#it's like being told you did a good job at school
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-> adore you | paige b
paige x black!fem!college!athlete reader
genre: fluff
authors note: she’s for the girls and yall go together. read bad
from the moment you woke up in your hotel room next to paige until now, about to step on to the espy’s red carpet, you were anxious. you were a famous athlete in your own regard but the spotlight had never quite been on you the way it was now - helping team usa win gold, setting a personal record and a uconn record, all while being in a loving private relationship with paige. everyone knew but nobody told. the athletes at uconn had each others backs and without a doubt, paige had yours. she popped candy into her mouth mindlessly as you got your hair and makeup done in the chair. “when you get on stage, not if but when,” she said matter of factly, “there’s going to be a countdown. don’t pay it any mind. just say what you want. literally, whatever. except curse words, they’ll fine conn for that.”
you couldn’t help having paige’s voice echo through your head, somehow drowning out the noise of the photographers. it was already a sunny day in california and the size of lights made you struggle to keep your eyes open. paige was coming behind you and suddenly all the photographers focus was on the both of you. the speculation had always been there, but there wasn’t any concrete proof. paige shot you a big smile and an awkward thumbs up and you covered your mouth to laugh. the shouts of the photographers were so deafening you couldn’t make out what they were saying until paige approached you and locked her fingers with yours: “they want us to take photos together.” she whispered in your ear before dropping your hand. the moment her hand left yours, the comfort was lost.
“just focus on something in the distance.” she whispered and wrapped an arm around you gingerly. you leaned into her touch, thankful to have her by your side. the contrast of your outfits made for a subtle declaration of your relationship. as the moments passed of you switching between a wide smile and a soft one, paige stopped the photographers for a moment and stood in front of you.
“what?” you mumbled, scared that you had done something wrong. did you look too cozy? was it obvious that you were dating? you were beginning to breath harder as paige reached up to fix your hair.
“wait let me fix your hair.” she mumbled, with her eyes focused on your delicately designed hairstyle. she was taking the job of fixing you so seriously that she had her tongue slightly out of her mouth in the process. “i think i got it,” she said turning away but immediately turned back, “one last thing, hold on.” she smiled and twirled of on the curls around her finger and it immediately came back to life.
“good?” you asked and the flutter of lights and the shutters of cameras began again. paige grasped your forearms and nodded.
“you look stunning.” she said loud and proud before facing the photographers once more.
—
they didn’t sit you with paige and it depleted your spirit. you kept calm conversation with the people surrounding you - a few athletes, an executive board member from uconn and other old men who were keen on getting you to explain your tennis career and why you hadn’t gone professional yet.
“i love uconn, my family is there, my team is there, even my girl- my best friend is there.” you corrected yourself. they all nodded in understanding but one of the more assertive man said, “you know college is always there. you should go while you’re still in your prime. you can get the money and find a nice husband while you do so.” he sipped his champagne with a smile that was confident - as if he gave you the most precious bit of information to skyrocket your career.
“i didn’t come to school to get my mrs. degree.” your voice was laced with snark. men like him wanted nothing but money as their main objective. it was never about the passion. as if she could sense the solemn energy radiating off of you, paige walked to the table and began introducing herself. they fawned over her for a few minutes and you were able to still your beating heart for a few moments. once paige spoke them all, she made it to you and dropped onto the balls of her feet next to your chair.
“you’re up next, yeah?” she said, her glimmering eyes scanning your face. “remember: go at your own pace, don’t let them freak you out.” paige squeezed your hand three times, saying “i love you.” it was a code you two developed when you first started dating. it was a way to express the love you shared subtly.
“you got this.” she said as she rose to her feet and said her goodbyes.
“what a nice young lady.” one of the gentleman said, watching her walk away.
“she’s amazing.” you agreed as the lights dimmed and the first presenter walked to the stage.
—
you couldn’t believe it was you who won national women’s college athlete of the year. you couldn’t move from your seat for a long while, hands covering your face ready to swipe the tears that were pouring down your perfectly made up face. you stood from your seat and held the bottom of your dress, walking slowly and as steady as you could. the yelling behind you was a roar of applause and shouts of your name from your fellow uconn student athletes and the loudest of them - was your girlfriend, paige. you stood at the stairs for a moment, unsure of your balance in the heels that adorned your feet. before you knew it, paige’s hand was in yours, helping you up the steps. she squeezed your hand three times and you smiled at her once you finally made it on stage. she shot you another cheesy thumbs up and the audience laughed.
the microphone was louder than you expected as you loosed a breath. your eyes scoped the audience, looking for that familiar face. everyone was in their seats, except paige. she was recording you and your acceptance speech and it was adorable.
“gosh,” you said looking down at the trophy before back up, “i don’t even know where to begin. i never thought my journey as an athlete would bring me to this moment. i was just a little girl years ago, watching uconn athletes and dreaming to be where they were. to stand alongside the greats and be in the arena where they existed. i never, ever,” you sniffled and wiped at your tears, “expected to be a part of uconn the way that i am now. i never knew love like this existed until uconn became my life. i have a thank you list that’s a mile long - so i’ll spare you all,” you laughed and the audience followed, “there are not enough words to describe the family and love i found while being an athlete at uconn. to my people, i love you and to my girlfriend, i adore you. thank you for believing in me and thank you for all those tough training sessions where you kicked my ass - it got me this trophy!.” you laughed and the crowd erupted in applause once more and you could’ve sworn that your girlfriend paige, was the loudest.
—
paigebueckers: after party with my girl, my national women’s college athlete of the year. she learned it all from me. so proud of her.
kkarnold: she’s really that girl
azzifudd: the dress is stunning just like her
paigefan1: so happy for yall 🥺
paigefan2: my heart, i cannot take it anymore
paigefan3: she’s so in love with her and i love it
#paige bueckers#paige bueckers fanfiction#paige bueckers fic#paige bueckers x oc#paige bueckers x reader
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Question for the mods....
HOW IN THE FUCK DID YOU MEET???
Like what???
How??
I am so god damn curious about you two.
I wanna study yall under a microscope lol
Also ngl kinda envious of how close of friends you two seem to be.
(Being an introverted shy af mofo sucks lmao)
I would actually probably read a whole ass book or watch a sitcom or something of the seemingly ever present weird-ass shit that seems to happen on a day-by-day basis.
/gen /lh /nf /pos
2018 newsies fandom. we weren't overly close but we bonded over race and albert a little and then katya dropped off the face of the earth for about a year.
during 2020 lockdown we both independently got into the witcher fandom and somehow ran into eachother again and had the fingers pointing OH MY GOD Y O U !!! moment in our dms. we bonded over hating jaskier. during this time we realized we were both dancers and katya was looking at dance colleges, i was already in college for dance and since it was lockdown and we couldn't go anywhere i told katya my experience auditioning at places to give him a good idea of places. and then i broke every internet safety rule known to man and said hey what if you had applied to my college but didnt know it?? and then one thing led to another and i dished out all the tea on my school. (only After that did we face reveal and give eachother our names lol) and then katya applied. mostly as a joke. until it wasnt a joke because that school gave katya a shit load of money and actually had stuff katya wanted to do. katya ended up coming to one of my zoom ballet classes and it took everything we had to not loose our shit on camera.
during this time we mostly kept eachother sane in lockdown writing witcher fanfic, and sending eachother awful thirst traps on instagram to pitbull music. one of our awful bits was using the dilf filter to make bad frat boy edits.
come august of 2021 we both moved into college. the same college. in the same building. it was wild. i pinched myself several times in shock. we went on a walk around campus with some worms on strings and were like what the hell how did we get here.
we continued to hang out and did weird insane things together. we took a class on the french revolution together where i had to put up with katya and fennec awkwardly flirting (read: making finger guns at eachother).
and then, since i was 2 years older, i was graduating and was going to stay in the area for a job and was like hey. what if we got an apartment together? and then we did. several adults agreed to this. idk why they let us. but now we live together in a real life apartment and we haven't even killed eachother yet. neither of our parents know that we met online. each of them have a different fake story as to how we know eachother and we really just hope they are never in the same room long enough to ask eachother about it. but its insane. 12/10 would recommend.
katya wanted me to include old tumblr screenshots of us talking, heres what i found from circa 2020:
we've always been like this lol
and heres some ancient greatest hits from instagram, i dont have context and trust me you dont want it:
every now and then the two of us look at eachother and go. how the fuck did we end up here??? (we have no idea)
#not a tag#from saph#storytime ig lol#sorry for the god awful quality#essentially we are basically dan and phil which is insane
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What gets me about Kipperlilly is that while her trauma envy is messed up, she really is facing an opposite problem to the Bad Kids.
Some people on here are saying that if she wanted to go on big adventures she should have done it herself and not expected some kind of plot hook to give her an opening. But we are seeing how that is going for the Bad Kids this season, and it clearly sucks. Fabian went on his first date with Mazey, yet so much of that conversation and role play was still about the mystery and the mission. Gorgug lost a chance to spend time with his bio parents because he was trying to get into a really learning heavy class. The Bad Kids are such good friends, but they can only spend time together in shared classes or as part of the mission. Why would you expect that of anyone?
Most Aguefort kids aren’t going on big real-world adventures like the Bad Kids cause that’s literally being in High School while also working a full time career oriented job. And yet some of these kids know that this is all just leading up to that real job that they’ve never really experienced or seen proof that they could handle. Is it so weird for a child to want confirmation that they’ll be able to do all the things they’re supposed to do as an adult, especially when they are seeing other kids get that confirmation?
Riz isn’t strong because he suffered, he’s strong because he has an amazing mom he looked up to and learned from and who taught him. Having that vision of his own best self, not just a copy of another person but really something he loves that he was able to really learn thanks to the support he was lucky to get DESPITE his and his mom’s financial situation. He chased his own dream of being a master detective, of dishing out justice, and he got so good at it that it let him kill an ancient red dragon.
Personally, I was one of the smart kids in class, but I wasn’t one of the gifted and talented. One kid was working with circuitry in a class where I was learning about screws and levers. In a photography class I got paired up with a kid in a lower grade than me who full on made his own model rocket fuel for homemade bottle rockets. Combining that with having ADHD that nobody properly educated me about, I always thought I was just missing something. I’m taking my medicine, I’m going to class and trying to join clubs, why is it that every time I ask someone to teach me they don’t have time for a total beginner? Why is being my own teacher the only way to learn these things, and why can’t I do that if apparently everyone else does?
I just don’t blame Kipperlilly for being upset when she is presented with the Bad Kids as an example to follow despite the fact that neither she NOR the Bad Kids are given proper time to actually work toward that goal. The Bad Kids don’t actually have the time for adventures on top of their regular lives, but they are forced to do it anyway. Kipperlilly allowed for time so the Rat Grinders could have whatever their normal lives looked like, at least until they all were taken by Ancarna. If your choice is to either work yourself to death and be told you did the correct thing, or to take your time and be shown that you are wasting it, why wouldn’t you be angry?
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Allegiance: Part 1 | Levi x Reader
masterlist
Summary: You're a wealthy citizen from Stohess. When the survey corps are in the city, you can't help but fall for a cute captain.
Word Count: 2.7k
Author's Note: Song correlated: Cola by Lana Del Rey. Okay This is going to have to be multiple parts because it's already pretty long and I'm not even near the end. Posted: 4/25/24
You grew up in a large home never worrying about your next meal and you never cleaned anything yourself. Your parents had people employed to do so. Your family was one of many other families who could afford MPs to guard and escort your family. While growing up, MPs escorted you to school, shops, and friends' homes. You wore clothes that fit you right and were cleaned properly. There was food when you wanted and life was easy for you. Your family required you to attend Einrich College and you got a degree in chemistry. Though they did not care about having you employed they just wanted you to remain a person with higher education. They didn’t mind you living at home and they wanted you to marry a man with a similar background.
You were fortunate enough to be a free-spirited person. You didn’t worry about titans coming to Stohess because of how close to the center your family lived. Most of your time was spent reading, writing, shopping, and being with friends.
One day your father told you the survey corps was coming to the Military Police Head Quarters in Stohess. The family was going to going to be in attendance at the gala. You and your friends grew up thinking highly of the military and the survey corps. They were so brave and cool for going beyond the walls. However, your adoration for the survey corps depleted around the age of twelve. Your parents prohibited you from joining the cadet corp because they wanted you to attend Einrich College.
When you were at the gala you stood by your parents like you usually did. You were polite to everyone your parents introduced to and made small talk with each official your parents knew.
“I want to introduce you to my good old pal Erwin Smith.” Your dad said to your mother and then glanced at you. You followed your mother and father toward a small group of people who didn’t look social. A guy with dark hair caught your eye. He had one hand in his pocket and he sipped his tea cup then put it behind him on the table. He was kind of cute. He noticed you looking at him and you offered a soft smile. He didn’t return one. “Commander Erwin of the Survey Corp!” Your father greeted a blonde-haired older man. To your surprise, he hugged your dad.
“Warren L/N! Long time no see.” Your father and he both had warm smiles. It must have been nice for your father to see a friend from his past.
“Erwin this is my wife, Cordelia L/N.” Your father motioned towards your mother who respectfully held out a handshake.
“Commander Erwin Smith, nice to meet you.” She said sweetly.
“Please I’m just Erwin to you.” Then he looked at you next. All you could do was smile.
“Erwin this is my daughter, Y/N,” Your father said.
“Y/N, nice to meet you,” Erwin said to you and you stuck out your hand like how your mother did.
“Y/N graduated from Einrich College with a degree in chemistry.” Your father said and you felt slightly embarrassed because you hated when your parents explained you didn’t need a job. “She was fairly vested in becoming a scout when she was younger.” You looked at the man with black hair to see his reaction. He was just staring at you. His attractive gaze made it hard for you to look at him any longer than a second.
“I bet you would’ve been a wonderful scout, Y/N,” Erwin said encouragingly.
“Poor girl can’t even run for more than five minutes.” Your father joked.
“That’s not true, father.” You said trying to not sound annoyed in front of the attractive man.
“Chemistry though? You must be easily able to find a secure job.” Erwin suggested and you started feeling embarrassed.
“Oh, she’s smart, but she hasn’t worked a day in her life. Y/N doesn’t need to get a job.” Your mother said lightly but the shame felt heavy. You stayed quiet and couldn’t look at anyone in the eye.
“I’ve been interested in jobs. I just haven’t found anything that interests me.” You said.
“Well, section commander Hange Zoe—” Erwin motioned to the cute woman next to him. “—studies and experiments on captured titans.” Your parents greeted and shook her hand. She seemed fairly inviting and energetic.
“Yes, titans have interested me—” You noticed the man with the dark hair roll his eyes. “—ever since I kicked a head and it was super light! We haven’t done much biological research on the titans. However, any information we collect is one step closer to solving their mysteries!” She said enthusiastically.
“Wow, I didn’t think there was a branch of the survey corp that experimented on the titans.” You said. You could feel the obsession with the survey corp from your youth slightly return. Only if.
“Yup! Just me and my assistant Moblit! We captured many titans!” Hange said.
“Are you looking for another research assistant?” You asked, thinking it could be a great opportunity to be in the survey corps.
“Unfortunately, Hange’s research is only a small part of the survey corps. You would still need to graduate from the Cadet Corp to be Hange’s assistant.” Erwin said earnestly. You looked at your parents who didn’t let you join. Erwin seemed like he understood that you wanted to join if you had the choice.
“Well, I guess I could always join later right? There’s no age limit?”
“You’d most likely be with a bunch of twelve to fifteen-year-olds. Not something you would enjoy.” Your father said.
“But I’d only be with them for three years and then I could make friends with people my age.” You said.
“Captain Levi joined a little unconventionally.” Erwin motioned to the guy with dark hair. Captain Levi. So that’s his name.
“Nice to meet you, Captain Levi.” You said holding out your hand eager for him to touch you. He looked at your hand and then your eyes. Then he shook your hand. Your heartbeat increased a little. “You joined the cadet corps older than the average?”
“Again he joined the survey corp unconventionally. I recruited him because he excelled with the ODM gear by teaching himself.” Erwin said. You had to face the fact that you missed the age to join the survey corp. You realized deep down you wouldn’t enjoy being with twelve-year-olds like your father said.
“Wow, you taught yourself? That’s really impressive.” You said and looked into his eyes. You hoped he thought he found you pretty. “You are all a smart group of people. How long has it been since you last saw my dad, Commander Erwin?”
“Over maybe twenty years?” Erwin turned to your father.
“Huh, time flies.” Your father said.
“Could they come over for dinner, Father?” You asked hoping for more time to get to know the three. “It would give you more time to catch up? And I could get to know more about Hange’s experiments?” Hange’s face lit up and you looked at Levi who had the same expression on his face. “Maybe we could get to know each other more.” You eyed him up and down despite him not seeming to warm up to you. You wanted him to know you found him attractive.
“Why not?! Erwin are you and your officials available to come over and eat before leaving Stohess?” Your Father asked wholeheartedly.
“I think we’ll have time in two evenings,” Erwin said.
“We could have chicken—” Your mother started.
“Mother no! Let’s have braised beef.” You said.
During the rest of the gala, you couldn’t help yourself from glancing at the survey corps. A few times Levi and you locked eyes. You wanted to keep looking at him but remained focused on every one your parents introduced you to. Why did your father have to mention you barely being able to run? Sure you didn’t run much, but you could improve if you worked at it. Now Levi only knows that you have poor stamina. You needed to find a way to make a good impression on Levi. Perhaps a small gift would make him remember you? And you have a day to find one before the survey corp came over for dinner.
The following day, you begged your mom to disregard your intention to interrupt reading time. You wanted to go shopping in town to find something for Levi. When you told your mom about wanting to find a small gift for Levi she teased you. You instantly regretted it, however, she let you miss reading time to go into town. You asked her to promise you that she won’t tell Levi about the gift until you give it to him. Your mother had one condition about going into town. She told you that you had to have MPs escort you.
In your teen years, you’ve argued with your parents that there was no need for the Military Police to escort you. After graduating from Einrich College you were especially adamant about it. Most of the time it was a losing battle.
You combed your hair and made sure it lay nicely. You put on pearls and made sure your clothes looked nice. You put on a nice full-length dress that hasn’t been worn yet. The dress made your hair color look pretty and stand out.
When you were heading to leave you thought you could sneak out the front door without the MPs. Of course, they followed you and you rolled your eyes because your mother assigned two. One would have been enough. The two MPs with you have been the few employed with your family most of your life.
When walking through the shops with the MPs following you, nothing caught your eye for what Levi may like. It was a gamble because you didn’t know much about him. You wanted to find something small and something he could have with him at all times to remember you. You hoped Levi would like the gift and then start falling for you. Though he did not seem like the kind of guy your parents wanted you to marry. He was a high-ranking official for the survey corps though.
When walking out of a clothing shop you spotted Erwin across the street. He seemed to be alone, no Levi or Hange with him
“Commander Erwin!” You waved and then ran after him the MPs shouted at you not to run and they burst after you. “Hi, commander! Are you out shopping? Are you alone?” He seemed surprised to see you and he glanced at the MPs on either side of you.
“Hello Y/N. Nice day isn’t it?” He said politely.
“Yes! Is Levi here?” You asked. “And Hange?”
“They’re nearby. Possibly getting something in that shop over there,” Erwin pointed at a small cafe that you’ve been to many times.
“It’s so nice to see you! I’m excited for you to come over tomorrow. I’m just in town to buy a gift for Levi but DON’T TELL HIM!” You said excitedly.
“A gift?” Erwin furrowed his eyebrows.
“Yes! But please don’t tell him!” You said. He laughed at your youth.
“I won’t.”
“Thanks! I’m going to talk to him and Hange! See you tomorrow!” You waved and dashed off to the cafe along with the MPs being forced to chase after you.
“MISS L/N! STOP RUNNING!” They yelled. When you got to the cafe in the window you saw Levi and Hange inside. They were sitting at a table with a small plate of treats and cups of tea. Your heart raced. Levi looked so cute sitting there. You turned to the MPs you had known most of your life.
“Do I look okay?” You asked.
“Yes, Miss L/N. Please no more running.”
“I’m sorry,” You said. When you walked in the owner who had known you most of your life gave you a big smile when he spotted you.
“Miss L/N! Your usual?” He asked and you saw Levi and Hange looking at you. You waved at them and you grinned.
“Yes thank you!” You walked over to Levi and Hange. Hange looked excited to see you and Levi looked normal. “Hi Hange, hi Levi.”
“Y/N! What a coincidence!” Hange cheerfully said.
“Hi,” Levi said and sipped his tea. They both glanced at the MPs on either side of you.
“Are you drinking the black tea?” You asked. “This place has the best black tea! I’ve come here since I was a child.”
“Yes, it’s good,” Levi said.
“Wonderful!” You said. “I’m excited for you guys to come over for dinner! I know you’ll like the braised beef!”
“What are you doing in town?” Hanged asked.
“I’m out shopping!” Levi rolled his eyes and though you didn’t feel offended, you knew soon he would be grateful for the gift you’re going to find. “Hey, it’s rude to roll your eyes!” You shoved his shoulder playfully yet hard enough to catch him off guard. Hange laughed.
“She got you there, Levi.”
“Yeah Levi, good thing my parents didn’t let me in the cadet corp, I would beat you up.” You said hoping he would laugh. Hange did.
“Not bad for a spoiled brat like you.” He said with a smirk and wiped off his shoulder.
“Hey, I’m not a spoiled brat!” You shoved him a little harder.
“Miss L/N, he’s humanity's strongest soldier.” One of your MPs said chuckling.
“Yeah, well, that’s only because I’m not in the military regiment.” You and Hange laughed. “Are you guys enjoying Stohess? What do you think of the town?” You asked. The owner of the cafe brought over your usual: a chocolate pastry. “Thank you!” Then the kind owner brought over a chair for you to sit on.
“It’s a nice district, very clean,” Hange said. You looked to Levi and raised his eyebrows waiting for a response.
“Very clean is correct.” You found his voice fairly attractive.
“Wonderful! Stohess is one of the districts with great architecture too.” You said. You started splitting your chocolate pastry into three equal parts. “Here try this it’s delicious!” You offered to Hange and Levi.
“Thank you, Y/N,” Hange said and took a bite. She moaned. Levi took a bite too.
“It’s tasty, thank you,” Levi said.
“You liked that? I don’t think it’s hard to make. Maybe I can try to learn to make it for you.” You said with hope and Levi just stared at you. You smiled at him and noticed him looking up and down at you. Your heart skipped a beat because it seemed like he was checking you out. “I’m excited for you guys to come over tomorrow and I can get to know you both more! I’d love to hear more about your experiments with the titans!” Hange perked up.
“Yes, I am ready for any questions you have. Perhaps your knowledge in chemistry will provide some ideas on gathering more information about the titans?”
“Oh I’m not sure about that, but I’ll do my best.” You noticed the door of the cafe open and Erwin stepping in. Suddenly you felt a wave of embarrassment when he looked at you and then at Levi. “Okay, I should get back to my shopping! I’ll see you tomorrow night then?! Bye!”
“Bye Y/N!” Hange said. You rush off with your MPs following you.
“Bye Commander Erwin!” You rushed off not giving a chance for him to speak.
You spent the rest of the day looking for something for Levi. As the sun started going behind the wall it felt hopeless. Nothing seemed like something Levi would like. The MPs suggested making your way back home, but you kept bargaining for just one more store. While walking past a window display of a store, you realized you may have found your gift. It was a little unconventional, but maybe Levi will remember you even when he leaves Stohess. It was perfect he could always keep your gift with him and it was small. Levi will never forget you after you give him your gift.
#attack on titan#sasha braus#armin arlert#captain levi#levi ackerman#levi aot#levi x reader#aot#armin aot#connie springer#aot erwin#erwin smith#commander erwin#hange aot#hange zoe#hanji zoe#hanji zoë#hange zoë#stohess#snk levi#christa lenz#krista lenz#aot sasha#fluff#moblit berner#eren aot#eren jeager#eren yeager#eren#snk fanfiction
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⚠️ addiction, child abuse/neglect, death
Takumi Hoga was twelve years old when he first entered the ring. What else was he to do, really? He had just found out that he would be held back another grade again. Usually kids like him would hear the same old "You're not stupid, you're just lazy" speech over and over again, but not Takumi. He knew what the teachers thought of him. The current ones, that is. The teachers at the last two schools he was expelled from were probably relieved to never waste another thought on him again, after what he did. Bit a child here, broke a bone there. Bruises. Bloody noses. "Beast types", teachers would sneer whenever Takumi caused another "incident". Other than that, nobody paid much attention to him, even in class. You see, Takumi was born with abnormally large and abnormally many teeth very similar to a shark's. Whenever he opened his mouth to say something, teachers and students alike would cringe at his impeded speech, the latter even making fun of it in front of the former. So Takumi just stopped speaking altogether. His grades steadily worsened. His job prospects looked bleaker and bleaker each year. His parents didn't care. His mother was busy with drugs and whatever affair she had going on currently and his father often left for "work" for days at a time, leaving his son to fend for himself more often than not. There was nothing in his life that could've prevented Takumi from entering the ring.
On that fateful day after school Takumi was prowling the streets, homework and upcoming tests being the last thing on his mind. Some kid, a few years older than him, approached him. A fellow "beast", with sharp teeth and blue scales on his skin. He was wearing a cool leather jacket and expensive sunglasses. Takumi liked them.
"Hey, buddy. You look bored.", the guy said.
Takumi nodded. He was bored.
"I know a place where kids like us can have fun and earn cash on the side. Interested?"
"Like a job?", Takumi asked.
"Yeah, but more fun.", the guy answered.
Takumi was unsure. His teacher had told him that he'd never have a good job with his lousy grades and long attack record. "No respectable company will want to hire a beast like you.", she said. So how come this guy now wanted him for a job? And a "fun" one, at that?
"What do I have to do?", Takumi asked.
Everything moved quickly after that. The guy introduced him to "the boss", a man in his thirties who loved expensive food and loud cars. He even let Takumi sit on the passenger seat and choose the music they listened to on their drive to the ring. When they arrived, Takumi was handed a simple white shirt and shorts which reminded him of the clothes he had to wear in gym class. "Now all you gotta do", the boss said, "is beat up this guy over there." Another beast was in the ring, not much older than Takumi. He waved towards the excited crowd beyond the cage that surrounded the ring.
"Beat him up?", Takumi asked, "I'm allowed to do that?"
"Yeah. Beat him, scratch him, bite him, do whatever you want until he taps out or you hear the alarm."
"What if I have to tap out first?", Takumi asked. The boss grinned and handed him a tiny plastic bag with some powder inside. "I don't think you will."
The guy from before didn't lie: This was fun. Takumi didn't even break a sweat during his first fight, knocking the guy out cold. The second fight was against an older girl who transformed into a wolf, Takumi grabbed her nape with his teeth and shook her until she tapped out. At the end of the evening the boss gave him his payment and drove him back. He handed the boy a phone and said he'd text him if he had another fight for him lined up. Takumi stuffed the phone and the money in his pockets and went to buy himself a leather jacket and sunglasses.
Takumi Hoga was thirteen years old when he adopted the stage name "Armageddon". The boss had turned him into a rising star in the local business. Bets were made on whether Armageddon won or lost the fight and the boss always gave him a cut of the winnings which Takumi would spend on food, video games and clothes. Sponsors would sometimes pay him directly to write messages and contact details on his white shirt in permanent marker, displaying them in the ring for all to see. After the fight, the boss would get him cleaned up and drive him home. Takumi then spent the next day eagerly awaiting a message from the boss. On nights without fights Takumi felt horrible, writhing around in his bed, sweating bullets and sometimes even throwing up. But as soon as a new fight came up and Takumi got his hands on that powder the boss always gave him beforehand, the world was alright again. He felt light but focused at the same time, fearless, excited and full of energy. He had finally found something he was good at. And he loved doing it.
Takumi Hoga was fourteen years old when he almost died in the ring. The boss didn’t tell him beforehand that the reptile-looking beast he was about to fight had venom. Armageddon knocked out his opponent, but then sunk to the floor, foaming at the mouth, breathing raspily. “This wouldn’t have happened if you just killed the fucker before he bit you”, the boss hissed into his ear. After some back and forth the manager of the reptile guy decided to hand over some antivenom. Even with that, Takumi felt horrible for days afterwards, unable to move the bitten arm. But when the boss texted him again the week after, he jumped at the opportunity to get back in the ring.
Takumi Hoga was fifteen years old when he fought his first adult opponent in the ring. He was hesitant, but the boss said that nobody wanted to pay to see Armageddon wipe the floor with boring ol' kids who couldn't even fight back. "There's just no money in it", the boss said, "and you wanna keep making money, don't you?" When Armageddon entered the ring, he saw a young man in front of him. Some kind of fish beast with claws and glowing spots on his skin. "Please", the man whispered, "I have debts. I need to get out of here. Please just forfeit, I need the money. I really need it." Armageddon shook his head. "Please", the man said, "Don't hurt me." Armageddon was fifteen years old when he took his first life in the ring.
Armageddon was sixteen years old when he first tried to leave the business. He kept having nightmares about the man he killed and the side effects of the powder started getting to him. But he craved it more and more and that tiny little packet the boss always gave him just didn't cut it anymore. He would've just bought himself more if he knew what it was. The boss wouldn't tell him. So one day, Armageddon stopped answering texts from the boss. He prowled the streets instead, picking fights, doing anything to distract from the withdrawal symptoms plaguing him. Eventually, he collapsed on the street and woke up again in the hospital. Police were called, his parents were called, social services were called. Lots of big words were thrown around that he didn't understand. Negligence. Addiction. Custody. Takumi Hoga was sixteen years old when he was removed from his parents and placed in temporary care with social services. But he didn't stay there very long. They wanted him to go to rehab, anger management classes, school. They took his phone and his hard earned money and placed him on a strict schedule with an early curfew. And Takumi tried. He really did. But he just couldn't live the life everyone else was expecting of him. Takumi Hoga was sixteen years old when he escaped back to the only life he knew how to live well.
Armageddon was seventeen years old when he fought “Razortooth”, a masked volunteer from the crowd. It was a rare occasion. Usually the boss decided who would fight him and the fights would be advertised in the business days in advance. Sometimes the book would drive him to private fights in some rich guy’s basement where Armageddon would fight and kill exotic animals, other beast-types or just random people who probably wronged that rich guy somehow. But tonight was open cage night in the ring, so whichever brave soul thought they could kick Armageddon’s ass was allowed to. Razortooth was a green-skinned beast wearing a short-sleeved hoodie and a ski mask. Armageddon immediately noticed that she fought wildly different from what he was used to. When you spend a lot of time in the ring, you tend to adopt a certain style. Flashy. Violent. Ruthless. But Razortooth didn’t seem to be here for the show. She dodged a left hook and rushed him, wrapping an arm around his neck.
“Hey”, she whispered into his ear as he struggled to get free.
“Hey”, he whispered back. He then punched her in the back, but the angle was weird, so it didn’t hit as hard.
“You want out?”, she whispered and shifted her weight, letting him stumble backwards towards her leg and kicking him in the back of his knee.
“I can’t”, he whispered back.
“He’s got you on Flick? That powder?”
“Yeah. Powder.”
“Alright. Sink to the floor and punch me in the kidney.”, she whispered.
“Why?”
“I’ll slip you my number and then I’ll forfeit.”
“Why?”
“I wanna help you get out.”
So Armageddon sank to the floor, then used her lowered defense to punch her. He then grabbed her and pushed her against the cage wall. Her arms flew up and he noticed something brushing against the pockets of his shorts. Razortooth forfeited.
Takumi Hoga was eighteen years old when he joined the Purpose Program. It was a long back and forth with Hitomi, the beast who had fought him in the ring under the name “Razortooth”. He thought about calling her for weeks after the fight, but something always came up. When he finally did, he didn’t expect her to be actually serious about helping him. But she was. They met up in secret and just talked for a bit.
“Are you a cop?”, he asked.
“No.”, she said, “Cops won’t help much in a situation like this.” Takumi nodded.
It felt great to talk about all this to someone. Hitomi never judged him, even when he talked about how he enjoyed hurting people in the ring. Or when he told her how he once woke up almost choking on his own vomit the night after a big fight (and big dosage of Flick). She showed him where to get Flick so he wasn’t dependent on the boss for it anymore. But she also told him what the drug actually did to his body, how he was cutting his life short if he continued consuming it. Takumi didn’t wanna die. But he also didn’t know what to do with his life if it wasn’t in the ring. Hitomi then offered to go get him tested, no strings attached. Takumi remembered how he did get tested once in elementary school, but not much was revealed there besides “big teeth” and “stronger than his peers”. The tests of the Purpose Program were different, though. It really felt like the scientists were interested in him, in what he could do. Apparently he was able to breathe underwater all this time, it just required a little surgery to open the gills in his neck. The first time he dove into the pool at the research center was heavenly, it was like he had discovered a piece of himself that was always hidden away from him. He was also strong, which he already knew, and had a lot of endurance. And the cherry on top was his excellent sense of smell underwater. He could locate a drop of blood on the other side of the pool while blindfolded.
“Water rescue” was the verdict. A job. For him.
He didn’t take it. He was scared. He relapsed multiple times, going back to the ring on nights where his mind just wouldn’t stop racing. But instead of the boss, it was Hitomi who picked him up. “Recovery isn’t linear”, she’d say. “But if you wanna enter the program, you gotta commit, Takumi.”
“I don’t wanna be Takumi anymore.”, he said, “But I also don’t wanna be Armageddon.”
“So who do you wanna be?”, she asked.
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helloo, how are you doing today?? ror fam finding out that dyslexic teen reader s getting bullied at school for it :(
For someone who has number dyslexia, I know what this is like.
-When you arrived home from school, several hours early, you slammed the door shut a bit harder than you intended, quickly getting attention from those around you as you walked down to your room, your arm lifting to wipe the tears from your face, upset and furious.
-You didn’t even make it to your room before you were pulled into Hercules’ arms, hugging you close, “Y/N? What happened? Why are you home so early?” You didn’t respond, turning to bury your face in his shoulder, your arms winding around his neck, hugging him as your shoulders shook with silent sobs.
-Your family was instantly worried, seeing you in such a state as Adam carefully pulled your backpack from your shoulders, relieving you of that and as he pulled it into his arms, he saw papers inside.
-He was quick to open your backpack to see graded papers with low scores from your English teacher, red marks all over from misspelled words and a note on the top ‘learn to spell’.
-Anyone around could tell he was instantly angry, as the heat radiating off of him was almost stifling, “Y/N- all your teachers know you have dyslexia, so why-”
-You cut him off, showing that you were really upset, “She doesn’t care! She says I’m just lazy and stupid and should go back to the first grade and learn how to spell! And she encourages the other students to tell me the same, so I’ll do better!”
-Instantly the mood shifted from worry to anger, as you had provided the school with all doctor’s notes and documentation that you had dyslexia, and that all staff were to help accommodate you. To hear that a teacher was bullying you, they were furious.
-They looked at Hercules who instantly nodded and headed to your room while many of the others headed out, going to your school.
-Hercules held you, telling you that nothing was wrong with you, being dyslexic, you were just a bit different, but you were incredibly smart, talented, and a good friend to all you met, which made you smile, making you feel better.
-Once you were calmed down, he took you out for ice cream, letting you get what you wanted.
-Your principal and teacher on the other hand, as well as the students in your math class who were bullying you, as your friend, F/N, had secretly recorded the incident.
-Your teacher was handing back the project to everyone and in front of the whole class, she called you out, “And once again, Y/N can’t spell. You should go back to the first grade if you don’t know how to spell.”
-You had tried arguing that you were dyslexic and had documentation and she just rolled her eyes, “That’s just an excuse to get out of working hard. Everyone, point at Y/N, laugh, and call them a liar!”
-Several students remained still, not saying anything, but F/N captured those who were willing to do it, finding it fun, laughing at you as you burst into tears, grabbing your bag and running out.
-Adam looked downright murderous, seeing his child being treated like this, while the parents of the bullies were quickly yelling at them, that they didn’t raise bullies.
-Your teacher was sweating, being glared at by so many as the principal also glared at her, “I’ve told you this before, students with supporting documentation are to be accommodated. And to see you bullying a student and encouraging others to bully as well… I’m disappointed in you. Go and clean out your office. You’re done.”
-She was quickly panicking, begging him not to fire her, that she needed this job, and with someone like this she wouldn’t be able to get another teaching job again. She was quick to beg your family members, begging for them to do something, but Adam was the one to speak, his voice low, “You knew full well that Y/N is dyslexic, but you chose to ignore that, bully them, and tell others to bully them. You did this to yourself. No adult, especially a teacher, should ever act like this.”
-His words stunned her as it finally clicked that she had no one to blame but herself as she broke down as security came to escort her to her office to clean it out.
-Attention then went to the bullies, who all froze, having just witnessed a teacher getting sacked as the principal spoke, “Bullying is not tolerated, even if you were encouraged by a teacher. Other students refused to do so, so there’s no excuse. You’re all suspended until next Monday.”
-While their parents weren’t happy, they did agree with the principal, as they had all seen other students refusing to treat you so cruelly.
-It wasn’t your fault that you mixed up letters which made spelling hard for you, to you they looked right, so they shouldn’t be so mean.
-You were zonked out when they arrived home, full of ice cream, which Hercules found amusing. You were their precious child, and nobody treats their child like that, especially another adult.
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Tying Up Loose Ends
<prev
Okay I'm back!
(But you had hardly left!)
Whatever! Here's the next chapter and the conclusion of this
TW/CW: creepy whumper, jealous whumper, manipulative whumper (I guess?), nsfwhump (not graphically described), noncon (at the very end, not graphically described, and honestly you could end the chapter just before it happens and it would still make sense)
A rhythmic series of knocks reverberated through the door of the office at half past eleven, just as Thomas had planned. He scooted closer towards his desk and minimized the windows he had opened on his desktop PC. “Come in,” he replied.
The door cracked open. The kid –Nico, my nephew, Michael once told him–stepped hesitantly inside, shoulders to ears, brows drawn tensely. “Y-you wanted to see me, Boss?”
“I did.” He gestured to a chair in front of the desk. Nico approached it stiffly, visibly uncomfortable being so close to the Don of the Costa Family. “Oh come on, sit down, I don’t bite, you know!” he chuckled.
Nico briefly looked around the room, eyes bright and alert. “Wait, where’s Khaled?” he asked, blinking at the empty space behind the Boss’ chair.
“On a coffee run,” Thomas answered simply. He suppressed an eye roll as Nico looked down, squinting at the bottom of the desk as if he could see through it if he stared hard enough. He cleared his throat, and Nico snapped his gaze back up. “I could ask him to get you something before he leaves the café, if you’d like?”
Nico shook his head. “I wouldn’t want to inconvenience him like that,” he insisted. The young man drew back the chair and took his seat across from the Don, and waited in questioning silence.
No matter how many times he had rehearsed this meeting in his head, nor how many arrangements he had to make over the past couple days to lead the boy to this point, Thomas still couldn’t help the nerves that feathered into the edges of his composure. Keep it cool, keep your tone calm, never betray how you truly feel, stay in control, a familiar voice once told him.
“So, how’s school?” An innocuous line, and as good an opener as any.
“Great, it’s been great.” Nico huffed an awkward little laugh as he hung his signature smile. “Which reminds me, thank you so much for allowing me this job in the first place, sir! I never got to thank you properly, or in person before-”
Thomas stopped him with one raised palm. “Hey, hey, that wasn’t all me. Let’s give a little credit to your Uncle Mike, too, right?” Nico conceded with another awkward laugh. “I understand it that this job helps you pay for your schooling, is that correct?”
“I mean, yeah,” Nico began to answer. “I don’t know how much college was back in your day, let alone law school-”
I never went to college, Thomas remembered, trailing off into his own thoughts as Nico kept nervously rambling. That was never really my scene. Never really had the brains for it, or the personability, according to my teachers. My brother, the Golden Child, on the other hand…
He redirected his thoughts at the right time where Nico started to complain about the most important part. “Wait, can you say that again?” he requested.
“My last tuition payment didn’t go through,” Nico repeated, an edge of desperation in his voice. “And if I don’t scrounge up enough money within the next two months, I won’t be able to afford my next semester’s worth of classes!”
Thomas gave a sympathetic expression of concern, even though he knew about this all along. After all, he was the one who delayed the payment to the college. “Is that so?” he asked with feigned interest.
The door cracked open again, though this time a familiar young intern entered. He cradled a cup of coffee in one hand and carried a takeout bag in the other. The guard whipped his head around, nearly bolting from his chair in shock. “Khaled?”
“Nico?” The boy approached, dumbfounded as he wordlessly set the spoils of his errand onto the Boss’ desk.
“You actually were out?” This time, Thomas rolled his eyes. Was it so hard to believe he used his fuck toy for honest work sometimes? (He supposed maybe yes, considering how much Nico had probably inadvertently witnessed over the past three years.)
Khaled’s well-timed entry provided a natural transition to the second half of his plan. “Speaking of which, I would like to thank you for looking out for Khaled this last weekend,” Thomas said. His boy silently took up post behind the desk, standing up straight with eyes slightly downcast, as he had trained him. “You’re a good kid for that. Most guys, they probably would’ve taken liberties, but not you.” Thomas craned his neck to look over his office chair. “Isn’t he a good kid?”
“Yes, sir,” Khaled readily agreed.
“Oh, no, please, I’d have done that for anybody! He’s my friend.” Thomas noticed how Nico cast a furtive glance at the boy behind him.
Friend, my ass. The very thought of how ‘friendly’ those two might have gotten had he not intervened that night made him seethe in possessive jealousy, though he maintained that icy façade of control.
“Of course, even if Khaled doesn’t remember it, you and I both know he was a wreck, wasn’t he?” The boy had sworn up and down and sideways that he didn’t remember what he had told his friend that night, no matter how much he’d tried to beat a confession out of him. Thomas leaned over the desk, dropping the volume of his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. Since Khaled still had no idea what he had told Nico, the next best course of action was to discredit his words entirely. “He was saying some pretty crazy things, wasn’t he? Things that you and I both know not to take too seriously?”
“Well… I don’t know” Nico began, “don’t they say ‘in vino veritas?’”
“Don’t they also say ‘God don’t pay tuition?’”
You’re being too blunt again, a familiar voice in his memory chastised. Yet he couldn’t help but smile as he saw understanding dawn on the young man’s face. “Well, go on,” he coaxed the young man standing behind him. “Tell him.”
Khaled bristled uncomfortably before hanging his head low. “He’s right,” he agreed somberly. “I may not remember what I said, but, it was probably not true. You should just forget it.”
“But, Khaled-” Nico began to protest.
“You heard him yourself, kid,” Thomas cut in. “Now, you’re gonna forget whatever it was he said when he was wasted, and just keep studying hard, alright?”
Nico attempted to make meaningful eye contact beyond the boss’ shoulder, but Thomas didn’t have to turn around to know Khaled would keep his eyes firmly fixed to the floor. The young guard let out a defeated sigh as he slumped back in the chair and offered a small, reluctant nod. “Yes, sir. Like it never even happened,” he muttered.
Check mate.
“Good boy.” Thomas leaned back in his chair, his hands folding on the top of the desk as his mouth curled into a small smirk of victory. “Now, try contacting Student Financial Services again. I have a feeling your tuition payment might’ve been resolved after all.” He waved him off with a final self-satisfied smile. “You may go.”
The kid looked green around the gills as he pushed himself up from the chair and excused himself from the room. As soon as he left, Thomas swiveled around to face the boy behind him. Khaled ventured a resentful, hopeless glare into his owner’s eyes before looking once again to the floor. “Well?” he goaded. Khaled did not rise to the bait.
Thomas pushed away from the desk, motioning to the familiar darkness underneath the hardwood like he was commanding a dog to lie. “Go on.” He took a sip of the slightly cooled coffee as he watched his intern crouch and fold himself into the space with stiff reluctance. “You know what to do, and you know how hard you need to work to get back in my good graces,” he sneered. “Now, put that tongue of yours to a better use.” He pushed himself back in and trapped the young man underneath the desk.
Le Tag List: @kabie-whump @rainydaywhump @whumped-by-glitter @skittles-the-whumpee @generic-whumperz @bamber344
#whump writing#creepy whumper#jealous whumper#manipulative whumper#nsfwhump#tw implied noncon#not graphically described but its there
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pausing the roleplay every two minutes to praise each other's writing >>>>
#it feels so nice#i love doing that#it's like being told you did a good job at school#also i love breaking hearts
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.
#just saw a post that was like 'if you have religious or moral objections that stop you from providing certain types of medical care maybe#you shouldn't work in healthcare' (paraphrased) and...#what a way to look at the world tbh#like. they're talking about me i think - i am a conscientious objector when it comes to euthanasia#(which granted has come up exactly twice and both cases in a theoretical capacity only this is not a frequent request to me)#and... i am also a good doctor#last week i told someone that her weight doesn't matter to her health with receipts to prove it and she cried#no one had ever told her that before#and that was something that came from me specifically. that was something i would not trust all of the GPs in my practice - a practice of#excellent and compassionate GPs! - to say#i am verifiably doing good in my job that is coming from specifically who i am as a person#i cannot put that down when it comes to issues i care deeply about#fundamentally the fact that i cannot put it down is what makes me a good doctor#i think that's what i'm trying to get at#the reason that i do well by my patients is that i practice out of my values and my ethics#if i did not stand on that core i would not stand at all#so you can't have it both ways. you can't have engaged and active and compassionate healthcare providers without sometimes those engaged an#active providers having things they do not feel comfortable doing#and it is to everyone's service if they are up front about it and do not try to hide (i am suspicious of people who try to hide this)#i am literally figuring this all out as i type hence the v long tag ramble and also being nowhere near the post that started this train#(honestly in med school we talked so much about ethics as like. abortion! euthanasia! trans rights! and the ethics in practice is the littl#things. do you apologise when you mess up. how do you manage a consult with your patient with paranoid dementia and her child in the same#room at one time - or one by one bc that's fraught too. (that one's on top i had one of those today.) how do you act with grace when#you're a bit stressed and your patient is a bit stressed and the nurse wants to add five more things to your book. the day to day ethics is#SUCH a bigger thing when you come to actual practice.)#this is obviously entirely about me and leans on the fact that i largely do think i am doing a good job i am really feeling my own way#to a Thought. but i think to a certain extent it is generalisable
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me age seven being sat down in front of the school’s district child psych lady and being given strange, simple spatial puzzles to solve and then long, complicated worksheets and hammering my way through them at the speed of light while having zero comprehension what their purpose was or why i was here: this is urgent! i have to get a good grade in Weird Puzzles, Or Else, something that is both normal to want and possible to achieve,
#kjalkjsdalkjasdl mrs button was a nice lady but not one adult in my childhood ever seemed to notice what to me now seems like#a pretty obvious case of the autisms#then again maybe they just didn't look as hard unless it was *really* obvious back then . it was like. what. 2000? a couple years later#everybody was talking about autism but not when i was six or seven then it was usually just when it was Very Visible#a couple years later my cousin who's more visibly on the spectrum than me got her diagnosis so young that she's pretty much always had it#which is...well i think it's just made her life difficult in a different way. people underestimate her or don't treat her like she's her age#but then she's always had the opportunity to get accommodations and people are sometimes more forgiving when she can't do something#whereas i got labeled 'kid that should be ahead of the game' from a pretty young age and then when i struggled adults either ignored it#or it was just a huge hassle to them and even i could see it exasperated them to have to work around me#but because mrs button (nice lady but what were you thinking) hadn't told them to treat me like a kid with a developmental disorder#they didn't do that in good OR bad ways . so i never got any accommodations with school stuff i struggled with which was a fair bit#i wasn't supposed to need extra testing time in a quiet room or tutoring with math or help organizing my abysmally scattered things#the only time i DID get that was in sixth grade when i was sort-of friends with this kid jonathan who was Very On The Spectrum#he wasn't really a talker unless it was about whatever he was reading which suited me fine so we just kind of existed in each other's space#and his TSS was this very smart and nice lady who had clearly clocked that Something Was Going On With Me and even though it wasn't like#her JOB she made a little bit of time for me. mostly with emotional stuff (i think i was under the impression she was a therapist?)#but if i had some problem with being unable to keep friends or being frozen out by the kids i wanted to be liked by (happened often)#she'd be able to just like. be there she'd make the time . wish i could remember her name
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this is such an indulgent au I made for myself that's not even related to selfshipping but i love to imagine the dexholders in a filipino school setting where some of the kids are part of the class officers and this is definitely based on my irl experiences with my old class when I was elementary to... freshman. <3
#ill just ramble in the tags from here on out#the class batch counts from the kanto to the hoenn dexholders - since they're all the most tied to one another#the officer list might change but the ones ive definitely settled were like#blue. he's the president of the class - he's quiet smart but handsome and would be a teacher's pet because he's also oak's grandson#red is vice president - he's a goofy compared to blue but he still has that vibe of someone you can absolutely rely on (and he does it)#would sometimes get told off by blue for being too carefree with his duties but they still go well together as a duo#i think i wrote secretary for crystal!! since crystal would definitely have a lot of biodata on her pokemon#it's only natrual that she'd be pretty good at being a secretary#in my class being a secretary means to keep track of students' attendances and names - basically writing a lot of things!#she's the smartest i like to think shes probably in the same ranking as blue (high honor students)#red is around the middle#green is the treasurer! (i was the treasurer last school year actually)#now i know this ones such a wild one because green is noctorious for being a good thief but that also means you cant outsmart her with money#and she's sure to keep the money safe. maybe she would spend the money secretly for her personal wants but she refills the amount she paid#<- i totally did that. nobody from my class knows me here so i can say this with full confidence AKSJSJAJJSJSJD#except its not for personal its for emergency LMAO like getting plete for tricycle n shit#looking at my notes apparently i wrote that sapphire and gold should be sergeants - i mean. i mean they can do the job but like#they're also kinda. insane so like - that's gonna be funny#sergeants are supposed to watch for their classmate's misconduct or stop anyone from fighting or whatever#that's all i wrote - i left the rest blank#about sapphire - i totally see her in my old classmate who was crazy about anime boys (except its franticshipping)#she's aggressive (to boys especially) but she also gets super UWU OMG KYAA BOYS <3 bitch THAT'S LITERALLY SAPPHIRE AND RUBY#that girl also acts tsundere at times so like. yeah you're sapphire coded girlie#ok thats all....#i kept this au to myself for like 2 months now PGPPTPTPTPGTP#pokespe hours#🍀 jil's rambling
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walking into work tomorrow for the staff training day after i got rejected for the job i was near guaranteed to get and didn’t find out the news from my boss who i was with the whole morning in TUTOR PLANNING DAY FOR NEXT YR FOR TUTORIALS THAT TUTORS WOULD BE DOING THAT I WAS BOOKED INTO WITH THE TUTORS THE ROLE I APPLIED FOR AND HAD A VERY GOOD INTERVIEW FOR i found out from a noreply auto generated email from hr that was sent out as soon as i stepped out of the meeting room :) and then got invited back to the meeting for the rest of the day where my manager repeatedly talked about taking my good ideas from my interview and implementing them into tutorials next yr. after i got rejected via generated email. How we doing guys 😆
#p#me personally. and not just me literally everyone else coworkers students anyone but my manager apparently was in my favor#like advocated for me#i got insanely good feedback from everyone#like that job is. mine already. i’ve done that job and my job and i did that voluntarily#no hate to the other candidate lovely girlie she is but being told my interview was great#and my teaching task was great and she’s never seen HER OWN GROUP OF STUDENTS so engaged in a task before#and then being highly praised for my vision and ethic etc#and me knowing this shitass school and system inside out and still wanting to be here and being passionate abt what i do#and STILL i get turned down. thats personal i take it personally#but bcs i know this place i wouldn’t have been surprised if it was just that#its the cruelty of how they let me know#this entire day was like being spat in the face#like thanks for all your hard work! bye now! you won’t be here much longer but we’ll take all the good things you’ve come up with!#i’m so shocked#i had a go at my manager and APPARENTLY the email wasn’t supposed to go out ‘yet’ but its a very convenient coincidence that it did then#isnt it#i’ve never in my life felt so disrespected ngl#like i still didn’t get a proper conversation about it ???? literally only got good feedback and a quick apology???#how dare you and what did i do to you to deserve this like literally#my feelings are CRUSHED its essentially like getting laid off#cause i’m gonna leave soon anyway its like yeaaa we don’t want you actually#well then ! thanks for treating me like a valuable employee and person with feelings
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im tired of ppl using headcanon stuff as proofs on the show. ''mike never stopped calling will.'' yeah no, that is not canon at all, lmao. you guys just took dustin's words and used it as some sort of a canon thing to prove that mike called. c'mon guys... canonically it doesnt make much sense anyways bc it doesnt fit. because mike learned abt joyce's job at the beginning of the season after el sent her letter. unless the duffers just made a mistake and screwed the time, it doesn't make any sense for mike to have called will constantly or 'complaining' due to joyce's job when he just learned abt joyce's job at the beginning of the season after reading el's letters. for all we know mike didnt send any letters to will, and they just only talked for a couple of times. like. that's the canon. we cannot just take something and treat it as canon and come up with criticism based on that. same as the 'lettergate' situation, for all we know mike just didnt bother writing and he didnt have a present. also u cannot really blame will either. for all he knew, the situation was just a repeat of S3. and we know what happened in S3. just a casual 'what if u wanna join another party' doesn't fix the issue at hand, and it literally didnt either. so.
okay, yes, this is what i was saying in the tags of this and what this post i reblogged earlier is about!!! you can't just say "mike 100% called and we don't even know if will called so will is equally to blame for the fact that they didn't keep in touch/for their rink o mania fight". i mean you can but i'll disagree every time because there's this little thing that happened between them that never got resolved that totally explains why will would be hesitant to reach out...who out of the two of them was rebuffed the last time he tried to show that this friendship was important to him? who was crying in the rain and calling himself stupid over it? as a very wise woman once said, i would've wanted mike to make a little bit of an effort too after that tf
and the thing is, if it turns out mike didn't call/doesn't have any unsent letters i'm not gonna be mad at him? they both have reasons for not reaching out. people being more forgiving of will probably has to do with the fact that his reasons are you know. not speculation
as for the technicalities surrounding the theory, the job part of it just doesn't add up to me like i...have spent a very long time thinking about it, it's april and i still don't get it. and as people have pointed out el can't use the phone and there's a walkie talkie in her room and all that but yk. idk. and i like lettergate and i like mikeactuallycalledgate but at the end of the day they're just theories you know
#either way i don't get the job thing because dustin says mike won't stop whining about it like he's been whining for some time which#means that el's letter is old (which i guess it could be) or that like...mike already knew about joyce's job before reading the letter?#like if he just learned about the job in ep 1 why won't he stop whining about it. is it a hyperbole. idk i don't get it.#my second paragraph isn't me doubting byler or like denying the fact that mike is OBVIOUSLY going through something too like i said they#both have reasons to not reach out. it's just that you can't exactly blame people for being biased when one's reasons are...out there#and the other's are: not. i know we're on byler tumblr and a lot of things are known to everyone but like do you see what i'm getting at?#one thing i'll give you is that trying to force your friends to play with you when they obviously couldn't give less of a fuck is...not#a very good strategy and also it was hurtful too when my friends didn't care about my crush of the week in middle school. i personally#never told them to grow up and accidentally called them gay over it though lol!#and i've also been will with the getting your friends to do something they don't care about i've told this story before when i was 12 my#friends literally WROTE ME A LETTER (they wouldn't even say it to my face!!!! they gave it to me and i was like what is this and they were#like uhjustwaitforustoleavewellseeyouonmondaybye and left before i could read) telling me to stop talking about one direction. and i didn't#even talk about them that much because i knew they only liked them a little while i was a Directioner. i never talked about them again#after that lolll#see how i did something for the will is always 100% in the right allegations#ask
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I almost accidentally texted my boss that “it’s so hard being a teenage girl in her 20s” :-(
#I also almost told her I couldn’t come in bc I couldn’t trust myself to keep up my little work persona#but I also powered through and didn’t say that#I could’ve tho she doesn’t care what I say#idk I called off summer school this week and like my bad bc I did in fact sign up to do it 💀 but dear god I would die if I lost it#I haven’t cried at this job yet (outside of injury but thats legal crying 🙏) and I will not be breaking my streak#it’s fine we were way over staffed to begin with and half the kids have job placements so like I’d be bored out of my mind anyway#I’m just going to go back to sleep and then go see my mom#I hope Andy printed my little pieces for my costume but when I asked him last night he kept being like ohhh I lose the blah blah#you’re missing parts 😐 of my 600 dollar printer 😐 that I left with you because you said you’d take care of it if I let you use it 😐#ough it’s fine if there any more problems then idk Lydia’s GODD at problem solving and she will be here tomorrow night well at midnight we#so we are probs just coming right home and going to sleep but we have 2 days to get crisis work done if we have to#I’m so lonely I’m going back to sleep#my apologies to my students lol#I HEART 8 AM PERSONAL DIARY POSTING I’m getting such a good grade from my doctor when I tell her#my posts
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I 100% felt I was being a whiny baby about our return to office stuff and while I'm right in my issues, it was a great reminder that I am being a whiny baby. Because like. My boss either has to move or expect to never be promoted here again (which is my company's loss because she is an amazing people leader and adds a lot with her work). While I "just" have to sit in annoying traffic to come to the office and sit here in my cube.
#I think I would be less pissed off if this wasn't the second time this year#That our leadership made an announcement in a manner that was NOT inclusive#It is very much 'this is what we are doing and it's good for you and what you asked for'#As a mandate. About things we are not interested in doing.#There is a way to drop a mandate while also including people in the conversation and this isn't it#So sure this change is good for my career because I suddenly have less competition#But it is terrible for the company and suggests to me that this maybe isn't a place I want to me#The way leadership is handling this (and other things) is just not it#Carolyn has a job#Actually I keep just flashing back to the time my bf told me I was being whiny in high school because of a rule#And he was very much correct but I did not want to take that feedback at the time#So anyways now I keep flashing back to that because rules that are dumb make me MAD#especially if I don't feel like there was adequate convo about them#Or a transparent explanation
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I'm Here on Business
Wayne is a regular at the bookstore Steve works at and badgers Steve into going on a blind date with his kid.
For @extocancer Happy New Years!!! I hope you enjoy your presents ◡̈
***
It's a quiet night in the little bookstore on the corner of Brinks and Williams. Steve is sitting behind the check-out counter flicking the leaf of a potted pothos placed next to the register. Soft music plays from the radio behind him.
Steve likes taking the evening shifts at the shop just to see the place warmly lit up by all of the eclectic and ornate lamps that Amber, the owner, has collected. The store doesn't give him migraines from obnoxious fluorescent light, which has been an issue at previous jobs.
Ever since Robin moved out of their apartment for Grad school, it's been upsetting to be at home alone at night. Without her company, the couch feels longer. And without her unhinged apartment decor, the walls feel taller and colder. Consequently, Steve has taken on more work hours instead of being home.
Plus, he has kind of fallen in love with reading. It came as a shock to him that he could enjoy it as much as he does. It started when his all-female team of coworkers began ranting to each other about these romance novels they were all into. He felt a little left out and decided to give one of them a try. It turns out that reading was actually a really great coping mechanism for dealing with his temporary loss of Robin.
The nicest, and most surprising thing to come out of this job though, is probably Wayne. A one-time customer turned regular, turned tentative friend for Steve. He's got a caring, parental energy that Steve's own parents never had.
The guy looks like he'd have a gruff or standoffish personality. His face naturally rests in a frown and he's got receding grey hair. He wears a flannel every day without fail; he's got a million different colors of them and Steve has even made a game of predicting which one he'll be wearing when he comes in.
"Did ya guess right today, boy?" Wayne will ask.
"No," Steve often admits glumly. "The universe told me you'd be wearing your green and blue one."
So anyway, Wayne comes around a lot to make small talk. He often mentions how he misses his son, Eddie. He's so stiff with personal information about his kid, but one time he let it slip that Eddie was on tour with his band. Steve had a field day afterward colluding with Google to find out exactly who Wayne's son was.
Eddie Munson, lead singer and guitarist of rock group Corroded Coffin.
Steve hadn't heard of ‘em but they certainly have a following. He listened to some of their stuff, to give himself some context for the next time Wayne brought up Eddie's music. It was nice enough, the guy has a good voice.
Steve's been waiting for Wayne to come in tonight. He's later than usual and it would be ridiculous for Steve to worry about a man who probably just thinks of Steve as that one kid who works at the bookstore. He may not come in at all tonight, and that would be fine too. Steve's still holding out on him pulling up in his... yellow flannel.
Steve's about to cave and start the next book in the current series he's reading when the door jingles. Wayne pushes inside in his mother fucking yellow flannel.
"Yellow Flannel!" Steve exclaims. Wayne chuckles and drops a book on the counter followed by a receipt.
"You got me right today?" Wayne asks fondly.
"Yup. It's been a while. I was aching for a win." Steve starts returning Wayne's book for him without giving him slack this time. Wayne treats the store like a library and Steve doesn't have the heart to tell him it's not allowed.
"Was this book any good?" Steve throws Wayne's receipt back at him and starts moving around the counter to put it back on the shelf for some other historical fiction lover to purchase.
"It was just alright." Wayne follows behind him languidly, eyeing the rows of colorful book spines for something that catches his eye. "But actually I'm here on business tonight."
Steve leans on the shelf and waits impatiently for Wayne to tell him what sort of business he's on.
"I think you ought to go on a date with Eddie. I think you two'd compliment each other."
Well, that's... not what Steve was expecting to hear.
"That's business to you? You came here to set me up on a blind date with your famous kid? I think he's gonna be a tad underwhelmed by a bookstore employee, Wayne." Steve's not gonna lie, he's a little intrigued by the prospect of dating a musician. He read a romance novel about one, not that long ago. Concerts, greenroom intimacy, targeted lyrics: Steve could be into it, in theory.
And ultimately, Steve did see photos of Eddie on Google and he's attractive. He looks good holding a guitar.
"He's gonna be home for a while so I figured now's a good time. Just go on one date. He's a big softie, you'll like him." Wayne pulls a book off the shelf and squints to try and read the title. He holds it further from his eyes before giving up and pushing it back into its slot.
"What happens if he doesn't like me? Will you still come around?" Steve runs a nervous hand through his hair. It wouldn't be the end of the world if Wayne stopped showing up, but it would probably hurt a little. It might fan the flame of his fear of abandonment.
"Of course, unless you break his heart. I know where you work, young man." Wayne pats his shoulder good-naturedly.
"Okay old man, you need my number to hand off?"
***
A day later, when Steve feels his phone buzz against his thigh, his instincts already know who it is. His heart gives that anticipatory squeeze he often gets before a first date with someone he finds attractive.
The text reads:
Hi Steve, this is eddie. Wayne swears we're soulmates. Wanna get dinner on friday?
It's a funny text to receive out of nowhere. Steve doubts Wayne actually used that word, but he imagines that Eddie is probably getting more of an earful than Steve got about this whole blind date. He also wonders what kind of person calls their dad by their first name.
Hi Eddie. I'd love to get dinner on Fri and discuss our soulmate status. I'm pretty sure he expects us to be married by the end of the night. Should I bring my tux? Also do you have a time and place in mind?
The master of puppets (Wayne) suggested we go to Maggiano's, are you okay with Italian? 8 maybe??? Tux optional but I think I will not be wearing one.
Haha. That sounds good Eddie, it's nice to hear from you. I'll see you soon.
***
Steve has to ask Amber to change his shift for Friday to work in the morning instead of the evening.
"Steve has somewhere other than work to be on a Friday night? Unheard of!" She slaps her palms down on the book display she was laying out.
"I know. I'm surprised too." Steve fiddles with his lanyard and gives her a 'please say yes' smile. She sighs.
"Yeah, I'll cover you. You can take my morning slot."
"Thank you! I owe you, boss."
***
When Friday arrives, Steve has the nervous jitters. It's been about a year since his last date, it didn't go very well. He's flattered that Wayne thinks highly enough of him to set him up with his kid.
Steve picks up a few small gifts for Eddie on his way home from work. He always brings his first dates a little something. He likes to see the way their faces light up. He thinks maybe he should get Eddie something music-related. So he walks into a little music store he's never been in and asks for small gift ideas for guitarists. He walks out wearing a smile, and hoping Eddie digs what he bought him.
And he's all smiles and confidence until he pulls up to the restaurant at eight and realizes he didn't send a confirmation text this morning. That's like, a rule, right? What if Eddie doesn't show up?
Steve steps out of the car and is equally anxious and relieved to find him leaning artfully against the restaurant near the front door with his hands in his pockets.
His curls are haloed by the warm light spilling out of the restaurant window. He's wearing a dark button-down with the sleeves rolled up to reveal tattoos on his forearms. And yeah, okay, he's hot.
The fact that Steve's going on a date with someone sort of famous hasn't fully sunk in. He's not sure he needs the added nerves though. He approaches as casually as possible and smiles when Eddie looks over.
The man does a double-take when he sees Steve. His eyebrows shoot up and he pushes off against the wall to stand straighter.
"Hi, Eddie?" Steve steps up onto the curb with a little wave. Eddie gives him a thorough once over.
"Oh, damn. Hi." He pulls a hand out of his pocket to shake Steve's.
Eddie is pretty up close. He's got long eyelashes and a bridge of little freckles across his nose. Steve notices all the little details that the on-stage photos didn't capture. He wonders if Wayne described what he looked like to Eddie who was at an informational disadvantage.
"I don't know what I was expecting you to look like, but my uncle didn't mention you were model pretty." Eddie tucks one of his big curls behind his ear and then steps forward to open the door. Steve's face gets warm at being called "model pretty", but he's terrible at taking compliments. He tries to redirect the conversation.
"Your uncle?" Steve asks.
"Wayne? My uncle?" Eddie motions towards the open door and follows after Steve once he's inside.
"Oh. You know he tells people that you're his son?"
Eddie's face softens and he scratches at his cheek. "Oh. Yeah well, I basically am. Maybe I should start calling him dad, I don't know."
"We don't take walk-ins." The hostess of the restaurant announces, breaking up their small talk. Steve looks over to see a tall woman with a slicked-back ponytail mad-dogging them. She has a cold demeanor, she kills the mood with one look between them. Steve knows the look, he's sure Eddie does too.
"Good to know! I have a reservation, though." Eddie responds.
"What's the name?" The woman pulls her iPad closer to herself like a shield.
"Munson." Eddie glances at Steve nervously.
"Hm. I don't see it." She pretends, tapping around meaninglessly. Eddie is getting agitated and maybe embarrassed too. He's scratching at his arm, unsure of how to proceed. First dates are already so awkward, especially blind ones. And if there's one thing about Steve, it's that he's gonna try to lighten the mood.
"Don't you know who he is?" Steve asks offendedly. Eddie whips around to look at Steve with wide, panic-filled eyes. The hostess raises an eyebrow and looks more closely at Eddie. It makes Steve chuckle. "I'm just kidding, let's go get burgers or something." He grabs Eddie's hand and pulls him back out the door.
"Holy shit, you scared me. I didn't know you knew who I was." Eddie has a hand on his chest and a wild grin. "She definitely didn't."
"I was just messing around. She did not want to seat our gay date." Steve sticks his hands in his pockets and then remembers Eddie's gift. "Oh but hey! I got you something."
Steve pulls out a nice bar of chocolate and a little tin of black pearly guitar picks. He offers them to Eddie with an open palm.
"Oh, what? You didn't have to do that." Eddie grabs them eagerly and slides open the tin. "This is so nice! How'd you know I've been needing picks? Now I feel doubly bad about dinner falling through."
"Hey, if I'm honest, sit-down dinner dates kind of give me anxiety. Too much pressure to keep the conversation going." Steve pulls out his keys, "You like burgers?"
Eddie huffs dramatically. "My palette is far too sophisticated for greasy burgers, Steve. I'm a chicken nugget man, obviously."
"That makes sense. You look like one." Steve teases. Eddie pouts.
"I'm taking that as a compliment."
"If you want nuggets we can just walk down the street. Unless you want me to drive?" Steve points in the direction of the row of fast-food restaurants.
"Yeah, let's walk."
Steve slowly turns and starts walking, glancing invitingly over his shoulder.
"So you know me." Eddie rattles the tin of guitar picks and looks a little worried by the prospect that Steve is some sort of fan.
"Only through your uncle, really. And maybe a short Google search. Sue me." Steve holds up his hands guiltily.
"Oh yeah, Wayne's my marketing manager. I send him out to spread the good word."
"Well I don't know who you've been instructing him to market to, but he's spending all his time in my store making me read book summaries to him because he conveniently forgets his glasses every time he comes in." Steve deadpans. Eddie chuckles and shakes his head knowingly.
"Yeah, It's this new long-con form of marketing. We decided to go all in for just one new fan." Eddie's got these sweet little dimples on either cheek when he smiles.
"Kinda worked, I dunno. I'm charmed by the Munsons." Steve and Eddie are veering towards each other as they walk. They're set to collide like two little asteroids. When they do end up bumping shoulders, it's soft. They stay close after that.
Steve hears a truly horrible sound coming from a bar a few meters ahead of them.
"Oh shit! Karaoke bar!" Eddie exclaims and speeds over. Eddie stands in front of the fenced-off patio and looks in while someone butchers Guns N' Roses. He looks absolutely delighted.
"What, you want to go show off in front of these poor, tone-deaf drunkards?" Steve rests his arms on the little fence and leans forward. Eddie vehemently disagrees.
"God no, I just like hearing all the very talented Midwestern voices." Eddie wiggles his eyebrows to express his sarcasm. "In other words, I enjoy making fun of bad music. I'm only human."
They sit there and give each other pained looks at the bad voices for a few minutes until someone starts trying to drunkenly stumble over the verse to a Nicki Minaj song and then Eddie drags Steve away in anguish.
"Can't take it anymore, Steve. Spare me."
***
The two of them have a good rapport, Steve thinks as they sit on a curb and share a big box of chicken nuggets. Maybe Wayne was right. It's playful. He can see how Eddie and Wayne share a handful of mannerisms and a sense of humor.
"Let's intertwine our arms like newlyweds do when they drink champagne," Steve says with a ketchup-covered chicken nugget in his hand. He wraps an arm around Eddie's and then takes a bite. Eddie follows his lead and giggles.
"I didn't know they did that. I've never been to a wedding." Eddie swallows and reaches for his soda.
"What? Never?"
Eddie shakes his head and looks up at the night sky. It's too cloudy to see any stars, unfortunately.
"My tux is in the car, by the way, should things pan out tonight." Steve jokes.
"I think they're panning." Eddie winks and leans in slightly.
"Oh yeah? Have I lived up to Wayne's description of me?" Steve bats his eyelashes and gives Eddie a sweet little smile.
"You've exceeded it, sweetheart." Eddie picks up Steve's hand and presses a chaste kiss to the inside of his wrist. Steve's heart jumps. When Eddie pulls back, he doesn't pull back far.
"Do you ever kiss on a first date?" Eddie whispers and squeezes Steve's hand. He glances at Steve's lips.
"Mmm, I could be persuaded." Steve feels a heady rush at the fact that he has somehow won the interest of a successful musician who probably meets loads of people every day. Steve reaches forward and tugs at one of Eddie's loose curls. He twists it around his finger and looks up with big doe eyes.
The tension is cut from Eddie's body when Steve looks at him like that. The move has a pretty good success rate at this point. And it doesn't fail him tonight. Eddie rests a hand on the base of Steve's neck. He strokes his thumb back and forth against the hollow of Steve's collarbone and leans in slowly.
Eddie's warm lips press against his own gently, experimentally. Their lips make a sweet sound when the suction is broken and Eddie's immediately reseal against Steve like he's irresistible. It's been forever since Steve kissed anyone, especially anyone worth kissing. He forgot how sweet and floaty it feels.
The hand on Steve's collar slides up so it's lightly holding his neck, it feels quietly possessive. It makes Steve's face heat up. Eddie's free arm wraps around Steve's waist pulling him closer. He lets himself be pulled.
Eddie starts getting more confident and hums softly when Steve weaves a hand into his long hair.
Steve could keep this up for hours, he wants to. But as dark as it is, he doesn't love the idea of continuing this so out in the open. He pulls back with regret.
"Damn, how are you not already taken?" Eddie wipes at Steve's shiny lips with his thumb.
"How are you not already taken? You're the accomplished one." Steve counters, squeezing one of Eddie's knees.
Eddie gathers their trash around them and stuffs it into the paper bag. "Well, I'll be home for a while if you'd want to do this again sometime. I can take you to a nice restaurant next time, I promise." He stands to throw away the trash. "Damn, I don't want the night to be over..."
"It doesn't have to be, you're welcome at mine." Steve leans back on one of his hands and bats his eyelashes up at Eddie.
"My New Year's resolution was to not do first date hookups, though."
"We don't have to, just come hang out." Steve holds an arm out to be pulled up to his feet from where he’s still sitting on the curb.
"Oh, yeah okay. You want me to?" Eddie pulls him to his feet with more force than necessary. It sends them both stumbling and giggling.
"Obviously I want you to."
***
The walk back to the restaurant is much faster than it was at the start of the night. They regretfully have to split at the parking lot, each having their own ride.
"Wait, call me so we can still talk on the way there." Eddie requests before jogging off to Wayne's truck. There really isn't much need to talk on the phone since Steve lives so close, but it's kind of cute that he wants to. Steve hits the call button on Eddie's contact.
"Hello, to whom am I speaking?" Eddie asks in a formal, over-the-top voice.
"This is Steve Harrington. I'm contacting you regarding your car's extended warranty." Steve backs out of his spot and waits for Eddie to do the same before driving out of the parking lot.
"Oh wow, what a coincidence. I was just wondering if my car had an extended warranty." Eddie always plays along, he digs into all of Steve's jokes and finds his own spot to grow there.
Steve drives slower than he normally would so that he doesn't get separated from his date. Eddie doesn't appreciate the sentiment.
"You drive like a grandpa. Has anyone ever told you that?" Eddie laughs and honks his horn. Steve hears it both over the phone and from his window.
"I'm only driving slow so we don't get separated, asshole."
"There's barely anyone on the road tonight to separate us, but it's fine, Steve. I value your safety. Drive at your comfortable geriatric pace."
When they pull up to a red light, Eddie instructs Steve to roll down his window so they can stick their hands out and play Rock Paper Scissors. Steve is so distracted watching Eddie's hand through his side mirror that he misses when the light turns.
"It's green, honey," Eddie alerts him softly through the phone, and Steve apologizes.
He's smiling real big the whole way there and when Steve eventually gets out of the car, Eddie comes up and grabs him from behind.
Eddie plants a few eager kisses on the side of Steve's neck. "You're fun, Steve."
"I'll show you real fun some other time." He jokes and pulls Eddie towards his place.
As soon as Steve opens the door to his apartment, he feels self-conscious about how dull it looks inside. Eddie looks around quietly. His eye catches on a picture of Steve and Robin.
"That's my best friend, Robin." Steve clarifies, just in case Eddie reads it wrong like dates have in the past.
Eddie smiles and pulls Steve back against his chest. "She looks nice."
"Looks can be deceiving." Steve laments which has Eddie chuckling into his shoulder. Eddie rubs at Steve's tummy.
What Steve really wants, what he's been desperate for, for months and months is human touch. He just wants to cuddle so badly. And Eddie doesn't seem the type to cuddle, but looks can be deceiving, so Steve's gonna ask anyway.
"Wanna cuddle and watch trash reality TV?" Steve's shoulders rise to his ears, it's a defensive gesture and he's expecting to be rejected. Eddie looks slightly amused by his offer, but he nods.
***
"So you liked him alright?" Wayne asks smugly patting the counter. Steve nervously watches the back of the store where Amber is reorganizing. Steve shouldn't be having a conversation like this at work while she's around.
"Yes, Wayne." Steve rolls his eyes. "Your nephew is lovely."
"I told him he should come here with me next time. Maybe we'll both visit ya." Wayne looks happy. The corners of his default frown have been pulled upwards by the return of his nephew. He's a good man. Steve thinks if his kid was only home a few weeks he'd want to hoard all of his attention, surely not set him up on dates.
And that's the thing about Wayne, it seems like he puts the people he cares about first. Steve wonders if Wayne is all that lonely when Eddie's gone, or if he just comes into the store so often because he knows Steve is.
"I'd love that." Steve hopes things work out with the Munsons.
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