#// will not only bite u ; but also beat u into next tuesday

[fatedefyd]

   mei is built like pvt. vasquez from Aliens, no i do not make the rules, it is simply the law--

[jungwonenthusiast]

hi ! enhypen smut prompt request ! can i have the reader whos a female say #4 with jake or sunghoon whos a hard dom ?? if u can , can u add how the reader and the partner are enemies who got lots of sexual tension so they kinda trease e/o a lot with words and actions ? u dont have to use that plot but thank u♡

A/N: This is one of my favorite works now lol i hope u like it :) <3

Warnings: unprotected sex, rly brief oral (f recieving), degredation

Word Count: 2.9 k

“But it’s a Tuesday,” you tell Jay while zipping up your backpack.

“So?” he says. “Don’t be lame.”

“I’m not lame, just responsible.” you sing your bag over your shoulder.

“Yeah, that’s lame.” he walks with you to the lunch tables. Jungwon and Heeseung are already there chatting it up.

“You guys are coming right?” Jay asks them and they nod. “See? You gotta come.”

“It’ll be fun noona,” Jungwon says. “And you have to come because Heeseung hyung and Jay hyung are probably gonna leave me for girls.” he rests his head on your shoulder for a moment.

“Why don’t you get yourself some girls too.” you suggest and he shakes his head.

“I’m too shy.” he says quietly and you giggle.

“Alright fine, I’ll go.” you finally say and they all celebrate. “Jake’s not gonna be there right?”

“Uhm,” Heeseung looks over to Jake’s lunch table nervously. “I don’t think so.”

“You don’t think so?” you cock an eyebrow.

“He won’t be there,” Jay says. “It’ll be fine.”

You feel someone bump into your shoulder as you walk to history.

“What the hell?” you say and turn around to see who the culprit is. Of course it’s Jake. He shrugs with a half smile. That fucking ass.

After a few more classes you head home and start preparing for the bonfire party. It’s at a beach so you decide to wear your favorite bikini under your shirt and shorts. Your phone begins to buzz and it's a facetime call from Jungwon.

“Hola~” you greet him.

“Hi~” he says. “Can you take me there? My parents are at work.”

“Sure.” you say while putting all of your essentials into a purse.

“Also,” he hesitates. “I think Jake hyung is gonna be there.”

“What? How do you know?”

“I heard him talking about it during p.e.” he says quietly and you groan.

“Fuck, I don’t wanna go anymore.” you say.

“No you have to go, I will die without you.” Jungwon pleads. “It’ll be fun, we'll just stay away from him.”

“It’s gonna be hard to stay away from that giant ego taking up the whole place.” you roll your eyes.

“He’s not that bad noona, he’s actually pretty nice.” Jungwon shrugs.

“Don’t betray me like that,” you scold him. “You’re on my team alright?”

“Okay okay.” he surrenders, giggling.

You pick Jungwon up and give him the aux for the 30 minute drive to the beach.

You guys groove to SZA together.

Jungwon rolls down the window while you're on the highway and sticks his head out like a dog. He kind of is like a dog (in a good way). He’d be a shiba inu.

“Whoooo!!” he screams as the wind whips through his hair, you smile.

When you get there you park your car and get the beach towels from the backseat.

“Did you put sunscreen on?” you as Jungwon and he shakes his head. “Why do you never listen to me?”

You get a bottle of sunscreen out of your purse and rub a dollop on his face. He scrunches his nose.

“It feels like you're rubbing cake batter on me.” he complains.

“You’ll thank me when you’re fifty and you aren’t a wrinkly wreck.” you tell him while spreading it over his cheeks.

“Can we be done now?” he whines and you sigh.

“Fine.”

You two approach the crowd of people suntanning, drinking, playing volleyball, and playing in the ocean.

You drop your stuff next to Heeseung’s and Jay’s before looking around for them. They’re playing volleyball with who on the opposing team? Jake Sim.

Jungwon must’ve noticed you shooting lasers through your eyes because he grabs your arm. “Come on, let’s go swim.” he tugs his t-shirt over his head and jogs over to the water.

You follow suit, only feeling a little self conscious about stripping with Jake Sim only so far away. But it’s only because you don’t want to be vulnerable in front of your worst enemy, right?

Jungwon’s already relaxing among the waves when you get to the shore. “Why’d you go so deep?” you call out to him.

“It’s not that deep,” he says back.

You swim around with him for a bit before forcing him to look for pretty shells with you.

He gasps. “Baby crab!” he rushes to pick it up. “Look.” he holds it up to you.

You try to pet it without freaking it out. “What if it bites you?”

“It won’t, we’re friends.”

The sun is nearly gone by the time you’re done shell searching and swimming so you head over to the bonfire. You wrap a towel around yourself and snuggle up to Jay. He scrunches his nose.

“It’s cold,” you defend yourself.

Heeseung hands you a white claw and you crack it open.

“What are we doing now?” you ask but you can’t hear Heeseung’s answer over the sight of Jake, Sunghoon, Sunoo, and Niki sitting right across from you. You notice how the bonfire highlights the muscles in Jake’s chest and arms. The warm orange light washing over him makes it look like he’s glowing. Is this what Apollo would’ve looked like? “Huh?” you ask Hee.

“We’re probably just gonna play dumb highschool games.” he says.

You inhale and take a big swig of your seltzer.

“Truth or dare time~” Bree sing songs. “Sunoo truth or dare?”

“Truth,” Sunoo answers.

“Do you have a crush on anyone and if so, who?” she asks and he rolls his eyes.

“I have a crush on myself.” he says confidently.

“Fair enough, you go now.” she says to him.

“Heeseung hyung, truth or dare?” Sunoo asks.

“Dare,” he replies and Sunoo giggles.

“Give your phone to Jay and let him text anyone anything he wants.”

Heeseung groans and throws his head back. “Oh God.”

Jay cackles an evil laugh. “Gimme.”

Heeseung reluctantly hands Jay his phone. “You’re gonna text Sophie aren’t you.”

Sophie Morales, Heeseung ex. They broke up only a month ago after half a year of dating. This was about to be brutal.

“You know me so well.” Jay smiles.

“Please don’t say anything too horrible.” Heeseung pleads.

“Sophie,” Jay narrates his text message. “I miss you and your huge tits. Also I’m sorry for not telling you while we were dating but your feet are really fucking ugly.”

Heeseung buries his head into his hands, laughing. “Fucking Christ.”

“And your breath stinks,” Jay continues. “At least your boobs are nice.”

This is what I get for befriending males. You think to yourself.

“Alright that’s enough.” Heeseung snatches his phone away while everyone giggles. “My turn since I was the victim. y/n, truth or dare?” “Truth,”

“What’s your biggest regret?”

“Becoming friends with Jay, because he’s insane.”

Jay guffaws. “I’ve been nothing but good to you.”

You roll your eyes.

The game goes on for a bit until it lands on Jungwon.

“Noona, truth or dare?”

You’d usually go for truth, but you didn’t want people to think you were boring. “Dare.”

“I dare you and Jake hyung to talk to each other in private for at least five minutes.” he says, crossing his arms.

Your eyes widen and you look over at Jake, he looks like he wants to drown himself.

“What? Why?” you ask urgently.

“Because I’m tired of you guys hating each other for no reason. Now go.” Jungwon shoos you away.

“Yeah go talk.” Niki says to Jake.

Both of you don’t budge. Jay tugs at your arm. “Come on, Jake and y/n becoming friends!”

The whole group starts chanting. “JAKE AND Y/N BECOMING FRIENDS!”

You had to admit that their enthusiasm was kind of endearing, so you swallow your pride and walk over to the lifeguard tower. You hear him not far behind you.

You climb up the stairs and let your feet hang over the ledge of the patio.

He sits down next to you.

You let a few moments of silence pass before speaking up. “I don’t want to be here as much as you do, so let’s just wait for the five minutes to pass and then go.”

“Damn,” he says. “Do you really hate me that much?”

You roll your eyes. “What do you think?”

“What did I ever do to you?” he scoffs.

“I don’t need to justify my feelings.” you cross your arms.

“Why are you so dense?” he grumbles.

You whip your body over to him. “I’m the dense one?”

“Yeah,” he says proudly. You want to slap the smug look off of his pretty face. Normal face. Slightly, almost, barely good looking face.

“Such a prick,” you mumble, turning away.

“What’d you call me?” he scrunches his eyebrows.

You look him right in the eyes. You never noticed how dark and piercing they were. “A fucking prick. Cause you are one.”

His black hair is still damp and poking into his eyes. His lips are parted and they look so soft that you almost want to kiss him. But he beats you to it.

I should push him away. Push him away you dumbass. You kept telling yourself but you couldn’t do it. His lips felt too good against yours.

Your arms snake around his waist as he lays you onto your back.

You wish you had a hundred hands so you could touch all of him. Two weren’t enough. He feels like silk and he tastes like red velvet.

He pushes your jaw up so he can get to your neck. You exhale as his tongue dances on your skin. He grinds his hips into yours and you let out a small moan. Why are you letting him affect you like this? Idiot.

“I thought you hated me?” he smirks while kissing your chest.

“I do.” you breathe out.

“You sure?” he asks, his fingers traveling down your stomach and into your bikini bottoms.

“Mhm.” you say.

He kisses your collarbone. “People you hate don’t make you wet like this.”

That just makes you throb even more.

“Fuck off,” you say and he backs up.

“Really?” he says. “Because I will.”

You roll your eyes and pull him in by the back of the neck.

“Touch me,” you say and he happily obliges. You knew were in public but it was dark and honestly, you didn’t care.

“Such a slut,” he says while running a finger up and down your slit. “If you wanted me this badly you should’ve said so sooner.”

“I don’t want you asshole.” you breathe out as he circles your clit.

“You just asked me to touch you princess,” he kisses your neck. “I think that’s good evidence.”

You rub your fingers through the back of his hair and tug it back, exposing his neck. He lets out a small moan. You kiss his neck, sucking and nibbling every now and then. When you pull away there’s at least three red blotches that go from his throat to his chest.

“People are gonna see those you know?” he says.

“Whatever.” you roll your eyes.

“Are you marking me or something? Telling everyone that I’m yours?” he boasts.

It’s confusing how your anger is feeding into your lust for him.

“Shut up and fuck me.” you say and he cocks a brow.

“Maybe if you ask nicely,” he kisses your cheek sweetly. You want to wipe it off and slap him in the face.

“Who do you think you are?” you scoff at him.

“Come on dont play with me,” he pushes one finger into you and you moan. “I can tell that you want it.”

It was true. You were practically gushing.

“More,” you say, wanting another finger.

“Where are your manners?” he smirks.

You swallow your pride. “Please?”

“Good girl,” he says and it sends tingles down your spine.

He pulls your bikini bottoms to the side and rubs his thumb up your slit. “Such a pretty cunt.”

Your thighs are already trembling.

“I really thought you’d still be hating me right now.” he says lowly. “Do I make you that weak?”

You snap to your senses for a moment. “Fuck you.”

“I am.” he snickers and you roll your eyes.

“Don’t give me attitude princess.” he warns you with a dangerous smile.

“Or what?” you test him.

“Do you really wanna find out?”

“What do you think you’re intimidating or something?” you ask and he scoffs.

He sits up and grabs your arm. “Get up.”

“What?”

“Get up.” he says sternly and you do.

He grabs your hand, leading you somewhere.

“Where are we going?” you ask, agitated. If you really didn’t want to go you wouldn’t, but you secretly wanted to continue what was going on.

“My car.”

“What? Why?”

“You’ll see.”

“Hey! Where are you going?” Jungwon calls out. “Don’t leave me!” “I’ll be just a second!” you reply with an unsure smile.

“Backseat.” Jake says as you approach his Mercedes.

So bossy, you think.

You sit in the back seat and before you know it he’s pulling you into his lap.

“Let’s continue shall we?” he says and you don’t waste any time getting your lips on his.

He pushes your hips down onto his and you whimper. You were already so wet and this was just making it worse.

“Please, I can’t wait any longer.” you say, not being able to hold it in.

“For what?” he nips at your neck.

“I need to feel you inside of me.” you plead. 

“That’s better.” he tugs his shorts down and pulls your swimsuit to the side.

You grab the base of him before slowly sinking down. “Fuck yes.” you moan in relief.

He fills you up perfectly and his tip brushes your g-spot every time you bounce.

“So fucking tight.” he growls, holding onto your hips tight.

Your legs begin to tremble from the pleasure so he grabs you by the waist and lays you on your back.

He snaps his hips into yours and you whine.

He smirks. “Look at you all spread out for me,” he kisses your neck. “Taking this cock deep inside you.”

Your fingers trail down to rub at your clit. “Please don’t stop.”

He flips you over into doggy and tugs your hair, bringing your ear up to his mouth.

“Tell me how bad you want it.”

“Really bad,” you whimper.

He smacks your ass and you let out a small squeal.

“Touch with yourself while I fuck you.” he lets you go and you rest on the door. Your fingers move to play with your pussy.

His hands are tight on your waist as he pounds into you.

You feel your knees start to give out and your cunt start to pulse around him.

He chuckles. “Are you close sweetheart?”

“Yeah,” you exhale. “Please make me cum, please I need it so bad.”

“Why should I think you deserve it?”

“Please, I can’t hold it any longer.” you say and he stops his movements completely.

He gets close to your ear. “You get to cum when I say so okay?”

You accept defeat. “Okay.”

You start to get more and more flustered as he continues to fuck you just right.

“Fuck Jake I can’t,” you whimper and hold onto the car door for dear life.

He pulls out suddenly and you complain before feeling his tongue on you. Your body tenses up from the pleasure.

“You taste so fucking good,” he says and you arch your back, pushing your pussy into his mouth. He moans against you.

After only a couple circles on your clit with his tongue, you’re ready to come undone. You grab onto his hand.

“Wait wait I’m close,”

And before you can utter another word he slams his cock into you and brings his hand around you to rub your clit.

“Cum on this cock sweetheart, I know you can do it.” he encourages you.

He smiles as your moans get louder and more high pitched.

Your legs start to shake and he grabs you tight. He comes up to your ear. “Be a good girl for me won’t you.”

Your eyes roll back as bliss runs through your entire body. He was probably the best lay you’ve ever had.

Your body goes slack as he cums inside of you.

“Fuck,” he growls and slowly pulls out. He picks you up and holds you in his arms as you try to ride out the trembling.

“How am I supposed to clean up?” you ask.

“Maybe you can swim again?” he jokes and you punch him in the arm. “Do you still hate me?”

“One hundred percent.” you say confidently.

“Are you kidding?” he scoffs. “My kids are in you right now.”

You fake gag and he laughs.

[imagineaworlds]

Rules & Roses

“you’re late”

Written By: @desperately-bisexual​

Request: None.

Warnings: Cursing, mention of death. Pretty sure that’s it.

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x Non-binary!Reader x Emily Prentiss (poly triad)

Word Count: 2046

“You’re late,” I said to him while grinning. He shook his head, trying to stop himself from laughing so that he could focus on running up to me.

Aaron Christopher Hotchner was his name. Though I had learned a lot about him since we officially started talking on that cold Tuesday morning, I still thought of him as that six foot Nordic God. He hated that nickname, though. No matter how many times I used it, he never gave in, but I liked teasing him with it. Only two weeks had passed since we first started talking, and yet it seemed like we knew each other a lifetime. More than that, actually. My worries of talking to a stranger faded quickly the more we passed each other on the trail, then would chat as we walked to our cars. It was a nice, unspoken ritual we had. But it always started like this. No matter if it was warm or cold, sunny or cloudy, busy or quiet, we met at that park bench at the top of the U-turn. Usually, we ran beside each other, or he would be waiting up for me. This time, I was waiting on him. That wasn’t usual.

“How am I late?” he asked.

I looked at my watch. “It’s 7:17.”

“So?”

“You never reach the bench later than 7:15.”

Aaron smiled and put his hands on his hips to help him catch his breath. “Who’s stalking who now?”

“I never said you stalked me. Those are your own words.”

“Ha. Ha.” He panted for another second. “My son woke up late, so I got here late.”

I froze. During our little conversations here and there, he had never once mentioned anything about having a family. He didn’t wear a wedding ring, he seemed more than happy to flirt with me, and he never, ever said anything about having a son. This whole time, I thought he was an available man. I would have never flirted with him if I knew that he was taken, that he had other promises and responsibilities besides meeting me, practically a stranger, in the park every morning. Of course someone like him would have been snatched up by someone else. Of course the one person I saw myself potentially getting involved with since moving to D.C. was the one person I couldn’t have. My fucking luck, right? I was so stupid. How did I not see it before? Why did I get involved in all of this in the first place? I promised myself I wouldn’t talk to a stranger, and I broke that promise for him. I promised that I wouldn’t let my desperate urge for sex and love blind my ability to read social queues and dictate what was good and bad for me— and I fucking broke that promise. I saw him— I felt his hands on my hips— and everything I had learned from past experiences flew out the window. For a moment, for a blissful, wonderful moment, I forgot about Lauren because I had all of my focus on the Nordic God. A Nordic God that was taken. How fucking ridiculous.

Aaron sat down next to me. I scooted away, and he immediately noticed. A couple of days ago, I asked him what his job was at the FBI, and he told me that he studied the behavior of serial killers in order to find them. When he cracked a joke that his ability to “profile” serial killers was a curse that affected every aspect of his life, I asked him if he could profile me. Profiling was putting together all of the behaviors he spotted in someone in order to tell what kind of person they were, are, and could potentially be. Aaron laughed. He said that he had already profiled me the day we met. “Your eyes were on my friend the entire time,” he said. “Her name’s Emily, by the way.” So, that had confirmed that it wasn’t Lauren I saw. Though I was somewhat relieved, I was also disappointed, and Aaron noticed. He asked me why I was staring at her, and I simply dodged a real answer by telling him that I thought she was someone else. His profiling skills seemed to tell him I was lying. Despite the fact that he knew I wasn’t telling the truth, he didn’t pry. He never did. When I moved away from him on the bench, however, and he noticed, that was the first time I ever heard him get serious with me.

“What is it?” he asked me quietly and sincerely. I shook my head. “Y/N, it’s not what you think—”

“Why…” I hesitated for a beat. “Why would you keep flirting with me if—”

“My wife died years ago, Y/N. That’s what I’m trying to tell you.”

If I wasn’t embarrassed before, I was as red as a fucking tomato, and this time for all the wrong reasons. Originally, I had simply assumed that him having a son meant that he was still with someone. My first mistake. Then, I thought that it all meant that he didn’t like me, that he had been stringing me around for no reason, that maybe I was seeing between the lines. My second mistake. Now, I was embarrassed because I had made a complete fool of myself by tensing up at the thought of him having a kid— something I really didn’t mind, actually— and then I admitted that I thought he was flirting, all while practically pushing him away. I fucked this all up. Why was it that he made me trip over my tongue like this? I mean, he was always in my head since that first day we met and I felt his hands on my hips; and I found myself wanting to spend more time with him and impressing him. All of that had just been flushed down the drain. Any chance I had to keep being this happy and distracted had just disappeared because I had been stupid.

“I’m sorry.” I did a lot of compulsive apologizing around him. Because he made me trip over my own tongue, I always happened to say the wrong thing, so I constantly needed to apologize, which I could tell he found adorable, but I found it to be humiliating. “I didn’t mean to force that out of you.”

“It’s okay. It’s been so long, and I’ve had to tell so many people; I’m neutral about it these days.”

“I’m still sorry.”

“If you say sorry one more time, I’m going to start feeling bad.”

“Sorr—” I caught myself before laughing. “That’s going to be a bad habit to break.”

“All habits are hard to break.” He shrugged, leaned back, and looked forward to make the feeling between us casual again. “New rule, no more apologizing.”

Part of getting to know each other was making rules in order to make ourselves comfortable. I didn’t pry about his work, he didn’t ask me any more about his friend Emily. I didn’t stare below his belt (a personal rule I made for myself that I never disclosed to him), and he didn’t stare too long at my breasts when I would wear a low cut or tight shirt (a rule he made for himself that went unsaid). The rules would come up occasionally, but only when we were sitting on that park bench surrounded by roses. The parking lot, however, was fair game. Because that was the last time we would get to see each other until the next day, which was never guaranteed since he traveled so much— just like Lauren always did— we both got to break our staring rules until we would get into our separate cars. This new rule about apologizing didn’t seem like just a roses rule, though. If I had to guess, Aaron was going to keep an eye on me to make sure I wouldn’t  break this new rule.

I nodded. “Okay, fine. But, no more being late,” I said. He also nodded. “And, I need a 6AM warning every time you won’t be here.”

Aaron looked at me. “How am I supposed to do that?”

“Phone,” I demanded while holding out my hand. Aaron urgently dug into his pocket, racing to grab his phone before I could change my mind about giving him my number. He was too chicken shit to ask for it, so I didn’t mind taking that first step for him. Afterall, it was the most I could do since I totally messed up by getting uptight about his son. Speaking of which, when I turned Aaron’s phone on, I saw a picture of him holding his son, both of them smiling ear to ear after what looked like a victory after one of his son’s soccer games. I felt myself melting. “He’s adorable.” He had blonde hair, which wasn’t like his dad at all, but the brown eyes, lips, and nose were all a mirror image of Aaron.

“His name’s Jack.”

“How old is he?”

“Nine.”

I smiled at him before looking back down to unlock his phone and put my information into the Contacts app. When I was done, I turned it off and handed it back to him. “There. Now you can text me at 6AM every time you know you’re not going to be here.”

“And what about… other than 6AM?” He was biting his lip again. I always knew that he was flirting with me when he would bite his lip like that. He was the professional profiler, yet he couldn’t have been more obvious. One would think that he knew how to hide his tells better than that, but he really seemed to suck at it. “Can I call you tonight, maybe?”

“For what?”

He hadn’t anticipated that I would nudge him back with a question. “I—” He didn’t know what to say. I giggled. “Is it too late to take my rule back so that I can say sorry for being too forward?”

“Yeah. It is. Sometimes it’s okay to be forward.” I stood from the bench, giving him the idea that it was time to go. He stood, too, taking my lead because he seemed like a lost puppy that needed to be told what to do. “I get off work at seven. You can call me for whatever it is you have on your mind any time after that.” I jumped on my toes to warm myself up, also testing to see just how long he could keep his eyes on mine and not one any other part of me that was a little more… distracting. “I’ll race you to the parking lot.”

“What happens if you win?”

“Who said there needs to be prizes?”

“The new rule I just made,” he said like it was a tease.

I squinted at him. “You can’t just make rules up for your benefit, Aaron.”

“Well, if you win, Y/N, I’ll stop making up random rules.”

“And if you win?”

I saw his answer coming from a mile away, but I still felt myself smiling when he said, “I take you out for dinner after our call tonight.”

“Deal.”

Aaron wasn’t prepared at all yet, but that didn’t stop me from beginning my dash down the path. Though I was inevitably going to let him win, I still had to put up somewhat of a fight to make his win believable. Aaron seemed to notice immediately. Before I could make it very far, he was already speeding past me, intent on winning so  that he could take me to dinner. Dummy. I wasn’t trying very hard to win. He didn’t seem to notice, though,even as we reached the parking lot where he claimed his victory. He slowed to a stop. As I caught up, he turned around and smiled.

“You’re late,” he teased me.

I rolled my eyes. “Pick me up at eight.” I immediately started making my way towards my car, which gave Aaron the chance to break his rule so that he could stare at me for a little longer than he was supposed to. “And don’t be late!” I called back to him.

------------

criminal minds family: @peggy1999​ @gorgeousdarkangel​  @alex--awesome--22​ @oceaneblu​ @brithedemonspawn​ @absolutemarveltrash​ @bshelley322​

[meltwonu]

| good in bed |     [chapter 1]

pairing; non-idol!chan x reader

this chapter’s notes; HELLO HELLO!! Gettin this ball rollin with the first chapter of good in bed!!!😚💕 Thank u for the interest in this fwb au with chan~ he needs more love yall hehe kind of an introductory chapter but fingering, (barely a) handjob and minor exhibitionism eheheh love u!!!💕💕💕💕

chapters; 1 - x - x - x

“So, how was your date with Jun-hyung?”

Chan toes his shoes off at the door, arms full of groceries and snacks for your weekly movie night at your apartment. You set your own bags down on the countertop before sighing and wiping the sweat from your brow. “It was okay. He kept asking me if I wanted to see videos of his hot dog roller and I couldn’t tell if that was sexual or if he really had a hot dog roller?” Chan laughs to tears, barely setting his bags down on the dining table before collapsing to the floor.

“Fuck, please tell me you’re kidding?” You shake your head ‘no’ at him, placing the various groceries in their places in the kitchen before grabbing the box of popcorn to make.

“I wish I was. He asked me if I wanted to go on a second date so he could show it to me in person.”

“Did you say yes?”

You shoot Chan an incredulous look, placing the bag of popcorn in the microwave and pressing start. “Uh, no?” He gets up from the floor, wiping the stray tears from his eyes before grabbing some of the other snacks and taking them to the living room to set up the space for your movie night.

“You should’ve. Maybe he would’ve shown you his massive dick and you missed out.”

You’re 3 movies in, 2 bags of popcorn cooked and Chan is already nodding off at 9PM.

“Chan, you ok over there?” He hums, sitting up on the sofa as he yawns. “Yeah, sorry, Soonyoung-hyung is really grilling us for the dance competition and we’re in the practice room a lot longer than usual. I’m beat. He could rip my legs off and I wouldn’t even feel it.” You look over to him rubbing his eyes, trying to wipe the sleepiness out of them as he reaches for the bucket of popcorn in between the two of you. “You should’ve just stayed home and rested, you didn’t need to come over for movie night if you’re this tired...” Frowning, you reach over, smoothing his mussed hair as he whines.

“I’m not a baby! And anyway, we’ve never missed movie night! Remember the time we got food poisoning from Jihoon-hyung’s cooking? We still had movie night, just with barf buckets.”

Laughing at the memory, you get up from your spot on the sofa, grabbing more drinks from the kitchen before settling back into your spot on the couch.

“True, I don’t know what we’d do without our movie nights.” Chan’s eyes flit to your form next to him, fingers in the bowl of popcorn. “I dunno, probably getting laid?” You choke on a sip of soda, the carbonated beverage getting onto your shirt. “What!?”

“What? Am I wrong? I don’t think I’ve heard you talk about any of your dates getting any further than the first date lately. And you’ve gone on a lot of them recently.”

The blush that coats your features is burning hot as you set your drink down onto the coffee table. You and Chan had talked about your dates and love lives before, but something about how blunt he’d just been surprised you. “Yeah, well, I dunno. I’m just not getting the right vibes, y’know? I know you’re friends with some of the people I’ve dated but just… I dunno. Maybe my chakras aren’t aligned or whatever.” He rolls his eyes at you jokingly, tired eyes back to the forgotten movie on screen.

“What if we just… I dunno, fucked?”

You can feel your pupils shaking as you stare holes into the side of Chan’s head. “Excuse me, what?”

He clears his throat, reaching for his glass of water on the side table before taking a sip and setting it back down. “I mean, you haven’t been getting any and I haven’t been getting any… We should maybe try it out?”

“You make it sound like we’re just trying kombucha for the first time! How are you so calm about this?!”

Chan laughs as he glances at you, noticing the blush covering your cheeks. “Because… Well, I don’t know. I guess cause we’re best friends? I trust you out of all people, you know? I know you won’t bite my dick off?” You bite the inside of your cheek; in all honesty, you had a huge crush on Chan for a while and the only reason you’d been going on so many dates lately was because you were trying to forget about your crush on Chan.

“Chan… I don’t know, this seems complicated?”

“You said you weren’t getting laid so…”

“Yeah, Chan, I said that but I dunno about this…”  He cracks a smile, hand in the bucket of popcorn next to you. “You also said you didn’t want random hook-ups either, not after Seungkwan tried to finger you in that Ferris wheel two weeks ago.” You grimace at the memory; you were 3 seconds away from getting the good ‘ol police escort out of the theme park.

“I did say that…”

“Well? I’m not random, I’m your best friend! And anyway, Soonyoung’s been so far up my ass with practice for the dance competition at the end of the year so I haven’t been getting any either. It’d work out for both of us?” Chan crams a fist full of popcorn into his mouth, eyes never leaving the tv screen. You contemplate his words for a minute; Chan was insanely handsome and if you were being completely honest, you’d had a crush on him for a while now which is why you weren’t sure this was the right route.

“Chan, I don’t know…”

“Okay, well, just think about it? I’m always here for you. Even if you want to tie me up to the bedpost.”

You nod, a quiet ‘okay’ leaving your lips before you turn to the tv yourself.

“Let’s finish this movie because Sonic the Hedgehog is next on our list and I wanna see it already.”

When Chan leaves your apartment at midnight, he hugs you goodbye, reminding you to think about his proposition. You nod, a tight lipped smile on your face when you shut the door.

You tidy up your place slowly, the thoughts of Chan swimming in your head the entire time it takes for you to clean up and get ready for bed. There was really nothing wrong with his suggestion; you just weren’t sure if it’d make or break your friendship with him. It was fine that you kept your crush on him to yourself, but you knew that adding any sort of physical relationship would make it hard for you to not fall for him even harder. On the flipside, you’d finally be able to fuck your crush without him noticing anything, probably.

Groaning, you reach for your phone, scrolling through various apps before sighing again. Was it worth all the risk?

Screw it, you think, if it destroys our friendship at least we went out with a bang.

You realize when you ring the doorbell to Jeonghan’s apartment that only an actual psycho throws a party on a Tuesday night. I guess that’d be Jeonghan. He opens the door and lets you in, a drunken flush already evident on his skin as he thrusts a cup into your hand.

“There’s more drinks in the kitchen, Minghao’s the bartender tonight!!” You grimace as you smell the contents of the cup, taking a sip before you walk further into the apartment. Noticing a few of your one time dates, you awkwardly wave at them before making a beeline for the kitchen in order to avoid conversation.

“Hey! There you are, come have a drink!”

To your slight surprise, Chan’s already there, arm outstretched with a shot in hand. You had barely talked to him all weekend, giving him and yourself some time to think about the decision you’d both made. Although he had texted you once at 3am asking you a list of your top ten things you wanted to try out in the bedroom; to which you had taken at least 3 hours to come up with before sending the text and throwing your phone at your bed as the sun began to rise into the sky.

Taking the shot out of his hand, you down it, setting the cup back onto the countertop. “When did you get here, Chan?” He downs his own before wrapping an arm around your waist and tugging you closer towards him. 

“Not too long ago, but Jeonghan’s been really shoving the alcohol down our throats tonight so it feels like it’s been hours.” He finishes with a laugh, fingertips digging into your clothed waist. “Been thinkin’ about you though, y’kno?”

“O-oh, really?”

“Mmhmm. Y’kno that fourth thing on your list that you sent me… I was waiting for you to show up cause I think we can try it out if you’re interested. I’m not gonna lie, I was getting a ‘lil ahead of myself and thinkin’ about all the things I wanted to do to you if you’d let me. Wanna get started?” You blush, almost crushing the cup in your hand when you remember what the fourth item on your list was.

Exhibitionism.

“I, um, o--okay, yeah let’s---let’s do it.”

When Chan pushes you into the storage closet of Jeonghan’s apartment, you can’t help but be a little confused, almost tripping over a misplaced wrench before plastering yourself against the wall.

“No offense Chan, but a storage closet?” He turns the flashlight on from his phone, searching for a light inside of the tiny room only to not find one before turning the flashlight off. “Aww, baby wants to fuck on a bed?” His voice is teasing, a stupidly handsome smirk visible on his face once your eyes adjust to the dark.

“Normally yes?”

“Well, too bad. The only bed in this place is Jeonghan’s and I know he’d make my life hell if I fucked you on it. Anyway, I… I wanna take it a ‘lil slow with you so we’ll start off with some basic shit, okay?” You roll your eyes, although you can’t deny the heat pooling in your lower abdomen. “I don’t know how basic this’ll be but … okay.”

Chan places his hands on your waist, pulling you towards him so that you can feel his hardness already straining in his jeans. “I’m not gonna lie, I was a little shocked when you sent that list of yours… But if I’m being honest, a lot of it is stuff I wanted to try too, so I guess it works out for us, huh?” He grinds into you, a small moan on his lips when he slots a leg in between yours. “Did you think about me at all?”

“Y-yeah…”

“Good. Can I kiss you?”

“Yes… please.” You’re nervous and about to change your entire relationship with Chan but the excitement overpowers all of your other emotions when he leans in, his lips on yours for the first time ever. He tastes like vodka and citrus when he dips his tongue into your mouth; your arms wrapping around his neck to pull him in closer.

His hips work against yours as the two of you grind against each other in the tiny space. Chan’s lips part from yours, trailing down your neck in soft movements. “Can I leave marks?” You nod your head furiously, moaning loudly at his lips sucking love bites onto your skin. “I’m surprised you asked. Don’t you want them to know what we’re doing in here?” Chan smirks against your skin, hands moving from your waist to the button on your jeans.

“Mmm, don’t we both?” Chan pops the button of your jeans, working the zipper down before he plays with the hem of your panties between his fingertips. “I want to make sure you want this before I start. I want to hear you say it.”

“I want you, Chan.”

You don’t know how long has passed since Chan’s fingers spread your pussy open, the sound of your wetness bouncing off of the tiny room’s walls. “Ugh, Chan, p-please, another finger? I need more!” The music playing outside in the living room is loud and you hope somewhat that your voice is muffled when you cry out. Chan obliges, adding a third finger as you grind down onto his digits.

“Aww, baby, I’ve been doing all the work. Won’t you give me a ‘lil something too?”

You tug him in for another kiss, trailing a hand down his torso before you’re undoing his jeans, pushing his underwear down to wrap a hand around his cock. Precum leaks from the tip as Chan moans against your lips, thrusting his hips up into your closed hand as you squeeze your hand around him.

“Bet you wish it was my pussy instead, huh?” 

You bite his lower lip before pulling away, “Too bad you didn’t just fuck me on Jeonghan’s bed but oh well~” Chan growls, thrusting his fingers into you particularly hard before his thumb starts to circle your clit.

“Don’t get cocky with me now, babe. Being a brat was only 8th on your list and I don’t think you want me to get mean with you just yet.”You grip on his cock loosens as you feel your orgasm building, moans freely spilling from your lips.

“Hey do you hear that?”

A muffled voice on the other side of the closet door has you pausing for a second, pussy clenching around Chan’s fingers. He smirks in the darkness, rubbing quicker circles on your clit. “C’mon, baby, cum for me, let them hear how pretty you sound when I’m making you cum.”

“Fuck, what the hell are you two doing in my closet!?”

Chan laughs, leaning down to kiss your cheek. “Cum, now.”  

All you can hear is the sound of your heart thrumming in your chest and Chan’s breathy moans as Jeonghan’s voice gets drowned out in the background when you cum. You’re sure nothing coherent is leaving your lips when Chan’s fingers continue to work you through it.

“Get the fuck out of my closet you nasty asses!”

“Ok but they sound good, ya’ll got an onlyfans or what?”

“Oof, is this why there was no second date?”

When Chan pulls his fingers out of your pussy is when you start to remember when you are, fingers still loosely wrapped around his cock when he licks his fingers clean. You run your hand up and down his shaft; hand coated in a sticky substance.

“Damn baby, even with the zero energy handjob I still came, guess you’re that powerful huh? Wonder what that pussy will do to me when we finally get to it.”

“Bitch, I will fucking kill you before you get to it, now get out of my closet!”

[dream-a-little-bigger-x]

Chapter 7 -- Perfect Harmony | Charlie Gillespie

Summary: Emily Fox is a talented 17-year-old with a passion for all things music. Her dream is to become a successful singer-songwriter one day. But to achieve that dream, she needs to get into one of the most prestigious music schools in her district – it’s all been part of her plan since she was six. Sadly enough, those schools cost a ton of money that her parents don’t want to invest. They don’t even want her to pursue her dream. So, now Emily’s hustling, working at the music store to save up to get into college. That’s until she meets Charlie, an annoying seventeen-year-old boy with the same dream as her. The only difference is, he’s just doing it. He doesn’t need a fancy college to pursue his dream to become famous with his band. He just writes his songs and books small gigs here, there and everywhere. Will meeting Charlie defer her from her dream college, or will he actually help her achieve the dream?

Pairing: Charlie Gillespie x OC (Emily Fox)

Warnings: mentions of death, sexual assault

Important note: the characters of Charlie, Owen, Jeremy and Madison are based on the characters they play on the show and i do not own their names, only OC are mine. The songs aren’t mine either, they’re all from the show except for one.

Chapter seven 

~|Emily Fox|~

“Hey, you want to hang out after school today?” Madison asks me on Monday at lunch. “Oh, I—” I think of the most plausible lie, “I promised Ash I would close up again tonight. She’s got this thing with her girlfriend. I don’t know what, but she said it was important.” It’s not even that big of a lie. Ash has asked me that many a times before for the exact same reason. Only this time, she didn’t ask me to close the store. I want to go and tell Ash I will close it, for free, just so I – hopefully – bump into Charlie again tonight. I want to tell him I nearly finished the song and ask him if he has any clue what’s missing. “What about tomorrow?” I take a bite of my sandwich and chew ferociously, guarding my mouth with my hand to show her I can’t talk yet. “Got a shift from four until closing.” That’s not a lie. Tuesdays are mostly shift days anyway. “Wednesday?” I realize I can’t come up with another lie that I have to work. And besides, I think I could hang out with Madi until just before closing time and head down to the Music Store after. “Sure, yeah, Wednesday could work.” The brightest smile appears on her face at the answer. “It’s a date!” she pats my hand twice excitedly. “You know, we’ve been spending a lot less time together since you started working at the Music Store. I feel like I don’t even know what’s going on in that mind of yours.” I widen my eyes at that. If only she’d know. “Seen Cute Douchebag again?” “Uhm, no, I think he’s given up,” I lie. I can’t get into Charlie right now. She’ll know by the first word I’m crushing on him. Like really crushing on him. And she’ll say something crazy that I’m in love with him and it’ll get me to start thinking about that and I can’t have that right now. “Oh, sad. I really think you and him would make a cute couple.” The words nearly make me choke on my sandwich. “And he could help you write songs and get you into that fancy school of yours…” she trails off at the end, and I know exactly what’s coming next. “Or help you become famous.” I mouth the words along, earning a glare from my best friend. “I’m serious, Emmy.” A shiver runs down my spine at the nickname. “Don’t call me that,” I warn her. It’s what Uncle Robert always used to call me and Madi knows. “You know that name is reserved for someone else.” Madison holds up her hands in defense and quickly changes the subject. “You know Brianna’s doing her annual party next week right?” I nod my head. “Are you going?” “I’d rather die than go to a Brianna Holly party,” I snort, trying not to imagine me at that party. “Besides, you do know witches lure their pray into their house to eat them.” “I’m pretty sure that’s just from Hocus Pocus and it was mostly kids,” Madi corrects me. “Seventeen-year-olds are still kids,” I argue. “You’re seventeen years old, Ems,” she points out. I open my mouth to reply something to that, but then close it, not sure what to say. “Besides, she’s no witch. That there,” she points to the other side of the cafeteria, to the “popular table” where Brianna and Jake are seated. “Is a demon.” I watch Brianna as she cackles her witchy-demon laugh and can’t disagree. “You’re right.” Madi and I both pack our lunches back up and grab our stuff. “When am I not?” she wiggles her eyebrows, the way only Madi could. The two of us giggle our way out the cafeteria and to our lockers, getting ready for the other half of the day.

The day went by really slow. School normally has a bit of a slower pace, but I think turtles might go faster than this day went by. And it’s especially agonizing when you look forward to something that’s happening after school. “Ugh, finally!” I groan once Madi and I exit the school. “This day went agonizingly slow today.” “Eh, it was fine,” she says, shrugging her shoulders. “Yeah, because you don’t have a cute boy waiting for you,” I mumble under my breath, hoping she didn’t hear. When I subtly turn my head to watch her reaction, I find her distracted by some other cute boys. The lacrosse boys. Of course. For once I thank heaven for high school jocks. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Mads,” I say before leaving, but I doubt she heard it, so I shoot her a text instead. “You seemed a bit distracted by the Lacrosse boys. Had to go. See u tomorrow xx”

I don’t think I ever managed to walk from school to the Music Store this quickly. I arrive in under five minutes, when it usually takes fifteen, twenty when Madi walks along. “Emily, hey?” Ash greets, a little confused by my presence. “Hey, you mind if I close the store today? I want to work on my songs and don’t want to disturb Uncle Mitch tonight.” Ash gapes at me with big eyes and an open mouth. “I’ll do it for free.” She closes her mouth at this and narrows her eyes instead. “I know what this is about,” she says as the bell over the door rings. “That’s what this is about.” She nods her head towards the door. I turn around to indeed find what this is about entering the store. I quickly turn back to Ash before making eye contact with Charlie and offer her a sheepish grin. “Please?” I almost beg, hoping I don’t sound too desperate, but also thinking I might already be past desperate. “I swear, you don’t have to pay me for this.” Ash shakes her head at me. “You’re so desperately in love with him, sweetie. I hope you realize that.” I furrow my eyebrows at this, now it’s me shaking my head. “No, he’s just –” Ash finishes my sentence for me, “Incredibly attractive? Yeah – I noticed. I’m still bisexual, sweetie.” She winks at me before hopping over the counter and passing Charlie in the store. “My colleague will tend to all of your needs tonight,” she tells him loud enough, so I hear it to. She even turns her head to look at me, just to make sure I heard her. “See you tomorrow, Ems!” she raises a hand as a goodbye before exiting the store. “Tend to all of my needs, huh?” Charlie asks with eyebrows raised. This time, however, it doesn’t sound as fuckboy-y as it did the first night. It has a nervous quality to it due to him not daring to look at me. “Actually,” I say as I reach into my backpack to grab my notebook with all of my songs inside. Most of them written on loose papers, just stuck between pages of the book. “I need you to tend to some of my needs.” He snaps his head up at this, raising his eyebrows at me suggestively. “Not like that,” I scold and make my way to the piano. “I nearly finished the song, but I’m missing something, and I was wondering if you could help me out.” He leans over the paper to take a better look at the paper. Our shoulders touch, and I nearly feel my head explode at the simple touch. “Huh, you did use my bridge,” he says, pointing to the scratched out first version of the bridge and his bridge written very tiny next to it. “That’s not the point,” I say quickly, then point to the part I do want to talk about, “I don’t want to use the exact same chorus twice. I think it might sound better with something like…” I trail off and play a few notes on the piano. “You set me free You and me together is more than chemistry Love me as I am I'll hold your music here inside my hands We say we're friends, we play pretend…” I look up at him for him to add something to it, which only takes him a few seconds. “You’re more to me, we’re everything” I smile at him. I knew he’d be able to fix my problem. “When are you going to show it to me entirely?” he asks after a few seconds. “I am, aren’t I?” “No, I mean, when are you going to sing this with me?” I open my mouth to respond, but nothing comes out. I can’t do this yet. The song isn’t tweaked to perfection yet. I need a few more days before I can really show it to anyone. “Not yet, I want to get it perfect before I can show it to anyone.” I put the loose papers back into my notebook after having scribbled down the addition. “It just needs some tweaks.” I repeat, then look up at Charlie to find him already looking at me with that loose smile on his face and his eyes golden. “So…” he then changes the subject after a few seconds of complete silence that feels like a soft blanket, “We practically wrote a song together… I thought you said you wrote alone?” My heart stops beating for a moment as I think about the real reason why I don’t write with anyone else. Uncle Mitch told me to be honest. So, I probably should. Unless I want him to leave me alone for the rest of my life. Which I don’t. I want to see him every day and spend each possible moment with him. “I—” I take a deep breath, “It’s stupid. It’s a lame excuse, never mind.” I want to turn and walk away from him to properly start closing up the store, but Charlie grabs my hand and keeps me from walking away. My eyes glide from his hand holding mine to the arm connected to it and to the face that I’ve come to enjoy looking at. “You can tell me, Ems. Whatever it is. However stupid. I want to know why. I want to know why you won’t write with me. We’d be amazing together. Look at that song we wrote together without even realizing. From what I can see on paper, it sounds amazing. You’re really talented and I think we could make real magic together.” I draw in a deep breath, my hand shaking a little in his. I wonder if he feels how nervous I am. “Okay… It’s, uhm…” He stares at me with tentative eyes, urging me to continue, telling me to trust him. “I used to write songs with my Uncle Robert. He’s the one that taught me everything. He taught me how to read music, how to play piano and guitar, we used to sing together every day from morning until evening. When I got old enough, around twelve years old, we wrote our first song together. Albeit, it was about my bunny that died, but still, it kind of rocked.” The sniffle that comes after the chuckle makes me realize I’ve started crying. Charlie’s chuckle reaches my ears and encourages me to continue telling him. “Uncle Robert died a year ago. So, I haven’t really written with anyone else because it feels like betraying him. It was our thing, you know? I just… it doesn’t feel right.” Charlie reaches up with the hand that’s not holding mine and tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. The simplest touch sends shivers down my spine and butterflies into my stomach. “That’s not a lame excuse, Ems. I get it,” he reassures me with a small smile, “I just think that if you ever feel like you could start writing songs with me, we’d be able to create the most beautiful masterpieces, just like the song we wrote together now. Times ten,” I chuckle at that, “In perfect harmony.” My eyes widen at that as an idea pops into my head. I tug my hand out of his in a rush and grab the piece of paper with our song on, just to write “PERFECT HARMONY” at the top. I turn my face to look at Charlie with the beautiful smile on his face again that makes me feel all warm inside. “That’s perfect,” he tells me, “Can you sing it now?” I raise my eyebrows at him, as if saying “Really, bro?” and he raises his hands in defense, knowing exactly what the simple non-verbal communication means. “Now sit down and play some guitar so I can clean up in here.” He salutes me and goes to grab the guitar he always uses when he’s here. He sits down and strums the guitar. “This is tuned different from the last time I was here,” he notices. “Other people use those instruments, Charles,” I tell him, knowing all-too-well it was me who tuned it differently. On Thursday to be exact. I was missing him and decided to play some guitar myself. The exact moment Owen came in and asked me about the Open Mic Night. “You did that, didn’t you?” he raises his eyebrow. I feel my cheeks heating up but turn quickly so he doesn’t see. “Don’t be silly, Charles. Why would I use your guitar when I’m working?” I question whilst keeping myself preoccupied by sorting some papers, mainly to calm my heart down a little. “My guitar?” he emphasizes the ‘my’. “I mean, that guitar.” He stares at me for a moment, and I hear Madi in my mind going “Mmh-mmh…” “Just play your instrument, dumbass.” I return to my job whilst Charlie plays his guitar for a while. Once I’m done and I can lock up, Charlie places his guitar back in its place and joins me at the door. “Hey,” he says, once outside. I turn to face him after turning the key. “Thanks for letting me play in there. It’s nice not having parents yelling at you for not making so much noise.” I offer him a smile, and hope it says enough about how similar my parents are. “No problem, Charlie,” he startles at the lack of full name-usage, “See you tomorrow?” “Yes, definitely. See you tomorrow,” he gives me a wave and the two of us split ways. Ash is right. I am desperately in love with him. I don’t know what it is. Sure, he’s attractive, but I would be repulsed by boys that approach girls like he did that first day. Overly confident, thinking they own the place. Jake’s like that and I learned from my mistakes. But Charlie is just… different. There’s a warm, golden heart underneath all that confidence. Plus, ever since I rejected him that first day, he’s been really tentative and kind of nervous every time he’s around me. Which must mean he’s not the Douchebag he seemed to be. Charlie is… Charlie. And I am absolutely, totally smitten.

Taglist: @parkeret​ @lukeys-giggle​ @hannahhistorian92​ 

Lemme know if you want to be on my taglist for this story/any of my other works!

[floraisann]

ateez reaction: you’re addicted to animal crossing: new horizons

➣ requested? ✓

➣ genre: fluff, humor

➣ masterlist

sorry that some of these are kinda dry 😔 i am try

❅♩♬♩❅――

❥ kim hongjoong:

lets you do your thing tbh

you’ll probably just be vibing in the living room with the switch hooked up to the tv and everything’s great when hongjoong just,,,, moves his work over without saying anything

you’re just ???? and he’s just :)))) the “just another tuesday” grin, you know?

after long enough if you ask him why he moved, he just says he “likes the soundtrack” like bro we do be bopping to the animal crossing ost out here in this quarantine joint

watches you play, only making comments when a villager says something REALLY cursed

really likes marshal— he’s funny

not the type to hate villagers either except chops, fuck chops

once yunho shows him how the custom qr code outfit designs work you’re about to have the most stylish lil mayor that ever roamed the earth

probably also borrows your switch to make your town jingle

overall is just confused by the game dynamic, but likes the music and how happy it’s making you :)

you’re gonna have to put the switch down on your own honey, he’s too caught up in bopping to the music while doing his own work to realize you’ve been playing for eight hours

❥ park seonghwa

has the game too, probably bought it for you so you could build “couple islands” and be THAT cute gamer couple

still probably nags you for gaming too hard if too many hours pass and you’re ignoring basic needs to like,,,, get lolly on your island or something of the sort

but lolly’s cute give him 5 mins to fall in love w god cat

sends you cute in-game love letters when you’re headass six feet away from each other in real time

but it’s ok they’re cute and he likes making you blush

brings his pretty flowers to your island he also steals yours but that’s okay

dumbfounded by your blatant aggression towards certain villagers

offers to “trade” villagers with you to make you happy and marshal scares him please take marshal from him

yes he’ll bring you cute snacks as if you were studying

overall happy that you found something you enjoy together, but will make you take frequent breaks so you don’t put off whatever you actually have to do too much

❥ jeong yunho

didn’t get the hype at first. bought the game since he thought it had to be super fun if you were ignoring him for hours at a time to go bug catching LMFAO

yet when he downloads it there’s a catch

mr epic gamer, unlike you, has the luck of a god and generates an actual island paradise and probably gets a ton of shooting star fragments too 😔✊🏻

you’re the one stealing from his island, but it’s okay he loves you 💕

and he doesn’t quite understand the game yet

gives you star fragments because you can’t get any and he doesn’t want you all sad because you can’t make a wand!!

has all the cute villagers, but if any try to move will give them to you

pays off your tom nook debt because with his luck it probably takes him less than an hour to get filthy rich in game

also figures out the qr code outfits early on. yes he’ll try to make you one, yes he’ll make himself match

overall, he gets the game because of you but does it better because it’s yunho why wouldn’t he xoxo

still makes sure you’re doing what you need to before you go off to work on your island for six hours; the type to offer game rewards he magically obtains as a prize for you after you finish your daily work

oh to be jeong yunho

❥ kang yeosang

the president of the epic gamer club

probably persuaded you to buy it with him so he could rob your island of all your goods

makes you both reset the game until your islands both have good items but are different

so he can steal your fruit :D

“y/n, you— no, restart. you can’t have peach trees, i already have peach trees!”

“dates” where you guys lie on his bed with your consoles, literally just exploring each other’s islands

y’all practically end up sharing two islands. that’s how much you play together

invites you to go raid the other members’ islands

cursed humor carries into the game; like he’ll send you crackhead mail when you least expect it and the content WILL be something that’s only funny because it’s Yeosang

“you make me so incredibly happy, y/n. almost as happy as when tom nook first handed me my nookphone. almost”

celebrates with you when you’re both rid of the ugly villagers

overall impartial to your obsession, rather he’s glad he has someone to steal from share with

still will make you take breaks with him. he loves that you’ve got a pretty island but you need to take care of yourself sweetie

if you don’t listen he will randomly come on your island to beat you up with a shovel xoxo yeosang luvs u 😘

❥ choi san

would not mind the game at all if it weren’t making you IGNORE HIS NEED FOR CUDDLES >:(

tbh san would probably whine about being attention starved for an eternity 15 mins until he realizes his whining isn’t working, and he has no choice but to cuddle up to you while letting you do your thing

by that i mean he’s backseat gamer all the way, no i do not accept criticism

he’d probably just plop down next to you and cuddle into your side or lay on top of you— just positioning himself in some way that he can see your gameplay

the type to cling to you while you play while bothering you until you accept his game opinions as fact

can and will make you kick out the villagers he thinks are ugly

“i just want you to kick that smelly limberg out, is that really too much to ask?”

probably spent 10 minutes absolutely losing his shit over the animal crossing language

“WHY ARE THEY TALKING IN KEYBOARD SMASH?”

takes the next half hour to learn how to speak it

so next time you play too long and ignore him, will shut off your switch then lay down on you and scream acnh villager language gibberish in your EAR

"you didn’t have a problem with that voice three hours ago when you were talking to that cat rosie!!” :(

if you really ignore him and never stop playing NOTHING is stopping him from being dramatic and saying smth like “y/n, i can’t take this anymore! choose, me or him!”

“him” is tom nook

why the fuck would you pick tom nook

❥ song mingi

knows the game is popular but wasn’t bothered to try playing

so when he sees you, curled up on the couch in the same position he saw you two hours ago just with one less family sized bag of chips, he quietly sighs to himself and sits next to you

“is the game really that interesting?”

when you nod, he ends up like san and kind of chills with you, backseat gaming mode

except he isn’t yelling at you to kick out the ugly villagers, he can already see you trying on your own

gets shocked when the first tarantula appears and you get bitten

occasionally gives input on what he thinks you can do to have a better island

makes you go on an island tour so he can see what you headass just spent the last week making

actually is impressed by how much work you put into your virtual island

congrats! you’ve unlocked an achievement! : gaming livestream date for song mingi

will decide for himself who the cutest villager is then act cute and ask if he looks like them. it’s probably gonna be kid cat. tell him he does. please, Tell Him he looks like kid cat

basically i don’t think he’d be that put off by you getting addicted to the game because!!! acnl is the most relaxing game ever he likes to watch you while he unwinds after a long day

if you play too long though he won’t really say much, just sit by you pouting like :(((( “lov me”

pls love him, the big babie 🥺

❥ jeong wooyoung

another member that probably has the game, but isn’t as obsessed as you

will beg you for shooting star fragments if you get any though. please get this man a wand

does not get WHY you’re trying so hard on your island layout. literally only wants one villager, his island can go to shit so long as he has that one villager

that one villager is probably gonna be molly or something

another member who learns how to imitate animal crossing speak, except his voice is already in the correct pitch

makes fun of you complaining about a villager you hate but it all comes back to bite him in the ass once moose shows up on his island and he gets it

you guys are having a competition to see who can get sprinkle on your island first

spoiler alert: he wins, he stole her from seonghwa

(he steals a lot from seonghwa)

overall happy with the fact that you guys have a game to play together

but if you grind too hard on your own and ignore him for hours at a time can and will invade your island to steal your fruit and trample your flowers. AND send you spam mail

sorry

❥ choi jongho

doesn’t care for the game, and he’s mostly chill too so he’ll probably just vibe in the other room while you play, waiting for you to finish so he can do something with you

comes out a few hours later when you’re (still) lying on the couch, angrily button mashing while muttering curses to yourself

he’s really confused tbh, he’s seen yeosang play, he knows you don’t gotta go that hard to be a successful mayor, so he HAS to ask what the fuck you’re so mad about

“i’m TRYING to catch a blittering at the moment, but i keep getting these stupid carps!!! i have a debt to pay off, god!!”

becomes infinitely more amused with the game after that point

he thinks its so funny how someone could get heated while playing through probably the most relaxing game ever

watches you fish; he enjoys the puns and seeing you get frustrated when you keep catching those goddamn carps

probably takes the switch from you at one point to try his hand at it and catches a koi fish in his first five minutes

“i guess you just suck at fishing, y/n”

overall pretty unbothered by your love for the game until you start ignoring him

then he will threaten your in-game apples, saying he’s .2s away from stealing one of his members’ switches just to brawl with your trees

and we all know who’s gonna win between jongho and apples

[crash-cinematic-universe]

Holographic Sand is a Kickass Band Name

pairing: peter maximoff/OC(graciella decuerpo) (high school AU/not canon)

summary: peter learns that a fuckton can change in the course of a week

warnings: none? bad language and peter is simp but thats it

notes **please read**: Heyyyyy how are you doing? good? that’s great. so ik this fic is a peter/oc fic, but honesty i only use her name a few times and a few defining features but like. thats it. so you can totally just imagine urself in her position. also this fic is 5,550 words exactly. that’s the most ive ever written and I am SUPER fucking proud. I think i might become one of those blogs where i write super huge monster fics that im proud of instead of just writing to fill requests.if u dont want that then just lmk and i will not do that. i dont know. maybe. also this fic is peter centric because uh it is. anyways enjoy <3

taglist: @creator-appreciator, @simonsbluee

--------

Monday

           Peter sat across the room, his arms crossed neatly on top of his knees as he rested his chin on his forearm. He wasn’t paying attention to the lesson being taught in front of him, in fact, he wasn’t paying attention to anything at all. No, Peter was lost in his head again. Peter’s mind was a chaotic minefield of music and cheesy one-liners and random facts that he seems to just know. But this time, he wasn’t envisioning himself beating up a police officer or playing with Pink Floyd. This time, he was picturing a perfect world where nothing ever happened yet nothing was ever boring. Peter had built a utopia in his mind-- a kingdom created to his exact preferences. A blissful tower of joy and happiness and energy and satisfaction. A paradise where he stood on top of the world with Graciella DeCuerpo, the pretty girl from algebra  class, standing right next to him.

          Now, Peter was well aware that the pretty girl from algebra  class had no idea who Peter was. The pair had never exchanged more than a few words, but somewhere within those few words, Peter managed to decide that she was his soulmate. He’d created an image of her in his head that would make God weep tears of envy, the perfect personality for the perfect person.  Peter willfully ignored the fact that he was setting himself up for heartbreak as he imagined how nice it would feel to have her fingers intertwined with his. 

           All of Peter’s friends thought he was ridiculous, ‘you can’t love someone you don’t know,’ they’d say. Peter would only scoff and shake away their words. He absolutely can love someone he doesn’t know, it’s getting the other person to reciprocate those feelings that’s nearly impossible. However, that doesn’t stop him from fantasizing at night. That doesn’t stop him from imagining the various ways he’d confess his love to the pretty girl who doesn’t love him. Or maybe she does. Peter doesn’t know, he could never know; unless, of course, he worked up the courage to talk to her. 

          Scott constantly teased Peter about his one-sided infatuation, but Peter paid no mind to him. He was 100% content with his perpetual pining for someone who probably didn’t know his name. He was totally okay with the unending ache in his chest that would appear any time she walked by or met his gaze. Peter was alright with his ceaseless yearning and the eternal feeling of disappointment that overtook him every time he snapped out of one of his fantasies. He was a-okay with all of that.

          So, there he was, spacing out during biology class as Professor Hargreeves struggles to teach the silver teen about photosynthesis. The Professor looked at Peter with desperate eyes, soon deciding that having his usually energetic student be quiet and still was the silver lining of the situation-- no pun intended. Professor Hargreeves droned on as Peter glanced at the clock, counting down the minutes until 7th period. Counting the seconds until he got to see the pretty girl in algebra  class once again.

Tuesday

          6th period was always the worst part of Peter’s day-- the dreaded english class. There were many contributing factors to Peter’s hatred for this class; the professor was a bore, the material itself was uninteresting, and Peter could never seem to sit still or retain any of the words he read in english class. Worst of all, english class seemed to go on forever, leaving Peter to impatiently wait for the bell to ring and release him to 7th period. At the end of the period every day, he was practically vibrating in his seat. 

          “Can anyone tell me what Juliet’s suicide is supposed to symbolize?” the Professor asked expectantly. Peter couldn’t care less about the symbolism of some chick’s suicide-- he’d much rather be studying the features of his algebra  class infatuation. 

          She sat next to him yesterday. There were at least 5 other open seats and she sat next to him. Yes, Peter read too much into it and yes, Peter spent the entire class period trying to make himself seem naturally cool, but he didn’t care. Peter would act like the most desperate, pathetic, lovestruck loser in the world if it meant that she would like him. They didn’t talk, they didn’t exchange a single word, nevertheless, Peter was in a state of euphoria for the entire class period. 

          Sometimes Peter feels like a stalker. He watches her whenever he can-- he doesn’t follow her around or anything, but if she’s around, he’ll stare at her. He has her features memorized, the curve of her nose, the dark brown irises surrounding her pupils, the way that she always seems to have chipped black nail polish on. He sees the small things. He sees the way she bites her nails when he gets bored and he sees the way her leg never seems to stop bouncing. She hums the basslines to songs as opposed to the melody. 

          English class came to an abrupt end as the bell cut off the Professor’s teachings as well as Peter’s distant daydreaming. Peter was out of his seat within seconds, his notes and books quickly being swept up in his arms as he walked out of the room. The hallways are crowded and chaotic and busy, each individual student attempting to get to their locker then to their class on time. Peter watches as kids swing their lockers open, fatigue and weariness apparent on their faces as they disappear into their classrooms. Peter reaches his locker hastily, the few small posters of classic rocks bands adorning the inside of his locker door. A playful giddiness overcame his body as he made his way to algebra  class, a small smile left on his face.

          Graciella shows up across the hallway, her bright red hair catching his eye in a sea of brown and blonde and blue. His stomach flutters as they get closer and closer to each other, finally meeting outside of the classroom. Her eyes rise to meet Peter’s, and instead of pulling away, Peter keeps looking. She smiles at him before disappearing inside the classroom, and Peter felt his knees get weak. With a deep breath and a triumphant smile, he walked into the classroom.

Wednesday

          Lunchtime; possibly one of the most enjoyable parts of Peter’s school day. Peter is free to kick back and stuff his face full of whatever junk the school board deems nutritious enough for highschoolers. Usually, he ate lunch under the bleachers with his friends, but in some sick twist of fate most of them were absent. So, Peter was left to eat alone in his usual spot.

          The quiet was comfortable, refreshing. The gentle summer breeze would blow every few minutes and Peter would listen to the rustle of the leaves. There’s a certain tranquility to being alone; Peter can lay back and relax and just… think. No stress, no panicking, no--

          “Hey, uh, Peter, right?” Peter’s eyes snap up so fast he’s afraid they would detach from his head and fall out. His breath faltered and his hands began to shake a bit-- why was he so freaked out? She was just a girl; sure, she was the prettiest girl he’d ever seen, and yeah, he was madly in love with her, but that’s besides the point. 

          “Uh-- uh, yeah, P-Peter. That’s, uh, that’s me,” He chuckled awkwardly, desperately trying to stay cool. Peter was an awkward person, but he’d rather die than fuck up his chances with Grace.

          “You dropped this on your way out of class yesterday, I, uhm, didn’t get to return it to you until now,” She holds out a small key chain with three small keys hanging off of it-- Peter’s house keys, along with the key to his mother’s car. He quickly takes the key chain from the red-haired girl in front of him.

          “Holy shit, uh, thanks! I couldn’t get into my house yesterday so I guess you saved me from another broken window,” Peter held up his hand and showcased the scattered pattern of small cuts on his palm. Grace laughed lightly before gently running her fingers over the cuts on Peter’s palm.

          “Oh fuck, dude, these look pretty bad. Maybe keep a spare key hidden under your welcome mat or something,” Peter doesn’t fully process Grace’s words; he’s too preoccupied with trying not to collapse at the feeling of her fingertips on his palm.

          “Hey, you okay? You look… pale,” Grace pressed the back of her hand on Peter’s forehead in an attempt to check for illness, but that just made Peter’s skin erupt in goosebumps. 

          “I, um, I’m fine. I’m just st-stressed about the algebra  t-test on Friday, I th-think,” To be fair, Peter was stressed about the algebra  test. Peter may or may not have spent the entire class staring at Grace instead of, you know, learning the material.

          “Oh! Well, if you want, I can help you study. I’m also kinda worried about it, and I study better with other people,” Peter silently thanked god for what was happening to him.

          “That would be fuckin’ fantastic,” Grace smiled a smile that made Peter shiver.

          “Cool! Uh, I’ll give you my phone number and we’ll meet up tomorrow. One day isn’t much time to study, but it’s better than nothing.” She pulls a pen out of her backpack and rips a small piece of paper out of one of her notebooks. Peter watches as she scribbles down her phone number and hands the paper to him.

          “Thanks. For everything, the keys, the studying-- everything.” Grace smiled.

          “It’s no problem, Peter, really. I’ll call you later,” And just like that, she walked away. Peter was left alone under the bleachers, a wide smile plastered on his face as he read the piece of paper in his hands over and over and over again.

Thursday

          30 minutes. 30 minutes until Grace Reaper DeCuerpo, the prettiest, nicest, funniest girl Peter had ever met would show up on his doorstep. She would be inside his house for god knows how long. She would sit next to Peter-- either on the coffee table in the basement or on the floor of his bedroom. Needless to say, Peter was freaking the fuck out.

          The plan was simple: Grace shows up, they study, they get comfortable, and she goes home. Yet, in those four simple steps, so much could go wrong. Wanda could interrupt, his mother could lose her temper, Lorena could start crying-- worst of all, Peter could embarrass himself and drive her away. 

           Peter was in the middle of reorganizing his record collection for a third time when he heard a knock at the door. His blood went cold and an electric excitement ran through his veins. Peter checked his hair in the mirror one last time before running to the door. He stood silently, staring at the chrome handle hesitantly. This was his one chance. His only chance to make his perfect kingdom real-- Peter really, really, really didn't want to fuck it up. With a deep breath, he slowly opened the door.

          "Hey, Peter!" Her voice was smooth and melodic and it made Peter's heart light up. He’s about to respond with something smooth and witty when a squeaky voice chirps behind him.

         “Hi!! Are you the pretty girl Peter talks about?” Peter can physically feel his face turn bright red as he turns to see his six-year-old sister, Lorena, standing behind him. She’s wearing a purple princess dress that has a syrup stain on the sleeve. Grace laughs before stepping through the doorway. 

          “Lorena!” Peter groans in annoyance, a pleading look on his face. The young girl just giggles before scurrying away, her dress flowing behind her.

          “‘The pretty girl Peter talks about’, huh?” Grace grins at Peter cheekily. Peter runs his hand through his hair before motioning to the staircase.

          “God, Lorna is quite the kid. Well, uh, we can work in my room,” He sighs. “And Grace? Uh, m-maybe don’t let Lorena change your opinion of me,” She just smirks before walking past Peter.

          “Too late,” She called before disappearing down the stairs. Peter could hear the faintest trace of a smile in her voice. His heart skipped a beat as he quickly followed after her. 

          She was wearing a Pink Floyd t-shirt and holding a backpack with various pins on it-- her left ear was pierced in three places and her right in five. The earrings she was wearing were black, or maybe grey; her bright red hair blocked Peter’s view of them. She was wearing rings, some odd words engraved in the metal. Peter couldn’t read them from where he was standing. She was wearing a skirt with fishnets, her hand buried in the pockets that seem to have been sewn in herself. She has callouses on both her hands, but Peter knew that already. Her appearance would put Aphrodite to shame-- suddenly, Peter was much less confident in himself than he was before. He ran his hand through his hair again before reaching the basement.

          He held his breath as Grace looked around his room, her gaze lingering on the plethora of stolen signs and band posters covering the walls. She placed her backpack on the floor and walked over to Peter’s record collection, her fingers carefully flitting through the different albums. She seemed… impressed. It was then that Peter realized it had been silent for much too long.

          “Y’know I can, uh, p-play some music if you want me to. You can just pick a record and, uh, I’ll... play it,” Peter winced at his words, cursing himself for being so awkward in front of the girl he’d been pining after since the beginning of the year. He felt like everything had spiraled out of control, and he watched idly as it happened. Then, Grace shot him a smile and pulled out a record.

          “You have a good taste in music, Silver,” No one had ever called Peter ‘silver’ before. He liked it a bit more than he should. “Although, that’s not really a surprise. I had a feeling you were cool.” 

          “You think I’m cool?” Peter asked, shocked. He wasn’t sure he heard her correctly.

          “Oh, totally. I see you in the hallways sometimes and you always seem so… carefree. Genuine. I don’t know, I guess it’s just… you, ya know? You’re naturally cool.” Every syllable that rolled off her tongue shot euphoria through Peter’s veins. Grace DeCuerpo, the girl Peter Maximoff had dreamed of for almost a full year, was telling him that she thought he was cool. Naturally cool. 

          “I know a lot of people who would disagree with you on that one,” Peter joked. There was truth behind his humor, but of course, he didn’t want to get into his insecurities now. “They think I’m a total loser, which isn’t totally wrong I guess.”

          “Well those people are stupid,” She stated matter-of-factly with a smile. “Speaking of stupid, we should probably get to work.” Peter nodded before sitting beside her on the floor. 

          For three hours they poured over their algebra  books. They quizzed each other and checked each other’s work; Peter’s proficiency in simplifying radicals aiding them both. Every now and then their hands would brush against each other, or the conversation would stray away from school and into their personal lives. Peter learned that Grace had two brothers, one of which passed away when she was younger. Peter talked about Lorena and Wanda and his miraculous abilities in the same way that she talked about her hometown and her own abilities. The conversation was smooth and natural-- Peter didn’t feel like he was being too annoying or too chatty and there was seldom an awkward pause. The pair were content in their time together, not a single moment went by where one wished the other would leave. 

          Eventually, Grace had to go home. Peter wished that she could stay forever, but of course, that would be considered kidnapping. He walked her to the door, although Peter didn’t feel like he was walking. He felt like he was floating.

          “Well, I guess I’ll see you tomorrow, Silver,” Grace said softly as she turned to face Peter. She looked him in the eye and he could feel his stomach flutter. 

          “Yeah, I guess so,” She opened the door, but before she left, she froze. She turned to look at Peter once again. 

          “Peter?” she said. “You’re not a loser.”

Friday

          Peter could tell the second he walked through the front door of his high school that something had changed. The energy that radiated in the halls shifted from a dull buzz of boredom to a rush of anticipation. The students in the hallway looked the same as always; tired and anxious and wishing for the day to go by quickly. However, Peter wasn’t wishing for the end of the day, and he certainly wasn’t tired. He was determined and energized and absolutely terrified, because that morning Peter Maximoff made the most important decision a seventeen-year-old could. He decided that he was going to ask Grace out on a date. 

          Peter made the choice to keep this from his friends-- it’s not that he didn’t trust them, it’s just that Peter knew he would be teased for his infatuation. It’s happened before and it will happen again. He walked down the hallways with a brave face on, his eyes forward and his heart racing. Truthfully, the silver teenager was terrified of… well, everything. The looming image of a harsh rejection forced itself into his mind; the idea that she would laugh in his face made his heart break a tiny bit, even though it wasn’t real. Peter simply shook those images away and walked on. 

          The day flew by much faster than Peter was comfortable with, and for the first time ever, he was dreading algebra  class. He was terrified that he would walk through the door and have everything be exactly the same-- he feared that Grace would go back to not knowing who he was, just like before. Peter was alright with never being her boyfriend, but he didn’t want to be a stranger. He didn’t think he could take being a stranger anymore. 

        ��   So, there he stood, staring at the door to his algebra classroom from across the hall. He felt confident and prepared himself for the task at hand. In four long strides, he entered the classroom. Grace was sitting next to an empty desk, her eyes stuck on the small notebook full of doodles on her desk. Peter watched as her eyes raised to meet his, a wide smile forming on her face as she motioned him over. 

          “Hey, silver! I saved a seat for ya,” she called, and Peter felt his knees get weak. He then decided that he would wait until after class to ask her out. 

          “You did?”

          “Of course,” She grinned. “I like you, dude, you’re my friend,” Peter’s heart fluttered as he sat down beside her. Grace shot an odd look his way before reaching out and placing a hand on his arm. “Hey, you look stressed. Don’t sweat it, silver, you’ll do fine. We studied for, like, 3 hours yesterday. You’re gonna ace it,”

          To be frank, Peter had forgotten all about the test. The real reason he looked so stressed was because he happened to be sitting next to the love of his life, and the love of his life happened to be touching his arm. 

          “O-oh! Uh, yeah, thanks. I was just nervous because of… the test,” The bell rang and class began, the professor strictly laying down the rules that were to be followed while the test was in session. Peter could feel the lingering touch of her hand on his skin. It made his head feel fuzzy.

          Peter soon came to learn that sitting next to Grace during a test was a huge mistake. He couldn’t focus on anything other than her-- it didn’t help that she kept shooting him glances from where she sat. The numbers and letters on the paper in front of him seemed to rearrange before his eyes, instead spelling out various taunts. He feels a little pathetic for how easily Grace can unravel him, but hey, he’s a teenager. 

          The silver-haired boy’s eyes were struggling to decipher the words on his page when a small folded square landed on his desk. It came from Grace’s direction, and a small smirk had formed on her lips as she solved equations. Hesitantly, he unfolded the paper and read the neatly written message.

          Hey silver :)

          Peter smiled softly. He quickly pulled a pad of post-it notes out of his backpack and scribbled down a quick reply.

          I have no idea what I’m doing. I think Professor Stedman decided to write our tests in hieroglyphics this time.

          He flicked the note onto her desk and quickly turned his face downward. Class would be over soon, and Peter knew he couldn’t turn in a blank test. He uses his enhanced speed to do his assessment in seconds. Sure, he was almost certain he’d barely reach a passing grade, but hey, he had bigger matters to focus on. By the time he finished, another note landed on his desk.

          That bad, huh? Looks like we better study longer next time. 

          Peter’s heart swelled a bit. He really thought the study sessions were a one-time thing. He’s overjoyed to know he’ll get to see Grace semi-regularly, even if he never manages to ask her out.

          I think I’d rather hang out with you without the looming threat of schoolwork. 

          That’s the closest Peter could get to asking her out. He put deep thought into every word, he examined the phrasing and checked the spelling of every word. His english teacher would be proud.

          That can be arranged ;) 

          Peter had no idea that four words could make him feel so much. He had no idea that 17 letters could make him want to scream in the middle of a silent testing period. His hand was shaking and his careful planning was abandoned as he scribbled back a reply.

          Oh yeah? What did you have in mind?

          Patiently, he waited. He waited for Grace to finish writing her response and he waited for her to toss the note back over. He didn’t wait for more than a few minutes, but it felt like hours. He was panicking, and he was sure she could tell. She was probably joking, right? She was probably writing an awkward clarification-- she was probably explaining that she would actually rather die than be around him for non-academic reasons. He braced himself as the yellow post-it landed on the center of his desk.

          My aunt owns a drive-in a few miles from here and she gave me keys to the projector room and the gate. She managed to snag a copy of The Exorcist-- I thought you’d like to join me during my midnight escapade tomorrow night.

          Peter’s heart stopped. For a moment, he thought his eyes were fooling him. Maybe this was all some sick joke. Maybe he was being set up. Maybe he’ll get in her car tomorrow and she’ll drive him into the woods and murder him. To be completely honest, Peter wouldn’t mind if she murdered him. Peter wrote his reply.

          Really? You want me there? I might be a drag. You could probably find at least 20 other people who would probably be more interesting than me.

          Grace frowned at his response, and suddenly Peter decided he never wanted to see her frown again. She wrote confidently, her words solid and sure.

          You? A drag? Impossible. I don’t want to be alone, and I don’t want to be with anyone other than you, Maximoff. 

          This note was his undoing. He couldn’t help himself, he read it over and over and over again-- he almost forgot to respond. He wanted to hold onto it forever, he wanted it to be framed and hung on his wall. Hell, he wanted it tattooed on his arm. Peter had never been so happy while taking a test, that’s for sure. He wasn’t sure exactly what to say; he went from heartfelt responses to witty retorts. Finally, he decided to be totally and completely honest.

          I wouldn’t miss it for the world.

Saturday 

          There was seldom a time in his life where Peter Maximoff felt wholly content. Even in the most peaceful moments, there was always something bothering him, there was always something to pull him back to reality. However, sitting in the back of Grace’s dad’s convertible with the seats down and the roof pulled back, his head resting on her shoulder as they watched a cheesy horror movie, Peter was as close to nirvana as he’d ever been. 

          Life had always been so hard for Peter. He’s always had to fight for his seat at the table, to claw his way into a state of mind that wasn’t a hellhole. It seemed as if the world was plotted against him; he was ostracized from society and taught that he, along with his closest family and friends, were monsters. He never met his father and his mother spent so long fighting her own battles that she forgot to love her kids. Peter had to steal to stay fed, and he had to do his best to raise his little sisters to be good people. But right there, right then? That wasn’t hard. Peter didn’t have to be anyone or do anything-- he just had to exist next to someone who wanted him. That was the easiest thing Peter had ever done.

          Peter wasn’t exactly sure how he got there. Of course, he knew that they had driven to the drive-in, but he wasn’t sure how he was the person next to Grace. They had spoken for one day, maybe two, and somehow he landed himself in the most perfect spot in the entire universe. Less than a week ago, she didn’t even know his name. Or, maybe she did. Maybe she was just like Peter-- maybe she had spent the past year pining for him, and finally she worked up the nerve to just talk to him. Maybe. Peter isn’t complaining either way.

          “Can I ask you a kind of cheesy question?” Peter is startled by the sound of his own voice. Grace sits up and glances at him.

          “Shoot,”

          “Do you-- well, uh, don’t read too much into this, but, do you believe in love at first sight?” God, he sounded awkward. 

          “Nope,” She said bluntly. Peter wasn’t expecting that answer, but he wasn’t exactly disappointed by it. “I mean, it’s kind of a stupid idea, ya know? Like, isn’t there a million poems and sonnets and books written about how love is this weird complicated monster of a feeling? I don’t think you can really love someone just by looking at them. You can love the idea of a person, sure, or maybe the look of a person, but you can’t love that person. Because a person is so much more than ‘first sight’,” she sighs. “I don’t know, maybe I’m being a killjoy. It just seems dumb to me-- dumb and, I don’t know, exclusive,”

          Peter stops to think for a moment. He steps out of his lovesick chaotic hellbrain and looks at his feelings from an outside perspective. He thinks back to the kingdom he created in his brain-- a kingdom built on a foundation of sand. Or, less than sand. Holographic sand, because the sand he built his kingdom on wasn’t real. He made a mental note that ‘Holographic Sand’ is a kickass band name, then resumed his impromptu soul-searching. She was right-- he could see  that now. Scott was right, too. You really can’t love someone you don’t know, because if you don’t know them, you fill in the gaps. You fill in the gaps with what you think fits, and then the other person stops being them and starts being parts of you. Peter suddenly felt weird.

          “I’m sorry if I said something wrong,” Grace interjects after a while. Peter hadn’t realized he’d been silent for so long.

          “You didn’t say anything wrong. On the contrary, you, uh, you made things a little bit more… right, in my brain. You somehow managed to take a little chunk of chaos and tame it, which is scarily impressive,” he joked. “Remind me to ask you your opinion on the meaning of life and the root of true happiness,” They’re joined in a chorus of laughter and Peter realizes that his little brain kingdom didn’t hold a candle to the red convertible he was sitting in. She slings an arm around his shoulders.

          “Y’know, I might not know the meaning of life, but I am pretty close to true happiness right now,” She says, softer than before. “Maybe the root of true happiness is you, Maximoff,” She chuckles. Peter smiles. He doesn’t want the ruin the moment-- god, he is desperately trying to keep himself from fucking it up, but he feels obligated to tell her about his year of pining.

          “Hey, uh, can I tell you something kinda pathetic?” He cringes at the way his voice trembled on the last word. 

          “Go ahead, Peter,” She used his name this time. Peter thinks she knows he’s about to say something mildly serious.

          “I’ve liked you since, like, the beginning of the year. You seemed so… cool. So nice. I saw you in the hallways and my stomach would get all twisted up and my head would hurt a little bit. It was like I was allergic to you, but I enjoyed it. That sounds weird. I’m sorry,” He stopped for a moment, attempting to take the buzzing mass of words in his brain and string them into a sentence. “I was too afraid to talk to you, so I, uh, asked around. I got other people’s opinions of you and then built a little version of you in my brain. I realize now that, uhm, the little brain version of you is like, way way worse than actual you,”

          When you talked to me the first time, you threw me off. I wasn’t really nervous about the test-- I mean, yeah I was nervous but that’s not why I looked so pale. I just wasn’t expecting for you to talk to me, like, willingly. So I lied because I was embarrassed. And I lied again in class yesterday. Because I was embarrassed,” He stopped talking. Peter felt like he was digging himself into a hole-- he felt like he killed the sweet sugary mood. 

          “Why are you telling me this?” Grace asked. She didn’t sound angry. She sounded a little confused, and she sounded like she was trying to help Peter decipher his brain. 

          “I don’t know, I guess I just feel bad. I feel bad for, uh, for not being honest I guess. I feel bad for being a coward,” Yep, definitely killed the mood.

          “Peter, you shouldn’t feel bad for being afraid, you know,” She assures. “I would’ve done the exact same thing in your position. Hell, I did do the exact same thing in your position,” That caught Peter’s attention.

          “What?”

          “You didn’t drop your keys in algebra. You dropped them somewhere in bio and my friend found them. She was gonna take them to the office, but I wanted an excuse to talk to you, so I said I’d return them,” Peter couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He was being pranked, he had to be. “Being awkward and weird is like a requirement in high school. Don’t sweat it, Maximoff, really. We’re all the same in that way, I think,”

          Peter felt a wave of relief wash over him. He was feeling too much at that moment, he was letting the bad drown out the good. He didn’t want to remember the day in a sad light.

          “I like you. A lot. Even if you are awkward and weird,” He smiles softly. Slowly, ever so slowly, he intertwined his fingers with those of the girl beside him. It was a simple display of affection, but it made Peter feel like he was floating.

          “I like you too, dork,” Peter smiled widely before placing his head back on Grace’s shoulder. Peter wasn’t paying attention to the movie, in fact, he wasn’t paying attention to anything at all. No, Peter was lost in his head again-- but this time, he wasn’t standing on a false kingdom with a false version of the girl he liked. No, this time, he was thinking about the very real girl beside him. He was thinking about the perfect world they had created in the small car they were in; a perfect world where he felt so much emotion and so, so safe. They had built a utopia in the back seat- a blissful tower of awkwardness and comfort and clumsy confessions. A paradise where he sat in the back seat of a Ford Galaxie with Graciella DeCuerpo, the pretty girl from algebra class, sitting right next to him. 

[damienthepious]

boy howdy it Sure Is Time For Lizard Kissin’. like. lots of Lizard Kissin’, honestly.

Scattered On My Shore (Chapter 17)

[Ch 1] [Ch 2] [Ch 3] [Ch 4] [Ch 5] [Ch 6] [Ch 7] [Ch 8] [Ch 9] [Ch 10] [Ch 11] [Ch 12] [Ch 13] [Ch 14] [Ch 15] [Ch 16] [ao3] [Ch 18] [Ch 19]

Fandom: The Penumbra Podcast

Relationship: Lord Arum/Sir Damien/Rilla, Sir Damien/Rilla, Lord Arum & The Keep

Characters: Rilla, Lord Arum, Sir Damien, The Keep

Additional Tags: Second Citadel, Lizard Kissin’ Tuesday, Pre-Relationship, (for the three of them. it’s established r/d), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Injury, Injury Recovery, Hurt/Comfort, Slow Burn, (this will also be), Enemies to Lovers, (for damien and arum eventually lol), Mutual Pining, canon typical Arum ignoring feelings

Fic Summary: Strange things wash up out of the lake near Rilla’s hut, on occasion. But this monster… this monster is certainly the strangest.

Chapter Summary: Morning, warm and safe, and together.

Chapter Notes: A short chapter and a weird chapter and i don't know whether to be sorry about it, but a certain someone(s) will yell at me if i am, so. I hope you enjoy? One more chapter probably to wrap things up, hopefully. probably. probably. I love you, kiss a lizzer.

~

Damien wakes at the same time he does nearly every day, regardless of the light strain in his muscles from the last leg of the journey, from the duel. He inhales deeply before his eyes are even open, and he hears an unfamiliar creak of wood, smells rich soil and vague sweet florals, feels the softness of his Rilla close by his side, feels-

The rise and fall of a scaled chest, beneath his own cheek. Scaled arms, wrapped around him. A clawed hand, curled at his lower back.

Damien blinks his eyes open, and stares at the gleaming, dappled scales he is resting against, and his heart-

His heart beats steady, and calm, and certain, and Damien wishes to wake like this… every day, if he is able. As often as he is allowed to do so, at the very least. His forever-flower close and safe and warm by his side, Arum's hands wrapped around the both of them.

He closes his eyes again, feeling their bodies beside him, committing this precise feeling to memory, future rhythms and rhymes tickling the back of his tongue. He breathes, slow and safe, and Rilla and Arum breathe as well, untroubled in slumber.

Content as he is, though, Damien knows that if he remains in their arms for much longer he will come in danger of waking them. The urge to press his lips to Rilla's shoulder, to the scales above Arum's heart- he would not dare risk it, but the temptation is too strong.

And- well, it is morning, and Damien has a routine to maintain, of course.

Arum's grasp upon him is loose in sleep; it is not terribly difficult to extricate himself, to allow the lizard's limbs to curl around Rilla instead, and neither wake though Rilla mutters something in her sleep as she presses her face into Arum's shoulder. That alone is enough that Damien needs press a hand hard over his mouth, the words on his tongue threatening to spill past his lips with the force of his adoration.

As Damien pulls his eyes away from that utterly enthralling sight, he realizes that they are no longer in the same place they fell to sleep the night before. They are not by Arum's table- in fact, they appear to be in a bed.

Arum's bed, Damien must assume.

He bites his lip, feels heat in his cheeks, and decides not to think too deeply on that particular detail.

Not at the moment, at least.

He tiptoes away from the bed, towards the loose curtain of leafy vines that separate the room from a wide balcony outside, shrugging off his shirt as he goes. The swamp below is utterly beautiful, breathtaking and thrumming with life, splotched with color and vibrancy, and Damien inhales the floral morning air of the Keep deeply, and then he begins his exercises.

Tranquility. Damien is filled with the feeling again as the sunlight hums warm through his eyelids, and he did not realize that he had been lacking, before. No, he had settled into his knighthood and achieved not tranquility, but complacency. Perhaps the one had preluded the other, but nonetheless he had allowed himself to forget the water, forget the flow of the river, to stagnate.

Damien slowly works his body, wakes his muscles, whispers his prayers to the morning air, to his Saint.

Mostly, this morning, his prayers revolve around the theme of thankfulness. Damien does not think he has ever felt so blessed.

He is settled, sun-warmed, utterly tranquil by the time he is finished, and he takes a long moment to simply… lean on the woven structure of the balcony railing, looking down upon the hazy glory of the swamp beneath him, rich greens and browns speckled through with vibrant purple, colors that echo and summon to memory the elegant visage of the monster still resting inside. The echo alone is enough to make Damien's heart ache, and he cannot think of a single good reason to deny himself the joy of returning to their sides, of holding patient vigil until his loves wake.

He gently sweeps the vine curtain aside as he steps back in from the sunlight, but he pauses in the threshold when he sees the flash of violet, gazing at him from the bed.

Rilla is still sleeping, still curled against Arum's chest, but the monster is awake. Awake, and attentive, if the brightness of his eyes is any indication, and Damien feels his cheeks heat again.

"A-Arum," he says, his voice pitched carefully low. "I- I did not wake you, did I?"

Arum shakes his head, his mouth curling into a slight smile.

Damien stands in the threshold, licks his lips, and Arum watches him quietly.

"I… it is… your home is beautiful, Lord Arum," he says eventually, and Arum's expression softens even further, going pleased and warm. "Thank you for… for sharing it with us."

"Honeysuckle," Arum says softly, and Damien feels the word like a ribbon wrapped around his throat. Soft, and welcome, but undeniable as well.

"Yes, Arum?"

The monster stares for another moment, one of his palms drifting very, very slowly up and down Rilla's back as she sleeps, and then his tongue flicks before he meets Damien's eyes again.

"Come here," he murmurs, and then he lifts a hand in Damien's direction. "Please."

Arum's eyes are soft, warm, perhaps a little worried- more worried, the longer Damien does not respond. He shakes off his surprise, and he does as Arum asks, padding closer until he is within Arum's reach.

Arum does not reach, though. Not immediately. He holds his outstretched hand just away from Damien's arm, and Damien sees him swallow before the monster glances up enough to meet his eyes again. "Honeysuckle," he repeats in a murmur, the nerves in his eyes sparking brighter.

Damien feels his lips pulling into a smile, affection making him feel near giddy, and then he kneels beside the bed, putting himself closer to eye level with the monster as he reclines, trapped beneath Rilla's quietly sleeping body.

"Arum," he murmurs, and then he drifts his palm across the back of Arum's hand, feeling the texture of scales against his skin, and then he gently pulls Arum's hand to his mouth so he may place a kiss at the heel of his palm, joy welling higher and hotter within him when that makes the monster give a keening sort of noise.

Arum swallows again, his hand flexing in Damien's, and then he drifts the tips of his claws across Damien's cheek with delicate care.

"Come here," he breathes again, and Damien blinks. "Closer, honeysuckle."

Damien leans forward, Arum's hand on his cheek tickling gentle as the space between them softens. Damien pulls himself back onto the bed beside them, careful, and Arum's eyes stay fixed upon him, steady and determined and only barely edged with nervousness now.

Damien pauses, then, close but still with space for breath between them, and there is something expectant on Arum's face now, but Damien is still not entirely sure…

He reaches out, cupping Arum's face as Arum is cupping his. Arum's breath catches, his frill raising just barely, and he leans into the touch, a rumble growing in his chest.

"Well?" the monster says in a whisper, and Damien blinks again.

"W-well?" he echoes, uncertain, and Arum's hand on his face flexes, claws so terribly careful against the skin beneath his ear. "Well, what?"

Arum exhales, his frill raising further, and the nervousness returns to his eyes though he does not pull his hand away. "I… I am… I imagine that you understand better… what is expected next. Human… convention is quite beyond me."

Damien tilts his head, letting his cheek rest more fully in Arum's palm. "I am not quite sure what you mean," he says gently.

"All- all of this." Arum gestures with another hand, vague and wincing as he does. "Being- being together. I have your example- yours and Amaryllis', but- but I have been- attempting not to allow myself to- look. Not to look too closely at the pair of you."

Damien blinks, warmth blooming brighter in his chest at the uncertainty and worry on Arum's face. "Oh." He breathes a light laugh, caressing Arum's jaw when the monster winces again. "Oh, well- if- if you are concerned for convention, I think you may safely set those concerns aside. This- this," he strokes his thumb over Arum's cheek, lifting his other hand and placing it over Arum's to draw light down Rilla's back. "This us. This you, and I, and she… it would be madness to expect us to be conventional, Arum. We must find our own rhythms, our own union, our own strength."

Arum exhales slowly, some of the tension in his shoulders softening, and he nods very slightly. "A fair point," he murmurs. "Nonetheless I am… uncertain what I should… do."

"Your instincts seem to be sound," Damien says, his voice warm, and then he pulls his hand back to cup Arum's own, cradling it against his cheek. "This is… quite lovely. I no longer need pretend that I have not longed for your hands upon me… longed to know the caress of scale upon my skin, longed to discover how your arms would feel around me… around us."

Arum's breath whirs, his tongue flicking, his slitted pupils slowly widening to dark diamonds. "You…" he smiles, very slightly. "Even at this hour you drift into poetics. I suppose I should not be surprised to hear the songbird lilt with the rise of the sun."

"I will lilt for you whenever you like, Arum," Damien breathes. "I am afraid I cannot help myself… the only words I can find to describe you, to describe what I want from you- they are all of them rather poetic."

"What you… want from me," Arum echoes, his tongue flicking again, and Damien feels his cheeks heat.

"I find myself more concerned, at the moment," he answers, "with what you want from me. If you are unsure what you should do, Arum, I think perhaps that would be the place to start. You answered me yesterday in a much grander sense, what you desire from us, but- what of this moment? No expectations, no convention. What do you desire?"

"You," Arum answers instantly, and Damien's breath leaves him in a sharp exhale. "Amaryllis," he continues. "This." He caresses Damien's cheek, the sharpness of his claws utterly careful, utterly safe. "Only this."

Damien blinks quickly, fighting back the dampness in his eyes, and his smile is helpless and warm. "An easy desire to fulfill, then," he murmurs, his voice wavering only slightly with the force of his adoration, and he edges a little closer, one arm pressing against Arum's as he arranges himself back on the bed more closely to the pair of them. "Have you any other desires we may meet with such ease?"

"I…" Arum trails off, his eyes flicking between Damien's, and then he gives a very soft laugh. "P-perhaps-"

Damien waits, but Arum does not finish the thought. He raises an eyebrow, staring at the monster as his frill begins to flutter again. "Arum?"

"Closer," Arum manages, his voice vaguely strained. "Would you-" he breaks off, hissing low, ducking his head, and then he sucks in a slower, steadying breath before he braves meeting Damien's eyes.

Violet, violet like-

Like nothing else. No metaphor Damien can summon would even come close. And those eyes, full of so much feeling, full of emotion, full of-

Love. Warm and overflowing, brighter and bolder than whatever fear is attempting to hold Arum's tongue.

"Kiss me again, Damien," the monster says at last, and the words may be a command in form, but Damien hears the desperation coloring them into a plea.

Damien's heart pulses, love rushing through him like a wave, and he knows that he could not possibly deny Lord Arum so sweet a request. He could not. Moreover, he does not want to.

Damien leans down, slow and patient, feeling Arum's sharp breath against him for a lingering moment before he presses even closer, and Arum's name bounces on his lips as they brush soft over the monster's mouth.

Arum gasps, light and sweet, one hand slipping back to claw gently through Damien's hair, the monster's breath whirring at the back of his throat, the texture of his scales making Damien's lips tingle.

Arum's mouth doesn't move like Rilla's, the contact stiffer, cooler, but the way his claws flex at the nape of Damien's neck, the soft whine he gives, the light pressure of his teeth against Damien's lower lip, all of it spins together into something strange, overwhelming, enthralling, and Damien is utterly helpless against the pull of it, utterly unable to do anything else besides press another kiss to Arum's mouth, and another, until they blend out of individual context, until he loses the thread of anything besides the sensation itself.

"Good morning," Rilla says, some time later by Damien's hazy estimation, and her voice is syrupy with sleep. Arum hisses as Damien pulls back with a sharp inhale, his heart swelling with delight as it ever does when his flower blesses him with her attention. She stretches against Arum (the monster gasps again), looking up at the both of them with warm, dark, gleeful eyes and a smile that squeezes Damien's heart. "Gotta say, I'm not a morning person, but if I can wake up to that more often I could probably be lured over to your side, Damien."

"Rilla," Damien murmurs, and Arum's claws are still in his hair as Rilla gives him that sly, loving smile, and Damien's fevered mind wonders briefly how happy it is physically possible to be. "Oh, oh love-"

She leans up and kisses him without preamble, and Damien's eyes slip automatically closed even as he hears Arum give a ticking rattle of surprise mere inches away, his palm drifting down the back of Damien's neck. Rilla's mouth slides against his own, familiar and intoxicating before she pulls back with a low hum of pleasure. "Sleep well, Damien?" she murmurs, and Damien presses another kiss to her cheek, chaste and delicate.

"Entirely soundly," he answers, "and blessed to wake with such beauty surrounding me, as well."

Arum ducks his head, his smile both flustered and pleased, his chest rumbling- purring, Damien realizes, at the base of his throat, and Rilla turns her warm gaze upon him next.

"Good morning, Arum," her voice soft as she smiles up at him, pressing her palm to his chest. "Are you feeling okay today?"

Arum blinks, as if taking a moment to remember his own injuries. "I… yes. I feel… I… I think, perhaps, I feel better than I ever have," he says, very quietly.

"Really," Rilla says, her eyebrows raising as her smile goes wider, her hand drifting up from his chest, up the column of his throat, gently brushing the edges of his healing frill. "All better, that quick?"

The monster wrinkles his snout, huffing a breath. "Well. A- a little sore, still, perhaps. But-"

Rilla lifts herself up, leaning to press her lips to the scales of his frill, and Arum breaks off into a whirring hiss.

"Saints," she whispers, and then she kisses him again, lips brushing his neck. "Y'know- I'd be lying if I said I hadn't wanted to do that for a long time."

"I-" Arum pants a breath, the hand he still has curled around her lifting to stroke down her braid. "I- I would be lying if I said I had not been longing for…" he exhales a laugh. "I didn't even know what. Your touch, your conversation, your attention … all of it. This." The arms he is caressing each of them with curl more tightly around them, tugging them into a proper embrace. "This," he says more softly, and then he runs the tip of his snout along Rilla's jaw, nuzzling and flicking his tongue lightly at the skin of her throat. He lifts his remaining two hands, taking Rilla's own in one and Damien's in the other, tangling his fingers with theirs, squeezing. "This," he repeats. "This, I wanted quite dearly."

Damien's heart swells almost painfully, and he lifts Arum's hand to kiss his knuckles, his mind a tangle of prayer and poetry and love.

"I wish I could keep you here forever," Arum whispers, giving barely enough breath to be heard, closing his eyes as Damien kisses his knuckles again. "I know, of course, I cannot. I know you must… return to your lives, but- but so short a time, knowing- allowing myself- so little time to- to love you properly, takatakataka. So little time before we must- before you leave-"

Rilla cups Arum's face in both hands, her dark skin so indescribably beautiful against the jewel-gleam of Arum's scales, and then she kisses him, slow and thorough and sweet, and Damien's heart swells yet again at the sight of these two precious creatures tangling together.

When she pulls back, only leaving just enough space between them for breath, for words, Arum exhales slowly, calmly.

"We'll figure it out," Rilla says, her voice utterly confident. "And… in the meantime," she pauses to kiss him again, "I don't see any reason to rush off home this instant, if you aren't eager to kick us out anymore-"

"Of course not," Arum growls. "Don't be ridiculous."

"Good," she says, and then she glances Damien's way, raising her eyebrow in a question that makes Damien's cheeks go hot, and he knows that she understands his desires precisely without him needing to even nod. "In that case… I think maybe we could just… spend the morning here... just like this, and we can work out something else I think we all want."

Arum stares up at her for an uncomprehending moment, and then Rilla presses another, deeper kiss to his mouth, her hands slipping back to wrap around him, one cupping the back of his head, her tongue darting out to trace the line of his teeth, and when she pulls back again Arum pants out a wild sort of breath, his diamond pupils widened such that they are nearly round, now.

"If," Damien says gently, "that is something you desire as well." He smiles, leaning up to peck the tip of Arum's snout much more chastely. "Whatever it is you do desire, we will love you all the same," he says, and Rilla nods beside him. "So… why don't you tell us, then. What do you want?"

Arum stares down at the both of them, his frill flared and flushed, his eyes wide and bright and intense, and then the monster smiles.

"You," he says, simply. "Both of you. Of course I want you, however much of yourselves you choose to share. I will treat your generosity with precisely as much care as it deserves."

Rilla's smirk softens, and she draws her hand down the back of Arum's neck slowly, making him hiss and shiver. "You big softie," she murmurs.

Arum narrows his eyes, though he cannot seem to clamp down on his own smile as he hisses, "Arrogant little creature."

"I love you both so much," Damien keens, the words bubbling up past any semblance of control, and Arum and Rilla both look towards him.

Rilla's smile is soft, understanding, and Arum looks nearly awestruck with it before he flicks his tongue, breathing something like a laugh. He shifts, pulling himself up to lean over Damien, crowding close enough to rub his cheek along Damien's, sweet and affectionate.

"I love the both of you more than I know how to say," he says in a voice that trembles with both emotion and laughter. "So perhaps-" he pulls back, his violet eyes so determined and full of undeniable desire, and he reaches a hand out, drawing Rilla closer as she laughs. "Perhaps, little humans, I should show you, instead."

[->]

[the-sunshine-dims]

amnesia Chapter 3; patton

i'm not the happiest with how this turned out but it made its purpose, also sorry it took two days, i had been really busy on tuesday and wednesday, 

amnesia taglist: @fandima

[1] [2] [^] [4] [5] [6]

words: 1487

Summary: deceit gets amnesia, the others realize how much they had assumed about this side, and how much information they discarded, they thought this dork  who likes making flower crowns and will lie if it’s necessary or too save someone’s feelings, was this evil villain who’s only job was to hurt thomas, and deceit without memory of all of this helps the others feel less guilty, they know they can’t fully be forgiven though,

~*warnings*~ hurt/comfort, angst, amnesia, mention of deceit and remus being treated poorly, deceit being an over excitable puppy, food mention, guilt, regret,

ao3 link

characters this chapter: deceit, roman, patton, logan (mentioned), virgil (mentioned) remus (mentioned,

all characters that appear in this series:  deceit, roman, logan, remus, patton, virgil, king creativity (mentioned)

________

“Hey patt?” Roman called from the Patton’s doorway

Patton turned to look up at him “yeah ro? What’s up?”

Roman nervously rubbed his neck “ok… well um… you see apparently deceit went into the imagination… and something happened, and he probably hit his head… and Logan has confirmed that he does in fact have a case of amnesia,” he chewed his lip nervously, a bad habit he picked up from Virgil,

Patton opened his mouth going to speak before closing it again, guilty of the fact he was gonna ask if they knew if he was faking it or not, he opened his mouth again “is he ok?”

Roman hummed and nodded, “he is, He’s currently trying to compete with Logan on who can solve a rubix cube the fastest,” Patton smiled and Roman smiled as well “it’s adorable,” he trailed off before remembering another fact he should tell Patton “also! Logan said that currently he’s mentally a teenager, like fifteen or sixteen most likely,”

“Poor thing…” was the only thing that left Patton’s lips despite how much was going through his head

Roman nodded sadly, “yeah,”

Patton looked thoughtful for a moment before focusing on Roman again “hey Roman… Do you think I could hang out with him?”

“I mean, it’s not really my choice, he’s his own person, though I mean Logan told me that you all used to be friends so i mean he’ll probably say yeah,” 

Patton gave a thankful smile, and stood up from the place he had been sitting, “ok, can we go and see if i can hang out with him and you guys now or no?”

Roman smiled and wrapped an arm around Patton’s waist “yeah, let's go chill with him,”

Patton smiled and nodded, and they both headed out of the room,

As they headed down the hallway Patton stopped, and looked up at Roman “hey roman, have you, Logan, and deceit ate yet?”

Roman gave an awkward laugh and rubbed his neck again “nah, not yet,” 

Patton shook his head disapprovingly, and headed towards the kitchen and started cooking, after around twenty minutes the food was done and he grabbed a couple plates, once he had put one of them In the fridge for Virgil he headed back on course, he then proceeded to shove two plates into romans arms, for him and logan, Roman gave a small laugh and just proceeded to walk towards logan’s room,

———

Deceit looked up up at the door as it slowly opened from where he had been sitting on the floor watching the tv as Logan worked,

When he saw Patton and Roman enter he waved at them nonchalantly, hiding the happy look he gave when he saw them,

“Hey dee, can I hang with you?” Patton said as he sat down passing deceit plate of food over, Roman was handing Logan his plate,

Deceit hummed and nodded giving a small smile to Patton which melted his heart,

“So how’re you doing kiddo?”

Deceit hummed softly again “‘mm fine, how are you?” he partially lied, it had been a mentally tiring day yesterday, He took a bite of the food as he waited for Patton to answer

“I’m doing fine kiddo, after you eat is there anything you want to do?” Patton tried, this encounter was rather awkward for him, because he knew he had treated deceit and Remus so awfully, he knew that he didn’t remember but it still ate him up with regret and guilt, he had been trying to get better but still…he had even started inviting the two of them to movie nights, though deceit had never taken up the invitation,

Deceit sensed the stress practically radiating off Patton and he made the quick decision of gently punching Patton’s shoulder “you sure there… adulto..?” He gave a small smile trying to cheer him up, he wanted his friends to be happy! He distantly wondered if a flower crown would make him feel better,

Patton gave a small chuckle “I’m good, just started overthinking,-“ he gave another soft chuckle -“even though it’s Virgil's job” 

Deceit tilted his head like a confused puppy for a moment before making finger guns and trying to stay up beat “...anxiety?” He looked over at Roman just for Roman to turn his head to him and nod and then turn back to his and Logan’s conversation, deceit turned his head back to face Patton “ah, anxiety, he's nice” he nodded to himself

Patton laughed, smiling softly “that he is, anyways what do you wanna do to?”

Deceit hummed in thought, he liked humming, whether it be the soft musical humming or humming in concentration, he liked it. “I’m ok with doing anything, except stuff with horses, I hate them, they hate me, Barney ate my family, you know the deal.”

Patton laughed and nodded “sooo-“ he trailed off before remembering him having a keen interest that creativity used to show off all the time to them -“would you wanna go hang out in the imagination’s meadow and make flower crowns?-“ the moment the words left his mouth he could practically see the stars in dee’s eyes

“Yesyesyesyes-“ he paused for a moment “yes please”

Patton chuckled softly and as soon as they were done eating he stood up, holding a hand out for deceit which deceit easily took, sure he knew things might be a little different but morality is nice! And logic is nice! And Roman is nice! So he very much trusted them all, 

Patton smiled as he escorted deceit to the imagination and the absolutely beautiful meadow, covered in all kinds of wildflowers, everything so vibrant, 

Deceit smiled happily and ran out into it, promptly falling on a soft cushion of grass And flowers, Patton followed him a soft smile on his lips, distantly wondering how he had never truly known deceit, this happy joyful, flower crown loving side,

Patton walked over, sitting comfortably on the patch of grass next to deceit, “ok so I have to admit I don’t know how to properly make a flower crown,” he gave a sheepish smile

Deceit smiled “that’s ok! That just means I can teach you!” He then proceeded to take a couple flowers and fold their stems into each other slowly, making sure Patton followed,

After Patton finally succeeded in making a flower deceit let out a cheer 

“You did it! You did well too!” He smiled widely, he  decided he liked teaching, it was no wonder to him why logic liked it too,

Patton smiled “thanks,” he thought for a moment before a thought verbally voiced itself much to the dismay of Patton “I’m so sorry I misjudged you…” 

“What are you talking about? You didn’t misjudge me! I think!” He tried to defend Patton, he wasn’t making the best argument though especially considering he very literally didn't remember it,

“Yes I did….-” he sighed -“I know you don’t remember it, but I was mean, so mean! And I misjudged you and I probably hurt you- and- I’m so sorry- so sorry-“ he was stopped as deceit pulled him into a hug,

“You probably had your reasons, and I’ll forgive you, when I remember what you mean, it may be a bit before I fully forgive you but no matter what, you deserve a second chance,” he pulled out of the hug, looking into Patton’s eyes intensely “I promise you, I know for a fact, that we’ll be friends and i'll stand by you, i promise” he smiled and plopped a flower crown on patton’s head,

Patton looked down and smiled sadly “your super sweet,” 

“hey, no u uno reverse bitch,” he laughed, but hey! It was the truth! Patton was nice too!

Patton snickered, deceits humor reminded him of Virgil, it was kind of Nice, he wondered if he liked dad jokes as well, “hey wanna make another flower crown and then head back to the commons and watch a show?” He prompted

“Yes please! What do you wanna watch!” 

“Hmm I’ll be fine with anything you want kiddo,”

“Hmmm, can we watch a couple episodes of the office?” He asked softly 

Patton hummed “mmhm, yeah we can, and we can get snacks too,”

Deceits eyes lit up and he murmured a soft thank you before hurrying to finish the last flower crown, he was planning to give them to logic and Roman, since he already gave one to morality,

Later Logan and Roman found deceit and Patton passed out on the couch deceit using Patton’s chest as a pillow and Patton’s arm wrapped loosely around deceits waist, tv asleep, they smiled at each other and left, silently agreeing to not wake them up, they both could see something had changed, they could both see that some of Patton’s regret and guilt was eased, it wasn’t gone, but it was breathing room for them both to work at,

[jungshookz]

Ramenboy!tae who works at a lil ramen joint and ur dragged there by Jungkook who loves to abuse Tae’s employee discount and wow they have a competition — eat this massive bowl of ramen in ten minutes and get free ramen for a month and u cannot lose to this heathen known as Jungkook and now u’ve made an awful first impression on Tae and ur mortified but he’s just impressed~ and high key thinks ur cute and now Jungkook needs to play matchmaker in the most disastrous way possible (cue chaos) 🔥anon

→ pairing: kim taehyung x reader

→ genre: nonidol!au, ramenboy!tae, comedy, tiny pinch of fluff, jungkook is an idiot and you might be one too because you just ate a gigantic bowl of ramen 

→ wordcount: 3.8k 

→ note: i’m sorry this took so lonG! u sent this in a while ago but i saved it in my notes because it’s.,, so cute,., this is less about taehyung and more about kook and y/n competing with each other lol!!!! my stomach exploded just thinking about eating five pounds worth of ramen idk how y/n did it 

(gif isn’t mine!) (also i was ecstAtic when i found this gif!!!! how pErfeCt)

this has quite possibly been one of the worst weeks in your entire life

you don’t know how it’s happened but on every single day of the week something has gone wrong for you

monday - your alarm didn’t go off so you accidentally skipped two veRy important lectures that were crucial for the finals

tuesday - your alarm diD go off but when you got to your first class (on time!) you didn’t realise that your prof sent out an email in the morning saying that there was a room switch for the day and the room was in a building located all the way on the oTHER end of campus so you basically missed out on half that lecture

wednesday - you have a big gap between classes on wednesdays so usually you just hang out and study in the library buT when you got there someone had taken your favourite spot so you were forced to go to the really, really quiet study area (no one’s allowed to make a peep otherwise ya get the booT) and when you stepped in you stumbled over someone’s laptop charger that was plugged into the wall and literally fell the floor in less than a millisecond with a big SMAK and everyone in that room looked like they wanted to rip your head off (especially the owner of the laptop charger)

thursday - you ordered a chocolate almond milk and banana smoothie because you wanted to treat yourself but somehow they fucked up your order and it tasted like they threw oranges into your smoothie instead of bananas and by the time you decided you wanted to go back and demAnd that they fix your order the line was like a hundred feet long so you were forced to throw out your $10 smoothie

friday - todAY,., you got your grades back for your midterms and uh.,,. all i’m going to say is u might want to spend a little more time studying and a little less time on tumblr

whatever

you’re just glad it’s finally friday because you are going to hibernate in your room over the weekend to recover from everything

you were going to head straight back to the apartment after classes today but jungkook insisted that you guys hang out today!!! even though you basically see each other every day!!!!

unfortunately you’re just not in the mood to do anything because you’re grumpy and tired

also it’s that time of the month

so like

you really reALLY aren’t in the mood to do anything

but of course

because it’s jungkook

he didn’t give you a choice (he dropped to his knees and literally just started sCREAMING until you said you would hang out with him and then he hopped back up onto his feet and was like heehee oki!! let’s go, friend!!!! as he wasn’t just screeching a lung out in the middle of the schoolyard a second ago)

and this is where he decides to take you

a dinky ramen joint in the city

“why couldn’t we just have gone to watch a movie?” you groan and flop your head back “also we had lunch like two hours ago-“

“and your point is??” jungkook scoffs as he flips through the menu

“if we eat now it’s going to ruin our appetite for dinner and thaT’s going to throw everything off course- hey quit iT” jungkook reaches back blindly to whack your face gently to shut you up

ur a great person and he likes u a lot but you need to relax ur asshole sometimes (he literally said that to you within the first week of knowing you and when you gawked and responded with ‘my asshole is SO relaxed and loOSE right now!!!!!!’ in the middle of the cafeteria he knew that this friendship was meant to be)

“listen, i was craving ramen and i always come here because i know one of the guys who works here so i always get a discount…” jungkook trails off as he continues looking through the menu “okay, i know what i want!”

“okay give me a second to- woAh-“ jungkook drags you into the restaurant before you get a chance to look at the options

oh

this place is a lot bigger than it looks

spacious booths on both sides with obscenely red leather seats

square tables scattered around the place

it seems like it’s doing pretty well in terms of business because almost all of the tables are full

“jungkook!” both you and kook turn at the source of the sound

who is

who is tHAT

floppy, soft brown hair peeking out from behind a red bandana

a little blue apron wrapped around his tapered waist

a stained white v-neck (it looks vEry good on him and usually u hate v-necks on guys)

and his smile is very.,,. boxy?

your eyes widen when he approaches you two

you immediately duck behind jungkook and pray to god that you look somewhat presentable

you look down at your outfit

okay

jeans and a cute little flowery blouse

okay!!! not bad!!! hopefully your eyeliner hasn’t moved from your eyes to your chin tho

“hey, man!” they do one of those bro-hug things and he gives jungkook a couple pats on the pack

jesus

even his hand is hot

“table for one, as per usual?”

oh my god

and that voiCE?

silky smooth is the only way to describe it

“i actually brought someone with me this time! this is y/n.” jungkook points behind him and you poke your head out a little

taehyung tilts his head to get a better look at you and he offers you a warm smile

your heart skips a beat and you feel your cheeks grow warm

“ah, so this is a date?”

“taehyung, please.” jungkook scoffs and pauses “…my standards are higher.”

“hEy-“ you scowl and smack his arm before moving out from behind jungkook

you turn to face taehyung and you smile shyly “hi”

he sticks his hand out for you to shake and you take it graciously

he gives you a firm shake

“hi! i’m taehyung but you can call me tae if you’d like. any friend of jungkook’s is a friend of mine!” he grins and grabs two menus from the front before leading you guys to a booth in the back

you slide in on one side and jungkook slides in on the other side

taehyung hands each of you a menu

“i’ll be back with some water and to take your orders in a couple minutes!”

“okay, thank you!” you chirp and let your eyes linger for a couple seconds as taehyung walks off to wait on another table

jungkook narrows his eyes at you for a brief second

interesting

veRy interesting

“ah, let’s see what’s good…” jungkook hums and opens up the menu while stroking his chin

what a dork

“you literally jusT checked out the menu outside-“  

“hey. look at this!” jungkook pulls a flyer out of the menu before flipping it over to show you

he wiggles his eyebrows

you squint and lean forward to read the small text

you should’ve brought your reading glasses with u

“the big bowl challenge… finish a five pound bowl of ramen in ten minutes and get free ramen for a month-“ your eyes widen and you pull away as if jungkook just zaPPed you “are you insane?! five pounds???”

“it wouldn’t hurt to try!!! if you finish the bowl, it’s free!!! and free ramen for a month?!” jungkook points to the flyer again

“well, you go ahead and enjoy filling yourself up, i’m just going to get a normal sized bowl of ramen.” you scoff and shake your head as you flip through the menu

their new spicy ramen looks pretty good

you might go for that one

ooH and it comes with a side of dumplings for $2 extra

“you just don’t wanna do it because you know you’re going to lose.” jungkook sighs and leans back against the booth and casually flips through his menu

you drop your menu and gawk at him “wha- lose?? trust me, if we were to compete, you would be the loser here.”

“all bark, no bite…”

you clench your jaw in frustration and let out a huff

jungkook knows how competitive you are and he knows exactly which buttons to press to get you to fall for his tricks every single time

he’s so sneAKy

“c’mon, let’s do it together! i know how to make things more interesting. not only will we be racing against the clock - we will also be racing against each other.”

huh

that doEs make things more interesting

“what happens if i beat you?” you raise a brow and put the menu down

your spicy ramen and dumplings can wait for next time

“mm… i’ll buy you smoothies for a week. and if i win, you have to do my laundry for a week.”

oh groSS

you don’t want to do jungkook’s laundry

he has spiderman boxers with holes in them n stinky socks

but those smoothies are expensive

and really yummy

are you reALLY going to force yourself to consume a five pound bowl of ramen just to shove it in jungkook’s face

also,…,., do you really want taehyung to sEE you consume a five pound bowl of ramen

“-and i will be partaking in your ramen competition.” you snap out of it when you realise jungkook’s already ordering for you guys “and we’re alsO going to compete against each other to see who can finish their bowl the fastest!”

you can’t really change your mind now

you’re not a coWARD

you sit up a little straighter before propping your chin up on your palm and reaching up to tuck a strand of hair behind ur ear

hopefully u look cute under this dim lighting

“oh, really?” taehyung looks between the both of you before scribbling it down on his soup-stained notepad “my money’s on y/n.”

“you’re a traitor.” jungkook responds immediately and slaps his menu shut “y/n’s going down and she’s going to do my laundry for a week.”

taehyung gasps lightly before shaking his head and tuning to look at you “god y/n.,., you better win because one time jungkook left a pair of socks at my place and i swear to god i was this close to moving out because of the stench… i don’t want anyone having to go through the pain of-”

“okAY okay don’t u have a job to do???” jungkook scowls and hands his menu to tae and you do the same

“i will return shortly with two monstrous bowls of ramen!” taehyung chirps and heads off towards the kitchen

you let out a little sigh before leaning back against the booth

jungkook clears his throat

“what… was that?”

“what are you talking about?”

“y’know, the-“ jungkook starts giggling like a maniac and reaches up to pretend to tuck hair behind his ears over and over again “that!”

“i have no idea what you’re talking about. also, just out of curiousity-“ you take a small sip of water, “how do you know taehyung?”

jungkook pokes his tongue into his cheek before leaning back and crossing his arms

“why do you ask?”

“i told u it was out of curiosity” you respond innocently and shrug

“we’re in the same literature class. he’s a pretty nice guy!” jungkook nods before going quiet “.,,.,.he’s also a pretty single guy.”

you give him a pointed look “don’t do that.”

“what?? you were curious and i answered your question!”

“i’m terminating this conversation.” you roll your eyes and cross your arms

jungkook hums and leans over to check out the little boxes of extra toppings on the side

pretty standard stuff

extra green onion.,.some ginger.,,. salt, pepper, chilli powder

“you ever think about how long it takes for people to shred green onion into these thin little-“

“how long have you known him for?”

jungkook’s shoulders droop

obviously this conversation has been resurrected from your termination

“ah… almost a year?” he shrugs and peeks into the little pot of shredded green onions

you gawk at him and lean forward

“…and you didn’t think to introduce me to him until now-“

“i thought you weren’t interested.” jungkook slaps the ceramic lid back onto the pot

“i’m just making conversation”

“i juSt tried to make conversation about green onions and you completely shut that down-“

“also, going back to my point, i never even asked you if he was single or not, all i asked you was how-“

“but if you were to ask me if he was single or not then i would respond with, yes, y/n, taehyung is very single and i’m sure-“

“alrighty, here we go!” you immediately shut up and give jungkook a warning look when taehyung appears at your table carrying two trays propped up on his shoulders

you swallow thickly when you see his biceps flex slightly

.,,.yes.

Yes To All Of That.

taehyung sets your bowl down in front of you carefully as to not have any soup splash out-

oh god

this bowl is.,., it’s a loT bigger than you thought it would be

there are like four boiled eggs in here

a tiny mountain of shredded green onion

six pieces of seaweed

ten thin slices of pork

you reach up and tie your hair up into a ponytail

ya gotta put the hair up when it’s time to get down n dirty

“get ready to lose, y/l/n” jungkook grins and rubs his hands together in anticipation

“in your wildest dreams, jeon.” you snap back immediately and pick your chopsticks up

“since you guys are competing, i brought two timers for you“ taehyung plops two little clocks down in between the two of you and you make sure to smile politely at him before looking back at your bowl

you don’t mean to brush him off but you’re tryINg to figure out the most strategic way to finish a bowl of ramen this big

and so it goes

the next ten minutes of your life will be the most important ten minutes in your entire life

here’s your game plan:

eat aLL the toppings first to get them out of the way

just go hAM on the slurping

use your chopsticks to really shovel and paCK the noodles into your mouth

if necessary don’t even chew!!!! just swALLOW

and then at the end chug down the broth because by the time you finish the noodles the broth will have cooled down a little bit

jungkook’s game plan is just to eat and enjoy himself

he doesn’t care whether he beats you or not

he just wants to see you shovelling food into your mouth like a maniac in front of his friend that he’s pretty sure you’re vERy attracted to

evil??? only a little bit

>:-)

“alright, you two ready?” taehyung keeps his fingers hovered over the start button on each timer “in 3, 2, 1… go!”

you immediately slurp up a giaNT spoonful of noodles and regret that decision almost instantly because hOT HOT HOT

it doesn’t matter

you gotta do whatever it takes to win

whATEVER it takes babY

okay jungkook was originally going to just enjoy himself but his competitive streak has officially kicked in so now he’s slurping up the noodles just as quickly as you are

side note

the broth is actually really good

and the eggs are cooked to perfection

and the noodles are also cooked to perfection

perfEctly chewy and perfectly slurpable

you definitely see yourself coming back here and it’s noT just because that taehyung boy is cute okay

speaking of taehyung

he is vEry impressed with your progress so far

most of the people he’s seen do this challenge have struggled a bit at the start but you seem to be doing just fine

jungkook’s noodles keep slipping from his chopsticks and taehyung laughs lightly when some of the broth splashes onto his face

he wonders why jungkook’s never mentioned his cute friend that he’s realising he might be slightly attracted to even though he literally only knows your name

u cute

u real cute

“you’re eating like an animAL-“

“says the one shovelling noodles into her mouth!”

“at least i-“

you and kook simultaneously bicker anD eat and taehyung snorts when you threaten to shove a spoonful of chilli powder uP his- [statement redacted]

you pause for a split second when you see jungkook literally swaLLow half an egg

good god

wat dat mouf do

swallow half a boiled egg apparently

“tiME” you smack your hand against your timer and wipe your mouth with the back of your hand because you feel yourself dribbling a little bit

let’s see

nine minutes and thirty eight seconds

not bad!! for a FIVE pound bowl of ramen

jungkook slurps up the last of his serving and whacks the timer

nine minutes and fifty two seconds

oOh

close call

jungkook drops his chopsticks into the bow and pats his chest a couple times before wincing in discomfort “the noodles are stiLL going down the hatch”

“alright, that’s ti- oh.” taehyung rounds the corner and hits the side button on his watch “you’re both done!”

“yep, we’re both done..” you smile weakly

you don’t know if you can ever eat another bowl of ramen again

you don’t know if you can look at boiled eggs the same way without imagining one sliding down jungkook’s throat

“congratulations, you two!” taehyung peeks into both of your bowls to make sure there’s nothing left “you’re both the noodle champions!” he stacks your bowls together and picks them up “i’ll be back with your prize t-shirts!!”

great.,,. you’re both nooDle champions.,,. but at what coST

o god

and taehyung just witnessed you inhale a five pound serving of ramen 

his first memory of you.,,.is seeing you shovel like five pieces of pork into your mouth while glaring at jungkook 

ahHHHH 

aT WHAT COST

“i think i’m pregnant.” you groan and lie down on your back

you sit up a little to look at kook “and i think it’s yours.”

jungkook glances back over at you “if it’s a boy, we name it ramen. if it’s a girl, we name it ramena.” he slouches back against the booth and stares into space “i have something to tell you too”

“what”

“i’m definitely pregnant and it’s definitely yours.” he rubs a hand over his bloated tummy and lets out a louD belch and you groan quietly

“you’re repulsive”

“i’m carrying your child, how dare you speak to a pregnant man like that?” jungkook sits up quickly but immediately regrets it

he lets out another belch and you whine before throwing a balled up napkin at him

god

u can smell it from here

“oh, god. the baby’s coming.”

“if you puke it all out you’re immediately disqualified-“

“i don’t caRE the bABY’S COMING-“ jungkook slides out of the booth and you can’t help but laugh at the sight of him sprinting to the washroom

you stop laughing when you feel the ramen coming up a little bit but you swallow it down because there’s no way you’re losing after that baTTle

“where’s kook?” you jump and immediately sit up  

you point to the washroom “he’s about to give birth to a ramen baby through his mouth”

“…huh” taehyung kisses his teeth “well, do you want your picture up on the wall?” he shakes the polaroid camera and your eyes widen in mild panic

heCk no you don’t want your picture up on the wall

“oh, god no. i do not want anyone knowing that i ate a five pound bowl of ramen in less than ten minutes.” you snort and shake your head

taehyung laughs lightly before pointing to himself “but i know that you ate a five pound bowl of ramen in less than ten minutes.”

“mm, that’s true.” you purse your lips before sticking your pinky out “pinky promise you won’t tell?”

taehyung grins and sets the camera down so that he can wrap his pinky around yours

he stands up a little straighter and clears his throat

“i promise,” he presses a hand to his chest, “i, kim taehyung, will not tell anyone that you, y/n y/l/n, successfully consumed a five pound bowl of ramen in less than ten minutes-“

“good-“

“iF-“

“…if?” your brows knit together in confusion

if

if whAT

“if you give me your number.”

huh

you have to admit that was kind of smooth

and unexpected

but a nice kind of unexpected

you snort and feel the apples of your cheeks growing warm 

you clear your own throat before sliding out of the booth and getting up

taehyung stands up straighter as you press your own hand to your chest “i, y/n y/l/n, will happily give you, kim taehyung my number if you don’t tell anyone that i successfully consumed a five pound bowl of ramen in less than ten minutes.”

keep in mind the two of you still have your pinkies locked together

taehyung nods firmly and lets go of your hand

���your country thanks you.” he salutes and you can’t help but giggle when his right eye drops in a wink  

you feel your heart go all warm and gushy

and it’s noT from the heartburn

:-)

okay wait

it might be a little from the heartburn  

help me help you make your wishes come tru (aka send me a request)

drabble tag

[sesskag1postchallenge]

Ch3 - Operation Grandpup Drop (A SitBoy Discord Crack Fic)

Chapter 3

 Edit - Warning borderline NSFW and violence.

imjaneees08/02/2019

Completely in a different plane of residence, Kagome felt an odd disturbing tingle in the back of her head. Kind of like that stranger danger feel you get. This was one of those times she wished she was home lying on her fluffy pink bed, away from all the crazy kidnappers lurking about, attempted murderers and what not. And she's not even getting paid for all her good deeds here.

 revang08/02/2019

Today was honestly turning out to be one of the most eventful days in all her time in the past, and that was saying a lot. All she had wanted was to relax in the hot spring. Yet here she was, pack half-empty, shoeless and wearing only a makeshift fur dress, speeding through the air in Sesshoumaru’s arms. 

She twisted a bit in his hold, trying to meet his eye. “Um, Sesshoumaru? Thanks for saving me back there, but where exactly are we going?”

Stormie Like Weather08/02/2019

Sesshomaru held the miko close, his arm tense around her middle as he thought about his next move. Rin and Ah Un needed to be fetched, while he knew his Mother would be expecting them. Leaving her waiting would only cause more problems. He scowled. "To Rin."  She was his ward, and as such, a priority over his Mother's antics.

 imjaneees08/03/2019

Kagome managed to bite her tongue before 'That's great and all but why are you taking me with you?' got the chance to slip out. She just got saved by someone who may have come to her aid a number of times, but tried to to kill her just as much as well. She was also quite aware that they were well above the ground and she really didn't want to splat because she ran her mouth off.

 Slayer08/03/2019

Unnoticed  be her she had actually muttered those words. Sesshomaru  looked down on her and raised one eye brow. He could tell she hadn't actually meant to say it out loud, but her defiance, her seemingly untameable mouth did something to him.

 Walter20508/03/2019

They arrived back at the campsite but Sesshomaru was somewhat dismayed to find it empty. No sign of Rin, Kohaku, Ah-Un, or his Mother. He already knew from the arrow earlier that his retainer wouldn't be present, for that he would give him a good stomping later. 

 Lifting his nose into the air, Sesshomaru took in the scents as Kagome took a step forward in front of him, glancing around at the cold fireplace. He growled, causing her to glance back at him in worry, as he caught the scent of his mother's debilitating poison, knowing it meant that she had knocked out the others and used Ah-Un to carry them to her sky palace. 

 A deeper inhale confirmed her and Ah-Un's scent mixed with the others heading into the sky...but what was this other scent he smelled now? It was so fresh and...pure. Was this the miko's scent his mother had mentioned earlier? 

 Sesshomaru took a step forwards and wrapped his arms around Kagome, securing her in place as he bent his head to confirm his suspicions. Yes, there it was as he inhaled around her neck, past the smelly fur pelts from the wolves and the remaining taint coatings from Naraku earlier, he smelled her spice and she was everything nice. 

 Kagome was beet red as she was pulled into Sesshomaru's embrace and held by him in a seeming hug as he sniffed her neck. For several moments she could form no words but that quickly changed as the hug continued.

 imjaneees08/03/2019

Her heart was beating so fast and hard that she thought it was going to fly out of her rib cage and run away out of sheer embarrassment. 

Painfully aware that all she was bearing was what the daiyoukai had given her, she cleared her throat, "Ummm, I though we were going to Rin-chan?" she congratulated herself for sounding more confident than she felt.

 Walter20508/03/2019

Inukimi allowed herself the smallest of smiles as she watched the two of them through the seer's orb embedded within her ring, her labors up until this point finally providing some fruit on her quest for grandpups. 

 A shame the whelp of a stepson in front of her had spent so much time pining after the lost affections of the undead while mostly shunning the living, she would've been receptive to receiving grandsons from him as well but it seems he has squandered any romantic chances with his longtime companion over the years during their adventures together. 

 Still, he would surely be jealous of any relationship that developed between the miko and her true son, something that she would be able to twist to her advantage. For now she just needed to make him and his companions stay put for a while longer. 

 "My dearest stepson, won't you and your companions please stay and be my guests for a while? Your companion and others are coming to join me here and then I can tell you all the reason I've inv...gathered all of you here. In the meantime, please feel free to help yourselves to the banquet in the great hall and rooms are being prepared for you all as we speak," said Inukimi as she turned around, clearly dismissing them as she watched her son and hopefully his soon to be intended resuming their flight to her sky palace.

 revang08/03/2019

Just as suddenly as he had embraced her, Sesshoumaru stepped away, his face the same stoic mask he always had. “Hnnn. Yes, it would seem Mother is playing her games again. We shall have to follow to her palace.”

“Mother???” Kagome asked in shock, still trying to calm her beating heart. What the heck was that just now? “You have a mother? I mean, of course you have a mother but- nevermind.” Realizing his other words, she snapped to attention. “Wait she took Rin? Is she okay??”

“Hn. Come, Miko.” 

He gathered her up again and took to the skies. Kagome didn’t think about their positions, just worried for the little girl. She clutched her bow tightly.  Whatever they were about to encounter, she’d fight to keep her safe.

 Stormie Like WeatherLast Monday at 5:03 PM

While Miroku salivated over a heaping plate of food and the prospect of what he considered to be an impromptu tryst vacation with his wife, Sango was busy glaring daggers at him. "What are you doing? This could be poisoned for all you know." She snapped. Mere centimeters from his mouth, she slapped a chicken wing from his hand. Inuyasha eyed the youkai claiming to be Sesshomaru's Mother. She certainly seemed bastard-y enough to be the asshole's mom, but what the hell did she want with him?

 Walter205Last Monday at 10:30 PM

"Half son of the West though you may be, you are still of the line and thus need to be properly taken care of for the good of the future ruler over the Western Lands. Although your half breed nature makes you unsuitable for offspring, there are still many tasks in serving the Royal Family that one of their own blood would be the most well suited for," said Inukimi, drawing Inuyasha's hackles as well as earning side glares from his companions present.

 "Keh, so you're telling me Sesshomaru gets to have all the fun then? And why bring my companions along?" asked Inuyasha as his voice dripped with sarcasm. 

 "Some of your companions can provide ample advice and demonstrations for mating and childbirth/raising for when the rituals arise, particularly if my son chooses someone who is...less than full demon. Others provide ripe candidacy for being mated. And as for Sesshomaru, do you think my two sons are the only offspring I have?" Inukimi asked coyly. 

 As if summoned on cue, two younger female Inu dog demons appeared in the banquet hall, taking up positions on either side of where Inukimi sat. One seemed very much like Sesshomaru in appearance, but with longer hair, softer facial features, and a much more voluptuous appearance. The other appeared similar to Inuyasha but was a tad more petit and curvy in nature. 

 "Allow me to introduce my two daughters, my full daughter Inuemi (Beautiful Dog) and my half daughter Inukui (Ugly Dog), the former born soon after Sesshomaru was, the latter the result of a revenge affair after Inuyasha was conceived, which proved most disappointing on my end," stated Inukimi as she gestured to each of them in turn.

 imjaneeesLast Tuesday at 12:45 AM

Before Inuyasha could even get a single word out, there was a very loud, "RIN-CHAAAAAAAAN!" heard from way above.

They all turned up to see Kagome, dressed in what seemed to be Sesshomaru's clothes, snuggled quite comfortably in the daiyoukai's arms. One arm was over the Western Lord's shoulder while the other hand was pointing an accusing finger at Sesshomaru's mother and apparently his sisters, "You! The ones who look like Sesshomaru and Inuyasha in drag! Where's Rin-chan?!"

She wasn't normally like this, no. But she was stressed, a little hungry, a lot molested and tired. Also, she loved children, more than that, she loved Rin, the girl was adorable.

 SlayerLast Tuesday at 3:23 PM

"Rude!" Yelled the female who looked similar  to Inuyasha. 

"Yeah well I have had a day lady so dont push me!" She pushed herself out of Sesshomaru's  arms and walked up to the female. And poked her right in the boob. 

Inukimi glared at the feisty little human and growled at her older brother. "Make her stop Sesshomaru."

 Stormie Like WeatherLast Tuesday at 3:36 PM

InuKui pushed Kagome's finger away from her chest with a wave, "Don't get all uppity about Mother's antics." Frowning, she took a well loved scroll from her kimono, and began walking away, bored, "Mother, next time you summon me, be sure it's not for something so stupid." 

InuEmi tilted her head, "Can she do that?" 

Sesshomaru's jaw ticked, already sick of the situation. "Mother." 

"What" InuKimi snapped, but behind her fan she was smiling devilishly.

 revangLast Tuesday at 4:19 PM

“I tire of your games. Where is Rin?” Sesshoumaru asked, sounding unconcerned.

Ignoring him completely, Inukimi approached the feisty young miko with interest. “So you are the one whose wholesome scent was emanating from that strange cat garment.” Kagome’s face changed instantly from one of determination to a look of utter mortification. She had seen her panties?? And smelled them??? “Though now it is hard to catch beyond the disgusting scent of wolves. We shall have to take care of that, come along.”

Too stunned and embarrassed to protest, she felt herself being led away by Sesshoumaru’s mother’s light but firm grip on her arm.

“Cat garment?” Miroku asked, exchanging a mystified look with the others.

“Hey! Bitch where are you taking Kagome??” Inuyasha called, gripping Tessaiga and starting after them.” 

“Don’t bother,” Inuemi sighed, shaking her head and putting an arm out lazily to block his path. “Once she gets something in her head there’s no stopping her. Especially when it comes to making someone her dress-up doll.”

“Dress-up doll? What the hell’s that supposed to mean?” he growled.

Sesshoumaru huffed. “Clearly she means to put the miko into some proper clothes, or are your senses so weak you could not tell she was wearing a mere fur beneath the haori this one lent her?”

“Yeah, hey what the hell? What was Kagome doing with you? What did you do to her, you bastard?” Inuyasha snapped, moving around Inuemi to threaten his prick of a brother.

 Walter205Last Tuesday at 9:15 PM

Sesshomaru glared at Inuyasha, deciding whether to deign the half breed with a response, but it wouldn't be very courteous to have a fight break out in the banquet hall, so he answered, albeit in his normal short and to the point monotones. 

 "I came upon your wench while she was being attacked by an incarnation of Naraku. I repelled the attacker and brought her here to be reunited with her companions," he answered simply. 

 "Keh, why was she wearing nothing but fur pelts?" Inuyasha asked again. 

 "That little brother would be up to your discretion to find out, as you've claimed time and again to be her protector," Sesshomaru sarcastically replied before turning to walk out the door. 

 Inuemi placed a hand on Inuyasha's shoulder. He turned to see a look of pity on her face as she glanced from her slightly older brother to the younger one. 

 "Don't worry, she remains untouched and I'm sure we can ask her ourselves once she is properly cleaned up and clothed. For now, perhaps we could enjoy some food over the exchanging of tales. I'm most eager to hear of your adventuring, younger brother," said Inuemi, very specifically leaving off the half- part with a warm smile on her face. 

 As the now subdued Inuyasha would come to find out, while Inukui was every bit as brash and arrogant as he was, Inuemi was the polar opposite to Sesshomaru in personality and interests. The only supreme conquest she was interested in was knowledge and was a bit of a book and scroll worm, although she was looking forward to the possibilities in starting a family.

 Stormie Like WeatherLast Tuesday at 10:11 PM

Noticing things settled down, Miroku pulled his currently not pregnant wife into a closet. "Miroku! What are you thinking!?" 

He waggled his brows, "Since we aren't needed, I was hoping to squeeze in a little alone time before having number four." His hand skated over her backside, and her face flushed. 

"Ahhh, here!?" A broom fell between them, and she huffed, "I require more than a servant's closet to get in the mood you know!"

Far back in the opposite wing of the shiro, Rin and Shippo were using their calligraphy paints to draw funny faces on the nanny Shippo had tricked asleep. "She will look so funny with a curly beard!" Rin giggled.

"Serves her right for trying to teach us calligraphy." Shippo snickered.

 Walter205Last Tuesday at 10:29 PM

Sesshomaru was walking outside when the skies began to darken ominously, a familiar scent appearing that elicited a growl from him before a cloud of miasma appeared. 

 "Lord Sesshomaru, please pass along a message to the others, if they feel so emboldened to face me then they shall suffer the same fate as this one," came the unmistakable voice of Naraku from the miasma cloud as a pair of objects fell from it. 

 The first was the head of the wolf demon known as Kouga, before his body plopped down next to it. Little holes dotted the places on his body where his five jewel shards had been located at previously. 

 Sesshomaru had just drawn his sword when the miasma cloud vanished. Sheathing the Bakusaiga, he pulled Tenseiga instead and attached Kouga's head to his shoulders before reviving him. 

 "Unnhhh, what? Naraku, where are...You?" stammered Kouga as he looked around before setting eyes on Sesshomaru. 

 "Wolf, go bathe," stated Sesshomaru before sheathing Tensiega and going about his way.

 revangLast Tuesday at 11:10 PM

Reaching what seemed to be the family wing of the palace, Inukimi pulled Kagome into a chamber partitioned off from a large indoor spring. Eyeing her up and down, she said, “While you do look good in my son’s colors, it simply won’t do for you to be going about the palace in such attire. Take off that filthy pelt. I am sure you are worn from your travels- please make use of my private baths. There are an assortment of oils and potions here you may use to your pleasure. Sasako will assist you, and when you are finished, come to me. We will get you into some proper clothes.” She indicated the quiet servant who had followed them into the room, and left with a cunning smile.

Still reeling from the whirlwind that was Inukimi’s overwhelming force of personality, Kagome stood blinking for a moment in the center of the room. She did have to admit she felt pretty disgusting. On top of just normal travel filth, she had been in the process of bathing before this all began, still halfway dirty, and then that wet grime had only gotten worse, attracting all kinds of dirt and debris as she fled sopping wet through the forest. Sleeping in a pile of furs in a cave certainly hadn’t helped, plus who knew where this pelt had been before she had it right against her bare skin as a makeshift dress all day. 

She was definitely not going to say no to a bath and some fresh clothes. She could put up with being made plaything for a noblewoman for the time being. Plus it was Sesshoumaru’s mother, who apparently existed and also did not kidnap Rin after all- not in the true sense of the word anyways- Kagome couldn’t be rude to her.

 Stormie Like WeatherLast Wednesday at 10:31 AM

"Well," Kagome couldn't repress her grin, since InuKimi wasn't the child snatching monster she'd believed her to be, "I can't decline a nice hot bath." She had reservations about being a dress up doll afterward, but any clothes that didn't stink sounded amazing at this point. Her matted hair hung as she bowed a thank you. 

Suddenly screams and giggles barreled through the door, revealing two familiar children. Though, Kagome mused, last she'd seen them, they had not been covered in splotches of ink.

InuKimi glared at the Nanny, who sported a fancy drawn on mustache and goatee. "What is the meaning of this?!"

The Nanny caught both children by the back of their kimono before they could run and hide, "You ordered me to care for two children!"

"Yes?" InuKimi's brow quirked. Usually she wouldn't tolerate this sort of behavior from a lowly staff member, however  her interest was piqued. 

"These are not children!" The Nanny cried, "These are little hellions! I refuse to take care of two bratty, malicious, beasts!"

"They are not bratty, beasts!" Kagome shoved her finger under the Nanny's nose, "You must not be competent enough to care for them. Which doesn't matter anyway, because they are mine!"

 SlayerLast Wednesday at 11:41 AM

"Really one would think a being of your station would know not to speak badly of a mothers children right in front of her." Inukimi said as she snapped open her fan. "Why dont we send the children to their father , uncle, and aunts."

 SlayerLast Wednesday at 11:50 AM

"Rin dear? Why dont you and little Shippo go to the dining hall  and eat." InuKimi smiled down on the children completely disregarding the nanny standing there with her mouth hanging open.

Once the children had run off she turned her calculating golden eyes on the stork youkai she had been assured could handle the children.

"As for you you are dismissed from the employment to this house you have 12 hrs to collect your belongings and leave." Inukimi looked back on Kagome and gave her a dazzling smile. "I am afraid she came highly recommended but she simply will not do for keeping my darling grandpups in line now will she? Let's get you cleaned up my darling daughter and into some more suitable clothing." She led Kagome down the hall and into a huge bathing house

 Stormie Like WeatherLast Wednesday at 12:05 PM

Wide eyed, Kagome let her -Sesshomaru's Mother lead her to the bath. She'd have to ask Sesshomaru what the heck she meant by 'darling daughter' and calling Shippo one of her grandpups. Things were getting weird. The day settled on her heavily, and as soon as InuKimi left her alone, she sank into the water and closer her eyes. "Back to square one."

Her eyes snapped open as soon as something warm and wet dripped on top of her head. Fingers massaged her scalp, taking her back to Tokyo and getting her hair done at the salon. Claws lightly scratched. She sighed. Too tired to complain about the servant suddenly washing her hair, she let them do their job. She deserved a little pampering after all the hell she'd been put through.

 SlayerLast Wednesday at 12:08 PM

Kagome was washed massaged oiled and had her feet done and nails buffed before she was allowed to leave the bathing area. It seemed that Sesshomaru's  mother had a day spa all her own in this odd floating castle.

 Stormie Like WeatherLast Wednesday at 12:27 PM

"Oh!" InuKimi clapped her hands together as the servant ushered Kagome into her rooms. "Look at that! Even human skin can glow like a Goddess's with proper care." 

Kagome blushed, not sure exactly what to say in this type of situation, "Um, thank you?"

His Mother twirled her finger in the air, and the servant turned Kagome in a small circle. "My, my, you do have nice hips. It's a wonder no one has pumped you full of their young already." Her lips made a thin line as her attention snapped to Kagome's face. She grabbed her chin, peering too close for comfort, "What are your flaws?"

"Well...It's not like no one has offered." Her jaw clenched, and she pushed InuKimi's hand away from her face, "I mean I'm sure I have flaws... but that's not why I'm not barefoot and pregnant."

"Ah..." It clicked very quickly in her mind, "So you prefer attention from females then, that does pose a problem, though only a minor one."

 SlayerLast Wednesday at 12:35 PM

"WHAT?! No I dont prefer the attention of females.....not that there is anything wrong with that. I just havent been interested in any of my 'suitors' either they are rude and crude too soft and sweet or they smell bad." Kagome supplied

"Definitely  not having sex with a jerk or a pansy and who wants a stinky male sweating all over them yuck." Kagome made a disgusted face.

 revangLast Wednesday at 12:42 PM

“Besides, I’m only 18, and we’re still running all over Japan battling Naraku!” she huffed. “Wait why are we even taking about this??”

 Stormie Like WeatherLast Wednesday at 1:07 PM

"18!?" InuKimi shouted, "You're practically a grandmother's age for a human!" She shook her head, completely ignoring most of what Kagome had said, "No, no, this just won't do at all. I have to find someone for you quickly, before you become decrepit and die."

Kagome's eyes were wide, "No, thank you?" Sesshomaru's mother was seriously crazy, there was something wrong with her. Obviously the years were wearing her brain thin. "I'm good, so if that's all, I'm just going to get dressed and go..."

 SlayerLast Wednesday at 1:22 PM

"Nonsense  girl. You need a mate. A mate will care for you and give you pups and protect you from all harm. We shall simply have to find the right male.....it is a male you want yes?"

 Stormie Like WeatherLast Wednesday at 1:45 PM

"Well...yes..." Kagome cringed, "But I'm not ready to settle down. I'm fighting Naraku, and have important things to do."

"Yes, I'm sure you do." InuKimi nodded while shoving a stack of silk at an uncomfortable looking servant, "Get matching obis for these, color coordinate everything. Honestly why am I having to tell you this?" She waved the servant away with her fan, and looked back at the miko in her possession, "Now those very important things include finding a suitable Mate, and giving me grandpups. Your Mother will not be around forever you know, I expect many grandpups from you." 

"You? My mom?" Kagome shied away, backing toward the door the servant had just rushed out of. 

InuKimi's smile made Kagome cringe, "Oh yes, my darling daughter. You are part of my pack now."

"P-pack?" 

The door swung inward. The servant rushed through with more piles of silk. 

Kagome bolted.

[renegade2026]

TOM HARDY SAVES THE DAY (NO, REALLY)

One of the most intense actors of our time agreed to take us on a motorcycle tour of his hometown—and then the day spun way off-script.

ERIC SULLIVAN AUG 7, 2018

We're at the first stop on Tom Hardy’s literal tour down memory lane, and he’s already causing trouble. The caretaker of St. Leonard’s Court, an apartment building in the leafy London suburb of East Sheen, comes out to the driveway to say that a tenant has lodged a noise complaint. Hardy leans back in the saddle of the offending source, a Triumph Thruxton fitted with a not-so-subtle 1200cc engine. “Must be hard for someone who’s home at 3:00 p.m. on a Tuesday doing fuck-all, innit?” he says to the caretaker, who’s already in retreat. Then, overriding his knee-jerk snark: “It won’t happen again.”

“I’m the youngest person to own a flat on this block,” Hardy, forty, tells me, sounding both proud and bemused. He bought the place fifteen years ago, moved out six years later, and now uses it as a crash pad for out-of-town guests. He didn’t choose the location for its social scene, if the few geriatric residents shuffling by are any indication. Rather, he was the prodigal son returned: He grew up in the upper-middle-class community, the only child of Chips, an adman and writer, and Ann, an artist. His parents still live nearby.

“Ready for the five-dollar tour?” he asks. Our plan is to trace the path from what he calls his “privileged bourgeois background” to the upper-upper-class town of Richmond, where he now lives with his wife, actor Charlotte Riley, and their child, his second. (He also has a ten-year-old son with assistant director Rachael Speed.) The journey is short in distance—a little more than two miles—but ultramarathon-long in life experience.

“Behind the Laura Ashley curtains, there was naughtiness and fuckeries!” he begins like an overenthused docent. I point out that’s a line he’s delivered many times to many writers. He shrugs. “It’s easier to say that than to go deep-sea diving into it.” To Hardy, a fiercely private man and a reluctant public figure, the canned story serves the useful purpose of making an unsuspecting person feel like they’re getting to know the real Tom. “Should we fuck off?” he asks as we pull on our gear. Except for the beat-up jeans, his five-foot-nine frame is covered in black, from his helmet to his motorcycle boots. We get on our bikes and fuck off.

Five minutes later, just past the prep school he attended as a boy, Hardy spots a commotion, and we pull over. A woman, blood covering her face, lies faceup, half on the sidewalk and half in the street. A few bystanders are crouched around. As Hardy approaches, he says, “I know her.”

It's Mae, the mother of one of Hardy’s childhood best friends. [Some names have been changed.] He drops to one knee and takes her hand in his. Someone in the crowd tells us that Mae tripped while walking her dog. She’s slipping in and out of consciousness.

“Mae, it’s Tommy,” Hardy says. “Squeeze my hand. Keep talking to us. Can you open your eyes?” She moans. He tries out a joke. “Are you Canadian?” he asks. She manages a word: “No. ” He says, “Not even a little Canadian?” She doesn’t reply. By the time the ambulance arrives, Mae is responding, but barely. Shortly after, her son Albert pulls up on his bicycle. When he sees his mother laid out, he bites his fist. Hardy wraps his arms around his friend, both to comfort him and to keep him at a safe distance.

The paramedics load Mae onto a stretcher, and Hardy asks if they can bring Albert, too, then asks again to make sure they remember. They say yes, but they’ll first check Mae’s vitals.

After the ambulance doors close, Hardy turns his attention back to Albert. “Your mom took a whack to the forehead. But I’m not concerned immediately, ’cause she’s responding better than when we arrived. And ’cause they’re not rushing off. You settle in at the hospital, and then we’ll meet you.” Albert protests, but Hardy stops him. “I’m one of your best mates, and I love you.” He slips money into Albert’s pocket. “Just for now,” he says. As soon as the ambulance leaves, bound for Kingston Hospital, he calls Albert’s wife.

For the half hour we’ve been here, Hardy has not stopped moving. He’s talked himself through each step as if checking off boxes on a crisis to-do list. Suddenly, he turns to me and considers our circumstances. We began the day as writer and subject, but that dynamic dissolved the moment he saw Mae. “There was no interview here,” he says. “We find ourselves in a situation where we needed to put everything on hold.” A smile cracks across his face. “Welcome to my neighborhood. I told you there’s always something to find behind the Laura Ashley curtains.”

Private Tom and Public Hardy: These are the two sides that define him. That his time is split between work life and family life, and that his obligations toward both are sometimes at odds, isn’t unique. However, his steadfast struggle to separate them is; he’d be thrilled if never the two should meet. But they do, with increasing frequency, in ways that are beyond his control.

Public Hardy may be an accomplished actor in the U. S., but in his home country he’s a national treasure. In June, he was awarded the title Commander of the Order of the British Empire, which, while not as prestigious as knighthood, is on the same scale. In February, Glamour UK named him the sexiest man of 2018. Madame Tussauds in London recently displayed his likeness reclining on an oxblood chesterfield couch, one arm perched atop the back cushion like an invitation. (“Cosy up to Tom on his leather sofa and feel his heartbeat and the warmth of his torso in what is surely the hottest seat in town,” hypes the wax museum’s site.) He tells well-worn anecdotes to keep Private Tom concealed, and he’s always on alert.

We meet for the first time the day before the accident, at the Bike Shed, a motorcycle club and café in Shoreditch where, last year, he spent his fortieth birthday. It’s Hardy’s favorite place in London—not surprising, as he’s an investor in the company, which plans to open a location in Los Angeles soon. Every few minutes during our conversation, he nods hello to yet another bearded, inked-up passerby. He’s wearing a loose T-shirt and cargo pants with enough pockets to fit all the world. Brown fuzz dusts the crown of his head. A copper beard stippled with gray blankets the lower half of his face.

He answers my first question—how he’s doing—without missing a beat: “I’m tired.” He’s been working a lot, mostly on Marvel’s Venom (October 5), in which he plays the title role, a reporter named Eddie Brock whose body is hijacked by an alien symbiote. Venom has remained one of Spider-Man’s best-known foes since he first appeared in comic-book form in the late eighties. At times, he’s an outright villain; at others, including in Hardy’s hands, he’s more of an antihero. He can’t discuss the plot, but he says the tone of the movie, directed by Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland), is “dark and edgy and dangerous.”

The three-month shoot, which ended in January, took him to Atlanta, New York, and San Francisco, where the movie is set. “I see America by where the tax breaks are,” he jokes. Next, he headed to New Orleans to play a syphilitic Al Capone in Fonzo, directed by Josh Trank (Chronicle). That crew went hard: nineteen hours a day for six weeks. The day they wrapped, he flew home, threw on a suit, and attended the royal wedding with Riley. (All he’ll say about why they landed the coveted invite is that “it’s deeply private” and “Harry is a fucking legend.”) The work wasn’t the hardest thing; it was, he says, spending such long stretches away from his family.

Yet workwise, Hardy has arrived at what you might call a stakes moment, one that’s twenty years in the making. At the dawn of his career, after landing just two small roles, albeit in big projects—Band of Brothers and Black Hawk Down—he scored his first major part, as the bald, asexual villain in 2002’s Star Trek: Nemesis. But the movie tanked, snuffing buzz over his excellent performance. Five years of forgettable films and a few distinguished stage performances passed before Hardy played lead roles that fully showcased his talents: the homeless drug addict with a heart of gold in the BBC’s Stuart: A Life Backwards (2007), for which he shed nearly thirty pounds, and the most violent inmate in Britain in Bronson (2009), for which he packed on fifteen pounds of muscle.

Physical change is just part of Hardy’s exacting, chameleonlike transformations. “One can embellish with flair or an accent,” he says. “But ultimately you need to ground the character in some form of recognizable truth.” Hardy will talk your ear off about acting theory— Stanislavsky versus Adler, presentation versus representation, the use of clowning and mask work. “I’m a complete geek about it,” he says. But those seams don’t show. At his best, Hardy so thoroughly embodies a character, in both body and spirit, that he all but disappears.

Take a scene from 2015’s The Revenant. Hardy plays Fitzgerald, the coldhearted fur trapper and the target of revenge for Leonardo DiCaprio’s Glass. One night, around a campfire, Fitzgerald makes a veiled threat to a suspicious travel companion. He never raises his voice, but it’s as if he’s ripped out the man’s heart. Hardy’s performance earned him both an Oscar nomination and, after losing a bet with DiCaprio over whether he’d receive such recognition, a tattoo on his right arm that reads leo knows all.

His knack for magnetic unease can inject a blockbuster with edge: Mad Max: Fury Road, Inception, and, most notably, The Dark Knight Rises. But aside from Fury Road, whenever he’s assumed the lead role—Lawless, Warrior, This Means War, The Drop, Locke, Legend, Child 44—the results have come up short critically, commercially, and sometimes both. Venom is Hardy’s most visible role yet.

“Sounds like a lot of pressure, doesn’t it?” he half-jokes. But he says he’s not concerned about box-office returns; as always, he’s consumed with building a good character. He admits he knew little about Venom when he first read the script. “So I spoke to the only person I could really trust in this environment: my older boy.” His comic-book-loving son “was a huge influence on me doing the role.”

Hardy prepped for the movie for more than a year. He undergoes a rigorous process to shape each performance, complete with its own argot. A script is a “case file,” to be “unpacked” via “investigation.” He often begins by using personalities, both real and fictive, as lodestars toward which he guides his portrayal. The voice he developed for Al Capone in Fonzo is based on Bugs Bunny’s; to prove it, he plays me a clip of the raw footage on his phone. Sure enough, he sounds like the cartoon rabbit with a severe case of vocal fry. In Venom, the dual roles of Eddie Brock and Venom reminded him of three wildly different traits of three wildly different people: “Woody Allen’s tortured neurosis and all the humor that can come from that. Conor McGregor—the überviolence but not all the talking. And Redman”—the rapper—“out of control, living rent-free in his head.” Those are not details he revealed to the execs at Sony, which is producing the movie. “You don’t say shit like that to the studio,” he says.

“IF THE ODDS ARE STACKED AGAINST SONY, THAT’S NOT MY FUCKING BUSINESS. IT'S IRRELEVANT.

“If the odds are stacked against Sony, that’s not my fucking business,” Hardy says. “It’s irrelevant.” He burnishes an image of himself as a creative lone wolf, and in the third person no less: “Tom is very mercenary when it comes to work. I cannot give a fuck what the writer, or the director, or Larry in Baltimore thinks about my choices.” (He later clarifies the perspective shift: “Sometimes I talk in the third person because it’s a lot easier to see myself at work as a piece of meat. So when Tommy says he doesn’t give a fuck what you think, it’s only because I give too much of a fuck, and it gets to a point where it stifles me.”) But it’s hard to square his claims of artistic purity with the occasional very non-lone-wolf detail like, “Market research shows that the biggest fan base for Venom is ten-year-old boys in South America.”

If this movie does well, there will be sequels. And if Sony builds its cinematic Spidey universe, Hardy may well appear in those, too. Beyond those commitments, he’s vague about his post-Fonzo plans, most of which don’t involve acting. “What I’d like to do is produce. Write. Direct,” he says. Through his production company, Hardy Son & Baker, he’s working on the second season of Taboo, a moody period drama set in early-1800s London that he stars on and cowrites with his father. The first season was a mixed bag—its premiere ranks as one of the most streamed episodes of any BBC show, but historians criticized its accuracy and U. S. viewers met its FX airing with indifference—yet his stature is such that the BBC green-lighted the second season. He also optioned Once a Pilgrim, a thriller by a veteran of the Parachute Regiment, the elite airborne infantry of the British army; he’s considering directing the adaptation.

Hardy’s future looks rosy. And yet, more than anything, he feels worn down. Physically, sure: He’s walking with a limp. He says he tore his right meniscus on the set of Venom, but he doesn’t know how it happened. “At the end of a job, I normally end up on the side of the road,” he says. “And then carrying the toddler around on my shoulders. . .” He lets loose a two-note cackle. “Things get in the way of looking after yourself.”

But the fatigue is also mental. Maybe it’s because the growing demands of the job, especially the time spent far from his wife and children, are beginning to outweigh its diminishing gratification. When I ask if being forty has changed how he feels about his career, this time he answers in the second person. “You’ve summited Everest. It’s a miracle that you’ve made it anywhere near the fucking mountain, let alone climbed it. Do you want to go all the way back and do it again? Or do you want to get off the mountain and go fucking find a beach?” He tugs his left temple so hard that it looks like the skin might tear. “What is it that draws you to the craft? At this age, I don’t know anymore. I’ve kind of had enough. If I’m being brutally honest, I want to go on with my life.”

After the ambulance leaves with Mae and Albert, Hardy suggests that we stop at a few places on our way to the hospital. Not for my benefit, but for his friend’s. “Albert needs to be alone with his mum and his thoughts,” he says. “He’s going to be taking care of her, so it’s important he pays attention. Sometimes, when there are other people around, that’s hard to do.” Hardy isn’t trying to swashbuckle; he’s thinking of how to best help two loved ones. And, apparently, a guy he just met: Looking me up and down, he says, “We’ve had a bit of a shock ourselves. We could use some sugar.” We set out for a refreshment stand in a nearby park he first came to as a toddler with his mother to paddle around the kiddie pool, and then as a teen with Albert and others to play rugby.

When we arrive, the stand is closed. As we get back on our bikes, a father walks by carrying his son, a chubby boy with an explosion of straw-colored curls. “How old are you?” Hardy asks the boy. “He’s two,” the dad beams.

“When will you be three?” Hardy asks.

“July,” the toddler says softly.

“That’s really soon!” he says. “You’re a bit older than my youngest, who’ll be three in October. Oh, you’ll be a big boy by then. You’re already a big boy. Do you want to sit on my bike?” The boy buries his face in his father’s chest. “I appreciate I’ve made you feel nervous. This is what I will do: I will disappear,” he says, which could double as his two-sentence acting manifesto. He revs his engine over and over. As we depart, the boy watches Hardy, his mouth agape.

We cut into Richmond Park, a twenty-five-hundred-acre expanse that’s equal parts polished and untamed. When something catches Hardy’s attention—stags in the brush, a view of the Thames, a tree with knotted bark—he raises two fingers to his eyes in a V, then points so I see it too, like I’m his Dunkirk wingman.

We pull over at a dead end. With our engines rumbling, Hardy tells me that his parents moved to this part of London to enroll him in the best schools they could afford. The area is among the wealthiest in the UK, but it’s also an economic patchwork where council houses sit blocks away from mansions. “Growing up, you mix and mingle. You can sit in the shit if you want to, or you can make something of yourself,” he says. “Or you can end up under too much pressure and fading out young.”

As a child, Hardy had a strong relationship with Ann, but he butted heads with Chips. Father and son made up years ago, and Hardy resists going into detail about their difficult past. “My father was the most wonderful of teachers in a world that can be cruel,” he allows. “He treated me like an adult, as opposed to changing his persona for his child. There was no filter. Do you understand? No filter.”

In his teens, Hardy wobbled. “The centrifugal force in my life is a natural disposition to not be happy with the way I feel,” he says. That, combined with a robust contrarian bent—“Nine times out of ten, when somebody says, ‘Don’t do that,’ my instinct is to say, ‘That has to be done’ ”—got him into a fair bit of trouble. He hung out with the wrong crowds; he fought in school. “I grew up in the neighborhood being a dick,” he says. “I’ve learned and will continue to learn from being a dick. To try and somehow chisel myself into being a human being so I can respect myself when I look in the mirror. And that’s a procedure that will go on until I die.”

Starting at thirteen, he struggled with alcoholism and other addictions. He still has a soft spot for those with similar demons. In April 2017, when two kids riding stolen mopeds were T-boned at an intersection and tried to run, Hardy, who lived nearby, apprehended one of them. The Sun headline sums up how the press covered the incident: “Tom Hardy Catches Thief After Dramatic Hollywood-Style Chase Through Streets Before Proudly Saying, ‘I’ve Caught the C**t.’ ” He disputes the details of what was reported— “It wasn’t much of a chase; when I found him, he was in fucking rag order”—but that’s beside the point. The tabloids missed the real story: After the incident, he tracked down the kid he turned in and got him help. “He must stand accountable for what he’s done,” Hardy tells me. “But he’s got issues, and he’s in a bad way. Do we just give up on a sixteen-year-old?”

As a boy, Hardy was given second, third, and fourth chances. Along the way, he discovered that acting offered an outlet for his baneful discontent. He attended one drama school, then another, got kicked out twice, and was cast in Band of Brothers before he graduated.

Still, for years, he questioned his chosen path. Hardy even signed up for a Parachute Regiment training course—but never followed through. “Oh, mate, I did so much backpedaling,” he says. “The reality is that where I belonged was not there. The last person defending the realm was Mr. Hardy.” He calls the decision to back out “one of my biggest regrets. I wonder what life would’ve been like. I would’ve loved to have served and been useful.”

In 2003, at twenty-five, Hardy cleaned up with the help of a twelve-step program—he calls it “my first port of call”—and he’s been sober ever since. “It was hard enough for me to say, ‘I’m an alcoholic.’ But staying stopped is fucking hard.” Sitting on his Triumph, at the center of the place that held all the risks and possibilities that would define him, Hardy sounds almost wistful.

We take off through the park. He rides with his legs bowed out, his left hand resting on his knee, and his right hand holding steady on the throttle. When he rips on a vape pen, white plumes swirl around his head and dissipate into the damp air.

We head to Richmond. The town sits within the borders of Greater London, but its roots are as much in the countryside as in the city. Generations of famous Brits seeking refuge have called it home: Queen Elizabeth I liked hunting stags in the park; Charles I relocated his court here to avoid the plague; Mick Jagger lived near the Thames with Jerry Hall, who, though now married to Rupert Murdoch, apparently still co-owns the home they shared.

We stop at a café around the corner from Hardy’s place. The wall between us that crumbled upon seeing Mae—or seemed to, anyway—is fortified just as quickly. When Private Tom reaches playfully for my stack of questions and I instinctively pull them back, he casts a leery eye. “I see I’m not in the circle of trust,” Public Hardy says, when in fact I just got booted from his.

“Can I get a double espresso?” he asks our waiter.

“For sure,” the waiter says. “By the way, big fan. I always know if you’re in a movie, it’s going to be a good one.”

“Thanks. But don’t put your money on that,” Hardy says. “I’ve got to be crap at some point.”

“I would say you’re one of my top three best,” the waiter says. “Action actors,” he clarifies.

“I think I’m a bit too old now for action.”

“Except for the next Expendables,” the waiter jokes.

“I’m tempted to ask who the other two are,” Hardy says after the waiter walks off. “I showed great restraint. Great restraint.” He might claim that the opinions of others don’t matter, but this is driving him crazy. “Who are the fuckers?”

When the waiter returns, I ask. “Mark Wahlberg,” he says without delay, as if he were waiting for the question. Hardy, stone-faced, says nothing. “And Matt Damon.”

Finally, Hardy speaks. “Can I give you this?” he says, handing over a plate, any plate, just to send the waiter on his way. Almost as an afterthought, he adds, “Thanks, man. Good company.”

He deals with this sort of thing all the time. “I’ve crossed the line of being a public figure. And I accept that means to a certain degree I’m public property,” he says, “even though I project an image of myself to them,” acknowledging Public Hardy in all but name. Most people he meets are lovely. But “the downside of being overt is you invite darkness,” he says. “It only takes one person to cause real harm.” He defends himself as if someone has called him out. “That’s not being paranoid. That’s just facts.”

“THE DOWNSIDE OF BEING OVERT IS YOU INVITE DARKNESS. IT ONLY TAKES ONE PERSON TO CAUSE REAL HARM.”

By filtering which parts of himself become public, he’s mostly okay with the balance of Private Tom and Public Hardy. Except, that is, when it comes to his children. “I will pose for you, and photos of me and my wife are fine,” he says. “But if someone takes a photo of my kids, all bets are off. I will take the camera off you and beat the fucking shit out of you.” His voice contains no hint of exaggeration. “That’s the one that hurts. My kids didn’t ask for what my job is.” He pauses. “There’s something that really upsets me about the imposition of a grown-up world on a child.”

When we spoke earlier about his relationship with Chips, he said he was working to become a better father by learning from the mistakes of his own. “In trying to protect my children, I’ll probably give them their own dose of problems,” he told me. “But I don’t want them to go through what I went through.”

At Kingston Hospital, we make our way to Mae’s room. She’s feeling better, but dried blood still cakes her face. She and Albert don’t know who or what to expect next, or how long it will be. Hardy asks what she remembers—“Hit the pavement,” she says. “Made a nice sound”—and what still hurts. We unload snacks we brought, and then we wait.

The three relax into a familiar rhythm. Age has smoothed but not erased the boys’ mischief and the mom’s sass. Hardy jokes to Mae, “All right, lovely, want salt-and-vinegar chips with a side of infectious disease? Pick up a little souvenir?” She smirks.

Hardy squeezes some sanitizer onto his hands and rubs it, then reaches for a chip. “Don’t do that,” Mae says. “Wipe off your hands first. It’s not for eating.”

“It’s better than eating disease,” Albert weighs in. “I’d rather be sanitized to death.”

“I’m gonna take my chances,” Hardy says.

“How’s your mum and dad?” she asks.

“Very good, actually,” he says. “It was my mum’s birthday last week.”

“Twenty-one again?”

“I’m glad to see you’re cracking jokes,” Albert says.

“Me too,” Mae says.

When she leaves the room with the help of a nurse, Hardy turns to Albert and delivers a dose of optimism: “She’s walking, mate. That’s a good sign. The next thing we’re going to get is an X-ray, or maybe a CT scan if they’re concerned about bleeding or swelling in the brain. They’ve got to check all the boxes.”

Once Mae is back, Hardy steps out to talk to the nurse without saying why. “Is he using his celebrity powers?” Albert asks me. “Not the first time I’ve witnessed that.” He laughs, then quiets. “But it’s a nice tool to have.”

Hardy returns without explanation. A few minutes later, the nurse comes in. “She’s going to be seen next.”

Like that, Mae is at the top of the list.

Though Hardy is coy about how much he played the fame card, it’s clear his job here is done. As we say goodbye, Mae pulls him in close. “I want you to know that I have plans to see Venom,” she says. “You’ve done something that’s close to my heart. You know I’m a sci-fi freak.”

“You’re gonna enjoy this one,” Hardy says. “This one’s just for you. And for my boy.”

Hardy wants to exert control over his world. The brutal irony is that the more successful he becomes, the more the world controls him. But as we walk out of the hospital, I suggest that while his celebrity might feel like a burden, in the instance of Mae and Albert it was . . . He finishes my sentence: “Perfect.”

At the exit, an orderly chases us down. “Tom! Tom Hardy!” We stop. “I just love your movies. Can I take a picture?” Two more fans follow. He smiles as they gather around in the hospital parking lot and start snapping selfies.

This article appears in the September '18 issue of Esquire.

https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/amp22627852/tom-hardy-venom-fonzo-september-cover/

[actualyuuri]

Viktor is a barista at a coffee shop near where Yuuri works. Yuuri stops in each morning and they obviously notice each other -- there are jokes about spelling Yuuri's name wrong etc. But one morning Yuuri walks up to order and Viktor already knows his standard order and that makes Yuuri super anxious because he doesn't like people remembering him since it feels like a lot of attention so he stops going to the coffee shop in the morning... take it away :D

Yuri or Yuuri?

length: 1.6k; rating: all ages;

“So the barista is…”

Attractive, Yuuri’s mind finishes automatically. The barista is off-putting in simultaneously the best and worst possible ways. He’s off-putting in the best way because he’s gorgeous, silver-haired and blue-eyed and everything that Yuuri’s wildest dreams couldn’t even come up with. But he’s also off-putting in the worst way because the barista’s aforementioned attractiveness makes Yuuri’s words come out in awkward, pieced-together chunks that make him appear to be an idiot.

“…nice,” Phichit finishes his phrase, smiling knowingly at Yuuri.

“He’s nice,” Yuuri agrees, dismissing the topic with a wave of his hand. He takes another sip of his drink.

Phichit takes the cup out of his hand, and Yuuri tries to grab it back, but his friend is squinting at the name written on it. Yuri. “He spells your name wrong.”

“Plenty of people do.”

“There’s no line right now. Why don’t I go correct him?”

Yuuri pales, takes his cup back and leans across the table, keeping his voice low. “Phichit, don’t you dare.”

“If you’re not crushing on him like you say, then why should it matter?” Phichit asks conversationally, folding his arms across his chest and tilting his chair so that it’s only balanced on the two rear legs. “You come in here every day. He should learn how to spell your name, don’t you think?”

“That’s rude, though,” Yuuri points out hopelessly. “To just correct him like that.”

“No, I’m sure he’d thank you.”

He sighs, buries his face in a hand.

When he peeks an eye out between his fingers to glance at the barista, though, the barista is looking at him. Which is a problem, because when the barista looks at him, his thoughts turn to gush. Which is what’s happening now. Because the barista is still looking at him. And won’t stop looking at him, apparently.

“How’s your drink?” the barista asks.

His drink. Right. He’d ordered a drink. A caramel macchiato. Right. It’s in front of him. On the table. And Phichit is in front of him, and Phichit is probably wanting him to respond, and obviously the barista is wanting him to respond. He opens his mouth, waits for the words to spill out, but they don’t.

“Yuuri is shy,” Phichit says, the epitome of charisma, “but there are actually two ‘u’s in his name. Just so that you know. Oh, and my drink is delicious.”

Yuuri swallows, smiles awkwardly. “So is mine.”

“Oh,” the barista says, and his name tag says Victor, so Yuuri should start thinking of him as Victor, except he shouldn’t, because somehow that name only makes him seem more attractive. “Sorry about that.” Then, he smiles. “Yuuri.” The way that his Russian accent curls around his name sends a shiver down Yuuri’s spine.

“That’s okay,” Yuuri hurries to say. “Um, plenty of people spell it wrong.”

“Plenty of people spell my name with a ‘k,’” Victor adds, obviously trying to be conversational, and it works—or it would work, if he were conversing with anyone other than Yuuri Katsuki. “Oh, it’s, er, Victor, by the way.” He points at his own name-tag.

“I know,” Yuuri answers.

He winces.

(Phichit winces.)

(Even Victor probably winces, internally.)

But externally, the employee laughs, runs a hand through his hair.

There’s a silence.

Phichit kicks Yuuri lightly underneath the table.

Yuuri clears his throat. “Um, I like your name.”

The barista—Victor—lights up at that. “Yours isn’t bad either, Yuuuuri.” He purposefully stretches out the ‘u’ sound and Yuuri laughs, glad that this guy seems to be good at making conversations out of seemingly anything. “See you around?”

“See you around.”

~

“One caramel macchiato for Yuuuuuuri?” Victor asks the next morning.

Yuuri blinks, surprised.

Victor knows his order.

Victor remembers his name.

(Victor’s eyes look extra blue today.)

He offers a shy smile, nods, pays.

When he picks up his cup, there are at least twenty ‘u’s on it. He spins it around, trying to read them all, and catches Victor watching him, amused, from the counter. “Look at the bottom of the cup,” he advises.

Yuuri looks at the bottom of the cup.

There’s a phone number written there.

Victor has a finger on his lips and winks at him.

~

Needless to say, Yuuri avoids the coffee shop.

“I thought you liked him,” Phichit groans, exasperated. “He obviously likes you.”

“He’s intimidating,” Yuuri explains helplessly. He does feel a twinge of guilt for going to a different coffee shop for the past week. They do have good coffee where Victor works, and Victor is very friendly. But he’s also intimidating—that’s definitely not a lie.

Victor practically oozes charm.

(Charm that Yuuri is not, and never will be, prepared for.)

Phichit doesn’t look impressed. “I’m pretty sure you’re the one who intimidated him. That guy lit up whenever you walked in. You might not be able to notice, but I can. So I think you should start going back there. Face your fears.”

~

Phichit eventually convinces him to go back.

“Yuuuuuuri!” Victor calls from the counter.

There’s a redhead grinning at him. She touches Victor’s shoulder, squeezes it, then turns away to focus on something else. Yuuri smiles brightly back at Victor, whose enthusiasm is contagious. “Good morning.”

“Where’ve you been? I started to think that maybe you’d lost your caffeine addiction.”

Yuuri realizes that Victor is already working on his caramel macchiato.

It makes him happy in a way that no amount of caffeine could make him happy. He takes out his wallet, but Victor shakes his head at him. “This one is on the house.”

“No, you don’t have to—”

“I insist. I don’t want to lose my favorite customer.”

If Yuuri wasn’t blushing before, he definitely is now. He accepts the drink gratefully, but he’s still lingering by the counter, and so is Victor, and the redheaded girl is out of sight, now. “Thank you,” Yuuri says, sipping it.

“Look at the caramel.”

There’s a caramel heart drawn across the whipped cream.

“Oh,” he breathes, then starts laughing. He meets Victor’s eyes, searches them. “Um…”

“If you want me to stop, you can tell me,” Victor tells him, shrugging one shoulder. “You know, if it bothers you or something.”

“It doesn’t bother me,” Yuuri promises.

Victor looks relieved, lets out a small laugh, and some tension that Yuuri hadn’t realized was there leaves his posture. “Great. That’s great.”

~

The next day, Google is written on his coffee cup in place of his name.

He looks at Victor, waiting for an explanation.

“You have everything that I’m searching for,” Victor tells him with ease.

Yuuri doesn’t think about anything else for the rest of the day.

~

“You know who you look a lot like?” Victor asks him on a Thursday.

“Who?”

“My next boyfriend.”

It has become a game between them, Victor flirting incessantly and Yuuri having an internal meltdown. He loves it, he hates it—he can’t decide. Either way, it always leaves him speechless, flustered, and Victor seems to feed off of that, sometimes touching his hands when he gives him the cup, sometimes adding an extra pick-up line just to top it off.

~

On Friday, it says Yuuuuuuri Nikiforov.

Yuuri knows Victor’s last name by now, pales at the sight of the cup and ducks his head with embarrassment. “What? Don’t you think it has a ring to it?” Victor asks, preening.

~

On Monday, the cup says Wi-Fi.

“I’m feeling a connection,” Victor tells him.

~

On Tuesday, it says Ariel.

“We were mermaid for each other.”

Yuuri laughs a little too hard at that one, and his hand brushes across Victor’s forearm. During Victor’s break an hour later, he comes and sits next to Yuuri, and they easily talk about everything and nothing, smiling and laughing and learning about each other and Yuuri wonders how it’s possible for someone to make sitting in a small coffee shop so magical.

~

On Wednesday, it says gorgeous.

“I’m running out of ideas,” Victor admits. “So you’re going to need to go out with me soon or I’ll have to resort to some really, really bad jokes, and trust me, you don’t want to hear them.”

“So you don’t think the ones so far have been bad?” Yuuri responds without missing a beat.

Victor clutches his heart and pretends to pass out. Turns out there’s a woman waiting at the counter to be helped, and she’s not nearly as impressed with Victor’s sense of humor. Yuuri, on the other hand, is stifling laughter behind his hand. As soon as her drink is made, Yuuri bites his lip, nods. “I’ll go out with you.”

“You will?”

“Sure.”

Victor grins, touches his hand and laces their fingers. “Tomorrow night?”

“Sure,” Yuuri repeats, breathless.

“Dinner? A movie, too? Or is that too much?”

“I’m… I’m okay with both,” he answers, “if you are.”

“I’m okay with both,” Victor agrees. “What movies do you like? Horror movies? No, romance movies? No, no, comedies. We’ll watch a comedy. I’ll surprise you, but you’ll like it, I promise. How does six o’clock sound?”

Yuuri just nods, not trusting himself to speak.

Victor walks around the counter to hug him. “Thanks for saying yes, Gregory.”

Yuuri falters, confused. “Oh, my name—”

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding. I know that your name is actually Lewis.”

“Victor…”

Victor pulls away, squints at him. “Jeremy? Peter, maybe? Oh, I guess I forgot your name. Maybe instead I could just call you mine?”

Yuuri groans when the joke processes in his mind. “That was the worst one yet.”

“I lied, I wasn’t completely out of bad jokes,” Victor says, and plays with the sleeve of Yuuri’s sweater. “I’ll have more for you tomorrow night, I promise.”

“Are you trying to get me not to go?”

Another customer enters the building, and Victor gives him one last blinding smile before going to help them. “See you tomorrow, Robert.”

“Okay, Michael,” Yuuri answers, waving to him.

[imsarabum]

Responses to {Part 26} I Won’t Stop You // Jeon Jungkook, Vampire!AU Asks~

Please ‘Keep Reading’ to find my response to your ask ^^ As always, I have copied and pasted all asks into this post in regards to last night’s chapter to avoid clogging up people’s dashboards and to avoid spoilers for those who may still wish to read the chapter. Thank you ^^

(I have also included asks that I received in the hours before IWSY was posted ^^)

Anonymous said: I was having a really horrible day. And that's when I realized IWSY is getting updated tonight and it hasn't been as bad as a day as expected!^^  On a side note, do you like 2PM? I just wanted to see possibly. If you do, what is your favorite song? Thank you for being so awesome! 💕😘

I’m sorry you are having a really horrible day *hugs* but I hope IWSY can make you smile a little bit! And yes, I like 2PM, but is it bad to say that my fav song was 10 our of 10? LOLOL I still listen to it occasionally :3

Anonymous said: can't wait for the new iwsy chapter :)))

Yay I hope you enjoy it!!

@hemhings said: I won't be able to read I Won't Stop You tonight because I'm on nightshift, I'm so upset about this!😭😭😨

Awww babe I’m sorry you’re working nightshift! :( that really sucks ugh :( but don’t worry my love, Jungkook will still be here for you when you get home!! :3

@ktaegyo said: okay i just had my first part of final exams today and I fucked it up but then I stumbled upon your story and read all 25 chapters at one go lmao. bless you, thank you for making me feel better. I love you

I’m sure you didn’t fuck it up my love, I’m sure you did the best you can do! *hugs* but I’m really happy that IWSY made you feel a little better, and I love you too :D

@fangirlunnie said: IWSY can have hundreds of chapters and I wouldn't get tired of it 👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻

Oh god I don’t think it will have hundreds of chapters xD But it is turning out to be quite long! I never expected the story to take my to all these different places and ideas xD But thank you so much beautiful :3

@adoppelna14 said: Every Tuesday I have this strange urge to tell you that I am waiting for the new Chapter of IWSY😂 and it's no joke. A lot of times I look at the date and I'm like, Oh no it's not Tuesday yet. And every Tuesday morning it's like, why can't it be night already?😂😭

Please never lose this strange urge because I really love seeing people get excited (cos I get excited too!!) hehe ^^ I really hope you’ll enjoy this one ahhhh c:

Anonymous said: Bc i live in the Netherlands i have to wait till 10:30 bc the time is 1 hour behind, but still I always stay awake for IWSY and I always go to sleep after i read it bc Tuesday is the longest school day i have whaha

Awh bless you that’s so late for you I’m sorry! :( But I hope that tonight’s chapter will be a good one :3

Anonymous said: iwsy is literally the highlight of my day... no lie. my university classes have already stopped for the summer so i have nothing to do today.. and iwsy hasnt come out yet.... so all i did was nap. i woke up, checked the time in the uk, went back to sleep, and checked the time again. you got yourself a dedicated reader here!!!!

You’re literally so cute I’m screaming xD But I’m so jealous that you’re already finished Uni for the summer! I really hope you like tonight’s chapter :3 thank you so much for reading IWSY!!

Anonymous said: IWSY has reached its final ark right? I'm so exited for the last chapters. ^0^

Maybe, maybe not! You’ll just have to wait! :D

@warriorinhealing said: Can I just say I'm literally sitting at the edGE OF MY BED just waITING for IWSY to update 😩 this story is so good and my friend got me into this and I don't regret(okay kinda of bc my emotions are played a lot in this story) and I jUST !!! 😭😩 I don't ship chim and tae but this story makes me wonder if I should and I love yoongi but this story makes me waNNA FITE HIM SO HARD and I want him to cATCH MY H A N DSS !!! and you just write so good 😭 sorry that this is long, I'm vvv emotional

Ahh you’re so cute thank you so much! I’m really happy that you got into IWSY and that you’re enjoying it :3 Tbh i ship tae with everyone lmao he’s so loveable and full of affection ^^ I hope you’ll enjoy tonight’s chapter my love!! thank you so much :3

Anonymous said: First of all, i'm going to calmly say that you are a wonderful writer and that new chapter is no joke. I also want to say something else. Pardon my french, but:  WHAT THE FUCK?  I almost started sobbing.... But its fine... Ill just wait another seven days to see what happens.   [I've never cried from fanfiction before so this was a nice surprise. Thank you for being such a great writer and continuously uploading IWSY. Just thank you~💕]

Hehe :3 thank you so much for saying that ahh~ i’m so happy you read it and liked? it! lolol :3 thank you so much dear!

Anonymous said: fuck.

same tbh

Anonymous said: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

YES

@jauntyjin said: IF U KILLED JIMIN ILL BE SO SAD

WHERE DOES IT SAY JIMIN DIED

@talkmemeytome said: Omg im ACTUALLY crying at iwsy youre such a great writer oh gosh

aaaaaaaaah thank you so much yay!!

Anonymous said: I AM SHOOKETH. OH MAN. THAT WAS SO GOOD. YOU'RE PLAYING WITH MY HEART STRINGS. JESUS

You’re so welcome hehe~ thank you very much!

@mysr3 said: Sara!!! Am so MAD at U rn!! That Yoongi bite not supposed 2b on Y/N ahh😖what!!! Am so upset Omg! Ok I know u r the queen of Cliff hanging but this is just the most painful one I ever had! Glare hard at u girl! Nice chapter! My emotions r all over the place again thx to u! Can u spare us n give us reassurance that everything will b okay! Plzz I need this! My tears keep on falling TT Thank you! I Love U n Ur Blog❤️❤️❤️ but should I continue LOVIN U after this hmm 🤔 Hav a good Day Sara! ❤️ Ps I like how u portrayed Y/N to b kind of bad ass this time! But Jimin!!!! Why~

It’s okay~ everyone’s mad at me :( Don’t cry! Keep reading! hehe :) And Y/N has always been bad ass ^^ But she definitely went overboard and couldn’t control her anger in this chapter I think^^ thank you so much for reading my love!

Anonymous said: 😯🙁😢😭😵😱  ☝basically how i felt while reading this chapter haha BUT DAMN NOW I REALLY NEED TO KNOW HOW THIS WILL TURN OUT I NEED NEXT WEEK TO ARRIVE (but also no because it'll be one week less to my finals) can't wait for updates!!! Hope you have a great week 😘

Next week isn’t that far away! and same I feel you i have so many tests and finals and assignments that I feel like crying forever lolol thank you so much for reading my love!

@ayedemi said: i'm crying istg, i need more of IWSY, i'm in London with school next week and i will miss it bc they don't know for sure if we have wifi ): but i wanna say ILY byeee ♥︎

Ooooh I will also be in London next week! *shifty eyes* hehe but I hope you’ll enjoy IWSY if/when you get a chance to read it :D

Anonymous said: I know I just forgave you for playing with my heart but now I'm afraid I'm gonna have to take it back becaUSEWHYDIDUKILLJIMIN?!WHYDIDYOUKILLTHEMOSTPRECIOUSTHINGINMYLIFEHUH?!HEWASJUSTAYOUNGVAMIREANDYOUJUSTWERELIKETIMETORUINTHEFUNSORRYMATE?!IFONLYICOULDKEEPMYSTUPIDMOUTHSHUTANDNOWJIMINISDEAD!!!IMSUPPOSEDTOWRITEAPAPERTHATSDUE T O M O R R O W AFTERREADINGTHIS?!THISISTOOMUCHFUDGINGANGSTFORMYPOORFLUFFYHEART?!IHAVEMORETOSAYBUTIMRUNNINGOUTOFCHARACTERSSOILLENDWITHTHIS-IH8USOMUCHRIGHTNOW!HMPH- Vampnip anon

Question; where in the chapter did it say Jimin died *confused face*

Anonymous said: ... .... ..... ...... I Hate  You So Much Right Now HOW.COULD.YOU.DO.THAT.TO.ME Is it sad that I don't actually care about my character I'm just really sad about jimin 😭

no Jimin don’t dieeeee!

@ohheyitsebonyrose said: Omgg Sara!!!! That chapter I'm actually crying! T-T you're such an amazing writer! It's my 18th Birthday tomorrow (well for me; April 13th) and I go see Got7 next week I'm so excited!!!

Happy Birthday to you my love! I hope you have an amazing 18th birthday AND OMG YAY YOU’LL HAVE AN AMAZING TIME! I’m also seeing GOT7 again in May and June and I can’t wait sdfghjk they’re literally the only thing that is stopping me from drowning myself somewhere lol. Thank you so much for reading IWSY my dear, it means a lot to me :D

@sundaymorningblues14 said: I have never felt this amount of anxiety over a fan fiction. But I made it through, and even though my poor heart is beating way too fast right now, I am happy I didn't stop reading it.. Thanks Sara x

I am glad you didn’t stop reading ^^ because everything will turn out just fine!! Thank you so much my love, and I hope you have a wonderful week~

Anonymous said: DUDE THAT CHAPTER I'M ACTUALLY CRYING REAL TEARS RIGHT NOW THIS ISN'T A DRILL HOLY SHIT DUDE I CAN'T TAKE IT I JUST

This is not a drill - this is a real emergency

@im-that-chesire-jax said: OH MY FUCKING GOD IM IN TEARSSSSS

*hands you a tissue* because same

Anonymous said: THAT ENDING! NO! I AM ACTUALLY IN TEARS,, holy crap you're so good at writing i admire you! also! how many chapters are left?

Thank you so much my love! You’re so kind to me :D And I have no idea, I’m sorry!

Anonymous said: NO GOD PLEASE NO. YOONGI DID NOT DO THAT. THIS STORYLINE IS SO CRUEL.

The world is a cruel place my friend

@animeimmortal said: DO YOU MIND WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO KILL JIMIN AND LIKE WHAT WAS THAT ENDING. MY SON IS DYING RIGHT NOW WHAT HAVE YOU DONE LIKE WHAT IS THIS I Don't know what I was expecting tbh bUT IT WASNT THAT THou I was expecting a fight to break out and the detailed descriptions? Amazing I love reading them they make the whole thing seem so real you're so tale ted aNYwAY MY SON IS DYING THERE OMG WHYTYYYYY ❤❤❤

Where does it say Jimin died? :o hehe thank you for liking the detailed descriptions and i’m really happy it seemed real to you ^^ NO JIMIN DON’T DIEEEEE! Thank you so much dear ^^

@jeonjungkooksshi said: You're an amazing writer! IWSY IS AMAZINGGGGG and the latest chapter... ughhh too much for my weak heart! LOOKING FORWARD TO NEXT WEEK!! <3

*blushes* thank you so much my love c: that means so much to me!

@the-golden-jhope said: I WANNA FUCKING DIE YOU CANNOT END IWSY LIKE THAT IM CRYING OH MY GOD I CANT WAIT A WEEK

1. Don’t die pls - 2. I just did~ hehe THANK YOU for reading :D

Anonymous said: OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! IWSY PT 26 WAS SO SPICY!!!!!!!!!!! DAMN UNNIE!!! fuck i hate cliff hangers but, in this case it's totally understandable. omo, my hearteu my hearteu. Unnie, do us all a favour, STOP MESSING WITH OUR BIAS LIST!!! lol, You deserve around of applause. Can't wait for Tuesdays!!!! hwaiting!!!!

Hot hot spicy! hehe thank you so much for reading the update and I’m glad it brought you pain/pleasure ^^ hehe

Anonymous said: BSKSKSNDND MUMSY IM ACTUALLY CRYING AT THIS IM SCREAMING WHY WOULD YOU OH GOD IM IN NEED OF SERIOUS COMFORT WHY WHY WHY IM SOBBING NDKDKKDEM I CANT EVEN BREATHE I'M CRYING IM NOT READY FOR NEXT WEEK IDKSKEND MUMSYYYYY WHYYYYYYYYY

*comforts you* shhh it’s okay~ it’ll be over soon~~ hehe thank you for reading it my love!!

@deangetoutofmyspleen said: oK i'm crying like a little bitch yet again bc of IWSY. the pain is highkey worth it though i'm in love with this story. if i owned a time machine i'd go to next week fr

it’s okay I cry like a little bitch every day~ it’s gr8 hehe ^^ thank you for being in love with iwsy ^^ i’m so happy that you’re enjoying the updates lovely!

@platinumbreak said:  Thank you, you made me lucky haha my exams went well. I hope yours will too. I talked about your writings to a friend and she has been reading it for 3hours straight, she is not even answering anymore haha Ps: This chapter is just amazing thank you for writing and making our life happier haha ×

I’m so happy i could give you a little bit of luck! and I’m glad to know that your friend has seemed to immerse herself in the story too :3 I hope she likes it! thank you very much for reading!

Anonymous said: I'm not even gonna begin to lie, there's actual tears in my eyes after ch26 like, fuck it has me so emotional I'm such a soft pillow I just want everything to turn out okay Jesus Christ I'm sitting nd crying why u gotta do this to me

trust me,I was crying when I wrote parts of that chapter ^^ hehe~ *hugs you* thank you so much for reading the update!

@killingalltheflowers said: Omg this chapter was too much. HOLY SHIT YOU KILLED JIMIN, MY LOVE. YOU MONSTER (I still love you) A-AND NOOO NOW THE READER IS GOING TO BE BOUND TO YOONGI. UGH I- I CANT. I'M SO UPSET ABOUT EVERYTHING. YOU FREAKIN GODESS OF FANFICS. T^T Also this chapter was gorgeously written.. T^T

Where does it say Jimin died?! lol ahhh I’m definitely not a goddess but thank you so much for reading and enjoying the chapter, it means so much to me :3

@oramleon said: sara i'm fucking crying right now what the HELL was that update??????????? WHYYYYYYY

I’M SORRY OKAY

@theninjachan said: "Yoongi smiled – baring his teeth and gums as if he found something to be terribly funny."  YOOO I THOUGHT OF YOONGI'S GUMMY SMILE IN THIS LINE AND CAN'T HELP BUT GIGGLE BUT HOLY FUCKING SHIT I AM TEARS RIGHT NOW THIS HAS BEEN YOUR MOST HEART WRENCHING CHAPTER YET. I NEED A MOMENT.

Yoongis gummy smile melts my heart every single time fuck-- TAKE YOUR MOMENT ITS OKAY I UNDERSTAND hehe but I hope you enjoyed it my love ^^

Anonymous said: sara you KNEW everyone was gonna be upset what do you mean "some scenes may be upsetting" i was balling my eyes out the entire time

Shit u rite~~ BUT I HAD TO WARN OKAY YOU CAN’T SAY I DIDN’T WARN YOU YOU BROUGHT THIS ON YOURSELF

@moonlighthollow said: OMG NO NO NO WTF NO PLEASE OMG  OK I'm done..😐 I'm an emotional wreck😭 she can't just..... yoongi can't just... oh geez i don't even know what to say  AND JIMIN😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 Why u doin dis to me ? My poor heartㅠㅠ (i love your writing tho♥)

Shhhh it’s okay...shhhh now *hugs* eheh thank you so much for reading this chapter even if it was a little sad!

@doubletroublesince1994 said: OH MY FUCKING GOD YOU DID NOT OH LORD HELP ME BREATHE I DID NOT EXPECT THAT HOW THE FUCK DID THIS HAPPEN BECAUSE HELL I DIDNT ANTICIPATE THIS IM SHOOK

I’m glad I could surprise you in the worst way c: hehe thank you for reading once again my love!

Anonymous said: Hi, how many chapters will IWSY have? 💕

I’ve answered this question a million times before and Im sorry but I have no idea! :D

@wearelivinglegacies said: I'm NOT OKAY OMG I'M SO CLOSE TO CRYING RN LIKE WHAT AHHHHH FIRST JIMIN AND NOW Y/N!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! I'M SO ANGRY AND SAD AND THIS STORY IS SO AMAZING THANK YOU, BUT ALSO WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO MEEEE???????? I can't wait for the next part this story has me on the edge of my seat 😭❤

I apologise for any hurt I’ve caused hehe~ thank you so much for being on the edge of your seat, and thank you so much for reading too! :D

@noceurash said:I knew bad things would happen in this chapter but I'm so... gffhu DEAD INSIDE,, my poor sweet boy jimin (I have such a soft spot for this boy why would you hurt me like this ;^;)) and tae too aaah my heart is breaking. Not to mention bby namjoon not wanting to hurt anyone im crying inside. You've hurt my soul this chapter. It's so good ((hurting me but good)). I hope you have a lovely day~~ I love you!!! <3

All the soul and heart hurties :c hehe i hope you’ll have a lovely day and I love you too! thank you so much for reading the new chapter sweetie!

@wastedtaehyung said: WHAT THE FLIPPJNG FUCK DOFMDCKMS KWEKSLXKQOS (Y/N) AND JIMIN WHAT WOFMWKDK APLDLQD NOW I HAVE TO WAIT NEXT WEEK WIFNSKDMSKSKWMS FUCKFKCMSKLAXMLWFKLW

you’re welcome :3

Anonymous said: nOOOO SARA NOT JIMINNN T_T. i expected it but you still got mehhh feeeeeels. your stories are just so emotional and thats exactly whats so great about them ;-;. ive always thought about how these ideas pop up in your mind. :3

:3 i’m so happy that you find it emotional to read, because i find it emotional to write! as for ideas, they just come to me randomly? dreams, through lyrics and poetry I write, i don’t really know^^ thank you so much for reading dear :D

@bekzzz said: Holy Shit. Just.... holy shit. Tuesday can't come fast enough!

hehe thank you so much my love!

Anonymous said: straight up forgot that iwsy was coming out today 😭. I'm moving houses so everything is super stressful but i read the chapter and suddenly I am at peace. -tall anon

i hope moving house goes quickly for you! stress is no good~ thank you so much for reading the new chapter tall anon! ^^

@m1n-yoong1 said: The amount of times I've gasped and screamed reading IWSY pt 26 is unreal, your writing always amazes me and I look forward to the next chapter 🙌🏼🙌🏼💖💖

awh thank you, that was so sweet and you made me smile ^^ thank you so much for reading the new chapter love!

Anonymous said: damn sara these cliffhangers tho 👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻

u know me xox

Anonymous said: I hate you I hate you I hate you I hate you I hate you I hate you I hate you I hate you I hate you 😡

It’s okay. I hate myself too.

Anonymous said: There was a part where you mention how she was essentially able to give life and it was in italics so she can bring Jimin back to life, right? Also if Jungkook marked her in some vampy way, does that mean that Yoongi's plan won't work? Please say yes! 🙏 Joon is gonna be okay too, right? I don't like death. Death is sad. I don't like being sad.

When Jungkook said he marked her, it was sexual innuendo as in - he has already gotten her pregnant ^^ hehe I hope everything turns out well in the end c: ~ thank you so much for reading!

Anonymous said: I'd like to assume that Yoongi can still be redeemed, because o love each and every one of them. That seems a bit too unrealistic, doesn't it though. 😔

We’ll just have to see what happens! But just remember that it’s not real haha Yoongi’s image is just being used for a character I created! It doesn’t depict him in any way ^^

@thenotsogrownupeldest said: I was screaming reading the ending of IWSY latest chapter! I even wish I was some kind of supernatural being that can intervene that heartbreaking scene and save both jimin and y/n.. you my friend, are a terrific writer. I love you but I slightly hate you right now for the ending. I need a moment to calm my non-vampiric soul from this intense scene.

Jump into the story and save everyone! hehe ^^ thank you so much and I love you too (even tho you slightly hate me) c: i’m glad you liked? the update!

Anonymous said: HOW COULD YOU

WHAT DID I DO

@wanda-rog said: I'm speechless...I really wasn't expecting that...Jimin better be okay next week! You're so good at leaving us all on the edge! I bit all my nails reading that chapter and now I can only hope for Jimin to survive and WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO THE BABY AND IS NAMJOON OKAY AND WHAT WILL HAPPEN OVER ALL, angst aside that was a really cool chapter I'm seriously looking forward to next one, thanks for always updating on time and lengthy chapters too, you go Sara xx

I hope he’ll be okay too! hehe all the questions, hopefully you’ll get answers soon c: thank you so much for enjoying it and reading the new chapter dear, it means a lot to me ^^

@coppertopging said: Omg i totally forgot it was tuesday until i saw your update! This chapter had soooo much going on!! I have so many questions, but got so many answers, but I can't help but want... no... NEED more of this story! Is it terrible that i just never want it to end?!

trust me, al the days have merged into one for me. I have 4 assignments due and numerous exams to have and I’m losing my grip on reality lolol please kill me :( thank you so much for reading as always dear, it means the world to me.

Anonymous said: Holly Tony Molly SARA DA FEELS ARE SO STRONG stop making me cry why did u kill Cristian Chim Chim :/// I just cant wait for next week arggggh *sobs* I freaking love how all of this is so angsty 💞 --wifey anon

hello wifey anon! Where does it say I killed Jimin? ;o thank you so much for reading my love!

Anonymous said: [[SCREAMING]]

*whispers*

Anonymous said: [Error 404] u cant kill chimchim u just cant why ?!😞😞

Where does it say I killed Jimin? ;o

@jynxy24 said: What. The. Hell. Shit feelings. What are feelings anyway? Do feelings even exist? WHY THE HECK YOU GOTTA DO THAT SARA WHY?! I'm happy that Namjoon is good. WE WERE CORRECT!! And damn, badass reader omg. I MISS BADASS VAMPIRE MOM!! Also, if Yoongi frickin doesn't turn good at the end, Istg Sara. Anyways! Thanks for the greatttttt chapter! Stay awesome :3

FEELINGS DONT EXIST :D hehe thank you so much for reading the new chapter ^^ i’m really happy you enjoyed it Jynxy :D

@shineeshawol204 said: So I just read chap 26 of I Won't Stop You, first of all, bitch - I mean that in the nicest way possible - second of all, your writing style is phenomenal! During the fight scene I was letting out audible gasps as the events were unfolding and I feel like I am actually watching it. There's zero gaps in your writing, I am left without questions (other than why bis, ugh the pain I feels) as to what's happening and just ugh, wonderful. Also my friend i sent it to is only on pt.3 and I need someone

Ahh thank you so much I’m so glad you enjoyed the fight scene! I had such a fun time writing it tbh lol to hear you say that there’s no gaps in my writing, it’s really a massive compliment to me. it’s always something i’ve been afraid of happening so thank you so much! thank you a million times ^^

@cheeto-puff-gem said: what the FUCK WHY THIS WHY T H I S

I DON’T KNOW WHAT

Anonymous said: OH SHIT Y/N IS GOING TO BECOME A VAMPIRE (stares intensely at April 18th on the calendar AKA NEXT TUESDAY)

but what if SHE DIES

Anonymous said: ONCE AGAIN YOU GOT ME ALL THE WAY FUCKED. ONE JIMIN NOT DEAD. IF HE DIE IMA LOSE MY SHIT AND TWO Y/N NOT GONNA BE YOONGI'S SLAVE CUZ SHE BELONGS TO JUNGKOOK. it's midnight and I'm laying in the bed crying RN cuz like why? Why you do these things? 😢😢😢 My soul is hurt. I feel as though the world needs to end because Lil mochi is dying and WHAT ABOUT THE FETUS? Baby fetus me is in there like wtf mom calm ya tits and where's my dad? You keep hurting me w/ cliffhangers but I love u 💜~LilKookieAno (cont.) P.S. on a real note I'm dead ass when I say the baby should be named after me. 💜 ~LilKookieAnon

Don’t worry baby fetus i’m sure you’ll be okay! hehe hopfully everything will work out okay in the end :D i love you too sweetcakes~ thank you so much for reading part 26! i hope you enjoyed it even though it was an emotional one :3

@blryface said: I'm honestly so shook at part 26. Like, oh my god I'm speechless. You're such an amazing writer and I anticipate every Tuesday when you update! I can't wait to see how things turn out but DAMN YOU GOT ME FUCKED UP

ahhh thank you so much honestly ^^ i’m so happy you liked it and that you look forward to new updates my love! and i’m sorry if i got you all fucked up hehe

Anonymous said: NO NO NO NO SARA WTHEFUCKWHY TAKE ME TO THE HOSPITAL RIGHT NOW IM GONNA AAAAAAA

I called you an ambulance!!

@sunnyoongi2 said: I JUST FINISHED THE NEW CHAPTER OF IWSY AND IM SO HURT I LOVE IT SO MUCH IM CRYING JIMIN!!! NOOO

hehehe thank you so much for reading!

Anonymous said: HOLY SHIT WHAT THE FUCK JIMIN OH MY GOD IM CRYING BUT ALSO NAMJOON AND IM SO TIRED IT'S TOO LATE ON A SCHOOL NIGHT TO BE THIS EMOTIONALLY DISTRAUGHT OH MY GOD

GO TO BED YOU NAUGHTY CHILD!

Anonymous said: NUH UH HONEY. That is all. (In response to IWSY Part 26)

UH HUH HONEY YES MM

Anonymous said: OH MY GODDDD. IWSY CHAP 26 GOT ME SCREAMINGGGG!!! THANK YOU FOR THE UPDATE 💜💜💜

AHH YOU’RE WELCOME AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING!

Anonymous said: WAIT WHAT

*waits*

Anonymous said: Yeah just slap me right into the feels take my heart will ure at it whats the point of living if softie Jimin is dead 😩

Where does it say Jimin died?!

Anonymous said: What is this pain that I feel in my chest?

Life

Anonymous said: my poor hearteu

*comforts you*

@lostheretics said: oMg iM HAVING A HEART ATTACK WTF YOONGI???????????? I NEED HELP IWSY IS KILLIN ME

hehe~ you’re welcome for the heart attack! :3

@koreaisanaddiction said: SARA NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! not thatt!!!!! im so sad!!!!!!!(cont.) I THINK I KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT!!! I HAVE THEORIES!!!

*sneaky laughs* I guess you’ll just have to wait to see if your theories are correct! ^^ thank you for reading lovely :D

Anonymous said: you ripped my poor soul in half with iwsy why, why must you bring pain and do this :(   poor jimin my heart

I apologise for all the pain :( but I hope you’re still enjoying the story my love!

Anonymous said: I just cannot with chapter 26, this feeling is so indescribable, no words can explain the pain when I read the last few paragraphs, OMG NO PLEASE DONT TAKE HER AWAY FROM JUNGKOOK PLEASEEEE!!!! ಥ╭╮ಥ

Hopefully everything will be okay!! Thank you so much for reading my love ^^

Anonymous said: oh my gosh Sara chapter 26 was so saddening but so good!!! JIMINNNNNN please tell me a miracle will happen and he won't die!!! and let's hope the mark made by jungkook makes a difference and it is strong enough to overcome Yoongi's... I don't want evil yoongi to become my master T.T btw I've written in a couple of times as anon, but how about I label myself as bunnykookie96 from now onwards :D yes, I'm a 96-liner. may I ask what's your age too? ^^

The reference jungkook made to a ‘mark’ was a sexual innuendo because he got her pregnant haha ^^ and yay bunnykookie96! I am also a 96 liner~ my birthday is 12th of January!! :D

Anonymous said: IDC ABT Y/N RN WILL JIMIN MAKE IT AKSKSKKSKK PLEASE OH MY GOD I STILL NEED TO SEE THAT VMIN SIDE STORY

I PRAY THAT ALL YOUR WISHES COME TRUE GODBLESS

Anonymous said: im fucking having theories in my head right now loool but i cant put it into words i will wait for the next chapter to see if im right hoho and btw is this ending? :( i feel like im reading a book holy shit i dont want it to end :((

I can’t wait to see if your theories will come true!! And nope, not yet. There’s still a bit to go~ But I’m glad that you’re not getting bored of it! I was afraid that people might get bored of it because of the length of the series haha :( thank you so much for reading!

Anonymous said: HOW COULD YOU DO THAT JIMIN WHHHHHYYYY the tears currently streaming down my face could create a lake for him to relax in LIKE WHHHYYY DID U DO THIS TO ME WHY COULDNT YOU JUST TAKE ME INSTEAD he was so young so bright so precious just full of love I'm so sad WHY JIMIN!!! New drinking game!! Drink an entire bottle of wine everytime you cried during this chapter ☹️

Jimin you should have stayed out of it!! Take him? Where did he go? Who said he’s dead? ;o hehe~ thank you so much for reading the chapter my love ^^

Anonymous said: I just looked at a picture of Min Yoongi the love of my life and I? Got mad at him?? Like??? You asshole???? Why couldn't you just stay in the basement of your god damn mansion and let everyone live happily????? Like damn I had to remind myself that I'm not dating a vampire and Jimin didn't actually get stabbed and that I need to stop reading outside because I look crazy crying on a park bench THANKS SO MUCH SARA YOU REALLY STABBED ME IN THE HEART THERE

Awwwwh no! Don’t be like that~ that’s not how Yoongi is - I’m merely just using his image to fit a character that I made! Yoongi is a sweet person for sure :D hehe i’m sorry if I made you cry :( but i hope you enjoed the chapter nonetheless ^^ thank you so much!

Anonymous said: Omg ch 26 was brilliant! All I can think about is what's going to happen to y/n's unborn baby ahhhhhhh >.< my heart goes out to jungkookie, his biggest fear became true. I really loved this chapter and the loved the way you conveyed namjoon's struggles! On another not,I really admire you for updating on time! Thank youuuuu for writing an amazing story that contrary keeps us on our toes. I love it and hate it at the same time lol.

Thank you so much my love! that really means so much to me, you’re so, so sweet thank you so much *hugs* I really hope you’ll enjoy the rest of the story and I’m glad you liked this chapter ^^

@dont-hyuck said: Fuck I'm trying so hard not to ugly sob after this chapter ooooohhhhhh someone help ease my aching heart 😭😭😭😭💔💔 I hope everything ends up right at the end I am so attached to this story it is one of the most wonderful things I have ever read and I mean that with my entire being. Please don't ever stop writing I love you so much 😭😭😭😭💖💖💖💖💖💖

I was ugly sobbing while I was writing it haha :( I hope everything ends up all alright too! awwh thank you so much my love, you have no idea how much your words mean to me! I don’t ever plan on stopping so you don’t have to worry :3 thank you and I love you too my dear!!

[frxggi]

Late Night Confessions

Sighs this didn’t turn out how I wanted it to  Tbh if i see chan getting into this sort of situation, mature and calm is like the exact opposite of how i think he’d behave He’s still young and so full of life so i feel like he’d let his emotions get in the way of handling this sort of thing so i kind of tried to have him act a bit more cooly but also still kind of ????? like how he usually is   srry if this isn’t exactly what u asked for but i did my best lol  Genre: Fluff i guess? Maybe angst not really actually  Word count: 2898  As always constructive criticism is always welcome thank u and goodnight  Also I wrote this on mobile so sorry if it’s kind of fucky ill edit later when im on my computer 

Sneakers squeak against laminate floors, heavy pants of exhaustion accompany loud music as you twist and turn and move your body to the song that’s been on loop for hours. The choreography that’s been drilled into your brain is now muscle memory as you finish out the song, your hair falling in your face. You raise your arms triumphantly, a shout of excitement leaving you as you bounce on your heels. This is the first time you’ve performed the song without messing up. Your other members groan and whine, their legs like jelly as they clamber over to sit down on the couch the company had only just put in the practice room. “Y/N, come sit next to me!” Hana, your rapper counterpart waves you over. You squeeze into the small space next to her and she casually drapes her arm around you, her phone held in front of her as she excitedly presses play on a new video she’s been wanting to show you. The visuals are beautiful, but the murmurs from the other girls overpower the volume emitted from the phone’s speaker. The video is nearly over when the door to to the practice room is kicked open. You and the other girls immediately get off the couch. The seven of you must have collectively forgotten that Victon, your seniors by a year, was scheduled for practice directly after your group. Subin announces his presence with a loud yawn as he stomps into the room. His hair is disheveled and there’s slight bags under his eyes. You guess he must have just woken up from a nap. The girls began to apologize for overstaying after they all give a quick greeting and file out of the practice room one by one. You, being the leader, have to stay behind and make sure everything was left as it was before you and the rest of the girls had arrived hours earlier.

Seungwoo enters last, his newly dyed gray hair pushed back haphazardly into a beanie. He’s dressed in black jeans and a white t-shirt that’s maybe a few sizes too big so it hangs lower on his shoulders and you can see a peek of his collar bone. He greets you with a wave and a warm smile. You return the gesture and then return to the task of cleaning your things.

“Y/N,” A cheerful voice begins. It’s Chan, rocking on his toes and a devilish grin on his face.

“Oh, hi. Am I in your way?” You ask, motioning to lift your bag but finding it stuck on the leg of a chair.

“No. I was just wondering what your schedule is like for next week.”

“We have a fanmeet on Tuesday, and tons of other stuff. I think I’m all booked.” You reply, bending down to free the strap of your bag.

“Ah, how unfair.” Chan juts his lower lip out in a pout, sniffing in an attempt to mimic crying before he’s back to his normal attitude. You laugh at his gesture.

Seungwoo watches the two of you casually out of the corner of his eye.

“We’re going to dinner to celebrate our first win. You and the rest of the girls are invited! Pleeeeeaaaassseee try to come?” Chan has his palms pressed together, held against his lips as if praying as he fixes you with a gaze you’re positive no girl can resist. You grumble.

“It’s not up to me to rearrange our schedule, but I’ll ask our manager if it’s possible.” His face lights up, and you wag a scolding finger in front of him before he can speak up. “BUT, no promises.”

Chan takes it in stride, and he’s waving a fist triumphantly as Subin beckons him away from you. Seungwoo takes this opportunity to speak next, catching you as you make your way out the door. “Stay safe out there, Y/N. The weather has been really unpredictable lately.”

“Ah, the dorms aren’t far from here. I should be fine; you don’t need to worry.” Throughout the course of your training, Seungwoo found himself taking you under his wing, so to speak. He’s helped a lot with your debut, even composing a song off of your album. It’s your favorite song. That being said, you and a few of your other members became fast friends with the boys; Seungwoo especially, so it’s no surprise that he worries about you.

You bid your goodbye as you zip up your coat, and Seungwoo stops you yet again. “Oh! Good luck at your fanmeet! You’ll have to tell me about it next time we see each other.” You nod, returning the smile he gives you before slipping out the door. You don’t catch that he’s staring at you as you leave. He doesn’t catch that Chan watches the interaction with a hint of distaste.

Tuesday morning rolls around and you’re the first one awake. Were it any other occasion, you’d take every opportunity to sleep while you can; your group had debuted not too long ago, and you’re busy with promotions, so you don’t get much time to rest. You’re showered and dressed before any of the other girls even wake up. Cooking would make too much noise, so you opt for eating a few boiled eggs from the fridge and a yogurt drink. Hana is the next one to wake, and she stumbles out into the kitchen of the large dorm (more like apartment) you share with the rest of your group. She’s lazily rubbing the sleep from her eyes and does a double take when she sees you leaned against the counter, chewing on your breakfast.

“You’re up early,” She observes. “Like, really early.” Hana has been dubbed the early bird of the group since you were trainees, so it’s to be expected that she rouses before everyone else.

“I had a restless night.” You respond through a bite of egg whites.

Hana sets out to grabbing dishes from the cupboards, presumably to get started on making breakfast. She’s younger than you by three years, but she admittedly has leagues more experience than you in the kitchen. You chalk it up to her being the only girl among her family; two younger brothers couldn’t possibly cook for themselves.

“Are you nervous for today?” She asks as if reading your mind.

“Not nervous, just excited.”

She fixes you with a knowing look.

“Maybe a little nervous.” You admit sheepishly. You can hear the soft patter of bare feet against hardwood flooring, but the footsteps never make it to the kitchen. A few moments later you hear running water; the youngest must be awake and taking her shower. You offer to help Hana with preparing a meal for everyone, and she accepts your generosity, but doesn’t have you do much as far as handling the food is concerned.

By now the rest of your members are awake and three of them are settled on the sectional, watching the morning news. The food is finished, and Hana encourages everyone to help themselves. You only eat a small portion, sitting cross legged on the chair at the kitchen table and Hana sits across from you, stuffing a spoonful of rice into her mouth. You finish off your food and it’s only a few hours before the rest of the members are ready. Before long, you and the others are stacked into a large van, headed to your destination.

Voices of hundreds of people talk amongst and above one another, and your smile stretches from ear to ear as you greet your fans. You hadn’t expected such a large turnout, given that this is your first fanmeet, but you were pleasantly surprised when you walked onto the stage to see the place was packed full of excited fans. You receive a number of gifts and pout when a staff member shews each fan away after only a few brief moments. You’re having fun and you’re happy and laughing and shining and before you know it the fanmeet is nearly over. Your nerves begin to act up again. The reason why you’d been so nervous to begin with is because at your first fanmeet you’re going to perform your first self composed song, especially for your fans. You announce that you have a song to perform as a thank you to everyone who showed up, and a staff member hands you a guitar. It’s your first time doing something like this, and you begin to second guess the quality of lyrics to a song you were so confident about in the days prior. Your fingers shake lightly and it takes you a beat then two to gain your composure. You begin to strum and pick at the guitar strings softly, your voice echoing out in the room that had gone silent. You sing a simple but sweet story, telling the tale of a girl who’s fallen in love with a boy but can’t bring herself to tell him out of fear of rejection. Instead she opts for a friendship, preferring that rather than having the boy disappear from her life completely. It’s a story that strikes all too close to home, and as you sing you think of warm brown eyes and a bright smile and your heart skips a beat. The song ends and the fans erupt into cheers and applause. You politely bow and offer them thanks before you’re being ushered off the stage.

You’re buzzing with energy as you file into the car, now on your way to practice. The fans love your song, and it boosts your self confidence and you’re excited to write more in the future. You’re cheerfully chatting away when you feel a tap on your shoulder. You look behind you to see Hana handing her phone to you.

“Chan wants to talk to you.” She informs, and you take the phone from her, holding it up to your ear. “Hey! Your phone is off, so I couldn’t get a hold of you.” Chan chirps.

“Yeah, sorry, I didn’t charge it last night so it died.” “That’s fine, that’s not why I’m calling.” He says. You say nothing, which prompts him to continue.

“Did you talk to your manager yet? Can you come to dinner with us?” He questions hopefully. “Ah, yeah, I asked about it this morning. We aren’t busy on Friday. I don’t know when you plan to go out but-” “Friday works! If you’re free Friday then we’ll do it Friday.” Chan interrupts, adamant on your group coming to dinner with them. “Okay, I’ll tell the girls.” “Okay, cool! I have to get back to practice now, bye Y/N!” The call ends before you can get in a response.

It’s Saturday evening, and you’re dressed in your casual attire. It’s still cold out this time of year, so you grab a jacket and shrug it over your shoulders before heading out. When you arrive to the restaurant Chan envelopes you in a hug, ignoring the staff members protests. You return the gesture and make your way over to Seungwoo, where he greets you with a hug of his own. You tell him that you wore a jacket specifically for him, knowing that he’d have complained otherwise. He laughs and allows you to lead the way into the building. The party takes up four tables, all pushed together to seat 14 people. Hana sits on your right with Seungwoo to your left. Heochan sits across from you, between Subin and Sejun while Byungchan, Hanse, and Seungsik all gather at the opposite end of the table. Your peers all talk and laugh among themselves and you’re listening to a childhood story of Sejun’s. Hana sits idly scrolling through her phone as you all wait for the food to be served. It’s when you’re all speaking about everything and nothing at the same time when Hana interrupts. “Oh! Check this out! Someone at the fanmeet recorded your performance, Y/N!” She excitedly shoves the phone in your face, and you take it from her, holding it out over the table so the others can see. Chan leans over the table, trying to get a better view. The video finishes and you hear ooh’s and ahh’s from the boys, your cheeks heating up a degree at the praise.

“That was really good, Y/N. You wrote it yourself?” Seungwoo questions, impressed by your work.

“She wrote it about the boy she likes.” Your youngest member interjects from besides Subin. This peaks the interest of both Chan and Seungwoo. “Oh?” Chan pipes in quizzically, his lips turning up into a smirk. “Does Y/N have a crush?” He teases from across the table. You kick him in the shin. “Why, it’s not like it’d be about any of you guys.” You scoff, sticking your tongue out to mock him. “Don’t say that, Y/N, y’know Chan’s practically in love with you.” Hanse pipes up. It’s true. From the moment you met Chan took a particular liking to you. At first, his affection started out as a joke, brought on by Subin, poking fun at how he always seemed to gravitate towards you whenever you were around. Eventually, Chan had told you that he actually had feelings for you. Of course, you couldn’t return them, much to his chagrin, but he didn’t seem to let your rejection get in the way of your friendship. “Yeah,” Chan starts, playing into the humor of the situation. “Y/N, you don’t have to hide that the song is about me.” “What if it’s about me?” Seungwoo takes his turn to speak, a smile playing on his lips but it looks unnatural on him, forced. No one else seems to notice. Your cheeks are red from embarrassment, the boys unrelenting in their antics. “Why would it matter if it’s about you? You don’t even like her.” Chan defends, shooting a halfhearted glare to his leader.

“You don’t know that! I like Y/N plenty. I might even say I have a crush on her.” Seungwoo counters, and you groan.

“Will you two stop, oh my God!” The words fall on deaf ears though, and they don’t pay you any mind. “Doesn’t matter, she totally likes me!” Chan argues. “Yeah? What if she likes me more?” Says Seungwoo.

“Looks like you two are going to have to fight to the death.” Subin says, feigning awe. “Or, you could just do rock paper scissors!” Hana adds. “Great idea!” Says Chan, and Seungwoo holds out his closed fist, ready for a match. The two duke it out, and on the first round, Chan loses. “Best two out of three!” He exclaims, refusing to back down. A fire in his spirit, Chan and Seungwoo throw their hands out once more, and this time, Chan is victorious. He wins the final round too, and points a finger in Seungwoo’s face while laughing. “Hell yes! I win! Now she’s my girl!” You shake your head. “I’m not anyone’s girl! The song isn’t about either of you guys, so shut it before I explode!” You shout, crossing your arms indignantly. The action seems to settle the two boys. Thankfully, that’s the last you hear of the topic throughout the night. Dinner goes on as if the two hadn’t been involved in a rock paper scissors death battle. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end. It’s late, well after midnight when you finally make the journey  back to the dorms. You’re exhausted as you wash your face of your makeup, after the other girls have all gone to sleep. You quickly change into some sleepwear and crawl into bed. As you’re plugging your phone onto its charger you get a message. 12:26 Seungwoo: Hey, are you up? 12:26 You: I’m just about to head to bed. Why, what do you need? 12:27 Seungwoo: I just wanted to apologize for earlier. I think Chan and I sort of stepped out of line.

12:28 You: Don’t worry about it. Chan has been trying to sweep me off my feet for ages now.

12:36 Seungwoo: Can I tell you a secret?

12:36

You: I’m just about to fall asleep, but go ahead.

12:37

Seungwoo: I wasn’t joking.

12:37

Seungwoo: When I said I liked you.

Your eyes widen and you do a double take. You can’t believe what you’re seeing. Your heart soars but almost immediately you begin to question the legitimacy of his words.

12:38

You: Really?

12:38

Seungwoo: Yes, really. You don’t have to do anything about it. I just wanted you to know.

12:38

Seungwoo: I hope this doesn’t ruin our friendship.

You beam at the screen, the light from your phone illuminating your dusty pink cheeks.

12:39

You: Don’t worry, it won’t ruin anything.

12:39

You: Now can I tell you a secret?

12:40

Seungwoo: What is it?

You take a few minutes to type out a response, giggling to yourself as you roll back in your bed. You type out a message and throw your phone to the end of your bed to stop yourself from staying awake all night. Though, given the information you just learned you’re positive you’ll have yet another restless night.

12:40

You: The song really was about you.

[pocket-anon]

Operation: First Noel (2/7)

Happy Tuesday! It's @xhookswenchx‘s Gutter Flower Secret Santa Week of Fic, Day 2! I was going to cut this chapter off at the first half, but then I thought, "Who doesn't need more domestic Swan Jones Family?". LOL. I hope you enjoy. I'm off to try to get Chapter 3 ready for posting by tomorrow night, but if the muse doesn't cooperate, I'll do my best to get you a Chapter 3/Chapter 4 double feature Thursday. Thanks for reading!

Find it on AO3.  Missed a chapter?  Get caught up here.

Summary:  When the residents of Storybrooke enjoy a rare period of peace over the holiday season, Henry asks his family for something he’s never had - a real Christmas. A series of holiday vignettes. (Captain Swan/Captain Cobra/Captain Charming.  Canon Divergent.  Domestic Fluff, Humor, & Smut.   Rated E purely for Chapter 4.)

Requested tags: @optomisticgirl.  Want to be tagged on updates?  Let me know!

Chapter 2: Christmas Trees, Chocolates, & Promises You Don’t Intend to Keep

The following weekend, David takes Killian and Henry out in his pickup to scout for Christmas trees. No one in Storybrooke is expressly growing evergreens, but when Henry shows him pictures of what they’re looking for, David’s face lights up and he nods.  “I know just the place.”

He drives them out to the west edge of the woods the next day, pulling the Ford to a stop along the side of the packed dirt road.  “There’s a grove of younger fir trees,” he says, lowering the gate on his truck bed and pointing, “just through there.”  He hauls out a stack of folded tarp and turns toward Killian, his breath misting. “Here.”

Killian accepts it with a curious look.  “What’re these for?”

“To wrap the trees,” David explains, grunting as he reaches for the chainsaw he’s also brought along.

“You act like you’ve done this before,” Killian observes.

“No,” he says cheerfully, leading them away from the road and into the tree line, “but I can look things up on the internet well enough.” He claps Killian on the shoulder with one gloved hand.  “You could try it sometime, you know.”

Killian suffers the ribbing good-naturedly.  “I’ll have you know that I’m becoming quite proficient at using Google, even though I still say it’s a ridiculous name.”  He doesn’t miss David and Henry swapping amused looks on either side of him as they crunch their way through the ankle-deep snow.

“At least he’s stopped calling it ‘The Google,’” David comments indulgently.

Henry grins.  “Baby steps.”

Killian merely rolls his eyes but doesn’t retort.  In truth, this relaxed camaraderie he’s developed with the members of Emma’s family is a one of many gifts they’ve given him that he never dreamed of having. Where once he threatened men’s lives for such teasing, he now views these little barbs from Charming, Snow, Henry, and, yes, even Regina, as a badge of honor, a sign that he’s been accepted into the fold, that he belongs. He's spent hundreds of years feared by those closest to him, respected but unloved, and now that he is loved, albeit inexplicably, by a group of remarkable individuals who view him as an equal, rather than their superior, there's no question in his mind which he prefers.

It’s a short walk from the road to the grove David spoke of, a smattering of younger trees of various sizes scattered amongst the towering, more ancient specimens that make up the canopy.

“Will this work?” David asks as they pause to survey the scene in front of them.

Henry ploughs ahead excitedly.  “Yeah. It’s great!  How’d you remember this place?”

David chuckles, following along with Killian at his heels.  “Given the amount of time we’ve spent looking for people out in these woods over the last couple years, I should hope I’ve got a decent lay of the land by now.”

They locate a couple of handsome six-foot firs that garner Henry’s approval and set to work felling them and wrapping them in the tarps.  It takes a bit of trial and error to get the trees wrapped tightly enough that they can carry them well, and David ends up making a trip back to the truck for some rope to use to bind them up.  

“Maybe we should have brought Mom,” Henry says as they finish wrapping the second tree.  “She could have just poofed these trees home.” He holds the tarp in place while Killlian tugs the loops of rope snug around the oversized bundle and ties it off with a maritime knot.

“Which mom?” David asks.

Henry shrugs. “Either.”

Killian climbs to his feet and dusts his hand off on his leg.  “As convenient as that might be, lad, you know magic is not always the answer,” he chides.  “We’re three capable men, and there’s something to be said for doing an honest day’s work with your hands.  Or, you know…”  He waves his hook with a sheepish grin.

“Besides,” David adds, “Isn’t this part of the Christmas experience?”  He and Killian position themselves on either side of the tree and hoist it off the ground in tandem.

Henry gathers up the chainsaw and a coil of unused rope.  “I guess.”

“Well, how did you and Emma get a tree before?  I mean,” David clears his throat, “in your fake memories?”

Henry shrugs.  “You know how fake memories are.  Everything is kinda fuzzy.  But there’s no local forest when you live in New York, except for Central Park, I guess, which doesn’t count.  So there are farmers who grow Christmas trees out in the country and bring them into the City to sell.  You just find a Christmas tree stand and get one already cut and wrapped.  This,” he gestures to their surroundings, “is totally old school.”  He brightens as they set off for the truck, tromping back toward the road.  “Do you think we could get Tiny to start growing Christmas trees on his farm?”

David grins. “That’s not a bad idea.  Maybe if you ask nicely.  Or your mom.”

“Aye,” Killian agrees, smirking.  “The giant has always had a soft spot for Emma.”

They slide the first tree into the bed of the pickup and head back to retrieve the second, and fifteen minutes later they pile back into the cab with Henry sandwiched in the middle.

“Hey, Grandpa?” Henry asks as the truck rumbles to life.  He leans over with his smart phone and shows David a picture of a leafy green plant with white berries.  “Have you ever seen anything like this growing around Storybrooke?”

David takes the phone and studies the picture as he adjusts the heater, his brow wrinkling. “Sure.  It’s a parasite that grows on trees.  Why?”

Henry flushes excitedly. “Do you know where to find it?”

David arches an eyebrow at his grandson’s eager expression and smiles wanly, suspicion in his eyes.  “Yeah, there used to be some down by the animal shelter.  The berries are poisonous; we always had to keep the dogs away from them.”

“Can we go get some?”

Killian reaches over to take the phone and inspect the image with interest.  “What is it, lad?”

Henry’s face turns a little ruddy.  “Mistletoe.”

“Another Christmas tradition?” Killian asks, clearly smelling a plot.  His lips curve in a burgeoning grin, and he shoots David a look over Henry’s head.

“Well, yeah,” Henry fidgets.  “You hang it, and people who get caught under it together have to kiss.”

Killian breaks into a hearty laugh.  “I see. Planning to keep some handy for your Violet, are you?”

Henry shrugs, trying to seem nonchalant.  “Maybe.”

David beams with amusement and pulls the truck out on to the road, making a U-turn and heading for the animal shelter.  “Well, we can’t go against tradition, can we?”

“Perish the thought,” Killian scoffs.  His eyes glint with mischief as he gives Henry a sidelong glance.  “You're not the only one who might be able to put this mistletoe to good use.”

Henry groans. “Promise me you and Mom and," he turns to look at David, "you and Grandma aren't going to be making out all the time from now until New Year's.”

Killian gives his stepson a rakish grin.  "It's bad form to make promises you don’t intend to keep, lad.”

*                             *                             *

  I don’t want a lot for Christmas

There is just one thing I need

I don’t care about the presents

Underneath the Christmas tree

I just want you for my own

More than you could ever know

Make my wish come true

All I want for Christmas is you

 Emma hums to herself as Christmas tunes fill the first floor of the house, pausing in between refrains to take a deep whiff of the aroma of milk chocolate as she stands at the stove and stirs the melting concoction in a double boiler.  Her free hand absently strokes her belly, and she sways a little in time to the song, wondering if the baby can hear any strains of music or sense the excitement of the impending holiday.  The little girl certainly seems to be giving Emma plenty of Christmas food cravings, and the big draw these last two weeks, in contrast to Emma’s usual penchant for the warmth of cinnamon, has been the cool bite of mint.

She sets her spatula aside and breaks away from the stove for a minute, moving over to the wood block cutting board on the counter.  Taking up a stainless steel meat hammer, she proceeds to whack at a large plastic bag full of peppermints in time to the quick beat, the candies crushing with each satisfying blow.

The front door opens, a frosty gust pouring in, and Henry appears with his arms wrapped around the front end of a cut and bound tree, his cheeks blotchy pink with cold and exertion. “Hey, Mom!” he pants, hauling the bundle over the threshold with Killian bringing up the rear.

“Hey, guys.”  Emma grins and pauses the candy carnage to watch them set the tree down along the wall just to the left of the coat rack. “I was starting to wonder where you two were.”

Killian sighs with satisfaction as he straightens and pushes the door closed against the frigid afternoon air.  “Sorry, love,” he says, flashing her an exhilarated smile.  “We had to make an extra stop on the way, and then it took a while to get the first tree set up at your parents’.”

“Extra stop?”

Her husband and her son exchange a conspiratorial look.

“Just an errand,” Killian assures her smoothly.  “Picked up a little something for later.”

She briefly narrows one eye at his coyness but resumes crushing the peppermints just as the song swells to a climax.  Thwack-thwack-thwack-thwack...

Killian and Henry exchange another look, clearly wary of the idea of a woman of Emma’s temperament wielding a hammer while pregnant and hormonal.  As usual, Killian braves the threat first, tugging his glove off between his teeth and flashing her his most disarming smile as he wanders into the kitchen. “What on Earth are you doing, Swan?” he chuckles.

She hums and sets her mallet aside.  “Making peppermint bark,” she says simply.

Killian’s face remains pleasantly blank as he draws close.  “Bark?”

Emma’s lashes flutter as he plants a quick kiss on her lips and smoothes his hand over her belly, and she hums happily.  “Mm-hmm. It’s a Christmas treat,” she explains, turning back to the stove to stir the molten chocolate before it burns. “It’s crushed peppermint candy in layers of white and milk chocolate.  It looks a little like tree bark.  And it’s delicious.”

His blue eyes light with understanding, and he grins at her knowingly.  “Ah.  Craving the peppermint again today, I take it?”

“Like you wouldn’t believe,” she says, rolling her eyes and cutting out the burner on the stove.  She hastily scatters a generous portion of crushed mints over the bottom of a baking sheet lined in wax paper and then reaches for an oven mitt.  “We may be out of candy canes, by the way.”

He chuckles and goes to shuck his coat.  “Well, we shall just have to order more.”

“Way ahead of you.” She bites her lip, looking a little chagrined.  “I may have splurged on a whole case this time.  And express shipping.”

He laughs.  “No worries, love.  I’m fairly sure we can afford to keep you stocked in candy canes.”

“Did you ever think this is how you’d be spending all those dubloons?” she asks slyly.

Killian strides back over and gives her a one-armed hug, pressing his lips into her hair.  “No.  This is a far better use of them than anything I could have imagined.”

She beams, and he responds with a wink as he goes to help Henry address the tree.

Henry has the spot for the tree prepped, the location just to the left of the bay windows ready to go with a thick towel and a plastic tray and a tree disposal bag set out just as the YouTube video he’s been diligently reviewing the last couple days instructed. They double-check the tree stand and huddle together around the stump, murmuring to each other as they secure it to the base of the tree.  

“You want me to magic it over there?” she calls, watching Henry and Killian bend down on either side of the tree and prepare to move it.

“It’s okay, Mom,” Henry says, glancing up at her.  “We’ve got this.”

Killian gives her son a proud smile.

Having already done this once today at David and Snow’s, he and Henry hoist the tree upright and maneuver it into the place with only a minimal amount of awkwardness and grunting.

“You okay?”

“Yeah.”

“To your left, lad.  The other left.”

“Oh, right.  Oh!  Wait! Wait-wait-wait...”

“Alright?”

“Yeah.  My hand almost slipped.”

“Easy does it now…”

Emma smiles to herself as she finishes pouring the chocolate onto the baking sheet and scrapes the remnants out of the bowl with a spatula while she listens to her boys work together. She reaches for her phone and snaps a few pictures covertly as they settle the tree into place and pull the wrapping away to reveal the handsome silhouette of the deep green fir.  A watery smile curls at her mouth as she catches a shot of them standing next to one another and admiring their handiwork.  Killian and Henry’s first Christmas tree, she thinks.  Our first Christmas tree.  It’s a symbol of them as a family, this tree, the first thing next to this house that they’re all investing in and molding to make their own, and her heart swells at the thought.  

Henry leaves Killian slicing open the boxes of lights and ornaments they’d ordered the week before and pops into the kitchen to locate a pitcher with which to pour water into the Christmas tree stand.  “You gonna help us decorate the tree, Mom?” he asks her, rummaging around in one of the lower cabinets.  His face lights up when he finds what he’s looking for.

Emma hurriedly sprinkles another healthy dose of peppermint shards over the liquid chocolate in the baking sheet and moves it to the refrigerator, grinning at her son over her shoulder.  “Of course, Kid.  I can’t let you guys have all the fun.”  She narrows her eyes as she counts the boxes of Christmas lights resting on the floor next to Killian.  “How many lights do you two plan to put on that thing?”

“A thousand.”  Henry grins innocently and sets the pitcher to fill in the sink.  

Her eyebrows peak, and she lets out a helpless laugh.  “I’m pretty sure you don’t need a thousand lights for a tree that size, Henry.”

“Who said anything about ‘need’?”

Emma groans and rolls her eyes.  “Promise me you two are not going to blackout the town.”

Henry glances over his shoulder and meets Killian’s eye, and they develop matching impish grins.  “I would, Mom,” he says blithely, “but it's bad form to make promises you don't intend to keep.”

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