Rock-Solid Heart (My Hero Academia Fanfic, Part Four)

Submitted into Contest #89 in response to: Write about someone who is always looking toward the future.... view prompt

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Gay Teens & Young Adult Friendship

"Alright, queens," Mina announces. "We're here. And it looks Like Jiro and Katsuki already arrived."

"Cat..." I struggle with the name on my tongue. Kiri just positions my head, smiling.

"Katz," he begins. "Key. Katsuki. Yeah... took me a little while too."

"Do you think he'll hate me?" I ask, pushing the diner's door open. I have to admit; Mina's got taste. The smell of nearly burnt tater tots and hot sauce wafts in from the red leather seats. It's like we've walked into the mid-1950s. Only a few teenagers occupy the other seats, and a smattering of chefs take up the kitchen. It's comforting.

"Nah," Kiri assures. "I mean, you're both pretty similar, I think. You're just softer and in your head a little more."

"And by softer you mean..."

"Bakugou looks like he could kill someone," Kirishima points to the back of the spiky blonde's head. "And he absolutely could."

I swallow. "Noted." Mina greets the two first, smiling as she slides into the massive booth seat. I notice that everyone's split up into pairs, from Kyoka and Katsuki to Kiri and I. Mina and Denki sit in the middle, fidgeting with straws.

I'm sitting opposite Jiro, sort of watching her from the other side of the crescent-shaped seat. "Hey," she waves, looking a little awkward. 

"Mina told me you play bass," I smile, watching as a light envelops in her eye. 

"Of course," she smiles proudly. "I mean, I'm well versed in all sorts of instruments; I've got perfect pitch."

"Woah," I smile back politely, trying to break down the barrier between us. Bakugou just stares angrily, looking almost possessive of her. Or maybe he's just being protective? "My music teacher told me that once. But... I don't think I have it."

Kyoka whips out her phone, playing with her headphones before ripping them out. It's only just now that I notice her jet black hair, cut choppily so that it lays askew across her forehead. Tiny paperclip earrings accompany her soft, pale ears. She catches me staring, holding her hand up to her ear. 

"I got her those," Bakugou proclaims proudly. "Guess some people wear the gifts I get them."

And just like that, all conversation dies down. Kaminari, Mina, and Kirishima all look toward each other; I guess they're the group's obvious extroverts. I can tell they must be using their secret extrovert powers, trying to find out how we can get back on track.

Jiro taps her phone, causing a dissonant chord to strike out from the tinny speaker. 

"F Minor-Major chord," I spew out immediately. "7th."

"I like him," Jiro shrugs. "So don't you fucking say anything, Katsuki."

"I wasn't gonna!" Bakugou crosses his arms, biting his lip. "So don't say anything."

"You have anger issues, dude," Kaminari waves a waitress over. "And that's your ex's new boyfriend."

"I said shut the hell up!" the blonde boy explodes. A group of freshmen a few booths over shiver from the outburst, only to break out into laughter. Katsuki just fumes quietly as the waitress runs over.

"What can I get ya'll?" she adjusts her big, curly hair, working through a pad of paper.

"Big tray of tater tots," Mina exclaims. "For the table."

"That should be $12.59. We'll get it up soon."

"Shit," Kaminari mumbles. "Forgot my wallet."

"Oh," I pull out a few bills. "I could pay for it all."

"No," Kirishima blushes. "You don't have to do that."

"Think of it as a thank you," I shrug. "Without you guys, I'd probably be dead right now."

"Wait," Jiro yanks out her headphones again. "What?"

"Nothing," I shrink into the seat. "I just..."

"The damn fool was gonna kill himself," Bakugou explains. "But I caught his notebook."

"So," Kyoka pokes his nose. "You're saying you helped someone?"

"He's not always the devil," Mina laughs. "I think, deep down, Bakugou can be nice."

"Just shut the hell up!" Bakugou roars. "Where is our order?"

"It's only been like half a minute," Kiri says, looking at his phone's time. 

Katsuki smirks. "Longer than you could last when we-"

"Woah!" Denki puts his hand on Kiri's chest before he can stand up. I can't tell if it's anger or tears in Kiri's eyes, but Bakugou looks proud of himself. Kyoka just shares my confusion. 

Mina claps her hands together, pronouncing each word. "Not. At. The. Fucking. Table!"

"Whatever," Bakugou blows hair out his eyes. "It's still true. And Nico ought to know, right?"

"I don't really care if um..." I stare back at Kiri, trying to comfort him before his anger rises again. "If you can't last long or something."

"Yeah," Denki teases. "Because you'd rather him bit-"

"Okay," Jiro slaps him. "Let's fucking stop, okay? We're not gonna talk about what we did last night, and no one's gonna talk about sex for the next hour, okay?"

Katsuki just keeps his smug smirk. I guess he wanted to date someone who could exert as much power as he could. In truth, when I look at Jiro, I don't see someone able to control a room. Yet, there's something deep in her eyes, filled with control.

"Oh my god," Mina cranes her ear up to the speakers. "Guys, they're playing something actually good."

I stare back at where they're all looking; an ancient-looking jukebox lays in the corner, cherry red and somehow beautiful. A modern screen lies over it, evident of a free Spotify account. "Little Talks," Kyoka identifies the horns almost immediately. "By Monsters and Men. Released... 2011? When we were all kids."

The six of us all pour out of the seat, cramming around the machine. "We all get one song," Mina compromises. "Everyone pays for their own song."

"But I ran out of money!" Kaminari whines. Mina just pulls out another quarter.

"Then you get Dancing Queen," she says. "I'm sure you'd pick something worse anyway."

"I'm fine with that," Kaminari smiles. "Just gay enough, but also straight. Perfect."

"I think that describes him well," Kiri looks down at me. "What do you think I should pick?"

"Something that feels... red. Maybe orange," I respond, trying to think of what I'm going to choose. Mina plugs in Doja Cat's Freak before I can get ahead. "I'll go last."

"Saving the best?" Jiro wonders aloud as Bakugou punches in some classic Green Day. "I still can't decide."

"That's it," Kiri pushes the keyboard, looking for a specific song. 

"She Looks So Perfect," I read. "5sos?"

"Yeah," Kiri beams. "Because you are."

"I mean," I point out. "I'm also not a girl."

"Don't take it personally," Kyoka adds, typing in "All I Wanted". Oh, how I yearn to once more hear Hayley Williams in her old band. "It's just a joke, I think."

"Sure," I say. "Well, I guess I'm last. Maybe... Conan Gray?"

"Whatever you want, Babe."

I punch the artist's name in, tapping on "Heather". 

"Remind me a little bit of you," I explain to Kiri. "Because..."

"Oh," Jiro nods. "Yeah...maybe not the best choice. Still a great song though."

"Why?" Kiri hugs me from behind, leaning closely in. The freshman girls watch us, smiling. Are we so heartwarming?

"Uh," I say, suddenly realizing exactly what the lyrics are saying. How could I choose a song clearly about a guy liking another guy who likes a girl? It's gonna make him think of Bakugou and Kyoka. "Nevermind. You'll see."

Kiri shrugs, swooping me back into the seat. "You know," Mina pokes Eijirou with her straw. "You don't need to act like Nico's a Disney princess."

"I don't mind," I say, staring up into his warm brown eyes. Bakugou turns red, facing Jiro. 

"Y'all are crazy," the waitress returns to our table. "I haven't seen anyone use the damn jukebox in forever. It's nice to hear something that's not corporate pop. Anyway, I got ya some other stuff. Mostly candy; no one ever buys it. On the house. I think they match you."

She places down everything, smiling softly. "Poprocks?" Jiro looks up from her black licorice twists. "That's Bakugou, I think."

"Sure," Katsuki brightens up a little, pouring an inhuman amount into his mouth. I can almost hear the mini-explosions; that boy is like a living firework. "At least I'm not like Denki and Mina; they're practically the same."

"Uh," Kaminari points out. "Skittles and Starbust are different, I'll have you know."

"Well," Kiri points out. "We almost got the same too."

I stare down at the candy laid before me; dark, thin Reese's, as opposed to Kiri's large, milk chocolate ones. "I guess it's a metaphor?"

"Oh no," Denki shakes his head. "We are not going through some deep philosophical shit this early."

"Says the person who claimed the earth was flat yesterday morning," Mina says in between bites of homefries. "You're just a walking contradiction."

I freeze up, only releasing the pressure when Kiri rubs my shoulders. "It's okay," he whispers. "You're fine."

"You two are just so cute," Jiro smiles, twisting her earbuds around her finger, bopping her head to American Idiot. "It's great."

"Yeah!" Kirishima pumps his fist. "I mean, we just have chemistry."

"Now that we all have dates," Mina says, eyeing Denki. "I mean, almost all of us... it's like the group is back together again."

"Oh," Katsuki throws his hands up into the air. "Like we weren't alright before?"

"That's not what she said," I mumble, defending Mina. Is this the first time I've stood up to Bakugou? His eyes have a murderous glint at their edges, but I try to swallow, ignoring the hate. "She just means that here's more harmony now, I think."

"Damn nerd," Katsuki flips me off, pushing against the table. Kirishima's song comes on next, interrupting his anger for a moment. Did Kirishima play that for him too? I can't see Bakugou taking that well, but what if it was an inside joke? Does Kiri not care if he causes discord so much? Or is he looking to poke fun at Katuski? "I was fine before you were here."

"I thought you said he would be fine with me," I nudge Kirishima. Mina and Kaminari just freeze up; clearly, they're pretty inept when situations take a turn for the worse. I guess someone can always try to direct attention away from violence, but when it comes to it, they're useless. 

"Well," Kiri blocks Bakugou from me. "I guess I was wrong."

"He's a fucking loser," Katsuki complains. "Like you, shitty hair."

Kiri puts his hands up to his hair. And while I never thought it was all that impressive, I can tell he's hurt; I know he puts a lot of time into making sure it looks wild, nearly standing straight up. "Take it back."

"I don't have to," Katsuki spreads his arms. "Kyoka, let's go."

"I haven't heard my song yet," she says, still adamant and stuck in her place. "I'm not leaving just because you want me to."

"I'm pissed off!"

She sighs, positioning her body around him. Kyoka holds his chin in her palm, staring into his beastly eyes. "You're always pissed off. And you know I usually love that... but it's not fucking funny right now."

"Whatever," Katuski shrugs her off a little. I notice that he's doing it gently, carefully placing her back down, as if she's frail. Almost like how Kiri holds me. "He doesn't belong; he needs a therapist, not a boyfriend."

"He's helping me," I refute. "Just like how you helped him."

"What?" Katsuki laughs. "No. We're not going through that. Kyoka, your song's playing; let's go!"

"You're not angry enough," Jiro eggs him on. "You're just showing it a little bit more than usual."

I can see the conflict in his eyes; he's used to having things go his way, for him to have the final say. But he's not willing to hurt her. Maybe Mina was right; somewhere deep, he has some good qualities.

Maybe he could show those qualities when he talks to me?

"I'm glad you seem so over us," Kiri shrugs. "But we still have a ton of home fries to eat. Maybe calm down a little?"

"Fuck off," Bakugou pushes him away. "F*ggot."

"What?" Mina screams. "Oh no... we are not going there!"

"Katsuki!" Jiro screams. "No, you did not just say that."

Bakugou turns red, darting eyes. he stares down, smile gone. "Shit. I didn't me-"

"What the hell is with you?" Kiri pleads with him. "You can't just... you can't say that."

"Wait," Kaminari points out. "But didn't Bakugou date Eijirou? Isn't that gay or-"

"Denki," Jiro holds Kaminari's hand, oozing with sarcasm and fake sincerity. "It's with a full heart that I'd like to ask you to please shut the fuck up."

He falls back down to his seat, looking dejected. 

"Sorry," Bakugou hangs his head. "I didn't mean to... fuck!"

Tears start rolling down his cheeks as he turns away from us, covering his face with his black hoodie. "Enjoy your food, I guess."

"Katsuki," Kiri holds out his hands, clearly not looking for retribution. "You don't have to go..."

"Jiro," Katsuki commands. "You can stay if you want. I need to be alone."

"I'll text you when we're done," Kyoka promises. "Take as long as you need."

He nods, exiting the diner. Everyone just looks at each other, suddenly quiet. 

"He's lost his impulse control," Kirishima confirms. "I shouldn't have-"

"No," I interrupt him, surprising everyone. I'm probably the most surprised. "You shouldn't have done anything. Why were you trying to egg him on?"

"I wasn't trying to-" he shakes his head, watching as red hair spills down. "I just wanted to get rid of all those things we had. And I wanted to heal with you."

"I'm sorry for lashing out," I cradle myself into his arms. "Shit... I just don't know why I did that."

"You're sorry for having emotions?"

Before he can continue, Heather's string line shuts him up. "Is this..."

"Yeah," I whisper. "Now shut up."

Everyone stays silent, listening closely to the lyrics. You know when you hear a song, and then you hear it a few more times, and the meaning completely changes? It's all I can hear. I catch Kiri taking glimpses at Kyoka during the song, nearly tearing up.

"Thanks," he sighs as the second chorus opens up. I nestle into his embrace. "You know... maybe we'll be alright."

And, at that moment, maybe we will.

April 16, 2021 16:22

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50 comments

16:24 Apr 16, 2021

PLEASE DON'T ASK IF THERE'S GONNA BE MORE I DON'T KNOW I HOPE SO

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Sunny 🌼
23:41 Apr 16, 2021

"It's with a full heart that I'd like to ask you to please shut the fuck up." I'm gonna start saying that to people this is amazing also Bakugo, buddy, not cool of you. You're portraying these characters in a different way but still staying true to their roots, that takes skill.

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11:13 Apr 17, 2021

I THOUGHT YOU WERE TALKING TO ME WITHOUT QUOTES NOOOO Yeah... idk. I had to push it forward, and Bakugo kinda just... fell into place. OR JUST DUMB LUCK

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Sunny 🌼
12:42 Apr 17, 2021

OMG NO LMAO! I would never say that- that's hilarious

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13:10 Apr 17, 2021

Lol

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Nainika Gupta
01:22 Apr 21, 2021

AHAH I THOUGHT SO TOOO LMAOO

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16:59 May 20, 2021

Eh, the thread was too thin (probably, I've chrome set in desktop site mode, so I dunno) OOH! I get the full rant?!, yep XD k..., I'll read it to find out, well, I'm going to read it anyway Lol oyi, very aRnGy XD ok, That was... some ted talk, not kiddin' hm, I think 2 similarities are better… you've put some work into this, hm, cool, that's actually weirdly insightful… Lol Thank ya so much for the ted talk! Just one prob, the starting seems to fishily say that this is not the first random thought you had while staring at the bedroo...

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17:29 May 20, 2021

Lol, it's sooo thin on my phone. Like, illegible. ARNGY Lol yeah, I had a lot of time at night bc I couldn't sleep, and then it was just a matter of writing it all down. Yeah... hehe

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12:06 May 21, 2021

I used my b r a i n s XD Arh, I had to cut my sleep time to four hours to have any sleep time at all Lol btw, I loved how you describe INTJ, I mean, what's more accurate than "chess games"? Lol AS A SIDE NOTE :Have you read station eleven? I read it, like two chapterS, some long time ago and is CoNtEmPlAtInG whether or not to complete it...Lol I mean, a multi storyline novel about a pandemic stricken world does sound stygian? It's common for you to delve into the peculiarities of personalities? (that wording sounds so weird XD) and, r...

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14:20 May 25, 2021

Hyperactive. It sounds more interesting So... wow this is basically going to be the last thing I send to you. That is... nostalgic? And I guess it's, weird. I haven't read the book you mentioned... and I guess I don't want to sound annoying, but I'm just going to spend the time here explaining why I'm leaving. Maybe even in the form of a list. 1: I've finished what I came here for. I wrote some great stories, I changed some people's lives, and maybe I can even believe that I shook the world, even if it was a small tremble. Because I know I c...

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14:54 May 22, 2021

How's yur day going?

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Nainika Gupta
01:21 Apr 21, 2021

yooooooooooo all my stars part 2 is out :)

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11:33 Apr 21, 2021

oOOOo0Ooo0O

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13:16 Apr 19, 2021

Wow, you didn’t rush it OR drag it (two common problems with fan fic) that just needs skill, actually there is something about your writing that screams “Hey! Look! This author is unbearably astute!, and writes so awesome!” how do you do that? Lol This was like a chaotic mix of fun and plot and tension and chaos and confusion and fun and witty phrases; it’s like you brew all those up and added a bit of madness, eh..., that does not make sense. Em..., that meant that it was ASTOUNDINGLY ASTOUNDING! Eh, when you used the first and last name...

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13:35 Apr 19, 2021

How incredibly ASTUTE of you to notice my astuteness. Truly a marvel. Well, I think when you read a lot of fan fic, you just finally learn... hey this ones good, and this one sucks! Hm... let’s not suck, lol. Yeah... the last names and first names... I’ll give you everyone’s full name (bc if u knew the anime, you’d know everyone’s full name) Kyoka Jiro Katsuki Bakugou Eijiro Kirishima Mina Ashido Denki Kaminari ... nico. Nico is um... he’s a y/n character... sorta self insert. There was a different character I was gonna do... but then it’d ...

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18:33 Apr 19, 2021

well, Ethanks, lol eh, I knew the names but it was a bit confusing anyway, well, it's just me wimpy brain Nico is.... not exactly y/n? ya! TWO Whole, Entire, Days! Lol

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22:06 Apr 19, 2021

Well... no, Nico is not entirely y/n. But he’s a made up character. I was going to make him the main character of Mha, Midoriya. But... Katsuki and him have a past, so it’d be very weird to have them not really know each other... (coincidentally, Mina and Kirishima came from the same school)

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10:37 Apr 20, 2021

Ya, that makes sense and you woulda had to change the personality a bit too I guess? (idk why, the name katsuki reminds me of... catfish, eh, weird...) Eh, well they do know each other

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11:37 Apr 20, 2021

Catfish? CATFISH Lol... I can't get it out of my mind; move away, LORD EXPLOSION MURDER... my new name for Katsuki is Catfish. Lol yeah... they do know each other... but even in the anime/manga... it's kinda just like "Oh yeah, I guess we maybe knew each other or something, sure" which is like, a total missed opportunity

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15:57 Apr 20, 2021

(eh the other thread is becoming too tangled) 0▪ YAA! It only has four characters.... well I’m still collecting, and twenty... would kill me, like twenty! Lol Maybe? But... if it’s dead, reincarnate it! TEACHER WITH PIRATE TALK YESSSSS ya, I like cringy, and cheery teachers, but idk, good teachers have a way of disappearing... 1▪ the thing with hearing problems is that they are not that gloomy but really REALLY annoying Lol I have..., A lot of cousins, some of them are ‘disappearing’ but anyway it’s crazy!, but actually it’s not JUST co...

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21:13 Apr 20, 2021

Yeah, the other thread is way too thin for me to see on my phone, lol. 0: hm... maybe when I have time. But for now, I have a few other ideas... 1: YES literally. Like, people think that you’re not death, so you’re fine... well, sure I’m fine, but it doesn’t mean I have the best hearing. And so then, people think I’m rude. No... I have a short attention span! THEY ARE DISAPPEARING, WHAT? Lol... not suspicious at all... My family is not big at all... we’re not entirely connected... I mean, the two sides don’t even interact. They don’t even k...

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12:19 Apr 21, 2021

⓿Cool, that’s k, wait weren’t you going to take a break in May for writing? (which is like in ten days) ❶lol, but seriously, how do you say ‘can you speak up?’ (or ‘what?’ three times in a row) without sounding rude? THEY ARE BEING FETCHED BY EXTRATERRESTRIALS! (idk for what, but if it was extraterrestrials then they would’ve returned me cousins in two days, they are that unbearable, lol) Eh ya, me family is humongous, but not interconnected, most of my cousins I’ve only seen once (eh, that’s enough) and rather than being ‘family-like’ mos...

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13:08 Apr 21, 2021

Wow, I was just gonna use those numbers... hmmm 𝟘: Well, not in mayyy... It's may 28th when I go on a little bit of a "break". I mean, you can't really call it a break, because I'm going to continue to write. You'll see me post every so often, but mostly, I'm going to be cram-writing "The Day The Clock Stopped" bc it doesn't represent my best writing abilities AT ALL. So most likely, I'm not gonna post stuff on reedsy unless the prompts are great or I already finished my at least one chapter per week rule. I'll still be responding to people...

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11:14 Apr 23, 2021

SORRY FOR THE lAtE rEpLy!!! 0) Lol, which are your other two roles? Eight... would be half eighth and the rest ninth here, like half of the day will be over here before it starts there, so weird Eh, like you only have two weeks to advertise now, right? Ya, with the covid and all I guess everything is going haywire I hope that you would be able to, anyway you do write pretty fast, like what do you do? Build a cocoon? Ya, it does look like an anime plot, like most of my longer works does, I don’t think that I can come up with typical...

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13:06 Apr 23, 2021

0~ My two other roles? It's Neighbor Tim and Jared, an alleged murderer. Neighbor Tim is.... he's just a nice guy who tries to give one of the main characters a casserole, and then gets yeeted out of existence, lol. Jared is very... bad. He's a stereotype of someone with depression, and I HATE playing him. So that's annoying. yEp AnD wE hAvEn'T sTaRtEd AdVeRtIsInG I think I write fast because I'm like "WOW YOU JUST AXE MURDERED MY EMOTIONS, LET'S POUR MY HEART OUT". So... yeah. Is it healthy? Probably not. But is it productive? Also... no. N...

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16:06 Apr 24, 2021

SORRY FOR BEING LATE!, I’M BEING MURDERED BY CHEMISTRY! And my fever is coming back, but anyway, sorry! 0) So, eh, you have a monologue for Jared?, (which is, guessing that neighbor Tim don’t like casseroles so much that he has written an essay on them). So, like Jared is a, like, (very stupid) secondary character or smthin’?, like does he do anything for the plot? Death and depression are the roles you get, and you actually have a cheery personality, Lol. Wait, are you ever gonna advertise? Axe murdered yur emotions? But, getting a lot ...

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22:18 Apr 24, 2021

Oh my god no. I LITERALLY JUST WROTE A MASSIVE RESPONSE (I mean, normal length, but still long) AND IT JUST DELETED IT. WTF I was gonna tell you about my chem teacher, but let’s do the abbreviated version - She was a chemist - She retired at like 40 - She obviously ran out of money and decided to take up teaching - She is a terrible teacher. She hates kids. - She retired after two years! Yay! Ugh that was so much better and funnier before. 0- Jared is a mess. Like, an absolute mess. He goes on about death and whatever and everyone is li...

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Angel {Readsy}
11:26 Apr 18, 2021

A creative genius, indeed. My Bro, you never fail to amaze

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Ari Berri
16:55 Apr 16, 2021

I like this series so far. I'm not going to ask, but I HOPE there will be more. Great job!

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17:35 Apr 16, 2021

Lol. I really want to write another one, but I wrote A LOT this week, and the reedsy cast is still um existent

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Ari Berri
18:10 Apr 16, 2021

Ah, that makes sense. I hope you get another story out soon,

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19:23 Apr 16, 2021

Lol, me too

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Angel {Readsy}
11:26 Apr 18, 2021

Did you read my story

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12:06 Apr 18, 2021

Um, no? I think this is the first time I've seen you on this site

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