* SCAREDY / BRAVE !

❛ – i like to sit around fires and catch the embers on my tongue; listening to a church choir sing some hymns about someone ! SCAREDYBRAVE / by jayden.

[sxmethingwiicked]

[scaredybrave]

msrennerharding‌:

speechless - season one, episode two

“ we’re lousy  neighbors. we’re not gonna take out our trash, we’re not gonna fix up our house… ”

[scaredybrave]

EMTPYTRACKS / sera stavins.

       a small huff of exasperation is elicited from barely parted lips. he stands up once more and it seems they’ve found themselves in the same position once more. round and round, and normally he’d tire of repetition but he only finds himself with a touch more determination than before. standing there in his boxers and a shirt with half it’s buttons done up, before her, helming a plea for company which she finds hard to oblige to. ‘   well, i don’t know about that.   ’ he starts, trying on the words for size, his gaze characteristically ( albeit annoyingly ) steady. ‘   i think you’d like me more. if i was - an ass.   ’ he shrugs. ‘   be easier, don’t you think ?   ’ she can take from it what she will, the edge of his lips tugging just slightly - an afterthought. he hates the thought of truth being misconstrued as something deeper, really, he just likes to believe that she’d have enough sense of self to not put up with a real ass. then again, maybe he just expects far too much from a girl of twenty-one. that’s how he got here, with her, isn’t it ? 

     she shimmies into oversized jeans, tucking a t-shirt in beneath the waistband. it might be his, and he might’ve already seen her in the nude, but she wasn’t about to undress before him. especially not under these circumstances. both prude and petty. quite the combination. ‘ who said i liked you? ’ she shoots back, eye contact back on track. no one did. but it was true. painfully so. she’d never fully come to terms with just how much and today was unlikely to be the faithful day that she does. ‘ and think what ya want … s’not like you know me. ’ minoo adds, choosing to leave her own top on the floor. it was his now. jacket is bunged up in her arms, and so is the sweatshirt she’s going to pull over her head once she’s out the door. a few steps back, enough time for him to have the last word. or second last. she was planning on SLAMMING the door and the latest of her dialogue didn’t quite have the bite that was suited for it. 

[scaredybrave]

EMPTYTRACKS / lou holstad.

      his smug grin is rapidly wiped from his lips, forming a gasp of pure shock that sends him jolting away from her. he can barely get a word out, squirming under her but luckily the attack leaves his hands wrists unpinned. he nods his head like an enlightened professor who’s just stumbled upon a life-changing revelation. ‘   so that’s how you wanna play it. alright, i see what kind of girl you are.   ’ he says, though the remark is choppy, interspersed by laughter and barely caught breaths. his fingers go straight to her underarms, see there’s a hierarchy to tickles, and poking his sides, well that’s just a cheap shot. ‘   i suppose this is just another game you’ll be losing. no biggie.   ’

     she should’ve seen it coming. the moment sawyer had let go off his wrists now realized to have been a grave mistake. a squeal passes through curved lips, laughter soon following suit. she had not thought this through. a petite frame twists and it squirms and she’s nowhere near out of his reach. her stomach hurts from the laughing and her cheeks ache, too. ‘ stop, stop … ’ demands distort into breathy giggles, her hands relenting and searching out his. planted on top, not quite strong enough in the moment to pull them off completely, her torso drops onto his; added pressure onto their shared touch likely to suffocate the tickling motions. ‘ i’m gonna kill you. ’ she breaths. years of soccer and a few minutes of this and she’s already out of breath ? out of shape, no doubt. 

[pivotpivotpivot-archive]

[scaredybrave]

pivotpivotpivot‌:

moodboard

[scaredybrave]

EMPTYTRACKS / sera stavins.

      he’d apologize if it were something he was sorry for - but it’s lighthearted enough, not to mention entirely true. he doesn’t feel trepidation at stepping into risky waters, everything’s all too calculated and he’s decided that yeah, he doesn’t mind playing a round or two. ‘   well, it’s not like it’s not true.    ’ the air of casualness makes it all the more cool, or maybe it’s just cold. he continues to travel aimlessly up her thighs, her his shirt creasing under his hands. a little further and he’d be able to hook his fingers under the hem of her underwear, a little further up he’d be able to feel the edges of a band-aid that’s pressed against her waist. 

     if anyone was a brat : if anyone displayed the characteristics of immaturity and stubbornness, it was him. who threw a tantrum, the phrase used loosely in comparison to her own, when they didn’t get their way ? brat, yeah … right. she was entitled to her secrets and she was entitled to her annoyance and he wasn’t entitled to be touching her like he was. she scoots further up the bedding, legs pulled back and swung around the edge to her side. ‘ whatever. ’ she mutters, scouring around the bedroom to locate dispersed clothing. items go scooped up in her arms, and she gives him the satisfaction of momentarily redirecting her attention back to him. ‘ you’re a real ass, you know that ? ’ there she stood ; tattooed, downright branded, with his name inked into pale skin, and he had the audacity to throw cruel nicknames her way. she was not a brat. asshole. 

[gifvictorious]

[scaredybrave]

EMPTYTRACKS / sera stavins.

      he wields a confident disposition that never cracks, but it doesn’t mean he’s not prone to submission. he’d give her what she wants if only he knew. it’s easy to account for ones self, he knows that he wants her - entirely. though what it entails leaves him scouting for words that’d make her want to stay. ‘   you were the one who asked.   ’ he says plainly, gaze caught on her eyes, pretending as though he doesn’t like the challenge. ‘   not always a bad thing though.   ’ he murmurs, hands travelling up her thighs. ‘   what ? do you want me to beg ?   ’

     he plays into her inexperience and it’s no fair. she sees through it, though, just as he sees through most that she does. a cheek is sucked in, his touch overlooked ( wasn’t easy, though, was it. ) and eyes refusing to break contact. ‘ well, you’re not getting away with calling me a brat, dickhead. ’ he wasn’t going to. there was no way he’d distract her from the matter, either. minoo was determined, confident even, that she’d win this one. but most importantly, he’d lose. 

[scaredybrave]

EMPTYTRACKS / lou holstad.

      thankfully, awkwardness dissipates for long enough to throw a quip back at her. ‘ my integrity ? where’s your integrity ? ’ he remarks through his smile, positively baffled at her audacity to suggest such a thing. he’s hyper-aware of the hold she has on his wrists, even more so when she asks a question that, in his position, could only end in calamity. he’s no liar, except for now. so he puts on the most arrogant, self-possessed expression he can muster, like a businessman making a million dollar sales pitch. ‘  nope.   ’ he asserts, a brow quirking for effect. ‘   face it sawyer. you’ve lost.    ’ he’s getting way too ahead of himself, but he’s having way too much fun. ‘   one might even classify you as a loser.   ’ provocation and hopefully distraction that he might be the most ticklish person on the earth. yeah, he’s a dead man.

     she accepts it. at first. she lets go and she lets hands rest on his chest while he goes on. and boy, does he go on. a smile is plastered onto full lips, though it fools no one in its authenticity. her gaze is avoidant and it’s focused elsewhere : far away from lou, and the finished game on the coffee table. she couldn’t believe she had lost. the concept nears itself accepted in her mind. she almost takes it … loser. the word triggers her attention to be fully redirected to the boy and a silent ‘ oh ’ leaves her, offence clear. hands move, across his chest and down his sides, settling against his waist. she prays to god he’d been lying. and a pinch.  

[namtan]

[scaredybrave]

SAINTVD / harriet mercer.

Harry wasn’t a big drinker; a few glasses of chardonnay tested her tolerance enough to abandon her desire for alcohol. Tonight, however, she figured she would reward herself for surviving glitter covered science fair projects and flu season. A sitter had been called and by eight o’clock she was sat on a barstool clad in one of her only sweaters without a stain, sipping on her first glass of white. Drinking on an empty stomach was never a good idea, which is where that singular plate of damn nachos came into play. The brunette couldn’t care less who the patron she was splitting it with was, getting as much of the cheesy goodness was all she could focus on. “ Your side has most of the cheese  ––  I’m eating straight corn chip over here, you can make do with forfeiting a little cheddar, pal. ”  Tortilla chip in hand, Harriet crossed the proverbial border to his side of the plate to dip into the sauce, placing one of his jalapeños on top to add insult to injury. 

     without the power do anything about it, stefan watches as she crosses the border onto his side of the plate. she’s not wrong about the cheese distribution, though it’s something she should’ve considered way before picking up her first chip. ‘ well … ’ he begins, grabbing a piece of tortilla for himself. ‘ you should’ve thought ‘bout that earlier. ’ a generous amount of is cheese is hauled onto it. far too much for a singular chip to handle, and far more than he’d consider ideal for a plate of nachos, but it’s for a cause. the cause of being an ass. tossed into a mouth wide open, regret is felt immediately though he’s doing his best from letting the emotion reach his face. ‘ think we’re better off sticking to our sides. ’ he speaks through loud chews, using another chip to create a line in the middle of their shared plates. 

[jadeamelia]

[scaredybrave]

EMPTYTRACKS / lou holstad.

      a smarmy grin refuses to leave his lips, even though this a matter of the utmost importance. integrity has to be maintained and justice beckons to be served and none of that includes lou holstad admitting to something he’s in no way guilty of. he squirms against her encroaching figure, to pride-ridden to make it awkward, that is until he remembers who he is. don’t make it awkward. it’s with this line of thinking that he sticks his tongue out and licks the tip of her nose because it’s the type of sibling antics – – but she’s definitely not his brother and god. ‘   or what ?   ’ he retorts, dipping his tone in a feigned machismo that sounds awfully off falling from his lips. pride which was once overflowing starts to simmer, patiently waiting for her surrender which he knows will only come the day that pigs fly. 

     she tries to collect wrists in small hands though he offers a distraction before any progress can be made. a nose wrinkles, back of her hand following to wipe it dry. and she sits back up, albeit still on top of lou. ‘ or what? ’ she mimics, brows quirked. ‘ there is no or what, lou … god, where’s your INTEGRITY ? ’ the same could be asked of her and the downright refusal to accept herself as the loser of a board game, alas. she thinks for a minute, though, lips pursed and thought clear on her features. or what … had the situation involved her siblings or her younger cousins, she’d be overflowing with potential scenarios to put them through, but she wasn’t. and their current position wasn’t making the fact any less clear, either. ‘ are you ticklish ? ’

[scaredybrave]

EMPTYTRACKS / sera stavins.

       another step and the distance is barely noticeable. he peers down to a unruly curls and blue eyes that tempt him to say something he can’t take back. instead of chasing regret, arms wrap around her, pinning her arms to her side and walking forward until the back of her calves buckles against the bed. with her sat back down, something like a lecture could ensue but he decides momentarily to give her what she wants - carelessness. hands spread across her thighs and he’s on his knees but he’s far from the altar. ‘   like a spoiled little brat.   ’

     frustration grows within a small frame ; bursting at the seams and composure is threatening to become undone. she is seated back on the bed like a DISOBEDIENT CHILD and she doesn’t care for the implication. at all. he wasn’t her father and she wasn’t his daughter and their relationship was fucked up enough without the undertones that were offered her. ‘ if this is your way of getting me to stay … ’ the blonde leans forward, voice lowering in the process. ‘ you’re doing a shitty fuckin’ job. ’

[scaredybrave]

EMPTYTRACKS / sera stavins.

         thankfully, maturity reigns - reluctantly stifling his own curiosity in favour of her staying. he stands as quickly as she does, easily blocking her way. this didn’t have to tarnish their day, but he thinks it might. it’ll be at the back of his mind, the tattoo and how he can barely breach the most trivial of her walls. ‘   come on, don’t be like that.    ’ he says, a call out sure, but there’s nothing wrong with a small dose of confrontation. ‘   it’s dropped, alright ?   ’ and he raises his hands in surrender, even if he betrays his submission by glancing at the t-shirt covered secret. nevertheless, feet stay rooted to the ground and he supposes this is what he gets for caring. he likes her just as much as he anticipated, she’s hardly a shot in the dark and perhaps that’s the problem. he loves her like he always loves, fully and deeply. 

     eyes roll as a path is cut off and arms cross against her chest. she didn’t want to go home. but even home was less inquisitive. mitch pearce, himself, unlikely to bother her about small things like new tattoos. all he really cared for were the drugs she snuck into his home and she figured he’d never give up the obsession of ransacking her room on a weekly basis. so be it, she had a good hiding spot.  ‘ … like WHAT ? ’ a head cocks to the side, unruly curls falling onto her shoulder. seems she was looking for a fight now.

[dailysooric]

[scaredybrave]

EMPTYTRACKS / lou holstad.

      he takes his turn as if there’s a ticking time bomb close-by, because he has to win, properly win and doesn’t want to know what the cost of it will be. with his roll, he easily crosses the finish line with a stack full of cards that make him practically invincible. in fact, literally invincible. ‘   i also have the protector card so even if you did have the second chance card to use against me, well.   ’ he shrugs, feigning a semblance of concern. ‘   but oh, would you look at that. i actually have the second chance card too.   ’ a wide smile peeks through his his mocking attempt at modesty. ‘   looks like your reign as game winner is over !   ’ 

     there was a refusal to accept lou’s words as the truth. and an even larger refusal to accept her own loss. ‘ no way, ’ the brunette protests, the card previously in the hands of lou now within sawyer’s grasp. he wasn’t lying. of course he wasn’t. but still … she couldn’t lose. she wouldn’t accept it. a card is tossed back onto the pile which it’d first been picked from, and her attention redirects to a boy who most definitely had not won. hands against his chest, she pushes a larger frame down onto the carpet. and with thighs at his sides, she makes an attempt to collect his wrists within her grip. ‘ okay, no -- you totally cheated. and i want you to admit it. ’ sawyer begins. a pitiful attempt at getting a confession out of him, really. ‘ admit it, holstad. ’

[scaredybrave]

UNHOLYSKIES / pippa espina.‌

“ Uh, mooch away! What are they gonna spend it on? I don’t do anything. Play surrogate daughter. ” She stands firm in her reasoning, but she winces a little at it anyway — the complicated tango of Kevin encouraging Pippa to do something and Pippa never actually doing it ( okay, maybe it wasn’t that complicated ) was a sensitive issue. One that had been entirely resolved, if you asked the older, not that she would ever tell her best friend that she’d tried and failed. It was much easier to play the part of cool and uncaring and — the topic is changed quickly. “ — I promise, no time soon. Eden needs a little of the Oswalt charm back in it’s streets. It’s all been very Blue Christmas in July. ”

     the idea doesn’t sound too shabby, though kevin had never been one to intrude. there was enough guilt coming from her semi-permanent stay at dalton’s, and without payment at that. she’d repay him soon enough, just needed a job to do that. ‘ yeah, i’m sure missing me has been … a universal feeling. ’ she stifles a laugh, eyes searching the espina residence : taking it all in as if she’s seeing it all for the first time. sure felt like she was. ‘ i just want to stay in, really. for a week, at least. recharge, and watch movies … read, maybe. and i was thinking -- i could do all that here. ’