Chanel's Folly (2017-2020 Drabbles) Updated Feb 16

[Subtly Clashing Wishes]

 I loved Lesson. It reminded me of a scene in Murphy's Romance. I totally agree with @AnonyMouse the fantasy of "rolling in the hay" is one that has so many possibilities. 

Your musings on the English language and "allergic" was very amusing in Resurface. 

[Chanel_no5]

Prompt: Cruelty
Fandom: Big Love
Note: I've been trying to shake the writer's block today. It doesn't work on what I'm supposed to write, but this... uhm, let's say I got a bit carried away. It is April…  

***

The cruelty of April was the worst imaginable. It lay in its sprouting, deceptively beautiful flowers and most of all, the blooming trees. The pollen expelled from all things in blossom was a constant irritation in her eyes, throat, nose…

Oh, here we go again.

“EiSCHH! EiSSCHew! HaISSCHHiew! Ugh.”

Barb wiped her streaming nose with yet another tissue, thinking her frequent use of tissue paper during springtime was probably the main reason for the deforestation. Quite ironic, when you thought about it, since she wouldn’t have to use so many tissues if it wasn’t for the trees. She had been sneezing so much the past couple of days her nose hurt. There was a constant itch that had settled from the tip of her nose all the way back to her sinuses, and ever so often it flared up with a prickling, stinging sensation that forced her to sneeze no matter how hard she tried to hold it back. Once she started, she couldn’t stop. Each sneeze irritated her already tormented nose and set off another until she was caught in a seemingly endless loop of gasp-sneeze-exhale, and repeat. Her eyes watered. They were so itchy she couldn’t stop rubbing at them, although she knew that only made matters worse. It felt like she had sand in them, tiny grains of sand grinding and grinding. Her throat itched. The roof of her mouth itched. Even her ears itched.

Sometimes when Margene lost things – and she was remarkable at it, almost like a magician – Barb told her she’d lose her head too if it wasn’t attached. Well, right now she wished she could leave her head somewhere until allergy season was over. It was like being chained to a torture device. Of course, it wasn’t like the rest of her body was left unaffected by the onslaught of pollen and her body's fierce response; the fatigue was nearly unbearable and made her want to sleep all the time. Which she couldn’t, because the other symptoms were running wild.

“Hehh… ehhh-AH-!”

She exhaled in frustration as the sneeze abandoned her. That was yet another cruelty; the failed sneeze. It wasn’t like the need went away, only the ability to carry out the action. She sniffled wetly and rubbed her nose, not sure if she tried to tease the sneeze out or push it back. It would be equally painful either way.

“Is it just me, or do your allergies get a little bit worse each year?” Margene asked. Barb hadn’t noticed her entering, which only proved how distracting this condition was.

“I think they do,” she sniffled. That sniffle was her downfall. She desperately gasped for air, and then the allergic storm was over her again.

“Hehh… AISSCHH! AISCHH! HahiSCHHoo! EeisSCHHew! HepTSCHHeew! AaaISSCHHHuh! AaaaISSHHiih! Huh… hahh… haESCHHEW!”

The fit left her completely breathless and she slumped back on the couch with one hand on her aching abs and one pressing the tissues against her dripping nose.

“Poor Barb,” Margene said as she sat down next to the first wife and gently stroke her shoulder in an attempt to offer comfort. Normally Barb would push her away, but this time she leaned into the touch instead. She really felt like a ‘poor Barb’ right now.

 

Edited April 19, 2017 by Chanel_no5

[Chanel_no5]

4 hours ago, Sanguine Cheerful Worrier said:

Poor Barb, indeed. Isn't there anything you can do for her?  No?  

Hmmm... no.  Where's the fun in that?  

 

[tenderwarrior]

I loved this!!! I've missed your drabbles ❤

[Chanel_no5]

Thank you so much!

***

Prompt: Acceptance
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Note: I was outside in this type of weather today. Not for very long, but still… basically, if I have to suffer, so does Blake.

 

It felt like the sharp wind went straight through her coat, jacket, blouse, oh hell, it felt like it went right through to her bones. Tossed back and forth by said wind, the chilly rain attacked her from all directions, hitting her like liquid spears. She was freezing so much she quivered, and the glance she sent in Rossi’s direction was filled with bitter jealousy. He was in a padded, waterproof, windproof oilskin coat. One that even had a hood, she noted with even more jealousy as cold rainwater trickled down the back of her neck.

The local sheriff had barely given her a second glance and aimed all his information and questions to Rossi. Normally that would have offended her, but right now she was relieved. She didn’t feel well at all, and the last thing she wanted was to be observed. She had a pounding headache, a sore throat and by now she was certain she had a fever as well.

“The victim was last seen over here,” the sheriff said and took his hand out of the pocket of his raincoat to point towards the rest area. He seemed to speak only to Rossi, as if she wasn’t even there, and Blake wondered for a moment if she could use her apparent invisibility to sneak back to the SUV without being noticed. Then she surrendered to the situation and tried to push her discomfort away from her conscious mind. It didn’t work, and now she also felt like she was about to sneeze. She didn’t have any tissues on her and the sleeve of her coat was so soaked with rainwater it was almost dripping.

Oh, who cares about politeness, nobody’s looking at me anyway, she thought, but whether it was out of courtesy or simple inhibition she at least turned away from the others.

“EeISCHhew! HehASCHHuh!”

Oh yeah, this was a cold alright. Her colds always started out with doubles. It remained to be seen if this would turn into one of her sneezy colds with almost allergy-like fits, or if it would settle in her chest instead. She didn’t look forward to either development. She very rarely caught colds, but when she did, they were always miserable and it was the last thing she wanted to deal with while on a case.

Shivering in the icy rain, Blake cursed the viruses coursing through her body, but wearily accepted her fate. There wasn’t much else she could do at this point.

***

Prompt: Curtain
Fandom: Rose Red

 

Like everything else in the mansion, the curtains were dusty. And like most things soaring in the air, dust was just yet another thing that Joyce was allergic to. She was mad at herself for not thinking before stirring up the cloud of dust that was now raining down all around her. She took a few steps away, pinched her nose and stifled a rapid triple, violently tickly but not very loud.

That was just the initial irritation from the dust. It wasn’t the actual allergic reaction from exposure to the allergen; that took longer to start, but in return it would last much longer. Much, much longer. And was she prepared to stop it in its tracks with antihistamines? Well, she would have been, if she had remembered to bring them. It hadn’t exactly been her top priority today.

“NktSCHh! NgTSCHhgh! KtSSHH!”

She sniffed and rubbed her nose hard, trying to at least distract it from the persistent tickle if not soothing it.

“Bless you,” Steve said.

“No need to even start blessing me,” she said and sniffed again, wetter this time. “I’ll probably keep going for at least a couple of hours.”

As if to prove it, she sneezed once more into cupped hands, then groaned loudly and glared at the curtains, where dust still whirled around.

“That was so unnecessarily stupid,” she scolded herself.

Steve considered whether he should say anything, but decided against it. When professor Joyce Reardon was in a bad mood, she was in a spectacularly bad mood.

***

Prompt: Morning
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Note: I really don't feel like I know Emily well enough to write her particularly well, but I still like her.  

 

”Where’s Emily?” Reid asked as he sat down at the breakfast table in the hotel restaurant. The rest of the team were already gathered, JJ had in fact already finished her breakfast and was now sipping her coffee.

“Still asleep, I guess,” she said. “I went to ask if she felt like coming along for a run, but she didn’t even wake up.”

“Well, not everyone like to start their mornings with a one hour workout before having breakfast at six,” Morgan said.

“And unlike you, Emily doesn’t start yawning and wanting to go to bed at nine in the evening,” Rossi added. JJ giggled.

“I’m just sayin’. She’s probably still asleep.”

Emily emerged from the corridor. Morgan was the first to spot her and he chuckled;

“It actually looks as if she is.”

She ignored his comment and sat down on the empty chair, but that was as far as she got before folding her arm over the lower part of her face and starting to sneeze, four painfully restrained half-stifles in a row. When she was finished, she rubbed her eyes with both hands.

“I’b sorry. It feels like I’b allergic to sobething”, she said.

“Most likely ragweed,” Reid said. “It’s in season and is actually responsible for up to half the cases of allergic rhinitis in the United States. Did you know that a single plant can produce over a billion grains of pollen per season?”

Emily groaned and hid her face behind her hands.

“I don’t think she wants to hear more about it,” Hotch told Reid and then turned to the allergic woman on his right. “We’ll get you some antihistamines and you can stay inside at the station doing the geographic profiling today.”

Emily nodded and looked relieved, a sign that she felt even worse for wear than she let on.

“Thank you. Huh-arrSCHHoo!”

“Bless you.”

***

Edited April 25, 2017 by Chanel_no5

[Chanel_no5]

Prompt: Offensive
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Note: So I was just about to go to sleep, but decided to at least finish up this damn drabble and post it. I guess I need to get back into posting on the open forum ahead of July version of Secret Santa already.

This one will obviously be my favourite character because. Yeah. Just because. Hopefully tomorrow, I’ll get a drabble or two out that’s more readable, but until then… *shrugs* Just bear with me, okay? I've been extremely rusty in writing this month, altogether, so please, be nice.  

Cheers guys!  

 ***

 

“Over 35 million Americans suffer from allergic rhinitis, and it’s much more common in people whose parents also have allergies, although it’s the gene that’s inherited and not necessarily an allergy to the same allergen, and chronic stress also tends to aggravate allergies,” Reid said, almost without taking a breath at all.

Blake nodded and dabbed her streaming nose with a tissue, realised the action was too little too late, and gave in to a thorough nose blow instead.

“You’d think allergy season would be milder when you’re not actually around a lot of blooming things,” Morgan said as Blake resurfaced from the depths of the tissues. She was still uncomfortable about displaying her allergy symptoms openly, but it simply wasn’t sustainable to keep being mortified every time she had to sneeze or blow her nose, so her mood had crossed into sheer annoyance instead.

“I know,” she said, her voice thick and watery-sounding. “But it’s worse in the city.”

“It’s due to the higher levels of air pollution,” Reid informed them helpfully. “You know, if you started taking your medication a few weeks before allergy season starts, you would probably suffer less once it has arrived.”

“Reid, do you have any idea how much my prescription meds cost? It’s more than enough having to pay for it the two-three months that I absolutely need it,” Blake said. Morgan gave her dreadfully allergic appearance a surprised look.

“If they’re expensive, they’re obviously not worth it. I didn’t even think you took anything at all,” he said.

“Believe me, if I didn’t take them, you would know.” She rubbed her eyes with the back of one hand and then gestured to her allergy-swollen face. “This is under control. I know it doesn’t seem like it, but I know the difference. So can we please focus on the job instead? It’s going to make me feel better to think about something el-hehhh…. ehhgtSSHkk!"

“There she goes again,” Morgan said to no one in particular, as the female agent succumbed to a forceful, back-to-back fit of tired half-stifles. Breathlessly, she added a string of highly offensive expletives afterwards, causing Reid to stare at her with large, shocked eyes.

“Sorry,” she said after noticing his stare.

“It’s okay,” Reid replied, still looking a bit stunned upon hearing that kind of language from his ordinarily so articulate colleague. “Um. Overt cursing has actually been proven to reduce pain, maybe it works on allergies as well.”

“It doesn’t, but it’s great anger management,” Blake replied, contradicting herself by sounding even angrier. Before Reid could say anything more, Morgan gave him a light swat on the shoulder.

“Leave her alone, kid.”

“Excellent advice,” Blake said, sneezed against her wrist, then mumbled something that neither of the men could make out. Both thought that was probably for the best.

***

[Subtly Clashing Wishes]

Oh Reid and his oh-so helpful observations, they just crack me up. 

[Anonymouse]

Acceptance - God, rain sneezes are so classic. I love the description in the first paragraph - I could feel how cold she was. Interesting little detail about the sheriff, too. Let's hope it's not one of those chesty colds...

Morning - You always capture the group dynamic so well. I love the gentle teasing. And Reid's relevant, but irrelevant, factoids about ragweed... what a beautiful dweeb.  There's something so fun about allergies of mysterious (at least to the sneezer) origins. 

Offensive - Jesus, Reid! He would be the worst person to sneeze around if you don't want your sneezes acknowledged.  I loved Blake's tirade (and of course the sneezing fit that follows!) and Morgan doing exactly what she asked them to stop doing. But I'll cut him some slack; I imagine it's hard to talk about anything else when your colleague is suffering with allergies so openly.

Quote

“Um. Overt cursing has actually been proven to reduce pain, maybe it works on allergies as well.”

I love the little "um" before he spits out a fact to explain why she may have cursed. Not Agent Blake!  Very cute... glad they realized in the end they should just leave her be.

[tenderwarrior]

Oh, this was so cute! I absolutely loved it. Thank you for updating!

[Chanel_no5]

Hi guys. Thank you so much for the comments on my latest update!  I'm sorry I haven't posted anything in a while, it's been a combination of lack of motivation and ideas, lack of time and confidence, plus what writing I have focused on has mainly been private trades. However, today I ended up having to wait for someone in the stables for over an hour, so I sat in the pasture with my horse and decided to write a couple of drabbles. Oddly enough, none of them are set in a stable...   Anyway. All are exactly 100 words. Go me.  

 

Prompt: Anomaly
Fandom: Criminal Minds.
Note: I’ll be nice this time, you can picture any of the ladies you like as I won't slap a name there.  

 

“Hhh-EISSHoo!”

“Bless you. Still haven’t gotten that tickle out? You must’ve sneezed twenty times the past hour.”

“Yeah, I know, I’m sorry,” she said. “I don’t know why I’m sneezing.”

“Probably allergies,” Morgan said. “We are in a farming state...”

She rubbed her nose, sighing.

“Doesn’t feel like allergies, though,” she said uncertainly. “If I’m allergic, my nose doesn’t stop tickling after I sneeze. It does now, but the tickle keeps coming back.”

“Sounds odd,” Morgan said.

“Yep,” she replied and looked out the window, hoping he’d drop the subject, which he did.

At least until next time she sneezed.

***

 

Prompt: Fresh
Fandom: Big Love
Note: I've actually wondered this myself from time to time - why?

 

Barb opened the bottle of fabric softener. It was the same brand they always used, and she had completely missed the notification “Now EXTRA fresh!” on the bottle – that is, until she smelled this new, improved, EXTRA fresh scent. She had no opinion on its freshness, but it was definitely sneeze-inducing.

She quickly put the cap back on to save herself further torment, but her breathing already hitched helplessly.

“Hehh-ahh… hehhh… HaISSCHEW! ISSCHEW! Hehh… ehhh… eISSHHIEW!”

She sniffled, glaring with watery eyes at the new label she had missed before. Why did everything have to be more than just fresh?!

***

Prompt: 1987
Fandom: Big Love
Note: If I recall correctly they never mentioned specific years in the show, but I do remember that at one point Bill played Foreigner's "I Wanna Know What Love Is" because it was his and Barb's song, and that single was released in the end of -84, so they likely became a couple after that. I know, I overthink these things, it's not rocket science, just fanfiction.  

 

Barb would never forget the summer of 1987. That was when she had been certain Bill was the man she wanted to marry. It was also the summer he had taken her on vacation to Mexico.

And it was in Mexico that her previously manageable allergies had gone completely out of control. Bill had been dumbfounded by how much she sneezed. So had she, in fact.

Now, as she sat on the side of the bed and sneezed wetly towards the floor, already exhausted although she had just woken up, she told herself firmly:

It’s not as bad as 1987!

Edited June 21, 2017 by Chanel_no5

[tenderwarrior]

You never disappoint, Chanel! These are made me tingly all over 

[Chanel_no5]

Aww, you...  Thank you so much!

 

Prompt: Sensitive
Fandom: Original
Note: So, my OC Angela is normally immune to trends, but every once in a while she jumps on a specific diet or detox, and while she conveniently forgets what the end result usually is, her housekeeper does not. (I have an idea involving the basics that I might turn into a real fic when I’m finished with other works and if I feel inspired. It includes Angela on some kind of chemical detox which includes her allergy meds. That’s not going to end well. )

150 words in this one.

 ***

Mary, the housekeeper, sighed loudly.

“Don’t you know by now that every time you do one of those detox things, you get sick.”

Angela turned feverish eyes in her direction.

“It has nothing to do with that,” she said.

“It has everything to do with that,” Mary replied. “Eating healthily is good, but releasing all collected toxins into your system at once, that can’t be good for you, you’re too sensitive. Can you imagine how hard your immune defence must’ve been working?”

“Well, it’s not doing a very good job,” Angela muttered and took a couple of tissues from the box on the table. “Heh-NKTSCHhyah!”

“Not when it’s overworked,” Mary replied. “Like you. Go to bed and rest. I’ll make some soup.”

Sometimes Angela considered reminding Mary about the hierarchy, but frankly, she wouldn’t want it any other way. This semi-harsh, honest kind of comfort was exactly what she needed.

Edited June 23, 2017 by Chanel_no5

[Anonymouse]

I love that Blake was able to identify that the sneezes felt different. People talking about that kind of stuff is so unff. These last few drabbles have been short and sweet like fun-sized Milky Ways. Totally needed and appreciated.

[Chanel_no5]

Thank you, m'dear!  

Umm, I couldn't stick to the 100 word limit for long, so...  Currently doing a couple of movie drabbles in between working on a trade fic and panicking over things I have no power over. Anyway. I'm eating Nutella out of the jar, that's great stress relief. That and sneeze fics.  

 

Prompt: Protocol
Fandom: Devil wears Prada
Note: It's been quite a while since I watched this movie, so I had to.  

 

Andy has spent the past half hour trying to figure out what the correct protocol is for this. The limo is stuck in traffic, and Miranda is sitting next to her, sneezing and sniffling almost constantly. The first couple of sneezes, Andy blessed her, but the death glare told her that wasn’t the way Miranda wanted it, so now she remains quiet.

“Ahhh… nkTT! NNKTschh! HaiSCHhhew!”

The last sneeze escapes her unstifled and she looks like she would reprimand it if she only could. Andy is fidgeting in her seat, afraid of what Miranda is going to say if she draws attention to this uncontrollable action she’s stuck doing, but she must ask. If she’s going to carry out her assistant’s duties, she needs to know what’s going on.

“Are you allergic, Miranda?”

Miranda runs a slender finger underneath her nose, which has taken on a deep shade of pink (the woman herself would probably know exactly what this shade is called, but Andy doesn’t) and sends Andy another one of those Dragon Lady glares.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Andrea.”

Well, that’s not an answer at all. It can mean “don’t be ridiculous, of course I am”, or “don’t be ridiculous, of course I’m not”, or “don’t be ridiculous, pretend you don’t notice me sneezing my head off”. It certainly looks like allergies, and it is springtime, but if Miranda won’t confirm or deny, Andy is just going to take a chance. She takes out her cell phone and sends a quick text while Miranda succumbs to yet another harshly stifled fit.

“I texted Emily to have a selection of antihistamines ready on your desk upon arrival,” she says, praying she interpreted Miranda’s non-reply correctly.

As Miranda nods – it’s just the tiniest nod, but it is one of approval – Andy releases a breath she didn’t know she held. Another situation acceptably handled, in spite of not knowing the correct protocol. She’s getting the hang of this.

“Tissues,” Miranda says in a ragged voice. Andy looks blankly at her. Miranda sighs and rolls her eyes. “More tissues. Honestly, Andrea...”

Oh. Andy digs through her purse and finds an open travel pack. It’s a cheap brand that Miranda doubtlessly frowns upon, but right now she looks so desperate for a tissue she doesn’t care. Andy hands her several sheets of thin paper, and Miranda snatches them from her grip and sneezes almost before she has time to bring them to her face.

Alright, so maybe she doesn’t have the hang of it yet, but at least Miranda is too out of breath to give her much of a scolding.

***

Prompt: Sailing
Fandom: Waterworld
Note:     

 

The Mariner stepped out into the morning sun and frowned. He wasn’t used to not being alone, and he certainly wasn’t used to waking up later than anybody else. Yet both the woman and the child were already awake. The girl sat with dangling feet and looked out over the still ocean. The woman sat as far away as she could get, curled up with both arms shielding her face from view. Her entire body convulsed repeatedly.

The girl sensed his presence and turned around.

“Good morning!”

He ignored the cheery greeting, but he was curious.

“What’s she doing?” he asked and nodded in Helen’s direction.

“Sneezing,” Enola replied with the complete lack of interest you only get from experiencing something every day. “She starts every morning like that, but she’s usually much louder. I think she didn’t want to wake you.”

He grunted in response and walked over to Helen. She tried to look up at him but had to duck her head down and sneeze again as the rays of sun hit her in the eyes, the light once more setting off the infuriating itch in her sinuses.

“NkTSCHh! Hehh... ihhh... KtSCHh! Tsschew!”

She sniffled messily and wiped her nose with her arm. “Sorry. I… heGTSCHH! I’ll stop soon.”

“How about you stop now?” he said.

“Hahhh… ahhh-ERSCHHHoo! I would if I could!” she snapped and wiped her nose again.

“We’re too far away from any atoll for you to be allergic,” he said, not fazed in the slightest by her hostile tone. “Unless you’re allergic to the plants I brought,” he continued. Helen, busy dealing with the persistent drip from her nose, wasn’t sure if she was being made fun of or if he just stated a fact about something she was unfamiliar with.

“Allergic?” she repeated uncertainly, as if tasting the word. “What’s that?”

“I saw it mentioned in a magazine the Ancients left behind.”

Helen stifled two more sneezes, pinching her nose and forcing them into a quiet back-in-the-throat sound rather than the violent screams they wanted to be. She sighed. She was so tired of this.

“And? What does it mean?”

“Means some things make you sneeze and your eyes itch. I don’t recall details. It was common back when there was land.”

“Do you still have that magazine?”

He shrugged.

“No. Traded it for some nets a while ago. Sorry. Do you know how to sew?”

Helen blinked at the abrupt change of subject.

“Yeah, why?”

“The sails tore when we escaped the atoll. When you’re done sneezing you could stitch them up. It’s a good boat, but she’s not sailing far without those.”

With that, he strode past her to the edge of the boat and dove into the water as if he didn't have a care in the world. Helen rubbed her burning nose with the back of her hand and sneezed again, groaned and hoped she would soon be done being “allergic” for the rest of the day. Because apparently, she had some sewing to do.

***

 

Edited July 3, 2017 by Chanel_no5

[Leafeon78]

These are very nice to read.

[Chanel_no5]

On ‎2017‎-‎07‎-‎03 at 10:11 PM, pikachu78 said:

These are very nice to read.

Thank you, I'm glad you liked them!  

[tenderwarrior]

These were so good, Chanel! I just love it when people with control issues suffer from allergies. Swoooon! 

[Chanel_no5]

On ‎2017‎-‎07‎-‎05 at 10:16 PM, tenderwarrior said:

These were so good, Chanel! I just love it when people with control issues suffer from allergies. Swoooon! 

Thank you! Those really are the best, aren't they?  

****

Prompt: Eventually
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Note: Yup, her again.  

 

Blake had known she would eventually end up losing the battle against the cold, but she had managed to keep the others in the dark. Until now, after the arrest was made and they were on their way back to the station. She was sitting in the back of the SUV, between JJ and Morgan, the worst seat in the car as it made it impossible to sneeze unnoticed. But she couldn’t hold it back any longer, so she leaned forward, into her hands and tried to sneeze as quietly as she could. It may not have been as loud as it tried to become, but it was throaty, nasal and messy in one miserable combination.

“HaATSCHhh!”

She sniffled and hung her head, wondering how she’d be able to wipe off her hands without being observed. She was freezing and sweating simultaneously, and she longed for this evening to be over so she could go to sleep.

Hotch glanced at her in the rear-view mirror.

“Bless you. You don’t sound too good.”

“I don’t feel too good,” she admitted and ran the palms of her hands quickly against the inside of her thighs to wipe off the spray on her slacks. JJ reached out and touched her forehead, and Blake found that she didn’t even care about the humiliation of being treated like a child.

“No wonder,” JJ said. “You’ve got a fever. As soon as we get back to the hotel, you’re going straight to bed.”

Blake rolled her eyes.

“Please tell me that’s a promise?”

“Promise, request, order... whichever you prefer,” JJ chuckled and gently rubbed her colleague’s shoulder. “Aw, Alex, you’re shivering.”

“It’s alright, really…” Blake began objecting when the need to sneeze struck her again. “Huh… S-sorry, I h-have to… sneeze agaihhh… NNKKTsh!”

Trying to stifle cold sneezes was a painful endeavour – much more so than her allergic ones – but she suffered through it with stoic determination, just like she’d suffer through the cold all in all.

****

Prompt: Hair
Fandom: original
Note: Beauty Queen- type of beauty isn’t really my cup of tea normally (I think they look kinda boring…), but the scenario wanted to be presented here, so…

 

It was quite impossible to pinpoint the exact culprit, but Thea was pretty sure it had to be the hairspray. At least it was the final straw. Her nose had been tickling – no, let’s be straight about it, it was itching, a small but notable difference, since she got her hair done, and it was only getting worse. She found herself constantly wavering on the edge of a sneeze and that was not the focus you wanted your mind to have when you were trying to dazzle the entire world with your overpowering beauty.

The stage was hers, the audience only had eyes for her, but the only thing that kept irritating the young beauty was the tickly, tingly, relentless urge to sneeze, and she fought it back with all the power she possessed. At least the sneeze never broke free and ruined her chances altogether, but she would never forget how goddamn close it was that she sneezed on stage in the middle of the talent proportion.

That was never going to happen again. Never. Next time she’d keep her hair loose and free with not a single drop of hairspray to keep it in place.

 

Edited July 13, 2017 by Chanel_no5
there were words that weren't supposed to be there. O_o

[Subtly Clashing Wishes]

Whoa! I had loads of catching up to do. Wonderful stories, every one. 

[Leafeon78]

Even more beautiful stories keep it up. 

[indigo]

Your Criminal Minds dribbles are just so good! My absolute favourite. I'd love some Hotch/JJ if you feel up to it!

[Chanel_no5]

On ‎2017‎-‎07‎-‎13 at 4:09 AM, Sanguine Cheerful Worrier said:

Whoa! I had loads of catching up to do. Wonderful stories, every one. 

Aww, thank you so much!  

On ‎2017‎-‎07‎-‎13 at 10:13 PM, pikachu78 said:

Even more beautiful stories keep it up. 

Thank you so much!  

On ‎2017‎-‎07‎-‎16 at 1:35 PM, indigo said:

Your Criminal Minds dribbles are just so good! My absolute favourite. I'd love some Hotch/JJ if you feel up to it!

Thank you! This particular drabble thread is just with lady sneezers, because that's what I like, but at least there's a JJ one in the next bunch..?  

 

Prompt: Snow
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Note: Alright, so… I never got the hang of writing JJ/Hotch pairing, but it’s hinted at, at least.
 

Sometimes JJ thought she was allergic to snow. It never failed; when the first snowflakes fell in D.C each winter, she caught a cold. She could make it through the usual fall cold season with everybody around her sniffling and sneezing, and stay perfectly healthy. Then the first snowflakes came soaring from the heavens, and she always ended up with a sore throat and a tickly nose within a day at most. Reid had of course told her all the science to why this wasn’t a possibility, that if it had any connection whatsoever it was psychosomatic, but the rest of the team only chuckled and viewed it as an odd personal quirk of hers.

The reason she was thinking about this now was that her throat had been feeling dry and scratchy for a while, and she was battling a “maybe-maybe not” sneeze that was dancing just inside the edges of her nostrils. It could be nothing, of course. Dry air, dust… but it certainly felt like the beginning of one of her Snow Colds, as Garcia had dubbed them.

“Hehh… ISSCHEW! Ah… hahISSHHH!” She sneezed twice against her jacket-clad arm and sniffled thickly, wishing she had remembered to pick up a pack of tissues.  

“Bless you,” Hotch said from the doorway. He held out a pack of Kleenex, and while his face was as expressionless as ever, she could still sense the warmth in his eyes. A warmth that went perhaps a little bit beyond what a boss was supposed to feel for his team member… but not so much it could make either of them uncomfortable.

“Wow,” JJ said and took the offered tissues. “Thank you. Did you read my mind?” She smiled. “Or did you profile me?”

“That was profiling,” Hotch said. “Look outside.”

JJ pulled the blinds aside and saw the white flakes whirling down from a steely sky.

“Oh. Yeah, that… eeeISSHHew! Explains it.”

***

Prompt: Majestic
Fandom: Criminal Minds.
Note: It was only a matter of time before I’d write Blake actively challenging her allergies. Because she would not accept there’s something she can’t do. Oh well…

 

Allergies, meet the power of Claritin, Blake had thought with a great deal of smugness as she had taken the pill well before they headed out to the countryside. They weren’t even going into the barns, and the horses would be outside in pastures, so she was sure she’d be fine. And this time she’d be prepared in advance with medication.

Only her allergies seemed to be far more confident than she thought.

Claritin, meet your match, the genetic flaw in her seemed to respond in turn when that tell-tale prickle started to blossom in her nose.

“They are majestic creatures, though,” Hotch mused as he looked across the meadow where four large, white horses raced each other, ears perked up in attention and tails floating behind them like snowy plumes.

“Indeed they are,” Blake replied, and her voice wavered. “Sorry, I… forgot something in the car, I’ll be right back.”

Hotch nodded, his face not betraying the amusement he felt. He made a bet with himself that Blake wouldn’t make it all the way to the SUV before she began sneezing, and that was a bet he won. She had only taken four or five steps when a shrieking, desperate gasp for air marked the beginning of her allergy attack, and even though she managed to rein in the sound of the first sneezes to near silence, Hotch knew that once she got started, she’d only get louder the more intense the fit became.

Yet she kept walking purposefully without stumbling, a rather majestic sight herself.

“HihhDJESSHH! Ugh, oh my God..!”

Alright. Maybe "majestic" wasn’t quite the right word, after all.

***

Prompt: Irony
Fandom: Original
Note: No actual sneezing in this drabble, but, um… it was still fun to write.  

 

For most part, Angela enjoyed getting her hair and makeup done before filming began. If they started early in the morning, it gave her an excellent opportunity to gradually wake up – she wasn’t the kind of person who would bite people’s heads off or be unpleasant in any way just because it was before lunch time, but she wasn’t all alert or social within the first three hours of getting out of bed, either. And if they started later in the day, she still enjoyed some time to turn her thoughts inward, mentally rehearsing her lines or simply daydreaming.

But today she was too distracted by a persistent itch in her nose to really be able to either focus or relax. She kept sniffling and scrunching up her nose in an attempt to alleviate the feeling without touching her face and ruin the makeup already in place. Her nose was so irritated, inside out, that she could feel the skin turning an inflamed red underneath the layers of foundations and powder. Maybe even being visible through them. She flared her nostrils again, and the makeup artist, Jenna, took a step back.

“If you’re about to sneeze, please tell me,” she said. “It’s not like I haven’t been sneezed on before, but I’d rather you give me a heads up.”

“I’m not gonna sneeze,” Angela said. “I almost wish I could, but I’m just itchy.”

Jenna nodded and sounded almost impressed.

“I can tell. Two layers of foundation and that redness is still visible. This is gonna take a while.”

Angela suppressed a sigh. Jenna snickered as she went back to work.

“It’s ironic, you know. I’m going to add a pink tinge to your nose either way because you’re supposed to look like you’ve been crying.”

Angela knew. That made it even more frustrating.

 

Edited July 21, 2017 by Chanel_no5
fixed a thing.

[Leafeon78]

Nice drabbles these are good and cute.

[zneeze]

4 minutes ago, pikachu78 said:

Nice drabbles these are good and cute.

This was well said I think! @Chanel_no5 I don't come by the drabbles board much but I had to check out your thread because you're one of my favorite writers around! You're great, keep doing what ya do!

[Chanel_no5]

On ‎2017‎-‎07‎-‎22 at 5:29 AM, Leafeon78 said:

Nice drabbles these are good and cute.

Thank you!!  

On ‎2017‎-‎07‎-‎22 at 5:35 AM, zneeze said:

This was well said I think! @Chanel_no5 I don't come by the drabbles board much but I had to check out your thread because you're one of my favorite writers around! You're great, keep doing what ya do!

Thank you, that's so sweet!  And, well, I'll try!  

 

Prompt: Hidden
Fandom: Big Love
Note: Smoking is bad, mm’kay? (But it can be used for fun in fiction. ^^)

 

Barb stormed into Margene’s living room, where the youngest wife was sprawled out on the couch with a bag of potato chips balancing on her stomach.

“Do you have a cigarette?” Barb snapped. Margene quickly sat up straight, the bag toppling over and spreading potato chips all over the floor.

“No! No, I don’t know what Nicki’s been telling you, but I…”

Barb rolled her eyes so hard it looked like it hurt.

“Oh cut it out, I know you still smoke,” she dismissed the younger woman’s try at denial. "I need one. Right now."

Margene knew better than trying to discuss with Barb when she went full bulldozer mode, so she quickly got out of the couch and beckoned to Barb to follow her into the garage. She got the pack of cigarettes and the lighter out from her secret hiding place and handed them over to the first wife. Barb took one, stuck it between her lips, lit it and inhaled deeply. Margene frowned at the sight. That looked suspiciously like an experienced smoker's movements.

“B-but I didn't think you...?” Margene said, sounding like an idiot even to her own ears.

“I quit before Sarah was born, but today seems like a perfect day to pick it up,” Barb said as she exhaled a stream of smoke. Margene didn’t think it seemed like it had been eighteen years or more since Barb last lit a cigarette, there was a particular dexterity to it that had to be maintained, but she decided it was probably a bad idea to bring that up to discussion. Instead she took one herself.

“And why is that? A perfect day to pick up bad habits, I mean?” Margene asked, trying to play it cool, but honestly, she was a bit excited. She was never the one Barb turned to, and sharing a secret (or a bad habit) with the first wife was like being invited home to the cool girl after school. Before Barb could answer though, she suddenly sneezed. Not just a lone sneeze, or even a double, but a rapid, aggressively itchy fit of five that she only made a symbolic attempt to cover.

“AyiSSH! IiiSCHH! AISCHH-tSSCHoo-AAESSCHHew!”

Barb was always a full-body sneezer, but these were so powerful even for her, that she had to stagger to the side or she would have knocked herself over.

“Wow, bless you! Are you okay?”

Barb nodded, clearly not okay, and rubbed her wrist back and forth against her nose.

“Fine. That always happens with the first puff.”

Margene was just about to ask her why she’d want to smoke in the first place then, but Barb had calmed down enough to tell her about Nicki’s latest stunt and Bill’s coverup plan, and by the time she was finished (sniffling and rubbing her nose throughout), Margene took two new cigarettes out of the pack without even asking if Barb wanted seconds. She’d only have to remember to find a new hiding spot for them later. Barb knowing that she still smoked was one thing, but… she’d prefer to keep her stash hidden.

***

Prompt: Pain
Fandom: Original
Note: The relationship between these two is complicated. They’re business partners (sort of), friends with benefits from time to time, but don't have any feelings for each other. They just… like to snap at each other and have sex occasionally.  

 

Angela woke up to a pounding pain in her sinuses and realised that the light-ish cold she had dragged around for weeks had decided to bloom into a sinus infection.

“KtSCHngghh!”

“Don’t stifle,” a voice said from next to her in bed and she startled.

“Oh my God!”

“Not really, but I’m flattered by the comparison,” Sherri replied and rolled over on her stomach. “Boy, did you snore last night.”

“I can’t help it, I’m sick. I forgot that you stayed over. You’re going to catch this too, for s-suhh… huh-NKTTsh! Sure.”

“Don’t stifle,” Sherri told her again and tossed the tissue box in her general direction. “I mean it, it messes up your voice completely and you have a radio interview today.”

Angela groaned.

“You really don’t have much empathy, do you?”

“No,” Sherri deadpanned. Angela, more focused on the pain behind her face, only huffed a little in response. She pressed her fingertips against her cheekbones and winced at how badly it hurt.

“I’m not in bed with you – figuratively or literally – for any kind of emotional reason. I like you fine Angela, but this is just physical.”

“So is my headache,” Angela sniffled miserably and fell back against the pillows.