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lovebombs4life · 4 months

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tis’ the damn season - l.r.h.

a/n: heyyyyyyy… i’ve been gone for a while and i’ve had this in my docs for a while. i thought about making a part two but i think ill keep it like this for now :)

cw: SMUT!!!! car sex, maybe some angst, fluff, pretty cute, involves some drinking/slightly drunk

wc: 3k

not proof read.

———

i shivered slightly as i stepped out of my car, the cold december air nipping at my cheeks and nose. i forgot how cold it got here. i had decided to visit my parents for christmas this year. i hadn’t been in my hometown since senior year of high school. i stepped to the back of my car, grabbing out my suitcase, then closing the trunk.

i rolled my suitcase up the driveway behind me, softly opening the front door of my parents house. i was quickly consumed by the warmth of my childhood home, and the scent of cinnamon and pine. “y/n! i’m so excited that you’re here!” my mother squeezed me into a hug. i smiled and placed my head on her shoulder, taking in her warm embrace.

“i’ve missed you, mom! where’s dad?” i asked, shrugging my coat off. she rolled her eyes, smiling softly. “watching football in the basement, of course. he’s probably fast asleep in his recliner.” she chuckled. i laughed, bringing my suitcase to my old room.

it looked exactly as it did before i left for college. my mother followed behind me, smiling wide. “we kept it all the same. figured it would be a nice trip down memory lane.” she nudged my shoulder. i smiled seeing my room again. id experienced so many things in this room, some good, some bad. i examined the photos sitting on my dresser. i bit my lip seeing one of the photos. i grabbed it, running my thumb over the frame, smiling sadly.

“i didn’t know if you wanted to keep any of those pictures or not,” my mom rest her hand on my shoulder. i shrugged, grabbing her hand. “it’s still all very bittersweet to think about.” i sighed, setting the photo back down. my mom held onto both of my hands, smiling warmly.

“his mom keeps in touch still, every so often we meet for coffee or tea.” my mother spoke, leading me into the kitchen. i sat down a the counter as she looked through the cupboards. she furrowed her brows, moving things around.

“well damn,” she breathed. “thought we had stuff to make homemade hot chocolate. wanna run with me to the store?” she asked, turning around to look at me. i nodded, getting of the stool i sat on. i slipped on my coat, and pulled on my boots, waiting for her to get her boots on too.

“alright, lets go!” she spoke, grabbing her keys off the hook. i smiled at the feeling of christmas nostalgia as i sat in her car. she started the car, cranking up the heat. she turned on the radio, the soft sounds of christmas music playing. as we drove to the little store in town, we reminisced on when i was younger, and how excited i’ve always been for christmas. we pulled into the parking lot of the small grocery store, making our way inside quickly to avoid being cold.

i rubbed my hands together to warm them a bit as my mom grabbed a shopping cart. “okay, first on the list is coco powder, then vanilla extract. those should be pretty close to each other.” my mother spoke as she lead the way to the baking isle. i scanned the shelves, getting distracted by one of my favorite drink mixes. i stopped quickly, grabbing the apple cider mix off the shelf. i walked quickly to where my mother was in the isle, seeing she was talking to someone.

“y/n, god i was just talking to your mum here, i haven’t seen you in years, how are you?” liz pulled me into a hug. i giggled at her happiness. “i’m real well, liz. how’ve you been?” i asked, pulling away from her. i looked into her kind eyes, missing that comfort.

“i’m great! all the boys are home for christmas and-” she was cut off. “hey mum i found the stuffing mix you needed,” his voice was as beautiful as i remembered it. i stood there fiddling with my hands as i watched him speak. sure i’d heard his voice on the radio when his band’s songs would play, but it wasn’t the same as hearing it over the radio. he glanced over at me, doing a double take when he realized it was me.

‘y/n? wow, uhm, hey.” he spoke nervously. i smiled softly, looking down at my feet. we had broken up just before i left for college. his music career was taking off, and we both knew it would be better for us to break it off. i never stopped loving him, hell, if i’m being honest, i never stopped thinking of him.

“hey, lu.” i spoke. his cheeks flushed at the old nickname. our mothers both chuckled at us, seemingly acting like kids again. “why don’t you kids go next door to the little cafe, yeah? we’ll do our shopping and catch up while you two go and get a coffe for yourselves.” liz smiled, nodding her head towards the direction of the cafe. i nodded, smiling at luke.

“y-yeah, okay.” he said shoving his hands into his pockets. i did the same, walking quietly to the cafe with him. “so…” he trailed. i nodded, smiling. “so. how have you been?” i asked, looking at his rosy cheeks. he was always one to get cold quickly. the tip of his nose had already been the same color. he bit his lip, making me notice the lip ring he once had was gone. he breathed in as we sat down at a table together.

“i’m good, erm, we just finished our fifth album a few months ago, were gonna start touring pretty soon.” he twiddled his thumbs around as his hands rested in front of him on the table. i smiled, pushing my hair behind me ear. “i’ve uh, actually been thinking about you, a lot.” he admitted. my cheeks grew warm.

“yeah? ive been thinking of you a lot too.” i spoke softly. he shifted in his seat, his leg bouncing under the table. i put my hand out on his knee, stopping the bouncing. his face grew bright red at the small gesture. “nothing to be nervous about, lu, relax,” i giggled. “it’s just me.”

he sighed, running a hand through his hair. “that’s the thing, its you. i’ve been thinking of you nonstop. i’ve honestly never stopped thinking of you.” he huffed. i lifted my hands to the table, reaching over and grabbing his. he looked up into my eyes. his baby blue eyes twinkled as he watched me. “i haven’t stopped either, lu.” i reassured him. he nodded, his blonde curls bouncing. “you think my mum would be mad if i asked her to ride home with yours so we can take my car and drive around town like we used to?’ he laughed lightly. i smiled, pulling out my phone, texting my mom to ask if they would mind. she quickly replied, telling us to go ahead, and that she'll see me later.

“so, riding around town?” i asked, standing up. he smiled, getting up after me. he lead me to his car. he opened my door for me, making me laugh. i slid into the seat, shivering at the still, cold air. he quickly scurried to the drivers side, starting the car. warm air blew at my face, making me relax. i looked at the buttons on the console, turning on my seat warmer. he chuckled at me. “not used to the cold anymore?” he teased. i tapped his shoulder lightly, rolling my eyes.

“oh hush. cause you’re so used to it still?” i poked at him. he chuckled again. we pulled out of the parking lot, driving through the empty streets. christmas was only a few days away, and i was only staying for a few days. i’d only been with luke for less than a day, but it felt like we’d never been apart.

“no, i swear on it, ashton really thought tadpoles were baby turtles! there’s even a video!” he laughed, i shook my head, gasping for air. we had been driving around for over two hours now, just talking about anything and everything. luke pulled off the road, driving on a trail. i had hardly recognized where we’d been until he stopped and parked.

i blushed, my heart racing slightly. we used to come here all the time for dates. we’d look at the stars and lay on top of his car, or we’d have a picnic. of course, we’d come here when we wanted to be alone. there’s a lot to the imagination of the events that have happened here.

he unbuckled his seat belt, turning himself to look at me. i did the same, looking into his eyes. “i never stopped loving you, y’know.” he spoke shyly. i nodded. “i never stopped loving you.” i grabbed onto his hand. he squeezed it, looking at our intertwined hands.

“a lot of songs were about you.” he blushed, playing with my fingers. i cocked my head. “how many?” i asked, playing with his fingers too.

“all of them.” he spoke flatly. he looked back up at me, his eyes glossy.

“i know that it was a mutual decision, but i always regretted leaving.” he sighed. i watched him as he tried to explain his thoughts. “i thought of you constantly, i still do. every song ive written, it’s been about you. it’s always been you.” he blinked, letting a few tears fall out. my hands lifted to his face, wiping the tears off. i moved my face closer to his, placing a soft kiss on his lips. his breath hitched, his hands traveling to my face.

the kiss was soft, full of passion. our lips melted together, just as they used to. i finally felt whole again, but i knew that this was temporary. soon i would be back home at my own apartment. as i pulled away, my eyes welled up with tears.

he wiped my tears away this time. “luke, i-” he cut me off, kissing me again. “i know. we’re both leaving in a few days. let’s make the most of it, yeah?” he kissed my forehead. i nodded. leaning my head against him. he snaked his arm around me.

“let’s remember the good times.” he pulled me out of my seat, making me giggle. i was on top of his lap, his face was red. he pushed his seat back, my hands falling atop of his chest. he grabbed my waist. my heart fluttered. i shifted my waist around on top of his. he groaned softly, guiding my waist to grind on him. i gasped as he pressed me down, the pressure making me shiver.

“fuck, y/n, been so long, keep that up and i’ll cum soon.” he whined, lifting my hips. i moaned at his words, my hands making their way to his waist, fumbling with his belt. he lifted his hips allowing me to slide his jeans down.

his hands found the button to my jeans, his hands sliding inside. i gasped as he pressed his hand against my bundle of nerves, my thighs trying to close against his hand. i pulled down his boxers, letting his cock free. i swiped my thumb along his tip, making his hips buck.

“no more teasing from now on, just wanna be inside you.” he moaned, pulling my jeans down my thighs, moving my panties to the side. he guided himself to my slit, rubbing against my clit as he did so, making my hips jolt. his other hand grasped my waist, making me stay still.

i moaned softly as his tip pushed inside me, both his hands now on my hips. i lowered myself on him, my head throwing back as he filled me up. “shit, feels so good, lu.” i cried, slowly rocking my hips. his grip tightened as i moved, his hands encouraging me to go faster. i began gasping for air as i bounced on him, his hips thrusting up to meet mine. “gonna cum, feels so fucking good, luke.” i choked. he groaned, pulling me down so my chest was to his. i hid my face in his neck, sucking and biting at his skin. his pace got faster as he fucked into me, my moans coming out in small gasps and sounds.

“come on baby, doing so, fuck, so good, love how you’re squeezing my cock,” he praised, my walls clenching around him as i got closer to my release. “cum on my cock, darling, wanna know how good i make you feel.” he kissed my shoulder. my orgasm washed over me, screams of pleasure erupting from my lips. he helped me ride out my high, pulling out from me soon after.

he kept my hips moving, grinding against his cock. he bit his lip and rolled back his eyes as hot ropes of cum shot from his cock onto his stomach and shirt. he slowed my pace, holding me as our bodies stilled. his hands traveled to my back, rubbing it as we tried to catch our breath. his fingers traveled to my hair, playing with it, stroking my head as i nuzzled into his chest.

we laid there for a few minutes before shuffling around, pulling our pants back up, and getting situated. he quickly pulled me back to him afterwards, holding me tight. i knew he was scared of losing me again too. i allowed myself to enjoy what time i had with him, even if it would only be a few days.

i looked at the window, seeing it was fogged up. i lifted my head to look at the other ones, seeing that they too were all fogged up. i giggled softly, thinking of how we caused that.

“what’s so funny?” he asked, smiling at me as i looked at him. i swiped my finger across the window. “we caused that.” this time he giggled, pulling me back into his chest. he kissed the top of my head before letting me get back into my seat. “what are we gonna do after our short time together is gone?” i questioned. he bit his lip, his eyes filled with sadness.

“i don’t know. i don’t want to say goodbye again.” he sighed, grabbing my hand and intertwining our fingers. i wracked my brain trying to find ways we could keep seeing each other. “me either. know what? let’s not think about that for tonight, okay? we’ll figure it out later.” i spoke, squeezing his hand and giving him a soft smile.

he nodded, grabbing his seatbelt and buckling himself. i did the same before he put the car back in drive, making our way back to town. we were only about fifteen minutes away from my house, and ten minutes away from his. we sang along to the christmas songs on the radio, holding one another's hand. “would you like to stay for dinner?” i asked him as we pulled into my driveway. he smiled, unbuckling his seat belt and turning off the car. “i’d love to.” he said, getting out of the car quickly so he could open my door for me. i rolled my eyes at him playfully, leading him to the front door. i swung the door open, hearing soft music playing in the kitchen and laughing from my mother. we walked to where she was, seeing that my parents and luke’s parents were both sitting at the kitchen table, each with a glass of wine in hand,

“well how wonderful it is that you two are here! would you like some wine?” my mother asked, standing up to grab two more glasses. i smiled at her, nodding. she poured the dark maroon liquid into the glasses, handing them to luke and i. we sat down with everyone, getting lost in conversation. once dinner had been done, and we’d all eaten, luke’s parents had gotten in their car and drove down the street to go home. my parents went off to bed, leaving luke and i alone in the living room, sipping on more wine.

we were sat on the floor, leaning back against the couch. my feet rest in his lap, giggling as i started to feel the effects of the alcohol running through my body. “your face is cute.” i said, stroking luke’s cheek. he nuzzled his face into my hand, his skin flushed from the wine.

“you’re drunk.” he giggled, kissing my palm. i smiled lazily, leaning my head against the couch. i stared at his features, taking in his beauty.

“so are you.”

he nodded, a goofy smile on his face. i downed the last bit of my wine, setting the glass on the floor next to me. “time for bed?” i asked him, slowly getting up. he nodded, rubbing his eyes. i grabbed his hand to lift him up, but he lost balance while doing so, the last of his wine spilling onto my white sweater.

he gasped, immediately apologizing. i giggled, waving it off. “doesn’t matter, just gives it character.”

i pulled him to my room, grabbing out a new sweater for myself. i found an old pair of his sweatpants, throwing them to him. he thanked me, sliding his jeans off, and pulling on the gray fabric.

i gripped the hem of my sweater, pulling it over my head. i threw it into the small basket in my room, and unclipped my bra, throwing it where my sweater was. i pulled the new clean clothing over my head, and threw on a pair of leggings.

luke already crawled into my bed, curled up under the blankets. i smiled at the site, crawling in next to him. i wrapped my arms around him, spooning him. he smiled softly, grabbing one of my hands and kissing it. we drifted off to sleep, enjoying the warmth from each others bodies.

#5sos #5 seconds of summer #luke hemmings #luke hemmings imagines #luke hemmings x reader #luke hemmings fanfiction #luke hemmings smut #luke 5sos

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heyybaejjk · 2 months

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SAU LA'U TAMA AULELEI ! - CHAPTER 5

pairing; teen miguel o'hara x fem samoan oc

summary; Manaia hates the weekend.

warnings/notes; manaia getting walked in on, CREEPY UNCLE WE ALL HATE EM YK. a little junior x manaia sibling moment 🥹 this was indeed proofread poorly. HA.

series masterlist | prev chap | next chap

Manaia had spent her Saturdays either working, cleaning or babysitting. Often, it was all three in that exact order. She'd wake up at 6 am and get ready for her job that paid absolute shit, and return home to a filthy house. Of course, her mother was no use. Her uncle that just moved in was no use. However, they'd complain about anything and everything not looking the way they wanted it to. Her other siblings who liked to be in and out of the house were also no use. And Junior, well, he is still a clueless child who's barely explored the world, let alone school. To Manaia, she'd admit babysitting was the worst of them all. Her mother and uncle were out, leaving an underaged child to look after another underaged child.

Now, if there was one thing more annoying than a Saturday full of deep cleaning, then there wasn't much to be excited about on a Sunday morning. At all.

For it to only be 6 am, it was too early for it to be this loud. Manaia groaned into her pillow, blocking her ears as she heard her mother's loud voice echoing through the walls. Her younger brother was hugging her arm trying to dwell more in dreamland, but they both found it useless as they were unable to fall back into slumber.

"Get up! Get ready for loku! [church]" the elder's voice rung through every corner of their small house.

"Mhh," Manaia got up, scratching her head in anger as the yelling turned into chants of her name repeatedly. "Okay, I'm up," she says to herself as a response.

She finds herself laughing as she watches her younger brother, Junior, consumed by all three thick blankets. So that explains why she was cold throughout the whole night, "Wake up, baby, we have to get ready."

"But I'm tired," the boy gets up and rubs his eyes, Manaia wraps an arm around his shoulder while smiling, "I know, but you'll see your friends at church the faster you get ready, yeah?" She tries to sway her brother.

He smiles immediately at the thought, "You're right."

"I always am, now go wake up Pele before mum starts yelling again," She laughs as her brother sulks at the thought.

Manaia had spent her sweet time looking around for the perfect dress to go with the sei Miguel had gifted her, but every dress she had was either too dark or too light to suit the colours she had. She dug further into her cupboards, squealing with excitement as she found the perfect puletasi.

Changing immediately, she sat on her bed and took off her top. Midway of changing without a single warning, the door swung open. Manaia yelped in surprise, wrapping her front with her blanket.

"Sorry, your mum told me to tell you to hurry up." A deep voice informed, a hint of smug in their tone.

She looks at the door and there stood a relative of hers. One she never liked. He was cocky, prideful, as well as a fucking creep. Manaia knew well to keep her distance.

Frightened to respond, she nods her head and mutters a small thank you.

"Where's my ofu loku? I gave it to you to iron."

"No, you didn't. You said put it in the wash."

"YOU- Kiuga, don't fuck with me right now."

Both latter's shut their mouth as a shout runs through the walls of the small house, "Kiuga! Siana and her kids are coming over so we can go loku together, did you puga the kipoki!?" [ boil the kettle? ]

Kiuga groans in annoyance looking over at David, "I thought I told you to- nevermind," he sighs, yet think nonetheless that standing and doing nothing about his problem would do anything, "Okay, find me a white button up and a black ie at least? I'm going to clean before Nai comes," he leaves the room.

Manaia could feel herself growing a migraine. She was stuck between a guy who seemed to be scared of using deodorant - who also had the choice to sit in the empty front seat - and a kid who did nothing but cry because his mother yelled at him and sent him death glares through the rearview mirror. It didn't seem to help when her phone was on 7% and her headphones were forgotten at home.

Her hopes of a good morning are high when their car is parked outside Kiuga's house. She wishes to run out the car and knock on the door, but is crushed when her mother demands she help Junior fix his outfit as it's stained with snot and tears. He would not have been crying if her mother had learnt not to be so aggressive in the morning. Or in general.

Her mother and uncle leave the car.

She sighs, her heart breaks at the sight of her brother looking up at her with teary eyes. Gently wiping his snotty face, she cupped his cheeks and gave him a comforting smile, "Are you okay, my honey?"

Junior shakes his head, hiccuping back a cough. His breathing slows down.

"It's okay not to feel okay, baby. Would you like a hug?"

Without an answer, he wraps his arms around Manaia's waist.

"Mum's a meanie," Junior whispers with a pout on his face.

"Mum's just getting old. She can be very impatient, she doesn't mean to hurt other people's feelings," she runs a calming hand up and down his back.

"Are you going to be mean to me when you're old?"

"No, Jay. I can never be mean to you," she sighs.

Manaia looks out the window, just as Kiuga rushes to the door of the car and opens it with a wide smile, "Manaia!"

He looks over to Junior who's engulfed by his friend's arms, "Hey, Jay," he says softly, he takes a seat beside Manaia. Placing an arm on her shoulder as he smiles at the small boy.

"You're a strong boy, you'll be fine," he ruffles his hair. Junior smiles through his tears.

"Where's David?"

"Right here!"

The three look over at the opened car door, the feeling of being squished together in a small car was no problem at this point in their life, this wasn't their first time doing so. David pushes Kiuga over, forcing his big form into the car.

Since young, Manaia wasn't fond of finding friends. Places like school, family gatherings, and drink-ups her mother would host were insanely too much. It was crowded and full of people. Church of all things were the worst. Something about teaching people how to live "right", don't do this, don't do that, would be drilled into their ass, only for sin to be penetrated right into their minds right after a sermon. Hypocritical kids who would make fun of her for having a mother who drank and drank, who all unknowingly had fathers that were long gone because of the same sitch her mother was in. Her older siblings were no help to her problem either. They only made things worse for her at home.

She had her baby brother. He was enough. He was everything.

Until two beaming families had joined. There, she was introduced to Kiuga and David. Two cousins who lived a few houses down from each other, but shared the bond of two siblings. Just like Manaia and Junior.

They hung out at church. They hung out at Bible studies. They moved to her school and grew even closer. And that was where they all met Sione. Her now, best friend.

Speaking of which, Manaia's phone dings.

Sione <3: Naia, can you bring those white chips you gave me last time? 😞😞 I'll come early to school if you do i swear

"You're only use your messaging app? Did you delete your socials again?" Kiuga asks upon seeing seeing Sione's contact name.

Manaia nods her head, "Only for a while so I can study properly without my mum complaining. Do not Disturb barely works on me because I end up going on my phone anyway."

buzz buzz

(bololicker) M.Ohara_99 has sent a message to pussy eatersssss

M.Ohara_99: Good morning, everyone. I hope you have a good service today at church. Blessings to the three of you.

A smile creeps onto David's face.

"Is that the girl you've been texting for a few months now?" Kiuga asks beside him. He shakes his head.

"Nah, just Mig being Mig," he whispers, hoping the mention of Manaia's small crush doesn't get her all flustered.

"You know.. she's wearing the sei he got her," David raises a brow, "I think you should show him."

The two whisper to each other, Manaia looks over to them in concern, "Are you okay?"

They nod their head and smile at her.

David intervenes in their moment of silence, "Oh Naia, can I take a photo of you wearing your sei? I just want to make sure I get the right one for my mum when I go shopping next week," he winks slyly at Kiuga, who which he rolls his eyes at.

Manaia agrees blindly, "Get Junior and I in it! Come closer, baby," she wraps her arms around his head and he's forcefully squished between her arms and stomach, nonetheless the boy giggles.

"And.. there! Thanks, Nai."

David hits send and grins evily at Manaia.

"What is it?" She asks.

"Nah, nah, nothing."

buzz buzz

David chuckles to himself at Miguel's reaction.

M.Ohara_99 has replayed your photo!

M.Ohara_99 has taken a screenshot of your photo!

M.Ohara_99 is typing...

M.Ohara_99: She's effortlessly beautiful.

bololicker: you should come and tell her that yourself miggs 😼

"Ew! Get off, you're drooling on me!" Manaia squeals moving her shoulder as Kiuga groans at the interruption of his slumber.

"Sorry, what did I miss?"

"Nothing much," David whispers, "Pastor just mentioned another funeral we have to save money up for."

"Nothing much? Another funeral? David, that's so mean. That's so much to miss!" Manaia growls both the boys off for their behaviour.

"Who the hell died this time?"

Their voices were hushed down to a whisper as they sat at the back of everyone.

"It's so cold, why do they always blast the AC in here?" Kiuga comments.

"Cause everyone's too broke to have an aircon at home so they use it as much as they can-"

The three big AC's on the walls turn off.

"It's hot now, thanks a lot, Kiuga," Manaia says.

"How is it my fault!?" Kiuga bursts out as David and Manaia shake their head disapprovingly at him.

"I don't know, maybe God got sick of your complaining and turned the AC off for you to shut the fuck up."

"David, we're in church!"

"Ugh, it's so hot!" He leans back into his chair.

"If it's hot here, then imagine the heat in Samoa."

"Imagine the heat in Hell! If you three don't quiet down, I'll make sure you'll quiet down there!" An old lady that was sat right in front of them turned around, sick of their banter.

"Sorry, aunty," Manaia apologises, giving a toothy smile.

David groans, "Why couldn't it be her funeral we're going to?" He sneakily whispers to his close friends.

"David, don't be mean."

"I'm just saying."

"Manaia, I'm going to look so fucking good at this funeral. My chains and rings, all that shit."

"Kiuga, stop talking about it like it's a party. Someone died."

"Well everyone cries, then eats at the big ass table of food right after the service like it was nothing."

"Yeah," David chimes in, "Why go somewhere with a big feed and not look good?"

"...You're both right."

"When are we not?"

She shoves Kiuga in the side as he laughs.

Looking across the other side of the hall, she tries to spot her younger brother sitting with his friends. Smiling happily at the sight of Junior listening attentively to the sermon. She internally cringes at the sight of her uncle looking back at her.

Awkwardly looking anywhere but at him, Manaia focuses her attention back to the front.

"The hell is your uncle doing here? I thought he got deported." An annoyed Kiuga says.

"I thought he got deported twice back to Sa," David comments.

"My mum is letting him stay with us, don't know how long for."

"Speaking of your mum, where's Pele?"

"Home," Manaia says quickly, "She got into an argument with my mum this morning-"

"Are we going to ignore your creepy uncle just looking at you?"

"I rather just ignore him, stop looking his way-"

"If you three do NOT be quiet-"

@zdawg14 hi :>

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snootlestheangel · 8 months

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Just A Dude!Ghost Monster AU

Side note before this post gets rolling, I love that my post with the highest notes starts with "I don't know who else" and I think that's very reflective of what Tumblr is like XD

Anyways

We're doing it! We are writing a Monster AU featuring Ghost as the only human despite what everyone else thinks! As far as I am concerned, mostly gonna post it here on Tumblr, since I don't really have much right now for it, mostly just little blurbs but if needed for readability, I'll put it on AO3 (under my profile FeelzMaster)

I'm gonna go ahead and give y'all the rundown of what species are featured, kinda what this world's like, the stuffs, ya know? TW: talks of death (just how they can die, relax)

Soap

To be 100% honest, I really wanted to do the whole werewolf!Soap thing cause it's just so perfect for him, but I thought back to a post I made about him being lightning and thought HUH WHAT IF?

So, partially inspired by @tactax-art and their depiction of Soap dealing with fire 'n shit, I have made Soap a unique type of "nymph". Technically, nymph isn't the right word, but neither is elemental, and the true name of these things is so old it's real translation has kinda lost meaning so they stick to describing themselves as "nymphs" or "elementals".

He is a Lightning Nymph, which is rare but that's apparently what happens when you cross an "atmospheric" air nymph (his mum) and a less traditional water nymph (his dad). He's often seeing consuming/messing with things that have electrical charge in order to keep up his own energy (Gaz once had to watch him literally lick an exposed outlet and maintain a straight face). Every time it storms, he's outside somewhere as high as he can get so he can soak up the natural static energy that comes with storms. He can and will shock people for the fun of it.

As for abilities, he's obviously highly conductive, can manipulate electrical energy but it's pretty exhausting so it's more of a life or death thing, he can glow in the dark if he wants to, and he's hyper aware of changes (due to ~energy~). His diet is batteries... Jk, but seriously he does not eat like a human would, he straight up eats things that will help with energy. Like I said earlier, he's licked an exposed outlet like it was an espresso shot. Downside is he can't see for shit in the dark so he's reliant on sensing energies, nightvision, or having one of his buddies that can see in the dark guide him. Can be killed if his brain stem is destroyed, but is also very weakened by the typical stuff (gunshots, stab wounds, severe bodily trauama, etc). but can be severely weakened by being trapped in insulated rooms/wrapped in insulators. If exposed to these things and not able to find a sustainable source of electrical energy, he will die. (rubber, steel, copper are some good insulators)

Gaz

I don't know why but I'm gonna make him a Siren. For some reason Siren!Gaz just melts my heart and I wanna hold him. I don't care if he can lure me to my death with his voice, I wanna hear him sing :'(

He's typically pretty human appearing, it's a natural instinct for Sirens, but when he's tired or distracted (like working out/doing paperwork), you can start to see some very fish-like qualities. Mostly very gorgeous iridescent scales around his ears, eyes, neck, shoulders, knees, top of his feet, and back of his hands.

Can breathe underwater, has the best vision in the dark, eats like a typical person but with more sea food cravings or cravings for fatty foods (like human), when in full Siren form he doesn't have a "mermaid's" tail, it's much more shark-like so he can accelerate really fast. Generally just more shark-like, except his scales are fish-like. His nose, like sharks, is super sensitive to certain changes, so booping his nose always throws him off if it's surprise, but he will also bump his nose into people/things without realizing it to get a better sense of it. Can be killed by things humans can, susceptible to parasites.

Price

Honestly, his has been the hardest but I'm gonna do changeling. I honestly don't know a lot about them, and quite frankly I've already got one homebrewed monster here, so why not another?

He's definitely the one everyone mistakes for being human cause he's so good at keeping up appearances. But there are always times where Price manipulates his appearance/body just enough that it's a little startling for those that believed him to be human to suddenly realize he's very much not.

He's got better eyesight in the dark than a human, but nowhere near close to what Gaz has. He's good at picking up on scents though, as his nose is a bit more attune to sniffing out humans than anything. He's not a bloodsucker, but changelings typically feed on weakened/ill/very old/very young humans, so he's able to tell when something is wrong with someone. Stifles the more violent urges of his species by eating a primarily meat heavy diet with a lot of raw veggies for the crunch. Most susceptible to things with iron or salt (obvi) but can still be fatally wounded by stab wounds/gunshots. Most other stuff won't kill him but it'll certainly hurt and he'll complain the entire time.

Alejandro and Rudy

These two are werewolves and Los Vaqueros is their pack :'). Most Vaqueros are also werewolves, but they do have a variety of other creatures commonly found in North America.

And finally, the whole point of this: we got our boy Ghost as a literal human being. Nothing more, just a dude. A dude with so much fucked up shit happening to him constantly it's just assumed he must be inhuman. NOPE! He's just a dude, a very very unlucky, and probably cursed, dude.

So yeah, that's what I have so far! Working title is "Cheers to the Unknown"

Taglist (if you want added let me know in the replies/reblogs): @tacticaltaxonomist @cthulhusstepmom

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xiakeponz · 1 year

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for modern AU fics - what chinese media did diaspora consume?

making this post because some of us in the diaspora server were having a chat about what Chinese media "Diaspora Chinese" watched in the 90's - 2000's (and even sooner than that) while not having access to satellite chinese media or streaming services - this is in the context of writing modern AU fics based off Chinese media/novels (so your main character's grandpa or uncle is not, in fact, watching an episode of Friends or Shortland Street or something as flavour text because sorry what the hell-)

We generally watched a lot of stuff on VCDs, including bootlegged and non-bootlegged movies, shows, anime/donghua. My household had a whole VCD album of this, and a lot of VCDs (even if they were pirated editions) would have a fancy hardcover box with a magnetic clasp and some artwork representing the show on it.

All of this is Mandarin - so not TVB stuff, because I'm from Northern China and I don't know any cantonese - but Canto friends, please feel free to add to the list! This is mostly stuff my parents liked to watch, or I liked to watch with them, with the exception of a few which I mainly watched with friends/cousins when I was maybe (in most cases) eleven/twelve years old onwards. This is a pretty personal list, meant to give people general idea of a possible "ballpark" of sorts, and by no means exhaustive.

Now, for the list of shows which I can confirm I had or someone I know had on VCD or some kind of offline media format lol (I'll try add release year stamps and links to the EN wikipedia where possible):

Period dramas (mostly Qing Dynasty stuff):

Huan Zhu Gege 还珠格格 (1998, April-) This is a classic, so many memes come from this show; hugely popular series, basically cemented Zhang Tie Lin's face as the face of the Qing Emperor for about a decade. Tie Chi Tong Ya Ji Xiao Lan 铁齿铜牙纪晓岚 (2002-2010) - I loved this show as a kid and watched all four seasons on repeat with family... The "trio" in this show are well known and loved.

Amazing Detective Di Ren Jie / 神探狄仁杰 (2004) A very popular and addictive show. Ok now the Big Four:

Romance of 3 kingdoms 1994 / 三国演义 (1994) - a classic that has had many remakes, my older cousin would play this on repeat...

Hong Lou Meng/红楼梦（1987） - another classic with many remakes, but I think the most recognised by the public one is the 1987 one.

Journey to the West / 西游记 live action (1986) - I think the 1986 version of the live action is the most recognised one. *Shui Hu Zhuan / 水浒传 (1998) - I am not too familliar with the live action of this one in my household tbh bc my mum doesn't like it lol (she keeps saying it's too depressing) but I'm sure it's up there with the rest of the big four, if anyone has an opinion on this one please let me know!

Modern setting shows:

My dad loved all the Sun Honglei (孙红雷 - actor name) stuff, iirc it was a lot of MinGuo period espionage stuff, your shanghai 1920's sxc aesthetic. This actor has been around since 1999? Qian Fu （潜伏）was very famous, and Ren Jian Zheng Dao Shi Cang Sang （人间正道是沧桑）。 These were around '08 and '09.

Chuang Guan Dong - 闯关东 (2008) (Baidu link, sorry - couldn't get an EN wikipedia one). This show was huge when it was airing, everyone was watching it. I was pretty young but even I watched it and got invested ... and I thought it was such an "old person" show at the time lmao. Xiao Bing Zhang Ga / 小兵张嘎（2004） (sorry, again Baidu link) - yo, anti-japanese war movies set between 1937-1945 were crazy popular - this is one of them and was very popular):

Donghua/Anime (all the stuff kid me watched and some which I didn't but were popular):

喜羊羊与灰太狼 (2005-) Calabash Brothers / 葫芦兄弟（1986-1987） Black Cat Detective / Hei Mao Jing Zhang 黑猫警长（1984-2010） Lan Mao Tao Qi 3000 Wen 蓝蓝猫淘气3000问 AKA 蓝猫 (blue cat) (October 1999 - Present) Legend of Ne Zha 哪吒传奇 (2003) Journey to the West/Xi You Ji 西游记 This was truly the Donghua I grew up on from when I was a bb, the OP song and ED song are classic bangers all kids know. Slam Dunk/ 灌篮高手 - People truly watched a lot of anime that may or may not have been terribly dubbed into mando (possibly canto too). Late 80s and 90s kids were all over this, and Dragon Ball, Crayon Shinchan (labixiaoxin).

Taiwanese Dramas:

This is mid-late 2000's, I would be remiss to not talk about the Taiwanese dramas of this era. Mike He, Rainie Yang, Wu Zun (amongst many, many others) were huge. Stuff like Dou Niu Yao Bu Yao, it started with a kiss, Hua Yang Shao Nv (Taiwanese version of Hana Kimi) were all pretty popular. Not sure if these shows all hold up in 2023, but boy were they popular at the time.

Note about CNY:

For CNY, people would try to tune into 春节联欢晚会 (the CCTV official CNY show) at that One Friend Who Had China Satellite TV's house. Zhao Ben Shan / 赵本山 was a comedy staple, and the show would often feature people from the music industry to perform. Eventually these people became more and more relevant to my gen and Jay Chou etc started appearing.

Last but not least Xian Jiaaaan 仙剑:

In 2005 I was all over 仙剑奇侠传 (Chinese Paladin), based off the video game. This show was crazy popular and probably sent me and a whole lot of other kids into Xianxia / Wuxia hell (and Hu Ge hell, and later I came back to love Liu Yifei). Thank you. The OST is a true banger.

#cnovel #mdzs #cdrama #chinese diaspora #danmei #not a lot of jinyong wuxia shows here so people who have opinions please chime in!#whew that was more than i thought #music could do with another post #but i dont know too much about my dads music i was just a 2000s cpop nerd #also this doesnt cover movies either #please no lan qiren watching friends #this breaks me out of my immersion immediately unless there was a specific reason why shufu is watching friends #not even sure how to tag this #late 2000s you could pretty much stream and download stuff i think i did that for bbjx when it came out #even tho my parents hated The Internet i managed #feel free to add more to this in a post or tags or whatever

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russellsppttemplates · 2 years

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What if I were like them (Mick Schumacher)

Note: english is not my first language I was listening to a couple of new (to me at least) songs the other day and came up with this idea

Feedback is appreciated 🤍 and although I'm not taking requests per se, if you have any ideas or concepts you want to share, feel free to do so!

Also, i have some ideas for a potential part 2 but let me know how you feel about it 🤍

Edit: there is also a part 2 and a part 3

Tw: curse words, mentions of alcohol consumption, being cheated on/infidelity, relationship break-up, selfconcious/doubtful reader

"I'm sorry I'm calling you at such a weird time, but are you home?", you sniffled into your phone, "Are you crying, Y/N? What happened?", your best friend said on the other side of the line, "I'll tell you later, but can I come to you? I don't want to be alone", you asked, receiving a positive answer from her. Drying your tears and taking a few deep breaths, you composed yourself to the best of your hability, knowing you couldn't possibly drive safely over to her place in this state. When you turned for the last time in direction of her house, as the gates were opening they revealed your best friend Gina dressed in her pyjama and a bit coat. Parking the car inside as she closed the gates remotely, you got out and your lip started trembling again, tears blurred your vision again until you felt her arms around you, "Hey, hey, what happened?", she tried to pry you away from her body so she could at least see your face, watching your bloodshot eyes, "we broke up, it wasn't working anymore", you finally uttered words since arriving. "Do you need anything from your car?", she asked, earning a shake from your head, "My brother is out on his motorbike, no need to park your car better, it's fine like this", Gina thought out loud, and it hit you, "Goodness, your family! Shit, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, didn't even think about it", you apologised, only now realising the extent of your disturbance, "I can leave, I'm sorry again, I-". Grabbing your hands, Gina squeezed them as hard as she could, "you're not leaving, you're staying here. My brother is out in some late meeting with his team and my mom would kill me if I let you to go back to your place like this", she reasoned with you as she welcomed you in, ushering you to her bedroom before asking if you wanted anything from the kitchen, "some water would be nice, please".

Looking around the room, you saw all the picture frames from various moments, some of them where you were lucky enough to be in, from your first day at kindergarten to some birthday celebrations and even some racing weekends the Schumacher family had invited you to join them. Grabbing a frame from what you figured was your 8th birthday, judging by the obnoxious balloons with the number, both you and Gina standing in front of the cake while a young Mick tried to get some frosting on his finger, "I have your water and some cake mum made this afternoon and dropped here when she came by", she offered, placing the tray on the bed, "Now, tell me what that asshole did for you to end up like this". And you went on about what happened. You had made some dinner plans with your colleagues once you got out of work a few weeks ago, deciding that a new restaurant in town was the ideal place to get together and enjoy some time off work. What you didn't expect was to find your boyfriend on the way back to your place. He was sitting at your door, waiting for you to get home since he wanted to spend time with you and you thought it was a nice moment until you questioned why he hadn't called you, making him reply that he had been out with his group of friends and didn't think to do so. You found it endearing until it happened a few more times, his state growing more intoxicated with alcoholic beverages he would consume over the times he payed you visits. Things started getting a little bit more complicated, and even though you suspected there was something else he wasn't telling you, only today did he sit down with you and expressed his true feelings and truthful words, going on about how he didn't feel like you were working anymore, admitting what he got up to in his nights out and how he was sorry that you both ended up in this situation. By the end of the conversation, you both had tears rolling down your eyes, prompting you to part ways as he grabbed the few things he had left at your place and bid you goodbye. And you cried, no matter how much your intuition told you that maybe he was spending his time elsewhere (and maybe someone else), it still stung that he hid all of those feelings and thoughts from you. "And yeah, that's that I guess...", you finished, grabbing another tissue and wiping your cheeks as finally the tears seemed to stop, "I'm such a mess and because of a guy...! This is a new low", you exasperated, your whole behaviour going against what you believed in, having grown up with every female role model in your life telling you how amazing you were and there should never be a man involved when you thought about your worth. "Do you want to spend the night? I think it would do you some good, I promise I won't kick you during the night", she conforted you, trying to pull a smile out of you as she pulled the sheets on the bed. Accepting her offer, you grabbed a spare pyjama from her chest of drawers and changed, going to her ensuite bathroom to splash some water on your face and then heading to the double bed.

You woke up when you heard an engine rumble outside, followed by the small noise of the gates closing and, not wanting to wake Gina up, you headed to the kitchen to grab some coffee and maybe lounge in the little outside area the house had connecting to the kitchen. "How are you feeling?", Gina asked once she arrived in the kitchen an hour later, pressing the button on the coffee machine after inserting the pod in, waiting for the dark liquid to brew and fill her mug, "For someone who cried all the water they had in their body yesterday, I feel surprisingly okay today", you humoured her as you drank some of your own coffee, looking at her, "again, thanks for letting me wallow in my misery with you", you showed your appreciation for her friendship, "Of course, what are best friends for? I'm not here just to make fun of you when you flip go karts", she replied sitting down after pressing a kiss to your forehead, "speaking of, have you seen my brother?", she asked. "I think I heard him leave this morning when I woke up", you mused, "he probably went for a workout", Gina wondered as she buttered some toast for your breakfast, "I'm going to spend some time in the stables, do you want to join me or stay here?", she questioned as she made her way upstairs after you cleaned the kitchen, "I think I'm going to stay here a bit on my own if you don't mind", you replied, earning an understanding nod from her. You sat down on one of the sofas after grabbing one of the many notebooks you usually carry with you from the totebag on your car, jotting down some words as you tried to work your way through how you were feeling. Being an introvert, you have learned a long time ago that one of the ways to stop bottling up everything you felt was to write something down, wether it just a literal brain dump or some verses.

Three weeks had passed since you went to Gina's place late at night after your break-up, and given everything you were taking things pretty okay-ish. Grabbing the things you needed and stuffing your tote bag with them, you grabbed the box that had your homemade dessert inside and headed to your bestfriend's house since she had invited you over for lunch, "Hi, hi! Oh, I'm so excited to have you here!", she greeted you at the door once you arrived, helping you carry your things inside. Setting the table and picking on some of the foods displayed, Gina informed you you would have some company, "My mother and my brother are joining us today, I assumed you wouldn't mind", she added as she passed you a tray to put on the table, "Oh, how great! I haven't seen them in a while, especially your mother. Mick I see on the TV on the races but it's not the same", you smiled as you heard the tyres on the gravel outside, "Oh, it must be them", and a few minutes later they both got in through the door, "Y/N, dear, it's been so long since I've seen you", Corinna beamed as she took you in, "always so gorgeous, you are so grown up", she hugged you and then greeted her daughter, "Angie, outside for a bit, and don't ruin the footballs, please", you heard Mick say to his dog. He too had grown up, the little boy you would once play with and read with (as you were both very shy and seemed to be happy just like that) was now a young man and, despite being a year younger than you, his body towered over yours as he turned to look at the room, "Hi Y/N, how are you?", he hugged you as you greeted him with a kiss on each cheek, "Hi, good and you? It's been a while since I've seen you in person Mr Formula 1 driver", you teased slightly. You had been almost as proud as the rest of his family when he got his F1 seat knowing how hard he worked for it and how much he deserved it, "Yeah, it's been a while", he said blushing, "Kids, the food is on the table, c'mon", Corinna called for you as you all sat down and ate the lovely meal Gina had prepared for you. "I saw a dessert platter when I arrived", Corinna said as you helped her tidy the table when you finished eating, "Oh yes, I almost forgot, I made my mum's recipe of meringue pie, I hope it's good", you winced, "I'm sure it's great. Mick! Y/N, made that dessert love", she said, entering the room with platter and placing it in the middle of the table. "I have a race next weekend but I've been pretty good lately, I think I'll have a bit actually", Mick said, forwarding his plate as his mum served everyone, "Wow, I'm shocked you're even considering eating a dessert, last week mum made some cake, your favourite cake, and you said no, thank you", Gina exclaimed, "Well, this is a pretty good recipe", Mick tried to reason his sister's light teasing, "It's worth breaking the diet a little bit just now, although I'm trusting you all to not tell my trainer on me", he pointed the spoon, "speaking of, do you want to join us these two this weekend? They're going to see the race", Mick offered, "if you're free and if you want too, of course", and it was suddenly like the shy and introverted kid you've known pretty much all your life was in front of you.

"Oh Y/N, you should come, change your whereabouts for a bit, get a chance to hang out with us...", Gina tempted you, "I'm free from this weekend on actually, I have a break from work so there wouldn't be any rush either...", you whispered, tempted to given in, "I'll email the team so they can get your passes ready, just need a picture of you", Mick said, "I can send it", Gina offered, "I have to send you mine and mum's too, Y/N sends me hers and it's done! Uhh, I'm so excited", she clapped before digging in the food on her plate.

When you moved to the balcony, you grabbed your notebook and sat in one of the sofas they had outside, appreciating how Mick and Angie played with eachother in the garden, "Still writing, dear? I always remember you having a notebook one you at any given time", Corinna said as she sat down on the opposite sofa, "It's always been a nice way to express how I'm feeling", you said as you both looked out to the dog who insisted she must rip apart every single bit of the football Mick played with, noticing how she ran to you and nudged her nose on your leg, "you want me to play with you? Is that what you want? Okay!", you said, excusing yourself as you joined the fun on the garden after setting your notebook on the sofa.

A moment later, Gina occupied your spot on the sofa, chatting to her mum, "Did you know that I always thought they would end up together?", Corinna mused, looking at how you two laughed together at something you said, running around Angie, "Mick and Y/N? Really?", Gina chuckled, "Yeah, although she was your best friend, Mick always enjoyed having her around, I think at one point the only time you played together without ripping eachothers hair off was when she was playing too, your dad used to say that could tame you both like that would go on to do great things", she mused, remembering her husband's words, "It's just, it's Y/N, you know? She's been around since forever almost and-, and she's had a rough break-up you know?", Gina said, looking back at you, now sitting on the floor next to Mick with Angie laying on her back, appreciating the belly rubs you were both giving her while settling in what looked like a comfortable conversation. "I'm not saying they will be, you know? But she is a very nice young woman, very kind, respectful, and she's very beautiful too... it's a shame she has learnt how brutal and stupid some men can be", Corinna offered, earning a hum from her daughter.

Even though you couldn't stay for dinner, Mick stayed, his sister not bothering with setting the table and choosing to eat outside and enjoy the warm night. While Gina offered to do the dishes, Mick was fixing the pillows of the sofa when he found your notebook, your initials carefully embossed on the front. He knew better than to go snooping around other people's things, his parents did not raise him like that and he felt on his own skin what it was to have people wanting to sneak and know about things no on told them about, so he chose to just grab the notebook and make a mental note to give it back to you at the race. As he grabbed it, a single sheet of paper flew away with the light breeze, landing on Angie's paw as she fiddled with it, "No, no, no Angie, no. Please don't rip it", he said carefully convincing the dog to keep the paper intact, "you don't play with balls but you play with this? You are one interesting dog", he mumbled as he picked the paper up, noticing a few drawings on the edges and some words written on it, and he caved in. He placed the sheet on top of the notebook on his lap, admiring how the drawings around the edges looked like a creeper-ivy and your handwriting.

What if I were like them

Who you wanted to be with

I did everything to be Cinderella

You seemed to think i wasn't to be praised

And I pretended I didn't notice

But deep down I always knew

Of the emotions you hid from me

From the temptations of your nights

I saw myself sinking very slowly

I think I only thought of you

I would say that we did everything

I just wanted to understand

How did we get here

Left on the side to suffer

Do you even know how much I liked you

Maybe it's not what you want

Maybe what I give you is not enough

If those you were with

Were better than I am

And maybe that wasn't enough

To make you stay here

He never allowed himself to dive deeper into his feelings when he spent time with you, after all you were his sister's friend and had known him almost all his life, but reading how you wrote your feelings down, he felt a sudden anger after reading words of self doubt and how someone had (mis)treated you. How someone had your love and affection and they let it all go to waste, how you were from now on insecure about yourself and unsure of your worth, the tightness on his chest lingering after he carefully placed the loose sheet inside the. notebook. "This is Y/N's, do you want me to keep it and give it back on the weekend?", Mick asked when he heard his sister's footsteps joining him on the outside area, "Sure", Gina added, thinking that maybe the conversation with her mum this afternoon did make some sense and maybe, just maybe, her best friend and her brother did have a chance at something beautiful.

Part 2

Part 3

#mick schumacher imagine #mick schumacher fluff #mick schumacher fic #f1 imagine #f1 x reader #f1 fanfic #mick schumacher x reader

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itsthewritergal · 2 years

Text

I don’t bite - Eddie Munson x reader

TW: Bullying, insecure Eddie (if you squint!!) that’s all I can think of but let me know :)

So this can either be read as a stand alone or as a part 2 to Freak

Enjoy :) xx

“Awh look the freaks sit together” One of the cheerleaders laughed as they walked into the chemistry room,

“I’d stay away, you might catch something” Jason smirked looking Y/N up and down, she shifted uncomfortably in her seat

“Says the guy who cried when his mum couldn’t come to his basket ball game” Eddie mocked with a sarcastic grin

“Did he really?” Y/N said turning to Eddie with a smile on her face

“That’s right isn’t it Jason, full on breakdown” He smirked, challenging Jason to say something else

“Freak” He spat turning around and taking his seat with the other jocks, Eddie leaned back in his chair with a satisfied grin on his face

“You’re pretty cool Eddie” Y/N babbled the compliment before she could even register what she was saying

“Thank you sweetheart, you’re not bad either” He grinned “Well for a freak of course” He added with a chuckle,

“Are you sure you don’t mind me joining tonight?” She asked,

“Of course not, like I said the more freaks the better”

Y/N quickly silenced herself as the teacher walked in, Eddie sat beside her watching intently as she wrote down almost every word that came out of the teachers mouth. He was enamoured with her already, shaking his head he tried to block her out of his mind but it didn’t work. His gaze just kept returning to her.

Eddie walked Y/N to each of her classes, sitting next to her in every single one she had with him. By the time they finished their last class of the day Y/N was consumed by excitement at the thought of watching the game which Eddie seemed so obsessed with.

“Do you need any help setting anything up?” Y/N asked

“I’ve got it” Eddie said gently, as he began setting up the table before everyone else arrived, Y/N stood in the corner of the room watching Eddie intently.

“You can sit down, it’s ok I won’t bite” He chuckled pulling out a chair for her to sit on

“Thanks” She said quietly, Eddie disappeared for a moment and then came back with an intricately designed chair

“What’s that?” Y/N asked

“It’s my dungeon Master throne” Eddie grinned “The drama department made it but never used it so I claimed it” He said

“It’s amazing,” Y/N smiled

“I’m glad you like it” Eddie said sitting himself down next to Y/N, he took in a deep breath “Just remember if you don’t want to stay just say the word and I’ll stop and drive you home ok?” He said suddenly feeling insecure in the little game he loved so much,

“You’d stop the game for me?” Y/N said sitting crossed legged

“Sure” Eddie said, although he knew if anyone else had heard him admit that they would have almost definitely lost their minds, especially Dustin. Y/N thanked Eddie with a blush spreading across her face.

“Hey guys!” Dustin grinned pushing the door wide open “Y/N, you made it!” He beamed

“We were scared Eddie would scare you off” Lucas laughed

“Would I ever scare off such a pretty young maiden” Eddie grinned putting on his Dungeon Master voice, “Now let’s begin” He said.

Y/N listened intently as Eddie began setting the scene, it reminded her of the stories she wrote in her spare time.There was a part of her which was obsessed with the way the words just rolled off of his tongue, it was almost magic the way he immersed everyone into his own story. It was just incredible.

— — —

“So what did you think?” Dustin asked as the others began packing up

“It was fun! I really enjoyed it” Y/N admitted with a grin

“Eddie’s an amazing DM isn’t he?” Dustin said,

“He’s certainly got a way with words” Y/N admitted turning over her shoulder to watch Eddie as he chatted to Gareth and Jeff who both looked as though they were in deep conversation

“It’s not every day he lets someone into the inner circle, he must think you’re pretty cool” Dustin grinned, Y/N knew what he was insinuating but didn’t believe one word of it

“I don’t know about that” Y/N admitted

“I do, he’s a pretty amazing person when you get to know him” Dustin said “You’re right there” Y/N agreed,

“You ready to go?” Eddie asked coming up behind Y/N, and slotting himself in next to Y/N so that their shoulders were touching

“I can walk, it’s ok” Y/N said quietly

“I’m not letting you walk home alone, I’ve got you” Eddie said with a kind smile

“Thank you” Y/N said as Eddie walked her out of the school after waving goodbye to the rest of the guys.

Eddie hadn’t ever driven so carefully in his life, ordinarily with anyone else in the car he would’ve still driven like normal but suddenly with Y/N sitting in his front seat he felt a wave of concern over her wellbeing.

“I really enjoyed today” Y/N admitted quietly as Eddie turned down the radio

“You did?” Eddie asked a smirk appearing on his face

“Yeah I did, I mean apart from all the freak stuff obviously, but I really enjoyed it” She said

“You’re not a freak, I know what those people can do to someone like you, but you’ve got me now” he said sincerely

“You know you’re pretty good at story telling” Y/N said changing the subject,

“I am?” Eddie said

“Yeah you are” Y/N grinned instructing Eddie to turn into her road. The moment he parked the car Y/N sat for a second “I don’t suppose you want to come in? Mum’s making dinner and I’m sure there is enough to feed the whole town, plus we can get started on that Chemistry homework” She said

“You want to invite me in?” Eddie said choosing his words carefully

“Please,” Y/N said with a smile “I mean obviously you don’t have to, I know we’ve only just met and I just was think—”

“It would be rude not to” He cut her off gently,

Y/N took Eddie’s hand and pulled him into her house, Eddie felt completely out of place in the perfectly decorated house, which reminded him of a story book.

“It isn’t much and we still haven’t unpacked properly but its feeling like home” Y/N explained

“Y/N is that you?” Her mother called out

“Yeah, I’ve brought a friend over” Y/N replied

“Hi darling” Her mother said walking into the living room “I’m Tammy, Y/N’s mum nice to meet you” she smiled at Eddie, it was the kind of treatment he wasn’t used to getting

“Mum this is Eddie,” Y/N said noticing Eddie’s hesitation

“You’re both home late, did something happen? Did you get lost on your way home?” She asked

“No, Eddie invited me to join him and his friends playing this D&D game” “What’s that darling?” She asked, Eddie felt his throat get dry, this was the part where Y/N’s mum told her she would never be allowed to see him again

“It’s this super cool fantasy game, Eddie writes all the stories for it!” Y/N grinned as she pulled Eddie into the kitchen and handed him a glass of water, her mother followed them

“That sounds fun! Perhaps you could write some stories for it too” She suggested

“You’re a writer?” Eddie asked

“I want to be” Y/N admitted

“It’s all she’s ever wanted” She laughed “Then you have to help me write the next campaign!” Eddie grinned

“Maybe” Y/N said shifting on her feet

“Why don’t you two go upstairs, dinner will be ready soon” She said gently

“Thanks mum!” Y/N said leading Eddie through the house

“You’re mums pretty cool” Eddie smiled as they climbed the stairs

“She likes you,”

“You sure?” Eddie said nervously

“Trust me, she likes you” Y/N grinned.

Taglist :)

@whitewineandpizzapuffs @planet-naptune @thefandomplace @sebby-staan @poguesinablanket @witch-and-a-half @nojamsonmytoast @seanh-boredom @wanniiieeee @louweasleymalfoy @missryerye @big-galaxy-chaos @barnestatic @devilsbooksworld @lovesanimals0000 @navs-bhat @saayanaaa

#Eddie fluff #Eddie munson fluff #Eddie munson #eddie #Eddie munson angst #eddie munson x female reader #Eddie munson x reader fluff #Eddie x reader angst #Eddie x reader fluff #Eddie x reader #eddie x

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phoebe-delia · 6 months

Text

One Day More (Harry Potter Version)

Okay I have written a little HP-themed parody of "One Day More" from Les Miserables. Because it wouldn't leave my mind once I thought of it.

I'm sorry if this doesn't make much sense to read over text, especially the ending since it's technically a bunch of characters singing their parts until they all come together for the last few lines. If you're not familiar with Les Mis I suggest you listen to the song before you try to read the lyrics.

ALSO a few notes here. I have put commas and dashes in order to indicate the rhythm at which certain words are said to fit with the timing/rhythm of the original lyrics, if that makes any sense. Also this IGNORES some of canon. Dumbledore is alive, and I basically just sorta wrote what I wanted without regard for what had actually *happened* on the day before the war.

Also, yes, this takes place (in my AU) the day before the final battle.

Here's a link to the original song.

[Dumbledore:] One day more A day that divination long forebode

The seeds I planted then will now be sowed. The orphaned babe from decades past

Will fin'lly fill his fate at last One day more [Harry:]

My life-long war could be near end

Will—I-see-days, beyond tomorrow? [Dumbledore:] One day more [Ron & Hermione:]

How long we wasted in denial

But what, is left I’ll share entirely

[Draco:] How have months undone my life? [Ron & Hermione:] I regret the pain I’ve caused [Draco:] How’s my enemy my hero? [Ron & Hermione:] All the pride I let consume [Draco:]

Could it be I’ve been so wrong? [Ron & Hermione:] I will fight here by your side [Draco:] Could he ever take my hand? [Remus:]

I’ll avenge them one by one

[Harry:]

All I’ve done has led to now

[Remus:]

But their deaths won’t be in vain

[Harry:]

I will do what’s right and just

[Remus:]

Victory now won’t bring them back

[Harry:]

Riddle’s reign will end with me

[Remus:] But my marauders fight with me! [All:] The time is now The day is here [Dumbledore:] One day more! [Voldemort:] One more day till I’m triumphant

I’ll be on my well-earned throne

They are foolish child fighters

They will soon learn to obey [Dumbledore:] One day more! [Bellatrix & Greyback:] Little tyrant tykes

Screamin’ for their mums

Fun to teach ‘em lessons

About who’s in charge Spook ‘em with a sneer

Hit ‘em with a hex See ‘em runnin, squealin

Like a pen of pigs! [The D.A. Students:]

This is not a war we started

This is not a fight we chose

But if they won’t lend an ear

We will shout our battle cries

This ends with our generation

Evil won’t win on our watch

Stand your ground and raise your wands

[Harry:] My place is here I fight with you! [Dumbledore:] One day more!

[[ALL SUNG AT THE SAME TIME]]

[Ron & Hermione:]

How long we wasted in denial

I swear I’ll never leave your side

And all the time I’ve got I’ll give you [Draco:] Could he ever take my hand? [Voldemort:]

I will finally kill that Potter

Now his luck is all run out

They will see that he’s no hero

They will worship me instead [Dumbledore:] One day more! [Bellatrix & Greyback:] Little tyrant tykes

Screamin’ for their mums

Fun to teach ‘em lessons

About who’s in charge [Voldemort:] One more day till I’m triumphant

I’ll be on my well-earned throne

They are foolish child fighters Tomorrow fills the prophecy [Dumbledore:] Tomorrow is the fated day Tomorrow fills the prophecy [All:] Tomorrow nothing that we’ve known will ever be the same again One more fight One more war One day more!

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takearisk-x · 2 years

Text

there is no third

written for @hinnyfest prompt 1: First, I love you

The little bell above the door tinkled and a gust of frosty wind swept through Honeydukes until the door banged closed again. Not paying attention to the other shoppers crowded around, Harry leaned against a display of Cockroach Clusters and watched as Ginny perused the baking section.

In typical Ginny fashion, she had left her Christmas Shopping until the very last minute, which meant Harry was trailing along after her and fighting the horde of dawdlers who also refused to take advantage of Owl Orders. It wasn’t the worst way he’d spent a Saturday, but he could think of other, much more enjoyable, pastimes to participate in with his fiancée.

Especially since in two weeks she wouldn’t be his fiancée anymore. She’d be something altogether more important. Something infinitely significant and meaningful. Something sacred.

Warmth cracked open in his chest as he watched her let out an impatient huff and return a cellophane bag of instant melt caramels back to the shelf.

Wife.

Ginny was going to be his wife. Home, family, and endless contentment, all wrapped up in his favorite person in the world. Bonded to him for life.

Sometimes Harry had to pinch himself just for the reminder that it was real.

The distinctive click of a camera pulled his attention away from Ginny chewing on her bottom lip and to the other side of the shop. Harry clocked the room but didn’t immediately notice anyone acting suspicious until the third go around.

A middle-aged bloke stood half-hidden behind a rack of Liquorice Wands and conspicuously stared in their direction. When he noticed Harry, he ducked behind an older couple passing by and disappeared from sight.

“Do you think Mum would want Golden Syrup Drops?”

The bloke reappeared three aisles over, raising a camera in their direction and Harry swore under his breath

“Yeah,” Ginny hummed. “I didn’t think so either.”

Not bothering with an explanation, Harry grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the back of the store.

“What’re you-” she started but he yanked her down the rickety staircase and into the basement storeroom.

“It’s that Bogdan fellow,” Harry explained in a rush once they were out of sight. “The photographer working for Rita Skeeter.”

Ginny made a disgusted noise. “That’s the third time this month.”

“Are we sure she doesn’t know?” Harry said with a pointed look.

She shook her head. “If she did, she’d have published something already.”

Harry shrugged in agreement, shifting his palm and sliding his fingers between hers.

Narrowing her eyes, Ginny tilted her head in question. “So, what’s the plan here?”

Harry blinked. “What do you mean?”

“I mean are we living in the cellar now or...?”

“Oh,” he faltered. “I hadn’t thought that far ahead.”

She sighed, her eyes falling shut. A nearly all-consuming urge to snog her senseless came over him.

“So instead of getting an innocent photo of us Christmas shopping,” Ginny spoke slowly as if she was explaining a particularly difficult subject to someone very dim. “He gets one of us sneaking out of the Honeydukes cellar?”

Harry opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out. He smiled ruefully instead.

“First,” Ginny remarked, her eyes sparkling with amusement in the dim light. “I love you.”

His smile stretched wider. He didn’t think he’d ever get tired of hearing it.

“Second,” she continued, moving her hands to either side of his face. “You’re an idiot.”

Harry choked on a laugh. “And third?”

“There is no third,” Ginny pushed up onto her toes to give him a fleeting kiss. “I love you and you’re an idiot. It’s the tragedy of my life.”

He snorted then buried his face in the crook of her neck. “We could wait him out?”

A knowing giggle rippled through her. “He could be up there for ages...”

“Don’t worry,” Harry pressed the lightest of kisses to the skin beneath her ear. “I know how we can pass the time.”

#hinnyfest #hinny #jesus this was pure fluff #is this a tpfy epilogue???#sure why not #lets make all the hinnyfest prompts tpfy epilogues #the path from you #my fic

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blackbutler-readerinsertsandjunk · 7 months

Note

Fuck it. I really like how you write Undertaker so could you please do an undertaker x reader, dealers choice? Could be fluff, le comedy, or ANGST, surprise me 💕

I apparently jump on angst when it comes to Undertaker, OOPS-

You think endless years of life and loss have shattered your lover into pieces.

Whatever else he may be, you believe the UNDERTAKER is a very, very broken man.

How long has he even been alive for, you wonder? How many people has he lost over his lifetime? Other than the vague fact of, All of them. You don’t want to be another one, but… he knows better than anyone else the cycle of life and death.

It’s simply obvious that he thought he could put a halt to it.

It’s sad to watch him, as you see him now, in this derelict church, sitting among rotted pews and jagged pieces of smashed-in stained glass. There are vines and flowers everywhere; you get the distinct sense that he doesn’t think it’s a beautiful thing.

… This whole place. It reminds you of his heart. Maybe that’s why you assume he doesn’t think it’s beautiful, because he has a very low opinion of himself by this point.

Living has eroded his self-image to nothing, like water beating a rough stone until it’s perfectly polished. You think this place is beautiful, in a melancholy sort of way.

You think he’s beautiful, in a melancholy sort of way. In a contrast to this place, he hasn’t let the new blossoms of moving on grow over him. He’s rooted himself, allowing the memories of his losses to consume him and make growth impossible.

You lower yourself next to him, and it’s telling that he barely even moves. He doesn’t look at you, he doesn’t move away. He doesn’t let his grip loosen a single bit on the chain of mourning lockets that are wrapped around his long nails and draped over his fingers.

God. You can only imagine what’s running through his mind.

You’re quiet as you lean your head against his shoulder. Any words you can think to say sound hollow when they ring in your skull, so you don’t say anything. You just sit, and exist next to the person you love more than anything in this world.

Finally, he’s the one to break the silence.

“It never gets better, y’ know.” His thumb runs over the locket resting in his palm. His eyes are weary, red-rimmed with the evidence of someone who’s cried until he has no tears left, and continued crying regardless.

You tilt your head with a soft hum. A request for elaboration.

The breath he takes is a gasp for air after breaking the surface of nearly drowning. “That’s what ev’ryone told me. ‘It’ll get better.’ ‘Time heals all wounds.’ ‘What do y’ think they’d want y’ t’ do?’”

His hand might crush the locket if that weren’t the very thing he’s been trying to avoid with every effort he’s made. “It’s a bunch of shite. It doesn’t get better. It never heals. An’ how the hell would anyone else know what they’d want me to do? There ain’t no movin’ past a hole in your chest that keeps gettin’ bigger and bigger, somethin’ that ain’t there but it feels so damn heavy y’ can’t get outta bed sometimes.”

He swallows, and it’s audible, and he finally turns to look at you. Fluorescent green eyes are only hidden from you by a film of tears. Suddenly, every scar you can see dotting his body makes you think he’s stitched together with nothing but memories.

As if that’s all he is anymore. A vessel for the memories of all the people he’s ever loved, instead of being the person he used to be.

“I don’t want to let go.” It’s spit out furiously, a response to a question you haven’t even asked yet. He brings the lockets close to his chest and curls into you. “They’re all gone now, (Name). My mum… my dad… the first one I loved… all the other family and friends and lovers I cared about since then…”

He looks up at you, pleading with you to understand.

“They’re gone,” he says in a voice that’s barely a whisper. “If I don’t remember ‘em… if my life goes on jus’ the same as it did before I lost ‘em… don’t that mean I didn’t actually love ‘em? But I did… I did, darlin’… jus’ like I love you.”

The way he says it makes it abundantly clear: if he thinks he didn’t love all those people, and that he didn’t love you, because he moved on after losing them, he wouldn’t be able to live with himself.

Once again, everything you can think to say seems like a blade to shove and twist in his already gaping wounds.

So you put your arms around him, and hold his broken pieces together as best you can, and murmur a declaration that feels louder than it sounds. “I love you too, Adrian.”

#tehgreatboo #grief tw #Black Butler #Kuroshitsuji #Undertaker #reader insert #romantic #drama #angst #hurt/comfort #UGHHHHHHHH MY HEART IS SPILLING OVER DAMMIT!!!!#I uh - I wrote this pretty fast and surprised myself?? damn XD #one hell of a queue

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m-jelly · 9 months

Text

Bodyguard's Touch - Chapter 8

@ladycheesington <3

Pairing: Levi x Fem!Reader

Genre and tags: Modern AU, bodyguard Levi, romance, fluff, falling in love, cute, emotional hurt, comfort, protective Levi, pregnant reader, marriage

What's in this chapter: Levi gets emotional about your injuries, so you give him comfort. Roland tries to talk to you but fails. You and Levi finally get married.

AO3 link

The end

Levi leaned on the counter in the kitchen as tears filled his eyes. The thought of you being shot without him being there for you made Levi shake a little. He gazed at his hands and saw blood on them, your blood. His legs became weak and before he could stop himself, he slumped to the floor as his emotions consumed him. He covered his mouth with his hand and quietly cried as he felt so weak and a failure.

You winced a bit as you moved downstairs in your comfy clothes and dressing gown. You shuffled closer to the kitchen with a desire to drink something warm and comforting. You paused a moment when you heard soft whimpers and cries. Your heart began to sting when you recognised the painful sobs.

“Levi?” You gave Levi a gentle smile as soon as he looked up at you with his tear-filled eyes. “Do you need a hug?”

Levi hastily rose to his feet and hurried over to you. “You should be in bed.”

With a caring smile, you held Levi’s hands. “I got thirsty and I wanted to stretch my legs.” You leaned closer and captured his lips. “Do you want to talk?”

He wrapped his arms around you and as gently as possible, he pulled you against him. “Let me hold you for a moment.”

“Of course.” You pushed your fingers into Levi’s hair and massaged his head. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” He pulled back and sighed. “I love you more than anything in this world.” He lowered his head as he processed his thoughts and feelings. “I just…everything caught up with me. I hate that I wasn’t there to protect you. You…you could have died…our baby…”

“I’m alive. Our baby is alive. I understand that it is horrible and it is so fucking scary to watch the person you love bleeding all over the floor.” You cupped his face. “But I am alive, I am here, I am well and I’m not going anywhere.” You kissed him and hummed. “You’ve been so strong for me and our baby. Thank you. I don’t think I could have pushed through this all without you.”

“You’re being too kind.” He sighed. “I am your bodyguard. I’m supposed to protect you.”

“You’re not my bodyguard, not anymore. You’re my fiancée and the father of this wonderful unborn baby.” You released a long sigh. “You have done so much for us so far. You’ve gone out of your way to protect us. You’ve showered us in love.” You held his hands. “Levi, my love, you can’t stop every bad thing from happening, okay?”

He whined a little at your words because he knew you were right. “I know.”

“You do so much for me. You’re so strong and wonderful.” You squeezed his hands. “Please, please don’t let this eat away at you, okay? I am right here. I am alive and our baby is.”

He nodded. “You’re right. You’re both here.”

You hummed. “Plus, I’m pretty sure the hitman who tried to kill me was paid to do it by the Carters. Hopefully, the police will trace it all and they’ll be arrested.” You hummed. “I’m glad they tried to shoot me because they poisoned my mum and that would be hard to detect. At least with a hitman, you can see them.” You frowned. “I’m not making you feel better with this. Sorry, I’m terrible at this sort of thing.”

Levi hugged you. “You’re incredible. Now, you’re being a naughty kitten. You need to be in bed resting.”

“How can I rest when the love of my life was crying all alone?”

Levi welled up before smiling. “You’re so sweet. I love you. Now, get back into bed.”

You turned and shuffled to the stairs. “But I need a drink.”

Levi laughed at your pout. “I’m bringing you a hot drink and food!”

“You better!”

He shook his head as he smiled. “Spoiled brat!”

“I’m a spoiled brat because of you!”

“I know and I love it!” He carried on making you a hot chocolate and a tray full of snacks. He made his way upstairs and smiled when he saw you in bed. “Good kitten.”

You wiggled in bed. “I’m ready for my drink and snacks.”

He placed the tray on your lap before sitting next to you and getting his tablet. “Make sure you have everything.”

You moaned at how delicious the drink was. “I will. It’s delicious.”

Levi leaned over and kissed your neck. “Thank you for hearing me out, letting me cry and comforting me.”

You gazed at Levi. “Did I comfort you? I thought I did a terrible job.”

“You were fantastic.” He kissed you and purred in delight. “Thank you.” He lifted his tablet. “I have something fun for us to do.”

“What is it?”

He opened up the browser and typed in a few things to get a webpage full of baby products. “Baby shopping!”

You hummed a laugh. “Perfect!”

Levi smiled happily as you sat together picking out a few things for your baby. He enjoyed every moment and was buying a lot, but he noticed you were flagging a bit and looking exhausted. “Darling? Are you okay?”

You leaned towards him as you fell asleep. You winced a little and touched your side. “Ouch.”

Levi shifted you on the bed. “You need some pain meds. You’re due for some.” He moved off the bed and helped you take the tablets before lying you down. “I need to check your wound.”

You whined when he shifted your top to look at the gunshot near your gut. “Is it okay?”

He nodded. “Just a bit of blood has seeped through, but it’s okay. I’ll clean it up and get you patched up again.”

You let out a shaky sigh. “Thank you.” You watched Levi closely as he tended to you. “I made you cry again.”

Levi looked up at your face. “You didn’t. I just have a lot of emotions at the moment.”

“Levi.”

He fixed your top before leaning over and kissing you. “I’m perfectly okay. You are alive, you are here with me and we’re having a baby. Plus, we have a wedding to plan as well.”

You hummed. “We’ll have a lovely wedding.”

He lay next to you and placed his hand on your stomach. “You’re going to look sexy in a white dress.”

You giggled. “You wear a lot of suits and you know how much I love them. I am looking forward to calling you my husband.”

Levi's cheeks burned at your words. “So, this whole time I was around you while I was at working, you were aroused by me in my suit?”

“Yes.” You squealed with laughter when he started nibbling, licking and kissing your neck.

He leaned up and took your earlobe into his mouth and hummed. “I like this information.” He kissed your cheek. “You seem to like my gloves too.”

You turned your head and gazed at him. “Yeah, the leather ones are hot.”

Levi propped his head up on his hand and leaned on his elbow. He gazed down at you as he traced patterns on your stomach. “You feel a little warm. I think it’s because you’re healing.”

“Yes, but it’s also because I’m a bit horny.”

Levi blushed a bit. “Well, I’m a bit horny too. I guess I always am around you.” He kissed your cheek. “I’ll be a good boy, don’t worry. You’re too hurt to do anything.”

You pouted a little. “I know, but my body wants you.”

Levi kissed your forehead. “It’ll be worth the wait, my love.”

You placed your hand on Levi’s on your belly. “So, baby names.”

“I like flower names for girls.”

“Oh, like Daisy?” You gazed at Levi as he imagined a little girl called Daisy and started welling up. “Levi?”

He threw his arm over his eyes and whined. “Daisy, my little flower.” He sniffed his tears back. “So cute.”

“I was thinking, that for a boy, we could call him Evan.”

Levi rolled over and pressed his face against his pillow and whined. “Adorable. I love them both.”

You reached over and caressed his cheek with the back of your hand. “I love you.”

He turned his head and smiled at you. “I love you too.”

You slipped your arm under Levi and pulled him to lie against you. “You’re just a cute cuddly bear, aren’t you?”

He nuzzled his face into your breasts. “Yes.”

You played with his hair and hummed. “The cops will make him talk. They’ll arrest Chester and we’ll be free.”

Levi sighed. “Yeah, you’re right.” He leaned up and gazed down at you. “You’re so fucking beautiful.”

“Thank you. You’re incredibly handsome.”

Levi smirked before gently kissing you. “You’re the best thing to ever happen to me.”

You cupped his face. “Same, Levi. You are this incredible light in my life.”

Levi released a long sigh. “I’m going to kiss every inch of your body.”

You giggled. “Can’t wait.”

You hurried around your bakery and moved past your father. “Coming through!”

Levi moved from the counter and grabbed the tray from you. “Careful.”

You giggled. “Sorry, but I’m trying to be a step ahead of this rush.”

Levi kissed your cheek. “Bruce and I will take care of the front, okay?”

You nodded. “Okay, I’ll slow down.”

“Are you okay in the back with Erwin?”

“Yeah, he’s doing amazing.” You giggled as he pouted. “You’re incredible too.”

Levi smiled. “Thank you. Make sure you take breaks, okay?”

“I will.” You waved to Levi and slipped into the back with Erwin. “You okay in here?”

Erwin smiled at you as he kneaded dough. “All good. I’m making the sweet bread right now.”

You walked over and peered at his hands. “Looks fantastic.”

Erwin chuckled. “Cute.”

You looked up at him. “Cute?”

He nodded and pointed to your little belly sticking out. “Your baby bump is cute.”

You placed your hand on your bump. “Mm, it is. Thank you.” You walked over to your little station and started making some scones for a nice cream afternoon tea treat, which was a scone cut in half with cream on it and a strawberry compote. “Erwin? Could you test this compote?”

Erwin took a spoonful and tasted it. “Mm, great balance in it.”

“Fantastic.” You cleaned up and walked to the front only to bump into your man. “Levi.”

He grabbed the tray. “I’ll take this.”

“Thank you.”

“You need to take a break.”

You pouted. “But Erwin.”

Levi kissed you. “I’ll help him.”

“Okay, I’ll go get some fresh air.”

“Good girl.”

You blew him a kiss and waved to him. You slipped out the back of the building and relaxed. You sat down in the sun and just allowed your joints to relax. You closed your eyes as you soothingly rubbed your belly. You were trying to keep your mind clear because you didn’t want to think about the bad things going on. You frowned a bit in thought when your mind reflected on the court cases you had mounting up against the Carters. The hitman had given everything up so you were going for everything but not asking for any money as compensation. You just wanted them to go to jail.

You frowned when you felt a shadow fall on you. You opened your eyes when you heard someone call your name. You felt cold as you stared at a very dishevelled-looking Roland staring at you. “Roland?”

He smiled at you as he shifted on his feet, almost like he was an addict that hadn’t had a hit for a few hours. He stammered your name. “Hey.” He laughed nervously. “You look great.”

You stood up from your seat. “You shouldn’t be here.”

“I just need to talk to you.”

“I don’t want to talk.”

He cleared his throat. “Come on, just hear me out!”

You hurried to the door. “No!”

He slammed his hand against the door and stopped you from getting in. “Look.”

You turned to face him as your heart raced with fear. “Roland, back off.”

“I’m not going to hurt you. I just want to talk. Please, drop all the cases against us, okay?” He laughed but it was unhinged. “You’ve won, all right? Just let it go.”

“Let it go? Your father tried to have me killed!”

“He’s seen his mistake and so have we. We won’t do it again.” He leaned closer. “You’ve ruined us. We have nothing. Isn’t that enough?”

You shook your head. “Are you serious!? You tried to kill me!”

He placed both his hands on the door on either side of your head causing you to be trapped. “My father wanted that. You know how I feel about you.” He laughed a little showing the sanity in his eyes was not there. “I do believe marriage between us is the perfect path. Just come with me now and it’ll all be okay.”

“You just want me so you don’t lose your father’s money.” You gulped hard. “Why don’t you ask your real Dad for help and not Chester.”

“He doesn’t want anything to do with me and Heather.”

“You have a business! Why don’t you work with that? You have your own money.”

Roland punched the wall making you jump. “I was just the face of it all.”

You hugged yourself tightly. “You could have learned how to run the place. You still can!”

“Do you know how complicated businesses are?”

“I’m running one, so yes but it’s worth it.”

He leaned closer. “Marrying you is the best option. I want you and have always wanted you. The money you have is a bonus.” He sighed. “I have expensive taste. Now, a few things will need to change with us getting married. Your clothes, diet and that baby needs to go.”

You kicked him hard between the legs causing him to drop to the floor and gasp in pain. You turned and yanked the door open. “Levi!”

Roland slammed the door closed and grunted in your ear. “Little bitch.”

You smacked the back of your head into his face and ran away from him towards the hill you and Levi sat on a lot. You stumbled a little before turning around and screaming when Roland tackled you to the ground. You struggled under him and slapped his face hard. Your heart raced when memories of his past attack in Levi’s car came to mind. You screamed in hopes that someone would hear you and someone did.

Levi’s foot collided with Roland’s face and sent him flying off you. Levi snarled at Roland as he rolled around on the floor cradling his face. “Tch, you piece of shit!”

Bruce skidded at your side and pulled you into his arms. “Are you okay, little flower?”

You nodded. “I’m okay, Dad, but Levi.”

Bruce hugged you. “Erwin will calm him.”

You clung to your father as Levi hit Roland a few times before Erwin talked to Levi and calmed him down. “Levi.”

Levi turned to look at you with a bloodied and cut knuckle, messy hair and a slight sweat. He moved cautiously towards you. “Kitten?”

You threw yourself into Levi’s arms and started crying. “Levi.”

He squeezed you tightly. “I’m sorry.” He squeezed you tightly. “I’m so sorry. I’m so deeply sorry.” He watched the police turn up and sighed knowing you would need to talk. “Kitten? Can you tell the cops what happened?”

You sniffed and nodded at Levi’s words. You turned in his arms a little and began talking. The more you told them about Roland, the more Levi squeezed you. You gulped when they asked you about pressing charges. You nodded without even thinking because it was the right thing to do. “Yes, and I am worried he might do this again.”

The cop smiled as he made a note. “Restraining order will likely be granted if you ask for it.”

“Thank you, I will.”

“Take care, ma’am.”

Levi looked down at you. “He tried to marry you again?”

You whined a bit as you nodded. “I’m so tired.” Tears filled your eyes. “Why can’t they just leave me alone? I’m not even asking for money by taking them to court. I just want them to leave me alone.”

Levi hugged you tightly. “I know and we’ll get it to happen.” He kissed your forehead. “I’m sorry you got hurt again.”

“You’re the one who got hurt.” You moved in his arms and grabbed his hand. “Look at these cuts.”

“They’re okay.”

You gazed at him with such an adorable look. “But Levi.”

He kissed you. “You want to fix my hand up?”

“Please.”

He hummed a laugh. “Okay, let’s go back to the bakery and you can tend to me.”

You held Levi’s hand and pulled him to the bakery. You sat him in the back and moved around with him watching you closely. You washed his hand and inspected the cuts. “Did you catch his teeth?”

“Yeah.”

You hummed and cleaned the cuts a little more. “Must have hurt.”

He cupped the side of your face. “Seeing you under him hurt more.”

You smiled and leaned your cheek against his hand. “That was romantic.”

He pulled you close and kissed you. He tugged on your bottom lip with his teeth before slipping his tongue into your mouth. He moaned against your lips as you pressed your body against his. He moved his hand over your bum and squeezed tightly. He sighed through his nose when you clung to him and kissed him back with just as much love and passion as he had for you. He felt reassured that you were okay with the way you were kissing him.

Bruce called your name and paused in the doorway when he saw you and Levi kissing. “Oh, I’m sorry!”

Levi chuckled when you hid against his chest. “She’s okay if you’re wondering.”

“I can see that.”

You leaned and smiled. “Hi, Dad. I’m okay. Umm…Levi is too.”

Bruce moved closer. “Do you wanna talk about what happened?”

You sighed a little. “He’s attacked me like that before in Levi’s car. I’m not scared really. I feel okay about it all.” You shrugged. “There isn’t much that can be done. The cops will be taking care of it now.”

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

You thought for a moment before nodding. “Yeah.” You walked over and hugged him. “I wouldn't be if he wasn’t caught.”

Bruce smiled sweetly. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

You smiled a little. “It’ll get better.”

You adjusted your wedding dress a little and released a long sigh. You reached up and touched the bullet wound on your shoulder. “Mm.”

Kuchel started playing with your hair. “You look beautiful.”

“My wound.”

She smiled softly. “I you worried about it?”

You turned to face her. “Yeah.”

Bruce walked over with a little box. “You look like a princess.”

You gulped hard and hugged yourself. “Thank you, both of you. Kuchel, what about Levi?”

Kuchel winked. “He has his dad and his best friend. Your mum can’t be here, but I can.” She looked up at Bruce. “That okay?”

Bruce smiled. “I appreciate it that you’ve been helping her and being a mother. It means a lot to her and me.”

You nodded. “He’s right. You're wonderful and amazing. Thank you for being here.”

Kuchel smiled brightly. “A pleasure. You are the best thing to ever happen to my son.”

You welled up and rubbed your tears away. “You’re too kind.”

Kuchel wiped your tears away. “Bless you, my sweet.”

Bruce called your name. “I have something for you.”

You gazed at your father. “What is it?”

He opened the box in his hands to reveal a necklace. “This was your mother’s. I gifted it to her on our first anniversary. When she was gone she left it to me.” He smiled when Kuchel picked it up. “Now it’s yours.”

You welled up as Kuchel put it on you. “Thank you. It’s perfect. I feel like I’m carrying my mother with me.”

Bruce smiled softly. “She’ll always be with you. She’s the part of you that’s loving, caring and strong. She’d be so proud of you.”

Kuchel rubbed your back. “Very proud, you’re an incredible woman.” She hugged your arm. “Now! Let’s get you married!”

You giggled and walked with her and your father out of the room and outside your home. You travelled through the town to the large open field where Levi was waiting. You smiled brightly when he stood with Erwin and Sebastian in his charming suit. You felt your heart flutter at how handsome Levi was. You couldn’t wait much longer, you just wanted to be in his arms and kiss him. So, you dropped your flowers and sprinted towards Levi.

Levi turned to face you and felt tears fill his eyes at how beautiful you were. He moved away from his father and best friend and ran towards you. He opened his arms and caught you when you jumped into them. He spun around with you before kissing you deeply when he came to a stop. He smiled at you as he took you in. He crashed his lips against yours as your friends, family and the people of the town giggled and marvelled at the baking couple deeply in love.

Erwin cleared his throat. “Hate to break this moment, but we have a ceremony to do.”

You giggled. “He’s right.”

Levi pulled you to the front and held you against him. “We’re ready.” Levi hugged you with his cheek resting on the top of your head. He hummed in happiness as his friend married the two of you. Levi looked down at you with a cute smile. “I do.”

You gazed at him. “I do.”

Erwin smiled. “All right, now is the moment Levi has been waiting for. You may kiss the bride.”

Levi yanked you close and crashed his lips against yours. “Mine.”

You giggled. “Yours, in a bit.”

“What?”

“We have to sign the papers first.”

Levi pouted. “You should be mine, now.”

Erwin sighed. “Then come with me to sign papers.”

Levi picked you up and hurried with you to the town hall where he could sign papers with you. He put you down and signed his name as soon as he could. “Kitten?”

You took the pen and signed. “Mrs Ackerman…it’s perfect.”

Levi bent you backwards and kissed you. “All mine.” He cupped your face. “I can’t believe it.”

You giggled. “It’s amazing. We’re married.”

He let out a long sigh. “I can’t wait to make love to my wife.”

Erwin sighed. “I’m right here, Levi.”

Levi held you against him and pouted at Erwin. “Thank you for marrying us, but I can’t help but tell my wife how much I enjoy making love to her.”

Erwin smirked and shook his head. “I’m happy for you, but we have to go.”

“Go?”

You cupped Levi’s face and wiggled it. “You’re so adorable, it’s one of the many reasons I love you.”

“Thank you.”

You kissed him. “We have our dinner and cake eating to do.”

Levi hummed. “But.”

“Please, darling husband.”

Levi perked up. “Husband…”

You nodded. “Yes, you’re my husband and I would love it if my wonderful husband would come with me to have dinner and eat cake.”

“I can do that.”

You cupped his neck and sighed. “Also, your wife would like it if you would dance with her.”

“I can do that too.”

You held his hand and pulled him along. “Come on then, handsome.” You looked over at Erwin. “You coming too?”

Erwin nodded. “I have a sexy and adorable girlfriend to dance with.”

You gazed at Levi when he started humming a song. “You’re in a great mood.”

Levi smirked. “Of course. I’m married to the love of my life and I’m off to go have our first dance together.” He pulled you closer and sighed. “Let me know if you get tired, okay? You need to rest as much as you can.”

“I’m good. I’ll let you know if I need to rest.”

“Good girl.” He led you to the head table and pulled the chair out for you. “After you.”

You sat down and relaxed. “Thank you.”

Levi sat beside you and held your hand as everyone did their little speeches. He lifted your hand and kissed it as people praised the love between the two of you. He rose to his feet and sighed. “Uh, I don’t do these things. My job is to protect the woman I love and be quiet as I do. I’ve never spoken out before. I do my job and stay quiet. I love this woman next to me.” He called your name. “She is my world. She brought light into my life. I am honoured to be with her. She is a blessing in my life and even though we have been through some scary times, at the end of it all we’re still deeply in love and strong as a couple. I am looking forward to spending the rest of my life with her.”

You welled up a little. “Me too. I love you.”

“I love you so much.” He winked at you before looking at his friends and family. “Enjoy dinner, everyone.” He sat down with you and smiled sweetly. “I love you.”

You giggled. “I love you too.”

He snuggled up to you. “You’re the best thing to ever happen to me.”

“So are you. You’re my everything.”

Levi reached over and rubbed your baby bump. “I’m looking forward to meeting the little one.”

You smiled softly. “Me too.”

Levi leaned over and kissed you. “I’m so glad you slapped me in the face last year.”

You giggled. “I’m still sorry about that.”

“Don’t be sorry, it was sexy.” He looked you up and down. “So fucking sexy.”

You gasped as Levi’s hand slipped under your dress. “Levi, save it for later.”

“Promise.”

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depressnt · 5 months

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Watched Hilda season 3 and Hilda And The Mountain King and I have thoughts for an au that includes the magic of The Incident(s) combining into one thing and affecting Hilda VERY greatly, I'm gonna copy-paste these texts from my convo with my partner (keep in mind, this isn't the first time I watch this movie)

I kinda wanna see troll! Hilda with her normal human mum, just trying to figure things out.

I wanna see Johanna struggling with Hilda who is so obviously *scared* and I wanna see Hilda break something by accident and just *freeze* and I want Johanna to deal with Hilda treating everything like glass and how obviously distressed the bells make Hilda

I wanna see Johanna try to hug Hilda and I wanna see Hilda hesitate and I want it to break Johanna to see what's happened to her daughter

I wanna see Hilda struggling with awakened Fae instincts due to the magics being connected and I want Johanna to see the difference after Hilda turns back and I wanna see Johanna doubt her daughter and then feel guilty for doubting Hilda who flinches at bells, goes in a trance like state when someone tells her their name, Hilda who can no longer say no to anything because everyone knows her name

Maybe i've consumed too much Danny Phantom content, when I see a non-angsty fandom simply existing, I think of all this 😭

Ok but i REALLY wanna see Johanna tell Hilda to do/not to something and Hilda visibly tries to not obey but is trembling and then locks up and kind of mechanically does it and it just makes everyone distressed

Omg I'm at the scene where Hilda is starting to experience the pain every troll experiences when they hear the bells

She's so scared, poor child :(however. I wanna focus on the part where she says "these things are gonna kill me" and I wanna amplify it, I want her to be SO scared of death. She's in a new body seemingly so invulnerable compared to her human one and I want THIS to be the moment she's sure she will die

I want her to get an intense ptsd flashback when she hears bells as a human. I want them to be just a bit louder to her than to anyone else. I want her ears to be left ringing everything she hears so much as a tink on glass.

I want her to yearn for her life as a troll occasionally because now that she's human again she's bound by so many things and the people around her are telling her to do things and her true name isn't pronounceable to trolls, they can't tell her to do things, she can feel in control of her body in ways she never could as a human

I wanna see Hilda breaking down and yelling for the call of the troll mother because it gave her a sense of connection to the land that she's always had, and still has after becoming human again, but that is amplified as a troll. Then I want her to break down bc the best mother she could ask for is already right there >:]

I want to see a visceral breakdown as Johanna takes care of a daughter who isn't hers (which is canonically happening as I type this, but it's filtered through a children's tv show lens and I wanna see the real thing)

The best thing throughout this whole idea is the (made up) language barrier and the fact that hilda stones-over in daylight

Hilda hiding under the bed from the sun and Johanna coaxing her out, only for Hilda to stone over once she's in the light and Johanna crying bc it's visibly painful for Hilda 🤭

Watching Johanna bang on a wall where a bunch of trolls dissappeared yelling "give her back to me!" At the specific troll who took her daughter is great, therapeutic, I love it. 11/10

OMG FRIDA AND DAVID, I HAVEN'T EVEN THOUGHT ABOUT THEM

OMG HILDA AND JOHANNA REUNITE BUT THEN JOHANNA LOSES HER AGAIN WHILE HILDA FIGHTS TO PROTECT HER! THEN THE PROPER REUNION!

Hilda still speaks human?! Nooooo the angst potentialllll

Hilda is openly displaying troll strength without accidentally hurting Johanna and running away crying while Johanna calls out for her as she cradles a broken bone or two, where's the angst :(

OMG HE ALMOST KILLED HILDA

HE'S HOLDING A CHILD HOSTAGE

Hilda is human again

She's also naked as a newborn babe/ref

HILDA STILL SPEAKS TROLL?! THE IMPLICATION THAT SOMETHING IS LEFT OVER FROM THE MAGIC- AUGHHHH

#hilda netflix #hilda #danny phantom mention #i have many thoughts #hilda and the mountain king #how do i tag #i love hilda sm #i also have consumed way too much phandom content #i just finished trust your instincts on Ao3 #thats where i got the mom angst from #like wheres the moment hilda gets hurt and someone tries to help her #but they make everything 20x worse and hilda ends up slightly better???#but then shes hurt AGAIN by something #worse than before this time #this is directly inspired by a danny phantom fic i read

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harrygoeswest · 1 year

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Trigger Warnings: sweary sweary language, bullying

Word count: 9,451

Chapters three & four

five

I’d felt bad for ignoring George the other day, so I sent an apology and a brief response to his question, and we ended up arranging to meet that evening, but this time he picked me up and we drove out to Lechlade where he lived.

It was a beautiful village, much like Bibury - on the river with locks to watch the canal boats come and go. We sat outside The Riverside pub, with food this time as well as a shared bottle of wine, and talked endlessly about nothing while we watched the world go by.

In hindsight I wish I hadn’t gone. Not because I didn’t have a nice time - I did. But that was all it was; nice. He was gentlemanly to a degree, though somehow I felt like all our conversations lead back to the same thing. For a man who seemed to hold chivalry to a high importance, he talked about sex a lot. I’ve never been the type to squirm over those kinds of conversations, but it did get boring after so long.

And it’s not like he was bad in bed. He wasn’t incredible or utterly life-changing, but he wasn’t terrible. He was adequate. Unfortunately, adequate was not what I was looking for.

So when I woke early on the Saturday morning and found him wrapped around me, similarly to the way I’d been held in that dream that fucked me up so badly the other day, I felt nothing. Whoever that man had been in my dream, it was not George. For some inexplicable reason this all made me feel guilty. That was all I ever seemed to feel at the moment. Either that, or embarrassed. The latter wasn’t quite so uncommon.

I decided it was time to leave, even though it was only early. The alarm clock on his bedside table read just before 6:30am.

I peeled myself out of his hold and sat on the edge of the bed for a minute, rubbing my eyes and my face. I then went straight to the bathroom and used the loo. On my return I got dressed in yesterday’s clothes (obviously).

“Everything okay?” George asked, having not moved an inch.

I looked at him with a smile. “Yeah, fine. I just really need to get home before my daughter gets mad at me.”

That seemed to startle him somewhat. He frowned and rolled onto his back. “You have a daughter?”

I wasn’t at all surprised by his reaction. In fact, most men seemed to be put off the second I mentioned Ruby, so I’d often use the information as a scapegoat to leave.

I hummed. “Yep, she’s nearly 6.”

“Wow,” he coughed and sat up, “you, er, you look too young to be a mum.”

I tipped my head to the side. “Maybe.”

George didn’t say anything else.

I finished getting ready and then found my phone. “What’s the number for a taxi?” Ubers didn’t exist in the Cotswolds yet.

He gave me the contact information without moving a muscle. He didn’t even move when I had to leave. I knew after hearing the revelation of my young spawn he’d never try to contact me again. It was always the way. Fortunately it was exactly what I wanted.

At home I showered, dressed, and had a substantial breakfast before I collected Ruby from my parents’ house. I had a bit of a dickie tummy from the amount of alcohol consumed in the heat yesterday and wanted to make sure I wouldn’t be feeling shit for Ruby all day. The weather was too nice to miss out on doing something fun with her.

I drove the car around to Mum and Dad’s, noting how warm it felt even though it was only early spring. I’d put a dress on but didn’t pay a thought to my thighs when I made that decision. Now they were sweating and I was dreading the later unavoidable chafing.

“Mummy!” Ruby squealed the moment the front door opened, and appeared not seconds later at the end of the hallway.

“Morning, angel!” I squeaked, taking her in for a tight hug once she’d charged into me.

“Grandad did my hair!”

I looked her over as she pulled back, and my expression dropped. Dad had given her pigtail braids but they were uneven, one-sided, and somehow her parting went diagonally across her head rather than straight down the middle.

I coughed, “I can see that.”

“Do you like them?” She grinned at me, smoothing her little hands over the top of them.

How could I tell her they were giving me anxiety? I couldn’t. “Love them!” I said briskly. “Do you want to go and get your things?”

“Okay!” Ruby squeaked, and skipped away again.

I followed her at a much less enthusiastic pace. In the lounge, Dad was tidying away Ruby’s toys into their designated boxes.

“Morning, darlin’,” he said around a smile.

“Hiya.” I returned, noting that Mum was nowhere to be found. “Mum gone to the salon?”

“Yep.” He sighed. “Sorry about her hair.”

At least he knew it looked shit too. “It’s fine. She likes it, so who cares?”

“I suppose. What are you going to do today?”

“I don’t know.” I said lightly, and perched on the edge of the sofa. “It’s so nice outside, I want to take her somewhere.”

“Why don’t we go to the country park? My treat - she can wear herself out on the inflatable thingy.”

“Isn’t that a bit big for her?”

“Nah!” He stood up, taking the box of toys with him. “I’ll go in with her if it makes you feel better? Make sure she don’t drown or whatever.”

My gaze narrowed. It wasn’t very often my dad would offer to do a child’s play activity. “Are you avoiding staying at home alone, Papá?”

He huffed, but I knew he was joking. “Excuse me for wanting to treat my only child and grandchild to a nice day out.”

“Alright, fine. If that’s what you want to do, we’ll do that.”

“Well, it’s not about me, is it? It’s about Ruby.” He said, and I followed him out of the room.

I rolled my eyes. “Ruby?!”

“Yeah?!” She shouted back from her bedroom.

“Do you want to go to the water park today?”

Ruby squealed. “Yes please!” She ran across the landing to stand at the top of the stairs.

I was just waiting at the bottom. “Do you want to go on the inflatables with Abuelo?”

“Yes! Yes I do!”

I turned over my shoulder to where Dad had paused trying to shove the box into the right space on the shelf. “I think she wants to do your suggestion.”

“Alright.” He chuckled. “We’ll have to get a shift on, then, before it gets insufferably busy.”

I ushered Ruby to hurry up again.

My dad cleared his throat once she was out of earshot.

“What?” I asked at the look on his face.

“I’ve spoken to one of the local breeders about the dog.” He practically whispered.

I grimaced without thinking. “Okay,”

“He said there aren’t any around here at the moment, but he’s going to get in touch with others that aren’t a ridiculous distance away and see what he can find. Once he’s found one I’ll let you know so we can go and see them.”

I took a deep breath and nodded. “Alright.”

Dad placed his hand on my arm. “Floss, we’ll figure it out.”

“I know. I just don’t want it to turn out that we can’t get one in time or we get the wrong one, you know?”

“I do. But she’s an angel. Even if we don’t get a blue one, she’ll be happy with a Great Dane. In fact, I’d be willing to bet she’d be happy with any dog.”

I wasn’t sure.

I still wasn’t entirely convinced or even sold on the idea of getting this puppy at all, but it seemed I didn’t have much of a choice. Ruby had played me like a… what’s the saying? Anyway, Ruby had me wrapped around her middle finger.

“Mummy!”

I sat up at the sound of my daughter’s squeaking, a panic rising in me as it did any time she sounded scared.

“Mummy, Mummy!” She cried again, and I threw the covers off me, eyes still barely open.

The bedroom door was flung open as I swung my legs over the side.

“What’s the matter, darlin’?” I asked, not braced for the way she launched herself at me. I sounded half-dead.

“We need to go!” She yelled, and I realised then that she was excited, not scared.

If she mentioned a fucking blue Great Dane called Bongo I would actually shout at her for the first time in my life.

“Go where?” I said tightly as I pulled her up to lie next to me in bed.

Except she didn’t lie down, she sat on top of me like a damn monkey. “Kid’s club!”

Suddenly, it felt like the world had slowed down. Kid’s club? She fucking hated kid’s club. I’d witnessed a screaming snotting fit five days a week for the past six months over kid’s club, had I not? Did I dream that? Or was I dreaming this now? I might’ve slapped myself but that wouldn’t set a very good example.

“Kid’s club?”

“Yeah! We need to go now!”

I blinked at her. “Why?”

“Because!”

I looked at the time. 06:59. I sighed and turned my stare to the ceiling. My alarm was set for 7 anyway.

“Mummy, come on!”

“Alright, alright!” I flinched away from her when she smacked my arm. “Stop hitting me, please.”

Ruby’s hands fell to her sides. “We need to go, Mummy.”

I nodded absently, and then the alarm started screaming. I stopped it within seconds and sat up again. “Let’s go, then. Eager beaver.”

Was I completely bewildered by her sudden u-turn in attitude towards the morning club? Absolutely. Did I think that as soon as we pulled into the car park she’d start throwing another of her tantrums? Yes, I did. For that moment I couldn’t fathom what might have brought her to change her mind.

Ruby got dressed faster than she ever had done before, and was so keen on getting to school that she even put her own shoes on. She waited by the door, her little school-branded satchel in hand. I giggled to myself when I found her that way. She looked so cute.

I pecked the top of her head and turned her around by the shoulders. One thing she hadn’t done was her hair. I quickly brushed it and then tied it up for her in a ponytail with a scrunchie the same colour as the school uniform.

We then loaded up into the car and drove around the corner to the school. I kept an eye on her throughout the short journey, but she just had her head permanently in the window watching the world go by.

We pulled into the car park and I braced myself for a change in attitude. I thought she might scream when I got out and moved around to open the door for her, but by the time I got there she’d already let herself out.

“Bye, Mummy! Love you!” She shouted as she ran off through the gate towards the cabin.

I stared off after her with a blank look, suddenly unsure of what to do with myself. Perhaps Lorraine had finally listened to me and made my daughter feel comfortable enough to spend an hour at the club before going to school. I still didn’t know what the initial problem was, but I was just relieved to see Ruby her normal self again in the mornings.

And it continued that way for the rest of the week. Every morning she would charge into my bedroom minutes before the alarm went off to wake me up, demand we get up that instant and then wait by the door fully dressed and satchel in hand ready to leave. I’d drive her to the school and then she would launch herself from the car and into the hut to start her day.

I was relieved to some degree, obviously. It hadn’t been nice seeing her so distressed over a little club for so long and it was comforting to see her excited about it all of a sudden. I just didn’t know why. My usually very forthcoming child had kept her experiences in that hut very close to her chest - both good and bad.

While before I was trying to work out the mystery of why she hated going, now I was trying to figure out why she loved going.

I hadn’t been on a blind date in… well, ever. This was an unusual idea to me. Why would I want to go on a date with someone I’d never seen or heard of before? Why would anyone want to do that? I couldn’t for the life of me find any kind of appeal, and yet I was surrounded by people that did. I mean, Bibury was a small place. All the surrounding villages were equally small, if not smaller. There was actually every chance I knew this person very well. But then I hated the idea of not knowing until I arrived. At least with Tinder dates I knew what I was getting myself into.

Mostly.

There was one terrifying occasion where I thought I was meeting up with a handsome older man. Turned out he was just old. And I mean nearly 80. I didn’t live that one down for a while.

Because I didn’t know who I was meeting I had no idea what to wear. I spent nearly 2 hours trawling through my wardrobe trying to find something I was satisfied with, and yet I never seemed to be satisfied at all.

I knew I was going to The Swan, but the difference was it was dinner at The Swan. I might’ve been in there most Fridays for a drink or five, but I’d only ever eaten there with Ruby and my parents. Never on a date. For some reason, the prospect of eating completely threw me and all my usual outfit choices.

Eventually I decided on a burnt orange belted culottes jumpsuit with butterfly sleeves. I left my hair loose and gave it a quick brush, applied the smallest amount of makeup because I actually just couldn’t be bothered to, and put on a pair of white strappy braided low heels. I didn’t bother with a jacket, even though I knew I’d probably regret it later.

I walked from my house into the village and to The Swan, smiling at pretty much every single person I passed because I knew them in some capacity, whether it be well or not so. It was another pleasant evening. It seemed summer had come early and honestly I was delighted about it.

The Latin in me craved the sunshine and the heat. I often fantasised about moving Ruby and I to Colombia or Peru to make the most of it, but I knew my mother would never hear of it. While she was proud of our heritage she despised the thought of going back to South America to live.

Inside The Swan I found the host in the restaurant, a staff member I wasn’t very familiar with, and gave over Zara’s name.

The host smiled and looked through the diary. “Perfect. You’re just in that table by the window,” she pointed to two armchairs facing each other with a dining table between, nestled into a crook with a tall window.

It was all very romantic and lovely, and I’d forgotten quite honestly that I was here for an actual date, not just a one-night stand. The table had a tall candle in the middle of it and the lighting was dimmed ready for the evening.

I looked at the person already sitting in the left-hand chair, staring intently at his phone. My stomach fell.

“Oh my God,” I groaned, taking a step backwards and knocking into the desk. “Shit,” I looked at the host again, “I’m sorry.”

“Are you okay?”

I wasn’t okay. I moved out of sight of the table.

It was the dentist. Harry Styles, the sexy dentist, was my blind date. Zara had royally stitched me up. I was starting to panic. I could feel it in my chest and in my ears.

There was no way I was going to manage a date with him. I could barely string a sentence together in front of him, let alone sit with him for however long and eat in front of him. He’d get to the end of it and never want to see me again. Perhaps that was a good thing. But it was easier for me to actively avoid him than for him to actively avoid me.

I was so annoyed. He looked so good. He’d dressed up a little - wearing beige suit trousers and a black shirt that kind of looked sheer. His hair was a little floppy and messy like he’d just washed it and let it dry to its own will.

I had no problem fancying him. He was very fanciable, evidently. And Zara had been right - anyone would be a fool not to find him good-looking. His looks were absolutely not the problem. It was his profession and my idiotic inability to not be able to build a bridge.

Could I leave? God, I hated to have to be that person to stand someone up on a blind date, but I couldn’t bear the thought of facing him after those two ridiculous incidents in his practice. I knew for sure he thought I was crazy. I didn’t want to cement that even further by spending two hours just embarrassing myself in front of him.

“Miss?”

I looked back to the polite host. “Christ, I’m sorry. Um…” I peered around the corner for another look at him.

He was still very pretty and still very invested in something on his phone. I found myself yearning for him and I needed to stop.

“No, yeah,” I met her gaze again, “I can’t be here with that man. It’s not his fault, I’m just… completely and utterly useless.”

She looked very confused.

“I know I’m not making any sense. Basically, I just need you to tell him I’m sick or something. Please? I’m sorry to put you on the spot but I have embarrassed myself in front of him twice already and I’m not gonna do it a third.”

The host relaxed and lifted her head. “I see. Leave it with me.” She smiled.

“Thank you!”

I allowed myself one more peek at Dr Styles before I practically ran from the pub.

I was riddled with guilt and shame. I just stood someone up. I’d never done that before, because I’d always thought it incredibly rude. I was incredibly rude in one sense, but I was also terrified. Why did the only single man to roll into town for the first time in years have to be beautiful and a dentist?

In haste, I walked to Geri’s and let myself in without even knocking. I found her and Zara in the living room sharing a bottle of wine and a curry from the local takeaway.

“Why are you here so soon?!” Geri stood up at my breezy entrance.

“You can’t have embarrassed yourself already…” Zara said with a frown.

“No, actually,” I pointed at her, “I left before I could do that. In fact, I left as soon as I walked through the door.”

“Why?!”

“Because that man has seen me covered in grease and dirt and talk absolute rubbish on two entirely separate occasions, and I am not opening myself to a third!”

“How the fuck have you managed that? He’s only been here a few weeks.”

“With great ease, apparently.” Zara muttered. “I can’t believe you stood him up! You look incredible! He’d be drooling over you!”

I flopped down on the sofa with a sigh, gladly taking the half-empty wine glass Geri offered to me. I took a long drink. “Yes, but he is on another level, isn’t he? Like… next to him I am nothing.”

“False.” Geri shook her head. “He might be pretty but you are beautiful, señorita.”

I giggled but it was filled with anguish, and leant my head on her shoulder. “Thank you. Still doesn’t change that I know he thinks I’m batshit crazy.”

“You are batshit crazy.” Zara corrected. “But who cares? There is not a person in this village who has a bad word to say about you.”

“That’s true.” Geri agreed.

“Also, you don’t have to marry the poor sod. You could’ve just had dinner, gone home together; bit of sexy time; bit of fun; sent him home in the morning.”

I pouted. “I am not letting a man with a face that gorgeous anywhere near my,” I gestured wildly to my face, “food funnel.”

“Just call it your mouth, you absolute weirdo!” Zara hissed.

Geri rolled her eyes. “Why do you think Ruby calls her nose a snot bucket, Zara?”

“You are joking.”

I ignored the two of them and carried on drinking.

“Anyway, you’re never going to find the love of your life by not going on the blind dates I set up for you. You’ll be single forever.”

“Maybe I like the idea of being single forever.” I retorted. “I don’t want some stuck up male moseying into my life and telling me how to live it, or how to bring up my child. I’m just fine on my own, thank you very much.”

“Bet that’s not what you were thinking when Ruby’s daddy minced his way into your knickers, was it?” Geri quirked a brow.

I was having a hard time imagining Federico mincing his way into anything. How does one mince? Is it slug-like? Or like a criminal in a cartoon, with the jutting of shoulders and long strides with high knees?

“Well, he wasn’t exactly around for very long, either.” Zara muttered, and then looked directly at me. “What was he doing here again?”

I decided to tell a little white lie. I shrugged, “I dunno, some study abroad scheme, I think. I don’t remember much.”

“Was that the last time someone shagged you?” Geri’s question made me feel like a child who didn’t know anything.

I scoffed. “No.”

“Floss, why did I even bother setting up that date for you?”

“I don’t know. I had a moment of weakness? A vivid dream where I was stupidly craving the physical affection of a man. I won’t be doing it again.”

“You’re not holding out for that Italian, are you?” Geri asked quietly.

“No.” I laughed. “If I never saw Rico again I wouldn’t be surprised, and I’m okay with that. I’m happy where I am.”

My two friends looked at me in silence for a moment.

Eventually, Geri said, “Hungry?”

“Fucking starving, mate.”

six

The Easter holidays came and went in no time at all. Part of me had wanted to take Ruby away for a few days somewhere, but since I was apparently about to break the bank buying a dog for her, I’d tossed the idea in the bin and pretended not to think about it.

She didn’t seem to mind. She had so many friends I could never remember the names of that she spent most of the holidays at other people’s houses. On one Friday I had let her arrange a sleepover which she seemed to especially enjoy. Geri came over to help with it, and while the girls had the rule of the roost downstairs, we stayed upstairs and shared a bottle of wine and stuck a film on, but kept the door open so we could hear them in case anything happened.

Mum and Dad also offered to have her a few times so I didn’t have to worry about arranging childcare. She only came with me to work twice, but she seemed to enjoy herself. She always managed to find a way to entertain.

We were back to Monday morning, and I was having an internal debate whether she’d kick up a fuss over kid’s club again or wake me up early like she had done every day the week before the holidays.

When Ruby did inevitably wake me up, I nearly choked at the sight of her fully dressed in her uniform.

“What on Earth?” I laughed, sitting up.

“I want to go now, Mummy!” She squeaked, a delighted smile on her face.

“Rubes, it doesn’t even open until half 7, and I don’t pay for you to turn up that early.”

“Please?”

“No, darlin’.” I didn’t want to give Lorraine the satisfaction.

Ruby huffed and began to stomp away.

“Excuse me,” I called after her, and she stopped at the unimpressed tone of my voice, “come here, please.”

She turned to face me with a scowl, marching her way back to me.

I took her hands in mine and made sure she was looking at me before I spoke. “I’m over the moon that you’re enjoying that club again, but we don’t throw a strop because we can’t get what we want, do we?”

“No.” She muttered, looking to the floor.

“No, we don’t. Now, I can’t send you there before 8 o’clock because that’s not the arrangement I have with them. I also don’t have to - I like our mornings together. So, we are going to go at 8 like we always do, and in the meantime I am going to get ready at a normal pace and you are going to wait for me. Okay?”

“Okay,” She said.

“Good girl.” I replied, and kissed her hands. “Now, you can go and watch TV if you want while you wait. And if you haven’t brushed your teeth I’ll be really upset.”

My daughter’s hands slipped out of my grip, and she trudged her way out of the room. I watched after her as she left, a slight pout to my lips. She was cute and all, but one day she was going to give someone a real run for their money. I just hoped that whoever she did end up with liked a challenge.

I got ready at my usual pace since I was actually in less of a rush than I usually would be. It felt warm again so I dug another t-shirt out of the wardrobe and a pair of black jeans for the journey. I’d only have to cover up with a boiler suit when I got to the garage anyway. I tied my hair up without looking in a mirror, made my way downstairs and pulled my boots on.

Ruby was still eagerly waiting by the door when I got to the foot of the staircase. I giggled at her and stroked my hand over her hair.

Once again I drove her to the school and she spent the entire journey staring out the window. I didn't dare ask her what she was thinking - I didn’t want to pull her out of her daydreams like that, as curious as I was to know. As soon as I’d stopped the car in the car park she unclipped her belt and wriggled her way out of the car.

“Ruby!” I shouted after her, and fiddled my own way out. I hated running, but I was sure as hell going to this morning.

She ran straight to the hut without a hint of hesitation, and I just about caught up to her in the doorway. She looked around the playroom at all the other children, and her shoulders slumped with sadness.

“What’s wrong?”

Ruby turned around and walked back out of the hut again. “Nothing.” She muttered.

I was confused. And bewildered. One minute she couldn’t wait to get here and now she didn’t want to go inside again.

“Ruby, darlin’, you know you can tell me what’s upsetting you.” I reminded her, crouching down beside her and taking her hand to encourage her to look at me.

“I know.” She mumbled, angled towards me but not looking directly at me.

“So why don’t you tell me what’s wrong?” I squeezed her hand.

“Because you’ll think I’m silly.”

“I promise you I won’t.” I hummed, bringing her hand to my mouth. “Talk to me, muffin.”

She debated for a moment. I could almost see her thinking, eyes drifting slightly with her thoughts. She opened her mouth to speak, but stopped at the sight of another car pulling into the car park.

I followed her gaze, brows furrowing. A familiar black Range Rover pulled in, parking a few spaces away from mine.

“Yay!” Ruby squealed, and immediately ran off again.

I took a few deep breaths. “Oh, fuck.”

At a much less enthusiastic pace, I followed Ruby back across the playground to the car park. Simultaneously, Dr Styles made his way out of his car to keep a cautious eye on his own child.

“Oscar!” He shouted after he’d closed the door.

That name rang a bell. Why did that name sound familiar?

I looked at the child that Ruby was suddenly so eager to see. He looked like his dad, that was for sure. He was a little blonder than I expected, and his hair didn’t quite have the curly bounce to it that his dad’s did, but he was so very similar to the dentist in the face. He was a very cute little thing, I had to say. Not as cute as Ruby, obviously.

Oscar and Ruby met halfway and immediately grouped close to one another, giggling over something.

I tucked my loose fluffy bits of hair behind my ears. The dentist made his way towards me, wearing blue scrubs on his lower half and a tight-fitted black t-shirt on his top. His boobs looked better than mine, and he pulled off casual-doctor-chic better than I did casual-mechanic-chic.

The closer he got to me the more weighted I felt. He looked at my t-shirt as he was about to speak, and got cut off by his own breathy laughter. “Morning,”

I quickly glanced down at myself, reminded of which one I was wearing. It was white with a red printed line-drawing of a pair of legs on a bed, face-down, with the caption ‘Lying Down Club’. I cleared my throat and looked anywhere but directly at him, “Hello,”

There was a moment of dead silence between us, but Oscar and Ruby were chatting away with ease.

“Oscar actually asked me to drop him off later.” The dentist said, arms now folded across his chest.

I looked at him properly then. “Oh, really?”

“Yeah, I usually,” he pointed a lazy finger at the children and swallowed thickly, “drop him off when it opens, but he said he doesn’t like being there early because Ruby isn’t there.”

“Oh…” I couldn’t help but smile a little. “That’s very sweet. Ruby asked me to take her earlier today, actually. But I’m meaner and said no.”

“I don’t think it’s mean.” He shrugged. “It’s a lot of money to send them here.”

I nodded in complete agreement. “And the woman that runs it is fu-,” I stopped myself from swearing, even though the children were not interested in our conversation, “she’s horrible.”

“Lorraine?”

“Uh-huh.”

The dentist smiled at the floor. “Yeah, she’s a stern woman.”

“Certainly one way of putting it.” I muttered.

Suddenly the children took off again, running towards the hut.

“Hey! Ruby?!” I yelled.

“Bye, Mummy!”

I lifted my hands up and sighed. “Bye, then.”

Dr Styles chuckled behind me. “Must be nice to have so much energy.”

“Yeah, tell me about it.” I huffed and turned to face him again. “She woke me up this morning fully dressed and ready to leave before my alarm had gone off.”

Harry smiled, and I forgot how to breathe for a minute. “I’ve had two weeks of it. Took him to my Mum’s for the Easter Holidays and all he spoke about the entire time was Ruby. He adores her.”

I felt my cheeks warm but I didn’t know why. He was complementing Ruby, not me. Still - it made me proud to know that other children enjoyed her company and looked forward to it. “I had been wondering why she suddenly enjoyed coming here so much. Up until the week before the holidays I used to have to push her, kicking and screaming, to go inside.”

“It’s nice. I’m glad he could settle in here.”

“So am I.” I smiled back at him.

We stayed just grinning at each other for some time. I couldn’t take my eyes off him, he was so handsome. Perhaps I was a fool to have stood him up, but he didn’t know that was me. Or at least I hoped he didn’t. Still, I stood before a beautiful man that I would happily look at all day. Perhaps we could end up being good friends one day. It didn’t change that he was a dentist and I was terrified of having him anywhere near my teeth.

He looked at his watch then and panicked. “Shit, I need to go.”

“Oh, me too.”

“My first appointment is in like, 10 minutes.” He laughed, turning away. “Bye, Florence.”

“Bye,” I said with a limp wave, wandering back towards my own car.

Well - one mystery had been solved this morning. Ruby had apparently become best friends with the dentist’s son. There was nothing wrong with that at all. It just left me with that terrifying internal panic that I may have to see the sexy dentist more than I really needed to.

Bollocks.

Every so often, my dad’s friend Frank would bring his car into the garage for a seasonal service or it’s MOT or some other reason. I’d known Frank since I was a baby - his wife Diane was also a regular client of my mother’s and they were very close friends. My mother had always shown a kind of disdain towards Frank, and I’d only recently understood why.

“Good morning, Florence,” he knocked on the window that looked into the office at the garage.

The sound startled me a little, so when I looked up I was wide-eyed and somewhat irritated. “Oh. Hi, Frank.”

I was sure I wasn’t expecting anything from him for a while - he’d not long had his summer service. I ran my finger over the little calendar on the desk.

“I’m not due in for anything - I’ve just been hearing a few little problems with it.”

I took a moment to collect myself before I moved. I stood and faced him, noting the way he leaned against the doorframe as if he owned it. His eyes were dark and glaring and it made me squirm.

“What’s happening?” I asked, trying to keep my voice even as we moved out of the office to the garage floor.

“I don’t know, I was kind of hoping you could tell me.”

I lifted my head a little and stood in front of the car with my arms folded.

Deemed to be one of the most beautiful cars ever made, Frank owned a red Ferrari F355. He was obsessed with it, as anyone should be if they spent such an obscene amount of money on a car they barely drive. I, on the other hand, could take it or leave it. It was pretty to an extent, but the amount of problems it had weren’t worth the hassle of just owning it. Frank had had his since 1995 when they were first released, and I honestly couldn’t believe it had lasted so long. It was the only one of its kind I’d even seen, but it was notorious for its failures.

“Show me the problem, then.” I encouraged, bored of waiting.

“I was kind of hoping you’d do it.” He smirked, jiggling his keys in front of me.

I gave him a flat look. “Get in the car and start the engine, Frank.”

I half-expected a snide remark in return, but he saved me the headache today and did as I told him to.

The engine roared to life a minute later, echoing around the open garage and probably scaring the farmer across the road. I circled around the car while Frank revved the engine in a stupid and wanky manner. I was listening for any tell-tale sign of what might be wrong with it, but I couldn’t hear anything apart from just loud engine and exhaust noises.

I signalled for him to turn the engine off again and sighed.

“Well?” He asked as he got out again.

“I don’t know. I’ll have a look into it and come back to you.”

“Okay, thanks, Florence.” He smiled, and squeezed my arm.

That was why my mother didn’t like him. A squeeze on the arm from a man I’ve known since infancy might not seem like anything drastic, but he’d been known to do far worse. He was a dominating man - calling me Florence when he knew I’d always gone by Floss was just one of his many little ways to express that it was his way or no way at all. Up to this point I hadn’t had a terrible altercation with him, but I know my mother had. Mine was almost inevitable.

Frank was smart. He always came to the garage when he knew Dad wasn’t working. He knew that if he ever tried to pull anything with Dad around it would not end well, so he always visited when he wasn’t in. He also thought it was easier to charm a woman with talk about his expensive car than a man. Unfortunately for him, I knew a hell of a lot more about cars than my father did, and no amount of mechanical chat ever really impressed me.

“Will you do me our special family and friends discount?” He asked when I didn’t say anything, his hand still on my arm. He began stroking it, and I felt sick.

It was true - I had in the past naively agreed to charge him fees without labour costs because he was a family friend. Now he asked for it every time, and it constantly put me out of pocket.

“I’m not gonna agree to that until I know how much work there is to do.”

“Don’t be like that, Florence.”

“Frank, I don’t know how many problems there are with your problematic car. If it’s more than a day’s labour, I can’t really afford to go without it this time - Ruby’s birthday is coming up.”

Telling him that was a mistake, but it was already too late. I could see the newfound smarm in his eyes.

“Let me guess - she wants something extortionate like a dog.”

I might’ve been a bit thick, but I wasn’t an idiot. I knew my dad would’ve told Frank that Ruby wanted a dog in passing comment, he just liked to pretend it was a lucky guess.

“You already know she wants a dog.”

“I promise I didn’t.” He lifted his hands. “How about we make a deal? You give me the friends and family discount on whatever the car needs, and I’ll help you out in getting Ruby’s dog.”

“Or, you could just pay me the labour fees I’m owed and you don’t have to provide any money towards the dog.”

He laughed and looked away. “Come on, Florence. Loosen up a little.”

The last thing I wanted to do around that man was loosen up. “No.”

Frank huffed. “Think about it. I’ll even pay for the insurance on it.”

“No. I’m not a charity case.”

“And I didn’t mean it like that.” His voice had become soft and sweet and it was disgusting. “I’m just trying to help you out, we love Ruby.”

“Frank?”

My dad appeared on the forecourt, and I exhaled heavily. Thank fuck for that.

“Dave! What are you doing here?” He sounded jarred. I should hope so, too.

“Come to see Floss about something.” Dad said, and seemed perturbed by the question. It was an odd question, actually. Why did my dad have to explain himself for showing up at his daughter’s garage that he occasionally worked at? Come on, Frank.

“Ah, right.” He coughed. “Well,” he looked at me, “think about what I said, Florence. And let me know about the car.”

“Uh-huh.” I mumbled, but never looked at him.

Dad waited for Frank to leave before he spoke again. “I have some good news. Thought I’d tell you in person rather than on the phone.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

While Dad explained himself, I felt around the Ferrari for the bonnet lock.

“That breeder I mentioned has found a litter.”

“Where?”

He looked hesitant when I met his gaze again. “Wisbech.”

I’d never heard of it before. “Where is that?”

“Cambridgeshire.”

I lowered my head, still none the wiser.

My dad rolled his eyes. “It’s about a three-hour drive.”

I tipped my head back and sighed. “Well, I guess that serves us right for wanting to find something so bloody specific.”

My dad hummed. “He did also say that there was a litter in south Somerset with a ‘merle’ colour one.”

“What does that mean?”

“I think it’s light grey with little black spots.”

“Sounds pretty. But it’s not blue, is it?”

“No. And, if we were going to travel all the way to Taunton for a puppy, we might as well just travel to Cambridge for the one she actually wants.”

“Yeah, I think that’s fair.” I nodded.

“What’s wrong with this piece of shit, anyway?” He knocked the side of Frank’s Ferrari with his knuckle.

“I don’t actually know. It’ll probably be anything and everything that can go wrong with one, though.”

Dad laughed. “Want some help? I’ve done everything at home your mother asked me to.”

I grinned, patting his shoulder. “Sure. I need to put it on the lift because I’m almost certain there’ll be something wrong with the suspension.”

I didn’t finish Frank’s Ferrari until over a week later. I was right - there was a lot wrong with it. Suspension included. The exhaust manifold was fucked, and I’d told Frank about a year ago that he’d need to replace it sooner rather than later because it was a known issue with the model. Did he listen to me? No. Now his bill with me would afford about 10 blue Great Dane puppies. Sadly, I wasn’t taking home the full five-figure bill since most of it was going towards paying for obtaining the damn rare parts from inconvenient parts of the world.

Frank was in the garage waiting room while I finished the very last touches. Zara was in the front seat of the car while I was tightening the last bolt underneath. I rolled out and stood up; absolutely filthy, as I had been every day this week, and stuck my thumb up at Zara.

She started the engine and it finally roared to life, and I let out a long sigh of relief. I could finally get this fucker off my hands and out of my garage - and I meant Frank, not the car.

I wiped my hands on a clean cloth and went to find the old man so I could get rid of him as soon as possible.

“All done.” I said as I handed him the keys.

“Thanks.” He grunted. “Think I might have to skip out on the winter service this year, Florence. You’ve bled me dry.”

“Cars have a life expectancy, Frank. Especially expensive ones with as many problems as yours does. You’re lucky it’s survived this long.”

“I don’t control the prices of the parts.”

“Neither do I! I’ve charged you what they charged me, and that’s without shipping costs. You want to keep your shitty expensive car, you’ve got to expect to pay the bloody fees to fix it.”

“So what are you saying?”

I pulled a face. Was he really more stupid than me? “I’m saying either get rid of the thing or face the costs of it.”

“Floss,” Zara interrupted us.

I turned my gaze on her, and she was standing in the waiting room doorway with the office phone pressed to her chest. “Yeah?”

“It’s the school asking for you.”

As any parents’ would, my stomach dropped. I looked back at Frank. “It’s fixed, for now. Excuse me.” I headed towards the door and took the phone off Zara and squeezed out of the room. “Hello?”

“Good afternoon, is this Mrs Fuentes-Carter?”

I was too concerned to comment on the title error. “Yes…”

“Hello, I’m calling from the school reception.”

“Is something wrong?”

“Ruby is absolutely fine, but there was an incident at school today and Mrs Moon would like to speak to you at the end of the day if possible.”

“Incident? What kind of incident?”

“I think it would be best if Ruby’s teacher spoke to you about it.”

I sighed and looked up at the ceiling. “Okay, fine.”

An hour later I was pulling up at the school, parking in one of the few remaining spaces. Geri, Sharon and Debbie were already waiting by the gates, and I could also see the dentists’ car, but he wasn’t in it or visible outside. As I made my way across the carpark towards the school reception I gave Geri a limp wave, but I could tell by the look on her face that she didn’t understand what was happening. Actually, I didn’t understand, either.

Inside I announced myself to the receptionist, and she guided me down the hall to the right classroom. There, outside the door, the dentist was waiting with his arms folded and a concerned look on his face. I slowed my walk, noting that neither Ruby nor Oscar were waiting with him.

“What’s going on?” I asked, glancing into the classroom where the door was closed.

“No idea.” He said, aggravated and without looking at me. “That woman who runs the morning club is in there with her kid and ours.”

I frowned. “Why the fuck aren’t we in there, then?”

Before he could answer, I wrapped twice on the door and opened it without waiting. “Excuse me, what is going on?”

“Mrs Fuent-,”

“I’m not married.” I said flatly.

Mrs Moon sat back a little. Lorraine and her son were sitting on the other side of the desk facing her in plastic red chairs made for children, while Ruby and Oscar were sitting on the carpet in the far corner of the room, each reading a book.

“Miss Fuentes-Carter,” Mrs Moon tried with me again, “I’d politely ask you and Dr Styles to wait outside until-,”

“Absolutely not.” I retorted. “It is inappropriate for you to have a conversation with another parent while our children are present but we aren’t. If we leave, so do the children.”

Mrs Moon grew frustrated, but she didn’t know how to answer me.

“It’s alright, Connie.” Lorraine said calmly, and stood from her seat. “We were just finishing anyway, weren’t we?”

The teacher started again, “Um, no-,”

“We have an appointment to get to, so you can discuss the incident with Florence and the doctor.”

“Mrs Houchen, please si-,”

“Follow up with me in an email if you need to!”

We all watched as Lorraine and her well-built son breezed from the room, and it suddenly felt deathly quiet. I met Harry’s baffled gaze, and then I looked back to Mrs Moon, who seemed to be exasperated. Oscar and Ruby were still very quiet, but they were looking at us.

“I don’t mean to be rude, but what the hell is going on?” Harry demanded.

Mrs Moon pointed at the now empty chairs opposite her and rubbed her cheek. “Would you both like to sit down?”

“No.” We said simultaneously.

The teacher nodded despairingly, and stood up from her seat to perch on the edge of the desk closer to us. “I didn’t expect this all to be quite so dramatic, so I apologise. There was an incident at lunchtime and I was hoping it could be sorted in a more… calm manner than this.”

“Who is in trouble? Our children or Lorraine’s?” Harry asked, arms still folded across his chest.

“Ben Houchen claims that Ruby pushed him and Oscar hit him.”

“Excuse me?” I choked.

“I know, I know.” Mrs Moon stressed. “It’s very out of character for Ruby, I’m well aware, and for Oscar… well, I’ve never heard him raise his voice at all. Only when he’s playing football. So, I’m just as surprised as you, honestly.”

“Did anyone see it?” I asked.

The teacher shook her head. “No. At least no one wants to admit they’ve seen it.”

I screwed my face up.

“I should also add that neither Ruby nor Oscar have denied that it happened.”

I looked at my daughter as Harry did Oscar, and the look she gave back to me was blank, but I could see in her eyes she was sad about something. One thing I knew about Ruby is that she didn’t lie. She was too forthcoming to care about lying, even if she was in trouble. If she didn’t want to tell me something she simply wouldn’t, but she would never outwardly tell me that she hadn’t done something when she had. It was that reason I knew that whatever was claimed to have happened between my daughter, Oscar and Ben, it probably actually did.

“Have they said anything about what happened?” Harry asked, seeming a little calmer than me.

“They won’t say anything about the actual incident, but Ruby has told me that Ben isn’t very nice to her.”

I gritted my teeth. “Is this the first time she’s said anything about it?”

“Florence, I assure you - if I’d have known earlier that she might’ve been struggling with another student, I would’ve done something about it. I absolutely do not tolerate bullying in my classroom, or anywhere else.”

I felt emotional. I felt like a bad mother again. My eyes welled up and I tried to swallow it all away. “Ruby, come here for a second.”

My small child stood up and ran over to me. I knelt down in front of her and took her hands. “Muffin, will you tell me what’s been going on?”

She looked at me, then at Oscar, Mrs Moon and Harry each in turn and shook her head.

I stroked her face. “Why not, poppet?”

“Because you’ll be mad at me.”

“Ruby, we are not going to be mad at you for telling the truth.” Harry said softly, a lot closer behind me than I realised. “Neither of you.”

Ruby looked at Harry for a while, and then turned over her shoulder to look at Oscar again.

“In order for us to be able to get to the bottom of the issues, we need both of your help.” Mrs Moon said with her hands pressed against her thighs. “And we are not going to punish you for being honest, because what do I always say to you guys?”

“Honesty is the best policy.” Oscar muttered, staring at his lap.

“Exactly.” The teacher smiled.

“Was Ben telling the truth?” I asked, thumbing over Ruby’s cheek. “Did you push him?”

Ruby inhaled, lips pouting, and she nodded twice.

“Okay.” I took her hand and squeezed it.

“Oscar, did you hit him?” Harry followed on.

“Yeah, but only because he deserved it.”

I pressed my lips together, and I could see Mrs Moon staring at her lap, mouth a thin line.

I missed the silent communication between father and son, but in the next minute Oscar was trudging across the room. Harry placed Oscar on the table closest, and he sat cross-legged on the top of it while Harry sat against the edge next to him.

“Thank you for being honest, mate.” His voice was quiet and warm, and he rubbed his head. “What happened that the two of you felt the need to do that?”

Oscar looked at Ruby, refusing to speak again.

“Ben isn’t very nice to us.” Ruby finally admitted.

“In what way, baby?” I cooed.

“He says mean things. He says that I don’t have a daddy because mine doesn’t love me. And he says it’s funny that Oscar’s mummy isn’t here anymore and that she’s better off without him.”

I felt sick. I was on the verge of tears again, and I could see Harry’s hand visibly tighten around the edge of the table.

“Before Oscar was coming to kid’s club, Ben used to chase me around and pull my hair. I asked his mum to tell him to stop but she always just used to say that it meant he secretly liked me and he was just teasing me. But he’s never been nice to me, he’s just nasty and spiteful.

“And when Oscar started coming in the morning he stopped for a bit, and it was fun there. And then this week he started talking about Oscar’s mummy and being mean to him about it. But it was okay being at kid’s club now because even though Ben is not very nice, Oscar was still there.

“Oscar was really upset yesterday about what Ben had been saying and he’d hit him on the arm, so I said we should hit him back. Grandad always says we should hit someone back because it’s not nice.”

I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths. I’d never felt so degraded through my child before because of another parent. I didn’t know how to react - I didn’t know what to do. My baby girl was being led to believe that it wasn’t okay to not have a dad, because some horrible, nasty woman had brainwashed her child into thinking that. What kind of cruel, spiteful person do you have to be to think it’s okay to bring up your child to believe that?

I could hear Harry whispering to Oscar, and I immediately brought Ruby into my arms for a tight hug. I kissed her cheek, my tears dripping onto her skin, but I didn’t want to let her go.

“I’m so proud of you, Ruby.” I whispered.

“I love you, Mummy.” She mumbled.

“I love you, too.”

“Um,” Mrs Moon started, her voice cracking, “I’m sorry that the two of you had this happen to you in my care. I’m ashamed that I missed it, and I can assure you it will not continue. I am also really proud of both of you for telling the truth, and for standing up for yourselves. I do have to say that physical violence is not the way forward… but, you should be proud of yourselves for being honest and telling us the truth.”

“Neither of you should feel ashamed for not having another parent. And you definitely shouldn’t be made to feel that way by a bratty child who hasn’t been taught any different.” Harry said, his voice coarse. “Not having your mum or dad is not your fault. In fact, there’s no fault to have on anyone’s part. You’re both amazing children, and you should not be made to feel guilty, or lesser than, because you’ve only got one parent.”

I stared at Harry, somewhat awed by him. I wouldn’t have been able to put it as eloquently as that, but I appreciated him and that we were on the same wavelength.

We helped the children collect their belongings, said goodbye to Mrs Moon for the day, and walked through the school corridors out to the car park. Ruby clutched onto my hand the entire time, while Harry had Oscar on his hip. He looked a little big to be doing that now, but after the revelation we’d just had, I didn’t imagine Harry cared very much.

It was a bittersweet moment - one that was of course about to be tarnished by the sighting of the cause of all our problems.

Lorraine was piling things from the hut into her car, badgering Ben in the process. I thought I’d calmed down, but seeing the woman whose child made my daughter upset and did nothing about it filled me with a rage I’d never experienced before. Nothing had ever made me really angry, and this other mother was the exception.

I was about to do something so out of character, I’d terrify myself.

“Lorraine!”

I’ve got big ears!

Chapters seven & eight

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