#//When dating; he is like girlfriends who insist they and their partner where matching outfits jhbkdrgrd

[xiindomitable]

One of Katsuki's love languages happens to be using someone as his own personal human Barbie, send tweet-

[rocorambles]

Reassurance

Pairing: Sakusa x Reader

Genre/Warnings: NSFW, Spanking, Atsumu’s a jealous asshole

Summary: Atsumu annoying Sakusa isn’t anything new, but when the blond setter says something that hits a little too close to home, you’re there to reassure your dark haired lover and remind him that he’s the only one for you. 

Author’s Note: The original request was for reader to have a fwb relationship with Sakusa, but in the spirit of Valentine’s day and desire for slightly softer Sakusa content (although it’s still pretty rough sex OOPS), I have them officially dating in this story. 

Miya Atsumu is a thorn in Sakusa's side, a fact that doesn't surprise anyone on the MSBY Jackals. But usually there's a slight playfulness to their bickering, a taunting smirk thrown in to take off the razor sharp edges of their vicious words that Bokuto and Hinata nervously laugh at and that Meian rolls his eyes at before they all resume practice. 

Not today however and Bokuto grits his teeth as he holds Sakusa back with all his strength, a worried look in usually carefree eyes, as Hinata wraps his wiry arms around Atsumu and practically tackles the fiery setter to the floor, as Meian sternly shouts at both players to calm down, strategically placing himself between their thrashing bodies as they fight against their human restraints and bare their fangs at each other. 

The team adores you and how can Sakusa blame them when he himself fell head over heels for you in a way he never thought was possible? So he just fondly looks on as Bokuto and Hinata look at you with star-filled eyes and ignores the harmless subtle looks Meian sneaks at you when you appear at practices, matches, and team outings. It's harder to ignore Atsumu's blatant leering stares, but the blonde setter never makes an outright disrespectful move other than flirtatious comments here and there, so as irritating as it is, Sakusa doesn't say a word for the sake of the team. 

But today he had gone too far and although it wasn't the first time Atsumu had openly raved about how breathtakingly attractive you are in the team locker room whenever you posted a new picture on social media, it is the first time he has openly denounced your relationship and everyone freezes at the setter's scornful words when he questions what you see in Sakusa. 

Even the team airheads quiet down, but Atsumu continues prattling on about how he would treat you so much better than Sakusa, how you deserve more than some frigid germaphobe, seemingly unaware of the growing tension in the air, the cold fury in dark eyes as Sakusa stares him down. But then he looks Sakusa dead in the eyes, not a hint of a joke in his disdainful gaze, and all hell breaks loose as Sakusa lunges at his sneering teammate. 

Despite how aloof Sakusa comes off as, he’s not completely oblivious to his own reputation and how cold he comes off as to others. He sees the skepticism in other’s eyes when the two of you walk out and about. He hears the doubtful mutterings as people wonder if he’s even capable of being a caring boyfriend. And the worst part of it all is that they aren’t wrong. 

He is irritable. He isn’t friendly. He’s not a great communicator. And the thought of intimately touching anyone had always turned him off to the point where even he himself wondered if he was destined to be alone. Until he met you. 

Women are pretty enough. He can admit that, not a stranger to appreciatively looking at an attractive female who asks him for his signature after a game. But skin on skin contact with a stranger? Holding a conversation about meaningless small talk? Out of the question and dating wasn’t something he even remotely considered as he focused on volleyball and being part of the future Japan National Team that would bring the country its first volleyball gold medal. 

And then you had swung into his life out of nowhere, turning his world and opinions upside down and for the first time he found himself wanting to get to know you better, talk with you. 

It hadn’t been easy, figuring out how to make a relationship work and in his defense, you’re his first girlfriend. But he grimaces when he looks back at the arguments the two of you used to have, the tears in your eyes when you asked him if he even cared about you, were you so disgusting that he couldn’t even bear touching you, the hurt in your eyes when he chose to stay silent instead of tell you how he really feels. And he groans when he remembers how his own damned pride had refused to budge, refused to allow himself to be vulnerable to you, refused to meet you in the middle. 

But when you had come to him, defeated, a slump in your shoulders as you asked him if he wanted to just end things, he had clawed and torn his pride to shreds, love and fear of losing you overcoming his constraints and the two of you began anew, communicating and working together to create a joint journey. It’s an amazing relationship despite the slight spats the two of you still sometimes have, but that doesn’t mean doubt and insecurity don’t brush the edges of his mind every now and then when he feels like he’s failed you as a partner. 

Damn Atsumu and his ability to stick his claws where it really hurts. 

Needless to say, both Atsumu and him are promptly kicked out of the gym after both receiving an earful from Meian about their unprofessional behavior and an affectionate but stern slap to both their heads as their captain orders them to go cool down and start practice on a fresh new page tomorrow. 

And he knows he should take the wise advice, should walk around, maybe jog, let the fresh air calm the turbulent storm inside of him calm before he returns to you, but doubt and uncertainty drag him to your front door and before he can even register what’s happening, he’s pounding relentlessly on the wood until you open it up for him and stare at him with surprised wide doe eyes. 

“Kiyoomi? You’re really early. I haven’t even started prepping for dinner yet-”

Your words falter as you’re brusquely pushed against the wall of your foyer, the front door slamming shut behind your lover and you yelp when lips come crashing against yours, almost painfully so. Bewildered you almost have half a mind to shove him off and have him explain what’s going on, but then he’s pulling away himself, calloused hands clutching the fabric of your shirt tightly, and your chest tightens at the distraught desperation in normally calm eyes. 

“Kiyoomi? Is everything okay?” 

You moan as he kisses you once again, more tenderly than before, but passionate enough that you’re gasping for breath when he finally pulls away and you melt into his tight embrace as strong arms wrap around you and hold you tight to him. 

“I just need you. Now.”

And how could you possibly deny that intense stare as dark eyes pin you down? 

Intimacy with Sakusa is usually premeditated, process-oriented, starting with a thorough cleanse in the shower and both of you neatly folding and piling your clothes safely in a corner before falling into bed with each other. Nothing like this and your heart races as you’re being dragged through the house and literally tossed onto the bed with so much impact you bounce back, only to be held still once more as Sakusa’s hands scramble to remove your clothing, almost tearing your outfit in the process as he haphazardly tosses them somewhere to the side. 

You want to tell him he can relax, that you’re not going anywhere, but before you can soothe him you squeal as you’re pressed against the bedsheets, a mouth hungrily kissing and sucking dark bruising marks all over your neck, your collarbone, body writhing as two hands cover your breasts, kneading and rolling your nipples between dexterous fingers. And suddenly you don’t want him to take it down a notch after all, your hips arching up and insistently rubbing against him in a desperate plea for more that he’s quick to answer by grinding his own groin down against you. 

It’s desperate, pathetic, two grown adults humping each other like animals, but neither of you can get enough of it and you’re embarrassingly close to cumming just like that, lewd moans filling the air as you succumb to the combined assault of his body, mouth, and hands. But you indignantly whine when he abruptly pulls away, shocking you back to attention when the cold air pierces you without his body covering yours. And Sakusa smirks at the way your whining turns into a yelp as he easily drags you to the edge of the bed by your ankles until your legs dangle off the mattress, a glint in his eyes when he sees how you nervously swallow at the sight of him kneeling between your legs, his fingers teasingly positioned at your inner thighs. 

Sakusa has talented hands, a fact that’s well known to anyone who’s a part of the Japanese Volleyball Association, but you wonder if they could ever imagine just how much more multifaceted his gift truly is and you let out a high-pitched keen as he glides two fingers inside of you, twisting his notoriously flexible wrists in a way that instantly has you seeing stars as he reaches and drags against places inside of you that you never even knew existed. You’re dripping and you wince at the lewd slick sounds you hear as he relentlessly explores and ruins you, shyly biting your lip when you vaguely think about how Sakusa abhors the mess of sex, and you make to gently push him away from you, reassuring him that he doesn’t need to go through with this. 

But you startle at the animalistic snarl directed at you, unable to do anything else except slump back down on the rumpled sheets, desperately digging your nails into the fabric surrounding you when he adds a third finger and increases his pace, twisting and turning, plunging even deeper inside of you. It’s overwhelming and you know you’re dangerously close to the edge already, head thrashing side to side as little mewls and whimpers slip past your lips, but then your back is arching, mouth gaping wide open as lips wrap around your clit and you scream as they suck on the engorged bud, convulsing and gushing even more as you dive headfirst into your first orgasm of the night. 

Your body is still shaking, eyes still in the back of your head, but you whimper, trying frantically to ground yourself as a hand firmly grasps your chin and urges you to gaze into dark eyes. 

“Tell me how good that felt.” 

“So good, Kiyoomi. So so good.” 

Your voice is slurred, mouth thick and heavy with exhaustion, but your word are good enough for now and you weakly cry as you’re suddenly being turned over, forced to slump down onto your stomach and chest, arms splayed out in front of you as your face rests on the bed, shaky legs barely holding your lower body up as you’re now forced to stand and bend over the edge of your bed. 

You’re not sure how much longer you can keep this position up, but arousal churns inside of you once more when you take a second to realize the position you’re in, ass and glistening pussy on full display for your boyfriend, reduced to nothing but a pair of holes as you bend over and present like a slut. And you whimper, ass automatically pressing back and shaking in want as hands grab onto your hips and something hard grinds against you. 

Any other time you’d be embarrassed to display such wanton behavior in front of your more reserved lover, but it seems like Sakusa is just as impatient as you and you claw at the sheets, grappling for purchase when he slams balls deep inside of you in one swift motion. He doesn’t give you time to adjust, not that you need much assistance considering how drenched your pussy already is, and you wail as he starts up a brutal pace, fingers digging into your skin as he holds you still while his hips thrust back and forth.

The pleasure is mind numbing and you can feel the sheets underneath you begin to soak with your drool as your jaw remains slack. But you need more and one of your hands slips down between your legs, searching for the little bud at the apex of your thighs, only to be briskly slapped away and you turn your head to complain, only to collapse back down and scream in the sheets as Sakusa swiftly replaces your wandering digits, rubbing and circling your clit. 

Your legs are trembling, stomach tightening as something hot coils and slithers inside of you, body tensing as arousal builds up to a crescendo inside of you, the lewd sounds of Sakusa’s balls slapping against your ass with every thrust echoing throughout. But as you teeter totter on the edge once again, you’re dragged back to the present when a hand sharply smacks your ass. 

“Who’s making you feel this good?”

“You, Kiyoomi! You!”

“Can anyone else make you feel this way?”

You can barely register the words, struggling to make sense of the questions he’s suddenly pouncing on you, desperate for release and being used. But you’re silent for too long and you howl as you’re punished with two more harsh smacks. 

“Answer me.” 

“NO! No one except you. Kiyoomi, please, please, please, please…”

You’re babbling at this point, incoherent wanton ravings of more, please, and Kiyoomi drowning the air, and you think you might start sobbing in pain and denial if he doesn’t give you what you want, willing to degrade and lower yourself to pleading and begging. But Sakusa takes mercy on you, satisfied with your answers, and you gratefully begin to loudly moan again as he chases his own end, dragging you along with him. And all it takes is a few more stuttered thrusts and more coaxing of your clit to have you falling apart underneath him once again, and the clenching and convulsing of your tight soft walls has him tumbling down after you, painting your insides white. 

You really do begin to collapse to the ground this time, trembling legs unable to stand anymore, but strong arms are there to catch you and your body goes limp in relief as you’re gently laid fully onto the bed and pressed against a comforting warm hold as Sakusa lays beside you, letting you nestle further into him and tuck your head under his chin in a way that makes you feel safe and loved. 

It’s a few moments before you can even begin to reassemble yourself, but when you do, it’s your turn to nudge a handsome face into making eye contact with you and you gently pepper Sakusa’s face with soft butterfly kisses as you urge him to finally explain what all that was about, reassuring the guilty and embarrassed countenance that it’s fine, both of you are fine, and everything is going to be fine, no matter what he says. 

You listen attentively, stroking long wavy locks as he hesitantly tells you about the incident in details, scowling and holding your lover even more fiercely to yourself when he repeats Atsumu’s vicious words, murmuring reassurances to him about how you only have eyes for him and even if you ever did leave him (you wince when he glares and bodily wraps around you like a serpent), it sure as hell wouldn’t be for a snot-nosed arrogant prick like Miya Atsumu. 

He loosens his grip on you, appeased by the way you affectionately drown him in kisses and nuzzles as he continues on to recount the rest of the day’s events, but he stares askance at you when you burst into laughter as he tells you about the fight that had almost broken out, that he had almost started, peering at you questioningly and unamused, unsure what you could possibly find so funny about the situation or his atrocious handling of the matter. 

And then he’s full on glaring at you as you relentlessly tease him for his childish impassioned reaction to Atsumu’s bitter words, mockingly cooing at him and fluttering your lashes as you call him your big strong hero, breaking into disbelieving cackles every once in a while when you imagine your mature, level headed lover trying to get into a fist fight over some silly words a stupid brat had said. 

But you’re not laughing when you’re suddenly being pinned on your back again, a surprised yelp forced from you as Sakusa sharply nips your earlobe before irritatedly staring you down. 

“Clearly I didn’t work you over well enough if you have enough energy to laugh and make a fool out of me. Let’s change that, shall we?”

[general-mahamatra]

This is very specific but do you have any headcanons about double dates between Jeanbilee and Silvercyclops? That or how do you headcanon Charles and Erik’s sexualities? I think of Erik as pan and Charles as gay.

Hehe... Oh I can do this. 

For Charles and Erik’s sexualities, I definitely agree. Charles is gay and Erik is either bi or pan (that one I’m not too solid on).

With the double date, catch me putting this in a modern setting. It’s under the line since there’s a lot

Individuals

Scott

Scott was definitely against the idea of a double date

Why? Because it’s kind of awkward to go out on a double date where the other couple... one of them is your ex

Yeah he’s still good friends with Jean! He’s just not sure how to handle going out to an event with her in a sort of romantic setting. Especially because there’s that slight problem that you KNOW he’s kinda anxious. Like what if people who knew him when he was dating Jean finds him all close and romantic with Peter?

Of course that’s not gonna happen. Man’s just anxious

But Peter managed to convince him and assure him that it would be alright

“It’s just a movie, Scotty. No one’s gonna care,” Peter had said. “Literally it’s dark and the seats are set up in pairs, you don’t need to worry.”

Scott protested immediately with, “but what if--”

“I’ll pay for the popcorn and treats. And the drinks. I’ll pay for it all for you.” 

Scott caved pretty quickly

Except he didn’t know that before the movie the group was going out to dinner because for some reason his mind completely omitted that information. By the time they got together, he remembered, but oh man. He was not prepared

Yeah he was dressed up because Peter was really insistent on him wearing something decent, but the fact they were going out to dinner skipped his mind entirely

He was antsy during the dinner at first. Really shifty-eyed and such and was overall just visibly nervous

But he cooled down fast

He had a lot of fun at the dinner, even if he was a bit awkward with Jean at first

But he loosened up. He found himself enjoying the event much more as time went on and he even managed to calm down enough to comfortably interact with Jean just like he used to

It was actually kinda refreshing

He had whole conversations with the ginger. While Jubilee and Peter were going off about their crazy ideas and plans and things that have happened to them over the past weeks, Scott and Jean were just talking about... life. Catching up on what they’ve missed since they split apart and inevitably pulled away from each other (Scott moreso than Jean)

It brought a sense of closure to Scott that he didn’t realize he needed

He found himself warming back up to interacting with Jean and was... happy with it

Peter

Oh Peter was excited for the double date

Ever since Jubilee ran up to him and proposed it to him he was completely on board. Hell, he even helped plan it out with Jean and Jubilee at times

It was actually Jean’s idea for Peter to convince Scott that things would be alright. She knew he was worried about it, even if it was all irrational. She also knew that he was their best bet on helping Scott out and getting him comfortable with the idea

So Peter did just that

He actually did a lot more than just blatantly tell Scott that he was going to pay for everything at the movies

Peter did a lot of minimal prodding. Stuff to get Scott to talk in a way that wasn’t too intrusive or anything (it’s honestly a special ability of Peter’s). It helped him understand what he was gonna have to do to help his boyfriend out

Because Scott had never been on a double date before

And Peter actually found that kinda funny

But when it came to the date itself, he was completely down for it. He wanted to do it since the moment Jubilee told him about it and he decided he was going to put about as much planning effort into it as her. After all, it’s not different from other... events they’ve planned in the past. They have a perfect system

The movie was his idea

He deemed it “necessary after eating at some dumb fancy place. Because who in their right mind is gonna go out to eat and then just head home at like, 7pm?”

(Peter was also the reason they didn’t end up going to a restaurant where you had to dress up SUPER fancy)

(Granted he wasn’t entirely successful. Jean shot him down and made him settle with having to dress up a little. She wasn’t going to drive them all to dinner if it was gonna be some fast food shit)

Honestly, him and Jubilee are on the exact same wavelength for the date

Jean

Jean was definitely the TRUE brains behind the double date

She was the one who mentioned the idea to Jubilee who then took the idea and ran with it, making it a true plan

She did it because, well, she’s always wanted to have a double date. It was only possible now that she was with Jubilee and her other friends were together

Besides, she like anyone else was aware of just how close Jubilee and Peter were. It was honestly a perfect plan

Scratch something off her bucket list while also getting the two away from their peers so everyone could actually catch a break from their high energy

Actual perfection right there

That and she could tell Scott was awkward around her, even if they’ve been broken up for almost an entire year by this point

There were a lot of times Jean tried to reconnect with him and get him to loosen up but nothing really worked until she came up with the double date

It would give her the opportunity to get her friend back while also allowing him to be in a sort of comfortable environment (she’s noticed the way he tends to cling to Peter whenever she comes around. She isn’t sure if she should be hurt by it or not but she knows he doesn’t mean ill will)

She has to admit though, Peter’s idea of a movie after was a great idea. It’s not something she would’ve put forward or even thought about

Then again... she wasn’t expecting the duo to take over the planning and make it a lot more “light” than an actual “true” date

Jean was looking to reserve them stuff out at a true fancy restaurant. Maybe get them to all dress up and put them in a romantic setting but she was quickly put in her place by Jubilee and Peter’s insistence that it’s a double date, they don’t need to be in a super romantic area

And honestly, they had a point

But she refused to let them make the event completely casual. If she was going to be involved in any planning, they were gonna go somewhere where they have to dress up at least a little

She won that argument easily

Jubilee

OH MAN 

Okay yeah Jubilee was definitely the front runner with the planning and setting everything up

Even with the double date originally being Jean’s idea, Jubilee took it upon herself to plan it all out mostly because she wanted to treat her girlfriend

(You act as thought Jubilee doesn’t know her own partner’s bucket list. Jean literally has it written out in a notebook under her pillow, Jubilee has gone through it multiple times)

She wanted it to be perfect

Which is why she went to Peter

Jean was the one who planted the idea of going on the double date with Scott and Peter but let’s be real, Jubilee would’ve chosen the boys anyways. They were the best bet

Either way, she was ecstatic

She literally has so much experience with planning from the pranks and events she’s set up with Peter, she knew exactly what she was doing when she got with him to plan everything out

Jubilee was actually the one who chose where they were going to dinner

It was a nice Hawaiian themed place. A seafood restaurant with a tropical theme and generally considered a 4 or 5 star restaurant. It was a perfect place, especially with its looser “dress code” (it was basically a sort of business casual, for lack of better terms. If she tried to describe it she would just point to Scott wearing a nice button up with no tie and Jean wearing a cute blouse and flowy pants to match)

(The really funny part is her and Jean low-key made it out to Peter like super fancy restaurants require you to wear formal clothes just so he would cave and “go somewhere less strict”)

(He never found out)

But if she was going to be honest, her favorite part of the double date was the movie afterwards

It was the newest Men in Black and she was losing her mind throughout it

Did she tune out the boys while they were nerding out quietly to her right? Yes, yes she did. She was much more focused on the humor and action and experiencing it with her girlfriend

Overall

Not gonna lie, Scott definitely clung to Peter at first

Like that much is obvious, but it really wasn’t that... obvious? It was if you looked closely at how he hovered closer to the older boy or how his head always seemed to be turned slightly towards him during conversations as if looking to him for stuff to say

Peter noticed it for sure, just as Jean did

Both of them let it happen. Because even when Scott loosened up as the night went on, he still wanted to stick close to his comfort and they didn’t want to pull him away from that

Man just doesn’t handle break ups well

Honestly though, the dinner was wonderful for the entire group. There was so much laughter and chatting and catching up, especially since they aren’t consistently hanging out together anymore

Jubilee convinced Scott to try some really spicy squid dish that he couldn’t remember the name of for the life of him and Peter just... kept ordering more chocolate milk

(They quickly learned that he forgot refills aren’t free)

(That didn’t stop him)

Outfits

Scott: Nice blue button up and black slacks. Honestly really basic typical “oh that guy looks cishet” kinda look, especially with the very plain uniform look to him

Peter: Black button up with white specks across it that look like stars and some slacks as well except his belt was a bit more... decorative than Scott’s. (It’s colorful)

Jean: A cute, loose blouse with a nice white and red floral/watercolor sort of pattern that sits nicely on her frame with some flowy pants and flats. Her hair was done into a braid

Jubilee: A nice long sleeve sweater-like yellow top and a short white skirt with a pair of flats as well. She had her hair down and man was it nice and curly

Honestly everyone was dressed so nicely, it was almost a miracle

During the movie, the couples sat together. That’s a given. But the way they interacted was definitely different from each other

Jean and Jubilee were vibing in their seats. They had chocolate and slushies and popcorn and were overall having a great time just enjoying the movie. There wasn’t too much commentary other than them laughing together or making fun of something they saw on screen

(Jean one time did yell at someone for having their phone on in the movie...she’s that person)

Jubilee was constantly touchy with Jean whenever something crazy happened or there was something intense. Hell, she ended up wrapping around Jean and crying when her favorite character died

Jean took it and honestly... it made her soft

She didn’t know it was possible to fall even further in love

Peter and Scott, though, were different. They too had all the treats and candy and such like the other couple but they were much closer than the girls. They were BASICALLY cuddling (Scott will never admit it). Like come on, you know it’s true

Scott was curled up against his boyfriend. Like head resting against Peter as the older had his arm around him. You know the drill

Again, Scott will never admit to it

But the entire time they were geeking out. Both of them grew up with sci-fi, especially MiB. And BOTH were excited for the newest movie and were having a great time pointing out the aliens and all that stuff and just overall having fun

After the date, the drive was both full of energy and calm. It was 10 by the time they were leaving the theatre and honestly... it’s an experience none of them would give up for the world

...they planned another one for the future

[sooave]

The Problem With Wanting: 1

It’s 2026, and an old celebrity crush comes to haunt your old and cynical heart. You’re doing great at pretending you were never obsessed with him, and finding things about him that you don’t like. Until you’re repeatedly forced to work with him. Until he decides that he’s in love with you.

Genre: I really don’t know what to call this, but it’s not an AU, Kyungsoo’s older and still a celebrity, and it’s friends-to-lovers.

Characters: Kyungsoo x Reader 

Length: 2,314 words

Tags: Angst, Slow Burn 

Part 1 | Part 2

The problem with wanting, was that the human brain’s pathways are more easily activated for desire, rather than liking. In other words, humans naturally want things more than they actually like them. Obviously, you didn’t fault anyone for that. You knew that humans are all victims of the mechanisms of their biological systems.

Just like how you never blamed your own body for being frustratingly uncooperative when it was exactly a week before your period.

Just like how you didn’t fault Do Kyungsoo at all for confessing to you, and asking you to be his girlfriend. You knew that he just wanted you. Now if he actually had you, he’d certainly be disappointed. No, his brain would be disappointed.

Being single at age 30 was surprisingly easy for you, considering the fact that it practically made you a spinster in Asian society. Your parents’ one saving grace was that they immigrating to North America, and brought you in tow. When you returned to Korea as a full-fledged adult with a string of ex-boyfriends and old jobs behind you, it was increasingly apparent to you that Korean society was at times lovely, but hugely flawed.

Back home, the Korean aunties that your mother would bring home no longer gave a shit about the fact that you were, God forbid, an artist. And an unmarried and childless one to boot. Their own children had put them through a fair share of self-perceived grievances already, and while most of them were still conservative at heart, they knew that they lived in a society where their values weren’t necessarily correct. You knew that they didn’t all understand that their values were straight up incorrect. But at least you didn’t get harassed about your life choices.

Coming back to build a career in your birth country had you encountering situations that made you laugh and feel uncomfortable at the same time.

“You’re self-employed? How are you ever going to find yourself a husband?” You’d tell them that being your own boss in fact made your schedule much more flexible. And that you fill up the time with pursuits that actually improved your life, like cooking and yoga. Not shitty dates with people you couldn’t connect with.

Of course, the nosy aunties would continue heavily implying that your life’s purpose was to find a good husband, carry your bloodline, and take care of the home.

“Thirty?? You should have had two kids by now?” You would politely inform them that you weren’t interested in having children, and if you did, you’d adopt an orphan in need instead.

“There won’t be any good men left at this point! You’re in trouble now.” This one, you couldn’t really argue with. You were a firm believer that if someone was single for an extended period of time, there was a reason.

Most of the time, they were a shitty person. Other reasons? Nursing a heartbreak. Pining after someone unattainable. Obsessed with their career. Etcetera.

And you?

You didn’t have your priorities straight. But after a countless number of bad dates, bad relationship, mediocre relationships, and some okay ones, you kind of had an idea of what you didn’t want in a boyfriend. You were doing just peachy by yourself, for now at least.

Sure, maybe you’d want to find a life partner eventually. That would come naturally. You were also a firm believer in the fact that the best matches are found organically.

But surprisingly to you, one of the blind dates that you’d begrudgingly gone on 3 years ago was actually bearing some fruitful benefits. Your date was an assistant PD at one of the largest entertainment companies in Seoul. He was a decent guy, but was insistent about being the sole provider for his future wife. That obviously didn’t check out with you.

Luckily, he didn’t hold a grudge against you for cutting your third dinner date short once you learned of that particular value, and even suggested you as an artist for several show segments. Today, your expertise was blackboard art. Other days, it was digital painting, or watercolours. But they all focused on food illustrations.

Seung-woo, your ex-date, had a particularly annoying habit of talking your ear off while you were working. For some reason, he assumed that the several hours you spent slaving away with your arm raised over the chalk board was the perfect time to catch up with you and ramble on about his love life.

“And then, she started ordering the spicy chicken even though I had explicitly mentioned that I had an upset stomach! Really. The nerve of her.”

“Oh…” you hummed disinterestedly as you filled in the grey base colour of the fish that you were drawing for the background of this board. Apparently, some professional chef along with a celebrity guest were going to be in the kitchen today filming an episode on ways to cooking methods for fish in Korean cuisine. This particular series was something you’d seen before while you were living in the U.S., and while you felt that Korea was a bit slow on the uptake, at least they were doing something interesting with it. You didn’t get to see a lot of Korean traditional cooking methods on American-owned YouTube channels.

“So… we’re going on a second date tonight. What should I say?”

If you were in America, you would have already told Seung-Woo off for disrupting your work and being a total wuss. But this was Korea, and you couldn’t really afford to offend the very person who got you this job contract. Plus, gossip travelled like wildfire, and soon you’d be labelled as difficult to work with and saying bye-bye to your steady income.

You had to take a deep breath and set down your chalk, in fear of snapping it in annoyance.

“Did that tell you something?”

Seung-woo set down the kitchen prop that he was playing around with onto the counter.

“Tell me what?” He echoed.

“Did her action of ordering the spicy chicken tell you that she had an undesirable trait that you cannot accept from a partner?” Your tone was bordering on one that a disapproving teacher would take when reprimanding a student, but luckily Seung-woo didn’t catch that.

He wasn’t as taken aback by your mannerisms as he used to be, but ever since you explained that you spent all of your formative years abroad, he was able to rationalize all of your non-conservative behaviours.

Instead, he actually thought of your advice and comments as thoughtful and interesting. You always refrained from mentioning that your perspective came from years of counselling and therapy, in fear that he’d label you as psychotic. Seung-woo had no idea what mental health was.

After a round of hums and haws, he finally responds.

“You’re right, it did. Are you trying to say I shouldn’t go on the date tonight?”

“Hey, I just asked a question. You came to that conclusion your self!” You turn around and throw a dirty rag that you’ve been using into his chest.

That finally got him to leave you alone, after whining about your aggressiveness and how unladylike you were. Luckily, you still had plenty of time to finish the piece, and once the annoyance hindering your progress was gone, the flow started to come naturally to you.

Time began to fly by as it usually did when you were absorbed with your artwork. Before you knew it, it was already time for the segment filming to start. It wasn’t everyday that you timed your work perfectly, but today you hit the deadline exactly.

You knew that the filming was about to begin because of the camera lights had began to turn on, and a buzz of conversation had started to grow in the centre of the room. Sometimes it irked you that you were working right in front of a dozen cameras and microphones, but it was comforting to know that they had absolutely zero interest in filming you.

Seung-woo had unfortunately appeared again, appearing behind you like a golden retriever wagging it’s tail. You were packing up boxes chalk into your carrying case, attempting to ignore him as much as possible, but something he said caught your attention.

“Wait. What? Who?” You had absolutely no idea what he had said, except for the fact that a horribly familiar name fell from his lips.

“Do Kyungsoo. You don’t know of him?”

“No, I do…” Too well, in fact.

“Well, he’s here right now. I could get you an autograph if you wanted too. Just ask your oppa nicely!” He shot you a shit-eating grin and you almost want to strangle him amidst the absolute panic you were experiencing.

You weren’t experiencing a real panic attack, thankfully. But the way your hands were shaking as you placed each piece of chalk back into it’s designated slotted groove gave away that you were one-hundred-percent losing your mind. As your heart raced in your chest, you did a mental checklist of the facts that faced you right now.

You were, or you used to be, absolutely obsessed with Do Kyungsoo as a celebrity. This was back in your late teens, when you were a freshman at college.

You had not thought about him, or even looked up his name, in almost 5 years. Real life got in the way. And your cynicism.

And he was right here.

In this very room.

Suddenly, your brain was kicked into hyper-awareness mode, and it was almost impossible to resist the urge to finger comb your hair and smooth out your clothes. Fuck. You weren’t even wearing a cute outfit. Today had been a boyfriend jeans and black t-shirt day for you.

Seung-woo was still standing in front of you, looking at you expectantly, and you reminded yourself that you had to actually respond.

“Er… no. I’m good, Seung-woo,” you rolled your eyes at him, “What makes you think that I’d want an autograph? You do remember that I’m an old hag right?”

He noticed that you were having difficulty stuffing your chalk boxes back into your bag, and leans down to help you.

“Who said that you can’t have celebrity crushes at age 30? I wouldn’t shame you for that. Plus, you’re still single…” Seung-woo waggled his eyebrows.

“Oh my lord,” You mutter in English to yourself, before switching to Korean.

“Idols are for the young or the delusional. Plus, they’re just regular ol’ people just like me. You take anyone with a bit of talent and a decent face and I’m sure they could pass as an idol.” This is a mantra you’ve repeated to yourself almost a million times, and it rolls off your tongue.

“God, you’re always so cynical…ah!” Seung-woo stands up to greet someone and leaves you struggling with your bag on the floor.

“No, I’m just old,” you said to yourself as you right yourself.

And then you come face to face with a profile that you’ve started at on your phone screen, your computer monitor, and even billboards, umpteenth times. It’s closer now, way closer. You saw the slight smile lines on his cheeks, and the unevenness of his skin that hasn’t been photoshopped out. But his strong eyebrows and heart-shaped smile were the same. And his eyes.

Kyungsoo was shaking hands with Seung-woo and another PD, but his eyes flickered to you briefly as you got to your feet. And then they’re gone. Like they didn’t see you at all.

You took a deep breath and reminded yourself that he’s just another person. He probably leaves his phone ringer on. That’s something that annoys you. Annoyance. It’s your weapon against anything you’re scared of. But it’s also grounding you in this insane moment.

Reminder, you’re staff. He’s the star of the show.

“Ah! This is our chalk artist, she made the board behind us,” Seung-woo declared proudly and grabbed your arm to pull you back, just as you were preparing to sneak away from the awkward circle of personnel. You’ve never cursed so strongly in your own mind before, and a string of fuckshitfuckshitfuck was still going through your mind as you gave a tight smile and bowed. All while avoiding eye contact.

You saw Kyungsoo and a few others glance at your work and you couldn’t help but cringe. God help you, you had confidence in your work, but were you completely unprepared for your teenage/young adult celebrity crush to judge you. They politely express amazement at the board, and you robotically thank them.

Seung-woo continued to discuss some detail about the segment and you took the opportunity to duck away and escape with your bag, not even taking a second look back. You were tempted of course, as you left through the studio doors. You could even stay to watch the entire filming, and no one would object. They knew who you were.

But there was no way you would be able to not fall back into your stupid crush that you still had, if you were able to just stand and watch him cook for an hour and a half. You were too old for this.

You gritted your teeth as you got in your car, placed your duffel on the passenger seat, and buckled your seatbelt.

Today, you would be an adult and do the right thing.

Tomorrow, you’d give dating apps another go.

But right now, you imagined another universe, where he was a regular person, and so were you. Then, you could allow yourself to fall in love. You closed your eyes and leaned your head onto the cold glass of the window and allowed yourself to fantasize.

A/N: I’m totally throwing this into the void and doing this for myself but part two is coming.

[jiqri]

A Ghost of the Past

A/N: Gif by me. Yugyeom was giving me major vampy vibes in NBTM and I came across this post, which resulted in whatever this is. This is my first fic and I finished it at like 4am so please excuse any mistakes. Enjoy~ 

Words: 3387

Genre: Tiny amount of angst?? idek, fluff

You turned and twirled in the small dressing room, trying to catch a glimpse of yourself from every angle. They say you can never go wrong with the ‘little black dress’, yet you struggled to recognise the person in the mirror looking back at you. You were way out of your comfort zone putting this tiny piece of fabric on, because that was literally what it was; tiny. Okay, maybe not tiny but small enough.

There was a knock on your door. “You okay in there, Love? You’ve been in there for 15 minutes already.” Your boyfriend’s voice came from the other side.

“I’m fine, I’m just getting changed again.” You puffed your cheeks, quickly getting changed back into your casual wear, putting the dress back on its hanger. It was a habit of yours to always keep the hangers of whatever you were buying.

You opened the door to find Yugyeom sitting legs crossed on the pouf outside, eyes buried in his phone. He looked as stunning as ever, a marble sculpture shaped by the most skilled artist. His full, black hair laid perfectly as always, a tiny freckle right under one of his eyes. God, you loved that freckle. You would never understand how you managed to catch such a stunning creature.

Yugyeom wasted no time putting his phone away the moment he saw you stride towards him. You reached the pouf where he was sat, standing in front of him, the black dress draped over your arm. His hand quickly found yours, stroking the back of it.

“You ready to go?” Looking up at your face, Yugyeom placed a soft kiss on your hand.  

You pulled your hand from his lips to the back of his neck, gently running your fingers through his hair, careful not to mess it up. “Yes, I’m so over this shopping trip.” You pouted.

Shopping was one of the things you hated with a burning passion. You were only here because Yugyeom had dragged you, claiming he wanted to take you on a nice date, and that you needed a new outfit. He smiled as he stood up, a laugh rumbling in his chest.

You sighed. “I still can’t believe you’re making me buy a dress. I have plenty of other suitable clothes at home.”

Yugyeom moved forward to cup your face in his hands. “You do not own a single dress, Y/N. Can you blame me for wanting to see my beautiful girlfriend wear one, just for one night?”

His eyes focused on your lips, caressing his thumb over your bottom lip, his face only inches away from yours. At this point you were tip toeing, desperate for only a small taste of this intoxicating man, a small taste of heaven. He never failed to leave you breathless, and for a second you forgot you were standing in the middle of the fitting area of a small boutique.

Snapping out of your trance when another couple entered the fitting area, you exhaled. “Don’t do that.” Your voice was barely a whisper as you pulled away from the male.

“Do what exactly?” Yugyeom’s eyes were dark, lustful.

You gulped down the saliva that had been pooling in your mouth, letting your eyes wander to anything but him. “Seduce me. It’s unfair, you promised you wouldn’t use your powers on me.”

He hummed, a smirk plastered on his face. “I did no such thing, Love. The emotions you were feeling were all you.”

Needless to say, you knew in your heart he wouldn’t manipulate your emotions to his advantage. You just weren’t ready to admit you were head over heels in love with this marvellous man, who also happened to be a vampire.

Rolling your eyes in response, you grabbed his hand, leading the way to the till so that you could pay for this damn piece of fabric.

You had both made your way out of the boutique after bickering over who was to pay for said piece of fabric. Yugyeom, the gentleman that he was, was persistent on paying for the dress, much to your annoyance. After bickering in front of the poor cashier for a good five minutes, you had finally given in, letting the man pay as he was the one insisting on you getting a dress in the first place.

You were heading home, now excited to get ready for your date. You had been on dates before, but it usually didn’t involve you having to dress up. If Yugyeom wanted you in a dress, it meant he wanted the night to be different from the others; special. In the midst of walking down the crowded street, lost in your own thoughts, a voice croaked from behind you, pulling you back to reality.

“Yugyeom?” The husky voice questioned.

You saw confusion written all over Yugyeom’s face before he turned around to examine the owner of the voice. Curious as to who would know your boyfriend’s name in this town, you followed his movement, turning around to see what was going on for yourself.

Yugyeom’s confused face had now turned into stone. In front of him stood possibly the most gorgeous woman you had ever laid eyes on. Her hair was long and dark, wavy but also so smooth. Did she advertise for Pantene or something? It certainly looked like it.

She had a face straight out of a magazine; big eyes, a small nose, lips a sultry red colour. She was about the same height as Yugyeom, possibly because she was wearing the highest stilettos you had ever seen, yet she made balancing in them look so effortless. Any other human would be wobbling around like Bambi on ice wearing those heels.

And that’s when you realised, she was too perfect, much alike the man standing by your side, because she wasn’t human at all.

She had taken off her sunglasses and placed them on top of her head to get a better look at the man by your side. Maybe if she had kept them on you wouldn’t have felt so incredibly average in her presence.

“It really is you! I have not seen you in-“ She paused as she gave you a glance, obviously unsure of how much you knew about the man and his being. Her eyes quickly wandered back to your boyfriend. “A lifetime.” She finished, shooting him a big smile. Ironic.

Yugyeom gave her a polite smile in return. “Indeed, it’s been quite some time.” Taken back by the sudden reunion, he seemed unsure of what to do, which was out of character for the composed man you were used.

He turned his head to you, placing a steady hand on your hip to pull you closer to him. “This is Y/N, my partner. Y/N, this is Genevieve, an old friend of mine.”

The woman, Genevieve, now shifted her focus to you, taking you in from head to toe. “A pleasure to meet you.” She reached out her perfectly manicured hand to greet you and you took it, giving her possibly the measliest handshake of your life.

She gave you a small smile, retracting her hand. “I didn’t know you had,” she paused again, taking you in once more, “settled in this town. It’s…cute.”

You weren’t sure if she was referring to this town or you, but you decided you didn’t like the sound of either.

Yugyeom shrugged. “I suppose I have a thing for cute.”

She gave him a hum in response, cocking her eyebrow. “It’s been so long Yugyeom, we should catch up. We could go for a meal, like old times.”

You could see her tongue gliding over her subtle fangs, smirking at Yugyeom, carefully observing his reaction. It was like she didn’t even notice your presence anymore from where she was standing in front of you, looking like she was ready to eat your man up like he was a three-course meal.

Something told you she wasn’t implying going for a steak dinner either, unless the cow was served still walking.

Yugyeom hesitated for a moment. Was he actually considering her offer? You awkwardly cleared your throat, hoping your boyfriend would take the hint. You could name a handful of other things you would rather do than to spend time with his old friend.

He squeezed your hip reassuringly, taking a sharp breath in. “Maybe another time, we already have a reservation so we should get going.”

If Genevieve was bothered by this, you wouldn’t have known, as her expression didn’t falter. She clicked her tongue. “That’s a pity, I suppose I will have to hunt someone else down.” You were pretty sure she meant the last part of what she said literally and shuddered by the thought.

Pulling the sunglasses from the top of her head back to her face, she signalled she was leaving. Passing Yugyeom, she put a hand on his arm. “I’m not in town for long so don’t be a stranger, darling.” She smirked whilst eyeing him over the rim of her glasses, retracting her hand from his arm, vanishing into the sea of people behind you.

You felt uneasy to say the least, and surprisingly pissed off. Why didn’t he just decline her offer at once? Who even was she? Jealousy is ugly and it was slowly creeping in on you.

“Are you coming?” Yugyeom’s hand pulled on yours, ushering you to continue on your way home. In the corner of your eye you spotted a particular shop you suddenly felt the urge to visit, just what you needed to complete night’s look.

You rummaged through your bag. “I think I forgot my sunglasses in the fitting room at that boutique, I’ll quickly run back and check. Go back to the car and I’ll met you there, yeah?” You let go of his hand, turning back in the direction of the shop you had been in earlier.

Yugyeom muttered an ‘okay’ and you parted ways, the man oblivious of your true intentions as he headed towards the car you parked a few streets down.

When he was out of your sight you hurriedly made a turn in the opposite direction, doorbell chiming as you entered your shop of choice.

 The dress you had chosen were a perfect match for your newly bought jewellery. Well, it was black, of course it would match, which is why you had lots to choose from when you entered the jewellery shop earlier. You had picked out a pair of earrings, a necklace, a bracelet, even a ring or two, all now carefully attached to your body. You had put on a full face of makeup, a rare sight for you as you normally didn’t have the time to. Putting your heels on, because heels were the only option fitting for tonight according to Yugyeom, you made your way out of your bedroom.

Yugyeom was leaning on your kitchen island, dressed up to match your own outfit, scrolling through his phone yet again. For someone always complaining that people in today’s modern age are always on their phone, he was consistent on putting his own nose in it too.

“These mortals really have no respect for their own limits anymore. Why on earth would you willingly throw yourself out of a moving aeroplane thousands of feet above ground? Their bodies don’t heal if something goes wrong and they hit the ground! Do all mortals subconsciously have a death wi-“

His voice trickled off, the sight of you standing in your doorway all dressed up made his thoughts go foggy. He didn’t need oxygen, he was immortal after all, yet he couldn’t stop the feeling of needing to take a deep breath to collect his thoughts.

For a moment he thought all his sins had been forgiven and he had been lifted to the gates of heaven, God having spared him from being dragged down to the doomed gates of hell for his eternal suffering.  You couldn’t possibly be anything other than an angel.

“You look heavenly.” For once in his life he had no other words to describe your beauty; no words could possibly do you justice.

You noticed how intensely he focused on you and you could feel your blush creeping up, tinting your cheeks a rosy pink.

Yugyeom pushed himself off the kitchen island, eager to get his hands on you. “The dress fits you perfectly.” He was about to pull you in for a kiss until he noticed your jewellery and came to a halt. “And so does your accessories.” He eyed them all, a questioning look taking place on his face.

Remembering that you we’re still not happy from the situation you had ran into earlier during the day, you straightened your posture.

“I saw this cute little shop on my way back from the boutique and I thought, ‘Hey, I don’t have any accessories’ and here we are. Do you like them? They’re all real silver.” You reached out your arm, your boyfriend flinching to the side.

His eyes trailed from the jewellery on your arm up to your face, back to your arm. “They’re nice. What made you go for silver?” He asked cautiously.

You let your arm down, walking over to the couch to pick up your bag. “You know, just thought they would look nice with the dress.”

Yugyeom stood still in his spot, brows furrowed. “So would gold, which also wouldn’t burn my skin off.”

You smirked, your face out of sight from your boyfriend. “Oh, I didn’t think about that. Sorry.” You shrugged.

Your boyfriend let out a sigh, now pinching the bridge of his nose with his eyes closed. “Love, come on. What’s the reason behind this?”

You looked at him with your doe-eyes, feigning innocence again. “What do you mean?”

Yugyeom crossed his arms, glaring in your direction. You could tell he was getting impatient by the way he puffed. “You got rid of all your silver the second I moved in, and you want me to believe you got all of this silver jewellery because ‘It would go nice with the dress’? Do not take me for a fool, Y/N.”

A near mocking laugh escaped your lips. “Maybe if you’re so afraid of a tiny amount of silver you should have invited Genevieve instead. I’m sure she would be more than happy to go for a blue steak with you.“

Yugyeom’s eyes narrowed at your comment. You didn’t normally start petty arguments over anything, so something was bothering you enough for you to lash out like this. He didn’t expect you to be throwing a tantrum over bumping into Genevieve, the past was the past, his story with the woman was buried decades ago.

Then it clicked in his mind.

“Are you jealous?” He asked carefully, his eyes now softer.  

You gaped, slightly offended. “I’m absolutely not jealous of your drop-dead gorgeous old friend. I’m just saying you probably have more in common with her than me when it comes to your choice of food.” You crossed your arms as well as your legs, staring into the darkness outside the window.

“Y/N, please.” Yugyeom sighed. You had to pick a fight, today out of all days.

You on the other hand had never felt this type of rage and the adrenaline that came with it.

Both of you fell silent for a moment, trying to read the situation.

“Who is she to you?” Breaking the silence, your gaze still outside, afraid that if you so much as glanced in Yugyeom’s direction your walls would come crumbling down, exposing you, your weakness on full display.

Yugyeom continued to stay silent, worry building in your chest. This couldn’t be good.

“I’m not buying the old friend crap. She was looking at you like you were a meal but as far as I know, vampires don’t survive off of each other.”

You wanted answers. You needed answers.

Yugyeom’s arms dropped and he made his way to the couch you were sitting on. He sat down next to you, placing a hand on your exposed knee, his touch sending a tingling sensation up your thigh, straight to your spine. Damn this man and how he affected you.

“We knew each other a long time ago. You could say we were partners in crime, we only had each other to rely on. It can be hard out there on your own, not to mention lonely.” His voice was soft, back to its silky-smooth self.

You took a deep, shaky breath.

“So you were lovers, is that it then?”

You couldn’t bear the thought of Yugyeom with someone else. It was ridiculous of course, the man had a life before you, decades before you were even born, he was bound to have been involved with someone. But it didn’t hurt any less hearing about it.

“We were involved with each other in various activities.”

Your heart was beating so hard you could hear your pulse in your ears, and you were sure Yugyeom could hear it just as well, if not better than you.  

“Did you love her?” You weren’t sure if you wanted to hear the answer to the question you just asked, your voice a mere mumble as you were now staring at the floor.

Yugyeom could hear your heart racing, the protruding vein in your neck pulsating, your breathing irregular. His hand squeezed your thigh, just above your knee, drawing circles with his thumb.

“I cared for her in multiple ways, but no, I didn’t love her. It was the reason she left me to my own in the end, I couldn’t love her the way she wanted me to. The way I love you.”

Yugyeom paused, trying to read your face before he continued.

Was he doing the right thing telling you this? It wasn’t unusual for you to ask questions about the past, how things used to be around the world as he had lived to see it unfold, but you never spoke about his past like this. There were uncountable things he could tell you about his past, but he would rather not go near that subject, burying it in the deepest, darkest part of his mind.

“I didn’t think I would ever see her again, we parted nearly a lifetime ago. I didn’t care for her like I care for you. I never loved her. I have never loved anyone like I love you.”

Your heart skipped a beat and you were sure it was going to pack it’s bags and run out of your chest at any point now. Your arms were still crossed over your chest, afraid of hurting your boyfriend with your jewellery as you didn’t actually intend to use them against him. More than anything you wanted to wrap your arms around Yugyeom’s frame, bury yourself face in his chest and smell that familiar scent, his scent.

Voice a mere whisper, you stared into your lap. “Say it again.”

Yugyeom squeezed your thigh once more, firmer this time. He grabbed your chin, gently nudging your chin up so he could tell you straight to your face. “I love you Y/N. I adore you. I crave you. You’re all I could ever want, and I will cherish you forever, even if my damned soul does not deserve you. I won’t let anything in this mortal world part me from you.”

It was all you needed to hear.

A sheepish grin spread across your face. “I love you too, Yugyeom. And I’m sorry about all of this.” You gestured to yourself and the dumb jewellery you were wearing. You were going to throw it all out by morning, not caring about the money you spent on it.

Yugyeom let out a breathy laugh, smiling because you were smiling.

“I know.” He pushed a strand of hair out of your face, careful to avoid your earrings. Soon enough he smirked, eyes just as dark as they had been in the little boutique.

“Now Love, would you please take all of this shiny garbage off of you so that I can kiss you before I go insane?”

A giggle erupted from your lips, throwing every piece of stupid silver on your body across the room, lips finally colliding with your love.

[hermionemonica]

Destination: Chapter 3

Welcome to the third chapter! Thank you for appreciating my work so far, and thank you for sticking around! I cannot emphasize how grateful I am to you all! There's less sadness here and things actually start rolling. So, enjoy! 

(I own none of the characters of this universe. This is merely a fan fiction.)

AO3 link

First chapter || Previous chapter

Finally, thought Adrien. After weeks of requesting and begging, his father had finally allowed him to go out with his friends. Every time he had asked, some photoshoot or press event would always come up. He secretly wondered if his father intentionally scheduled those in such a way that he could not meet his friends. Because honestly, he had never quite liked Adrien's friends. Nino was a taboo in the Agreste mansion since the Bubbler incident, Alya was only “the girl who runs the Ladyblog". The only person whom his father seemed to treat with some respect was Marinette; he remembered her as the girl who had designed the hat which Adrien wore to his father's fashion show.    

Marinette.    

His beautiful, talented, kind, amazing classmate. His everyday Ladybug.    

His friend, who had once been in love with him.    

It was Kagami who had told him that Marinette had been in love with him for more than a year.    

“I am surprised, how could you have never noticed? She was hopelessly in love with you!”    

Marinette had been in love with him. The awesome girl whom he had admired since she stood up to Chloe in class, she had been in love with him. And he had never noticed. Seriously, how stupid could he have been?    

Strangely, his father had seemed particularly interested in Marinette for a while. He had been surprised to know that it was Kagami he was dating. Adrien recollected the conversation.    

“Father, I just wanted you to know that I have a girlfriend now.”    

Adrien thought he saw a glint in his father's eye as he spoke. “Well, I believe it was only a matter of time before you got involved with Miss Dupain-Cheng.”    

“What, Marinette? No father, I am dating Kagami.”    

“Oh,” his father had been surprised, “Well, Miss Tsurugi is a pleasant candidate too.”    

‘Candidate'. Adrien laughed. As if this was a competition. Although to be honest, that was probably how Kagami saw it. She was constantly pushing him for more and more. She refused to take things slow. And towards the end, she had started to demand an explanation of what he had been doing or where he had been at any time. She almost detested the times when he chose to hang out with his friends instead of with her. It was like she wanted him to be hers and hers only.    

Like he was a prize she had won.    

And that’s what led to their break-up.    

“I cannot do this anymore, Kagami.”    

“What are you talking about, Adrien?”    

“I don't want to be with you anymore. You’re making it too hard. I-I just can't breathe.”    

“So, you want to break up with me?”    

“I am sorry Kagami.”    

“I knew this day would come. I had been mistaken, you do not belong with me,” Kagami placed her hand on his shoulder. “I just have one thing to say. Follow your heart; it will lead you to your destination.”    

And that had been it.    

Adrien had feared Kagami would get upset, and maybe she would end up akumatised. But none of that happened. It was almost as if she had been expecting this to happen.    

But Adrien was yet to figure out Kagami's last advice. He was confused about his heart. Kagami had never made him feel the way Ladybug had. And now, Ladybug was even further away from his reach than she ever had been. But Adrien had long reconciled himself to that.    

The ring on his phone shook Adrien out of his reverie. He picked the phone and saw Nino’s contact name displayed on the screen.    

“Hey, Nino, what's up?”    

“Just calling to check on you dude. You still up for the Louvre, right?”    

“Yeah, of course!”    

“Okay, see you in an hour!”    

Adrien went to take a quick shower. Nino’s call had made him feel all the more excited. And in spite of himself, he found himself thinking about the one person he was more excited to meet today than anyone else.    

Marinette.  

It was strange, how he had started to spend most of his time thinking about her. It was almost as if thinking about her made him feel happy. Over the past couple of months, they had grown much closer than they used to be, which meant they got to spend more time together. And every day, Adrien found himself being more and more blown away by this wonder of a girl. Everything about her was so amazing. And when he was with her, he felt this unexplained warmth in his chest, that made him think of all the good things in life.    

Not unexpectedly, his thoughts distracted him and he took a bit longer in the bathroom than he normally would have.  

“Ready for your day out, kid?” Plagg asked from his cheese corner.  

“I am, but you aren’t.”  

“What do you mean? I’m always presentable!”  

“No, you’re not. Not until you get rid of that gross smell of cheese!”  

“That is an unthinkable insult to my precious baby!”  

“Oh shut up! You have to clean up if you want to come with me today. I don’t want to be smelling like stinky cheese today.”  

“Ah, of course! Gotta impress the girlfriend, huh?”  

“Plagg, you know Kagami isn’t going to be here today.”  

“I wasn’t talking about her.”  

That statement confused him, but a summon from Nathalie made him hurry. Much to Plagg’s chagrin, Adrien sprayed him with the same deodorant that he was wearing on himself. He was downstairs in a few minutes.  

His father had insisted that his bodyguard drop him at the Louvre. Although that wasn't quite to his liking, Adrien had conceded to it. He would have loved to walk with his friends, but he had given in, thinking it to be a small price to pay in return for an entire afternoon with his best friends.    

When Adrien got there, he found Nino was already waiting for him. “Adrien, you're here! The girls should be here any moment now.”    

They had barely exchanged pleasantries when they heard Alya’s voice, “Are you boys done with your love-fest already?”    

“Alya!”    

At Marinette's voice, Adrien turned around with a smile. But as soon as his eyes found her, his smile was replaced by a deep blush that spread over his cheeks.    

Marinette was wearing her hair down. Just like that day when she had helped him and Kagami escape from the Bourgeois party.    

Her raven locks fell on her shoulders, and a few strands framed her face. And when she walked, her tresses danced in the breeze just a little. And she took his breath away just like she had the first time. Because she looked beautiful. So beautiful. It took him a few moments to recover. And then he took in the rest of her.    

Her outfit, that is.    

She was wearing a black t-shirt with a large green paw-print at the centre. She had paired it with a pair of shorts in matching green, and a pair of high-heeled black boots.    

Adrien felt his breath catch in his chest.  

Marinette was wearing a Chat Noir inspired outfit. And from the looks of it, she had designed it herself.    

Adrien felt a little shaky at the knees. Marinette had created that outfit with her own hands. She had made the design thinking about him. She had sewed it thinking about him. She had put it on thinking about him. He could not explain why his heart-beat accelerated at that thought.    

“Doesn't she look really pretty?” a voice brought him back to reality.    

“She does,” Adrien answered dreamily, and then he recognised the voice who had asked the question.    

Luka.    

“Hey Luka, I didn't know you were coming?”    

The reply to his question came from Marinette. “He was free today so I dragged him along. I hope it won't be a problem?”    

“Of course not, girl!” Alya said, but Adrien didn't quite agree with her.    

The afternoon turned out to be much less fun than what Adrien had expected. At least for him. Nino was with Alya, and Marinette was with Luka. And Adrien ended up third-wheeling with either of them. Of course, they tried to involve Adrien in every activity as much as they could, and there were times when the five of them did something together. But most of the time they stayed with their partners and he ended up being the odd one out. He couldn't really blame his friends though.    

Adrien was used to third-wheeling with Nino and Alya, because he had been doing so ever since they had started dating. But it used to be easier before, because he had never been left alone. Marinette would be with him. Even though they weren’t “together”, it was nice to have someone third-wheeling with him. For a moment, he wondered if there was someone he could call over to join him, but he couldn’t go ahead with that. Because he didn’t think he’d enjoy third-wheeling with anyone as much as he would with Marinette.  

But now, Marinette was with Luka, not with him. And they were “together”. For some reason, that thought made him feel even worse than being left out. Adrien could not ignore the way he felt a burning sensation in his chest every time he looked at Marinette and Luka. For the first time in his life, Marinette's smiles made him angry, because it was not him she was smiling at.    

What did Luka have that he didn't?    

Woah, where did that come from?    

Wait, was he jealous? Of what Marinette and Luka had?    

And then, all the emotions he had been subconsciously pushing away came to him in a rush.  

He was jealous that Marinette was with Luka. He was jealous of the attention Marinette was giving to Luka. He was jealous that Luka was allowed to be so close to her and he wasn’t.    

He wanted to be the one who held Marinette's hand. He wanted to be the one who made Marinette smile.    

He wanted to be Marinette's one.    

“Are you okay, kid?” Plagg called out from inside his pocket. “You have been silent for a while.”  

“Yeah,” he breathed. “Now I am.”  

Next Chapter

[onegayastronaut]

NSFW Alphabet List (Hope Van Dyne)

A = Aftercare (What they’re like after sex)

Hope is the softest girlfriend ever and loves cuddling you. She has taken a lot of time thinking about having sex with you, so any physical contact she can have with you after sex is like heaven for her. After your relationship has progressed a bit, she loves kissing you for what seems like hours in bed. There are times when she'll seem a bit preoccupied and stroke your hair absently, but a little nudge from you is all that is needed to bring her back to the moment. Soft kisses are a hallmark of what it's like to cuddle Hope after she's had her way with you.


B = Body part (Their favorite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)

She loves everything about you, but if we're being honest, your boobs are where it's at when Hope is turned on. She feels like she can get lost in them whenever her lips are making their way down your body, and she definitely takes her time. Hope loves

Hope loves her arms and how strong she is. That's because whenever she gets to lift you up and press you against the wall for a make-out session she can feel your weight in her arms. She especially loves it when you run your hands up and down them as you kiss. Hope also loves her hands, especially now that she knows how to make you melt with a few well-placed touches.


C = Cum

Let's be honest: Hope is full of sexual energy when the two of you start dating. She really likes sex toys, but nothing too "out there". She likes the fact that she can get you off pretty much anytime she wants, and its uncomfortable for her to think of needing help in that category.

Hope loves taking care of you first. But she also loves to be cared for from time to time. It seems like you know exactly when and how to take care of her, which is part of why she fell in love with you in the first place.


D = Dirty Secret (Pretty self-explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)

It's no secret that Hope is willing to do anything, anywhere with you. Hope loves to get on top of your whenever it's possible. She loves watching you as she teases you in public and finally giving you what you want after you've begged for it for the longest time.


E = Experience (How experienced are they? Do they know what they’re doing?)

It's no secret that Hope is very experienced (she has had girlfriends before you after all). She likes using everything that she has learned before to please you, or to make sure you know who you belong to if she's jealous.


F = Favourite Position

There are quite a few. But Hope's favorite position is when the two of you are extremely close and she gets to feel your skin on hers. She loves how she can have direct access to your skin and kiss you all she wants and tell you how much she loves you. Hope finds it quite hot whenever you manage to get on top and control her for a little bit.


G = Goofy (Are they more serious in the moment, or are they humorous, etc)

Hope doesn't try to be too funny when the two of you are having sex. She's not too serious though, as she likes to see you smile a lot.


H = Hair (How well groomed are they, does the carpet match the drapes, etc.)

She's pretty proud of her body and isn't afraid to show it to you, so she keeps everything trimmed down there.


I = Intimacy (How are they during the moment, romantic aspect…)

Hope always liked to go old school in terms of romance. Whether it be holding doors open for you, helping you get off the car, or doing anything to protect you, Hope is willing to do it. She never wants to seem like she's smothering you, but she also wants you to know that she cares about you, a lot.

She's not really into PDA, but she does like to have everyone know that you're hers. So she makes sure to almost always be touching you and kissing you on the cheek. In private, she's much more physically affectionate and will not hesitate to make out with you and carry you to the bedroom whenever she feels like it.


J = Jack Off (Masturbation headcanon)

She doesn't really like to masturbate ever since the two of you started dating, so she'll always come to you first if she feels the need. But if being with you isn't possible at the moment, she's capable of taking care of herself (even if it's not the ideal situation).


K = Kink (One or more of their kinks)

Nickname kink: she calls you baby, sweetheart, babygirl. She loves giving you nicknames that only she can call you by. As for her, she loves it when you say her name during sex. She relishes the fact that only she can make you feel that way and that it's her who you want when you're in bed together.


L = Location (Favourite places to do the do)

Mostly at home when no one else is around to disturb the two of you. So in the bedroom, the bathroom, the floor, the kitchen, literally anywhere. Your home is where no one else can disturb you, and she gets to take all the time in the world with you.

But if the two of you are in public, she is not above teasing you. She'll wrap her arms around your waist and kiss your face/shoulder/neck just to tell everyone else in the room that you are hers. One of the things she really likes doing is to turn you on beyond belief during very inappropriate places (i.e. when there are people around) and she's the only one who gets to make you squirm. Most of the time, she likes to take you home and give you what you've been begging for, but Hope is not above having sex with you in public either.


M = Motivation (What turns them on, gets them going)

Everything about you gets Hope going. There is nothing about you that DOESN'T turn Hope on, from your outfits to the way that you tease her if you want something. Of course, there are some outfits that work better than others, but let's face it, Hope has been thirsty for you the moment she saw you. When the two of you are in public together, all you have to do is to hint at wanting her and she'll be ready to literally carry you to somewhere private where the two of you can be alone together.


N = NO (Something they wouldn’t do, turn-offs)

Threesomes are a definite no-go for Hope. She does not like the idea of sharing you with anyone else, and the thought of someone else touching you makes her so jealous she almost can't think straight. 


O = Oral (Preference for giving or receiving, skill, etc)

She really loves to give when it comes to you, but she would be lying if she said that she didn't like to receive when it comes to you. Your tongue works magic on her, and she would be lying if she said that she didn't like to be topped by you every once in a while. Your neediness for her is the only thing she needs whenever she's with you.


P = Pace (Are they fast and rough? Slow and sensual? etc.)

Hope loves going slow when it comes to you. She can't wait to slowly explore every inch of you when the two of you are together. Sometimes she's embarrassed to admit it, but she loves to make you beg for her. There are times when she likes being fast with you, but she prefers to be nice and slow whenever she's with you.


Q = Quickie (Their opinions on quickies rather than proper sex, how often, etc.)

Hope has so much stamina that the idea of a quickie never made its way through her mind. She loves taking her time with you, but if the two of you are busy, she's down for a quickie. Either way, she'll have you moaning her name and begging for more. As long as she gets to leave marks on your body, she's not complaining.


R = Risk (Are they game to experiment, do they take risks, etc.)

She loves to make you feel good and therefore is willing to try anything new. As for risky business, her first concern is making sure you're safe and comfortable with whatever she wants to try. As long as its something that turns both of you on, Hope is game for pretty much whatever is out there.


S = Stamina (How many rounds can they go for, how long do they last…)

Hope has so much stamina that it's pretty unfair. She can go on all night and still cuddle you in the morning when you (finally) wake up.


T = Toy (Do they own toys? Do they use them? On a partner or themselves?)

Hope doesn't really like toys considering the fact that she doesn't want anything aside from her being able to make you "happy". But if you insist, she's not against using toys on you to make sure everything happens quicker. Before your relationship, Hope didn't own any sex toys, but she sure does now.


U = Unfair (how much they like to tease)

Hope teases you so much it's honestly like she enjoys how much you squirm while sitting next to her. She knows exactly how to turn you on, and just looking at you will make Hope carry you to the bedroom. The sound of you begging for her to carry you to somewhere more private is intoxicating.


V = Volume (How loud they are, what sounds they make)

Aside from a few quieter noises, Hope isn't too loud. But she also knows that whatever quiet noises she makes turns you on to no end. And if you get turned on, she does too. She loves it when you're loud for her because that means she's doing something right -- which is making you feel as good as possible. If the two of you are in public, Hope loves letting out quiet giggles as she works on making you a hot mess where other people might catch you.


W = Wild Card (Get a random headcanon for the character of your choice)

Hope loves buying you little presents whenever she misses you (which is all the time). There are times when she is on a mission and there's no way that she can meet you, so sex when she gets back home, is pretty mind-blowing. She tries to not leave you hanging for too long, and Scott usually gets a death glare whenever he implies that she has somehow gone "soft" ever since she met you

. 
X = X-Ray (Let’s see what’s going on in those pants)

Homegirl looks good under those clothes and we all know it.


Y = Yearning (How high is their sex drive?)

Hope's sex drive was incredibly high when you first started dating, but as your relationship progressed, it has calmed down somewhat. Hope really loves cuddling with you, and it often leads to sex. But Hope always lets you know that you're the only girl on her mind. There is a time and place for everything, and the two of you know when enough is enough. Hope loves you for knowing exactly when to take care of her.


Z = ZZZ (… how quickly they fall asleep afterward)

Both of you fall asleep fairly quickly after the deed. Hope likes to have sex with you for an extended period of time, which means that both of you are pretty worn out after the fact. Hope usually drifts off to sleep with her arm wrapped around your waist.

[morfinwen]

#2, 5, 7, 10, 16, 25, 32, 40, 45, 52, and 60, please! :)

You didn’t specify characters, so i guess i’ll just have to answer each question for all most of them!

Since i have so many, i’ll be grouping them.

The quartet (Christopher “Chris” Hardie, Reagan Travers, Angela “Angie” McKendrick, Neal Fairchild) are my usual go-to characters when playing a game with some kind of role-playing element, but also have versions of themselves in a more ordinary world, which is typically the one i’m thinking of when i answer questions about them.

“Heaven and Earth” is a story i’m working on with my sister. Characters from this work include Lanzo Ramsey, Ashley “Ash” Jackson, Conri “Connie” Lowell, Aidan Michaels, Nate Vasquez, Niner, Q Free, and Amanda Wheeler.

Next group are video game specific characters - Leah Tolkien from Fallout 4, Elarin Is-Ha'Arel from Knights of the Old Republic, Meaghan Caoilfhionn from Knights of the Old Republic 2, and Avery Hawke from Dragon Age 2.

Lastly, my other original fiction characters, the Raines siblings (Kira, Darcy, and Susanna) and Ian Grayson and Lauren Winston.

In case it isn’t already obvious, this is going to be a long post, so the actual asks and answers are going under a read more.

2: Where does your OC work?

Christopher is an theater actor/musician. He’s not tied to any huge corporations, so work can occasionally be a bit thin, but he’s dedicated and talented enough that it hasn’t caused him many problems.

Reagan has an uninspiring office job of some type. It’s not her passion, but it pays the bills.

Angie and Neal, no idea yet.-Lanzo’s worked a lot of odd jobs. Currently working as a bartender at a magical people-only bar.

Ash does enchanting work on a freelance basis.

Connie … haven’t nailed down his career yet. Something in the sciences.

Q is a bike messenger/courier, also for an occult-only company. At this point in his story, he has not realized this yet.

Niner and Nate are unemployed.

Amanda is a reporter for the local newspaper. -While Leah, Elarin, Meaghan and Avery have a lot to keep them busy, they don’t have specific careers; unless you count keeping their respective homelands/worlds safe as a career.-Kira, Darcy, and Susanna are too young for jobs, unless you count school.

Ian and Lauren work for a blues musician’s crew in some capacity, also not nailed down yet.

5: How old is your OC?

Chris: Early 30sReagan: Late 20sAngie: Mid 20sNeal: Mid 20s-Lanzo: Over 600 (vampire)Ash: Early 30sConnie: Early 20sAidan: Little over 100 (phoenix)Q: Late 20sNate: Early 20sNiner: Mid 20sAmanda: Early 30s-Leah: Mid 20sElarin: In her own game, 27; five years later when KotOR 2 rolls around, 32Meaghan: 30Avery: Mid to late 20s -Kira: 15Darcy: 13Susanna: 11

Ian: Early 20sLauren: Early 20s

7: Is your OC in a relationship?

Most of them are not, because most of them haven’t had their stories completed.

Chris had a couple girlfriends in high school and college, none of which lasted very long. He wishes he’d taken them a bit more seriously, but he parted with all of them on good terms, so it’s not a deep-seated regret.

Neal had his heart broken once. He’s not eager for that to happen again.-Lanzo’s present-day relationships rarely last long enough to deserve the term. In the past, he has been married four times. He has no desire to make it five.

Ash met a very nice young lady named Danae in his junior year of high school. They became fast friends, studied together often, and had long, interesting discussions on a wide variety of topics. Under different circumstances, they probably would have dated each other, but both of them had plans for after-graduation that would take them to very different parts of the world, so they decided to just remain friends instead. They still exchange letters, though since Danae travels so much and in rural locations, Ash has to send his letters to her mother to pass on to her.

Q was in one long-term relationship that ended badly: he tried too hard to be who she wanted rather than who he was, and she cared more about getting what she wanted out of it than making a relationship that could last. It probably hasn’t turned him off relationships in general, but it’s going to take time for him to be willing to consider dating again.-Leah is in her second relationship. She married her high school sweetheart, Nate, and losing him was devastating. It’s strange how different her second partner is from Nate, but he has a lot in common with her – he married young, has a son, and lost his wife. Sometimes she thinks it’s because he’s so different from Nate that their relationship works – when she looks at him, she sees him, not Nate.

For most of her life, Elarin had no real interest in romance; so she’s told, at least, but what memories she still has support that. Then she had to spend several weeks on a planet occupied by enemy forces, and the only person she could count on was a widowed pilot with a hideous orange coat and raging trust issues. Love is weird.

Meaghan’s story is pretty similar to Elarin’s, except instead of weeks it was days, instead of an occupied planet it was a mining station where almost everyone else had been murdered followed by an apartment they had to stay in for a couple days under police surveillance, and instead of a decorated war hero and straight-arrow pilot it was a snarky two-time deserter who never gave a straight answer about his past because he used to work for her worst enemies. So basically the same thing.

As a teenager, Avery had a brief romance with a young man in her hometown that probably wouldn’t have lasted even if he hadn’t fallen in battle and her family hadn’t fled as refugees to another country. Unlike her current relationship, which might even survive the end of the world. Don’t get between Avery and the people she loves.-Kira, Darcy, and Susanna are all too young for love yet.

Ian broke up with his high school girlfriend when they had different plans for college, and broke up with his college girlfriend when she fell in love with his rich roommate’s gardener. Since then he’s decided to focus more on music than relationships.

Lauren has had a couple short relationships, none of which ended well.

10: What is your OCs favorite outfit?

Chris - for every day wear, his pair of good quality blue jeans and red t-shirt. For formal occasions, he has a tailored black suit, a white shirt, and a brilliant blue tie that matches his eyes.

Reagan - black jeans, one of her t-shirts with a funny image or text on it, and her black-with-blue-highlights jacket.

Angie - a pastel-colored blouse, white or khaki capri pants, and sandals.

Neal - long-sleeved button-up patterned shirt, black slacks.-Lanzo - doesn’t pay that much attention to clothes anymore, so whatever is comfiest.

Ash - flannel shirt, brown carpenter’s jeans, suspenders.

Connie - his entire wardrobe is t-shirts (solid color, mostly black but also subdued reds, greens, and blues) and shorts (black or tan).

Aidan - the 1920s were the height of fashion, and nothing will convince him otherwise. He only wears clothes in that style on special occasions, though, so as not to attract (more) attention.

Nate - video game t-shirt, black jeans, jacket with a hood he can pull over his head.

Q - jeans, band t-shirt (all his shirts are band t-shirts, whether he’s listened to or even heard of the band in question), his jacket.

Amanda - black slacks, solid bright color shirt.

Niner - why are humans so obsessed with clothes of all things?-Leah - never used to be that fond of dresses, but having the opportunity to wear one now reminds her of pre-War days, in a good way.

Elarin - whatever helps her blend in her current environment.

Meaghan - Jedi robes, honestly. They’re not flattering but they remind her of happier times.

Avery - there are a couple outfits she has that remind her of absent friends; friends who were more fashion-minded than she ever would be, and insisted on taking her (over her slightly exasperated objections) clothes-shopping for said outfits.-Kira - jeans and a t-shirt, probably.

Darcy - jeans, thick sweater.

Susanna - she has a floral dress she loves, but it’s too nice to wear on ordinary occasions.

Ian - he loves his red flannel footie pajamas, and would never take them off if that was a reasonable option.

Lauren - skirt, floral blouse.

16/25: When is your OCs favorite time of year? What time of year does your OC prefer?

(These two questions seemed like basically the same thing, so i combined them.)

Spring - Angie, for early mornings and warm rains. - Meaghan and Leah, it represents new beginnings. - Nate, associated with his mother’s flower and herb gardens planted on the windowsills and tiny balcony outside their apartment. - Ian, it’s the one season his allergies don’t flare up! As much.

Summer - Neal, loves the heat - stepping outside when it’s warm feels like being wrapped in a blanket- Susanna, NO SCHOOL! :D- Elarin, warm evenings and swimming.- Avery, stays light out later.- Kira, no school, also swimming.- Niner, less trouble finding warm sleeping spots.- Reagan, thunderstorms are awesome, and it doesn’t get dark stupidly early.

Fall - Ash, cooler but things aren’t quite as dead or bleak yet- Darcy, likes being bundled up and drinking cocoa and tea, but without having to deal with ice.- Connie, more comfortable running around outside, and the changing leaves are pretty.- Q, it’s socially acceptable to wear a jacket again, but not freezing cold or too snowy/icy for biking.

Winter - Chris, loves the feeling of dry cold, and some of his favorite outdoor activities require snow.- Lauren, the snow is pretty, and she has more excuses to stay home and away from people (the roads are bad, the flu is running rampant, holiday season).- Lanzo, it gets darker earlier, and snow is just plain beautiful to watch fall.- Aidan, finally doesn’t feel like he’s running too hot all the time! Also has a lot of fond memories of Christmas and New Years’.- Amanda, enjoys skating and cross-country skiing. Also certain members of her family act like they get along for a while.

32: Did your OC go to college? What did they major in?

Chris was a double-major in theater and music – he has a Masters in both, contemplating going for a doctorate in music. He’s also taking night classes in advanced math and physics, which will probably be enough to net him an engineering degree before too long.

Reagan went for a four-year English degree. Being a normal, sane person (unlike some people), she has not gone back for another one.

Angie and Neal, not sure yet. Angie might have gone for a degree, but probably not – she’s brilliant and as driven as Chris in her own way, which is not a way that’s conducive to a college education.

If Neal doesn’t have a degree, it’s something he’s contemplating. Contrary to Angie, the validation of an external organization is something that would appeal to him.-Lanzo - not unless you count the school of hard knocks. According to him, he’s the star pupil of that particular school.

Ash - not formally. He received extensive education in enchanting things from his great-aunt, probably equivalent to a Masters.

Connie - his decision to go to college was a definitive one for him in several ways, not all of them good. He originally just went for some Bachelor of Science degree, but wound up graduating a few years later with two or three after all the credits he’d accumulated (details on what types of degrees to be determined).

Aidan - didn’t even graduate high school.  He’s considered getting a GED, but honestly it doesn’t really appeal to him, and there’s not really a compelling reason to try.

Q - no.

Nate - was in his senior year, on his way to a degree in audio engineering, when he died. He has not made any progress since then.

Niner - what’s college?

Amanda - yep, graduated magna cum laude with a journalism degree.-Leah - law degree.

Elarin - no.

Meaghan - no.

Avery - no.- The Raines siblings are of course too young, but college is probably on the horizon for them.

Ian - yes, music.

Lauren - yes, music.

40: What is the craziest thing your OC has done?

There may or may not have been a time when Christopher got drunk during college and woke up the next morning in a strange place with a hangover and a bag full of things he didn’t remember acquiring, half of which were illegal and/or something he had no idea how he would ever have gotten his hands on it. If that ever happened, and if he ever happened to remember what had transpired that night, it would probably be an incredible story that he will not be telling anyone, at least not until he’s sure the statute of limitations has run out.

Reagan isn’t generally into crazy stuff. There’s probably some story where she stepped outside her usual bounds, but even that probably wasn’t terribly exciting.

Angie and Neal, not sure yet.-Lanzo has a long list of things he’s claimed to have done over the years. Given his character, it is … difficult to tell what is exaggeration and what has actually happened.

When Ash was college-aged, he and some friends got a bit … passionate in their attempts to convince their state senator to sign a particular environmental bill. All you need to know is that the giant papier-mâché horse wasn’t his idea, and while he isn’t exactly sure who the guy in the newspaper photo is, he has never gone out naked in public, so it wasn’t him.

Connie once signed up for a night class (Ancient Greek) and an 8 am class (Calculus) in college. During midterms and finals he subsisted almost entirely on coffee and protein bars. It’s mostly a blur now, but there was a period in there where he almost thought he could taste colors, and attempted to verify it with experimentation. Eggs still taste green to him.

Around the age of ten, Aidan and his sister were really starting to get a grip on their powers, and wondered if they could fly. They decided to test it by jumping off the roof of the burned-down barn they lived in. Fortunately, the answer turned out to be “kind of”.

There’s a lot of risky stuff kids can get up to in New York City, especially when they’re with their friends thinking about what would be cool and not thinking about the consequences. Nate spent one summer doing those kinds of things. Then his mother remarried, and suddenly had time to keep tabs on her son and what he and his friends were doing when they weren’t in school.

Q once rode his bike – a regular bicycle, not a motorized one – on a highway. It was late at night, so there were almost no cars, and there was a full moon so he could see well, but the heart attack he nearly had seeing the headlights of a car suddenly appearing ahead of him helped him determine never to do that again.

On multiple occasions, Niner has first gone to a place where it would be unlikely or impossible for a cat to go, then turned into her cat form.

Amanda has interviewed a drug kingpin, and investigated a death that might have been an assassination by a mega corporation. -Leah tends to think of herself as two different people, pre- and post-The War. Given that Pre-War Leah’s craziest stunt involved toilet-papering a racist teacher’s house with friends in her sophomore year of high school, and Post-War Leah’s craziest stunts are things like facing down a ten-foot-tall deathclaw alone, traveling through an area so irradiated it’s called the Glowing Sea, and teleporting directly into the base of villainous scientists with technology beyond the capabilities of any other organization in existence with very little idea of what to expect, that is perhaps an understandable distinction to make.

While Elarin has been involved in a lot of dangerous stuff, she’s not really one for the “it’s just crazy enough to work!” type of plans. Even if it seems crazy, it’s honestly the best option available at the time.

Meaghan regularly walks into deadly, dangerous scenarios with no clear plan of escape. Whether that’s just her duty as a Jedi or craziness depends on who you ask.

For several years, Avery’s closest companions included an apostate mage, a Dalish elf willing to make deals with demons, an ex-Gray Warden apostate mage running an underground clinic for refugees and helping other apostate mages escape the Chantry, a member of the City Guard and the widow of a Chantry Templar, a dwarven merchant, a magically-enhanced elf slave from the Tevinter Imperium who hates magic, and a pirate captain. It’s questionable if one could think they could have such people interact regularly without ending in murder and not be at least a little crazy.-Whatever the craziest thing the Raines siblings have done is, it probably wasn’t all that crazy, especially compared to the other stuff on this list.

When Ian gets started on a long-term joke or prank, like using a fake name or always arriving somewhere in some wild and slightly dangerous way, he feels obligated to keep doing it longer than most people would. It’s a minor miracle he hasn’t been hurt or fired yet over something like that.

Lauren does not do crazy stuff, except maybe her friendship with Ian.

45: Does your OC like reading?

Chris enjoys a good action-y book, usually with the writing quality of a McDonald’s hamburger but fun to read nonetheless. He doesn’t care much for non-fiction, as he learns best by doing.

Reagan has mild dyslexia, and finds it hard to visualize stuff happening in a written medium. She does enjoy books once she gets into them, though that doesn’t happen terribly often. She keeps meaning to try audio books.

Angie reads so much asking if she likes reading is like asking if she likes breathing. About the only genre she doesn’t read is erotica.

Neal likes dense, complex stories with deep symbolism and philosophical themes. He can only read one of those at a time, and then has to take a little while to think through it all, so he sometimes breaks it up with books of poetry - particularly nature or romance.-Lanzo buys pretty much anything on the bestseller lists, wanting to keep up with what’s popular. Most don’t stick in his memory very long, so if he makes a book recommendation, it’s definitely worth looking into – if he still remembers it, it’s either fantastically good or hilariously terrible.

Like Angie, for Ash reading is roughly the same as breathing, though he’s less varied than she is in topic: he prefers non-fiction, or fiction with a handful of characters who interact mostly with nature. He also tends to re-read a lot, since it can be hard for him to find new books he likes.

Connie is not as voracious a reader as Ash, but he tries to read one or two books a month. He also reads all kinds of genres, but has a slight preference for non-fiction.

Aidan is very picky about what he’ll read, and if he ever puts a book down out of disinterest he won’t be picking it up again any time soon (if ever), but what books he likes he really likes.

Nate reads exclusively fantasy and science fiction, more of the latter than the former. Considering recent events, some parts of fantasy hit too close to home.

Q is continually reading new stuff, usually stuff recommended by “if you liked x you’ll love y” lists. He usually only likes half of what he finds that way, but the ones he doesn’t like tend to fade from his memory pretty quickly. He’s a very fast reader as well.

Niner never learned to read, and has no interest in learning.

Amanda loves mysteries, historical fiction, and true crime novels. Outside of that she tries to keep up with journalism-related things.-Elarin likes reading well enough, but only obscure texts, rare books, etc. Fortunately she’s had a lot of chances to find those kinds of things.

Meaghan is not a big reader, but she finds certain kinds of poetry soothing.

Avery never has time to read.

Leah enjoyed reading when she was younger, with a particular fondness for pulpy comic books, but there aren’t many books in the Wasteland, comic or otherwise. She makes sure to collect any she finds in readable condition.- Kira’s just started getting into light horror/suspense, now that she’s old enough that her grandmother lets her. She’s also a fan of mysteries, having been able to read Nancy Drew and Sherlock Holmes and the like since middle school.

Darcy reads a lot. Sometimes he picks a particular non-fiction topic to focus on, other times he reads more broadly. For fiction, he prefers to re-read his favorites, but if given encouragement will try something new. He’s also been known to read university textbooks for fun.

Susanna isn’t a big fan of fiction, but she likes history books, particularly ones that cover what life was like for ordinary people back in the day, with lots of pictures.

Ian likes to pretend he doesn’t read anything deeper than some cheap superhero comic, so unless you know him well or recognize a joking allusion to a more obscure Shakespearean play, you would never know he read anything else. In reality, his reading material is about half comic books/graphic novels (some Marvel and DC, but he prefers less common ones) and half classical literature, particularly the older stuff. He never paid more attention in English class than the year they read The Odyssey and The Iliad, and never confused a teacher more than poor Mrs. Mitchell.

Lauren read a lot when she was younger, but not so much anymore. On the occasions she does read something, however, she really gets into it.

52: How does your OC feel about insects?(Technically some of the mentioned critters are not insects but whatever.)

Chris: They do an important job, so as long as they stay off of him to do it, you go, little bug buddy.

Reagan: She loathes flies and mosquitoes, is terrified of centipedes, and likes butterflies, moths, and spiders (certain kinds). Other than that, so long as they keep their distance from her, they’re okay.

Angie: Finds certain kinds interesting, but like Chris and Reagan, prefers if they keep their distance from her.

Neal: Not welcome anywhere in his vicinity, not even spiders. Any insect he finds inside his home is dead.-Lanzo: He’s more used to bugs than some. Not a huge fan of them, but is definitely more “live and let live” than most people.

Ash: He has supported various endeavors to save endangered bugs, and is more knowledgeable on the kinds found in the Pacific Northwest than most non-entomologists. That said, he has a pacifist zero-tolerance policy on insects in his house (except for certain species of spider).

Connie: Apart from a special hatred of fleas, most bugs would have to tap-dance on his nose to get him to notice them, let alone do anything about it.

Aidan: Live and let live, with one exception. If he ever finds an ant in his general vicinity, he will carefully use a very precise amount of fire magic to incinerate it instantly. Don’t tell Ash.

Nate: Spiders are cool. Cockroaches are disgusting, but don’t affect him much anymore. Both receive the same indifference he gives most things these days.

Q: Prefers to ignore them as much as possible, and more likely to run or move away from one that’s pestering him than squish it.

Niner: If questioned, she has disturbingly (according to Q) thorough and well-researched opinions on which ones are the most fun to chase, and which ones are the tastiest to eat.

Amanda: They are an undeniably important and fascinating part of nature, and she can stand them when she’s out in the wild, but if she finds one in her house it makes her skin crawl and distracts her until she’s sure it’s dead. If it’s mostly benign (like a spider) and hasn’t made a pest of itself, she might be willing to let it outside, but her instinctive response is “kill it! kill it! kill it!” The only thing worse than insects is *shudder* rats.-Leah: In the past, insects generally grossed her out, but she mostly left them alone. After facing down mutated bugs the size of her dog (or bigger), the little ones no longer trouble her so much. The big ones, though – she hopes they’re all burning in hell.

Elarin: Depends on their size, general danger level, appearance, etc.

Meaghan: If they leave her alone, she leaves them alone.

Avery: Spiders are evil, and they’ll stay far away from her if they know what’s good for them. -Kira: Ew, yuck, gross, kill them.

Darcy: Bees make him nervous, since he got stung by one when he was younger, but for the most part he doesn’t notice them unless they’re crawling on his face.

Susanna: Used to hate them, until she did a report on the insects common to her area in grade school. Now she has a long list of insect trivia to creep out her sister when she’s being annoying.

Ian: Tolerates them, which is good because his general living habits mean he always has a minor infestation of one sort or another going on. So long as it’s not termites, he lets it run its course.

Lauren: The best part of winter is most bugs are now burning in hell where they belong.

60: Does your OC enjoy nature?

Chris’ default location, so to speak, is urban, but he likes the occasional venture into “extreme” nature – mountain climbing, scuba diving, downhill skiing, etc. He’ll enjoy nature while he’s out in it, but once the event is over he returns to the urban jungle.

Reagan likes “organized” nature - parks, gardens, beaches, etc. Beyond that, she prefers to experience it through photos or documentaries. Sure, it’s not the same as actually being there – actually being there often involves exposure to the elements, biting insects, outhouses or disgusting gas station bathrooms, labor-intensive hiking or climbing, treacherous ledges, money spent on entry fees or equipment or tour guides, and risking the whole business being ruined by bad weather, sudden illness, or tourists. Photos and documentaries involve none of that, and so are unarguably superior.

Neal also likes “organized” nature, though he has more of a need for it than Reagan. It relaxes him in a way that few other things can. If he goes too long just in cities, he starts to feel drained. That said, he’d be lost if he ever wound up more than, say, fifty miles from civilization.

Angie tries to blend nature and the city – terrariums and potted plants in the house, vegetable and flower gardens in the yard, roads lined with trees, etc. She likes the occasional trip out into “just wilderness”, but prefers having nature more easily, commonly accessible.-Lanzo and the sun are no longer on speaking terms, but even before becoming a vampire he was of the opinion that anything worth doing was something that could be done inside.

Ash lives and breathes nature. If it weren’t for the handful of things tying him to a more ‘civilized’ existence, like his friends and family, he would happily move out into the wilderness and live the rest of his life there. He has a tremendous respect for nature as well, and knows full-well how dangerous it can be if you don’t respect it.

Connie is always a little more at home outdoors than he is indoors, though he usually winds up indoors more often. While not quite as willing to go live in the wild as Ash (despite being better suited to it), he gets a lot out of extended camping trips or hikes in remote nature areas.

Aidan has a particular fondness for the countryside where he grew up, but apart from that, doesn’t really care if he’s indoors or outdoors, so long as he isn’t getting too hot.

If liking house plants and herbs counts as enjoying nature, then yes, Nate enjoys nature. Otherwise, no.

Given the number of bug bites, sunburns, sudden downpours, black ice, and other things he’s endured, Q has a slight suspicion nature has it in for him. Still, it’s more honest about it than some humans have been, and he’s seen some breathtaking sunrises and meteor showers, so it evens out.

Amanda likes to go out into nature on occasion, like hiking in national parks or on scenic bike trails.

Niner has pretty much always lived in “nature”, albeit usually close to human habitation. It’s all right, she supposes. Not the worst, usually. She can even tolerate rain, so long as it’s gradual or predictable, and doesn’t involve thunder and lightning.-Kira loves the rain, and wants desperately to visit the mountains someday. Other than that, she likes suburban living, provided there’s sufficient trees and shrubbery around.

Darcy has, on occasion, enjoyed outdoor activities, like ice skating. He can count them on one hand.

Susanna was already inclined to prefer being outside to in, and then she discovered she was far less likely to be yelled at for being loud or energetic if she was outdoors. The hardest part of moving from the suburbs to the city is the lack of trees to climb and fields to run around in.

Thanks to his terrible navigational skills, Ian has seen more of the countryside in Tennessee than he ever planned on. He’s developed the fondness that comes from repeated, unintentional exposure, like learning to like that dumb pop song that’s always on the radio.

Lauren likes the beach, and seeing mountains or forests from a distance. That’s it.

Okay, that’s probably more information than you were expecting. Hope it was interesting and not too painfully self-indulgent of me. It was fun trying to answer for everyone, though!