Tuesday's Best 4-12-2011

Good morning, my lovelies. Hope you're doing fine today, and are ready to face the week. If you could do with a bit of a boost (like me, as both hubs and I managed to get sick), then why don't we go ahead and take a peek at what Aradi and I have found for you. I can tell you right now, though, that we almost had another round of fisticuffs over her rec ;-)

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I always have a soft spot for the quirky stories in contests.  You know the ones... the ones that won’t win the popular vote for some reason:  too heavy on the angst... too light on the sex... too much... whatever.

I like me some whatever sometimes.

Vampireisthenewblack brought some whatever to the CarlWard Contest in the form of Lost Boys.  

It comes with a “Enter at your own risk” warning too.  (Yeah, that works just like a red flag for me.  Toro!)

Lost Boys is AU, with a Carlisle we mostly recognize, and a deliciously not-quite-right Edward.  They had been together before Esme’s arrival in their lives, but Carlisle finding his mate in Esme left Edward as the jilted lover who turned to feeding on humans.  Edward comes and goes from their lives during the course of the O/S, seemingly determined to find the solution to the problem that is Esme.

For Esme, it is easy. She didn't see him that night. She didn't hear the things he said or witness the things he did. She has no fear of being alone with him during the night while I am at the hospital. I want to take some time, to wait until I am sure of Edward's state of mind before I leave them, but she insists I go. She wants the two of them to get to know each other again.

When I return the next morning, I find them in the living room. They are seated on the couch together, Edward is wrapped in my wife's arms, his head laid on her breast as she slowly strokes his hair.

I am alarmed, but the reasons for that alarm are varied and conflicted.

They both look up as I greet them. Esme is full of motherly joy as she cradles Edward in her arms. I see the vampire in the alley, dark, demented, dangerous. She sees a lost boy, one repentant of his mistakes.

Esme can't see his eyes. His smile doesn't reach them. His eyes move, while the rest of him is motionless. He examines me, though what he finds, I have no clue.

The story is told from Carlisle’s POV, and his dilemma is so well written.  He knows there’s something very wrong, but he still loves Edward.  Carlisle is nearly powerless to deny Edward anything (short of breaking his vow to Esme of course).

I read it the same way I watch horror movies:  in giddy anticipation of whatever is about to jump out of the shadows.

If you like it as much as I did, be sure to vote for stories that venture off the beaten track in the next contest you read.  These stories deserve more love.

Be sure to check out Vampireisthenewblack's other stories, including the previously-recced Say Something Else.

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Gotta love it when someone has a birthday, and they share their wonderful gifts. Especially when such gifts are as enticing as Just Breathe, written by bmango for SorceressCirce’s birthday last year (and continued this year, yum! Happy birthday, indeed!).

It’s Edward’s eighteenth birthday, and to celebrate the occasion, Emmett is treating him to his first Alice in Chains concert. Edward is out, but shy, and a delectable geek (what? Just voicing my opinion). As much as he is looking forward to the concert itself, he isn’t looking forward to playing third wheel, since Emmett’s girlfriend Rosalie will be going with them.

Once at the concert though, he soon gets completely absorbed by the music.

I'm pushed forward again and stumble into the guy I'm trying to avoid. He elbows me in the gut and shoves me again, this time just scowling in my face. I trip over my own feet and feel myself going down and my glasses rip from my face. Instinct takes over, and I flail again for some kind of purchase. I grasp onto another arm, but this time I feel a sharp yank on my hand, a tug under my arm and I'm pulled to my feet to be greeted by a blurry but beautiful smiling face. He makes sure I'm able to stand and then pulls on the hand he's still gripping tightly.

I'm not completely blind, but without my glasses, navigating in the pulsing light and darkness is difficult, and I thankfully follow his blonde head as he tugs me along, shoving his way through the bodies surrounding us. He leads me to a wall and I lean against it and close my eyes, trying to catch my breath. He stands next to me, back to the wall, panting just as heavily.

A slower song, "Don't Follow", fills the speakers and he takes the opportunity of the quieter music to talk.

"Jesus, man. Were you trying to get killed out there?"

Mmm, no, I don’t think he set out to try to kill himself, but I’m pretty sure that right there... right there he feels as if he’s died. And if that isn’t the case, then I’m fairly positive he’ll think so in the very near future. Why? Read and find out ;-)

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There you have it, folks. Two lovely stories to sink your teeth into. Be sure to check back next week to see what Stolenxsanity and I have in store for you then. In the mean time, be sure to leave these wonderful authors some love. 

Also, if you're not aware already, there's a new contest in town. The Real Love Contest. They want lemons. Realistic lemons. You know: the giggle-fits, farts, mishaps, painful first times - all of it. Sex is never perfect, so why should it be in fic? You have until May 20th to enter, so give it a shot. 

Maybe you can finally write about that fumbling threesome where they can't quite figure out who does what? 

Or that blasted condom just won't go on right, because damnit, this is your first time ever and you just haven't practiced enough?