I woke up today and saw this on my phone's notifications! Thank you so much @gloryride 💖

Character Headcanons

How they’d react if you called them Ryan…

Dad Van

💗 When the kids find out Van's real name is Ryan they're delighted, much to Van's chagrin. "Why did you have to tell them love? I'm not gonna hear the end of it now!"

💗 "Ry-an! Ry-an! Ry-an!" Chants baby Leo. When he learns a new word it's all you hear for the next week.

💗 You're laughing your head off and Grace is too. "But you don't look like a Ryan Daddy! It sounds funny!'

💗 “Grandma says Van McCann sounds like Humpty Dumpty!" You tell your daughter, cue much hilarity whilst Van pretends to scowl at you both.

💗 You take the opportunity to get the old family photo album out that Mary gave you and you and Grace spend the rest of the afternoon looking at embarrassing childhood pics of Van and teasing him.

💗 You're definitely both getting attacked by the tickle monster until you're screaming for all that teasing.

Red

❤️ Van would enjoy the teasing banter and you'd love to drop his birth name into conversation throughout the day just to wind him up.

❤️ He can't do anything about it whilst Larry's there but as soon as he goes out... "I'm warning you Y/N... say that one more time and you're gonna regret it!'

❤️ "Ooh I'm scared Ryan! What you gonna do about it, huh?" You back away as you see the mischievous glint in his eye.

❤️ You'd probably get chased around the house and when he caught you there'd be some play-fighting which would probably lead to you getting railed hard against whatever surface you were pressed up against.

❤️ “This doesn’t feel much like punishment!”

The Devil Next Door

❤️‍🔥 Van would absolutely hate being called Ryan with a passion and you'd use that fact to your advantage.

❤️‍🔥 "It's not Ryan okay? It's Van!" He snaps, hands balling into fists at his sides.

❤️‍🔥 "Oh sorry I didn't realise you were so touchy about it. It's your real name isn't it? What's up? Ryan not 'cool rockstar' enough for you?"

❤️‍🔥 “Shut up Y/N!" You note the warning glare but that doesn't deter you.

❤️‍🔥 “You gonna make me?" You smirk. There's something about sparking his temper that's so satistying to you.

❤️‍🔥 You're definitely using this every time you have an argument from now on.

Forbidden

🖤 You know you're really pushing your luck by dropping Prof Van's real name into conversation during your private tutorial.

🖤 "What was that?" He challenges you, jaw clenching as you smirk defiantly back at him.

🖤 "You heard me Ryan!" You taunt, sitting back in your seat, pulling your bottom lip between your teeth as you fix him with wide innocent eyes.

🖤 It's only a matter of minutes before you're being hauled out of your seat and pushed facedown over his lap, your skirt pushed up around your hips.

🖤 "Now the only words I wanna hear from those lips are “Yes Sir" he growls but of course you can't resist misbehaving.

🖤 “Yes Ryan!" You whimper, bracing yourself against the impact, already growing wet at the prospect of your delicious punishment…

The Royal Romance.

Second Chance Romance.

A/N: I’ve decided to go into my own little TRR/TRH world and create an AU. This will be fun! So; Talley Ho! *in my Sherlock Holmes voice*

Rated: Mature. | Contains sexual content and strong language. (You know? The usual from me. 😁) | Bolded and/or italicized words are conversations and thoughts of the characters. | Main Characters: King Marquise Rys (LI) and Queen Shanelle Dawkins (MC) | All Characters and names: (except MC and certain original characters, created by me) are property of Pixelberry.

Current Word Count: 1,300 words. (more or less. I stop counting after editing and re-editing. 🤷🏾‍♀️)

Woo! Another Drabble from me! I’m starting to get good at this!

Prompt Time! Using @wackydrabbles Prompt #69 (hehehehe) I won’t forget this. It’ll be in bold in black.

Tag List: @txemrn @pixie88 @lifeaskim @hopelessromanticmonie @lucy-268 @choicesficwriterscreations @wackydrabbles @secretaryunpaid @shanzay44 @bebepac @texaskitten30 @kingliam2019 @glaimtruelovealways

As always if you’d like to be added to my tag list, just reblog or send me a DM and I will happily add you. 😁😘

I AM UNAPOLOGETICALLY NSFW! READER DISCRETION IS STRONGLY ADVISED!

Chapter 7.) Shattered Glass.

His majesty had been caught in a very precarious position. One he had no knowledge or realization that he was in at the time. All thanks to his very charged encounter with his ex Tanya.

What was meant to be innocent and comforting, could be seen as him falling back in with her and out of love with Shanelle. Or that’s how Damon was about to spin it to her. He was determined to stick to Marquise.

After securing the final travel plans, Damon was on his way to talk to Shanelle and hit her with a hard truth. He found her in her room going over her luggage. He knew this would hurt Shanelle. Which is exactly what he wanted.

“5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12. Yup that’s all of them.” She said as he entered her room.

“What are you doing princess?” He asks her.

“Not worrying about you, dickhead.” She replies.

“Awww don’t be like that! I was only joking, your highness!”

“You are so annoying!”

“You know you love it!”

“I know I’d love to stab you and hide your body.”

“Stop it before you make my dick hard.”

“You pig!”

“Oink oink baby!”

“Ugh! What do you want Damon?” She asked him.

“I thought you’d want to see my handsome face, baby girl.” He replied.

“You mean the same face that got punched by a king? More specifically my future king?” She asks him.

“I refuse to answer that.” He replied.

“Awwwww that’s okay baby! Besides I already saw the aftermath of the ass whooping he gave you, so I’m good.” She said to him. She snickered as he rolled his eyes at her.

“I still don’t see what you see in him.” He told her.

“Let’s just say I see more in him than I’ll ever see in you.”

“You sure about that princess?” He asks.

“Yes I’m sure. I don’t have to question him. Unlike you. I know where I stand with him.” She replies.

He just smirks at her as he moves her luggage to the door. He was trying to get her all riled up just so he could break her heart.

“I’m sure you think you do, baby girl.” He said to her. She rolled her eyes at him.

“I know what you’re doing, Damon.” She said to him.

“What am I doing sweetheart?” He asks.

“You’re being cryptic. You always did that whenever you wanted to piss me off.” She replies.

“You think that’s what this is, baby girl?” He asks.

“With you it’s more than possible, so.” She replies with a shrug.

“You are still so judgmental, I see.”

“Am I really judgmental or do I just know when you’re trying to pull some shit? Which one is it?” She asks him.

“You’re judgmental! You always have been!” He replied with a bite in his tone.

“Angry already Damon? You know maybe you shouldn’t be here anymore. You don’t seem to really enjoy your job all that much.”

“Cute! Real fucking cute! You still think you’re just little miss perfect, don’t you?” He sneered at her.

“No. Not at all. I just know when to call you out on your bullshit.” She replied.

Damon lets out a dark chuckle then asks, “oh really? And what about your so-called Prince Charming?”

“This conversation has nothing to do with him.” She replies.

“Oh but it does, baby girl. Or at least it will.”

“What are you rambling on about?” She asks him.

“You treat me like I’m some kind of pariah, while you praise the ground your king walks on.” He sneered.

“It’s not my fault. If you had been the man you were supposed to be, I wouldn’t have to be here. I’m here thanks in part to you! If you had been a man when we were together, you wouldn’t have to see me with him now. I would’ve never met him if you hadn’t broken my heart!” She replies.

“And here we go! Here comes the victim act!” He said as he rolled his eyes at her. That infuriated her. She glared daggers at him before speaking what was on her heart.

“You know what? I have had enough of you saying I play the victim. I AM NOT A PLAYING A FUCKING VICTIM! What I tell the world is exactly what happened! YOU! WALKED! OUT! You threw us and what supposed to be our life together away! And you didn’t care what it did to me! You broke me! After giving you all that I had to give, you decided that it wasn’t good enough for you! What’s worse is you decided that I wasn’t good enough for you! You decided that you had to have more. So you went out and got it. You asked me to marry you, just for you to wind up fucking another woman! You decided to be a selfish, self centered bastard! You decided to smile in my face and tell me how much you loved me and how you couldn’t wait to marry me, all while you had the audacity to fuck her in my bed! You violated me! You humiliated me! I swore that I won’t forget this! So I make sure that the world won’t be able to forget it either!”

She was upset at this point and he knew it. He was getting to the point where he wanted her to be.

“And you think your prince is better, right? You think that he won’t hurt you?” He asks her.

“You know what? Yes I do! He loves me! He cares about me! He’s patient. He’s kind. He has a sense of honor, of decency and compassion! And you want to know what the best part about him is? The best part about him is that he’s twice the man and three times the lover that you will ever be!” She replies with rage in her tone.

“He’s twice the man I’ll ever be, huh? You sure about that?” He asks.

“Positive!” She replied.

“Poor little princess! She does the noble thing and defends her king, without realizing that she’s nothing more than a disposable bed warmer! That must be really nice!” He sneered.

That was when she had heard enough and slapped him. He was loving it. He knew what to say and do to set her off. And he was happily doing it to her.

“Ooh! Looks like I struck a nerve! You know? I forgot that you hit hard. I guess learning the truth about where you stand with his majesty stings.” He said to her.

“I fucking hate you!” She said as she seethed.

“That’s okay baby girl! You can hate me all you like. But at least I won’t be the only one.”

“What are you talking about?” She asks. Rather than answer her question, Damon smirked and pulled his phone out.

“A little something I recorded earlier. Consider it as a gift. Now while you watch I’m gonna get your bags. Happy watching!” He said to her as he gathered her luggage together and got it out the door.

She was still confused as to what he meant but she was about to find out. When her phone buzzed on the nightstand, she checked her text messages and saw the incoming text from Damon. It was a video. Which further confused her, until she opened and played it. And what she saw broke her heart.

“No! No! It can’t be! He wouldn’t! Not this! Not again!” She said as she continued to watch. She felt the tears well up in her eyes. It just couldn’t be. It wasn’t possible. But there it was in black and white.

Her man and his ex. Together in each other’s arms.

Wounds

Pairing: Ryan Haywood x Reader x Jeremy Dooley

Word Count: 5,338

Prompt: We all know Los Santos’ most feared assassins, but what if you were their target? And the first words out of their mouths were the same words imprinted on your skin?

Warnings: Swearing, descriptions of torture.

Breathe, for fuck’s sake, just breathe, you told yourself, keeping your head down as you walked towards your usual lunch spot. Your lips were stuck in a grimace, trying to keep the tears from spilling over, and you couldn’t keep from internally cursing at yourself. Way to go, (y/n), not even fucking noon and you’re already spiraling, god dammit.

Between your alarm not going off, your boss berating you for your recent work performance, and the empty threats your ex continued to text you from different numbers, it seemed like nothing was in your favor. So, with the whole universe against you, you resorted to blocking it out; pulling your phone out of your pocket, you turned up the music in your earbuds so you couldn’t hear the tourists that swarmed the sidewalks, or the drivers shouting obscenities as they blared their horns.

You just needed a break, needed something to go well. The playlist you were listening to helped slightly, and you knew once you had some food in your system you’d feel better, but you were honestly feeling pretty hopeless. Getting through work would be hard enough, and the idea of going home to your roommate and their boyfriend made you sick. With a sigh, you turned down the alley you always cut through, the usual lack of other people comforting.

Though it was a faster route, your bigger reason for using the shortcut was the excuse to get away from the crowds that plagued Los Santos. Living in a city where you’re constantly surrounded by people grew tiring, and you could only relax when you felt alone. If that was in a dirty alley, so be it.

Your pace slowed as you continued, and with no one around, the tears began to spill over. Fucking hell, just, take a breath, you urged the tears to stop, trying to maintain composure. You’ll get something to eat, then you’ll get through five hours of works, and you’ll be—

You were dragged out of your thoughts and back into reality by the gloved hand that suddenly covered your mouth, pulling you back against a solid figure. Music was still blaring in your ears, and you weren’t even able to fully process what was happening before it was too late to do anything. It wasn’t until a needle sunk into the flesh of your bicep that you began to scream, fighting to escape your attacker’s grip.

Wrapping an arm around your torso so tight you could hardly breathe, he quickly contained your movements. “Shh, there’s no point, no one’s listening,” a voice rumbled in your ear, and even as your mind started to fog, you immediately recognized those words. They rendered you immobile, the same words that tingled on your skin, scrawled across your hip.

Fuck.

“There we go,” he murmured, tossing the syringe to the ground before his arm moved to wrap around your throat, “wasn’t that easy?” With both the drug in your system and your restricted airflow working against you, you could barely struggle, weakly pulling at the arm around your throat. If you could just say something, he would know, he would hopefully stop, but all that escaped your lips were choked cries.

When your efforts had died down, and you grew limp in his arms, he easily tossed you over his shoulder. Everything was foggy, you couldn’t move, couldn’t speak, could barely even think. You just watched the ground move below you as the man walked, unable to focus your vision on anything.

“J, pop the trunk,” the man called, and you winced at the sound of his hand hitting the car. Within seconds, you were dropped into the trunk, your head hitting hard, and you barely caught a glimpse of a skull mask before the lid was slammed down.

In the the darkness, with your mind in a haze, you couldn't even tell when the world faded to nothing.

When you awoke, you found yourself in an empty warehouse, only lit by the few barely functioning lights that hung above you. Your head was pounding, the pain dizzying, and the gag in your mouth only made the nausea worse.

Your limbs were tied to a rusted chair, the coarse rope cutting into your skin as you pulled at your restraints. Behind you, you could hear noises, the sounds of metal hitting metal ringing through the warehouse, and you only struggled harder, eyes watering as fear sent your heart racing.

“Well Ry, I think she’s awake,” an unfamiliar voice murmured, and you felt a sting along the skin of your thigh, the words imprinted on your flesh almost burning.

“Shall we begin?” the voice from before asked, and you felt a hand brush your shoulder as he walked in front of you, sending a shiver through your frame. Finally getting a look at his face, you found your eyes drawn to the smudged facepaint that covered his skin, making his smile all the more menacing.

You struggled to speak, to say anything at all, but the cloth in your mouth muffled every sound. Your attempted words turned to shrieks, the jagged dagger in his hand finally catching your eye; and when a man in purple walked into your sight, crowbar in his gloved hands, tears began to spill over.

You couldn’t believe, out of all the possible people ways to meet a soulmate, this would be it. They were fucking terrifying, had your heart racing and tears streaming down your face, your whole body trembling. You knew that what they had in store for you would break you, probably kill you; but there was still that instinctive longing for them, for your soulmates, and you cursed yourself for it.

“Listen,” the man in purple spoke, swinging the crowbar around as he watched you, “Before we get started, I want you to know this is purely business. An old pal of yours paid good money for our services, some guy named… Damon?” he glanced over at his partner for confirmation.

“I believe it was Devon.”

Your heart sunk at the mention of your ex and you began screaming muffled pleas, much to the amusement of the two men. They both shared a glance before the shorter one moved forward, dragging his crowbar against the concrete as he sauntered around you. “Y’know, this Devon had some very specific instructions, I mean, really, what do ya gotta do to a guy to make him that angry?”

After making a full circle around you, he raised his crowbar in with a smile, and then a crack echoed through the warehouse as it made impact with your shin. You were seeing stars as the pain hit, your shrieks of pain muted by the cloth that swallowed the sound, and they both laughed.

“Ooh, that looked nasty, Jeremy,” the taller man commented, a smirk on his lips as he watched you twist and writhe in pain. You pulled even harder at the rope restraining your limbs, crying out as your struggles only caused you further pain. “Sweetheart…,” he chastised you, moving closer, dagger glinting in the dim light, “you really don’t wanna do that.”

Then, he was on top of you, legs straddling your thighs as he held the blade against your cheek. Instinctively, you pulled your face away from the jagged edge, but then a calloused hand gripped your chin, jerking your head to face him. His ice blue eyes were daring you to move again, and you didn’t, small whimpers escaping your throat as he traced the dagger along your jawline.

“Such a pretty face…,” he murmured, his hand holding your jaw still as he dragged the dagger down to your collarbone, still not breaking skin. “It’s a real shame he wants us to carve you up… but a job’s a job, and playing butcher is always fun.” He bared his teeth with a smile as he pushed the blade a little deeper, and your blood began to seep over the jagged edge.

“Aw, Ryan, come on,” the man behind him spoke over your sobs, “save some of the fun for me.”

He stood from your lap, gesturing to your pathetic form as he replied, “Give ‘em your worst, Dooley.”

The other man threw his crowbar to the side with a grin, cracking his knuckles as he walked towards you ever so casually. “I work better with my hands anyways,” he commented, quickly landing a blow to the side of your face. The punch knocked your head around, and you were seeing stars as you tried to get past the ringing in your ears. There were words thrown your way, but they all felt distant, muffled, and the world was spinning around you as your eyes glazed over.

With a few taps against your cheek, the man calmly said, “Hey, stay with me. We’re not done with you yet.” However, when you didn’t acknowledge him, didn’t try to speak any muffled words, he kicked your broken shin with a growl, causing you to shriek and writhe in pain. “You can’t escape this,” he murmured, his hand on the back of your chair, leaning it back as he loomed over you. “This is it, end of the line.”

He suddenly landed a punch to your stomach, shoving the chair to the ground, and you let out a groan. Every sensation coursing through you was overwhelming, all the pain, the shock, the fear. Everything hurt, and yet, even as your head lay against the cold, dirty concrete, and you stared up into the dingy light, you still struggled to escape. Even with your mind unable to process anything that was happening, your most basic instinct was fighting. If you could just say something, you’d get through this alive, and that was enough of a chance to keep you struggling.

“Now, I’m not sure, but I think (y/n) is trying to tell us something,” Ryan remarked as you continued to shriek, muffled pleas bleeding into sobs that shook your whole frame. “I’m sorry, what was that?” he asked with a kick to your ribs, causing your plead to grow even louder. “You’ve really gotta speak up.”

He gripped your throat, pulling both you and the brittle chair up to his height. With a quick slash, his dagger cut through the cloth gag, tossing it to the ground below. Chest heaving, you gasped for breath, arms tugging at the restraints as you tried to reach the hand wrapped around your neck.

You struggled to talk, barely formed consonants escaping your lips, but nothing that came even close to speech. “Here, let me help you,” the man seemed to mock you, setting you back down on the concrete floor. However, when you opened your mouth again, his blue eyes stared daggers, choking every word within you.

“So shy now?” Jeremy asked, and the two of them shared a glance, amused grin pulling at the corners of their mouths.

“Don’t worry, I’m sure we can change that.”

He grabbed your jaw and yanked your head upwards, stretching your tendons and exposing the skin of your neck to his blade. You trembled as the cool, wet metal dragged across your skin, stifled sobs trapped in your throat. He traced the jagged edge slowly, ever so slowly over your skin, and then your clothing as it passed your shoulder. In an instant, the blade pushed through your shirt to your bicep, barely breaking skin, but he drove it deeper and deeper at a crawling pace.

This drew broken screams from your lips, and when he shifted the blade slightly in your flesh, your vision began to spin, the contents of your stomach working their way up your throat. Despite your best efforts to swallow it back, your mouth had gone dry, the bile pushing its way up and dribbling down your chin.

“Ooh, yikes,” Jeremy commented from behind you, watching with amusement as you still struggled against the ropes. “I don’t know, Ryan… maybe we should just put her out of her misery.”

There was a pause before the two laughed, and Ryan yanked the dagger from your flesh, ripping a ragged sob from your lungs with it. Pushing through the excruciating pain that coursed through every nerve in your body, and the fear that paralyzed your mind, you cried out, “Please, don’t do this, I— I can’t, please.”

They stopped dead in their tracks, the blood-soaked knife slipping from Ryan’s fingers, and the metallic clatter echoed through the warehouse as it hit the ground. It was silent as they stared at you, their eyes wide and calculating as they processed everything. It didn’t take long for them to snap back into action though, Ryan picking up the dagger and rushing to cut the rope that restrained you. Meanwhile, Jeremy had pulled out his phone, restlessly murmuring, “Come on, pick up… pick up.”

Muttering under his breath, Ryan violently slashed at the rope around your ankles, but even in anger he was precise. Not once did his blade hit you again. When he moved to the rope tying your wrists to the chair, he cut through the worn cord with ease, ready to catch you the moment you fell forward. Your vision was still spinning, sounds fading in and out as you blinked, trying to get a grasp on what was happening.

“Andy, we need you at the warehouse, like,right now… shattered shin, stab wound— no, no arteries were hit… I know, I know… listen, I don’t give a shit what the chances are, you need to get down here right the fuck now,” Jeremy glanced over at you, a shaky breath leaving him as he did. “We can’t lose this one.”

With that, he pocketed his phone, stripping off his purple jacket as he moved to your side. “Hey…” you saw his lips continue to move, but the words faded into background noise. With the world spinning and fading around you, there was no way you could focus, no possible way you could process anything that was happening; and you would have tumbled to the ground if not for the two men holding you.

“Hey, stay with us,” Ryan spoke firmly, cupping your cheek as Jeremy pressed his jacket against your wound. You locked your gaze on his blue eyes, the rest of the world blurring as you tried to maintain any focus; then, it all faded to darkness, and you felt nothing.

When your eyes blinked open, the first thing you noticed was how warm the room was. Not only in heat, but the colors, the light, it was all much softer than everything you had just been through. There was no more pain coursing through your system, only a numbness, almost a floating sensation. Glancing around, you saw what, aside from the medical equipment, appeared to be a normal bedroom; and in the chairs beside your bed sat a woman with red hair and a man in a full tuxedo, the two conversing quietly.

The woman glanced up, meeting your eyes before glancing back to the man. He cleared his throat, rubbing his hands down his face with a sigh before looking at you. “Hey kid, how you holdin’ up?” he asked softly, and in your haze, it was difficult to process his question, let alone respond. He gave you a sympathetic look, his eyes tired, and then continued, “Before we start talking, I want you to know that you are 100% safe here. No wrong answers, no danger… nothin’ is gonna hurt you, alright?”

You nodded, barely able to move, and the two exchanged a glance before the redhead began to speak. “First, I just want to tell you how sorry I am for all of this, this lifestyle, it’s— it’s incredibly dangerous, and the fact that fate dragged you into all this, it… sucks. I don’t know how else to put it.”

Though your mind was hazy, you were beginning to piece things together; their vaguely familiar faces, the way the spoke, along with the memories you were already trying to repress, they all pointed towards one thing: the Fake AH Crew. You could faintly recall various newscasts, wanted posters, and you most definitely remembered seeing their faces multiple times.

Your heart began to race again, but the increasingly frantic beep of your heart monitor didn’t seem to faze them, they simply sat there, slowly raising their hands to prove they weren’t armed. “I might be Los Santos’ most wanted,” the man started, making sure to meet your eyes, “but a promise is a promise, and as long as I’m here, no one’s gonna lay a finger on you.”

You glanced at the woman, whose eyes were warm and sincere, then back to the man, who gave you a small smile. Letting out the breath you’d been holding, your muscles untensed. Though your heart was still pounding, the beeps began to slow, and they brought their arms back down. “The way Geoff and I see it, there’s two ways we can go here,” the redhead continued, “and we want to run you through every option before you decide what you want. You with us so far?”

You nodded slightly, afraid to move anymore than that in case it aggravated one of wounds that littered your body, and she gave you a soft smile. “If we end up going too fast, just let us know, okay?”

“As I think Jack mentioned, this all depends on what you want. Our resources are virtually unlimited, and we just want what’s best for you, so don’t feel pressure towards any particular choice.” Geoff told you, his voice taking on a slightly more professional tone. “The first option we could see is taking you to Mount Zonah Medical Center to continue your treatment. Their doctors may not be as well trained as our personal medic, but they’re the best in the city, and we’d pay for top treatment.”

“We’ve found a nice apartment for you to go to once you’re ready to return home, in a much safer neighborhood than your current place,” Jack continued as Geoff pulled out his ringing phone. “We’d cover the rent, so don’t worry about that, and we’ll make sure that no one comes after you again.”

Geoff whispered something to her before standing to his feet, shooting an apologetic glance you way before he left the room. Jack gave you a reassuring smile in response before picking up where she’d left off. “You should also know that the man who’s been threatening you, Devon,” you shuddered, and she carefully reached out to place a hand on your arm. “He’s been taken care of, and he will never hurt you again.”

You nodded, taking a deep breath, and she patted your arm a few times before pulling back. “The other option assumes that you would still want to be with your soulmates.” She paused, seeing how you visibly tensed. “Do you want me to go on? Because it’s completely understandable if you don’t want anything to do with them after what you’ve been through.”

You shook your head quickly, your voice quiet as you replied, “Tell me.”

“Right now, we’re in the penthouse, Geoff’s expansive ‘apartment.’ This is where the entire crew stays,” she gave you a sympathetic smile before continuing, “and that includes Ryan and Jeremy.”

Hearing those names brought you back to the warehouse, the names your torturers had spoken once or twice as they put you through hell. The pain throughout your body sharpened in response to the memories, your heart racing at the thoughts; but as you continued to lose yourself in memory, you were brought back to their first words, the words scrawled across your skin. With a shaky breath, you asked, “They’re… they’re my soulmates, right?”

She nodded, noting how your heart rate sped up. “You could stay here, with us, and not only would you have the best medical care, but you’d be safer here than anywhere else… It’s perfectly understandable if you can’t see yourself doing that, and either way, we’ll pay for all your treatment, physical and psychiatric.”

Your brows furrowed as you struggled to process all the information that’d been thrown your way, and Jack noticed, adding, “There’s no rush, we just wanted you to know your options, you have plenty of time to think it over.”

You nodded again, and when she stood to leave, you called out, “Wait!” Your voice cracked slightly, and it pained your throat, torn from overuse. “Can I—” you stopped, taking a breath before you continued, “Can I see them? Jeremy and— and Ryan?”

She paused, biting her lip in concentration as she weighed the situation. “Are you sure? Because you don’t have to do this right now. It’s okay if you’re not ready.”

Your brows furrowed, heart pounding as you continued to think about seeing your torturers again, but you just couldn’t quell the longing to be with them. “Is this what having a soulmate is like?” you asked quietly, voice shaking with all the conflicting emotions that filled your head. “They— they—” you couldn’t bring yourself to say it, couldn’t quite acknowledge what they’d done, what you’d been through, “…why do I still want to see them?”

She gave you a sad smile, moving to sit at the edge of your bed. “People tend to romanticize soulmarks as this ‘perfect’ thing; and believe me, while I love my soulmates, the concept is nowhere close to flawless. The whole system is messy, broken, and I can’t imagine what you must be feeling right now… but, yes, to answer your question, this is what having a soulmate is like. No matter what someone does, you still want to be with them,” a sigh escaped her, voice trailing off as she added, “more than anything.”

She met your gaze with understanding eyes, another smile pulling at her lips. “So, should I go get Ryan and Jeremy?”

Your voice was small, heart pounding in your chest as you answered, “Please.”

“Hey, I’ll be there the whole time,” she assured you, patting your uninjured leg. “The moment you feel unsafe, you let me know, and I will kindly escort them out.”

With that, she stood and walked out, leaving you alone with your spiraling thoughts.

The silence of the room was only broken by the pulsing beep of your heart monitor, and it was so quiet, you could hear the murmurs beyond the bedroom door. Trying your best to stay calm, you took a deep breath, fists clenched at your sides. You couldn’t even tell what you were feeling anymore, every emotion, every thought blurring together as they clashed. All you knew was you were the furthest from calm you could get.

After a few moments more, the door opened slowly, pulling your mind out of its haze. With a glance to your left, you saw Jack walk in, the same comforting smile on her face, and you tried your best to smile back. Then, you saw your soulmates, both walking in with shoulders slouched and soft smiles on their lips when they saw you, smiles that didn’t quite reach their heavy eyes.

You could feel your heart skip erratically, didn’t need the monitor to tell you just how fast your pulse was racing. Of course, it did help that they were wearing different clothes, that the man with piercing blue eyes no longer had smudged paint obscuring the majority of his face; but you were still struggling with the memories that threatened to pull you back, to keep you trapped in that warehouse with jagged blades and maniacal grins.

At the sound of your heart monitor stuttering and racing, all three sets of eyes went wide, and Jack moved forward as the other two pressed themselves against the wall, almost shrinking into the background. “Hey,” Jack spoke quietly, leaning down beside your bed and placing a hand on your shoulder, “(y/n), it’s okay, they’re not gonna hurt you. You’re okay, I promise.”

She watched your face, noting every small reaction, and when your breathing began to slow, she continued, “I want you to look at them, alright?” You nodded hesitantly, looking over to them again, and the first thing you noticed was their hands, intertwined, then the way they glanced at each other worriedly before looking back at you, their eyes soft, almost pleading. “These are not the same men who hurt you. Ryan and Jeremy, they want nothing more than to keep you safe.”

As you looked at them, truly looked at your soulmates, you could feel their hearts breaking, and you wanted more than anything to keep them from hurting anymore. It really started to hit you, these were your soulmates. They were here, with you, looking at you with nothing but love and sorrow in their eyes… it was enough to bring you to tears.

Despite your slowing heart rate, you tears only caused the others to worry more, Ryan and Jeremy slowly moving to leave. “Hey, like I said, it’s okay if you’re not ready,” Jack gently spoke. “We don’t have to do this today, you can take your time—”

“No, no, please don’t take them away from me,” you cut her off, voice desperate and pleading. “Don’t take them away.”

They all looked at you with varying expressions of shock, but no one argued, Jack glancing at the other two before looking back to you. “Would you like me to step outside?” she asked softly, and to your own surprise, you found yourself nodding. “I’ll be right by the door, just shout if you need anything.”

With that, she gave you a warm smile, making her way out of the room.

You moved to sit up, wanting to go towards your soulmates, who still stood near the door. They seemed hesitant to approach you, afraid to make a single wrong move; but that all went away the second you winced and cried out, pain shooting through your arm as you put even the slightest weight on it.

“Hey, hey, don’t push yourself, alright?” Warm brown eyes met yours, and he gave you a soft smile, his hands gentle against your back as he eased you down onto the bed again.

“You’ve got some healing to do,” a deeper voice spoke, and you turned to meet the other’s blue eyes as he sat on the edge of the bed, his gaze much softer than you remembered. “Just take it easy, we’ll take care of you.”

You smiled despite the dying tears that streaked down your face, and you received even brighter smiles from the two. “You— you’re Ryan?” you asked, still not quite sure, and the way his eyes brightened at the sound of your voice answered the question for you. “And Jeremy?”

“That’s me,” his voice was breathless, a small laugh escaping him. “and since we’re going around, you’re (y/n), right?”

The smile on his face put you at ease, along with the sound of your soulmate saying your name; and though his familiar laugh threatened to pull you back to the warehouse, you forced yourself to focus on his smile, on the kindness in his eyes. It wasn’t him, it wasn’t them, you found yourself thoughts repeating over and over again, only realizing you were speaking aloud when their faces fell.

You began to apologize, your eyes growing wide as you said, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to—”

“(Y/n), no, you— you don’t anything to apologize for,” Ryan spoke softly, though there was an edge to his tone that sent a slight tremor through you. “Jeremy and I, we’re…” he took a deep breath, his fists clenched as he continued, “we’re the ones that did this.”

His eyes flickered first to the small gash along your collarbone, then over each wound and bandage, an unmistakable pain to his gaze. Hesitantly, you reached out to him, placing your hand over his and gently uncurling his fist. He looked down at your hand, brows furrowed as he carefully shifted his hand to grip yours, and then he met your gaze. “(Y/n), I…”

As he trailed off, you squeezed his hand, a small smile tugging at your lips. “I know,” you murmured, and just looking into those blue eyes began to drag your mind away, feeling a phantom knife pressed against your skin as that gaze never left yours. With a shuddering breath, you clenched his hand, closing your eyes for a moment. He brushed his thumb along the back of your hand, his skin warm, somehow soft despite the calluses, and you concentrated on that.

Someone who wanted to hurt you wouldn’t be so gentle, you tried to convince yourself, you’re safe.

As you thought it, the last two words were spoken aloud, and you opened your eyes to see Jeremy, a tear slipping down his cheek as he forced a smile. “We’ll keep you safe,” he assured you, his hand moving to brush your hair from your face, lingering for a moment. Just looking at you seemed to send both warmth and pain through him, his gaze so incredibly soft as tears continued to fall.

He hesitated for a moment, the smile fading from his lips as he decided to go through with his next thought, “I just wanted to say, I— I’m sorry, (y/n),” the hand in your hair moved to cup your cheek, and you found yourself both trembling and leaning into the touch. “We’re so, so sorry.” He glanced up at Ryan, their eyes meeting, and you couldn’t do anything but watch as they both tried to blink away tears. Jeremy’s words were barely a whisper as he tried to continue, “There’s noth— nothing—”

When his voice broke, Ryan reached across you, his fingers gentle against Jeremy’s skin as he brushed away his tears. “Nothing we could do to ever make it right,” Ryan continued for him, his voice soft as he moved to look at you with downcast eyes. “But, I promise, we’ll spend the rest of our lives trying.”

“We’re gonna do right by you,” Jeremy added, his voice wavering. “And no one is gonna hurt you ever again.”

In the back of your mind, a voice murmured, don’t make promises you can’t keep, but you shook the thought away, fighting to keep your mind from dragging you back. The longer they were with you, though, the closer those memories were pulled to the forefront of your mind, and your heart rate was climbing quickly.

“I— I’m sorry, can you… can you leave for a bit? I’m really sorry, I just, I can’t—” your voice broke, but they seemed to understand, both of them pulling away slowly.

“(Y/n), it’s alright, you don’t have to apologize or explain yourself,” Ryan assured you as he and Jeremy stood from the bed.

“We’re just… we’re glad you’re okay, and we’ll do whatever we can to keep it that way.”

“Thank you,” you murmured as they made their way out of the room, the words barely there as you were fighting against your own thoughts. The second you knew they were gone, the heart monitor’s beeping slowed significantly, and you took in a painful breath. Your entire body ached, and you couldn’t help but feel exhausted after the mental strain of struggling against your own memories.

“I’ve got some more painkillers,” Jack spoke as she walked in, glass of water in hand. “The last dose we gave you should be wearing off about now, and it’s way too early for you to be feeling everything.”

The small conversation you had with her as you took the meds honestly went by in a daze, and before you could process anything, the painkillers had you drifting off, something you were honestly grateful for. You could deal with your spiraling thoughts when you woke up, until then, you’d fade in and out of dreams, nightmares where Ryan and Jeremy fought to save you from themselves.

He’s Drunk

Ell: You walked around the party looking for Ell, he was nowhere to be found. You walked outside to the back house and saw Ell inside with a bunch of other people. You walked in and found the band, Ryland, their significant others, and a bunch of other people that you didn't really know. You opened the doors to the back house and took in the scene. Ell was sitting there telling everyone some crazy story that for sure didn't happen and was making everyone laugh till they cried. You walked in and tried to sit next to Rydel and Vanni but Ell saw you instantly. "BABE", he yelled, everyone's eyes met yours. You gave a peace sign at the awkwardness. Ell continued to yell,"Where have you been? I've been looking for you this whole night!" You giggled,"No you've been here." He looked like he had just realized that he forgot an important day,"Oh my gosh! You're right!" Everyone laughed. "I'd like to sing you a song of apology." You rolled your eyes,"Ell, don't do th-" "Say can you read between the lines I'm singing, through away the only chance I had with you", he yelled. You laughed,"I didn't breakup with you." He let out a sigh of relief,"You're taking me back?" Everyone laughed really hard. "I'll never do it again", he continued as he came running to hug you.

Ross: You were awoken by someone's sobs that filled your bedroom. You turned your head and adjusted your eyes to what was going on. It was Ross, in only his boxers, and he was lying against your door. "What are you-" "Welcome to the Hotel California", he sang lightly. You laughed,"Rossy? Are you okay?" He looked up,"Y/N, how long have you been here?" "Since before you came home", you said with a giggle. He ran toward the bed and jumped onto it, barely missing you. You gasped at the thought of drunk Ross flattening you like a pancake. You still faced the door as you let out a yawn. He grabbed your torso and pulled you to face him. You were both now lying face to face. "How much did you drink", you said while tapping his nose. "A lot", he said while tapping your nose. You cringed at the smell of Vodka with a bunch of other things. He then suddenly began crying again,"You don't know how much it hurts me", he cried. You became slightly worried and you rubbed his back,"What happened Ross?" He turned away from you. You jumped onto his side like he did you and faced him. He turned again. You jumped onto his side to somewhat keep him from moving. "You're hurting me", he obnoxiously yelled. "Good", I said with a laugh,"Why are you crying Ross?" "Because it hurts to think that....th-that...that I could've had one more shot, but I ran out of money to give to the bartender." You sat there and laughed your butt off. "Stop laughing at me", he continued to yell through sobs for the next fifteen minutes.

Riker: "I don't want your body but I hate to think about you with somebody else", you heard him belt before sliding into the seat in the booth next to you. You ignored him and continued your conversation with the gang (when I say gang I mean, well...you know. Ry, the band, their gf's and stuff). "Our love has gone cold, you're intertwining your soul with somebody else", he sang again, you could hear the drunk smirk through his voice. You turned to face him with a look of annoyance in your eyes. "Someone's about to get punched", Ross hooted which caused everyone else to do the same. "Riker, not to be rude but I'm talking and you're interrupting me with your singing in my ear", you said with a smile. "Y/N, not to be rude, but I was singing and you interrupted me with your talking." Everyone laughed and 'ooh'ed you two. You let out a devilish chuckle,"Well then, if you must continue making my ears bleed, please do", you said while gesturing for him to continue. "Let's dance", he decided to stray from the topic of conversation and grab you by the waist. "No", you said while shrugging him off. He pulled on your again. "Riker, honestly I know you're dr-", you started. He cut you off by kissing you roughly. Everyone laughed. You pulled away almost three seconds after,"What the?" "I'm looking through you while you're looking through your phone and then leaving with somebody else", he sang with a smirk. You gave him a death glare. He chuckled and put his hands in the air making jazz hands while saying,"Ooh looks like we have ourselves a badass on our hands", causing you to even laugh.

Rocky: You sat up in one of the rooms with the rest of the gang, none of you were interested in this party that Rocky had convinced you to go to. Rocky wasn't in the room, he was missing. But you all sat there talking and imagining what he was doing downstairs and hoping he wasn't cheating on you. You suddenly were all interrupted by a scream from down below,"Y/N! Y/N!" You rolled your eyes,"This can't be good", you got up and looked out the window along with everyone else. You all looked out to see a naked Rocky. You all laughed at him. "What are you doing...babe", you were suddenly embarrassed of him. "Come join me", he said while taking a sip of something from a big bottle. You turned around and ran out the room while yelling,"STAY THERE AND WATCH HIM!" You ran outside to where he was. He turned to face you and sort of sang,"Y/N!" You rolled your eyes and walked toward him. He walked toward you while trying to give you a hug. "Don't Rocky", you shouted while pushing him away. Everyone laughed from the window. You gave them the finger and took the bottle from Rocky's hands. "Babe, you could've just asked! Take as much as you want", he said while swatting his hands in the air like a fly flew in front of him. You rolled your eyes and threw it in a trashcan that was a couple of feet away from you. "What the fu-", he started. "No more drinking Rock", you said like a mom. He turned away from you and put his hand like someone talking (idk how to explain it but I hope you know what I mean) . You rolled your eyes again and stepped toward him. He took this as an opportunity to throw you over his shoulder. You screamed,"PUT ME DOWN", while hitting his back. Everyone continued laughing, filming, and screaming from the window. He walked toward the pool and threw you in. You shot up from the freezing water and ran out of the pool. You yelled like a monster, everyone from the window and Rocky screamed in fear. You ran toward Rocky who was too stunned to move. You grabbed his shoulders about to knee him where it would hurt. He leaned in and smashed his lips against yours. You couldn't resist even a drunk and naked Rocky. You kissed back. Everyone from the window yelled,"BOO!" and "Get a room!" But you ignored them, it was just you too, the drunk and the sober.

Ryland: He had just gotten home from Riker's bachelor party and Ryland was basically him when he was drunk, plus a Rocky and Ross personality. It was annoying because you could barely stand all three of them in one room together without wanting to pull your and their hair out. It frustrated you just thinking about it"Y/N", he pleaded,"Why won't you kiss me?" "Because you and your breath smell like you drowned in vodka", you chuckled. "That's stupid", he said with a slur. "Brush your teeth then", you said while looking back at your phone. He groaned loudly,"I have to give up so much just for you to kiss me?!" You laughed,"What a sacrifice", you said while touching your chest. He scoffed,"I'm pure!" "What the hell?!" "I'm not going to let you take my breathinity", he said while covering his mouth. You guess it was like virginity but with your breath. You laughed,"Ryland it doesn't take a lot to brush your teeth, I'll help you if you'd like", you said while continuing to scroll through apps on your phone. "It's that", he said with bugged eyes and pointing at your phone. "What?" He snatched your phone from your hands. You went to get it back but he jumped on you. You laughed,"Ry I know you won't remember this tomorrow but I want you to understand that you're the cause of my death!" He looked through your phone while you struggled underneath him. "Ry! Seriously get off and give it back!" "I'll do both if you kiss me", he said with a slur, he began taking selfies. You rolled your eyes,"No!" "Fine then, no phone and you get squished!" "Fine", you gave in,"You have to let me out though so I can reach you." "You're tricking me!" "I give you my honest word", you persuaded. He finally gave in and got off of you. He motioned for you to come toward him. You rolled your eyes and leaned in. You hesitated a bit because he REEKED of vodka! He was finally over with how slow you were and cupped your face in his hands, he kissed you and you took your phone from him put it in your back pocket. You broke away and giggle before running off,"Thanks!"

Chapter 9 - Yes Chef!

Ooh! It's finally my turn to talk! We've never formally met, you've only read about me. Well anyway, my names Elizabeth Brooke Ryan. I go by a few names that my friends and family have come up with, so just pick one of those. Those names are; Elizabeth, Liz, Lizzy, Beth, Eliza, E.B., E.R, E., E. Ry, Ryan, and I think that's it. As you already know I'm youngest of my Ryan family siblings, I'm five foot five, blonde hair, green eyes, and I wear glasses. I didn't do sports like my siblings when I was in high school, I found a different kind of skill that I was good at. Instead I would learn cooking and baking at different rec centers and take classes wherever I could. I just found the whole thing so interesting, and it just came so natural. Despite my reputation as a picky eater. Hey I'm working on it! At this point I'd like to consider myself the best cook in my family. My siblings love being my taste testers and always have been ever since I made my first batch of cookies with mom when I was like..eight. Even though theres a pretty significant age gap between us, we're all close. I'm not any closer to one sibling more than another, I love them all equally. They all took time to take care of me growing up and in different ways. I study at a culinary school in San Diego, and my parents were gracious enough to pay for my entire tuition, but I do work at a restaurant for experience and y'know ya girl needs some spending money. I work at kind of a fancy-ish french restaurant, but I only do prep work. So I'm cutting lots of onions, carrots, potatoes, and crushing a whole mess of garlic. My dream is really to be a chef at a restaurant I love. Simple I know, but I'm a simple person. A lot of people think cooking is a chore or a hassle, but it's something I do that makes me happy and makes me feel creative and special. I live in a small-ish apartment near the school so on occasion I'll walk to school and work, but sometimes I'll feel weird walking around toting around a briefcase looking bag of knives. When I made the decision to go to culinary school it wasn't until I'd already done a year at a traditional college. I wasn't passionate about anything I was taking, and nothing seemed to make me want to dedicate my life to it. It was a real internal struggle since I didn't wanna feel like I was disappointing my parents in going an unconventional route. Though when I did finally tell them they were supportive. I don't know why I expected anything else from them, they're the best! Word got to my siblings on my decision and they all chipped in together to buy me my knives to show their support as well. They were Henckel knives that I'd walk by in Sur la Table all the time and just pine for. Can you say #Blessed ? -ALARM- I struggled underneath the covers trying to find my way out. When I finally emerged I turned the blaring alarm off, and made my way to the bathroom. I did my business and splashed some cold water on my face to wake me up a little bit more. "Alexa, play THE LIST!" I smiled turning to my reflection in the mirror. C'est La Vie began playing and I danced around my apartment probably looking like an idiot. Though what did I care I lived alone. "Say you will say you won't, say you'll do what I don't!" I continued singing probably off-key, dancing my way into the kitchen to make breakfast. Opening the fridge I examined the miriad of leftovers populating the shelves. First things first, i popped open a monster energy. I shook the caffiene through as I took the first sip. "C'est la vie!" I smiled hitting it right on time. -Knock knock- I skipped over to the door and looked through the peep hole. I unlocked the door welcoming inside my two best friends James and Rebecca. James walked in also holding the hand of his son. We usually walk to school together, but today they were early. "Healthy breakfast you got there." James laughed pointing to my energy drink. "It's just a warm up. I was going to have a real breakfast." "That and maybe put on some pants there." Rebecca said. "I'm wearing shorts! I wouldn't have answered the door pants-less I'm not a heathen Rebecca." Though I could see how I did look pantless with my big t-shirt covering my shorts. "Anyway, what're you guys doin here so early. We don't leave for another like..half hour." "I was actually going to ask if I could use your shower cause they were doin some stuff over at my building and the waters out.." Rebecca said pushing her index fingers together. "Well let me go first. And since I'm doing you this favor you make us breakfast then!" "Okay deal. See James look at how nice our friend Elizabeth is. That's why she's my best friend not you" "I can't help that my roommates had the bathrooms occupied when you came over. Get cookin there." I heard Rebecca rummaging through my cabinets for pans while I walked over to the bathroom to take a shower. The good thing about having friends in culinary school is that you can always rely on someone to cook. When I came out the cloud of steam flowed into the apartment. "Jeez you must take some hot showers." Rebecca said plating an omlette. I shrugged my shoulders, still drying my hair. "Okay I did my part. SHOWER!" She picked up her bag and practically ran to the shower. I sat down with James and his son, eating the omlette with what looked to be cut up portions of leftovers. I washed up the dishes and made final checks before we all made our way out of my place. I slinged my bag over my shoulder and picked up my knife kit on our way out the door. We talked about random things on our way to school, but not before making a quick stop for James. He dropped his son off at day-care which also was conveniently close to the school. "I really don't know how you do the whole single dad thing." Rebecca said. "What do you mean?" He said while replying to texts. "I mean I can barely take care of myself let alone another person, and ALONE." "Well he's not alone Becks. He's got us." I smiled. "Aha thanks Liz. But yeah I've got help but I just wanna do as much on my own as I can without burdening anyone else." "You're one of the strongest people I know James." Rebecca said before taking the last sip of her coffee. We made our way onto campus before parting ways to head to our classes. "Meet for lunch!" Rebecca shouted. Both James and I gave her the thumbs up. i walked into my first class of the day which was baking. I learned a lot of my baking knowledge from not only my mom but also my aunt Camryn. Along with her wedding planning business she has her own baking business on the side. She wasn't always my nicest teacher to me, but I did learn a lot. I buttoned up my chef's jacket and sat down in the lecture hall to watch a demonstration. I paid attention as best I could taking whatever notes I felt would help me the most later. This isn't like a typical lecture with slides,  it's literally a projection of someone making a dish. When it was finished the class went into the test kitchen to see if we could recreate it. I did fairly well on my recreation but just a few plating issues kept me from a perfect score. Still an A none the less with room for improvement. I checked the clock. I walked over to the cafeteria where Rebecca was already there waiting with her second coffee of the day. Though what can I expect from someone that considers themself a sommelier of coffee. "How was baking class?" Rebecca asked a little shakily. I'm assuming it's from all the caffiene she's had in such a short amount of time. "I made the pastry fine, but I just had plating issues. My coulis wasn't as thick as I wanted and it started streaking on the plate. So I got docked points, but still an A." I shrugged trying not to think about it too much. "Well that's good." "What's good?" James asked walking over to us carrying a tray. "Liz got an A in baking today, but she's mad about her coulis." "Oh bummer. Cookie?" He offered. I smirked taking it. "Ha nothing a cookie couldn't solve." "Okay rude you didn't offer me one." "Excuse me where are my manners, Rebecca would you also like a cookie?" "Hold the sarcasm with that one." Rebecca said reaching over. "But yes I would." I took a bite laughing at their exchange. "*SPITS JAMES!" I rubbed a napkin on my tongue. Both of them looking at me crazy. "THESE ARE RAISIN!" "...and?" James said slowly taking a bite for himself. "WHO LIKES OATMEAL RAISIN COOKIES!?" I fumed passing it back to him. Rebecca's eyes grew wide. "You would like raisins!" Rebecca huffed. "C'mon Elizabeth, let's get real food." We stuck our tongues out while James laughed to himself. Moving through the lunch line, Rebecca and I grabbed food onto our trays to forget the trauma of the raisin trying to be a chocolate chip. What sick bastard decided cookies needed raisins?! I settled on a chicken sandwich with polenta fries, while Rebecca got a skirt steak salad with chipotle dressing. Perks of going to a culinary school is you get food normally not thought of in regular college. "I can't believe you did that to me. I THOUGHT WE WERE FRIENDS!" I took a hard bite into my sandwich. He just shrugged his shoulders before taking another bite of that monstrosity of a dessert. When we finished lunch it was time for me to head to my cooking basics class. The class I'm probably best at. Like my baking class we start off watching a demo of a dish being made and then are asked to recreate. I like this one in particular cause we get to eat whatever we make. I'm not so much a sweet tooth person so that's why this one takes rank over desserts. Also this way I usually don't have to make dinner. We were making pan roasted chicken, braised swiss chard, roasted parsnips, and carmelized cipollini onions. It's a dish I could make in my sleep. When I got into the kitchen it was time for business. I didn't hear anyone, I wasn't talking, the only thing I was doing was cooking. I finished somewhere in the middle of the class, and brought my dish up to be judged. My professor cut into my chicken and I hoped to fuck it wasn't raw. He picked the piece up on the fork and I saw BOOM right on the money. He took bits from around the plate onto a single bite. "Very good Elizabeth. Another good days work. You can enjoy your dish if you want or leave it to another student." FUCK THAT. I brought my plate back to my station and started eating. I did the dishes at my station when I got done, and packed up my knives. James and Rebecca were waiting outside my class as we were all going to work right afterwards. James is a waiter at the restaurant, and Rebecca works the bar. They're both a little older than I am, and I'm only twenty. I met them both pretty randomly when sitting alone in the cafeteria. Rebecca sat down at my table and just introduced herself to me. Complete opposite of my own personality, and then right after James did the same. I guess they could tell I was new or something and needed friends. Since then we've all just hung out, and they even helped me get the job at the restaurant. "Looked good whatever you were eating." Rebecca said. "Oh so good. I love having a class where you eat what you make." "Aha I remember those classes. Enjoy them now." James warned. "Aw James don't scare her!" Rebecca laughed. "I'm just sayin! I can't eat my accounting homework." Way to bring down my mood James. "Well whatever, let's get to work." We walked off campus and rode the bus. I made it to my station of unchopped vegetables and got right into it. "Hey Elizabeth." Our head chef greeted me. "Hi!" I smiled looking up from my pile of carrots. "I'm also gonna need you to break down those romaine hearts. We got tableside Caesars going tonight." "Ooh fun. Are you guys making the dressing from scratch?" "Yeah actually, you ever done it?" He asked inspecting the various stations. "Just at home, it was okay." "Aha hard to believe this is your first year at culinary." What can I say? Humble brag. "Well I'll leave you to get back to work." "Alright, bye chef!" I don't even think I know our head chef's real name. I just call him chef. I set my knife down for a minute to shake the feeling back into my hands. The pile of carrots slowly began to dwindle down, so I shifted my focus to the romaine hearts. After washing and spinning them I broke them down for salad. I brought the bowls to the trolleys for the table side service. I stood at the front of the kitchen just imagining what it'd be like. "Alright on order! Four covers!" I said pretending to read a ticket. I heard laughs behind me and immediately I turned around shook. A few of the line cooks had seen me. "Aw..she's playing pretend." One of them said walking past me. "How cute..thinks she's an actual chef." Another chef smirked attempting to pinch my cheek. I pulled my face away, trying to be as stone face as possible as they walked by. Inside I was dying. I was so embarrassed. I ran back into the walk-in fridge to cool off. I took a few deep breaths to collect myself. The head chef walked in, and jumped back surprised to see me in there. "Whoa! I didn't expect to see anyone in here." "Oh..um I was just..never mind I don't know what I was doing." "You okay?" He asked looking me in the eyes. "Yeah yeah just..nothing." I tried to walk past him back into the kitchen. He held his arm out blocking my way. "Hey tell me what's wrong." He leaned up against the door. "No one can hear what we're talking about it's okay. What you say will be between us, and I can tell you're a little rattled about something." "*sigh well..alright. I was at the front of the pass with no one in the kitchen and I kinda like pretended I was calling out orders..y'know like a real head chef. Then I guess some of the line cooks saw me and kinda..made fun of me for pretending." "Mm I see. So lemme ask you something. What's your goal from all this?" "What? To be a head chef." "So what if you imagine yourself in that role and some people see? You can see yourself doing that, and that's what matters. Those chefs are probably just content working the line and never getting better. They probably stopped learning a long time ago. You're dreaming bigger. You've got something Elizabeth and I'm not just saying that." I nodded my head. "Now walk back in there like you belong in there." He pointed me back into the kitchen. I pulled my shoulders back and walked confidently back in. I found the chefs that passed by me. They smirked at me again, mocking the motions I was doing earlier. "I will be a head chef one day, and a damn good one. So FUCK YOU!" The head chef covered his mouth laughing as I returned to my station. I must've said it pretty loud since I could hear both James and Rebecca laughing their ass off. Good thing we hadn't opened for dinner yet!

Whispers in the Dark (Shyan)

A/N: Because I can? And I’ve been obsessed with possessed fics now? Basically, Shane brings an ouija board to one of their investigations and it was only suppose to be a joke.

Angst! Because I like making myself cry.

P.S! This is based off a real place/event. Villisca Axe Murder House. It’s pretty damn interesting!

Title: Whispers in the Dark

-

It was stupid, of course it was. And, it was one of Ryan’s biggest no no’s, but, Shane, being the skeptic that he was; wanted to see how far he could actually push things.

Countless of times since he’s knew about Shane’s little plan he told the elder no. That he won’t let them do that, that he won’t participate, but every time he got shot down. Now, as they sit in a house where two adults and six children were found dead; murdered by a person or persons they still didn’t know. The case is unsolved, has been for 105 years already, having been in 1912.

J.B and Sarah Moore were killed along with their six children, and still, no one knows what truly happened that dark night.

And Shane here was trying to contact them with a ouija board.

“No! We’re not doing this, if anything, we’re fuckin up the rest for the dead.” Ryan argued, the board was already placed down on the floor and Shane was retrieving candles from out his bag.

“What? Scared that this is actually all bullshit and ghosts and demons aren’t real?” He questioned with a smirk.

“Well- no! It’s just, if we even do this-if- who knows for sure whatever we do contact is the Moore’s family?” Ryan chided.

“So what? Like demons?”

“Yes! Exactly, like demons. They could disguise themselves as J.B or Sarah Moore. And, not to mention, all the rules we have to follow- and, the actual chance of speaking to something!”

Shane rolled his eyes and chuckled, “Whatever, nothing’s going to happen, here, we can do a test run while the cameramen are still outside.”

“No-”

“Ryan. Come on, what’s the worse that can happen? What are we going to do? Open the portal to Hell?” Shane interrupted, knowing well that Ryan was going to give in soon.

Ryan stared at Shane for a good minute, trying to find out if Shane was serious or not. After a moment, Ryan sighed, closing his eyes as he ran his fingers through his hair; messing it up a bit.

“Fine, fine, but just remember the rules.” Ryan compromised.

“Which are?”

“Don’t leave without saying goodbye, never play alone, and don’t leave the planchette on the board if we’re not using it.” Ryan recited.

Shane slowly pushed the resting planchette off the board and smiled, “You’ve never played this before?”

“No, because unlike you, I don’t actually want to die.” Ryan groaned, sitting down with his legs crossed on one end of the board while Shane sat on the other end.

“Boring.”

“Have you?”

“Nope.”

Ryan gave Shane what could only be explained as a bitch face before shaking it off. Pulling out a lighter, Ryan lit the two candles and put them on the either sides of the board. So all four angles were either covered by Ryan and Shane themselves, or, the candles.

Before grabbing the planchette, Ryan looked up at Shane who was staring at him. “Don’t fuck around.”

With a quick feign of innocence from Shane, Ryan placed the planchette on the board and put both of his pointer’s fingertips on one end. Seeing as Shane mimicked him shortly afterwards. With a deep intake of breath, Ryan circled the planchette around the board three times. Now, he could feel his heart pounding in his throat.

“If Sarah or J.B Moore is out there, we would like to talk about what truly happened to you on June 10th, 1912.” Ryan began, guiding the planchette to the middle of the board and waited. Nothing.

“Me and Shane aren’t here for any trouble, we just want to know what happened to you on that devastating day.” He continued, nothing.

“It must be hard, having no justice, for your family. We, and thousands of others, truly sympathize with you. So if you’re willing, we only have a few questions.”

Silence.

Ryan was about to call it quits and burn this thing when the slightest movement happened. A simple glide from one of the random letters on the board to the letter ‘H’ and then 'E’. Ryan looked up at Shane, who was also looking down at the board. A shit grin ate most of Shane’s face.

“You dick! Are you serious?!” Ryan yelled, seriously annoyed as he tried to calm his frantic heart rate. Shane burst out laughing.

“Ah! You should have saw your face, you were really into it.” Shane teased, face turning red.

Ryan rolled his eyes and let out an irritated huff of breath. Letting go of the planchette as an reaction of his frustration with Shane’s childish behaviors.

“Hey, hey I’m sorry! Okay, okay, I won’t fuck around anymore. Let’s do this legit.” Shane nodded up at Ryan who still gave him a dissatisfied housewife look.

“Fine, but I swear to god if you fuck around again we are burning this board and sticking to the original plan.”

“Yeah, yeah, of course.” Shane agreed absentmindedly, watching as Ryan placed his fingertips on the planchette again.

Three more circles.

“Mr. Moore? If you’re still there with us we would like to ask you a few questions if that’s okay. No one knows who truly murdered you and your family and all the suspects have been let go.” Ryan says, trying to keep his heartbeat down.

There was still silence.

But then the planchette started to move, Ryan whined as he let out a pissed off, “Really?” at Shane.

“I swear this is not me.” Shane quickly defends himself.

“Well I barely have my fingers on this!” Ryan says, the pointer first going to one corner to the board. Then another.

“U-uh, Mr. Moore? Is that you?” Ryan asked, his voice now shaky as Shane stared, unresponsive.

The last two corners were touched and the planchette moved quickly now.

“R-Y-A-N?” Ryan muttered, his mind now going ten times it’s usual speed. “Sh-Shane this isn’t fucking funny!”

“Ryan, I swear this isn’t fucking me!”

“So explain this.”

“I-I don’t know, wind? Maybe the board is slippery and slight movements makes the planchette move more than it actually does?” Shane racked his brain for an answer, solution, but nothing.

Their attention was quickly grabbed by the board again.

R-Y-A-N-R-Y-A-N-R-Y-A-N

“It’s my name, it’s Ryan, I-I don’t understand? Shane?!” Ryan asked, desperately.

Shane found himself completely speechless, the candlelights were flickering, the furniture was shaking. And then, nothing.

It all stopped.

Shane looked around the house, in total disbelief, and then, back at Ryan.

Ryan was hunched over, his face wasn’t showing. Hell, his body wasn’t even moving.

“R-Ry?” Shane asked, trying to control the fear that was bubbling inside.

Laughter, laughter that shook his body overcame Ryan. And for a moment, Shane thought Ryan was fucking with him for his earlier doings. That was, until, Ryan lifted up his head, still laughing. His eyes were closed.

“R-Ryan?” This wasn’t like Ryan, he doesn’t fuck around with supernatural shit like this. That’s just not his Ryan.

“Sorry, who?” Then his eyes opened, black tar pits, leading nowhere but more and more darkness. However, a single tear ran down Ryan’s face and down his cheek.

Shane’s breath got caught in his throat as he quickly scooted away from Rya-that thing. That wasn’t Ryan anymore and whoever it was-whatever it was, needs to stay the hell away. The thing stood up easily, as with grace, and a single flick of his wrist the board and planchette flew to the other side of the room.

“Honestly,” the thing croaked, “I don’t see your interest in this piece of flesh.” the demon, the only thing Shane can really come up with, said. It’s black eyes looking over Ryan’s figure and then back to him. “You do have feelings for this thing, don’t you? Deep feelings, that a friend shouldn’t have for another male friend.”

Shane quickly went red as he tried to stand up, only to have the demon place Ryan’s foot on his chest and push him back down. Immense power being placed on his ribcage made Shane cry out. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Shane spat. The strength was unbelievable, and his struggles went unnoticed by the creature as it barely flinched.

“Yes you do, don’t play coy with me. As if I care that you’re too chicken shit to fess up.” It’s head cocked to the side, “In fact, how would our little friend Ryan react to this?” it smiled, showing off Ryan’s teeth. “Perhaps he’d be disgusted, want to quit the show and your petty friendship. Or maybe!”

The demon stepped off of Shane’s chest, smirking. His finger placed on the bottom of Ryan’s lip. “He would just kick you from the show, block you from everything. I think I would be disgusted if some low life, pessimist, uninteresting,” it’s voice started to get louder, “good for nothing, piece of shit try to even want to waste my time more than he already does.”

Shane’s breathing was frantic, his head shaking. “You don’t know anything, you don’t know shit about me, nor Ryan.”

“Oh? I don’t now? So I also don’t know if I did this,” The demon waltz over to where Shane was still on the ground, frozen in fear, and placed both of its legs on either side of Shane’s body and dropped down. “and it was your precious Ryan, you totally wouldn’t kiss him right now?”

It’s features, that Shane could now see clearly, was somewhat soft, even accompanied with those dark orbs. The soft smile that unsettled Shane with how much it looked like his Ryan. “You’re not him.” Shane gritted.

“You know, we can play out some of your many fantasies about our friend-”

“He’s not our friend, he’s mine.” Shane quickly hissed.

“Ooh,” The demon purred, “possessive. Isn’t that cute?” it dipped, Shane’s chest now brushed against Ryan’s. The dark orbs now staring deep into Shane’s brown ones. And it smirked. “For a skeptic, you really are afraid. You’d think, since Ryan believed in this stuff so much that he would know the believers are more likely to have something… happen to them.”

The demon grinned, his hand now grabbing at Shane’s jaw, it’s thumb and pointer finger smashing in Shane’s cheeks. “Humans are so complicated, doubtful, scared, it’s pathetic. Your annoying love for Ryan makes this moment, that you should be fearing for your life, still heavily wonders if Ryan’s okay. So tell me,” It’s grip for harder, painful. “why shouldn’t I kill you right now? I could leave this pitiful body, leave you wondering if Ryan actually sees you as disgusting as I do.”

It’s head crooked, “You know that human saying, 'Nothing kills man faster than his own head’ hmm.” Shane was whining out in pain now, his jaw felt like it could crush any moment now. He couldn’t look at this thing anymore, his soul already crushed and the tears that were threaten to fall almost did.

The demon laughed, mockingly, shoving Shane’s head to the side. “Pathetic.” It groaned. Sitting up as it still straddled his waist, Shane watched, the black orbs looked somewhat amused with what it did. “You’re not worth my time, and neither is him.” And with that, Ryan’s eyes closed and he fell- well, would had fell if it wasn’t for Shane’s quick thinking.

Holding the shorter man up as he laid slumped over. Slowly and carefully, Shane sat up, still holding Ryan as he pulled the man close; now letting out the tears he’s been desperately hiding.

“R-Ryan, Ryan fuck, fuck man, you gotta wake up. God, please.” Shane begged, sniffing as he tried to protect Ryan from the world by holding him close.

Shane ran his fingers through Ryan’s black hair, shaking his own head as he choked up. “I’m s-sorry, I should have listened to you, please wake up.”

A movement, a light one, but it was a movement. Ryan groaned and Shane quickly pulled back to look at him. “We have to get out of here.” He said before Ryan had to chance to say anything. Helping Ryan up and standing himself, he ignored the tremendous ache in his jaw and the hurting of his ribcage.

“B-Burn the board.” Ryan said after he got up, “Burn the board!” he said even louder. Shane stared at Ryan, watching as the younger man held himself and looked down at the floor.

Quickly, without saying anything, Shane found both the board and the planchette, throwing them in the fireplace they had lit to give a more ominous introduction to the video. Turning away as it burnt.

Not spending anymore time in this hellhole, Shane took Ryan’s wrist and pulled him out. Practically dragging Ryan as they went to the car. The cameramen were staring in interest but Shane quickly waved them off.

“It’s over. We’re not doing this anymore.” Perhaps it was the tone of his voice, the ragged look from both of the boys, or how Ryan was speechless, staring blankly at nothing; with only a dried tear stain on his face.