*sidenote* I have been incredibly self conscious of the appearance of my front tooth since knocking the last repair off. So that's why I haven't been doing this.
Most Romance Week Prompts will be attached to a romantic song.
Day 1: Brad Paisley’s We Danced
SJMRW Prompt: Meet Cute
Ship: Aedion x Lysandra
Summary: Modern AU where Lysandra leaves her purse behind on girls’ night out. The cute bartender gives it back at the price of a dance after last call.
Short and sweet.
Lysandra
I cursed as I reached for my clutch on the center console and met air. “What is it?” Aelin slurred from the passenger seat of her own car. Despite my offer to drive her home from girls’ night out, Rowan—ever the doting husband—came to pick her up himself. Newlyweds were something else.
“I left my purse inside somewhere. Who knows who snatched it up by now. My credit card, my ID—”
“Just go back inside. Look, you know I picked this bar because my cousin’s an employee. The over protective pain was watching us all night. If you left your bag, there’s just as good a chance he grabbed it and missed us leaving as some stranger picking it up.”
He was the bartender. The hot bartender dropping bad pick up lines when I went up for my one and only drink as a lightweight driving myself home. I groaned. I hadn’t seen him since Aelin and Rowan’s wedding where we hadn’t spoken a word, but he was certainly acting familiar tonight. “Alright. I’ll go check.”
Slipping back into the empty bar, I found the blond wiping down the counter. “Looking for your clutch?”
“Aelin said you probably picked it up,” I said, hope rising.
He nodded, dropping his stained rag on the bar top. “Rowan asked me to keep an eye on you girls.” He chuckled. “Aelin calls me over protective. Let’s just wait till she finds out her husband’s the one hounding me about watching you two.”
I smirked, sure my friend had a good enough idea about her husband’s interventions. “I guess we should thank the both of you for keeping us from becoming a Friday night bar horror story. That’s it,” I confirmed as he raised my black clutch from a shelf behind the bar.
He drew his hand back before I could take the purse from him. “You’ll get this back on one condition, Miss Lysandra.”
I crossed my arms, already irked by his little game. “That being?”
“Dance with me.” I snorted. “Come on. One dance right out here on the floor. No one’s watching.”
“I—” He raised his brows. “Fine.”
Stepping around the high counter, he turned a cheesy slow dance on his phone, sweeping me into his arms.
Taking a step, he led the first pattern. Oh, the man was smooth.
Here I had expected awkward out-of-time steps and stiff turns, but this man could dance. He gave a full laugh, easily reading my surprise. “So little faith, Lysandra. Why? I am the prima donna’s cousin. Shouldn’t I have maintained a skill or two we learned in our childhood?”
“I didn’t see you dance once at the wedding. I made my own assumptions, I suppose.”
He spun me under his arm—once, twice, drawing me in closer as we resumed our original stance. “Maybe I was waiting on the right partner.”
I met his eyes, surprised at what I found there. He held me like a gentleman, leaving space between our bodies, but the heat in his eyes promised something else, dare I welcome it.
“Are all of you Ashryvers such smooth-talkers?”
He grinned, leaning down as the song faded to its outro. “That depends. Is it working?”
~~~~~
Aelin
“So, did he have it?” I asked, waving a magazine over my freshly painted toes.
“Yes. Thankfully,” Lysandra said. “Replacing that stuff would have been a pain.” I grinned, glad we were speaking over the phone. How Lysandra hadn’t put together my history of pick-pocketing and my cousin finding her purse, I didn’t know. “Aelin, would it be weird if he and I went out? Like to dinner.”
My grin widened. “Lysandra, I think that’s a brilliant idea.”
~~~~~
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1 year of We Danced Into The Fire And Look Where It Got Us
I’ve been frequenting the Duran tag on AO3 since June 2019. Back then, it was pretty dead, only a couple writers were active and it felt like a dying fandom. I still enjoyed the fics anyway, and eventually started to put out my own. Though interaction was few and far between, I enjoyed writing Duran fic and kept with it. My work and the work of others kept me going.
So last year, right around this time, I was delighted when I saw a new fic in the tag. It was We Danced by @duranarchy-in-the-uk, Pink_and_Velvet on AO3. As someone who never liked mpreg all that much, I was hesitant. But soon enough, I gave the new fic a chance. I’m so glad I did. Because not only did I get to read an amazing JoSi fic, I gained a close friend who has inspired me so much over this past year. Through all the ups and downs, Tash has been there, a comforting presence admist all the chaos that the year has been.
I remember helping to name Barbie way back when the fic was still in its developing stages. I had so much fun reading and talking about the fic, and it served as a great distraction from things going on in my personal life. I’d like to think that because of this fic, the Duran AO3 tag livened up more and became a close knit family of fans with a passion to share stories. We are much more united than we were before. It’s really special.
So happy birthday to the incredible fic that started it all! I appreciate you, Tash, and everything you’ve done for this fandom. Now sitting at 273k and counting, the series has to be one of the most in depth Duran fics we’ll ever read. Thank you Tash, for sharing your beautiful work and inspiring us every day. I’m so proud of you for making it this far, you’re just amazing. All the love in the world to you. ❤️🖤
Too busy over the cross country nationals weekend at Lehigh U. to post. My race, the masters 40+ and 50+, was one of 5 races on a cloudy misty day. It had rained the night before, so the grassy course was intermittently muddy. Luckily the rain held off for us, but came down steadily for the open women’s and men’s races.
I didn’t have a good race, in fact had a bad race. Went out too conservatively and got stuck in the middle. Struggled mightily with the mud. Felt like a 10 kilometer long intervals workout - fast pace on the dry patches, then stopping or slowing in the muddy parts - constant stop & go’s. Finished in 39:30, 190th in the race out of about 450, about 50th among the 50+ age group. A disappointing (and fitting) end to a trying year of racing. Mercy!
The 40+ team that I was on did well, finishing 18th in the nationals and ahead of some strong clubs including a rival from upstate NY.
The rest of the weekend was tons of fun with friends and fellow runners, and the main thing: some great dancing into the night at the race party!!!
