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i-am-baechu · 1 year

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Chapter Two: The One About K-pop

Summary: “Did you just ask me if I sell coffee in a fucking coffee shop?” And with that, Taehyung was smitten by the Barista in the crazy flower sweater vest. Friendships will form but most importantly Taehyung will finally meet his soulmate.

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Genre: Idol au, strangers to lovers au, barista reader!, slow burn (friends with benefits to lovers kind of), semi-short storyish format, friendships, romance, angst, comedy, and smut

Main pairing: Idol! Taehyung x Barista! Reader

Side ships: Hoseok x OC

Warnings: Explicit language, smut, mature themes, homophobia, smoking cigarettes, drugs and alcohol usage

⇜ Masterlist ⇝

•——————•°•✿•°•——————•°•✿•°•———•

It’s been two days since Y/N got “Coffee boy’s” number and they’ve been talking nonstop. He was super sweet, he always asked her about her day and sent her websites on ways to relax after a busy day. Every time she saw his name pop up on her phone, butterflies flew into her stomach but Nikki said it could be the whiskey. Even though she enjoyed the conversations with him, she still didn’t know who he was and this annoyed her...(it was kind of hot but overall annoying).

Coffee boy:

Good morning, I hope you have a good morning. I wish I can see you but I have a meeting, I’m sorry about that

Y/N:

That’s okay. What’s the meeting about? You never told me what you do for a living

Coffee boy:

That’s for you to find out ;)

Y/N sighed and looked up at the ceiling with a frown on her face. Nikki raised her eyebrow at her and muted the tv, “That’s the fourth time you sighed and it’s only eight in the morning. What’s wrong?”

Y/N glanced at her and then back at the ceiling, “Coffee boy...he won’t tell me anything about himself. It makes me think he doesn’t like me.”

“Maybe...just maybe, he's part of the mafia.”

Y/N let out a laugh and looked at Nikki to see that she had a serious face, “Nikki, you can’t be serious.”

“Just listen to me, he has a black card and he's young. That’s very suspicious. I mean also, his jacket is part of Louis Vuitton's newest collection that’s not even out yet.”

Y/N’s face scrunched up as she shook her head, “There’s no way...I mean if he is then we would go to jail for getting involved with him and I can’t last in jail. Oh my god, I can’t go to jail. I can barely handle being alive, I can’t handle being in jail. If I-”

“Y/N, calm down. Maybe ask him?”

“I can’t ask him if he's in the mafia, that’s how you die!”

“No idiot, just ask him what he does for a living and tell him if he doesn’t tell you then it's over.”

Before Y/N could say anything, Julia came in with two boxes of doughnuts and a frown, “The lady at the shop yelled at me and caused a whole scene. She wouldn’t let me have the leftover dough and even tossed a bottle at me.”

“Julia, why did you want the dough? You don’t bake.”

Julia shrugged her shoulders and placed the donut boxes on the coffee table, “My cousin wanted the dough but he wouldn’t tell me why.”

Nikki nodded her head and opened the box to see the glazed doughnuts, “Even though that’s worrisome, I’m hungry so it doesn’t matter.”

Julia sat next to Y/N and looked over her shoulder, “Oh, you're texting that boy you met.”

“Yeah, we think he's part of the mafia...”

“That’s cool.”

Y/N glanced at Julia and shook her head, “It’s not cool, Julia. It’s a crime. We could go to jail.”

Julia shrugged her shoulders at her, “We can have a better apartment if he's part of the mafia.-” Julia leaned back on the couch and took her phone out looking at Y/N, “I was on twitter and I swear this place looks like our coffee shop.”

Y/N put her doughnut down on the napkin and leaned next to Julia to look at her phone. Her eyes widened and snatched the phone out of her hands, “That’s the coffee shop!”

Nikki wiped her hands on her cotton pants and raised her eyebrow, “What the hell are you talking about?” She snatched the phone and her eyes widened, “Oh my god, thats the coffee shop...who the fuck is Kim Taehyung?”

“I don’t know but he’s trending...do you think he died in the store?”

Julia shook her head and snatched her phone back, “No, he's part of this kpop group and he's famous. Want to see him?”

Nikki gave her a smirk and nodded her head, “You had me at famous.”

Y/N smacked Nikki’s shoulder and shook her head at her. She leaned forward grabbing her doughnut taking a small bite as Nikki pushed Y/N out of the way to look at Julia’s phone. She landed on the ground and glared at Nikki, “He’s a human being, don't treat him like he's just a famous person. Also, Nikki we will never meet him so, don’t get any ideas.”

Taehyung cracked his neck as he looked at himself in the mirror. He was dressed semi-formal for this interview and he wanted this to be over already. He was upset because he wanted to text the barista but he knew he was going to be busy all day. He felt an arm around his shoulder and he looked in the mirror to see Jimin with a smile, “Yoongi told me you got a girl's number...was she pretty?”

“Yeah, she was pretty but you can’t flirt with her.”

Jimin rolled his eyes and took his arm off of his friend's shoulder, “Why would I flirt with her when it's clear you're interested in her. Tell me about her.”

Taehyung shrugged his shoulders and fixed his collar in the mirror, “She’s Irish and she's cute. That's all you get.”

“Does she have a name?”

“I haven’t asked yet...I thought it was kinda hot to keep this stranger thing up.”

“Or it could be really weird and she walks away because you're creepy.”

Taehyung rolled his eyes and turned towards Jimin to smack his shoulder, “Thanks for the confidence.”

“Do you need confidence? You're Kim Taehyung.”

“Oh, I need all the confidence to talk to her.”

Y/N stared at the wall with a blank expression as Nikki and Julia stared at her with worried looks. They both glanced at each other, Julia looked down at her phone and then back at Y/N, “I mean at least he's not in the mafia.” Y/N let out a laugh and covered her face with her hands as her body shook with laughter. Julia flinched at the loud laugh and looked at Nikki, “I think she's broken, Nikki.”

“Y/N, are you okay?”

She turned her head and looked at them with a face that they couldn’t decipher, “Am I charity?”

“What?”

Y/N got up from the couch and walked into the bathroom to stare at herself in the mirror. She whipped her head to look at them, “Do you see me? Look at him, why would he ever want me? Oh my god, he thinks I'm charity.”

Nikki rolled her eyes and got up from the couch to lean against the door frame, shaking her head at her, “Or he thinks you're hot.”

“Don’t lie to me.”

Julia shook her head and stood next to Nikki, “Y/N, you are hot. Your boobs are great.”

Y/N looked at Julia with an annoyed look and shook her head, “Thanks Julia, I’m glad this is how you see me.”

“You're welcome.”

Taehyung listened to the interviewer as he was looking out into the audience and smiled. He heard his name a couple of times and he gently waved at the girls in front making them gasp from the attention. He looked back to see that Namjoon was ending the interview and gave the woman a wide smile as she said her thanks to them. The group stood up from their chairs and bowed at the interviewer and the crowd with wide smiles. Taehyung waved at everyone and they made their way backstage, taking off their equipment.

Taehyung looked at Jungkook with a pout, “I’m hungry.”

“You just want to go to the coffee shop to see that girl, don’t you.”

He rolled his eyes and slapped his shoulder gently, “No, I’m actually hungary.”

Namjoon nodded his head and looked at Taehyung with a stern look, “I heard that you gave your number to a girl. Care to explain?”

Taehyung bit his lip and looked down at his shoes before looking at his leader, “I met her and I just thought she was interesting...hyung, I really like her. The moment I saw her, I wanted to get to know her and I gave her my number.”

“Taehyung, this is serious. We don't know anything about her and she could sell information about you or even us. You should’ve talked to us first before making this decision.”

Taehyung bowed his head as he was scolded by his leader and Jin wrapped his arm around Namjoon’s shoulder, “Joon, stop scolding him. You should be happy that he’s found someone, he’s never done this before. Let him have this moment.”

Namjoon glanced at Jin and then at Taehyung who was staring at the carpet. He let out a sigh and pushed Jin’s arm off and placed his hand on Taehyung’s shoulder making him look up, “Tae, just be careful. If something happens, tell us immediately.”

“I-I will...please let me talk to her still.”

“Fine.”

Y/N took another shot as Nikki watched from the doorway. This was the fourth shot that she took and it's only been four minutes. Nikki rolled her eyes and snatched the glass out of her hand whilst Y/N glared at her, “What are you doing?”

“Saving your stomach. Why are you drinking? Is it crazy that Kim Taehyung from Bts likes you.”

Y/N raised her eyebrow and nodded her head, “Yes, it's crazy. Have you seen the way he looks? He’s hot, sexy, and mysterious, then there's me, the opposite.”

Nikki rolled her eyes and placed the glass in the sink. She crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head, “Y/N, it's obvious he's interested in you. He gave you his number and I’m sure he doesn’t do that a lot.”

“Or he could give it to a lot of people to have orgies or I don’t know one night stands.”

“He’s been texting you nonstop since he gave you his number, that doesn’t sound like somebody that wants a one night stand to me.”

“Or he’s just playing me because he wants a quick fuck.”

Before Nikki could say anything, Y/N’s phone vibrated on the counter top. They both glanced at the disturbance and then back at each other with raised eyebrows. Nikki snatched the phone before Y/N could and unlocked the phone. She raised her eyebrow while giving her a small smirk, “Hey, sorry I was busy today but I was thinking of you. I was wondering if you would want lunch with me sometime in the future? Mmmm, doesn’t sound like he wants a quick fuck to me.”

Y/N’s eyes widened as she looked down at her feet with a shy look, “He said that?”

“Yes, now go talk to him before I slap the shit out of you.”

She rolled her eyes while grabbing her phone before heading to her room. She locked the door behind her, taking a small breath before looking at the message with a smile. She clicked his icon and called him wanting to hear his voice. Taehyung’s eyes widened in the van as he pressed the green button with no hesitation, “Hello?”

“Hello, Kim Taehyung.”

Oh shit. “Oh...you know who I am. What’s your name?”

“It’s Y/N L/N...Your name was trending on twitter when you were in our cafe and I thought someone died in it but turns out it was just a kpop star sighting.”

He let out a nervous laugh at this and raised his eyebrow, “Wait...has someone died in that shop before?”

“I mean...it was across the street from us but it's New York so...anything could happen. So, you're a kpop star?”

He looked around him to see everyone was either sleeping or listening to their music with headphones on. He glanced up at the front to see that Namjoon was too busy talking to Jin about something to notice that he was on the phone. He smiled to himself nodding his head, “Yeah, I am.”

“Thank god. I honestly thought you were in the mafia.”

“Mafia?”

“You had a nice coat on so my friend assumed it. Anyways, I saw a picture of you at the interview. You looked very handsome...”

“Oh~, did I?”

“Oh, you like that. I take it back because you get enough praise.”

“But hearing it from a beautiful girl makes it different, darling.” There was a long pause and Taehyung thought he messed up but he heard a crashing noise on the other side. He pulled the phone away and looked around with a confused look. He put the phone back to his ear and raised his eyebrow, “Y/N? Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, sorry. I dropped my phone. Hearing you say that made me sweat more than usual. Fuck...ignore that I just said that.”

He let out a small laugh and shook his head, “You're so cute.”

“You need to stop because I can’t drop this phone anymore but thank you for calling me cute. I just got called cute by a kpop star...oh my god, I just got called cute by a kpop star...Fuck anyways, can you say your name for me?”

“Kim Taehyung?”

“I just wanted to hear your own voice say your name. It feels better when you can say your own name with your own voice instead of someone else doing it. I mean I know I knew your name but it didn’t feel right that I didn’t know your name with your own voice…I hope that makes sense. Oh god, I’m blabbering.”

With that, Taehyung knew he made the right decision giving her his number. He let out a small chuckle and nodded his head, “I never really thought of it that way...I like that idea and I like your blabbering.”

“But I’m so glad you're not part of the mafia. I wouldn’t last in jail. You mentioned you wanted lunch...do you want to go out to lunch or like facetime while we eat?”

Taehyung looked around again and saw Jimin looking straight at him with a smirk. Taehyung rolled his eyes at him and turned his body towards the window, “Can we facetime and eat together? Is that okay?”

“Oh, it's fine for me. Just a heads up, if you hear yelling or crashing, it's nothing serious. It's just my roommates.”

Taehyung smiled at this and ignored the stare from Jimin, “That sounds like a plan. I can’t wait to see you.”

“Yeah...I can’t wait to see you too. I mean, no yeah, I can’t wait to see you. Ummm....bye?”

“Bye, I’ll facetime you when I get into the hotel.”

“Okay....bye...yeah bye.”

Taehyung let out a small laugh while putting his phone in pocket with a wide smile. He felt a small tap on his shoulder as he let out a sigh. He looked at Jimin with a raised eyebrow, “What?”

“Soooo, you have a date with the barista.”

“I wouldn’t call it a date...more like hanging out. I mean maybe later on maybe we can go on a date.”

Jimin nodded his head at this and patted Taehyung’s shoulder, “Look at you getting a girl. You’ve been a loner for so long that it's shocking that you can talk to one.”

Taehyung rolled his eyes smacking Jimin’s shoulder hard, “Shut up, your single still. Haven’t seen you talk to any girls in forever.”

“You don’t know my business.”

“Yes I do. You tell me everything.”

“That doesn’t mean anything. Maybe I hide things from you, you never know.”

“You don’t because the last time you tried hiding something from me, you started crying.”

“Why do you remember everything!?”

Namjoon glanced at them and sighed. He turned his head and gave them a stern look causing the two to stop talking, “No fighting. Shouldn’t you guys be tired from our busy day?”

“I am tired but Taehyung isn’t. He was talking to his girl.”

Taehyung quickly sent a glare at Jimin and then back at Namjoon who had his eyebrow raised, “Do you have a date?”

“It’s not a date...we're just going to facetime each other while we eat.”

Namjoon nodded his head and gave him a smile, “Have fun with that. Just be careful.”

Taehyung fought back his annoyance (Namjoon was only worried for him and he knew this) and nodded his head, “I will hyung.”

Extended ending:

Taehyung stood in his bathroom staring at himself in the mirror and took a deep breath, “It’s okay. You're just talking to her, that’s all.” He heard a knock at the door and he walked towards it expecting his lunch but when he opened it, his eye was twitching, “What the hell are you guys doing here!?”

Jungkook looked at Jin and shrugged his shoulders, “We just wanted to see you off for your date.”

“It's not a date!”

Jin let out a small laugh and leaned against the door frame, “Are you going to show her your-”

Before he could finish his sentence, Taehyung shut his door on their faces and walked back to the bathroom. When he entered the bathroom his phone was ringing in his pocket and he rolled his eyes. He quickly picked up his phone (without checking it), “What?”

“Oh, sorry. Are you busy?”

He wanted to kick himself in that moment and let out a small cough, “Never for you.” He was going to beat Jin and Jungkook’s ass after this.

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heartsdefine · 3 months

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↪ memes — accepting!

@highaver said: "I'm sorry. I was stupid. I should have come back earlier. I wish that I had." magician bal for julia after he's vanished for a bit in t40

“Would you believe me if I said I had a feeling you'd be back?” Julia flicked the ash from the end of her cigarette, having watched him approach the cottage from her perch on the stone wall outside its front door. Reaching into her jacket pocket, she produced a pack of smokes and offered him one. “Not that you owe us anything, really.” She might've brought him home and helped him get sober, but he hadn't asked for that help, and she hadn't expected him to stick around and help them bring back magic just because of that.

#re; julia wicker. ( the girl who became goddess )#ic; julia.#answers; julia.#highaver #int; julia & balfour.#v; julia main. ( the wheel of fortune )#arc; julia. ( timeline 40 )

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adeehayag · 9 months

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too far / a self para (pt. 1)

And I’ve gone too far Lost my mind, it was overdone I'm melting with your scars Now I find nothing else to hold on And it's my fault It's my fault

triggers: death, murder

Dear diary,

I think that’s how I’m supposed to start writing this. I’m not entirely sure how to go about it because the last time I had a diary, I was fourteen years old and I had a crush on one of the guys on the football team. I was talking about him so much, like how cute he was when he smiled, or how tall he was and how I wanted to wear his letterman jacket. One day, though, the diary slipped out of my backpack and a classmate took it, reading it out loud for everyone to hear, to make fun of me.

I swore to myself I’d never have another diary again.

However, I went to therapy today. It was my first time, and seeing how nervous it made me feel, I think that was the last time too. She was nice, though. Made me feel really safe in her office, even though I didn’t like how prodding her eyes were. I felt like I was being examined. Aren’t therapists supposed to be warm?

Anyway, she told me I seemed to have a problem with letting my words out vocally, so doing this could be a little exercise. Just write everything down in this notebook, and told me I won’t have to show it to her at all. Just to let it all out in my own way when I’m ready because it might help me.

At this point, after Dante’s death, I don’t think I can be helped, but I’ll try my best. She’s right, this might be good for me. A way for me to retrace my steps. To learn from whatever mistakes I may have made so I won’t do them again.

For the next time I’ll kill someone.

May 6, 2023

I think I’ll do this by date, starting from the very beginning, so I won’t get lost in the storytelling of it all. May 6 was the day of Mama’s reopening and it started off so well. I was up so early, so happy to don my waitressing uniform again, feeling like I had my armor back on. I might have never thought I’d be a waitress at this point in my life, in this age, but it seemed I was damn good at being one.

I’ve loved Mama’s for as long as I can remember, so being there that night of the fire had been traumatizing, especially because we all thought everyone had gotten out. We had absolutely no idea someone had been stuck there. Thoughts of the smoke in my lungs, of rushing out of there, of watching the building crumble in front of my eyes were in my head as I went to the newly renovated building, and I couldn’t be happier.

After the nightmare that was working at Medusa as a server, being back at Mama’s felt like coming home. The smell of the coffee brewing, seeing the newly furnished booths that continued the theme of the diner, talking to my friends during my breaks, all of it made me feel so at peace.

Up until I had to witness Dante yelling at his ex-girlfriend. Talking about how he was a father. I’d known Dante since we were younger, even dated during high school, even though I know he’d always been smitten with that woman. Now, he was a father? And from what I could hear from the conversation, he had no idea about it?

Dante stayed on my mind the entire day, throughout me ending my shift at Mama’s, to me coming home so Julia, Maya and I can get ready together, to coming to Medusa for Jieun’s party.

I saw Dante that night, saw how sad he was and after hearing what had happened at Mama’s, all I wanted to do was to make him feel better. When the bathroom had been suggested, I was more than ready for it. I was happy about it even. Maybe this was my shot at getting him to see that he deserved better than her, that instead of focusing on her, he should be focusing on me instead. That maybe what he had been looking for was right here all along.

He had other people to talk to, though, and as I nursed my wounded ego after the bathroom, I caught Rhys’ eye. We worked together for a while there, and he had always been the sweetest guy, always so concerned about everybody. Even when he had to break up a drunken fight and had to throw people out of the club, he was always kind to them. I don’t even think I’ve seen that gentle giant be mad at all.

Thoughts about Dante immediately went out of my head when we started talking and with the alcohol already in my system, I just wanted to get out there with Rhys. His shift was done, I was a little tipsy, and here was a guy who seemed interested in me. When he suggested for us to get out of there, it was like I jumped up, wanting nothing more.

He said he let a friend crash over at his place tonight, so I told him we could go to mine instead, but on the way there, I felt like I couldn’t wait anymore. We were already in the neighborhood, just a couple more minutes from my place with Julia, but I told him to pull over. We were near the Salem Neck Trail, and the woods looked a little creepier than usual, but it offered us the privacy I wanted. Once we started kissing, my mind became completely distracted. It didn’t really matter where we were. All I thought of was Rhys. All I wanted was Rhys.

While we were in the car, we heard a noise outside, but while I told him to just leave it alone, being the man that he was, he decided to check it out, to make sure that nothing was out of the ordinary. I didn’t want to stay in the car by myself, just waiting for him, so I put my clothes back on and rushed outside to follow him.

It was dark, he was already ahead of me and I was spooked. I was very spooked. The sounds from the critters around me that I couldn’t see made me jump every time, and I was glad I still had my bag on me because something inside of it offered me some comfort. What not a lot of people know was that I had a pocket knife on me at all times. I learned to carry it around once I started working at Mama’s and realized I was in for a lot of late nights. I didn’t have a car, and there was something so scary about being out in the open at night, even when on a bike.

Swallowing thickly, I called out for Rhys, the light from inside the car no longer reaching to this part of the trail and my heart was thudding in my chest. I could see the road well enough, even though it was dimly lit, but I couldn’t see Rhys at all. I thought I was following him but I could no longer see him, couldn’t even hear him and I was about to cry, when just then, I heard someone make a sound from behind me, like one of those sounds made by friends when you’re trying to scare another friend, and I could feel their breath on the back of my neck, spooking me even more. Without even thinking, I turned around, knife at the ready, just to see the laughter in Rhys’ eyes make way for shock.

I followed his eyes down to where I had stabbed him in the gut, and I couldn’t fully see it, but I could feel the wetness of the blood on my hand. In my panic, I had pulled the knife out, which just made more of the blood gush out. I remember muttering no, no, no. What did I do? What did I do? What do I do? but then even amidst my panicked breathing and scattered brain, one thing was clear to me.

Rhys decided to scare me, thinking it was all a game, thinking it was funny. It wasn’t funny. He wasn’t funny. However cute he may be, it wasn’t funny and it was almost like I was having an out of body experience as I watched my own shaking hand plunging the knife into his stomach again. And again. And again. And again.

Everyone treated me like I was some helpless, little girl after my parents were arrested. Everyone thought it was funny to play games with the girl who lost everything and I was sick of it.

He was supposed to be fucking nice. That wasn’t nice. So I’m not going to be nice.

I didn’t know how long I stood there, but eventually, the adrenaline and the anger faded, and nothing but panic settled in.

What the fuck did I do? What did I do?

I’m going to jail, I remember thinking that. They’re going to arrest me and throw me in a cell just like they did with my parents. I’m going to die there. I’m going to be somebody’s bitch because I don’t know what I’m going to do in there. I can’t do it. I can’t go to jail. I can’t.

Rhys did this. He did this to himself. Not me.

Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, oh my g--, I paused my muttering, startled, because when I looked up, I saw the view of the road now obstructed by a figure. I didn’t know if they heard me. I didn’t even know if they could see me, but once the figure started walking towards me, I knew I was done for.

This is it. I’m going to jail.

But once I saw that it was Jake, it was like the hope energized me yet again. Jake could help me. Jake could save me. We had so much history together that even though we were no longer friends because of Kat, I felt like I was about to cry when he decided to help me. I was so relieved, I didn’t even stop to think about why he was out here by himself at this hour. I didn’t even think about why he was helping me. I just knew that he was, and I loved him for it.

I could feel my dinner threaten to make itself reappear once he got to work, and even then, I didn’t stop think about how he was so good at this. How calm he was as Rhys’ body was chopped into pieces. How this entire situation didn’t faze him.

He was helping me, taking care of me and wasn’t that all that mattered to me? Wasn’t that what I said I always wanted? What I always needed? Someone who’d just take care of me, and won’t make me feel alone?

My trust in him solidified completely that night. He was my knight in shining armor, coming in just in time to save me from the horror of a prison cell. How good he looked with blood on his hands, while I had blood on mine. How strong he was. How capable. He was perfect.

We’re forever intertwined now, because of this. Because of me. A silent promise that all that happened tonight would stay between us, and just us, and I couldn’t help but feel cocky. Kat wouldn’t know about this, only me. I trusted Jake, and he trusted me.

As I went home that night with the comfort and assurance that he’d take care of everything, I didn’t even think of Rhys. I didn’t think of his blood. I didn’t think of his family. I didn’t think of the future he no longer gets to have.

Just Jake. My hero.

May 20, 2023

A part of me thought that the worst was over. I was scared of the entire world finding out what I had done, but I also felt relieved because I knew that Jake wouldn’t hurt me like that, and the days passed by with no incidents at all. The only good thing is that everybody felt panicked, which gave me a reason to seem panicked as well.

I’d sometimes go to the bathroom at Mama’s, turn on the hand dryer and scream loudly, not because I was freaking out about the killers, as others were, but just because I could. It was almost... euphoric. I got rid of someone I didn’t really care about who thought he was funny but wasn’t, and other than the initial fear that people would remember I had been the one Rhys had ended the night with, I just felt... free. Like I could take on the whole world.

I was happy.

That is, until Jake decided to contact me again. I didn’t really know what was going on or why he felt the need to contact me when I had just spent a really good night with my best friends, and though I was happy that he did seem to want to talk me, I was still confused as I followed his directions to where I was supposed to go. I had completely accepted the fact that I’d do absolutely anything for him but once I got there, though, I was met with a sight that was something I never thought I’d ever have to see in my life.

Maya.

She was unconscious, and I couldn’t be too sure but I think the matting of her hair was because of blood there. The image a stark contrast to how she looked just a couple of hours ago when she was with me and Julia in our apartment. I remember my first instinct had been to run towards her, and I almost tripped on my way there until I found myself kneeling beside the chair she was placed in. My hands held onto her cheeks, grateful to feel that they weren’t cold like Rhys’ were.

She’s okay, I said, relief evident in my voice but my blood ran cold as I moved my eyes up to meet Jake’s. My hero. This strong, capable man handing me a knife.

I like to think I’m a smart person, but I felt really dumb then. Completely and totally dumb. It didn’t register in my mind what that knife is for. I didn’t even understand why we were here in the first place. I always thought that if I snuck around everyone’s back with Jake, we’d be doing something completely different.

My hands reached out for the knife regardless, because it felt like that was what I was supposed to do. As my hands wrapped around the handle, it slowly started to sink in what we were here for. Almost as if I could now see things with a clearer vision.

No, I remember saying. No. I can’t do that to Maya. I can’t-- This-- I was struggling to breathe, only then realizing where we were. How... sterile the entire environment was. How... planned out. I remember thinking this is the work of someone who’s a planner. Maybe Jake had been planning this for months. Maybe even years. I really didn’t know, and now didn’t really feel like the time to ask, not when I was panicking so hard.

Then the words came that brought tears to my eyes. Kill her or I’ll kill you both.

I didn’t understand. I thought Jake was my hero, was someone I could look up to and trust completely. He helped me with the unfortunate situation that was Rhys and I thought that was that. We were bonded by that secret that we’ll carry with us until we die. I didn’t think we’d be back to do more. I didn’t think he’d ask me to do something that I couldn’t possibly do.

I couldn’t possibly do this, right? I can’t. I won’t.

I can’t do this, I said, hearing how shaky my own voice was. I can’t kill Maya. Please don’t make me kill Maya. I can’t.

I didn’t understand the look in his eyes when he listened to my stammering. How dead they were. How panicked mine must have been, but the silence in that room was heavy, only interrupted by my quick breathing. Do you ever think about those times when you sob so uncontrollably, especially as a child, and then you take a shaky breath after what felt like the longest time when in reality, it had just been a couple of minutes, glad that the worst was over?

That was what I wanted to feel. That was what I needed to feel right now, because my brain was starting to hurt and I just wanted this to be over. I didn’t want to feel like this anymore, like something was being held over my head, and the only way to do that was to do what Jake asked me to do.

It almost felt like I was watching someone else’s shaky hand hold up the knife and see it plunged deep into Maya’s chest. A strangled gasp escaped past my lips as my hands immediately let go of the knife, jumping back as if the handle was hot to touch, my tears falling down my cheeks with no intention of stopping.

What the fuck did I do? What the fuck did I do? What the fuck did I do?

There was nothing else I could have done after that, except watch as Jake did what he did best. What I had seen him do only once before. He was methodical, almost trained, and I know I should be scared. I should be running for the hills seeing how good this man is at handling a dead body, but instead, something like warmth bloomed in my chest.

I did it.

I did what he asked me to do and I did it well. He didn’t have to say that he was proud of me because I know he is. After feeling completely powerless after what happened with my parents and the spectacle my life had become immediately after that, there was power in knowing how easy it was to take a life. To know that Jake trusted me still. To know I could do it, and that I will. I won’t hesitate next time.

Rest in peace, Maya, I thought, as I watched Jake cut off her hands, the tears long gone by then. There was no more sadness in what I had done. It was necessary, I thought. Maybe a part of me was relieved too that Maya was no longer in the picture. Julia and I were the best friends here, not Julia and Maya. I was taken aback by the sudden realization but I was quick to accept the dark truth about what I really thought about her as I stepped into a pool of her blood. Maya should have known better than to tread onto my friendship.

This part was always Jake’s domain, I thought, as I stepped back and merely watched him, filled with admiration and warmth, barely even giving much attention to the corpse in the room with them.

June 9, 2023

I gave myself a chance to let loose and just do what I wanted to do on my birthday, even though it was a day after Maya’s body was found and I had to force myself to seem sad still about her death, when in reality, I really wasn’t. Now that I couldn’t stop picturing her as the third wheel in my friendship with Julia, all I could think of when I remember her is good riddance.

My birthday came and went. I felt pretty good that night in the outfit that I wore to Medusa, I ended up in bed with Kyle, had a talk with Julia about it the morning after, but other than that, the days trickled by slowly, and it seemed like things were going back to normal. I didn’t really understand why Tucker had to die, but I was positive Jake would talk to me about it when the time came.

Was it bad that I felt a tiny, tiny, tiny bit of FOMO about it? Why’d he have to kill Tucker when I wasn’t there?

I asked myself that, but then I realized there was a better question I should be asking myself: Why was I thinking about killing again? Why did I want to? Was it the rush of power that I got watching the life drain from their eyes, knowing it was me who had been responsible for it? Was it the fact that it was something I can control, compared to everything else that had happened in my life after my parents’ arrest that made me feel completely helpless? Was it because it gave me a reason to be closer to Jake?

Either way, I felt like I ready when Jake and I met up again. I remember I was even smiling when I walked back to where I had previously killed Maya, and I was still smiling when I saw Ruby’s lifeless frame. Jake’s been busy, I remember thinking, full of glee and anticipation. I wonder who mine is. My present. Jake’s present for me. It was only when I realized who the other person was beside Ruby that the smile finally left my lips. Seeing the familiar dark hair. The expression on her face that I could delude into thinking was just her being asleep, instead of unconscious in a dark room, being prepped for slaughtered.

No. The word moved past my lips firmly and I shook my head, not even daring to reach for the knife in Jake’s hands. No, I repeated and it was just that one word being said over and over as the tears started to pool in my eyes. Surely, Jake wouldn’t do this. Surely, there was still a line that neither of them can cross.

Surely, Julia couldn’t be killed, not when she was my best friend in the whole world. Not when she had done absolutely nothing to deserve to have an end like this. Hadn’t Maya been enough?

Please. Please don’t do this, I begged, but it felt like he wasn’t even hearing me. It didn’t matter if I started to sob, the same words that had been said in this same room were said once again, and I thought I knew what despair felt like, but I was wrong. I was so wrong.

Kill her or I’ll kill you both.

I wanted to scream then. I had to be the one to kill her? Wasn’t the fact that she was possibly going to be killed bad enough? Maybe a part of me really did want to kill Maya because I didn’t resist as much as I was resisting now. I didn’t cry as much as I was crying now. I didn’t want to do this. I can’t. I won’t. I can’t do this. I can’t hurt Julia.

But did I have a choice? Did Jake leave me with one?

I couldn’t read the expression on his face. Once again, I don’t know where I stand with him. Weren’t we closer than ever? If so, why all this? Was this just a test? Was he testing me, to see where my loyalties were? Did he want to hurt me? Is he really going to hurt me if I can’t do this? Was this random? Did he think this whole plan through? Why Julia?

Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?

Please don’t make me do this, I sobbed, hoping and praying that he would change his mind but to no avail.

I don’t want to die, I remember thinking. I can’t die yet. But how can I live if I push through with this? If my best friend’s death will be on my hands? Can I survive that?

A thought popped into my head then that I really didn’t have a choice. I saw what Jake was capable of. I had come to understand the look in his eyes for the after part, even loving that part of him. When the hacking off of body parts started happening. When his eyes swept over the room to make sure there was no trace left of what he had done. It was when he’s in his element, tapping into who he innately is, and I get to take a peek on who he really is and loving him anyway. Funnily enough, it was also when he’s like this when I feel safest, because I knew what he could do, and I couldn’t believe how lucky I was that he trusted me enough to show this side of him.

I just never thought I wasn’t part of the exception.

Would he really hurt me? I don’t have a choice. I don’t. I don’t. I don’t. I can’t do this. I need to do this. I have to. I don’t have a choice.

I’m sorry, I said, sobs racking my chest as I finally wrapped my hand around the handle of the knife, staring down at my best friend’s face. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I whispered as I stabbed her in the chest, making sure it was clean. Making sure it was quick and painless. The kind of death she deserved. I could grant her this one last favor.

I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.

And for the first time since all this happened, I finally understood what grief truly was. I understood what love truly was.

Grief is dealing with what I did to Julia, my own best friend. Love is dealing with knowing even after giving me no choice, I still would do anything, anything for Jake.

June 22, 2023

I didn’t have to fake it this time. The sadness. The loss of appetite. The lack of desire to actually do anything. The strong urge to stay in bed the whole day to cry. The inability to fall asleep. I didn’t even have the option to bury myself in work because Minnie decided to give me as many days off as I wanted while I grieved.

I hated it. I hated the pity in her eyes, and I hated the pity in everyone else’s eyes too. It wasn’t like this after my parents got arrested. Back then, people were judging me because of their mistakes, as if I was the one who had been taking all that money. Back then, I hated all the judgment, even wanted to walk up to people to tell them to stop judging me for something I didn’t even do, but now, I’d jump at the chance to be judged over pitied.

I hated it. I hated everything about it. I still loved Jake, and I knew that will always be the case, but I couldn’t stop seeing the knife plunging into Julia’s chest every time I closed my eyes. The memory of the man I loved was intertwined with the deaths of my two best friends and it brought a lot of conflicting emotions that just left me exhausted.

My only consolation, the only beacon of hope I felt like I had left in this world, was Dante. I can still remember what had happened at Mama’s reopening, the look on his face, but nowadays, he seemed to be doing better, which I found relieving. He was one of the few people who actively checked in to see how I was doing after the news of Julia got out and it meant a lot more to me than people thought.

Just because I killed my best friends doesn’t mean I don’t have feelings, you know?

He just made me so, so, so happy and even though we used to date, hooked up sometimes throughout the years, talking with him now felt like we were meeting each other again for the first time, which wasn’t really that far off. After all, I wasn’t the same person I was back in high school, in the same way I hope he wasn’t the same person he was back in high school too, when he seemed to be completely head over heels over this other woman, who I always felt didn’t deserve him.

I wanted to change that, for sure. I wanted his eyes on me. I wanted to be the priority this time around, and not just be the person someone fucks before getting back with their ex, like how I felt with Dante’s cousin, Grey, especially because it already sucked seeing him run right back to his ex. I really didn’t need to see Jake go running back to his bitch of a girlfriend too after every kill we did together. Seeing it happen made me angry every single time, made me feel like an option.

It wasn’t fair on me.

I was the one who knows the real Jake, not her. He’s probably just with her for some ass anyway. I really wouldn’t mind killing again if it meant I’d get to hurt that fucking bitch. I want to see the panicked look in her eyes as she realizes she has no way out and that I’m the one who gets to dangle death in her face. I want to hurt her. I want her to suffer. I want to hear her cry. I want her to try to fight back. I want to slap her over and over.

And over and over and over and over again. I want her cheeks to be red as hell, payback for what she did to me. I’ll find a way to make this happen. I’m sure of it.

Her being friends with Dante is also so fucking annoying. I swear, Dante’s like a magnet for the most annoying people ever. Kat, Sawyer, Lucia, fucking Bella. They can all die for all I care. I’ll kill them all myself if I have to, since it would probably make the world a much better place. They’re all distractions from me anyway. From what Jake and I could have. I mean, Dante and I.

Jake can have fun with his fake blonde bitch, and I’ll just focus all my efforts on Dante, which wasn’t really that hard because he made it so easy to care for him. He had such a good heart, such a kind soul that I could definitely see myself falling in love with him. Maybe he’ll get over his ex and fall in love with me somehow too. At the rate we were going, I was pretty optimistic about it, especially because he asked me to be his plus one at the music festival.

Some part of me knew that relying on just him for my happiness wasn’t healthy, but I was grieving my best friends’ deaths and I just wanted everyone else to leave me alone. At this point, I didn’t even care what anybody else thought. I just wanted to be with Dante. If Jake wasn’t going to give me the time of day when he knows we should be together, then I shouldn’t even bother. Not when my heart was already yearning for another.

I smiled as I got a text message from Dante that night, and it felt like my entire body was filled with light. This man made me so, so happy and I wondered what this surprise was. Rolling over until I was resting on my stomach, my feet in the air, I sent him a quick reply.

A: can’t wait to see you tomorrow too. can i get a little hint on what this surprise might be? 💕

The smile on my face slowly disappeared as the minutes ticked by with no response. Maybe he was driving himself home? I was just about to give up and call it a night when I jumped at the sound of the notification saying I got a text.

It wasn’t from Dante, though. It was from Jake.

#( self para )#nobody talk to me about how long this is

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amlovelies · 2 years

Note

If it’s not too late could you do 8. “The way cold glass fogs when you press your hand against it for” a Sidestep?

not me filling this almost a year later 😬 just a little scene not long after cynthia returns to los diablos

from the sensory prompts lists

I almost do

fandom: fhr pairing: Julia Ortega/f!sidestep (Cynthia Basri) rating/warnings: none, light angst words: 646 read on ao3

It’s almost like living in a new city. You stay far away from your old haunts: the corner store where you used to get your smokes, that taco truck with the best al pastor you’ve ever tasted, the thrift store off Sepulveda where you found your favorite jacket. You find new places, busy places where you don’t get noticed. No more friendly banter with the sales clerk, you’re just another easily forgotten face.

A new Los Diablos for a new you.

You almost believe it. You spend months creating new habits, taking new roads, always avoiding the dangers zones that spiral out from the city center, until it becomes second nature.

It shouldn’t be a big deal then, taking this bus. You convince yourself it will be fine and realize how wrong you are as the familiar shape of the Ranger’s HQ comes into view.

You’ve been able to avoid it for months now, it’s not like the city center holds much for you now. You’re back on the outskirts, back with the forgotten and the cast off, spending your days on the edges.

You’re safely anonymous on the bus, just passing by, hood pulled low to cover your features. Maybe you should move away from the window, but you can’t bring yourself to, some sick needs making you watch the building grow closer as the bus makes it way down the congested street. It looks larger than you remembered, familiarity making it shrink in your memories, into somewhere safe, somewhere close to home.

Even this early there is still traffic, still too many cars, too many souls crowding the clogged streets. You can feel them beating against your shields. Exhaustion, frustration, rage pressing in on you. Its an almost welcome distraction to the tightness in your chest as a red light causes the bus to stop in front of the doors.

You can’t help yourself, face almost pressed against the glass,

You could hop off now. Walk through the door and what?

Your heart twitches in your chest.

Tell the receptionist you’re an old friend of Ortega’s stopping by for coffee?

Would there be any recognition if you gave your name? It’s not like you could say hi I’m Sidestep back from the dead, but Cynthia?

Cynthia wouldn’t mean anything to anyone but Ortega, and even that is a maybe.

What if that name means nothing to her anymore? What if you don’t mean anything to her anymore? That would be for the best. Better for her to move on. Besides what was there to move on from? A few stolen kisses? You never let it go further, never let it be more, and it’s not like you were the only one she was kissing, of course, she would move on.

You’d spent so long waiting for her to save you, hoping hoping hoping, but she never came. No one ever came for you and why would they? You are just a thing. A tool to be used by others. There isn’t even supposed to be a you. Every memory every emotion you felt over those years was a manufacturing flaw.

Wasn’t it?

It doesn’t feel that way, not when you can see the stupid R on the door handle, almost hear Themmy’s laugh beside you. If you closed your eyes now you know you would see Ortega, beckoning you forward leading you back into the life you thought you had. The chord is rough between your fingers and you don’t even remember reaching for it. All you have to do is pull, tell the bus to stop, to throw caution to the wind, but you resist. Instead, your hand comes to rest on the cold glass of the window, fog blooming under your heated skin until the building is swallowed up and obscured.

It’s just a fantasy. Themmy is dead, and so are you.

fhr tag list: @lilyoffandoms @rosarx @plotbunny-bundle @stealthbaguette

#thank you 💜#sky answers #I take forever with prompts sorry for who I am as a person #anon #sensory prompts #julia ortega #chargestep #fallen hero #fhr #if: fhr #fhr ortega #ship: you'll be her ruin #oc: cynthia basri #fic: cynthia basri #lovelieswrites

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voidnoidoid · 2 years

Text

Weaktober Prompt 7: GREASE

A/N: Sorry this is 2 days late... this piece of writing got way out of control. It's extremely, extremely loosely based on the 1978 movie Grease! I hope this makes up for me missing the entire first week of prompts. Enjoy. (total word count 3626)

“When you return, we’re gonna meet back here, you got that?” Lily said, facing the sun setting below the horizon, slowly dipping below the river. Glowing golden specks danced across the surface of Yeouido river. The sky was a gorgeous splash of reds and yellows, fading away to a dusty blue. Julia smiled, her gaze fixed on Lily, whose mocha hair and pale skin glowed gently in the sunset light.

“Yeah, that’s a promise.” Julia murmured. Lily turned to look at her, grinning.

“Don’t forget it!” She declared. The two of them sat in comfortable silence for a few moments, watching the sun go down, and the sky transform from radiant gold to soft pinks and blues.

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Lily twiddled her mechanical pencil in her fingers, gazing listlessly at the clock. An entire year had passed since she’d last seen Julia, who had gone abroad to further her studies. They had kept in touch, messaging each other frequently. However, texting every day dropped to every few days, to once a week, and finally to pure radio silence. Lily tried to brush it off as perhaps time zones got in the way, but she had a sneaking suspicion that Julia was trying to avoid her on purpose.

“Alright everyone! That’s the end of today’s cram school class. Make sure to finish reading pages 70 to 100 of the textbook, and see you all back here next Thursday!” The teacher announced, snapping Lily out of her reverie. She glanced at her notes, and breathed a sigh of relief as she had managed to take note of all the crucial parts of the lesson but there seemed to be something amiss. Her eyes drifted over to a supposedly blank corner of the page, where a drawing of Julia’s face sat, gazing melancholically into space. Gosh! Why had she doodled Julia out of all things? Lily grabbed an eraser, preparing to rub that drawing out of existence, but found that she could not bring herself to do it. She snapped her notebook shut and replaced her eraser back into her pencil case.

Lily put on her backpack and walked out of class, to see her friends waiting for her. “Lily, what took you so long?” One of them complained, a tall girl with hair cut in a short brown bob.

“Oh come on, it was only 5 minutes!” Another piped up, a slender girl with hair tied in two low pigtails.

“Haha, sorry to keep you waiting. Come on, let’s go home!” Lily chimed with faux cheerfulness. Hopefully walking with her new friends could take her mind off of Julia.

In the year following Julia’s departure, Lily had enrolled in a prestigious high school, and built up a reputation as the school’s resident star student, earning stellar grades with a sunny personality to boot. Lily had a warmth which drew people to her, and a subtle, unwavering inner strength. Despite how it seemed like Lily had it all, she always felt like something was missing.

Lily and her friends walked along the cram school street, talking and smiling on their way to the subway station. They were just about to walk past the convenience store across the road when Lily noticed something, more specifically someone, and her eyes widened in shock and surprise. Leaning on a wall outside the convenience store was none other than Julia Chae. There was no mistaking that deep purple hair and faraway stare. Julia was smoking a cigarette while scrolling on her phone, wearing a white scarf and a black leather jacket over a striped shirt.. In front of her was a huge black motorbike, with violet tyre rims and a decal of a flying raven of the same colour, emblazoned on the side of the motorbike, leaving a trail of feathers behind it.

Lily couldn’t believe her eyes. She never knew Julia as the delinquent type, and she hated smoking! More importantly, Julia was back and she did not tell her. Conflicting emotions churned within Lily. On one hand, she was glad to see an old friend, but on the other, she was hurt and worried over how she practically cut all contact with her. Just then, Julia looked up from her phone and their gazes met. Her eyes widened in surprise at the sight of Lily. Moments passed, and neither of them wanted to look away.

“Hey! Lily! What are you doing just standing there?” The tall girl called out from ahead of her.

“Ah! Coming!” Lily replied, and started jogging towards her friends. She cast a look back at where Julia was, but she was already gone.

At home, Lily sat on her bed, furiously messaging Julia, but to no avail. She wasn’t picking up any of her calls either. Lily let out a cry of frustration, as Julia was clearly reading all her texts, judging by the little notification next to them. “We’re gonna meet up, whether you like it or not!” Lily huffed. She sent another message,

[Julia, I know you’re reading this. Meet at Dawn Cafe this Saturday at 3pm. I’ll be waiting.]

With that, she shut off her phone, placed it on her bedside table and flopped onto her bed, letting out an exasperated sigh. What happened to the girl she once knew?

Dawn Cafe was filled with the buzz of conversation, the tinkling of teaspoons in ceramic cups, and the soothing jazz that played in the background. Lily sat in a secluded corner of the cafe, next to a window, sipping her vanilla latte. It was 2:45 pm, and she was early. She stared at the entrance, watching as each customer walked in, anticipating Julia’s arrival. After what seemed like an eternity, Julia walked through the door, dressed in a simple long-sleeved black shirt and loose jeans. She had her hair down, unlike the last night where she had it fixed in a low bun. Julia looked tired, her eyes sunken and face thin. She made her way towards where Lily was sitting, and sat down.

“Look who decided to show up.” Lily said. Julia remained silent, but her eyes darkened slightly. “So, you came back to Korea huh? How was life overseas?” Lily said, barely masking the hurt in her voice. She gripped her skirt under the table, feeling the soft fabric scrunch up beneath her fingers. Julia did not speak. “Don’t you have anything to say to me?”

Julia finally met Lily’s gaze. “Lily, I’m sorry. I lied to you.”

“Wha- what do you mean?”

“I never went overseas. I took a gap year to work and earn some money.” Julia confessed, shamefaced. Lily was stunned.

“Why didn’t you tell me any of this?”

“I didn’t want you to worry-”

“Oh really? Then why didn’t you respond to my messages? Why didn’t you call, or email, or anything? You practically ghosted me for half a year, and you’re telling me you didn’t want me to worry?” Lily spat in anger. She felt her eyes water, and took off her glasses to rub the tears away. “And what’s with the whole… motorbike, smoking thing? It’s so not you.” Despite everything, Lily managed a small laugh.

Fidgeting with her sleeve, Julia responded, “I joined a gang… to work as their courier. No fighting or anything, I just do deliveries.” Lily raised an eyebrow. “It pays well, enough to make ends meet.”

“But why this? Why not some normal job?” Lily asked, incredulous.

“I needed money, a lot of it, and fast. You know my mum… well, she’s not doing too good right now. Someone has to pay the bills. One thing led to another and… here I am. It’s a long story.”

Lily went quiet at that. She was so wrapped up in her own hurt feelings that she hadn’t stopped to consider how Julia was feeling. She had her own problems too. “Julia, I’m sorry I-”

“No Lily, I should be the one to apologise. I don’t have any excuses for how I’ve treated you. I felt like this side of me was something I couldn’t let you find out about. I’m sorry. How can I make it up to you?”

Lily took a long drink from her latte, which was getting cold. She set it down with an audible thunk against the table. The light from the window reflected off her glasses, making them shine with an ominous glint. “Apology…..” Julia gulped nervously. “....accepted.” She let out a sigh of relief.

“I- I thought you’d be angrier.” Julia remarked.

“Oh I am. But you know how you can make it up to me?” Lily said.

“How?”

“No more secrets! You better respond to my texts this time!” She declared, pointing at Julia, who smiled in relief. “And… Could you stop working for your gang? I don’t think it’s the right thing for you to do.”

“Alright. That’s a promise.”

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Julia raced down the highway on her Yamaha YZF-R3, on her way to her next assignment. The street lights were a yellow blur against the midnight sky and the edges of her leather jacket that she wore backwards fluttered behind her, like the feathers of a bird. She had done some reflection after her meeting with Lily. The delinquent life she was leading now gave her no satisfaction. It was simply a means to an end, and was in no way a long term solution to her problems. Thinking about it rationally, Julia felt a pang of regret for the choices she made that led her down this path. It was job after job, one risk bigger than the other, and for Lily’s sake, Julia had decided that enough was enough.

“You want out of this gig? Sure. If you’re able to bring back what was stolen from me. If not… I’m afraid your wings are gonna get clipped, Violet Raven. ” Her boss, Wolf Keum, gave her this final mission. She was to retrieve a bag full of important documents currently in the possession of a rival biker gang, the Hounds.

The Hounds were a group of vicious thugs willing to do anything and everything for a large sum of money. Whoever hired them was filthy rich. “Sort of like me.” Julia thought, but she shook that thought aside. She was different. She had a good reason to need the money. She wasn’t some brainless thug.

Soon, she arrived at the Hounds home base, an abandoned warehouse in a shady part of town. She parked her bike somewhere inconspicuous, and kept her helmet on. If the Hounds caught sight of her face she would be done for. Sneaking into their base was like jumping straight into the lion’s den, but according to the intel she received, the Hounds would usually be out roaming the streets at this time.

Under the cover of night, Julia sneaked into the warehouse through an open door. It was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. She found herself in a room stacked with various boxes and crates, the walls lined with shelving units. Quickly, she scanned the room for any signs of a leather bag emblazoned with “GOLD”. She was just about to leave when a glint in the darkness caught her eye. Right there, beneath a small open window was the bag she was looking for, tucked away in a corner. If she hadn’t spotted the reflected light, who knows how long she’d be in here for? As silent as an owl in flight, Julia retrieved the bag and retraced her steps out of the warehouse. That was easier than she thought.

Stashing the bag safely in a storage compartment on the back of her motorbike, Julia hopped on her bike and was about to leave when-

“Hey! Who the fuck is that!” It was one of the Hounds. She had to leave. Now. Gripping the handlebars tight, she sped off into the night as fast as she could, hoping and praying to whatever God out there that she wouldn’t be tailed. Thankfully, it seemed that the Hound did not recognise her.

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The next evening, she was summoned to the rooftop of Ganghak High, where she returned the stolen bag to Wolf. The head of Ganghak lounged on his chair, his lackeys standing on either side of him. “Didn’t think you could do it.” He said, looking nonchalantly at Julia. He unzipped the bag and peered inside, checking the contents. After a few seconds, he closed the bag, satisfied. “Good, everything’s as it should be. You’re a reliable one, Raven.” Julia nodded, feeling stiff from the immense aura Wolf gave off.

“Welp, I’m a man of my word. You can leave.” Wolf remarked. Julia’s eyes widened, feeling a bit stunned. Was she really being let go this easily? His smile dropped after seeing Julia just standing there, unmoving. “Well? I said leave.” Julia cast her gaze downward, muttered a thank you and left in a hurry. Thankfully he was in a relatively good mood that evening, and for whatever reason, let her go with no strings attached. Julia descended the stairs, mounted her bike, and with a muffled roar of her engine, drove to the convenience store near the cram school street.

The convenience store was a comfort to Julia. The clean, pristine floors, neatly organised shelves of snacks, medical supplies and other miscellaneous goods. A place where people passed by and nothing more. The feeling of impermanence, ironically, was a grounding force to Julia. She had come in to buy a pack of cigarettes, and was just about to go to the counter to get some, but stopped herself. “I’ll have one of those please.” She gestured to a package of strawberry candies, Lily’s favourite.

Julia stepped out of the store, the chime ringing as she exited. She pocketed the candy, and was just about to leave when she heard a distant roar of multiple engines. She looked out to the road, and there they were. The Hounds. A quintet of blood red motorbikes were speeding down the road. Their leader, Jeongmu Choi, led the pack straight towards her. “Shit!” She muttered, stuffing her head into her helmet. She’d have to shake them off.

Her heartbeat pounded in her ears as she raced down the road. Thankfully there wasn’t much traffic at this hour. In her side mirrors, she could see that the Hounds were hot on her trail. She grit her teeth and accelerated as fast as she could. The wind whipped her hair behind her, biting cold. If she weren’t being hunted down, she would have found this rather exhilarating. Julia neared a crossroads, she turned left. Then a right. Right again, and another left. Surely she’d lost them by now right? She was dead wrong. Once the Hounds had caught wind of her scent there was no shaking them off now.

“Shit, shit, shit!” Julia skidded to a halt, tyres screaming against asphalt as her bike turned at a 180 degree angle. She stuck out a leg to stabilise herself, dragging against the road. She’d reached a dead end. The hounds had cornered her into a dead end street. The walls of the buildings stretched high above her akin to a birdcage. Julia dismounted her motorbike, and removed her helmet, fixing the rival gang with a steel-cold glare. The Hounds formed a barrier with their bikes, removing all possibility of escape. Jeongmu dismounted his bike and smirked maliciously at her.

“You’ve got nowhere to run, little birdy. Nobody steals from us and gets away from it.” He said, voice low and threatening. A girl emerged from behind him, stalking arrogantly towards Julia. It was Lala Lee, the two-faced narcissist who humiliated her a year prior.

She flipped her hair, getting right up in Julia’s face. “What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue? We’re gonna put you in your place you worthless bitch.” She shoved Julia roughly, sending her stumbling back a few steps.

“Hmph, I’ve got nothing to say to you. You’re a pathetic attention-hungry brat who’s only method of filling that empty hole in your heart is by hanging out with brainless idiots like them.” Julia retorted, venom lacing her words. Lala, enraged, slapped Julia in the face. She didn’t flinch.

“Argh! Y-you BITCH!” Lala turned to Jeongmu, pointing angrily at Julia. “What are you waiting for, get her babe!” At that, the Hounds began closing in on Julia. She put her hands up in a guard stance, steeling herself for the pain that was about to come.

Jeongmu cracked his knuckles and said, “You heard what she said. A shame I gotta mess up your face, you’re pretty cute.” Lala shot him a glare. “But obviously not as hot as Princess over there.” Julia shut her eyes and braced herself, there wasn’t any way out of this one.

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Lily was scrolling through social media when something caught her eye. It was a post from Lala, her ex-friend from middle school. She gasped in shock when she saw it, a selfie of Lala with a menacing group of thugs in the background, cornering a girl. Lala had really gone too far. And was that… Julia? Lily read the caption, “Bye bye birdie! Prepare to get crushed.” Lily zoomed in. There was no mistake. That really was Julia. Her leather jacket and black and purple motorbike gave it away. She was in deep trouble! Looking closer, Lily recognised that street, it was the shopping district near her apartment complex!

She had no time to lose. Lily threw off her blanket, grabbed a hoodie from her closet and threw it on. Quietly, so she would not awaken her parents, she crept out of her room, slipped on her pair of slides, and snuck out of the house. Within minutes, Lily was on her bicycle, pedalling as fast as she could on her way to the shopping street where Julia was. It had been a while since Lala had posted that picture, she hoped she could reach Julia in time.

Turning a corner, Lily finally reached her destination. The alley was completely deserted, save for a figure lying on the ground in a crumpled heap. “Julia!” Lily exclaimed, getting off her bike and rushing to her. “Oh… Julia…” Lily breathed, examining Julia’s condition. She was unconscious, her pale skin littered with bruises, black and blue. Lily gently brushed the hair from Julia’s face, revealing a streak of blood dripping from her forehead and lips. Lily sat and rested Julia’s head on her lap. She retrieved her cell phone and dialled the number for the ambulance. “Julia, you big idiot.” Tears started welling up in Lily’s eyes. “I’m sorry I’m late. I’m sorry I wasn’t there to protect you.” She sniffled.

She held Julia in her arms til the ambulance came, the wailing siren and red-blue lights enveloping them both.

Julia regained consciousness the next afternoon, with Lily by her side at the hospital bed. “Lily…?” She whispered, her voice raspy. Lily’s head shot up, immediately turning to look at Julia.

“What happened?” Lily asked, concerned. Julia recounted the events that had transpired, and she listened with rapt attention. “So… it’s over? No more gang stuff?”

“Yes. I’m done with that life now.” Julia said with a smile.

“You idiot… you could have just come to me for help instead of going through all that alone! I was so-”

“Worried? Yeah, sorry.”

“Agh whatever! That’s all over and done with now. I’m glad you’re okay Julia.” Lily smiled.

Julia looked down, cheeks reddening slightly. “C-can we start over? Hang out like we used to?” She asked in a soft voice. Lily beamed brighter.

“Heh, that’s a promise!”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was the end of another school day. Lily was heading towards the school gates when she spotted a crowd gathering at the front. Curious, she went to see what all the commotion was.

It was Julia, waiting for her at the school’s entrance, le

aning against her bike. She smiled and waved when she saw Lily. “Hey, come on, let’s go!” Lily’s blushed, embarrassed by the murmurs and attention the other students were giving her. She took her helmet from Julia’s hands, white with pink flowers emblazoned on it, complimenting Julia’s dark coloured helmet. Lily sat behind Julia on the passenger seat, and held on to her waist. “Hold on tight.” Julia said, right before she sped off.

“Where are we going?!” Lily yelled over the noise of the bike.

“You’ll see!”

Giggling, Lily had an inkling about where Julia was taking her, but she didn’t want to ruin the surprise. Slowly, she leaned forward and rested her head on Julia’s back, hugging her from the behind. Unbeknownst to Lily, Julia’s heart skipped a beat.

“We’re here.” Julia announced. They were at the bank of Yeouido River, at the exact spot where they had promised to reunite a year prior. The two girls walked over to the stone stairs leading down to the river, sitting on the second step.

“It’s just as beautiful as I remember.” Lily said. They were just in time to catch the sunset, which burned the sky a brilliant array of pink, yellow and red. A soft breeze blew in from the west, a gentle, cool wind.

“Hey Julia?”

“Hm?”

“Thanks for remembering.” Lily said.

“Even if I’m over a week late?” Julia teased.

“Yeah! What gives, ya dummy?” Lily shot back, grinning from ear to ear.

For a while, the two of them sat and watched the sunset, just like old times. As the sun sank below the horizon, Lily said to Julia, looking into her eyes,

“I missed you.”

The golden sunlight formed a halo behind Julia’s head. Her gaze was impossibly warm, Lily felt herself getting lost in it.

“I missed you too.”

#weaktober #weak hero #lily nam #Julia chae #weak hero lily #weak hero julia #weaktober day 7 #this is horrendously late im so sorry #worked on this for 3 days lol #weak hero july #lily x julia #weak hero lily x julia #am I tagging this right

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ohlawsons · 1 year

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03. running out of gas | dani & ortega, 1037 words post-therapy debrief and dani is an ass. dani's therapy sessions are just basically: "i'm not angry," they say, angrily

“So…?”

“I keep telling you, you’ll be the first to know when I’m magically all better.”

It’s the same thing after every appointment — Ortega trails after Dani when they go to their Julia-mandated-therapy sessions, and trails after them as they leave and peppers them with hopeful questions. Dani tries to appreciate it, tries to remember that Ortega doesn’t have to be this careful and patient and considerate but she is, and that needs to mean something even if Dani thinks it’s a waste of time.

Pressing their lips into a thin frown, they shove their hands into the pockets of their jacket, and mentally scan the area around them for anyone who might be listening in; as usual, it’s just the comforting, steady static of Ortega walking beside them, and anyone else’s mind is nothing but a low drone of everyday, innocent thoughts. “She keeps asking about things I can’t talk about,” they say, more for Ortega’s sake than theirs; it’s easy enough to assume that she’ll guess Dani’s referring to some of their work with the Rangers, or the past that they’ve always been shady about, rather than their current crusade as Shrike or anything to do with the Farm. Nothing for Ortega to be suspicious over. “Apparently that makes me, uh,” they pause, a brief flash of a grin as they glance down at their heavy boots, “difficult.”

They expect some snappy comeback from Ortega, but instead there’s silence for a good long while, long enough that Dani glances up at her. Her shoulders drop a bit as she lets out a quiet sigh, offering Dani a sidelong glance before asking, “You realize that isn’t the goal of this, right?”

“What, being a cagey asshole?” The words are sharp. Unkind. If Ortega won’t take the bait, Dani will take it themself, and anger bubbles up within them as they snap at her. “What’d you fucking expect, Jules?” Her name is weaponized behind Dani’s gnashing teeth, something brandished in her face to keep her kindness and patience at bay; but she’s not the same woman as she’d been seven years ago, and even as Dani bristles, they know Ortega isn’t so easily lured into an argument like this anymore. She knows better.

“Dani.”

She’s stopped walking, and Dani takes two more stubborn steps before relenting, turning slowly to look at Ortega; she levels her with a steady, concerned look, and they respond with a scowl. “What.”

“Don’t take this the wrong way, please.” She steps forward, brow furrowed as she gives them the most sincere look they’ve seen from her in a long time. “Do you want to get better?”

The question hits Dani hard, in part because Ortega’s the one asking it, and in part because they don’t know the answer. Suddenly restless, they reach for a cigarette, turning from Ortega and continuing their walk as they light it; it’s not a comfort anymore, not really, not like it used to be — a craving that could soothe their racing, anxious mind. These days it’s just a habit, a nervous tic, because that addiction had been stripped from them just like so many other things, and now the nicotine doesn’t quite fill the hole they’ve torn into their chest.

But it’s still better than nothing. Their feet carry them forward, thoughtlessly, and they let out a slow breath of smoke before they trust themself to speak again. “Does it matter?”

“What— Of course it matters!”

They hadn’t realized that Ortega had continued following them until she reaches out to place a hand on their shoulder — meant as a comfort, maybe, or as the next step in her crusade to shake some sense into them; some long ingrained reaction flares within Dani, and just as Ortega brushes against their jacket, they twist and dodge and step. It’s too quick, too reflexive, too instinctual for someone claiming to be seven years removed from the line of fire, and their mind howls and snarls at the way they now hold Ortega’s wrist in an iron grip. “Don’t. Fucking. Touch me.”

“Easy, Dani. I’m sorry, I didn’t realize.” The words are soft in a way that’s meant to be a comfort. Soothing. But Ortega’s expression has smoothed into something deceptively placid, and the static of her mind has gone from a quiet comfort to something that sits rancid and biting at the back of Dani’s mind, groping and corroding and tearing at what little patience they have left. “But it matters to me. And I want it to matter to you.”

A beat of silence hangs heavy between them; not for the first time, Dani wonders why they let themself get involved with Ortega again — because she cares too much, too loudly, too recklessly, all guilt and affection and rotten memories wrapped up in a woman who somehow looks even better now than she had a decade ago. A woman who’s never been shy about taking a battering ram to Dani’s defenses. A woman who can tear right through them anyway, with that familiar little grin she now flashes as she wiggles her fingers on the arm Dani’s still holding.

“Asshole.” But there’s no heat behind the word, and Dani releases Ortega’s hand and busies themself by stomping out the cigarette that had fallen, still lit, when they’d deflected her. Shoving their hands in the jacket pockets, Dani gives a little nudge of their head as they continue down the sidewalk — a truce, for now.

“I’m serious, though. I know it’s not your usual style, but you are allowed to ask for help when you need it.” The words are still soft. Comforting. Soothing. She doesn’t hesitate, exactly, as she falls into step beside Dani, but there’s a reticence to the words that feels like it’s meant to be a mercy — as if she’s worried they’ll lash out again. As if they’re a wounded, cornered animal.

As if something as simple as therapy could somehow fix the years they’ve let anger and rage and bitterness eat at them like maggots at a corpse.

As if.

“Yeah. I know.” Hollow. Tired.

Just one more lie in a friendship built on them.

#fhr #dani gutierrez tag #julia ortega #fic: dani #in veins laced with gold fic #brooke writes things

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manwalksintobar · 1 year

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XXIII (from thirsty) // Dionne Brand

I’ll tell you what I’ve seen here at Yonge and Bloor, At this crossroad, the air is elegiac with it whiffs and cirri of all emotion, need and vanity, desire, brazen as a killing a burger a leather jacket a pair of shoes a smoke to find a job to get drunk at the Zanzibar, a body the body of a woman in a cage on the window in a photograph in a strip joint two blocks away. to piss to get drunk to get fucked to get high grease sushi men wanting to be beaten to be touched and all the anonymous things that may happen on a corner like this for instance murder If you look into any face here you might fall into its particular need. And a woman I’ve seen her Julia perhaps walks here I can’t quite make her out She is a mixture of twigs and ink she’s like paper

#poetry #Dionne Brand #Toronto poems #Canadian poetry #YYZ #Yonge & Bloor #the city as it vanishes #downtown Toronto #police brutality #city poems #toronto #elegiac

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atleast6jim · 5 months

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Tonight my partner got pulled over. And let me walk you through this tale!

First, meet my partner. E (not his name). He’s got three adorable face tattoos, and is 5 foot 4 inches tall. He’s got a buzz cut that has melty smiley faces dyed/painted on. 14 visible face piercings, and countless other visible tattoos. His jacket matches his hair perfectly, and he’s got a Gomez adams played by Raul Julia mustache.

He’s driving the speed limit, after a long day of work. He gets pulled over.

Officer approaches. Maybe they’re Latino? E described them as attractive, slicked back high Ponty Tail. Feminine enough to call E hun and it seem nice not weird.

Officer points out expired registration, E explains financial hardship. Head of a household of 4 (me and the 3 cats, these details he left out to the officer). Officer says she smells… marijuana. She says she sees green flecks in the car, and asks E if he’s ever smoked before?

What? Weed? Never officer, E says. “No, I’ve never smoked. And don’t smoke marijuana in my car.”

E is asked to leave the car, and about weapons. E hands over some rainbow brass knuckles, a fancy pocket knife, and a workman’s Home Depot pocket knife. Explains there’s his kitchen knives from work in the front (he’s a chef in the city).

Officer searches the car and Dearest Readers I share now a photo of what this officer theoretically found in the car (this is a staged photo of CBD yes sir legal CBD)

Photo taken 2003 yes sir look at that Patina or whatever

Officer gives a look at E. A good long look at this man before her with red green and yellow smiley face hair.

“Go home, clean your car.”

This state is not a legal state

Readers I hope you all find this kind of luck on the roads this evening, and clean your car.

#story time #police #pulled over #e said in response to “clean your car #it’s a federal offense not to clean your car?#officers said it CAN be with strong emphasis #e took 3 hours later to get the point #the officer also saw the mascara #and crystals #and three bic lighters #in his pockets #and a cinnamon stick

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ehdrmfahs · 7 months

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who’s eyes pt 3/3

Deling City always had a strange effect on Squall. He often blamed it on his time here in the past, when the city was exactly the same but the people were different. NOt him, but Laguna. Not his friends, but Kiros and Ward. Not Rinoa, but Julia.

Othertimes, it was the weight of what they almost did to Edea. Now, he felt like he just wasn't made for the big city.

He focused on Rinoa's hand in his palm. She knew where she was going. He let himself be led through the crowd of people and just drifted. Trusted. Once he felt the cool air conditioning blow his bangs back, he opened his eyes and found himself back at Deling Hotel.

"Can we stop for a drink?"

Squall and Rinoa got more than one drink, so they got a hotel room as well. The sheets were cool, Rinoa was warm, and everything was soft. Squall didn't really like drinking much, but tonight he could understand why Zell did. Rinoa whines a little when he pullss back from their kiss. Resting on his haunches, he takes his shirt off, pulls his zipper down, pants off. Rinoa grabs onto his forearms, gripping hard.

"Are you okay?"

She nods. Another kiss before he pulls her dress up and off. Squall turns to toss it on the chair, and Rinoa pounces onto him, straddling his thighs. Rough, sword-worn hands ran up and down her milky, smooth legs while she shakily lowers herself onto him.

!~!

After they've both finished, showered, ate, and Squall smoked (twice), he still wasn't ready to fall asleep. Rinoa's head rests on his chest, rising and falling with his breath. His fingers comb and card through her hair, enjoying it just for the sensation. Rinoa hummed appreciatively, closer to sleep than him.

Rinoa rolls over, bright eyes locked on his. Squall can't match her gaze, but gets a playful pinch on her cheek in before sliding out of bed.

Rinoa tracks him from the bed, to his jacket, to his pants, to the window. Squall lits up a cigarette he never wanted to smoke, and the acrid stink of it in his throat almost makes him gag. Instead, he hocks a loogey outside.

The nicotine, the fresh night air, and the post-nut clarity all mix together to sober Squall up. From his vantage, he can see all the way to Rinoa's house. They hadn't stopped in to see Fury in weeks. He and Rinoa both knew he wasn't ready, that he would do or say something he would grow to regret.

"I actually didn't like that song for a long time."

Squall faces Rinoa, wrapped up in in sheets and looking for all the world like a Renaissance painting. His heart races — he had gotten away with not talking about the song for months now. "I thought everyone liked it."

Rinoa's lips tease into a not-quite smile. "Everyone's mom didn't write it. You've met Dad, you can imagine how he felt about hearing it. He was too scared to feel anything about her."

Squall just nods. Blows smoke out the window. Curses Fury Caraway to hell and back.

Rinoa continue. "Now, listening to her music makes me feel close to her. I played it a lot during our mission."

"I oughta say thank you to her."

Rinoa smiles privately. Squall would do anything for her. He puts his cigarette in the ashtray and dropped from standing to kneeling betweeen her legs at the end of the bed. He feels her arms rubbing up and down his back.

He hears her take a deeper breath than normal. When he looks up, he's surprised to find Rinoa finishing off his cigarette. She doesn't cough or hack, just smiled down at Squall.

They sat there in silent stasis while she finishes smoking. And then after. Squall doesn't know how long it was before Rinoa picks up humming again. The melody was familiar to Squall, but he couldn't place it exactly. Not before she finally sang the lyrics.

"Did you ever know? That I had mine on you."

#ff8 fanfic #final fantasy 8 #final fantasy viii #squall x rinoa #squall leonhart #rinoa heartilly

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tristandelarkadien · 5 months

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My Edwardian girl Julia, decked out in her smoking jacket, a hand-me-down from another time.

#wwi fiction #art by tristan #Julia Wainscott #history oc #tomboy #my oc stuff #WWI #illustration

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tolietfrog · 2 years

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Anachronism

Chapter Three: I’m Eddie, Eddie Munson

Summary: In 2017, Charlotte Pierce is not exactly thriving. She's reeling from a break-up and trying to move on. When she and her best friend, Julia, drive to the abandoned town of Hawkins, Indiana, Charlotte has two goals: tag some buildings and get over her ex. She certainly didn't expect to fall into the Upside Down and reappear in front of Police Chief Jim Hopper in 1983. Now Charlotte has to blend in until she can get back to her life. And what better way to blend in than to hang out with Eddie Munson and his crew? Oh, and do some major monster slaying along the way.

Word Count: 2k

Content Warning: not edited (please let me know if I should add anything!)

Charlotte wanted to do something nice for Hopper. She had settled in over the weekend, and he had bought her everything she could possibly need. New clothes, a new pair of shoes, toiletries. Her hair was even dyed back to a bright magenta and her nails had a fresh coat of black. Charlotte really wanted to do something nice for Hopper. But instead she ended up burning the eggs.

She wasn’t even sure how she managed to burn them. One second everything was fine, and the next the smoke alarm was blaring. She dropped the spatula on the stove and grabbed one of the towels that Hopper had left on the floor instead of putting into the laundry. She waved it under the smoke alarm.

“What the hell is going on?” Hopper came careening out of his room, his hair still askew.

Charlotte froze and the towel followed its momentum, slapping her arms.

“Eggs?”

A half hour later they were seated at a small diner booth with non-charred eggs in front of them.

“I appreciate the thought, kid,” Hopper said through a mouthful of eggs, “But next time, save us both the trouble and order a pizza.”

“I’ll get better at cooking.”

“You might, but I only have one house.”

“I just,” Charlotte sighed, pushing eggs around on her plate, “I wanted to do something for you.”

Charlotte glanced up to see Hopper’s face soften. He set his silverware down with a clink.

“Kid,” He started, “You don’t need to do anything for me. You don’t owe me anything. I’m taking care of you because that’s the right thing to do, end of story.”

A lump swelled in Charlotte’s throat. Hopper looked at her, blinked, and glanced over at the counter.

“Listen, I’m gonna go chat with a friend. I’ll be gone a few minutes. Keep eating, and let me know if you want more.” He slid out of the booth and ambled up to the counter, leaning over and talking to an older woman with mousy brown hair.

Charlotte took a breath. Another. The lump in her throat started to dissolve. She wrapped her hands around the mug of coffee in front of her, relishing the pricking sensation from the heat.

The diner’s door opened with a small ding and four boys stumbled in. They were loud, jostling each other as they slid into the booth in front of Charlotte’s. She glanced up, catching the eye of one of the boys. Who looked strikingly like the MISSING photo she had seen in 2017.

Younger, definitely. A mop of curly hair that just hit his collar bone, and no bangs. His eyes lit up when his friend made a joke, and his raucous laughter bounced off the walls. He noticed her staring and his smile widened.

“You!” He pointed at Charlotte and scrambled out of his booth to sit across from her, “Your hair is sick. Love the color.”

Charlotte touched her hair, pulling it into view so she could look at the vibrant magenta, “Thanks. I just redyed it yesterday.”

“Eddie. Eddie Munson,” He stuck his hand out across the table, “You are?”

“Charlotte,” She shook Eddie’s hand. It was warm, a little sweaty, “Pierce.”

“Well, Charlotte Pierce, you must be new in town,” Eddie retracted his hand and propped his elbows on the table, “I would have noticed you at school for sure. Not every day you see a girl with pink hair and a sick leather jacket. I’m working on a vest right now. Gonna make it look so sick.”

“I am new. Starting at Hawkins High on Monday.”

“Amazing!” Eddie clapped his hands, “You should totally sit with us.”

He turned around and began to point out his friends.

“Gareth.” A boy with a round face smiled hesitantly and waved. He had a mass of curls, not as wild as Eddie’s.

“Jeff.” Close cropped hair. A flannel dwarfed his frame. He grinned brightly.

“Liam.” Straight, greasy hair that fell into his eyes, which were blocked out by large glasses. He did not smile.

Eddie turned back around and grinned. Charlotte noticed the small amount of eyeliner that was bleeding under his eyes.

“We’re in a band. Pretty cool, huh?”

Charlotte leaned forward, “Hella. What kind of music?”

“Metal. Grunge. Rock. The good stuff.”

“Nope.” Charlotte and Eddie looked up to see Hopper standing in front of the table, his arms crossed, “Outta my seat, kid.”

Eddie’s eyes widened, “Sorry, Chief. I- I didn’t realize—” He scrambled out of the booth and went back to his friends.

“Damn straight. You—” He waved his finger around wildly, in the general direction of Eddie and his friends, “Are trouble. Charlotte doesn’t need trouble. Don’t even think about it.”

Heat crept up Charlotte’s neck. She had been with Hopper for less than a week and he was already more protective than her parents. Scaring away the first friends she could have made. She ducked her head and became very interested in the color of her coffee.

“Well, we were looking for a band name,” Eddie grinned, almost delighted with challenging Hopper’s authority now that he was out of the booth, “But I don’t think ‘Trouble’ has the ring we’re going for.”

Hopper grumbled something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like “fucking little shit”, but Charlotte chose to ignore that. She looked up past Hopper to see Eddie making faces at her from the other booth. She put a hand up to her mouth, stifling a laugh.

“No,” Hopper pointed at her, “Do not even think about it. Word of the day is ‘low profile’, got it? ‘Trouble’ and ‘Problem’ do not bode well when you’re living in my house.”

“Yes sir,” Charlotte mock-saluted.

“You’re gonna be the death of me, I already know it.”

The waitress swept by and dropped their check on the table. She stopped at Eddie’s and began to take their orders, balancing a tray on her hip.

“Let’s go, Trouble.” Hopper stood up and grabbed the check, taking it to the cashier. Charlotte followed.

Hopper paid swiftly, and turned to walk out the door. Charlotte trailed behind him, catching Eddie’s eye before she walked out. She winked, and wrapped her jacket tighter as the cold breeze hit her.

If Charlotte would have waited a moment longer before walking out, she would have seen Eddie’s eyes widen and Gareth grin and punch him in the shoulder.

Charlotte Pierce and Jim Hopper sat in rigid chairs in the Hawkin’s High Superintendent’s Office. Mr. Crosselby sat across from them at his desk, humming lightly to himself and he jotted down notes in a new file reading “Charlotte Anne Pierce”.

Charlotte’s leg bounced rapidly before Hopper placed a firm hand on her knee. She glanced up at him and he gave her a thin-lipped smile. He removed his hand after a moment and Charlotte’s leg still bounced, but much slower.

“Well, Miss Pierce,” Mr. Crosselby set down her file gingerly and interlaced his fingers, “I think we have everything settled. Let’s go over a few points.”

Charlotte swallowed tightly.

“We couldn’t find any records of you in this area. All the way to Indianapolis. Obviously, there’s no way to really search other than calling and calling, and if I’m to be quite frank,” He glanced at Hopper, “We don’t have the resources. I understand you have finished the equivalent of your sophomore year, and your conversations with our teachers here seem to corroborate that. However, this far into the semester it would be extremely difficult to fit you into junior year and catch you up. I recommend either picking up with the sophomore class now, or waiting until next fall and joining us as a junior.”

Charlotte’s mouth dried, “You mean, be a year behind?”

Mr. Crosselby looked at her with sympathy, “I understand if that’s hard to hear. I know the connotation that comes with being held back, but I want to say Miss Pierce, you seem like a bright young lady. This is simply to ease your transition into Hawkins High. Now, if you could give us any indication of a previous school or institution, I’m sure we can reach out and—”

Hopper cut him off, “I think it would be best for Charlotte to begin now and do a partial sophomore year. I’m sure, given the circumstances we talked about on the phone,” He gave the Superintendent a hard look, “We can make an exception for Charlotte’s lack of memory and move forward with no issue.”

Both men looked towards Charlotte.

“It’s your choice, kid,” Hopper put a gentle hand on her shoulder, “But starting halfway through sophomore year will allow you to review and get a handle on life here.”

“I’ll redo sophomore year,” Charlotte replied softly, pinching the skin between her thumb and forefinger.

“Great!” Mr. Crosselby clapped his hands together, “I’ll get your information ready and have everything prepared for your arrival tomorrow. I’ll have a current sophomore show you around then, and get you all set up as well.”

Hopper stood up and shook the superintendent’s hand.

“Been a pleasure, Chief,” Crosselby said.

“Likewise.”

Charlotte stood and followed Hopper out of the office. She kept her gaze on the floor and focused on her breathing. One. Two. Three. One. It wasn’t the end of the world to redo a portion of sophomore year. Hell, she technically wasn’t even born yet, so really she was ahead.

But thinking that didn’t stop the clenching in her gut or the tears pricking her eyes.

“You alright kid?” Hopper glanced back at Charlotte trailing behind him and saw the glisten in her eyes.

“Fuck,” He said, rubbing the back of his head, “I’m sorry if that meeting didn’t go the way you wanted.”

“I just—” Charlotte took a breath and pushed the lump in her throat down. “I feel behind. I feel stupid.”

Hopper opened the door to his car and ushered Charlotte inside before walking around to the driver’s door and getting in himself. He started the car. Buckled. Took a breath.

“Let’s get one thing straight,” Hopper started, “You are not stupid. You are not behind. Redoing something doesn’t make you either. School gives you one option for success. And if you don’t follow that path perfectly, you’re labeled as ‘dumb’ or ‘lazy’ or ‘behind’. How long it takes you to do something isn’t what shows your character. It’s your resilience and your attempts to try again. And you, Charlotte,” Hopper takes a breath and faces her, his voice softening, “You’ve been through some shit. Probably a lot I don’t know and that you will never tell me about. And that’s okay. We get up tomorrow and we start again. Keep pushing. Keep going. When we stop is when we really fail.”

Charlotte laughed softly, the lump in her throat dissolving, “Damn, Hopper, you could be an inspirational speaker.”

“Shut the fuck up.”

Hopper pulled out of the school parking lot and traversed the back roads to his trailer. Soft rock music played on the radio, crinkling in and out every so often. Charlotte leaned her head against the window, watching the bare trees race by. A chill had settled deep in her bones, and she couldn’t tell if it was from the sudden winter or something else, something sinister. Her gut was leaden. She had made up her mind about two things, however.

One. She was going to get up tomorrow and start sophomore year for the second time. And that was okay.

Two. She was going to keep Eddie Munson from going missing.

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