#one of my favourite photos is of Amy and I sitting on the floor of my student flat in December a few years ago
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The Study
Not only is this the start of my 'Moving In' series, I'm also calling it my birthday piece! I turn 24 on Tuesday and I'm trying hard not to think about the fact I'm overdue a quarter-life crisis.
Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader
Word Count: 2.7K (oops)
Warnings: Pleasure Dom!Bucky, sub! reader, spanking, use of a vibrator, forced orgasms, kinda Dom vibes but totally consensual, degradation, safe word system but safe word not used, pet names
Summary: Bucky spends the weekend at your new house and you take him on a tour.
Minors, do not interact
Turning the key in the front door still feels odd. One of the very first changes you made to the house was installing a new locking mechanism on both doors and it hasn't had a chance to stiffen up yet.
The smell of paint is starting to dissipate but it hits you hardest when you open the front door. The hallway was one of the last areas of the house to be redecorated so the smell seems to be most noticeable right at the door.
"Damn, this place is deceptive." Bucky's remark makes you smile to yourself while you hang your jacket up. "It's a whole lot bigger on the inside than I thought."
"It surprised me too. All of the rooms are a nice size."
The house had ticked so many boxes for you. More than two bedrooms in a quiet development, a low maintenance garden, off road parking, a downstairs bathroom and the whole house has plenty of potential. The plan isn't to live here forever, after all. It should be easy enough for you to sell when you decide to move on.
You flick a few lights on in the hallway and toss your keys into the bowl on the hall table before you turn your attention back to Bucky standing in your living room. Despite the fact you hadn't removed your own shoes, he's taken his off, leaving them neatly at the doorway of the living room beside his travel bag.
He's respectful of your space; he always has been but it's nice to just have him in your space. It's nice to have him be part of it.
He walks slowly around the little living room, looking at the few ornaments and picture frames you'd collected. "That's cute." He's looking at a picture of you and your best friend, sitting on the floor of your old kitchen, laughing yourselves to tears over the fact your Christmas tree was three inches tall and cut out from the back of a cereal box. The photo brings a smile to your face every time you see it.
"Are you hungry? You've had a long day." You move over behind him, wrapping your arms around his waist and kissing his back through his clothes while he looks at your pictures on the fireplace. He's had to travel for a few hours just to get here so you imagine he's bound to want something.
"I'm okay for now." You nod at his response, taking in the fact he's actually standing in your home.
The time you have with him is limited. That's how this works but for just less than two days, he's yours. After that, he'll go back home so you've learned to make the most of the time you have with him.
"Help yourself to whatever you like. Kitchen is down the hall." You don't even really want to move but you can't stand like this forever.
He turns in your arms so he's facing you and captures your lips in his. It's a soft, slow, gentle kiss; the kind you've been dreaming of since you last saw him. You need him to feel exactly how much you've missed him without having to tell him.
The kiss lasts for minutes, far beyond its natural end but neither of you care.
After what feels like forever, your lips part but your foreheads stay pressed together, both of you determined not to pull away.
"I still haven't gotten the grand tour." He's got the most beautiful eyes and they're locked on yours to the point that you'd almost forgotten he's never been here before. "But I want to start in your favourite room."
"Well, the study is my favourite. I converted one of the bedrooms into an office space."
"Show me."
You don't protest. Instead you head out of the living room and up the stairs to the furthest end of the hallway, with Bucky following closely behind you.
"These all used to be built-in storage units around a headboard for a bed. I took all the doors off the cabinets and made it into shelving." You'd turned the room into a space that you love. The walls are painted a light shade of cream with houseplants lined up between books on the shelves. Instead of storage around a headboard, you now have book shelves, arching around your desk. The other side of the room has a sofa that converts into a bed for extra guests and there's a beanbag in the corner by the window to read on.
"I see why it's your favourite. Odd mix of books here though." Bucky's eyes flick over the titles, ranging from your collection of political figures' autobiographies, the 'Diary of an Oxygen Thief' trilogy, the selection of books providing commentary on the criminal justice system and a good few classics.
"It is. But I like this room. It'll be cosy in winter once I get some fairy lights and nice and bright in summer. Somewhere to unwind." You're thinking out loud as you reach up to close the window and that's when you feel Bucky step behind you.
"I think we should celebrate." Bucky’s voice is low, his lips trailing up the side of your neck, heading towards the spot just behind your ear that he's always loved to kiss.
"I think..." He stops briefly on his path, taking a second to inhale deeply, determined to slow down. "I think we should make love in every room of your new house this weekend."
Fuck.
"Are you sure you're up for that? Because I can really stretch it out. I'm not sure how we're going to make it work in the pantry or the downstairs bathroom but I'm happy to try."
"Your 'pantry' is a cupboard." Bucky's breath is hot on your neck, and you feel his lips have curled into a smile.
"I know. You promised every room though." You can't help but tease him, although you're half serious. It's not your fault that you're keen. Not when he's kissing down your neck like that and holding your waist so your back is flush against him.
"You're a handful." You feel his fingertips graze the bare skin of your waist and you remember how nice it is to just be touched the way he touches you.
"I might be a handful but I can promise if I have my way, after you leave here on Sunday, you won't even be able to think about cumming again until Thursday at the very earliest."
"Jesus, that's one hell of a promise." He turns you around to face him and you notice his eyes are damn near twinkling with excitement.
You've got all weekend together; there's no need to rush but you can't help the overwhelming need to feel him sliding into you. That's when you feel closest to him and it's the closeness you're craving more than anything.
Your hand cups the side of his face, your thumb tracing across his freshly shaved jawline and you allow yourselves a second to just be together.
He smells familiar. The heat of his body against yours makes you feel safe. He makes you feel safe.
"I want to start with you though. I brought you a little something." He kisses your lips gently and smooths a hand down over your hair before he retreats downstairs to the bag that he'd brought a few changes of clothes in.
He returns with a small cardboard box with the tape on one end already cut.
"I didn't have time to wrap it. It arrived last minute." You're so busy trying to get into the box that you hadn't even noticed.
Inside the box are a few instruction manuals, a thin white cord and a black satin pouch. Inside the pouch is a neon pink toy that's thicker at each end, narrow in the middle and nicely curved.
"I've already charged it and paired it to my phone. This end slips inside you." He points to the thicker end, studying your face to make sure you're okay with this.
And why wouldn't you be? This is pretty damn close to a dream come true.
"Remember what you said last time I saw you? You wanted me to spank you. Maybe we should take it a little further." He's always been hesitant to do anything that would hurt you and that fact is the very reason you want him to. You know how much he wants to protect you and knowing he cares about you has you convinced that he's the right person to explore this with.
"Please." You whisper, beyond excited at the thought of getting everything you've begged him for. "What did you have in mind?"
"I'm thinking about you bent over this desk with this inside you and we'll start off with a couple of light taps to that pretty ass." He presses the button on the narrow part of the toy and it give a short buzz, coming to life in his hands.
Fuck, you're into this man. You're into his hesitation just as much as you're into his willingness to try something new.
"Traffic light safe word system. 'Red' and I'll stop, 'amber' and I'll give you a break, 'green' to keep going." He wants to be fully sure you know you're in control here, not that you ever had any doubt.
You nod and stretch up on your tiptoes to kiss him, this time with as much passion as you can manage. Your hands run through his hair while his trail over your body, your tongue flicking gently against his.
Just being around this man makes you wet, not that you'd ever admit that to him. Even the thought of him has you throbbing with arousal so now that he's here in front of you, your whole body feels like it's buzzing.
He touches you like he can't get enough. He can't get you close enough and it's beyond thrilling to be the subject of his need.
It's almost embarrassing that you get yourself worked up so easily but from the hungry look in his eyes when you undo the button of your jeans, he doesn't seem to mind.
You step out of your jeans and panties and Bucky helps you out of your top and bra, leaving you naked in your study.
"Look at you." Bucky sounds like he's almost in awe, no matter how many times he's seen you naked.
He kisses you again, matching the same passion he'd had earlier, trailing his hands over your soft, warm skin until his fingers are nestled between your thighs.
"Fuck, you're soaked." His fingertips trail between the folds of your sex, gathering the wetness he's responsible for. "Good girls don't get this wet at the thought of being spanked. You know that, don't you?"
You're almost too turned on to even respond to him. "Bend over. I want to see how well you take your toy."
You do as you're told, bending over your desk while Bucky drops to his knees behind you to slip the toy inside you. You feel him trail the thicker end of the toy against your slick cunt, gathering enough wetness to let it slip inside you comfortably.
Within a minute, the toy comes to life inside you and there's no way to stifle the moan that catches in your throat.
Not only is the internal part vibrating at a low, delightful buzz, the other end is pressed right to your clit and is stimulating it at the same strength.
"Did I say you could make a sound?" Bucky quizzes, sounding harsher than ever and when he gets no response, his hand comes down on your ass with so much force that it makes you yelp.
It was a hell of a spank and you can feel heat blooming under the skin of your left cheek, quickly followed by another spank to the right.
"For the record, you can make as much noise as you need to. But only because I've told you that you can. You see the difference?"
You force yourself not to nod and it has the effect you were hoping for. Two more harsh, painful spanks are delivered, one to each cheek, the same as before.
You don't know if you imagined it but the toy inside you feels stronger. You can't be sure if you're just focusing on the pleasure over the pain or if Bucky really has turned it up.
"Does that feel nice, sweetheart?" He needs to know you're enjoying this because a little part of him is surprised at just how much he's into it. He gets to control both your pleasure and your pain because you want him to and the trust alone is enough to get him off.
"Feels amazing, fuck. Making such a mess." Stringing sentences together isn't easy but you swear you're about to cum already. Your nipples rub delightfully against the wooden desk and you swear every sensation is heightened.
"I wish you could see the mess you're making. Looks fucking delicious." He turns the toy up ever so slightly but that's enough to send you spiralling, gripping the edge of the desk as pleasure ripples through your entire body.
You can do nothing but sob, cumming relentlessly because he's refused to turn the toy down. Even after you're done, he keeps it at the same intensity, moving on like nothing happened.
"You say the sluttiest things. That promise of yours to totally drain me. Who says shit like that? So fucking filthy."
"I mean it. I want every drop of cum you can give me. And then more." You know saying something like that will earn you another spank and it does.
"You're not just acting like a slut. You are a slut. You spend your life hiding it from everyone else but you can't hide it from me." A shiver runs down your spine. You almost feel like you've been caught. Like he's figured you out and now you have nothing left to hide. "Say it."
It's a clear instruction but saying it makes it real.
Your hesitation earns you another sharp spank, heat prickling both your face and your ass at the same time.
"Don't make me tell you twice." For someone hesitant to slip into a dominant role, he's absolutely nailing it.
"I'm your slut." Your voice is less steady than you would've hoped but the words at clear at the very least.
"My slut?" He almost sounds like he can't believe what he heard.
"Yours. Your slut." You repeat, wishing you could see his face.
"Oh sweetheart, that's cute." He means it too. He turns the toy up as a reward and even though it's only at half its full strength, you can't help but cum again, pleading your way through another blinding orgasm.
"Such a good girl for me. That's it. Cum nice and hard. Give that slutty little pussy what it needs." He lands one more harsh spank on your ass and you swear it only makes you cum harder, to the point that your legs are shaking.
But all of a sudden, the sensation stops completely.
"B-Bucky?" You ask, turning around to look at him, wondering if something went wrong.
"Don't want to wear you out, sweetheart. I think that'll do for now." You agree that it's probably a good place to stop and you have no problem taking the toy out for a while.
He pulls you in close, resting your head on his chest, letting you catch your breath while he holds you and kisses your forehead.
"I didn't hurt you, did I?" His voice is soft, hoping that you'll tell him the truth.
"No. It was perfect." You smile, capturing his lips in yours, hoping to relieve some of his fear. You're almost giddy with excitment. It truly was everything you needed and you fully intend to thank him for it before the weekend is over.
"Good. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would." He's back to the gentle, tender touches that you're so used to from him and it's a blessing that he can flick so effortlessly between both personas.
"How about we order in and stick a movie on?" He suggests, kissing the tip of your nose. "Go put on something comfortable. I'll find a takeout."
#bucky barnes smut#bucky barnes x reader#bucky barnes x reader smut#bucky barnes x you#dad’s best friend!bucky#bucky barnes imagine#bucky barnes fanfic#marvel fanfic#bucky barnes fic#dbf!bucky#james buchanan barnes#bucky barnes x y/n#bucky barnes x female reader#bucky barnes x female reader smut#james bucky barnes#bucky barnes fanfiction#writing this was unexpectedly nostalgic#one of my favourite photos is of Amy and I sitting on the floor of my student flat in December a few years ago#we were drinking wine and working on an assignment and she noticed the only Christmas decoration we had was cut out from a cereal box#she laughed so hard she cried#I got to tell her recently about the house#but I hadn't even thought about the fact we can make as many happy memories in my new place as we did in my old uni flat#and that's made me even more excited#it's so weird to think that this is my last birthday in this house though
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The 5 times Jake & Amy tried to get some ‘alone time’ during the holidays (and the 1 time they’re successful)
Here is my entry into the @b99fandomevents Summer 2020 Challenge, for @peraltasames 💗 also available on ao3, as it is a little long ☺️
(For those of you playing at home, only part 2 is NSFW 🙊)
Part 1:
(where it all begins)
Attempt number 1: The Santiago Family Holiday House
“Thought I might find you here.”
Lifting her head up from its resting place in the crook of her arm, Amy doesn’t even try to suppress the smile that began to creep onto her face the moment she’d picked up on Jake’s voice.
She cocks her head to the side as he falters mid-step, an obvious blush creeping onto his cheeks as he lifts his hands, raising two bottles in mock surrender. “I mean, obviously I didn’t know that you’d be out here … I’ve never been here before and that’s giving off some real Creepy New Boyfriend vibes. You know what, I’m just going to reset and start again.” Digging one sneakered heel into the landing, he does a quick full body turn before Amy can give any type of reassurance; blinking quickly when their eyes meet again to indicate a Full Reset. “Hey, Ames! Your brother mentioned that you might be out here, so I thought I’d do something completely non-stalkery and bring you a drink.”
Chuckling, Amy reaches out for one of the offered bottles, riding that still new high that comes from hearing Jake Peralta refer to himself as her boyfriend. “Thanks, babe.”
It’s Jake’s turn to grin right back, clearly enjoying her use of their favourite new term for each other; a colloquial word that still seemed kinda new - given it’s only been four months since they got together - yet somehow fits so well it’s almost a little strange to remember a time when they couldn’t refer to each other as such. There’s a shared giddiness that floats between them as they clink bottles and take a sip, and her cheeks kinda hurt from smiling this much, but Amy really doesn’t care.
Gesturing at the expanse of the relatively simple deck, Jake takes in the wooden panelling of the exterior walls before turning his attention back to his girlfriend. “So … this is your little secret hideout, I hear?”
Nodding, Amy returns to her earlier position leaning against the high railing in front of her, letting out a soft yeah as her free hand runs along the timber paling.
Built by her grandfather as a home away from the city several decades ago, the Santiago Lake House has long been considered a place of refuge for the family. With six of her brothers, two uncles and her father Victor on the force, common holidays were rarely guaranteed off; and so this year they had elected a non-particular weekend in June as their opportunity for all to come together. Save for a last-minute issue at Victor’s precinct pulling him away from the festivities, all eight Santiago siblings (and their mother Camila) had arrived earlier today for a well overdue holiday.
While the majority of her family often preferred to gather around the oversized back deck, from a young age Amy had gravitated towards the more intimate side balcony that overlooked the water. Stretching out from the family room situated on the second floor, the surrounding tree tops lent a sense of privacy the back deck couldn’t completely offer; and on the evenings when things began to feel a little too loud, Amy would often come up here to decompress, watching the night slip by as the moon silvered the lake before her.
Taking a sip of his beer, Jake moves to stand next to Amy, resting his weight against the banister as he drinks in the view. “I really like it.” A small army of goosebumps appear on Amy’s skin, despite the dusk’s only slightly fading heat, as his arm brushes against her skin. “Perfectly compact, with a great view.” She can sense him grin, shoulder nudging against hers. “Feels like you.”
Amy feels her cheeks heat up as a blush washes over her, grateful that the relative darkness of the almost night sky would be able to hide her reaction. Jake was the very first boyfriend she’d ever brought to the lake house - a fact that Manny had announced very loudly in the middle of the private tour she had been giving earlier - and the look of elation and pride that had taken over Jake’s features at the discovery has remained fresh in her mind for the past few hours.
(It had never been an overly deliberate action, to keep previous boyfriends away from the lake house, but the thought of Jake joining in, within a minute of the date being set, had been so automatic that Amy is only now realising that the concept of being here without him had seemed completely illogical.)
A melody played from Luis’ acoustic guitar is carried up to the two of them by a sudden breeze, cutting through the tops of the surrounding pine, and Amy lets out a small shiver: forever and always susceptible to the cold, regardless of the lingering summer heat. Without missing a beat; Jake moves to stand behind her - covering her back with his front with the instinct of not only a gentleman, but a man who is very quickly taking complete hold of her heart.
His arms come to rest besides hers along the edge of the bannister, and quietly Amy hopes that he cannot feel the rapid pounding of her heart through her jacket. It felt a little ridiculous to act this way, like some kind of lovesick teenager drawing hearts all over her notebook, but dating Jake for the past four months doesn’t seem to have taken the edge off the way his presence made her feel.
“So …. Tell me about David.”
As hard as she tries to avoid it, Amy feels her shoulders tense up - the urge to let out an exaggerated UGH almost too strong to resist. She’d only touched on David’s presence briefly on the drive up to the lake house, and despite her own personal reservations, she supposed it was sort of fair that Jake might have a few questions. Letting out a calming breath, Amy gives herself a quick reminder to keep her responding tone light. “What would you like to know?”
“Uhh … well, look - the way his photo is displayed on that mantel in the formal lounge, and the clear adoration in your mother’s voice whenever his name came up made me wonder if he was on some super secret mission to Mars or something.” Shaking his head, Jake knocks the lip of the beer bottle against his forehead. “I honestly spent the first twenty minutes of polite chatter frantically rewinding all of our conversations over the last few years in my head, trying to remember you ever bringing up something like that. Thank god he walked in when he did, or I’m sure I would’ve ended up saying something really stupid.”
Knowing that Jake can’t necessarily see her (okay, perhaps childish) reaction, Amy rolls her eyes at the mention of Camila’s unfiltered reverence when it comes to David. “Yeah, he’s basically the ‘Do No Wrong’ guy … The Golden Child, as Julian and I like to call him. It’s kinda always been like that, ever since he came home from first grade with a report card filled with gold star stickers and praise from literally every teacher he’d ever been in contact with.”
Swallowing his last swig of beer, Jake scoffs into the night sky. “Gold stars are cool, I guess. But any fool knows that the scratch-n-sniff stickers are where it’s really at.”
“Obviously. Strawberry, the clear winner.”
His free hand landing on her forearm, Jake squeezes gently. “I’d always been partial to grape, but strawberry just reminds me of that chapstick you use before bed now, and I am a big fan of those strawberry kisses to start my morning.”
Craning her head to the side slightly, Amy flashes Jake a grin before meeting him halfway for a soft kiss. She, too, had become a big fan of morning kisses … and afternoon kisses, night kisses … basically any time she got to feel the pressure of Jake’s lips against her own was a winner in her book - and she knows she’s being a little ridiculous but she also really, really likes him. Remembering their previous conversation as she pulls away, Amy shakes her head slightly before looking out onto the lake again.
“It’s worse at home, if I’m being honest - it’s basically the same shrine on the mantel, only at home we have a piano in the living room as well. So … how well you’re doing at school or work or whatever, determines your position either on the piano or the wall of shame above the staircase.”
“I mean … I’m sure it’s not meant to feel like a wall of shame, babe.”
Amy nods, letting out a quick I want to believe you laugh. “Tell that to Tony. One semester, he wasn’t focusing as much as normal, and his grade dropped by a whole level. Two days after he came home with the results, Mama conveniently decided to do a redesign of the living room - one that just so happened to include the shuffling of Tony’s school portrait from next to mine on the piano, to sitting at the bottom of the staircase.”
Taking a long sip of Cristal, Amy pauses to take stock of the conversation. It felt slightly traitorous to be talking to Jake about the hierarchy that - prior to this evening - she’d only ever discussed with her brothers (minus one). There’s never been a question over whether their mother loved them dearly - an abundance of love was palpable between the walls of both their family home and the holiday house - but it was also impossible to deny that the shadow of David’s successes, paired with Camila’s obvious praise, had loomed over Amy’s shoulders during her many late night study sessions.
This wasn’t the first time talking to Jake had led to Amy admitting more than she would to most - he had that (at times, irritating) ability to sneak past her guard long before they’d been anything more than colleagues. But one of her most favourite details of their new relationship, aside from the why-did-we-wait-so-long-for-this sex, was the amount of nights they would stay up just … talking. They’d learnt more about each other in the past four months than the last two years combined, and still she craves more. Shaking her now empty bottle, Amy stoops to place it on the ground beside her before straightening, sighing in contentment as Jake’s shoulders rest against hers once again.
“Eventually, Tony’s photo found its way back to the piano .. but the message was pretty clear.” Letting out a rueful laugh, she shakes her head slightly. “It’s no secret that I love a bit of friendly competition. But … it’d be kinda nice if the rungs of the ladder weren’t always so far away from each other.”
At the feeling of Jake’s lips pressing into her hair Amy lets out one last sigh, surprising herself with just how lighter her shoulders seem to feel. A silence stretches between them as Jake drains the last of his beer, and just when she’s about to change the subject completely, he speaks.
“So. There’s a little known fact about me, that you should probably be made aware of now that we’re all smooshing booties offical stylez and whatever.”
Her lips curl up at the term. “Oh, yeah?”
“Yup. Obviously you’re already aware of my titles as Greatest Detective Ever, Badass MC, Amazing Lover, Fierce Defender of Good from Evil ..”
“Oh god, is this list ever going to end?”
“… Master dunker at B-ball, unofficially official taste tester of any and all sour candies … but! What you might not know is that I am also a crazy good Hype Man. Like .. the best. All the others can just go home coz I kick the most butt at hyping things up and that’s just the facts.”
Turning her head slightly towards Jake, Amy glances up at her boyfriend from the corner of her eyes. “I feel like there was a point you were making, here?”
Depositing his empty bottle along the far edge of the banister, Jake’s hands return to weave their fingers through both of Amy’s, staying close as she watches him take a heavy swallow. Sensing that something important was about to be said, and that Jake may not be at the Locked Eyes Grand Gesture stage just yet, she trains her gaze towards the lake and waits.
“What I’m saying, Ames, is that I am officially signing up to be your hype man. I will literally have zero hesitation in pointing out your awesomeness to anybody that doesn’t immediately see it, and I just ..” Pausing for a moment, he shuffles closer to her back, squeezing their gripped fingers tightly, and she takes no hesitation in squeezing right back. “You need to know that … no matter what happens. I’m always going to be there, cheering you on.”
The unspoken definition of the no matter what happens hangs between them, the mere mention of anything but the two of them staying together sounding both unwelcome and impossible, and Amy nods against his chest.
“I just …. They could rewire the stars with your accolades, Ames. The fact that it goes over anybody’s head baffles me, let alone somewhere like here.”
She nods again, temporarily unable to speak as unexpected tears begin to threaten their escape. There were an abundance of reports and awards that spoke of her achievements, and logically she knew that any task that she set her mind to could be mastered with relative ease.
But to know that Jake not only noticed her triumphs, but wanted to actually (and, perhaps literally) shout them from the rooftops, meant more to Amy than she could have anticipated.
He presses another kiss to her hair, and she holds onto him tightly. There’s so much familiarity surrounding her right now - from the scratch of the logwood bannisters; the filtered laughter of her brothers and their extended families, to the slightly acrid smell of burnt marshmallows as Luis once again fails to make a decent s’more.
Jake’s cologne with it’s spicy notes, and the overall sense of warmth he exudes, should feel foreign amongst it all … but standing here on the balcony with his arms stretched out comfortably on top of her own, Amy cannot deny that it feels less like an intrusion, and more like the final piece of life’s puzzle locking into place.
Her voice cuts through the night, tone soft as she rests her head briefly against Jake’s shoulder. “I’m really glad you’re here, Jake.”
The bridge of Jake’s nose brushes her temple as he dips his head lower, pressing a kiss against her cheekbone, and her heart skips at the simple intimacy of it all. “Me too, Ames.”
His fingers, still interlaced with hers, tighten as he pulls their arms closer to her middle; holding the two of them in a tight embrace as his continues a trail of kisses, letting out a quiet sigh as he follows her jawline. It’s as his teeth begin to graze the outside edge of her earlobe - a guaranteed winning choice - that he begins to whisper, the warmth of his breath sending shivers down her spine. “So if I’m officially the first boyfriend you’ve brought here … does that mean there’s a bed somewhere that needs breaking in?”
Grinning, Amy turns in his embrace, releasing her grip on his hands so that she can throw her arms around her boyfriend’s neck and nod. He gives her a suggestive waggle of his eyebrows, absorbing her laughter with a slightly longer kiss as his arms wrap around her lower body, and it only takes a moment when he pulls away and looks down at her - but in a moment, she knows.
It’s a combination of things - a curated list of all of her favourite details about him coming together on a hazy June evening: the softness of his touch every time he was near; the warmth of his breath when it ghosted over her skin, the way he made her feel like she was the only person in the world that he could ever want to kiss. She knows that it’s still technically early days, but as his fingers tip gently underneath her chin and draw her closer for the kind of kiss one doesn’t forget easily, Amy knows for sure that she is most definitely falling in love with Jake Peralta.
It’s the kind of thought - the kind of kiss - that distracts even the most focused of people, and for that reason alone Amy doesn’t hear the heavy thud of Manny’s boots bounding up the staircase until it’s accompanied by his loud Busted! tone.
“Okay amantes - time to come and at least pretend to be sociable with the family, yah?”
Amy’s lips pull away from Jake’s with a smack, swivelling her head towards her brother as she fixes him with a glare. “We’re here for an entire weekend, Manny. Plenty of time for family stuff.”
That frustratingly mischievous glint appears in her brother’s eyes - a sure sign of danger ahead - and Amy pulls away slightly from Jake. “Ah-huh. No biggie, Ma’s just been asking about your new boyfriend Jake, and is wondering where you’d gotten to … I’ll just tell her you’re both up here exploring the backs of each other’s throats, if that’s cool?”
Grabbing her wrist quickly, Jake yelps out a quick “Nope!”, gently pulling Amy towards the staircase. “We were actually just talking about how we should go down and join the crowd, weren’t we Ames?”
Manny makes little to no effort to conceal his laughter as Amy’s response is a continuation of her glare, and he half-turns towards Jake as all three begin their descent towards the back deck. “FYI, my bedroom is right next to yours, and I sleep real light … wouldn’t want to have to tell Mama about the things that go bump in the night, hey hermana?”
“You’ll get yours, manito.” Amy mumbles, linking hands with Jake as they move further away from their private oasis.
There was a very good chance that this was Manny’s version of revenge (she may or may not have stumbled on her brother & his boyfriend last year, something she still swears to have been an accident) but now she’s both turned on and frustrated; knowing that as long as Manny has anything to do with it, there will be No Sex for her and Jake at the lake house.
Truly, she couldn’t think of a worse way to begin a holiday.
*
(… is that a red light blinking?)
Attempt number 2: Santa Barbara
Jake’s eyebrows lift in surprise as the strength of Amy’s shove forces him into the couch cushions below, body barely settling against the base before she begins scrambling onto his lap.
Responding to his shock with a satisfied grin, Amy rests her hands on either side of his face to pull him in for a kiss, catching his soft moans and joining them with her own as it deepens.
It isn’t until she’s begun to graze her teeth against the base of his neck that she catches her breath, whispering as her body begins to grind down against his - “I’m totally blaming you for this, by the way.”
“I’m not sure what I’m taking the blame for, but as long as you keep kissing me like that I’m pretty much going to admit to anything.”
She laughs, sinking her teeth gently into his shoulder and leaving a kiss in their wake. “You and your hands, stroking up and down my back all night while I was trying to be the attentive and supportive sister. It was driving me crazy, you don’t know how close I came to dragging you into the coat closet.”
The two of them had flown to Santa Barbara for a long weekend to show their support for Amy’s closest (aka: secretly favourite) brother, Miguel. As the only Santiago child not to join the NYPD, Miguel had instead chosen to become a specialist in the medical field, relocating to follow a promotion in California. This evening he was receiving an award from his peers at a gala uptown, and both Jake and Amy had jumped at the chance to attend - if for no other reason than a chance to get away, after months of double shifts and leads that had taken them absolutely nowhere.
Amy had chosen a new dress for the occasion - black material that shimmered in just the right way, with a low-scoop back to avoid the unbearable summer heat. Paired with her signature studs and heels high enough to do some serious damage if provoked, she’d felt like a million dollars walking into the gala on Jake’s arm - and had smiled ever so proudly as Miguel received his award.
The rest of the night, however, has become a vague memory … because all she can remember feeling - all she can remember even thinking about - was the way Jake’s fingers felt as they feathered against her exposed skin. With his arm draped over her chair he’d been given the perfect amount of leeway throughout the ceremony, and the non-sensical patterns of unconscious action on her boyfriend’s end had sent a parade of tingles all over her body with every lap.
Safe to say, once all the awards have been presented and they’d had the chance to congratulate Miguel once again, Amy had slammed down her fourth drink and found a convenient reason for her and Jake to leave. Immediately.
“To be fair Ames, you do look amazing tonight,” Jake mumbled in-between kisses, running his hand over the expanse of her back to demonstrate his appreciation. “Honestly, I’m blaming the dress for making my already hot girlfriend Super Mega Hot.”
She rewards his sweet declaration with a heated kiss, hands making quick work of his tie - loosening the knot with practised ease (she does, after all, fasten and loosen his work tie most days) and casting the fabric aside as she begins to tackle his buttons.
A beachside mansion, owned by a friend of Roger’s, had been offered to be their accommodation for the weekend - an olive branch of sorts towards Jake that he’d begrudgingly accepted (the notion of his parents dating each other, something he was slowly coming to terms with). Their delayed flight this afternoon had meant that Jake and Amy barely had time to dump their bags before getting changed and leaving again, but the floor-to-ceiling windows and expansive layout she’d picked up on their way out the door already suggested a very comfortable few days ahead.
It is, in fact, only as Jake drops a quick kiss to her lips, suggesting they move things into the bedroom, that Amy stands and actually takes stock of her surroundings (a combination of four drinks and an irresistible partner can clearly only lead to a distracted mind).
Tugging onto her boyfriend’s hand as he continues leading her towards the hallway, Amy lets out a quiet wait a minute - and it’s just enough to pique Jake’s interest, turning to see what it is that’s caught Amy’s attention.
“Ames?”
Raising her finger in a curious point, Amy surveys the room. “Cameras.” At Jake’s silence, she points them out as she slowly circumnavigates the room. “One, two .. I count four altogether. Four cameras, three of them video. Trained to face the furniture, and not the beach.”
Hands on hips, Jake moves further into the centre of the room, frowning. “Yeah, that is a little weird.”
Her eyebrows knit together as she walks towards the bookshelf next to the tv unit, inspecting a container that managed to catch her eye. “Jake, there are like five different handcuffs in here. All of them furry.” Turning her head, she begins to read a few of the labels attached on a row of VHS tapes. Genna and Nicolai … Matt and Lennon … “Cockpit Larry and the Mile High Stewardi?” Swivelling quickly, Amy turns to gasp at Jake. “Babe … what sort of place has your father organised for us?”
Running his hand along the back of his neck, Jake shakes his head quickly. “Let’s not panic just yet, Ames. This could all just be a series of coincidences that when put together seem really weird, but actually aren’t. It .. looks like a normal house - except for all the cameras that seem to be directed towards the couch we were definitely just making out on, maybe a few sex tapes and what, in hindsight, might definitely be release papers waiting for us on the kitchen bench.”
“There’s what, where?”
“In fact, I bet if I lift the lid off of this bowl thing, we’ll find some delicious candy or potpourri or something … and it’s lube. Many, many bottles of lube. Hey, we’ve got the same flavour!”
Amy’s eyes widen, her face paling significantly as she feels her stomach drop to her feet. “Oh god, this is a sex dungeon isn’t it?”
“If not, it’s the background of at least a few porn videos.” Gripping the base of his hair in frustration, Jake lifts his head to curse at the ceiling. “I should’ve known Roger wouldn’t know anybody with a normal house!”
Sensing the panic build up inside of her, Amy scours the room for her purse and heels, both of which had been discarded near the entryway mid-makeout. The arousal that had been coursing through her mere minutes ago has all but disappeared, replaced by the overwhelming urge to take a shower. She was all for porn, just as long as she wasn’t the star of it (one simply doesn’t find NYPD’s youngest female captain on RedTube) - and this house was the kind of place that, under a black light, would resemble a Jackson Pollock. “Jake, we need to leave. We almost had sex in here!”
“Almost being the keyword, Ames. Unless … ”
“Jake!”
“Coming, my love! Title of the sex tape that we definitely didn’t make here!”
*
(i’m sensing a pattern here …)
Attempt Number 3: The Beach House
“Jake! Jake’s girlfriend! I just pulled Charles’s ear away from your bedroom door, thought you might wanna know!”
Startled, Jake lifts his head up so quickly it hurts his neck a little, both confused and irritated that his earlier activity of planting a series of kisses along Amy’s bare torso has been so rudely interrupted. “Wait, was that …?”
Raising her head off of the pillow, Amy meets his startled gaze with her own. “Did she just - ”
Their suspicions (and, in all honesty - their worst fears) were confirmed a mere second later as another voice booms through their (thankfully, locked) bedroom door.
“I’ve had a very stressful week, Gina! What better way to lull myself into a restful sleep than by listening to the sweet lovemaking of America’s Dream Couple?”
“Oh my god, BOYLE!”
Jake’s knees slide against the sheets as he sits up, lending a hand to Amy as she follows suit. He lets out a defeated sigh as she pushes the hem of her shirt downwards again, leaning forward to grip his arm as he calls through the door - “Boundaries, Charles! … Thank you, Gina!”
“It’s a virtual feast for the ears, you guys! Very soothing, to bear audio witness to the actualisation of love beyond a doorway. It’s only weird if we make it weird.”
“It’s weird and creepy and not okay, Boyle!” Squeezing his eyes shut, Jake cringes at the sheer notion of it. Using his best nope voice, he continues. “Good night!”
From their position on the bed, Jake and Amy hear the faint sound of Gina muttering come on, you weirdo; and they wait in careful silence, sharing flustered looks.
The entire squad had all met up at Boyle’s ex-wife’s beach house this weekend, eager to continue the yearly tradition now that Holt and Jake had finally returned from Florida a month prior. After a day of fun and frivolity (the two of them perhaps being a little unsubtle as they openly checked each other out in their swimwear); the happily reunited couple had snuck away as the evening’s drinks began to die down for a little … alone time.
It had been Jake’s version of paradise, with Amy’s skin still feeling warm and sun kissed as his hands roamed her gorgeous body, and with a schedule of Absolutely Nothing planned for the following day, he intended to keep things going well into the early hours.
That is, of course, until Charles (and Gina, but … mainly Charles) had put a total stop to it.
Amy’s hand squeezes Jake’s bicep, casting a wary glance towards the door before softly speaking. “Wow, that was close.”
“Yeah. I never thought I would say this in relation to sex, but … thank god for Gina.”
“I don’t even want to imagine the alternative.”
Shaking his head, Jake swears under his breath. “You know what this is, right?”
“Charles forgetting basic social normalities, and grossly overstepping the line?”
“No. I mean, yes - that, too. But I think the main culprit here is the curse.”
“The curse?”
“The No Nookie Curse. Tell me you’ve noticed it Ames, it can’t just be me.”
Cocking her head to the side, Amy tests out the term. “The No Nookie Curse?”
Scooting closer to his girlfriend, Jake rests his palms against Amy’s thighs with the practiced comfort of someone who knows her body better than his own. “Every single time we tried to initiate sexy times when we’re on holiday, something happens to interrupt us. I’m telling you, we’re cursed.” He grimaces, rolling his eyes. “Which is probably because I didn’t forward that email on to seven of my closest friends back in 2013, but I was busy that day and - ”
“Jake. There’s no way we’re cursed. We had sex on our last holiday … didn’t we?”
“Do you mean that weekend at Dave’s cool beachfront mansion, that was also definitely used for porn films?”
“Oh right, the sex den. Okay, but that’s a one-off. We’ve been on plenty of holidays prior to that.”
“Like the lake house, where we were both so paranoid that Mama Santiago would find out what we were doing that we barely moved each evening?”
“Yeah, when you add it up like that it really doesn’t sound great.”
“I mean … there was lots of sex on the cruise once Doug Judy disappeared. Good sex, too - not that we ever have bad sex. But that was really good, life-affirming, post-declarations-of-love sex, that I’m completely certain we were able to have because we were in international waters, and therefore outside the curses’s jurisdiction.”
Covering Jake’s hands with her own, Amy squeezes gently at the mention of their cruise holiday and leans in for a chaste kiss. “I’m pretty sure curse’s don’t have jurisdictions, babe.”
“How can you be so sure, Ames? All I know is, whenever we’re on holiday and we try to get the good kind of naked, something always comes along and stops us. And it really is a travesty, because you always get this crazy sexy vacation glow about you that just makes me want to cover your body in kisses, and yet somehow it just never seems to happen.”
“Wow, you’ve really thought a lot about this, huh?”
“Lets just say it’s been eating away at me for a while now.”
A lewd joke dies on Amy’s lips as she looks over at her boyfriend, taking in the obvious frustration in his face and realising how seriously he was taking the issue. “Babe, I promise. There is no such thing as a curse.” Planting her hand on the other side of the bed, she lifts herself up, straddling his lap as he moves quickly to tent his legs behind her. “And I am going to prove it to you - right here, right now.”
His hands land on Amy’s waist, holding her steady as she scrapes the edge of her teeth against his curve of his neck, carding her fingers through his shorter hair while her body slowly gyrates on his lap. “God I love you, Ames.”
“Mmm.” Amy takes in a deep breath, relishing the scent of the man she’d missed for so long, sighing when his hands reach down to squeeze her butt. “I love you too, Jake.”
The curse, the previous interruption … pretty much any kind of detail other than his name was disappearing from Jake’s mind with every press of Amy's warm lips against his skin, and he lets out a soft moan, gripping her body tighter as his hands begin to wander to her front.
THUD.
“OW! Rosa!”
“What the hell, Boyle! I know Gina just pulled you away from here!”
Their kissing coming to an abrupt stop, Amy groans, tucking her head into the juncture of Jake’s neck and shoulder. “Oh my god, again?!”
Squeezing his eyes tightly shut, Jake falls back onto the mattress, taking Amy with him and curling both arms around her protectively. They listen as Charles and Rosa squabble in the hallway outside, choosing not to acknowledge the horror of it all this time around. With a defeated grumble, Amy reaches for the comforter, covering them both up before returning to her safe place (i.e., Jake’s shoulder).
“What was that you were saying, about curses not existing?”
*
(okay, now the universe is just messing with us)
Attempt Number 4: Team Building in Deer River
It’s Jake’s absent-minded humming of his current favourite song that puts a tranquil smile on Amy’s face on their return to the campsite, keeping her grip around his waist tight as the leaves crunch loudly beneath their feet.
Together with the squad, they had spent the day attending a team building event in Deer River - a state forest just far enough from the city that camping overnight had been the safest option.
After a full day of trust falls, puzzle solving and a group scavenger hunt, the couple had strategically erected their tent further away from the rest of their team, hoping to afford a little bit of privacy (and perhaps, a safe enough distance from Charles). Following Jake’s exoneration, and the brand new addition of a shiny ring on Amy’s finger, a night away underneath the stars was exactly what they needed; and once everything was set up the two of them had wandered off into the woods for some time to themselves.
(Aka: totally disappearing into the surrounding trees and starting a makeout session that lasted longer than either had anticipated.)
(So much so, that the sun had almost completely set by the time they pulled away from each other, hastily returning each of their clothing to a suitable state before heading back.)
Intent on proving that the No Nookie Curse was only an amalgamation of Jake’s paranoid thoughts, Amy was determined to get back to the campsite and settle themselves into bed before anyone or anything could interrupt them. Her plan involved waiting out the rest of the squad’s bedtime routines, before demonstrating to the love of her life that vacation sex was not only a) possible, it was also b) definitely happening.
Whistling the last few bars of his song, Jake tightens his arm around Amy’s shoulder as a strong wind runs through the surrounding greenery - the fifth gust since they started walking back, all of them gaining in strength - already regretting not grabbing her scarf from their luggage earlier.
“Just throwing it out there, babe? Still on Team Outdoor Sex. Sex in the woods sounds hella cool. Daytime sex, though. Now that the sun has clocked out, and the wind has clocked in, it’s actually kinda really cold.”
“Daytime outdoor sex does sound cool, if you disregard the bugs that will crawl all over you, the ticks that will suck on your blood and potentially give you Lyme disease … the bears that could come along at any second and attack us …”
“Really ramping up on the sexy talk there, Ames.”
Rolling her eyes, Amy squeezes Jake’s hand, linking their fingers together. “All of these are things that would interrupt us, and while I’m still not saying that curses exist, I do think we should try to avoid any temptation for things to go wrong.”
“You’ve put a binder together about this, haven’t you?”
“Not a binder per se, but I’ve definitely done a decent amount of research.” Stopping just shy of the clearing, Amy turns to face her fiancé, wrapping her arms around his waist. “After all, this is the first time we’ve been able to get away since getting engaged. A night away is just what we need, and I’m not letting a thing stop us from taking full advantage of this opportunity.”
Pushing herself up onto her tippy-toes, Amy pecks a quick kiss onto Jake’s lips, satisfyingly noticing their still swollen state from earlier activities. “Besides, if the wind stays like this, I’m going to need something to help keep me warm, Peralta.”
“I’m sure I could think of something,” he mumbles in reply, leaning in for another chaste kiss and groaning when Amy pulls away, grabbing his hand and leading him back towards the camping ground.
Quickly reverting back to their previous positioning - hand over shoulder, arm wrapped around waist - Amy is giggling at something that Jake has just whispered in her ear when Holt comes into sight, raising her free hand in a silent wave as they near him.
“Peralta. Santiago. I’m thankful to have ended up on the same path as the two of you, as it was exactly your presence that I was seeking.”
Pushing a stray lock of hair out of her eye line, Amy nods. “Jake and I went for a walk and must have lost track of the time, sir.” From beside her, Jake subtly nudges his hip into her own, and she resists the urge to elbow him in the ribs. “What did you need us for? Do you need a hand with your tent?”
Wincing, Holt shakes his head slowly. “Ahh, no. Unfortunately, it would appear that your tent was not as securely fastened to the camping ground as previously suggested.”
Amy feels Jake’s hand slide down her back as it falls away - much like their hopes for the rest of the evening would soon do - and she looks over at her superior, confused. “Captain?”
Turning, Holt points through the clearing towards the river, where in the fading light Amy and Jake can faintly make out the tip of their tent as it floats further away from solid ground.
Oh.
“The trouble with openings such as this, is that the prevailing weather meets very little resistance - and so as the wind has grown stronger we have all had to readjust our footings in regards to our own domiciles. Regrettably, such distractions meant that the rapidly loosening fixtures on your tent went unnoticed by the squad. Your lodging managed to catch the wind and set itself adrift on the water before anybody had a chance to attempt recovery.”
Running a hand down his face, Jake lets out a frustrated groan. “Looks like we’re roughing it in the dirt tonight, babe.”
“Weren’t our sleeping bags in the tent as well?” Amy responds, her face falling as Jake nods slowly.
Holt raises his hand, clearly intending to stop the couple from spiralling into total hopelessness. “Fortunately, Kevin and I recently purchased a two room tent that has the ability to sleep ten people, which provides plenty of room for the two of us and Cheddar. Provided you have an adequate amount of your allergy medication with you, Santiago, we can relocate him to our side of the canvas and offer you shelter for the evening. Perhaps in the morning, we will be able to organise a retrieval of your now absent tent.”
Resting his hand on the small of Amy’s back, Jake nods once again. “There’s a spare packet in our bags, which thankfully are still in the common area.”
“Very well. Follow me, then. Kevin has already begun making provisions for your stay, and I’m sure your earlier activities have left you eager for rest.”
Thankful, but also more than a little bit crushed that their plans had fallen apart so swiftly, Jake and Amy follow their captain through the campsite with fallen shoulders.
Jake waits until Holt has passed through the mesh lining into their other ‘room’ before muttering low enough for only Amy’s ears to pick up - “The No Nookie Curse strikes again.”
And truthfully, Amy cannot come up with a single rebuttal - choosing instead to cup her fiancé’s face, and offer a soft kiss in commiseration. Perhaps curses were real, after all.
*
(seriously, how do those guys do it?)
Attempt Number 5: Romance on the beach
“I’m telling you, Ames. There has to be a secret propellor or something under there. There just has to be. I literally cannot think of any other way.”
Her shoulders shaking from all the laughter, Amy reaches out to rest her arms on either side of her husband’s neck and breaks her chuckle for a kiss. “I know, babe. You’re totally right.”
“I just … how else do they do it?”
Shaking her head, Amy breaks out into another round of laughter, keeping her grip tight so that Jake knows it isn’t directed at him (but rather, the situation at hand).
The Hamptons was their address for the next three days, the location of choice for Tony and his partner Luella’s upcoming wedding. In true Peraltiago Vacation style, emergency renovations to the widespread home that all Santiago siblings were staying in had meant that they were short one room, and Jake and Amy had been the lucky couple to be allocated the sofa bed in the living room as their place of rest.
(A fact that, once broken to them, had led to Jake coughing the word Cursed! under his breath, and in all honesty - this time Amy knew he was absolutely right.)
Fresh from their honeymoon (which, once their captain had left them in peace, had involved a lot of sex … amazingly mind-blowing, sometimes costumed sex - which only served to prove that the international waters clause of the curse still held strong), both of them had entered holiday mode with a renewed vigour to finally set things straight.
Having a sunken living room, with a wraparound balcony looking down at them from above for a bedroom, led to Jake thinking creatively - pulling Amy towards the beach on the first evening, lifting her into his arms and running both of them straight into the ocean.
It was the stuff of fantasies: floating in the water with the one you heart adored, holding onto each other tightly as you make love, the waves lapping around you and the world disappearing for just a little while. The kind of scene that every person has seen in a movie, or read in a book, and one that the newlyweds had actually intended to try on their honeymoon before realising that the beaches surrounding their hotel were rarely secluded enough for such activities.
The reality, however, was vastly different - with the two quickly realising that the art of treading water, while clinging to each other and trying desperately not to drown, did not a sexy tryst make.
It was mid-kiss that Jake finally broke away, sputtering out “Are the guys in all the movies secretly dolphins or something?”, all the while pushing frantic strokes through the water in an effort to stay afloat; causing Amy to burst into laughter - tears streaking down your face, ribs sore from all the shaking kind of laughter - clinging to her husband like a koala as he slowly walked them back towards the shore.
Joining Amy in her mirth, Jake leads her over to the towels that he’d dumped on the sand earlier, spreading them out haphazardly and pulling his wife down to meet him. “Okay, so now we know. Sex in the water = not as easy as it looks.”
Thankful to have chosen a dress for their intended walk on the beach, Amy lifts the wet fabric from her thigh, squeezing out a small fountain of water as she gives Jake a sympathetic look. “I’m sorry, babe. It was definitely worth a shot - and bonus points for spontaneity. Very hot.”
Jake’s hand comes to rest on her bared thigh, stroking her skin gently before leaning in for a kiss. “It’s easy to find reasons for spontaneous sex, when you have a wife as hot as I do.”
“Mmm,” Amy moans into his mouth, abandoning the skirt and letting it fall back down with a splat. The sand beneath the towel shifts as she digs her knees in; scrambling closer to Jake to deepen the kiss, knowing all too well that her horniness level was still sitting low on simmer.
She breaks the kiss to nibble on Jake’s earlobe as his hand slides further up the dress, fingertips sliding over her butt, and Amy climbs onto his lap, lifting her hips slightly in silent invitation. Her underwear slides down a moment later, lifting her knees and then her ankles until they’re being tucked into Jake’s pocket, and she takes advantage of the freedom by grinding down on his growing erection.
Despite the cool sea water still dripping down her skin, Jake’s hands feel warm as he moves to caress her once more, palm digging into her derriere as he pulls her in for a heavy kiss, and suddenly Amy thinks she’s beginning to understand all the reasons why ‘sex on the beach’ is such a popular term.
Jake’s fingers caress her folds shortly after, dipping one finger in before following with another, and it's everything Amy has been craving for, her husband’s lips leaving a trail of kisses along her jawline while she writhes on his lap.
It’s only as his hand pulls away, and her hips continue to sway closer to Jake’s body, that a whole other sensation begins to form. Yanking her mouth away from the hickey she’d been creating on Jake’s neck, Amy presses a hand to his chest and whispers - “Jake! The sand.”
“Mmm, yeah. All soft and warm, it’s kinda hot.”
Shaking her head, Amy rears back further, only to let out a sharp cry. “No, Jake! I think the sand has gotten into … places.”
He blinks, shaking himself out of his makeout stupor. “Wait. Ames, are you okay?”
“My vagina is on fire, babe.”
Scrambling upwards, Jake reaches out to help Amy stand, wincing at her obvious discomfort. “Do you want to go back into the water?”
Amy shakes her head quickly. “I need a shower, pronto. Oh god, I can feel all the little grains scraping.”
“Oh no, it would have been on my hands, and then I … I’m so sorry, Ames.” Turning, Jake presents his back to her, bending lower. “Here, jump up and I’ll carry you back to the house and straight into the shower. I’m so sorry, babe."
His hands dig into her lower thigh as Amy rests her upper body against her husband’s back, pressing her forehead into his shoulder blade and letting out a groan. “Okay universe, we get it! The No Nookie curse is real!”
“It’s real and it sucks!” Jake’s voice comes out in a huff as he rushes through the sand, grateful that they hadn’t strayed too far from the house.
“Ugh, why have people named a drink after this?!”
*
Part 2:
(and the 1 time they’re successful)
(I'm definitely seeing stars)
Jake’s grip on his wife’s hand holds strong as he leads her up to the highest point of the house, pausing at the base of the final set of stairs and gesturing for her to take the lead. Amy gives him a curious look as she passes him, clearly intrigued, and he whispers a compliment directed at her butt (always a favourite) as they both begin their ascent.
Holt and Kevin’s vow renewal ceremony was (finally!) taking place this coming weekend, and the squad - plus partners and children alike - had all convened earlier today at their allocated accommodation in the Berkshires.
The house - like many in the surrounding neighbourhood - was larger than the precinct and all of their homes combined; stretching out into various wings and drawing the eye upward with it’s high ceilings and exposed stonework. This time, Jake and Amy had gone to great lengths to ensure they were allocated their own room towards the opposite end of the home, large enough to accommodate a now eight months old Mac while also ensuring a modicum of privacy - a concept dearly treasured, after so many disastrous attempts.
Exhausted after a full day of sticking to a rigid schedule of rehearsals and preparations alike, Jake had waited until they’d been able to lull their son to sleep in his travel cot before luring Amy into the hallway with the promise of a surprise; and he’s not entirely sure if it his proposal to her several years ago that finally got Amy on board with his surprises, or if it was just indicative of the trust he’d been able to earn - but either way, she follows eagerly with an excited grin.
He hears the excited gasp that escapes her mouth as the door at the top swings open, the full extent of his plan coming to fruition as Amy moves further into the landing and turns to him with eyes that sparkled. “Jake … this is amazing!”
Tucking both hands into his pockets, Jake puts on his best humble brag face as he joins his wife in the centre of the alcove. “So I did a little research on this place before we got here, and as it turns out the owner/builder was a massive fan of stargazing.” Nodding towards the low set walls that wrapped around the base, he turns to Amy with a proud grin. “They’d built this landing solely for that purpose. And tonight, it is our little hideaway.”
Amy’s eyes soften as she takes in the surrounding tea light candles, the blow-up mattress covered in blankets and pillows in the middle of it all, and the bottle of wine still chilling in a bucket of ice to the side. “Wow, babe. You really pulled out all the stops on this one.”
“One could say .. a whole binders worth of preparation.”
Her head swivels towards him, and he grins triumphantly. “You made a binder for this?”
“You haven’t even heard the best part. The door we just went through is the only way in or out, and I have the key right here in my pocket. Rosa has stepped in to keep an eye on Mac, and has promised that she will only call if it’s an emergency. She also seems to have figured out what we are doing up here, and appears to be equal parts impressed and disgusted.”
Amy nods, moving closer and resting her hands on either side of Jake’s neck.
“Holt and Kevin are off with Laverne, Charles and Genevieve have taken Nikolaj camping half an hour away, and Terry and Sharon are exhausted from chasing after their kids all day. Hitchcock and Scully had both an apple pie and a cake after dinner, so I can only assume that they’ve slipped into some sort of post-sugar high coma.” Leaning in to press a soft kiss at the edge of Amy’s lips, Jake pulls away with a grin. “What I’m saying, my darling, is that there is almost no chance of us getting interrupted.”
Moving closer still, Amy wraps both arms around Jake’s neck, carding her fingers through his slightly overgrown curls as she draws him in for a heart-pounding kiss. “Looks like we’re kicking a certain curse’s butt tonight.”
Nodding, Jake initiates another kiss, waiting until he feels Amy melt completely in his arms before grazing his lips along the edge of her cheek, peppering tiny kisses in their wake. “While I am definitely looking forward to breaking the curse, this is mainly just me wanting you to feel good, babe.”
“Mmm. I’d say you’re on the right track.”
His teeth scrape lightly against her earlobe as he lets out a soft laugh, pulling their bodies closer together. “You work so hard, Ames .. and you do so much for Mac and I. You deserve to have a holiday, and really relax.” Continuing the path paved earlier, Jake reaches the juncture of her neck and swipes his tongue against her warm skin. “Let me make you feel good, babe.”
Amy lets out a moan, Jake’s hands wandering down the front of her jeans, cupping her centre through the fabric and rubbing with a slow rhythm; and he pulls away with a sly grin.
“There is one tiny detail that we need to take into consideration, actually.” Raising one hand, Jake gestures towards the open design of the landing. “Out here it’s just you, me and the stars … and sound travels like crazy.” He drops a tender kiss to her lips, leaving the intimation of both his and hers tendency to get a little loud during sex unspoken. “In fact, you could even say it’s - ” leaning in, he flips into his Best Sexy Tone - “omnidirectional.”
“Oh, mama …”
“We’re going to have to try really hard to stay quiet, babe.” Tightening his grip around her waist, Jake lowers his body slightly and Amy picks up on the queue, wrapping her legs around her husband as he moves them towards the blankets. He lowers her carefully, shaking his head in wonder as she gazes back up at him: looking like some kind of heavenly creation amongst the mixture of candlelight and stars. “I’m so in love with you, Amy Santiago.”
A soft blush creeps onto her cheeks, and Amy crooks her finger in a silent request for her husband’s presence, sinking her teeth into her lower lip as he covers her body with his own. “I love you too, Jake.”
Her hips tilt marginally upwards, rubbing her body against the fabric of Jake’s own jeans as she reaches for his fly, making quick work of the barriers as her hand slides inside to grip his rapidly growing erection. Quick to follow suit, Jake pulls away from their embrace only to tug both his and Amy’s jeans off completely, casting both of their tops and underwear aside haphazardly and mentally congratulating his earlier decision to use battery-powered candles over real ones. Setting fire to the highest point of a house is a great way to kill a mood - and ruin a wedding - and there wasn’t a single way that he was going to let the two of them be interrupted tonight.
His erection rubs against Amy’s naked thigh as he covers her body once again, sweeping his hand over her curves as his hand heads directly to her centre. He covers her mouth with his own while his fingers begin to explore, taking in the moisture they find and gently massaging just the way Amy loves. Her hips sway beneath Jake’s torso, working with his deft touch as her hand moves to circle his cock, squeezing and pumping slowly … a familiar move that only made Jake last a full two minutes the last time she tried it.
The two of them are straight-up moaning by now, rotating between messy kisses and heated breaths against shoulders and necks as they both work each other up with expert precision. Contorting his back, Jake moves to sink his teeth into the edge of Amy’s right breast, desperate for a taste of her arousal but knowing all too well that if he moves too far away from her mouth, his wife will begin to really cry out, and the risk of exposure was just too great.
Instead, he slides back up to press his lips against hers, the desire obvious as his bare crotch ruts against her own. Amy’s responding moan is stuttered, her attempts to keep everything quiet obvious, and he grins.
“You’re doing so well at staying quiet, Ames … god you’re so sexy.” Tongue sweeping against hers, absorbing the moans that were gaining in intensity, Jake’s thumb rubs persistently at her clit, matching the tempo of her rotating wrist as they push each other closer and closer to the edge.
“Oh god Jake … fuck me. Fuck me now, fuck me hard.”
Looping his elbow under one of her knees, Jake moves into position and enters Amy in a single thrust, feeling momentarily breathless as the warmth of her surrounds him completely. Her other leg swings around to rest on his butt, holding him close as he pulls out and slams back in again, and truly, this has to be the closest thing to heaven.
Pressing one hand into the base of the landing, Jake pushes down for leverage as he returns his right hand to Amy’s clit - resuming the circled patterns he’d initiated earlier - and Amy sinks her teeth into Jake’s shoulder as she comes with a muffled shout. The feeling of her walls pulsing around his cock makes him descend into a state of almost madness, increasing the intensity of his thrusts until it’s all just pure instinct, chasing the euphoric high but nowhere near ready for any of this to end.
Slipping her other leg from his grip, Amy digs her fingers into Jake’s shoulders as she rolls him onto his back, keeping their hips joined as much as possible to avoid any chance of disruption. Her body is slick with sweat as she rises above him, planting her hands on his chest and looking down at her husband with a flushed and satisfied grin, rising and falling as she takes over Jake’s steady pace.
“This is the best idea you’ve ever had,” she whispers, leaning down to circle her tongue over his nipples, sucking a love bite into his pec as she goes. “Fuck, this feels so good.” Rising again, Amy leans back until her hair is trailing down her spine, and the sight in front of him nearly pushes Jake over the edge completely.
She looked so incredible like this, bare and open and clearly just letting her body take over as she swivels her hips into his thrusts, his cock glistening with her arousal as she slides up and down. Jake has known, for a long time now, that there is nobody in the world that could ever be as beautiful as Amy Santiago, and tonight only serves to solidify his belief.
There’s a bit more of a curve to her skin now, a soft swell to her belly that stands as proof of the their amazing son; and he knows that at times she feels self-conscious of the changes she cannot control, but he fell in love with Amy for a million reasons, and her body was only one of them. His body has changed as well, after all; and probably will again over the course of the next fifty years, and there is nothing that will ever change the way they feel about each other.
He tents his legs to a low degree behind her, offering support as his hands begin to cover every expanse of her body, thumbing the inverted arch of her breasts with reverence as they bounce against their joint movements. Jake's not sure if he’ll ever win the lottery, but it’s clear that he’s already reached the jackpot right here in this moment, watching Amy hurtle ever closer to another orgasm.
It’s the faltered breaths and the occasional stilling of her hips that tells Jake that his wife is nearly there, and with gentle coaxing she falls forward again, mashing her lips against his as their chests press together. Knowing that this is an angle that both of them enjoy, Jake digs his fingers into Amy’s butt as he lifts his hips off the ground, hammering into Amy as the steady motion presses her clit against his pelvis, whispering her name over and over as her fingers grip his hair by the roots. Her body begins to shake, followed by a whisper of babe I’m close, and Jake pushes his body a degree or two higher.
There’s a sharp sting against his skin as Amy comes, her mouth clamped over the edge of his shoulder as the need to scream is just too powerful, the vibrations of her moans reverberating into his intoxicated mind. The sheer mixture of pleasure and pain is all Jake needs to let go completely, pouring himself inside his wife as calls out her name without suppression, and Amy’s hand clamps quickly over his mouth before the sound of his climax can travel too far.
It takes a long while for either Jake or Amy to be able to speak, their bodies a jumble mess as they struggle to catch their breath, the silence only broken as Amy cranes her neck back towards the sky and gasps - “Wow, you really can see so many stars from here!”
From beside her Jake nods, still partially in a state of seeing stars of his own as his heart begins to return to a normal pace. He lets out a gradual sigh as Amy shifts closer to him, curling her arm around his waist and tucking her head into his shoulder.
Wrapping his left arm around her naked body (he’s not sure there’ll ever be a time when he will ever have enough of it), Jake raises his right hand for a high five. “We did it, Ames. We broke the curse.”
Amy’s responding laugh is loud, and probably carried over the grounds, but Jake doesn’t care at all anymore, and she meets his hand with a triumphant slap. “Yeah we did! Suck it, universe!”
His grip grows tighter, seizing the blanket with the tips of his fingers and sliding it over their skin before his wife has a chance to feel the coolness of the night’s sky. He knows that they should probably head downstairs soon, sneak back into their bedroom and relieve Aunty Roro of her babysitting duties, but the afterglow of this moment feels too sweet to give away - Mac has been sleeping through the night for a solid two months now, and he knows that if anything had gone wrong they’d have known well before now.
Amy’s lips ghost against his bicep as she lets her eyelids flutter close for a moment (a post-sex power nap often needed, rarely lasting longer than thirty minutes), and Jake smiles at the sight, letting her nestle in to his embrace as he gazes through the glass ceiling above them to watch the stars.
He already knows that he won’t be able to find anything brighter than their future up there in the darkness, but for now, he’s content to watch the world pass them by for just a little bit longer.
#I hope you like this!#best of both worlds with the smut and fluff again#b99fandomevents#b99 summer 2020 fic exchange#my writing#Peraltiago smut#Peraltiago fluff#b99fic#b99 fic
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Butterflies - Bechloe (Pt3)
Part 3/?
Beca woke up the next morning and blinked a few times before looking down at her waist where an arm was slung across her before glancing over to her chest where ginger hair covered what she knew was Chloe's beautiful face. Beca couldn't help the smile that crossed her lips as she gently moved the hair back to reveal Chloe's content sleeping face.
Beca had never had a best friend, not really anyway and well if this is what it felt like to have a best friend, well then, she really had missed out when she was a kid. She adored Chloe and would do anything for her, things that usually made Beca cringe like hugging or any form of physical contact really, she relished with Chloe.
Beca just couldn't wait to move into the Bella house- shit they were supposed to be getting the keys at 11:30 from the dean, what time was it? She grabbed her phone and saw that it was already 11:05. Shit! "Chlo" Beca called softly to wake her "Mmmm five more minutes" Chloe mumbled sleepily and snuggled even tighter into her best friend "Chlo its gone 11 o'clock" she told her but Chloe only grumbled in return "Remember we need to meet the dean at half 11 to get the keys for the Bella house" Beca had barely finished the sentence as Chloe shot up "Crap!" she mumbled as both of the co-captains got up and frantically started to get ready. "Take whatever clothes you want" Beca said as she quickly brushed her hair.
Ten minutes later and both girls were up and ready, Beca found it quite amusing seeing Chloe in her clothes, the two girls clearly having vastly different styles. She mentioned this to Chloe on their march up to the deans office "Yeah you dress gayer than me!" Chloe laughed "What do you mean?" Beca questioned "I mean come on for a straight girl you sure do dress gay, you confused my gaydar when we first met" Chloe laughed as they walked into the waiting room to see the rest of the Bellas already there.
"Chloe why are you wearing Beca's clothes? Did you two bone?" Fat Amy asked upon seeing the two approach "What no, Chloe slept at mine last night and borrowed some clothes, sorry were late guys we slept in" Beca replied "I sleep-murder sometimes..." Lily whispered as everyone looked over at her "Well I'm not rooming with her then" Cynthia Rose blurted out just as the secretary called the Bellas in.
"Okay here are your keys girls you know the rules, don't destroy the place okay?" The older man said as he passed the keys over to Chloe "Of course, may we say thank you again sir" Chloe said taking the keys off him "You can go now" he said and the Bellas all nodded and made their way out of the room. "Let's go to our new house!" Chloe squealed in excitement as the girls made their way to the Bella house. Once they had all looked at the house the discussion about the room situation came about, there were 5 rooms and currently 8 Bellas, although they were sure to pick up new members soon.
There was one room with a double bed, a room with three single beds, and three rooms with two single beds. "Shotgun the-" Fat Amy began but Beca cut her off quickly "We are not shotgunning rooms we will do it fairly, everyone write your name down and we'll draw someone out for the big room" Beca said before finding a pen, paper and a bowl. "CR you can pick a name out" Beca said as she picked the name out and opened it.
“Fucks sake, it's obviously Chloe" she grumbled as Chloe beamed "As for everyone else, we can pick roomies if you want? Shall we also leave the double for the new recruits?" Beca asked as everyone nodded "Shotgun Shawshank!" Fat Amy yelled as Beca smiled over to her, it felt nice to be wanted. Jessica and Ashley obviously chose each other which left CR, Stacie and Lily in a room together "She better not murder me in my sleep or I'm coming back to haunt you all" CR grumbled referring to Lily as the rest of the girls laughed.
The whole rest of the day was spent packing their stuff from their old rooms, carrying it across campus and unpacking it. Fat Amy went for a nap after she finished so Beca decided to wander downstairs from their attic room to see Chloe in her room. She knocked and was greeted with a bright sing-songy "Come in!" Beca smiled at the sound and entered Chloe's now semi-furnished room "Oh hey Becs!" she said engulfing her in a quick hug which made Beca once again unable to help herself from smiling. "Have you come to help?" She asks "Nah I came to watch you struggle" Beca said flopping onto Chloe's bed with a smirk "Fine, suit yourself" she replied pulling tongues at the younger girl. Beca stood back up and casually wandered around her room looking at the way she had decorated the place, it was all so... Chloe.
She wandered over to her desk to see a framed picture of the Bellas after the ICCA along with a neatly organised pens, highlighter, files books and folders. Beca flopped back onto the gingers bed and saw that she had another framed picture on her bedside table, it was of the two of them. It was a picture with the two of them back to back with matching hoodies and jeans, pulling silly faces, Beca instantly recognised the picture and the memory of the day came flooding back.
The shipment of costumes for the Bellas had arrived and these hoodies were part of it, not something that they had ordered but the girls decided to keep them anyway. They both wore them with jeans and did a mini photo before spending the day together discussing all things Bella related whilst enjoying a host of non- Bella related activities like bowling, eating at Chloe's favourite restaurant and getting ice cream on the beach. It had been a perfect day and both girls had loved it.
Beca grabbed the picture off the table "This is so cute Chlo, plus it was like the best day ever!" Chloe glanced over and her face split into her infamous beaming smile "I know right! If I'm ever feeling down, I look at that picture and it cheers me up" she confessed "You're so soppy" Beca teased but internally thought it was the cutest thing ever.
"Shut it short arse! Now are you going to help or am I going to have to kick you out?" Chloe questioned Beca who laughed in reply. "Help with what?" Beca asked looking around the almost complete room "Oh yeah" Chloe mused, "How about you help me make dinner for the Bellas?" She asked and fluttered her eyelashes at the brunette who couldn't resist it when Chloe did that "Fine but cooking dinner for 8 people is going to take us forever" she complained whilst following Chloe down the stairs. "Not with both of us and its only pasta now come on".
The two girls began to prep dinner like a well-oiled machine, with Chloe giving direction and Beca following them. Chloe instructed Beca to chop the onions whilst she stirred the sauce, soon after Beca began to cry and Chloe took a picture of her "I finally have a picture of Beca 'the badass' Mitchell crying!" the older girl crowed "You'd delete that if you knew what was good for you" Beca warned playfully as she began to chase the ginger around the kitchen who sprinted away giggling "Right that's it!" Beca yelped picking up a tomato "Last chance Beale!" she shrieked who shook her head defiantly, Beca took aim and sent a tomato hurtling at Chloe, it hit her square in the chest.
Chloe's mouth dropped open as she picked up her own tomato and launched it at Beca which hit her in the head. Beca ran at Chloe and playfully wrestled her to the floor grabbing chunks of tomato out of her hair and rubbing them on Chloe's face.
The two girls began laughing uncontrollably when a confused looking Stacey and Cynthia Rose entered the kitchen. "What the fuck is going on?" CR asked to which the girls laughed even more "I... we... tomatoes" was all Chloe could get out through her fit of laughter "Right, I'm leaving now" CR said "Good idea" Stacie agreed as they both turned and exited the room. After another five minutes the laughter finally subsided, both girls wiped tears of laughter away and stood up "That is the most I think I have ever laughed" Chloe choked out "Fuck me that was funny" Beca agreed before the girls finished cooking and called the Bellas down for tea.
The girls served the rest of the Bellas before sitting themselves down "So did you both get into a fistfight with a tomato or is there another reason for this?" Fat Amy said pointing to the two co-captains tomatoey-attire. The girls explained the story giggling throughout "Yeah I think that was one of those you had to be there moments because that wasn't funny" Fat Amy told the girls which just caused them to laugh again.
After the girls had all finished their food, Jessica and Ashley offered to wash up whilst Fat Amy grabbed Beca "Hey short stack, Bumper is coming over till like 9 so if you could make yourself scarce that'd be great" Beca rolled her eyes at her but agreed to see if she could chill with Chloe that night. "Of course you can! You don't need an excuse to hang out with me Becs!" Chloe trilled "Ugh I need to get a shower first, how the hell am I going to get this off?" Beca asked motioning to the tomato stains covering her body "I can come in the shower with you and show you" Chloe suggested, Beca's jaw went slack at the suggestion and she began to blush, Chloe winked "Gotcha!" she smirked "Now I'm going to use my shower first see you later" She giggled as she left for the bathroom. Beca sat on Chloe's bed and groaned, God why did Chloe make her feel like this? Friendships with girls are weird.
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Songbird - Part Six
“When Erin decides to perform one of her favourite songs at a bar, she didn’t expect one of the singers, Niall Horan, to be in the audience. What started as an appreciation for her cover quickly turns into more than either bargained for.”
(Previously known as Fools Gold, this fic has been edited, reworked and finally finished!)
Thanks to @angryniall for being an amazing beta!
As always let me know what you think.
Em x
Catch up below
https://niall-is-my-dream.tumblr.com/post/184528124078/songbird-masterlist
2870 Words
Waking up the next morning in Niall's arms you felt safe and calm. But then you remembered the picture circulating social media and the smile that had adorned your face soon faded.
Niall had met you at yours the night before when you had arrived back home after finishing work. He knew that you would have searched social media on your journey home and seen what people had been commenting on the posts. There has been been an article in the Daily Mail calling you "Niall's mystery red head".
You had talked about everything over dinner and a glass of wine. Considering that no one knew who you were and that the comments hadn't been that bad you felt ok. But in the cold light of a new day, you didn't feel as confident as the night before.
His phone vibrating on the bedside table pulled you from your daze. Niall mumbled an apology as he woke up and leaned over to answer it.
"Hey Marco, bit early isn't it?!" He joked.
But then his smile was gone.
His face was full of concern as he turned his body, his legs falling to the floor and he stepped out of bed. You were left lying in your bed confused as he walked hurriedly out of your bedroom.
Your flat was cold as you walked down the hallway to the living area, the heating had not long come on so it's warmth hadn't filled the air. Niall was stood with his back to you, one hand on the phone to his ear the other frantically running through his hair and down his neck. Red blotches had appeared on his neck where he had obviously put too much pressure on his skin. The sight caused you to panic, whatever was happening on the other end of the phone was serious.
Making your way to him, you wrapped your arms around his semi naked torso, just a pair of white Calvin's covering his lower half. His body was clammy where he had been cosy in bed one minute and then out in the cold of your living area the next.
His hand instantly covered your arms, his thumb caressing your warm skin. When you rested your forehead against his back you could feel the tension in him relax a bit at your touch, your gentle kisses calming him. His breathing was heavy as he listening to what Marco was saying on the phone.
"Yes, I'm at Erin's now."
Pausing your kisses, you held your breath wanting to hear what was said next. But Niall ended the call with a brief goodbye to Marco.
Placing his phone on the kitchen side, he took a deep breath before turning around in your arms. His face was full of worry and you instantly took a step back. But he reached for your hands and held them in his own.
"Um, someone spoke to the press yesterday after our picture was printed and told them who you are. There's an article in The Sun newspaper."
"Fuck..........who?"
"Don't know. Marco and the team are working on it."
"Oh my god. What does the article say?"
"It's someone close to you, they knew a lot about you."
"What does the article say?" You asked more firmly.
"It doesn't matter what it says."
"WHAT DOES IT SAY?!" You shouted.
You knew it wasn't his fault, he had just taken you out for a date. Neither of you expected some random fan to be there and sneak a picture of you. But the fact that he was reluctant to tell you what had been said in the article was frustrating you.
"Says your name, where you work, that you sing at The Courtyard and that's where we met. That we have been seeing each other since before Christmas........" He replied his voice pained at having to tell you.
"And........ "
You knew he was holding back.
"Just that .......they said some not nice things about you."
"Like what?!"
"I don't know, Marco didn't say."
Moving across from the kitchen to the living room, you picked your iPad up from the coffee table.
"Erin...... Just don't look."
"No, I need to see it. Need to figure out who told them."
A quick search of Niall's name and you found the article, a lovely exclusive from Dan Wootten in the Sun.
Surprise surprise.
There was a picture of you from a bbq at your old house. A photo of you and your friend Rob standing at the grill, massive smiles on your faces. It had been posted on your IG so could easily have been taken from that.
Niall had been right, it had stated where you work, what you do. That you and Niall had started talking when he approached you about singing Fools Gold at The Courtyard pub. It even said about you having been to his show a few months ago. Like you were some obsessed fan.
There was no way Kathy would've done this. She was your friend. But she was the only one you had told. Unless someone had recognised you from the picture. But in the picture you couldn't even see your face, just your hair.
The source that gave the information to the newspaper however definitely wasn't someone who was your true friend.
Niall stood hovering by your side for a minute before taking a seat next to you. You read the article twice, trying to see if you could work out who had sold you out. There was no mention of New Years Eve, so it definitely wasn't any of Ross or Amys friends.
The gin bar however was mentioned. But you got on so well with everyone who was out that night, who would sell you out like this and say such horrible things?
"Erin, please stop reading it. It's all shit and you know it." NIall said as he took the iPad away from you.
"Fuck......Niall I'm so sorry." You replied, your face in your hands. The tears started to fall then. Broken pathetic sobs.
"Why are you apologising?! Someone has completely fucked you over." He said as he wrapped his arms around you. "I should apologise to you."
"But your name........your reputation."
"This will be old news tomorrow. Marco has already contacted them about taking this article off their website and getting a retraction."
"He has?"
"They can't go printing such personal information about you like your work place. It's not right. It's a fucking hospital for Christ sake."
"God, I'm going to get in so much trouble."
"It'll be ok, just speak to your boss before your shift starts later."
"Why are you so calm?!"
"Because I have a lot of shit written about me and none of my fans believe any of it. They know I wouldn't want to spend my life with anyone like the person you're being described as."
You sat looking up at him for a few seconds registering what he said about spending his life with you, before the ringing of your phone from the bedroom caught your attention. Not really wanting to answer it but knowing you needed to, you made your way to your room.
Donna's name showed up on the caller ID.
"Hello." You managed to say.
"Erin are you ok?" She asked her voice laced with concern.
"So, you've seen then?"
"Yeah, just read it. It was Michelle."
You gasped. Of course it was.
"How do you know?!"
"She was boasting about it last night, they paid her. I should've called you then, I could've helped you not get it printed. I'm so sorry, I didn't realise the article would be that bad."
"Donna, it's fine." You replied.
"No, it's not. Please forgive me, I should've done more, I thought it was all talk. You know what she's like."
"There's nothing to forgive, you didn't sell the story, she did."
"What are you going to do?"
"Not sure. Just do me one thing?"
"Anything." Donna said.
"Don't tell her you called me." You replied, the rage you were feeling deep down in that moment shocked you.
You were frantically brushing your teeth when Niall entered the bathroom.
"What are you doing?" He asked, taking in your appearance.
You'd thrown on some jeans and a t-shirt and were finishing off in the bathroom.
"Can I borrow Willie's car?" You asked him calmly, ignoring his question.
"Only if I come with you?"
"Probably best you don't."
You walked past him and into the hallway grabbing your boots as you went.
"Where are you going?"
"Michelle's. It was her."
"You sure you want to do that?"
"Oh definitely. Now give me the keys." You said holding out your hand.
"I'm coming with you. Give me two minutes." He replied as he walked out the living room.
********
"I know you're in there Michelle!" You said banging on the door to your old shared house.
Michelle didn't work Saturdays, your other old housemate Jess did though and you knew she would have already left by now. You saw the curtains twitch in the upstairs window, she was home.
"Let me in." You shouted.
Niall was stood next to you and you were wondering what he was thinking of about your behaviour. You didn't care if you looked or sounded ridiculous.
Reaching into your pocket you took out your keys and found the one you needed.
"You still have a key to the house?" NIall asked you.
"Yeah, just wanted to give the coward the chance to actually open the door to me first. Wait in the car."
"Nope, I'm not letting you go in there on your own." He replied as he walked behind you into the house.
You stomped up the stairs to the front bedroom where you had seen the curtains twitching. Swinging open the door to find Michelle casually sitting on her bed.
"WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" You screamed at her.
"Whatever do you mean?!" She replied sarcastically.
"Oh you absolute....." You said as you made your way over to her, only to be held back by Niall.
"That's it let your secret celebrity boyfriend hold you back."
"Hey." Niall said. "What the fuck is your problem?"
"You lied to me." Michelle said.
"So, you sold me out to a newspaper because I kept this a secret from you?!"
She nodded. "I thought we were friends. You know, who tell each other everything."
"Are you joking?! You're nothing but rude and put me down all the time. You can't keep a secret to save your life unless it's to protect you. And why do you think I was so desperate to move out of here?"
She just sat there, her smug little face not even faltering. You were in no way a nasty person but you couldn't stop the words from pouring from your mouth.
"Did you know that Jess is saving up to move out to? Asked to buy somewhere with me. Did you also know that Andrew knows about your stupid crush on him and won't come near you because you're such a slut!"
She gasped then, that wiped the smile off her smug face.
"Maybe you should sort out your own life out instead of going around ruining others." You said taking Niall's hand and walking out of the room.
Your hands were shaking and you were sweating as you stepped out of the house, the cold wind of the January morning cooling down your face.
"I'll drive." Niall said, taking the car keys from you.
Sitting in the passengers side of the car you fastened your seatbelt. Taking one last glance at the house you saw Michelle in the window again. Getting your phone from your pocket, you opened up the contacts and hit the button saying Pam, Michelle's Mum.
Michelle might have been an adult, but you knew her Mum would be appalled with her and you had no problem with ratting out her behaviour.
*******
You placed your bag into your locker, closing it before taking a deep breath. You could do this. No one will mention it.
Except Kathy did as soon as she walked into the locker room.
"Are you ok poppet?" She asked.
Kathy's big sister nature was shining through. Her eyes were full of worry for you and it was then that you broke down.
"No...not..really." You managed to choke out.
"Come here." She replied as she pulled you into a hug.
The door to the staff room opened and your boss Linda came in.
"Can I have quick word please Erin?" She asked a soft smile on her face.
You nodded and Kathy gave you another hug before you left the staff room.
******
You were in your bedroom when you heard the soft tap of someone at your front door. Dropping what you were doing you made your way down the hall.
"Hey." Niall said as you opened the door to him.
"Hi." You replied as you moved to the side to let him into your flat.
"Are you ok?" He asked clearly seeing your puffy red eyes. Since you got back from work last night after being sent home by your boss you had spent a lot of time crying while reading all the shit you had been getting online.
His fans had been leaving comments on some of your old IG posts. You'd gone private but you hadn't been quick enough to stop them all. Clearly they had believed the article.
"Not really." You said as you wandered down the hall to your bedroom.
Niall followed behind you but paused in the doorway.
"Are you going somewhere?" He asked, his voice low as he surveyed the small suitcase and clothes strewn across your bed.
"Just going to stay with my parents."
"Were you planning on telling me or were you just going to disappear on me?"
"I was going to text, but I was busy packing." You replied not looking at him.
"How long are you going for?"
"Not sure, maybe a week."
"What about work? What about me?"
"Well, considering Michelle told the press where I worked, they need me to take a few weeks off so that there aren't any problems in the maternity ward."
"Shit."
"And you'll be fine, you have work." You replied. You hadn't meant to sound so cold towards him. Your words had just come out that way. You instantly regretted it.
"So that's it is it? You're just going to end things with me without any discussion?"
"No, I just think we need some time apart. It's been a pretty intense couple of weeks." You said as you folded the last of your clothes in your suitcase. You took a deep breath trying to hold back the tears that threatened to spill.
But this was his opportunity to get out of this relationship and save himself anymore embarrassment from you.
"Please don't do this Erin." Niall pleaded, his voice breaking.
He made his way over to you, but you couldn't bring yourself to look him in the eyes. He took your hands in his and began stroking his thumbs across the top of your fingers.
"Please...." He sobbed. "I'm sorry they found out about us? I shouldn't have put us at risk by going to that restaurant. I thought we'd be safe. I'm sorry that people are saying crap about you. I'm sorry......." He broke down then. Pulling one of his hands from yours to wipe away his tears that he had let fall. Completely unashamed to show you how he was feeling.
It was then that you looked up at him, tears rolling down your cheeks as well. Lifting your free hand you helped him wipe his tears away.
"I'm sorry too. But it's all too much for me. I just need some time to think."
He nodded, unable to form any words.
"Promise me that you'll come back to me?" He whispered.
"We have something special, I'm not going to throw that away." You whispered back and you hoped he believed you.
His hand moved up to your face cupping your cheek as he leaned in and brushed his lips against yours, worried you'd move away. But you didnt. You moved forward and captured his lips in a kiss that you hoped told him how much he meant to you. His other arm wrapped around your body pulling you to him. The kiss was intense, your body moulding against his. You didn't know when you would see him next and you wanted him to know how much you would miss him.
The buzzer to your door went and you reluctantly both pulled away.
"That'll be my Mum." You whispered, wiping your eyes.
Niall nodded and reached over to your bedside table to get you both a tissue.
He followed you down the hall and you opened the door, your Mum was standing there completely unfazed by Niall at your side.
"Hi sweetie." She said as she embraced you. Taking one look at the broken man beside you before she embraced him the same way. "Niall, it's nice to meet you."
Your Mum didn't say anything about your tear stained faces, just excused herself to use the bathroom. With your Mum down the hall and out of earshot, Niall turned to you.
"Please come back to me. Promise me you will." He begged.
You nodded unable to to say anything in that moment. Your throat felt tight and you could feel another wave of tears approaching.
Niall cupped your face again and kissed you. Neither of you said anything as you moved away and he stepped outside your flat. You watched him walk down the path towards his car, but closed the door before he could turn around and see you.
With your face in your hands, you leaned against your door unable to stop the tears. The soft hands of your Mum pulled them away and she cuddled you close like she always did when you were upset. The comforting scent of her familiar perfume engulfed you, time at home was what you needed.
"He looked broken." Your Mum whispered. "Completely broken."
Thanks for reading!
Tag @awomanindeniall @playboyxniall @ihearthemcallingforyou
#Niall#Niall Horan#Niall fan fic#Niall fan fiction#niall Horan fan fic#Niall Horan fan fiction#Niall fluff#Niall smut#Emily writes
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if a great wave shall fall
Pairing: Jake Peralta/Amy Santiago
Desc: “Amy, sorry to wake you,” Terry says quickly. “There’s an active shooter at the grocery store on St Mark’s...Jake responded to it.”
Notes: title from wherever you will go - the calling (but the charlene soraia version is better). you might cry.
Read on AO3
Jake and Amy’s apartment
12:02 A.M.
Amy jolts awake to the found of her phone ringing. Not her morning alarms, not her eight month old baby, but the distinct sound of the ringtone reserved for one person only - her boss, Captain Terry Jeffords.
She reaches across the bed, the other side still empty, to grab her phone. “Hi, Captain, how can I...” She pauses as she glances over at her alarm clock. She’s not on call to come into work. There is no logical, work-related reason for her captain to be calling at this hour. “Wait, Terry, why are you calling me after midnight?”
“Amy, sorry to wake you,” Terry says quickly. “There’s an active shooter at the grocery store on St Mark’s...Jake responded to it."
After she hears her husband’s name, her world goes completely still for a few seconds. It’s long enough that she doesn’t fully absorb the rest of Terry’s words.
“He...he what?”
“He’s not by himself in there,” she hears him repeat, a bit slower and more gently. “He’s got a good team, all highly trained in situations like this. But we don’t have any updates just yet.”
As Amy’s brain goes into panic mode, she closes her eyes tightly, trying to visualize how to deal with this particular issue. It’s an emergency. Who do I call in an emergency? Jake. Who do I call if Jake is the emergency?
“I’m coming to the precinct,” Amy says, quiet but firm. “I just need to call my brother to come watch Abby.”
“Of course, Amy. I’ll call if I hear anything before you get here.”
She thanks him and ends the call, instantly going into her emergency contacts and selecting the second name on the list.
“Amy, what the-it’s three in the morning-“
Her brother, Nic, was the obvious choice when planning for an emergency such as this one. The rest of the squad were out of the question, as they could easily be involved in whatever reason Jake is unavailable. Karen lives twenty minutes away and her parents are in New Jersey, but Nic is only a five minute drive from them, making him the perfect candidate to watch Abigail. Of course, she hoped she would never have to actually call him - so much so that she never exactly told him he was their emergency go-to.
“Jake responded to an active shooting.” Her voice is still steady. She’s trained to deal with crises. “I need to go to the precinct. Can you please-“
“Oh god, Amy, I-I’ll be right there.”
The line goes dead, and Amy only allows herself a moment to try to remember how to breathe before she jumps into action.
She goes through the motions of packing an emergency bag, rummaging through the things in their bedroom: anxiety medication, phone chargers, badge and gun...
As she grabs the badge from her bedside table, her eye catches the framed photo right beside it, a moment captured by Gina’s phone of their first kiss as husband and wife. It wasn’t the professional photograph she had planned, but it’s her favourite picture ever taken of her and Jake.
Jake. Her husband. The father of her child.
It suddenly clicks that he’s actually in real, mortal danger. This isn’t just a worst case scenario, it’s the worst case scenario. The absolute worst thing that could possibly happen is one bullet away from becoming reality.
She slowly sinks down until she’s on the floor, her back against the side of their bed as the tears begin to flow. She doesn’t have time to break down, she knows that. She’s a wife, mother and sergeant - not one of those roles does she take lightly, not one leaves room for her to be weak. She’s supposed to be strong.
The opening of her bedroom door brings her back to reality, her head jolting up from where it was positioned in her hands to see her brother. His brows are furrowed with deep concern and his sweatpants and messy hair indicate that he got here as fast as is humanly possible.
“That was really fast,” she remarks, her voice trembling more than she thought it would as hot tears continue to stream down her face.
“I might have broken a few traffic laws. You can get me out of a ticket, right?” Nic smirks slightly at her horrified look. The Santiagos do not break traffic laws. “Kidding.”
Her older brother plops down on the floor next to her, putting a hand on her knee as she moves to get up.
“I need to go-“
“You need to breathe for a second before you operate a vehicle, Amy.”
She shakes her head, aggressively wiping away her tears. “I need to be there. I need to figure out what’s happening and - and I need to be a good wife and sergeant and mother and - and I need to buy more mushy peas in the morning because it’s all Abby will eat this week and now I have to go-“
“Amy, breathe.” Nic shifts over so he’s facing her, forcing her to look him in the eye. “You are strong. That’s never in question, okay? The fact that you’re breaking down right now does not make you weak, it makes you a normal person who’s going through something totally terrifying.”
She nods, letting a small sob escape her and leaning back against her soft comforter.
“I didn’t kiss him,” she says suddenly. “I…I always do, but I had just gotten Abby down for a nap and I was in the shower when he left.”
“Hey, it’s okay,” Nic says comfortingly. “You’ll get to kiss him.”
“He only took a night shift because he’s been trying to get more overtime ever since we found out I was pregnant. I told him he doesn’t have to, but he wanted to start a college fund for Abby.” Amy runs a hand through her hair, shaking her head. “He spent all his money on massage chairs and take out when I met him, and now he’s…he’s such a good dad. I can’t do this without him, I can’t come home to her alone.”
“You won’t. Jake’s tough and he’s a good cop. He’s gonna be fine.”
For the first time in a life of relentless teasing and arguments, she really hopes her brother is right.
99th Precinct
12:28 A.M.
Nobody says a word when Amy comes running off the elevator wearing leggings and an NYPD sweater smelling faintly of cologne that is noticeably to big to be hers. Terry, Rosa, Charles and Gina are gathered in a loose circle of chairs outside Gina’s former desk in front of Captain Holt’s former office that is now Terry’s. She has no idea how everyone got here so quickly, but the many cups of coffee and the bags under her friends’ eyes indicate that they all rushed to the precinct as quickly as she did without the added step of having to find someone to watch their children. There’s just about nothing that this group of people wouldn’t do for Jake Peralta, she realizes.
Amidst the silence, everyone rises from their seats and within seconds she’s being pulled into a hug by Charles.
“He’ll be okay, Amy. It’s Jake, he has to be.”
Her husband’s best friend’s words resonate with her - Jake is always okay. He’s survived death threats and prison and countless dangerous operations just like this one. He hasn’t been taken from them yet, she hopes with all of her heart that he won’t be taken from them tonight. She hugs him back briefly and then pulls away to face her captain.
“Have you heard anything?”
Terry gives a solemn shake of his head. “Sorry, Amy, I still don’t know much. Holt said he’ll do everything he can to get an update, but there’s only so much even the commissioner can do in situations like this.”
She sits in the chair next to Gina, the extra seat obviously meant for her, trying not to glance just to her left at the pair of desks where she spent years stealing glances at the guy that she had a minor crush on (okay, it was pretty major by the time she admitted it to herself and full-blown obsession by the time she told him).
She keeps her phone in her hand and the volume on high in case Jake texts that it’s over or Holt provides an update to her directly. Her heart begins to ache a little more than it has been this whole time as the elevator doors open again and the commissioner of the NYPD himself steps out. Despite the considerable relationship he has with his old detective squad, he certainly isn’t obligated to give them an update in person. Unless it’s a bad one. She isn’t going to wait to find out.
“Have you heard from Jake?” she explains in a tone that lacks politeness and professionalism, but Holt does not seem to mind. His face softens when he sees Amy in her current state.
“As of right now there are two civilians wounded, no deaths and no officers injured.” Relief washes through her instantly and she nearly falls back into Gina, who keeps her upright with a hand on her shoulder. “Unfortunately the shooter has not been taken into custody yet, so Jake and the others are still there. It is unclear at this time when they will be out.”
The thought of waiting any longer without the certainty that he’s safe makes her feel nauseous, but Captain Holt - Commissioner Holt, but he’ll always be her captain - sits next to her and says “Peralta will be alright. I believe that his tendencies to make rash decisions without proper judgement have declined significantly through your relationship.” It eases her mind for a moment.
99th Precinct
1:22 A.M.
The precinct is colder at night. It always has been, and Amy’s always noticed it. She worked late often enough to realize the change in temperature, but it wasn’t until they were assigned to the night shift by the ridiculous Captain Stentley that she came to truly loathe how cold it got.
The moment she steps into the break room tonight and a chill goes up her spine, she feels a big wave of déjà vu hit, almost as if it’s a vision from her past.
“Hey, whatcha doing in here?”
She looks up from her spot on the couch, her face buried in a case file. Despite her fatigue and the general disheartening effect of the night shift, she’s still working as hard as she always does. It eases her heart and mind a little to see her boyfriend limping through the doorway with his cane, grinning at her. It’s his first week back at work in months, and she missed seeing him across the desk from her more than she realized.
“It’s a couple degrees warmer in here than the bullpen,” she answers, shifting over on the couch so he can join her.
“Yeah, it is actually a lot colder in here at night than I remembered it,” Jake agrees, plopping down next to her with a thud. “Wait, why aren’t you wearing a jacket?”
“None of my blazers really match this blouse, so-“
Jake’s already shrugging off his leather jacket, wrapping it around her shoulders and then pulling her into his side.
“Jake, we’re at work...” she trails off, looking up through the break room window. The majority of their colleagues are nearly asleep at their desks or currently absent. She knows for a fact that Captain Holt just took his break, so he won’t be walking in any time soon.
She doesn’t think anyone would really say anything, anyways. She’s sure they all noticed how little she smiled or laughed or showed enthusiasm of any kind over the six months he was in Florida, how she would decline invitations to hang out after work or quietly excuse herself when someone mentioned him.
“You’re so warm,” she says fondly, her face squished against his chest. She allows her eyes to flutter closed, immersed in his embrace. God, she missed him so much.
“And you’re freezing,” he says with a kiss to the top of her head.
Feeling completely relaxed for the first time that night, she begins to fantasize about the comfort of her own home - or his, she doesn’t really care at this point - awaiting her when their shift is done in just two short hours. “We should definitely take a long, hot shower as soon as we get home.”
His eyes widen. “Ames, that is hardly appropriate conversation for the workplace.”
“Oh, yes, there’s nothing sexier than helping my boyfriend bathe because he has a bullet wound in his leg-“
“And who inflicted that wound upon me?”
“I saved your life!”
They’re both laughing at this point, and she can feel his chest rising and falling in sync with his laughter, the sound bouncing off the walls.
Now, the room is painfully quiet as Rosa leads her to a chair, urging her to sit down and placing a mug in front of her. She appreciates the gesture, but her nerves certainly cannot be tamed by a cup of herbal tea.
“Thanks, Rosa, but-“
“It’s coffee,” Rosa interrupts her. “I know Terry said to give you chamomile tea to relax you or whatever, but we both know it’s gonna be a long night.”
Amy nods gratefully, taking a long sip of the hot, bitter drink.
“Remember the Brooklyn Heights shooting a few years ago?” Rosa’s voice cuts through the silence.
She’s taken aback by the question, nodding slowly. Of course she remembers it - the hours Rosa’s life was up in the air were some of the scariest of her life (until today, that is).
“Did Jake ever tell you he almost came to help me even though he was ordered not to?”
Amy’s heart clenches in her chest, trying to recall the events of that day after Rosa found her drenched in toilet water. She remembers going home, taking a shower, going over some wedding plans with Kylie over the phone, falling asleep early with Jake beside her. They barely talked about the shooting at all, let alone the fact that he almost went.
“No,” Amy says quietly. “No, he never told me.”
She can’t say she’s surprised, but it still hurts her to think that she could’ve lost him weeks before their wedding. She could’ve never been married to him.
“We went to Shaw’s that night and he told me what happened,” Rosa continues. “I think I was the only one that ever found out other than Holt. But you know what he said when I asked why he came to his senses?” Amy shakes her head, still looking at Rosa with watery eyes. “You, Amy. He said he couldn’t handle the thought of leaving you alone.”
She promised herself she wouldn’t cry again, at least until she gets to hold him and inevitably breaks down in his arms (she has to keep telling herself that that moment will come) but Rosa’s revelation completely unravels her.
Rosa’s hand on her own brings her some comfort, the act of affection both rare and extremely appreciated.
“He wants to come home to you. And Jake’s stubborn as hell when he wants to be.”
Amy smiles fondly, nodding in agreement. It’s one of the things she loves and occasionally disdains.
“Yeah, he really is.”
24-Hour Grocery Store
3:14 A.M.
As soon as they get the call that the shooter’s been taken into custody, the Nine-Nine rushes to the scene of the shooting. Amy rides in the passenger seat of Terry’s car, her eyes shut tightly so more tears don’t escape as the words she heard through the speaker phone in the captain’s office replay in her brain.
Several officers down. Names and severity of injuries still unclear.
There were less than ten officers present, as far as she knows, which means there’s a significant statistical possibility that Jake is one of the several.
There are ambulances and squad cars surrounding the store, the flashing lights making Amy feel more disoriented as she jumps out of the car the moment they’ve parked.
Immediately, she spots a familiar face, Detective Ross Thompson from their neighbouring precinct, exiting the building. He’s uninjured, as far as she can tell, which first relieves her and then makes the calculation in her brain of the likelihood that Jake is one of the injured shift further out of her favour.
“Thompson!”
The way that the man’s face pales with fear when he sees her in a way that it shouldn’t at the sight of a superior officer with whom he has a pretty good professional relationship, but might at the sight of a dead man’s wife.
“Sergeant,” he says quietly. “Peralta-he, uh-“
A quick glance over his shoulder renders the rest of Thompson’s sentence obsolete. Nothing has ever shaken Amy Santiago quite as much as the sight of her husband on a stretcher, blood covering so much of him that it’s impossible to tell where he’s been shot.
Jake. She isn’t sure if she actually shouts his name or if it’s just echoing in her head the way that it has for the better part of ten years, but she manages to push past the crowd of cops and paramedics until she’s as close to him as possible.
“Jake,” she breathes, her hand clutching his where it rests limply at his side. He’s still wearing his kevlar vest, which has a mark from a bullet that surely would’ve penetrated his heart without it - she’s never been more grateful for an article of clothing. She’s close enough now to see the wound in his shoulder, where the paramedics seem to have finally stopped the blood - which is everywhere - from flowing. His name comes out like a whimper as she lets out the tears she was holding back.
“Ames?” His voice is so weak and small compared to the volume she’s used to. She squeezes his hand a little tighter as he looks up at her with wide eyes. She’s pretty sure that the look of fear on his face mirrors hers.
“Excuse me, miss, I’m going to have to ask you to step back so we can move him to the ambulance.”
Amy steps away reluctantly, only enough that the man and woman in paramedic uniforms can move the stretcher into the back of the vehicle. Jake’s groan of pain as she steps away makes her sob harder.
“Is he going to be okay?” she chokes out, following them to the ambulance parked just a few feet away.
“He’s lost a lot of blood, but we’re going to do everything we can to make sure he pulls through,” the male paramedic, a twenty-something with dark hair and bright blue eyes, informs her. “Are you his wife?” Amy nods. “You can ride in the ambulance with him.”
She climbs up into the back of the ambulance behind the paramedics, sitting as close to Jake as she can while the paramedics work around them, cleaning some of the blood off his chest.
“Why’re you crying, babe?” Jake’s eyes are barely open, his only real awareness seeming to be the fact that she’s there and she’s sobbing violently while she clutches his hand so tightly that both of their fingers are white.
She kisses the back of his hand a few times, comforted by the fact that his skin is still as warm as it always is. “I can’t lose you.”
“Not gonna…” he struggles to get the words out, his breathing laboured. “Not gonna leave you. Promise.”
He moves their joined hands almost like a handshake, a symbolic agreement that he will never leave her. She feels his grip on her loosen as he drifts off, and she holds on to both his hand and the vow that he’s just made to her. He’s not leaving her, definitely not tonight.
“I love you so much,” she whispers for no one to hear.
Brooklyn Methodist Hospital
7:21 A.M.
Mom
Just woke up to voicemail from Nic. Our prayers are with Jake. Call if you need anything, mija, we love you both very much. Xo Mom and Dad
Nic Santiago
Abby’s up and just had breakfast. All good here. Has Jake woken up yet?
Charles Boyle
Just got home. Don’t forget to text me when Jake wakes up and every hour after that with an update :)
Raymond Holt
Dear Sergeant Santiago,
Captain Jeffords has updated me on Jake’s condition. I will visit later today after you have both had adequate time to rest.
Sincerely,
Raymond Holt
Kylie
Your brother texted me. Is Jake okay?? Do you need anything?
Gina Linetti
you were passed out during my turn to visit, plz tell jake he’s not getting out of the $10 he owes me for buying pizza in ninth grade that easily. and ily both i guess
Karen Peralta
Just got your texts. I’ll be at the hospital as soon as I can - just have to find someone to cover me at work today. Give Jake a big hug from me. Sending you all my love.
Rosa Diaz
Say hey to Jake for me when he wakes up. Don’t tell him any of the lame stuff I said (yes, that is a threat)
Terry Jeffords
Thinking of you guys. Just got home to Sharon and the girls. Take all the time off you need while Jake recovers.
Amy wakes to an onslaught of text messages from her friends and family, her eyes adjusting to the harsh hospital lighting and the brightness of her phone screen. She realizes she’s only been asleep for about an hour, but it’s more than she thought she would be able to get in the uncomfortable chair next to Jake’s bed.
She glances over at her sleeping husband. If it weren’t for the sling keeping his fractured scapula immobile, he would be indistinguishable from the man she wakes up next to every single day.
Against her better judgement, knowing that she needs to let him sleep, she runs her hand through his hair. She feels a little guilty when his eyes flicker open, but it vanishes when he smiles at her. Her heart feels like it’s going to explode. She loves him so much.
“Hey, Ames” he says. His voice is hoarser than normal and still her favourite sound in the world.
“Hi, baby,” she says in a soothing voice, moving to sit on the bed in the space next to him. While one hand continues to stroke his soft curls, the other grabs his where it rests on his stomach. “How are you feeling?”
“I…can’t feel much,” he says, confirming for her that the drugs she approved that they give him are working. “Babe, where’s Abby?”
“She’s at home with Nic. He came over to watch her last night when I got the call.” Her voice breaks a little at the end of the sentence. She thinks it goes unnoticed until she feels his hand squeeze hers tighter.
“Nic’s watching her?”
Amy chuckles slightly. Apparently, Jake does not try as hard to hide the fact that Nic’s not exactly his favourite of her brothers when he’s on morphine.
“He’s a doctor, Jake. He’s capable of watching our daughter.”
“He’s also capable of judging my every move and acting like he knows everything.”
“To be fair, he probably does know a bit more about the effects that pizza bagels have on your health-“
“Well, I know more…laws,” Jake says with a huff, frowning. He looks like a five-year old that just got told it’s time for bed, and he’s completely adorable and she loves him so much.
“I bet you do,” she says warmly.
“I’m sorry I scared you. I tried to be careful for you guys.”
After Jake was rushed into surgery and she was reunited with the squad in the waiting room, Thompson filled her in on what happened. Jake had taken two bullets intended for a twelve year old boy, only one of them actually penetrating his flesh. It was the kind of decision that they’re often faced with in this job but never really prepared to make. As much as she hates the choice he made, she knows it was the right one and the same one she would’ve made.
“It’s okay, Jake,” she murmurs. They’ll talk about it more later, when the shock and the drugs and the initial terror have worn off. She leans down to kiss his lips gently. He kisses her back, his hand moving from hers to weakly cup her face. She pulls away and rests her forehead against his, her eyes still shut. “I love you so much.”
“I love you too,” he says with a quick kiss to her cheek. “’M sleepy.”
She pulls away as he closes his eyes, seconds away from drifting back into a deep sleep.
“Yeah, you should get some rest.”
“Need you,” he murmurs softly, but its still laced with urgency.
“I’m right here, honey,” she assures him. “I’m not leaving.”
He shakes his head, unsatisfied. “Need you here.” Jake shifts over in the bed to offer her more space, extending his uninjured arm so she can curl up with him.
“I shouldn’t…” she starts to say, but quickly decides that cuddling with her husband right now is a million times more important than some hospital rule.
She, very cautiously, climbs into the bed with him and melts into his side, her arm hugging his stomach. Her head tucks under his chin.
“I love you,” she says once again. “Forever.”
“I know, that’s why we got married.”
“Jake, please just let me be emotional for two seconds. My husband just got shot, it’s been a bit of a rough night for me.”
“Really? He sounds like a badass.”
Amy rolls her eyes, smiling against his chest at the sheer fact that she still gets to do that. “You’re such an idiot.”
He holds her closer, his cheek resting comfortably on the top of her head.
“I love you too, Ames.”
#otp: you're not allowed to fall in love with me#b99 fic#b99#all of the angst#also i apologize sincerely for any grammatical errors it is very late#but i wanted to post before bed#myfics
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stars (they make me wonder where you are)
summary: Rosa doesn’t remember much - meetings with lawyers, Jake being buried next to Amy, Charles screaming in grief, Holt sobbing whilst holding Kevin. Rosa does remember moving into her two best friends apartment when she is appointed the guardian to their child.
read on ao3 / major character death
“Hey it’s me! Your daddy-o!” Jake’s hold on his phone is shaky, but his happiness evident. “So it’s November 23rd, 4:38 in the morning and your mom has been experiencing contractions for about 3 hours!”
Jake turns his phone slightly to include Amy in the frame, who looks uncomfortable but happy sitting up in their bed. “How are you feeling Ames!?”
“Well she’s definitely on her way.” Amy’s hands are resting low on her stomach, and she cringes with a smile as another contraction begins. “It’s really not that bad, you know since I can- ah!”
Amy breathes deeply for another 15 seconds before she relaxes. “You know because I can still talk during them.”
“Okay babe, whatever you say.”
CUT
“It’s your dad again with birth update!” Jake sighs happily, “It is 0700 and contractions are about 12 minutes apart so still too early to go to the hospital but we’re walking around the apartment trying to move it along.”
“Jake do you really need to this?” Amy whines, “We’ve had no sleep and I’m uncomfortable and in pain.”
The camera quickly faces the floor but doesn’t stop recording, “I thought it might be fun to look back one day, but I can stop if you want me to.”
There’s silence for a moment before Amy agrees to let him do it. “So how are you feeling Ames?”
“I feel like I need you to come out of me much quicker please.” Amy says directly into the camera, as if talking to her daughter.
CUT
~
Luna Santiago-Peralta is put in the care of Rosa Diaz when she is only 5 weeks old.
It was written in their will. If anything were to happen to them, the care of their daughter would be passed to her godmother.
Karen found her son peacefully asleep with Luna screaming in his arms, but he doesn’t respond. Jake is a heavy sleeper, but with the baby right in his arms he should at least stir. Karen then notices how pale and unmoving her son is.
She rushes to his side, take his cold wrist and checking for any sign for a pulse. Any sign of life. Her arms rush to grab her granddaughter as her chest constricts and her spare hand shakes as she goes to call someone - anyone .
It’s a blur of tears from there and she’s trying to calm down Luna but she is screaming like she’s never heard a baby scream before. It’s not long before Captain Holt appears with Rosa who both falter at the sight of Jake and Karen sobbing holding a screaming baby.
Rosa doesn’t remember much - meetings with lawyers, Jake being buried next to Amy, Charles screaming in grief, Holt sobbing whilst holding Kevin. Rosa does remember moving into her two best friends apartment when she is appointed the guardian to their child.
She feels her chest tighten at the sight of the photos of Jake and Amy scattered around the apartment, the die hard posters and knitted quilts made by Amy. “I don’t know how to do this, Luna. But I will do my best to make sure you know how much they love you.”
She remembers when she gets the call from Karen, telling her the autopsy revealed that Jake had died of broken heart syndrome. A real thing. Rosa had heard of it before - the stress of grief so bad for some that it affects the heart. In short, his death had been preventable, but no one could get Jake to talk to them.
~
The first time she ventures into Jake and Amy’s room, Luna is almost 3 months old. Rosa had taken to sleeping on the couch, too afraid to change anything about the apartment. Every single person that visits understands.
It’s when Gina suggests they finally move in together when she finally goes inside. “I want her to grow up here, like they intended.”
“I know.” Gina takes her hand, squeezing lightly. “There’s a spare room, so Iggy can have her own room. I know it’s going to be hard… But we can’t keep it all the same. They can’t expect that.”
“They would want us to make it our own.”
~
Gina has Iggy and Luna out for a walk, and so Rosa spends her time alone to empty out some of Jake and Amy’s things out of her (their) room. She is controlling her emotions better as of late, so clearing out Amy’s clothes and putting them away to be donated doesn’t make her cry.
Halfway through Jake’s clothing, she notices an envelope fall out. His messy handwriting looks shakier than she remembers, and it has two words. For Luna . Rosa’s hands begin shaking as she carefully rips the letter open.
Dear Luna,
I hope no one has to give you this letter. But as you know, your mom died shortly after you were born but she bled out too quickly during surgery and passed away.
Your birthday is simultaneously one of the brightest and darkest days I’ve ever experienced. I’ve been separated from your mom before. Undercover mission, Florida, prison. I hope I can make these stories lighthearted for you one day. Right now, I can’t see anything but darkness.
I don’t sleep, I can’t eat and I can’t even bring myself to talk. And I usually talk a lot. The only thing I can do is keep you alive. You are the only thing keeping my heart beating. I can feel my body giving out. I have heart palpitations and pains every day. I want to stay alive for you I do, my baby, but I don’t know how to survive without my Amy. She was everything to me, such a badass and so loving.
I want you to know that I love you more than anything in the world as well as your mom. If you are reading this and it means I’ve died - don’t think this means I love you any less. I love you so fucking much.
I’m sorry. I am really trying to keep myself moving, living. I don’t want you to grow up without your parents. You’ve already lost your mom and you don’t deserve to lose the both of us. I’m trying so hard and I love you so much. I’m so sorry if you can’t understand my pain and I’m sorry for bringing you this pain. I just need you to understand that we love you to the ends of this earth.
Forever your dad,
Jake.
Rosa is furious. Jake knew he was dying. He told no one. The tears are hot on her cheeks and she hears the front door open, the sound of Iggy telling a story to Luna echoing through the apartment.
Gina notices her girlfriend crying, and sends her daughter off to go play before joining Rosa in their bedroom. “Rosa, what’s wrong?” Gina’s wiping the tears off her cheeks, desperately searching her eyes.
“Jake fucking knew he was dying.” Rosa’s voice is strained, and Gina sees her knuckles go white as she grips the letter in her hand.
It doesn’t take Gina long to read the letter, and Rosa’s heart breaks all over again as she reads it and tears roll down her face. “He abandoned her, Gina, the last thing he ever wanted to do. That’s exactly what he did.” Rosa growls stomping to the other side of the room.
“No!” Gina scoffs, “There’s no way he really knew he was dying.”
“ I’m having heart palpitations and pains everyday ! He fucking knew and he told no one!” Rosa wants to scream, the grief and disbelief too overwhelming.
“Try to think how he was feeling! There was no way it was easy to lose his fucking wife right after they had a baby!”
“It’s not fair to Luna! His duty was to be there for his daughter, not to join his wife in the ground!” Rosa is breathing heavily, and she doesn’t think her heart could break any further.
“How would you feel if I died, Rosa?” Gina holds both of her arms still and their eyes connect, “I know I would feel like the world is ending. I would feel like I’m dying! I don’t think he genuinely thought he was about to die. I think he was just trying to get his feelings into words since he felt like he could talk to no one!”
“Luna can never find this.” Rosa shakes her head, wiping the remaining tears off her face.
“It’s for her. She has the right to read it when she’s old enough.”
~
This time it’s Amy holding the phone. “Hola mi amor, it’s your mama. It’s 9:15 and your dad has fallen asleep on me.” Amy quickly shows Jake snoring on her shoulder on the couch, “He thought we could pass time by rewatching Die Hard for the 1001st time and he passed out.”
Amy yawns, “I can’t really sleep when the contractions are just over 10 minutes apart but I try to close my eyes. I’m glad he can get some sleep since he’ll be driving.”
Jake’s eyes flutter open, and slowly he registers that she’s filming. “Oh update time! What time is it?”
“9:17 now.” Amy tells him, “I’ve already done the basic update.”
“Sorry that I fell asleep.” Jake yawns, stretching.
“I can forgive you but I’m not sure Bruce Willis will…”
“AMY HOW DARE YOU-”
CUT
~
They only have family over for Luna’s first birthday. Family being her grandparents and their squad. No one really knows how to go about the day. There’s a cake for Luna, and a framed photo of Jake and Amy at their wedding displayed next to it.
Luna is dressed in a dark blue dress with black tights and there’s a dark bow in her unruly curly hair. Rosa had tried to tame it for photos but the whole day was stressing her out so much that she has to stop in order to catch her breath.
Her smile is so bright and unknowing of the events that happened a year earlier. She waddles around the apartment and giggles when Victor makes silly noises.
Rosa has to wipe her eyes of the tears that escape when Luna waddles over yelling, “Mamamamamaa!”
She spots everyone at different points of the day crying. It’s all so fresh but their life has to move on so they can give Luna the best chance she can get. They take photos and sing happy birthday. Luna smashes into the cake and squeals as she throws it everywhere and puts very little into her mouth.
After giving her a bath and having her fall asleep in Gina’s arms, she’s finally in her cot. The adults all give toasts to Jake and Amy, and reminisce on their favourite memories. Gina holds her hand through it all, just as she had been all year.
~
From the moment Rosa had custody over Luna, she made sure every night she told a story about her parents. Whether it was about their relationship, or a individual story or a whole group story. Sometimes when she had to work late, Gina would take over but her stories always involved herself.
“Roro, can you tell me the dress story again?” Luna asks, crawling into her bed.
“Sure can,” Rosa turns on the bedside nightlight and sits on her bed. “Your mom just became a sergeant and she didn’t want to be judged for looking for a wedding dress, but I caught on, so I forced her to take a break to try on dresses.”
At 5 years old, she has told this story so many times already - it’s her favourite and still Luna takes her bunny and holds it close to her chest as she devotes all her attention to Rosa. “But then when she was wearing the dress, a bad guy was running from the law so your mom leaps over the couch and chases the bad guy down and leaps over all these obstacles - then finally, she tackles him down and takes the sash she’s wearing and restrains him.”
“And then you catch up with her and you’re like ‘damn sarge!’” Luna giggles, her eyes crinkling just like her mothers.
“What is the very important lesson from this?” Rosa asks.
“The lesson is that I should never care what other might think of me, and that women can do everything!” Luna repeats this confidently every time, yawning.
“You are so smart, I love you.” Rosa smooths the curly hair down as she kisses her forehead, “and so does Sergeant Bunny.”
“I love you mommy Roro.”
~
At 6 years old, Charles introduces Luna to her favourite movie - Zootopia. She has Sergeant Bunny near her at all times, as it was something her parents bought her when they found out about her. The few times they almost lost it are the few times Luna had real meltdowns.
Charles always makes sure that he babysits every few weeks so that Rosa and Gina can have a break. This particular night, Iggy is sleeping over at her friends so it’s just Charles and Luna. After they’ve eaten dinner and Luna is in her pyjamas, Charles puts on the movie. Anything to do with cops, she always pays intense attention to. She dances, her curls bounce and her smile is as wide as Jake’s and her eyes bright like Amy.
His heart physically hurts every time he thinks how much like Luna is like her parents. Her personality and looks. She takes games very seriously, when she’s interested in something her focus becomes so serious her eyebrow crinkle the same way Amy’s did.
“I want to be a police woman like mommy and you and grandpa Holt!” Her goofy smile fades slightly, “And like mama and daddy!”
“Yeah? Why do you want to be a police woman?” Charles asks, trying to keep his emotions intact.
“I wanna save the world and catch the bad guys!” Her smile returns quickly, “Mom says mama and daddy were real good superheros!”
“They were. Have you been told the story of the bet where their love story began?” Charles heart clenches again at how her eyes sparkle.
“YES! They bet who could arrest more baddies and daddy won so he took her on the worst date ever but it was really a good date!” Luna knows just about every story possible about her parents. She sits back down and continues to pay attention to the movie.
Once it’s finished, Charles notices that Luna has gone quiet which is very uncharacteristic of her (just like Jake). “Are you tired, Luna?”
“No.” Luna mumbles, “I wish I could meet my mama and daddy. My friends at school know their moms and dads.”
“Not everyone knows their mommies and daddies.” Charles assures her.
“There are others like me?” Luna’s eyes are desperate to know more.
“Niko doesn’t know his birth mommy. I raised him with Aunt Genny.”
“Really?” Her chin wobbles, “Does it ever make him sad?”
“Sometimes, but when that happens we just remind him how loved he is and that we’re here for him. The same goes for you Lulu.” Charles pulls her in for a hug, “Your mama and daddy loved you so much and are always in your heart.”
“Were they with me when I stole a cookie from the jar when I wasn’t supposed to?” A guilty grin forms on her face.
“Yes and they love you unconditionally. Your mama would tell you not to do it again, but then your daddy would sneak you another cookie.” Charles laughs softly, “For every moment you need them, they will be with you.”
~
“It is 10:49 and we are officially going to the hospital!” Jake jumps, giddy, “Care to tell us why?”
“Contractions are 7 minutes apart, much stronger and my water broke about 10 minutes ago.” Amy is panting as she walks up behind him, “I can’t wait to walk a few feet without being out of breath.”
“I never thought I would be more fit than Amy freakin’ Santiago!”
“I have a human baby in me I think that makes me more fit in every way possible.” Jake cracks up at this and Amy is poking her tongue out at him and he kisses her nose in response.
“You are completely right. I love you.”
CUT
~
Luna is 8 and a half when her moms finally get married. Rosa had proposed years earlier, but kept putting it off. She always said she wanted to focus on raising Luna well but always promised Gina that it would happen. They don’t begin planning until she asks them why they aren’t married like all the other parents of her friends.
“It’s complicated…” Rosa begins.
“Is it?” Gina rolls her eyes, “Let’s just do it. Nothing flashy.”
“But it’s your wedding it has to be flashy!” Rosa argues with a pout.
“You guys are all I need to have the perfect wedding.” Gina says with a soft smile, her eyes drifting to one of the pictures of Jake and Amy on their wedding day.
Rosa finally agrees to a simple wedding, and it’s only a month later and she’s braiding Luna’s hair getting her ready to be the flower girl. “Do you have a cool line to say mommy?” She asks as she hops off the stool.
“I don’t know if I can beat ‘your butt is da bomb’, but I can definitely try. I’m not as big of a dork as your parents were!” Rosa giggles, smoothing her own curls as she checks herself in the mirror.
“So not true! I hear you saying cute things to mom all the time!!” She squeals, “You are my everything Gina! What would I do without you my love!”
“You are a little rascal!” Rosa is smiling so wide she might entirely fall apart.
“I learn from the master, GINA LINETTI!” Luna puffs her chest and juts her chin up, pulling off a perfect Amy Santiago power pose.
“Can’t argue with that.”
In the end, Rosa can’t think of anything genius and hilarious to say to express how much she loves Gina. But she is able to show a whole different soft side that her family hasn’t seen before, and she believes that softness was brought out by none other than Luna.
“I can’t wait to spend every day for the rest of my life loving you. Loving you, Iggy and Luna.”
~
“Why haven’t we ever done a Halloween heist?” Luna asks, dropping her school bag on the floor as she enters their apartment.
“Hey Luna, my day was good. How are you?” Rosa raises her eyebrows at her, amused with the lack of greeting.
“Yeah yeah, I’m good now please answer my question.” She sits next to her mom at the table, determined to get the answer out of her.
“Um, well, it never felt right, without Jake and Amy.” Rosa looks down at her hands, “I had you to focus on, we all had families at this point and it hurt thinking of competing without them bickering.”
“I think we should start them again!” Luna tells her, bouncing in her seat. “I know everything about the past Halloween heists and I can fight to defend mama and dad’s titles! Everyone says I’m just like them so I think we can make it work!!”
“I don’t know, it’s a bit different for all of us.” Rosa tells her sternly, her tone warning her to drop it.
“They wouldn’t want you to stop enjoying that part of your life! It was tradition for 8 years! I think it’s a good way to honour their memory-”
“Drop it Luna!” She rarely raises her voice with Luna, only in moments like this where she is so like her parents and the stubbornness is overwhelming.
“NO! I DON’T WANT TO DROP IT!” Luna screams, her frown so deep and it looks like she’s about to have a meltdown.
“What is going on?” Gina rushes into the room, eyes concerned as she looks at her wife and Luna.
“I want to do a Halloween heist to defend my parents title!” Luna stands up and moves closer to Gina, “I think it’s a great idea to honour them but Rosa keeps saying no!”
“Excuse me?” Rosa falters at hearing her name.
“YOU AREN’T MY MOM! GINA ISN’T MY MOM!” Luna wipes the hot tears falling on her face, “I don’t know my mom and dad. I just want to know them but I can’t so I want to do this heist!”
Both Rosa and Gina are crying at this point, speechless at their daughters pain. No one speaks for what feels like hours, but Luna wipes her cheeks again. “Can I go see grandpa Holt?” She asks, her arms folding her and building up her walls. “I’ve got some hard math homework.”
“Baby, you can’t run away from your feelings.” Gina walks closer but Luna steps back, her arms tightening around herself.
“Please do I have permission to run away to grandpa Holt for a night?” Luna hiccups, avoiding all eye contact. Rosa makes the call and it’s not long before Holt is there, taking her bag with pyjamas and change of clothes for school the next day.
“I will make sure she goes to bed at the appropriate time and is at school on time.” Holt tells them with a nod of understanding.
“I love you Rosa and Gina.” Luna mumbles with a wave.
Luna remains silent whilst she completes her homework with Holt’s help, and throughout dinner where she barely eats her plain rice. They are watching Zootopia on the couch when Holt asks, “May I ask why you and Rosa fought?”
“No.” Luna’s eyebrows knit together, trying to focus on the movie in front of them.
“Talking about it tends to help you sort out your emotions.”
“Tell that to Rosa.” Luna still keeps her eyes on the television for a few moments. “I want to do a Halloween heist.”
“Oh…” Holt can feel her tense as his tone. “It’s been a long time.”
“I get that it makes everyone sad to do it without my mom and dad but… I don’t know them and I want to feel like I do. I know they loved me, I know they are with me always - it’s been drilled into me for forever but I still have no way of connecting to them. It’s not fair that you have so much with them and I get nothing!” Luna lets the tears fall freely again, her breath shaking as she speaks.
“It is completely unfair.” Holt agrees, his arm wrapping around her shoulder, “And I believe it would be a brilliant to begin the heists again.”
“Really?” Her eyes sparkle as she turns to him, “I was trying to tell mom that it would be a good way to honour them. And so that I can defend their titles!”
“It’s wonderful, and it will be hard for us but I think I can convince them as the only two time winner.”
“My dad is the only two time winner! Bill had the real belt at midnight so it means he won the heist! And also because that’s when he asked mama to marry him!!” Luna defends fiercely.
“I guess I can concede defeat after 12 years…” Holt chuckles, “You will do well at defending their title.”
Luna gives him a tight hug, “Thank you thank you thank you!”
Come Halloween, Luna is dressed as a mummy and is in the centre of the bullpen holding the statue at midnight. “I WIN! THE SANTIAGO-PERALTA LEGACY LIVES ON! SUCK IT!” She squeals, jumping on the spot.
The entire squad surrounds her and repeats, very happily, “Luna Santiago-Peralta is an amazing human slash genius!”
At that, Luna runs up to Rosa and wraps her in a tight hug. “I love you mom.”
~
“11:26 and we are settled in our room!” Jake voice is loud and unexpected since they are in a hospital. “Contractions are getting closer and more painful for your mom but she’s still on the no medication headset.”
In the background you can hear Amy groan and the camera suddenly faces up to the ceiling, but you can hear Jake coaching Amy through the contraction, telling her how amazing she’s doing and there’s still a short time until Jake picks up his phone again and begins talking again. “Luna, I’m going to take this moment to tell you how badass your mom is.
This wonderful woman here has just spent the past 9 or so months growing you - sacrificing her body and her sleep so that you can be as strong as you can be. I can’t express how much I admire her! She is the strongest woman I know and if you grow up to be like her I will be the proudest man on earth. Except love ninja turtles and Die Hard like me - then you can be the ultimate human slash genius- OH AMES, I can’t wait to introduce her to Halloween heists. This year we teamed up and your mom pretended to be in labour so we could steal the championship wand - Aunt Rosa ended up kicking our ass though. That’s a story for another time. Anything you want to add Amy?”
“Please don’t let her be obsessed with Die Hard, I will be outnumbered in movie nights!” Amy pouts, “I love you Luna, but please, I’ve heard enough about it to last me a lifetime.”
Amy is smiling at Jake, so he knows she doesn’t mean it. “She’s lying, she loves Die Hard as much as I do now!” His eyes are wide and he’s nodding with a silly grin on his face, “You can love whatever movies you want Luna, we will still love you the same!”
CUT
~
Luna convinces Iggy to let her watch Die Hard while their moms were out on date night.
“I’m all caught up on my homework for the next two weeks and I’ve finished my reading for the night, Iggy, please!” She whines on the couch, “It’s my dad's favourite movie but mom said I can’t watch it yet but I want to!”
“Ugh fine, don’t be such a big nerd about it.” She rolls her eyes before finding the movie on Netflix, “You’re only 14 so if I get in trouble you’re going down.”
“Yeah yeah whatever now be QUIET.” Luna sits on the edge of her seat as the movie begins, her attention devoted entirely to the screen. Two hours later and Luna is on the floor, right in front of the TV and looking gobsmacked. “That. Was. Awesome.”
“It’s not that great.” Iggy puts her book down to laugh at her little sister, “Don’t make me watch the next one please.”
“THERE’S ANOTHER ONE???”
“There are like 5, Loony.”
“THERE’S 5 MOVIES I HAVE SO MUCH TO CATCH UP ON!” Luna grabs the remote and clicks on the next one.
“I’m going to bed, have fun nerd.”
Gina and Rosa come home around 11 to find Luna fast asleep, snoring peacefully as explosions played in the background. “I’m having flashbacks to childhood.” Gina snorts, “I want to be mad that she didn’t listen but she is Jake’s kid.”
“Die Hard is in her blood.” Rosa laughs as she kneels next to Luna, “Hey baby.”
Luna’s eyes flutter open at the feeling of a hand brushing through her curls, but when realising it’s her mom her eyes widened and she sat up quickly. “Heeeeyyyy moms! How was your night? I don’t know what this violent movie is on my screen right now!” Rosa rolls her eyes at her daughter trying to deflect.
“You are so your dad,” Luna blushes and looks at her hands, “And you shouldn’t have watched it without permission but I understand why you did.”
“I’m sorry.” Luna shrugs, “I’ve got Harry Potter to connect with mama and I just wanted to see what dad was so obsessed with.”
“That’s completely understandable.” Gina wraps her up in a side hug, “He probably would have made you watch it much earlier even though it would have been so inappropriate.”
“I like to think Amy might have prevented it for a few years.” Rosa laughs, “She loved Die Hard too, I never heard her admit it out loud.”
“Do you miss them?” Luna asks quietly.
“Constantly. Especially when you make that face when you love something, it’s such an Amy expression and then you behave so much like Jake when you get focused. You’re a giant nerd like the both of them.” Gina tells her, a fond smile on her face.
“I’m always thinking of how they would love the cases I’m getting, and if I struggle I try to think like they would.” Rosa follows, “They’re always with us, especially in you.”
~
“Have you started planning your Quinceañera, my dear?” Camila asks at dinner one evening, months before her 15th birthday.
“Um, I don’t actually want to have one.” Luna frowns slightly, “They’re really backwards and all, and I know it’s a tradition but…”
“Oh…” Camila frowns, “I just thought… Do you want to see Amy’s photos?”
“Camila, if she doesn’t want to do it you need to respect that.” Rosa intervenes.
“No I would love to see the photos.” Luna brightens as her abuela take out a binder full of photos from Amy’s quinceañera. In the photos she can see how similar they look, except her own hair was more wild and curly like her dad. The dress she is wearing has a white sparkly bodice with soft pink tulle.
The photo with her abuelo, who had died when she was only 3 years old, is what she can’t take her eyes off. It’s during their father daughter dance, and she is beaming at whatever her father seems to be saying. She then closes her eyes, trying to imagine her quinceañera if her parents were still alive. What her father daughter dance might be like with her dad?
Luna says she doesn’t want to have a quinceañera because its old fashioned and lame - but the real reason is so much more. Rosa has been the greatest mother, as has Gina, and the entirety of her parents old squad - but she wants to have her parents there but they can’t . They’re gone forever, no matter how much people tell her they are always inside her.
“I still have her dress in the attic. Amy always told me she wanted her own daughter to wear it to her own quinceañera.” Camila says fondly.
“Really?” Luna has tears in her eyes, and she grips on her abuela’s hand.
“Yes, and I don’t want you to think I’m pressuring you to do it. It’s just an open suggestion.”
~
“Here we are, it’s 1:06 in the afternoon. Mom is a solid 7cm dilated and very very excited to get you out of her body!” Jake announces with a grin. He turns the camera around so that it shows Amy on her purple birthing ball. “When I say she’s excited I mean she’s desperate - but it’s the same sentiment.”
“Luna is very welcome to hurry up.” Amy groans, “She’s gonna see this video and think I hate her.”
“Noooo you’re just in pain, Ames. I’m sure our child isn’t a cold hearted snake!”
“I will love her even if she’s a bitch. I will have to reprimand her for it though.”
“Don’t be a bitch, dear Luna. Listen to your mother now!” This time when Amy groans again, Jake doesn’t drop his phone but moves to support her with her face still in frame.
There are tears rolling down her face as the peak of the contraction hits her, and her groan grows louder. She sniffles when it’s over, and Jake gets the both of them in frame again. “See your mom is a total badass. I love her so much.”
Amy grins down at her husband and chastely kisses him, “I love you so much.”
CUT
~
Every birthday they make sure to visit their graves. Since Luna could remember, she has always taken this time to update them on the major events in her life - when she lost her first tooth, her first straight A report card. This time she has her hair and makeup ready to go to her quinceañera but she didn’t get in her dress so that they could make the trip before her big party.
Rosa joins her for the first 10 minutes, but then goes to wait in the car so she can have her moment alone.
Amy Santiago-Peralta Jacob Santiago-Peralta
Sept. 17 1983 - Nov. 23 2022 June. 14 1981 - Jan. 1 2023
Daughter. Wife. Mother. Son. Husband. Father. Die Hard fanatic.
Luna sits on the grass and takes a deep breath. “Hi.
Sooo, I’m in high school now! So far so good, people aren’t so awful as movies depict it. So far I’m on track for having straight As this semester. Mo-Rosa says you guys would be so proud of that - that I’ve become a giant nerd like you two.
My best friend, her name is Lauren, really likes Die Hard like we do - obsessed with any old action movie really. I always make sure I tell her everything wrong with the way the women are treated and she calls me a nerd but in the way Gina does. So it sounds kind of mean but she has so much heart.
Um, I saw photos of you with bangs mom, so I got bangs. Oof it was a bad idea - but that’s because my hair is too curly I think.
I also had my first kiss this year. It was weird, his name was Luke and he was okay but said he wasn’t that interested in me. I’m not too bothered by it but I feel like it’s something you tell your parents. I didn’t tell Rosa or Gina - I felt too uncomfortable.
Um, I miss you. Or the idea of you, since I don’t have any real memory of you. But it sucks that you aren’t here for my quinceañera - but I’m doing it for you mom, I got your dress altered to fit me and it looks great.
R-Rosa said she’s going to do the father daughter dance - because fuck gender roles right? Sorry, Rosa tells me not to swear and I definitely shouldn’t right in front of you. I just want you here.
I need to save my makeup, so I guess that’s it from me for now. But I hope you’re watching tonight, because it would make me really happy to know you’re there.”
Luna doesn’t say anything in the ride to the venue, only a vague nod if when her mom asks if she had a nice chat with them. Before either of them leaves the car, Rosa turns to her and takes her hand. “I’m so proud of you, Luna.” There are tears on her cheeks, and she doesn’t try to hide them. “I love you.”
“I love you mom.” Luna’s chin quivers intensely, but she doesn’t let herself cry - not yet.
She lasts a long without crying - she gets through hugs from her entire family and speeches. But then they announce it’s time for her dance with Rosa, and hear breath becomes shorter. When her mom wraps her arms around her, she can feel herself relax. They don’t have a proper dance ready, they just begin to sway.
We know full well there's just time
So is it wrong to dance this line?
If your heart was full of love
Could you give it up?
It doesn’t take long before her shoulders are quaking and Rosa’s grip tighten, Luna can hear her sniffling as well as the piano takes over.
'Cause what about, what about angels
They will come, they will go and make us special
Don't give me up
Don't give me up
She can hear Rosa audibly crying as much as she is now, and not a moment later she feels her other moms hands wrapping around them. Then it’s uncle Charles, uncle Terry and grandpa Holt. Luna sways with them all, and she’s pretty sure everyone in the room is likely crying but in this moment she feels her parents more than ever.
She manages to look up at Rosa and whisper shakily, “They’re here.”
It's not about, not about angels
Angels
~
“It’s 5:30 in the evening and you have been here in the world for about an hour and a half now. Born at 4:06 to be exact and you weigh in at around 6 pounds and 19 inches long. Your mom is doing great, in pain but she’s such a champion. I will never stop telling you how powerful she is and if you ever disobey her I won’t stop her showing her wrath. Also because I’m terrified of it.”
Jake moves so that Amy and Luna appear in the frame with him, “Look at us - a happy little family!”
Amy’s face quickly scrunches up as she begins to cry. “We have a baby Jake!”
“What did you think you were growing in you for 9 months, Ames?” Jake laughs, joining her on the bed.
“Various fruits and vegetables of course!” She giggles, “I’m just so happy, babe.”
“Me too. I can’t wait to watch her grow up with you.”
Jake kisses her softly, stroking Luna’s head lightly before they both look at the camera like they’re taking a family photo.
END
~
Luna is 17 years old when she finds the video her dad made of the day she was born. She had been working on an entrance essay for college when she got bored and went looking at photos on her moms laptop. She had scrolled until until she saw a folder she had never seen before.
11/23/22
She opens it and sees photos she seen before - photos of her moments after she was born, screaming on her mother’s chest as her mother glows. Photos of her with Jake and photos with her with Amy - and then the both of them beaming as one of them holds her.
What she hasn’t seen before is the the 4 minute and 13 second video. Her heart pounds as her father’s goofy smile appears on screen.
Luna has been to therapy - parents dying hours and months after you are born can have a lasting affect - and she has worked through most of her emotions about not knowing them. She still has her moments of missing them intensely, and that usually falls on holidays or her birthday.
So she doesn’t really expect the flood of tears that break once she hears the line ‘ I will love her even if she’s a bitch. ’ She’s really laughing at her parents being weird but the tears don’t stop falling and her heart truly aches.
Of course she has seen an abundance of videos and photos of her parents of through their partnership, friendship and then relationship before. There was something completely groundbreaking seeing them talk about her and them moving with her there even if for a short time.
The video has been over for a few minutes, paused on them both looking at her with love written in their features. She still can’t stop her tears and it’s then that her mom shows up.
“Alright which little son of a bitch am I fighting?” She growls immediately, protective mode in full force. When she joins Luna on the couch and sees what she has open, she softens. “Talk to me, Luna.”
“I don’t know what to say that I haven’t said before.” Luna hiccups, shaking her head. “I have this moment with them, it’s all I have. I wish I had… a chance to… to have one conversation with them now. I want to hear them say they love me and that they’re proud. Everyone tells me they are but I want to hear it from them.
And you and Gina have been such great moms to me and I feel so bad for wanting them so badly. But I also know I have the right to feel like this and it all just hurts.”
“We would never feel like you don’t appreciate us because you want your parents. We want them back. But that doesn’t change my love for you either.” Rosa grips her hands tightly, “Your parents and you have changed my life like I never expected.”
~
The last thing Luna remembers is falling asleep with Rosa as she told her the best stories of her parents once again. Now she’s in what seems to be a park, surrounded by bright green trees and a lake in the corner. The sun is shining on the lake and she’s in such a deep trance that she doesn’t hear her name being called until there’s a hand on her shoulder and she jumps. Turning around, she stumbles a few steps back at the sight of her mother and her father close by - soft smiles on both their faces.
“Hi Luna.” Amy’s eyes seem to be filling with tears and her voice is cracking with emotion.
“Mom? Dad?” Luna has to take a few deep breaths as she tries to process what was seeing in front of her. “Is this some freaky Harry Potter resurrection stone dream shit?” She finally manages to get out, tears are leaking out of her parents eyes as they laugh.
“Probably. Ames, this is so cool right? It’s our baby.” Jake gestures at Luna, awe shining off him brighter than the sun.
A sob escapes as she jumps to embrace them and she doesn’t care if she’s dreaming because they feel so real in the moment. “I can’t believe this.”
Their arms are tightly wrapped around her and they spend what feels like eternity just holding each other and crying. “I’m so sorry, mi amor.” Amy pulls back and holds her at arms length to look into her eyes.
“Don’t be sorry! This wasn’t in your control.” Luna shakes her head, “I know you didn’t want to leave me.”
“It doesn’t change how bad we feel that you only got to know us through others.” Jake adds, “We love you so much, and we’ve always been with you.”
“I know that.” Luna nods fiercely, tears continuing to fall like a waterfall.
“We are so proud of the young woman you have become.” Amy tells her.
“Everyone tells me how much I’m like the both of you.” Luna beams, “They all did their part to tell me about you.”
“Did Charles cover the love story? I’d say he’s the best at telling it besides myself.” Jake quips, and she feels so enlightened. It’s everything she wants in a dream.
“He has made sure I know and that my expectations are at an extremely unrealistic level.” She replies, like they’ve joked around her whole life.
“Thank them for us.” Amy requests softly, “Everyone who has helped you - but especially Rosa. It was so much to ask but she raised you with no questions asked and we couldn’t be more thankful for that.”
“She’s been great to me.” Luna agrees, “I might not have had you but I was always loved.”
“A few more things, while we still have time. One; good job on defending us in the Halloween heist. Two; you rocked those bangs girl I don’t care what you say. Three; I’m so proud that you love Die Hard.” Jake is counting on his fingers, and he’s thinking of a fourth when Amy interrupts.
“Also you’ve been so good in school, and you’re so kind to your peers. Luna, we can’t possibly express how proud we are.”
Luna once again buries herself into a hug with the both of them, and they’re all mumbling how much they love each other. It’s warm and she’s never felt a happiness this intense.
The sun grows brighter and brighter until she opens her eyes and she’s back in her home, her head against Rosa’s legs and tears staining her cheeks. They’re gone again but she can still feel their arms and their love surrounding her.
They’re gone again, but she’s okay.
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a post!
hello! find below what I believe is called a post?
(a stranger things billy story I was going to write but gave up on)
1/3
“You’re joking? Hawkins?”
She laughed, “It was Neil’s idea.”
“Hawkins, Indiana?” Amy asked incredulously, leaning back on her elbows into the booth they shared at Susan’s favourite diner.
She nodded, her hair bouncing around her shoulders.
“I bet Max isn’t happy,” Amy said with a grin plastered across her face.
Susan chuckled, looking down at her milkshake as her fingers wrapped around the straw, “well, she’s just a girl. She’ll make new friends.”
Amy nodded, biting back a retort. The air in the diner was alive with emotion, it was draining to block them out so for a moment she leaned back into the vinyl of her seat and closed her eyes. She let down the wall and the emotions flooded in, the most prominent of which was the boy sitting behind her. Anxiety wrung his bones and in the reflection of the glass door, she watched him stare down into his glass.
She felt pity for him, briefly before slowly building up the wall again; blocking out the electricity that brought the air alive. Just before she could an older woman walked past, urgency lacing her fingers together and a darker feeling weaving into Amy’s mind.
“Oh!” She exclaimed as the emotion materialised as a reminder. Amy dug around in her worn leather bag and pulled out a file which she dropped on the table with a bang.
“Hawkins…” She trailed off, flipping open the file and scanning it quickly.
“A-ha! Hawkins, Indiana a young girl with blond hair stole-“ She hesitated the foreign word mangled on her tongue, “Eggos? And shattered the glass in the doors without apparent means!”
She glanced up from the writing to meet the older woman’s confused eyes.
“The people I’m tracking, one of them was spotted in Hawkins.” She explained quickly, “I haven’t found a name but I do have a picture.”
Susan nodded, confusion radiated from her but her expression was understanding. Amy held up the picture of the girl to her, a blurry picture of her walking out of the store, stepping over the broken glass in a dress that reached her knees covered by a thick jacket.
“If you see her when you’re down there tell me,” Amy asked, putting the file away and snaking her fingers around the cool glass of her milkshake.
“Why don’t you stay with us?”
Amy’s eyes snapped up from the pink coloured milkshake to Susan’s, “really?”
“Of course, Max loves you.” Susan leaned forward on her elbows, a bright smile decorating her features.
“I wouldn’t want to intrude…” Amy trailed off, excitement burning deep in her gut.
“Oh no! Don’t be silly, it would be a pleasure to have you there with us,” Susan’s eyes glistened in the dying afternoon sunlight, the amber of the setting sun colouring her skin. The excitement radiated off her in waves.
“Susan Hargrove, you are a blessing.”
They finished their milkshakes excited detailing her stay in Hawkins. They walked out of the diner side by side as the cold air engulfed them. The buildings on the horizon were illuminated by the rising moon behind the diner, its angle casting elongated shadows on the ground.
“Oh, Billy will be there too.” Susan said, by means of farewell before turning away and walking to her car.
“Oh—Wait, Susan!” Amy cursed under her breath, but Susan had already shut her car door and started the engine. Oh well, Amy would be damned if she let Billy Hargrove spoil her time in Hawkins.
2/3
The house was small, just a touch larger than her flat in California but it was homely. The walls were painted the colour of eggshells and the whole home smelt of cinnamon, the same aroma that always followed Susan. Susan stood in the doorway, the sun, muted by heavy curtains, outlined her silhouette.
“Isn’t it lovely, Amy?” She asked, she seemed so at ease here. The warm air cocooning her and the orange curtains casting yellow-toned sunlight across her face. The angle creating harsh shadows in the concave of her cheeks but warmth emanated from her.
“Indescribably so,” Amy replied, a box filled with photo frames perched on her hip.
Susan moved toward her and wrapped her bird-boned hands around the box’s edges, Amy swatted her away quickly. “No, no, I’ve got it.”
Amy made her way down the thin corridor and placed the box on the floor of her empty room, nothing but a mattress on the floor. She sighed before sitting down cross-legged on the floor and taking the frames out of their cardboard box. The smiling faces grinning up at her through the glass.
Hours passed before the sound of a car peeling into the driveway echoed through the house before the door slammed and a familiar voice shouted, “if you hate it so much, leave!”
Amy furrowed her eyebrows but couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face from the familiar voice. She stayed sitting cross-legged on the floor until she heard Max’s footsteps down the hall. She stood up, stretching her back that creaked in protest, before making her way towards Max’s room.
The red-haired girl stood in the center of the room a photo frame in her hand and her back towards the doorway.
Amy rapped her knuckles on the white door frame, “hi, carrots.”
Max turned around with an incredulous smile, “Amy!”
She ran at her and wrapped her arms around her waist, “Mum said you were coming Tuesday.”
“I know, I wanted to surprise you.” Amy replied, smiling down at her, “I missed you, carrots.”
Max scoffed at the nickname and pulled away; falling onto her mattress, “Billy’s here, too.”
Amy nodded, “I know, Susan told me.”
Max raised her head to meet Amy’s eyes, “If you’d met him before, you wouldn’t have come.” She stated, her hair fanning out on the mattress as she let her head drop again.
“That’s not true. I have work here, no teenage boy is more important than that.” She began, her mind wandering to the surveillance footage of the girl before she saw Max’s expression and quickly added, “and seeing my favourite niece, of course.”
The corner of Max’s mouth twitched but it was quickly disguised before she replied, “only niece.”
Amy laughed before her mind wandered again, “What about Neil? How’s he?”
The mood in the room immediately darkened, the small smile quickly wiped off Max’s face. “I hate him.”
Amy’s eyebrows furrowed, “well, I guess most kids don’t like their stepdads.”
Max shook her head and rolled onto her side, “You don’t get it.” She huffed.
Amy stood there for a moment, arms crossed against her chest. A strange dark emotion had saturated the air in the room that she couldn’t quite place a finger on. It was dangerously close to fear. She shook her head to clear it and began to walk out of Max’s room when the door slammed and an unfamiliar voice called out into the house, “Susan!"
3/3
Neil was intimidating, to say the least. His eyes watching Amy, like predator watches prey. The mustache that adorned his face twitched as Amy broke eye contact with him, her eyes falling on her sister, who stood with her hands clasped together and a thin smile stretching her skin.
Amy cleared her throat, “Susan, I think I’m gonna head out for dinner. I’ll try to find the sheriff before it gets late.” She smiled and tightened her grip on the briefcase in her hand.
“Of course.” Susan nodded before turning to Neil to elaborate, "She’s in investigative work.”
Neil did not respond, his eyebrows furrowing as his eyes landed on the briefcase held in her hand. Amy’s fingers instinctively held it tighter her knuckles turning yellow with the force of her grip. Unease rippled throughout the room whilst Neil was emitting something darker, worse.
Amy muttered a goodbye before hurriedly exiting the house, stumbling on the steps but her grip on the briefcase unfaltering. She clambered into her well-worn car and placed her case on the passenger seat, just as she eased her car out onto the road a blue Camaro sped past her, peeling into the Hargrove’s driveway at breakneck speed.
#i like it but not enough to keep writing#also i remember absolutely zero about the plot#but it seems a waste to just delete it i guess#billy hargrove#stranger things
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A Crack in Time 3/?
I have a cold and it's very annoying right now but I still got a chapter :)
When she was seven years old a man in a box fell from the sky and crash-landed in her best friends garden, and promised her that he would return in five minutes, now nineteen years old and twelve years late the Doctor returns to best friends Hollie and Amy and quickly learns that they’re no longer the seven-year-old girls he met five minutes ago in body but possibly at heart. Unable to leave them alone with the strange crack the Doctor invites them in his magical time and space machine while he figures out what the crack in time and space actually is.
AO3 | Wattpad | Spoiler Series
"The sun's going out, and you're photographing a man and a dog. Why?" The Doctor asked grabbing the phone off the man.
"Amy." Rory stared at her.
"Hi!" Amy smiled. "Oh, this is Rory, he's a friend."
"Boyfriend," Rory replied.
"Kind of boyfriend." Amy shrugged.
Hollie rolled her eyes. "Definitely her boyfriend." She told the Doctor. Amy sighed slightly while the Doctor just looked at Rory.
"Man and dog. Why?"
Rory stared at the Doctor before it clicked, his eyes widened as he looked at Hollie. "Oh my God, it's him, it's actually really him!"
Hollie bit her lip before she whined. "Just answer his question, please."
"It's him, though. The Doctor. The Raggedy Doctor."
"Yeah, he came back," Amy added.
"But he was a story." Rory protested. "He was a game."
"Man and dog." The Doctor cut in. "Why? Tell me now."
"Sorry," Rory replied. "Because he can't be there. Because he's..."
"In a hospital, in a coma." Both the Doctor and Rory finished.
"Yeah..." Rory slowly added.
"Knew it." The Doctor grinned. "Multiform, you see?" He looked at Hollie and then to Amy. "Disguise itself as anything, but it needs a live feed. A psychic link with a living but dormant mind." The man barked at the four. The Doctor turned and stepped forward. "Prisoner Zero." He called.
"What?" Rory looked at the three. "There's a Prisoner Zero too?"
"Yes." Amy nodded.
The Doctor noticed one of the alien eyeball ships scanning the area. "See, that ship up there is scanning this area for non-terrestrial technology. And nothing says non-terrestrial like a sonic screwdriver." He raised the device into the air and pressed the button, a moment later all the streetlights exploded and car alarms blared. The three humans laughed as they watched a group of firemen run after a fire engine that started to drive off by itself.
"I think someone's going to notice, don't you?" He pointed at a red telephone box. The Doctors sonic then sparked and he yelped and dropped the device. "No, no! No, don't do that!" He cried.
Hollie ran over to the Doctor to see what happened and winced as she saw the smoke coming off his screwdriver. They all looked up when Rory called out: "Look, it's going." He pointed as the space ship moved away.
"No, come back." The Doctor stood up and looked at the ship. "He's here! Come back! He's here. Prisoner Zero is here." He whined. "Come back, he's here! Prisoner Zero is-" He stopped as Amy shouted.
"Doctor! The drain." She pointed as Prisoner Zero disappeared down the drain. "It just sort of melted and went down the drain."
"Well, of course, it did."
"What do we do now?" She asked.
"It's hiding in human form." He muttered. "We need to drive it into the open. No TARDIS, no screwdriver, seventeen minutes. Come on, think. Think!" He lightly hit his head.
Amy frowned as the Doctor thought. "So that thing, that hid in my house for twelve years?"
"Multiforms can live for millennia. Twelve years is a pit-stop."
"All the times I came over to yours to play or to hang out." Hollie looked at her friend. "And neither of us realised you had a whole other room untouched."
Amy looked at Hollie before looking at the Doctor. "So how come you show up again on the same day that lot do? The same minute!" She stared at him.
"They're looking for him, but they followed me. They saw me through the crack, got a fix, they're only late because I am."
"What's he on about?" Rory frowned.
"Nurse boy, give me your phone." He ordered and held his hand out to Rory.
"How can he be real? He was never real." Rory looked at the two girls.
"Phone. Now. Give me."
"He was just a game," Rory said as he passed the phone to the Doctor. "We were kids. You two made me dress up as him." He pointed at his two friends.
"These photos, they're are all coma patients?" The Doctor asked as he flicked through the images.
"Yeah."
"No, they're all the multiform." The Doctor corrected. "Eight comas, eight disguises for Prisoner Zero."
"He had a dog, though." Amy frowned. "There's a dog in a coma?"
"Well, the coma patient dreams he's walking a dog, Prisoner Zero gets a dog." The Doctor shrugged. "Laptop! Your friend, what was his name? Not him," he looked at Rory as he handed him his phone back, "the good-looking one."
"Thanks." Rory rolled his eyes.
"Jeff," Amy answered.
Hollie frowned at her friend. "Oh, thanks," Rory added again.
"Yeah, I thought we agreed never to call Jeff good looking ever again?" Hollie crossed her arms.
Amy shrugged. "Not my fault you two broke up."
The Doctor looked at Hollie and frowned. "You and Jeff?"
"What?" She stared at him. "I thought it was a good idea at the time."
“I think you made a good idea to break up, I couldn’t imagine you two.”
Amy sniggered at her friend as the Doctor shook his head at his own words. "He had a laptop in his bag. A laptop. Big bag, big laptop." He grinned. "I need Jeff's laptop. You two, get to the hospital." He nodded at Amy and Rory. "Get everyone out of that ward. Clear the whole floor. Send Hollie every photo you took of Prisoner Zero, we need them all, phone us when you're done." Amy looked at Rory. "Your car. Come on." She dragged him away. "Hollie come with me, we need to find Jeff."
"Great." She grumbled. "I wasn't trying to avoid him or anything."
The two arrived at Jeffs home with his nan. The Doctor stormed in and swung the door open as Jeff slightly closed his laptop. "Hello." The Doctor nodded and held his hands out. "Laptop. Give me."
"No, no, no," Jeff begged, grabbing half of the laptop in a vice-like grip as the Doctor tried to pull it away from him. "No, wait."
"It's fine." He rolled his eyes and pulled on the laptop. "Give it here."
"Hang on!" Jeff shouted as the Doctor finally pulled the device away and out of Jeffs hands. Hollie gave the man an odd look as he shuffled nervously on the bed while she sat down beside the Doctor who smiled in triumph and placed the laptop in his lap, opening it up his eyes widened and Hollie let out a high pitched cry: "Oh my god!" She shouted, covering her eyes."
"Blimey. Get a girlfriend, Jeff." The Doctor commented before realising what he was saying, his eyes snapped to Hollie who glared at him. "Sorry." He whispered.
Jeff opened his mouth to speak but quickly snapped it shut as Mrs Angelo entered, the Doctor quickly deleted the page and Hollie sighed, thankful that she didn't have to awkwardly sit next to the Doctor while... that type of website was open. It was horrifying.
"Gran." Jeff awkwardly smiled at the woman.
"What are you doing?" She looked at the Doctor before she looked at Hollie and warmly smiled. "Hello Hollie, are you and Jeff okay now?"
Hollie groaned as Jeff looked over at her. "Nope." She replied.
The Doctor glanced at her and frowned slightly before shaking his head and looking at Mrs Angelo. "The sun's gone wibbly, so right now, somewhere out there, there's going to be a big old video conference call. All the experts in the world panicking at once, and do you know what they need? Me." He grinned and opened up a website before hacking into the call. "Ah, and here they all are. All the big boys. NASA, Jodrell Bank, Tokyo Space Centre, Patrick Moore."
"I like Patrick Moore." Mrs Angelo smiled.
"I'll get you his number." The Doctor winked. "But watch him, he's a devil."
Jeff frowned. "You can't just hack in on a call like that."
"Can't he?" Hollie asked just as the Doctor replied as well:
"Can't I?"
Hollie watched in amazement when the Doctor actually did it, six different faces popped up on the laptop screen. The blonde frowned when the Doctor held up what looked like a black wallet at the face cam as Patrick Moore spoke up. "Who are you?"
"This is a secure call," another asked, "what are you doing here?"
"Hello." The Doctor moved the paper and placed it back in his pocket. "Yeah, I know you should switch me off, but before you do, watch this." He started to type on the keyboard.
"It's here too," Patrick Moore frowned, "I'm getting it."
"Fermat's Theorem, the proof." The Doctor explained as he typed. "And I mean the real one. Never been seen before. Poor old Fermat, got killed in a duel before he could write it down. My fault. I slept in. Oh, and here's an oldie but a goodie. Why electrons have mass. And a personal favourite of mine, faster than light travel with two diagrams and a joke." He pointed at the screen, Hollie snorted and shook her head at the joke the Doctor had sent across. "Look at your screens. Whoever I am, I'm a genius. Look at the sun. You need all the help you can get. Fellas, pay attention."
"Holls can I borrow your phone?"
"My phone?" She frowned.
"Yeah, I need to write the code on something." He explained. "You'll understand."
Hollie shrugged and handed her phone to the Doctor who started to type. "What kind of code are you writing?"
"A computer virus." He looked up as the group of people in the call watched. "Very clever, super-fast, and a tiny bit alive, but don't let on." He then addressed the people in the call. "And why am I writing it on a phone? Never mind, you'll find out." he waved a hand. "Okay, I'm sending this to all your computers. Get everyone who works for you sending this everywhere. Email, text, Facebook, Bebo, Twitter, radar dish, whatever you've got. Any questions?"
"Who was your lady friend?" Patrick asked noticing Mrs Angelo watching the Doctor as well.
"Patrick, behave." The Doctor warned.
"What does this virus do?"
"It's a reset command, that's all." The Doctor answered. "It resets counters. It gets in the wifi and resets every counter it can find. Clocks, calendars, anything with a chip will default at zero at exactly the same time. But yeah, I could be lying, why should you trust me? I'll let my best man explain." He then slowly turned to Jeff who stared at the screen. "Jeff, you're my best man."
"You what?"
"Listen to me." He patted him on the back. "In ten minutes, you're going to be a legend. In ten minutes, everyone on that screen is going to be offering you any job you want and maybe, just maybe Hollie will forgive you but first, you have to be magnificent. You have to make them trust you and get them working. This is it, Jeff, right here, right now. This is when you fly. Today's the day you save the world."
Jeff shook his head and looked at Hollie before leaning towards the Doctor. "No she won't."
"Why not?" The Doctor asked. "I'm sure Hollie won't let a silly argument get in the way."
"It isn't just silly though, I said you weren't real."
The Doctor blinked. "What?"
"She always kept talking about you." He explained. "All the time and I had enough, told her to grow up."
The Doctor looked over at Hollie who must have been texting Amy, her eyes glued to her phone. The Doctor sighed and slowly nodded. "I can see I messed things up." He admitted.
Jeff nodded. "Yeah." He agreed. "Why am I your 'best man' though?"
"It's your bedroom." He answered before taking Hollies hand, making her yelp as she almost dropped her phone. "Now go, go, go." He ran out before stopping and running back in. " Oh, and delete your internet history." He nodded then ran out again with Hollie.
The Doctor grinned as he spotted a fire engine, Hollie looked on slightly nervous as the Doctor happily ran over and jumped into the driver's seat. "You do know how to drive one of these right?"
"Can't be much different to the TARDIS he shrugged.
Hollie closed her eyes. "I'm going to die."
"No, you won't." The Doctor replied with a grin. "No dying today Holliaet!"
"It's Hollie." She huffed as the Doctor quickly sped off. "Not 'Holliaet', not 'Holls' just Hollie, you haven't earned the right for nicknames, Doctor, not yet.
The Doctor continued to drive and looked over at the woman who had her arms crossed. "I'm sorry okay." He apologised. "I didn't think the TARDIS would take me 12 years ahead, I was thinking five minutes."
"We waited for you, you know?" Hollie replied. "Like Amy's aunt had a fit when she got home and saw Amy in the garden, lying on a suitcase packed with clothes. The home eventually found out and Sharon refused me seeing Amy for a week."
The Doctor slowly nodded in understanding. To put it lightly he had fucked up and it cost the two best friends their childhood.
Hollie looked down at her phone as Amy's name flashed across the screen. "Ames?" Hollie answered, holding it up to her ear.
"Hollie, we're at the hospital," Amy answered, "but we can't get through."
"They can't get through," Hollie told the Doctor. "No one's being let inside."
"Tell them to look in the mirror." The Doctor answered.
Hollie frowned but repeated it anyway. "He say's 'look in the mirror.' I don't know what that means but that's what he said."
Amy looked in the glass window and grinned as she saw her reflection. "Haha!" She laughed. "The police uniform."
"Brilliant." Hollie laughed as well.
"Are you on your way?" Amy then asked. "You're going to need a car."
Hollie chuckled nervously and gripped onto her seat as the Doctor suddenly jerked the fire engine out of the way of a squirrel that ran across the road. "The Doctor found us a way of getting there. I'll see you in a bit if I survive the drive."
"What do you mean."
"Let's just say I don't think the Doctor has legally taken a driving test."
The Doctor stuck his tongue out at the blonde who giggled before the phone call hung up. "Feeling better?" He asked.
"I was fine anyway."
"Well, you look like you're less likely to strangle me." He answered.
"Nah." Hollie shook her head and turned to him. "Just can't believe you're real, I feel like I'm going to wake up any minute and have to get up and go to work."
The Doctor nodded. "No idea how that feels like but this must be better than that, right?"
"Oh definitely." Hollie grinned before laughing as the Doctor pressed a button and the sirens started to blare.
A few minutes later Hollie ran Amy up again and could only hear crackling. "Amy?" The Doctor called as Hollie placed the phone on speaker. "Amy, what's happening?" He frowned when there was no answer. "
"Amy, talk to me!"
"We're in the coma ward, but it's here," Amy replied. "It's getting in."
"Which window are you?" The Doctor asked.
"What, sorry?" She frowned.
"What window are you near?" Hollie spoke up. "
"First floor, on the left, fourth from the end."
"Oh, dear little Amelia Pond." The Doctor and Hollie heard what they presumed to be Prisoner Zero speak up. "I've watched you grow up. Twelve years, and you or your little friend never even knew I was there. Little Amelia Pond and her best friend Holliaet Aria, waiting for their magic Doctor to return. But not this time, Amelia, Holliaet or your Doctor are nowhere to be found."
"Amy duck!" Hollie shouted into the phone. The gingers eyes widened and she quickly pulled Rory down as the glass of the window behind them shattered and part of a metal ladder entered the building. A moment later the Doctor followed by Hollie climbed into the hospital by the ladder. "Right!" The Doctor helped Hollie to stand. "Hello. Am I late?" He asked as Hollie and Amy hugged. "No, three minutes to go." He looked at the clock. "So still time."
"Time for what, Time Lord?" Hollie frowned slightly, swearing she had heard that word before, but what was a Time Lord and how could she have heard the word somewhere before?
"Take the disguise off." The Doctor told Prisoner Zero. "They'll find you in a heartbeat. Nobody dies."
"The Atraxi will kill me this time." If I am to die, let there be fire."
"Okay. You came to this world by opening a crack in space and time. Do it again. Just leave."
"I did not open the crack." Prisoner Zero replied.
"Somebody did."
"The cracks in the skin of the universe, don't you know where they came from?" Prisoner Zero smiled. "You don't, do you?" Prisoner Zero then changed her voice to the voice of a little girl. "The Doctor in the TARDIS doesn't know." It sang. "Doesn't know. Doesn't know!" It then changed its voice back to an adult. "The universe is cracked. The Pandorica will open. Silence will fall."
The Doctor smiled at the clock on the wall. "And we're off!" He pointed at it. "Look at that. Look at that!"
Hollie stared at the clock mouth open slightly in shock. "You actually did it." She then looked at the Doctor who grinned smugly before he looked at Prisoner Zero.
"Yeah, I know, just a clock." The Doctor shrugged. "Whatever. But do you know what's happening right now? In one little bedroom, my team are working. Jeff and the world. And do you know what they're doing? They're spreading the word all over the world, quantum fast. The word is out. And do you know what the word is? The word is Zero." He grinned. "Now, me, if I was up in the sky in a battleship, monitoring all Earth communications, I'd probably take that as a hint. And if I had a whole battle fleet surrounding the planet, I'd be able track a simple old computer virus to its source in, what, under a minute? The source, by the way, is right here." He pointed at Hollie's phone.
The Doctor, Hollie, Amy and Rory all looked at the window as a bright light shone in. "Oh! And I think they just found us!"
"The Atraxi are limited." Prisoner Zero countered. "While I'm in this form, they'll still be unable to detect me. They've tracked a phone, not me."
"Yeah, but this is the good bit." The Doctor grinned. "I mean, this is my favourite bit. Do you know what this phone is full of?" He asked. "Pictures of you. Every form you've learned to take, right here." He grinned. "Ooo, and being uploaded about now. And the final score is, no TARDIS, no screwdriver, two minutes to spare. Who da man?" He grinned and widened his arms. Hollie giggled and he grumbled. "Oh, I'm never saying that again. Fine."
"Then I shall take a new form."
"Oh, stop it." He waved an arm. "You know you can't. It takes months to form that kind of psychic link."
"And I've had years." Prisoner Zero grinned.
Rory's eyes widened as they saw Amy and Hollie fall to the floor in the corner of his eyes. "Amy!" The Doctor and Rory shouted. "Hollie!"
"No!" The Doctor shouted running over. "Hollie, Amy? You've got to hold on." He lightly shook Hollie "Don't sleep! You two have got to stay awake, please."
Rory looked up and his eyes widened. "Doctor."
The Doctor turned around and came face to face with himself, or rather Prisoner Zeros version of himself. "Well, that's rubbish." He frowned. "Who's that supposed to be?"
Rory frowned. "It's you."
"Me? Is that what I look like?" He looked at Rory who frowned slightly. "How can you not know what you look like?"
"Busy day." He answered and looked back at Prisoner Zero. "Why me, though? You're linked with her. Why are you copying me?"
The Doctor and Rory watched in horror as little, seven old Amelia walked out from behind the Doctor. The Time Lords eyes widened further than they already were as another little girl came out from behind the Doctor. A curly-haired blonde seven-year-old.
"I'm not. Poor Amy Pond. Still such a child inside. Dreaming of the magic Doctor she knows will return to save her and her best friend. What a disappointment you've been to them."
"No, they're dreaming about me because they can hear me." He turned to Hollie. "Hollie, don't just hear me, listen. Remember the room, the room in Amy's house you couldn't see. Remember you went inside. I tried to stop, but you did. You went in the room. You went inside. Hollie, dream about what you saw."
"No. No." Amelia and Holliaet both shouted. "No!"
They watched as Prisoner Zero transformed back into its natural form. "Well done, Prisoner Zero." The Doctor smiled. "A perfect impersonation of yourself."
"Prisoner Zero is located." The Atraxi stated. "Prisoner Zero is restrained."
"Silence, Doctor. Silence will fall." Prisoner Zero hissed.
Rory looked out of the window. "The sun. It's back to normal, right?" Rory asked. "That's, that's good, yeah? That means it's over."
Hollie groaned and stretched her arms before she blinked and rubbed her eyes. "Oh god, I was dreaming." She grumbled. "The Doctor was here and-" She froze seeing the Time Lord kneel down and stare at her. "Oh."
The Doctor smiled and extended arm, giving her his hand to help pull her up. Hollie took the gesture while Amy opened her eyes and blinked a couple of times before sitting up and frowning. "What happened?"
"He did it," Rory answered. The Doctor did it."
"No, I didn't." The Doctor answered and typed onto the phone.
"What are you doing?" Rory asked.
"Tracking the signal back." He typed in a phone number. "Sorry in advance, Hollie."
"For?" She frowned.
"The bill." He answered and held the phone to his ear. "Oi, I didn't say you could go!" He snapped. "Article fifty-seven of the Shadow Proclamation. This is a fully established level five planet, and you were going to burn it? What? Did you think no-one was watching? You lot, back here, now." He ended the call. "Okay, now I've done it."
"Did he just bring them back?" Rory asked as the Doctor walked towards the door. "Did he just save the world from aliens and then bring all the aliens back again?" Rory quickly followed.
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The new life of Samara, Chapter 2
New York was blooming on its fullest. Nevertheless, I am not a morning person and usually would be ready to shoot singing birds from my bedroom window, lately, I was quite happy and didn't mind to have my coffee at 5 AM. I've got used to the morning shifts as those were pretty much the main shifts I was currently working, but I didn't mind. I'm free by 4 PM and can go anywhere and explore the city of my dreams. During those three months that I've already spent here, I had a chance to visit Central Park Zoo, Rockefeller Center, Metropolitan Museum of Art (I went there four times actually), Times Square, Grand Central terminal.. and after seeing a Brooklyn Bridge with my own eyes, a new dream was born and I told myself that one day I will have an apartment with huge windows with direct views onto this magnificent bridge.
Actually, after three months of practice, I was pretty quick in the mornings. Every morning started with the same routine - brisk shower, a couple of sips of my black coffee, ten minutes to have my make up done and I was ready by 5:50 AM. I've put on jeans, a grey sweater and my favourite white leather converse sneakers. Even though it was the middle of April and during the day weather was just perfect, right now it was pretty chilly outside, so I took my oversized denim jacket with me and went out. As usually Lilly was waiting for me near the subway and was finishing her morning cigarette.
"So how it was yesterday after Peter announced that Jessica is leaving? " Lilly asked while we were running down the stairs to catch our train in time. She left our hotel meeting a bit too early yesterday and was quite curious about it.
"Well, it doesn't look good to me. If Jessica is leaving because she had an offer from Ritz and accepted that, she might be taking Amy with her, as they are working together for like... how long? " I wasn't sure about that.
"Five years, " Lilly précised "Yeah, I see what you want to say. But anyway, now they need to rush things up a bit as the wedding season starts like..now!"
"Do you think they have already someone on their mind?"
"Oh, Samara, please, Peter has lots of things to think about right now, I don't think an event manager is one of those things. " after saying that, she couldn't hide her sarcastic smile and we laughed together. The train was pretty full, so we caught a few negative looks. Yes, she was right, since Peter Roam, our general manager, found out that his youngest daughter Erica (who was Oxford graduate and human resource department trainee) is dating our porter Max, Mr Roam was kind of depressed.
After forty minutes or so, we were already dressed up in the uniforms and were ready to start our day. Lilly was working as a waitress in one of our hotel's restaurants so we separated on the way to the hotel lobby. I loved to arrive at work so early- the hotel was almost empty, most of the guests were still asleep in their perfect-white bedsheets, some of them were having their breakfast in our restaurant downstairs, quiet music in the lobby was creating a right mood for the upcoming day. Archie, my supervisor, was already on the spot and was checking out our regular guest Mr Collins. Usually, he arrived every week on Monday and stayed with us for two nights, but this time just for one.
"Good morning, Mr Collins. How are you today? " I've asked while entering front desk area and started to help Archie with Mr Collin's receipts, he needed all of them to be put in separate envelopes.
"Good morning, Samara! Nice to see you, I am well, thank you. How about you? Did you had a chance to visit the place I've recommended to you?" Mr Collins was a very nice gentleman in his late forties and was never against small talk.
"Oh, not yet, Mr Collins, but I've visited this exhibition in Queens, which you mentioned while staying with us at the beginning of the month."
"Isn't it remarkable? I have never imagined that photography could be so fascinating to me, but this guy, who took all those photos is just genius! " Mr Collins collected all six envelopes that I've handed to him, after that he quickly glanced at Archie and then his eyes returned to me, "And regarding this Portuguese place, perhaps I can join you and show you a bit around of that area?"
Archie became a statue and acted like never heard the last sentence. I would like to become a statue as well.
"This is so nice of you, Mr Collins, but sadly I've promised my mom to go there together. She is coming to NYC for the weekend." I've tried to be as polite as it was currently possible, but still, I had a feeling that it was not enough.
"That's delightful, darling! Hope you both will have a great time there," Mr Collins called our porter with just making eye contact "Please let me know how it was!"
Max was taking his suitcase and went outside to catch a taxi, Mr Collins slowly followed him.
"Thank you for staying with us, Mr Collins! Looking forward to welcoming you next week!" Archie was finally awakened.
"Goodbye, Mr Collins! Wishing you a great week!"
Mr Collins waved his hand and disappeared from our hotel's lobby. After two seconds, Archie came closer to me and whispered:
"Miss Simonee please, do remember that dating our guests is strictly forbidden," he tried not to laugh but didn't succeed.
"That is so gross, " I was trying to calculate an age gap between two of us, " I bet, he is older than my father."
After lunch, I head downstairs to the basement floor to see executive housekeeper Bella, as I signed up for a cross-training in housekeeping department later this month. Usually, it was very hard to catch Bella as she was everywhere, but this time she was in her office. After signing up a couple of papers, she informed me that my cross-training in her department will be divided in two days - the first day I will spend with a room attendant and the second one with supervisor and later on with her. I was delighted that I've got an opportunity to spend some time in other department and learn something new, but I would be even more thrilled if I could get an opportunity to spend some time in an event planning department as well. But now, when both Jessica and Amy are moving to Ritz (yes, Amy announced that to me during our coffee break this morning), there will be no one to learn from. And another thing that made me sad about it, is that there is no chance for me to get this position (or even apply) because my experience didn't seem enough for them.
"But you can still apply, darling. " I've shared my worries with Bella and she was trying to cheer me up.
"As Amy told me when she got hired, they requested minimum 2 years experience in the same position, which I do not have," I was folding all the housekeeping reports that I need to bring upstairs, "I mean, yes, my total hotel experience is like 5 years or so, yet most os that time I was working in housekeeping and front desk. I was there as an event coordinator just for ten months."
"You wanted to come here so desperately that you've agreed to front desk agent position?" she raised her eyebrows.
"Yeah, because it is still huge as this is The Plaza." I shrugged my shoulders.
While I was on my way to the front desk, carrying a folder Bella gave me after we finished our conversation, I've noticed that The Champagne Bar was full and our bartender, Larry, had just one waiter as help and it was getting too busy for two of them. I have grabbed a couple of beverage cards and distributed them to awaiting guests. Helped to clean up several dirty tables. When I was about to finally return to my actual working place without being fired, I've noticed two men impatiently searching for a waiter with their eyes.
"Good afternoon, may I assist you, are you ready to order?" I walked towards them hoping that order won't be big as I wasn't carrying any paper or notepad.
"Hi, would it be possible to get two espressos and one sparkling water, please?" Thank you, God!
"Absolutely. San Pellegrino would be fine?" and thank you, God, again, the only brand of sparkling water that I knew.
"Yes, thank you." guy collected both beverage cards from the table and handed them back to me. So nice of him.
"Thank you!" I took both beverage cards and walked away.
"Thanks for helping, dear!" Larry put his hand on my arm for a moment and smiled "Olly and Tim are on their way already."
"No worries," I've smiled back, "I took an order from those two gentlemen, who sit by the window, could you please get them two espressos and one sparkling Pellegrino?"
"Sure, see you!"
I've checked in a few of arriving guests and my shift was already coming to an end when suddenly I felt that something was wrong. It took me almost two minutes to understand what exactly was wrong and what I forgot to do. Shit, housekeeping folder. I immediately called Larry, asked Max to go and check the bar and find this damn folder, but it wasn't there. Moreover, it wasn't anywhere on the first floor. At the same time, I was ready to sign a resignation form because of losing a whole folder with private guest information, one of the espresso guys from the bar came to the front desk, with my folder in his hands.
"Hey, I think it belongs to you." I was finally holding this folder with my own hands.
"Thank you!"
"Take care!" he put back his sunglasses and went away smiling.
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you’re the closest to heaven that I'll ever be
(aka, the epilogue I suddenly found myself writing) 🙈♥️🤷♀️
season eight: you’re the closest to heaven that I’ll ever be
On New Years Eve of 2020, the Santiago-Peralta household is strangely quiet.
In the tastefully decorated living room a brightly coloured activity centre, complete with musical panels, sits neatly beside the beige sofa. Three of the warmest blankets in Brooklyn share space with a knitted Ninja Turtle themed throw, and strapped to the door frame of the reading room Amy had once considered her favourite space is a purple and yellow Jolly Jumper, a myriad of sensory developmental toys clipped along it’s edges.
There are five different flavours of baby food on the kitchen counter waiting to be put away, and the bedazzled invitation to Gina Linetti’s 2021-a-thon lays forgotten to the side, mixed in with the letters and correspondences that neither Jake or Amy have done more than skim their eyes over. Above the counter, below the precision-timed clock, hangs a framed photograph of the two of them on the night of their wedding, the happy glow of a freshly married couple still noticeable all these years later.
Having just hung up from an unnecessarily long conversation with her mother, Amy leans against the kitchen counter, sighing at the familiarity of the curved granite meeting her lower back. Mama Santiago means well; and as the mother of eight and abuela to five, has a lot of valuable tips and tricks up her sleeve. But this is Amy’s first child, and as much as she wants to do everything exactly right, she also wants her and Jake to figure things out as they go. A statement she’d had to repeat approximately eighty-nine times to Camila during that last phone call.
Twisting the rings on her finger, Amy smiles at the thought of all that she and Jake had been through in the past year. At eight months, their daughter Mia was tiny but fierce, and motherhood was both everything and absolutely nothing like she’d expected it to be.
There had been offers to babysit from friends and family alike in the last few weeks, but all of them had been met with a polite shake of both her and Jake’s heads. Sure, there were a lot of places that they could be tonight - and they’re probably missing out on an interesting experience at Gina’s - but truthfully, tonight there is nowhere they’d rather be than home.
(With any luck, they’d have their own wild night - and by wild, she means uninterrupted sleep for the next ten to twelve hours. Baby Mia had only just begun to sleep through the night, and both Amy and Jake were approximately 4,167 hours behind on their own slumber.)
Shaking off the last remnants of the phone call from her body, Amy tucks her hair behind one ear and looks around the kitchen, noticing the bottle of champagne that her husband had pulled out of the chiller earlier was still sitting to the side, unattended next to a spare lid for their daughter’s favourite bottle. Pouting her lips slightly, she glances at the clock, noting from it’s steady tick that it had been a good half hour since she’d heard from either Jake - and while silence in a house with a baby is usually a good thing, she’s also really curious what could be holding him up, and so Amy grabs the champagne with her left hand, shoving her phone into the pocket of her sweats with the other.
The condensation from the neck of the bottle drips onto Amy’s fingers as she makes her way down the short hallway, her socked feet moving carefully across the floor lest a squeaky floorboard should wake their sleeping beauty. Amy cranes her neck around the doorway once she’s reached her destination, and the sight inside simply makes her heart melt.
Jake sits inside their daughter’s room, on the oversized plush chair that a very pregnant Amy had insisted they buy, his eyes trained solely on their sleeping daughter. The delicately embroidered pillow made by Camila, with Mia’s name sewn in shimmering thread, remained gripped in his hands, his body leaning forwards as though at any given second he was going to climb into the cot and join their daughter. His eyes are soft when they flicker over to her, and he shrugs, giving Amy a sheepish look before turning back to Mia. “I just can’t stop watching her sleep. She’s so beautiful, Ames.”
Humming her agreement, Amy tiptoes into the room. While a relatively tight budget had meant that the nursery had remained the same colour as the rest of their apartment, she and Jake had chosen softer toned items for all the trimmings, and the mixture of excerpts from some of her favourite children’s authors and photographs of family that lined the walls never failed to bring her a sense of calm. Running her free hand along the edge of the dresser, she toys with the neatly folded onesie Jake had placed there earlier in the evening before resting the champagne bottle beside it, moving to stand beside her husband and run her hand through his hair. He was absolutely besotted with their little girl, and it was her favourite thing in the world to see.
Jake starts at the moistness of her fingers, looking up at Amy before noticing the champagne and he rubs his face in exhaustion, wedding band glinting in the soft light from the lamp set up behind him. “Oh right, I’d completely forgotten that I opened that before I put Mia to bed.”
Shrugging, Amy points her chin towards their daughter, moving both hands to Jake’s shoulders as she replies. “It’s a good thing you did, really. A popping champagne cork would definitely have meant saying good-bye to a sleeping Mia for the rest of the night.”
His laugh is soft as he nods, the memories of the first few nights with a screaming newborn still very fresh in both of their minds. “It’s crazy, though … how much I miss her when she’s literally right there.”
Amy’s heart swells to twice it’s normal size, thrumming against her rib cage as it tries to compensate for the sudden and overpowering amount of love she feels for her husband. She understands all the reasons why there was a part of Jake that was worried he would turn out to be a terrible father, but oh, how she wishes he could hear how sweetly he talks about their daughter. Turning slightly, she grabs the bottle of champagne and nudges Jake over on the plush seat, rubbing her shoulder against his as she settles into place. One of her favourite things about this chair - and the reason she’d been so insistent on buying it - was the fact that it was just big enough for two (if they snuggled); and in moments like this Amy would definitely consider it a worthy investment.
Reaching for the bottle and taking a slow swig, Jake uses his free hand to rest against Amy’s thigh, fingers tracing gentle patterns that she knows are unconsciously done. (They’d been together so long now that each of their bodies was an extension of the others, and she liked to think that the tiny swirls he made were representative to the myriad of coils in his mind, stretching and unfurling comfortably whenever she was around.) In front of them, resting her tiny head in the cot that Jake had put together (and definitely hadn’t lost his cool whilst doing so), was their baby girl - and she was literally the most beautiful thing.
“I still can’t believe we made her.”
“I know.”
“And that it’s been eight months already.”
“I know.”
Jake smiles, nudging the frame of his glasses up with the edge of his finger (a Tired Jake at home has no time for contacts). “She gave me the biggest smile tonight, when I lay her down and kissed her goodnight. It was like she was saying ‘goodnight, daddy!’ … without being able to actually say it, ya know?” His face scrunches. “God, I sound really stupid right now.”
Amy shakes her head, unable to keep the blissful smile from stretching across her face. “Not at all. This morning, I swear she almost said ‘mama’, but then she just kinda spit up everywhere.”
His shoulders shaking as he chuckles, Jake turns his head slightly to leave a commiserative kiss on Amy’s temple. “I’m sure she was trying to say it anyway, babe.”
Shrugging one shoulder, Amy looks up at her husband with a smile. “Maybe, but I doubt it. Her first word is definitely going to be Dada.” At Jake’s incredulous shake of his head, Amy persists. “She literally lights up when she sees you, babe. It’s adorable. You’re going to get first word, and I am totally okay with it.”
(Her first word, when she says it in a few weeks time, is in fact baba - aka, her bottle. But, it’s totally a compromise between mama and dada, and the parents take it with glee.)
Picking up the blanket mysteriously knitted by Tia Rosa, Jake drapes the material over Amy’s legs before clearing his throat. “So earlier this evening, I was scrolling through Facebook, and the sweetest photo came up on my timeline.” He pauses, digging for his phone and unlocking the screen with the dexterity of a man who has definitely trained himself to text without looking down. “See?” He continues, holding up the selfie he’d posted of the two of them last year, the festoon lights strung out on the fire escape casting their faces in a cool glow as they grinned up at the camera. “Hard to believe this was only a year ago, right? What a difference between then and now.”
“Oh god, that feels like forever ago,” Amy murmurs, her eyes running over the image as the memory of that night washes over her - right down to the feeling of their daughter still nestled in safely. “You were right, though. This year has been amazing. Even if we’ve forgotten what it’s like to have a quiet home for longer than five hours.”
“An amazing night is just another Peralta Guarantee, babe.” Jake winks, grinning. “And as crazy as it sounds, I’m all in for that screaming, Ames. I mean ... I’d like it a lot more if it was two in the afternoon, and not morning, but I’m here for it all the same.” He shakes his head at Amy’s offer of the champagne again, and she nods in agreement, setting it down on the floor.
Shuffling until her legs are draped over Jake’s lap, Amy reaches for her husband’s phone and types in her brother’s profile. “Chris did the same thing earlier tonight - look, it’s the same photo I sent to you all those years ago.” Jake smiles, eyes taking on a faraway look as Amy continues. “Man, I was so stupid back then. I was crushing so hard for you, and really thought that if I just put all my energy into my work, that it would just …. Go away, I guess.”
Jake nods, his arm wrapping further around Amy’s legs, rubbing the amazingly soft purls of wool between his fingers. “If only we’d been able to talk to each other about it … I would’ve warned you it was fruitless. I tried to forget how I felt about you for over a year. Obviously, it did not go well.”
“Do you think if we had told the rookie detective versions of ourselves, sitting in that unmarked car down at the docks, that one day we’d spend our entire evening watching our daughter sleep, that we’d believe them?”
His chest constricting with a restrained snort, Amy feels Jake shake his head above her. “There is no way I would have believed it for a second. I would have hoped, but …”
Wrapping one arm tight around Jake’s midsection, Amy looks up at her husband, genuinely wishing that even the smallest part of the amount of love she has for him right now is detectable in her gaze. “Lucky our heads caught up to our hearts, huh?”
Leaning in, Jake plants a gentle kiss against her lips. “I’m thankful every day.”
A muffled snore comes from the direction of the cot, and Mia stretches out her fists as she slips further into whatever dream she’s having. “Okay, seriously. Our daughter is literally the cutest baby ever to be born.”
“She really is.” And really, how else could they put it? She was tiny and beautiful and adorable and all those other words that always seemed to fail to come to mind when someone asks them to describe their daughter, because how can you relegate something so life-changing to just a few words? She laughs, a deep-from-the-belly kind of laugh, whenever Amy pretended to have a sneezing fit in front of her. Smiles so brightly that even her godfather Ray finds himself smiling right back. Grips her parent’s fingers with the strength of an army - and Jake swears that their daughter somehow took a seminar in utero, because she is her mother’s daughter - but Amy already knows that truly, both of them were 100% wrapped around their daughter’s little finger from the moment she was born.
Mia was a tiny tyrant, but their tiny tyrant; with deep brown eyes you could lose yourself in, messy curly hair, and a screaming voice louder than any infant had any right to have. But it only took one look from her: one slow blink, or the resting of her head on your shoulder, and suddenly everything was okay again. It took thirteen hours to birth her, and only one second to fall in completely in love, and Amy would do it all again in a heartbeat.
As her eyelids begin to grow heavy, Amy rests her head against Jake’s shoulder, relaxing completely as the combined scent of his shower gel and their daughter’s baby powder fills her senses. Before they close completely, her eyes shift towards the framed picture of her and Jake on their very first New Years Eve together as a couple. Oh, how far they’d come.
*
It’s several hours before she opens her eyes again, ears picking up on an unfamiliar but persistent pop sound coming from the window in their daughter’s room, and as her still-snoozing mind begins to wake up, Amy realises that both she and Jake had managed to sleep through it all.
Jake’s head is heavy on her shoulder, and as Amy cups his jawline in her hand and begins dotting kisses to his hairline, he mumbles himself awake, shrugging when Amy tells him that they’ve missed counting in the New Year completely.
His hand grips Amy’s steadily as she leads him over to the crib, neither able to resist the chance to check that their daughter was still just as perfect as she had been several hours ago, and with a stretch of his limbs Jake allows himself to be pulled away from the nursery, grabbing the baby monitor from the change table as he goes.
Both are asleep again before their heads even hit the pillows, completely unfazed at missing the countdown. This house, after all, was going to be filled with celebrations for so many years to come - whether their family expands or they stay as a unit of three - that a new year simply meant a new beginning. The future was ripe with possibilities, and they couldn’t wait to see what was in store.
#ok so now it's really finished#the fortunate ones#b99 fanfic#NYE Peraltiago stylez#title from the goo goo dolls#Jake x Amy fic#which yes I know is a little old but what a line!#mia is the name I've used so far so I'm just sticking with it now#feel free to read it as some other name if you prefer#we all have our list of faves!#b99 fandom events#b99 2020 vision challenge
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Budget Travel | 4 Hotels Under Rs5,000 in Morocco
A round-up of Moroccan hotels rich in both history and character, and oozing old-world charm, which fit tight budgets.
Hotels Morocco
Zac O’Yeah | POSTED ON: September 17, 2019
The classic among Moroccan hotels, Tangier’s Continental is a sight in itself with hallways and corridors that make one feel like Alice in Wonderland. Photo by: Zac O’Yeah
I wonder if there’s a name for my peculiar psychiatric condition—a pathological love for old hotels that aren’t part of impersonal global chains, but remain strictly local, personal, and rare. Actually, it’s not a bad condition to have, it just takes a bit more effort to track down the perfect hotel, but once I find it, I can usually be sure that I’m getting an unforgettable once-in-a-lifetime holiday. Some countries have a better stock of such forgotten gems and recently, as I toured Morocco, I found myself in heaven.
Tangier
Walking with the icons
At sunrise, the Hotel Continental looks golden, like a ruminating camel perched lazily on a cliff overlooking the Bay of Tangier. I’d heard from people in the know about the late 19th-century, 70-room hotel, and found the bargain rate of 400 dirham/Rs2,900 online, and seeing its palatial grandeur in reality instantly makes travelling all the way to North Africa seem worth it.
According to a sign, the hotel was built in 1870, and prides itself on being a “hotel musée”—which I understand to mean hotel museum though my Moroccan is not so good—and it certainly looks the part. Despite the stained-glass windows that let in colourful morning light, the lobby is gloomier than the Dark Ages and filled with things one would expect in a museum: an antique telephone switchboard, a bulky radio cabinet, a battered samovar, a concierge who never smiles. It extends into a spooky antiques shop with a creepy proprietor. There are smoking rooms with upholstered benches and faux oriental embroidered cushions, and a forlorn dining hall with crystal chandeliers, dark-wood sideboards and heavy drapes, where nobody ever seems to be eating. It’s like something out of an exotic period movie—and was in fact the setting for Bernardo Bertolucci’sThe Sheltering Sky (1990), starring John Malkovich and Debra Winger as depraved American tourists.
I’m led up labyrinthine corridors to a bright, second-floor room that’s quite the opposite of the rest: thoroughly modern and, on the plus side, overlooking the sandy Tangier beach and the Strait of Gibraltar. Apparently Edgar Degas used to paint the vista from one of these rooms. Back in the day, the hotel was a mandatory stopover for anyone who was anyone visiting Africa—kings and queens; two of my favourite writers, Mark Twain (“Tangier is a foreign land if ever there was one, and the true spirit of it can never be found in any book save The Arabian Nights,” he wrote in The Innocents Abroad), and W. Somerset Maugham; singer Amy Winehouse; and architect AntoniGaudí. I wish we could have all checked into the same room at the same time. What a party!
The historic quarters with their cafés (such as Cafe Colon in Rue de la Kasbah, which due to its 1940s ambience features prominently in Bertolucci’s film) are around the corner, and Tangier’s enigmatic relationship to time becomes clear as I GPS my way through the maze to Rue IbnBatouta, where the celebrated globetrotter and original travel writer was born in 1304, and where he is buried too. After a few days of blissing out on Tangier, it feels like a major tragedy that I haven’t booked a longer stay.
Where 36, Rue Dar el-Baroud; www.hotel-tanger.com; doubles from Rs2,900.
Foodie Facts Restorante al Andalus, a seven-minute walk from the hotel in an alley off Petit Socco, is a family-owned eatery founded ages ago by Italian expatriates. It has a reputation for serving the town’s best seafood, and I sample an excellent grilled swordfish with finger chips and shish kebab (100 dirham/Rs730).
Larache
A slice of local life from a breezy balcony
Grand Hotel España remains one of the finest relics of old Spanish colonial grandeur on the African continent and the well-kept rooms are a steal considering the fabulous location right in the centre of Larache. Photo by: Zac O’Yeah
From behind the Tangier bus station, the gareroutière, I catch a shared grand taxi as they’re called: ramshackle Mercedes vehicles that provide convenient, cheap travel from city to city (about 20 dirham/Rs145 per trip). My taxi is crammed and I’m flattened like a roti in a chapati-press, but luckily it’s not far to Larache.
Larache, a Spanish colony till 1956, is the most distinctive remnant of Spain in this part of Africa. I check into the 1930s vintage Grand Hotel España, where an airy, top-floor room costs 600 dirham/Rs4,400 and has balconies on two sides—the front one overlooking a roundabout with palms and a fountain. At night, I spy families taking in the cool air and children playing until late, while people watch football and cheer in the lively cafés; it’s a perfect perch for a voyeur.
The breakfast in the cute dining hall is sumptuous. A merry waiter covers my table with a petit déjeuner that includes Moroccan flatbread, a spicy omelette, grilled cheese sandwiches, sausage, olives, fruit salad, juice, and excellent Moroccan milky coffee.
A charming thing about Larache is that there are few other tourists, so no “tourist prices” and all that. I stroll about the neat, blue-painted alleys to a flea market and browse: everything is for sale, from vacuum-cleaners and spring mattresses to straw hats, guitar amplifiers and tagine cooking pots. Afterwards, I chill with a soda pop in Café Jean Genet, which is named after the French author-slash-jailbird immortalised in David Bowie’s “The Jean Genie,” who lies buried in the Spanish cemetery outside town. It is appropriately a favourite haunt of young hashish smokers.
Where 6 Avenue Hassan II, Plaza de España; phone +212 5399-13195; doubles from Rs4,400.
Foodie Facts Larache being a pleasant fishing harbour, there’s a superb seafood canteen, Puerta del Sol, with tables set in an alley right behind my hotel. A mixed platter with the odds and ends of the ocean—squid, prawns, a tuna steak, fried flatfish, deep-fried cuttlefish and a small shark complete with teeth and eyes—served with sides of meaty lamb sausages, finger chips, seafood paella, olives and a tasty bean stew, costs 130 dirham/Rs950.
Casablanca
A window into Morocco’s French quarters
Tangier’s Continental straddles a promontory on the edge of the city’s old medina and has grand views across the sea to Spain and Gibraltar. Photo by: Zac O’Yeah
In Casablanca, the thing to do is to stay in the art deco quarters built by the French around a hundred years ago, which remain remarkably well-preserved. I’ve tracked down Hôtel Guynemer as its facade is mentioned as one of the sights in town, and booked a 450 dirham/Rs3,350 room via email. It seems like a good deal.
Guynemer opened its doors in 1909, and the lobby doesn’t show signs of having been renovated ever since art deco went out of fashion. The concierge tells me rooms are 650 dirham.
“But in the email you wrote 450.”
“We have no such rooms. There is a room for 360 but it is dirty.” It sounds like a typical tourist scam.
Checking the rooms, it turns out the more expensive one is completely modern and unappealing. The cheap room oozes charm, but is shabby, and the bathroom bulb is broken so it’s impossible to see where to pee. I ask the concierge if he has another cheapie. He grumpily gives me a key to what turns out to be a neat chamber with a high ceiling, kitschy art and the largest bathroom I’ve seen in Morocco—as big as the room itself.
And I have the heart of the city right outside my doorstep. Here, French architects were given free reign and so they tried to create a paradisiacal version of France: a neo-Moorish dream fantasy of wide, endless palm-lined boulevards dotted with charming small eateries, sidewalk cafés and smoke-filled bars.
Where 2, Rue Mohammed Belloul; guynemerhotel.net; doubles from Rs3,350.
Foodie Facts Trotting past the slightly dilapidated Marché Centrale, I contemplate hitting the fishmongers’ hall to gobble up basketfuls of fresh oysters, but decide to instead save my appetite for Taverne du Dauphin, the well-known 1958 seafood bar (115, Boulevard Felix Houphouet). It turns out to be the type of quiet joint one can easily love. A few other leisurely customers sit at the counter and the attentive bartender immediately serves me a half-bottle of chilled Moroccan white wine and a plate of spiced olives. Soon enough my food arrives, piquant pil-pil mussels, deep-fried smelt (which tastes a bit like Indian Bombay duck), and a lean umbrina fillet with pan-seared veggies. Since the fishing port is just across the road, everything feels eminently fresh and worth the 315 dirham/Rs2,300 (inclusive of the wine and a couple of local beers).
Marrakech
That hotel which feels like home
It is very crucial to book oneself into a quiet back alley hotel such as Hotel Le Gallia in Marrakech (top) where one can recover one’s senses between bouts of sightseeing and shopoholism; Colourful Marrakech is Morocco’s main tourist attraction with madness levels to match, like at Jemaa el-Fna (bottom), the big square in old town, a day-and-night spectacle of street food, souvenirs, and entertainers who tell stories or play music. Photo courtesy: Hotel Le Gallia (interior), Photo by: Pavliha/E+/Getty Images (market)
After Casablanca, I head into what might be termed Moroccan Morocco, deep into the deserts at the foot of the Atlas Mountains, where the railroad ends, in Marrakech. While waiting for the train, I buy a packed sandwich as the trains don’t have restaurant cars, just the good ol’ snack trolley. The compartments are crammed with travellers but I find myself a seat. My chatty co-passengers from Ohio, Jack and Jill, are on a tour of Africa and tell me that they have a world map on their wall (at home in the U.S.) into which they put little pins for every place they visit. They’re trying to pin down Morocco now.
From Marrakech station it’s a short taxi ride to the old town and—typically for this touristy city—the driver demands five times the meter rate to drop me near the main square, Jemaa el-Fna, known for its flamboyant show of street food and busking musicians. Hotels in this area are rather tricky to find, as they are hidden deep inside winding alleys. Eventually I discover the extremely unassuming lane off the main pedestrian Rue Bab Agnaou that leads to mine. Once I walk down Rue de la Recette, it turns out to be an oasis of calm compared to the madness of Jemaa el-Fna.
Although there are luxury hotels aplenty, savvy visitors check into riads, traditional palatial homes built to shut out the hustle-bustle with rooms facing inner courtyards. Most riads have been bought by moneyed foreigners, who restore them to their former glory and decorate them with Berber textiles, ethnic mosaics and brassware—plus all the mod-cons and then some. However, riads tend to be over-the-top pricey (Rs40,000 per night is not unusual for a “budget” stay) so I select something in between a full-blown riad and a pension, the 1929-built Hotel Le Gallia. This family-owned guest house has some 20 rooms along a maze of corridors overlooking the greenery of its two courtyards with quaint fountains. My spacious ochre-painted room (470 dirham/Rs3,500) is like a cottage on the roof with views over the neighbourhood, perhaps my finest stay in all of Morocco. There’s no breakfast included, but on the other hand Jemaa el-Fna is just around the corner with cafés for people-watching—Café de France perhaps being the best pick with its terraces and balconies and variety of combo breakfasts for 40-55 dirham (from Rs300 and up). Try the Moroccan options, such as a pancake called m’semen, spicy omelettes, and great coffee.
Within walking distance there are as many souvenirs to buy as one’s bulkiest luggage can handle. Stop for a drink at the most luxurious hotel of Morocco, La Mamounia, which was built around the same time as Le Gallia and which has hosted everybody from Edith Piaf to John Lennon and Jennifer Aniston (Avenue Bab Jdid; www.mamounia.com). Not to mention Winston Churchill, who was kown to sit in the garden and paint when he wasn’t drinking at the bar. I avoid the “Sir Winston cocktail” (rather expensive at 320 dirhams/Rs2,400, nearly the cost of my room in town), and instead go for a glass of the brilliant house red wine (190 dirham/Rs1,400).
Where 30, Rue de la Recette; www.hotellegallia.com; doubles from Rs3,500.
Foodie Facts For dinner, hardcore carnivores would do well to try Chez LamineHadj Mustapha in the alley north of Jemaa el-Fna. Their speciality is méchoui du four (170 dirham/Rs1,250 per kg), which is typical of the Atlas Mountain tribes and consists of a whole goat slowly baked in a hole in the ground. It gets crowded ever since the tiny eatery has been featured on BBC, but the meat does not disappoint—it certainly melts in the mouth.
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On the road to Sin City
A last hurrah after ten months in the USA.
The final trip on my American adventure; bringing a year I will never forget to a spectacular end.
Until next time, America, stay rad.
San Francisco
San Francisco is possibly my favourite city I've visited in America so far. The quaint houses nestled amongst skyscrapers and perfect bay views were so beautiful.
After our 19 hour bus journey through the spectacular Oregon countryside we were able to meet up for brunch with my brother, Gaz and his friend, Charli in the Ferry Building. Heads up, Marketbar does great pancakes!
We then headed over past Crissy Field to The Golden Gate Bridge. Cloaked in mist and indescribably large; we spent an afternoon strolling across, watching the whales swim 220ft below us.
Luckily, the fog held off just enough so the Bridge could eerily show off its crimson towers for us once we got to the other side.
Thankfully, the city wasn't as foggy as the Bridge so the 360° view from the top of Coit Tower, below, was nothing short of perfect.
Check out the restaurants in North Beach for dinner. There’s plenty of good Italian eateries! Make sure to head to Vesuvio Cafe, a quirky hidden gem, for drinks on the way home if you get chance.
The next morning, I think the cherry on the cake was that we were able to meet Gaz, Charli and, Ben and I’s friend, Amy to catch the San Francisco Pride Parade.
I’d never been to Pride before and I'll be forever grateful I got the opportunity to experience it. We didn't stop dancing and tapping our feet to the music of passing floats all morning!
It was heartwarming to see so many people from all walks of life lining the parade to show their support and solidarity. In the end, the parade, and the party that came with it, lasted well over 3 hours.
In the afternoon, we went back out to the Bay. We took a walk round the Palace of Fine Arts, which is beautiful might I add, with Amy before checking out Lombard Street; famously branded as “The World’s Crookedest Street”.
They weren’t lying! With no less than eight hairpin turns, it’s almost impossibly twisty, and impossible to photograph!
From there, we walked down to Ghirardelli Square; a pretty courtyard with some great bars, restaurants and shops.
Eat at Lori’s; a 50’s-esque diner with gorgeous bay views. Skip out on desert though and do the rounds of the numerous different Ghirardelli’s shops to fill up on free chocolate samples instead!
If you’re heading downtown, take a cable car back to Union Square. The views at night are unbeatable!
The next day Ben and I took a ride over to San Francisco Zoo. It was such a lovely place but this little pair of cuddling meerkats, below, won my heart!
We spent a good few hours taking in the sun, sea views and all the weird and wonderful animals from their different zones.
We then stopped off at The Painted Ladies; lining one end of Alamo Square and providing the perfect mix of old and new.
Relax in the park for a while before taking the short walk to the vintage stores, street art and coffee shops of Castro and the Mission District. Valencia Street, recommended to us by Charli, is a particularly good choice!
Later in the afternoon we met up with Amy again at Pier 39 where we ate at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Forrest himself would have been proud of the food! We whiled away the evening with some cocktails before heading home via Fisherman’s Wharf.
I left Ben on our last day to take the short boat ride out to Alcatraz Island; the prison on which somehow always seemed to dominate the horizon and had had me captivated for years.
Below, the imposing rows of cells that line Broadway can be seen; although D Block, or solitary confinement, was particularly bleak.
Outside you can see the remains of political graffiti from Alcatraz’s rich past while being treated to beautiful views and, at that time of year, fluffy baby sea birds everywhere!
Luckily, I managed to escape The Rock alive, and without a spoon, before meeting Ben and heading back to Pier 39. We found the Crêpe Café; a cute french crêperie about half way along Pier 39. They do sweet and savoury crêpes; great to munch on while watching the sea lions!
We then headed over to the Presidio, finding a beach to sit on in the fading sunlight for one last parting view of the Golden Gate...
Yosemite National Park
The next leg of our trip, from San Francisco to Lake Tahoe, involved a lot of driving, and a lot of Motown (thanks DJ Benji).
Tunnel View, above, was our first main port of call and is probably one of the most recognisable views of the Valley and rightly so. Somehow one viewpoint manages to capture almost all the main attractions. El Capitan towers above the valley floor on the left and as you pan round you find Half Dome and finally Bridalveil Fall glistening in the sun.
We then carried onwards and upwards to Glacier Point; clambering to the top of a large rock where we were just in time to be treated to the most beautiful sunset. The shadow slowly moved up the face of Half Dome and the surrounding mountains turned a candy floss pink! One of those moments where no description or photo will do it justice...
The next day we set off into the Valley and arrived at Bridalveil Fall. Even though it was early the spray from under the waterfall was welcome in the heat.
We then carried on to meet Martyna, who we had met whilst in San Francisco, and went to Yosemite Falls together. The Falls are the tallest in North America but as we walked closer, the Upper Falls crept out of view until most of the 2,450ft was out of sight by the time we got to the bottom of the Lower Falls.
Before saying goodbye to Martyna and the Yosemite Valley, she offered to take us on one more short hike to one of her favourite spots in the park. She called this The Couch and the view was spectacular!
We sat a while and shared a couple of beers while taking in the view of the Royal Arches and Half Dome, both standing proudly before us. We then regrettably said our goodbyes and got back on the road, heading north for the sequoias of Calaveras Big Trees.
Calaveras Big Trees State Park
After a minor incident involving 1) our entire food supply being in cans 2) our lack of can openers and 3) the apparent lack of can opener merchants in California, it was late when we arrived so we were in the dark when it came to the beauty of our surroundings, literally!
We woke up the next morning to glorious sunshine and uninterrupted views of the forest. Gold star for us for blind tent placement!
Spending the morning walking amongst giant sequoias was humbling. They are the largest living things on the planet and many of them are well over 3000 years old.
Also, the sugar pine cones that were everywhere were bigger than our heads, so that was cool...
The tree below is know as the Empire State Tree. It is probably the largest tree in the North Grove at 18 feet in diameter and so tall, even lying on the floor wouldn’t fit it all in the photo!
We spent a couple of hours following the winding North Grove trail. Pick up a guide at the beginning of the trail if you can so you can spot all the major trees!
Sadly, we were only able to spend the morning wondering the trails and were unable to make it to Louis Agassiz, the largest tree in the park at 25 feet, down in the South Grove.
We set off once more, this time bound for the crystal clear waters of Lake Tahoe!
Lake Tahoe & Sacramento
We arrived at South Lake Tahoe in the mid afternoon and headed straight for the lake front.
Before leaving I’d scouted out a kayak rental place and before we knew it we were on the water whiling away an hour.
The snowy mountains helped us at least try to hold on to the cooler weather before we hit 43° Las Vegas...
We headed over to Sugar Pine Point State Park, our home for the night, and the drive up was stunning! Stop off at a viewpoint overlooking Emerald Bay if you can for picture perfect views.
For the first time, we had the luxury of getting to our camp site in the light! Finally we were able to have a relaxing night with a few beers and campfire chilli!
The next morning we headed down to the Park’s lake front for a quick paddle before embarking on the final leg of our mini road trip back to San Francisco.
The water was unbelievably clear and as blue as you can imagine. They high altitude means pollution is at a minimum.
We stayed a while and watched the waves roll in until we finally had to set off.
On the way back to the airport we took a quick stop in Sacramento, California’s capital. We only had a couple of hours so we stopped off in Old Sacramento; an old timey Wild West style area of the city with boardwalk lined streets and quirky shops and speakeasies.
Here, we found possibly the best looking record store I've ever had the pleasure of browsing in; right in the heart of Old Sacramento. If only I’d have had space in my bags for some of the gems in here...
Alas, I did not, and our journey continued!
Las Vegas, Hoover Dam & The Grand Canyon
We arrived in Las Vegas to blistering 43° heat! Brilliant; unless like us you decide to walk half of the 6(ish) mile strip in the middle of the day...
At least our walk wasn’t in vain; culminating under the Eiffel Tower in a place called Beer Park. Dare I say the best bar in Las Vegas? Certainly one where we spent the majority of our time! The view of the Bellagio's fountains across the road is almost as good as the beer selection.
That evening we managed to catch Caesar’s Palace’s Independence Day fireworks with some friends from OSU before introducing them to Beer Park too!
Day 2 in Vegas saw us taking the three hour trip out to the Grand Canyon. I’ll admit, I’m more of a PNW forest kind of girl but there’s a certain charm to the Nevada/Arizona desert in high summer, so the views along the way were more than enough to keep us entertained on the drive!
Our first stop was the Hoover Dam; an awe inspiring feat of engineering and a certain novelty in being able to walk between two time zones...
Sadly, we didn’t have the time to travel out to the National Park on the south rim but the views on the west rim were, I hope, just as spectacular.
Below, Ben models a very hazy Grand Canyon in the mid afternoon heat. Haze or not, the size and beauty is indescribable and the fact it is all there due to the forces of nature is hard to comprehend.
My only regret is that we were not able to spend longer taking in the sights...
The next day was 4th of July, Uncle Sam’s birthday, and a day we mostly spent drinking with new friends at our hostel’s pool! We were so lucky to meet so many amazing people from all over the world on this trip, and the majority of them here in Las Vegas!
Later in the evening we all headed down to the Strip. Possibly the most memorable experience of the trip was spending 4th of July on top of the Stratosphere with everyone and watching the entire sky light up with fireworks.
Being our second to last night, we really ended our trip with a bang!
We ended the night on Fremont Street in downtown Vegas. Head to the neon lights and zip lines of the Fremont Street Experience if you want to see a more casual side of Vegas. There are some good bars and restaurants so you can have a great party without the expense of the Strip’s big casinos!
This was the second time Ben and I had been now. We all got drunk and danced in the street. People filmed us. It was great.
The next morning it was time to say our goodbye’s to Vegas and to America.
Of course, we headed back to Beer Park for some hair of the dog and then explored the rest of the strip with Baer from our hostel. You’d have thought we’d have learnt our lesson on the first day but I guess the heat had finally fried our brains...
Time to go home.
Instagram: @rhianlaaa
LP Trips: trips.lonelyplanet.com/ontheroadtosincity
#san francisco#yosemite national park#calaveras big trees state park#las vegas#lake tahoe#hoover dam#grand canyon#california#nevada#arizona#usa#america#travel#adventure#road trip#adventuring with rhian
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POSTCARDS FROM THE WEEKEND – LUTTRELL’S TOWER
Breakfast with a view. This last weekend, we were lucky to be invited by The Landmark Trust, to stay at their atmospheric property Luttrell’s Tower in Southampton. We packed up a car with two of our favourite people, their 7-month-old and everything we needed for a two day break, then headed along the coast for a couple of days of relaxing and restorative sea air.We arrived at dusk and after getting a little lost eventually found our way to the tower, looming in all its glory out of the winter night sky. Built around 1780, Luttrell’s is a private tower on the shores of the Solent, with smugglers tunnels and breathtaking views of the sea. A magical place where you can sit and watch boats passing for days on end. The dusty blue doors beckoned us in and we explored the rooms on our ascent up the winding tower stairs. The blue room has huge windows and shutters to batton down for privacy and protection from the elements. Simply furnished with antiques and traditional decor this room looks out onto the sea, gardens and woodlands nearby. Up the winding stairs to the next level, the green room has smaller windows for a cosy feel, with more antiques and etchings of historical voyages. Gold accents with rich rugs, wooden floors and more of that coastal light, sleeping and waking in this building is an absolute pleasure. As I said, we arrived at dusk and all piled in with our bags and boxes. We pre-prepared an evening meal for each night so we could spend as much time relaxing as possible. Friday night was spent sitting at the huge bay window facing out into the darkness with the sound of the wind and sea for music. Arriving after dark we didn’t know what to expect when the sun came up. I spent the evening excitedly wondering how close the sea was and what the view would be when we woke up the next day. The living space is bright yellow with huge windows on three sides, a fireplace and comfy chairs for fireside relaxing. I didn’t capture every detail of this room as a whole, if you ever visit (which I highly recommend) it is just so lovely to discover for yourself. I baked two batches of granola to fill a big jar for the weekend and we had breakfast using the beautiful Landmark Trust crockery. I fell in love with the blue and white patterned china now need to find a teapot just like this!The view was everything we hoped and more. I ran up the winding stone stairs to an 8am view of waves rolling in and boats slowly gliding by like huge metal swans on a rippling lake. The sky was pale blue-grey, the breeze gently fluttering the silvery green leaves of the Ilex trees below.We sat here for breakfast and an hour or two later for tea and cake. Then it was time to search the basement for the secret tunnel that leads to the beach for a fresh air walk, a snuggled sleep for this little one below and some seaside treasure hunting.With winding stairs in both directions, we climbed all the way to the top of the tower for a blast of sea air before heading all the way down to the underground tunnels – our direct route to the beach. Dusty green Cyclamen leaves decorated the sleeping winter garden, while daffodil and crocus tips peeked through the soil, waiting for warmer days to pop their petals out. We found shells, seaweed and branches softened by their time in the waves. Bringing them all home to take a closer look and read entries from all the previous guests of the tower, dating right back until 1971. Inside the volumes are beautiful drawings, paintings, poems and detailed descriptions of holidays passed – and some beautiful handwriting! Later, a bit more boat watching, a very soothing pastime indeed. Ferries, fishing boats, yachts and container ships all navigating the water between the two islands. As the light fades, across the water the lights of the Isle of Wight start to twinkle out of the darkness. The best way to enjoy a place like this is to pack everything you need so no time is wasted away from the magic and history of the property. We didn’t leave the grounds for our whole visit – except for our beach meander.My top tip if you stay here is to go down to the Bijou bathroom before dinner, draw yourself a bath, pop a candle in the alcove, shut the door and open the porthole window to listen to the evening wind rushing by. I took some of my favourite Aesop beauty products with me and had a mini spa half hour before getting dressed and heading back up to the dining room for dinner, bliss.The place has a feeling of an Agatha Christie novel about it (in a good way)! Inside there is everything you need for preparing food and truly taking some time out the real world. To sink back into history and really enjoy some calm. For those who can’t quite sit still, there are interesting books, games and puzzles. We loved reading about Luttrell’s Tower throughout history. We were sad to leave the rustling hydrangeas and pack the car for home. I’d love to visit this place in all seasons to see how its surroundings change.These are the top five places on my Landmark Trust visit wish list –
1. Danescombe Mine – Calstock, Cornwall. Nestled in the woods this is the engine house of a former mine. The living room leads onto wooden decking where you can sit out and overhear the stream running past the back door and wonder what life was like here a century ago
2. Hanmers – Lundy, Bristol Channel, Devon. A fisherman’s hut, Hanmers was built by a fisherman in 1902. He chose a good site, a dip in the hill, on the path from the beach to the castle, so the place is sheltered but has the usual wonderful view out to sea towards Devon.
3. La Maison des Amis – Gif-sur-Yvette, Essonne, France. La Maison des Amis is one of the guest cottages created by the Duke and Duchess of Windsor in the grounds of Le Moulin de la Tuilerie. The ground floor opens onto a private terrace overlooking the main gardens; the first floor is open to the original roof timbers and also has views of the gardens and woodland beyond.
4. The Pineapple – Dunmore, Central Scotland. An eccentric 18th-century summer house built in the shape of a pineapple – it presides over a walled garden, while at the back is a private garden for those staying. It is an eccentric work, of undoubted genius, built of the very finest masonry.
5. Cul-na-Shee – Saddell, Kintyre, Argyll and Bute. Cul na Shee means ‘nook of peace’ in Gaelic and this simple weathered boarded cottage is well-named. Set in a stunning location on Saddell Bay on the east coast of Kintyre, it looks out across the Kilbrannan Sound to the Isle of Arran. Here in the 1920s a schoolteacher, the daughter of a local minister, built herself a simple home for her retirement, on the grass behind a rocky beach.
Collaboration Note: Our stay at Luttrell’s Tower was a welcomed gift from The Landmark Trust to highlight one of their amazing properties – all words are my own. Photos by Dean and myself.
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#28 from the Fictober prompts! I absolutely adore your fics! Xo
Here’s a little bit of fun for you, Anon! 😊
#28 - “Enough! I heard enough.”
Set in S7 😝. (A thousand thank you’s to @b99peraltiago for helping me with this one! You’re the best Adele 😃)
classified information
“Enough! I’ve heard enough.” Shaking his head in defeat, Jake slaps one hand across his brow, wedding band feeling cold against the bridge of his nose. Taking in a deep breath, he tries to regulate his thoughts before letting his hand slide further down.
The knife-twisting-in-his-gut feeling that came from a betrayal like this didn’t seem to be subsiding. If anything, as his hand slides down towards his neck and Jake looks over at his wife, the feeling was only getting worse.
She has the decency to look morose as she watches him react to her news, eyebrows knitting together to form that are you okay expression that has pulled so many confessions out of him in the past. Her eyes and wide and sincere, and he knows - he knows - that she never intended to hurt him.
“I didn’t mean for you to find out like this,” she whispers, eyes full of regret as she takes a tiny step closer. Instinctively, Jake takes a responding step backwards. “I wanted it to come from me.” Her voice firmer, she shakes her head. “It should have come from me.”
Jake shakes his head. “Doesn’t change what happened.” He’s being petulant, he knows. But he just can’t believe what he’s just heard. He tells her as such, shaking his head as both hands land on either hip. “I can’t believe you didn’t call me.”
Amy’s shoulders drop, her hands moving to fold in front of her chest as she watches him carefully. “I couldn’t have, Jake. You know that.”
Realistically, she’s right. He knows that she’s right. And what’s worse - he knows that she knows that he knows she’s right. But the truth still cuts like a knife. “Not even a text, Ames?” he mumbles, casting his eyes to the floor before looking back up. “A sneaky photo or two?”
She sighs, her shoulders rising and falling with the action, and suddenly he’s desperate for the feeling of her arms around him. “I’ve told you already, babe. It was - ”
“Classified information.” They say it in unison, Jake’s tone noticeably less interested in the importance of such a concept.
There had been less than an hour left in his shift when he first heard the whispers - that there had been a theft at a film set not far from the precinct. He’d shrugged, less than interested - Brooklyn was often the go-to location for film shoots. This was New York, after all. And after his less than favourable foray into TV sets, Jake had made it a personal rule not to get involved in the trappings of Hollywood.
Then the rumours began to grow. It’s a High Profile set. A big star is involved, they said. So big, that only the Sarge is involved.
And to be honest, when Jake heard Sarge, his mind went straight to Terry. To him, Amy was just Ames - his wife; his moon and stars … the love of his life. He rarely referred to her as Sarge. (Except, you know, occasionally. For Sexy Reasons. Because, when somebody as sexy as Amy Santiago stands in front of you in full uniform and tells you to start stripping, you comply.)
And then he remembered that Terry was a Lieutenant now, and that the Sergeant they were referring to was most likely Amy, and Jake grew a little more curious about this supposed Big Star. He’d even sent her a text, mentioning the whispers, and when she replied only a moment later with an It’s no big deal, babe - nothing exciting, he’d pushed it all out of his mind.
Turns out it was, in fact, a big deal.
A big deal, because the secret celebrity that Amy met with today, was none other than Bruce Willis.
Bruce Willis.
AKA, John McClane.
Jake’s wife, Amy Santiago, had met Bruce Willis today. And she hadn’t even called him.
Or texted.
Or snuck in a sneaky selfie, immediately-erasable-via-Snapchat-stylez.
She had touched the brightest star in the cosmos, and hadn’t even brought him back a sparkle.
There were so many things wrong with this situation, Jake genuinely didn’t know where to begin.
In the end, it was Gina who spilled the beans. Which was impressive really, considering she didn’t even work at the Nine-Nine anymore (and there would be some who debate if she ever really did). Sending Jake a text about how ‘ya wife had just upped her cool points by spending the afternoon with Bruce Willis’, and ‘also do you think Arnie could ask Bruce if he would attend my next book launch party?’ - a text that Jake had stared at for a solid five minutes, distracted only when Amy swung open the front door of their apartment, finally home after what had obviously been a huge day.
Her smile had been bright, and on any other day Jake would have pulled her in for a kiss, but the idea of Amy meeting his childhood hero and not telling him was still hanging over Jake’s head, and he found himself rooted to the spot.
It had taken her mere seconds to confess, in a way that in hindsight made Jake realise that she had, in fact, wanted to tell him all day - but hearing the details was turning out to be worse than not knowing at all.
Because not only had Amy met Bruce Willis, she got to walk around a film set ALL DAY with him. Met his co-stars - interviewing various actors for information regarding the case; having lunch with him when the clues took longer to catalog than she had anticipated. Shared his salad, in fact, when she realised that she was allergic to all the options available at craft services.
All of this, while Jake was sitting at his stupid dumb desk, writing up boring paperwork for his mundane grand theft auto case.
Sometimes, life just wasn’t fair. And so he raised his hands in surrender, calling out Enough!, and for now their apartment was quiet.
He feels his head drop, and in a second Amy’s gentle hands are on his arms, and it’s like a drop of water in the middle of a desert. Jake’s arms are around her waist in a millisecond, pulling Amy closer, sighing as the comfort of the touch of his favourite person. They stay like that for a few minutes, both of them too comfortable to move, until Jake pulls away with a mumble about taking a shower.
She offers her company, and he shakes his head no - unable to push away the morose feeling that was hanging over his head, a heavy storm cloud threatening to break at any second. It must be obvious to her, how he’s feeling (and in a way, it probably always is), and he watches her face turn from contemplative to confused, arms returning to their crossed position in front of her chest. “Are you … angry at me about this?”
Jake shrugs, noncommittal in his response.
Amy’s eyes narrow into an all-too-familiar look. “Jake, I was assigned this case because of my discretion. Of course I thought of you when I realised who I was interviewing today. But I had to be careful, babe. If we’d compromised such a publicised case like this … it would have been disastrous.” Her forehead creases as she looks down at the floor. “What’s more, it would have reflected poorly on me.”
Jake feels his heart drop down to his feet as the realisation that his reaction to Amy’s day has only made her doubt herself. He knows that in the larger scale of things, he was probably overreacting to it all. Perhaps it was the fact that his birthday was around the corner, and he was getting closer and closer to facing that number 40. Or that whenever he’d brought up the topic of the upcoming celebration for said birthday, his friends and colleagues seemed less than enthusiastic about doing anything with him. Whatever the reason, he just couldn’t shake the feelings swimming around his mind. Clearing his throat, he looks up at Amy, waiting until her head has lifted before speaking. “I’m not angry at you, Ames. I’m not. I just … it just kills me that I wasn’t there. And that I found out from Gina.”
Amy’s mouth twists slightly. “I get that. I was trying to get home to tell you as quickly as I could.” She hesitates. “Honestly, if anything I would’ve expected it to come from Boyle.”
“BOYLE?” Jake replies, eyes widening. “Charles was there?”
Her teeth sink into her lower lip. “Kind of, yeah.”
Will this horrible day EVER end? He shakes his head, despondent, repeating his need to take a shower. Perhaps, if he tried hard enough, he could wash this whole thing away.
*
An hour has passed when Amy runs her hand along the back of Jake’s shoulders, the familiar scent of her favourite perfume wafting over him as she moves from the back of the couch to stand in front of him. He looks up, trying his best to plaster on an I’m fine face, a mask he knows she can see straight through, already feeling ridiculous for such petulant behaviour earlier.
She smiles, reaching her hand out for his. “You and I need to get out of this house, babe.”
His hand grabs hers, as automatic an action as breathing by now, and shakes his head. “I’m not sure I’d be the best company tonight, Ames.”
Her fingers squeeze, tugging slightly until he’s being pulled from the couch. “You’re the only company I could ever want, Peralta. Now come on, let’s just grab dinner somewhere. I’ve got the perfect place in mind.”
Jake’s nose is buried in a game on his phone for the majority of the drive to their destination, and when Amy pulls their car into the parking space he looks around in confusion, eyebrows knitting when he doesn’t recognise any of the storefronts his eyes catch. “Ames?” he asks, turning towards his wife, cocking his head to the side when she winks in response.
“So maybe I’m not thinking dinner after all,” she giggles, pointing towards the sign just slightly outside Jake’s peripheral. An oversized panel, with flickering fluorescent letters spelling out Johnny’s Laser Tag lights up the otherwise dark carpark. “I think that maybe you need to blow off some steam.”
He smiles, the first genuine smile in what feels like the entire evening, nodding enthusiastically when she mentions that she’d also ordered a pizza to be delivered to the same address. She really is his Dream Girl. And it was ridiculous of him to have reacted the way that he did.
The apology is still forming in his head as he follows her into the building, not noticing the lack of literally anybody else until they’re well past the front lobby, Amy’s hand tugging him towards the central game zone with an eagerness he hasn’t seen all night. He’s trying to slow her down, pull her back towards him for a second, when suddenly there’s a bright flash of light, and an overwhelming shout of SURPRISE!
He’s blinking in confusion and Amy is grinning and he can hear the unmistakable squeal of an overexcited Charles somewhere in the background, and when all of the elements finally merge together in his mind, Jake realises that just about every person he has ever met is standing in front of him, smiling from ear to ear. There are happy birthday banners and balloons and streamers and music playing in the background, and he’s so happy that he could just about burst. Without hesitation, he pulls Amy in for a kiss, so full of joy and love and gratitude for her that words have completely failed him.
It’s another hour before he notices Amy checking her phone almost obsessively, brushing off his questions with her multiple methods of (admittedly successful) distraction. He’s one more glance away from pulling her into a quiet corner so that he can finally figure out what is on her mind when she checks her watch and grins, pulling him to the centre of the room and using her best Librarian Shush to pull the room into silence.
She announces to the crowd that while they had all been incredibly successful in surprising Jake that evening, there was still one more tiny surprise up her sleeve. Boyle, doing a terrible job of keeping his cool, saunters through the crowd until he reaches the front door, swinging it open with such a flourish Jake wonders if perhaps his friend’s true career path is on stage in Broadway.
The thought is fleeting, however, because immediately after that, his heart stops - jaw dropping in shock.
In the doorway, smiling and holding out a celebratory bottle of wine, is none other than Bruce Willis.
Bruce Willis, his favourite actor ever and the man behind the character that convinced Jake to join the NYPD, was at his birthday party.
In the days to come, stories would be retold of Jake’s party at the local laser tag. They would mention how drunk Gina got before challenging Boyle to a dance off (which ended, predictably, in disaster); how handsy Amy got after a few drinks and kept pulling her husband into the darker corners; and how Terry had challenged Rosa to a row of shots before failing terribly three hits of tequila in.
But Jake’s favourite memory, and the one he will treasure forever, is of him and Bruce (because they’re friends now, and friends call each other by their first names, just like he and Bruce do), strapping on laser gun holsters, McClane Stylez, and dominating the Laser Tag zone like they were saving Nakatomi Plaza all over again. When he retells the story, Amy will roll her eyes, telling whatever audience that the two of them took things way too seriously, and that by the end everyone had just given up and let Jake play out his Die Hard dreams.
Afterwards, the actor had told Jake about how incredibly good Amy was at her job (information that was not new to Jake at all), and that when she had solved the on-set theft so quickly and discreetly, dropping by to meet her husband (or his number one fan as Amy had put it), seemed like the least he could do. Even admitted that maybe the stories he had heard from Reginald VelJohnson had stemmed from a misunderstanding, promising to set the story straight next time the two met.
Later that evening, when everyone had returned to their homes and Amy’s Holly Gennero costume had made a welcome resurrection, Jake would hold his wife close to him, whispering apologies for his earlier reactions. She understood him, in a way that nobody ever really had, and having her beside him was truly the best part of any day, hands down. And the fact that she had managed to pull off the greatest surprise ever, only made him love her all the more.
Plans to get in contact with Will Shortz before Amy’s birthday in September run through Jake’s mind as he closes his eyes, the soft sound of Amy’s gentle snores lulling him to sleep. If he got to meet his hero, it seemed only fair that Amy would get to meet hers.
(With any luck, this puzzle master would be a little less gorgeous.)
#something lighthearted#myfic#can you imagine#Jake would lose his MIND#b99 fanfic#fictober prompts#peraltiago fanfiction#Jake x Amy fic#hope you enjoy anon!
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15--2-2017 SUITE A UNE INTERDICTION BANDE SON PAR YOUTUBE MIS BANDE SON BIBLIOTHEQUE YOUTUBE.
MISE A JOUR
02-11-2015 mise à jour
Mise en ligne le 10 déc. 2011,Musique "Without Love" de Tom Jones, J'ai laissé faire au poèteTHOMAS André la PRESENTATION DE NOTRE PHOTO-POEME.
THOMAS ANDRE, auteur, écrivain ,poète, http://thomasandre.orgfree.com/,
MARTINE ANCIAUX, photographe d’art,et créatrice de la photo-peinture, photo painting,Martine ANCIAUX creator of the photo painting. new art of the photo painting, art photographer,
http://www.anciaux-photos.fr, http://www.anciauxmartine.com
Je me suis inspiré des magnifiques photos de Martine ANCIAUX photographe d'art, créatrice de la photo-peinture
Je dois aussi souligné que mes amies internautes de youtube, google+,google,dailymotion,skyrock,myspace,twitter,facebook,tumblr,ma tv video France 2,ma tv video France 3 ainsi que wat, m'ont donné envie de me pencher sur le romantisme du net et de
constater que la nostalgie. Et les sentiments chez nous humains ne sont pas morts, on rêvera toujours sur une poésie,Sur une belle photo, un beau diaporama, et une très belle musique.
©LA ROMANTIQUE POEME DE THOMAS ANDRE©
Comme une grande romantique,
Assiégée par la robotique,
Et essayant de dompter toute cette bureautique,
Elle s’assoit devant son pupitre, et met en ligne des chansons nostalgiques.
Qui parlent d’amour,
Se liant pour toujours.
Alors, se sentant loin des tracas,
Pour s’échapper de la vie, et de ses tracas,
Elle entame une danse, devant son ordinateur,
Se souvenant des passages, heureux comme un auteur,
Qui aurait décidé de ne voir que le beau.
Le moment, ou au cirque intervient, le clown sous le chapiteau.
Enfin plus libérée,
Elle va pouvoir s’évader,
En partageant ses mots, et ces images de toutes beautés.
Elle se livrera sans se contrarier.
Avant les réponses, Tout son afflux de sensibilité,
Se sera manifesté,
Dans ces photos, qu’elle, Livrent à Youtube,
Elle n’aura pas oublié de mettre, une de ces chansons Préférée d’un tub.
Comme un robot,
Ou une poupée qu’on appelle, aussi bibelot,
C’est la secrétaire qui rentre en action,
Cherchant à faire les choses à la perfection.
A ce moment là, finit le sentimentalisme,
C’est le professionnalisme,
Pour éviter les erreurs,
Et échapper aux censeurs.
Confrontés de plein pied à la vie virtuelle
Mais ou tout ne peut –être accepter sans une rigueur réelle.
Alors comme une automate, elle enclenche les étapes,
Réajustant nerveusement à chaque faute de frappe.
Et c’est meurtri,
Lorsque le travail fini
Qu’elle verra défiler son diaporama, si chère à son cœur,
Et pendant un instant, elle sentira un grand bonheur.
translated by Google translation
02-11-2015 Update
Posted December 10 2011 Music "Without Love" by Tom Jones, I left to make the poèteTHOMAS André PRESENTATION OF OUR PHOTO-POEM.
THOMAS ANDRE, author, writer, poet, MARTINE ANCIAUX, art photographer, and creator of the photo-painting, photo painting, Martine ANCIAUX creator of the picture painting. Photo of the new art painting, art photographer, I was inspired by the beautiful pictures of Martine ANCIAUX art photographer, creator of the photo-peinture.Je have also pointed out that users of my friends youtube, google +, google, dailymotion, skyrock , myspace, twitter, facebook, tumblr, my tv video France 2, France 3 my tv video and wat, have given me want to look into the romance of the net and find that nostalgia. And feelings with us humans, are not dead, we always will dream of poetry, On a beautiful picture, a beautiful slideshow and a beautiful music.
ROMANTIC © POEME THOMAS ANDRE ©
As a great romantic,
Besieged by robotics,
And trying to tame this whole office,
She sits at his desk and puts online nostalgic songs.
About love,
Binding forever.
Then, feeling away from the worries,
To escape from life and its worries,
She began dancing in front of his computer,
Remembering passages, happy as a writer,
Who would have decided to only see the beautiful.
The time or circus acts, clowning in the marquee.
Finally more liberated,
She will be able to escape,
By sharing his words, and images of all beauties.
It will engage without upsetting.
Before the answers, all the influx of sensitivity,
Will be manifested,
In these photos, she, Deliver to Youtube,
She will not have forgotten to put one of those songs Favourite a tub.
Like a robot,
Or doll called, as trinket,
It's the secretary who returned to action
Seeking to do things perfectly.
At that time, ends sentimentality,
This is professionalism,
To avoid errors,
And escape the censors.
Facing ground floor to virtual life
But not everything can or -be accept without a real rigor.
Then as a controller, it engages the steps,
Readjusting nervously every typo.
And that is bruised,
When the work is finished
It will scroll through the slideshow, so dear to his heart,
And for a moment it will feel great happiness.
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Budget Travel | 4 Hotels Under Rs5,000 in Morocco
A round-up of Moroccan hotels rich in both history and character, and oozing old-world charm, which fit tight budgets.
Hotels Morocco
Zac O’Yeah | POSTED ON: September 17, 2019
The classic among Moroccan hotels, Tangier’s Continental is a sight in itself with hallways and corridors that make one feel like Alice in Wonderland. Photo by: Zac O’Yeah
I wonder if there’s a name for my peculiar psychiatric condition—a pathological love for old hotels that aren’t part of impersonal global chains, but remain strictly local, personal, and rare. Actually, it’s not a bad condition to have, it just takes a bit more effort to track down the perfect hotel, but once I find it, I can usually be sure that I’m getting an unforgettable once-in-a-lifetime holiday. Some countries have a better stock of such forgotten gems and recently, as I toured Morocco, I found myself in heaven.
Tangier
Walking with the icons
At sunrise, the Hotel Continental looks golden, like a ruminating camel perched lazily on a cliff overlooking the Bay of Tangier. I’d heard from people in the know about the late 19th-century, 70-room hotel, and found the bargain rate of 400 dirham/Rs2,900 online, and seeing its palatial grandeur in reality instantly makes travelling all the way to North Africa seem worth it.
According to a sign, the hotel was built in 1870, and prides itself on being a “hotel musée”—which I understand to mean hotel museum though my Moroccan is not so good—and it certainly looks the part. Despite the stained-glass windows that let in colourful morning light, the lobby is gloomier than the Dark Ages and filled with things one would expect in a museum: an antique telephone switchboard, a bulky radio cabinet, a battered samovar, a concierge who never smiles. It extends into a spooky antiques shop with a creepy proprietor. There are smoking rooms with upholstered benches and faux oriental embroidered cushions, and a forlorn dining hall with crystal chandeliers, dark-wood sideboards and heavy drapes, where nobody ever seems to be eating. It’s like something out of an exotic period movie—and was in fact the setting for Bernardo Bertolucci’sThe Sheltering Sky (1990), starring John Malkovich and Debra Winger as depraved American tourists.
I’m led up labyrinthine corridors to a bright, second-floor room that’s quite the opposite of the rest: thoroughly modern and, on the plus side, overlooking the sandy Tangier beach and the Strait of Gibraltar. Apparently Edgar Degas used to paint the vista from one of these rooms. Back in the day, the hotel was a mandatory stopover for anyone who was anyone visiting Africa—kings and queens; two of my favourite writers, Mark Twain (“Tangier is a foreign land if ever there was one, and the true spirit of it can never be found in any book save The Arabian Nights,” he wrote in The Innocents Abroad), and W. Somerset Maugham; singer Amy Winehouse; and architect AntoniGaudí. I wish we could have all checked into the same room at the same time. What a party!
The historic quarters with their cafés (such as Cafe Colon in Rue de la Kasbah, which due to its 1940s ambience features prominently in Bertolucci’s film) are around the corner, and Tangier’s enigmatic relationship to time becomes clear as I GPS my way through the maze to Rue IbnBatouta, where the celebrated globetrotter and original travel writer was born in 1304, and where he is buried too. After a few days of blissing out on Tangier, it feels like a major tragedy that I haven’t booked a longer stay.
Where 36, Rue Dar el-Baroud; www.hotel-tanger.com; doubles from Rs2,900.
Foodie Facts Restorante al Andalus, a seven-minute walk from the hotel in an alley off Petit Socco, is a family-owned eatery founded ages ago by Italian expatriates. It has a reputation for serving the town’s best seafood, and I sample an excellent grilled swordfish with finger chips and shish kebab (100 dirham/Rs730).
Larache
A slice of local life from a breezy balcony
Grand Hotel España remains one of the finest relics of old Spanish colonial grandeur on the African continent and the well-kept rooms are a steal considering the fabulous location right in the centre of Larache. Photo by: Zac O’Yeah
From behind the Tangier bus station, the gareroutière, I catch a shared grand taxi as they’re called: ramshackle Mercedes vehicles that provide convenient, cheap travel from city to city (about 20 dirham/Rs145 per trip). My taxi is crammed and I’m flattened like a roti in a chapati-press, but luckily it’s not far to Larache.
Larache, a Spanish colony till 1956, is the most distinctive remnant of Spain in this part of Africa. I check into the 1930s vintage Grand Hotel España, where an airy, top-floor room costs 600 dirham/Rs4,400 and has balconies on two sides—the front one overlooking a roundabout with palms and a fountain. At night, I spy families taking in the cool air and children playing until late, while people watch football and cheer in the lively cafés; it’s a perfect perch for a voyeur.
The breakfast in the cute dining hall is sumptuous. A merry waiter covers my table with a petit déjeuner that includes Moroccan flatbread, a spicy omelette, grilled cheese sandwiches, sausage, olives, fruit salad, juice, and excellent Moroccan milky coffee.
A charming thing about Larache is that there are few other tourists, so no “tourist prices” and all that. I stroll about the neat, blue-painted alleys to a flea market and browse: everything is for sale, from vacuum-cleaners and spring mattresses to straw hats, guitar amplifiers and tagine cooking pots. Afterwards, I chill with a soda pop in Café Jean Genet, which is named after the French author-slash-jailbird immortalised in David Bowie’s “The Jean Genie,” who lies buried in the Spanish cemetery outside town. It is appropriately a favourite haunt of young hashish smokers.
Where 6 Avenue Hassan II, Plaza de España; phone +212 5399-13195; doubles from Rs4,400.
Foodie Facts Larache being a pleasant fishing harbour, there’s a superb seafood canteen, Puerta del Sol, with tables set in an alley right behind my hotel. A mixed platter with the odds and ends of the ocean—squid, prawns, a tuna steak, fried flatfish, deep-fried cuttlefish and a small shark complete with teeth and eyes—served with sides of meaty lamb sausages, finger chips, seafood paella, olives and a tasty bean stew, costs 130 dirham/Rs950.
Casablanca
A window into Morocco’s French quarters
Tangier’s Continental straddles a promontory on the edge of the city’s old medina and has grand views across the sea to Spain and Gibraltar. Photo by: Zac O’Yeah
In Casablanca, the thing to do is to stay in the art deco quarters built by the French around a hundred years ago, which remain remarkably well-preserved. I’ve tracked down Hôtel Guynemer as its facade is mentioned as one of the sights in town, and booked a 450 dirham/Rs3,350 room via email. It seems like a good deal.
Guynemer opened its doors in 1909, and the lobby doesn’t show signs of having been renovated ever since art deco went out of fashion. The concierge tells me rooms are 650 dirham.
“But in the email you wrote 450.”
“We have no such rooms. There is a room for 360 but it is dirty.” It sounds like a typical tourist scam.
Checking the rooms, it turns out the more expensive one is completely modern and unappealing. The cheap room oozes charm, but is shabby, and the bathroom bulb is broken so it’s impossible to see where to pee. I ask the concierge if he has another cheapie. He grumpily gives me a key to what turns out to be a neat chamber with a high ceiling, kitschy art and the largest bathroom I’ve seen in Morocco—as big as the room itself.
And I have the heart of the city right outside my doorstep. Here, French architects were given free reign and so they tried to create a paradisiacal version of France: a neo-Moorish dream fantasy of wide, endless palm-lined boulevards dotted with charming small eateries, sidewalk cafés and smoke-filled bars.
Where 2, Rue Mohammed Belloul; guynemerhotel.net; doubles from Rs3,350.
Foodie Facts Trotting past the slightly dilapidated Marché Centrale, I contemplate hitting the fishmongers’ hall to gobble up basketfuls of fresh oysters, but decide to instead save my appetite for Taverne du Dauphin, the well-known 1958 seafood bar (115, Boulevard Felix Houphouet). It turns out to be the type of quiet joint one can easily love. A few other leisurely customers sit at the counter and the attentive bartender immediately serves me a half-bottle of chilled Moroccan white wine and a plate of spiced olives. Soon enough my food arrives, piquant pil-pil mussels, deep-fried smelt (which tastes a bit like Indian Bombay duck), and a lean umbrina fillet with pan-seared veggies. Since the fishing port is just across the road, everything feels eminently fresh and worth the 315 dirham/Rs2,300 (inclusive of the wine and a couple of local beers).
Marrakech
That hotel which feels like home
It is very crucial to book oneself into a quiet back alley hotel such as Hotel Le Gallia in Marrakech (top) where one can recover one’s senses between bouts of sightseeing and shopoholism; Colourful Marrakech is Morocco’s main tourist attraction with madness levels to match, like at Jemaa el-Fna (bottom), the big square in old town, a day-and-night spectacle of street food, souvenirs, and entertainers who tell stories or play music. Photo courtesy: Hotel Le Gallia (interior), Photo by: Pavliha/E+/Getty Images (market)
After Casablanca, I head into what might be termed Moroccan Morocco, deep into the deserts at the foot of the Atlas Mountains, where the railroad ends, in Marrakech. While waiting for the train, I buy a packed sandwich as the trains don’t have restaurant cars, just the good ol’ snack trolley. The compartments are crammed with travellers but I find myself a seat. My chatty co-passengers from Ohio, Jack and Jill, are on a tour of Africa and tell me that they have a world map on their wall (at home in the U.S.) into which they put little pins for every place they visit. They’re trying to pin down Morocco now.
From Marrakech station it’s a short taxi ride to the old town and—typically for this touristy city—the driver demands five times the meter rate to drop me near the main square, Jemaa el-Fna, known for its flamboyant show of street food and busking musicians. Hotels in this area are rather tricky to find, as they are hidden deep inside winding alleys. Eventually I discover the extremely unassuming lane off the main pedestrian Rue Bab Agnaou that leads to mine. Once I walk down Rue de la Recette, it turns out to be an oasis of calm compared to the madness of Jemaa el-Fna.
Although there are luxury hotels aplenty, savvy visitors check into riads, traditional palatial homes built to shut out the hustle-bustle with rooms facing inner courtyards. Most riads have been bought by moneyed foreigners, who restore them to their former glory and decorate them with Berber textiles, ethnic mosaics and brassware—plus all the mod-cons and then some. However, riads tend to be over-the-top pricey (Rs40,000 per night is not unusual for a “budget” stay) so I select something in between a full-blown riad and a pension, the 1929-built Hotel Le Gallia. This family-owned guest house has some 20 rooms along a maze of corridors overlooking the greenery of its two courtyards with quaint fountains. My spacious ochre-painted room (470 dirham/Rs3,500) is like a cottage on the roof with views over the neighbourhood, perhaps my finest stay in all of Morocco. There’s no breakfast included, but on the other hand Jemaa el-Fna is just around the corner with cafés for people-watching—Café de France perhaps being the best pick with its terraces and balconies and variety of combo breakfasts for 40-55 dirham (from Rs300 and up). Try the Moroccan options, such as a pancake called m’semen, spicy omelettes, and great coffee.
Within walking distance there are as many souvenirs to buy as one’s bulkiest luggage can handle. Stop for a drink at the most luxurious hotel of Morocco, La Mamounia, which was built around the same time as Le Gallia and which has hosted everybody from Edith Piaf to John Lennon and Jennifer Aniston (Avenue Bab Jdid; www.mamounia.com). Not to mention Winston Churchill, who was kown to sit in the garden and paint when he wasn’t drinking at the bar. I avoid the “Sir Winston cocktail” (rather expensive at 320 dirhams/Rs2,400, nearly the cost of my room in town), and instead go for a glass of the brilliant house red wine (190 dirham/Rs1,400).
Where 30, Rue de la Recette; www.hotellegallia.com; doubles from Rs3,500.
Foodie Facts For dinner, hardcore carnivores would do well to try Chez LamineHadj Mustapha in the alley north of Jemaa el-Fna. Their speciality is méchoui du four (170 dirham/Rs1,250 per kg), which is typical of the Atlas Mountain tribes and consists of a whole goat slowly baked in a hole in the ground. It gets crowded ever since the tiny eatery has been featured on BBC, but the meat does not disappoint—it certainly melts in the mouth.
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source http://cheaprtravels.com/budget-travel-4-hotels-under-rs5000-in-morocco/
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