#bees writing

“Oh, sorry, I didn’t see you in the dark. You alright, slick?” She set down her purse as she approached him, tentatively setting a concerned hand on his upper back. He flinched slightly, letting out a hiss of pain when he moved, and struggled to relax once more afterwards.

“Y- yes, I am just fine Anna Maria, thank you…” He lied, voice obviously strained and laced with irritation. He would much rather blatantly deny the truth than admit defeat to something he’d been putting up with for months now. Anna Maria eyed him skeptically, taking her hand off his back after noticing his uncomfortable reaction.

“Really..? You don’t seem to be doing too well. Is something wrong?” She leaned over the counter, tilting her head to try and get a look at his face. He refused to reciprocate, sensing her presence there and turning his head away just slightly, nose buried in the crook of his elbow.

“No, Anna Maria. I am fine.” He warned, shifting in his seat slightly to try and dispel the pins and needles feeling in his legs. She pursed her lips, furrowing her brow. 

“I don’t believe you. Look me in the eye and tell me that you’re feeling okay, then I’ll leave you alone.” Crossing her arms, she waited expectantly for a response from the young man, who’d fallen silent. He finally heaved out a sigh, sitting up slowly with a look of pain drawn tight across his face. He refused to look her in the eye as he quietly spoke.

“... I am simply dealing with some… joint pain. That is all.” Otto’s gaze remained trained to one of his many projects on the counter nearest him, distracting himself as he crossed his arms and leaned back. Despite his desperate attempt to look casual and unaffected by the woman’s commanding presence, he still sat stiffly and winced with each miniscule twist and lean of his torso. Her face softened when she could see his expressions, and while she would never say it out loud, she was proud of the way she managed to make him open up so consistently. 

“Seems pretty intense for your average aches and pains. Can you tell me what's wrong…? I might be able to help.” She asked gently, reaching up and putting a hand on his forearm. He finally looked her way, glancing between her hand and her eyes as he debated on whether or not he should be honest. Eventually he caved with an indignant growl, rolling his eyes. 

“I have been dealing with this pain since I first had my mechanical arms fused to my nervous system. Apparently having several kilograms permanently attached to your back for a year is not beneficial for your skeletal structure.” He gave a rushed, sarcastic answer, as per usual when he was upset about whatever situation he currently found himself in. It's funny, as much as Anna Maria felt she understood Otto, she often forgot about his criminal past, and had never stopped to think about the physical effect it may have had on him. 

“Have you seen a doctor about it?” She asked, tilting her head.

“You know as well as I how sick of hospitals I have become… not to mention-” he cut himself off before entering his usual spiel about “medical professionals” being clueless dolts, since Anna Maria had already scolded him on that sentiment. She'd made him aware that when he felt powerless his first instinct was to blame everyone else for their shortcomings, and now any time he resorted to that mentality he noticed right away, attempting to redirect as per her instruction. He eyed Anna Maria, carefully resuming his sentence after restructuring the thoughts in his head.

“... Not to mention I have deduced that the injury and associated pain is not severe, as well as easily avoidable.” He finished cautiously.

She scoffed, a little dumbfounded by his belittlement of the situation.

“Not severe? Otto, you can't even stand up. Please take this seriously. I won't make you go to the doctor, I suppose, but I'll be damned if I don't do anything at all to help. Excuse my language. What can I do to help?”

“Anna Maria, I don't-”

“What can I do to help, Otto?"

She repeated, much more insistently. He pressed his mouth into a line, chewing on his lips as he regarded her. His eyes lowered, and he drew in a hesitant breath.

“... I keep a few ice packs in the freezer. You will find them in the room adjacent to this one.” He finally mumbled, giving up trying to fight her. She gave a content smile, and patted his arm appreciatively, if not a little smugly. 

“Thank you, Otto. Would you like some painkillers?” He went quiet, refusing to give her more ammunition against him. 

“Otto.” She restated sternly, to which he grumbled with frustration. 

My footsteps echo through the empty room. Every time I walk up and down, it rings in my ears. It's one of the few sounds I'm aware of at this moment. I block out the other noises, concentrating on my footsteps, on the wind hissing through the cracks in the enormous walls of the throne room.

I place my hands together in front of my body. I massage my palms and fingers. I can feel the cold material of the rings that adorn my long, slender fingers. Some of them are still particularly close to my heart. Then I place my left hand on my stomach. 

  Casper looked up from his bowl of spaghetti. He'd been too absorbed in his thoughts to even think about talking to Thomas. Now he realized he'd been rather rude.

  "What do you wanna know?"

  "Tell me how you came to be the ghost king when you're not even dead." Thomas prompted. "It's quite a feat, you know."

  "Well," he paused, considering the best way to explain. "I think it was the Translation. You know them, right?"

  "The illegal time travel organization, yes."

  "Well, I think they wanted to recruit me. So they did some ritual… I don't know, all I remember is waking up in a coffin. It was terrifying."

  "Recruit you? But you're a child." Thomas said, a little outraged. "I'm sorry, Casper, I really am. You don't deserve the… responsibility that comes with this position, nor do you deserve to be disowned. But I'm here to help, no matter what."

  Casper laughed nervously. There was something about Thomas's tone, the way he asked questions like he already knew the answer, the way he almost seemed to spit out the words 'ghost king' like they left a bitter taste in his mouth. It all freaked him out. 

  "Thanks, but I hardly know you. I mean, I know I'm staying in your house, and I'm grateful for your generosity, but really I probably shouldn't stay for long." Casper said, trying to push down the sudden anxiety. 

  Thomas frowned. "Has something got you spooked?"

  Casper was quiet for a moment. He didn't want to mention the knocking. That would make it more… real. He didn't want it to be real. "No, not really," he said carefully. "I just don't want to overstay my welcome, you know?"

  "I see." Everything about Thomas seemed to get a little less intense. "Well, don't worry about that. I'm happy to have you. And you're safe here, really. Safer than you were out there."

  "Yeah… I guess I am." Casper's voice was barely a whisper. 

  The two went back to eating silently. 

  The knocking came again that night, this time louder and more desperate than before. Whatever was out there really wanted to get in. Casper ignored it, staring at the door, afraid that if he took his eyes off it, whatever was there would burst through. When, after what felt like hours, it finally stopped, Casper stood. He crossed the room toward the vanity. 

    As he stared at himself, taking in every blemish and imperfection- the bruise forming above his right eye from the fight that got him kicked out, his cut lip, some sort of mark on his left cheek- the room seemed to warp in his periphery. The wood of the walls blackened, bulging out before collapsing in on itself. The wallpaper curled and crisped, peeling off the walls. The faint smell of smoke wafted through the room. 

  When he looked back, the walls were just as untainted as before, but the smell lingered. 

  Sighing, he returned to his bed, reaching underneath for his bag. It was a small backpack, stuffed with the few things he'd managed to grab before having to leave home. He pulled out his phone. It was nearly dead. The time read 12:06. How had it gotten so late so fast? He set it aside and dug around some more. 

  Aha! He pulled out his flashlight. Tonight was the night he'd explore the house. 

  Opening the door slowly so it wouldn't creak, Casper turned on his flashlight. It was dim, and flickered slightly, but it was better than nothing. He shut his door just as carefully behind him, convinced that if he left it open for too long, something would get in. 

  He quietly moved to the next room over, opening the door and shining the light around. The room had been converted from a bedroom to a small library, with oak shelves lining the walls. The window was covered by thick red curtains that danced on the floor as if in a breeze, though the air was still. Casper got the intense feeling that someone was watching him, and quickly shut the door. 

  He couldn't risk the other side of the landing. He didn't want to wake Thomas. Something told him Thomas wouldn't like his snooping. He made his way around the furniture on the landing, cringing every time a floorboard creaked. Slowly, slowly, slowly he made his way down the stairs, sticking to the sides where he could. The smell of smoke was stronger on the first floor. And not the nasty smell of cigarette smoke. The distinct smell of burning wood, as well as something else. Something… meatier. 

  He stopped as he passed Thomas's study. The smoke smell was almost overwhelming, and he swore he could hear something inside. Something rhythmic. A thump. Thump. Thump. 

I sat down on the couch with my head in my hands, my mind clouded with so many emotions and I couldn’t control it. This is stupid Y/n! You love Andrew, not Haz, a voice rings in my head. But you do love Haz and you know he has feelings for you too! Stop and choose already! The other voice screams. I shook my head, clearing out the thoughts inside of it.

“Babe, I’m home!” Andrew said cheerfully while shutting the front door behind him. I heard his footsteps enter through the doorway of the living room, and he sat down next to me. I looked over at him and dreading about what’s to come. I didn’t realize tears started streaming down my face. Andrew pulled me close to him and cupped my face in his hands. “Baby, what is it? What’s wrong?!” His face is filled with concern and worry. I shook my head and I removed his hands from my face gently. I couldn’t look him in the eyes because I would chicken out if I did.

“I’m so sorry Andy ... but I can’t keep going on and pretending anymore.” I ran my hand through my hair, trying to figure out how to phrase what I’m feeling inside. My hands started to tremble and the butterflies in my stomach grew bigger with each passing second.

“Baby, just say it,” Andrew said flatly like he had seen this coming. I looked down at the floor and covered my face with my hands, trying to regain myself. I really love Andrew but I’m also in love with Haz. I have such a strong pull to him and it won’t leave me alone. I can’t keep dragging Andrew along while wanting to kiss someone else. I could feel his heart racing which made it harder for me. I knew I was about to break his heart and that’s one thing I never wanted to do and the one thing I said I would never do.

“I am in love with someone else but I am still in love with you…” I whispered into his chest and I could feel him grow tense as I held onto him. I pulled away from him and looked at his expression. His face was soft but filled with heartbreak at the same time. “I love both of you and I know if don’t try with him I would be stupid.” I voice cracked at the last sentence. Andrew sighed and released his hold on me. He got up from his spot on the couch and ran a hand down his face. 

“If you really loved me, then you wouldn’t be in love with someone else and you know that’s true..” He snapped, then ran his hand through his hair. He looked back at me and his expression softened a bit. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t get mad at you because of how you’re feeling. I just don’t want to be a second choice, I want to be your only option and the only person that you love but I know I can’t have your whole heart as long as Harrison is around.” His baby blue eyes started to tear up and I swear I could see his heartbreak when I looked into his eyes.

“How did you know it was Haz?” I furrowed my eyes a bit in confusion. He scoffed and shook his in disbelief.

“You really don’t see the way he looks at you and the way you look back at him? It’s really no surprise to me. I saw this coming…” He said. He  was astonished that you had no idea that you looked at Haz with more love than you ever had with him. 

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry I did that to you and didn’t know it.” I chewed on my lower lip while picking at my black nail polish. He smiled softly at me and nodded. He grabbed his coat and headed towards the front door.

“I’ll come by tomorrow to pick up my things. You have someone to confess to now, right?” He said, trying to put on a fake smile. I saw right through it which broke my heart again. I nodded and chewed the inside of my cheek, watching him leave out the front door. A few tears escaped down my face again, I wiped them away and picked up my phone. I dialed Haz’s number and waited for him to pick up the phone. It rang three times and he picked up.

“Hey Y/n/n! How are you?” Haz said cheerfully. I could hear Tom in the background saying that I should come over.

“Hey Hazzy, can you come over? I need to talk to you about something and I don’t really want to do it over the phone…” I said quietly. I could hear him tell Tom that he is coming over to my house for a little bit and told him that he’ll be back shortly.

“I’m on my way, darlin’. I’ll be there in 5 minutes” He said as I heard a door shut on his side of the line.

“Alright, I’ll see you soon, Haz.” I said softly. I hung up after he did and headed to my bathroom and I looked at myself in the mirror. I looked horrible but given the situation, I guess that is to be expected, right? I started rehearsing what I was going to say to him and how I was going to say it.

Okay, so the reason I asked you to come over is because I just broke up with Andrew and you’re the reason- no no no that sounds stupid! 

I grabbed some makeup remover wipes from the cabinet and started cleaning off the ruined makeup from my face while trying to figure out what I wanted to say to him. Once I finished I looked back in the mirror and sighed. Then I heard a knock on the door. My thoughts completely stopped and looking towards the front door. I sighed and looked back at myself in the mirror.

Okay, you can do this Y/n! He is your best friend and he will understand because your 99.9% sure he likes you back. You got this!

I walked up to the door and checked the peephole to make sure it was Haz. I opened the door and I was instantly greeted with a hug from him. I hugged him back and lead him inside. He sat down on the couch and I sat down next to him with a sigh.

“What’s going on?” He said concerned, turning his body to face me on the couch. I looked at him and I could feel my nerves starting to crumble. I looked down at the floor and then at the picture of Andrew on the fireplace. I stood up and grabbed the picture frame, and took out his picture.

“Andrew and I broke up, like 20 minutes ago...” I bit my lip and then looked at him. His face went from relief to sadness in a matter of seconds. He stood up and walked over to me. He wrapped his arms around me and held me for a few minutes.

“I’m so sorry Y/n. What happened to make you two break up?” He looked down at me, leaving a gentle kiss on my head. My heart fluttered as his lips touched my skin.

“I told him I was in love with someone else.” My voice was quiet and I took in his scent at that moment. He smelled of hot chocolate and peppermint. He pulled away and gave me a questioning look.

“Why didn’t you tell me and Tom? Do I know him or her?” He looked into my eyes and tilted his head a bit to the side. I nodded slightly and gave him a small smile. “Well, who is it?” He sing-songed. I giggled at his goofiness and just stared at him for a second.

“You. You, Haz.” I said quietly as I chewed on my bottom lip waiting for his reaction. He looked confused at first but his expression slowly morphed into joy and relief. He pulled me to him and held me close to his chest.

“I’ve been trying to get the courage to tell you how I felt, but you beat me to it.” He chuckled and smoothed down my hair. I smiled, looking up at him. He smiled down at me with so much love and care in his eyes. I knew he felt something too. He leaned down and moved my hair away from my face. He kissed me with so much love and passion, my knees went weak. A shock was sent down my spine and it made me shiver some. He smiled into the kiss which I guessed he felt it too. He wrapped his arms around my waist and deepened the kiss. I cupped my hands on his cheeks and letting them fall to his chest. He pulled away and smiled at me.

“I’ve been waiting to do that for a long time…” He nuzzled my nose with his still having the biggest smile on his face. I giggled and nodded.

“So have I, Hazzy.” I pecked his cheek and then realized he left Tom at his apartment alone. “We should go to Tommy. He might be feeling a little alone right now.” I said while pulled my hair up into a bun, and turned to grab my bag from one of the hangers by the door. Haz nodded and grabbed his phone from the coffee table and followed behind me. He dialed Tom’s number and put it on speaker.

“Hello?” Tom said with a bit of a struggle in his voice.

“Hey mate, are you okay?” Haz said with a bit of concern in his tone. Haz grabbed his car keys from his pocket and headed towards the car.

“Yeah, yeah all good. Tessa and Monty are laying on me and it’s getting hard to breathe.” He chuckled. Haz and I both laughed just imagining the scene that was occurring in that moment.

“Alright. Well, me and y/n are on our way over.” Haz said looking over at me with a smile. They said their goodbyes and we got in the car. I looked over at him and said,

“Do you think he’ll be happy for us?”

“He has been begging me to ask you out on a date for months now. I think he will be more than happy” Haz laughed while putting his seat belt on.

“Let’s go tell our best friend then.” I laughed. I knew I made the right choice in choosing him.

~~~~

Mutuals that might want to be tagged; @euphoria-parker​ @hollandharrison​ @farfromhaz​ @cuddlemeparker​ @fanficparker​ @starkissedholland​

"wh- why not!? I know that that brain hurts you, and I know Steven hates having to commit crimes-!"

He winced as Squeaky sent a sharp throb of pain through his skull at the mention of Steven, and he held a hand up to silence her. He gently cupped his left hand over the small brain, realizing that this only proves Wordgirl's point further. He couldn't help but get a little frustrated, grumbling quietly.

"Wordgirl, I said no-!"

He snapped, accidentally shouting a little. She closed her mouth, the hurt and surprise visible on her face. Geez, sometimes he forgot that she really was just a kid.

"s- sorry, Wordgirl, I didn't mean to..."

He sighed, running his hands down his face as he struggled to put together the right words before continuing.

"Look Kiddo, I know how much you miss him. But the truth is, even if I get this removed, he won't be back."

He looked down at her, his face softening with sympathy. Her injured gaze followed his movements as he knelt down, attempting to hopefully help her feel a little more heard and safe. His words became a little gentler.

"I really only have hazy recollections of his memories, and I doubt they'd return. And frankly, Wordgirl, I don't want to go through all that again."

He shuddered at the memory of waking up in the lab, in pain and confused, nothing but two panicked voices in his own head to keep him company. The early days were harder to remember, since it was mostly Squeaky and Steven bossing each other around and haphazardly piloting their body through the city.

Wordgirl frowned, fiddling with the top of one of her gloves.

"go through... What again..?"

He looked down, one elbow on his knee as he slumped over slightly. He looked tired.

"Not knowing who I am, Wordgirl. I've only recently been Dr. Two Brains, and I'm still figuring out who that is! I just... I don't think I could handle another big change like that again, Y'know...?"

He tilted his head, searching for her gaze, but she avoided eye contact. It was a lot to take in for a little girl like her. He frowned, feeling a little guilty.

"wordgirl... I hope you know this doesn't mean we're not friends. I know it gets... Weird, sometimes, what with all the impulsive crime sprees and cheese obsessions, but kid... You can always come to me for help, alright...? Well, almost always, there's still rules against some things."

He chuckled, scratching his neck nervously as he remembered the "anti-conspiratory" rules in the Villian rulebook.

"we can't go to a museum together, pretty sure that's one..."

He mumbled, getting lost in thought. She was finally looking up at him, lip trembling as if she were about to cry.

"aw, kid, don't cry...!"

He opened his arms reflexively, offering her a hug. She ran into his arms so fast she knocked the wind out of him, her super strength nearly crushing him. With the way she could lift one of Tobey's giant robots like it was nothing, he knew she couldn't help it. He managed to wheeze out a simple sentence, patting her back awkwardly.

"k- kid, don't kill me--"

"oh! Sorry, heh--!"

She let go of him, stepping back and holding her hands behind her back apologetically.

He pressed a hand against his chest, catching his breath and giving a weak chuckle.

"no, no, it's alright. Asking a superhero for a hug, I should'a known better."

All in all, the interaction probably could've gone way worse. The sweet moment ended when his sensitive rodent ears picked up the sound of a roof access door opening around a small concrete wall, and he looked over. The two police officers rounded the corner and gave wordgirl a polite wave, the red haired woman speaking up.

"Heya Wordgirl! Great job stopping Doc again! We heard about the whole thing. Oh, uh, you too Two Brains I guess."

She offered him an unsure shrug and he rolled his eyes, standing and holding his hands behind his back so they could cuff him.

"Gee, thanks officers..."

He mumbled. Wordgirl, however, couldn't be happier with the praise, grinning and giving a playful curtsy with the corners of her cape.

"oh, it's nothing really, heh! See you later, Dr. Two Brains."

She gave him a final wave paired with a bittersweet smile, and he nodded appreciatively.

"till we meet again, Wordgirl!"