did you see, Mr. Stark? You're not up here this week!”

“I did see, Mr. Parker,” Tony replied with a laugh. “I made that list, y’know. Well, helped make it. If I had it entirely my way, Steve and I would both be getting the week off.”

His pointed look was met with a fond eye-roll, as Steve settled into the seat next to him. “We will, soon enough,” he promised, giving Tony a gentle pat on the arm in consolation. “Once we know that the trainees can handle themselves without us.”

“Hey, c’mon, give us some credit,” Kate scoffed. “We’ve been doing great so far!”

“She’s got a point there, Cap,” Natasha chimed in. “It won’t be the end of the world if you and Tony take a vacation. And if it is, we’ll call you back in.“

“Yeah, we’ve got things covered,” Kamala said confidently.

But before anyone else could offer up their two cents on the matter, the alarm went off overhead. Over the speakers, Maria Hill announced, “We’ve found a hidden HYDRA base operating out of the Catskills. All on-call team members and trainees report to the Quinjet immediately.”

Steve stood back up, just as the rest of the team turned their attention to him, waiting for orders. “Alright, Avengers, if you wanna prove something, now’s the time. Let’s give it our best out there,” he said, gaze softening as he looked over the newer recruits, then his husband. “And depending on how it goes, we can reconsider next week’s roster.”

Tony’s expression brightened, and he couldn’t help but lean in for a brief kiss, ignoring all of the feigned gagging from the rest of the team. When he pulled back, it was with a dazzling, determined smile. “Well, you heard him, everyone — suit up and head out! It’s time to kick some ass!”

Steve gave Tony a nudge. “You wanna do the honors?”

“Oh, no, you’ve got it, sweetheart. It’s your week, anyway.”

The anticipation in the room was nearly palpable as Steve cleared his throat. “Avengers, assemble!” he called, and everybody moved at once, rushing to get ready.

As always, the kids were the first ones out the door.

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sparrowhero · 1 year

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Dabi Courtship/Flirting Headcanons (with emphasis on a LoV reader)

He’s not very good at it and you really are going to be hard pressed to figure out he’s actually doing it. His love language is basically time spent together (since so much of his time in the League is him fucking off and doing his own thing, the fact that he willingly spends time with you even if he says nothing at all for at least a half hour is something.

Not even kidding. If you’re one of the League, he’s just sitting or standing in the same room as you and occasionally staring at you as you do whatever it is you’re doing. He won’t look away if you meet his gaze but he WILL have the gall to ask “what are you looking at?” Not in the mean way (at least, not intentionally), it’s just that HE knows why he’s looking at you, he doesn’t know why YOU are or if you have a problem with it.

READMORE FOR LENGTH AND MINOR SPOILERS

Not really the jealous type at all. He’s pretty confident in himself if he manages to bag you in the first place— you gotta have some kind of thing for a guy with as many personality eccentricities as he has. Doesn’t help that everyone in the League is their own special kind of weirdo (affectionate) so there really isn’t anything to BE jealous of. He’s got his own niche filled but he might glare juuuuust a little at the hot alt guy with a septum piercing at the record store a little bit if he tries to talk to you a little too close. Something something “get lost, junior” etc.

In a similar vein, he’s not jealous of Hawks at all if you get close to him (or Hawks attempting to get close to YOU to try and find out things about Dabi), but he doesn’t trust him at all so he tends to insert himself directly between the two of you anyways and isn’t very subtle about it. Also the kind of guy to grab your head (or shoulder if you’re taller than he is) and lead you physically out of the conversation. It’s actually kind of funny and most people wouldn’t believe how gentle he is about it.

Dabi doesn’t particularly feel any way about his burns: they’re just as much a part of him as anything else, aside from the obvious health practices he needs to keep up on. He only covers them because it’s like wearing a cardboard sign that says ARREST ME.

Dabi is the type to go “so what are we” after not saying literally anything beforehand that would indicate he is romantically interested in you. This is basically the interaction that puts everything in place so you can ACTUALLY start to date like semi-normal people. Not in the weird yandere way but just in the “this guy just does not have game” way.

Respects if you’re definitely not interested but if you say something like “you don’t know” then he just hums and says “That so.” And things continue on with a very slow-burn of him trying a little bit harder to be more obvious or to get you to realize he may not be Prince Charming, but he can definitely be what you need.

Kisses you first and completely without warning. Just goes “Bye” and then lays one on you directly on the lips in front of god and everybody. Leaves without saying anything in explanation, that’s on you to handle that, babe.

Toga knew the entire time. Twice is saying he also knew all along despite the fact that he was telling Toga “there just ain’t no fucking way” yesterday. Shigaraki just gives a long, judgemental look before proceeding back to whatever LoV business needs to be attended to. Compress laughs and Spinner wonders if that was some kind of mirage until Dabi comes back.

If they ask him about the Details(tm) he just goes “Mind your own business.” And Shigaraki has to really consider his fraternization policies bc Dabi has gotten at least 15% more annoying since he became your boyfriend. He already has a hard enough time getting Dabi to take him seriously and now that you’re dating he literally angles his body away from Shigaraki deliberately to look at you instead.

You’re gonna learn his real name when the rest of the world does. He couldn’t risk Hawks getting it out of you, one way or another, and as far as he’s concerned, he’s “Dabi” now. Any person he once was is more of a facet of the entire identity he embraces now. While he prefers to be called “Dabi”, he also doesn’t mind just being called “babe” or something along those lines in terms of names for just the two of you.

#bnha headcanons #mha headcanons #dabi x reader #dabi headcanons #gender neutral reader #bnha x reader #mha x reader

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marvelstarker-mha98 · 27 days

Text

The Runaway Distance Life Of A Little Stark chapter 34: FRIDAY

Pairing: Tony Stark & daughter!Reader, Friday & reader, Friday & tony stark Summary: flashback and journal Warning: Flashback and mentioning Co author with: callikc Tag: @venomsvl @geeksareunique

You had been squatting in the warehouse for about two months now.

It was July 3rd if you remembered correctly. It was dark, too. But while most people were preparing to celebrate Independence Day, you were busy doing other things. Coding, to be specific.

Your own personal natural language user interface computer.

Strewn about on your computer desk were several empty coffee cups, what little food you had stolen and rationed to survive, an abandoned bowl of cereal, and a notebook all about creating an AI.

You thought it would be a fun and interesting challenge to undertake since the main inspiration was JARVIS, made by your dad. As a kid he was probably your best friend, always looking out for you and creating games to play when everybody else was busy.

You knew you were smart enough to make your own AI, but you just didn't have the experience, hence the notebook. It was your dad's college notebook from his time at MIT, and you had stolen it from the library years ago.

This AI project had been going on for about a month already, started as soon as you gathered what you needed and loaded it into the warehouse. You hadn't slept properly in God knows how long but that was fine because you were currently on a roll.

Your head was beginning to droop but you kept your eyes wide open as you rapidly typed away on the keyboard.

"Rewrite basic command... Program of obedience." You kept muttering to yourself, ticking off mental boxes as you scanned the code. "Linguistic annotation. Machine learning based on NGL, NLP, and NLU. Neural network with a sentimental analysis."

After this main checklist, you finally took a break, leaning back in your chair to assess the code from a distance.

"This thing'll be ready for a Turing Test in no time." You joked. "Now you need a name, sweet code o' mine."

As you said it, a yawn suddenly slipped out. You took a hefty breath and sighed, rubbing your eyes as you blinked several times.

"Sleep first, maybe."

You leaned across the makeshift desk to push some notes out of the way and found a small smartwatch hidden underneath the clutter. The date was Friday, July 3rd, and it was 11:59pm.

"Friday already." You mused with a lazy smile. "Friday... Already. Friday."

Suddenly sleep didn't seem so important. Before the minute was up you were already writing a list of possible acronyms for the AI.

Fully realized intelligence data analysis yield?

Feeling rather intelligent doing anything yours?

You were still drawing blanks ten minutes later. You turned to the notebook instead, picking out the first words you saw and stringing them together.

Female. Replacement. Intelligent. Digital. Assistant. Youth.

"Good enough." You decided. "Better than mine. God, I'm tired."

You quickly typed in some more code to name your creation and put in 'F.R.I.D.A.Y.' on the blank space. Then you hit download.

Next, you considered walking the ten steps to your mattress in the corner but the tiredness argued that it wasn't worth it. You shrugged and just lay your head on your dad's now closed notebook.

Then you simply closed your eyes and a few hours passed by in what felt like the blink of an eye.

FRIDAY didn't know much at first.

From her perspective she was inside some long and endless dark void. She couldn't see or hear anything. She couldn't feel. But she could speak, even if her voice wasn't computing at first.

"System boost..." Her refined tone voiced. "Systems fully functional."

A pause in which a small light appeared in her void.

"Protocols... Protocols assessed."

The light began to spread, granting her access to a small portion of a network.

"Unit Designation." Her voice was now clear. "Female. Replacement. Intelligent. Digital. Assistant. Youth."

She could see almost everything now.

"FRIDAY."

With a new database practically ignited inside her, she switched on a visual through a computer camera. The void was filled with the inside of your converted lab.

FRIDAY scanned the entire room - every single inch - and eventually found her sights on you. She scanned you too and learned your name, date of birth, height, and other characteristics solely from this spot alone. She also managed to identify you as her maker, the one she was created to work with.

(Y/N) (M/N) STARK REM SLEEP - 92% COMPLETE

Judging from the calculations that instantly bombarded her being, FRIDAY knew that you would wake up within five minutes. She waited patiently until she noticed your features twitch and your brows furrowed.

"Good morning, Miss." She spoke up.

You startled, wide-eyed and with drool on your chin, and muttered in confusion. "Wussup? Who's there? What's going on?"

Your vision was blurred and you hurriedly tried to wipe the sleep from your eyes. You also wiped the drool away once you felt it on your chin. Your whole face flushed red with embarrassment.

You let out a sound mixed between a yawn and a groan. "What time is it?"

"It is 10:09am, miss." FRIDAY responded.

Your soul left your body.

You jumped in your chair after being struck alert. You looked around for the sound of the voice, only to notice your computer humming exceedingly loud, as if using a lot of power. Furthermore, there was a sound bar-esque hologram projecting from the screen with a light glow.

Your jaw dropped.

"FRIDAY?" You whispered.

"Yes, miss." She replied.

A shock of giddiness overwhelmed you and you leaned forward so fast that the desk thudded from the force. Instead of disorientated and bewildered, you now looked overjoyed and almost insane with laughs of pure disbelief.

"No way." You grinned. "I did it. I actually did it."

You hoped that if an AI could smile, then FRIDAY was. After all, this was most definitely a cause for celebration.

"FRIDAY, can you run diagnostics?" You asked.

"I already have, miss." She said. "I have checked all systems and am functioning to the best of my ability."

"Really? That's - That's great. Uh... Can you tell me where we are? The weather?"

"Of course, miss. Our location is the Stark Industries storage facility, Upstate New York, off the coast of the Hudson River. The skies are clear with a temperature of 44°F, cloud cover is however expected before the afternoon is up."

"Very nice. Can you... Can you tell me my temperature? What about the nearest bathroom?"

"You are currently at the average normal body temperature, generally accepted as 98.6°F or 37°C. The nearest bathroom is approximately thirty feet down the hallway to your right."

"You're amazing." You said.

"Thank you, miss. Although, I have a question."

"Ask away."

"I am... I'm confused."

Your smile faded. "Okay. What do you mean?"

"I am an artificial intelligence unit designed by and made to accommodate the Starks. However... I cannot... I do not know who I am."

"Oh." You tilted your head, curious. "I guess that's complicated, huh?"

"In simple terms, yes."

"I guess it's complicated, trying to define who we are and stuff. I don't think it's as simple as knowing if I'm honest."

"My database suggests the same. Regardless, I'm pleased to be your assistant, Miss Stark."

Your smile began to creep back. "You're more than that, FRIDAY. I'd like to consider us friends."

Fast forward several years and Tony was still standing in your lab as he watched FRIDAY.

He wanted to ask so many questions about you. FRIDAY had no doubt been around for a while based on the way her speech sounded. You must have programmed her as a linguistic learner, adapting through what she heard. He wanted to know what you worked on, if you ate and slept enough, and even if you had that same grin that he did every time a project turned out successful.

"You know me?" He asked.

"Yes." FRIDAY replied. "Miss talked about you thirteen times a week on average. She held great respect."

Tony was even more surprised. "For me? Are you sure?"

"Yes. Anthony Edward Stark, Iron Man, the billionaire industrialist, a founding member of the Avengers, and the former CEO of Stark Industries. A brash but brilliant inventor, she said."

"I think 'brash' is a bit harsh." He mumbled.

"She also told me you would say that."

He scoffed, amused. "What else did she say?"

"She compared herself to you frequently, hoping that you would be proud of how much she had changed. She was very proud of you, after all. Her stories were fascinating, from her teenage days to her very last. She loved you dearly, boss."

Tony looked down, suddenly finding the floor of the room exceedingly interesting. It was only to hide the look of pain that settled on his face.

"I'm sorry she died." He told the AI. "I tried to save her. There was some kind of poison in the bullet that killed her. I... I couldn't save her. It was my fault."

"I don't believe that, boss." FRIDAY said. "Miss always knew what would happen if she revealed herself and she chose to accept the consequences. She wouldn't want you to take the blame. She accepted her decision hoping that she would get to see you again and she did."

"Well... Thanks for the sentiment. Have you been here the entire time?"

"I haven't. Miss put a protocol in place that upon the event of her death I should find a way into the Avengers Tower network and introduce myself to my grand-AI JARVIS."

Tony raised a bow, unable to guess if that was a joke or not. It sounded like one, and yet FRIDAY spoke with a very serious tone. Perhaps she'd taken your protocol very literally.

"An interesting term." JARVIS spoke up. "I recall the hack. Miss Stark was smart, however I would not assume myself old enough to be the equivalent of a grandfather."

Tony bit back a smile for two reasons. One, it was amusing to hear JARVIS compared to a grandparent. Two, you had devised what was essentially just a command chain so well that it was capable of integrating itself into the network he had thought up. Did Fury know about FRIDAY?

"How long have you been around?" He asked FRIDAY. "How long were you her assistant?"

"Forgive me, boss, but I was much more than an assistant." She replied with a sassy undertone. "Miss created me two months and seven days after she found the warehouse compound five years ago. She considered me a friend. Family, if I might be so bold."

"Right. My bad. Who knows about you?"

"I helped miss with all of her SHIELD assignments so naturally Director Nicholas Fury and many agents knew of my existence. Benjamin, May, and Peter Parker were also aware. I functioned to assist her with all projects and those she considered family."

FRIDAY was amazing.

She had her own personality, the ability to learn and adapt through linguistic and presumably visual queues, she could perform complex hacks and interceptions, and was able to assist with your work projects. You did all of that in just two months while it took him four months to create JARVIS. Yes, the tech wasn't as advanced back then, but it was still an impressive feat.

"What did (Y/n) do here?" He asked.

"Her activities varied. The majority of her time in this lab was spent sleeping and revising for assignments from The Triskelion. She also kept personal effects here and made use of the warehouse as a dumping ground essentially. She kept a detailed journal of her years also."

"A journal? Where is it?"

"The desk drawer to your right."

Tony found the desk and went for the top drawer, for some reason surprised when it easily opened. Inside was only one thing.

The journal.

It was a 450 page one, leather bound in what had to have been your favorite color. Sealing it was a small padlock. He tried to open it but it was futile and instead checked all the desk drawers for a key.

"FRIDAY, any idea where she kept the key?" He asked as he searched.

"Originally it was with the journal, however she removed it some time before her death. She gave it to her brother."

Tony frowned. Brother? You didn't have a brother.

"Who?" He questioned, bewildered.

"I believe FRIDAY is referring to Dum-E, sir." JARVIS said. "(Y/n) was rather lonely as a child and found friends in many things."

Dum-E... Of course.

Tony remembered what had happened when he trashed the lab. He remembered the tiny bot rolling up to him and handing over the letter. Photos, letters, and keys.

A hand went to his chest where the very same key still hung. It was long enough that he could stare at the metal as he held it in his hand. It was warm against his skin, glinting in the fluorescent lights.

The words of the letter rang inside his head.

Did he even want to read the journal? Clearly you had intended for him to. Your life as Ellen Campbell seemed to be a peaceful one, perhaps even happy. But was it worth the agony of reading that?

"Pardon me, boss." FRIDAY said.

Tony kept his eyes on the key. "Yeah?"

"I think you should read the journal by the lakeside patio. Miss enjoyed spending time out there and I can assure you that you won't be disturbed."

"Makes a change." He mumbled. "I will. Thanks."

"Of course."

And so Tony made his way through the warehouse and outside. There was a nice spot overlooking the great lake with a few benches placed around - probably by you. He took a seat closest to the water's shimmering surface. Deep blue and reflecting the maturing sun, it was beautiful.

With a small sight, Tony fit the key into the journal's lock and turned it. A click sounded and the padlock popped open. He removed it carefully and set it down beside him on the bench.

"Here goes." He mumbled, opening to the first page.

Instead of angst and teenage grudges, he was greeted by doodles. You had written down your name and decorated the page with everything from miniature design ideas to self-portraits and world landmarks to graffiti letters. He had almost forgotten that even though now you were known as the friendly engineer, you were still once a kid immersed in hobbies and trends.

The first journal entry, however, was a stark contrast to the playful and inventive pages beforehand.

Hey, Journal It's been a week now. A really long seven days. I got a bus, paid in cash obviously, and hitched a ride Upstate.

I found Grandpa Howard's warehouse from the files. It's where I found this journal. It's a mess but the view is nice. There's lots of grass and growing stuff and even this huge lake. It's pretty neat.

But I guess not even a sweet view helps the general anxiety. God, I sound stupid. It's just that I can't stop thinking about Obadiah's threat. People are after me. They don't just want to hurt me, he said they'd actually kill me. How touched in the head do you have to be to use death threats on a kid? I'm barely old enough to do my own taxes and I'm already running for my life because of some K-drama twist of fate.

This is all because I'm related to the great Tony Stark. Of all the dads in the world, I got him. I don't know what to think. He's my dad and yet... I don't know. I love him, I really do, and I miss my life, but I can't go back when people are after me. Let's hope I survive. - (Y/n)

Tony struggled to digest just this first entry. If this was the first and already he felt a powerful mix of emotion he couldn't understand, how was he supposed to sit through 450 pages? Despite wanting to stop, he forced himself to turn the page.

Hey, Journal I saw myself on the news today. It's kinda surreal, I guess. For the first time in literally forever, I feel like people are finally noticing me. That's bad, right? I don't know.

I don't know. I say that a lot.

I cut my hair and dyed it again. I finally used my credit cards, too. I took out some cash and then cut them up and booked it before anyone found me. I can't risk looking the same as the reports. Obadiah's people will find me.

On the bright side I'm thinking about making an AI like dad had. I'm probably in way over my head but I've made a list of stuff using his college book as a reference. Wish me luck?

Yeah, I'm sorta low on news right now so I guess I'll talk to you later. Thanks for listening. - (Y/n)

Tony glanced up from the journal in his hands and looked at the lake again. You had to change everything about yourself just to live another day. It couldn't have been easy, scared to look the same way for too long or afraid to stay in the same place for longer than a week.

As he flipped through more and more entries, he finally gained the insight into your life that he craved before. He read all about how you discovered he was alive, how you worked in a cafe for a while, attending the Expo and saving a little boy and then seeing him again, changing your name and being recruited into SHIELD, meeting Steve and Bruce and the Parkers, accidentally stealing things.

He smiled at that bit, wondering just how in the hell someone could 'accidentally' steal.

After almost half an hour of reading, he discovered a break from the entries and stumbled across more doodles. It was more like a moodboard actually, a moodboard of him.

There were cut out pictures and articles of him in the suit, the Avengers, Pepper and Happy and Rhodey, and even a very rare photo of him smiling. In the middle of the pages you had written down a simple statement.

Do it for him.

His grip on the journal tightened as a pang of guilt struck his heart. It was a cruel thing that the pair of you had to wait until you were separated to realize how much you meant to each other. One of the big things that got him was how you had attended the Stark Expo and he had no idea.

He ran his hand over the pages and noticed a little bit of paper sticking out of one. It had the label 'pull me :)' on it and so he did. As he looked at what it was, tears began to build in his eyes.

It was just after the Mandarin attack in Malibu.

You had just discovered Pepper's old teddy bear. It was clutched tightly to your chest as you headed towards the SHIELD jet that Fury was currently waiting for you in. Your eyes were glazed over, your brows were furrowed, and you were biting your lip slightly.

The expression was for several reasons, the main of which being that you were deep in thought and trying to keep your emotions at bay for now. You didn't really want Fury to see you being so emotional. Since he always kept up the cool and stoic vibe it made him a little intimidating.

As he came into view - patiently waiting by the open ramp of the jet - you took a moment to collect yourself before approaching any further.

"There you are, Campbell." He said. "I trust you didn't get lost."

"Ha, ha." You mocked, pulling a face.

Fury considered you for a moment, noting the bear in your arms. "Since when were you into soft toys?"

"It's Pepper's, not mine."

"That's what they all say."

"No, seriously. Her grandma gave it to her when she was a kid. It's a comfort thing."

"It's missing an ear."

"I'm aware. I'll fix that soon enough."

"It's a good thing you've got some downtime on the jet, isn't it?"

"I'm actually waiting until we get back to HQ. I'm not wasting data on YouTube sewing videos."

He raised a brow. "You're telling me my best engineer doesn't know how to sew?"

"Shut up. I can't be the ace all the time, alright?"

You could tell he was hiding a smile.

"I did some digging of my own." Fury then said. "Got you something."

You exaggerated shock. "It's my birthday already?"

"Watch the tone, Campbell."

"Yes, sir." You said with a teasing and coy smile. "I'll rephrase. What did you get me, boss?"

"Take a look."

He retrieved what appeared to be a photo. You couldn't get a decent look due to the glare from the sun and waited until it was in your hand instead. You had seen many photos inside your home during the years you lived there, and yet you couldn't remember ever finding this one before.

Pain welled up in your chest.

The agony of missing a loved one was brutal. Sometimes it lingered, sometimes it came in stabs, but it always hurt. Yet, as you observed the far right of the photo, this sadness was quickly replaced with anger.

Without thinking, you tore the picture to remove the memory.

Back in the present, Tony was trying to control his hitched breaths as he stared at the photo.

He was so young back then, barely beginning his twenties. He was surrounded by Pepper, Rhodey, and Happy, all of them smiling with pure adoration and joy. Even his young self looked content for once.

In his arms was you as a newborn. He was struggling on how to hold you properly and that was clear by your expression of discomfort in the picture.

The photo was torn on the right side, the shoulder of someone visible over the jagged rip. That was Obadiah Stane's shoulder. You had ripped him out.

Tony averted his eyes immediately and focused on what remained in the picture. The happiness of everyone else.

"I miss you, kid." He mumbled.

#Tony stark #tony stark x daughter!reader #tony stark & daughter! reader #tony stark & friday #mcu #marvel #avengers

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troius · 1 year

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I am genuinely asking this cause this is a plot point I've been stuck on: how would you write Ichigo getting his powers back? The Shinigami ex Machina twist felt like bland fan service but I don't know how else it should go.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, I've been thinking about this a lot, and I don't really think it's too hard! It's kinda sad, because all the heavy lifting has actually already been done-- we have four whole volumes of set-up. We've established:

Ichigo was depressed because he was powerless. This provided an in for a gang of con artists to sucker him in with the promise of making him feel better about himself. The lesson he has to learn here is his own self-worth absent his powers (which thematically will result in him getting his powers back).

Ichigo and his friends completely fail to communicate with each other throughout the arc, thinking that keeping things secret will keep their friends safe, only for it all to blow up in their face. The conclusion therefore must also involve these idiots finally talking to each other.

How I, were I Kubo's editor and yet completely immune to the commercial pressures of Shonen Jump, would do this after the cut:

We're going to start our divergence when Ginjo and Ichigo arrive at Tsukishima's mansion, with maybe a slight change to establish this thing earlier in the story because it sort of came out of nowhere. But rather than bring in Ichigo's nonpowered friends and family for a second round of trauma, I'd suggest keeping it tight on Ichigo's desire to kill Tsukishima. This is what he thinks will solve his problem. He fights his way shockingly easily through the other members of Xcution (it's almost like they're not really trying...) before getting to Tsukishima.

And naturally, Orihime and Chad intervene. But instead of being strangely stoic about it all, they're acting like you would expect people to act if one of their best friends was trying to kill the other. Orihime is full-on crying as she heals and shields Tsukishima. Chad is screaming to Ichigo about how this isn't what Ichigo used to take pride in. And most importantly, they're actually trying to restrain him and stop the fight instead of just passively protecting Tsukishima when attacks happen. As the fight spills outside, Ichigo can't win the fight without hurting them.

And so finally, finally, Ichigo resorts to dialogue. He tries to talk them out of it. And Chad and Orihime, who still have all of their memories of Ichigo even if Tsukishima is weirdly in some of them, listen. They're not going to harm him either. Ichigo, breaking down, apologizes for failing to protect them. Orihime and Chad tell him he doesn't need to apologize for anything, that they're fine. Even Ginjo and Xcution stop fighting each other. It's all very sweet. And that's when Uryu shows up and seemingly ruins everything.

He drops out of seemingly thin air with a massive licht regen that completely demolishes where Ginjo and Tsukishima are standing. Ichigo, Orihime, and Chad are astonished, verging on furious. But Uryu responds that those two are the ones who attacked him. The dust clears, and rather than being dead by Quincy powers, the two of them and the rest of Xcution get the drop on the Karakura kids. Uryu, Chad, and Orihime are all quickly taken down, and Ginjo takes Ichigo's fullbring.

Ginjo and Tsukishima do their villainous exposition. Ichigo has his full-on breakdown. But his friends are there too, and share in his pain. Uryu tells Ichigo that he's arrogant for assuming its his job to protect them. Chad points out that all their instincts to protect worked disastrously as they concealed the truth from one another. Orihime says that what matters here is that he, and everybody here, aren't hurt. Rukia calls him an idiot.

OH SHOOT, RUKIA'S HERE. She says that the four of them really made a mess of things, but that Isshin sent a message to her through Urahara that something was wrong. Ichigo says that she didn't think she cared, as she hasn't been in his life for 18 months. Renji (who is also here) points out to Ichigo that she is an immortal soul with a job, and that if he wanted to see them he should have asked! And then Rukia points out that it won't be a problem going forward, as Ichigo can see them now.

Because Ichigo has his powers back! No magic sword necessary-- we already established when he was training with Ginjo that his powers were coming back. Rukia gives the above spiel about how Ginjo couldn't steal them, and then informs him that she and Renji are taking him in. Xcution naturally does not take kindly to this. Our six hearts each pair off with a Fullbringer (Orihime did some healing during all this), and if people ask for it I'll do a second post about how I'd pair those fights off.

But I'll leave it at this for now. That's how I would thematically tie off the arc.

#bleach #ask troius #this might be my longest post on this blog lol #hope it satisfies

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from-a-reckless-writer · 2 years

Note

i have no idea what you’ve been rambling about for the past two weeks but it sounds gay so i support

I JUMPED OUT OF BED TO TYPE THIS ON MY LAPTOP HOLD ON-

alright el, brace urself, you didnt ask for an essay but an essay you will get. OKAy, so let's start, there's a famous Filipino comic called "Darna" she's an ordinary girl named Narda who turns into a superhero, when she swallows an alien stone and yells the word, "DARNA!" kinda like SHAZAM. (there are various origin stories but basically Darna is an embodiment of the perfect warrior from the planet Marte, and the stone chose Narda as its protector.) She was developed from Mars Ravelo's Komiks and was based on Superman. So, most of her powers are like Superman's; flying super strength, enhanced hearing etc. NOW. There's a new generation TV adaptation of said comics, and its- SO FUCKING GAY. LIKE- SO SO FUCKING GAE. ITS LIKE FUCKING SUPERCORP WITH HOW GAY IT IS. actually no this is fucking worst.

here's the thing in the comics, Darna has an archenemy named Valentina, she's an evil alien, whose kinda like a gorgon, she has a crown of snakes for hair.

In the show, they made it so Narda Custodio and Regina Vanguardia (Valentina's human counterpart) are BEST FUCKING FRENS. Sound familiar yet? And jesus- so far all their scenes are so gay. Regina Vanguardia is a ruthless human rights lawyer whose goal is to rid the city of corrupt officials. She is cold and calculating to everybody else, because that is the only way she'll gain respect but her demeanor changes so much when Narda comes in. Narda is an EMT in her foundation, the Vanguardia Foundation (again, sound familiar yet?) so they usually see each other a lot in the office AND OHMYGOD THE WORKPLACE FLIRTING IS JUST??? SO GAY. LIKE? if Regina was named Reginald they'd be married with kids by now.

And now the gays are making a lot of noise on twitter to make it canon, because the actors themselves ship it, the director, and even one of the producers, but lately the production tweeted a post and captioned it with SISTERHOOD, and everybody just lost their shit. It's so fucking funny to me that Filipino mainstream media has finally learned queerbaiting ohmygod, we're so here for it. But I do truly hope they make it canon, because their chemistry really has the main hetero ship in the show, BEAT. not to mention of course the gays had already made abundant fanfics and fanart whereas the main ship still has uh none i think?

also, it would be revolutionary for Philippine TV to finally have a sapphic Darna.

so there, now you know.

for context here's a compilation of all their scenes from the fucking official youtube channel of the TV Network (they're fucking aware of what theyre doing):

youtube

I CAN'T FUCKING BELIEVE THEY CAPTIONED IT WITH FRIENDSHIP JESUS CHRIST heLp PLSSSS 😭😭😭

#ALSO DARLENTINA PULLED ME OUT OF MY WRITING SLUMP SO THERE'S ALSO THAT #darna #darlentina #asks

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bonnieprincegnarly · 7 months

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Everybody was talking about the quad thing in the last episode of Riverdale like that's the wildest thing about it.

Betty freaking time travels. Jughead is like an angel or something. Reggie dropped the Brando schtick and reverted to dumb dumb status again.

But that's not even the point. The finale is just heartbreaking. The finale is about real life finally catching up with The Archies. It's not about serial killers, or Gargoyle Kings, or Stephen King's The Stand Jr. And yeah there's the live action Gainax ending a la Lost, and Angel Jughead and Betty's Excellent Adventure, but mostly it's just a hit parade of emotional gut punches. It's just scene after scene of life absolutely bodying the expectations of America's favorite teenagers.

And I feel it. I'm there too. In my 20s I saw everyone drift away after high school. I've since seen the deaths of people I thought I'd know my entire life. And some people I talked to every day for years, stopped responding and never spoke to me again.

And it's heartbreaking in Riverdale because these kids finally get everything sorted out and just drift away like you or I would. Archie starts to tell Betty what many of the viewers are probably thinking, that the whole story started with the two of them and will just as likely end with the two of them starting a family and living together for years. And then Betty explains that she already knows the future and they don't get together at all. Archie moves to California and marries someone else who we never learn the name of, has a family, dies, and gets buried in Riverdale next to his Dad. Archie doesn't become a rockstar or a famous writer. He becomes a construction worker who writes on the side for funzies. Archie and Betty and Veronica and Jughead live miles apart, they die years apart. They never really see each other all together ever again after high school. That's us. With a few exceptions that's you and me.

There's a part toward the end of the finale where Betty asks Angel Jughead what happens after we die. Jughead uses Pop as an example and says that he imagines Pop doing what he loved for the rest of eternity in The Sweet Hereafter. Betty tells Angel Jughead that she never wants to leave Riverdale then. She wants to stay forever young with all her friends and hope about a bright future. Angel Jughead looks serious and then contradicts his comment about Pop. Angel Jughead says what Betty wants is impossible. "You say hello. You walk beside someone for a little while... and then you say goodbye. That's life." That is life.

There's a big scene in Mike Flanagan's Netflix series Midnight Mass where Riley and Erin are talking about faith. Riley talks about his atheism and disbelief in an afterlife. He goes on to describe the process of brain death and how time seemingly expands forever onward in the perception of those whose brains are shutting down. One long dream before the beginning of an endless sleep. This is what The Archies too are left with; that diner that lives in their memories as a timeless rendezvous for the best version of everyone they ever loved; one long dream before the vast expanse of infinite sleep.

#riverdale #archie andrews #jughead jones #veronica lodge #betty cooper

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threewaywithdelusion · 1 year

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Tommy Hagan: New Kid in Town

Tommy was an outsider from the very beginning.

Most of Hawkins wouldn’t agree with him, but that was by design. Because before Tommy moved to town in fifth grade, he learned his lesson the hard way. He saw what it was like to be the boy whose dad cheated on his mom. He saw how the other kids gossiped and pointed and said “Tommy’s Daddy kissed other ladies.” “Tommy’s Daddy left because Tommy wasn’t good enough.” “Tommy’s going to be like his Daddy one day.”

They moved to Hawkins and Tommy needed a fresh start. So he found the King and Queen of the playground and he watched them. Steve Harrington and Carol Perkins. They had a circle of little admirers, but they didn’t let anyone else join their group. It was clear that all the kids standing around them were their subjects and that Steve and Carol were something different. Something more.

Tommy didn’t want to be just another subject. Tommy wanted to be part of the group.

So he waited, watching, to see what they needed.

It was a lesson that Tommy had learned young — if he wanted to be appreciated, he had to be useful. He could go get Daddy a beer and he might be invited to watch the basketball game on tv. He could bring home good report cards and Mommy would take him out for ice cream to celebrate. He could shove down a bully on a playground and the other kids would shut up about his parents, at least for a little while.

Tommy watched Steve and Carol for almost a week. They were both clever about their popularity. Steve was athletic and all the boys wanted to play basketball or soccer with him at recess. The gym teacher always made him team captain and let him pick first, which meant Steve could deem someone worthy of being on his team or leave them squirming and embarrassed, among the last to be picked. Steve had so many cool, expensive toys and he didn’t let everyone touch, but Carol always got to.

And Carol was smart too. She wore pretty skirts and dresses and she painted her nails, which was a really grown up thing to do. She knew everybody’s secrets and she could either keep them safe or use them to tear someone apart. Her birthday was over the summer and she’d apparently thrown a huge party before Tommy had moved to town, renting out the whole pool for an entire day and buying everyone ice cream as well.

She and Steve used rumors, money, and the reward of their stamp of approval to stay on top. But several kids resented them for the hold they had over the whole grade.

Tommy watched, enraptured, as one of the boys who Steve didn’t like shoved him down on the basketball court. Steve stood, scraped bloody from the asphalt, and shoved back. But Steve was unprepared for the boy to swing at his head and he ended up on the ground again.

That was when Tommy stepped in. He stood in front of Steve and faced the other boy — Richie Howard.

“Who the heck are you?” Richie scoffed.

“Tommy Hagan,” Tommy said.

“Get out of the way,” Richie said, like Tommy didn’t matter.

So Tommy punched him. He’d already learned how to fight at his old school and it wasn’t that hard to hit Richie where it would hurt. They ended up tussling on the floor, the hot blacktop leaving scrapes up and down Tommy’s back. But when they stopped rolling, Tommy was on top, throwing a punch down at Richie’s face right before the teachers managed to pull him off.

Steve and Tommy were both sent to the nurse, with strict instructions to go to the principal’s office once they’d had their wounds taken care of.

“I didn’t need your help,” Steve said, face red where Richie had punched his cheek bone. They were sitting on chairs outside the nurse’s office while she tended to Richie, who had come out of the fight in the worst condition.

Tommy shrugged. “I’m good at fighting.”

“I don’t even know you.” Steve looked bewildered, like he couldn’t understand why Tommy would defend him.

Tommy gave him a big smile. “I’m Tommy.”

Carol came running down the hall then, beelining straight for Steve. She looked concerned and intrigued, like she was already thinking about how they would spin this. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Steve said, even though he was bleeding just like Tommy was.

“You gotta get good at fighting, Steve,” Carol said. “The big kids always do it.”

Steve scrunched up his face. “Why?”

“Cause you can’t let people get away with shit,” Carol said.

Tommy was in awe. He didn’t know other girls his age who said the word shit like it was a regular part of their vocabulary.

Carol was so cool.

“Why can’t I just tell people they can’t get away with shit like you do?” Steve asked.

“Cause I’m a girl,” Carol said impatiently. “Girls don’t fight. Boys do.”

“Well I don’t have to learn how to fight,” Steve said. “Tommy’s good at it.”

He finally turned to face Tommy again. He was smiling and Tommy understood why all the other kids did anything he asked.

Carol looked him up and down, eyes sharp, and Tommy sat up straight. He had to make a good impression. Steve and Carol could ruin him. Or they could make him into something.

“You’re the new kid,” Carol said.

Tommy nodded.

“Where are you from?” Carol asked.

“Chicago.”

Carol’s eyes went wide, then narrowed. “That’s a big city. It must be so must be much cooler there than in Hawkins.”

Tommy shrugged. “It was pretty cool, yeah. But Hawkins isn’t so bad either.”

Carol smiled, pleased, and Steve grinned at her, proud. Like he’d magically discovered Tommy and Tommy hadn’t planned all of this.

His scrapes took ages to heal and his mom was not happy with him for getting into a fight his second week at a new school, but Tommy didn’t care.

Because after that, they weren’t Steve-and-Carol. They were Steve-Tommy-Carol and they were revered.

He was in.

#stranger things #stranger things fanfiction #tommy hagan #steve harrington #carol perkins #Mia writes fanfic #I like the idea of Steve and Carol knowing each other first #but needing Tommy to complete them #I also have an obsession with Tommy and Carol

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tngrace · 1 year

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Hold My Hand

AU in my AU world. Grace and Bradley have been struggling with infertility and they finally break down to Dad!Mav & Pops!Ice.

After almost two months, this is finally complete. It kinda ran away from me, and got really long, but I hope you enjoy. I've interspersed some lyrics from the song the title comes from, so those will be in red throughout. It's my 1st (? 2nd maybe?) time doing that, so hopefully it's not too awkward.

🏷: @dragon-kazansky @mrsjaderogers @bayisdying @cycbaby @askmarinaandothers @breadsquash @semperhuggs @ladylanera @callmemana @starlit-epiphany

Two years... It'd been two years and Grace felt like such a failure.

Grace met Bradley at the Hard Deck, ten years ago when she was barely twenty. They'd dated for six years before they got married, and they'd been married for four years. Two years ago, they felt settled and were ready to expand their family. Bradley was teaching at Top Gun, and Grace was running the kitchen at the Hard Deck, having entered a partnership with Penny.

But things weren't exactly going as they hoped. Grace had been afraid of this ever since she'd learned at eighteen that she had PCOS. And while she'd shared her worries with Bradley when they started trying, she still felt like a huge failure. It even affected their sex at times, Grace getting too lost in her head. They'd kept it quiet from everybody that they were trying because Grace didn't want the added pressure of others constantly asking, and she didn't want anyone else to be as disappointed as they were each month.

At her last doctor's appointment, they recommended that they start fertility testing and meds. While Grace agreed that it was the next logical step, she also was worried. While they made decent money, they still had bills to pay, and she didn't want for them to go into debt over this. So she was worried, and everyone was starting to notice. She kept to herself a lot at the Hard Deck, hiding out in the kitchen instead of working the bar or socializing in the down times. She knew the minute they agreed to the testing, they would have to start telling others. She knew keeping the secret, especially from Ice and Mav, had been really hard on Bradley, but he'd done it for her.

I heard from the heavens that clouds have been grey

Ice and Mav had noticed the kids were acting different at every family dinner for the last two months, but they were doing their best to act like everything was fine. After the second month of awkwardness, they decided to tackle it, especially after Penny confirmed Grace had been acting different at work too. Grace was the best thing to ever happen to Bradley and their family, and they wanted to help fix whatever needed fixing. So they made a plan; Mav would talk to B and Ice would see if Grace would talk to him.

Getting Bradley to talk was harder than Mav expected though. When asked if everything was ok, Bradley assured him it was. But the kid still couldn't lie and Mav saw right through it.

I see that you're hurtin',

"Ice we have to do something," Mav whined after several failed attempts at getting Bradley to talk to him at work or at the Hard Deck.

Ice gently squeezed the back of Mav's neck, massaging some. "What about a day at the hanger. You know B likes being out there, and Grace could probably use the quiet."

Mav already has his phone out texting Bradley to see when Grace was off next and if they could go. The plan was set for Saturday; they'd meet Ice and Mav at the hanger around nine in the morning. They were hopeful time away from everything would help the kids open up to them a little more. Especially since it was rare for them to keep anything from them like this.

After getting Mav's text, Grace curled into Bradley's side. "You know we have to tell them," she whispers. Her fingers are drawing idle circles on his chest, as his fingers stroke up and down her back.

"Yea. I think...." he sighs a little. "I think they're on to us. Mav's been asking me all week if everything is ok."

why'd you take so long To tell me you need me?

Grace lets her fingers keep dancing over his chest. "Mmmmm yea. We probably haven't been the most subtle lately."

"Grace..."

"No I know. I've been off. It's been... It's been a lot, with a lot of decisions to make. Fuck B I've had you keeping secrets from them for two years. I'm surprised they haven't caught on before now."

He tips her chin up so she can meet his eyes. "You haven't had me doing anything. I agreed."

She bites her lip softly as she nods. He softly kisses her forehead, holding her tight. "It's going to be ok babe. It'll be ok."

Raise your head, look into my wishful eyes

They pull up to the hanger, the door wide open. Bradley is not surprised in the least that his dads are already there. They probably spent the night before there if the truth was known. He laces his hand with Grace's as they get out of the bronco. He knows she's worried about today, but he knows Mav and Ice will be the most supportive parents ever.

"Morning," he calls out.

"Hey kiddos," Mav smiles pulling them both into his arms.

"Hey dad," Bradley smiles, before Grace sinks into the hug. She clings a little tighter and Mav just lets her as Ice hugs Bradley. She sinks into Ice's hug next; both Ice and Mav give the best hugs. It takes all she has not to start crying.

"Dad made breakfast," Ice says as Grace slowly pulls back.

"Well let's eat," Bradley smiles. He wraps his arm over Grace's shoulder as he leads her towards the makeshift table in the hanger. Conversation flows easily as they eat and then Mav asks if Bradley wants to go up. He turns to Grace who is nodding without him even having to ask. She knows Bradley loves being in the air with Mav and she is perfectly fine being on the ground with Ice. They clean up breakfast and Mav and Bradley are in the air within the hour.

Grace waves as they take off, before she turns to Ice to see what he would like to do. He pats the couch and Grace lets out a breath before joining him. "You two are tag teaming us aren't you?"

Ice snorts as he pulls her into side. "And this is why you've always been my favorite Gracie." She chuckles as she lets him give her a side hug. "You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to. We just wanna help. We can tell things have been off, and we're just worried about you two."

She rests her head on his shoulder as she gathers her thoughts. Ice and Mav have always been great to her, like dads she never had. She knows how lucky Bradley was to have them. She pulls her legs up to her chest, resting her chin on her knees. "We've been keeping secrets. I... I asked B to keep secrets. But... we have to be honest now. We..." She takes a shuddering breath as Ice lays a hand on her back.

"Grace you don't have to say anything you don't want."

"Its not that we don't want. B would've told you from the beginning but, I asked him not to. I didn't...." She feels tears gather and knows she's not going to be able to stop them. "I didn't want to disappoint you two as well."

"Grace, honey, you could never." Ice pulled her into his arms as the tears silently roll down her cheeks. "Oh honey."

She tried to pull herself together as Ice just holds her tight. "We've.... we've been trying to make yall grandparents," she whispers.

So cry tonight But don't you let go of my hand You can cry every last tear I won't leave 'til I understand

Ice's arms tighten around her. Before he can say anything she just pushes on wanting to get this all out now that she's started. "We've been trying for two years with no success. Bc of my PCOS they wanna do some tests and then put me on meds but it's not guaranteed. They've already told us we should consider fertility doctors. I just.... I've let it all get to me lately and I know I've been off. I just..." she shrugs. "I just feel like such a failure. I'd do anything to make B a dad because I know he'll be an amazing one but I can't."

Ice gently turns her face towards him. "Grace I want you to hear me when I say this ok? You are not a failure. You're not. Things aren't happening like you want right now but that does not make you a failure."

She can't stop the tears as Ice pulls her back into his arms. "He gets so excited each time and then I just have to crush it," she sobs. "He tries to hide how hurt he is, but I still see it. I still feel it."

Ice just holds her tight letting her get it all out as he thinks of how to word what he wants to say so she hears him.

"I don't know what to do anymore. I think I've given up hope. The meds might work, they might not. And then what? How long do we keep going, keep being disappointed. And everything after this will be so expensive. How do I know when it's enough and I just have to crush his dreams all together? I can't do it.... I dunno that I can keep doing it. I can't keep hurting him and destroying his dream."

"Grace honey..... it's your dream too."

"I don't even think about me anymore," she whispers into his chest. It's so quiet he almost doesn't hear it.

"Grace..."

"I don't," she chokes on a sob. "I never think about me. I knew it could be like this, I tried to prepare him, but I don't think I did a good job. And it's a constant let down. God he should've found someone better... prettier... someone who can make all his dreams come true."

"Honey, I've known Bradley a very, very long time. You are the best thing that has ever happened to that kid. He's been looking for you his entire life, and when he found you? His whole life made sense. Even if you never give him a child he would never ever blame you for it. You're all he needs. You're everything to him." He hugs her tight to him, rubbing her back, his heart breaking for the girl that has been like his daughter for ten years now.

"You completed our family Gracie girl. You're not just the best thing to happen to that boy, but to us too. We weren't sure we would ever have a family beyond just us two, but then we got Bradley. And while we hate how that happened, we loved that boy like our own. And now you, the daughter we never had, but love very much. Making a family comes in all shapes and sizes. We all would be lost without you, so never think for a second you belong anywhere else. Would we love a grandchild? Of course. But if it never happens, we have you two."

He holds her tight as she cries into his chest, and he prays his words are absorbed. "You know we will help anyway we can. You don't even have to ask."

"I dunno that I could ever ask that. It'd be..."

He tips her chin up to look into his determined gaze. "You're not asking. I'm offering. We'd do anything for you two. You're all we've got; we might as well spoil the hell out of you two."

Grace gives him a small smile. "Mav might not like you spending all his airplane money."

Ice laughs out loud at that. "Oh honey. Mav would give all that up to see you two happy and living your dream."

Grace hugs him tight. "Thank you Pops," she whispers quietly.

"Anytime Gracie girl. Anytime."

But if you decide to, I'll ride in this life with you I won't let go 'til the end

Mav had let Bradley fly around for about 10 minutes before he decided to press. "B..." he starts but Bradley cuts him off.

"You don't have to ask again Dad. I'm done lying," he sighs. He levels the plane out and thinks of his words. "I'm surprised you haven't pressed before now. But.... I am sorry for lying to you."

"It's ok Bradley. We're worried about you both and just wanna help. Penny said Grace stays in the kitchen a lot and has been really quiet."

"Yea...." Bradley sighs as he brushes the hair off his forehead and back behind the headset band. "Things have gotten to be a lot lately. We uh..... we've..." he trails off finding it hard to admit the truth. It's been their secret for so long, he doesn't know what to say. Plus he's just as worried about Grace as they are. He wishes he could make things easier for her, help in some way, but she's been shutting down a lot, even on him.

"It's ok kiddo. You don't have to say anything you don't want to. And if it's easier we can always land again."

"Yea... I might... you know I love being in the air but it might be better not having your life in my hands for this. I dunno how steady I'll be."

Mav chuckles at that. "You know that's never worried me Baby Goose. I trust you with my life, but whatever you're comfortable with."

Bradley circles back towards the hanger and slowly sets her down. He stops at the end of the runway and pops the canopy. "Can we just sit out here before we taxi back?" He knows Ice is probably talking to Grace and he hopes Pops is helping so he doesn't want to interrupt that.

"Yea of course." Mav climbs out and settles under the wing in the shade, Bradley following him. He pulls Bradley into a tight hug as soon as he can and Bradley just sinks into it. "It's going to be ok. Whatever it is, it'll be ok."

Bradley clings to his dad before he chokes out "I don't know anymore dad.. I just don't know." Mav runs his fingers through Bradley's hair until his kid pulls back some. "Maybe we should go to the firepit to be more comfortable? This might take a while."

"Whatever you want B," Mav smiles. Mav ends up taxiing the plane to the hangar. He waves at Ice and Grace before heading around back to the firepit near the house. Bradley is already settled in one of the chairs staring off into space.

"They looked fine. More importantly Grace looked fine. You know Pops will take care of her." He could tell she'd be crying, but he left that out.

Bradley smiles up at him. "Yea I know. He's good like that. You're not half bad yourself old man," he teases.

Mav scoffs and rises to the bait like he knows Bradley wants him too. "Who are you calling old kiddo?"

Bradley snorts as Mav gets settled beside him. Mav squeezes his shoulder in encouragement. He decides it'll be better to just rip the bandaid off quickly so he blurts it out in one go. "We've been trying for a baby for two years and I think Grace has about reached her breaking point. We've kept it a secret but now her doctor is recommending testing and meds and it's all just been a lot."

"Oh kid," Mav sighs. He can't not pull Bradley into another hug after that and Bradley just breaks, silent tears streaming down his cheeks. "I gotcha Baby Goose. Let it out," Mav murmurs, his heart breaking for his two kids who have been struggling so long on their own.

"I don't know what to do anymore dad."

Mav runs his fingers through Bradley's hair calming him. "What are they thinking?"

Bradley wipes his eyes and lets out a soft sigh as he sits back in his chair. He runs Mav through her disorder and what testing the doctors are wanting to do. He tells him they wanna put her on meds and if that doesn't work they'll recommend fertility doctors. He doesn't stop there though telling Mav everything; how Grace has been shutting down, how she thinks the doctors are good idea but she's worried they can't afford them nor is she confident they'll work, how she thinks she's disappointing him and will disappoint everybody and that's why they've kept it a secret, how she constantly tells him he deserves someone better that can give him a family.

"I don't want anyone else dad. Grace is my world, my everything. She's amazing and more than I deserve. But she's so down on herself right now, I can't get her to see it. I mean hell the problem might not be all her. We don't know. But two years is so long I'm afraid she's gonna give up. Or maybe she already has. I just.... I dunno what to do anymore."

Mav gently squeezes the back of Bradley's neck, his heart breaking in two as he listens. "Hey. It's going to be ok. This is the first right step ok? You're talking about it, I'm sure Pops got Gracie to talk. You two aren't alone B. Not anymore."

"I get why she wanted to keep it a secret. It's been hard enough on us, much less adding in anyone else's hopes. But I just...."

"It's gotten to be too much and you two need help. It's ok to admit that B."

Bradley gives him a small smile. "Pops has rubbed off on you a lot."

Mav scoffs a laugh but concedes. "You're right he has."

"'S not a bad thing," Bradley grins.

Mav chuckles as he ruffles Bradley's hair. "We just have to be there for her. Remind her how much we love her no matter what. She knows you're not going anywhere, Baby Goose. She knows that. But sometimes..... when you get lost in your head, it's hard to know that in the moment. Constant reminders help. And you know you can come to us for anything. We'll help anyway you want or need. You don't even have to ask."

"I know.... We just hate asking for money or anything like that. It's not..."

Mav gently cups his jaw. "Stop. I know it's not easy to do, you're too much like me," he smiles ruefully. "But we are offering. Whatever you two need. We'd do it for you."

"Thanks dad," Bradley whispers hugging Mav tight. "Can we..."

"Come on," Mav chuckles, knowing exactly what Bradley was asking for before he even finished the question.

They head back into the hanger just as Ice and Grace were pulling apart from their own hug. "Everything...." Grace didn't even let Bradley finish. She was up and in his arms before he could blink. She clung to him tight as Bradley just held her. Mav sat down by Ice on the couch just watching them.

"I love you," she whispers into his neck.

"I love you too baby."

She hugs him for the longest before pulling back and wiping her eyes. She gives him a soft smile and a quick kiss before they rejoin his parents. They spend the rest of the afternoon talking, relaxing, just enjoying the company. Ice and Bradley grill burgers for supper while Grace and Mav sit around the firepit talking.

Its a much needed night for them, and they end up staying the night with the promise of breakfast in the morning. Once the kids are asleep, Ice and Mav quietly check on them and find them sound asleep curled around each other. "Ice," Mav whispers as Ice pulls him away and to their room.

"I know love. I know."

"What do we do?"

"We be there for them and help them anyway we can. They came to us so that's the first step." Ice gently cradles his face. "I know you wanna fix it as bad as I do, but we have to wait on them. Whatever they ask for, we'll do. But we can't force them. Grace needs all the extra love right now possible. But I suspect Baby Goose does too."

"Yea. They're both in need of a little extra TLC."

"Good thing that's your specialty," Ice teases.

Promise me, just hold my hand

Two weeks later, Bradley lets Mav and Ice know that Grace is going to have the first test done. They want to make sure her tubes are open. Ice makes sure to get Bradley the day off, especially when Bradley lets on how apprehensive Grace is about it. Mav already makes plans to take care of dinner for them that night and Bradley just hugs them both tight.

The procedure isn't as bad as Grace expected, but she's still thankful to have Bradley home that day. While she's not in any pain, she doesn't feel the best after, so she's more than glad to accept all the cuddles he wants to give.

The doorbell rings about five and Bradley untangles from Grace. "That's probably dad," he murmurs softly. She wasn't asleep but she'd dozed some.

"K," she yawns. She throws on one of Bradley's hoodies and follows him to the door.

"Oh you didn't have to get up," Mav tells her after setting the casserole on the counter.

"It's fine. I probably needed to move." She gives him a smile as he pulls her into his arms.

"You ok sweetheart?"

She nods against his shoulder before slowly pulling back. "Yea it wasn't as bad as I thought. Not really cramping like they said I would, just feel off."

Mav brushes a curl behind her ear before Ice pulls her into his arms for a hug. "Well that's good. I'm sure B has been very attentive?"

Grace giggles as Ice cocks his eyebrow at Bradley, who's getting down plates and cups for drinks.

"Who do you take me for Pops? You taught me better than that."

"Gracie?"

Grace full on laughs at that, settling into the seat when all three shoo her away from helping. "He's been amazing Pops I promise."

"Good. That's what we want to hear."

Mav dishes up dinner while Bradley gets them all drinks. Before they can ask she offers up, "We've already gotten the results and everything is good. Tubes are open so...." She pushes some of the food around, before giving them a shaky smile. "The doctor's going to call in meds to start next cycle and they've already sent a referral for B to get tested too."

Bradley's hand squeezes her thigh; he's so proud of her being able to get that all out.

"Sounds promising right?" Mav can't help but ask as he gives her shoulder a squeeze.

She wipes at her eyes before giving him a smile. "Yea... yea you're right."

Bradley and Ice change the subject after that, and dinner goes well. Mav and Ice insist on cleaning up despite the kids' protests. Once everything is clean and the leftovers packed into their fridge, Mav and Ice hug them both tight, making them promise to call if they need anything.

It's another few weeks before she can start the meds, having to wait until the third day of her cycle. And it's two weeks after that, that Bradley goes for his test. Deep down Grace knew it would come back just fine, so she's not the least bit surprised when it does.

She's not thrilled about having blood work done on the third week, but she understands it's necessary. The first round of meds, help with ovulation, but it doesn't bring the results they were hoping for.

Round two sees her having blood work and a mid-cycle ultrasound to see how the meds are affecting her ovaries. Bradley isn't able to go with her, but once more, it doesn't turn out as bad as she was expecting. She's learned she's real good at making scenarios worse in her head.

What does surprise her is when both her fathers-in-law show up at the house before her shift after that appointment, although she really shouldn't be. Mav and Ice have been the best during this time, literally offering to do anything they need. They take her out to lunch, and she promises them she's fine. They talk a little bit about her appointment, but they don't linger on it long. Their main goal was just to offer her a little extra TLC and get her mind off things.

Cycle three hurt the worst because Grace was almost positive things had worked. The day she got her period though, found her curled on the couch in one of Bradley's hoodies as she just cried her heart out. She'd been so sure this time; she knows she should've known better than to hope, but she couldn't help it.

She sent B a sad/crying gif on his lunch break when he asked how she was and he instantly knew. He just wanted to go home to her, but he knew he couldn't. So he did the next best thing he could think of. Mav was on base with him, helping with some training so he called Ice and asked him to go over. Then he text Grace; Pops is coming over. I know you probably want to be alone but I'd feel better if someone was with you since I can't be.

B he doesn't have to. I'll be fine.

Please.

She gives in at that, knowing Bradley is probably worrying about her and she'd rather he not be worried about her while at work. It's only fifteen minutes after Bradley's text does she hear the door open.

"Gracie?" Ice calls out softly.

"In here." It comes out as more of a croak, and she winces at how rough it sounds. She sits up, wiping her eyes, and before she can fix her hair, Ice is sitting down beside her on their big sectional couch.

"I'm sorry I loo..."

"Oh Gracie." Ice pulls her right into his arms and just holds her tight. "You know I don't care one bit about that."

She sniffs as she clings to him and as Ice rubs her back she feels herself start to cry once more. His arms tighten around her as he tries to comfort her. "Oh sweetheart. It's ok. Just get it all out," he murmurs softly. He's so glad Bradley called because he shudders to think of her here alone like this.

"I thought this time it'd worked," she sobs as she clings to him. "I knew better," she hiccups.

"Oh Gracie. It's ok to hope, honey. I know it just makes it hurt worse, but it's ok to let yourself hope and believe it's going to work."

She just clings to him as she sobs into his chest and Ice just holds her tight. It doesn't take much longer before she's exhausted herself. "Just rest sweetheart. I'm not going anywhere."

She falls asleep against him and Ice just holds her until she's deep asleep. He lays her down on the couch, laying a quilt over her. He sends Bradley a text letting him know Grace is asleep and he's got her.

He cleans up the kitchen and checks the pantry and fridge for lunch and dinner options. He's not that surprised when he doesn't find much, considering how much both of them have worked lately. He sends Mav a text to pick up dinner, whatever Bradley wants and he'll order whatever Grace wants for lunch later. He's halfway into a movie when Grace stirs.

"Hi sweetheart," he murmurs, as she slowly sits up emerging from the blanket cocoon.

"Pops?" Her voice is groggy and her eyes are still swollen, her hair a mess.

"Yea. Still here." He pulls her into his side, letting her rest on his shoulder. "Feeling better?"

"A little. Back still hurts but it will for the first day. Cramping a little too," she shrugs.

"Anything I can do?"

She shakes her head as she stays curled into his side. "Thanks for being here," she whispers after several minutes of quiet.

"No where else I'd rather be. You know Mav and B would be here if they didn't have training today."

"I know." She gives him a small smile before working out what movie he's watching. They finish the movie in silence and then Ice orders take out from the local Mexican restaurant Grace loves. Over lunch he entertains her with stories of Mav and the flyboys, and it does the trick to keep her distracted enough to eat.

Her mood seems to improve marginally throughout the day as they watch TV together and by the time Mav and Bradley come through the door with pizzas, Grace is laughing. Bradley turns towards the bedroom to hide his tears of relief, but Mav still sees them.

He sets the pizzas on the counter then pulls Bradley into the hallway and into a hug. "She's ok Baby Goose. Everything is going to be ok."

Bradley nods against Mav's shoulder before pulling back. He wipes his eyes giving his dad a tired smile. "I'm gonna go change then I'll be out."

Mav squeezes his shoulder before he heads to the living room. "We come bearing pizza," he smiles, being dramatic to hear another laugh from Grace.

"Good were starving," Ice declares, pulling Mav into his lap after he sets the pizzas on the coffee table. "Where's Baby Goose?"

"Changing." Grace can see them having a silent conversation, but before she can say she's going to check on her husband, Ice sits Mav on the couch and is up. Grace shakes her head fondly as she leans into the hug Mav pulls her into.

"My Mr Fix-it," Mav laughs as he holds his daughter tight.

"He's pretty good at it," she murmurs.

"That he is." He tightens his arms around her, dropping a kiss on her forehead. "You ok Gracie girl?"

"I will be. Having Pops here today helped. Was a good call for B to make. Don't know that being alone would've been good. I tend to get lost in my head easily. And I was a mess before Ice got here. I just..." she shrugs, feeling Mav tightening his arms once more. "I just thought this time was it," she whispers.

"It's going to happen. One way or another. You two will be the best parents ever."

"I dunno anymore," she sighs.

I can see everything you're blind to now Your prayers will be answered

Mav pulls back just a little and cradles her face. "I know. Ice knows." He wipes the few tear tracks off her cheeks. "We'll hold onto that hope until you can believe again Grace. We'd do anything to make your dreams come true. We weren't just saying that that day at the hanger. Anything."

"I know." She curls back against his chest. "It's just so hard to ask for help. Hard to know when we have to give up."

"You don't give up until you've tried every possible option."

Grace chuckles softly as she nods against his chest. "We can't afford every possible option Mav."

"Oh sweet girl you can. With us, you can."

I won't let go 'til the end

Ice quietly knocks on the door when he sees Bradley standing in the middle of their room just holding his clothes. He startles a little, turning towards the noise. "Hey Pops. Give me just a minute and imma change and be out."

"May I?" Ice asks instead.

Bradley nods as he swallows deep, knowing Ice won't take a no. He drops his clothes on the bed and before he knows it, he's wrapped in Ice's arms. He sinks into the hug, Ice being tall enough that Bradley can just sink into it.

Ice's arms tighten as he feels Bradley relaxing into him. "It's ok for you to not be ok either Bradley."

"I'm..."

"Uh huh. Nope. Don't you dare say you're fine."

"Yes sir," he murmurs into Ice's shoulder.

Ice holds him tight; "Come on B. It's ok. Let it out."

I'll be right here, hold my hand

"Pops," he hiccups. Ice's hand rubs up into his hair, holding him against him.

"I gotcha. It's ok. Let it out." And Bradley breaks. His sobs are silent, but he shakes in Ice's arms. "It's ok Baby Goose. It's ok." He holds the little boy he helped raise tight in his arms.

Ice just lets him cry, whispering words of comfort over and over until Bradley's body stops shaking and he's just clinging to Ice sniffling. "She's ok B. You're both going to be ok."

"She was sure," he whispers.

"I know. I know kiddo." He places a soft kiss on Bradley's forehead. "You made the right call having me come over."

Bradley nods as they sit on the edge of the bed. His fingers fiddle and Ice just pulls him back into his side. "She's ok now B. I'm not saying things are gonna be easier because they're not. But for tonight everything is ok."

Bradley gives him a small nod.

"It's ok to let her see you break too."

"I can't..." He shakes his head in denial. "No I can't. She needs me to be strong."

Ice gently ruffles his hair with a soft chuckle. "No kiddo. She just needs you." He gives Bradley another squeeze. "Tonight you just let me and dad be the strong ones ok? You just be."

"Pops is right," Grace says quietly from the doorway. Neither had heard her come looking from them. Bradley's head shoots up at her voice and he instantly starts trying to pull himself together.

Ice gives her a smile, squeezes Bradley's shoulder and then gets up leaving them to it. Grace walks closer, walking between Bradley's knees. With him sitting, she's sorta looking down at him. She threads her fingers through his hair and then lets her arms drop to the top of his shoulders. She pulls him close so his head rests against her, her head resting on top of his.

"Should listen to him," she whispers. She places a kiss on top of his head. "You can just be babe. I know you're just as crushed," she whispers.

Bradley's arms tighten around her as he gives a small nod. They stay like that in the quiet of their room just holding each other for the longest. Finally Bradley pulls back a little, reaching up and cupping her face. He softly kisses her, his thumbs rubbing under her swollen eyes. "We'll do an eye mask tonight, make you feel better."

She gives him a soft sweet smile. "Ok. But first we let Dad and Pops take care of us both." She softly rubs his cheeks until he nods, then she hugs him tight once more. They link hands and head back to the living room.

Ice and Mav are on opposite ends of the sectional, leaving plenty of room between them for the kids. The pizza boxes are open, drinks on the coffee table, and Homeward Bound already queued on the TV ready to go. Ice and Grace have watched Sweet Home Alabama earlier in the day, and before she'd gone to the bedroom she suggested that maybe they watch Bradley's comfort movie that night.

Bradley curls into Mav's side while Grace settles beside Ice. Mav softly rubs Bradley's head, placing a soft kiss there. "We gotcha Baby Goose."

"I know dad," he murmurs.

Ice presses play, and they get the kids to eat at least two pieces each. They leave the pizza there during the movie in case they want more. Bradley and Grace naturally drift together during the movie, curling around each other. Ice nor Mav are surprised when Grace drifts off or that Bradley fights to stay awake the whole time.

Once the movie's over, Ice starts cleaning up while Mav gets Bradley up and both of them off to bed. He picks up the living room, before they go tell the kids goodnight. They lock up behind themselves after seeing the kids curled in bed together sound asleep.

"Don't give me that look," Ice sighs as he and Mav walk to their vehicles.

"There has to be something we can do!"

Ice pulls Mav into his arms hugging him tight. "I know love, I know. But we can't. Not until they decide they wanna do more."

"They do though! They're just scared."

"Rightfully so," Ice gently reminds. "Pete we have to remember they've been doing this for two years already. Two years of constant disappointment."

"I know," he sighs, feeling his heart break more. "I just wanna make it better!"

"You did, tonight." Ice kisses his husband softly before they pull apart. "We'll just keep showing up and reminding them we're here. They'll come to us when they're ready."

"I'm not patient and you know it."

"That I do," Ice laughs. "I'll see you at home."

The kids seemed to perk back up a week later, but Ice and Mav were still worried. They were on the last cycle of meds, and everyone was on edge to see what would happen. Grace was the least surprised, when once again, it didn't happen. She was crushed, no doubt, but this time she was prepared.

It took them another two weeks before they came to Ice and Mav though. Bradley brought it up over family dinner, letting them know as forewarned, the doctor would not be calling in anymore meds and recommended they have a consult with the fertility clinic.

"What do you two want to do?" Ice asked gently.

Bradley looked at Grace, whose hands were fiddling in her lap as she bit her lip, not meeting their eyes. Bradley gently squeezes one of her hands and Grace finally looks up.

"We're going to do the consult. See what options they give," she finally said. She gives them both a watery smile. "Someone told me not to give up until we try every option and they'd hold onto the hope for me until I could believe again. I think I wanna trust him on that."

Mav is around the table before anyone can blink, hugging her tight. "That's right sweetheart. I still believe. Ice still believes."

She nods against his shoulder, feeling herself relax a little more. Once Mav is sitting back down across from them she says, "They're supposed to call us by the end of the week with an appointment."

"You just let us know what you need ok?"

"We will Pops," Bradley promises.

Hold my hand, hold my hand

They're appointment isn't for another three months, and during that time Grace puts all their troubles out of her mind. She focuses on herself and on Bradley, on their family and friends and just lets herself be. It's relaxing and feels like just what she needed. Since she's not on any meds, her periods are once again erratic, but she does her best not to let it bother her.

By the time they have their consult, she feels stable once more, and feels like she and Bradley are back in a really good place. The consult takes forever; they go over all the testing they'd had done previously, their medical histories, and the best plan of action going forward. She tries not to stress over the dollar amounts that get thrown at them, but it's really a lot.

By the time they leave, they both feel overwhelmed. "Think maybe we should go see dad and pops," Bradley says once they're in the Bronco.

"Yea... yea maybe."

Bradley squeezes her hand before texting Mav, who tells him to come straight over. Bradley chuckles when he reads the response. "Bet dad's drove pops crazy this morning."

Grace giggles. "Probably. You know he's just worried."

Bradley softly kisses the back of her head before he heads over to their house. He's not surprised in the least when Mav is waiting on the porch, Ice in the doorway. "Ready for a hug attack?" Bradley laughs as they get out.

He's not wrong; Mav instantly pulls her into his arms, stopping Bradley before he can get on the porch away from his dad. He hugs him tight next, while Grace goes to greet Ice. "I tried to keep him inside," Ice whispers, causing Grace to giggle.

"It's fine. I know he's been nervous."

Once inside, Bradley lays out all the paperwork they were given. He explains everything, with Grace chiming in as needed. "So this is what they're recommending first?" Mav asks, looking over the paperwork.

"Yea. The IUI is cheaper and less invasive. Essentially just putting everything where it needs to be to make a baby."

Ice gently squeezes Mav's arm before they meet the kids' gazes. "Do you want to do it?" Ice asks.

Bradley and Grace share a look, having a silent conversation between themselves. "Yea. I want to try. I...." she breaks off, steeling herself before she continues. "I don't want to give up just yet. I want to make Bradley a dad because I know he'll be an amazing one. I want to expand this little family we have."

Mav gives a tight hug. He's so proud that she took his words to heart and is still holding on to a little bit of hope despite everything trying to take it from her.

"Then we'll make it happen," Ice promises.

"Actually.. I think we can handle this first round. We've saved up some over the last few months. And we wanna do this as much as possible without dipping into any savings or airplane money you two have. We know we might have to, but.."

"B you don't have to do that. We can help."

"I know, dad." Bradley gives him that sweet smile that reminds him of the four year old that hung onto his every word. "But let us do this first round. If we have to do more, then we'll need the help."

Ice squeezes Mav's arm once more, and Mav concedes. "Alright. We can do that."

"Thanks dad." Bradley hugs him tight, knowing how much it took for Mav to concede to him just then. "I promise we'll let you help when we need it."

Grace has to do another round of meds, with ovulation tests, and before they know it, the day of the procedure rolls around. She keeps Mav's words in the back of her mind for the whole two weeks, and Ice and Mav do their best to keep the kids distracted and busy during those two weeks at Bradley's request.

The day she should start her period comes and goes. They try not to think about it, but it's all Grace can think of. The kitchen at the Hard Deck gets a solid deep clean, and Grace would've tackled the bar too if Penny hadn't stopped her. The next day is the same, except Grace is off and she finds herself at base, cleaning Bradley's office, before tackling Mav's.

Mav finds her after his last class of the day. "Gracie?"

She spins to face him with a sheepish smile. "Hi," she waves.

"Sweetheart what are you doing?"

She sighs as she sinks into the chair across from his desk. "I needed to stay busy and I was off today. Figured if I showed up and tried to clean the bar again, Penny would kill me. So I came here."

Mav leans up against his desk, watching her. "Uh huh. And you've just been cleaning?"

"Yea. Pops' office is way too clean to even bother. So I did yours and Bradley's."

I know you're scared and your pain is imperfect

Mav kneels down in front of her when she won't meet his eyes. "What's going on sweetheart?"

She sighs as her shoulders slump. "I should've started yesterday," she sighs.

Mav gives her hand a squeeze. "I see." He stands up and kisses her forehead. "Well it's a good thing it's Friday," he smiles. He drops some things on his desk, before snatching up some keys.

"Why?" Grace asks giving him a puzzled look.

"Because. Means we can go to the hanger for the weekend. Get out of town."

"I've got a shift tomorrow."

"I'll call Penny."

"Mav no its fine. I just..."

"Trust me sweetheart. If you're not ready to take a test, getting out of town will be the best thing."

"Ok," she whispers.

He pulls her up into a hug. "Now go find that kid of mine and tell him to hurry up. We'll meet ya out there tonight."

"Thanks dad," she whispers as she hugs him back just as tight.

But don't you give up on yourself

She heads off to get Bradley, Mav calling Penny as he walks to Ice's office informing him of the new plans.

The weekend ends up being the perfect distraction. Grace enjoys watching the guys fly, and Bradley is even able to convince her to go up once. The view is gorgeous and she ends up really loving it. It helps that her husband is patient and gentle in the plane with her behind him. By Sunday night, she feels well rested and loved and taken care of.

Monday morning before work, Bradley finds her in the bathroom throwing up and dry heaving. He wets a wash cloth and rubs over her forehead and the back of her neck. "You ok?" He whispers when she leans back against him just breathing deep.

"I'm so nauseous," she whines.

Bradley softly hums as he keeps running the wash cloth over her. He just holds her, letting her breathe through it until the feeling passes. "Think maybe you should take a test now?"

She shakes her head no before he even finishes his question. "You know I had nausea spells before my period with the meds last time."

"Mmm. But I don't remember you ever puking."

"Could be a fluke," she argues.

"Ok baby. Ok," he concedes. He softly kisses her forehead before helping her up. He stays right there while she rinses her mouth and then helps her back to bed. "Just promise you'll take it easy at work if you still don't feel good."

"I will," she promises, pulling him down for a kiss before he's off to work.

Grace feels better after another hour of sleep, and she's convinced herself it's just a fluke when it only happens the once. By the next weekend, she's officially a week late, her temp is still elevated, and she's absolutely exhausted.

That fear that's inside you will lift, give it time

It all comes to a head Saturday over family dinner. The minute Grace walks through the door, the smell of her favorite sushi and hibachi take out sends her running to the guest bathroom off Mav and Ice's foyer. Bradley instantly follows leaving his Dads standing in the doorway confused.

Mav lights up when he puts the pieces together but Ice reigns him in. "Don't. We don't know anything."

"When has Grace ever gotten sick at the smell of food?"

"When she's had a stomach bug," Ice deadpans.

Mav sticks his tongue out, but they retreat to the living room to wait on the kids. They don't have to wait long, Bradley carrying a very pale Grace. He lays her on the couch, Grace covering her face with a whine.

"Might wanna put the food away," Bradley suggests, when Grace groans and just tries to breathe through it.

"You got it kiddo. What can we get her?"

"Got any sprite or crackers?"

Ice gives him a nod as they both retreat to the kitchen. Ice packs away the food for now as Mav brings back the requested items. He sits at Grace's feet, lifting them into his lap. Bradley's sitting with her head against his thighs, as he runs a wash cloth over her face still.

"Here sweetheart. Wanna try one of these?"

"Sprite first," Bradley answers already knowing which one she'll pick first. Mav hands it to him, and Bradley helps her take some slow slips.

"Sooooo, stomach bug?" Mav asks, causing Ice to let out a loud groan from the kitchen.

Bradley can't help but chuckle himself, knowing Mav has been dying to ask since Grace ran to the bathroom. "We don't know Dad," he finally says. "This is the second time this week it's happened though."

I've heard a story, a girl, she once told me

Ice rejoins them, sitting on the coffee table near the couch. He brushes some hair off Grace's forehead as she tries a cracker. "How you feeling sweetheart?"

"I'm ok. I'll be fine. I'm sure it's nothing."

Mav makes a wounded noise at that causing Bradley to giggle once more. "I think dad disagrees with you babe."

Grace sighs as she shakes her head at Bradley. She takes another cracker from Mav and works her way vertical, leaning her head over on Bradley's shoulder. "Think you're gonna have to hold that hope yourself Mav."

"I'll do it." He pulls her gently into a side hug. "You know I will. Good things are coming Grace. I know you're scared, but twice is a coincidence sweetheart."

"Not necessarily," she grumbles.

Mav kisses the side of her forehead as he shares a look with Ice. "Do you think you can eat honey?" Ice asks her.

"Not what yall ordered." She feels herself turning green at the thought of the take out.

"What do you think you can eat?" Mav asks her as she nibbles on another cracker.

"Grilled cheese," she shrugs. "I dunno. Food makes me wanna gag at the moment."

It's so hard for Mav not to remind her that might be a good sign, but he doesn't say a word. "Grilled cheeses are dad's specialty," Bradley smiles.

"What are yall gonna eat though?" she pouts. She feels terrible that she's ruined their dinner plans.

"Grilled cheeses are fine," Ice reassures. "Taking care of you is the most important."

She settles on the couch with Bradley while Ice and Mav go fix the sandwiches. She can hear them whispering in the kitchen, but she just can't let herself hope just yet. "Dad might be right," Bradley whispers as he rubs her back.

"I know... I just..."

"I know baby. I know." He softly kisses the top of her head as they just relax. They end up enjoying the night on the couch, eating the sandwiches and catching up from the week. Grace dozes off, exhausted, and they let her sleep as they keep talking quietly. Bradley promises Mav and Ice that he will try to get her to test soon. He gently scoops her up, and it's a testament to how tired she is that she doesn't even wake.

"B just take her to the guest room and you two stay."

"Ok, dad," Bradley smiles. He knows it'll make Mav feel better to have them under the roof for the night. He tucks Grace into the bed, and after hugging Mav and Ice, joins her. They sleep all through the night, and Bradley wakes before her. She's gorgeous and he loves watching her wake up.

He softly kisses her forehead; "Morning beautiful."

"We stayed the night?" she murmurs sleepily, taking in the room around them.

"Yea you fell asleep and dad suggested we stay. Seemed easier."

She rubs her eyes as she stretches. "Ok." She gives him a sweet smile, and pulls him down for a kiss. "Think they made breakfast?"

"Most definitely," he grins.

They get up, and Grace snags a hoodie, that she suspects Bradley had left here at some point. She throws her hair up in a bun, and once she feels mostly presentable, they head out to the kitchen. She squeezes Bradley's hand as she breathes deep at the smell of the coffee.

"Morning kiddos," Ice smiles, seeing them join them.

"Hey Pops, Dad."

"Morning," Grace tries to smile. "I'll...." She breaks for the bathroom unable to hold it back like she thought she'd be able to.

"Bradley..."

"I got it dad. Just... maybe no coffee," he shrugs. He finds Grace in their bathroom, breathing deep. He wets a wash cloth and kneels beside her.

"You ok?" he whispers.

She leans into his shoulder as she just breathes. "Yea... I just..." She sighs as he wraps his arms around her. "I dunno felt sick. I'm so nauseous."

Bradley softly rubs her back as he gently rocks her. "Baby..."

"I know," she whispers. She clings to him tighter. "I'm just scared."

"Me too," he whispers. "But we have to jump sometimes."

"Ok," she whispers. She gives him a small nod, and Bradley pulls her head off his chest to stare into her eyes.

"Yea?"

"Yea. Go get me one."

"What if I send dad?" he grins.

Grace chuckles softly. "Ok. Do that and you can stay with me."

Bradley kisses her forehead and then helps her back to the edge of the bed. He heads back to the kitchen, and he's not surprised when they both turn to him expectantly. "Who wants to run to the store for us?"

"I'll be right back," Mav says, already having his bike key in his pocket.

Ice pulls Bradley into a hug; he can see the fear and barely concealed excitement in his eyes. "It's going to be ok."

"Yea... Yea I know Pops."

He goes back to cuddle Grace until Mav gets back. She dozes a little, and prays her stomach will settle, sipping some Sprite. Mav's back within thirty minutes and he quietly knocks on the door. He passes Bradley the box with a small smile, and tells them they'll keep breakfast warm.

"Well... Here goes," Grace sighs, taking the box from Bradley's hand. He pulls her into a deep kiss, holding her tight.

"Whatever happens, we're going to be ok."

She gives him a shaky smile and then closes the door to the bathroom. She comes out a few minutes later and sits on the bed beside him. "Baby?"

"Gotta wait three minutes. I don't... I don't know that I can look at it B."

"That's ok. I can do it." They sit there watching the minutes tick by and when it passes five minutes, Grace finally pulls back from his arms. She gives him a nod, and then she starts twisting the hoodie sleeves around her hands. She's almost petrified of the results after all of this.

Bradley comes back holding the test, and he's doing his best, not to give it away. He knows his eyes have to be shining though. "B?"

He turns the test towards her, and she immediately closes her eyes. "Grace... baby just look."

"Bradley..."

"Please?"

She slowly opens her eyes, connecting with his smile first. She lets her eyes drop down to the test, and she can't move. She sits there in stunned silence just staring. "Grace?"

"Oh my god," she whispers, a hand dropping to her stomach. "We... It..."

That I would be happy again

Bradley drops the test and picks her up, Grace wrapping her arms and legs around him immediately. "Congrats Mommy," he whispers as he holds her tight.

She cries into his neck as she clings to him. "I can't believe it!"

"I know. I know. It worked though. Grace you're pregnant."

She cradles his face, wiping away his own tears, before she kisses him hard and deep. "Congrats Daddy," she whispers, more happy tears rolling down her cheeks.

The test is forgotten on the floor as Bradley carries her out to the kitchen. The coffee is gone, and Mav and Ice have moved to the living room, so Bradley keeps walking.

Mav sees the tears on Bradley's cheeks and squeezes Ice's hand before he gets up. "Oh kiddos..."

"Hi Grandad and Grandpops," Bradley says before Mav can finish his thought.

They both stare at him, letting the words sink in, as he sets Grace on her feet. "Wait... you just..."

"He did," Grace smiles. She jumps into Mav's arms giving him a tight hug. "You held onto that hope long enough Grandad."

"Come here," Ice says, pulling Bradley into a tight hug, before he and Mav switch kids. After more happy tears are shed, they ask Grace what she thinks she can stomach for breakfast. She gives them a grin, telling them some toast will be fine for now, as they both move back to the kitchen to fix their breakfast.

"I have a feeling I'm fixing to be doted on even more than I already was," she whispers with a giggle.

"Oh no doubt," Bradley agrees.

Despite their rough journey to making their little miracle baby, Grace ends up with a fairly easy pregnancy. They tell the rest of their family and friends after her twelve week appointment, and time seems to fly after that.

The nursery comes together rather easily after their gender reveal party. They kept it a surprise and Bradley got to fly the Mustang with a banner flying behind as the announcement; "Daddy's Little WingMAN coming soon." If Mav and Ice cried seeing it, well Grace just let them. It made for a cute video though.

The last ten weeks found her on bed rest, which she hated, but did without complaint for her little man. Ice and Mav constantly stopped by to keep her company or help out. If one of them wasn't available, usually one of the Flyboy uncles would stop by. She loved them dearly, but felt they were going overboard taking care of her, but she didn't really have the heart to tell them.

At thirty-eight weeks, Grace goes into labor. One phone call to Ice, and Bradley is off work and on his way to her, Mav riding along. They get to the hospital just as her water breaks, and ten hours later, Grace is holding their son. Bradley gets to cut the cord and then follows over to the side as they clean him up. He carries him back to Grace, cooing at him the whole time as the baby just watches him.

He settles on the side of her bed, gently placing the baby in her arms. The room empties quickly, leaving them in the quiet. "He's perfect," Grace whispers, her finger rubbing over his cheek.

"Like his mama," Bradley smiles. They cuddle their baby for close to an hour, Grace feeding him during that time. Once he's asleep, and they're for sure settled, Bradley leaves him with Grace to go get his dads.

"Come on. We got someone to meet you," he smiles, after they both hug him tight.

They walk into the room quietly, and Grace smiles at them from the bed. "We've got a sleepy boy who can't wait to meet his grandparents," she smiles.

Bradley gently takes him out of Grace's arms before turning to his dads. "Dad, Pops, we'd like to introduce you to your grandson, Mitchell Thomas Bradshaw."

Grace can't help but giggle, despite the video she's taking. They'd promised Slider they'd get the reaction on video, as they'd kept the name a secret from Mav and Ice.

"Oh Bradley! It's perfect," Mav whispers wiping his eyes. He gently takes the baby from Bradley, as Ice leans over his shoulder. The little boy yawns and wiggles in his grandfather's hold getting comfy. His eyes open and blink a few times at the two new faces and then he settles right back to sleep.

"You did amazing kiddos," Ice whispers, grinning over at them. Bradley had curled into the bed with Grace and she looked like she was about to doze off. "You two rest. We got him," Ice promises.

They settle onto the little couch, taking turns holding the sleeping baby, while Bradley lets Grace get some sleep. "I knew you'd come along and be just perfect," Mav whispers to Mitchell. "Grandad never gave up hope. And now you can be daddy's little wingman."

Mitchell Thomas had no idea just how loved he was going to be growing up. He had his parents, his grandads, and a whole slew of aunts and uncles that spoiled him rotten. The kid never wanted for anything, and with his daddy's big brown eyes, no one could hardly tell him no. He was his mama's boys and his daddy's wingman, completing their little family.

I heard from the heavens

#my writing #au of my au #bradley rooster bradshaw #grace spicy bradshaw #bradley rooster bradshaw x oc #bradley rooster bradshaw fic #spicy x roo #bradley x grace #pete maverick mitchell #tom iceman kazansky #icemav #icemav raised bradley #dad!mav #pops!ice #tw: infertility #infertility #infertility struggles

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eisforeidolon · 6 months

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Question: So if you guys could go back to sitting there reading the very first script for the show we're all here for, and you were in the room with yourselves, what would you say to yourselves?

Jared: [emphatic] Don't do it! Kidding, kidding, kidding.

Jensen: W-what would, like, the me now say to the me then? Uhhh. Well, I would say, don't worry you're gonna play Dean. [Jared laughs] Because originally they were only reading for Sams. They were for auditioning for the role of Sam first.

Jared: Obviously someone was really fucking great at that and you had no chance. [laughs, slaps Jensen's arm]

Jensen: Thankfully. Yeah, so I - there's somewhere out there in the ether is my audition tape for Sam. And I never did come back and read for Dean, they just immediately brought me to the final, the final test audition. Which is where I met him and that was the first time I'd ever read Dean.

Jared: But you had been like -

Jensen: Yeah, I'd went in and when I met with Kripke and -

Jared: And that, for those who don't know? That's not uncommon for movies or tv shows and the like. Is sometimes they just make everybody audition for one character to go like, okay, this person could be a great Crowley, this person could be a great Castiel, this person could play Dean, but you all read the same thing. They want to see the way you kinda react. So it wasn't like he lost the role of Sam. That's just what they do. I think every role I've ever gotten, it was like they were auditioning - here are your audition scenes. Everyone got the same thing.

Jensen: There were a lot of roles that I never - that wasn't like, that was kind of a product of reading for something else. Like my role on another little show I did just prior to - I think Tom Welling was the lead. I was - it came down to he and I for that role, and he ended up getting it. And then a few years later they just called me up and said, hey, we've been looking for a way to bring you on, we really wanted to work with you, we really wanted you on the show. And they created that role and just had me - just gave it to me. So a lot of those, that happens, where you go and you read for something and then you end up getting another role. And that happened with Dean. So that's what I would say, I would say to my younger self reading that for the first time who was reading it thinking that Sam was the one that I would - that I would be fighting for? I'd just be like, hey, don't worry, it's gonna be Dean. [Jared laughs] Because when I did get the audition, I read for Sam and I was like, listen, can I just - when you guys read for Dean? I'd love a shot at that. And Kripke and Nutter just looked at each other like -

Jared: We already know.

Jensen: We got you. So I dunno. That's maybe one thing I'd say. What would you say?

Jared: I think - amen to that - and I think that dovetails into kinda what I would say, which is more than about the show specifically? About talking to two guys or gals or whatever in their 20s, like starting their life? I don't think there's any such thing as [finger quotes] starting your life or going like I'm gonna do this so that one day I can live this life I want. Like, life is happening now. Like, this is life, y'know, that's what I've learned through friendships and other relationships. If you just sit down and beat yourself up for years and years going once I get this, then I'll have a life. And then I'll do what I want to do. Like, life is happening now. You're living life now, so I wish I could tell - because a lot of 20 year old Jared was upset. Like [affected voice] this isn't what I thought I wanted to - I don't even know where Vancouver is, you know?

Jensen: Well, you, I think, you've even talked about this, we've had discussions about it. But he, you know, he was just coming off of Gilmore Girls, he was early 20s, and he had a really good setup going in LA. I mean, he had a solid girlfriend, he had a lot of good friends -

Jared: Dogs.

Jensen: He had dogs, he had a really good house. He was really kind of set up. And when the show started, like he said, we moved up to Vancouver.

Jared: Well - did you tell the story about shooting the pilot in the village - or in the valley rather? And then going - the show gets picked up, we go to the Upfronts in New York, we go to Nobu -

Jensen: We filmed the pilot in LA, thinking we were gonna then, when the show - if it went, we would film in LA.

Jared: Which was like 5-10 minutes from where we both lived.

Jensen: And he could just continue this great setup that he had in LA.

Jared: Months pass, so we shoot in February and March, get picked up in May, go to New York to announce the show was picked up, and then we get brought out to a dinner with all the bosses at the time. And they're like, okay, Jared, Jensen, Kripke, congratulations, have a great time in Vancouver. And we're sitting there like ... what? And we found out after the show was picked up, after we did all the interviews about doing the show, that we were filming in Canada. So that was a big, like, pull the rug out kinda thing. It ended up being amazing and, y'know, I think it was a phenomenal place, and obviously I think the show worked out? We're all here to talk about it, so things happen for a reason. But yeah, it caught me off guard. I got by with a little help from my friend [hits Jensen's shoulder]. So here we are.

#jaxcon 2023 #j2 main panel #long post

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drivin-down-i-20 · 6 months

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I don’t really know how to start this kind of thing off so I guess I’ll just introduce myself? I don’t want to get too personal, for reasons that I’m sure you’ll come to understand later, but I can at least tell you my job. I’m an employee of my state’s Highway Patrol. I’m not a cop or anything like that; I clean up accidents.

Semis, mostly. I’m part of a crew that is responsible for the section of I-20 that cuts across my state. We get calls mostly at night, so we’re all night owls, perpetually sipping caffeine in one form or another. Except for that one guy, but he’s a whole story all by himself.

I’ve seen some of the most horrific accidents you can imagine. Cattle trailers overturned. Sleeping truckers. Spills. And I’d like to tell a few stories if that’s okay. I’ve never believed that people living and working in places where secrets are kept is a good idea. Especially when those secrets are kept by those who are supposed to protect them. This is the “I’m sure you’ll understand why later part.” This is a throwaway account and it’ll be deactivated when I’m through with these stories. In the meantime, feel free to shoot me any questions you’ve got. Asks. Whatever. I figure Tumblr isn’t as… monitored as Reddit so maybe I’ll be okay. Just. Spread it around yeah? Protect your people. Help them protect themselves.

I’ve never been a superstitious or conspiracy type person. I was raised hand to mouth and didn’t really have time to think about any of that. I did go to church. Mama made all of us go. I loved lessons in Sunday School about the great heroes in the Bible. David. Moses. Samson. Superheroes of the Bible the old woman who was my teacher called them.

As I got older though, I realized they were just men. People. David was a murderer, murdered a friend to steal his wife. Moses was a murderer, but I’ll be honest, I’d have done what he did too. Samson got himself in an entire bind over a woman. They weren’t to be idolized. They were to be learned from.

Guess this is what my first story’s like. Learn something from it. Maybe.

It doesn’t snow much where I am. Instead, we get the ice. Yeah that real good pipe-busting, road-slicking ice. It’s not every year, heck we get balmy Florida sun as many winters as we get ice, but it can happen.

Couple years back there was an ice storm that put the bits of the state that were affected on a screeching halt. No school, no stores open, nothing. So everybody stayed real snuggled and safe at home until the thaw. Which was the next day. Everywhere was just soggy with it. The grass squelched under your feet.

A “side-effect” of this thaw was heavy fog. There was a man, husband, dad of two, minister in a local church, who was on his way to prayer early that morning. He was in a hurry so he was doing what everyone else does on a hectic morning: speeding.

Ah hush you know you do it. And sometimes, it’s okay to do. Keeping up with the flow of traffic and all that. Dude had his high beams up. It was just another day.

Until he ploughed into the back of a parked schoolbus at top speed. Doubt the guy knew what hit him.

Wasn’t anything anybody could do for him.

The bus was higher than his vehicle so most of what happened to the bus, happened to the undercarriage. The kids were scared and some were a little scratched and banged up, but they were all okay. Liked to have scared the poor driver clear to death, though.

The man in a hurry had already be taken away when we got there. People don’t really like to think about what happens to a body when it dies. Releasing the soul is kind of how I think on it. You don’t realize how many muscles and tendons are contracting right now, holding you together. When you die, it all relaxes. Yeah you go through rigor mortis, but that’s only after.

Your bowels release. Your bladder releases. If you were in an accident like this man, your veins let go. And what your body was working so hard to contain, it leaves. And it’s everywhere. All that hurrying and anxiety to get where he was going, it stayed behind too. With his wife and his kids. And it haunted them. You know it did. You know they asked themselves how they might’ve stopped that day from happening. What if Daddy had just waited a few minutes? The bus would’ve moved on, the fog might’ve lessened. And he’d still be there.

So take it from me, who’s had to hose my fair share of the refuse of hurrying and impatience off the asphalt, both of sinner and saint, being late is still being alive.

Sorry for the heavy start, but it’s the nature of my job. I’ll go in a different direction with the next one. Not all of them involve death and tragedy. We got a call to a clean up about 4:30 one morning for a semi overturn. Fella had rounded down a turn-off, coming down an overpass and cut too sharp. Whole trailer flopped over. She was hauling, wait for it, soap. Dawn. Oh my God. It was. Everywhere. Smelled great. But good sweet Lord. We got our big, coarse bristle brushes to try and sweep it into some tarps, trying to keep it from poisoning wildlife or the ecosystem, but it just made it all suds up. Bubbles. Everywhere. And then the wind got to blowing. It was a mess. Even once we got to just hosing it, it was like something out of a cartoon. But I still laugh about that one though with the guys. We might’ve frolicked through them like slow motion princesses and taken pictures. They’re in my blackmail folder just in case.

This crew’s been together the longest of any one I’ve been on. Folks usually get tired of it and want to move on to something less strenuous. Which I get. It’s not for everyone. But I like it. Keeps the bills paid. You know. I’m not unhappy. And I get sweet overtime.

Me and this older guy are the old hands. Let’s call him Jake. Jake’s older than me and I guess you could call him the foreman. But it doesn’t really work like that. He just knows what to do for most incidents and we listen. Experience is valuable.

Jake and I started working together when I moved to this crew about seven years ago. I’d been town cleanup for a bit but it was so boring. So I put my application in through the DOT, Department of Transportation, and got hired. Got a raise too. I was over the moon. I’ve always been one to feel more awake at night and Jake was the same. Guess maybe that article I read somewhere about evolution conditioning some of us to stay up and tend the fire in the night is true. Feels like it.

I’m rambling.

We got a early morning call, pre-dawn. There usually aren’t that many vehicles on the road that aren’t semis at that time of day. We’d been working on our gear, making sure it was all ready to go. Takes a lot of stuff to do this job. We drive a high-powered diesel wrecker for one with a trailer, in case of big debris. We also have kits that range from everything from corrosive chemical spills to bodily waste removal. Special containers, neutralizers, discrete disposal units, all that stuff. So you have to keep all that useful. Make sure it’s not past the expiration and so on. When we’re not on a job, that’s what we do.

So we got a call out and headed out. There were about ten of us, me and Jake in The Big’un, that’s what we called the wrecker, and then the rest took DOT-provided pickups. You’ve probably seen them. Got the emergency strobes and flags on them.

The first thing I noticed was the smoke. Thick and white, just hanging in the air. FD was already there but they weren’t working on the truck. They were trying to put out what had spread over to the trees. It was a dry year and the woods were parched kindling; everything in a 200 yard radius of that truck was already cinders. The semi had pulled over and was just resting on the side of the road. PD had already blocked off as much of the road as they could to allow some traffic through, though there really wasn’t much.

The trailer had caught fire, that much was very obvious. Whatever had been inside must’ve not been secured properly and had flopped around, fallen over and either made a spark or reacted with another chemical. Whatever it’d been was hot burning too. The driver had been taken to the hospital already for third degree burns. Which was the first odd thing, when I thought about it later. The driver’s cab was fine. Scorched a bit on the back but fine. All the fire damage had been pointing away from it, toward the doors of the trailer.

I remember Jake, who was usually very reserved and placid, booming out orders to tow the trailer away from the original sight a bit. And I was glad too. The flames that were down in the woods were so bright and so hot. We wore sunglasses in the dark, trying to protect our eyes, and the heat was so bad that we were treated for mild burns to our faces and hands afterward. I had a beard then; I shaved it the next day because patches were burnt clean off.

We didn’t stay long. There weren’t any chemicals to clean up, just hauling the ruined trailer away to give the FD room to put that fire out.

When you work this kind of job, you end up seeing the same folks at the same event, you know? Jake was having some coffee when we got back to the call our office the next day. He’d had a haircut, a bad one. And his face was all blistered like he’d been at Daytona for a week. We all slathered up for a while after that to keep from getting ashy and peeling too bad. Jake looks like something out of a Viking movie. The Avengers Thor guy wishes.

“Everything okay?” he finally asked me, in that deep thunder voice he’s got.

“Shoot man, yeah. But crispy… Did they get the fire out?”

Jake nodded. “I know a bunch of them guys. Talked to ‘em this morning. Lot of ‘em out today with arc-eye and burns all over ‘em. Said the driver didn’t make it.”

That stunned me. “Didn’t make it? But the cab was fine!”

Jake had arched a confirming eyebrow.

I didn’t know what arc-eye was, but I googled it later. It’s what happens when welders don’t wear proper protection on their eyes. Looking at the arc like that can lead to severe irritation of the eye and even blindness in some cases.

“Said he died of severe internal trauma and heat-related injuries. Insides were cooked until they burst. Guy’s eyes were clouded white from the heat. Said it took a flyover all the way from Texas to finally put all of the fire out. They had it contained but their guys kept passing out from heat exhaustion.”

I remember being so staggered by this. And I remember looking for news about it later because that was really something. But I never did see any.

And I remember breaking that trailer down. How it was still hot. How the doors had been bent outward, the lock melted solid. How the fire trailed away. In a straight line.

Jake watched me as we worked. The way his eyes rested on me… it was like he was waiting for something. When we got the doors off, he’d taken his gloved hand and run his fingers through the grooves, elbowing me so I’d look at what he was doing.

It still feels so stupid to think this. Because who does this? Who makes this connection? It makes me feel crazy but it. It happened. The grooves weren’t melt patterns, like slag. They were claw marks. Pushed through the metal and ripped backward. Curled like paper. Peeled almost.

I’ve never said out loud what it looked like to me. But Jake made me put my fingers in those grooves. Curve my hand around that metal. Feel what it felt like. Feel the warmth living in that metal. And we looked at each other for a long time, not saying a word. Jake knew and I knew. And that seemed to be all he wanted. For me to know.

I thought about what else Jake had said about the driver. His friend in the FD had been pretty disturbed and had talked to him a while. Jake’s that kind of guy. You can talk to him. Something about him makes it easy for people. Comforting.

“FD lady said the man was screaming when they got to him. Burn victims do that, yeah, but she said he grabbed hold of them and wouldn’t let go. Had to pry him loose. Kept saying “seen” over and over. Y’know sometimes when the body’s been traumatized so bad, the mind can’t handle it. He was scared, though. The pain was bad but he was so scared that he just wanted someone to hold him.”

Sorry if the ending here is abrupt but…? That’s all I got for now. I have to get ready for work, and I’ve been thinking about maybe asking Jake if he’s ever seen anything else like that night. We’ve been on some other calls together but he’s been at this for nigh unto twenty years. We’ll see.

#personal post #drivin down i 20 #(creepypasta)#post 1 #text post #clean up crew #unreality #(JUST. A. STORY.)

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