#emo rn

Cole had never really put much stock into first impressions– he was who he was, he’d live and die exactly that way. He could handle being liked just as well as he could handle being hated– in fact, he’d gotten quite good at the latter over the years. But as he paused on Shep’s doorstep, knowing that the half-brother he hardly knew and the niece he’d never met waited on the other side of it, Cole couldn’t help the flutter of nerves he felt low in his gut. This first impression mattered. Naturally, he wondered what Shep had told his daughter about him– or more importantly, what he hadn’t told her. Cole wasn’t under any sort of delusions here– he knew he wasn’t a good man, but there was a part of him that hoped Jillian couldn’t see that, or wouldn’t hate him for it if she could.  Pushing the thought aside, he raised a fist and knocked thrice against the door before easing back a step and clearing his throat– almost like he was gearing up for the interaction. When the door opened, he offered up a small smile and a little wave, “Hey, man,” Cole started, lifting up both the six pack of cheap beer he’d bought and the small stuffed lion cub he’d spotted at the store, “I come bearin’ gifts.” He glanced down at the stuffed animal, admittedly a little unsure of himself, “Too much?” Cole wondered aloud, almost as though he was asking his half-brother for some sort of guidance. He had no experience with kids, and his own childhood was far too abnormal for him to use as any sort of reference point. “For the record, the lion ain’t for you.”

me, tearing up slightly over the fact that we were’t even on the list last year and this year we’re in the top ten? it’s more likely than you think!

gifset request meme: