And Dream Tonight • •

[emmett reuben winchester]

Las Vegas had been…interesting. The trip had certainly been all fun and games, with roulette wheels and black jack tables. It had been exactly like the movies made it out to be, with casino chips, bright lights and fancy outfits to boot. Emmett and Delia had gambled, drank expensive champagne they never would have even looked twice at in New York City, and partied like it was their last night on planet earth. The cocktails and champagne got to them both eventually because there was a hazy fog over his memories. He could recall being in the casino lobby after a small win at the roulette wheel, promising to take Delia for “a night on the tiles”, but then his next memory is being back in the suite and with Delia suddenly pressed against him, his lips against hers. She tasted sweet, like the last cocktail they had shared from the pricey fishbowl. Emmett had snapped to his senses in that moment and pulled away. He was drunk, but still lucid enough to know what they had done and what might have happened if they hadn’t stopped then and there. After that the fun and games had turned into awkward exchanges which both of them had blamed on the hangovers, then the nuisance of travelling back to NYC.

Since then, it lingered. Emmett noticed it even when they returned back to their normal lives. It was fine whenever they were in the company of others, but once they were alone it brewed up again. He couldn’t help it. The moment it was just the two of them he was right back there in that drunken moment trying to wrap his head around what was happening. He couldn’t remember what had led up to the kiss, or who had even initiated it. Emmett tried to tell himself that it didn’t matter, that “what happened in Vegas, stayed in Vegas”, but all of that was so much easier said than done. It was made even more difficult when Delia was one of his closest friends, and one of his work colleagues. If he needed a break to clear his head, to try and make sense of it, then he couldn’t unless he took off completely for a trip out of the city. She was at the university campus, the museum, not to mention that they shared plenty of the few local haunts as their favourite spots to hang out. It was difficult to avoid her, but he was getting frustrated with the growing awkwardness between them. If it was just a kiss then why did it seem to matter so much?

Emmett wanted to get to the bottom of things, but getting Delia to speak to him alone was almost mission impossible. There was either always someone around, or there was that underlying discomfort that led to the conversation ending before he had a chance to confront her about what had happened between them. What he needed was a chance to speak with her when she couldn’t make an excuse to leave, or have anyone walk in to grab their lunch or ask a silly question. After the next tour group left, when the museum was in a quiet phase for a little while, Emmett strolled through to find the red head and when he did he grabbed her, hastily bundling her into one of the cleaning closets. It wasn’t elegant and it lacked dignity, but he didn’t care. “Okay, we’re hashing this out right now.” He told her, blocking the exit and hitting the light switch to provide a tiny bit of dim light in the small closet. “We can’t keep acting like nothing happened when it’s clearly bothering both of us.” He folded his arms and waited for Delia. It was her turn now, and this time she couldn't slide away or have anyone else’s entrance save her from the conversation.

• • •

TAGGED! Delia Sierra Reynolds
WORDS! 655!
OUTFIT! December Dude!
LYRICS! Birthrights - - Jim Kroft
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Delia Sierra Reynolds]

Delia had felt a little awkward since returning from Las Vegas. It was as plain and simple as that. That old adage what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas wasn’t exactly true. In fact, the trip was all she could think about! Delia couldn’t make heads or tails from any of it. She couldn’t figure out how they went from drinking and gambling and having fun to making out! Being in Las Vegas had been exactly what Delia had expected. There was gambling and alcohol and so many bright lights. There were fancy clothes; she even donned a dress and heels for the occasion! She was tall enough without the heels, with them she towered over people. But that was the fun of Vegas. None of it was supposed to follow you home when you left. You could do whatever you pleased and as long as you didn’t get arrested for it, it stayed in your memories and in the city of sin.

But the memory of that kiss followed Delia home with her when the trip was done and over with. It was entirely unpleasant; it was however a little bit of a shock. She wasn’t even sure when that line crossed. They were having a good time, drinking and partying and the next thing she knew they were stumbling through the door of their suite, their bodies pressed against each other and they were kissing. Delia didn’t know if she kissed Emmett or if it was the other way around but it was happening and then Emmett was pulling away before she could fully comprehend the idea of doing the same. They were friends but that kiss felt like it had changed that. Like Emmett, Delia blamed the hangover she was nursing the day before and then it was packing and dealing with getting back to New York.

She had hoped that returning to New York meant they could return to normal. But the awkwardness she felt and the confusion followed her and she didn’t know how to deal with any of it. She wasn’t socially awkward but she also didn’t go around making out with one of her best friends or a regular basis. So Delia thought it best to stay away as much as possible. Obviously, that wasn’t easy. They attended the same school, they worked at the same place, and almost always the same shift and they both frequented the same places to unwind. She would have had to return home to really get away and as much as she loved Scotland, she wasn’t ready to return there. There were days when they couldn’t avoid each other’s company, but there was always someone, usually Gabe there with them. So she could ignore without ignoring Emmett and their Vegas trip.

Delia was going to go run out to the Starbucks on the corner after the last tour group left while she had the chance. She had another tour following and she wouldn’t get a chance to head out until she was finished for the day. Unaware of anyone around her, she started towards the nearest exit so she could get out and get back with plenty of time to actually finish the coffee she was grabbing. She was even thinking about what little snack she’d treat herself to when she was unceremoniously grabbed and pulled into a broom cupboard. Delia muttered curses at the mystery person but it appeared they fell on deaf ears; not that it mattered. “Hashing what out?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest. She knew exactly what he wanted to talk about but she wasn’t sure if she was ready to analyse it. Her professors back in Scotland wouldn’t be particularly pleased. Huffing out a sigh, Delia shook her head. It was unavoidable now that she was stuck in a cupboard with the man! “I don’t honestly know what to tell you. What do you want me to say?” She asked, tapping her foot nervously.

Tag || emmett reuben winchester
Words || 665
Clothes || Flustered Tour Guide
Music || Stand Out --Sabrina Carpenter
Notes || <3

[emmett reuben winchester]

Emmett had been dubbed Mr Awkward by the high school students he had taught back in Oxford. If they could see him now, hear the tale of Las Vegas, then they would be reminding him that they had chosen that nickname for a very, very good reason. It went beyond his mannerisms in front of a classroom of teenagers, or the way he bounded around in a gangly fashion, as though his limbs wanted to go in opposite directions. He couldn’t deal with his emotions, had never really been able to wrap his thoughts about his heart. Right now everything was just bundled up in confusion and about half a million questions he didn’t have the answer to. Emmett knew that he could turn into a terrible flirt after several drinks, but he had been friends with Delia long enough for her to know the same. He didn’t know how they had gone from casual gambling to getting hot and heavy on their way back to the suite, but it couldn’t be solely on his shoulders and how he behaved after a few whiskey and cokes. That behaviour was nothing new to him, and he was never the guy who crossed a line. He knew he only ever whipped out the cheesy lines, wiggled his eyebrows and if anything became more awkward and giggly than he usually was.

Not knowing was what bothered him most of all. It had been that way ever since he had discovered the truth about his biological father. It was the secrets that had tormented him then, but now it was the mystery that tortured him. It was the furthest thing from Emmett’s idea of fun and he just wanted it all to be over. He knew it wasn’t so easy to do. He knew he couldn’t click his fingers and have things revert to the way they were, but he could at least try to find out how this had happened and what it meant now for him and Delia. She had been a good friend to him in New York City, and good friends were rare to find. He didn’t want to lose that, but he was scared that it might be too late now. Las Vegas might have snatched that from him already.

Emmett just needed to know the truth. He needed to know exactly what Delia was thinking. The archaeologist to be couldn’t go on with this dance the pair of them were doing since they arrived back in New York. He needed to know what had happened between them. He had to know what the future was going to hold for them. Not knowing was driving him mad. He shot the redheaded Scot a dark look. “You know exactly what.” He stated coolly. Now was not the time for games and the same avoidance that they had been playing with since they had touched back down in the city they both currently called home. He wanted to get to the bottom of this. “Anything! The truth! What the hell is happening between us? What happened between us?” He asked. Emmett suddenly wished that there was room in the tiny cupboard to pace. However, there wasn’t a chance in hell that he was letting Delia out of there until she had told him something to satisfy his nervous mind.

• • •

TAGGED! Delia Sierra Reynolds
WORDS! 562!
OUTFIT! December Dude!
LYRICS! Birthrights - - Jim Kroft
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Delia Sierra Reynolds]

Delia had managed to go her entire life until that trip doing next to nothing that she regretted. Well, she didn't exactly regret that night either, she just didn't know what she was going to do about it. She didn't wish it didn't happen, it was still an experience that would shape her life but she just wasn't sure how it would do that. All through her teenage years, she'd been a solid person, not awkward but never really doing anything to give her a reputation. She hadn't been quiet but she also hadn't gone dancing on tabletops when she was out with her friends for the night. She had her fun but she'd never gone too far because she'd always had Meredith to look out for. And she didn't want her niece to see her aunt acting a fool and follow in those footsteps. As it was, she was too much like her aunt for her own good.

Life since Las Vegas had been interesting. She'd been avoiding Emmett as much as she could and she would admit to it. She had been three sheets to the wind wasted as the saying went when they'd stumbled their way to their hotel suite that night and kissed. But she'd still been sober enough to remember the night and what had happened; for the most part. She definitely remembered that kiss and now she didn't know what to do about it. Emmett was her friend, her best friend really. They weren't exactly a dime a dozen. She didn't want to lose that and she was actually afraid if she voiced her opinions of the night, it would ruin it. Because she hadn't hated it. In fact, she'd quite enjoyed herself but what did that mean for their friendship. She'd seen too many people start out the way they had, get involved just to have it blow up in their faces. Delia had given up counting how many of her friends expected her to ditch the other in an attempt to collect friends like belongings. She wouldn't have any part of it and said as much to both parties. She would hang out with both on separate days. She wouldn't talk about what the other was getting up to and that was the best she would give them. At least in that aspect, she was glad to be away from home.

Del hated that she was avoiding Emmett. But she hadn't sorted out her own thoughts on the matter and hadn't wanted any confrontations until she'd done so. It was a terrible process but it was hers. It had always been bound to fail, they worked together and frequented the same places. They were always running into each other outside of work and plans like they'd actually made plans. "Don't give me that glare. I'm not easily scared by it." She stated, giving him her best glare in return. Del was nervous; plain and simple. If she did as he asked, where would that leave them? She didn't want to lose Emmett but at the same time, she hated having all these mixed up, awkward emotions and thoughts. It just wasn't healthy keeping things bottled up inside. Eventually the lock box it was all stored in would break and everything would spill past her lips like lava from a volcano. "I have no idea what's happening between us. It's awkward but it's even more awkward talking about what did happen. We kissed and I just keep... blinking every time I think about it. Then I shut it down because I don't know. I just don't know." She said quickly, barely taking a breath to get it all out. The lock on that box she'd kept things in really wasn't all that strong. "Happy now?" She asked, returning to that glare she'd been giving him as she crossed her arms over her chest.

Tag || emmett reuben winchester
Words || 650
Clothes || Flustered Tour Guide
Music || Stand Out --Sabrina Carpenter
Notes || <3

[emmett reuben winchester]

Emmett frequently made stupid mistakes, but they were always along the lines of forgetting to put the teabag in when he made a cup of tea, or washing his face in the morning before grabbing a fresh towel and then having to stagger about with water in his eyes to try and find one. He wasn’t prone to making the mistakes that actually changed his life in a big way. Every change in his life that he had held control over had come with careful thought and consideration. He might have been an impulsive man who lived in the moment, but he didn’t live so recklessly that he wanted to wake up with a list of regrets. Then again, Emmett couldn’t decide if he did regret Las Vegas. He certainly regretted what it had done to his friendship with Delia, but in the moment he hadn’t really wanted to pull away and stop. It had only been the tiny voice of logic that had caused him to do that in the end. It was one big tangled mess of thoughts and feelings and it constantly made Emmett feel queasy every time he tried to make sense of them all. That was why he hoped forcing Delia into talking about it might help him figure out what the hell was going on inside his scrambled brain.

It was difficult when she was avoiding him, but cornering her had really been his only choice. Now he just hoped that they got all of this figured out before someone came looking for them and found them squished up in a dark, tiny cupboard. It would be hard to explain that without revealing something about Las Vegas to whoever found them. Emmett, despite his carefree nature, was a private man. He didn’t like having his private life aired all over the place. Even with his closest friends now they probably actually knew very little about him and his past. He had always been that way, but it had become a stronger trait ever since he had discovered the truth about his parentage. He would answer questions when they were asked, but he didn’t spout facts or stories about himself until then. Instead he just bounded around making memories and apparently making out with people in hotel suites.

“Don’t avoid the point then.” Emmett said, not letting up with his glare. It didn’t matter this time how much Delia skirted around the questions or tried to dodge the answers. He wasn’t letting her go until they had talked this through. They needed to deal with what happened or else it would fester and their friendship would crumble entirely. If they had any hope whatsoever of saving their relationship it came through dealing with whatever the hell did happen and whatever the hell almost happened out in Nevada. He listened to Delia talk, but her words weren’t exactly what he wanted to hear. She just seemed to echo his own thoughts which was hardly helpful when he had been expecting this to be some kind of way out for them both. He didn’t know how it would have worked, but he had hoped it would come with some kind of closure, and not just the same questions he already had repeated. “Not really. ‘I don’t know’ is hardly the answer I was hoping for.” He huffed, folding his arms and leaning back against the closed door, ensuring there was no escape still. “You’re not getting out of here until we figure this out.” He told her sternly. “Otherwise that’s it. And you know it would be.” They had been avoiding each other – and this – for so long now that it probably would be the end of the line for their friendship if this conversation didn’t provide answers for them.

• • •

TAGGED! Delia Sierra Reynolds
WORDS! 641!
OUTFIT! December Dude!
LYRICS! Birthrights - - Jim Kroft
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Delia Sierra Reynolds]

Most of Delia’s life consisted of mistake after mistake. She started making them when her parents died and just kept them up, like they were a particularly favourite habit of hers; an annoyingly bad one. She didn’t like making mistakes but it happened anyway and there was nothing to be done about that; mistakes would keep happening. She didn’t regret things though, they helped to make her who she was. But she could still wish things went differently, even if she knew that if even one thing changed, she wouldn’t have gone down the path she had. It was human nature to wish things like that. Without falling out of that tree, she wouldn’t have opened her eyes to what she’d been doing do Meredith. If she hadn’t decided to stick around home to continue her education, so she could help with Meredith, maybe Mere would have turned out differently, maybe she would have ended up somewhere else, falling in love with someone else and never even finding herself in New York. The Butterfly Effect was a scary thing when one actually sat down to think it through.

But she was where she was because of the steps she’d taken. And she couldn’t say she was sorry for any of it. She could wish with everything she had, on every shooting star in the sky to understood what was happening right then and there with Emmett but it wouldn’t really change anything. The kiss had happened and there was no taking it back. And Delia wasn’t sure if she wanted to or not. It was a strange moment for her, not a mistake but still something that probably shouldn’t have happened. It made for awkward silences and strange, mixed emotions. “Can’t avoid a point, I can’t find, now can I?” She asked, crossing her arms over her chest. This was so... Awkward and Del didn’t do well with awkward.

Everyone knew it, she was often teased because of it. “You’re such an infuriating man, Emmett Winchester.” Delia said, letting her frustration get the better of her. “I didn’t hate it, okay?” She blurted, crossing her arms over her chest and looking to the side, hoping that would be the end of it somehow. She didn’t do awkward well, obviously. She purposefully stayed away from any sort of situation where awkwardness could become a factor. “Did you?” She asked, her voice barely above a whisper as she asked a question she’d been wanting an answer to since they’d kissed and it had taken over her waking and dreaming thoughts. Sometimes, she really hated being a girl, no matter what she liked to think about how confident she was, it still mattered if the guy liked her back.

Tag || emmett reuben winchester
Words || 504
Clothes || Flustered Tour Guide
Music || Stand Out --Sabrina Carpenter
Notes || <3

[emmett reuben winchester]

Emmett wasn’t used to screwing up or having regrets. He had always kept things simple and after spending high school dodging bullies and running from fights when he said the wrong thing at the wrong time, he had entered adulthood making sure that most of those things didn’t happen again. Emmett hadn’t particularly enjoyed having his ass kicked in back alleys after the final bell, and he couldn’t pull off a black eye like some of the bad boys in his school; they just made him look even more like an oddball and an outcast. However, he would go through it all again to fix this mess with Delia. He wasn’t a wordsmith or even half decent when it came to stringing his thoughts into coherent sentences. It made it even more complicated when he didn’t really know what his thoughts were. They just raced through his head right now, twisting and changing direction before he could even begin to understand just what they were trying to tell him.

Vegas was such a blur in general. So much had happened over so few days. It had all been incredible, but then there had been that moment, that kiss, with Delia, and now he felt lost and confused. He wanted to find whoever had coined the phrase about “What happens in Vegas” and tell them every single thing that made it wrong. There was no way he could leave that behind in the Nevada desert, especially not when it seemed as though Delia was struggling the same way that he was with what had happened between them and how it had altered their friendship. “Well you’re doing a damn good job of it regardless.” Emmett mumbled, running his hand through his hair, staring at the shelves beside his head for a long moment. None of this was easy, though he had known to expect that. Still, a man could hope that maybe he was going to be proven wrong.

He let out a loud sigh. “I like to think it’s gotten me this far in life.” He said with just a hint of sarcasm. He knew all of his character flaws probably better than he knew his good traits. However, Emmett had made no effort to really change himself in the last ten years since every attempt before that had just led to miserable failure, and it was more trouble than it was worth. He stiffened slightly at Delia’s words, and her question took him right back to that hotel room, the kiss, and the dozen things it possible could’ve turned into. His eyes flicked to Delia’s face, glancing briefly at her lips, his mind torn between the memory of what was and the moment right now in the dark cupboard. “No, I can’t say that I did.” He confessed, his voice thick, barely above a whisper.

• • •

TAGGED! Delia Sierra Reynolds
WORDS! 482!
OUTFIT! December Dude!
LYRICS! Birthrights - - Jim Kroft
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Delia Sierra Reynolds]

Delia wanted to know more than anything else when life became so bloody complicated. What happened to the good old days when the biggest problem she had faced was getting away with throwing sand from the school sandbox in Billy Kavanaugh’s face because he’d pulled her pigtails and she’d fallen to the ground with the force. Once upon a time, that had been her biggest problem. And then the accident happened and all hell broke loose in Delia’s life and bigger problems arose. But she still missed the days before her parent’s death. And now it was more like how she would pay both her cable bill and for the new foil she had her eye on; how she would face Emmett on a near day-to-day basis after Vegas.

She hadn’t been able to stop thinking about that kiss and what it would mean for them. What happened next? She didn’t want anything to be ruin between them but the longer this conversation was pushed aside and ignored, the longer they had to deal with the awkwardness of this whole situation. Delia wasn’t in the habit of regretting things and she certainly didn’t regret kissing Emmett but she worried what it would do to them. They were friends, Delia didn’t want that to be compromised and it quite honestly scared her. Emmett was the one person in New York that she could go to and say anything to and he didn’t look at her like she was crazy, he either agreed with her or he added to it. “It’s amazing what you learn when you’re raising a child at eighteen.” She muttered, not the first time wishing her brother had acted like the father he was and took care of his child in the absence of her mother and his wife.

Delia hadn’t stopped thinking about that night in Vegas since it happened. It was the one part of that entire drunken trip that was extremely vivid. She couldn’t remember the shows, the strip, anything at all. But that kiss was burned into her memory and she couldn’t decide if she wanted to slap Emmett for it, even though for the life of her she wasn’t sure who started it and it would be an entirely useless response, or if she wanted him to do it again. She didn’t hate it, no, but she was terrified of it all the same. What if it completely ruined their friendship? They would still have to work together and see it each other almost daily. It would be a mess and Delia didn’t want that at all. Emmett’s words took all the air from Delia and she momentarily forgot that she was annoyed with him and looked up at him as her arms dropped to her sides. “So what do we do?” She asked, softly, pleading Emmett to have an answer.

Tag || emmett reuben winchester
Words || 522
Clothes || Flustered Tour Guide
Music || Stand Out --Sabrina Carpenter
Notes || <3

[emmett reuben winchester]

Emmett missed the days when he could live his life without any of this real stress. The hand fate had dealt to him in recent years had made the torment of high school bullies look like the tickle of butterfly wings. The truth about his mother’s betrayal, and the lies that he had grown up with had shattered his own world already, had driven him from Salem, and had made him re-evaluate his entire life. Emmett couldn’t even go home now without feeling utterly betrayed, angry at his mother and the man who was supposed to be his dad’s best friend, and wretched by the fact that his father was completely oblivious to their infidelity. Emmett wasn’t going to be the one to destroy his life, but his love for the man whose life he had saved with one of his kidney’s, and the faith he had once had in his mother were completely gone. There was nothing on this earth that could repair those relationships. And now he was stressed out again, but this time there was only himself to blame, and Delia he supposed, since she was there in Vegas, too.

He had done his best to try to act like it was just ‘one of those things’. He had heard of friends getting drunk and kissing before, and he was sure they didn’t freak out and act like it was the end of the world, but Emmett couldn’t help it. He wasn’t the smoothest of guys, he wasn’t skilled when it came to any area of romance, and it wasn’t in his nature to go out, get drunk, and end up with a girl in his arms. Emmett didn’t quite know what had happened that night with Delia, but he couldn’t stop thinking about it and fretting over it. He didn’t want to throw away what they already had; true friends were so few and far between for the gangly man. He just wanted to know what to do, what the answer was for them now. “Shame you didn’t learn about this.” He grumbled, running his fingers through his hair and letting out a long sigh. None of this was easy, and Emmett was exhausted just from how much it had played on his mind in the last couple of weeks.

He didn’t know what he wanted. He didn’t know if any good could come of anything now. Emmett had seen his relationships with the people he had once cared about damaged beyond repair because of foolish mistakes and he was terrified of the same thing happening again now, and because of something considerably less serious. He really didn’t want to lose anything that they already had, but he knew things couldn’t stay the same between them after Vegas. He just didn’t know what he wanted, or how to handle this in any other manner. Looking at Delia, he swallowed hard. His mind was still torn between what was happening now and what had happened then and he was having to hold himself in place with great difficulty. “I suppose asking you want you want to do is pretty stupid, right?” He said, leaning back against the door and shoving his hands into his pockets, only because he didn’t really trust them to be out in the open anymore. They were itching to reach out for Delia, and at the same time desperate to stay away from her. It was the same internal conflict that he had been fighting with since that infernal kiss.

• • •

TAGGED! Delia Sierra Reynolds
WORDS! 591!
OUTFIT! December Dude!
LYRICS! Birthrights - - Jim Kroft
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Delia Sierra Reynolds]

This whole situation was driving Delia mental. She hated that she didn’t know where she stood with Emmett and she didn’t want to find out what would happen if they couldn’t figure this out. They would stop hanging out, spending time time making fools of themselves, stop being friends entirely. Delia didn’t have many friends and to lose one well, it was something she didn’t want to do. But she was so confused about everything. Her head hurt, her heart hurt more and she was terrified to blink in case everything around her shattered. She was a mess and didn’t want to admit to it. It was too much to admit to and it made Delia feel like she wanted to run away but run to Emmett just as much. She didn’t know what to do with herself.

“Well, Meredith was six back then. She wasn’t exactly making out with her friends and then running from it.” She muttered and huffed out a breath. If her niece had ever pulled such a stunt, she was positive she’d have better advice for Meredith than she had for herself. For Meredith she would have said something that sounded really good, thanks to that psychology degree of hers but for herself, she had nothing. Not that she would have taken her own advice. Psychologists and Therapists were always great at handing out the advice that other people needed but they were the worst when it came to taking advice. Delia was proof of that. Instead of looking through everything she knew and telling herself things that made sense, she blocked it all out because she just didn’t want to deal with it. It was scary.

“Yes, it is.” She said with a quick shake of her head. “But only because it’s a toss up between running away and doing it again.” She said with a sigh. She’d never really been one to shy away from much. She tended to barrel through things and wait to see what the consequences may be. It usually turned out well for her but there were those times, obviously when things didn’t turn out as well as she hoped and she ended up apologising or losing a friend in the process because she’d taken things a step too far. In this case, it hadn’t just been her but she was still worried. Emmett was one of the first friends Delia had made when she’d moved to New York. "What the hell do we do, Emmett?" She asked, reaching out, putting her hands on his biceps, unable to help herself. They were getting nowhere and Delia knew she shouldn't have done it but it was too late now. She couldn't take her own advice even if she had wanted to; which she was almost certain she didn't.

Tag || emmett reuben winchester
Words || 506
Clothes || Flustered Tour Guide
Music || Stand Out --Sabrina Carpenter
Notes || <3

[emmett reuben winchester]

Emmett had never been the type to involve himself in drama. He often ran away from it in the same way he ran from the high school bullies. The bullies usually caught up with him though, they were faster than the gangly smart kid who spoke when he ought to keep his mouth shut, and then it was common for Emmett to take something of a beating from them. It was all part of growing up to him, but it wasn't enjoyable in the least. No teenage boy wanted to be the subject of hallway taunts or return home with a split lip or bruised jaw. However, it was the price Emmett paid for being an idiot and saying moronic things to the kids who weren't afraid to risk a school suspension for beating on him. Right now though, in the midst of everything that was happening with Delia, Emmett would rather go back to those daily beatings. They were less confusing and the pain was easier to handle than the stress of trying to figure out what the hell was happening between them now.

“I thought that age was all about running away from kisses. Cooties were the most frightening disease back then.” If they were only that innocent right now. Then again, if they were he knew for sure that they definitely wouldn’t have been making out in any hotel room in Vegas like it was just the done thing to do. Life was just definitely so much simpler for Emmett when the biggest problem he had to face was playing out with skinned knees, or remembering his helmet when he took his bicycle out with the other local kids. At least the answers to those problems could be solved with a trip back home; the one place now Emmett hated returning to.

Delia’s answer shocked Emmett just a little bit. It was really no different to his own dilemma in the matter, but he hadn’t expected to hear it come from her. He didn’t quite know why, but he had been so fixated on fixing their friendship that he hadn’t even paused to consider anything else cropping up that might be cause for alarm. Friends did not go around wanting to kiss each other again; at least not well functioning friends. He wasn’t the most socially aware guy in New York City, but he knew that much for certain. Glancing down at where Delia had grabbed his arms, Emmett swallowed and suddenly noticed just how small a space he had pulled her into for this conversation. He didn’t know what else he expected from a broom closet in all honesty, but it was a little alarming in that exact moment in time, especially when he lifted his gaze back to Delia’s. “Well, if you don’t quit touching me, I’m going to end up kissing you again very soon.” He warned in a low voice. It was all too much, and it only took the slightest touch from Delia to send him crashing back to that moment in the hotel suite. It didn’t make his thoughts or feelings any more clearer, but just made him feel even more messed up than he already did.

• • •

TAGGED! Delia Sierra Reynolds
WORDS! 540!
OUTFIT! December Dude!
LYRICS! Birthrights - - Jim Kroft
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Delia Sierra Reynolds]

Delia couldn’t quite get a grip on what was going on around her after Las Vegas. She thought she knew what was going on, what was happening around her, what she wanted from the big apple. And then they’d gone and had quite the make out session in the hotel room and everything was turned on its head. Delia didn’t quite know which way was up and was afraid to break the surface just as much as she was afraid of drowning in the mess they’d created. Before New York, before any of this, she’d led a relatively uncomplicated life. She went to school, she took care of Meredith and she made sure her brother’s nightly pity parties took their regularly scheduled break to tuck his daughter into bed and kiss her goodnight.

And now she was just confused. There were plenty of things in hr psychology books but a shrink never wants to take advice, even sound words and she especially didn’t want to take her own. That made things even more complicated and messy and Delia just wanted things to go back to the way they were. And then she didn’t. She wanted someone to make the hard decisions for her, but apparently that was just too much to ask because so far she’d been left alone to deal with her thoughts, her emotions and the whole situation alone. “They were. They still were, vaguely when I left but I’m afraid that won’t be the case for much longer. Not that it’s relevant at the moment.” She said, brushing it aside. She could fill her mind with everything she shouldn’t be thinking of in that moment, to get what she really had to deal with out of her head but it wasn’t fair to either of them and her brain was refusing to do it anyway; which was frustrating because she was realising she would have to admit to something she wasn’t entirely sure she was ready to.

But they had to deal with this or it would fester like an infection and they’d fall apart, end up hating each other and Delia definitely didn’t want that. She could admit though that it was a bad idea to touch Emmett. It had been one of the things she’d been putting a lot of effort into not thinking about and coming away from those moments a failure. Because she hadn’t stopped herself from thinking about those few moments in the hotel room, what it would be like to be in that position again. She was scared of what would happen to them afterwards, if they chose to go forward with whatever that was and it tore them apart. Emmett was one of the first people Delia had met in New York, he was quite literally her first friend in the country. She didn’t want to lose him but at the same time, when you obsessed about something like that for as long as she had, as they both had, it was worth the chance to see where it went, right? Delia wasn’t the type of person to thoroughly think things through. She made a quick mental list of the pros and cons of a situation before throwing those lists away and doing what she wanted. Pulling her into the broom closet probably wasn’t the best idea, with so little space, to have a decent conversation to hash out their problems. “You make it sound like that would be a bad thing.” She said, instantly making up her mind. She was going to throw caution to the wind and do something in the moment. She would not regret it because she chose it, even if it did come back to bit her in the ass.

Tag || emmett reuben winchester
Words || 673
Clothes || Flustered Tour Guide
Music || Stand Out --Sabrina Carpenter
Notes || <3

[emmett reuben winchester]

Emmett had long since given up on trying to predict what life would throw at him next. In the twenty-eight years he had been on the planet the powers that be had certainly decided he was something to be toyed with and laughed at. Every time Emmett had been given a slither of happiness it had been crushed by something awful, and each time it seemed to be something bigger and more soul destroying. As a child it had always been bullies, their ways to torment and tease growing worse the older they got until everything became physical and violent. Emmett could deal with that; roughhousing was apparently expected of American boys as they grew up, even though they were reprimanded and told never to do it again. A black eye came with a telling off, but someone else always saying 'boys will be boys'. When he thought he had escaped all of that though, found a life he could happily settle into and live with, another revelation came smashing through his idyllic existence and ruined everything. Discovering the truth about his parentage was in fact the worse thing that had ever happened to Emmett, but it had left him prepared for the next bad hand life would deal him. Now he half expected it to be losing Delia's friendship as a result of Las Vegas.

He had no idea what had happened between the casino floor and the hotel suite. Emmett could remember being at the tables, laughing with the other tourists and tormenting Delia about something and then it skipped straight ahead to the kiss. At least ten minutes of his memory was a blur with no rhyme or reason for it. Not that having an answer would help them any now. Logic didn't define a kiss, or change how they were reacting now they were back in New York. "At least things made sense back then." He mumbled, remembering a time when things were black and white. You liked something or you hated something. There was absolutely none of this fuzzy grey area where confusion crept in and complicated things. Emmett sometimes wished for the simplicity of his childhood back, even if he did spend most of it trying to outrun bullies and being one of the nerdiest kids in his class. He would rather live through that again than face up to some of the truths he had discovered in adulthood.

This was such a mess, and he couldn't figure out what he wanted more. Emmett couldn't recall being this confused in a very long time. He was usually the type of guy who knew what he wanted in an instant, but this was driving him mad and he didn't like it one bit. Part of him even wanted to just run away from it like he did those childhood bullies. Swallowing hard, he looked down at Delia. "It would be if I lost what we already have." Their friendship had gotten him through so much he had never spoken about. Emmett wasn't the type to verbalise all of his problems, but he did rely on his friends to pick him up when he was feeling burdened. Without them he would be a wreck, and to lose Delia would be the worst blow of them all. "I don't want to lose that." He confessed in a whisper, though he was already a hairsbreadth away from her now. Emmett didn't even know what he was doing anymore.

• • •

TAGGED! Delia Sierra Reynolds
WORDS! 604!
OUTFIT! December Dude!
LYRICS! Birthrights - - Jim Kroft
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Delia Sierra Reynolds]

Delia really wanted to know why life suddenly became so difficult? She longed for the days when a skinned knee was the biggest worry she had and maybe finishing her maths homework before her parents found out she’d chosen not to do it the night before under protest. Of course, if that was all real, the chances that Delia would have even ended up in New York were fairly slim. She’d had a life figured out back in Scotland, while her parents were still alive. She might have been young but she’d had ideas and dreams and plans and reality was, none of them had included moving out of her native country; unless it was to London. Of course, she also hadn’t planned on studying psychology, getting her PhD in the field or finding an interest in Law. She’d wanted to go to the Olympics on the fencing team, compete all over the world before finally settling to teach the sport, becoming one of the best coaches the country had ever seen. It seemed like a ridiculous dream to have in retrospect but she’d really been that good when she’d been younger. She could have succeeded.

But then her parent’s accident, her brother taking over followed quickly by tuning out. Her own downward spiral and the broken arm she’d done to herself thanks to a fight with a tree and she was so far from the dreams she’d had, she hadn’t honestly known what to do with herself. She’d continued on at school because she knew her parents would have expected that much of her. But the rest came by pure happenstance. The psychology degree started out as a filler course, the move to New York because she knew she needed to help her brother by being so far away he couldn’t rely on her and the tour guide job had fallen into her lap after asking the tour guide she’d had some questions he hadn’t known the answer to, but she had. She’d been curious how much the man had known about what he was talking about and as it turned out, he knew nothing more than what the brochures said. She still went through the process of an interview and hadn’t immediately accepted the terms that were given to her but she was a good negotiator and ended up with more than she’d really needed when she finally accepted the job. Returning to school was something she’d done to fill more time in all honesty. She didn’t give a real damn about American Law beyond the point of knowing if she was breaking it by doing something or if she was still on the right of that very thin line. “We can’t stay children forever. This isn’t Neverland.” She said sadly, almost wishing it was. It would certainly be entertaining!

Delia promised herself right there that she was not going to let what may or may not be developing between them ruin what they already had. There were people in the world who were friends with their ex-boyfriends and ex-girlfriends. Surely, though she still had no idea what was really happening between them, they could find it in themselves to not let it interfere with what they’d had before. Of course, it was easier said than done. “We’re not going to let that happen, Emmett.” She said, barely above a whisper. He probably wouldn’t have been able to hear it if it hadn’t been so quiet in the storage cupboard. There was hardly any space at all between them now and Delia closed the gap herself. She would not regret what she did in Las Vegas like she was not going to regret kissing Emmett again, right there in the storage space. She would wish they’d locked themselves into a different room so she didn’t fear having something fall on her but she would not regret her actions. She liked kissing Emmett, showed him as much by grabbing fistfuls of the sides of his shirt and pressing herself against him. They were going to have to be adults about this later, really sit down and talk it all out properly but right then and there, in that storage cupboard, they could let their hormones run rampant for a short time.

Tag || emmett reuben winchester
Words || 772
Clothes || Flustered Tour Guide
Music || Stand Out --Sabrina Carpenter
Notes || <3

[emmett reuben winchester]

Emmett knew his days of simplicity were behind him. He had realised that when he had given up one of his kidneys to save the life of a man he had always assumed wasn’t even a blood relation, though he was always ‘uncle’ to Emmett. That day had been the end of everything easy in his life and there was no way back to it. However, at least everything complicated for him had been caused by other people making stupid mistakes and not himself. This was all on him, and a little on Delia, too, he guessed, but he felt like shouldering more of the blame because he felt like he ought to have known better when they were in Vegas. He wasn’t a reckless man, at least not when it came to relationships or life choices. He might smash people’s furniture or ornaments because he chose to whip out NERF guns in the smallest imaginable space to do battle, but he wasn’t the type to trample over friendships and feelings like they were meaningless.

He might have seemed like a gangly, hyperactive man-child who didn’t have any control over his own limbs most of the time with how he conducted himself, but Emmett had a heart of gold beneath his chest. It was just rare that anyone gave him a chance to prove it. They saw how he was usually and assumed that maybe he wasn’t the greatest guy to go to with their problems or worries. He might agree that he wasn’t brilliant with advice because he hadn’t been in all too many situations that were complicated or dramatic. Emmett kept his own issues as close to himself as possible and tried to muddle his way through them usually without the greatest of successes. However, he tried his best and he wanted to be better, but he often put one foot in front of the other and fell flat on his face. “But it could be, if we could just pretend nothing had happened.” He whispered, though he knew it wouldn’t happen. It was too late for that now. He couldn’t take back the kiss, and he couldn’t blank it out of his memory and forget what had taken place in Vegas. It was too big of a deal and too much of a game changer for them.

Emmett didn’t know what he was doing. He barely knew what he wanted and he didn’t know if it was a momentary rush or something else entirely. Everything was just so damn confusing and he hated it. He wished there was a switch somewhere that he could flick that would make everything make sense again. If only life could be that easy. “It’s easier said than done.” He murmured, wondering how many people had said the same thing only to have it all come crashing down around them sooner or later. He didn’t want them to be like that. Feeling her lips on his, Emmett didn’t hesitate to kiss back. He grabbed her tightly and pulled her as close to him as was physically possible. Squeezing her against his body, he buried one hand in her hair. Emmett shuffled in the tiny space, pressing Delia up against what he assumed was the door as he deepened the kiss. This was totally reckless, but he didn’t care. This kiss made him feel high and like an addict he wanted more.

• • •

TAGGED! Delia Sierra Reynolds
WORDS! 573!
OUTFIT! December Dude!
LYRICS! Birthrights - - Jim Kroft
NOTES! <3 <3 <3