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bingwriterxo · 1 year

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sisters, sisters

pairing: tara carpenter x reader, sam carpenter x reader

summary: in which two people ask you out, and you make a decision

warnings: none

word count: 2800+

author's note: here she is! definitely more tara-centric, but that's ok!

Tara (8:43 pm): come over. now.

Mindy (8:44pm): u good T??

Chad (8:46pm): On our way

Tara (8:47pm): doors open

Tara (8:47pm): let urselves in

* * *

It was a madhouse in the Carpenter-Bailey apartment when Mindy and Chad arrived. There were pillows strewn all over the living room; plant pots had been knocked from their places on the back table, leaving scatters of dirt across the floor; the corkboard that usually hung next to the doorway to the kitchen was on the ground; and, to top it all off, Sam and Tara were arguing at the top of their lungs with a very stressed-looking Quinn in between them, her arms out to keep the sisters from jumping at one another.

“Thank god you guys are here!” Quinn said when she caught sight of the twins walking through the front door. “I don’t know what to do with them!”

Tara and Sam didn’t seem to hear the redhead--or chose to blatantly ignore her--as they continued their screaming match.

“She was my friend first, Sam!” Tara shouted.

“So?! That doesn’t mean you have dibs on her!” Sam yelled.

“Woah!” Mindy exclaimed, interrupting the two. They turned their sights on her, anger raging behind both of their eyes. Mindy would’ve been intimidated--scared, even--if she didn’t know that the two were harmless (unless, of course, she was wearing a black robe and a stupid Halloween mask). “First of all, you can't call dibs on anyone,” she said, like it should have been obvious to the sisters, which it should have. “Second, what the hell is going on here?”

Sam sighed, pressing the heel of her palm to her forehead. Tara clenched her jaw and balled her hands into fists; she was clearly the more aggravated of the two.

“Sam’s a bitch,” Tara seethed.

Before Sam could respond, Chad butted in. “Guys, come on. Why don’t we just sit down and have a nice, calm talk?” he suggested, gesturing toward the couch.

“Please,” Quinn agreed, falling into the armchair. “I can’t play mediator anymore.”

“Fine,” Tara huffed. She sat on the couch, tense, and crossed her arms over her chest as Sam did the same on the other end, and though she was more relaxed than Tara, she made sure to leave enough space between them that a large elephant could fit.

Mindy and Chad made their way to the center of the room, staring at the sisters. The air was thick with tension, and Mindy rolled her eyes when neither Sam nor Tara made the first move to speak.

“Okay,” Chad started, “so what’s wrong?”

“Didn’t I just say what’s wrong?” Tara snapped. “My sister’s a bitch.”

“T,” Mindy said sharply. “This is supposed to be nice and calm. No attitude.” She looked at Sam, hoping that she would be more cooperative considering the fact that she was older and, usually, the more reasonable of the two. “What’s going on?”

Sam inhaled deeply. “I tried to talk to Tara earlier, and she completely blew up at me.” She gestured around the room. “As you can tell.”

“Oh, that’s not fair!” Tara complained. “Tell them what you told me.”

“All I said was that I want to ask Y/N out on a date.” Sam shrugged. “I didn’t really think it would be a problem, but I know all of you guys are closer to her than I am, so I wanted to tell Tara before I did anything.”

Chad hummed, confused, and Mindy furrowed her eyebrows. “And, Tara, why is that a problem?” she asked.

Tara mumbled something beneath her breath, and everyone leaned closer as though it would help them hear her. She glared at the group, sighed, and then rushed out, “Because I want to ask Y/N out.”

Mindy’s jaw dropped, Chad’s eyes practically popped straight out of his head, Quinn made a noise akin to a surprised baby, and Sam let out a soft, “Oh.”

It was silent for a moment, and the tension somehow seemed to thicken. Tara fidgeted uncomfortably beneath the eyes of her friends, shifting where she sat and playing with the skin around her fingernails.

“It’s not that big of a deal guys,” she finally muttered after the silence became too much. It snapped everyone from their thoughts, and they all started talking at once.

“We just didn’t know--”

“I mean, I had no idea--”

“You never said anything--”

“I can’t believe I didn’t realize sooner--”

They spoke over one another until they realized that nothing they were saying was intelligible, and when they stopped, Mindy took the lead. She knelt down in front of Tara and took her hands in her own.

“You never told us you were into girls, T,” Mindy said.

Tara shrugged. “I just didn’t think I had to do the whole ‘coming out’ thing. I wanted to be able to bring a girl home, preferably Y/N”--she glared at Sam, who huffed--“and say, ‘This is my girlfriend’ and have that be it.”

Mindy nodded. “Okay. Fair enough. Then we won’t make this a big deal.” She stood. “But we still have the pressing issue to deal with.”

“I can’t believe you guys both like the same girl,” Quinn said, a teasing smirk on her lips. Everyone looked at her with narrowed eyes; she was not helping the situation. “What? This is fucking hilarious!”

Chad shook his head. “Anyway…” He inhaled deeply. “What’re we gonna do? You can’t both ask Y/N out. I think the girl would combust.”

Mindy snapped her fingers and pointed at her brother. “No, I think you’ve got an idea there.” She turned to the women on the couch. “You two should both ask Y/N out. She’ll only say yes to one of you, and this whole thing will be solved.”

“So, we both ask Y/N out…and she chooses?” Tara asked, unsure of the idea of even letting her sister have a chance.

Mindy tilted her head and shrugged. “Well, yeah. I mean, we can’t choose for her. Just…don’t do it at the same time, or on the same day. Chad’s right: she probably would combust if that happened.”

“What about the person she says no to?” Sam asked.

Quinn spoke up. “They’d have to suck it up and accept that Y/N doesn’t like them that way.” She shrugged. “This really is the best way to solve things.”

“What do you think?” Sam asked as she looked at Tara.

“I have a feeling you’ll ask her out even if I say no,” Tara said.

Sam shrugged. “Yeah, probably.”

Tara bit the inside of her cheek, unraveled her hands, and held one out. “Fine. We’ll both ask Y/N out. When you get rejected, you’ll forget you ever thought about her in a way other than friendship.”

Sam scoffed and rolled her eyes but still reached out to shake her sister’s hand. “Whoever gets rejected will forget they thought about Y/N in a romantic way.”

Tara hummed. “Deal.”

“Deal.”

“See?” Mindy said. “That wasn’t so hard!”

Chad fell onto the couch between the sisters. “So, how’re you guys gonna do it?”

* * *

“I just don’t know what to do, JJ,” you said with a sigh, falling back onto your bed. You held your phone above your face so that you could see your best friend on FaceTime. “I mean, she’s so funny, and she’s smart, and she really cares about me--I can tell.” You could feel your cheeks heat up at just the mention of her.

JJ furrowed her eyebrows. “So, what’s the problem? Ask her out, stupid.”

“I can’t.” You bit your bottom lip. “It would mess up…everything.”

“It would only mess things up if she says no, and from the way you talk about her, she’s not gonna say no.”

“No, you don’t get it. Even if she says yes, it would, like, destroy the friend group, and I don’t want to do that. I love these guys. Obviously, they don’t compare to you, but they’re pretty decent people otherwise.” You dragged your free hand down your face and groaned, your stomach dropping at the thought of losing the friends you had made at college. “I hate having feelings for people.”

She chuckled. “You just need to learn to not have feelings for people you’re friends with.”

“Wait until you meet her,” you said. She’s fucking perfect, you thought. “It’s easier said than done.”

“I still think you should do it.” JJ shrugged. “If these people are really your friends, they won’t let your guys’ relationship get in the way. They’ll be happy for you, probably, since you won’t be pining over her anymore.”

“I’m not pining over her!” She gave you an ‘are-you-sure-about-that?’ look. You rolled your eyes. “Okay, maybe I’m pining over her a little bit.” Her face didn’t change. “Okay! A lot!”

She smirked victoriously, and you sighed. “That’s what I thought.”

“I hate you, you know that?”

“You love me--”

JJ was interrupted by a sharp knock on the front door of your apartment. You sat up and furrowed your eyebrows, confused. No one’s coming over today, right?

“What is it?” JJ asked.

“Someone’s at the door.” You shrugged and glanced back at her. “Probably one of my roommates’ friends--” The knock came again, harder this time, and you groaned. “I should get that, I guess. I’ll call you later, okay?”

“Yeah. Talk later.”

You shuffled out of your bedroom and to the front door, peeking through the peep-hole. You couldn’t see much beside a head of brown hair and the tint of tan skin, and your heart sped up.

Is it…?

You whipped the door open, grinning from ear to ear, but your smile faltered as you saw who stood in the hallway.

Sam.

She looked up at you, smiling the way you were just seconds ago, her eyes shining with an emotion you couldn’t read. “Hey,” she said.

“Uh, hi,” you said, voice a little too high with disappointment. You cleared your throat. “What’s up?”

Sam shifted on her feet, tucked her hands into her jacket pockets, and swallowed hard. “Could I come in?” she asked.

You could tell she was a little nervous--she was never usually so fidgety--so you nodded and opened the door wider, gesturing for her to step inside. You shut the door behind her and spun around, watching her expectantly.

She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. She opened her mouth, like she was about to say something, and then closed it again. It was starting to make you anxious—seeing someone so confident and sure-of-herself suddenly reduced to nothing more than nerves. You were going to speak up, ask her what was wrong, but you didn’t get the chance as her question tumbled from her lips.

“Would you want to go on a date with me?”

Your eyes widened in shock, mouth falling agape as all of your limbs suddenly felt frozen. You watched as Sam began to shrink in on herself, and a pang of sorrow struck deep in your chest.

“I--I--” you stammered. You inhaled deeply and regained your thoughts. “Sam, I’m sorry if I ever gave you the wrong idea…but I don’t like you that way.” Her face fell, and you frowned, hating yourself for having to hurt her. “I’m sorry.”

She took a shaky breath and shook her head, eyes glancing down. “It’s fine.”

“Sam--” You reached out, wanting to offer her some sort of comfort, but it felt wrong if it were to come from you, since you were the reason she needed comforting in the first place.

“It’s okay, Y/N.” She looked at you again and tried to offer you a small smile. It fell flat. “Really, it is.”

You bit the inside of your cheek. “I hope this doesn’t change anything between us. You’re a great friend, Sam, and I’d hate for that to be any different now.”

Sam nodded. “Yeah. No, yeah, of course. Nothing’s gonna change.” She shifted again. “I should probably get going.”

“Okay.” You moved to open the door, then paused and looked at her again, anxiety hitting you like a train. “You sure we’re okay?” You didn’t want to lose her, not because of this.

Her features softened as she took you in, picking up on the turmoil coursing through you. “I promise. We’re fine.”

You sighed. “Okay.” You opened the door and watched as she started to leave. She was halfway down the hall when you called out to her. “You really promise?”

She turned around, chuckled softly, and offered you a smile. “I really promise.”

* * *

Even though Sam had double-promised that things were okay between the two of you, and had made good on that promise by inviting you over for dinner with the rest of the group later that same night (to which you had lied and claimed you were busy), you still found yourself wallowing in your bed for the next few days, the image of Sam’s upset-face burned into the backs of your eyelids. You hadn’t even been the one to be rejected, yet you still felt sorry for yourself--sorry that you had to hurt a friend, sorry that you couldn’t like her back, sorry that you had been wishing it was her sister.

You were in the midst of your new daily routine--watching TikToks for hours on end while tucked beneath the comfort of your favorite blanket (that Tara had gifted you for your birthday just a few weeks prior)--when Mindy’s face suddenly appeared on screen, her contact picture sticking its tongue out at you.

Your thumb hovered over the decline button, more than tempted to press it and let yourself fall back into the monotonous routine of scrolling, but the longer you stared at Mindy’s photo, the more you knew you couldn’t avoid her.

“Hey,” you croaked as you answered. Your voice was rough, your throat sore from not using it.

“And where the hell have you been?” Mindy asked quickly, her voice loud over your speaker. You cringed slightly at her words and tried to bury yourself deeper into your mattress.

“I’ve been, you know…around.”

She hummed. “Yeah, okay. Well, I thought I’d give you some sort of heads-up because Tara is on the way to your apartment right now.”

You shot up, holding the phone close to your ear. “What?! Why?!”

“That is a question I cannot answer!” she said.

“Mindy, what--”

Your phone clicked as she hung up.

Almost immediately, there were soft knocks against the front door of your apartment. You scrambled out of your bed, grabbing a pair of sweatpants and a random sweatshirt from the floor and throwing them on, not bothering to check if they matched.

“I’m coming!” you called out as you walked toward the front door, your head stuck in the armhole of your hoodie. Fucking hell, you thought. Pull yourself together. Once you could finally see again, you pulled the door open and inhaled sharply at the sight.

Tara stood in the hallway, a shy smile on her lips and a blush painting her cheeks, making her freckles stand out even more than usual. One of her arms was outstretched, and in her hand was a bouquet of flowers, waiting to be taken by you.

“Hi,” she said, and just her voice made your heart skip a beat.

“Hey.” You opened the door fully and she slipped inside.

She pushed the flowers further in your direction. “These are for you.”

Your eyes widened. “Oh!” You took them from her, your fingers brushing over her own as you did, and a jolt of electricity zipped up your arm. You tried to ignore it as you said, “Thanks, Tar.”

“Sure.” Her voice was shaking slightly; well, she was shaking slightly.

“Why did you--”

“I want to take you on a date,” she said suddenly and all at once, like she wouldn’t have been able to say the words unless they fell out of her mouth in a jumble.

Deja vu washed over you, sending a shiver down your spine, and all you could get out was a soft, “What?”

Tara tried again, her words slower and more calculated. “If it’s okay with you, I’d like to take you on a date.”

You swallowed, your brain short circuiting, and, in your stupidity, asked, “What about Sam?”

She raised her eyebrows in surprise, unsure of how to respond. “Uh--” A beat of silence passed between you before she found something to say. “Sam’s okay with it. She doesn’t--she doesn’t mind.”

“Oh.” You nodded and glanced down at your feet, suddenly too aware of the way the seams of your socks were resting against your toes. A blush was forcing its way up to your ears in embarrassment. What about Sam?! you thought. You fucking idiot! Who says that? “Cool.” Jesus Christ.

Tara clicked her tongue. “Yeah.” She shoved her hands into her back pockets. “So, about that date, then?”

She was watching you with wide, hopeful eyes, and the softest of smiles, and, god, you just wanted to fall into her.

“Yeah,” you said, nodding. “Yeah. A date--that sounds good. That sounds really good.” Just shut up, me! You offered her your own smile, watching as she lit up with excitement and joy and--Would it be weird if I kissed her right now?

Tara bit her lip as she grinned, her dimples prominent. “No, I don’t think that would be weird.”

You paled. “Did I--Did I say that last bit out loud?”

She giggled and nodded. “Yeah. Kind of.”

“Oh.” You gulped. “But…it would be okay?”

“It would be more than okay.”

And then your lips were pressed against her, and she sighed into you, and neither of you thought about the flowers that were being squished between you.

bonus: jj <;3 (10:59pm): u done pining yet?

you (11:06pm): shut the fuck up.

#tara carpenter x reader #tara x reader #jenna ortega x reader #jenna ortega #sam carpenter x reader #sam carpenter #melissa barrera x reader #melissa barrera #scream 6 #scream 5

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junkbrainz · 1 year

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captains quarters :] this was my final project for art but its worth posting :)

[Image Description: A digital painting of Kirk and Spock from Star Trek. They are lounging in a dark room on an oval-shaped couch. There is a white side table on the left side of the couch that holds a picture frame containing the gay flag, a futuristic lamp with a floating light source, and a mug filled with coffee that says "#1 captain" on it. On the second shelf of the table there are two books and two snow globes. On the right of the couch is a white pot that has elephant ear plants in it. The couch is also white with red cushions. The floor is carpeted and orange and the walls are a muted red. Kirk and Spock sit facing each other. Kirk is talking and gesturing to Spock with one hand. He is wearing a yellow button up and light brown pants. Spock is intently listening with a mug of tea in one hand, he is resting his head on the other. He was wearing a dark grey turtleneck and black pants and boots. Behind them is a window that looks out at the vast expanse of space. End ID.]

#wesleys doodles #star trek tag #star trek #star trek TOS #star trek the original series #captain kirk #james t kirk #spock #spock x jim #tos spirk #spirk fanart #spirk #schn tgai spock

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simverses · 6 months

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Tomarang Deco Objects

More deco objects for Tomarang (or any sim world of your choice): Converted from Settlers 6 and edited, this is a set with smaller deco objects. Matches the Tomarang Deco sets but can be used anywhere, on lot or off lot. Base game compatible.

Set consists of:

A Triumphal Arc (ok not so small.. make it smaller or even bigger with T.O.O.L)

A Victory Pillar with a victorious warrior on top, a center piece in any town.

Separated Golden Cow statue and smaller Golden Elephant statues.

Amphoras - in group, or single.

A vase

A shrine - there is a slot to place a candle, or maybe some flowers?

A sundial, shiny golden numbers to show time of day.

These are all merged into one file as they share the same textures. All parts are base game compatible. Build your Tomarang anywhere!

The Pots - decorative or as functional planters:

2 deco pots with planted small bushes (original version) - square or round pot.

2 deco pots without plants, but with slots to place flowers or items of your choice. For example roses from my Rose Garden set.

2 planter pots - square or round - for planting flowers or veggies or even trees. The animation for planting is a little off but the harvesting ect looks normal.

These pots are all merged into one file as they share the same textures.

The Brazier

A brazier for warmth and light. Needs SP Dine Out to work. Warms up your sims, and is a light in the dark.

More separated decorations to come.

Place them in on-lot or off lot in empty spots in you hood using T.O.O.L by TwistedMexi.

You can use my Blowtorch mod to have a sims world emptied of modern stuff - read more here.

Download Tomarang Deco Objects Part 1 (Curseforge) Download Tomarang Pots & Planters (Curseforge) Download Tomarang Brazier (Curseforge)

#sims 4 #sims 4 cc #sims historical #settlers to sims 4 #sims 4 buybuild #sims 4 hood deco

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wen-kexing-apologist · 1 year

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Songkran, Water, and KingUea

Was talking about my Bed Friend Reflection post with @respectthepetty and more specifically she was referencing the observation I made about how strongly water ties into King and Uea’s relationship and it got me thinking. What, if any, possible meaning could be gleamed from this theme?

And well, Songkran happened recently and I really just decided it was time to go overboard in the parallels I drew between the use of water and the defining moments of King and Uea’s relationship. For those of you who (like me until I looked it up just now) do not know, the original myth of Songkran states Indra the king of devas looked upon a city and was sad to see high levels of corruption, thus until they strayed back from sin there would be no rains, minimal food and water, and extreme drought. The people prayed to mother Earth (Siri) and Siri told the people the causes of their misfortune and gave them fertile lands, divine seeds, songs for rain, and pots of powder to cool their skin.

Songkran is the Thai New Year which is particularly well known, in Bangkok at least, for its water fights. (There are other rituals such as cleaning the home, making merit, elephant processionals, etc based on region)

Songkran stems from the Sanskrit word “saṃkrānti” or “saṅkrānti” which (according to Wikipedia) means “transformation” or “movement”

So let’s explore this theme a bit more in relation to Uea and King’s relationship shall we?

The first time King and Uea have sex, Uea wakes up, panics, and returns home where he then enters the bathtub:

Thus dousing himself in water, water which, in a Songkran transformation sense, should cleanse him of his sin, in this case, engaging in “slutty” behavior, something he was severely punished for as a child by his mother.

Then, we hit a dry spell for an episode and a half while King and Uea navigate the beginning of their FWB relationship, things seems to be going pretty well. King is, and I cannot stress how much I mean this in a non-sexual way, planting the seeds for a prosperous harvest, and he is doing so when he shoots the I Love You sign to Uea, when he massages Uea, when he goes out with Gun and spends the whole night communicates with Uea, and it is clear by that point that Uea is starting to having Feelings about King. Then King accidentally triggers him, they hit a bit of a dry spell, until Uea finally accepts King’s apologies and re-starts their sexual relationship. At which point, we get the rain:

With a rain-streaked window overlaying them, King asks Uea “Will you let me be a good thing in your life?” and while Uea tries to brush the question off, we know his answer is yes. King has washed away the sins he has committed against Uea (accidentally triggering him) and they are moving into the next phase of their relationship to one another, where Uea starts seeing King as a good thing in his life.

Third instance of water comes after Uea’s encounter with his family on his birthday. He calls King seeking comfort, and King recognizes Uea’s anxiety and makes him take a bath instead of continuing their sexual encounter while Uea is emotionally compromised. King brings Uea a birthday cake, and while I have not read the novel, I remember there was a post floating around comparing the book and the show that mentioned that Uea is surprised or touched or something to discover that King cares more about Uea than his mother does because he actually gives Uea a celebration for his birthday.

Uea is once again cleansing himself, this time of the sins of his family, and enters another phase of his relationship to King where he trusts that King cares for him.

And we get secondary movement in the King/Uea department with them sitting together in the pool:

While King has been witness to some of Uea’s present traumas and trauma reactions, Uea has not otherwise been forthcoming with information about his life. He’s mentioned when his mother texts him, or he makes vague and off-handed comments about things not going right for him in life, but he has not told King any actual information about himself and his life…until the pool, where he talks about happy memories living in Lampang with his cousins. Uea is planting seeds and watering them in the hopes of a bountiful harvest. They openly flirt with each other and discuss visiting Lampang together, fully abandoning the behavior of Friends With Benefits even as they continue to define themselves as such.

Episode 5 marks our next rain-streaked windows event where the power goes out, Uea has a panic attack, and King calms him down.

Uea is able to sleep, in darkness, through the night which is a huge step for him. Over a cover of rain, Uea is cleansing his fears, and it is showing us that the seeds King has been planting to ensure Uea can trust him are beginning to bear fruit. King has become such an honest, stable presence in his life that Uea is able to find safety and security from the sins committed against him.

We get another drought in Episode 6 with King promising Uea a beach trip (hello water) but having to cancel due to the arranged match. No water, no movement, no growth, their relationship begins to break down and Uea begins to regress, latching on to the ‘Bed Friend’ title between them as a way to convince himself that he and King have not been going through the motions of a romantic relationship for the past few months/episodes.

Besides the waterworks (King and Uea’s tears) the only instance of rain we get in Episode 7 is actually reserved exclusively for Uea after he stands up to his mother and his step father.

Under a cover of rain, Uea is cleansing himself of filial obligation and is finally fighting back after years of biting his tongue. He is cleaning house, getting rid of the people who have sullied his life for so long. This marks a personal transformation for Uea, another songkran.

Now, if you have read my posts about the use of reflections in this show, then you will know I operate under the assumption that the reflections we are given are indicative of the character’s internal emotional states.

So if you combine the reflections as emotions and the water as transformation, you can imagine the weight of King and Uea being reflected off the water when they confess their feelings for each other. King admits he likes Uea, he gets Uea to admit that he likes King, and while being reflected off the water they are able to cleanse themselves of their transgressions against each other (even though I personally think Uea did nothing wrong) and progress their relationship from the ‘friends with benefits’ phase to the ‘seeing each other’ phase.

One aspect I have not fully mentioned of the ritual of water pouring in relation to Songkran is not only does pouring water wash away your sins, but it can wash away bad luck as well. Uea is a person who believes himself to be unlucky, and he has said as much in the show. But with this admission from King, and with them being now openly on the same page, and with Krit and the arranged match complications resolved, King and Uea (Uea especially) are able to wash away the bad luck keeping them apart.

And we know from here on out King and Uea are going to be a tight, cohesive unit because they are frequently surrounded by water for the rest of this show. They have removed their sins, removed their bad luck, and are now granted a glorious relationship. (Of note additional rituals as a part of Songkran include washing the feet of your elders and serving delicious food. While they are not washing each other’s feet we are still getting imagery of them with their feet in water and eating food)

Episode 9, we get four minutes straight of rain, from the scene immediately after King introduces Uea to his parents as his boyfriend until King wakes up sick from the rain.

First, we have our parallel to Uea’s rainy car ride, with King being the one to stand up to his family, say that he loves Uea and he will not be joining his parent’s company.

He has cleansed himself of his own filial obligations, and he has Uea there to comfort him and try to break him out of the moody headspace he has gotten himself in to. The tire goes flat and King exits in to the rain to figure out what happened, and Uea brings him an umbrella, but King is already drenched.

This is a blessed rain, a rain from Siri, a rain that heals the burnt flesh from drought and allows the crops to grow. A rain that allows for the cultivation of fertile land. In this case, the growth and cultivation of King and Uea’s relationship to one another, and to themselves as individuals as well.

Very Important Side Note: Episode 9 of Bed Friend aired the same weekend that Thailand was having their Songkran festival.

Now, forgive me if I get any of this next part wrong, I do not understand zodiacs very well, but apparently Songkran is meant to celebrate the movement of the sun in to Aries. Now, my knowledge of zodiac is limited but I am pretty certain Aries season begins around March 20 or 21st and goes through about April 20th. King and Uea go on their Sea Trip in Episode 10 on March 25th, during Aries season.

And uh, it might not rain in Episode 10 but…

That does not mean our boys aren’t getting absolutely covered in water at every opportunity. I mean, as evidenced above we have them fully submerged in the ocean, snorkeling.

And in the bathtub where the wine drunk boyfriends are not only being horny on main, but we have a little bit of verse action happening. This is the final water we get in the show before we get Uea’s first attempt at intentionally turning the lights off and we move towards King and Uea’s engagement.

We get the perfect circle, Episode 1 starts the relationship between King and Uea with Uea alone in a bathtub trying to wash the memory of the evening away and ends in Episode 10 with King and Uea together in a bathtub, feasting from the bountiful harvest they have sowed throughout the show.

#bed friend #bed friend analysis #bed friend meta analysis #kinguea #ueaking #king x uea #uea x king #sorry if i got songkran stuff wrong i just learned about it #domundi #mandee channel #i continue to not be normal about this show #netjames #thai bl #bed friend the series

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absentlurker · 1 year

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ok hear me out: eddie is on the mend but he’s limited to his trailer because he’s about 78% mummy. wayne is back at work because bills pile up even when your nephew is lowkey dying in the hospital. everyone seems to be back to their normal routine and eddie doesn’t want to really mess that for them so…here he is. trying to comfortably sit on the couch outside and get some vitamin d before he actually turns into a vampire.

Eddie is cursing his existence as he shifts for the 56th time when his neighbor cheerfully opens her screen door and starts walking to her small garden in front of her blue and white trailer.

“Hey, Eddie!” She calls out when she notices him sprawled out. “How you doin’, honey?”

Eddie keeps his eyes on the cloudy sky as he replies, “Livin’ the zombie dream!”

Patty tsks softly before crossing the dirt path.

She stood over him with her hands on her hips, “Come on! Up, up!” She wiggles her pastel gloved hands at him.

Eddie eyes her like she was an actual predator, “Uh…” he starts.

Patty rolls her eyes, “Don’t look at me like that, boy. I’ve known you since you were a wobbly-kneed 12 year old.”

Eddie sputters, offended as though he didn’t draw breath in his lungs until he was a leather jacket wearing dungeon master.

Patty sighs and wiggles her fingers at him once more, “I know you’re bored to death, sweetheart, cooped up here by yourself and hurtin’,” she starts softly, “come sit with me while I spruce up my rosemary. You might even learn somethin’” Eddie stares at her for a minute and exhales loudly when her eyebrows raise.

He starts to slowly shift up and he allows Patty to gently take some of his weight as she helps him cross over to her trailer. She sets him up under her shade cover in a lawn chair at her small round table with a small glass of lemonade. She claps her hands softly when he gives her a thumbs up before she turns around, picking up a few things and brings Eddie three small plant pots that were full of soil and three what looked to be slowly dying plants in plastic beginner pots.

Patty hands him some gloves, “I found these little cuties at the store for a quarter! They’re lavender!” She chirps.

Eddie picks up on the plants as he says, “Patty, they look dead.”

Patty waves her hand as she crouches next to her small wooden plant bed, “oh people always think they’re dead. But you give those little babies a little TLC and they’re good as new!”

She racks up brown crusty leaves with her fingers, “can’t tell you how many times I’ve bought plants that people think are dead but blossom just beautifully if they’re taken care of.”

Eddie hms softly. Eddie creates a small hole in the soil as Patty instructs him how to plant the lavender. She gently pats him on the shoulder when he finishes.

She hands Eddie a small elephant shaped watering can and watches as he slowly waters the newly potted plants. Eddie exhales loudly once he sets the watering can back down and leans back in the lawn chair.

“That’s enough physical activity for me, babe.” Patty chuckles as she fusses with her older plants that are sitting seemingly randomly around the outside of her trailer.

“Well, I thank you for your assistance just the same,” she says before she starts into a story of when she was sixteen and pretty. Eddie sips the tart lemonade slowly as she talks and it isn’t long before he dozes off surrounded by potted plants and a chipper old woman.

#Eddie Munson #this is just #I dunno a wholesome I just wanna write about Eddie healing and learning to garden fic #it’s mainly for me but also everyone else if they like that kind of thing #also Patty is me #dying plant savior #this fic has no purpose but to relax me #eventual #steddie #stranger things

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fantasticallyfruity4 · 2 years

Text

What if Neil Hargrove worked at the same plant as Wayne Munson?

Sure, Neil was higher up on the ladder, and a day shift manager man, but they knew eachother- At least of eachother in passing.

And wayne knew that that man was just dirt garbage, the day he met him. Fucker reminded him of his good for nothing brother, kinda guy who thought pushing around his wife and kid made him a man. Wayne found it pathetic, really. As he’d ranted shamelessly to Eddie about.

“Yeah, I go to school with that guys son. Billy, he’s in the class of ‘86.”

Wayne raised an eyebrow at that.

“He alright?”.

Eddie shrugged. “He’s a dick, but if you know his family- his dad, it makes a lot more sence. If you don’t, I guess you just think he’s a dick. He’s bought some pot from me a few times-“

“Edward! That shit-”

“What! I’m just saying, he’s bought from me and I feel bad for the guy, every time we’ve talked he’s kinda skittish the whole time, and paranoid about his dad finding out he’s- never mind”

“What? What’s he scared of his dad finding out?”

Eddies jaw tightened. “Nothin, don’t worry about it. It’s nothin-“

“He’s like you, isn’t he?”

It was simple enough, didn’t make Eddie say anything out loud. He knew what his uncle meant. And he knew this uncle would love him no matter what. He’d still be his boy, his son, no matter what. He’d told him before, many times, without expecting Eddie to say the words. So all Eddie had to do was nod.

“Shit. That’s a recipe for a dead kid, I’ll tell you. That man ain’t right in the head.”

One night Wayne goes into Eddie’s bedroom to ask him if he has any laundry he needs done when he goes to the Laundromat the next day. As he’s walking in, Billy’s climbing in the window.

Billy’s face is a panic when they make eye contact.

“Eddie, laundry?” Wayne repeats to the stunned, deer in headlights-esq teen.

Maybe a bit surprised at the casualty of his uncle, at the fact that he’s sneaking a boy in, Eddie just nodds handing his uncle his hamper.

“Use the damn front door next time, boy, or else one of my redneck neighbors will probably shoot you in the ass on account of thinkin your a theif” he calls calmly as he walks back out.

After that he notices Billy’s around more. Keeps his conversations with Wayne to a minimum, but he’s polite. Respectful. Clean. Seems to make his boy happy. Seems to be happy too. He looks relaxed here, like he feels safe. Good. He’s probably uncomfortable about fathers- or father figures, Wayne supposes. He doesn’t need to make some big show of ego, it’s alright with him.

He doesn’t exactly see anything between the boys, but he knows. How couldn’t he. When he walks in the room Billy always scoots away from Eddie on the couch, stops standing behind him in the kitchen, jumps across the bed. And Wayne wants to laugh, clap the boy on the back and tell him he’s about as subtle as an elephant but that wouldn’t do any good. He knows. He sees the marks on his nephews neck that he put in no effort trying to conceal. Sees the look in their eyes. Hears the sound of a car staring late at night and early in the morning.

Sometimes Billy shows up before Eddie’s home from hellfire or a gig. Those nights he has a black eye, usually. Or red marks on his neck. Or he’s got a limp. Or he’s clutching his torso. Usually more than one.

Wayne let’s him in without a word to wait for Eddie, makes him a cup of tea, something small to eat. If Billy’s afraid of parents, if he doesn’t want to talk, he’s not gonna make him. Not in this state.

One Sumer night eddie looks panicked, face white as he drops the phone in the kitchen. The sound of the receiver bouncing off the kitchen wall.

Suddenly they were distant for a while, Eddie and Billy, Wayne noticed. Billy wasn’t around too much anymore that summer.

It was maybe a month.

Eddie said Billy was acting strange- angrier than usual, more easily upset. Panic attacks. Acting Distant. He said something was up, he thought maybe Billy was doing drugs- bad shit, worse than he sold. His guess was heroin. But then eddie got that call.

“Eddie? ‘The hells going on in there?”

“Billy’s in the hospital-“

“Did that bastard father of his-“

“No, no. There was a fire, uh, at the mall or something? I have no idea his sister called me she was crying a lot I’ve gotta get to the hospital-“

“Edward you are not in any state to be driving god forbid you his something or god forbid someone let’s go I’ll take you”

“What they say?” Wayne asks, eyebrows knitted tight in concern, waiting in the hospital waiting room.

They’d let Eddie see Billy- the little sister had come or get him, convinced the nurse he was their cousin, that he lived with them too. And they’d let Eddie come into Billy’s room and see him, told him the story.

“He’s got a concussion, like a bad one. He says he’s having trouble hearing, but the doctors say it’s gonna pass, he just- he just held onto my tight and didn’t let go. Didn’t stop apologizing for like 20 minutes. Crying that it wasn’t his fault, that he didn’t have control” Eddie rambled, face knit in confusion.

“The hell does that mean?” Wayne wondered.

“I don’t know max said she’d explain it later. Just gotta worry about Billy now.”

The two munsons had barely finished their talk before Wayne watched Neil Hargrove walk in, yelling, flailing his arms, making a god damn scene.

“Don’t let him in there! Don’t fucking let him in there he’ll kill him!” Wayne watches the little red head sister scream at the sherif standing outside the boys hospital room.

It’s not just one of the deputy’s either, that’s the chief. Wayne knows the guys face. And he seems very invested in this all, assuring the girl he won’t let anything happen to her brother now, no matter what.

and Neil’s making a god damn scene, threatening hopper (which isn’t the brightest idea now, is it?)

And Wayne thinks fuck it, in for a penny in for a pound.

“Why don’t you shut the hell up and take a walk before the chief here shoots your sorry ass?” He calls across the room, everything falling silent.

“Uncle Wayne what the fuck?” Eddie whispers in a hiss.

“You talkin to me trailer trash?” Neil yells across the room, storming over to Wayne.

“The fuck are you gonna do about it, wife beater? Gonna hit me like you do your son? I don’t think that’s a good idea, I’m not some scared little boy, Hargrove, I hit back” Wayne promises.

“Neil take a step back before I have to put you in cuffs” hopper warns one last time.

But the thing about cowards like Neil, like Wayne’s brother, is they’re big men when it comes to putting their hands on women and children. But when it comes to being put in their place, they’re big cowards. Wayne knows the type all too well.

“Whatever, you and your faggot nephew aren’t worth my fucking time. I’m out of here”.

And she doesn’t know that Neil’s leaving for good, that he’s gonna get in that car leave hawkins, go to god knows where.

And max hates watching her mother chase after that piece of shit who beats her big brother, who terrorized her the last two years, it’s embarrassing. Her mom could do so much better. But At least Neil’s getting further away from Billy’s room with every heavy footstep.

And tonight when Susan and max are still stranded at the hospital both Wayne and hopper will offer them a ride home, and Susan will take Wayne up on the offer. Eddies going to stay the night in the hospital, not that Wayne doubted he would for a second.

And when they park outside the mayfield/Hargrove house susans going to ask Wayne quietly if he would keep an eye out for a vacant lot, or a trailer for sale. Because she can’t keep this place afloat on her own. Wayne knows just the spot, writes the supers number down on a napkin and hands it to her.

#mungrove #uncle wayne #Wayne munson #we all love him so much lmao #Neil Hargroves a+ parenting

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heartthumpnovel · 11 months

Text

Heart Thump: Chapter 4

“Where Trouble Begins”

Word count: 5233

Jason messes up big time.

Thank you to those reading this and having patience for releases. I've been doing re-writes and actually have my boyfriend helping me edit my work. I've been gaining more momentum though and hopefully should be putting out more chapters sooner than later :'D cw: Minor claustrophobia Last chapter: Growing Imagination Next chapter: Carrying the World

----

Ding. Going up. Jason moved his finger from the buttons of the elevator and placed them on his phone as his fingertip was shaking considerably. Swiping upwards through the search results of the page; ‘sudden growth spurt’ ‘growth spurt mid age?’ ‘Symptoms of elephant man syndrome’ ‘Alice in wonderland syndrome’ ‘cute kitten images’ ‘endocrine disorders’ ‘signs of schizophrenia '. Wondering page after page with his questions not revealing anything coherent or was completely unrelated to his little ‘problem’. Something wasn’t right about the day before- or the day before that one for that matter.

Ding.

None of that could have possibly happened right? Of Course no one could just survive a lighting strike like that in such a coincidental way? Sure there might have been many survivors from many lightning strikes. He had a pretty bad one. It’s not like anyone up there could have heard Jason scream his mournful monologue into the cold late night breeze. He was drunk after all and it could've been an alcohol induced nightmare. But what about the pain he felt when he was struck by a force greater than anything he had felt in his entire 26 years of life? The screen of his phone turned dark as he pressed the home button and stuffed it into his pants pocket. Ding.

Nah, nah- Jason had felt pain in his dreams… strange but it did happen before. Constantly in fact. As sad as it may seem, if experience did equate to knowledge, Jason should be awarded for being an expert on night terrors. Plus having the room shrink around him just had to be regular strange dream stuff sealed the deal. Even if it all felt so realistic… it just had to be a figment of his imagination.

Ding.

That decided it then. It was a dream. Nothing more, nothing less… Ding. How ridiculous.

Dong.

~~~~~~~~~

Jason gave out a sigh of relief as the elevator doors opened and he got onto the bustling office floor as workers left to right were rushing around trying to get work done with concerned looks upon their faces. It’s been a rough hour with tons of call-ins and more or less organized chaos going around. Jason had to slowly push through the crowd of coworkers to try to find his cozy cubicle so he could punch in for another day of work.

All the pushing and shoving made it difficult for him to get to his cubicle. Gripping and pulling the plastic divider had gotten him smooshed into his office as he barely had the space to push through all those busy people. With his new found space he sat down at his desk and started to boot up his computer as he reached the time card machine and clock into work.

As Jason entered his ten-digit password, he realized something was different. There was no cheery voice chatting on the phone or a particular blonde coworker peeking over the paper-thin cubicle wall. It wasn't until the office finally started to quiet down, and people became focused on their work that he decided to investigate. He stood up and went on his tiptoes to check on his neighboring colleague.

Plants were generously placed around the cubicle, with potted ferns and cacti on almost every corner of the well-used desk. It made the workspace feel cozy, with an odd bowl of discolored stones in the far corner adding to the homely atmosphere.

However, there was no sign of the overworked woman who often napped at her desk, face smacked down on the keyboard. It was about time for her daily nap.

Suffice to say, Ellie just wasn’t there.

Jason wasn't surprised to find Ellie absent from her cubicle. She was an overworked master's degree student, constantly taking on an unhealthy amount of credits and sleeping irregularly. It wasn't uncommon for her to collapse into a never-ending coma-like sleep.

Jason assumed Ellie was having one of those days and didn't blame her for it. However, Anyone who worked in this place knew Natasha would cut her a break.

Turning back to his computer- which at this point was logged in and displaying a deep gradient blue default desktop image with a few important shortcuts neatly pushed into the left corner of the screen. It was time to bend down into the workload he was expecting as the room seemed to be beaming with people rushing to get stuff done in the last quarter. Upon clicking the mail shortcut he was met with.. nothing new. An eyebrow raised as he clicked his spam, trash and even sent to make sure there weren't any important emails hiding. Strangely, he wasn’t sent anything containing any replies he would have gotten from him sending out vitally important marketing data to the other sectors of the company. Surely someone should have gotten back to him? Even Natasha didn’t reply back to an email about a good time for another meeting with the department for him. Something tickled his guts wrongly, he frowned before trying to send out an email.

Unable to send.

“Fantastic.” Jason grumbled under his breath.

This wasn’t the first time that he couldn’t receive or send emails, though it always caught him off guard every time this happened. Jason turned to the phone on his desk, staring at it wondering if contacting IT again would be worth it. While they do eventually put duct tape on the issue, which Jason appreciates they can even fix it at all, it takes nearly a whole day for everything to go back to normal if he was lucky. “Now what am I supposed to do?,” Jason mused as he turned away from the phone, patting his fingers down on his knees. “Can’t really get any work done right now until things get back in order…”

His eyes slowly moved away from his knees and drifted to his filing cabinet. His eyebrows rose with the metaphorical bulb in his head lighting up. Quickly, he peaked over on the wall in his cubicle with his knees pressed on the bottom of his chair in a frantic kneel. The whole department still looked busy with no one paying attention to the cozy cubicle smushed onto the wall. Jason lowered down from his observation as he thought, since he couldn’t work for a bit and well- Ellie was going to be late, he might as well catch up on some important reading. He grinned widely.

His boney fingers fiddled the edge of the filing cabinet shelf and yanked it open with a forceful tug. Files upon files of the company’s past dues nearly overflowed the poor filing cabinet. If it weren't for the fact that Jason hardly ever touched these files due to the wonders of technology, he would have had to throw them out like he was supposed to have done the day he was hired. However the papers did have use to him as a clever facade to what was truly important there. He pushed the junk files aside to reveal his secret library of paperback novels of varying degrees of cover quality and romance plots. The smell of the aging pages had bubbled the excitement in Jason’s chest in glee as he pulled out one that still had a bookmark in it.

Goodness, he was overwhelmed by emails and crunching numbers that he hasn’t been able to check into the exploits of the great knight dame Elisabeth and her star crossed princess lover Thaladortha. Normally he wasn’t too interested in fantasy rubbish but, this one did tug his heart strings so far as it was filled to the brim with wholesome sincerity. Plus it wasn’t completely inappropriate for a workplace environment, a welcome addition.

The little office employee leaned back into his office chair comfortably and plopped his shoes on top of the filing cabinet half heartedly like a rascal. Flipping open the page, Jason flicked the tip of his thumb to the most recent paragraph and began to dive.

“Dame Elisabeth for gods’ sake let the poor man go!” Shrieked the desperate servant as they hung onto the bulky woman dawned in burning stainless steel armor. The weasel would scream if he could if it weren’t for his throat being clutched shut by a coiled fist. Rage blinded Knight Elisabeth to the point of nearly crushing his scrawny throat, her teeth gritting harshly. “ This shall be the last time I remind you; MY FAIR MAIDEN WILL NOT SETTLE FOR ROSES.”

She dropped the frazzled noble onto the ground with him trying to grasp onto oxygen. “Only the most beautiful succulents will suffice for her wedding you fool.” she proclaimed.

The noble tried to stutter out an excuse of roses being the traditional choice for a wedding, however he was quick to shut up when the dame gave him an ice cold glare that chilled him to the soul. “She cares not for tradition. If she’s going to be forced to have a wedding- At Least have plants that will bring her joy!” She turned away from him and strutted down the hallway heavily. The servant trotted worryingly behind her. “M-madam I.. I think physical violence was going a bit far isn’t it? Just for some flowers?” they spoke up- freezing up when the knight stopped in her tracks.

She went quiet.

Until the servant could clearly hear soft.. Sobs? Coming from the dame herself? It couldn’t be. Dame Elisabeth turned her head- revealing tears sweltering down her cheek. Shaking her head in shame.

The servant quickly grabbed the dame's hand before she could hide her sorrow. "Please forgive me, my lady. This is all my fault. I didn't want to upset you so much." They bowed their heads low.

"Hmph... fine. You can stay here for now." Elisabeth said softly before she continued onwards.

The servant smiled warmly and thanked the dame. The Dame then told her sad tale to the servant, how she fawned over the maiden ever since they were small and how she wished she could be the one taking her hand in marriage that day. That's why she had no intention of settling for anything less than the best. Though at the same time, she didn't want to see her beloved maiden marry someone else just because of political gains.

"It is a cruel reality we must live with," Spoke the Dame in despair, "Even if we must never have our love for each other be seen by the world. " Her voice cracked as her eyes began to well up.

The servant felt awkward at first but decided to comfort the Dame by holding her hand. She gently squeezed her hand and told her everything would be alright. "I'll do what I can for you my lady." They stood there, silent for a moment.

"You really care about her don't you?" The servant asked as she wiped the tears away from her face.

"Of course. She's my best friend!" Elisabeth replied with enthusiasm, "And lover!"

Both of them chuckled quietly, though the servant was too nervous to say the next part.

"So um... Why not court her?"

Elisabeth's face went blank.

"What? Court her? What do you mean 'court'?" She was confused.

"Well.." The servant trailed off.

"That would put both of us in danger!" The dame crossed her arms, trying to avoid having to talk about treason.

"But... She'd be happy wouldn't she? And she's the only person who truly understands you," The servant pleaded.

"No, this isn't right. We should never act on our feelings... Though." The Dame continued, thinking of the times when her maiden would laugh in joy at her jokes, and the times when they kissed under the moonlight.

"Are you sure it's okay with doing this?" Elisabeth asked worriedly.

"Yes. I'm quite positive," The servant answered with confidence.

"I trust you. If you feel like we should do this, then I am all for it."

----

Jason let out a deep sigh as he melted back into his office chair, or at least he attempted to. He shifted side to side, feeling a bit uncomfortable in his chair despite being engrossed in the heart-wrenching story. He noticed that his knees were rising higher, and he seemed to be a bit higher up than usual. The armrests were hugging his hips tightly, which was odd for his petite frame.

Suddenly, it dawned on him that his chair was in the wrong adjustment. It wouldn't have been the first time that Motor had pulled this trick on him, nor would it be the third. Jason reached down and adjusted the seat lever to make himself comfortably leveled again before leaning back in his creaky chair to continue reading.

----

"And do you, Alice, take his hand in marriage?" The pastor asked the maiden, who was dressed in a bleak white dress.

Alice's heart pounded in her chest as she waited for the answer. Looking around the room filled with people. All of them eagerly waited for her response.

"I...." Before Alice could finish, Elisabeth shoved the doors open, loudly exclaiming, "I OBJECT!"

Everyone gasped, except the priest himself. He merely sighed and looked at the knight.

"Dame Elisabeth I suppose you wish to object?" He inquired.

"I do, sir. because... Alice wouldn't be happy marrying him! She should be with the one that SHE chooses!" Dame Elisabeth roared as the guards began to surround her and Alice's father screaming angrily at the Dame.

"Be silent! You are not to speak unless spoken to!" Alice's father bellowed in rage. "Now please leave, Dame Elisabeth."

Elisabeth growled and glared at the priest. Before she could continue, Alice spoke up for the first time in confidence, holding her hands to her chest and approached Elisabeth with tears in her eyes.

"Dame Elisabeth..." She whispered in awe, "I wanted to marry you. I always did. But... I couldn't. Because of my father, and you being a knight. Please...marry me. For real this time. Marry me, Elisabeth."

The knight fell into silence, staring at the young maiden. When she finally looked up, her face softened and she saw nothing but sincerity in those blue orbs.

"Then.. YES, I will marry you Alice," Dame Elisabeth said happily before she took the maiden's hand and kissed it passionately. Alice burst out laughing as everyone in the room cheered and clapped.

----

Jason was yanked backwards with a sudden force, causing him to fall onto the aging carpet. His swivel chair came down with him, and its wheels spun helplessly in the air, no longer in the safe grasp of the floor fibers. He groaned, struggling to get himself off the ground as he felt a strange bloated sensation throughout his entire body. He wondered what caused his chair to suddenly give out, but the answer he was looking for came quickly as he realized his cubicle was feeling a lot more cramped than usual. The plastic walls were slowly closing in on him, and his computer seemed to be … shrinking? ‘No. Nooo no no no.’ It couldn’t have been happening again. That whole thing couldn’t have been real, he had to be asleep in his bed still. It’s much more possible that he just missed his alarm this morning than whatever this crazy sensation was. His hands scrambled to grab hold of the desk but his fingers kept slipping off of the smooth wooden surface and he desperately tried to get off of the floor. Breathing had gotten much harder to do- it felt like his chest was about to explode.

Jason almost stood up to get his bearings, but then he noticed that he was getting taller than the cruddy plaster cubicle walls. Everyone who wasn't buried in their own work was going to notice him, and public humiliation would be his worst nightmare.

The red-cheeked office worker bent down on their knees as he saw that his body was still keen on getting bigger. Was he actually growing, or was he losing his grip on reality? He wasn't sure which one would be worse; Jason would have preferred being late to work.

His heart felt like it was going to fall out of his chest from the rate it was beating at. The office chair that was currently laid on the floor disagreed with the notion that he was going bonkers and that this impossible body fluctuation was the real deal. Drat. If he had to make a quick scientific guess from someone who majored in business, he had about 50 more seconds until someone would notice that little 5'3" Jason wouldn't be so little anymore with the rate at which he was growing. ‘Why did Ellie have to sleep-in today?’

Finally, his long forgotten survival instincts kicked him in the backside and he decided it would be for the best if he could find a good place to hide, somewhere roomy and quiet preferably. It was the best he could think of right then. Calming down until he was normal again seemed to work last time but.. He didn’t have anyone there to guide him now.

Jason went on hands and knees, giving him a chance to peek outside the cubicle entry way, which was now starting to barely graze his shoulders and slowly sink into them. The work rush seemed to be in full swing as his fellow coworkers were in their own little cozy spots making phone calls and typing away. Strange no one noticed the crashing sound. The ignorance of loud noises was a little concerning to Jason but, at the moment he didn’t have much time to worry about that.

Fortunately, it seemed that someone was smiling down upon him as Jason spotted the largest conference room on the entire floor, which was conveniently empty. The oak double doors were wide open, beckoning him to safety. Despite some hesitation, Jason managed to clamber across without breaking the cubicle he was escaping from. He quickly slid into the conference room ungracefully, feeling a bit of carpet burn but otherwise unscathed, even though he was now as large as a Honda civic. Adrenaline continued to pump through his veins as he sat up and grabbed the door knobs, but he immediately paused when he realized his palms were nearly 30 times larger than the knobs and still growing. Jason yelped as he gingerly took the tiny knobs and quickly pulled the doors shut.

Right. Immediate crisis over. For the moment anyways. He still was having the issue of his heart beating faster than light and he was getting taller by the second. Inch by inch. He closed his eyes just trying to grasp at something to calm himself down. He usually took those slow breathing exercises when he was with Ellie right? Well, trying to recall exactly how to breathe calmly turned out to be harder to remember than one would imagine. His fingers brushed through his hair thinking about the technical bits of that exercise. Okay- four squares. Wait did it include the inhale and exhale or were those things separate states. Wouldn’t it be technically two square breathing? Who even decided that calling the stages squares anyways? Wouldn’t that just be counting? This scattered thinking was soon interrupted by the feeling of something pressing on his head and snapping him out of it with a scare. Jason fell back onto his backside again and realized he was definitely pressed for time.

Jason thought for a moment what made him happy, surely something that makes him feel better might make his head calm down right? The first thing that came to mind on the subject of happiness was the thought of his hands being held gently by Natasha’s soft fingers. “OW!” Jason yelped as his height suddenly doubled and he smacked the back of his head on the wall.

To his horror, even the thought of Natasha's soft, meaningful gaze was making his heart beat more pronounced. The supposedly massive conference room, meant for department-wide meetings, was now feeling just as claustrophobic as his shrinking cubicle. Jason's head lowered, and he was left speechless as the walls seemed to close in around him. His leather loafers scraped along the carpet, unintentionally taking some wooden chairs for a ride. His heart couldn’t help but to race, how was this happening and more importantly why was it happening? Jason’s heart felt like it was going to claw its way out of his throat and hop out to go on a paid vacation because god did it deserve a break. Jason’s face felt like it was lit on fire and it was getting harder to stop and breathe. Things can get any worse from here? Right?

A knock came from the miniature door in front of him with a sickeningly sweet voice coming from the other side. “Jason, are you good?”

The overpriced deco chandelier got him right in his temple as he suddenly felt a jolt go through his system as he felt an explosion of gigantism hit him harder than an oncoming freight train. His shoes basically pushed the whole table to the other side of the room along with all the tiny chairs falling over onto the floor.

Quickly, Jason tumbled over onto his stomach and slapped his palm right on the front of the door. It was just his luck that Natasha had to hear his pathetic yelp. As his fingers were eclipsing the door- he could feel tiny pushes on his palm. There was no way Jason was going to let her see him like this. In fact he wouldn’t want anyone to see the horrific transformation Jason was going under.

---- “You okay lil guy- wait. Why’s the door locked? Jason.”

Natasha, try as she might, couldn’t get the door to push open. What was he up to? Pink hair pressed on the oak wood door to try to decipher what his groaning and panicked British mumbing meant. Natasha’s worry got worse as the thought of needing to call an ambulance was going to be called. Eventually she did get a response- a rather loud one at that.

“Y-yeah the door locked. Uhm- I am not.. Feeling that great. I felt under the weather and HUGHk- … I might have made a really-really big mess in here.” Jason half-truth as he was facing the challenge of not screaming in agony when he felt the talons of the pure gold chandelier pierce into his mid back. His hair was getting squished down by the popcorn ceiling and the room was quickly becoming his coffin.

Natasha scowled with her nose rising a bit as she pulled her head away. “Why didn’t you call in then?!,” Natasha retorted back as she gestured her hand. “ You shouldn’t be working when you have the flu! You could get everybody here sick! For God's sake, I didn’t send you home yesterday just because I was giving you a day off.”

She waited about five whole seconds for some sort of explanation and when she did get a response it was just a really sorrowful “My bad…” mumbled its way through the oak.

Natasha brushed her bangs forcefully from her face with a long sigh. “It’s fine.” It wasn’t fine. She muttered before she turned to look at an elevator that finally arrived on their floor. Natasha turned to the door once more with a soft voice, “Go home Jason and see a doctor, Call me up later to let me know how long you need to rest alright?” Natasha didn’t bother to stick around for a response as she started to walk towards the elevator. However she had to step out of the way for a sleep deprived college student that rushed out of the cases with papers literally flying out of her grip and nearly caused a foot traffic collision with Natasha. “Woah-WOAH ELLIE-” Natasha sputtered out when she managed to side step out of the way. Ellie’s heels came to a shrieking halt and nearly hauled over from exhaustion. However she didn’t let herself waste time by catching her breath and began to conjure a whole rant of apologetic lyrics. “OhmygoshNatI’msorryIwasstudingreallylatelastnightandIlosttrackoftimeandIgotreallytiredandIsleptin!Iknowit’sbeenthethirdtimethismonthbu-” Ellie whipped out in a panic before her tongue got twisted by a hard pat on the shoulder.

“It’s alright, Ellie. You’re not that late. Just clock in, hun,” Natasha said with a stern yet sympathetic smile. Ellie let out a fluttered sigh and grazed her fingers on Natasha’s wrist, nodding slightly in a blissful silence and letting her shoulders relax. “Thanks a ton,” Ellie commented as Natasha swiftly pulled away from her and they made their way into the waiting elevator. “Oh yeah and could you let Motor know he’s needed in conference room A113? Jason ain’t feeling great. Thanks~” Natasha added.

As the elevator doors closed, Ellie's brief moment of calm shattered.

---

Crisis averted- for the most part. Jason grumbled in this tight box he was shoved into and the increasing pain he was feeling wasn’t making things any more comfortable. Not to mention the creaking noise he was hearing wasn’t making him confident either. Now that he wasn’t about to be exposed- he wondered how in the world he could get out of this room and more importantly, not be an impossibly giant human that defied science.

Frantic knocking came from the oak door- who did Jason have to lie to next? “J-Jason, are you okay in there???” Ellie whispered, “Did … it happen again?” Ellie spoke more quietly at the last statement to not raise an alarm in the office room. Thankfully it seemed there was quite a buzz in the office due to a sudden flow of work and calls. So no one was noticing the commotion happening in the conference room.

Ellie tried the door but she was also denied entry, However Jason this time was at least willing to at least come clean. “It-it got worse Ellie.” Jason murmured as to not drag attention to them.

Ellie’s demeanor changed like a lightbulb getting shattered by a baseball bat. She frowned as she plastered her body against the wall and lowered her voice to a solid whisper. “Well bud you’re going to have to let me in and help you.” Ellie replied back with a worried grin plastered on her face, wondering what he meant about it ‘getting worse’.

“I don’t think I can literally let you in…” Jason spoke solemnly. “I can barely fit myself in here.” “Uhhh… what do you mean by that?” Ellie tilted her head as she took a double take at the door. A voice didn’t respond to her but loud jostling as if there was a moving crew pushing around furniture on the other side. Noticeably however, the door no longer had any pressure on it and the handle became turn-able again. When Ellie managed to discreetly push the door open slightly ajar- she wasn’t greeted by her best friend, but a huge, looming, hazel eyeball staring worriedly back at her.

[Image Description: A big hazel eye is staring at Ellie as she pushed open the door. Ellie is covering her mouth.] Its lids twitched sporadically and grew more watery as Ellie had to cover her lips to not scream in abject horror and alert everyone in the room that there was a giant occupying the room. What did come out of Ellie’s mouth however was a high pitched whine that could have broken glass if uncovered.

“This is a bit awkward, innit?” Jason quietly mumbled- trying to be inconspicuous as he possibly could be in his situation. Though his leg was becoming more numb and fuzzy the longer he sat on it. Shifting it to the side might do the trick, but as he tried to move his leg over- his heart dropped as he suddenly heard an ear piercing shriek moan from the overly stressed floor boards below him.

...

clink

“Sick.”

Another abandoned plastic bottle was slammed into the trash can for 50 points and Motor was just killing it in his little makeshift game. However, even with his high score, he still couldn't compete with his reign as the grand champion of disposing of all abandoned cans, which was never-ending and filled with sticky glory. He then noticed a helpless Sprite that had been left behind and without hesitation, he grabbed it and threw it into the recycling bin at the other end of the room.

clink

“Nnnnnnice!” Sizzled the janitor under his breath that was followed with a victory pump. That sick dunk called for another celebratory soda. Motor turned to the vending machine, popping in his quarters as he jammed out to the ear-splitting majesty of electric guitar riffs and the lead singer screaming about his personal problems, which he probably needed therapy for.

How relatable.

Right as he was about to chuck another can, his aim was thrown off by the ceiling shaking above him. The can flew onto the wall beside the trash with a disappointed thunk. Motor was baffled and took a few steps back to check up on the ceiling. “... Swear to godzilla if the goddamn pipes broke again, construction is going to have their bones twisted into pretzels -” The room suddenly collapsed in on itself, and Motor narrowly avoided losing his head by falling debris. He let out a string of curses and had to pause to process what had just happened. After collecting himself, Motor got up to inspect the damage and see what had caused the catastrophic event. … Leather? Motor had to stare at the large boulder of dark brown leather that was accompanied by a chunk of scuffed rubber. Before Motor could look into the destructive object further, as fast as it arrived- it lifted back up in the air and nestled into the hole it made. With a careful ear Motor could now clearly hear Ellie’s and that one stuck-up coworker’s voice. It only took him a few seconds to connect the dots and he got this emotion where he was full of confusion and anger but strangely enough, excited.

Finally, a cure for his boredom.

It didn't take long for Motor's thunderous footsteps to reach the service stairs and ascend to the floor above. He pushed past shocked suits and cubicle rats, determined to reach the source of the commotion. As he approached the crowded door, people were starting to panic and wondered if they should call for emergency services.

Motor elbowed his way through the crowd and joined the group of water cooler guys who were trying to force the door open. Despite their efforts pulling it, the door wouldn't budge.

"Relax, bozos. I'll see what fell over. Probably just a light fixture," Motor said sarcastically, trying to calm the onlookers. He gave the guy at the door a stern look, causing him to back away a few meters. Then, with ease, Motor pushed the door open.

Due to his large stature, no one could see what Motor was witnessing. The conference room was in ruins with the whole fancy light fixture crashing into the floor. Right in front of that light there was a sight of Ellie holding onto a hyperventilating Jason’s shrinking hand. Seeing a man that was the size of a truck become Jason sized was more than surreal. Ellie was the first to notice that they had an onlooker right as she was finished with calming Jason down with a wide terrified look and color draining from both of their faces.

#g/t #giant tiny #gt writing #heart thump #gt community #giant #tiny #writing #gt #it's the moment we've all been waiting for #Jason's first detrimental growth spurt

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thelazybard · 1 year

Text

Instead I Pour the Milk. [Alejandro Vargas x fem!Reader] Chapter 11: Olive Branch.

Happy Friday!!!

ao3 saw it first

Previous Chapter

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Warnings: Mentions of assault, and anxiety

Since making plans to speak with Alejandro in person, time seemed to pass by spitefully like a petty slug at a crosswalk. It didn't help that you couldn't occupy yourself with work. Suddenly none of your books were interesting, and you couldn't get past a single page. You tried to nap but were wide awake, and Guillermo wasn't in the mood to play. Stupid motherhood. The kittens were napping so there was no use in trying that either.

David noticed your restlessness as you swept the floor for a third time and couldn't help but tease you. "I thought you didn't want to see Alejandro?" He said.

"Leave me alone." You grumbled.

He smirked, then looked at the front door and lit up. "Oh, look who's here."

Heart dropping to your stomach, you turned and saw Abuelita peaking into the shop through the front door's window and rushed to let her in. She had a tray of buñuelos wrapped in tin foil. When word got back to her about what happened to you, which was fairly quick since one of the soldiers with Alejandro was her son, she quickly whipped up some food to bring you in hopes of lifting your spirits.

And that it did. The three of you had an afternoon snack of buñuelos served with coffee made by David. It wasn't prepared as good as yours, but that was to be expected.

"How are you feeling, mi hija?" Abuelita asked, holding one of your hands in hers. Her hands were smooth, the comforting softness that all elder women seem to have. She reminded you of your grandmother, a bittersweet discovery that did nothing to help your homesickness.

You exhaled. "I won't lie, last night was terrifying. But I'm feeling a little better about it, now. Alejandro sending soldiers to guard the store really put me at ease." You nodded to the front door where two armed Vaqueros stood outside.

"That's why they're there? That man really does care for you, huh?" She smiled.

You didn't want to tell Abuelita about the complexities of your relationship with the Sergeant, especially if you were to try and mend it with him tonight. Word got around fast and you wanted to protect your peace. "Yeah, I know a few people that aren't too happy about that though." You said simply.

Abuelita shook her head. "Don't you worry about Rosa, or Roberta. I heard about that ordeal, shame on her."

You offered a shrug. "I'm sure she feels plenty shameful now."

Abuelita eventually had to go but you and David made sure to show your gratitude for the buñuelos. The day continued to drag on, but the elder woman's visit managed to cheer you up and with the energy gained from your newfound joy, you did some maintenance outside the shop. With the Vaqueros right there to keep you safe, you were sure nothing would happen to you.

After sweeping dead leaves off your property, you rearranged some of the potted plants. You grew various herbs such as lavender and basil, ingredients you frequently used in the shop. People were free to walk by and pick what they needed, yet another demonstration of your unwavering kindness. It was no wonder Alejandro liked you.

Then that night, Alejandro texted you saying he was on his way, and you nearly choked on your chai latte. It was finally happening, you were finally going to address the metaphorical elephant in you and Alé's metaphorical room.

"Should I be around for this talk?" David asked you.

"Sorry, but hell no." You chuckled.

He snorted. "I figured. Then I'll just wait in the lobby until he gets here."

"Thank you, David."

"Don't mention it. So..." He took a deep breath then looked at you. "Have you told anyone back home?" He asked.

Guilt made your stomach drop, and you looked out one of the windows. "Not yet."

"Seriously? Not even your parents?" He asked.

You sighed, slightly ashamed. "No, I don't know how to tell them without them freaking out and trying to drag me back home. And what good would it do?"

"It'd be a chance to be honest with them, and that's always good."

"I guess I'm not in the right state of mind for their "I told you so" yet." You admitted.

"I guess I can understand that. But you are going to tell them, right?"

"At some point."

David didn't say anything for a moment. "Okay." He finally conceded.

You sighed and started cookie dough for the next day. As you kneaded the dough with your bare hands, you allowed your mind to wander. What would your parents say? There was no doubt in your mind that no matter how much you assured your dad, he'd still be campaigning for your return home. As for your mother, you could expect her to say something along the lines of, "I told you this would happen. Now do you see why we want you home?".

The way you saw it, danger was everywhere and an unavoidable circumstance. What would your parents say if you were assaulted back in your hometown? There'd be no I told you so's then, right? So why is it any different now in a town full of people who respect you and make you feel at home?

The door's bell snapped you out of your brooding and you washed your hands clean before entering the storefront.

Alejandro waited patiently by the front door, holding a bouquet of yellow roses and white tulips. An unmistakable flutter in your chest at the sight of him told you everything you needed to know about yourself: You still adored this man.

He smiled at you and David excused himself upstairs, winking your way before leaving you two in the lobby.

"Hey," You started, rounding the counter to approach Alejandro. You finally took a good look at the bouquet in his hands. "Roses and tulips?" You asked.

"Yellow roses symbolize friendship, and tulips represent forgiveness." He explained.

You raised your hands to accept the flowers. "Oh, so you're a florist now?" You teased.

He placed the bouquet in your hands gently. "No, but my sister is. She helped me design the bouquet."

Smelling the flowers, you allowed a faint smile to form. "Well, it is a beautiful arrangement." You turned and set them down gently on the counter behind you.

"How is your hand?" He asked.

"It's fine."

"Would you like to sit?"

You nodded slowly, and the two of you sat at a table in the back of the store. Being close to where you were assaulted made your heartbeat quicken, but you made an effort to not let your nerves show through. Instead, you looked at him expectantly, hands folded neatly in front of you to prevent them from trembling.

Alejandro mirrored your pose and bowed his head, sighing a bit. "So... About what you saw at the restaurant."

Words that you'd been stringing together since that night began to spill out of your mouth before you could stop it. "Look, if you still want to be with Valeria I understand, but you should have been upfront with me. This whole time I thought–"

Alejandro interrupted your word vomit. "Why would I want to get back with the woman who cheated on me?"

Your mouth snapped shut, and Alejandro continued. "Valeria and I, despite our past, still have to work as a team. We had to discuss work, but I didn't want to let her back into my private life. So, I suggested we converse somewhere public, like over dinner. She refused to meet anywhere but at a nice restaurant, so I had to concede for the sake of the greater good."

That... actually seemed plausible. But you still remained unconvinced.

Your shoulders slouched as you thought it over. "I just– If this is all true, why would you not just tell me that?" You asked.

Then it occurred to you that perhaps Alejandro didn't owe you an explanation in the first place. You weren't together, hardly even lovers. A kiss was the only thing keeping a tie between the two of you. It was a situationship at best. Not to mention, it's not like you told him much either. You didn't tell him when you saw someone stalking the store, or about Roberta striking you. Granted, you weren't that intimidated about either of those things, but they were things he'd have probably liked to know.

Boy did you feel foolish. Had the relationship you had with Alejandro progressed further in your mind than it did in reality? Perhaps it was time to tone it down, you thought.

But what Alejandro said next made you toss that notion out of your head.

"I'm sorry. You're right, I should have told you. I just thought that if I did it would look like I was trying to make you jealous. I really don't want to mess things up with you."

You frowned. "Neither do I."

He reached over slowly for one of your hands, and you intertwined your fingers with his, causing a smile to appear at the corner of his mouth. The olive branch was exchanged.

"Can I know something?" You then asked.

"Anything, mi vi– Scout." He corrected himself.

You decided to ignore his slip up for the time being. "What was it the two of you talked about?"

Alejandro answered with some hesitation, no doubt finding a way of answering that wouldn't expose confidential info. "Our unit is planning something that will happen very soon, and we needed to get a few things straight."

"Does this thing concern Las Almas?"

"Every part of it." He replied.

You looked down at his hand and squeezed it. "Okay."

"Do you forgive me?"

You nodded. "I do. And you?"

"I was never upset with you." He proclaimed.

You walked Alejandro to the front door. He had to be up early, and couldn't linger despite desperately wanting to now that the two of you had made amends. Standing there like a bump on a log, he wondered if it would be appropriate to hug or kiss you goodbye. You took notice of this and with the faintest of chuckles leaned in to peck his cheek.

"Ah, there it is," He joked, the silliest of smiles on his face. You giggled and shoved him before he pulled you into a tight hug. Your cheek was pressed against his chest, listening to his rapidly beating heart. Neither of you were particularly in a rush to pull apart, especially when he began to rub your back gently. That's when you moved your head to nuzzle your nose into his neck and sigh contentedly.

"I missed you." He confessed, his voice raspy as he rested his chin on your head.

Sighing again, you admitted, "So did I."

Eventually you had to let go. The two of you pulled away reluctantly, and you watched as he disappeared into his truck before locking the door.

After putting away the cookie dough and turning off all the lights, you made your way upstairs to your apartment, no bothering to greet your cousin before telling him the news.

"I'd say that went very we–" You stopped in your tracks when you saw David on the couch with Guillermo in his lap. They both looked at you like they got caught red handed, and you couldn't help but laugh and point.

"I knew it! I fucking knew it! You like cats!" You shouted as Guillermo shot off of David's lap and he shushed you repeatedly.

"Girl shut up! I never said I hated cats." He lied.

"You so have." You then gasped as an idea crossed your mind. "I'm telling Chloe." You threatened.

The night ended with you evading David's grasp long enough to call your mutual cousin.

#call of duty #call of duty modern warfare 2 #call of duty modern warfare #alejandro vargas #Call Of Duty MW2 #alejandro vargas x reader #alejandro vargas x oc #alejandro x fem!reader

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