#I assumed max would be since we saw her Gazing at another lady in a previous trailer | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

catchmewiddershins · 3 years

Note

Hi🥺

if it's too much trouble, could I request a pt. 3 of the ‘overhearing their crush talking about them’ with oikawa, akaashi and yamaguchi?

Thanks in advance and have a nice day!💕

Haikyuu Characters Overhearing their crush talking about them - pt 3:

Includes: Oikawa, Akaashi and Yamaguchi! 💖 SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG 🥺 I’m so glad you asked bcs I needed a reason to write a third part hehe

Oikawa:

He could barely keep his eyes open. Contrary to popular belief, Oikawa wasn’t a monster, he couldn’t keep pushing and pushing and never feel the consequences. Interhigh was approaching again and he was desperate to win, desperate to see the national court just one time before he left high school, desperate to prove that all of the blood, sweat and tears that he had poured into this sport wasn’t futile. So he’d stayed awake, he trained until late at night and woke before the crack of dawn to practice. And now he was feeling the toll, incapable of focusing on the words of the teacher at the front of the class, he let his mind drift, getting shocked out of his skin when the bell rang for lunch.

Floating down the corridors, he almost fell asleep standing up until he walked into a door frame. Then, as he rounded the corner he heard your voice. Oikawa had been harbouring feelings for you for a while now, ever since you’d been kind to him outside of the usual fangirl devotion - you’d helped him hide from a few of them while he was late for practice, and he’d been trying to work up the courage to confess to you. He was just... worried that you’d assume he was asking in a playboy manner, rather than from sincere feelings. Suddenly, he paused, having heard his name in passing from your conversation.

“Why do you want to go to a volleyball match? Like at interhigh?”

“Because Oikawa’s playing and I wanted to cheer him on!” There you were, you sounded so cheerful, it made his heart flutter and heat sprang to his face.

“Isn’t he that guy who’s really pretty? I hear that tons of people are swooning over him, you’ll have a lot of competition if you wanna blend in.”

“I mean yeah... he’s pretty but that’s not why I like him!”

“What, you’re different from the rest? Why do you like him then, if not his looks? They seem to be the only thing of his that are of note.”

His heart sank a little, there it was again, that focus. His hair, his eyes, his face, people complimented him on them left and right and it made him wonder if that was all he was worth - is that all he is? Just a pretty-boy athlete?

You sounded... indignant?

“I like him because of his skills, for one! Have you seen his serve? That thing looks as if it could turn my face into a pancake! And besides that, he’s such a great leader! His team clearly flourishes with him as captain, I saw one match where he couldn’t make it and they were only working at 3/4 max of the potential that Oikawa is able to draw out of them - it’s incredible! I worked on a project with him once and he was both in charge and so considerate! He’s more than his face, you know.” Your hands moved passionately and he could imagine the sparkles in your eyes as you talked, the way you occasionally did about your favourite media or facts.

He was in deep, and your rant at your friend gave him the nudge he needed to confess immediately... or maybe at interhigh.

Akaashi:

He nodded as you spoke, having been asked to help tutor you for the upcoming exam, as you had a few things that you were stuck on. He’d accepted immediately, since he was absolutely smitten with you. Nobody had been told about this, not even Bokuto, because he would tease Akaashi to kingdom come if he found out - or he’d try to set you up, which would be even worse. Gently correcting a mistake you’d made in your work, he took the time to appreciate being so close to you. Akaashi loved to spend time with you, since you’d become tentative friends due to sitting adjacent to each other in Biology, and since you occasionally came to his matches, but only when you had the time.

There was a slight noise as his phone buzzed in his pocket, and, taking it out, he saw a text from Bokuto, saying that he’d forgotten where the bibs for practice were stored and that he was outside the classroom so that Akaashi could point him in the right direction. Stepping outside with a sigh, he showed Bokuto which way the storage cupboard was, and gave him very clear directions on how to get back to the gym from there, along with another, not really that sincere, apology for having to miss practice to tutor you. However, just before he opened the door again to the spare classroom that you were working in, his ears picked up the sound of your voice, on the phone to one of your friends.

“Yes I am getting tutored by Akaashi!” His curiosity was piqued, was your friend interested in him or something? He couldn’t hear the sound from your phone speaker, but your response sent sparks through him.

“No, of course I haven’t confessed to him - It’s not like he likes me back! Besides, we are actually supposed to be working!”

“...”

“Yes, I’m sure I like him! He’s so considerate, and he explains things really well, and he always knows how to help, and he’s gorgeous.”

Oh. Oh Oh Oh! You liked him! He couldn’t stop the beaming smile that shone across his face as your conversation with your friend trailed off, leaning against the wall outside and trying to quell the ache in his cheeks that came with such a wide, lovestruck grin. His ears were pink and his eyes sparkled, and if anyone had walked past him at that moment, they’d say that he’d never looked more alive.

He walked into the classroom, glowing, and sat back down next to you before clearing his throat. He could see redness in your face as well, and mustered all his courage to do what he’d been wanting to for a while.

“Hey... I’ve really enjoyed spending time with you today and... I was wondering if... you’d maybe like to go out with me sometime?”

Your resounding yes made this the best day ever.

Yamaguchi:

It was a Saturday, sunny, warm, and boring. Yamaguchi had decided to try and pass the time by going for a quick stroll down to his favourite café, passing through a lovely green park on the way, where he walked around, looking at the different species of flower, and the fish in the ponds, throwing a few crumbs of bread to them as he passed. To be honest, the only way for the day to be more perfect would have been a backing soundtrack, then it would have felt like something directly out of a feel-good film.

Coming to a new street, he wandered past a few shops, until he came to where he’d been meaning to come. The sweets sold here were the best, and getting one, plus a lemonade, to take away while he walked was just an extremely relaxing thing to do. He was planning to go and read a book in the park, to soak up some of the sunlight and enjoy the lovely afternoon.

The bell tinkled as he pushed open the door, and his nose was caressed by the smell of baking bread and sugar. However, as he approached the front to order, he spotted you and a couple of your friends sitting in the corner, near the window, all of you nursing some cold drinks and chatting with one another. His heart jumped into his throat, the sound of it pounding in his ears. The lady at the countertop, who had got to know Yamaguchi relatively well, since he came here so often, leaned over and grinned at him.

“Do you know them?” She asked, a twinkle in her eyes. At his nod, she giggled and said to him, “Whichever of them you like, you should say so! I bet they’d say yes!”

He thanked her, quietly, and smiled, knowing that she only meant well, and waited at the side of the counter for his order to be ready. As he waited, your voice drifted over to him from your seat at the window.

“So, do you like anyone?” One of your friends said with a laugh, you appeared to be having one of those lighthearted discussions that good friends sometimes have about such things.

A blush sprang to your face, and you brought a hand to your eyes, “...Maybe...” Leaning forwards, your friend gestured for you to continue. You sunk further into your chair in embarrassment.

“Ok... so you know... Yamaguchi?”

“Yamaguchi?” Your friend replied excitedly.

“Yeah,” smiling, your gaze drifted a little, as if you were lost in thought. “He’s just the sweetest, honestly, so supportive and kind, he helped me out after I tripped over the other day, and, when I missed one of the maths lessons, he talked me through the material... he’s lovely...”

Grinning, your friend patted your hand, relaxing back into their chair, “Well, he’s definitely not the worst person for you to be crushing on, you’ll need to drop some hints though... want a hand?”

“Stop it!” You whined, bringing your hands up again to cover your tomato-red face as your friend laughed.

Yamaguchi left the café with three things, a pastry, a lemonade, and the resolve to ask you out the next time he saw you. He practically skipped down the lane as he went back to the park, joy filling his heart.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 4

233 notes · View notes

mermaidsirennikita · 3 years

Text

bridgerton--the good, the bad, the ugly

The short of it: Bridgerton excellently captures the tone of Regency romance novels and offers a lot of escapism and great sex scenes, but could definitely use some serious work in terms of how it depicts race and it should have made some further alterations to the dated and flawed source material. Definitely loved a lot of it and am hotly anticipating the second season, but I want to see more work done and I HOPE that this encourages the adaptation of better (and less inherently flawed) romance novels.

Now for the longer take.

The Good

Bridgerton depicted sex and romance in a way that is totally different from anything I’ve seen in period dramas, for sure, but possibly different from anything I’ve seen on TV. The romance of it all was woven into almost every aspect of the show. There is the handsome and seemingly severe but extravagantly wealthy and sexually adept duke sweeping into town. The (multiple) rakes who just want to have fun while also being hot messes. The awakening of female sexuality and the copious use of the female gaze. (Note the pretty modest and minimal focus on female nudity, while we get plenty of lingering shots on Simon.). People want love! There is pretty minimal violence and perhaps the most physically violent scene involves Simon beating a man up because HE IMPEACHED DAPHNE’S HONOR~.

The sex scenes themselves focused on Daphne’s pleasure for the most part, and were probably among the best I’ve seen since Outlander in terms of chemistry, in terms of the visuals, in terms of focus on sex as an act of emotional connection and FUN. Yes, there was some Unlikely Vaginal Orgasming, but we also saw Simon tell Daphne about masturbation. On the wedding night, he was pretty clearly touching her to help her enjoy it. He ate her out... a good bit.

And aside from that, we got all of the grand speeches, the stolen glances and touches, an excellent buildup of sexual tension that led to some pretty hilarious moments.

I also really enjoyed many of the performances on this show. Rege-Jean and Phoebe had great chemistry and excellent back and forth. Jonathan was a GREAT Anthony. I would argue that as lackluster as I found his relationship with Siena (more on that in a minute) it largely existed as a way to set him up for his romance with Kate. He now has even more of a reason to be down with love, as opposed to solely relying on a kind of flimsy tragic backstory. Additionally, his overprotectiveness of Daphne added tension to the story and made him a source of comedic relief for me? I loved it. Give me disaster Anthony all day; can’t wait until he falls to the enemies to lovers trope just like Simon fell to his FLAW-FREE fake dating plan.

A lot of the changes I found were really good. Obviously, it was important that the show incorporated greater diversity (though they need way more). Benedict was INFINITELY more fun and interesting than he was in the novels, and acted as another standout for me. As much as I hate Portia Featherington, I think that the elevation of her to a proper villainess is probably necessary and Polly Walker excels at those types of roles, though they need to maybe have her be less like, actively racist. I adored the addition of Queen Charlotte; she was excellent comic relief. Lady Danbury’s expanded role and relationship to Simon was one of the best moves they made. It touched my entire soul.

Buuuut....

The Bad

The show needs to work on casting more men that are frankly on Rege-Jean’s level. It feels a bit awkward to see a guy that is by most people’s standards kind of stunning and then.... Colin looks twelve. Lord Philip is like... a farm guy. Get rid of the sideburns, we’re in romance novel territory.

In the same note, the girl who played Siena wasn’t a great actress and wasn’t super stunning, so even though I’m fine with her being a placeholder.... Eh. Go for better casting. The woman playing Madame Delacroix would’ve played that role so much better and I really enjoyed her dynamic with Benedict because she was just fun.

Frankly, I don’t know what the fuck they’re going to do to make me want to watch Penelope and Colin fall in love. Their book was already a bit basic--fun, but far from revolutionary. I don’t really get why they would receive attention similar to that of Kate and Anthony, basically. The issue is that Colin, again, looks and sound rather young and twerpy. It obviously wasn’t great for him to be tricked into raising another man’s child, but.... For fuck’s sake, how much would that have affected his life on a practical level. He’d never know unless he was told, thanks to the lack of DNA tests. He was marrying far out of his league in terms of attractiveness. He’s a rich white guy in England with a supportive family.

I really disliked the fact that Colin told Marina in his huffy little tantrum that he would have married her anyway--because would you have, buddy? Really? The thing is that Marina had no way of knowing that and her entire life (and the reputations of her cousins) was on the line. She didn’t know if she could trust Colin to keep her secret. They barely knew each other. He basically came off as a whiny child and I’m fine with him staying in Greece if that’s the plan.

Penelope was just... psychotic. And that was really disappointing, because I love Nicola and would love to have loved to see the fat girl get her sexy love story. But first off, lol, it wouldn’t have been sexy because Colin was miscast. Second, she basically tried to destroy Marina’s life and that of her sisters? And herself? Because Colin? Because Colin, a guy who hasn’t even shown any amount of attraction to her at this point? Her tears, her whining, it was all too much. Penelope was dealing with a crush and Marina was dealing with the real Grown Woman issues of a child out of wedlock and as it turned out a dead lover and they were not on equal footing.

I mean, Penelope could very well make a great villainess at this point, and if done well I’d embrace it. But I do not know how the fuck they can make me interested in her love story. And the idea of her basically being launched into villainy because she was this chubby white girl obsessively jealous of a beautiful black woman...... not a great look.

The show definitely needs to explore diversity in terms of sexuality too--I don’t think it’s correct to read Benedict as straight because he still seems to be open to exploring. Once he has more screentime, I think he could totally end up being bisexual, and it’s possible that the writers were trying to feel the audience out in terms of their receptiveness to taking a straight character who has a big straight love story in the books and making him LGBT+. Eloise could also easily be a lesbian, and I’d be thrilled to see that happen. They need to do something to expand the world, and if there are 8 Bridgerton kids, all of them being straight as an arrow seems SO unlikely.

The Ugly

Obviously, the rape scene was bad and should have been written out. Simon could have gotten caught up in the moment and blown up at Daphne after he accidentally didn’t pull out in time. Men.... accidentally don’t pull out in time... a lot. That’s how babies happen. It would’ve been believable, and due to our sympathies being with Simon largely, I don’t think he would have become irredeemable if he was more at fault than Daphne.

As it was, I will say that the scene was somewhat better than it played in the books because Simon was conscious and totally sober, and it was a bit? Confusing? That he didn’t just roll Daphne over and pull out? Because she wasn’t really clearly trying as hard as she was in the book to wrap her legs around him and hold him tight. But it remained a rape scene. The show also did a better job, I think, of establishing how fucked up it was that Simon took advantage of Daphne’s lack of knowledge. Whatever he said about thinking she knew what was up--he knew she didn’t even know about masturbation. He had to know she wouldn’t understand what pulling out meant. He did very clearly mislead her to think that he was sterile and therefore denied Daphne her ability to give informed consent. Did that justify what Daphne did? Nope. Two wrongs don’t make a right. But both of them did a fucked up thing and I think that we honestly could’ve stopped at Simon’s misleading.

The issue too is that this leads into a bigger problem the show had. It wanted to include diversity (yay!) but did not consider the total implications of what was happening (not yay). Daphne and Simon’s dynamic is inevitably influenced by the fact that she’s a white woman and he’s a black man, regardless of whatever handwaves happened. This influences the sexual assault and makes it even more messy.

Speaking of mess, I’m not sure what exactly would have fixed the “we don’t want this to be a colorblind casting” issue... but the explanation they came up with wasn’t good. Never mind that this makes everything SUPER confusing (racism is over like..... maybe 50 years MAX after Queen Charlotte’s marriage if we assume she was a teen when she married and is in her 60s now?) but Lady Danbury’s dialogue explaining this was HORRENDOUS. “One of them fell in love with one of us”. The implications are awful. I don’t know if perhaps setting back the integration of society centuries earlier would have helped? But this wasn’t it.

Additionally, the writers and casting directors didn’t seem to get that diversity is all well and good, but what about the fact that almost every black character has a light skin tone? Why are there so few black female characters? Why is Marina, the most prominent woc on the show, given the “pregnant and desperately trying to trick a man into marrying her until her jealous white cousin fucks her life up and she is humiliated into settling for a loveless match” plot? I desperately hope we see her next season, falling in love with Sir Phillip or perhaps having experienced a plot twist that gives her someone else... And she better not die. Eloise can find someone else if Marina really ends up with Sir Philip.

Ultimately, again, I really loved the show. But it needs to work on some things. I think that a lot of its issues can be addressed and fixed in a future season, and I HOPE they do that.

#bridgerton #but fuck polin for life lol

163 notes · View notes

caitlesshea · 4 years

Text

passed down like folk songs

4 times Nile hears Joe and Nicky tell a fake story of how they met + 1 time she hears them tell the real story.

“We met at university.”

Nile pauses from where she’s sucking down her milkshake through a straw even in New York City winter because Chicago, when she smiles at whatever flowery love story Joe and Nicky are currently telling a bakery owner.

“How lovely.” The owner says and then smiles at Joe’s humorous turn of events.

Nile’s glad she made them take her to Max Brenner, even in this weather, because even though they aren’t tourists, she is. And neither one complained when she saw them greedily lap up the hot chocolate.

She also saw Nicky eyeing a Hug Mug and she grabbed it before he noticed. Even though no one else celebrates Christmas, she does, so they’re all getting gifts.

“He was my English tutor.” Nicky says and Nile snorts, recalling both of their animated stories of their distaste for learning English when they did, hundreds of years ago.

“He was my best student.”

And, Nile’s back to gagging.

She loves them, she does. But there’s only so much poetic love she can hear them wax about each other before she tunes it out.

She should’ve dragged Andy along with her, but her and Quynh opted to stay in their town home they’ve owned since the Industrial Revolution or something, and lord knows where Booker’s fucked off to.

So, she’s walking around New York in November, so Joe and Nicky can go to their favorite bakery on the other side of the city from where their place is.

“He really didn’t need any help with English.” Joe teases and Nicky smiles like this is a story they’ve told before.

“Nope. We’ve been married for eight years now.” Nicky says to the owner, who squeals loudly.

They end up leaving the bakery with more pastries than they paid for, much to Joe’s delight.

“Eight years, huh?”

“It has been eight years since our last wedding.” Nicky says and Nile’s eyes bug out of her head.

“Wait, you’re actually married?”

They both stare at her like she’s lost her mind and she doesn’t know why she thought they weren’t.

“We’ve been married for a long time. Different places, different names, different countries.” Joe shrugs and grabs Nicky’s hand as they continue their walk.

Nile pulls another bit of milkshake through her straw and follows after them.

“Your friend is very hot.” The woman, Anya, smirks at Nile as she gestures over her shoulder.

“Who?” Nile asks incredulously because for one quick moment she wants to answer with I don’t have friends but she knows that’s not exactly true so she just gapes at Anya with her mouth open.

Anya, the daughter of their mark, who Nile is supposed to be getting to know, just points rudely towards Joe.

“Are you lovely ladies talking about me?” Joe slides up to Nile and puts an arm over her shoulders.

“No.” Nile says at the exact same time Anya says yes.

Anya smacks Nile’s arm playfully and smirks at Joe.

“I was just telling Nile how attractive you are.”

Nile stares at Anya wondering when she got so bold and then looks at Joe who’s smiling and blushing, which she didn’t think was possible.

“Why thank you. But I am happily taken.”

As if summoned by Joe mentioning he’s taken, Nicky comes over and places a hand on the small of Joe’s back as he separates from Nile.

Anya is pouting but Nicky just smiles.

“Were you talking about me, love?”

“I was just about to tell Anya how we met skiing in the Alps on vacation.” Joe turns to look at Anya and continues. “My Nico is not the most coordinated and he got his skis tangled and once we realized he was okay I asked him to join me in the lodge and we had hot coco in front of the fire. He still makes fun of my love for mini marshmallows.”

Nile smirks at the story, knowing that some of it is probably true and when she turns back to Anya she notices what only can be described as heart eyes.

“That is the sweetest story.” Anya gushes and just as she’s about to go on, her father, their mark, walks up and smiles at her.

“Darling. Who are you friends?”

As Anya introduces them Nicky turns to her and winks.

Yeah. They’ve definitely told that story before.

“Do you wanna dance?”

Nile turns at the question and comes face to face with the most attractive woman she’s ever seen.

“I’m Nile.” Nile blurts out unintelligently and the beautiful woman laughs and Nile’s fucked.

“I’m Frankie.” The woman, Frankie, smiles and leans closer to Nile. “Dance with me?”

Nile nods as she finishes her drink and turns in time to catch Joe’s smirk. She rolls her eyes and lets Frankie pull her out to the dance floor.

They’re in London, because Booker needed to be here for something he couldn’t say, but right now Nile doesn’t care. She convinced Joe and Nicky that they needed a night off and they let her drag them to a club.

She’s forever grateful they agreed.

She lets Frankie grab her hips and pull them flush together and after a couple of songs Nile feels want like she hasn’t since she died in the desert.

“Your friends are staring at us.” Frankie whispers in her ear and it pulls Nile out of the moment.

“Huh?”

“Your friends. They’re protective?”

“Oh.” Nile tugs on the belt loops of Frankie’s jeans. “Yeah.”

“Introduce me to them.”

“What?”

“I want to meet your friends.” Nile looks at Frankie incredulously because really?

“Kiss me.” Nile says instead.

So Frankie kisses her and Nile ends up dragging her to meet Joe and Nicky.

“Joe. Nicky. This is Frankie.” Nile introduces them as she steals Nicky’s drink right out of his hand. He scoffs and smiles so she knows he’s not mad.

“How do you know Nile?” Frankie asks them like they didn’t all meet tonight. Nile would find this weird but she’s immortal so what even is her life?

“Nile and I met at work.” Joe answers. “But I brought my husband to a work party and I’m pretty sure he stole my best friend.”

Nile’s breath catches in her throat. She knows Joe’s telling a story and she knows they’re friends but something about the way he says best friend makes her heart clench.

“And how did you meet your husband?” Frankie asks as she slides closer to Nile.

Nile assumes she’s being nice, trying to get to know them, but the cynical part of her that has only grown more and more since she became immortal wonders why Frankie is asking all of these questions.

“Oh, it wasn’t much different than this.” Joe gestures to the club and even though Nile knows it’s a lie her eyes still bug out of her head.

“Really?” Nile squeaks and Joe smiles.

“Yes, although I think it was called a speakeasy. The one we met at had a dress code and everything. Fedoras, suspenders, the whole nine. Nico was very dashing.”

Nicky smiles at Joe as he kisses him quickly, once, and then turns back to them.

“He bought me a drink and the rest as they say is history.”

Nile chuckles and Frankie seems enraptured by them and Nile gets it, she does, but she tugs Frankie back onto the dance floor.

Later Frankie puts her number in Nile’s burner phone and Nile throws it on the ground and crushes it with her boot.

“Did Dr. Jones tell you I introduced him to his husband?” Luca, the curator at the museum they’re canvassing asks.

“No, I don’t think so.” Nile smirks and Joe rolls his eyes.

“He didn’t introduce us so much as we met when I was helping curate one of the museum exhibits. Nico, as you know, is a photographer and he was hired to take photos before the opening.” Joe smiles like he’s replaying a pleasant memory.

“Love at first sight?” Nile teases and Joe and Luca laugh.

“Seemed like they couldn’t stand each other at first.” Luca smirks and Nile raises an eyebrow at Joe who just shrugs.

“We figured it out eventually.” Joe turns to her and Nile knows the moment Nicky walks into the room because Joe’s gaze has left Nile and is now focused over her head.

“Practice makes perfect.” Nile mumbles and Luca smiles at her as Joe leaves them to go stand next to Nicky.

“Hurry up!” Joe calls after them as Nile, Andy, and Quynh cross the street to catch up to them.

Nile pulls her scarf tighter around her neck to keep the chill away. It’s New Years Eve and they’re back in London, because Booker, and they’re trying to beat the crowds out of the city to get back to Copley’s.

They’re about to jump onto the sidewalk when Nile hears it; tires skidding, a sickening crunch, and Booker’s ear piercing scream.

“James!”

That’s new.

Before Nile can even process what’s happened, the car is speeding away and Joe is trying to grab Booker by the shoulders while Andy and Quynh land on the pavement next to a woman, unconscious on the ground, body twisted in an unnatural way.

“Nile.” Nicky takes her by the shoulders and steers her away from Copley, lying on the ground, blood pooling around him, and the woman, who it looks like he was trying to save.

Booker is inconsolable and suddenly London makes a lot more sense.

“Booker.” Nile goes to say as she steps around Nicky and stops in her tracks when she sees the woman.

“Frankie.” Nile falls onto the pavement unconcerned with her jeans getting soaked as she gently touches Frankie’s face.

She wants to scream, she wants to cry, she wants to blame this universe for all that is unfair.

Booker’s hiccupping sobs cut through most of her inner turmoil as she turns to Andy and Quynh.

“We need…” Nile clears her throat. “We have to call the police.”

“Nile.” Nicky’s voice is soft and she turns sharp eyes on him.

She’s about to argue with him when there’s a loud gasp as Copley shoots awake right into Booker’s arms.

“Sébastien.” Copley whispers as Booker starts crying in earnest now, mumbling in French, as Joe holds both of them.

“We have to get off the street.” Nicky says quietly.

“We can’t leave her.” Nile grabs Frankie’s hand, the woman she spent a half a night with, and knows she can’t leave her alone.

“Nile.” Andy tries to placate her.

“No.” Nile stares Andy down. “No.”

“Frankie.” Copley crawls over to her and Nile’s eyes widen and she’s about to ask how he knows her when Frankie gasps awake and turns to cough up blood.

“Shit.” Frankie says as she grabs her head and watches in abject fascination as her legs heal.

Nile has just a moment to catch Frankie before she passes out and hits her head on the pavement.

“Now can we get out of here?” Andy asks exasperated and everyone nods as Nile picks Frankie up.

Back at Copley’s, hours later, Frankie listens as Joe and Nicky explain everything to her.

Nile wants to comfort her, wants to know if this is why she felt drawn to her before, months ago.

She has so many questions but they can wait until Frankie asks all of hers. Luckily Copley doesn’t have many, and he and Booker are cuddled on the couch together.

“Nicky and I met in the Crusades.” Joe says cheerfully, and Nile’s thrown back to the church almost a year ago when she heard the same story.

In retrospect, it probably shouldn’t have taken her almost a year to figure it out.

“We killed each other.” Joe jokes as he winks at Nicky.

“Many times.” Nicky smiles at Joe but Nile can see what she now knows isn’t just an underlying sadness of hurting his love, but the battle he wages within himself, nearly a millennium later, thinking he’s still not worthy, that he’ll never be able to repent for those sins he made outside of Jerusalem.

“They never get to tell the real story.” Nile says quietly to Andy.

“Real story?”

“Of how they met. I mean before tonight they maybe told it three times? You and Quynh, Booker, me.”

“Ah. Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“That must be really hard.”

“They have fun with it.” Andy shrugs as she looks over at Quynh.

“I’ve heard some of the stories.”

“They’re not just stories.” At Nile’s questioning glance Andy continues. “I mean most of the things have happened, they just leave out the part where they already know each other.”

“Huh.” Nile thinks back to all the stories she’s heard them tell of how they met or how they got together and her heart aches that they’ve only been able to share the real version a handful of times.

“You’ll be able to have your own stories someday.” Andy nudges her and she looks over at Frankie.

“We met at a club.” Nile smiles at the memory.

“Yeah, but tonight is when you really met. And someday they’ll be another to share it with.”

That makes sense and Nile smiles at the possibilities.

“So, Copley, are you gonna tell us why you were meeting up with a CIA analyst?” Joe asks Copley and Nile watches both Copley and Booker look at Frankie and then Copley gets up and goes toward his office.

“I was gonna tell everyone tomorrow.” Copley says as he leans against Booker, who pulls him closer to his side.

Copley drops a file down on the table and Joe and Nicky open it.

Nicky quickly loses all the color in his cheeks and stares at Frankie with something akin to awe.

“Is this real?” Joe asks and Copley nods.

“She’s a descendant of Nicky’s. We worked together before I left the agency and since I can never let anything go…” Copley trails off. “I got in touch and she said she was interested in her ancestry. I was gonna tell you what I found before I brought her in but well…”

Frankie looks around at everyone and then she makes her way over to Nile.

“Hi.” Frankie says quietly to Nile as everyone else in the room starts talking over each other.

“Hi.” Nile says as they sway closer together.

“Is this why you never texted me?”

“Yes.” Nile breathes and Frankie smiles.

“I forgive you.”

“Oh you do?” Nile teases her and Frankie smirks before turning back to the rest of the room.

Nicky has a strange look on his face and Frankie turns her questioning gaze to Nile.

“He’s trying to figure out which one of us to give the shovel talk to.” Nile smirks and Joe laughs with his whole body as Nicky winks.

“Is he?” Frankie smirks and tugs Nile impossibly closer.

“Yeah.” Nile breathes against Frankie’s mouth before she closes the distance and kisses her.

“Let’s give him something to talk about.”

This is a story Nile can’t wait to share.

#the old guard #joe x nicky #nile freeman #nileweek2020 #mentions of canon temporary character death and injuries

138 notes · View notes

victorusolano · 3 years

Text

FYD Series

by Victor Ubanos Solano

The old lady said that the pup was born in the province of Cavite from an unidentified breed of canines. Although it looked like a Labrador or a half-breed Saint Bernard or if mistakenly recognized from refined breeds of dogs, it was just a dog of some ordinary sort or I do not know. She said, “My friend had to put the pup inside a rugged sack so we can travel the way from south to north.” It was Friday morning when I met them at the tail coach of the PUV going to Antipolo. “They're not letting us to onboard because they do not allow pets inside” The Madame exclaimed. She was talking to me like a newly found friend. But only with a calm smile, I rewarded her back from her exasperation.

The other commuters reverted in silence while we were all comfortably tucked into our seats. “So, I gave its brother to the kind and gentle bus driver then he let us in.” She said while still a bit annoyed. Again, another moment of delay before she spoke another word. “Don’t tell them!” She shrugged with a hush. The car moved on, the furry creature sneaked out from the sack bag where he was kept out of sight and raised his little paws to my feet. “Cute creature,” I said and put him on my lap. “You want? You can adopt him too!” Calmly she said. The little beast gave me a gaze of glassy eyes as if telling me, Please! He bowed his head and folded his feet, pushed his body closer to my arms; I looked at him and told myself, a furry friend – and I named him Maximus.

The truth is, I never had a pet that I raised on my own. The feeding and caring for a pet to live was never handed to me directly as an opportunity. My attempts from the past were some experience of a disaster, I can name a few: Boomer was the first, she was a family dog and died while giving birth to Dugan which I named after an anime series Cedie in the ninety’s. Unfortunately, Dugan died a miserable death due to an unknown disease. The last was Chuchay. I would say Chuchay is a lesbian bitch but that was only my guess and died a virgin dog. There was one animal that lived a long life and expired old, It was a rooster. Needless to say, the reasons for these animals being gone, the sad and happy moments had been revered and marked happy memories.

Now as for Maximus, the first nourishment I gave was all dog milk that I bought from the pet shop the next morning. I can say that he liked it and enjoyed it till the last drop of the serving. The routine began like that, milk in the morning and afternoon.

One day, there was an inevitable change in my work schedule. I left Maximus wandering outside around a fenced structure. I decided to let Maximus claim the outside surroundings. A territory, my strong belief was that; going out of the fence is far from his ability.

I went home early the next day. I expected that Maximus would be so excited to see me wagging its tail in joy. But no shadow of Max at the entrance, I wondered and tried to look for him. I called him Max for a nickname. “Where is that rascal?” Sweat on my brow dropped. I've looked at all corners of the surroundings and I am sure he cannot be inside the house. It would be impossible, I locked all the doors and checked them twice before I went to work last night. The only recollection I had was; I left Max at the gate; Max watched me leaving, and wagged his tail like sending me the message, Goodbye. It could be a snake swallowing him whole for dinner? That was my suspicion. In fear of that indescribable scene, which I considered could be possibly true, I grabbed a metal rod which I used to push coals in the hearth and poked it under the hearth stand, but only pots and old ceramics clanged under and no Maximus or a snake moved to be visible.

There, I turned my survey to the other part of the premises, to a meter square of foliage near the dead mango tree, I grubbed the metal rod to the soil and the newly grown shrubs, but there was no reptile of some sort to be recognized. If Maximus is not inside the house. And a dog can't break the fences. That Maximus may have been stolen? Yes and no! What would be so interesting for a small dog? Maximus is not even an expensive breed, so what to steal it for? I went on curiously.

I went outside and looked. Maybe a charitable neighbor allowed him a free sleepover. “Nanay Auring! Have you seen my dog?” I yelled out from the gate. She opened the door and stepped out onto the porch wearing a billowy duster dyed in Okir patterns, and said “No! I didn’t even know that you have one!” I resigned my curiosity and walked a little more and searched. Disappointed I was, with no Maximus found. I began to lose yearning. I felt tired and it has been an exhausting day – my mind whirled of many thoughts. If Max happened to know where to go back, I'd make sure he could not escape anymore, or if someone brings my dog home, I would be grateful to thank the good samaritan then. I retired to look for that dog; I have gone for the next street and the next street further. And to the tall rusty arch gate of the village, now I can see the highway from a distance. I imagined a scene, a plausible one, did Max walk this far last night? tried to follow me, and was hit by ten-wheelers careless of their speed. I prayed without words “May good heaven forbid.” While trudging, I decided to go back and will continue my search tomorrow. I have agreed to myself to take my usual drill at home, boil water for coffee, take a bath, continue reading the pages of the novel I left last night, take note of ideas and write more chapters to a story I have been developing for the past two months, then go to sleep.

I entered the gate of my house and pushed the door open. Alas! Almost all things inside were scattered. Shoes were randomly thrown everywhere, and the tattered fleece of the sofa and paper bills were torn in pieces. I looked at all these things and quickly I thought they were not made by a human. “Maximus!” I yelled out with all the energy. Max came out from my room, little pink tongue out as if smiling, wagging the small tail, and with all speed, I ran to my room and found a disaster. All pillow covers raged in an inordinate piece, my room slippers are all twisted. Max barked a screeching note trying to divert my attention. “Little rascal! How did you get in?” but in no time before I finished what I just said, a book fell from the shelf inside my room near the window. “Aha!” Little did I know that there was a stack of old things outside of my room window. Max managed to climb and entered through a missing jalousie blind near the beam. He quickly felt from my sharp stare that Max committed something wrong. Maximus curved his hind half, bowed his head, and tried to kiss my feet. “Little beast! I thought I lost you.” A sudden surge of feeling not to punish him is a remarkable thing I felt, I pity and realized Maximus was just a pup.

A few months passed, the acquaintance with him went on with ease, Max and I shared my favorite nook in the house, He and I went out together. Max, I can say, is almost a member of the dance club organized by the village sports enthusiasts. All afternoon we went there and he waited patiently till I was all perspiring for the afternoon workout and then he slipped out and explored all nearby places. There were other gangs of dogs, high breed dogs, toy dogs, and all sorts of unidentified colors. Maximus, a snobbish dog I observed, had been in too many dog fights before he could learn to go places he liked.

After my workout at the village sports center, I usually attend some readings and writings before going to bed. Maximus never missed an opportunity to read what I type on the computer. He sat beside the writing table and climbed on a little space left on the bench. “Hey, is that beautiful?” Max's responses are few, he would just look at me, a big mouth of a yawn, and look away. Max didn't know any tricks that time so I taught him the basics; shake the hand, sit in place, roll over and poop training, the only difficult one was to play dead. Surprisingly, he exhibited that skill by ignoring my presence when I am deeply immersed in reading or writing.

In the totality of his existence, Maximus was very happy and satisfied with all that comprises a dog life, nearly those eight months of being my chum, I could not say that Maximus was of a selfish temperament. But Maximus hated to be acquainted with other dogs. At some point I tried to understand that animal behavior is multifaceted. In the case of Maximus, it was curious that he had skipped some of the processes. Maximus would walk away when being ignored or would stay in his cabin for a couple of days and almost a week or many days. He sulks and this is what he meant by his isolation or maybe I was wrong. After all, I don’t know all the details of the dog's affair.

Two years have passed. I can say Max is now a fully grown-up dog, so many physical changes have happened. I am correct to assume that he is a big dog with big paws and short folded ears. But one afternoon Maximus ran away. I went on my search and imagined that he wandered all over the residential area and went to town in search of food or shelter, or maybe he went to the market and tried his luck there; why would a dog just leave like that? Max’s life inside the house was all working fine, with all this theorizing, I almost forgot that maybe I am overthinking, but since he cannot talk, it makes sense that all was and in between were only mere suggestions of his gestures, or perhaps Max is just a dog.

I went home and surrendered my search mission, which made me very tired. I laid down in a daybed, and my thoughts were quickly drawn in a pensive. There, I saw Max stopped in a shop and was thrown a piece of meat from passersby eating street food. He enjoyed it very much, and some of the bystanders threw leftovers, and eventually, more came. He enjoyed a banquet, feasting on what was left. The romanticized life there, however, only lasted for a moment. And with another twinkling, the image changed and dissolved into darkness. Another scenic place looked like a highway road except that no vehicles were passing by. There on the sidewalk, I saw Max walking slowly past a pile of food scraps but he just ignored the presence of it. I reckoned his solitaire swiftly in my mind, he fasted his cravings and preferred to go without food, I thought there he longed for my company. “Maximus!” I called him loudly and beckoned him to come over but sadly he swept aside his master's order and ran away so fast. I tried to follow him but the scene warped so quickly and transcended to another beyond.

One afternoon after many days passed. My neighbor Nanay Auring brought kalamay for a snack, I received it with warm thanks, and after her funny gossiping performance act, she left. I dashed to my small kitchen and made myself a cup of coffee. I went onto my writing table and dedicated myself to scrawl pictures in my mind. That moment of my solitude I have forgotten Max for a little while. I went on to write as much as I could, and when almost half of the page was done, I heard scratching knocks at the door. I unbolted the metal lock and opened it. “You giant scamp! Where have you been all these days?” He curved his legs, tucked in his tail, and stood before me with a bowed head. I bent over to hug him, and he pressed his cold nose onto my neck, and I patted his fur. I pulled him inside and cleaned him up. I gave him his usual favorite dog food, and not too long he consumed the last dab from the feeder bowl. He climbed up and sat beside me. He looked at the screen of my computer. I swallowed the rest of the coffee with a gulp. I looked at him and asked, “What title do you think is pretty for this piece?” He barked loudly as he approved when I typed the name Maximus.

***

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, business, events and incidents are the products of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

Copyright Statement : This work is the intellectual property of the author. Permission is granted for this material to be shared for non-commercial, educational purposes, provided that this copyright statement appears on the reproduced material. To disseminate otherwise or to republish requires written from the author.

GLOSSARY

*Auring: a coined nickname of Aurea, Aurora or Aurelia. *Kalamay: a variety of rice cakes in the Philippines. *Nanay: (n) mother / a female parent. *Okir: a design or pattern often rendered or curved in hardwood, brass, silver and wall painting in curvilinear lines and Arabic geometric figures. *PUV: (abbr) public utility van / vehicle.

#maximus

4 notes · View notes

msjr0119 · 4 years

Text

We Belong

Introduction

A mini series

Today at work we had to use the defib for a patient, when I spoke to the patients son- he was so grateful that we managed to save his father’s life (thank god for our NHS- we are so lucky!) We spoke to him afterwards, and he spoke about how his father loved their mother but there was his childhood sweetheart who he regretted letting go- then bam, I’m inspired.

Just using combined tag list, if you want to be removed just let me know as always 😘:

@pedudley @kacie-0156 @loveellamae @annekebbphotography @burnsoslow @ladyangel70 @kingliam2019 @bbrandy2002 @butindeed @bascmve01 @drakewalker04 @captain-kingliamsqueen @duchessemersynwalker @insideamirage @of-course-i-went-to-hartfeld @kozabaji @texaskitten30 @ibldw-main @kimmiedoo5 @nikkis1983 @gnatbrain @walker7519 @lodberg @cmestrella @hopefulmoonobject @addictedtodrakefanfic @angi15h @liamxs-world @rafasgirl23415 @notoriouscs @yukinagato2012 @dcbbw @qammh-blog @nz1091 @cordonianroyalty @custaroonie @indiacater @seriouslybadchoices @rainbowsinthestorm @princess-geek @jared2612 @desiree-0816 @gardeningourmet @twinkle-320

*****

Liam and Riley had been on their ‘engagement’ unity tour - attempting to unite Cordonia after the recent attacks. It was now the day for Liam to show Riley her beautiful Duchy for becoming Queen and Duchess- Valtoria.

Bastien waited at the palace entrance for; Liam, Riley, Olivia, Drake, Maxwell and Hana- escorting them all to the large SUV.

“I didn’t realise Valtoria was this far, it always seemed like a quick journey.” Bastien overheard Maxwell ask Liam, gulping he lied to the group of friends.

“There’s been a diversion. We will be there soon, Sir.” Maxwell shrugged. After a while, Bastien pulled up- hoping he wasn’t going to be thrown into a dungeon for his deceit.

“What the hell are we doing at your ex’s Duchy Liam?” Olivia asked, quirking her eyebrows at him. Liam shared a vacant expression not knowing himself, focusing his gaze towards his guard - he folded his arms hoping that Bastien could provide the group with answers.

“Oh I get it, maybe Bastien is giving Riley another option for a Duchy? I mean Evie wasn’t exactly thrilled to be the heir, and we haven’t seen her in ages. She’s probably living the high life now- got a whole group of new friends. The Duke and Duchess before they passed away said she wasn’t interested even coming back from boarding school for the holidays.” Bastien ignored Maxwell’s theory, instead gesturing them to the front door. As they approached the door swung open. Shock was the common expression between the majority of the group of friends.

“Hey guys!” Evangeline, Liam thought whilst keeping a stoic expression- not wanting Riley to know how he truly felt about seeing his childhood sweetheart. Maxwell ran up to her picking up, swinging her about like a rag doll.

“Evieeeee. I’ve missed you! What are you doing here? Why didn’t you tell anyone?”

“I told Bastien dur. Hence why you are all here. I’ve missed you too Maxi.”

“Well, well, well. It’s good to have you back Evangeline Bruley. I’m still the queen bitch though.”

“You wanna bet Liv? Drake. Still a grump I’ve heard?”

“It’s good to see you Bruley.” God she’s more beautiful than I remember.

“And you two must be Lady Hana and Duchess Riley- soon to be Queen. It’s so lovely to finally meet the person who stole Liam’s heart.” Evie walked up to the two strangers, giving them an over friendly hug. “Hi Li.” Liam looked at her as if she was a ghost. “Hello Evangeline. It’s nice to see you, but I was taking Riley to Valtoria. So if you’ll excuse us.” Needing to get away from the current situation- Liam knew his old feelings could potentially resurface. He loved Riley, truly he did- but Evie was the first girl to make his heart skip beats.

“Why don’t you and Riley just go. I need to catch up with Evie. Liv, Drake, Hana?” Maxwell could tell that this whole situation was awkward- especially seeing Riley’s body tense up. Olivia and Drake agreed to stay with Max catching up with Evie. Hana didn’t know the new Duchess personally, and was undecided on what to do. In one way, she felt awkward as she didn’t know Evie- but yet again she would feel like a gooseberry spending the day at Valtoria with Riley and Liam. Feeling guilty, she decided to stay with everyone- mouthing sorry to Riley, her best friend offered her a half hearted smile.

“Okay, well myself and Riley will go to Valtoria. You can all stay here. Goodbye lady Evangeline.”

“Your majesty, I hope you will both be attending my ‘welcome home’ ball tomorrow night?”

“Of course we will attend Evie. See you then.” Watching Bastien drive Riley and Liam away- Evie smiled at her childhood friends, eager to catch up with them all and to get to know the infamous talents Hana Lee.

“Come in everyone. Now I’m back, I better get used to being a Duchess.”

*****

Liam noticed Riley staring out of the window. Looking broken after her interaction with her fiancés ex.

“Ri?” Attempting to hold her hand, she abruptly brushed him away- sighing as she continued to stare into space, over thinking the events that were due to occur.

“Why didn’t you tell me you had an ex who was an heir to a Duchy?” Finally focusing her gaze onto his baby blues, she hoped that Liam would be honest with her. Knowing how he would possibly hide the truth to protect her feelings- she needed him to be open especially as they were due to get married.

“Because it’s not important. She isn’t important. And she’s been practically non existent since we was 11.” Sighing, he took Riley’s hands into his own. “The truth is myself and Evangeline were betrothed to be married. As Leo and Madeleine were. She was sent to boarding school- we all kept in touch. Some holidays, she would return. But she kept herself to herself, the last time I saw her was at her parents funeral two years ago- they died in a car crash. We never heard from her after.”

“Do you love her Liam?” Her bottom lip trembled, she had only just got him back and jealousy soon appeared- scared of losing him yet again.

“As teenagers, I did believe that I was in love with her. But our marriage was only going to ever be political. She didn’t feel the same towards me. I often wonder if that’s why she refused to come back home to Cordonia. Riley I love you. You are my Queen.”

*****

Maxwell and Olivia had decided to show Hana around, they had spent most of their childhood at the Duchy as they did at everyone else’s. Drake had always had a slight crush on Evie, but never exposed this. Mainly due to his best friend being in love with her since a young age.

“So Bruley, what’s it like to be back home?”

“Weird. I’ve missed you guys!”

“Even Liam?”

“Even Liam. Just because I didn’t love him, doesn’t mean that I don’t miss him. He’s one of my best friends. Always will be as you all are. Have you been to the gym? You look more toned.” Drake blushed, before gazing down at his body. Raising his head back up towards her- he providing that infamous Walker smirk.

“Maybe. It’s what single life does to you.”

“Is Kiara still drooling over you?” Pouting her lips, she knew just the mention of Kiara would frustrate him. Laughing at him now scowling at her, she held her hands up in defeat.

“Now that’s the most idiotic question for anyone to ask.”

“Why? If I was lesbian, I’d definitely choose Kiara- she’s beautiful, she’s intelligent...”

“Says the girl who got a scholarship into boarding school.” Drake interrupted.

“Well myself and Kiara would make a pretty intelligent couple then.” Drake raised his eyebrows, not knowing if she was being serious or not.

“So what do you want to drink? I know everyone else’s drink preferences as they came to my parents funeral.” Drake felt guilty for not attending- one reason was he was in Texas visiting his mother. The other reason being, that he knew he wouldn’t be able to hold his true feelings regarding her in, until today Evangeline Bruley was what he assumed just a teenage crush.

“I’m sorry about not being there. I did send my condolences. My mom needed me in Texas. I’m a whiskey man.”

“I’m joking with ya Drake. Good manly choice. Here.” Evie handed the drink to him, as he took the tumbler - their fingers brushed, sending a bolt of electricity through his veins. Noticing the wedding band on her finger, he felt slightly disappointed. Of course she’s married, why wouldn’t she be- he thought.

“They are my mother’s rings.” Evie realised he was gawking at her left hand, shaking her head she knew he was putting two and two together and making five.

“What?”

“I saw you look at them. I could see your mind working overtime.”

“Exactly, you’re intelligent. So erm... is there a special someone in your life?” Shit why have I asked her that?

“No. I mean, I’ve had boyfriends but they all ran away once they found out I was noble.”

“Not surprised!” Drake winked at her.

“Hey! Are you still sponging off Liam?”

“Touché! I’ve missed you. We all have.”

“Missed you too Walker. Will you be attending the ball tomorrow?”

“Attending, Yes. I haven’t got anything better to do. Boring commoner life. I’ll just stand in the corner as always.”

“You haven’t changed one bit have ya? Would you consider us close friends?”

“Erm. Yeah. Why?” Wondering why she would ask that he provided her with a perplexed expression- of course they were friends even if they had drifted apart over the years.

“Would you like to escort me into the ballroom tomorrow? I’d have asked max for old time’s sake, but I think he will ask someone else.”

“Who? Surely you could ask someone else. You don’t want me ruining your grand entrance.”

“Shut up! I asked you because I want you to escort me. We’re best friends. Don’t look over your shoulder but Liv is playing gooseberry....” Drake ignored her and turned around immediately- Olivia shook her head using her resting bitch face expression. “Drake I told you to not look! You ignored me!”

“They’ve been flirting all the way through Liam’s social season anyway. It’s no surprise.”

“Really? Aww little Maxi is all grown up....”

“Yeah. He’s smitten with Hana. You, me and Liv will play the sad singletons within this friendship group.” Evie laughed loud, not realising how loud until Olivia, Max and Hana snapped their heads towards her direction.

“Drake... you do know that Liv is fucking Bastien?”

#trr #trr choices #trr fan fic #trr we belong #drake walker #liam rhys #riley brooks #olivia nevrakis #hana lee #maxwell beaumont #trr bastien #trr oc evie #drake x evie #drake x oc #liam x riley #liam x evie #liam x oc

52 notes · View notes

sailorsei · 5 years

Text

Snowed In

Steve Harrington x Fem!Henderson!Reader

Word Count: 4.1k (OOPS LOL)

Summary: On their way to visit the Byers, the party is forced to stay the night at a run down motel during a snow storm. Will they freeze in the night, or will Reader and Steve find a way to keep warm? ;)

Warnings: smut ahoy! 18+ only pls. Reader is Dustin’s older sister!

Authors Note: This is my first time writing for the stranger things fandom so pls be kind <3 enjoy!

Snow flurries poured from the sky as you drove on the highway. You had been driving for about 2 hours now and we’re getting pretty uncomfortable having sat in the same position. Steve sat next to you, looking out the window at the snow that had already gathered on the trees and ground. Dustin quietly snored from the back seat.

It had been a few months since the Byers had moved a few hours north of Hawkins. Everyone missed them so much, so when you had concocted this plan to surprise them a week before Christmas with the gang in tow. You drove your brother Dustin and your friend Steve in your mom’s station wagon, while Nancy had taken her families car. Nancy took Mike, Lucas, and Max.

The Wheelers trailed behind you as you made your way through a small town. The snow started to come down harder as you passed through.

“Maybe we should stop for the night? The snow is supposed to get worse during the night and once we’re out of this town, there isn’t another one for a while.” Steve said, rubbing his face to gain some warmth. You were pretty sure the heat stopped working an hour into the journey.

“Its fine, Steve! We’ll make it to the Byers’ house just fine, I’m a safe driver—“ Just then, as if fate wanted to humble you, your car hit a patch of ice and sent it spinning. You and Steve yelled as Dustin snored away, spinning in circles until hitting the curb, popping your front passenger tire.

You had grabbed Steve’s hand at some point during your spiral. Letting go, you climbed out of the car to check the damage. The front tire was popped, and the metal part of the wheel was scraped, but other than that, you got real lucky. With a new tire, you knew your mom wouldn’t even notice. But that still left you to the present situation.

The Wheeler mobile pulled over behind your car and everyone got out.

“Oh my god, are you guys alright?!” Nancy asked, rushing over to you. Nancy and you were close, since your brothers were best friends. She came up beside you and knelt down to look at the damage.

“Too bad Johnathan isn’t here, he might be able to fix it...” She trailed off, standing and wrapping her arms around herself. Steve nodded and then began to look around. The snow was starting to make it hard to even see a few yards ahead. Steve saw a light up sign down the block that read “Vacancy” and turned to you guys.

“Why don’t we just stay the night at that motel down the street until morning? We all can’t cram into Nancy’s car. Plus we can’t just leave your moms car here.” Steve rubbed his hands together and tucked them under his arms.

“I don’t think we have enough money for that...” You trailed off, a gust of snowy wind chilling you.

“I took my parents credit card. Not that they would notice.” Steve pulled it out of his pocket. You and Nancy looked at each other and then at him and shrugged, moving towards your car. You woke up Dustin and then proceeded to grab your things.

The walk to the motel was long and cold, even for it being just a block up the road. The vacancy sign flickered, giving the parking lot a dull, red glow. Snow weighed down the roof, icicles forming off of the gutters.

The little lobby housed a middle aged man reading a magazine and smoking a cigarette. He didn’t even look up when you and the gang entered. You cleared your throat and he finally pulled his gaze away from the tabloid.

“What do you want?” He asked, clearly irritated.

“Uh, we’re looking to get some rooms. My mom’s car broke down you see and—“

“We don’t rent rooms to kids.” He grumbled, turning a page.

“I’m 19.” You replied, crossing your arms. He sighed, exasperated, and pulled out a binder that listed the available rooms.

“How many rooms do you want?”

“We need two.” Dustin chimed in. You look at him, raising your eyebrows.

“You got money for a second?” You turn to him. Dustin goes to retort when Steve rests his hand on your lower back to get your attention. It works, as you look at him, trying to hide a blush.

“It’s fine. I got it,” he says as he turns to the old man. “Two rooms.” He hands the card over to the man. The old man looks at him and then the card.

“Folks know you got their card, kid?”

“Of course they do. Do I look like someone who would take my parents card without their knowledge?” Steve says, clearly sarcastic. The old man huffs, but goes ahead and runs the card, handing it back to Steve. Steve lets his breath go and smiles at you.

The old man shuffles over to a back room, returning with 2 keys.

“You got rooms 1 and 2. Don’t lose the keys.” He period the keys on the front desk and goes back to his tabloid. You grab the keys and you walk to the rooms.

The cold chills you once again as you walk to the far end of the motel towards your rooms. Steve walks beside you as Nancy talks with Mike about something. Dustin, Lucas, and Max quietly talk amongst themselves.

You arrive at your rooms. The door and window look as dingy as you expect, you hope the inside of the rooms are a little nicer.

“I think there should be a kid’s room and adult’s room.” Mike says. You shrug and look at Steve and Nancy.

“That seems fair. Any objections?” You ask. Steve and Nancy look slightly uncomfortable but shake their heads. You hand Mike a key and head off into the other room.

The door flies open from a gust of wind and snow blows in. There’s two double beds with a night stand in between. A couch is next to the front door along with a coffee table and a small box TV. A door next to the right bed leads to what you assume is the bathroom.

You shuffle in with Steve and Nancy and set your back pack by the edge of the left bed and flop onto the bed, taking in the feeling of not sitting in an uncomfortable car. You roll onto your back and sigh. Steve walks over to the other bed and sets his bag at the foot of the bed, before walking into the bathroom and shutting the door. Nancy puts her bag on the couch and walks over to you.

“So…” She says in a hushed tone. “Perhaps maybe I should bunk with the party tonight…” She smirks and giggles. You blush immensely, nervously laughing. You grab your bag and dig around to try to find something to change the conversation.

“I have NO idea what you’re talking about, Nancy.” You reply, trying to find a snack from your bag. Nancy rolls her eyes.

“Please! Like it isn’t obvious that you two clearly like each other.” Nancy crosses her arms. You throw your arms up in the air and get off the bed. You nervously pace around the room, pretending to be checking out the room. Nancy gets up too and grabs your shoulders to face her, and says your name.

“I’m so sick of looking at you two dancing around the subject! So, I’m just going to give you guys a nudge, okay?” She says. You nod sheepishly when you hear the bathroom door open. Steve walks out and then stops when he sees that Nancy has backed you into a wall, with her hands on your shoulders, and you looking positively flustered. You both look over, and Nancy immediately lets go of you and takes a step back.

“Did I interrupt something?” Steve asks.

“Nope! Nancy was just being weird.” You shot her a warning glare. Nancy smiles and shakes her head. Steve eyes you both.

“Alright…” Steve says, clearly not believing you.

He walks past you to sit on the couch and turns on the TV. The TV only has 3 channels and only one comes in, barely. It’s a shopping channel, but it has a slight fuzziness to it, probably because the antenna can only get so much signal through the snow storm.

You settle down on the couch next to Steve, but not close enough as Nancy would like. She makes her way over to the couch and sits on the other side of you, forcing you to scoot closer to Steve. Your face gets incredibly hot as your thigh touches Steve’s. You intensely watch the lady parading around a diamond necklace on the TV, so you don’t have to look at Steve or Nancy. Your eyes begin to get heavy and your long drive catches up with you. You close your eyes and doze off.

You wake up to very light snores. You scrunch your eyes a little bit and open them. Your head is in the crook of Steve’s neck, his head leaned against yours. You freeze for a moment, silently screaming at your predicament. You look to your left to see if Nancy is still next to you. She’s over by the nightstand, she’s talking in whispers on the phone. You can’t even hear what she’s saying. Your head slightly moving makes Steve stir, lifting his head a little bit. You feel his body tense, you assume it’s because of you using him as a pillow.

You fake wake up and sit up straight, yawning, pretending to not even notice you two were kinda snuggling.

“Who are you talking to, Nancy?” You ask, rubbing your face. Nancy looks up and holds a finger up to you. You roll your eyes and look at Steve. He shrugs. You look down to see that you’re still pressed up against Steve. You shoot up from your seat, startling Steve.

“Sorry! Just need to use the bathroom.” You give him a weak laugh and head towards the bathroom. You place your hands on the sink and let out a sigh. How were you supposed to get through the night with Steve being so cute, and Nancy trying to play match maker? You shake your head and turn on the water.

Splashing your face, you look in the mirror. You look tired, you look stressed, and if Nancy were in here right now, she would say you look like you need to get laid.

You finish up in the bathroom and walk back out to see Nancy with her bag over her shoulder, you look at her confused.

“Oh uh, the party is feeling a little spooked so I’m going to hang out in their room for a little while until they get to sleep.” She said opening the door, snow blowing into the room. She quickly waved and then exited. Steve looks from the door to you. You nod your head and give him smile before heading over to your chosen bed and grabbing your bag. You search it for your pajamas.

Steve gets up and looks out the window next to the front door.

“We were only asleep for like an hour and it’s already snowed almost a foot.” Steve motions for you to come look. You hold your pajamas to your chest as you walk over and peek out. Steve was right. The snow, still coming down hard, covered every surface you could see. You couldn’t even see the street from your room now. You shivered just thinking about exiting the somewhat warm room.

“Hopefully the party falls asleep soon, or else Nancy is going to have to stay in their room. She’s going to get snowed in.” You say. Steve just nods. You turn, and head back into the bathroom to change.

You slip into your pajamas and grab the door knob when you hear a loud explosion, you open the door and peek out, Steve looking just as confused, when the lights and TV go out. You hear one of the boys yell from their room.

“Fuck, the powers out. I can’t see a goddamn thing!” You fondle the wall until you feel Steve’s bed, and then using that, you sit down onto your bed.

“Hopefully it comes back on soon, no power, no heat.” Steve says from the couch. Your heart sinks. Sure the beds had a decent comforter on them, but you started to worry about your brother and his friends.

“Should we check on the others?” You ask.

“No, they’re old enough to know it’ll be fine. Plus, Nancy is in there.” Steve replies. You nod, even though he can’t see you. You rub your arms and decide to get under the covers, searching for some more warm.

“You’re already going to bed?” You hear Steve ask, he gets up from the couch and slowly makes his way over to his bed, hitting his leg on the frame, causing to cuss.

“No, I’m just trying to get warm is all. I only have that one sweater I was wearing earlier so…” You snuggle in and pull the covers over you. Steve does the same and faces you, not that you could tell.

You fall into a comfortable silence. The room is silent, the snow insulating the sound from the outside world. You stare up at the ceiling and feel yourself getting colder and colder by the second. You shift uncomfortably and pull more of the blanket over you.

“Cold?” Steve asks. You softly reply. “Yeah I’m starting to get cold too. These blankets are like paper thin.” You hear him try to rub his arms and warm his hands. That’s when the thought crosses your mind. Would you and Steve have to share a bed? It was below 20 degrees outside, it would be very stupid to just try to settle for just the blanket for warmth. It was as if Steve read your mind when he cleared his throat.

“Hey, you can say no if you want, but we’re both pretty cold. Want to just set aside the weirdness and share a bed, for like warmth, and stuff?” Steve asks, you can hear the anxiety in his voice. Your stomach does flips and you find yourself having to force your mouth to speak.

“S-sure! Don’t want to turn into a popsicle in the middle of the night.” You sheepishly say. You remove yourself from the bed and step over to Steve’s bed. He scoots over and you slip inside. Just the conversation between you two has increased your body temperature by a million degrees. Steve covers you with the covers and scoots just a tad closer to you, unsure of himself. You scoot closer too. You both lay on your sides, facing each other.

“Much better.” He says, a smile in his voice. You nod and rest your hand against the pillow. Steve shifts and rests his hand against the same pillow, slightly touching yours before pulling away quickly.

“Sorry, didn’t know your hand was there.” He apologizes.

“Its fine, if you want to put your hand there, go for it.” You say. Steve hesitates and rests his hand against yours. Your stomach is filled with so many butterflies, you feel borderline sick. You stay like that for a while when you feel Steve’s hand scoot closer to yours. You feel a small burst of confidence and take the situation into your hands.

“I’m still a little cold, would it be ok if we like snuggled a little bit more or spooned or something? If not that’s ok! I can always get the other blanket from the other bed…” You asked softly. Steve didn’t reply but he did scoot closer, pressing you into his chest. You blushed profusely as he wrapped his arm around you. You snuggled into his chest and he rested his chin on your head. He smelled like clean laundry and his hairspray.

You smiled to yourself, not believing that this was happening. Steve cleared his throat so you looked up at him, thinking he was going to say something. He had moved his head at the same time as you, causing your lips to ghost over each other. You both froze in place, trying to figure how to proceed. This time it was Steve’s turn to have a burst of confidence.

Steve softly pressed his lips to yours, melting into you. You kiss him back, placing a hand on his cheek. He pulls away for a moment, hoping you pull him back, which you do. This time the kiss is more desperate. He holds your waist, and draws you even closer to him. You open your mouth just slightly and Steve nibbles on your lower lip, eliciting a moan from you. This awakens something in Steve and he kisses your jaw, and works his way down to your neck.

You entangle each other’s legs and you card your hands through his hair. Steve leaves love marks all around your neck and down to your collar bone. His hand snakes its way under your shirt and he strokes your ribs with his hand, getting dangerously close to your chest. You moan again at the thought of him grabbing and playing with your boobs, and Steve seems to read your mind again.

He lightly glosses over your boob at first, causing you to press your chest into his hand. He smirks and goes ahead and runs his thumb over your nipple. You grip his hip this time, clutching at his shirt. Steve brings his lips back up to yours, which you greedily receive.

You can feel his hard on pressing against your thigh. You take your knee and rub against him softly, but firm, hoping to give him some kind of relief. Steve grunts and kisses you deeper, his tongue exploring your mouth now. His hand retracts from your shirt and moves down to your pajama pants tracing the hem. You move your hips forward to let him know you’re game, and he goes for it.

He slowly moves his hand into your panties, drawing it out, making you frustrated from lack of friction. His hand finally makes its way to your slit and he dips one finger in, getting some of your slick, and then begins to massage your clit. You cry out, not remembering the last time you were touched like this. Steve kisses your neck and he switches from massaging your clit and finger fucking you.

You moan and groan into Steve’s shoulder, gripping his upper arm to keep yourself grounded.

“You sound so beautiful right now…” Steve whispers. You kiss his shoulder, mumbling something against him. You feel yourself teetering on the edge, your breathing picking up. Steve focuses on your clit and you come undone, you gasp and moan into his shoulder.

He finger fucks you until you come down from your high, you lay back in a daze, completely forgetting about the power being out and the snow outside. Steve pulls his hand out of your pants and brings your face into a kiss and pulls away.

“Listen if you don’t want to do anymore, that’s completely—“ You bring him back into a kiss and bring your hand down to the front of his pants, his hips pressing into your hand. He gasps when you dip your hand into his pants and grips his dick. You give it a few pumps when you try to pull down his pants to give you more room to work with. Steve immediately knows what you want and scrambles to pull down his pants past his thighs. His dick springs out and you grab it again, and begin to let him fuck up into your hand. He groans into your mouth as he thrusts his hips, bed creaking underneath your movements.

“Did…did you want to do more or should I—“ Steve asked out of breath, before you interrupted him.

“Yes, please!” You pleaded. Steve whispered “Oh God” under his breath and went to remove the remainder of his pants as you did the same. You brought his lips back to yours as he climbed on top of you. You made out for a little bit before he gave himself a few more strokes and rubbed this tip up and down your slit, eliciting the sluttiest moan from your mouth.

He slowly pushed in, both of you at a loss of words. He rested his head into the crook of your neck and rested his hips flush against yours. You wrapped your legs around his waist and urged him to start moving. Steve brought his head up and kissed you, pulling out and then slamming back in. You threw your head back all the way in a silent scream of pleasure.

Steve rested an elbow on one side to keep himself up, while his other hand stroked your face and ran his fingers through your hair. The bed frame creaked more, bed frame hitting the wall over and over again. You, for a moment, thought about if Nancy and the others could hear you, but then Steve began to hit you in all the right places and your cares went right out the window.

“I’ve wanted to do this for so long…” Steve whispered into your ear, hand gripping your hip now.

“Me too...” You replied. Steve began to draw out his thrusts and then slamming into you. You could feel yourself getting to the edge again. You tilted your hips up more so Steve could hit you deeper. Steve nibbled on your shoulder and used his free hand to help lift your hips higher.

Your breathing started to get more labored and Steve brought his mouth to yours again, mostly to keep you quiet as to not wake up the room next to you. You came as he kissed you, still as loud as ever. Your walls clenching around his dick sent Steve over the edge as well. His head fell into the crook of your neck, grunting into you. You felt his coat your walls with his cum.

He rode out his high for a few more thrusts when he finally came to a stop. You both breathed heavily for a moment before he slowly pulled out and laid beside you, pulling you close. You snuggled into his chest and squeezed him. He squeezed back. You both drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, you woke up, snuggled to Steve’s side as he snored on his back. You lifted your head and kissed his nose, causing him to stir. He opened his eyes and smiled, pulling you into a tight hug.

“What time is it?” he asked. You sat up and looked at the clock. The power was still out.

“I’m not sure. Power is still out.” You sat up and stretched. You figured you should get dressed before Nancy came to check on you guys. You gave Steve another kiss and got up to go to the bathroom. You knew the water would be cold so you had to skip the shower.

After you had freshened up, you walked back out to the room to see Nancy had made her way over to your room. She was talking to Steve when she looked at you.

“Oh, hey, Nancy. Sorry you had to sleep in the kid’s room. We left the door open for you, you know?” You said as you were putting your pajamas away in your bag. Nancy waved you off.

“Oh, it was no biggy. Max and I shared a bed so it was fine. I can’t believe the power went out and is still out.” She said. Steve packed his things as you two talked.

“So, I suppose we should suit up and see if we can find a mechanic around?” You asked. Nancy nodded.

“Oh, yes, we should. I completely forgot about your car.” Nancy frowned.

“I’ll go let the party know we’re leaving to find one.” Nancy walked to the door and turned back to you two, a smirk on her face. You both looked at her confused.

“Also, next time, try to be quieter. I had to explain to Dustin that Steve wasn’t hurting you and I don’t think he’s going to look at either of you the same ever again.” Nancy laughed at both of your mortified faces and shut the door.

#my fics #stranger things #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington

90 notes · View notes

kentparsonbirthdaybash · 5 years

Text

Cards Close to the Chest

Prompt: Supernatural

Characters: Kent, Aces Ensemble

All of the guys chirped Parse for buying a pack of tarot cards. He might have been their star-talent rookie, but that didn’t mean he was above some healthy razzing. Especially since he bought those cards, at all fucking places, a Barnes & Noble. The guy lived in Vegas but he bought his occult knicknacks at a store that was designed for bougie soccer moms. Seriously, who did that?

“Since when does Barnes & Noble even have tarot decks?” Carl wanted to know, raising his voice to be heard over all the hooting and hollering.

Parse just shrugged, looking cool and collected as ever. “I think it was part of some special promo. They were in the section with all the books for twelve-year-olds about vampires.”

“Oh, God, I think I saw that,” Max recalled, his face scrunched up in memory. “Edmonton, right? God, what a hellhole. Couldn’t even find a decent coffee place, so we had to go to ’Noble’s in-store cafe. They fucked up my latte, too.”

Parse swept his gaze over the assembled team. “Anybody want me to do a card reading for them?” he offered, brandishing the deck at them. “I think I’ve about got the hang of it.”

His generosity was met with a chorus with a chorus of scoffs and eyerolls until Burnsy, one of the vets, volunteered.

“Always wanted to have my fortune told by somebody,” he said easily, shooing Carl out of his own stall and sitting down beside Parse. “Go ahead, Parser. Solve the mysteries of the universe. Or at least tell me how I’m going to do in our next game.”

Parse had Burnsy select three cards from the deck (“Six is the usual for reading an entire future, so we have to scale that down to focus on just the game.”) and then did his best to decipher them. The rest of the locker room either feigned disinterest or listened with skeptical expressions, curious in spite of themselves.

“So, it looks like you got the Page of Cups, which means a happy surprise is coming your way. Then there’s the Three of Swords, which means there’s gonna be some suffering. And then we have the Nine of Wands, which means … resilience and determination. Huh.” Parse squinted at the foldout page of instructions. “So, I guess you’re going to suffer, get a nice surprise, and then recover? Can’t be sure of that order, though.”

“What’s there not to be sure about?” Carl asked scornfully. “He’s going to get hurt and then get better. That’s generally how that works.”

“Well, at least we know I’m not dying,” Burnsy said cheerfully. “Thanks for reading my fortune, bro. I guess we’ll see if it comes true or not.”

While Parse still got grief from some of the guys about giving up hockey and becoming Vegas’s next great stage magician with those cards of his, everyone forgot about the prediction for Burnsy. That was, until their next game, when an attempted slapshot at the Flyers’ goal in the last four seconds of play rebounded off of Burnsy’s thigh, entering the net and giving the Aces their victory.

“Wait a minute, that’s exactly what you said would happen,” Jello recalled when they were out for drinks later that night. “Parse, you said that Burnsy would suffer, but there would be a happy surprise, and then he’d get over it. Well, the dude took a slapshot to the leg, got us a goal, and now he’s left with a hefty bruise where the puck hit him. But he’s still gonna be okay.”

“Hey, that’s right,” Parse said, but he didn’t seem especially amazed. “Guess that did happen, huh?” There was a teasing look in his eyes, which were blue that day.

“Just a coincidence,” Carl insisted. “If he broke out those cards again and tried to make sense of them, none of it would come true.”

“Wanna bet?” Jello challenged, raising his chin stubbornly.

So, with fifty dollars riding on the outcome, the next day Parse did a full card reading for a neutral party: Max.

“Something you’ve wanted to happen for a while is gonna happen soon,” he informed Max as he pored over the cards. “But there’s strings attached, and it’s going to be difficult at times but rewarding at the end of the day. And also—” he tapped the Empress card, “—this one means motherhood, so possibly a kid will be involved?”

“God, I hope not,” Max said fervently. “Neither Lauren or I want kids.”

But just a few days later, when they were on the road, Max got a call from his wife, telling him that their elderly neighbor had fallen and broken her hip. The lady would be in rehab for the next six weeks and wouldn’t be able to take care of her dog even afterward. What would he think about them adopting a four-year-old Golden Retriever?

“I mean, we’ve always wanted a dog,” Max explained to the other guys. “We’ve talked about getting one but never really got around to it, so we’re totally going to do this. I really like that dog, too, she’s a real sweetheart.”

Jello was emphatic that the circumstances proved him right. “Lauren getting a dog is basically her becoming a mom!” he insisted. “She’s still responsible for another living creature. And some people refer to their pets as their kids!”

“One, no it’s not,” Carl said flatly. “Two, those people are freaks. Three, this proves nothing.”

But a number of the rest of the team was convinced that it did, and suddenly Parser was regularly performing card readings for several of his teammates. Skeezy wanted to know if he should move into a development with an HOA (Parse predicted an inevitable sacrifice of freedom for contentment), Red was questioning how meeting his girlfriend’s parents would go (Disastrously, but through no fault of Red’s, and to his ultimate benefit), and Chazzer checked to see if his holiday plans would go smoothly (They wouldn’t and would just leave him disappointed).

One by one, each of Parse’s predictions came through. Skeezy found out that he couldn’t build the dream deck he’d always wanted if he moved into the HOA neighborhood, so he decided to look for a house elsewhere. Red went to meet his girlfriend’s parents, but her father announced during dinner out that he was divorcing her mother, rendering the rest of the visit extremely uncomfortable. His girlfriend, however was enormously impressed by him sticking it out with her despite the awkwardness. And Chazzer ended up stranded at the airport for nearly forty hours due to a blizzard taking place during his layover, missing his visit home entirely.

“So, like, everything he says is going to happen ends up happening,” Max concluded during a team breakfast. “He has a gift.”

Carl snorted. “No, he doesn’t. He’s making guesses and some of his guesses work out. You could read your horoscope in Seventeen magazine and get better results.”

“Yeah, how fair would it be if God or Buddha or whoever made Parser made him psychic and a total beast when it comes to hockey?” Jazzy put in.

“Maybe he’s so good at hockey because he’s psychic,” Jello suggested. “Everyone has always said that the reason he can score like he does is because he can anticipate where the puck is going to be. Maybe he’s not anticipating. Maybe he already knows before it actually happens.”

They all paused to think about that, even those of the team who were more skeptical about Parser.

For his part, though, Parser didn’t seem bothered one way or the other about if his predictions turned into reality. Whenever someone came up to him and began talking excitedly about how the cards had been right, he responded with a modest shrug and a small smile, casually engaging with his teammate but not seeming very moved by what they had to say.

“Do you even believe any of this mumbo-jumbo?” Carl demanded one day as he and Parser tossed a medicine ball back and forth between themselves during sit-ups.

“Not especially,” Parse replied easily, amusement glinting in his green eyes. “Definitely not as much as I’ve convinced some of the guys on the team to.”

Carl scowled. “Then why the Harry Potter act? Is it just a joke to you? A way you can secretly chirp the other guys?” Maybe Parser was just out to make fun of everybody. Maybe he was just trying to be a dick.

Parse tossed the medicine ball at him with unnecessary force. “No,” he replied flatly. “I don’t care if they believe it or not. I just think it’s good for them to believe in something, like destiny or fate or some bullshit like that if they’re already stressed out about what’s going to happen next. Helps them deal with it, weirdly enough. Guess they figure there’s nothing they can do if it’s already in the cards.”

“Pathetic,” Carl snorted.

“No, it’s not.” Those weird mood ring eyes of Parser’s went stormcloud gray. “Not if it helps the guys deal with what’s bothering them. Some people struggle with not knowing what’s going to happen in the future. This is a solution for that.”

“Huh.” Eyeing Parse and seeing the frown on his face, Carl decided that continuing this line of conversation would only increase the danger of Parser lobbing the medicine ball at his head. So he wisely changed the subject. “You ever use those cards to find out something for yourself? Like, about what’s going to happen to you down the road, I mean.”

Actually, he was really curious about the answer, about if Parse had ever believed in the cards to tell him the future, or if he’d originally bought them with the idea of tricking the guys and helping them cope. If it was the second one, then that was super weird.

Parse’s eyes went even darker, going nearly black. “No. Not ever.”

But Carl somehow got the feeling that he was lying. He noticed that when Parse spoke, his thumb was stroking that Memorial Cup ring he’d won back in Juniors, the kind that were given to only the captain and the alternate captains of the winning team. When they’d seen that Parse still wore it after being drafted into the actual League, Carl and some of the other Aces had assumed it meant he was an arrogant prick.

Now, though, Carl wasn’t quite sure what it meant. He also wasn’t sure why Parse lied about those cards—it wasn’t like the chirping had seemed to bother him before.

Still, the next time he saw Parser surrounded by teammates, each of them with a specific question they wanted him to answer by reading the cards, Carl kept his mouth shut. If their hotshot rookie wanted to do something to help out the team in his own freak way, Carl wasn’t going to stop him.

#submissions #prompt week #submission #parse prompt week #kent parson #omgcheckplease #omgcp

46 notes · View notes

riseandshinelittleblossom · 5 years

Text

Hoping for Home Ch 6 - “If I Didn’t Have You”

Sorry for the wait, guys! Catch up here!

Disclaimer: Just borrowing the characters except my originals.

Song for this chapter: “If I Didn’t Have You” By Thompson Square

Tags: @ao719 @cocomaxley @leelee10898@fullbeaumonty @choiceswreckedme @ritachacha @itsstillnotwhatyouthink@blackcoffee85 @indiacater @drakesensworld @carabeth @daniv2278@cosigottahavefaith @gibbles82 @innerpostmentality@perfectprofessorherokid @darley1101 @jovialyouthmusic @liamxs-world@thequeenofcronuts @blznbaby @stopforamoment @zilch3382@wannabemc2 @jlouise88 @lodberg @jasieschoices

The lights of the private waiting room of Valtoria Medical were bright and mind-numbing. Not that Libby's mind was feeling much of anything other than fear and regret.

She'd clung to Drake like a parasite since they'd gotten word. In the swirling vortex of everything that had happened to her the last couple of months, culminating in the accident, he seemed to be the only constant and so she allowed the warmth of his arms to be her anchor.

The rest of the room was packed with courtly figures,people that she had considered friends in another life. Maybe she still did, even if the pain she'd caused them all had caused them to think of her differently.

They'd been in the emergency room for four hours now, all of the children had been lucky in a manner of speaking. Bartie and McKenzie were virtually unscathed by the accident, a few bumps and bruises between them. Abel had a cracked rib. Will's right forearm had required twelve stitches where it had been pinned in the accident.

Emma was, by far, the worst for wear. Preliminary scans had shown no signs of permanent brain damage nor any cerebral swelling or bleeding. However, she still had not woken up.

The doctors told the duchess that her daughter seemed to be responsive to outside stimuli, which was an excellent sign, but they wouldn't know more until she awakened.

“Can I have your jacket, Drake?” Libby asked raising her head off of his shoulder.

“Sure, Scott.” He slouched the blazer from his shoulders and handed it to her. She stood to cross the room, intending to use the jacket to cover her son's sleeping form,but she paused when she watched Liam wriggle from his own coat and drape it across Will instead. Her heart stopped for a moment, taking in the way Liam cared for the young boy that he wasn't even sure was his son.

Libby spun on her heels, handing the jacket back to Drake. “Nevermind.” She smiled softly as he draped the garment over his knee. “I'm gonna step outside for some air.”

Drake stood from his seat, twisting his torso in a stretch before he draped his jacket over Libby's bare shoulders.

“Keep it, then. It's cold out there, Scott.”

She hugged the blazer closer offering her friend a warm smile. “You'll call me if she wakes up?”

“Of course we will, Libby” Olivia told her as she placed her polished nails on her old friend's shoulders. “Take all the time you need. We'll come get you if anything changes.”

Libby faced the Queen, her eyes darting back and forth over the woman's face. She noted the lines at the edges of Olivia's eyes that she hadn't sported in their youth. They were laugh lines, Libby assumed, and she couldn't help but wonder what must've changed for Olivia over the years for her to have gained them.

“I can't tell you what this means to me. After everything I've done…”

“You are our friend, Elizabeth. Emma is your daughter no matter which way everything else plays out so, come hell or high water, we're here for you. We can sort the rest out later.” Olivia said.

Libby wandered outside, finding a small courtyard boasting a few benches and a gazebo. Seeking the refuge the small structure provided she made her way over to it. As she drew closer to it, she noticed a thin cloud of smoke hanging in the air just above it, the smell of nicotine wafting by.

Stepping inside she found Maxwell leaned against one of the railings. His thoughts seemed to be far off in the distance as he absentmindedly flipped the ashes off the end of his cigarette.

“Those things will kill you one day, you know. Do you have another?”

The brunette man peered over his shoulder at her, narrowing his eyes slightly. Against his better judgement, Maxwell pulled a silver case from his inner jacket pocket, popping it open to offer Libby what was inside.

“Suppose you need a light too?” He grumbled placing his own bit of vice between his lips as he reached for his lighter.

Libby took a long drag, exhaling the smoke out into the night sky.

“Since when do you smoke?” She asked him desperate to break the silence.

“Eh, my second wife was a social smoker. I picked it up from her. Usually I only smoke socially as well, but tonight…” Maxwell's voice trailed off as he planted his palms on the railing in front of him, leaning into it.

“I know what you mean. I quit just before I came to Cordonia for the first time.”

A silence hung between them, but somehow it was more peaceful than Libby imagined it would be. She watched as his shoulders subtly rose and fell with each breath, his dress shirt taut against the well defined muscles on either side of his neck. She parted her lips to speak, the uncharacteristic stillness of the man who'd once stolen her heart beginning to make her uneasy, but nothing came out.

He must have been feeling the same way because he exhaled loudly before whirling around to face her. Hopping up to sit on the railing he said, “I know this isn't exactly the best time to say this, but Libby, I've missed you. Every single day.

I'm sorry for the way I behaved earlier, but the truth is...it doesn't matter. I'm just...I'm really happy to see you again.”

She smiled softly at his confession, taking a step closer to him.

“I'm really happy to see you again, too, Max.”

She wanted to apologize profusely. To tell him all about the days - the years - she'd spent missing him too. However after the night's events, she found herself too emotionally drained to even begin.

She dropped her cigarette, smashing it out with the toe of her high-heel.

“Maxwell, I-.” Libby began, but was interrupted by the sound of stilettos clicking quickly over concrete.

“Libby! Emma's awake. They said you can see her now.” Olivia huffed.

Drake stopped at the coffee vending machine. Eyeballing the selections, he scoffed when he saw the chai latte button. The odd drink that started this whole mess.

Liam came up behind him, leaning against the wall. “How is she holding up, Drake?”

He sighed, running a hand over his chocolate locks. “Ya know. I mean, she's okay but she's upset. It was easy for me and Sav and Hana. Our kids were bruised, but they're fine. Emma is…”

Drake and Liam both averted their gazes the what if too much for either to bare while looking at the other.

“I'll stay with her, Li. I know that it's not exactly something you can do at this juncture.”

Liam smirked and shot his best friend a bit of side eye. “Oh I have no doubt that you will stay by Libby's side. I just wonder if you aren't doing it more for yourself at this point.”

Drake furrowed his brow. “What are you talking about?”

Liam continued to smile smugly as he crossed his arms over his chest.

“Liam it isn't like that. Libby is my friend. And ya know, not for nothing but I did pry her from her life and all but force her back here. So excuse me if I feel a little bit responsible for her.”

The king chuckled. “As I'm sure Maxwell felt responsible for her all those years ago, old friend.”

Drake shook his head with an eye roll. “Whatever you say, Your Highness.”

In a flash Libby was at Emma's bedside, her petite fingers grazing through the young girl's blonde hair.

“Mama, I'm so so sorry.” Emma croaked.

“Shhhhhhh-sh-sh. None of that. I'm just so happy you're all okay.”

“Your Grace, I have ordered an MRI. Assuming things look normal on that end I would say you can take the Lady home tomorrow. I would like to keep her here until then for observation. Typically with a concussion-” Doctor Monroe was interrupted by the sound of the door clicking open, revealing Liam and Maxwell on the other side.

Monroe offered a deep bow as the men made their way into the room.

“I apologize for the intrusion. I hope it's okay that we've come.” Liam said, nodding to the doctor.

Libby smiled, turning her eyes back to the caretaker.

“Typically with a concussion we don't see such a significant loss of consciousness, so I just want to be sure there isn't more going on than meets the eye. For now, she just needs rest. I'll give you all a few moments.”

Doctor Monroe stepped out of the room and the door clicked behind him.

“How are you feeling?” Maxwell asked, taking a stance at the foot of her bed.

“Honestly I'm fine. A little bit sleepy, but... Mom?” Emma answered and Libby quirked an eyebrow.

“I don't really know how all of this courtly stuff works, but that nurse that saw me before you came in...she said I'm lucky to be alive. That means I could've died tonight and I never would have found out which one of you is my father. I'm not okay with that. Can we just do a paternity test? Please? We're at the hospital anyway, and I know that maybe this isn't the best time but-.”

“I agree with her, Libby. Ultimately the decision lies with you, but after tonight's events... I'm very keen to find out myself. Maxwell?” Liam butted in.

The dark haired man was staring into the distance and he shook his head at the mention of his name.

“I wasn't going to bring it up given the circumstances, but yeah. The sooner the better.”

Libby chewed her bottom lip. Scanning her daughter's face she found nothing but certainty, a rare trait for a person of her age. Slowly the nodded her head.

“I don't see why we can't bring it up with Dr. Monroe in the morning, before you're discharged.”

Will was curled up next to his sister when the doctor entered the room.

“So what exactly are you going to do? Draw some blood?” He asked as the man washed his hands, applying a fresh set of sterile gloves. He picked up two kits from the counter and faced the twins.

“I'm going to swab your cheek. One tiny in and out, that's all.” Monroe explained.

“ And that's it? Then we'll know who our dad is?” Will shifted his weight suddenly very anxious.

“Well we will have to swab the men on question. All of the samples will be sent to our lab for analysis. The results usually take 4-6 weeks. Then you will know who your dad is.”

Emma squeezed her brother's hand, calming him by measures.

Libby smiled from her chair in the corner. She had always been amazed by their ability to always know just what the other needed.

“It's okay to be nervous.” She told her children.

“Well if you had done this a long time ago we wouldn't need to be.” Will scoffed.

“Will, don't.” Emma scolded and he rolled his eyes.

After marking and packaging each sample, Dr. Monroe headed towards the door.

“I'll have these sent priority, Your Grace. As I said, we should know something in 4-6 weeks. In the meantime, you're free to take young Emma home. There are some papers waiting for your signature at the nurse's station.”

“Thank you, Monroe.” Libby started turning towards her children. “I'll be back in a few. Will, help your sister get ready, please.”

She strode down the corridor headed for the nurse's station when she saw Liam round the corner.

“Ah, Libby. I was hoping to speak with you. The doctor informed me that it could take some weeks to get out results.”

“That's right, Your Majesty.”

“Please,that's not necessary. We're discussing whether your children are my children, I think we're beyond pleasantries.”

The redhead grinned at the ridiculousness of the whole situation as the king continued.

“In any event, Olivia and I would like to invite you and the twins to stay at the palace while we await the results. It would give me some time to get to know your children better.”

Libby tilted her head.

“If I find that they are mine and I've squandered this time that I could've shared with them because I wasn't sure I will never forgive myself, Lib. At the end of the day I don't feel I will have lost anything at all by getting to know them if it turns out that they are Maxwell's children, and I would love the opportunity no matter the results. What do you say?”

“I…” she paused a moment. “How many security vehicles does the King's Guard house at the palace?”

Now was Liam's turn to be confused as he cocked his head to the side.

“Twelve. But why does that matter?”

“Well although I'm grateful that they escaped with their lives the fact remains that they are teenagers that stole a car and wrecked it. I will still have to punish them. Washing and waxing twelve card seems severe enough.”

Liam laughed, his blue eyes twinkling beneath the fluorescent lights of the hallway. “Wait. You're- you're not joking.”

Libby raised a brow. “I most certainly am not. We'll be there tomorrow morning. Thank you for the invitation, Liam.”

He turned to leave, bouncing on the balls of his feet when he remembered. “Oh. I should tell you that I've invited Maxwell to stay as well. He seemed keen to seize the opportunity as well, though he has neither accepted nor denied my invitation. Just thought I should give you a heads up.”

Libby waved her hand flippantly. “That won't be a problem. I don't know why you think otherwise.”

Liam let out a laugh from deep within him. “Of course, Your Grace. How silly of me to think that it would be.”

#hoping for home au #hoping for home #trr au #choices the royal romance #the royal romance au #the royal romance fanfic #trr liam #trr maxwell beaumont #trr olivia nevrakis #trr drake walker #choices liam x mc #choices maxwell x mc

55 notes · View notes

totaltozier · 6 years

Text

Just Another Day: Chapter 7

I'm really sorry that this update took a whole month but university has been kicking my butt!!! Hopefully it was worth the wait!

words: 2.1K

summary: Stranger Things/IT crossover in which Richie and Mike are twins, Mileven is real, and even though Hawkins Lab was shut down what lies beneath the Upside Down is still up to no good!

READ ON AO3 // chapter 6

The group stood in their spots, their feet glued to the ground in fear. None of them knew who or what the lady in front of them was but they could all tell that she wasn’t safe and that they needed to get out of there. Everyone looked around at each other, waiting for someone to say something, make a decision or a plan of how to get them all out safely.

“No thank you,” Mike finally broke the silence. “We actually all had dinner already.”

“Yeah, we’ll just be going now!” Dustin chimed in bravely. Thinking this was their chance to slip away, the group turned around to head back outside through the door.

The lady tilted her head. “What’s your hurry?” She asked. Lucas reached for the door handle to push it open, but he heard a click noise signalling that the door had been locked. They all turned back around to see the lady standing in front of them now, just about seven feet away. “Please, have a seat.” She gestured towards the long table that ran down the center of the diner. The table wasn’t there before and none of them could wrap their head around how it had mysteriously appeared.

“Just d-do what she says,” Bill whispered to the group and they all slowly shuffled their way towards the table. They each sat down carefully, sliding into their seats slowly.

Richie slipped into his chair, his hand still firmly in Eddie’s. He could feel Eddie’s smaller hand slowly grip his tighter and Richie gave him a small squeeze. Eddie turned his head to look at Richie and he gave him a reassuring head nod.

“Now,” the lady began to speak. “Mike already mentioned that you have all eaten dinner so how about some desert?” She asked. “I have some pies, a few cakes, there’s even ice cream and sorbets in the freezer too!” She walked away from the table and back behind the counter. She reached for an apron that was laying over the counter and she slipped it on. “I know you all seem to be fans of milkshakes, I can whip some of those up for you all too.” She offered as she tied the apron’s strings in front of her waist.

“I’ll have a slice pie.” Beverly said. Max, who was sitting next to her, whipped her head around to glare at the other red-headed girl. “With some vanilla ice cream too, please.”

The lady clapped her hands together in delight. “Coming right up!” She turned to move around behind the counter, putting together Beverly’s request.

“Bev, what the fuck are you doing?” Dustin asked leaning in over the table. He had lowered his voice, so the lady couldn’t hear.

“If this is your ‘I want to run towards something and not away’ crap then you can just stop it right now!” Stan ordered.

Beverly looked back over at the girl to make sure she wasn’t watching them. “Look, we’re already in this situation and by the feeling this creepy place gives me, I don’t think we’re getting out of it anytime soon, “she explained. “I might as well eat some free pie while I’m still alive.”

“But what if it’s poisonous?” Will asked with concern.

Beverly shrugged. “Then I’m going out eating my favourite food!”

Mike crossed his arms over his chest and sighed. He leaned back into his chair, slouching slightly. He eyed the lady as she walked towards the table with Beverly’s pie in her hand. She carefully placed the plate in front of her and gave her a smile and a bon appetite. She moved to the other end of the table where Bill and Mikey were sitting and started talking to them, asking what they would like to eat. Mike quietly scooted his chair closer to Eleven’s who was sat next to him.

“Is there anything you can do?” He whispered to her.

She shook her head. “I don’t know,” she whispered back. “I don’t know what she is and if I tried to hurt her, I’m not sure how much it would take out of me.”

Mike nodded his head. He knew that Eleven was capable of a lot of things, especially since her time spent in the cabin, but she was right. No matter how strong she was, they didn’t know what they were dealing with and they couldn’t afford to mess around and risk someone getting hurt. They both looked back at the lady who had now brought desert to a few of the others, but Richie, Eddie, and Will had all refused to eat anything.

Richie had his arms crossed over his chest, sitting in the same position as his twin now. He chewed on his lip as he analyzed the situation he was currently in. Across from him a few of his friends were nibbling on the desert that the mystery lady had brought them. She had yet to tell them her name or why she insisted that they all eat her food. Richie couldn’t understand why any of them were even eating the food either. Had their mothers not taught them to refuse food from strangers, especially ones who were not from this dimension?

The lady was now standing on the side of the table across from where Richie was sat and she placed her hands on her hips. “Are you sure you don’t want anything to eat, Richie?” She asked with her head tilted slightly.

“How come you know my name but I don’t know yours?” Richie asked her bravely. He wasn’t sure where his courage was coming from, maybe it bubbled up from his annoyance of being in the weird situation to begin with.

A look of shock came over her face. “Oh my, what a horrible hostess I am!” She gasped. She shuffled to the end of the table as everyone’s eyes fell upon her. She stood tall with her hands clasped together in front of her waist, her elbows sticking out from the side. “My name is Nagmia,” she explained. “Or you can call me Mia for short.”

“That’s an odd name.” Richie challenged, staring her in the eye.

Her mouth fell into a tight line. “Well, that’s what I am, Richie. Nagmia.” She said. Her gaze challenged Richie back as if her eyes were daggers and she was trying to shoot them through his glasses. Richie refused to look away first. He blinked, but as he did he could have sworn he saw her eyes flicker bright green, the same way he had seen in Eddie days earlier. A shiver fell down his spine.

A silence fell over the room as everyone who was eating went back to their food. The sound of silverware clinking against the china made Richie cringe. He hated everything about the situation. He didn’t understand where they were. He didn’t like the creepy vibe this Nagmia lady was giving him. He definitely hated that his friends were easily accepting the mood she was giving them too.

“This cake is delicious, Mia,” Max complimented as she placed her fork down on the now empty plate.

Nagmia smiled. “Thank you, Maxine.” She accepted. “I am so glad you enjoyed it. Would you like anything else?”

“A milkshake, actually!” Max replied and Nagmia smiled with a nod.

“I’ll have one too,” Beverly chimed in. Bill had lowered his fork too as he requested a milkshake for himself. Soon half of the table had ordered milkshakes and Nagmia returned behind the counter with a smug smile.

“What the hell are you all doing?” Mike asked the group in a hushed tone as the milkshake machine whirred up across the diner.

“Relax Mike,” Dustin sighed. “The food is actually good.”

“It’s probably full of poison for some shit!” Mike stated. “You’re all going to drop dead or start bleeding to death soon because of some desert and we’re going to have to get out of this mess!” He gestured to the others who hadn’t eaten a single bite of the mystery food.

“Maybe not all things are dangerous, Mike,” Lucas said, earning a glare from him.

“Yeah Mike, not all things are dangerous,” Beverly said with a smile. Her eyes were wide, staring at Mike and she tilted her head slightly to the side before her grin faded away and she looked back at her plate.

Nagmia returned with a tray full of drinks, each topped with whipped cream and a bright red maraschino cherry. She placed them down in front of them one by one. Mike watched as she placed one before him, despite not having ordered one.

“I didn’t ask for one.” Mike reminded her as she moved to place one down before Richie beside him. He pushed the drink away from him on the table.

“Just have a sip before denying it entirely.” She requested. Her voice was smooth and for some reason, Mike wanted to listen to her.

Mike looked at the drink in front of him. It did look good, it was probably silky and sweet just how he liked them. He pulled the drink back towards him but didn’t sip it, just looked at it intently. He felt a tap of his thigh from beside him. He looked to Richie, assuming that was where it came from and met his eyes.

Pretend. Richie mouthed to him. Mike furrowed his eyebrows in confusion as he watched his brother place his lips on the straw but not suck anything through it. He pulled away and pretended to swallow before licking his lips.

Mike turned back to his drink and did the same, even humming in delight the same way he would if he were drinking a milkshake at their favourite restaurant. He could feel Eleven’s eyes watching him and he did the motion again before turning to her and mouthing the same request Richie had given him. She nodded her head and joined in on the charade too.

Nagmia observed the kids as they all drank their milkshakes, each of them commenting on how sweet and delicious they were. Mike had managed to stir his around making it look like he had drunk some of the drink.

“These were delicious, but I think we should all be on our way now,” Mike said as he pushed up from his chair.

Richie followed suit beside him. “Yeah, thanks for the treat Mia.” The rest of the group stood up and gave their thanks as they all headed for the door. Just as Mike was pushing open the door, Nagmia called out from behind them.

“See you all soon!” Her voice was chipper and knowing.

And with that Mike led them all out. He crossed the street, Eleven and Richie closely behind him and into the bushes that they had climbed through earlier. Once everyone was on the other side he spoke up.

“What the fuck were all of you thinking back there?” He practically yelled at his friends. “Are you all idiots now?”

“Calm down Mike,” Stan insisted. “Nothing bad happened.”

“But it easily could have!” Richie added in. “She could have easily poisoned you all! You could all be dead right now!”

“You were druh-drinking the milkshakes too, though.” Bill stated.

They all shook their heads. “We were pretending to drink the milkshakes, so she wouldn’t suspect anything of us.” Eddie explained. “We’re not dumb enough to get ourselves killed.” Everyone who had drunk them stood there quietly.

“Yeah, I don’t want to deal with all of this sort of thing again,” Will added shyly. “I thought our lives were going to go back to normal.” He paused. “I want my life to be normal.”

“I want our lives to be normal too.” Eleven agreed. “Which is why I didn’t do anything that Mia told me to.” Mike nodded his head in agreement.

“Come on,” Richie said. He started walking ahead of everyone else. “I want to go home.”

Mike gave the group a glare before grabbing El’s hand and following his brother. Eddie kicked a stray rock on the path and crossed his arms as he jogged to join Richie at the front. The rest of the group shuffled behind them through the woods with their heads hanging low.

taglist: @alwaysmebeforeyou @rrichiettozier @deebaddee@kaitlinlexiepxrrini @lulibeanss@parkeriddikulus@bevvverlymarsh @trashmouthdiangelo@prongs-mileven @wheeeeeeeeeeeze @aburbules @88-shooting-stars @sarah-cat-and-the-doctor @usagiserenityy@sweetlysilent @myupsidedownsoul @mysterious-fish@itsloveit@sisterbecca @fallingforfinnwolfhard @ahyesfandoms @imnot-reddieforthis @fnnwlfhard@hollywantsdeath @bxtchy-rxchie @leavewillbyersalone @solemnyswearimuptonogood @wlwrichie

#just another day #chapter 7 #mileven #crossover

20 notes · View notes

eloiseduval · 6 years

Text

challenge 8

a/n: THE LAST CHALLENGE ahhh can’t believe this is the end, it’s been so incredibly fun. at the start of this selection, I really didn’t think it would end up like this, it’s been a great ride y’all. a thousand thanks to @nathaniel-schreave for this rp and the many others we’ve done (ILY CLAIRE) and to @camille-marshall (small lieutenant always, NO MORE MARSHALL SUFFERING PLEASE my heart can take no more). more thanks to both grace and claire for creating the best schreaves, honestly what would we do without marlie, juinn, brooks, or the beauty that is max. happy reading <3 word count: 4014

I had to resist from bouncing on my feet as the limousines filled with our families pulled up to the front of the palace.

Lady Collette was watching both Marshall and I intently, mentally reminding us of every lesson that ensured we should be acting like the poised ladies we had become.

Still, even Lady Collette couldn’t stop me from being excited as Giselle was the first to step out of the limousine, her grin wide. The rest of my family quickly followed after her and once they made their way up the palace steps into the palace’s main foyer, I rushed forward into my sister’s arms, unable to keep still any longer.

“Elle!” She stumbled backwards a bit at the sudden contact, but quickly returned the gesture.

I leaned back after a bit to glance at her only to be engulfed in another pair of arms. The familiar scent of my dad’s cologne overwhelmed me and I quickly linked my arms around his tall frame, squeezing my eyes shut at the sensation of tears welling up.

“I missed you middle child,” my dad murmured into my hair.

I laughed loudly, glancing up at him. His face was blurry through the tears and I swiftly wiped them away to get a better look. He looked the same as always, blue eyes staring down at me fondly.

“I missed you too parent number two.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Number two?”

“That’s right, number two. Now come hug your parent number one,” my mom’s voice interjected from behind my dad’s shoulder.

I maneuvered myself away from my dad’s embrace, eagerly rushing into another familiar set of arms. It wasn’t long before I made my way to Alex and Katrina, the pair hugging me tightly.

“No tears for your big brother?” Alex leaned away, quirking an eyebrow up. I rolled my eyes, the tears already gone.

“Unfortunately for you, no. Maybe Katrina.” I grinned at her and she laughed, wrapping an arm around his waist as he pouted.

“I see how it is. No one can compare to your prince now.”

I gave him a flat look, the rest of my family stepping up to make a little circle in the foyer. “He’s not technically mine.”

He waved one hand. “Beside the point. Now that you’re up to be the next queen we can’t possibly live up to—”

“Alexandre,” my mother interrupted, looking exasperated. A routine expression.

Giselle tugged my arm and began to ask questions faster than I could answer from everything about the royal family to what Marshall was really like. My parents joined in the conversation with their son and daughter-in-law while I looked around fondly at everyone for a moment. I had missed this. I had missed them.

Eventually we were ushered upstairs to show everyone their rooms, Marshall’s family included, and then back downstairs to the Women’s Room for a welcoming reception with the royal family.

My mom linked her arm with mine as we made our way down the long hallway. “Is the queen really as kind as everyone says?” she murmured into my ear.

I laughed. “And more. Trust me, I think the both of you will get along really well.”

She smiled and squeezed my arm, though I could still see how she nervous she was. It was looking at the rest of my family that I realized they were all nervous in some way. Alex fidgeting with his tie, Giselle smoothing down the skirt of her dress.

I managed to reassure them somewhat before we stepped inside the Women’s Room, though I had every confidence they would do just fine on their own. Marshall’s family had already arrived, her father and brothers speaking to the king while the remaining members of her family were mingling with the rest of the royals.

We huddled in a small group for just a moment before I saw a figure approaching just over Alex’s shoulder. Nate. I hadn’t seen him since my little confession a few days ago, but the sight of him didn’t fail to bring a smile to my face. His lips were quirked up nervously, sparing me a glance before speaking loud enough to be heard over our conversation.

“Good morning, I hope you had a lovely flight out here.”

I decided not to say anything, letting my family make their introductions. They all bowed and curtsied, a little wobbly, but tried nonetheless. Alex went to him first, holding out a hand.

“Pleasure to meet you, I’m Alex.”

Nate shook the offered hand. “A pleasure as well, and no need for the curtsies.”

My mother spoke next, looking more than pleased with Nate’s presence. “It’s so lovely to finally meet you, we’ve all been looking forward to it.”

“Very much yes. I’m Samuel, this is my wife Sofia, my daughter Giselle, and Alex’s wife Katrina,” my dad piped in, gesturing to everyone with their name. Katrina and Giselle gave small waves and smiles, Giselle’s cheeks pink at the sight of the prince.

“Our flight was great, thank you.” My dad offered a firm hand for Nate to shake. I tried to gauge his reaction to Nate, a little wary to what his first impression would be, though his friendly demeanor gave away nothing. Friendly for now at least. I ignored that less than optimistic thought. In the end, I knew Nate had nothing to fear from my dad.

Nate shook my dad’s hand. “I’m glad. I’ve been looking forward to meet you all as well. I’ve heard all good things.” He turned and smiled at me which I took as an invitation to step up to his side, returning the grin.

“Right, had to keep up the image,” I teased.

Alex rolled his eyes. “Please, as soon as you left things got way more normal.”

I glared at him from the corner of my eye, mentally shoving him back outside the palace, though Katrina thankfully beat me to it as she pinched his arm. Before he could say anything more my mother intervened. Thank goodness for her.

“Elle’s spoken nothing but highly of you. In fact, that’s all we really hear from her.” I take it back.

I cleared my throat, my face warming at what I had assumed would stay between me and my family. “Yes, thanks Mom.”

Nate glanced down at me, curling his lips in. I could practically feel his pride knowing I talked about him so much. “Is that so?”

Giselle giggled and I saw from the look on her face she was ready to pipe in. “Definitely. She—”

“Why don’t I introduce you all to the rest of Nate’s family, hm? I’m sure they’d love to meet you,” I interjected, gesturing to the said royals pointedly.

“Oh I think I’d love to talk to Nate more, thanks,” Alex said, a gleam far too like our father’s in his eyes.

Katrina sighed and tugged his arm. “Let’s go before you make any more trouble.” Giselle followed behind, a mixture of nerves and excitement at meeting the infamous Schreave family.

My mom smiled politely to Nate. “We’ll make sure to speak more later.”

“Yes, later,” my dad agreed, nodding his head once towards the prince. His gaze was sharp, eyes darting between the both of us before finally walking away with my mother.

“They’re… interesting,” I allowed with a small smile.

“They are family.” He turned to face me. It’s just the way they are.” His shoulder lifted as he smiled.

“Wouldn’t have them any other way.” I looked across the room towards them, a fond smile on my lips. “I should probably make the introductions, they’re already nervous enough.” I turned my attention back to him, my smile still present. “Talk to you later?”

He nodded. “We’ll talk soon.”

I resisted the urge to step up and kiss his cheek, aware of our rather public interaction and instead settled for a brief squeeze of his hand as I walked by him to follow my family who had been watching the exchange. I silenced whatever Alex was going to say with just a look to which he pouted amusingly.

When we stepped up the Schreaves, Aubrey smiled kindly and happily took over making the introductions, leaving me to take one last glance back at Nate. He was walking up to Marshall’s family, the same nervous expression as before. You’ll be just fine, Nate, I thought with a smile, then brought my attention back to the conversation.

I eventually found myself lingering by the refreshments table, my family doing more than well for themselves as they mingled. I set my empty cup down on the table, smiling in thanks at the maid who took it away and lingered, observing the interactions for a moment.

The Marshalls were more… rigid in comparison to us Duvals, though I couldn’t really expect anything else considering they all were born and bred military. Still, they seemed friendly enough and I could see where Marshall got her startling good looks from. They all had an intimidating air about them compared to the sweeter Selected.

“Hey there,” a voice cut in on my thoughts and I turned to see Marshall herself, giving a small smile in response.

“Hey Marshall, how’s it going?”

“Well, other than trying to stay calm while my family's here... I'm good.” She smirked. “How are you? You seemed to have had a nice reunion with your fam.”

“I know, this is more stressful than I imagined.” I let out a short laugh. “But other than that I’m great. I didn’t realize until our reunion how much I missed my family.” I shook my head, a smile tugging at my lips. “Got a little overwhelmed.”

Marshall nodded her head, her own lips turned up at the corners. “You seemed really happy to see them. It's good to hear that though, I got a little concerned when I saw a bit of the water works back there.”

“You weren’t the only one, surprised me too.” I laughed along with her, then bit my lip as I remembered the less than warm reunion Marshall had with her own family. “Are you... okay? With your family and all,” I said with caution, though not lacking any concern. Ever since the Selection had been cut down to just the two of us, Marshall and I had grown a little closer, only one another for company. It meant I was more comfortable asking about the friend who didn’t seem all too pleased with the presence of the rest of her family.

Her expression sobered. “Umm.. yeah.. we're just not very ... close with each other or.. sentimental. But it's cool though... um.. I haven't seen my family this complete since I was…” she paused, “...15..”

My eyebrows rose in shock. “15? That’s... I can’t even imagine it.” I glanced at the families, trying to picture a life where the Duvals weren’t all together for so long. I couldn’t.

She chuckled. “My brother- Antonio.. um.. Tony.. over there,” she pointed to her eldest sibling, “he was deployed when I was 15. He's been overseas working for the navy. My brother: Ferdi, well— he's in the army and was deployed to New Asia when I was 17. Vange works for the coast guard, but she's based in Clermont... we've been separated for a long time now.

“As for my dad and mom... the admiral was given special orders to foresee the building of a state of the art naval base in Dominica for the past two years, my mom got transferred along to the air rescue department in the province too— and you'd find me in Midston... working under the Air Force.” Her tone was neutral as she explained the complicated technicalities of the Marshalls situation.

I chuckled, glancing back at her. “It seems the military runs in your blood.”

She nodded. “Actually, we have been serving the military for the past five or six generations.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Well no one can say you all aren’t loyal.” Ideal choice as a princess.

“That's true…” She shook her head. “Just don't get the Admiral started about loyalty,” she rolled her eyes while I quietly marveled at the usage of the name “admiral” versus “dad,” “he'll give an entire speech about loyalty, duty and honor,” she finished with a chuckle.

I smiled. “Appreciate the warning. They seem to be getting along well with everyone else.” I nodded my head towards the gathering.

“I hope mine are.” She huffed out a breath. “I've noticed though... your family seems really close with each other, that's nice.” Her attention was on everyone, specifically the members of my own family.

I nodded my agreement. “Sometimes a little too close.” I let out a small smile at that. “But it’s good to have their support no matter how all…” I waved one hand, “this ends up.”

A quick glance at Marshall revealed a longing look in her eyes at the mention of having my family’s support. It brought on a rush of gratitude for the people who meant the most to me and that I could always count on them. She was silent for a few seconds before speaking up. “It's so weird to think.... this is all coming to an end…” She shook her head, turning to me. “But I'm sure your family will really be there for you no matter what happens,” she surmised, a small smile on her lips.

“It is strange.” I faced her, a bit stunned as I recalled our very first day on our way to the palace. “Can you believe we started and ended together?”

She thought about for a moment, then smiled fondly. “At the airport, right? I have to admit though... I think a part of me has always known that you'd make it this far... you almost scared me with how princess material you were.”

I snorted, surprised that anyone thought I was princess material at the start of the Selection. “Seriously? I wouldn’t consider myself that, at least in the beginning. The lessons helped a bit,” I teased with a small smirk.

She ran a hand through her hair, returning the smirk. “No... I remember you talking about charity...there was something that screamed princess material to me…” She nodded. “But agreed, I think the lessons here were lifesavers.”

“You know you’re just as princess material as anyone, don’t doubt that. After all, we’re both still here.” Here and waiting.

She snorted. “I'd like to debate about me being princess material... but you know…” She clicked her tongue. “You're right... I'm still here... oddly enough,” she finished with a laugh, my own joining in with her.

“Almost anyone can learn to be princess. You know in the end it’s just,” I lifted a shoulder, “it’s about Nate,” I pointed out neutrally, then glanced over to where he was speaking with his parents.

Marshall turned to where he was standing as well, tucking some hair behind her ear and looking down at her feet. “Yeah... I mean... it is his decision…” She took a breath. “That doesn't lessen the burden on your mind though. Kinda makes it worse when you realize what's... who's.. at stake…”

I bit my lip, more serious at the mention of what was at stake. It was almost too much to think about. “It’s the most terrifying thing I’ve ever gone through.” My face warmed a bit as I let out a small laugh. “It’s definitely not all bad, but…” I shook my head, unable to finish my thought.

She crossed her arms. “It has more good than bad... but I get it... being scared... I mean... I almost ran away from all of this because I was... afraid,” she admitted with a nervous laugh.

“Yeah, I mean—” I turned my attention back to her, confused, her words only just sinking in. Wait, what? You almost ran away?”

She nodded and stepped a little closer to me, her voice lowering. “Not a lot know, but I almost did-- the night of the rebel attack. Only two other people know... there's Vee... and well- the person who convinced me to stay… Nate.”

I lowered my voice as well. “I’m glad you stayed too, but well... why? Were you just afraid of the situation?”

“I was scared of a lot of things, honestly. But the one thing I was scared of…” she sucked in a breath, “was having feelings for Nate. I thought it was going to be the best for him that I left... I mean it seemed like a good plan at the time when I thought that I didn't belong here.”

I nodded, silent for a bit as I considered her words. It was difficult to adjust to the life the palace brought and I could almost imagine becoming too overwhelmed and leaving it all. My feelings for Nate were a good enough reason for that. “I get it, in a way. I was so nervous to tell him how I felt and I didn’t think I could do it.” I crossed my arms with a small laugh. “Almost drove me crazy.” I looked up at her. “But I’m glad you figured it all out, and that Nate convinced you to stay.”

She nodded. “I'm glad that Nate did convince me.” She smiled widely. “Trust me, I haven't figured everything all out. I still am, a lot of this is kinda still new to me.”

“The whole dating a prince a thing? I think we can relate on that,” I grinned. She made an offhand comment about checking this particular experience off our bucket lists that made us both laugh. I mentioned something pretty corny—a regular occurrence as of late—about staying friends once the Selection had ended that after a little teasing she agreed to. It was weird, in a way, to think of us becoming friends considering our current situation with Nate, but I think no matter how it all ended, we could manage it.

After talking for a little while longer, I spotted Max unsuccessfully trying to flirt with a beet red Giselle. I excused myself to go save her, knowing that no matter how confident she had become while I was gone, no one was ever truly ready for the youngest prince’s advances.

“Who knew there were so many forks you could use during one dinner,” Alex surmised, slumping down in an armchair in my room. My parents settled on the small couch, Giselle and Katrina on the bed with me. We had decided to come back after dinner for some more time together before we all parted ways for the night.

I chuckled. “You get used to it.”

Katrina poked my shoulder. “Sure, but you’ve had months of practice.”

“And maybe years more,” Giselle added, crossing her legs beneath her.

I sighed and propped myself up with one hand as I leaned to the side, guessing this conversation was only bound to happen. “Maybe,” I said simply.

Alex raised an eyebrow. “Not feeling very optimistic?”

I shrugged. “I’m trying to be realistic. He either chooses me or he doesn’t and there’s nothing I can do to change that.”

“Except tell him how you feel,” Katrina continued.

I hesitated before answering. “He already knows.”

My dad raised both eyebrows. “And what did he say?”

I shifted my weight, sitting up fully and my cheeks warming at the fairly private subject. “Well… he couldn’t say the words back to me, but I know he was happy to hear it.”

“Lo amas,” my mom said simply, her gaze direct. She knew the intensity of those words, we all did. I nodded, smiling a little. Definitely not te quiero anymore.

Katrina reached out to squeeze my hand. “We think he might feel the same way, Elle.”

I sucked in a breath. “You think?” My voice sounded a little too hopeful and I mentally berated myself.

She nodded. “You know we can’t be for sure with your friend still here, but it’s obvious he feels strongly for you.” Something strong doesn’t always mean something permanent.

“I guess we’ll see won’t we,” I said with a small smile, the only answer I felt comfortable sharing out loud. “What do you think of him, after talking to him more?”

Today had been a chance for the families to explore the palace more and speak with the royals. I knew while I had been showing Giselle and Katrina around that my parents and Alex had a chance to speak to Nate privately.

“He’s a perfect gentleman. I see why you like him so much,” my mother offered, smiling softly.

“And apparently a good gift giver,” Alex added.

I tilted my head, confused, to which Giselle pointed at my neck. I looked down and smiled when I realized they were referring to my necklace, fingering the gold charm.

“We noticed it in every single picture and on the Report after Christmas,” my dad pointed out.

“Right, well… um…” I trailed off, not sure how to respond.

They all laughed. “I’m glad you’ve been happy, Elle. And safe, for the most part.” My dad sighed, glancing up at the thin scar along my hairline. My mother grasped one of his hands, a silent reassurance.

“He took care of me Dad.” Wouldn’t let me do anything at all, really.

He nodded. “So he mentioned.”

“Poor kid looked traumatized at Dad mentioning anything happening to you in the future,” Alex continued with a laugh, making me wince.

“You didn’t scare him off did you,” Katrina asked, raising an eyebrow. The Duval men were an intimidating pair when they teamed up.

Alex waved one hand. “Nah, he’s fine. He’s determined, I’ll give him that.”

I smiled at that. “That and more.”

Alex picked up a pillow and hurled it across the room at me, reminiscent of the friend I missed far too much. Clove would be impressed by his distance. “That was cheesy even for you.”

Katrina rolled her eyes, glancing at her husband pointedly. “Oh please, cheesy runs in the Duval’s blood. You should have heard some of the things he came up with while we were dating.”

“Kat,” Alex whined, looking offended.

“This baby will probably be just as corny,” she pointed out, then her eyes widened. My jaw dropped.

“Baby?” I couldn’t believe it, there was no way they had gone this long without telling me.

She looked sheepish. “We were going to tell you tomorrow.”

I tackled her onto the bed with a hug, laughing loudly. “I’m going to be an aunt!”

She laughed, hugging me back and Giselle joined in too, giggling happily. After a bit I leaned back to look at Alex. “And I can’t believe you’re going to be a dad.”

He chuckled, a rare moment of sincerity as he gazed at Katrina with complete adoration. “Me either.” We all chatted about the baby for a while longer, running over a list of names and every plan we had for the little boy or girl. This baby would be nothing but spoiled.

It wasn’t long before the conversation drew back to the Selection and my place. Everyone was immensely supportive of whatever the outcome would be, as I expected. I admitted my fears at possibly being sent home and the sheer joy I would experience if Nate asked my to stay. We talked through every scenario and possibility and when they left my room for the night, I felt far more comfortable than I had before they came to the palace.

Lying in bed and staring up at the ceiling, I decided to push aside my worries for how everything would end. It was out of my hands and whatever Nate’s choice would be, I was grateful for every memory and moment I shared with him. Him and this experience had taught me so much more about myself that I never expected to learn, giving me newfound friendships and opportunities I couldn’t have found anywhere else. More than anything, I knew I would be okay.

Whatever happens, you will be okay.

#((this fic was a struggle to write tbh))#((excuse any subpar writing or typos I was anxious to get this out hehe))#((honestly not my best writing but I hope you enjoy it anyway))#eloise duval #selectionoc #my writing

6 notes · View notes

228renea86 · 6 years

Text

Finding His Alpha: Part 6

Finding his Alpha Part 6: The Long Wait

Nigel sat in the waiting room beside Bev, growing more and more anxious as time passed. His knee started bouncing as he waited, and he nervously picked at the rip in his jeans. As the two hour mark approached, Jack strolled in passed the nurses station and headed straight into the waiting room where he closed the door behind himself. Nigel instantly stiffened in his seat as he looked up at the other alpha.

"Listen here, I don't know what kind of sick joke this is," he started as he walked closer to Nigel, "but this is going to stop Hannibal. And why the hell isn't he cuffed?" Nigel's jaw clenched and his fingers dragged up his thighs as his gaze stayed locked on Jack's. "Jack, I let him stay with me. We're still waiting to find out about Will; I couldn't even get Will here without Nigel," Bev spoke to her superior, "And no this isn't Hannibal. This is Nigel, Will's boyfriend." Jack whipped his head towards Bev, as did Nigel. "Boyfriend?" Back bellowed, "He's a spitting image for the man that nearly killed him?!" Jack kept bellowing, Nigel however kept his gaze on Bev. Boyfriend? Nigel didn't know Will had talked about him to his coworkers, let alone the fact that he’d be considered the younger man's boyfriend.

Jack started pacing and Nigel offered Bev a small smile as she turned to look at him. "Can I go check at the nurse’s station for information on Will?" Nigel asked and Bev rose from her seat just as Jack blew again. "No! You're supposed to be in cuffs, not walking around the hospital like a free man!" Bev rolled her eyes, and walked out of the room to head to the nurses station, leaving the two Alphas alone. "Have I don't something illegal to warrant being in cuffs?" Nigel asked calmly, which pushed Jack's buttons all the more. "You kidnapped an FBI agent! You'll see jail time!" Jack spewed, and Nigel crossed his left leg over the other. "I did no such thing. Stan and Max were the ones that took Will. I stopped them from hurting him, I provided a place for him to recover for the night," Nigel corrected, "I'm sure once you speak to Stan and Max they will corroborate my claims." Jack started pacing the room, as he had already spoken to both men.

Jimmy and Brian were walking down the corridor towards the waiting room when Bev joined them, as they pushed open the door to the waiting room Jack was once again screaming at Nigel that he would see jail time. Jimmy shot his boss a strange look, "Uh, Jack, one of the suspects already told us what happened. Nigel’s free and clear. He did not kidnap Will, nor did he beat him." The vein in Jack's neck looked like it was about to burst as he yelled once more. "He's not free and clear until I say he is!" Bev took her seat next to Nigel and extended her hand towards Nigel. "I'm Bev. Sorry that we had to meet under these circumstances, Will’s talked about you a lot," Bev smiles at Nigel as he shook her hand, "I will warn you, if you hurt Will like Hannibal did, I will kill you myself." Nigel couldn't hold back a laugh, and shook her hand firmly. "I am glad to hear Will has such protective friends, but to assure you, even without knowing this Hannibal, I have no intention of hurting Will," Nigel spoke honestly, but tucked away the name and every emotion that crossed the FBI agents’ faces when they mentioned Hannibal. Nigel had been around the block enough times to know this Hannibal person must have been a cruel person.

One by one Jimmy and Brian introduced themselves to Nigel, and Jack rolled his eyes as he stormed out of the room. "Will's heading to his room shortly, they patched him up," Bev explained, "he has a concussion, several broken ribs, stitches in his lip, and he has a hairline fracture in his right orbital bone." Nigel’s hands clenched on the arms of the chair, his knuckles turning white. He'd return the favor to Stan and Max, there was no question about that. Bev reached over and rested her hand on Nigel's forearm. "He's okay Nigel, he'll heal. He got a good beating, and the nurse said he has a ton of bruises, but he'll be alright." Nigel offered her a warm smile, and nodded his head, "You bet your ass he will heal, pretty lady, I don’t plan on leaving his side until he does." Nigel's words made the team smile. They were more than happy to welcome Will's partner into their group, especially since he seemed so dedicated and protective, after all Will had been through he deserves no less. Nigel rose from his seat. "I'm going to go across the road and get some coffee," and a pack or two of Marlboro's he thought to himself, "Before I head to Will’s room, anyone want some?" Jimmy and Brian declined but Bev said she'd take a cup. "Keep an eye on him until I get back will you? Then I'll take over on guard duty." Nigel asked and it made Bev chuckle. "Of course I will." Nigel ducked out of the room, and could only imagine what they would say about him as he left. He shrugged the thought off as it didn't matter to him what they thought all that mattered to him was Will.

Nigel pulled his phone from his pocket and texted one of his associates as he rode the elevator down to the lobby. "Find me information about a man named Hannibal. That's all I got. He knows my Will." Hitting send, Nigel dropped the phone back into his pocket and made his way quickly out of the hospital and across the street to the small gas station. Filling up two cups of black coffee for himself, Nigel moved onto fill a third, only then realizing he forgot to ask Bev what she took in her coffee. Nigel grabbed one of the to-go containers and added the three cups in it, using the fourth slot to add creamers and sugars just in case. Stopping at the cash register, Nigel grabbed a lighter and two packs of Marlboro’s. The young cashier made small talk with Nigel, avoiding all eye contact as he did so. Nigel thanked him and ran back across the road to the hospital’s smoking section. Without wasting any time he set the coffee tray down on a bench and opened his pack of Marlboro’s. Popping one out of the pack and between his lips, Nigel wasted no time lighting the end and taking a long drag. His eyes closed for a moment as he blew out a gray cloud of smoke, the nicotine calmed him almost instantly, and Nigel took another long drag.

Knowing he needed to get back upstairs Nigel leaned down and rubbed the cherry off the end of his cigarette on the tar at his feet. Nigel blew on the end making sure it was cold, before he tucked the partially smoked cigarette behind his ear. He picked up the tray of coffee and ducked back inside the hospital. There was a quick pace to his step as he hoped he had not missed Will waking up. Seeing the line at the elevator Nigel opted for the stairs; ran up to the 1st floor; thankfully not spilling any of the coffee on himself. He let out a breath of relief when he saw Will’s coworkers still sitting in the waiting room. Walking towards the waiting room, Nigel pushed open the door and stepped inside. “Any news?” He asked instantly as he sat down beside Bev. He pulled her a cup of coffee free, and then turned the tray towards her, showing the creamer and sugar. “Realized I Forgot to ask what you wanted.” Bev took the offered coffee and popped off the top, “The nurse just left, they are moving him now. We wanted to walk up with you to make sure he was all settled in, and then we have to get back to the office.” Nigel nodded his head, and took a swig off his coffee. “Your boss is a real piece of work huh?” Nigel asked, which made Bev shrug he shoulders as she stirred sugar and cream into her coffee. “He means well, but he can be hot under the collar sometimes,” Bev started, and Jimmy quickly chimed in, “With everything that’s been going on, it is quite warranted. We got a call saying Will was taken from the bar, when we tried to call his phone he didn’t answer.” Nigel set his coffee down as he looked between the three of them when Brian started talking, “Jack drove out to his house, and he wasn’t there, when he didn’t show this morning it threw up even more red flags.” Bev let out a sigh and shook her head, “Basically we got a call this morning, stating that Will was at your address. We assumed the worst.” Nigel nodded his head, “Pretty lady, I’m not mad. You did what you had to do. The moment Will was brought to my house, I put an end to Stan and Max treating him like shit.” Nigel tried to explain but his attention was pulled away from Bev as they wheeled Will by the waiting room towards the elevator.

Nigel forgot about the coffee and jumped up out of his chair, he was the first person to Will’s side. “Is he alright?” he asked the nurse that was pushing the bed and wasted no time slipping his hand into Will’s. “You’re the boyfriend?” the nurse asked, and Nigel nodded his head. Will stirred slightly and his grasp tightened for a moment on Nigel’s hand. They stopped outside the elevator and waited for it to rise to their floor; Nigel leaned down and pressed a kiss to Will’s forehead. “He’ll be fine; he just needs some rest and some time to heal,” The older nurse spoke softly. Will’s co-workers quickly joined them at the elevator and Brian had grabbed Nigel’s forgotten coffees. “It looks like you four will have to take the next one,” the nurse spoke with a soft chuckle as she was crowded at the elevator. As the elevator chimed open, Nigel pressed a kiss to Will’s forehead once more, “Fourth Floor. Room 432,” The nurse explained to Nigel and he unwillingly let go of Will’s hand to let the nurse push the bed into the elevator. Nigel watched the doors close, and then scanned for the stairs, “You can grab the next one,” He spoke and ducked into the stairwell where he took the stairs two at a time to get to the fourth floor. The nurse was halfway down the hall with Will, when Nigel stepped out of the stairwell. A small smile curved onto his thin lips as he walked down the hall with a quickened pace. The nurse let out a small chuckle as she realized Nigel was right by her side, “Aren’t you quick,” she smiled and headed to Will’s room, “Will you get the door?” Nigel stepped infront of the bed and opened the door, holding it open for the nurse to push Will into the room.

Nigel followed her into the room, and glanced around as she wheeled the bed into place. Thankfully it was a private room, so he didn’t have to worry about a nosy bedmate for Will. The nurse promptly locked the wheels, and moved her way around the bed to hook Will up to a monitoring system. “He will need rest, I will be in and out every few hours to check on his vitals,” she explained to Nigel just as the team walked into the room, “If you need anything, just hit the buzzer on his bed and I will come in.” Nigel walked over and shook her hand, thanking her. “Thank you,” He glanced at her name tag, “Thank you Sharon, I will keep that in mind.” The woman nodded and ducked out of the room, and Nigel pushed a chair close to the bed. “Shit,” Bev mumbled as she sat on the edge of Will’s bed, opposite Nigel as he sat in a chair, “They got him good.” Nigel sucked in a deep breath, and reached for Will’s hand, holding it in between his two. Jimmy and Brian stayed quiet for a long moment, and Nigel was thankful for that as his mind was swirling with anger and frustration. Stan and Max would pay. Jimmy speaking broke him out of his thought, “Should we do anything? Get him anything?” he asked Bev, who shook her head, “No, he needs to rest, nothing we do can help right now.” She stood up from the bed, and walked to the small nightstand where she found a pad of paper and pen. “I’m going to leave you our numbers, “She explained, as she scribbled down a list, “All of our cells and our office. Please call if anything changes or when he wakes up.” She ripped off the sheet of paper and handed it to Nigel. Nigel carefully folded the paper and added it into the pocket of his shirt. “Will do pretty lady,” he spoke as his hand rested back on top of Will’s, “I won’t be leaving until he is.” Bev smiled and brushed a curl off Will’s eye lid, “I need to go have a conversation with these two scumbags.” Without another word, Bev walked out of the room with Jimmy, and Brian set the coffee down on the stand beside Nigel. “Thank you for staying, Will doesn’t usually talk a lot about the people he dates, but he has spoken a lot about you,” Brian rested his hand on Nigel’s shoulder for a moment, “He deserves a good man in his life. If you need anything call.” With that Brian left the room before Nigel could say thank you.

Nigel slid his chair closer, leaning over the bed he pressed a soft kiss to Will’s forehead, letting his lips linger against his skin. “Hey gorgeous,” he whispered as he rested his forehead gently against Will’s temple, his lips just barely brushing against his ear. “You’ll be alright. You have my word they will pay for this.” Nigel felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, but he ignored it; he let his eyes close as he focused his attention purely on the man before him. In that very moment all he wanted to do was switch places with Will, he would gladly endure the pain just so Will did not have too.

#nigel #willgraham #charliecountryman #hannibal #crossover #fanfiction #fanfic #hughdancy #madsmikkelsen #alpha #beta #omega #love #hurt #hospital #beating #violence #jackcrawford

11 notes · View notes

ohlookamiraculousblog · 7 years

Text

The Great Hair Dared

Chapter 1 – Dares. Focused on Hairs.

“Since TECHNICALLY Alix never won the race,” (everyone’s brain simultaneously: since she kind of tried to murder everyone over a watch), “then TECHNICALLY I don’t have to stop giving out dares!” Kim claimed triumphantly.

Alix couldn’t deny it, she hadn’t raced him

‘Or rather couldn’t remember racing him the one time she did, but that didn’t count because, well, breaking time and all.’ Marinette’s brain reminded her as she casually eavesdropped. It’s not that the story Alya was telling wasn’t interesting, but she had heard three times this morning of how Ladybug roundhouse kicked the last akuma.

The classwide outcry of groans was swiftly suppressed when Kim yelled out, “SO ADRIEN AGRESTE.” Invoking four heads to pop up and look back at Kim’s seat. “I challenge you to a dare!”

All eyes turned anxiously to a blonde-haired-green-eyed boy. An unamused glare glazed Adrien’s eyes and an annoyed sag fell over his shoulders. “What is it this time?”

“Hmm, honestly I’ve gotten bored with picking them. I think someone else should decide the dare.” And a genuinely thoughtful gaze crossed over the class. Scanning over he chanted, “No. No. Nuh-uh. No. Nah. Nope.” His eyes stopped on Alya first, “mmmmnnnoooooooo”

While Kim wasn’t afraid of much save spiders (which is fair) but he didn’t want to chance a dare coming from THAT mind.

His eyes quickly snapped to Marinette. He pointed, lurching forward in the motion.

“You!”

“Me?!”

“Yeah you! You’re gonna choose what the dare is.”

It didn’t bother Marinette, in fact she might even be able to help out Adrien. She shrugged, “ok I don’t min-”

“AND you have to be in on the stakes as well!”

A chorus of “ooooooh"s flooded the classroom. In an instant, the class had quite sharply turned on Marinette, if they’re enthusiasm was anything to go by. Soon the whole room was buzzing with excitement, Adrien himself included.

He had faith in her, Marinette couldn’t possibly let him down!

'WHAT?! Okay hold up Marinette think, think! THINK!!’ Marinette visibly struggled to come up with the perfect dare. She puckered her lips and looked from the ceiling to the floor as though she would physically find the answer.

It had to be something that Kim could never be able to do, and that Adrien and Marinette could breeze through. Mathematics came to mind, and while it wasn’t her strongest suit, Adrien had it down to a science. (literally)

But she couldn’t do that, no matter what the stakes, she couldn’t embarrass Kim like that. Yeah he could be obnoxious, but just because he preferred sports over studying didn’t give her a reason to humiliate him she decided.

Mulling it over further was put to a halt as Miss Bustier walked in and instructed them all to sit down.

She had time now, she had a chance to think.

And think she did, over the entire class period. Alya, knowingly, began writing up a second set of notes. She knew better than anyone that once Marinette was on a mission, not hell or high waters would stop her.

'Especially since this mission involved 'saving’ her beloved Prince Charming’ Alya inwardly giggled.

In the meantime, Adrien couldn’t help the occasional humming sound from behind him. Sometimes he would hear her whine lightly, he took note that there was a positive whine as well as a negative whine.

The positive whine was hopeful almost, as though she were saying, "yeah that might work!”

Mostly they would immediately be followed by a negative whine though. It was lower pitched, monotone, only a second or two long, and the piano portion of his brain told him it was a C sharp.

He tried to take notes, honestly! But the moment he saw Nino taking a second set he gave up. He resigned himself to taking mental notes.

Of the sounds he heard.

Coming from behind him.

Until finally he heard a gasp. She just had an epiphany, he just knew it. 'Double underline THAT noise in my memory.’

Now he had to wait.

It was horrible, waiting till the bell rang. 15 mins felt like another 6 hours. When the bell finally did ring, he had been sitting there for almost almost 36 hours.

As soon as the bell rang every student in the room turned towards Marinette.

Marinette stood reverently to address Kim. “I have decided.”

The silence stiffened in the room. All the students stared, paying much more attention than they had to the lecture not even a minute before. Marinette took a breath and spoke again, “instead of a dare, how about a bet?”

Kim’s face immediately scrunched up, “Ehhhhh…” he started.

“Now hold on! You chose me to pick the dare, so listen up!” Kim sat straight back down from where he had begun to stand in protest.

“They’re having that fireworks display by the Eiffel Tower tomorrow night, and I have it on good authority that Ladybug and Chat Noir will be there together.”

'What? I didn’t know that!’ Thought both Adrien and Alya. Both felt rather scandalized, although for very different reasons.

“Kim, you think they should get together don’t you?” Marinette continued, blissfully unaware of the two whirlpools of thoughts swirling behind her.

“You mean do I ship LadyNoir? Yeah of course!” To which a majority of the class nodded or hummed in agreement.

Miss Bustier was fascinated, here they were sitting and discussing like normal humans. It was so very different from class time, which could, at times, be rather frustrating. She couldn’t bring herself to break them up, so they continued on without interruption.

“Well, if you’re so certain that they’ll be together, it would stand to reason they would be on a date when they go to see fireworks.”

“I still don’t see what your point is Marinette.” Kim stated, balking at this lame idea.

“What if they kiss?” She stated simply.

It was quiet at first, but she heard it behind his voice. The intrigue.

“What?”

“You heard me,” she sassed, “I don’t think they’ll kiss. But if you’re SO certain that 'LadyNoir’” she mimicked, using air quotes to add to the teasing, “is legit, then if they kiss, you win.”

She already saw it in his excited eyes, she had one this. It was in the bag for her this time around. Was it cheating? Yes. But Kim never said she couldn’t bet on something she had direct control over!

As Kim’s eyes widened, Adrien’s shot to the floor. He suddenly had a battle of desires before him. In the unlikely case that Ladybug DID go, he now couldn’t even try to kiss her.

In Paris.

Under the Eiffel Tower.

While literal sparks went off around them.

This was going to be a difficult bet for him.

Even though he technically had control over his actions, he knew himself better than that. If his Lady allowed him, he wouldn’t think twice about losing some silly bet. Speaking of which, what were the stakes?

As if on cue, Kim spoke up. “Alright, fine. If I lose, I’ll shave my head.” This solicited a gasp from the class, everyone knew Kim adored his hair. “But if Ladybug and Chat Noir kiss, YOU have to get your hair cut like mine,” he directed towards Adrien, “and YOU have to get a pixie cut!” He said pointing to Marinette, yet winking towards Adrien, who suddenly sported a blush.

The whole room burst into excitement. Marinette’s logical side noted that that oddly enough the guys seemed to like the idea of a hairstyle change more than the girls.

The rest of her brain freaked.

Marinette squeaked. “W-what! That’s mental! That’s-” and she stopped short when she felt a warm hand on her shoulder.

Adrien looked, piercing her eyes with a shy smile before turning to Kim. “Give us a minute would you?”

With an approving nod from the athlete, Adrien led Marinette into the barren hallway. He knew exactly what this was about. ——— Earlier that day, the guys at P.E. (Kim included) had been talking about this very thing.

“Dude, pixie cuts are the cutest thing. You have to admit it man!” Nino proclaimed. All the guys hushed him so the girls weren’t alerted to their “scandalous” conversation. At least in the mind of 15 year old boys it was scandalous.

Kim was the first to agree, “oh yeah! I bet if anyone would go for that, it’d be Juleka.” Followed by sounds of agreement.

“She does seem that type.” Max added on.

Nathanael surprisingly was next to speak, “what about Rose? She basically already has one right?”

“No,” Max objected. “I believe we’re speaking strictly of girls with long hair, as well as a buzz cut.”

“Well, who else would look good with that hair? I know Alya wouldn’t.” Kim continued.

“Hey!!”

“Oh come on Nino, I didn’t mean like that. Just that the pixie cut wouldn’t work.”

“Mmmm. Fine.” Nino begrudgingly replied. “Okay here’s how I see it. Alix and Juleka would look good with it. Any other girl is a no go.”

Adrien finally spoke up. “What about Marinette?”

All the guys looked at him, non-verbally demanding him to defend his choice. “W-well I mean, not with pigtails obviously. More like…if she let her hair down and maybe a bit longer?” He slowly relaxed as each boy contemplated the idea. Each mind picturing a raven haired girl with about a third or maybe even half of her hair buzzed short.

“I think it’d look pretty good.” Ivan said breaking into everyone’s thoughts.

Kim finalized it. “Well, we all know Ivan isn’t biased for Marinette since he’s with Myléne.”

But before they could continue, Alya attacked. Poor Nino never saw it coming. Jumping onto his back with grace Adrien had never seen from her before, Nino was forced to stagger forward. Her arrival promptly ended the discussion.

—— “Marinette, we’re gonna take him up on it.”

“WHAT?! Except that I like my hair, Adrien!” Her panic and anger at the idea of losing her hair managed to overwhelm any thoughts of stuttering in front of Adrien.

“But has Ladybug EVER showed interest in Chat Noir?”

Marinette was taken aback at the very idea she would betray her precious Adrien like that. “She most certainly has not!” Both of them were giving a little more info than they should’ve known, but since they both knew it, they assumed it as common knowledge.

“Then what’s the problem?” Adrien reached out and Marinette felt a supportive and calming pressure hooked around her wrist. “LadyNoir won’t happen.” Adrien gave a sharp and dark glance to the ground and after a beat of silence, came back at her eyes with the same model smile she had seen plastered to street signs. “Then Kim has to shave his head! Surely he’d cool it with the dares after that.”

Marinette began to untense her shoulders, 'As much as Adrien doesn’t realize it, he has a point. Ladybug won’t kiss Chat Noir.’ (he did realize this)

'I’ll make sure of it!’

Inhale. Exhale. “You’re right, I’m getting worked up over nothing.” And as she brought her lips up into a reassuring smile, it dawned on her who was still holding her wrist.

Luckily Adrien already started dragging her into the classroom, so he didn’t hear the loud yelp echo through the courtyard.

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous #chat noir #adrien x marinette #adrien agreste #adrinette #tales of ladybug and cat noir #ladybug and chat noir #fanfic #fanfiction #the Great Hair Dare

4 notes · View notes

barakobean · 7 years

Text

Precilla's Torture Box - Meudon

“I can’t see anything. I remember leaving the night lamp before I sleep, but now, my room is pitch black. I woke up to a strange melody from the piano in the living room, but now, I couldn’t hear a thing. What was that song again? I can’t remember, maybe it’s just a dream.” In her head, she muttered. She tries to move to her head to the side but her eyes can only see as far as the edge of the ceiling. She moves her right arm to turn on the night lamp but she can only feel the cold wind from the window brushing the bare skin of her arms, shoulder and face. Her head started to sink into the pillows, deeper as the soft feathers tried to cover her face. She screams… “Ishmael! Ishmael!” And she opens her eyes, gasping for air. Breathing heavily, she looked at a dark figure at the foot of her bed. Her hands were illuminated by the street lamps piercing the thin sheets of curtain hanging from her window, but the figure just stood there, silent, unmoving, faceless. It seems to stare at her for a moment when a thud from a fallen item caught her attention. “Chiho, you scared me. Come baby.” And the cat purred as it slyly jumped into the bed with Precilla.

“Andrea, don’t forget to lock the door when you get in tonight. I am going ahead to the store. There’s coffee and some toast on the table.” “Yes your highness.” And the house music played on as water rushed from the shower.

Precilla opens the door and is greated by the cold wet wind of February. It is already 10 AM, but it seems that the sun has no intention of showing up. She started to walk at the corner of Cyril Magnin, through 6th Street going to Mission. The bricked side streets are wet from the rain last night. It must have been difficult for the homeless. “Hey lady, I heard you had a nice and wet sleep last night. I bet you paid a whole lot for that handsome Latino.” A tall black homeless woman dragging a trolley shouted at Precilla as she nears Mission alongside Nordstrom. She stopped for a bit, and looked for her cigarette. “Oh shit! Here you are my long and thin darlings. Come to mama and make me feel better.” She enters the store with a plush pink wall paint and an indiscreet sign saying Good Vibrations. It is just a 5-minute walk from the Lofts, but it took her 10 minutes to get to the store since she smoked. At exactly 10:15, she was late, but it doesn’t matter. She owns the store anyways. It’s warm inside, and the smell of silicone and sweet lotions flowered the store. There were magazines near the fire exit and several posters hang on the right side of the shelf. Some feathers, coiled straws and candies adorn the left side of the fire exit. In the middle, there is stand for lotions of different scents and consistencies. On the left side of the entrance door, just in front of the cashier, there are displays of pretend penile shafts and heads, some include the balls of different sizes and colors. There are also some small mechanical trinkets the size of the thumb with free batteries. Tubes are displayed towards the corner with different flavors of condom. Rebecca stood by the door greeting the customers, giving them flyers of the February promotions and occasionally informing them that we don’t allow bags in the establishment. Then redirecting them to the side of the cashier where their bags are taken and given wooden clips with numbers.

It was 11 when a thin olive skinned boy came in. He took his beanie off revealing a dark brown, shoulder length, wavy hair. He doesn’t seem to be from the area with an awkward smile and a mercurial accent. “Hi. I came back with my passport.” They boy smiled and examined the tubes. “Is there anything in particular you are looking for?” Rebecca smiled trying to assist the little man. “I am getting two of these.” Nervously grabbing the Apollo Max penis sleeve. He stared for a moment at the lubes and grabbed a 50 ml bottle of Gun Oil. “I think that one isn’t compatible with the Apollo Max. You need a water-based lube for that so that the sleeve wouldn’t disintegrate.” Rebecca handed a bottle of Please and placed the Gun Oil back into the shelf as the foreign boy approached the cashier.

“That would be $51.25. May I have your ID please?” Precilla demanded. The boy scrambled through his blue messenger bag and handed his passport. “April 25, 1980. Is this really yours? You don’t look like the picture.” “Yes, that’s me Precilla.” He looked straight into her eyes, and she blushed. Those dark brown eyes pierced through her and gave her a slight tingling between her legs. Besides the fact that she knows what he will do with the stuff he bought when he gets home, he knows her name. “Sorry, I am not sure if it is polite to call you by your name, but that’s the only thing on your pin aside from the tongue drawing.” Precilla laughed and the boy dropped his gaze. “Do you need a bag for these? Sorry I forgot to ask you.” And she handed his passport. “No, I am just going to put these in my bag. By the way, don’t call the black man by his name. It would be difficult to have him leave once he thinks you wanted him.” “Say again.” “Oh sorry, I was just singing this song. See? Skullcandy?” The boy left leaving Precilla dumfounded.

She stared at the mirror as Silicone Lube played in her Iphone. Precilla, naked, is half black, half Guatemalan. Her eyes are green, and she has freckles on her nose, forehead, cheeks and neck. She’s not that tall at 5’7” with shoulder length curly hair. She puts her hand to her waist and examined her belly. It is soft but without any revolute convexity. From her navel up to her breasts, her hand moved gently as it massaged her breasts up to her neck. She pulled her hair up and tied it. Her breasts looked glorious with her arms raised, she thought. She dropped them and gently moved between her legs. She ran her fingers through her thin pubes rubbing the button-like structure above her slit. It feels good for a while that she started to moan silently. Another touch to this area, and she felt a slight wetness in her middle finger. She looked at the mirror, mouth parted, but to her shock a figure in black leather mask and suit is behind her. Screaming, she woke up pillows and blanket on the floor with breast fully exposed to the chilly air from the, again, open window… “Precilla wake up. Wake up girl. There’s a fire drill in the building. The management asked all tenants to participate.” “Andrea, it’s a Saturday. And what on earth are you wearing?” Her hip jingles as coins and beads hit each other in her hip scarf. Andrea sports a flowing fish skirt above her bare ankle and feet. A choli top just above her navel wraps her cup D breasts with a knot just below the inferior angles of her scapula. “Dance lessons? Uhmmm, Precilla, your breasts are so firm.” “Will you stop that. I am already awake. See they are both standing now” pointing at her nipples. “I am not going to that fire drill. Am going to get some coffee,” and she walked towards the kitchen topless. “Fine then. I am gonna go down and head straight to the lesson after the drill. There’s a package for you at the table. I checked the mailbox this morning and saw that addressed to our unit. It doesn’t say it’s for you. I just assumed. We both know how much trouble I’ll be in if “They” find out my address.” Andrea slammed the door without hearing what Precilla has to say. The coffee is bitter. They ran out of sugar packets from Carls Jr. Precilla made another sip as she waited for the soup in the microwave. “In the vaults of our hearts and brains, danger waits. All the chambers are not lovely, light and high. There are holes in the floor of the mind, like those in a medieval dungeon floor – the stinking oubliettes, named for forgetting, bottle-shaped cells in solid rock with the trapdoor in the top. Nothing escapes from them quietly to ease us. A quake, some betrayal by our safeguards, and sparks of memory fire noxious gases – things trapped for years fly free, ready to explode in pain and drive us to dangerous behavior…” The television droned the lines of Hannibal Lecter as Precilla watched closely at the inside of the oven. The bowl keeps on turning as her mind wandered to the idea of it exploding to her face. She has always been afraid of the microwave. The eerie hum as the thing is turned on and the flopping of the lid as the contents boil make her uneasy. Finally, her lunch is ready, so she opened the microwave door, and bare hands, she took the bowl and placed it on the coffee table. “Owww! Fuck! Too hot!” She cursed as the bowl touched the magazines, dripping with creamy mushroom and potato soup. Four champagne red satin lace, each 2 feet long, a piece of black leather the size of dice, and a note with numbers 809 8846 and the word meudon were the contents of the package. Precilla placed her cup on the kitchen counter and examined the piece of leather. It is soft, smooth and fine grained. It smelled of oak and fir. It brushed her nose, her cheeks and lips. It nauseated her like some surfaced old memory. It excited her, made her heart beat faster and louder as it pumped hot blood to her neck, her lips and eyelids. She started to rub her pubis to the handle of the dishwasher. Slowly, she bent her knee and moved up and down to hit her front upon the handle. She stopped and opened her eyes, lips folded inside her mouth to keep the leather from falling, and the cold tiles at her feet woke her delirious senses.

0 notes

msjr0119 · 4 years

Text

Return to New York

Part 1

So because many of you have asked for a follow up- here ya go, it may be a mini series- haven’t decided yet 😫

Riley Brooks never returned after being thrown out of the Coronation. Liam cleared her name, and they tried to find her with no luck. One day they returned to New York and by fate she turned up at a cafe due to Daniels ‘meddling’.

Warnings: Swearing

Some quotes are owned by Pixelberry as are the characters.

Using combined tags for this one shot/mini series:

*****

“Did you miss me gentlemen? Or did you just miss the cronuts?” Riley asked in a sarcastic manner- even though deep down she was nervous. It had been three years since the Coronation- three years since she got on that plane back to New York and never returned to Cordonia.

“Little blossom!” Maxwell screeched, Jumping out of the chair- he knocked the drinks over- not giving a damn about the consequences. Running closer to her, he picked her up- swung her around as if she was on the waltzers.

“I’ve missed you so much! Do you really hate us that much to go awol...” Riley looked at him with sorrow in her eyes, not knowing how to respond to him. Thinking up of a shit excuse to use- she was shocked by Maxwell checking her left hand and eyeing up her body.

“I’ve missed you too- why are you looking at my hand? And my body?”

“You look fabulous to say you’ve popped a baby out-who’s the lucky fella? The baby daddy? Are you getting married?” Riley looked at Daniel who just shrugged his shoulders, then focused her gaze towards Liam and Drake who both looked at her with their jaws agape.

“Max, I don’t know what you’re on about? I’m definitely single, and I’ve definitely not ‘popped’ any kids out- thank you.”

“But Daniel said....”

“But Daniel couldn’t finish what he was about to say... I was going to say was that she worked at the Hard Rock cafe down the road, but it’s part time. Her main job... she’s got a kid who she looks after during the day- for extra income.” Riley looked at Daniel understanding how Maxwell would get his wires crossed- he was never one to let people finish what they wanted to say.

“Oh... Maxi. If I had a baby, you’d be the first one to know. So what are you guys doing here?”

“Maxwell wanted to feel close to you.” Riley snapped her head towards the voice- the last man she kissed. The last man she felt anything for. Sure she had feelings for Liam- but there was something about Drake that she couldn’t shake away.

“And he dragged you two along. Typical Max.” Maxwell shrugged his shoulders before pulling the two men into a bromance hug. “Congratulations by the way Liam, I’m so happy for you.”

“Thank you Lady Riley. It’s good to see you.” Liam stood up to hug her, the last time he was this close to her was in the maze when he promised that he would choose her- even though there were doubts from her side about her being his choice, due to her lingering feelings towards Drake.

“So, are you having a Prince or Princess?”

“We’ve decided to keep it a surprise.”

“Li if you knew, we could have gone on a shopping spree... I told you it was a bad idea keeping the gender a secret.”

“Why don’t you guys go shopping, you can buy unisex clothing.” Riley suggested.

“Come with us Little blossom?” Maxwell’s eyes pleaded with her, he wasn’t ready to say goodbye just yet.

“I’ve got to go to work. Sorry Max. Why don’t you all go shopping then come for a meal, I’ll give ya a discount.”

“Deal.” Maxwell agreed without confirming with the other two men. If they didn’t want to join him, Max wouldn’t force them. Personally for him, he was going to spend every second he could with Riley- his ‘adopted’ sister.

****

The men went shopping, to say it was for Liam’s child the only person excited was Maxwell- hoping to prove that he could win the best ‘uncle’ award. Drake remained silent throughout most of the shopping trip- his thoughts were about Riley on a constant loop. The last conversation he had with her, the regret of not following her to New York- ignoring Liam’s advise regarding her ‘safety’.

Yeah, well... I guess maybe I found someone worth impressing.

Drake...

If only for tonight.. anyway, I’m glad we were able to have a few minutes out here together. Thanks for the drink, Brooks.

I wanted to ask... it seemed like you were about to say something earlier?

I was just going to say that I was wrong. No matter what happens tonight... crown or no crown, engaged or... not... you’re still you.

Weren’t you just telling me how I’m one of them now?

I was being an idiot. I shouldn’t have said that. I knew it as soon as the words were out of my mouth. You didn’t deserve that.

Drake is that as close as you come to an apology?

You don’t let me get away with anything do you? Lady Riley Brooks, I’m sorry I was out of line.

Thank you.

It’s just in that moment, when I saw you at the ball... you reminded me of Savannah. How she was the last night we went out with nobles at that party. She was so happy in her fancy gown, with her hair all done up. So hopeful. She lit up the entire room. She really believed she’d made it. That she was one of them. And I still don’t know what happened to her, what made her leave. But it was bad. It was something that broke her. I’ll never forget how devastated she looked the day before she disappeared. She looked hopeless. Like she’d given up. And when I looked at you tonight...I couldn’t stop myself from imagining the same thing happening to you. This place seems shiny and wonderful, but the truth is, it breaks people, Brooks. I don’t ever want to see you broken.

Drake.. that’s still no excuse for how you’ve been acting.

I know. I’m sorry. Hell, Brooks. My life would’ve been so much easier if I could’ve just hated you. I....

What were you thinking just now?

I was thinking... if this is the last time I’m going to be alone with you before you’re an engaged woman... I’d be a damned fool to not kiss you.

Drake... kiss me now.

“Drake? Are you okay?” Liam asked softly, noticing his friend was in a trance.

“Yeah. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You just seem quiet, since we left Riley.”

“I’m fine Li. Honest.”

“What were you thinking just now?”

“I... I kissed her the night of your coronation. I’m so sorry Liam. I know you were going to choose her. The last three years all I’ve thought about is what would have happened if... if she... I’m sorry Li.”

“You kissed Blossom? Why didn’t you tell us? Is this why you and Kiara never worked?”

“I like Kiara I do... but more as a friend. With Brooks...”

“With Lady Riley you had feelings that were more than a friend?” Liam asked smiling at his friend who gulped before nodding his head.

“It’s not too late Drake, hey my spontaneous trip brought us back to her.” Maxwell bowed in front of the men, proud of his ‘genius’ impromptu crazy ideas. Patting himself on the back overdramatically - he knew that fate was occurring.

“If you feel that way.. don’t let her go. She wouldn’t have kissed you if there were no feelings from her side. I’m not cross Drake, so don’t apologise.” Liam’s encouraging words made Drake think, he didn’t want to make a fool of himself jumping straight into where they left off. Arriving at the Hard Rock Cafe, they were seated by a waiter- Riley noticed them settle in, smiling and waving at them all.

“My names Riley, and I’ll be your waitress for the night. I assume you’ll want; a sex on the beach for Lord Beaumont, a scotch for his majesty and a whiskey for Sir Walker?”

“No need for the titles Riley.” Drake said smirking at her, looking confused at him she paused writing the order down. He had never called her Riley- instead he used her surname as a defence mechanism.

“Are you feeling okay Drake? Calling me Riley?” She playfully nudged his shoulder, before staring into his eyes. Both of them focusing on each other- frozen. Liam and Maxwell noticed the spark between the two of them.

“Blossom, I think we will just have three burgers- whichever one you suggest.”

“Uh sure. I’ll put your order in gentlemen.” Watching Riley walk away, the two of them instantly looked at Drake.

“What?”

“Go and speak to her, whilst she makes the drinks.” Liam encouraged, watching Riley nervously place her hair behind her ear- then noticing Drake looking at her also.

“I think I’ll need a bit of Dutch courage before I speak to her like that.”

“No you don’t. The way she just looked at you.... the way you looked at her.... there was something there.” Maxwell pouted his lips- impersonating a kiss. Drake shook his head, clearing his throat- he robotically walked towards the bar. Rehearsing in his mind what to say to her, he was shaking- not knowing why.

“Hey Brooks, how are you?” No that’s stupid.

“Hi. You’re still as beautiful as I remember.” No too upfront.

“You look as if you’ve settled back okay.” For fuck sake Drake, it’s just Brooks. It’s just Riley.

“Hey, you do know that the waitress is supposed to bring your drinks over right?”

“Yeah, I know... I ... why did you decide to not come back?” Fuck. Why did you ask that?

“I... I just thought you’d all be better off without me. I already caused one scandal, I didn’t want to cause another.”

“You didn’t cause that. That was all Tariqs fault, not yours. We all wanted you to stay. Liam cleared your name. You could have come back then.” Sighing, she didn’t know what to say- would they accept her apology for leaving abruptly and losing contact?

“Drake... what’s she like? What’s Anna like?”

“She’s an amazing Queen. Liam is smitten. Why do you ask?” Does this mean she still feels something for Liam?

“No reason, if I came back when Max and Bertrand tried to beg me at the airport- he wouldn’t have met her. He wouldn’t be happily married with an heir on the way.”

“Honestly they are crazy in love- it’s sickening.” He laughed, Riley mimicked his action. “What did you mean another scandal by the way?”

“If Liam was to choose me that night, it would have caused another scandal.... I love Liam, I really do but as a friend. I...” Biting her bottom lip, she knew that if this was the last time seeing them- she needed to come clean, place all her feelings on the table. “I would have caused another scandal- because I slowly fell in love with someone else. How’s Kiara by the way?”

“Erm... she’s okay I suppose... why?”

“Liv and Hana.... they... they kept in touch with me- keeping me up to date with court gossip. You both began dating so you should know how she is.”

“They kept in touch with you? They knew we were going out of our minds looking for you.”

“Why are you avoiding the question about Kiara?”

“Because there’s nothing to explain. Yes we began dating shortly after you left. But it’s not like that....”

“It’s not like what? It’s none of my business. Go and sit down marshmallow. I’ll bring the drinks over.” Jumping over the bar, he pulled her close to him.

“Drake you’re going to get me the sack! Go and sit down!”

“So what? You can come back to Cordonia that way.”

“I’m quite content where I am thank you.”

“Brooks, you belong in Cordonia... Jeeze you belong there more than I do.”

“I don’t deserve anything Drake... please go and sit with Li and Max.”

“Don’t you deserve happiness too? Who did you fall in love with?”

“It doesn’t matter Drake. Excuse me I have to work.”

“Riley... wait...” turning her head towards him she wondered if he was being sincere with his nice attitude.

“The reason myself and Kiara didn’t work was because of you. She knew that I was in love with you.”

#trr #trr fanfic #trr returntonyc #drake x riley #drake x mc #liam rhys #maxwell beaumont

35 notes · View notes

msjr0119 · 4 years

Text

The Greatest Show

“The Other Side.”

A new 9 part series- all chapters are based on each song from ‘The Greatest Showman’

Characters belong to Pixelberry except MC - Amber Smith-Beaumont

Warnings: Swearing, sarcasm, stubborn Dramber

Tags - using combined tagged list, if you want to be removed please let me know 👍🏼

Catch up on the previous chapter here

@annekebbphotography @burnsoslow @drakesensworld @ladyangel70 @kingliam2019 @bbrandy2002 @butindeed @bascmve01 @drakewalker04 @pedudley @captain-kingliamsqueen @duchessemersynwalker @insideamirage @of-course-i-went-to-hartfeld @kozabaji @texaskitten30 @ibldw-main @kimmiedoo5 @nikkis1983 @dangerouseggseagleartisan @gnatbrain @walker7519 @lodberg @cmestrella @hopefulmoonobject @addictedtodrakefanfic @angi15h @liamxs-world @rafasgirl23415 @notoriouscs @yukinagato2012 @dcbbw @qammh-blog @nz1091 @beardedoafdonutwagon @cordonianroyalty @custaroonie @indiacater @seriouslybadchoices @rainbowsinthestorm @princess-geek @jared2612 @desiree-0816

I was going to do the songs in chronological order, however this song is apt for this chapter.🙌🏼

******

Amber woke up with a slight headache- not knowing if it was due to the jet lag or the full bottle of whiskey she had downed with Drake in such a short time the previous night.

Wrapping herself up in the luxurious duvet, waves of nausea suddenly hit- adding to her misery regarding being here ‘against her own free will.” Amber turned her phone on, as it ‘pinged’ with message after message, notification after notification- she regretted turning it on in the first place. Brett. Brett and his usual abusive threats were many of the messages. After no response from her, the usual apologies began- ‘Baby I’m sorry. I love you, just let me know that you are alright?’ The room began spinning, dehydration was now too obvious to ignore- grabbing a glass of water and painkillers, she had hoped that she would recover even the slightest before seeing Bertrand.

Quickly getting showered and dressing in comfy clothes- she had decided to go for a wander around her new home for the next month or so. Knowing that it was the Derby later on today and that Maxwell had already prepped her outfit, she knew she had time before needing to get ready. Leaving her phone, she text Brett lying saying signal was rubbish.

*****

Maxwell and Bertrand woke up and immediately headed towards Amber’s room. Bertrand had decided to give her a quick refresher lesson to help her ‘fit in’.

Opening the door, she wasn’t there. Bertrand became panic stricken mainly due to his house’s reputation, Maxwell was the opposite- assuming it was due to Brett.

“Where the hell is she? Was she okay when Drake saw her?”

“Yes! He said ‘She’s fine, no need for babysitting. I’ve left her now. See ya tomorrow Beaumont.’ I know Drake is miserable and seems not caring. But he wouldn’t leave anyone alone if they weren’t fine. Well...he may do that to Madeleine or Olivia- but with other people he has a heart under that gruff interior.” Heading two doors down, they knocked on Drakes door- hoping he would give any indication regarding Amber’s state of mind. Opening the door in response to the loud banging, he would berate whoever created this rude awakening.

“Do you know what time it is?” Drake snapped, whilst yawning.

“Yes 7.30. It’s late for me! I’m like the walking and talking alarm clock. Have you heard from Amber?”

“No why would I hear from her?”

“Well you probably have spoken to her more than anyone here. She’s not in her room. I’m worried that she’s runaway to go back to that arsehole.”

“She was fine when I left. We spoke about the states, realised we have a few things in common. One of those things was riding- I said I’d take her for a ride one day. I wouldn’t have left her if she wasn’t okay- mainly due to you two possibly murdering me.” Mainly due to me falling fast for her. I wouldn’t want to see her hurt. “What’s this arsehole done to her anyway? Cheated on her?”

“I wish! No I don’t mean it like that, I meant I wish that was the only thing he has done to her. Do you remember us sneaking off to New York a lot? That’s the reason why- she’d insist to not come but she’s family.”

“Many times myself and Maxwell had tried to convince her to come back. She’s afraid of what he may do next, what more he is capable of. I’m surprised that she’s here now. Maybe if she feels safe here she may stay?”

“I’ll use my persistent charm to convince her.” Maxwell winked at them both.

“I’ll go and look for her. You two look for her as well.” Bertrand exited the room, Drake’s mind was racing - wondering if the two brothers were over exaggerating the facts regarding Amber’s boyfriend.

“What has he done to her Max? She didn’t explain anything to me. I know it’s none of my business and that’s probably why.”

“Black eyes, bruises, broken arm, skull fracture. There’s no getting through to her buddy. I just wish she would find someone who would love her and that would treat her like a princess. I know she’s sarcastic, a bit dim at times- but she’s an amazing girl.” I know Max, she is amazing. That bastard, she doesn’t deserve that. No one deserves that. I’d treat her well. I’d take her on dates, spoil her, love her. She won’t see you in that way Drake, she’s far too good for you- so stop thinking like that. Brett is her boyfriend, and she’s Liam’s suitor. The prince could sway away from Liv, I mean Amber seems so much better than the ice queen. Shaking his head, he left his thoughts locked away- for the mean time.

“Let’s hope she enjoys her time here then, and that you can convince her to stay. Keep her safe. Does he know where you two are from?”

“No. He doesn’t know we are noble. Good job really.”

*****

Amber was in a gaze, walking through the courtyard lost in thought.

“Lady Amber are you lost?”

“Hey ‘Zimmer’. No. Well yes. I just needed some air - to clear my mind. I didn’t want to be a burden to anyone.”

“Remember what I threatened you with ‘suture’. Well if you insist. I’m sure the Beaumont’s are panicking about your whereabouts, Bertrand had a face like thunder.”

“Shit! He’s going to kill me. He’s going to yell at me. I better go back in.”

“And where the hell have you been?” Clearing his throat after seeing Leo, he returned to his usual manners by bowing to the prince. “Your highness.”

“Bertrand for fuck sake just call me Leo.”

“As you wish. Amber you look a mess, you’re one of Liam’s suitors. Get inside now and get ready! I’ll bring you some breakfast up to your room. We don’t have time to dilly dally. You’re a Beaumont act like one!”

Amber mouthed told you to Leo who just laughed. Storming through the doors with Bertrand high on her heels, Maxwell and Drake were waiting in her room after not finding her themselves.

“What are you two doing here?”

“Where have you been?”

“I went for a walk, I’ve got a banging headache- a hangover because of him.” Pointing to Drake, his face dropped knowing he would be in the doghouse with the brothers.

“Hey! I didn’t force you to drink the whiskey. It’s not my fault.” Amber laughed, then the both of them averted their gaze. Maxwell noticed the two of them blushing. Wondering what exactly happened last night between them both. He had noticed that Drake hadn’t been as withdrawn as he usually is since Amber had been there. Believing he was overthinking the situation- he did need to mention something important.

“Amber, he’s been ringing you whilst we’ve waiting here. What’s up?”

“Oh the usual threats. I made my bed Max so I’ll lay in it. Anyway- get out I need to get dressed, I don’t want to give Drake another heart attack. Then we have a Beaumont meeting downstairs, Bertrand is waiting for us.” Using the ‘finger gun’ gesture mimicking a handgun, he knew it was important to get to Bertrand quickly- the sooner this ‘meeting’ was over the better.

*****

Pacing the room, Bertrand was impatiently waiting for his family members to attend. He had spoken to Liam prior, to ask that no one disturbs them.

“Lord Beaumont. Lady Amber. About time that you both arrived. You both need to be punctual with court events. Now we have around an hour before we have to head to the Derby.” Amber rolled her eyes back, whilst Max sniggered- knowing she really didn’t give two damns.

“Bertrand. I know how to be noble. I spent all my childhood summers surrounded by you guys. I’m a good actress don’t worry.”

“Right here, right now. I put the offer out,I don't want to chase you down. I know you see it. You run with me and I can cut you free. Out of the drudgery and walls you keep in.”

“What the hell is that meant to mean?”

“That you can stay here with us, not go back to your hard boring life in New York. So trade that typical for something colorful. And if it's crazy, live a little crazy.... you can risk it all and see”

“Don't you wanna get away from the same old part you gotta play 'Cause I got what you need, so come with me and take the ride. It'll take you to the other side” Max butt in, hoping that she would listen to their plea to stay.

“Okay, my friend, you want to cut me in. Making me a fake princess, a noble. Well I hate to tell you, but it just won't happen. So thanks, but no I think I'm good to go. ‘Cause I quite enjoy the life you say I'm trapped in. Now I admire you, and that whole courtly show you do. You're onto something, really it's something....I got what I need and I don't want to take the ride. I don't need to see the other side. So go and do like you do. I'm good to do like me. Oh, damn! Can't you see I'm doing fine. I don't need to see the other side”

“Now is this really how you like to spend your days? Whiskey and misery, and parties and plays?”

“If I were mixed up with you, I'd be the talk of the town. Disgraced and disowned, another one of the clowns.”

“But you would finally live a little, finally laugh a little. Just let me give you the freedom to dream. And it'll wake you up and cure your aching. Take your walls and start 'em breaking. Now that's a deal that seems worth taking. But I guess I'll leave that up to you...” Hoping she would listen to their words, she didn’t need to become a full Beaumont- a lady of their house, but if she moved to Cordonia full time they knew she would be safe- and have a better future. Amber remained silent, not knowing how to respond. Obviously leaving Brett would cure all the heartache she had gained in New York. But she knew of how vicious court could be especially with her being ‘common’.

“We’re going to the other side, as a team. Until the Coronation- then I’ll consider my options. And for your information I enjoy whiskey and misery! And parties. Does this social season include an infamous Beaumont Bash?” The two brothers smiled at each other, knowing she would possibly consider staying. Not wanting to push it any further, they had decided to continue with the noble refresher course. Bertrand went through things such as how to use cutlery correctly, whilst Maxwell helped her with the Cordonian waltz.

“I know you don’t want to be here, but make an effort with Liam. Especially if Connie is watching. I heard that Drake that offered to take you for a ride. What kind of ride did he mean?”

“Horse ride. Dur! What other kind of ride?”

“Ohh you were both blushing before.”

“So?”

“Well he’s your type, tall dark handsome.”

“He is not my type! My type are arseholes. And he isn’t an arsehole.”

“But his looks are your type.” Amber knew she couldn’t lie- especially to Max. When they were younger, they would tell each other their deepest, darkest secrets.

“You two! Concentrate! I know I said you could live a little- but we need to get this right before the next ball.” The two of them danced, Maxwell didn’t see the point- he knew that Amber was an elegant dancer anyway. Picking up the moves straight away he knew she would piss the social season without even trying. Bertrand was impressed with the progress that they had completed in such a short time. There was a hesitant knock at the door- Liam, Leo and Drake wondered if they were all ready to go to the derby. Whilst Bertrand spoke to the Princes- Drake went over towards Maxwell and Amber.

“How’s the hangover m’lady?” Drake asked sarcastically.

“It was better until Bertrand forced us to dance- giving me more of a headache. I’m not noble but I know how to dance. My forte is the slut drop back home- but I don’t think they’d all appreciate me doing that here?”

“Hey, seen as though you’re such a good dancer- why don’t you teach grumpy here? He’s useless with those things.”

“Beaumont! I’m not useless- I just choose not to involve myself with shit like that.”

“Come On Drake, you’ve lived here your whole life and you’ve never once danced with a lady here. Even when Kiara tried to force you.” Kiara, she’s the intellectual one apparently- why would he refuse to dance with her?

“I would dance with anyone but her. I’d even dance with you Max over her.”

“So dance with Amber now then. She needs as much practice as possible.”

“I don’t need anymore practice thank you, MAX.” Why am I refusing to dance with him? It’s just Drake, my cousins friend.

“You heard the lady.” Drake stated before Bertrand came over, wondering what all the commotion was about.

“What’s the matter?”

“I suggested that Drake and Amber should dance together. To get more practice for her. But they are both being stubborn.”

“I think it’s a splendid idea. Maxwell, Liam wanted a word with us anyway. We will be back in five minutes.”

*****

“How about we just not dance. I can tell that you feel uncomfortable about it. What they don’t know won’t hurt. We could just lie, I’ll say I couldn’t teach you because you’re a rubbish student.” Smirking at him, she had hoped that he knew she was joking.

“I don’t actually know how to waltz, I’ve never been interested and I never will be, especially dancing with some noble girl who drools all over me at any given opportunity.” Amber bit her lip, attempting to prevent herself from laughing. “I know you’re trying not to laugh- but it’s true.”

“What the issue with Kiara? She’s beautiful, intelligent, from what they’ve said she’s nice enough.”

“She’s all that.”

“Well then. Maybe you should give her a chance- I’ll teach you to dance the waltz and then you can ask her for a dance.” For god sake Amber, I don’t want to dance with her. Maybe I would with you though.

“Fine. I’m going to lose this argument anyway aren’t I?”

“Yes. My family have a persistent side to us.” Getting into position, she could tell he was tense. Rubbing his arms, she had hoped to loosen him up a bit.

“Do not tell anyone about this.” Drake begged, putting all his trust into a woman he had known for all of two seconds. In the back of his mind he was hoping that he wouldn’t make a fool of himself.

“Don’t worry, you’re secrets save with me. I accept bribery in the form of whiskey.”

“That’s my girl.” Realising what he said, he immediately regretted it. “I didn’t mean it like that... I meant... because you like whiskey... oh just ignore me... I’ll buy you some whiskey to keep my secret safe.”

“That’s my man.” She winked, mimicking him. Taking one of Drake’s hands, she guided it around her waist, before putting her hand on his shoulder gently. Placing her spare hand into his- she noticed that it was slightly clammy. Looking into his eyes, she smiled softly- reassuring him that it would be fine. Shit I can’t do this, that wank last night was a one off- but having her this close to me is making me want more. Think that you’re dancing with Maxwell instead. After a while, Drake glided through the steps effortlessly, keeping his arms and chest out.

“Hold your hand up, and I’ll spin underneath it.” Finishing the spin, he held her close- both just staring at each other. Their chests rising in unison, Amber averted her gaze, and removed herself from his embrace.

“That’s it. You’ve done the Cordonian Waltz. I’ll buy you a medal. See, dancing isn’t that bad.” Maybe not with you in my arms- shit. Stop thinking about her like that.

“Maybe not. I don’t need a medal, I’m not a kid. I’ll share that whiskey I owe you instead.”

“It’s a date. Come on. Let’s go and find the others.” Drake blushed, knowing the word ‘date’ didn’t mean anything. But how he wished it did, he wouldn’t admit that to anyone.

*****

After finding the others, they headed towards Honeyhill Downs. The suitors all gathered in the tents. Amber kept herself to herself- not really wanting to form any friendships until she knew what her future held. Olivia abruptly dragged her to the side, out of view from the others.

“So Amber, Liam told me about your little plan.”

“With all due respect your grace, it’s not a plan. It’s what Prince Liam will be doing. He wants you to become his wife- so what’s stopping him just following his heart?”

“But the King said....”

“What the King said is something he hopes for. Doesn’t mean it will become a reality - he shouldn’t control Liam’s mind. Liam is the future king.”

“So you don’t find the Prince attractive? You wouldn’t want to be future Queen yourself?”

“Fuck no!” Composing herself, she coughed before acting more ‘lady like’. “What I mean is no, I do not want to be Queen. Not now. Not ever. He’s all yours, don’t worry your grace. The only time I will spend with Liam will be an act. He’s not my type anyway.”

“What is your type then?”

“Someone who’s tall dark and handsome. And someone who is usually an arsehole. Liam has lovely baby blues, but I prefer dark eyes.” Olivia laughed, knowing who her perfect man would be- unaware that Amber was already in a relationship.

“Oh someone like Drake Walker then?” Blushing, she needed to think of an excuse to avoid people realising she had a slight crush on the commoner.

“Drake, is a lovely guy. The only love we will share is for whiskey.”

“If you say so Amber. I’m starting to like you. Stay in my good books or I may threaten you with a dagger.”

*****

Liam, Leo and Drake sat in the royal tent- all scrutinising the suitors tent from a distance. Whilst the two brothers compared the suitors, they noticed Drake in a trance- his eyes following every move that a certain lady made.

“Earth to Drake?” Liam said in a concerned voice, whilst shaking Drake.

“Sorry, what’s up?”

“Why are you gawking at Amber?” Shit!

“I’m not, I’m looking at them all- wondering why the hell liam is still insistent on choosing Olivia.”

“Now I know you’re lying Walker. You wouldn’t look at Kiara like that. You hate her.” Leo raised his eyebrows, waiting for Drake to lie through his teeth.

“I think Amber is a lovely girl, she’s got a great sense of humour. That is all.”

“Dude, you need to tell her how you feel.”

“For fuck sake Leo, I don’t know the girl. There’s nothing to tell her. I’ll go and grab some more drinks.” The two brothers laughed, both knowing Drake was hiding his true feelings.

“Do you think he will ever confess to her?”

“No.”

*****

Walking over to the bar, Drake thought about leaving Cordonia for a while to convince himself that he wasn’t falling for the new girl. If it was that obvious that both the princes knew, who else knew? How long would it be before Amber knew?

“I’ll have a whiskey if you’re buying. You owe me remember- or I may just spill your little secret.” Turning around, he couldn’t get away from her- not that he wanted to.

“I have many secrets, I suppose that one isn’t one of the worse for you to spill. Are you enjoying the Derby?”

“Ohh there’s more secrets? You have to tell me now, I’ll pinky promise that I won’t tell anyone. About this Derby- I’d rather be riding, but hey this is all just for show. In a month I’ll be out of here, living my old life.” Drakes heart sunk, now he knew that he needed to prevent his premature feelings from growing.

“I don’t trust anyone, so I wouldnt trust you with all my secrets.” One secret being that I like you more than I should. “I don’t blame you for wanting to escape. I’d be doing the same if it wasn’t for Liam.”

“I’m hurt that you don’t trust me- I’m joking. Are you sure you’re not a closet gay?”

“I’m positive! I meant Liam has always had my back. Even when my dad died, and my mom left us- the royal family took us in and made us part of the family. Most nobles were ready to cast us out.” Placing a comforting hand on his arm, she felt guilty.

“I’m sorry Drake. I didn’t know. I was only joking you know? I better get back. Thank you for the drink.”

“No problem. Your round next time though.”

“Definitely. By the way, I’m glad you’re not a closet gay. That would just be a waste- you’re too handsome. See ya.” Shit why would I call him handsome? I mean he is, but I shouldn’t have said that. Why is it that I’d prefer to hang out with him over the women? I need to go back to New York as soon as possible- I’m damaged goods, he wouldn’t like me in that way.

Too handsome? She’s just being polite. Don’t think too much into it. You’re just a commoner. Once this event is over, I need to book a flight to Texas- I can’t fall for a girl who will never return the feelings.

#theroyalromance #choices trr #drakewalker #maxwell beaumont #olivia nevrakis #liam rhys #leo rhys #drake x mc #trr amber beaumont #trr the greatest show #trr fan fic

38 notes · View notes