So my brain would not shut up about this idea while I was out on a walk so I decided to write up the first chapter. I'll post as the chapters come to me but I hope everyone enjoys it. Gabriel isn't featured a lot in this one but he will be in the following chapters, I just wanted to set up Layla. I also decided to go with an OC since she will talk more about her family and such in later chapters and I know people would get fussy if an xreader had stuff about a family or background. But anywho, I don't see much about Janitor!Gabriel on here so I felt it was needed lol, hope everyone likes it!
Word count: 2,889
Pairing: Gabriel x Fem!OC
Warning: None, just a few guys being typical college guys.
Also yes, we are doing more of the wing trope because I'm a sucker for it lol.
She quickly put on her boots, racing to grab her keys and phone as she glanced around the small apartment her friend had set her up with. Purse-check, keys-check, phone-check, books-check. The clock read that she had about twenty minutes to get to the school and her new setup before class would start, so with one last look, she locked up and headed for the elevator.Ā
Hastening her steps as she saw the doors at the end of the hall beginning to close, calling out for it but watching as they shut. She cursed under her breath as she turned towards the stairs door, being on the sixth floor sucked at this moment, but she had to do it, though, looking at how steep the stairs were she was happy she wasn't a heels type of girl.
Finally making it down to the first floor after a bit she turned to exit into the lobby when she caught a sudden flash of gold out of the corner of her eye. Whipping her head around she looked towards the little alcove under the stairs, her breath slowing as she listened, steps hesitant while she walked towards the area draped in shadows. The stairwell was quiet, eerily so, and just as she peered into the darknessā¦her phone chimed.
Jumping slightly, she let out the breath she didn't know she was holding while she reached forward, hand making contact with the block wall, nothing. Fishing her phone out of her pocket she looked at the cause of the chime.
šøKaylee: Where are you?? You're gonna be late!
Looking at the time Layla realized that she now only had sixteen minutes to get to the campus.
š„Layla: I'm leaving now, I'll explain my horrible morning when I get there
She texted back while rushing out of the lobby and to the parking lot, her baby waiting for her as she jumped in, cranked her up, and quickly left. Five minutes later she was pulling up Springfield University, Crawford Hall to be exact, and Kaylee was already waiting at the entrance for her.
āWhat happened?ā The blonde asked, heels clicking on the polished floor.
āAlarm failed, luckily my internal alarm woke me up before noon, but not early enough. I rushed to take a shower and the hot water was not working so I had to let the landlord know about that. My keys got lost in the eternal abyss for a good ten minutes, and then I had to take the stairs down.āĀ
āHoly shitā
āYeah, but I'm hereā
āYou're here, and you're gonna do amazing!ā She smiled, and all Layla could do was nod, hoping she was right, this was a lot for her after all. When the two of them broke apart, Kaylee going to her own class and vowing to sit with her at lunch, Layla continued down the hall, her mind wandering back to how she even got here.
It had started with a phone call, Kaylee was someone Layla had met years ago through her job and had surprisingly kept in touch withā¦maybe it was because Kaylee kept her in her life, lord knows Layla drifted. But she called her that night not with her normal three hour long life update, but with a request.
āMy school is getting a new class, it's like a cross between cryptozoology and folklore legends. Guess the principal's kid is really into it and wanted it so they decided to implement it. I know this is right up your alley! You could be the teacher!ā
āTeach? Kaylee I don't have a teacher's license, I didn't even go to public schoolā
āI'm sure you have people that can work something out! Please! Otherwise there is going to be some loony toons old man come in here who doesn't know his ass from a hole on the ground and try to show the kids pictures of slightly crushed sticks and say it's a Bigfoot footprintā
āIt could beā
āLayla!ā
āKaylee I can't teach, I don't know the first thing about teaching, I don't do crowds, and I don't care for people staring at meā
āYou said you taught your nieces and nephewsā
āThat's differentā
āDon't you think these kids should be awareā
ā...Kayleeā
āPlease, it would be perfect for you, plus you said you wanted to get away, settle down a bit. I can help you get an apartment and everything. Pleaseā¦justā¦think about itā
And Layla did, so here she was, walking down the hall towards what she felt like was her doom. Man she hated the thought of this, why did she let Kaylee talk her into it? She stopped for a moment, taking deep breaths while trying to psyche herself upā¦she could do thisā¦it was just like teaching the little onesā¦she's got thā another flash of gold caught her attention as she quickly whipped her head towards the hall to her right, empty aside from a few doors.
She waited for a moment, hesitant, before making her way towards them. The first led to a janitor's closet, nothing gold. The second, an empty classroom, again, nothing.
āWhat the hell?ā she whispered to herself, knowing full well she saw what she saw. She was about to step into the room when the warning bell rang loudly in the quiet, her eyes widening as she quickly shut the door and rushed to her class, taking one last breath before pushing open the door.
Eyes fell on her as she walked in, and it didn't take long for a wolf whistle to ring out, God how she hated college guys, she swore their hormones played peek-a-boo with the lone brain cell they probably had left from all the parties.Ā
āHey pretty lady, you can find a seat on my lap til the teacher gets hereā one yelled out, followed by laughter from who she assumed were his equally brain dead friends.Ā
āHey new girl, you and me can party in my car after classā another one called out, followed by a few girls telling them to shut up and stop being gross. But she was used to it, having brothers, she knew how men could talk. So instead she walked over to the teacher's desk and sat her books down before grabbing the chalk and beginning to write her name, a smile forming on her face as she noticed the class having gone silent.Ā
āNow that you know my name you can stop calling me girl and lady. I'll also give you one chance to apologize for the crude language and give you a moment to reflect on why you shouldn't talk to women that way, that is, if all of your brain cells haven't been completely annihilated by either alcohol or stdsā She spoke while turning, raising a brow at the two boys who had spoken before and watching as they adjusted in their seat, uncomfortable with the fact that all eyes were now on themā¦goodā¦now they know how it feels. She waited, listening as they coughed before giving a muttered apology, and she figured that was the best she was going to get.
'Just like with the kids Layla, you got thisā
āOk, so, I'm hoping you are all in this class because you are interested in cryptids and folklore, not because you think it will be some easy extra credit. Because it won't be, sorry. Cryptids, monsters, folklore, fairytales, whatever you want to call them aren't just things that go bump in the night, or things people think they catch on some grainy footage from the seventies. They have history, some from multiple cultures, some dating back centuries. And we are going to go into detail about all of them. By the time you finish my class you'll be able to write full novels on each. So if that already sounds like too muchā sheĀ gestured to the door while leaning against the front of the desk. She looked over the class, there were a lot of faces, a lot of eyes, all staring at herā¦But no one movedā¦No one left. Everyone watched her with a look she had seen on the little ones back homeā¦a look of hunger for knowledge. With a smile she nodded and pushed off the desk.
āAlright, let's start off with a crowd favorite, who here likes vampires?ā
She walked into the lunch room with her wallet and headache forming in the loud atmosphere. Man she was glad she had been homeschooled. Making her way to the āteacherā line, as the sign above the second entrance to the kitchen called it, she grabbed a tray. She wondered if Kaylee was already at a table or if she had even arrived yet, being the art teacher, she was sure Kaylee was the type to stay behind with any student who wanted to. Grabbing a bottle of water, and the shaker salad, but also a few of the chicken nuggets that were offered to her by the elderly lady who gave her a wink as if to say āI don't know if you're eating healthy, but I saw nothing just in caseā, she turned and heard a voice behind her speak up.
āYou must be Mrs.Matthewsā she reached the register before she turned her head to look at the man while handing over the money.
āMs, and that'd be meā she nodded, thanking the woman who gave her her change.
āSorry, my name is Arthur Cox, I'm the psychology teacher hereā he explained, causing Layla to nod at the older man.
āOh, nice to meet you Mr.Coxā
āLikewise. I do have to say, I'm shocked the school hired someone soā¦youngā he spoke, eyeing her up and down. She had to force herself not to roll her eyes, was every guy in this school a perv?
āWell it helps when you have friends here. And I'm thirty-two, not that youngā she noted.Ā
āThirty-two is still young,ā he smiled back.
āMeh, not when your back says your eighty some daysā she shrugged, her statement causing him to laugh.
āI understand that, so what made you want to take up such a subject to teach?ā
āStuff like that has always interested meā
āSo you believe it all to be realā
āI believe anything is possible. I believe the human mind can only comprehend so much so we write a lot off as fiction to save what little sanity we have. But I believe the world jades us to a lot of things as we get older, we're a lot closer to what some would consider the āspiritual worldā as children, therefore we believe a lot more as children.āĀ
āFacinatingāĀ
āWhat?ā
āJust that as an adult you still fully believe in things like thatā
āthere could be an explanation behind every cryptid, from pareidolia, mass hysteria, animal gene modification experiments the government isn't telling us about, to perhapsā¦something real. How else would cultures who are on opposite sides of the world have stories about similar creatures dating back to when people were still discovering landā
āI prefer proofā
āBe careful what you wish forā she trailed off when she saw that same flash of gold, this time by the lunch room doors as they swung close. What the hell was that?Ā
āLayla!ā she heard Kaylee's voice before she saw her, waving from a small booth a bit away from her.Ā
'Saved by the friendā
āI should get over there before she gets sent to the principal's office for disrupting lunchā Layla nodded towards the giggling blonde.
āOf course, she can be ratherā¦excitable. It was nice talking to you Ms.Matthewsā
āYou as well Mr.Coxā she nodded and turned to quickly sit down with Kaylee.
āThank you for saving me from thatā she sighed with an eye roll.
āNo problem, as soon as I saw I knew I had to step in, did he hit on you?ā
āNot outright but the looks hinted at it. Though I think I turned him off when I started battling against his psychologist mindsetāĀ
āGood! He needs to be knocked down a peg, he thinks he's a big shot cause he's an author, but he's just a sleezeāĀ
āGot that vibeā Layla nodded while eating a nugget and shaking up the salad.
āOh! Gabriel left this for you, as a sort of welcome to the schoolā Kaylee spoke while pushing a small container towards her, she looked down at the slice of cake, funfettiā¦it was her favorite.Ā
āWho is Gabriel?ā She asked, looking at the fancy piping on top.
āThe janitor, at least the one for Crawford Hall. He's a total sweetheart, and he's always got the best sweets on hand. I swear he just pulls them out of thin air or somethingā she laughed.
ānot only does he always have a candy if you ask, but he even brought me the cutest little cake for my birthday, hang on, I have a picture,ā Kaylee spoke, grabbing her phone and quickly scrolling while Layla finished her nuggets and started on the salad.
āHere is it!ā Kaylee smiled while turning her phone to reveal the most colorful cake Layla had ever seen.
āGabriel is just a sweetie, you'll like him when you meet himā Layla simply nodded, finishing up her salad and grabbing the fork Kaylee offered her before trying the cakeā¦it really was a good cakeā¦honestly the best she had ever had.Ā
After lunch they returned to their classes, Layla teaching the second round of students the same thing she taught the first, really only scratching the surface for vampires, but she knew it would take them a bit to really grasp everything. Though, there were a few in her classes she could already tell were going to be doing their own bit of research, if their requests for book recommendations were anything to go by.
Over all, she was satisfied with her first day, invigorated almostā¦she could do thisā¦there weren't any monsters waiting around the corners, just the ones in the books. There weren't any spells to try to find cures to, no new cases to research, no random motels, long drives, and gas station foodā¦she could breathe, take a momentā¦relaxā¦there wasn't anything supernatural here except her class.
A knock on the door broke her from her thoughts, Kaylee stood at the entry, along with another woman, this one shorter than Kaylee, curvy, curly red hair and a very librarian style, her round glasses resting on her full cheeks as she smiled at Layla.
āThis is Marie, she's the history teacher hereā Kaylee explained.
āI mean this as a grand compliment, I would have taken you as the librarian,ā Layla chucked as she gathered her books and made her way over.
āCompliment accepted, I would have been if the position had been openā Marie giggled.
āBut I'm a huge history nerd soā¦history teacher is second best. I told Kaylee I wanted to meet whoever got to be the lucky winner of this class, the history and folklore of cryptids and such, ugh, can I take your class?ā She giggled again, causing Layla to let out her own light laugh at the woman's enthusiasm.
āThere's still seats openāĀ
āDon't tempt her,ā Kaylee joked as they all made their way towards the frontā¦this was nice. Layla couldn't remember the last time she had people to just joke with that weren't her familyā¦even they were not around that often, always on hunts of their ownā¦when was the last time she had a conversation with someone who wasn't Kaylee? Did she ever have lunch with anyone like today? Or listen to gossip? Was this what normal felt like?Ā
āNothing supernaturalā
She sighed, falling behind the women who were engrossed in their own conversation, when she saw it again, the flash of goldā¦This time thoughā¦This time it wasn't fleeting, it didn't move, and as she turned her head her breath caught in her throat.Ā
Wings
Largeā¦goldenā¦wings
They were the most beautiful and breathtaking things she had ever seen, an almost bronze color at the very base of every feather, the color slowly lighting to a honey tone at the tips. They reminded her of a sunset, or maybe it was the golden light that shown in the window onto them that made her think that, as it made them almost glitter while they shifted.
Her eyes dragged over them, going from the very bottom and inward until they met blueā¦blue work overalls of a man who was casually leaning against a mop as he looked out of the large window in front of him. She couldn't see his face, only his golden brown hair.Ā
She wasn't sure how long she had been staring, but it must have been enough for Kaylee and Marie to realize she wasn't following anymore because their voices were soon right next to her.
āSee something you like?ā Kaylee giggled, causing Layla to look over.
āWhat? No! I-ā
āThat's Gabrielā Marie added, and as if hearing his name, even from so far away and with glass separating, he turned towards the three of them. Golden eyes meeting green.
āSo much for nothing supernaturalā
Chapter 1 done! I hope everyone enjoyed it and it liking Layla so far, she's a bit of a "take no shit" kinda girl but also a protective friend. I'll have the next chapter out as soon as I can, and I'll add an ao3 link to this when I get it uploaded to there. Thanks for reading!
So this is based on a dream I had last night (that's why it's so short)
Went to bed thinking of Kenpachi and had a Hitsugaya dream lol, you can't forget your first love I suppose.
Synopsis: Rangiku knows you have a crush on Toshiro, and knows Toshiro likes you too, and decides to have some fun while trying to get you two together
āOk give me just a second to change Rangikuā You called as you made your way into your room, you had just gotten back from a full day of the cheerful lieutenant dragging you around shopping, and not only were you (and your wallet) exhausted, but she wanted to go meet everyone for dinner.
āAnd by everyone, I mean everyoneā she had smirked at you, knowing exactly who you were thinking of, the only reason you agreed to go instead of calling it quits. You sighed as you laid out the new clothes you had gotten, now to decide what to wear.
Meanwhile
āRangiku, there had better be a good reason you called me all the way back hereā Toshiro sighed as he entered the home and spotted his lieutenant sitting on the couch, a pile of clothes in front of her.
āCaptain! There you are! I need your adviseā she stated, causing the man to rub out the headache that was already forming.
āRangikuāĀ
āI'm bringing drinks tonight and I need to know what you think would be better?ā She asked, holding back her smile as she shoved the red liquid towards him.Ā
āI'm not drinking that Rangikuā
āBut Captain,ā she pouted.
āI need to know if someone other than me thinks it tastes goodā
āI'm sure if the others have the taste buds you do, they will like itā he grumbled while trying to push it away, but his lieutenant was ready for him, and pushed harder, causing the liquid to slosh right onto his white shirt.
āOopsā placing her hand in front of her mouth to cover her smileā¦step 1 done.Ā
āRangikuā The white haired man seethe, ready to simply head back to the Soul Society and say screw it to this whole mission.
āI'm so sorry Captain, but don't worry, I actually got you some new clothes while y/n and I were out shopping today! I put them in her room.Ā
āWhyā¦you know what, I don't even careā he sighed while standing up and moving down the hall to your room, why Rangiku hadn't put it in the spare room he had been staying in while they stayed with you he would never understand, unless she just dumped out even more of her bags in your room. He unbuttoned the two buttons on the polo shirt and brought it up over his head while he opened your door, ready to get rid of the article that now reeked of berry alcohol.
You froze as you stood in front of the mirror, holding up two different outfits you had put together, all the while only in your bra and underwear. When you heard the door open you looked over, expecting to see Rangiku ready to help, but instead your eyes widened. Slowly raking over the smooth planes of the pale chest that entered your room, his face obscured by the shirt he was removing, and like a deer in the headlights, all you could do was stare. You watched the muscles move as he pulled the shirt higher, arms flexing as he finally pulled it off, eyes opening as if this was some sort of slow-mo scene straight out of a J-drama. His eyes widened as soon as he spotted you, and both of you simply stood there, your eyes dancing across his chest before returning to his face only to see his own lingering on your form before quickly darting back to meet your own gaze. And suddenly it was like the two of you realized what had happened, you quickly pulled one of the outfits to cover you, and he raced out of the door and slammed it shut.
āI-I-ā You heard from the other side
āI-It's okā you told him, your own voice shaking while your heart raced, you don't think you will ever forget that sight even in a million years. You could feel the blush without even looking in the mirrorā¦and that was when you heard it.
āOh! Wait, the shirt I bought for you is out here Captain!ā
Rangikuā¦.
āRangiku!ā You both shouted, knowing very well she did that on purpose. You wondered how you were going to be able to even look at him the whole time they stayed here now.
āIs it too late to just stay in?ā You sighed, looking back at the clothes, and as you expected, your beet red face.
Bleach does got me feeling like how I felt as a kid, it even got me to draw lol. Decided to come up with an OC early on and see how much she changes as the show progresses lol. Don't have a name for her yet, but I'm thinking she lives in the USA so she doesn't really have any contact with Ichigo and the gang early on. Her mom is a Quincy so she has those powers, but she doesn't know her father and her mother doesn't really speak of him. She has been able to see spirits and things since she was a kid though, and doesn't agree with the Quincy view of simply killing Hollows, she agrees more with the mindset of the Soul Reapers when it comes to that. So she figured out a way to help souls cross over, and purify Hollows with her powers (I already have it figured out how she is able to do that but I don't wanna give it away yet š¤)
Needed something to watch while I worked on some crochet projects, and for some reason Bleach popped into my head...I haven't watched it since I used to watch it on TV back when it first aired...so I put it on.
When I tell you that theme song hit and suddenly I was 14 again, singing in front of my niece and all her friends at her birthday party. The opening line started and I was 11 again when the show first premiered. It's crazy how a show can be such a part of your childhood that when you watch it again as an adult you're no longer an adult...you're that little kid, giddy about seeing their favorite characters (I already know i'mma lose my shiz when I see Toshiro and Grimmjow again lol). It's crazy...but nice, with how crazy the world is right now, to just put a show on and be a kid for a bit again.
I love that the modern-day tumblr post equivalent of chain emails only requires me to reblog a relatively pleasant image instead of forward an email to a bunch of my friends and family members to quell my raging anxiety.
Back on my Avatar shiz because it's summer time...and why do I automatically end up back on my Avatar/Na'vi shiz during summer time you ask? Because I live in Florida, and every market you go to, all the jewelry and crafts look like you are shopping at a Metkayina clan faire lol. Don't get me wrong, I love the Omatikaya clan, but if I were a Na'vi I'd have to be Metkayina lol. When you grow up adding seashells to just about everything and taking trips to the ocean, you kind have no choice š¤£
So after 23 years of living in the woods away from most people, someone bought the lot behind our house and is clearing it...23 years of memories running through the woods with siblings, nieces, and nephews and now it's coming to an end...I want a place like Grandpa's house from The Lost Boys, away from people, just dealing with vampires and cryptids instead of people š