AN: Dunno if I mentioned before but it'll be more relevant in other parts; since this is AU, the female fairies have the babies. I say that cuz I've made multiple mentions of a mother's womb and wanted to clarify. I dunno, I just prefer it that way.
Also...at this point this entire series should just be a giant trigger warning, but uh, there's mentions of sexual harassment in this chapter, so if that triggers you, I'm sorry. Without giving too much away, I'd suggest skipping to the section where it starts with Alewandro and Susie.
McSgwizzle: Spam away if you like, I don't mind, but I understand if you don't. I will say, if you're assuming what I think you're assuming about Rose's ex-boyfriend, you might be correct. Assuming that I know what you're assuming, cuz I can read minds! (Ha...no.)
*coughcough*
Anyway.
Gentle droplets of rain drummed against the window of Cosmo and Spike's dorm room, sprinkling from the limitless sky. No lights shone except the movie 'Starstruck' playing on the screen of Spike's mini-TV, small sheen of silver rainclouds cast through the window panes. Snuggled in the cocoon of Cosmo's polyester comforter, Cosmo snuggled behind Wanda as his arms wrapped around just beneath her chest. One hand tucked underneath, Wanda nestled her head against his pillow, allowing Cosmo's cheek to rest in the nape of her neck. Clothed in the comfort of their bedtime wardrobe, they enjoyed the Sunday afternoon to themselves. Sundays had consistently been Cosmo's day off, and on his day off, he was content with doing absolutely nothing.
The four weeks of their Christmas Break were spent primarily in Mr. Twinkle's abode. Spike's father insisted since Cosmo and Wanda had no biological family to go home to. They slept in separate rooms out of respect for living under Mr. Twinkle's household, and since Spike's room only had a single bed, Cosmo gave Wanda the guest bedroom where he used to live in exchange for the couch. Cosmo lived with Spike and his father before, so Wanda felt that she was the true guest of the home and wanted Cosmo to sleep in the bed he used to have, but Cosmo, being the gentleman he is, didn't want Wanda to be subjected to an old couch with stiff cushions, especially during days where he had to put in long hours at the Diner and his exhaustion could sleep soundly on any surface.
Wanda saw a change in Cosmo. Instead of his normal jovial, childlike demeanor, he became more subdued. He acted sort of…'normal,' which was quite abnormal for a fairy like him. She figured it had a lot to do with what happened with his mother, so over the break, she gave him the space he needed to reflect and sort his thoughts. At first, she assumed he'd bounce back within a few days' time; however, seven weeks since the confrontation, he didn't perk up like he normally would. Considering the hectic hours of work on top of focusing on his studies which, more often than not, left him drained, she wondered when she'd see him genuinely happy again.
"…Cosmo, honey?" Wanda lifted a loving hand to his cheek, shifting towards him. She knew he wasn't asleep due to the lack of soft snoring, but he'd hardly said a word. "You alright?"
"Mhmm." came his muffled response, half-closed eyes facing the tv.
"Are you sure?" Wanda asked again. "You can take a nap if you're tired."
"Mmmm…nuh-uh." Cosmo nuzzled against her palm. "I don't need one."
"Then why so quiet?"
"Don't feel like talking."
That was the excuse he'd always revert to. How much longer was he going to 'not feel like talking?' "…sweetie, are you sure nothing's wrong?"
"Yeah." Cosmo dully replied. "Why?"
Adjusting herself to sit up, Cosmo moved to let her lean back against his pillow. "I'm just concerned is all."
In spite of her worried glance, his casual expression remained. "But I'm fine."
"Are you, though?"
…was he?
Since that night, she hadn't called or texted him, and he hadn't seen her at the diner. She completely vanished from his life, almost two months since, and he could still hear his mother's shrieks in his head. Calling him pathetic, telling him he was nothing. Those were more or less the same things he's heard his whole life, and not just from her. Drilled into him by teachers and other kids, so much that he deprecated himself at the age where her understood the meaning and feeling of worthlessness.
Did it bother him to hear that horrid reminder because she chose those daggers as her parting words? The last thing he'd ever hear her say? Would she pretend she had no son at all, considering the son she had was a complete waste of her womb…
"Honey, talk to me."
Her gentle voice shook him from his thoughts, probably for the better. The way her eyes locked onto him sent a wave of anxiety crashing into him. He cherished her compassionate nature, but perhaps she cared too much. "…but I don't wanna talk."
"Then at least tell me what I can do." she compromised, bringing her knees to her chest. "I feel like there has to be something…"
"You don't have to do anything." he held his fixed gaze.
"But I miss you."
His head tilted slightly. "…I'm right here."
"No…I miss you." Wanda tried to emphasize, holding a finger to his chest. "I miss the Cosmo I fell in love with."
…why would anyone miss a bumbling idiot who cries because the mommy he didn't want yelled and screamed at him? A dunce weak enough to get bullied and beat up every day? Granted, he didn't face many bullies so far in college, but who's to say they weren't out lurking somewhere. The Cosmo she fell in love with was mediocre at best…if it came down to a physical fight, he'd definitely lose as he had many times before. The Cosmo she fell in love with allowed his 'mommy' to tear him apart from her, ripping her heart to shreds. The Cosmo she fell in love with feared he'd never finding a love like hers again and tried to take his own life...all because he wasn't man enough to fight for her before. If he was such a man, that would have never happened…
The man she loved before was hardly a man at all.
. . . . . .
Sitting on Rose's single dorm room bed, Spike admired his girlfriend as she finished her makeup in her tabletop mirror, seated at her desk. The rain set a slight damper in their Sunday afternoon plans; this didn't stop Rose from wanting to go out to see 'Dawn of the Anti-Fairies' in theaters, followed by their dinner plans at Stargaze Sushi and Hibachi. Spike told her she didn't need to get all dolled up since their plans didn't involve anything too fancy, but Rose insisted, remembering Spike's compliment when he told her she looked amazing without makeup and he couldn't imagine the bombshell of a babe she'd be with makeup.
Feeling eyes behind her, Rose looked over her shoulder, seeing a small smile curve Spike's lips once she acknowledged him. "You're staring again." She remarked with a smirk, having caught Spike staring at her multiple times before.
Spike, of course, always had a good reason to stare. "…It's not my fault you're so beautiful."
"OMG, whatever." She jokingly rolled her eyes, returning to her makeup as she heard Spike chuckling behind her.
Rose was his first real relationship; he had no idea what he was doing or how he was doing it. Rose remained patient with him, assuring he didn't have to be perfect. Two months in, and the couple couldn't be happier. Nothing felt rushed between them, the awkwardness eventually went away. Everything seemed to align and their interactions were always authentic. Rose was beginning to see a lot more of the softer side of Spike she knew was there, and Spike found new reasons to admire her every single day.
They made a point to see each other over Christmas Break, mostly for public outings as things were still fairly new between them. They even had a few double dates with Wanda and Cosmo, as well as some triple dates with Susie and Alewandro. Thornton was not left out; they also made time to spend with him throughout the course of the break, and unsurprisingly, Thornton had his collection of PDA jokes just waiting for an opportunity.
Over the last few weeks, Spike thought back to his conversation with Thornton in regards to Rose's ex-boyfriend. Anytime he'd try to bring him up, Rose instantly shot him down. It was either that or she'd change the subject, or she'd start kissing him to where he'd lose his train of thought and forget what he was talking about. Maybe she just wasn't ready to talk, but if he was to avoid making the same mistakes as her ex, he wanted to know all the 'what not to dos' without learning the hard way.
"…why don't you ever wanna talk about your ex?"
Rose recapped her lipstick after application tighter than expected. "…why are you asking?"
"Just curious." Spike shrugged.
Recollections of such a dark past bubbled to the surface. She knew Thornton had to be lying when he stated he never told Spike anything about her ex, because he sure seemed inquisitive about it lately. "You're definitely nothing like him…"
"Oh? How's that?"
"Can you just drop it?!" She spun around in her seat with an aggravated glare. "It's really none of your business!"
His bruised ego lowered his gaze. This wasn't the first time he brought up her ex, but it was the first time she yelled at him for it. "…sorry." he muttered, pulling out his phone to text a reply to Thornton's earlier message.
Her defenses soon softened from the hurt in his expression. "No…I'm sorry…it's just still a really difficult subje-"
"Don't worry about it." came his mumbled response, keeping his frown on his phone screen. "I won't bring it up again."
She sighed in regret. Great, she hurt his feelings. She didn't mean to, she just…hated thinking about it. About a part of her life only a select few knew about, a part of her life she wanted to keep locked away in a cage and throw away the key.
Rising from her seat, she faced Spike with her hands behind her back, leaning against the back of her chair. Her pulse drummed in her ears; neither her heart nor her mind was ready for what she was about to reveal. Speaking quietly yet audible enough for Spike to hear from across the room, Rose held her eyes to her burgundy baby dolls.
"…my ex raped me."
Spike's eyes shot up with perplexation, seeing the sorrow in her avoidant gaze.
"…met in 10th grade…dated for a year…" Rose continued, clasping her timid hands together against her chest. "…during that year…he kept forcing me to sleep with him…"
Spike set his phone to the side on Rose's bed, listening intently.
"…when we first met…he seemed sweet…caring…charming…l-like you…" she shuttered at such an awful comparison. "…but then three months in…he changed…I didn't want to, I never wanted to…b-but he'd force himself on me…force himself in me…force me to…go down on him…he'd tell me no one else would want me…so I might as well give him what he wants…"
He rose from his seat, approaching slowly while she spoke.
"…if I refused…he'd slap me…he'd kick me…or threaten to kill me…" her eyes closed from the swell of resurfacing emotions. "I-I only stayed for so long because…I was scared of what he'd do to me…but Thornton found out when he saw a bruise over my eye one day…and he offered to come with me to turn him into the police…m-my parents were able to press charges…but all he got in return was a few months in fairy juvi and a restraining order…"
She felt a tug on her arm, opening her eyes to see Spike drawing her in closer to him. A single tear trickled from her teal eyes as he embraced her, scrunching a hand just above her ponytail puff as she clutched his shirt.
"…I felt so hopeless…" she whimpered into his chest, slightly cursing herself for running her makeup with her tears. "…almost half the jury presumed it was all consensual and I just 'didn't want it' as much as he did…just because we were dating…so…they just labeled him abusive…"
"And gave him a slap on the wrist…" Spike grumbled, nestling his chin in her hair. There was so much injustice when it came to cases like Rose's. "…freakin' figures…"
"…it's why I don't like to talk about it…" Rose wiped her running mascara from her cheek. "...it's why I just wanna forget him…forget it ever happened…"
"Pretending something like that never happened never helps." Spike lowered his hand to rub her back. "Trust me…I would know."
Rose pulled away to face him, allowing his thumb to wipe away silent tears. "…I-I'm sorry…" she sniffed, lowering her eyes in embarrassment for crying. "…you don't deserve to deal with this."
"You should be telling yourself that." Spike lifted her chin, making her peer into his solemn gaze. "And don't apologize…" he let his lips smile faintly. "…I got you."
Her arms squeezed around his torso, holding him tight as his arms embraced her shoulders. No other words were said, silenced by the warmth of each other's affection. She closed her eyes into his chest, no longer caring how many tears fell, and Spike rested his cheek in her hair, wishing he could hold her forever.
. . . . . .
Going over their Transfiguration homework before Monday's class, Susie and Alewandro sat side by side on top of Alewandro's cerulean-blue quilt, propped against the white brick walls with notebooks in their laps.
He and Juandissimo avoided each other all of Christmas Break. Alewandro spent majority of his time either with Susie and her Grandmother or with friends within the group, and if he was home, he cooped himself in his room. After the night of the 'confrontation,' saying all those horrible things about his late aunt to Juandissimo, Juanita felt awkward associating with him. Hearing those awful words come from his mouth, she didn't know if it was okay to trust him. He and Juanita were eventually able to talk things out, though it was hard for Juanita to forgive him. Juandissimo, against their parents' wishes, shut him out completely, and as far as Alewandro was concerned, it was probably for the better.
"You think instead of reading about how to transform into other things and the history behind it, we'd actually start doing it?" Susie flipped the page to her textbook, practically dying of boredom.
"I heard that does not start until next year." Alewandro kept his eyes on the written text as he replied.
"What's the point in learning all this stuff if we're not applying what we learn?" Susie had always been more of a 'hands on' student; she can read until her eyes give out, but without any type of engagement, it took longer and more effort for lessons to stick.
Turning to his girlfriend, Alewandro shut his books, setting them to the side. Susie complaining about studying meant a much-needed study break. "How about we take five?"
"Thought you'd never ask."
Closing her books with the quickness, Susie eagerly tossed her books to her right, making him chuckle. Scooting closer, Alewandro draped one arm around Susie's shoulders, and Susie happily nestled into his chest. Caressing just below her rolled up sleeves, he planted a delicate kiss on her forehead, just to see her smile.
She didn't know where she'd be without Alewandro. Before he came into her life, she believed she always had to be strong, indestructible. Independent and invulnerable to pain. Grandma Cocoa had a mother who hid her emotional trials and always encouraged putting up a front to keep an image of 'holding it together.' Susie never met her great-grandmother, but Susie learned the implications of the 'strong woman syndrome' when her grandmother never allowed to see her get upset. Grandma Cocoa showed her daughter every other emotion except sadness, and in the seldom moments she'd cry, Susie pretended to be a fly on the wall when her grandmother believed she wasn't around.
Indirectly, Susie learned to 'smile through the pain.' Strength and resilience meant shoving her struggles to the side to deal with them internally and plastering on a mask not to show society 'weakness.'
Emotional rawness wasn't her strong suit, and with Alewandro, with every chance his arms embraced her, the walls around her heart slowly crumbled, and sometimes this frightened her. It frightened her because him chipping away her walls meant her invincibility was beginning to crack. There weren't a lot of male figures in her life, and being around men (for the exception of her friends) made her slightly uncomfortable. She hid her fear from Alewandro in hopes not to scare him off, but overtime, the endangerment she felt dimmed, and she allowed him to make her feel safe which, in turn, gradually brought out the defenselessness she despised.
"What is on your mind?"
"Hmm?" Susie looked up from her thoughts to her boyfriend.
"You were staring off into space." Alewandro smiled subtly. "Something wrong?"
"…no?" she spoke slowly.
"Are you certain?"
Susie moved to where both knees straddled over his lap with a gentle grip on his shoulders. "Do you love me?"
Alewandro grew puzzled; when did he not? "…si?"
She leaned in to where their noses almost touched, and he could see a tender yearn behind her indigo eyes. "…don't leave me?"
Instinctively, he held her by the waist, softly bringing her torso nearer to his. "…why would I leave you?"
"Just promise me?" She brushed the tip of her nose against his, bashful eyes fixed on him. "I don't want you to leave."
Staring lovingly into her eyes, an amorous grin curved his lips. "Neither do I."
Hearing the twist of the door handle, their eyes darted to the door to see Thornton enter the room, shutting the door behind him.
"Ha, I would say 'get a room you lovebirds' but uh…" Thornton scratched his nose, half smiling.
Alewandro scratched his head with a nervous laugh as Susie lifted herself from him. "…lo siento, Thornton."
"Nah bro, it's my bad." Thornton's friendly smile responded. "Probably should've checked before comin' in."
At the beginning of the semester, Alewandro moved into Thornton's room in Leo Hall, two floors up from where he used to stay. Thornton had no problem applying to room with him before the end of the semester, knowing ahead of time that Alewandro refused to room with Juandissimo again and vice versa. Coincidentally, Thornton's old roommate was Cupid, so they essentially just switched roommates, and it worked out since Cupid had no issue rooming with Juandissimo.
"About to go to work?" Susie asked as Thornton pulled out his work uniform from his drawer.
"Yup. Gettin' that overtime." Thornton confirmed, thankful that he'd have the next few days off after this last shift. "Probably gonna be comin' in pretty late, Wandro. Just FYI."
"It is all good, Thornton." Alewandro assured with a friendly grin. "Honestly, I might still be up by the time you get back."
"Still on the night owl schedule, huh?" Thornton smirked, taking off his white vans for his black work sneakers.
"I keep telling him to do something about that." Susie commented, ruffling Alewandro's hair. "But does he listen? No."
"Ha, men." Thornton joked. "Never wanna listen."
"Ever!" Susie played along, folding her arms.
"Way to gang up on me, you two." Alewandro indulged, used to their antics.
"You make it too easy." Thornton grinned, using his wand to change out of his regular clothes.
Susie looked to her boyfriend with a satisfied smile. Admittedly, Alewandro was not the first boy she ever dated, and fortunately, he was the first guy to show her what the love of a man truthfully felt like. Living most of her life without a father, it took a slew of toxic guys to learn when she finally found a good one.
They say no one in this world can love a girl more than her father, but heartbreak came way before any boy had the chance to.
. . . . . .
Patters of rain bouncing off her umbrella, Blonda floated up the path to Professor Cardician's home, ringing the doorbell so he can let her in.
Her had been sober for probably 30% of the four weeks she visited for Christmas break as his intemperance in liquor progressed to a functioning alcoholic. He managed to continue running a business and managing trash collection contracts while under the influence, and after twelve to thirteen hours straight at the office, he'd come home to open a bottle of bourbon to further drown the strain of the day away. The heaviness of his drinking led to a horrible bout of magicumonia and the development of osteoporosis, but even with the slow deterioration of his own body, he still sought after the numbing of liquor. It's why she chose to stop worrying about him because it was easier to deal with him that way. If she cared too much, then the attention he'd much rather give to alcohol than his own daughter salted the wounds that will never heal.
Tensions between her and the triplets still rang high. As long as she kept talking to Professor Cardician, they had every single problem with it. Little did they know, he was her saving grace; she could talk to him anytime about anything, and he was nothing short of patient and understanding. They couldn't really see each other, simply because he lived over an hour away, she had no driver's license, she wasn't about to ask the triplets to drive her every time she wanted to see him, and despite him living in a drunken stupor majority of the time, she couldn't risk Big Daddy finding out about their relationship every time he wanted to drive down to see her.
In spite of their distance, the love and attention he willingly and openly gave to her made her feel so much closer to him.
Professor Cardician opened the door to the beautiful fairy of flaxen curls floating before him, smiling upon her beauty. He pulled her by the hand and kissed her softly on the lips, welcoming her inside from the rain. "Did anyone see you?"
"Not that I could see." Blonda shook her umbrella to let out excess water before propping it against the wall closest to the front door. "It's raining so, obviously not a lot of folk are gonna be out and about."
"Hmm…true."
After locking the door, Professor Cardician held Blonda by her waist as she rested her arms around his neck, so entranced by such rosy, fuchsia orbs. "Wanna go see a movie?"
Her brow arched in hesitation. "Aren't you worried someone from school will see us?"
"You only had me for one semester." Professor Cardician reminded, circling his arms more so her waist drew close to his torso. "Technically, you're no longer my student."
"I know, but I'm still a student…you're still a professor." Blonda pointed out. "Technically…we're not supposed to be dating at all."
"Well…" he smooched her forehead. "…since you're no longer on my roll call, technically….it doesn't matter; we're two consenting adults…right?"
"…yeah?"
"…and we love each other." His lips moved from her forehead to her nose, leaving a little peck on the tip. "…right?"
"Uh-huh."
"So there's nothing to worry about."
Her head leaned back when his lips met the hollow of her neck, closing her eyes in bliss of his soft yet firm smooches as his hands traveled the curve of her hips.
"…besides." Professor Cardician kissed her neck once more before reaching a hand behind her head, positioning their lips to lock in one, sensual kiss. "…I wanna take you out on an actual date."
"…an actual date?" Blonda chuckled.
"Yes." He smiled warmly. "You deserve that and more."
She matched his smile with her own. "…I literally can't stand you sometimes, you know that?"
"Oh?" He brushed his lips to hers, teasing a kiss. "You can't stand me, huh?"
"Yes!" She laughed as he raspberried her cheek before pushing him gently away. "Like when you do that!"
"What about…" his hands roamed down her hips to just beneath her hem, his fingers crawling underneath her dress. They slipped inside her underwear, finding their intended target, and he gleamed at the sight of her eyes closing from the pleasure in her gasp. "…when I do this?"
"...I…don't..." her words scrambled in daze of her brain, his fingers dancing in a spot she couldn't resist. "…d-don't stop…"
. . . . . .
Shaking the excess water from his umbrella, Cupid used his wand to enter the double doors of Leo Hall. He passed a few students hanging in the student lounge, watching mindless television or engaged in a game of pool, as he floated up the steps to the second floor. Reaching into his blush-pink coat pocket for his dorm keys, he hovered through the halls until he found his door, using his keys to twist the door handle.
Entering the room, he noticed none of the overhead lights were on and the window blinds were closed, allowing very little light to seep through the otherwise dark surroundings. At first, he assumed Juandissimo wasn't there, but when he flicked the lights on, he saw Juandissimo sprawled on his bed, staring at the ceiling with half lidded eyes. Cupid arched his brow as he propped his umbrella against the wall next to the door, taking off his coat to sling over the mounted coat hanger. He left for the library maybe five hours ago; had Juandissimo been lying in the same spot this whole time?
"I'll never understand how you can sit in the dark like this." Cupid chuckled, tossing his backpack beside his bed as he flew over to open his side of the blinds, only pulling on them just enough to cast blind shadows across his pink duvet. Setting his keys down on his desk, he took a seat in his chair, reading a text from Blonda. "It's not good for you, y'know."
His comment was met with still silence.
"…Juandissimo?" Looking up from his phone, Cupid stared at the drooping eyes of his lifeless roommate, knowing he was still alive from the subtle rise and fall of his chest. "Juandissimo!"
"…Hmm?" came Juandissimo's muddled response, struggling to keep his eyes open.
"What's up with you?" Cupid found Juandissimo's behavior to be extremely odd, even for Juandissimo.
When no reply came, Cupid turned to the white bottle standing on Juandissimo's desk, opaque enough to where he couldn't see what was inside. Curious, he went over to grab the mysterious bottle. "Juandissimo." Cupid shook Juandissimo to get his attention. "What is this?"
"…wha?"
Cupid noticed Juandissimo's response came out slurred. "This." He pointed to the bottle, holding it in front of Juandissimo's line of vision. "What is this?"
Juandissimo gradually lifted himself to a sitting position, grabbing his head and closing his eyes to keep the world around him from spinning. His head weighed a ton, finding it difficult to hold up. Every time he tried to blink, double vision joggled more fog in his mind. His could hear his heart thumping in his ears, though every ligament of his body tingled numb.
Juandissimo could describe his Christmas Break in one word; lost. His parents would try to strike conversations with him, yet he'd only half pay attention or he'd escape in his mind once they started conversing among themselves. Juanita tried getting him to talk, yet he had little to say to her, and when she'd ask for a hug, she felt distant in his arms, like hugging air. Most of it was spent wondering the streets, allowing his mind to zone out into worlds unknown. Sometimes he'd lose himself so much that he'd lose track of time. At one point his parents almost called the police because he wouldn't answer his phone and he went missing for almost 24 hours, and though he eventually returned home, he didn't want to be found.
Now that he was rooming with Cupid, he knew not to burden him. He knew how Cupid was; he knew Cupid would want to try and distract him with something mundane, or try to cheer him up somehow. Juandissimo didn't want cheering up, he didn't want distractions. He was well past that…
He needed an escape, and he stumbled upon just the thing to make his thoughts to disappear, even if but a moment.
Now that he shared a room with Cupid, he didn't want to burden him. Cupid had such a big heart…he didn't deserve his empathy. Cupid would try and distract him with something mundane, or try to cheer him up somehow. He felt that was the farthest from what he deserved. Juandissimo didn't want cheering up, he didn't want distractions. He was well past that…
"…Juandissimo." Cupid spoke gently, unable to hide his worry. "Are you okay?"
"…have you…" Juandissimo resorted to two hands holding both temples, elbows supported against his crouched knees. "…ever felt…you were here…somewhere else?"
Cupid paused. "…what are you talking about?!"
As Juandissimo found the strength to raise his head, Cupid saw the dilution in his pupils, red veins squiggled in the sclera as if he hadn't slept for days. "…I…" Juandissimo slowly touched his cheeks with wobbling fingers. "…cannot feel…"
…what in the holiest?
Staring at the bottle in hand, Cupid twisted the cap to pop it open. He took a whiff inside, his nose filled with aromas of something sweet and faint burn. Curious, he stuck out his tongue and held the bottle to get a sip. A drop of some kind of thick liquid coated his tongue, followed by a sweet yet alcoholic burning of his taste buds, and he gagged in response, repulsed by what cursed his mouth. He then quickly set the bottle back where it stood before and turned to see Juandissimo fold his arms over his knees, his half-lidded eyes staring off into space.
Something didn't seem right.