#[huff rude people don't get the hint >>]

[im-am-not-a-weenie]

🍓period comfort

This is self indulgent 😃.

Reader is AFAB and I will be using she/her pronouns

shout out to all the girlies who don't like taking medicine and just power through it the cramps.

hinting at period sex with astarion, yknow how it is

spelling errors <3

see end for a/n

Gale, Astarion, halsin,

🍓Gale

you felt like shit. utter shit. if you didn't believe in the gods now you did because you've been praying for them to end your suffering hours ago. you were curled up in a ball in the corner of your tent

"Love, are you in here?'' your pity party was interrupted by your darling boyfriend Gale.

you let out a grunt to signal that you were in fact under the heap of blankets in the corner, you could hear a faint chuckle and footsteps nearing you

Gale crouched down and his knees gave a loud pop which made you smile a bit. "are you ok?" he asked gently. you shook your head under the blankets. "can I see you please?" his voice soft and words kind

with a huff you peaked out through the blankets. "there she is" Feeling his hand tuck a piece of your hair away you looked up. "what seems to be the matter?"

"I'm dying" you groaned. he immediately removed all your blankets and began scanning your body for injuries. "what's hurt, are you ok. you should tell me when you get hurt. or at least see Shadowheart or Halsin-." he rambles on

grabbing his worried hand and bringing it up for a kiss getting him to stop his ramble. " I'm fine gale, is just my period" That got him to stop, "oh" his face flushed, and just looked at you for a few seconds

"Why didn't you say that" he left the tent. before you could even get up to check on him he was back with a small basket filled with different plants food and canteens

you made a face of disbelief "Where did you get all of that on such short notice" The only answer you received was "I'm a wizard" he started to pile the blankets back on you but this time joining you in the pile

"eat this" he gave you a purple looking plant "it'll help your cramps " he said gently, you just shook your head. "cmon it'll make you feel better" he prompted." "I know," you said with a shrug and just snuggled into him

"Dont want icky medicine" he wrapped his arms around you pulling you close "Then what do you want" his hand started to play with your hair. "you" he let out a soft chuckle "That I can do"

you lay there in comfortable silence before Gale interrupted it. "you know I will make you eat that later right." you giggled "I'd like to see you try Wizard Boy."

spoiler alert, you ate the plant

🍓Astarion

let's be honest. he could care less (lies). astarion is one of those people who passively aggressively takes care of you

in a similar fashion you were in your tent curled up on the floor before astarion rudely barged in. "what are you still doing in bed." he asked dryly. you just groaned.

rolling his eyes he walked over and nudged you with his foot "Get up." looking up at him with a baffled expression you just stared at him "Did you just kick me?"

he scoffed "Darling I nudged you, you'll see kicking if you stay in bed any longer" he threatened with a smirk. "fuck off astarion i don't have to deal-" you cut yourself off with a groan as you doubled over and clutching your abdomen.

"stop being dramatic. it's not my fault you stayed up with Karlch and Wyll all night. you gave yourself the hangover now deal with it- why does it smell like blood in here." he looked confused and looked back down to you noticing how you clutching your lower stomach. it took a minute but finally, he connected the dots.

he sighed sitting on the ground and pulled you into his lap. "oh my poor dear." it was one of those rare occasions where his voice was soft and genuine

his hand trailed down and rested on your lower stomach. "does it hurt right here?" he asked softly as his other hand played with your hair. after answering with a simple nod he started to softly massage there trying to relieve some pressure.

"y'know," he said with a mischievous smile "you smell delicious right now. Gasping you hit him playfully "astarion." he giggled and held you tight against him. "come now dear we both know it wouldn't be the first time" he pressed a kiss on the top of your head

rolling your eyes fondly you giggled with him. "maybe later when I'm not feeling like I'm being stab." "of course darling, just think of it like an extra meal for me" that earned him another playful hit.

🍓Halsin

walking. sooooooooooo much walking, when will we stop walking. you think to yourself, you and your companions have been walking for almost the whole day, and for what. to look for a stupid necklace for a stupid-

"my heart are you alright" Internal monologue was interrupted by your mountain of a boyfriend Halsin. "No, I'm alright" quickly dismissing his worry. you didn't really want to do this quest but you knew the sooner you got it done the sooner you could make camp

he looked unsure but nodded making sure to slow his strides to walk with you. you felt his hand grasp yours. everything was fine until it wasn't, you felt a sharp pain in your uterus. you inhaled a deep breath and stopped moving, closing your eyes and trying to collect yourself

halsin stopped to observe you "Are....are you sure you're feeling well?" you felt a hand on your shoulder. your eyes met his, you gave him a reassuring smile "It's just cramps bear, I'll survive"

he looked at you worried "You started your cycle?" it made you laugh a tad. "no, not yet."

"then why-" "Halsin my love, I get cramps before during, and after. I'm fine" you explained calmly. another painful wave washed over you. this time Halsin picked you up and started walking in the opposite direction of anyone else

"Not that I'm complaining but what are you doing?" you giggled at the sudden lift. no matter how big you were Halsin made you feel small, but in a good way

"I'm taking you to camp," he said simply and left no room for arguments 'if you are suffering I'd rather you suffer in my arms in our bedroll' he kissed the top of your head.

you felt safe and loved, the rhythm of Halsin's steps made you drift to sleep. when you awoke you were wrapped up tightly in Halsin's arms, your bodies tangled together you smiled and kissed Halsin's cheek before falling asleep again

hey. i did it i posted on time. anyway, i hope yall liked this! it was purely self-indulgent. also thank you for all the love of my last post! I've never gotten that many notes before. my inbox is open for requests. and i also can write for other characters bg3. <3

[ancha-aus]

RealAgeAU Drabble - Customers

I am back! And we are still with Ccino :D @spotaus drabble required tag <3

First drabble Prev drabble Next drabble

No edit or beta as always. we are here for a fun time!

*--------------*

Ccino snaps out of his staring as someone else stands before him impatiently. Ccino pulls up his best customer service smile and gets to work.

The line is long but it is for the better.

Keeps his mind off the damning newspaper that got delivered to him.

He makes his way throught the line easily enough though. Even if it is busier than usual. And with cross universe customers too. Which sucks for different reasons.

an Alphys and undyne walk up to the counter to return their things. Ccino takes it with a nod and a good day wish as he goes to wash them.

The Undyne speaks "hey... so... I know people have been... rude to you about the whole... letting the gang stay and stuff?"

Ccino rolls his eye lights as he cleans the glass "That are just rumours. I just said that we can't speak for reasons who gods that we don't understand."

Undyne huffs but ALphys mutters "Sorry... the news that Dream had been wrong was... shocking and well... people need time to process it adn stuff..."

Ccino puts the things away and crosses his arms "Anything else i can get you?"

Undyne glares "What the hell man? We are trying to apologise."

Ccino sighs "your apology misses the words 'I am sorry.'." and he stares at them.

Undyne glares but ALphys stops her before speaking again "We are sorry... YOu were right... most of us never understood what the gods did and why and assumed a lot... I am sorry... I am also sorry that the only way people were more open to it was... well..." she eyes hte newspaper before shooting him a smile "must be rough... never being able to at least tell him that you didn't judge him."

Ccino's grip tightens on the cup. Don't react.

the two fianlly take the clue to leave and do as much.

Ccino lets out a sigh in relieve and his sight finds the newspaper again. THe headline is clear as day.

NIGHTMARE PRONOUNCED DEAD.

Ccino glares at it before turning it over. Maybe he can use it to light the fire place later or something.

There is no way he is dead. Those idiots just gave up searching or looking out for him. Ccino can know. he actually read the whole piece instead of just the headline and figured out that they never found any clues that could prove he had died. They are just assuming he died because they hadn't seen any hints of him living anywhere.

Ccino knows this to not be truth. Mostly because Dream would at least tell him that Ngihtmare had died. they have an understanding after the last time they met.

Ccino huffs and looks at one of the cats "You would think they would learn a thing or two about assuming things." the cat just nuzzles his hand.

"Yeah people tend to keep assuming stuff."

Ccino jumps and turns around quickly. He hadn't heard the doorbell ring.

Before him stands another him. Blue hoody. pink slippers. black shorts. white eye lights. pretty much a blank slate of how most of them start.

Okay no that was rude. That is a bad way to think about it. Ccino met Classic. he is a great and helps sneak him quite a few supplies.

Ccino smiles brightly "Didn't hear you come in! sorry for that. what can i get you?"

the other, Ccino will just think of him as Sans for now, looks at the menu and hums before looking bakc at him "I don't want something off the menu."

Ccino raises a brow and keeps grinning "The adoption process can be started at any moment. mister....?"

Sans grins wider and tilts his skull "the skeleton. obviously."

Ccino can't help but snort "Why is that joke always funny?"

Sans looks rather smug "because it is. and here i was afraid customer service killed your humour."

Ccino sighs "oh trust me. it is tryin and testing me daily." he pets one of the cats that has gotten near "the cats make it worth it though."

Sans nods and leans on his fist "can't help but notice the little notice on your bullet board. the one about dream having messed up? What is the deal with that?"

Ccino frowns but figures out what this guy wants. curious dude it seemed who just wanted to learn stuff. Ccino shrugs "figured it would be good to keep the notice up for others."

Sans raises a brow "That is all?" He sounds... disappointed... maybe.

Ccino can't help but be a bit unnerved. this guy is really hard to read for some reason and he can't quite figure out why.

Ccino shrugs "I mean. It is also nice to see mister perfect mess up for once." ccino doesn't even fully mean it anymore. After Dream and him sat together and spoke?

ccino has more sympathy for him.

But Dream is also the reason Ccino isn't seeing Ngihtmare anymore and that shit still hurts and he is just worried about the other.

He really needs to get somekind of help because he is feeling protective over a god. that can't be healthy.

Sans chuckles and nods "Wiht that i can agree. Still weird that people would just think tiping the balance that badly would end well." he snorts and leans on his fist.

Ccino relaxes a bit and nods "exactly! Like. Sure i don't like being sad more than any other person and it sucks if bad things happen to you. but sometimes stuff jsut doens't go well and sometimes bad things happen! And i would honestly much prefer the ability to get pissed or sad about it over just the whole 'oh well! It could be worse!' attitude the whole time." it just sounds exhausting.

Ccino sighs and rubs his cheek "sorry for that." a glance.

Sans however doesn't seem bothered. those eye lights seem more intent for a moment and ccino feels himself freeze.

like a prey in the sight of a very very dangerous predator.

than the moment breaks and sans grins.

It is weird. he never actually did anything different with his eyes or anything. it was just the air around them. charged with danger. it is hard to explain.

Sans leans back "well it is nice to have some people agree with my unpopular opinion." he shrugs before poking the face down newspaper "what about the big news?"

Ccino huffs "i call bull. there is no way he is gone." he doesn't want to believe it. and unless he sees the dust of him himself or saw a video of him dying and actual solid proof Ccino will keep denying it.

Sans tilts his skull "you sound very secure. met him before?"

ccino almost answers honestly but pulls hismelf back. this is a stranger. and if anyone else knew that nightmare visits this place? No that is too much of a risk. Ccino wants this place to stay fully neutral and give his friend the ability to return here if he needs it.

Ccino shrugs "nope. never met him." ccino had gotten pretty good at lying.

sans just stares at him.

ccino just stares back. don't continue speaking. showing nerves can be a sign he is lying, which he very mcuh is, and he is trying to not get caught.

sans sighs "shame. i bet he would have liked the support."

ccino frowns and stares at sans "why do you say that? he had his whole gang right?"

sans looks a bit smugger and shrugs "still. he worked with those right? Must have sucked to be trying to fix soemthing for the good of the whole multiverse and yet have everyone curse you out and want you gone."

Ccino frowns and rubs his arm "yeah..." he imagined that before. there is a very good reason he was always excited to have nightmare visit. to have him take a seat and just drink and eat as the cats grew brave enough to attack the tendrils.

eventually nightmare would bring a book with him to read. and the few times ccino caught him having fallen asleep in the reading chair with multiple cats all over him.

yeah...

ccino has no doubt it was terrible for him.

sans nods and ccino shoots out of his thinking. fuck what could the other have seen on his face.

Sans stretches "anyway. i should head home. nice to meet you ccino." he waves and walks towards the door.

Ccino watches the other exit. he pulls up a hood and takes a sideways step through a portal that just opens for him.

weird.

Ccino frowns as he suddenly realises he never introduced himself. both himself and his guest. yet his guest did know his name.

Maybe he heard it from others or-

Ccino looks down as his hand suddenly touches somethign. a letter and a bunch of gold coins.

Ccino counts out the coins first and notices it is enough to cover a coffee and little pastry. yet the other never ordered anything?

next he grabs the letter. it is closed with a little seal with a crescent moon on it. He opens the letter and freezes.

Hello. there is someone who would like to talk to you and we think you would also like to talk to him. If you are open to speaking with him. Make sure your shop is closed for the public tomorrow. make sure the curtains are closed. In short? Do what you would normally do if NM visited you. Just make sure to do it over a whole day. If tomorrow this isn't done? We will assume you have no interest and move on. If anyone is there who shouldn't be or if you tell anyone about this? We will move on and assume you have no real interest. See you tomorrow Ccino.

At the end a small crescent moon image again.

Ccino feels his soul and head spin before he rushes to his printer and snatches a paper. he quickly writes down that for personaly reasons the store will be closed for the next day, and he makes sure to mark it with the actual date as well.

He puts it on the window of the door before rushing back to the counter and rereading the letter.

This could be a trap. He should contact the stars.

But honestly? He just wants to hope this is exactly as it says it is. He just really wants to see his friend again.

--

Hello Journal.

I am still getting used to writing in this but today was a good day and I had some big feelings again. And Dusty did say it helps to write those down.

The feeling didn't happen today but a few days ago. We were outside relaxing in the nice sunlight as we took our times to check the grapes. Oh I was with Ror that day.

Anyway. Suddenly Killer came running over looking very happy. Aparently the multiverse had decided that with how inactive i had become I probably died. So they declared me dead.

I didn't even know Killer went out into the multiverse still. I don't like that, I am afraid he will get in trouble but aparently that isn't something i have to worry about anymore.

When I first heard the news? I was happy. It was such a relieve. People will really leave me alone. For real this time.

The others were happy as well, I could tell! Cross cheered and picked me up to hug me while Horror sighed in pure relieve. Dust had nodded and offered we could celebrate by going to the tavern and enjoying our night there.

Then... I got sad all of the sudden. It confused me. Why would i be sad? Everyone would think i was gone. everyone would really leave me and my dads alone.

So why would I be sad? I wasn't even sure why and my dads didn't either. They thought it was about Dream and well... Dream always brings up complicated emotions but this was different.

Then I finally remembered. I remembered one of the few universes i liked to visit myself. It kinda felt like i got busted? When I told them about Ccino and his cafe. The spot i could just be for a while. Just exist without anythign important. kinda like a self imposed time out.

I hated that i told them. I sounded so ungrateful! Like i still wanted more. So i told them it was fine and i know why we are hiding. It is straight up for me after all. to keep me safe because i am weak and useless and-

No. Cross said not to let those thoughts run free. There. crossed out. much better.

Anyway... yeah.. I felt bad about it but they said they would look into it. Like they do when we plan to visit Dreamtale for the graves.

Well, that is it for now. I am still not sure how to sign these off... so... bye i guess? Until the next part. - NM

*--------------*

First drabble Prev drabble Next drabble

[rottenpumpkin13]

This is possibly (probably) opening myself up to another wave of pain. So I'm begging you to be gentle...

But Do Angeal and Sephiroth ever find out that Genesis cried over annoying them? Did zack notice that Genesis had been crying? Did they apologise? I need to know!!

Also I hope you're doing well!

(Continued from this post) Okay!! Let's do this >:)

-⏤★⏤-

Zack stands before Sephiroth and Angeal as he chronicles the afternoon he had spent with Genesis two days prior. With each word invoked, different expressions stretch across their faces, ranging from bewilderment to shock. He would’ve opened up to them sooner, but Zack wanted to wait and see whether Genesis would say something first. 

He didn’t. For the past two days, any time Zack had seen the infamous trio together, Genesis had been right beside Angeal and Sephiroth. His smile was forced, his words were careful, and every step he took was as calculated as his newfound sense of self-awareness—like Genesis was trying his hardest to step over stray bombs. 

"Seriously, guys," Zack insists. He presses his back against the closed door of Sephiroth’s office, where he has cornered them. "Genesis isn't doing well. He didn’t explicitly say anything that day, but it was clear he had been crying.”

Sephiroth raises an eyebrow, his usual stoic demeanor showing a hint of surprise. 

“And yesterday he finally told me what’s been going on,” Zack continues, rubbing his crossed arms in a self-soothing gesture, “he…says he feels like a bother.”

Angeal huffs. "And how do you know he's not just having one of his dramatic moments?"

Zack leans against the wall, not taking kindly to “dramatic moments��� and whatever Angeal is trying to insinuate. 

"Because he told me. He feels like nothing he says or does matters at the end of the day, that you guys have the same image of him in your head, that he’s this—this—” Zack shakes his head. “This annoying weight that you put up with.”

Angeal exchanges a glance with Sephiroth, a silent, shared question passing between them. "Why would he confide in you, Zack? I’m not trying to be rude, but I didn’t think he liked you very much.”

Zack composes that part of him that knows not to lash out. He’s standing before his two superiors, after all. “What's the name of his new book?” 

Sephiroth and Angeal look at each other, their expressions incredulous. 

Angeal shrugs. “I don't know what you—”

“—Because Genesis can name every single plant in your office, pick out your coffee order, and tell you what issue’s been badgering your mind lately. 

The click of Angeal’s teeth as he clamps his mouth shut is Zack's cue to turn to Sephiroth. 

“And you. He admires you so much, he can go into detail about every single one of your conquests. And he loves you so hard as a friend that he can remember what things to avoid teasing you over so he never crosses the line with you.” 

Sephiroth looks down. Angeal looked away. Zack unglues himself from the door and steps forward. 

“I know I’m not perfect. I talk too much, I’m impulsive, I have a tendency to bite off more than I can chew, and I get that I’m all over the place sometimes.” He pauses. “And if the people who I admire the most in this world—you two—ever use those as reasons to ignore me, then I think I’d just—” Zack chokes on his words, feeling hot tears spill down his cheeks. 

“I’d just die,” he whispers. When he looks up again, Angeal is rubbing his own face with eyes that are getting glassier by the minute. Sephiroth is still looking down, contemplative. 

Zack is undeterred. “If you can’t stand him anymore, fine. But you need to tell him that—”

“That’s not the case,” Sephiroth says quietly, quickly. 

“Well, it sure seems like it,” Zack snaps. “If you can’t stand him anymore, fine,” he repeats, slower this time. “But you need to make that clear to him now.” Zack’s clenched fists tremble at his side. He lets out a shaking breath. “It’s painful enough watching you guys be jerks. I don’t want to continue to see him miserable too.” 

Angeal shakes his head, still unable to meet Zack’s eyes. “Genesis is our friend, Zack. It’s hard to explain to an outside perspective, but we do care for him—”

“Then fucking act like it,” Zack spits. 

This time both Angeal and Sephiroth snap their heads up, looking At Zack as if he has just drenched them with a bucket of cold water. Zack feels his cheeks hit up and regret pool at the pit of his stomach, yet he’s unrelenting. He heaves his shoulders, looking at both men with the same type of conviction Angeal always claims he lacks.

“You can punish me if you want.” He hangs his head. “I probably deserve it, but…” Zack shrugs. “It’s what I thought you should hear.” 

The silence in the office is loud, with the only discernable sounds being the whir of the air conditioner and the soft hum of life right outside the door. An uncomfortable tension hangs in the air. Angeal and Sephiroth exchange a meaningful glance.

Zack shuffles his feet, acutely aware of the possible punishment coming his way. The seconds stretch into an eternity, but he endures it, thinking of Genesis’s well-being—something he never expected to care so much about.

Sephiroth breaks the silence. “Thank you, Zack,” he says, his voice strained. “Your honesty is appreciated.”

Angeal offers a small, almost imperceptible smile. “Go on, Zack. We need some time to discuss this. We'll handle it from here.”

Zack hesitates for a moment, then nods. He turns to leave the office, and when the heavy door closes behind him, the gravity of the conversation lingers like a weighted cloak over his shoulders. 

-

Genesis sits at the booth by the tall glass windows, their usual seat in the dining hall. A bowl of hot soup lies untouched in front of him. The aroma of fresh food fills the air, doing nothing to Genesis other than strengthening the nausea that digs into his stomach. The often lively atmosphere feels heavy as he waits for Sephiroth and Angeal.

He closes the pages of his mystery novel with a soft sigh. Now officially done with the book, a sense of emptiness settles in, like it always does when a thrilling story reaches its end. 

His thoughts wander to the plot, and the revelation that, in the end, the husband was the murderer. He had unraveled the mystery before the final page, a small victory that ended up being the highlight of his…week, really. 

Genesis slumps in his seat, the triumph short-lived. He yearns to share the excitement of the book’s end with Sephiroth and Angeal and boast about his achievement. A knot tightens in his chest. Unfortunately, the fear of sounding annoying held him back.

His melancholy momentarily hushes when Sephiroth and Angeal approach. Surprisingly, they take their seats on either side of him, leaving the opposite side of the booth empty as they squeeze Genesis between them. Genesis can only mutter a confused “huh?” as their trays clatter atop the table. 

Angeal flashes him a genuine, bright smile that Genesis swears he hasn’t seen in months. “Hey!” he nudges him. “Did you hear about Sergeant Stevens? Apparently, Heidegger barred him from interacting with Scarlet on suspicion that she’s using him for another purpose.” 

Genesis is taken aback—not by the gossip, but by the topic coming from Angeal. “Um…no, I haven’t heard anything about that.” 

“Oh, it’s quite the scandal,” Sephiroth adds, offering Genesis a small smile. “But not a bigger scandal than the newest addition to the Sector 8 theater’s production of Loveless.”

Genesis is flummoxed. He feels his heart sink, heat rapidly rising to his face. 

“Oh?” Angeal leans over. “What happened?” 

Sephiroth pokes the roast beef with his fork, shrugging. “Based on what this week’s issue of Dramatica Magazine chronicles, the actress Eliza Moffit refuses to cooperate with Director Henry Fray unless he changes her lines to cater to a younger, more contemporary audience.” 

Genesis feels the initial signs of tears coming in, complete with a sharp pain in his nose and a throat that continues to close up by the minute. 

Angeal hums. “I heard about that. Apparently, her insistence on changing Minerva’s lines has caused a strain in the relations between the Loveless Theatre and the scholars who study the epic. Remember Carl Madden?”

Sephiroth nods. “The professor whose paper on the play’s use of Soliloquy Genesis annihilated online last year.” 

Genesis feels the tears spill from his eyes, hot and washing away the last trace of a smile from his face.

“Him!” Angeal snaps. “He’s threatening legal action against Miss Moffit.” 

“Quite the scandal,” Sephiroth says. 

“Isn’t it?” 

“What do you think, Genesis?” 

Genesis sniffs. “Um…” He quickly wipes away a tear. “C-Could you please stop making fun of me? I get it, I don’t need—whatever this is. I get it. I see your point already.” 

Angeal’s smile fades quicker than the fried rice on his plate has cooled. “Making fun of you? Gen, we’re not—hey, are you crying?” Now noticing the tears, he softly places a hand on Genesis’s shoulder. “What’s wrong?”

Sephiroth follows suit, gently laying his hand on Genesis’s other shoulder. He looks concerned, watching another tear roll down his friend’s cheek. He frowns. “Is there something that we can help with?” 

Genesis shakes his head, sniffling as he reaches up to wipe away more tears. “I understand that you find my endless prattling annoying and tiresome. I’m trying my best to change.”

Had the sound of Angeal and Sephiroth’s hearts being sliced into two been any louder, the other side of the world would’ve heard it. They exchange anxious looks. 

Angeal lightly shakes Genesis’s shoulder. “Gen,” he says softly, as if talking to a child. “Can you look at me please?” 

Genesis reluctantly raises his head. 

Gen, we're not making fun of you. What gave you that idea?”

“We're genuinely interested in what you have to say,” Sephiroth adds. “We want to know how you're feeling.”

Genesis sniffs, his tears momentarily interrupted by confusion. "But... you were talking about…and I thought—"

Angeal interrupts him with a soft chuckle. “We were trying to lighten the mood, not mock you. You've seemed so down lately, and we haven’t been the most attentive friends to you.” 

A tinge of embarrassment colors Genesis's cheeks. He wipes away the remaining tears and sniffles again. "I... I misunderstood. I’m sorry.”

Sephiroth squeezes Genesis's shoulder reassuringly. “You’re not annoying, nor are you tiresome in any way. If I did not have you in my life, I’m certain I would’ve…” Sephiroth pauses, thinking hard. “....Chewed off my own foot by now.” 

The humorous analogy works. Genesis lets out a dry laugh, then looks at Sephiroth. 

Sephiroth hesitates, looking past Genesis at Angeal. “Every time I act annoyed with you, I thought I was playing my part in a joke we were all in on.” 

Angeal nods. “We didn’t realize that by ignoring you, we were hurting your feelings.” 

“Nor were we aware that you had feelings,” Sephiroth adds quietly. 

“Seph!” Angeal snaps, reaching behind Genesis and slapping the back of Sephiroth’s head.

Genesis laughs a little more. 

Angeal groans. “Our point is, you’re important to us. And we don’t want you dimming your shine just to appease people. Don���t ever do that.” 

“Ever,” Sephiroth agrees with a singular, arched eyebrow. “Do you understand how boring our lives would be without you in it?”

“Or how bored Sephiroth would be without someone to keep him in line,” Angeal grins. 

Sephiroth rolls his eyes, huffing. 

Genesis manages a weak smile, feeling both grateful and vulnerable. "I appreciate that. I just... I thought I was becoming a nuisance.” 

Sephiroth slips his hand from Genesis’s shoulder, crossing his arms as his focus veers to the glimmering city outside. He hesitates, “even if the morrow is barren of promises…”

Angeal and Genesis both look up, the former smiling before continuing the line. “Nothing shall forestall my return.”

Sephiroth nods, smiling. “To become the dew that quenches the land.”

“To spare the sands, the seas, the skies,” Angeal says, squeezing Genesis’s shoulder.

Genesis looks down at his lap, unable to contain his smile as warmth spreads through him. “I offer thee this silent sacrifice,” he says, huffing. “So you two have been listening to me.”

Angeal sinks down, resting his head on Genesis’s shoulder and sighing. “More like, you’ve beaten it into our heads.”

Sephiroth does the same, bracing his head on Genesis’s other shoulder—and yawning. “And I wouldn’t have it any other way.” 

Genesis can’t believe his ears. Not only had they listened, but absorbed his words into the fabric of their friendship.

The weight of the loneliness that had crushed him before lifts, replaced by the light, reassuring presence of his two friends. 

He leans into the shared warmth, feeling a genuine sense of belonging as he closes his eyes. 

Everything feels perfect. 

Well—almost perfect. He wouldn’t be Genesis Rhapsodos if he didn’t strive to get the last word in

“Gentlemen,” he mutters, “this is why people think we're a throuple."

Laughter erupts from the three of them.

[grandlinedreams]

Hi there! I'm slowly working on a One Piece OC and she has a logia devil fruit that allows her to turn into water/ control water (like Ace's devil fruit). I was wondering if you could do something with Law x femme reader with this type of power? Maybe something to do with him finding out about her devil fruit because she doesn't like people knowing about it.

(My character's story is that she was forced to eat the devil fruit because her parents hated that she loved spending time in the water and swimming with her mermaid friend, so they wanted to take away the one thing she loved. Her parents are aholes if you couldn't tell lol)

AAAH that sounds really cool!! I've got an oc that got forced/coaxed into eating a DF too and ough the angst that comes w that 😔👌🏼 but I hope I can do this justice for you!!

[Heads up!: canon typical violence]

"Come on, just a sip! A tiny one, you won't even notice!"

"For the last time, no." You inch away from where Penguin'd been leaning over you, making grabby hands at the canteen looped over your shoulders. "If you're that thirsty, find somewhere to get your own."

"Rude," he huffs. "Not like Captain'll let us stay long enough to actually relax."

"Should've thought of that when picking a career choice," Law answers. "Not exactly smart to stick around anywhere when your face is on a Wanted poster."

Penguin wilts before he starts his pleading anew by slinging his arm around Law's shoulders. "Come on, Captain. It's been forever since we've been allowed fool around."

"Get off me," Law snaps, "and stop playing around. We're not on a vacation, damn it."

"Just give in," you intone, "you know he'll just get the others to pester until you do."

Penguin grins, and Law scowls. "Don't encourage that behavior," he tells you before he pinches the bridge of his nose. "Fine. But I better not regret this."

ㅡ

"This is your fault, you know." Shoulders slumped, Law watches the scene unfolding just a few feet away with a look somewhere between embarrassment and annoyance.

"Don't be such a grouch. They deserve to remember don't have to be so serious all the time." You take a sip of your drink and peek at Law, who's sitting beside you. "You could learn to do that too."

Law looks away, even as his knee bumps against yours. "I'd rather not."

You shrug. "Suit yourself." Glancing at him, you can tell that he's far from thrilled to be here, from the set of his jaw to the tension in his shoulders, gaze sharp beneath the brim of his hat. "We can leave if you want to."

"I doubt they're ready to," he says, dipping his head at the tableful of crewmates who are engrossed in whatever party trick Clione is trying to attempt.

You slide off your seat. "I can come collect them later, or they'll find their way back on their own."

Law debates for a moment before he follows you, aware of the eyes that follow your departure. Outside, he quickly falls into step beside you. "We're being followed."

"I'm aware," you answer, listening to the additional set of footsteps. Reaching down, you work the the cap of your canteen open as discreetly as you can.

Law listens as the foosteps quicken, hand moving to use room, but you beat him to it. Pivoting on your heel, your hands come up, and all Law sees is the barest hint of blue before the footsteps stop.

Turning, his eyes widen a fraction at the sphere of water encompassing the man's head, bubbles spilling from the corners of his mouth as he struggles, trying to claw at the water.

"I wouldn't if I were you," you say, tone level despite the fact that you're casually drowning someone, a pale blue glimmer to your hands that Law realizes belatedly is also water.

You wait until the man's eyes roll back and his arms drop before you bring your hands down, guiding the stream of water back into your canteen before you approach the collapsed stranger.

"He's still breathing," you report before you rummage around, producing a crumpled wanted poster with Law's face on it. "Bounty hunter, maybe. Not a very good one, though."

There's the melt of your hand into water, quickly turning the paper soggy and illegible before turning towards Law, who's staring at you.

"You never told me you'd eaten a devil fruit."

"It never came up," you say, and when his eyes narrow, you look away. "It's not something I'm comfortable talking about. Figured the less anyone knew, the better off I was."

"That's understandable," Law says, "but I don't appreciate being left in the dark, especially about my own crew." He takes in the slump of your shoulders, expression easing a fraction. "I won't tell anyone, if that's what you're worried about. But from now on, I want you to be honest with me. Got it?"

You nod. "Got it."

"Good." He gives you a small, barely there smile. "Now lets go get our crewmates before they get us into more trouble."

[miyuhpapayuh]

24. Marriage and babies, maybe?

"This place is so cute, Stevie!" Tyler exclaims, pushing her cheetah print sunglasses up into her hair.

"I thought so, too! I love this cute little deck we're sitting on, and the top floor has a wine bar!" Stevie squeals.

Tyler's face scrunches up, causing Stevie to laugh.

"Before you start!” Stevie stops Tyler's response in its tracks, "I know you like your hard liquor, wild child. I just think you should at least try it. One day.”

"I don't know about that."

"You mean to tell me, Chris has never offered to get you glass of wine after a long day?"

"He has. I told him that I didn't drink wine, and he went to the liquor store and picked up two vodka blue’s, came back and we had a great night. Very relaxing."

"Okay, alright. I just want you to try it."

"Ugh. If you're gonna pout about it." Tyler huffs with a laugh.

Stevie waves her off and sips her mimosa.

“I'm not messin' with you. How's the husband?"

"As much as I enjoy that man.... we're nowhere near marriage. He'd look real good in a tuxedo, though." They share a laugh. "Anyway, he's fine. Work's been kinda kicking his ass, hopefully that lets up soon."

"At the club? Or??"

"Nah, the radio station. Him and some guy got into it in the parking lot, cause his girl was being rude. She called in bein' all hostile and Chris gave it to her, straight. She ain't like that, so she told her pit bull to come and fight him."

"Did they fight??"

Tyler snorts.

"Girl, no. The station is back in Manhattan, but them white people wasn't playin' with us. Them cops was called faster than I could blink."

"You were there??" Stevie asks, eyes widening,

Tyler slaps her thighs in a very “of course my dumb ass was out there. I love that man!” manor, without saying a word.

"Outside! In my good heels, cause I try to be cute at all times! In the damn parking lot, tryna calm one man down while ten seconds close to punchin' the fuck outta the other one. It was intense. Cops showed up and Chris pushed my ass back on the sidewalk. I felt like I had gotten in trouble."

"Aww, he ain't want you gettin' in trouble!" Stevie coos.

"I woulda been okay." She shrugs. “How's your baby daddy?"

It was Stevie's turn to snort.

"He's actually doing really good. Work's great. He's started getting more time off, which is nice. He's been hinting at being more than just my man, as of lately."

"While that's not shocking to me, that's still major!" She shakes her shoulder.

"It is! It's got me a little nervous."

"Why?" Tyler asks.

"You know... I'm not entirely sure. I think it's just me. My nerves get bad, sometimes.”

"Well, if you're not entirely ready for marriage, you should talk to him."

"It's not even that I'm not ready, I mean, I'd say yes, regardless. I love that man. I just like being his girlfriend... is that weird??" She asks.

"Stevie, this has been your only relationship. Of course, it's not weird! You be a girlfriend and enjoy as much of it as you can, and then enjoy the fuck out of being a wife!"

"You think he's gonna be upset when I tell him this?"

"The way you always call him a sweetheart, he shouldn't be anything other close to upset. He should understand you and where you're coming from, which I'm sure he will."

"Thanks, Ty."

Tyler's heart swims for her best friend, although, she wondered when her and Chris were gonna get there in their own relationship.

"I'm really happy for you, Stevie."

"And, I'm happy for you!"

A comfortable silence falls over them as they resume eating their, still warm, breakfast.

"Mm!" Tyler wipes her mouth with a napkin, "before I forget. I ran into Darla."

Stevie's incredulous expression almost makes her choke.

"Where??"

"The mall. She was there with some boy. You wanna tell me what color he was?" Tyler snickers.

"She finally got her a negro?? Oh, God!" She clasps her hands over her mouth, failing to hide her cackling. Tyler joins in, snickering away.

"She shol did. Look like she hit the lottery. She was still her bitchy self, but there's some sugar in it, now."

"Life is wild, ain't it?"

"Cheers to that!" They clink their half empty glasses together.

༺═───────────────────────────═༻

"Honey, I'm home!" Stevie calls as she opens the front door, sitting her purse on the table.

"Hey, gorgeous,” he greets, coming around the corner to wrap his arms around her waist from behind, inhaling her scent.

"I missed you." He presses kisses to her jaw and cheek, hugging her tighter. She blushes profusely, glad he can't see her face.

Relaxing in his embrace, she contently sighs.

"I missed you, too." She places her hands on top of his, squeezing them.

"You look pretty. And, you smell good.”

She giggles. "Thank you, baby."

"How was breakfast?"

"It was great. Tyler says hey. We caught up, which felt like we never left off. Talked about everything under the sun!”

"That's always a great thing, babe."

"Yeah, of course! It just really felt nice to be back with my girl, man. We haven't hung out like that in a minute."

"You're making me miss my boys, cut it out." He fake pouts, twirling her around in his hold, her giggles filling his ears.

Pulling her back into his chest, he attacks her lips with wet kisses, unintentionally ruining her panties, as their tongues begin to wrestle.

Pulling away from their lip lock, she pants wildly.

"I.. I had a few drinks, and I'm not afraid to fuck you in this kitchen."

The wicked smirk on his lips turns her into a complete puddle.

Dragging a finger down her cleavage, he reaches back up to grip her neck, pulling her closer to him.

“Get upstairs.”

Sprawled out in the mess of sheets, as bare as the day they were born, the lovers wrap up in one another, savoring their intimate moment.

"Proposal's right around the corner," Rod mumbles into her fingertips, as his soft lips brush over them.

"Oh yeah?"

"Mhm. I've already got a ring." He casually says, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

"Picked out?" She asks, impressed.

"I bought it." He says, pressing another kiss to her lips. 

Her brows lift as she pushes up from her position, causing him sit up as well.

"You bought a…what?" She asks in shock, eyes wide.

He chuckles, reaching out for her hands. "Stevie, stop playin'."

"No. You stop playin'! You bought an engagement ring??"

"Of course I did.” He jerks his head back a bit.

“I meant it, when I said I was marrying you sooner than you think. You ain't take me seriously?"

Still flustered at the thought of him buying her a ring, she opens her mouth to speak, but nothing comes out.

"Vie." He calls, worried he might've done too much.

"Gimme a second," she responds, sliding her hands out of his to pull the sheet over her naked frame.

"I didn't take you for a joke when you said it, I just.. I didn't think you'd go out and buy a ring. That's huge!" She stares at him with wide eyes.

"I'm sorry I overwhelmed you, baby. I just like being steps ahead of you. I'm not gonna rush it because I agree, we're not ready just yet, I just like to know that it'll already be there, when the time is right." he winks at her.

Her cheeks flush red as she releases the breath she didn't know she was holding.

"A well calculated man, indeed. You scare me, sometimes." She laughs, running her fingers through her sweaty hair.

"You wouldn't say yes, if I asked you tomorrow?" He teases, making her laugh.

"Roderick, you could ask me, right now, and I'd say yes. I just wanna be your girlfriend for a little bit longer, since this is the only time I'll be one. That's all." She softly smiles.

He softens his defense, reaching back out for her hands.

"I understand, baby."

"Are you upset?"

"Of course not. I didn't mean to make you feel rushed. I just know that I wanna marry you." He softly smiles, making her heart flutter.

"I wanna marry you, too."

"That's all I need, baby," he pressed kisses to her hands, “that and a baby or two."

Stevie softly laughs. "A baby or two, huh?"

"A boy and a girl. Sounds good to me!"

"Me too! You have any names picked out?"

"Hm... I don't, actually. I just know I ain't gon be that dad that names his kid, Roderick jr." Stevie laughs, looking at the grimace that spreads across his face at the thought.

"Aw, a little Roderick jr. sounds so cute, though!"

His expression worsens, making her double over in laughter.

"You can't be serious." He shakes his head at her. "It's bad enough, me and that motherfucker's name start with the same letter. Ma woulda caught all the hell if she named me Richard jr. That's enough." He plainly states.

"Okay, okay. No jr's, got it."

She holds her hands out, welcoming him back into her embrace, “come'ere, my big baby."

They lay back down in the sheets. Her nails draw a pattern on his back as he drifts off to sleep.

"I love you." He says.

"And, I love you."

༺═────────────────────────────═༻

I want you, forever.

On rainy days,

After you've given a headache.

On sunny ones,

When I push your buttons.

On busy days,

When we get a little too carried away.

I want you, on bad days

When we shut down and isolate.

On good days,

Where life seems so sweet.

Even if we're unsure,

I'm always certain about one thing..

I want you, forever.

༺═──────────────────────────────═༻

"Aye, David... Can I talk to you for a minute?" Rod asks, as he walks into his mother's kitchen, where David's cooking Sunday dinner for the foursome.

"What's on your mind, son."

Setting his elbows on top of the island, he gazes out of the big windows at his two favorite girls, laughing it up about God knows what.

"I'm ready to marry Stevie." He says, clearly.

"That's obvious, you know." David chuckles, covering the pots on stove, and turning to face Rod.

He cracks a smile. "I guess you're not wrong."

They share a laugh.

"Have you told her?"

"We talked last night, yeah. She's not quite as eager as I am, but I'm not mad. Just gives me more time to plan things.

"Well, having an understanding is very important in any relationship, so that's great." He pats his shoulder.

"So, you got a ring picked out, yet?"

“I actually do, it looks like something of her dreams.” He smiles.

“Yeah?”

“Got a sweet deal on it, too! Only five fifty!”

“That's a mighty sweet deal, what does it look like, though? You got me excited.” David laughs.

“Oh yeah! She stresses about her jewelry being rose gold, so I got a rose gold band and there's pink diamonds across the front, like petals almost. It's so dainty I was scared to hold it in my hand!” He stresses, chuckling to himself.

David fondly shakes his head.

“She's gonna love it. I already know it.”

“I hope so. I'm so nervous, even after talking about everything. I just want it to be perfect. She deserves that.”

“After everything you two have been through, I doubt the last thing she's needing from you is perfection. You know her like the back of your hand— I mean, just listening to you talking about this ring was wild, I think you're more excited than she is,” he pokes fun, making Rod laugh.

“Just go with your gut, son. No way you could mess this up.

“Thanks, man. You're not always a pain in the ass.”

“Ah, there he is!” He pokes again, cackling up a storm as Rod heads out the back door.

"There's my handsome man." Viv says, her warm hand reaching for Rod’s cheek.

"This is the best lemonade I've ever had, by the way."

"I know what I be doin', ma." He smiles, looking over at Stevie, giving her a wink. She blushes like always.

"What y'all out here talkin' bout?" He asks, draping his arm around Stevie's shoulder, pulling her into his side.

"Stevie tells me that you guys are taking a trip, soon."

"Yeah. The boys wanna get out the country and go to Jamaica for a lil bit. His girl's coming, so Stevie won't be the only girl there." He chuckles. "Sounds like it'll be fun."

"Yes, of course. You two just be very careful. Don't be getting into trouble."

"Ah, that's my middle name." Rod jokes.

"Don't make me hurt you, child."

"I don't wanna see nothing!" Stevie covers her eyes, the pair laughing at her.

"But, seriously. You two be careful." Viv stresses.

"We will, ma. I promise."

“I'll make him call you as soon as we land. My folks already gave me the same spiel.” Stevie says.

“See? Smart parents!”

“Ma, come on. We got common sense, right?”

“Your friends are questionable, especially outside the country. Flight risks.”

“Ma,” he laughs, not believing how she's talking about his friends.

“I love them like they're my own, which is why I'm saying what I'm saying,” she defends, making Stevie giggle and step away to drink her lemonade.

“Oh god,” she mutters, waving at David through the kitchen window.

“Those two at it, again?” He asks, opening the door as she heads up the stairs to talk to him.

“Aren't they always?” She laughs, taking in the aroma coming from inside the kitchen.

“What's for dinner?”

“Pork chops, mashed potatoes, macaroni, rice and green beans.”

“Oh man, that all sounds so good!!”

“And, there's red velvet cake for dessert. Also might've picked up somebody's favorite ice cream.”

“You got that boy almond fudge ice cream?? Aww, y'all do like each other!” She coos, rubbing his shoulder.

“Yeah, yeah. Knucklehead ain't too bad.” He smiles.

“I'll let you know when the food’s ready.” He says, shooing her away.

“Aw, y'all bout as soft as that ice cream in there!” She teases, running out the door before he could swat her with his towel, a chuckle coming out of his mouth.

@thegifstories @blackerthings @ghostfacekill-monger @planetblaque @blowmymbackout @cecereads @soufcakmistress @megamindsecretlair @abeautifulmindexposed @blackpinup22 @nahimjustfeelingit-writes @honestpreference @harmshake @henneseyhoe

[kittlesandbugs]

BG3: The start of something Characters: Dark Urge (Nox) & Enver Gortash Warnings: Canon typical hints of Durge violence Word Count: 1212 Summary: After being badgered for almost two months, the Chosen of Bhaal agrees to meet with Gortash and find out just what he's about.

"Well. I'm not sure what I expected, but I won't say I'm not pleasantly surprised."

Your eyebrow creeps up as you glance over your tankard at the tall foppish man. His fine leathers declare he'd be more at home with patriars in the upper ring, but the ease of his stance suggests he's just as at home in a dive like this. You give him a wry smile as you rise to greet him, more than a little gratified to find you're half a head taller. When he takes your hand, he doesn't flinch from your dark gaze, and his grip is firm and strong. But there's something about him that makes your hindbrain itch with Father's displeasure. 

Despite the misgivings, you wave the serving girl over to bring him a pint of the same piss you're drinking. She's quick to dart over, flushing at your thanks and coin. You'll have to remember her for later.

"What did you expect?" you drawl as you retake your seat. "A man?" 

"Oh, nothing so droll," he says with a negligent wave of his hand as he slides into the booth across from you. "You know, terrifying horned helmet, spiked plate mail, something to strike fear into the hearts of all who stand before them." Then his voice lowers below the din of the tavern for your ears only. "Someone like Sarevok Anchev."

You chuckle and take another swig of your rotgut ale, giving him a toothy grin in response. Mareth was right. He does know who you are, even if he didn't know what you looked like until now. "Grandfather is not well-known for his subtlety."

His eyebrows raise in surprise and no small amount of awe. "He's your grandfather? Truly?" 

"Not exactly, but..." A shrug as you shake your head. You suppose technically he'd be something more akin to a half-brother? Uncle? Centuries and impurities muddle your relations. Father's lines aren't exactly known for their clarity or linearity. You respect the specter of the past enough to use his chosen title for you and your dear "little sister." But that's nothing this stranger needs to know. 

He huffs little breath of a laugh, dark bottle green eyes crinkling with mirth that ends as soon as he drinks. He winces at the acrid cheap ale. "Gods, next time we meet, I'm choosing the venue."

"What makes you think there's going to be a next time?" you ask, amused by his assumption that this is anything more than a satisfaction of curiosity for you. He's been attempting to get your attention for the better part of two moons, leaving messages with your people. More recently on their corpses, which is what finally prompted you to respond. Killing the congregation is your job. "I don't even know who you are. Or what you want with me, given that you seem to know which master I serve."

His face scrunches up like a fresh worg pup's, offended by the call out of his presumptuous familiarity. His brows knit in consternation, and then he sighs and nods. "Of course, that was quite rude of me."  He clears his throat and straightens his shoulders, offering his hand again. "Enver Gortash. Artificer, entrepreneur," his voice drops again to the level of conspiracy, "and Chosen of the Black Hand."

Bane. That explains the strange feeling that's been crawling under your divine flesh. Your lips curl instinctively in distaste matching Father's, your fist curling around the dagger at your hip as the image of his blooded corpse at your feet fills your mind. He'd make such a pretty one, too. 

Rather than be offended by your reaction, Gortash give a nervous laugh and raises his hands, entreating and placating. "Please, before you cast your full judgment on me, I did not seek you out to rehash a centuries old feud." He's quieter, serious in his claim to neutrality. 

"Then what have you sought me out for?" you growl low, a panther poised to strike. 

"Partnership," he says simply, not balking from your baleful gaze. "My master is almost as reviled as yours, staving off any kind of cooperative endeavors with most other sects. I believe that together we can achieve more than either of us could alone."

Your hand stays and you force yourself to relax. To sit. To breathe. To let him finish his proposition. 

"As a show of good faith, I have some information you may find most interesting, regarding some relics of your bloody sect." The smugness in his voice has returned, now that you've sat back. He fishes a sheaf of parchment from his pocket and unfolds it before sliding it across the table.

An advertisement for a new exhibit in the House of Wonders.  Not a place you generally think about, much less visit, lurking in the under reaches of the as you often do. Your eyes dart across the page, taking in the information. The dark side of Baldur’s Gate.  An anniversary of the Bhaalspawn crisis two centuries prior.  And on display… torture racks retrieved from a Bhaalist coven led by a human Bhaalspawn, Eler Had.  And the bones of a Bhaalspawn kobold, Toop.  You’ve heard tell of both of them, from Sarevok and your butler.  

“How dare they?” you hiss, your fist clenching around the parchment, hard as the set of your jaw.  “We are not some spectacle to be gawked at by cattle.”

“I agree wholeheartedly,” he says with a sympathetic tone, nodding his understanding.  “And I would like to assist you in retrieving these artifacts of your sect.”

"And you're just telling me about this? Just offering to help me recover them because…?  I have trouble believing this is just about making friends.” Your eyes narrow as you meet his gaze, trying to peel your way through the onion of his confident facade. "What do you hope to gain from this alliance?" 

"Well…" He gives you a conspiratorial grin as he leans in close enough for you to smell his sandalwood cologne over the unwashed stink of the tavern. "Let's just say I have some rather lofty political aspirations that would be greatly assisted by the judicious removal of several individuals.  And who better to assist me in this endeavor than one so very versed in the art?"

There's a low thrum of approval deep in your bones. Political upheaval is nothing but beneficial to the Lord of Murder. You feel your lips curl in sync with your toes as you imagine the blood sure to follow. The ruling class of this city is as insular and inbred as your own cult, much as the patriars pretend otherwise. They will not take kindly to this usurper wheeling and dealing his way in. You give him a decisive nod, extending your hand to seal the alliance. If the heist you’ll be planning at the House of Wonders ends up being a disaster, you can exact your retribution later.

He grins as he returns your grasp wholeheartedly with both hands. "Now that we're friendly, what may I call you?" 

"Nox. Just Nox."

"Quite poetic for a Bhaalist," he says, staring into the abyss of your gaze as his grin widens. "I can tell already. This is going to be the start of something truly great."

[batmenstrualcycle]

reflections; maki x reader

:wasted summer

:master list

note: lol can u tell I'm not good at endings

When Gojo introduced you earlier to the four other first years, it left him a bit confused. About your last name, to be specific. Hatake, he's heard that name before, he just doesn't know where. When he first got your card from Shoko, he took a good look at it to stare at your name, clearly perplexed at what it was. Now, he's back in her office to ask her about it, which she doesn't know either.

"Hatake...you ever heard that name before?" Gojo asks, leaning back in the extra office chair in Shoko's office. The brown haired woman from earlier, the one who gave you your uniform, Shoko, looked at him and shook her head. Gojo clicked his tongue then crossed his legs, "I swear I've heard it before..."

"I know I haven't," Shoko admits as she turns back to her desk, examining some sheets of paper sitting on her otherwise blank desk, aside from a box of bandaids and tissues and a pencil cup. Gojo bruted for a moment, pouting his lips and thinking. He's sure he's heard that name before, he just can't pinpoint where. He'd have to ask one of his friends about it later on, or maybe even principal Yaga, but he'll do that later, he just got to Shoko's office a few minutes ago.

"Have you checked the library?" she asks from her desk, not turning to face Gojo. He looks at her with an unseen lifted brow, "Nope," he replies cheekily. Shoko rolls her eyes with a quiet scoff, not even bothering to care if Gojo heard it or not. "Then you probably should do that, instead of bothering me," she said dismissively to which Gojo stayed quiet and in his spot.

"I'm curious," he starts up once again, and Shoko rolls her eyes, once again. "Why would someone from the Hatake clan be coming here in the middle of the school year?" Gojo thought out loud, frowning a bit and resting his hands on the arm of his chair. "And how come we haven't heard about someone coming from that clan? I know the people of the Zenin clan are a bit...old fashioned, and like to keep a lot of things to themselves, but wouldn't they at least give out some hint that someone from the Hatake clan was there?"

"If being a Hatake means that much in the Jujutsu society- I don't know anything about that clan, and I've never heard of it- but the Zenin clan probably wanted to keep that kind of thing to themselves for potential clan merging," Shoko admits, finally turning to face Gojo in her own office chair. Gojo clicks his tongue again, then huffs.

"Or they could've been working for who knows, there could be a variety of reasons," she finishes bluntly, getting up from her chair and walking over to one of the cabinets in the room. Gojo brutes again for a few more moments, he found it incredibly suspicious that someone from such a clan was kept at the Zenin estate then started going here in the middle of the year. Transfer students aren't uncommon, but it's definitely a rarity for a special grade Jujutsu sorcerer from the Hatake clan to start coming here in the middle of the year, even Yuta's arrival was more convenient than that.

"Alright," Gojo chirps as he gets up from the chair, standing tall in the room. "I'm gonna go to the library." he announces before marching out of the room, opening the door and shutting it behind him while Shoko kept going through different cabinets.

On his way to the library, he got a glimpse of you and the other first years out in the training field doing whatever it looked like you were doing- probably sitting around. He couldn't blame you, it's your first day here and he bets you're a bit confused about this whole place- that's different from Yuta, though. He had the power of the Queen of Curses with him, so of course he had to be trained immediately.

Gojo chuckled, watching you seemingly get bombarded with questions before he kept going to the library. It was rude, for sure, to watch you get attacked with different questions about you when you don't even know half of the answers to, then find amusement in it. But, he figured you'll be ok, it's part of being a kid.

"Are you, like, really strong?" Panda asks as he's looming over you, staring at you with wide eyes. You leaned back a bit, appalled by the weird questions you were getting from everyone which Maki failed to prevent. Maki was sitting next to you with crossed arms and a frown on her face as she watched and listened to Panda bombard you with questions.

"Well, my cursed technique is really strong, but I dunno about myself," you admitted sheepishly, cringing in your spot. Panda deadpanned his expression before turning to face Toge, who also had a deadpan expression.

"Stop bombarding them and leave them alone, they obviously don't wanna talk to you," Maki grumbled next to you, glaring at Toge and Panda. The two boys looked at her, giggled, then went back to asking you questions. An irk appeared on her face before she grabbed your hand and dragged you away from the other boys, even Yuta who didn't say anything, then took you to a tree on the other side of the field so you two could sit in the shade despite it being only 60 something degrees out.

"Those guys are jerks, you don't have to answer any of their stupid questions if you don't want to," she stated quietly as she took her own spot down on the ground, her skirt was a bit discolored from sitting on those dirty bleachers then from taking her spot on the dirt just now, but she didn't mind, she was gonna wash it later on today anyways. You hummed as you sat down next to her, leaning back against the tree stump.

"So what made you start going here, aside from Naoya's bullshit?" she asked as she turned to face you; her expression seemed indifferent, but that's how she always was when you remembered talking to her back at the estate. You huffed then thought for a moment, hugging your knees up to your chest. You'd have to come up with something else, you can't just flat out say you're here to kill her, she wouldn't believe you and even if she did, she'd hate you, and you obviously can't have that from the way the boys treat you.

"Well, Naoya said he was gonna let me be free for a bit while I go here, then he wants me to come back after a little while," that was partially true, he is letting you be free while you go here, but he's gonna check on you every once in a while to see how you're holding up. If you don't give him any news when he checks on you the first time, he might get anxious and send someone else out to do it for you.

Maki stared at you as you were sitting there uncomfortably, watching you clench your jaw and chew on the bottom of your lip. She crooked her brow a moment later, clearly confused. "Let you be free for a while? That is not a Naoya thing to do," she narrowed her eyes suspiciously. You stopped breathing for a moment, trying to come up with something else to say after that.

"Well, he's not as evil as you may think he is, he helped me sneak out from the Zenin estate earlier this morning," you admitted, this time more truthfully. When Maki didn't hear any trace of a lie (after contemplating it for a moment), she huffed and looked the other way. "You might be right, you spent more time with him than I ever did, aside from when he'd bully me," she commented monotonically, not even paying attention to the fact you're looking extremely anxious, because what if she doesn't believe you? Would she keep pressing like Panda did? Or would she keep it to herself and use her wits to get the truth out of you?

"...why're you so quiet? Normally you were such a chatterbox, not you don't say two words," she questioned, turning to face you again, this time with another arched brow. You glanced at her for a moment, "I was lonely at the Zenin estate when you and Mai left, and I didn't voluntarily talk to anybody, so I just got used to being alone after a while." you admit while shrugging your shoulders. Maki frowns a bit, then starts slighting chewing on the bottom of her lip for a moment. "I knew I probably should've taken you with me," she comments with a sigh. You lift a brow, "What about Mai?"

"Mai didn't want to be a Jujutsu sorcerer, she's mad at me for leaving on my own because she was forced to go, too," she admits, squaring her shoulders and leaning back against the tree stump with you. You nod briefly with a hum, then huff. "I wish I didn't have this stupid cursed technique," you start, lifting your hands up to get a good look at them. These hands are the same ones that bear such a strong and rare technique, Naoya even said it's a one in a million chance of being born with. "I didn't even ask for it, anyways."

"It's not that stupid, it landed you a spot as a special grade sorcerer," she backfires, glancing at you. "There was only four before you got here, so now there's five," she continues, her expression doing the rarity of changing from indifferent to seeming engrossed in the conversation (since she has no cursed technique, and she finds it interesting to learn about others', depending on what it is) as she leaned forward slightly. You stay silent, pursing your lips and scratching the back of your head.

"Yeah, but if it's such a strong technique, then I'll barely have any good opponents to fight, I'll get bored eventually," you finally break the silence, sighing, your shoulders rising and falling as the exhale leaves your lips. Maki rolls her eyes, if it were her, she'd be thankful to have a cursed technique like yours. Not everyone gets one like that, so she's a bit salty that you're not taking advantage of it.

"It's not like you were born with it for no reason," she comments, making you glance at her with an incredulous look on your face. "I was born with no cursed energy, that's a good reason to prove that you don't need it to be strong."

"You have the will, I don't," you grumble, frowning as you hug your knees to your chest. "It's easy to have that kinda will power when your own clan treats ya like shit," you continued while Maki bit her tongue to keep herself from lashing out. She can't really do that, you had to go through something similar. No, you weren't from her clan, but you were still treated with the same shit that her and Mai got.

"You were treated badly, too, y'know," she shot back, making you roll your eyes. "Yeah, but you're actually from the Zenin clan and you were mistreated by the people who were supposed to care about you. I was sold to the Zenin clan as a servant and a weapon, and that's what I am to them," you crossed your arms tighter around your knees and rested your head on your forearms. After a moment, Maki gave you a wry smile, then huffed.

"What I'm saying is, you should actually take advantage of your power, don't just let it go to waste," she admitted, emphasizing her phrase by tilting her head slightly. You glance at her as you frown some more, not noticing that she's actually being kind compared to how she is around the others, but maybe that's because she relates to you more than any of the others, so she gets why you're so mundane and quiet. If Panda and Toge caught her like this (don't forget Gojo), they'd never stop teasing her for it, so thank god she's all the way across the field and not back at those dirty bleachers where the boys were being boys.

"I should, but I don't want to," you reply as you let your legs straighten out, extending your arms and stretching out with a groan. Maki deadpans her expression and even frowns a bit as she watches you lean back against the tree once again. "I'd eventually run out of things to do with it." you finish, glancing back at her with a blank face. She rolls her eyes, then gets up from her spot. When she looks down for her case, that's when she realizes she left it at the bleachers. She groans, gritting her teeth as she starts to march back across the field, leaving you clueless, though you're guessing it's because she did leave it there.

In the library, Gojo was busy standing between two shelves, looking at two different books. One of them had a muggy green color and was titled 'Ancient Cursed Techniques, And what they Are.' The other one had a royal purple color and was titled 'Sorcerery Clans that changed the Jujutsu World.' Gojo eventually decided to do eenie meenie minie mo before ultimately deciding to go with both, grabbing them off the shelf and walking back to one of the big tables in the middle of the room, taking a seat in one of the chairs and flipped open the first book.

The first thing he looked for was the table of contents to see if he could find anything related to your clan. Much to his disappointment, he found nothing. He shut the book, pushed it off to the side and picked up the other one, then flipped to the table of contents to check for anything. He lucked out, there was one chapter called 'The Secrets of the Hatake Clan,' and he immediately flipped to that page. The book was 2,000 pages long, so it took Gojo a while before he finally got to the chapter.

'The Hatake clan; one of the Jujutsu world's first clans, which was believed to be extinct, though a few descendants live here today. The Hatake's were human weapons, with their ultra rare technique, Infinite Soul, it was one of the most feared clans for many years until the reign of Ryomen Sukuna. The technique, Infinite Soul, did do some damage to Sukuna which was the cause of splitting soul into 20 fingers when he eventually died of old age.

'Infinite Soul is an ancient cursed technique where the user can create any desired object purely from their soul—the cursed energy part comes in when the user decides to emit soul matter into said object. Example, the user uses their soul matter to create shadows—which is part of their technique— to create a katana. Said user can choose to ignore object permanence and finish it in one strike or make it permanent— the dark, shadowy tint would leave the blade if it were permanent. The user may also use said shadows to form any object of their will, or even simply use them as a distraction to blind enemies and ambush them in the darkness of their own technique.'

Gojo's lips parted as he finished the page already- the chapter isn't long, so it's only a few pages, but he was already shocked that some kid who got sold to the Zenin clan has such a strong technique and doesn't know how to use it (that's what he assumes). Gojo quickly shut the book, not bothering to put it back as he got up from his chair to rush over to Shoko's office.

"Shoko," he announced his arrival as he opened the door, earning an eye roll from the woman as he sped over to her desk. "Y/n's got this ancient cursed technique that nobody else has," he explained as his hand landed on her desk. Shoko's eyes averted from her computer screen to Gojo's large hand laying flat on the surface, then she looked at him with an uninterested expression. "Ok...what's the rush?"

"The rush, Shoko, is that other sorcerers might hear about that power and might come here to seek it," Gojo crossed his arms after retracting his hand from her desk. Shoko remained looking indifferent, blinking twice in confusion. "If their technique is so strong, they can use that to get rid of whoever might come here in the future." she said bluntly before going back to her computer screen, playing tetris.

Gojo clicked his tongue then sighed, "I guess you're right. But what if that doesn't work?"

"You're getting pretty chicken-hearted over a kid you just met," Shoko commented indifferently, clearly more interested in playing tetris than talking to him. Gojo rolled his eyes under the bandages, muttering insults under his breath. "That kid seems...I dunno. I just don't want anything happening to them."

"They remind you of Suguru, right?" Shoko finally takes another moment to look away from her screen, watching as Gojo stands there stiff in his spot in front of her desk. The silence between the two of them grew so loud that it was making Gojo uncomfortable.

"...yes...yes, they do," he finally admits, his tone is quieter than his usual loud and obnoxious one. Shoko sighs when she realizes how touched he was by that, then stands up from her office chair to bring her hand up to pat his shoulder, then she figures that Gojo was waiting for something like that, because his Infinity was off.

"You'll be ok," she says before stepping away to another counter to grab the jar of gummies sitting there and bringing them back with her to her desk and kept playing tetris.

Meanwhile, Maki was finally teaching you to fight out in the training field.

"I know that Naoya didn't ever teach you how to fight properly, so I'll do it for him," Maki announces as she steps closer, enclosing the space between you two as her chest meets your back, her hands guiding your arms and her feet lightly hit the back of your shoe to put you into what she calls 'the perfect fighting position.' If you've never felt hot-faced before, you definitely did now. To feel her fingers grip your arm through the material of your shirt to push and pull it around made your heart pound, and every swing of her arm, you could feel her chest move with her. That alone had you burning up in the cheeks.

"Was all that contact necessary?" You question, narrowing your eyes a bit as your eyebrows knit closer together, watching her step in front of you to make sure your arms are still in place. She nods a moment later, then leans down to pick up her polearm that she left sitting on the ground.

"I'll go easy on you right now, since you're pretty weak for a special grade," she momentarily glanced at Yuta, then looked back at you. "But each time, I'm gonna go harder and harder, ok?"

"I'm not that weak, good god," you roll your eyes, staying in your position as you stiffen your arms, waiting on her to do something. Maki lifts a brow, then parts her lips to say something before she's rudely interrupted by Panda yelling from the bleachers.

"Make sure she goes easy on ya! She hits pretty hard!" Panda yelled with his paws up to his mouth, his voice echoes throughout that half of the field as you twirl around to face him. "Wha-" You're cut off when the end of Maki's polearm wacks you in the head, sending you toppling onto the ground. When you're cradling your own head in pain, you can hear the cackling coming from Panda as you lay there in pain.

"What he said," Maki comments as she leans down, extending her arm for you to grab her hand as she watches you look up at her with the nastiest frown she's ever seen. She knows this, but you're pretty pissed at the moment. When you ball up your fist, you get back up and lunge at her, tackling her to the ground as your body barely lands on top of hers, her arms at their full wingspan as you're pinning them down with your hands, holding her hostage on the ground by her biceps.

"I learned a few things when Naoya was teaching me how to use my cursed technique," you mumble, your face inches away from Maki's. Her lips are parted as if to comment on what you just did (or maybe how this scenario looks), but nothing comes out when she sees how proud you look. The twinkle in your eyes tells her that this is the first time you've ever gotten to experience a victory like this, who was she to take it away from you?

She only smiles, the corners of her lips curling as she pushes herself up in your grip, causing you to let your arms fall. Your butt lands on the ground with a small grunt from you as the two of you are sitting criss cross in front of each other. Maki opens her mouth to say something else, but is rudely interrupted again by Panda shouting from the bleachers once more.

"Oooh! Look at the love birds!" Panda teases, pointing a finger and giggling at the sight of you and Maki facing each other. You and her both turn your heads to face him in sync, glaring at him as he keeps on laughing. Toge and Yuta are simply watching the two of you as you're waiting for Panda to shut up.

"Um...how can they be love birds if this is Y/n-chan's first day here...?" Yuta commented quietly as Panda's laughter just kept roaring throughout the entire field now. Toge simply waved him off to shush him as if to feed into Panda's teasing while you and Maki kept sitting there, faces steaming by now as Panda kept laughing.

"Panda, shut up!"

"Never!"

You sighed, bringing your thumb, index and middle fingers to pinch the bridge of your nose while Panda and Maki kept on arguing for what seemed to be the hundredth time today.

[wisedawn13]

#xiantober Day 8: Head Disciplexian

It's been exactly 6 months since the other sect disciples left which means that it has been a year since Wei Ying left early.

Not that he's been keeping track.

He just has a good memory, is all. He doesn't think about Wei Ying.

He doesn't.

He definitely doesn't think about Wei Ying in Yunmeng summers, sweating and swimming and flirting with girls. He doesn't think about it and he doesn't feel any jealousy or anger.

He really doesn't! So, if his brother would stop looking at him like that, that would be great.

Lan Wangji is quite content with how the world views him. Cold and distant work well for him, he doesn't have to worry about people trying to talk to him and bothering him.

At least... he didn't.

But he doesn't think about him.

He visits his uncle and brother.

He walks in as they are saying something but they both stop when they see him. A growing sense of unease settles in him.

"Ah! Wangji, you're just in time!" his brother exclaims with a smile that hides nefarious intent.

Lan Wangji narrows his eyes. This does not bode well.

"Shufu and I were just talking about having you take over some classes while we go on a diplomatic trip."

Lan Wangji nods slowly, that's not so bad. So, why does he feel like there's a trap? "Very well. Where will you be going?"

Xichen grins. Oh no. "Yunmeng."

Ah...

Lan Wangji freezes, feeling like he's at war with himself. He hates diplomatic trips and having to talk to people. But... ugh! His brother knows him too well, dangling a trip to Yunmeng in front of him like a carrot on a stick.

His brother is cruel.

It's not like he wants to go.

He just... well, as a sect heir he really should try to be more diplomatic. He'll be expected to go to more events and conferences when his brother becomes sect leader. He might as well start now.

Yes.

That is why he's interested at all.

No other reason.

Xichen watches his face closely as LWJ considers everything.

"Is there a reason you did not ask me to join this trip?" he asks carefully.

His brother and uncle share a look—damn—and Xichen turns back to him. "You do not like diplomatic trips," he says with far too much cheer.

"It is expected of me as part of my sect heir duties," he replies. "I am getting older, I might as well get used to it."

Xichen smirks and nods. "Of course, of course. And this is the perfect time to do so, correct?"

Lan Wangji glares at his betrayer of a brother in response.

That, unfortunately, only makes him laugh. "I don't suppose there is any other reason for the sudden interest in—"

"No," he cuts in. Shufu gives him a look at that but Lan Wangji has already mentally assigned himself lines to copy later for his rudeness.

"So you will come?"

Lan Wangji holds back a sigh at his brother's machination and clear joy at having won. "Mn."

Xichen claps his hands together and smiles wide. "Wonderful! We will head out in the morning."

"Shall I find a replacement to cover the classes?" Lan Wangji asks.

Shufu shakes his head. "Your brother has already arranged for someone to cover them." There is a hint of disapproval in his voice but also a hint of amusement.

So.

It was all a ruse?

Lan Wangji glares at his brother but Xichen merely smiles innocently back.

With a huff, he leaves to go pack.

~

Lan Wangji is not freaking out. He is merely anxious about having to be around so many people in an unfamiliar place. He's not nervous about a certain someone that he definitely doesn't think about daily.

Someone who invited Lan Wangji here multiple times and claimed to want to be friends with him, but teased and tormented him in their time together and then never sent a letter.

Wei Ying who? He doesn't know him.

He certainly doesn't think about him and his pretty laugh.

Lan Wangji is walking to the entrance of Lotus Pier with Xichen and Shufu and he is having some serious regrets. He should not have come. It was a bad idea.

They are greeted by a servant who leads them into the entrance hall where they wait.

It's not long before Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan enter to greet them, followed shortly by Jiang Yanli, Jiang Cheng, and—

"LAN ZHAN!"

—Wei Ying.

Wei Ying's eyes are wide and his smile is large and warm as he waves at him. Lan Wangji wants to curl into a ball.

Jiang Cheng elbows Wei Ying and Wei Ying quiets, falling in line. He watches as Wei Ying's eyes glance away before he stiffens and his face closes off.

He looks and sees Yu Ziyuan glaring at Wei Ying. Something sours in Lan Wangji's mouth at the sight of that.

They are greeted warmly and then shown to their quarters for their stay. Lan Wangji is just setting his stuff down when there's a knock.

"Come in," he says turning to the door.

The door opens and Wei Ying slips in before closing it. He shifts and smiles at Lan Wangji.

"Hey, Lan Zhan! You finally came!"

Lan Wangji feels completely unmoored. "Mn."

Wei Ying feels almost timid right now and Lan Wangji is unsure what to make of that.

"So, uh... how've you been?"

"I have been well."

Wei Ying nods. "Good, good."

"How about you?"

"Ah, you know. Same old."

He, in fact, does not know. But he hums and nods anyway. Of all the things he thought could happen on this trip, having an awkward conversation with Wei Ying was not one of them.

"Will you show me around Yunmeng?" he asks suddenly.

Wei Ying's eyes light up and he stops fidgeting. "Really? You want me to?" Lan Wangji nods and Wei Ying smiles, true and warm. "Okay! But first I have to teach a class."

Lan Wangji isn't sure what makes him say it, but he asks, "May I watch?"

"Yes!" Wei Ying exclaims loudly.

It's almost amusing, seeing how excited Wei Ying seems about this. Lan Wangji finds that he looks forward to it as well. For all that he most certainly, definitely has not thought about Wei Ying this past year, he finds he is actually looking forward to spending time with him.

Oh, his brother is going to be insufferable.

Wei Ying grabs Lan Wangji's sleeve, careful not to actually touch him, and drags him out of the room through Lotus Pier. He talks a mile a minute as they go, pointing things out along their trek to the archery field.

Then, Lan Wangji gets to watch Wei Ying at work, teaching a bunch of little kids how to hold bows and shoot straight. Distantly, he knew Wei Ying was the head disciple here, but his encounters in Gusu left him wondering about that, concerned he may not be up to the task.

That started to change when they dealt with the waterborne abyss and he witnessed firsthand how quick and intelligent Wei Ying is. He's a natural-born leader.

He'd still had concerns but seeing him here, now, working with children... Lan Wangji sees just how right that role is.

Wei Ying is genuinely wonderful with the kids and they clearly love him. His teaching style is very different than anyone in the Cloud Recesses, but it works. He is fun, yet firm. The children enjoy themselves while learning. Lan Wangji hadn't realized that was truly possible.

It's a wondrous sight to witness and Lan Wangji feels a part of him melt. Maybe, being friends with Wei Ying wouldn't be so bad. Sure, he'd be subjected to teasing and torment (good-natured, he's aware) but... a part of him doesn't think that's so bad.

Ugh. Gross.

Whatever. It's just being friends. Lan Wangji can allow himself a friend. Shufu may not like it, but Xichen will (and will be endlessly annoying about it).

Maybe he will allow himself to be just a tiny more honest with himself when it comes to Wei Ying.

Wei Ying smiles brightly at him from across the field and Lan Wangji feels something settle in him while simultaneously getting his breath taken away.

Yeah. This seems right.

----------

Of course, their friendship grows and blossoms and they write letters often. It takes a bit, but they start to realize that they actually have romantic feelings for each other and begin courting years down the line (this is also a no-war au) and eventually get married.

Link to thread

[whaogh]

shocked that he's still mad at me about this, which doesn't actually concern him in any way but I guess one must find a reason why the person they don't like is the "bad guy" in the situation. jesus christ. it's just. does he feel guilty and ashamed for not being able to provide the same base level of care others do for my disability? does he realize he's the one in the wrong? does that eat him up to the point that he has to find any of my wrongdoings to justify denying me basic care and empathy? is he just ableist, and will always throw others aside once they're not fun, once they actually show any symptoms of their problems? was I just supposed to get the hint at some point, but I didn't so he kept pretending that things were okay?

there's nothing I could have NOR would have done differently. I reached out, communicated openly, tried to find ways to fix things. And all I've gotten in return is someone incapable of confronting the situation, incapable of telling me upfront that he's not willing to change his behavior to be a better friend to someone who mattered to him at some point.

were they all empty words? was any and every "it was really nice to spend time with you" a lie because being polite is more important than being honest? when did that change- or were you always like that and I just didn't pick up on it. It's not like your actions always aligned with your words to be fair. wonder why I thought I must be the exception.

why does he try to pretend things are suddenly magically okay because of an apology? as if saying sorry somehow changes the material conditions, wipes away the past? what if I'm not sorry? what if I wholly agree with the choices I made given the circumstances I was in?

I mean I both do and don't give a shit about the words. Like yes it would be nice if he could own up to being unwilling to change, to make basic fucking accomodations and just be nicer instead of getting frustrated when someone has symptoms of their disability. when I ask you to slow down because I can't walk that fast, I shouldn't be met with a huff and grumbling. I shouldn't have to ask a million times to slow your pace so you aren't just walking 10 feet in front of me while still trying to maintain a conversation. when you invite me to an event, it'd be nice to take into consideration that I don't fucking function like you, that I'm having to drag my aching crumbling body around. Yes, sure, people are allowed to not be friends with people who are disabled because they can't cope with it and they can't accommodate them. But at least be honest with yourself and said disabled person about that fact.

Does he think he tried to change things between us? That because he'd remember to text me once in a while to invite me to something, or come if it was convenient for him when I needed support, that was his way of trying to fix things? But there was a problem in the actual communication and things said when spending time together: you can fucking tell someone that btw. Forcing yourself to spend time with them and then expect them to pick up on your nonverbal hints while you constantly reassure them that it's not them, it's just that you're having a hard time. Like what the fuck am I supposed to do here? I don't know which behavior annoys you. If you don't want to know about how I'm doing, because you know my life is hard, it's as easy as not asking! If you don't give a shit about hearing about my problems, don't ask me to tell you about them!!! It's not bad to be incapable of hearing rough shit, but it is your job to tell people so they don't fucking TELL YOU THAT SHIT. trying to change or ignore the person talking is rude, you can't avoid confrontation forever. Or I guess you can, but god what a miserable life you'll have.

I never asked you to fix my problems, my problems don't have a solution. I wanted support. I wanted to know that despite my struggles, I was still loved. I wanted to feel heard, to be validated. But all you could see was that you were powerless to help me, and I guess, you felt generally bad anytime you saw me because you felt like it was a personal failure that you couldn't do anything to help. I mean there were ways to help, but they weren't how you wanted to help. Helping others isn't about how you want to help them, it's about what that person needs to feel helped. Deciding that this type of help is superior to another doesn't magically change that a person is still not receiving your help if you're not giving them what they're asking for.

[grieverled-moved]

"Funny enough, you're one of the rare few that prefer the more 'elegant' name over the 'cuter' one." He snorts with a short laugh, gloved fingers fiddling with the edge of his pen, graphite greys flitting back over to snag back on brighter ones, tapping the edge against his lips in some subdued impish amusement. It lingers, a rarity in & of itself for the man as he normally kept himself strictly professional as far as behaviour went. But he has to admit, it's nice to let it melt away for a short moment.

"It's a subtle language you know. You don't see much of them these days . . . but floral bouquets given as gifts for loved ones on special occasions? A lot of the time the person gifting them made sure to speak their honest thoughts & truer feelings through those arrangements. A sneaky way to confess & say what they couldn't out loud."

Whatever direction he'd expected this whole interaction to go, it flies clean out the window when the other greets him with that same blinding joy, that genuine excitement towards a hobby he knew little about. The support of it, he finds, doesn't bristle at his edges like a loosened string caught on a sharp corner. He doesn't mind. Finds something in his chest easing at it as he sighs.

It's not an annoyed sound, that faint smile curled along his lips giving away otherwise as he shrugs his shoulder.

"Sorry if this comes off as . . . rude. But I didn't take you for the type. Not initially." No sugarcoating it or trying to soften it for what it genuinely was. It was rude - his assumptions prematurely balanced on the First's shoulders so early. It wasn't fair when he hardly knew much outside of the gossip heard through Shinra, but in his defense, it was a skill, an unfortunate one he'd grown to need. To habitually slip into assessing others early on to discern whether or not they were safe or a threat, or worth their salt as far as their linked trust went. Though Zack took it all in stride, despite the flicker of pain at times when Squall'd stepped too far or snapped too harshly. But he never let soured things linger, trying always to keep them light & buoyant to move on from.

"But, you'll learn as you go if you keep a sharp enough eye out. So . . . hey, who knows, maybe this'll be the start of your exciting new 'floriography journey'." A hint of a smile lingers, before he moves to focus back on finishing his quick sketch. When the silence lingers on just long enough for him to feel uncomfortable, antsy, Squall is the surprising one to break it.

". . . I've worked with a lot of people since I've joined the Turks. Usually those in SOLDIER only seem to care for the fighting. You're not what I expected. Not what I'm used to . . ." He huffs, a soft puff of air that leaves him as he folds the corner of his sketch page, an indicator to come back later on. The tension is there, but it's not as smothering, urging if anything to get what he wants to say out, though it's a bit of a struggle. Feelings & sentimental honesty were never his strong suit . . .

"I guess that's not such a bad thing."

                  ➤ @myristicisms

“ Marigolds. ” He repeats softly, interest glimmering within his gaze as mako green eyes fixate on the image of the flower, “ I never knew marigolds had another, way cooler name, something like calendula would be far more fitting for the meaning, prettier but kinda elegant. ”

A subtle tilt of his head, excitement clearly bubbling deep within his heart to simply listen to Squall's voice, very much ensnared in the explanation as though it were the most interesting thing he's ever heard in his nineteen years alive. Eyebrows scrunch in the way only ever seen when Zack was truly focused on something, his attention fully remaining on the page and tracking the pen. “ I think... I think that's what makes flowers so special, I'm not... Very adept with flower language yet but I think it's so interesting how different pairings and colors can change the meaning, the context, like.. ”

He pauses, puffs out his cheeks in a pout as he struggles to find the correct words, then looks over to the brunette with a dopey grin. “ I think they're awesome! The fact that some flowers can help fight infections or help with a sickness while others can take down a grown man from accidentally eating a petal? ... Yeah! They're really interesting, thanks for sharing with me, I really like learning y'know? ”

[laetationis]

Cont. from here ||.sweetest-himegimi

     🔥 Don’t push it lady ! He’s fuming and boiling from the way you two exchanged         glances and way too friendly words! “ Go for all I care! I ain’t helping you carry           all those back. ” Now he’s angrily eating his ice cream. Acting like a child,                  and about to get a breainfreeze if not careful, but he can’t help it.                     Kougyoku’s such a cute girl, overly friendly, nice and sweet.                       Easy to attract any guy’s attention and easy for them to                                                                              fall in love with.

                     This boy at store wouldn’t be first but had to ruin his mood                  since today he was supposed to hang out with his crush friend!

[icybrry]

jealousy

viktor x reader

tags: jealousy (obvs lol), drinking, drunk! vik, fluff, jayce being a good friend, fem reader

-

the party was going well by jayce's standards, and viktor was tired. it was 2:14 am and everyone was still drinking. you had come along as viktor's date, being his lover, and jayce was all over you; begging for attention.

you both had danced a lot, took shots, and viktor knew he shouldn't be jealous; you always came back to him to smother him with drunk kisses and love. but... he was tired of watching jayce fawn over you, he hadn't slept, he was nursing a glass of whiskey, and he wanted you.

sky was being just as irritating, trying to hint at hooking up behind your back, it was all too much. he bid sky farewell as harshly as he could, and stormed over to you. "hey!" you giggle, moving to kiss him. viktor dodges it slightly, letting you kiss the corner of his mouth instead. you pout, trying to fluff his hair a little. "not now, love." he sighs, walking away to get a refill.

your frown was noticed by jayce who came over to talk, handing you a cocktail. "i don't know what's up with him..?" you huff, leaning against the wall nearby. "maybe he's cranky, he hasn't been sleeping properly." jayce teases, and you can't help but giggle. "maybe. i think he's gonna sleep well tonight though with all that whiskey he's drinking." you joke back, mood lightening. "don't worry about him. when he's done he'll be all over you again." jayce winks.

viktor had polished two bottles. he didn't know why he did it, but he certainly needed it. the inventor sighs, his eyes glued to you as you play pool with jayce and a few others. he was particularly watching your body, observing how you looked bent over the table. you were gorgeous in your little dress, the way his hugged your hips was perfect. no wonder jayce wanted all your attention.

sky was eyeing viktor up, you could see it. you wanted to talk to her, tell her that viktor wasn't interested, but it was jayce's party and you didn't want to be rude and ruin his party. you agreed to a game of pool to keep your mind off things, laughing with jayce, but your mind and eyes kept moving up to her. she was slinking closer, clearly drunk as she swaggers up to your boyfriend; linking her arms around his neck.

you feel relief flood through you as viktor pushes her away, talking to her instead. "your turn." jayce pats your shoulder gently, and you almost jump. "yeah, sorry." you nod, taking position. jayce looks over to viktor and sky, she was still trying to make moves on him, and he wasn't about to let her ruin your night.

you didn't notice jayce moving, blocking them from your view. "got you!" you cheer, winning the game with one good strike. jayce grins, hugging you tightly and swinging you around. he catches sky's eyes, and moves with you so you couldn't see her. "let's go get drinks." jayce smiles, grasping your hand and pulling you away.

"see? they're sooo gonna bang behind your back! so to get back at your slutty girlfriend you should sleep with me." sky grins, and viktor feels anger bubbling up deep in his chest. "no. i'm tired of you antagonising y/n. she's the only person i'll ever love. now kindly fuck off." viktor snaps, and sky is taken aback. she nods, turning on her heel and rushing away, wiping her eyes.

he relaxes as she leaves, but the anxiety of you actually going to sleep with jayce was nagging him. grasping his cane, he moves past a small crowd, heading through each room to try and find you.

"thanks for that jayce." you smile, sipping your cotton candy cocktail as you watch people swim and splash each other. "what?" he asks, furrowing his brows. "that thing with sky. its stupid but she really gets to me sometimes." you huff, finishing your drink and putting the glass down. "oh- that? yeah, no problem! she's nice but she can be overbearing." jayce nods, his fingers idly combing over the grass. "yeah... well, i appreciate it. you're a good friend."

"i try." jayce grins, standing up and dusting himself off, offering you a hand. you smile, taking it and standing with him. "go find viktor and take him home before he passes out or gives himself alcohol poisoning, i think everyone's getting tired anyway." jayce stretches, and you nod. "yeah. goodnight jayce. thanks again." you smile, giving his cheek a gentle kiss. "no problem."

viktor huffs, haven given up on the search after two rooms, sulking into a bottle of vodka. he was sat on the floor in the kitchen, cane lay next to him as he swigs the burning liquid. "there you are!" your voice makes him perk up, and upon seeing you he realises how much he missed you. "my love..!" he slurs, standing up on wobbly legs, almost falling when you grasp his sides. "careful..!" you smile, taking the vodka from him. "mmmm- i missed you." he whispers, sagging against you, nuzzling his face into your neck.

"i missed you too." you humour him, moving down as best you can to grab his cane without dropping your boyfriend. "sky called you slutty." he frowns. "oh really?" you fake shock, and he nods. "i told her to fuck off." he nods, arms wrapping tightly around your waist. you can't help but laugh. it was odd hearing viktor swear, but he was blackout drunk, he wasn't coherent. "c'mon. we're going home." you press a kiss to his cheek, handing him his cane as you link arms with his other arm in case he fell.

jayce had called you an uber, and you made a mental note to thank him when you got up. viktor was stumbling a little, rambling about the party and you. "i can't believe you and jayce went off without me!" he whines, sitting on the grass. "sorry, baby." you smile as he leans against your thigh, looping a hand around your leg, squeezing your flesh slightly. "sky said you two were sleeping together behind my back." he whines, yawning. "what, me and jayce?" you laugh at the thought.

"don't laugh..!" viktor frowns up at you, smushing his cheek against your thigh. "there's nothing going on between me and jayce." you comb your fingers through his hair, smoothing down a few strands, watching them poof up once more. "good. i don't want to share you." he leans back, stretching. "you're not sharing me. i'm all yours, babe." you help him up, picking up his cane for him.

you stumble a little as viktor leans on you, kissing your neck a few times. "c'mon, our uber's pulling up." you help him into the back, getting in after him. viktor snuggles into your side, nuzzling your neck as he sprawls onto you. "do you love me??" he asks, and you giggle. "of course i love you." you press a small kiss to his head. "good. i love you too." viktor smiles, cuddling into you further as his arms tighten around your waist.

"vik." you speak, and he lets out a long hum. "how much have you drank?" he pauses to think, letting out a small puff. "i can't remember." you roll your eyes, pressing a kiss to his head. viktor leans into you, eyelids drooping a little; you just about manage to catch his drowsy expression. "hey, stay awake for me baby. i don't want to carry you to our apartment." you comb your fingers through his hair, fluttering gentle kisses all over your boyfriend's face.

"mmmh.. but i'm tired." he whines, his head falling onto your shoulder. "i know, we'll be home soon." you smile, resting your head upon his. "i love youuu.." he sighs, trying to curl up on the backseat so he could lay on you fully. "i love you too, vik." you manoeuvre a little to let him get comfy, wrapping both arms around him. "you don't love jayce?"

"i don't love jayce. only you." you smile, refraining from squirming as his lips kiss along your collarbones. "mmh-good. i'm gonna take a nap." viktor slurs, and you can't help but roll your eyes. "c'mon, stay awake for me." you gently shake his shoulder, and he whines like a child. "c'mon vik, i'll pay you in kisses." you laugh as he looks up at you, pressing a kiss to your lips. "one more?" he mumbles, and you giggle. "a lot more if you stay awake."

viktor hums, accepting a chain of kisses happily, his fingers curling into the fabric of your dress. "we're five minutes away." the uber quips, and you want to answer politely but your boyfriend was more demanding. you let out a breathy moan as viktor nips your bottom lip, taking the chance to push his tongue into your mouth.

once viktor breaks away for air, his head falls onto your shoulder as he snuggles in, and you press kisses to his head. "c'mon. we're almost there." you have to lay back as he presses all his dead weight into you as he cuddles you. "mmh i want more kisses." he smiles, and you press a hand to his shoulder. "you can have kisses when we get home." you push him back so he's sitting, getting up yourself.

viktor whines, collapsing onto your chest, drunkenly confessing his love to you over and over again. "i love you too, vik. c'mon i see our apartment building." you get his cane and tip the driver for putting up with your drunken mess of a boyfriend. viktor stumbles out of the car behind you, falling onto you and almost knocking the two of you over. lanky arms find their way around your waist as he mumbles something; hiding his face in your neck. "vik, c'mon-"

"i don't wanna share you with jayce.." he pouts, and you roll your eyes. "you're not sharing me with anyone." you take one of his arms, supporting him as you begin to walk inside. viktor almost falls over in the lobby, but you manage to get him into the elevator without him collapsing and hurting himself. "i didn't realise you were so heavy." you tease, deciding to take a video in the elevator mirror to send jayce in the morning.

"i'm not heavy!" he fakes offence, leaning on you. you laugh, ending the video before he realises. "can i have more kisses now?" he pouts, hooking his chin upon your shoulder. "not yet, when we get you in bed you can have kisses." viktor groans, fastening his arms around your waist. the elevator dings, and you help him to the door, fishing the keys from his pocket. "now..?"

"nope. be patient." you smile, unlocking the door and opening it before you aid him to the couch. sighing, you lock the front door and put the keys in their usual place. "babbbyyy..! kisses!" viktor whines, reaching for you. "no, we're sobering you up a bit."

viktor huffs, getting up and wobbling a little. "careful." you warn, pressing a hand to his side. viktor nods, following you to the bedroom. "stay here, i'm gonna get you some water." you say, and viktor mumbles something drunkenly. you leave him for at least a minute when he's calling for you. "coming." you shout back, taking the glass of water with you.

"help.." he pouts, his pants ruffled. you can't help but laugh at how lost he looks. "don't laugh..!" viktor whines, and you stifle your giggles. "sorry, sorry baby. c'mere." you put the glass down on his bedside table, unzipping his flyer for him. you help him out of them, supporting his lower back so he didn't fall. "buy me a drink." viktor giggles, trailing kisses along your shoulder. "i think you've had enough to drink, love." you push viktor to the bed, and he falls onto it.

you can't help but smile as he snuggles into his pillow, almost falling asleep. you take a quick video of him, adoring how pretty he looks. putting your phone down, you join him, draping the covers over him. viktor feels your presence and latches onto you, legs tangling into yours, his arms squeezing your torso. "hey." you smile, pressing a kiss to his nose. viktor lets out a small noise, giving you a sleepy kiss on your lips.

you give him kisses as he dozes off, and eventually he passes out, completely tangled in your limbs and pressed up against you. you smile, kissing his forehead one last time as you settle down as well, texting jayce goodnight quickly. viktor hides his face in your neck, his breath tickling your skin slightly as he snoozes. eventually, you fall asleep too, pressing your cheek against his head as you hold him tightly.

he was going to have a killer hangover in the morning.

[drabbles-mc]

Could you do a HC on how the Mayans men would react to a girl getting hit on at a bar and the guy not taking no for an answer, like they don't know her or anything. I feel like they all respect women enough to at least do something about it; ya know?

All of the Mayans men wake up every day and drink a full pitcher of Respect Women Juice. They will not tolerate disrespect in their house. HC’s under the cut!

(I couldn’t decide if i wanted to do third person or reader insert for these but I settled on reader insert. Hopefully it works alright)

Bishop:

-Senses the tension immediately 

-My man sits back and watches the entire clubhouse all night. He knows everything that’s going on. And when he notices that some guy is refusing to leave you alone, he instantly gets up and goes to intervene.

-He’s not hot-headed about it. He doesn’t have the time or the energy for that anymore. But he places himself between the two of you, looking back and forth, “Everything alright here?”

-The guy would try to brush it off and reassure him that yea, of course everything is okay you can leave now. But Bishop wouldn’t have any of that. He’d cut him off mid-sentence, “I wasn’t fucking asking you.”

-He’d turn to you and ask again if you’re alright. You’d give a slight shake of her head no, not wanting to stir up drama but also not wanting to deal with this dude anymore. And that’s all it would take.

-”I think you should leave,” he wouldn’t yell. Just state it as a fact. But when the guy would try to argue that’s when he would get a little more heated. He’d step in closer to the dude’s face, but not putting hands on him, “I said you should fucking leave.”

-Bishop only uses yelling and brute force as a last resort. Very rarely does it ever come to that. He would follow the guy all the way to the clubhouse door, making sure that he actually leaves before going back to check on the poor girl that he was harassing. He 100% lingers close for the rest of the night to make sure no one bothers you.

Angel:

-King of being the Fake Boyfriend.

-My tall boy might be emotionally illiterate sometimes but he can read a social situation. When he sees a girl scrambling to try and come up with excuses to make a guy leave her alone, he has no problem inserting himself into the situation. 

-Smooth as fuck walking up to you, greeting you while resting a protective hand on your shoulder. Instantly setting the tone to whoever is talking to you that this was a useless endeavor.

- "Hey, querida,” he’d wait for you to look at him, “Sorry, didn’t see you walk in. You get a drink already? Want me to get you something?”

-The look in his eyes would let you know that he’s offering you an out to the uncomfortable situation that you’re in. He’s not trying to flirt--he’s just trying to drive away whatever asshole wasn’t catching the hint that you didn’t want to talk.

- "Who the fuck are you?” this is a problem that the guy did not see coming.

-Angel would look at him, eyes narrow, “I’m her boyfriend. Who the fuck are you?”

- The question is rhetorical. It doesn’t matter who the guy is. Angel doesn’t give him a chance to answer. He steps closer to the guy, towering over him. He looks down at him and is practically begging the guy to say something stupid so he has an excuse to physically throw him out the front door.

- He doesn’t get the chance, though. The guy reads the cue, knows that it’s a fight that he will not win, and walks away.

- Angel would turn back to you, “You good? Sorry about that. Didn’t seem like he was getting the hint.”

- You’d shake your head, “He wasn’t. Thank you, I appreciate the assist.”

- “No problem,” he’d pause, “But forreal did you get a drink already? First round on me.”

Ezekiel:

- Y’all remember the casino scenes with the cops? That’s how he handles shit.

- Master of keeping his cool in frustrating situations. Completely follows your lead. He sees a lot of weird interactions being on the serving side of the bar, always clocking what’s happening in front of him in case he has to step in.

-He’d notice you rolling your eyes and giving short answers. He’d also notice that the guy either isn’t picking up the cues, or is willfully ignoring them. EZ catches your eyes a few times, silently asking if you want him to step in. You shake your head--the guy is annoying but harmless for the time being.

- Then he tries to touch you. Casually reaching for your shoulder, trying to rest his hand on your knee. You recoil, trying to create more space between the two of you. He doesn't care though.

- That’s when EZ can’t keep it to himself anymore. He’d sigh, not looking up from the glasses that he’s cleaning, “I don’t think she’s into you, man.”

- You and the man would both turn to look at him, each of you with a surprised expression on your faces. You’d stay quiet, wanting to see how the situation was going to play out. The man next to you would scoff, “I don’t remember you being part of this fucking conversation.”

- “I might as well be if I have to sit here and watch it. You’re the only one out of the three of us not suffering from how uncomfortable this is.”

- His commentary would ruffle some feathers. The man next to you would get defensive, “No one asked for your fucking opin--”

- Knowing that EZ had your back would give you a little extra confidence, “You should listen to him,” you nod, “He’s right. We’re suffering.”

- He’d be caught off-guard by the two of you teaming up on him. Realizing it wouldn't be worth the fight, he’d huff and walk away. EZ would watch him and chuckle, calling after him, “Least you could do is pay your fucking tab!”

- You’d laugh, glad to be done with the uncomfortable situation, “His drink and whatever you want are all on me tonight. As a thank you.”

- He’d give you that little smirk, “Don’t mention it.”

Coco:

- Zero tolerance policy.

- Not coy or polite about it at all.

-Instantly uses himself as a barrier between you and whatever guy it is that’s not leaving you alone. He might not be the biggest guy in the MC, but he sure as hell carries himself like he is when the situation calls for it.

-Will not hesitate to get nose-to-nose with whoever is bothering you. If someone wants to invade your space, he’ll invade theirs. Fair is fair.

- “You really can’t take a fuckin’ hint, huh?” he’d shake his head.

- “What’s your problem?” the man’s voice would sound confident but the look in his eyes would show that he really didn't want a problem with whoever this guy was getting in his face.

- “You. Fuckin’ beat it,” he’d jerk his head towards the door, “Don’t come back, either.”

- Coco carries himself with the confidence of a man that will make someone pay dearly for coming back uninvited. Confrontational situations usually resolve themselves quickly. People tend to not want to mess with him if they can avoid it.

-When the guy inevitably leaves not just you, but the clubhouse altogether, Coco finally turns back to you, “You good, ma?”

- You nod, watching him light up a cigarette, “Uh, yea. I’m good. Thanks for that.”

- He nods, blowing out a puff of smoke, “We’ll make sure that fucker never comes back.”

Hank:

- The only thing that Hank Loza drinks is Respect Women Juice. When he runs across someone that doesn’t, it gets out of hand really quickly.

-Bull in a china shop.

- The same man who is usually calm and cool and collected, physically removes whoever it is that is causing a problem. The guys have tried to teach him deescalation skills but it never sticks. It’s the only thing that Hank gets heated about so they all let it go at this point.

- Hank isn’t a small dude. When he steps toe-to-toe with someone he almost always out-sizes them. They get about 5 seconds to hear what he says and leave on their own before he removes them on his own.

- “You should leave her alone,” the friendly suggestion is really anything but.

- The guys are almost always cocky, not thinking that anything is actually going to happen to them, “Or what, tough guy?”

- They ignored their first and only warning. What happens next is all on them. Hank grabs the guy by the collar of his shirt, lifting him from the ground. His voice is quiet, which is way more terrifying than yelling, “Let’s find out.”

- Hank lifts and carries the guy out, on the brink of dragging him like a caveman. The guy is yelling in protest, trying to swing, but Hank is unfazed.

- He throws the guy down the steps of the clubhouse, giving a final warning not to come back. No longer in an agumentative mood, the man takes off in a desperate attempt to avoid getting further tossed around.

- When he goes back into the clubhouse, the rest of the guys have moved on from the situaiton--to them it was business as usual for Hank. You, on the other hand, didn't see the situation unfolding that way at all. He walked back up to you, the anger gone from his face, a gentle smile there instead.

- “Are you alright?” he looks you over as if to make sure you didn't get hurt in the midst of it all.

- “Yea,” you nod, “I’m...I’m fine. Thanks. You...you didn’t have to do all that.”

- He’d chuckle, knowing that for him it was the only course of action, “Of course I did,” he’d gently rest his hand on the outside of your arm, “Let me know if anyone else gives you any trouble.”

Creeper:

- The smaller version of Hank, tbh. Constantly out here Respecting Women.

- Remember that scene where he catches a shotgun that’s tossed to him and immediately starts shooting on the highway?? That’s the energy he has when dealing with men who disrespect women.

- Cannot easily lift and remove men the same way Hank does, but he will throw hands without hesitation.

- The guys told him no more threatening with guns in the clubhouse. So fists will have to suffice.

- Does not offer a warning to the guy. If someone is being pushy or rude, they don’t deserve a heads-up. He will try to get your attention in some way first, to make sure that you want him to intervene. If he thinks that it’s going to get out of hand, or if you let him know with a pleading look that you could use the assist, he is instantly throwing himself into the middle of it.

- He’d catch your eye, motioning back and forth between you and the man in front of you to ask if you need an out. You’d give him a slight nod and that’s all it would take.

- Walking up, he grabs the guy by his shoulder and turns him around, “Hey, motherfucker,” he’d shove him towards the door of the clubhouse, “Leave.”

- Caught off-guard, the man would shove him back. Fully-bruised ego shining through, “Keep your hands off me.”

- That’s when you’d hear the first crack of a fist colliding with someone’s jaw. Your eyes would go wide, not ever having seen Creeper get like this. His focus would be completely on the man stumbling towards the ground in front of him, “I said get the fuck out.”

- It usually doesn’t take more than one punch to get his point across. HIs muscles aren’t just for show--getting clocked by him fucking hurts. They’re lucky that he’s not big on wearing rings.

- Once the threat is neutralized, he instantly shifts back into his quiet, gentler self to check in with you. He sees the surprise in your face at how things unfolded and he holds his hands up in surrender, “I’m done, promise.”

- It’d get you to laugh. You can see it in his expression that it’s almost like a switch he can flip on and off. “Um. Thank you. That...isn’t what I was expecting. But thank you.”

- “Are you alright?” he’d sit down next to you, mindful to give you some space.

- “Yea, I’m good. How’s your hand?”

- He’d chuckle, “All good. Nothing new.”

Okay this was a lot of fun. I love all these dorks. Hope you enjoyed! xo

[xpeachesncream]

restart | four

[ SEQUEL TO PERFECTLY WRONG ] | [ series masterlist ]

summary: as you and taehyung start to build your life together post graduation, things become more complicated than what you expected it to be. while taehyung struggles with his inner demons, you’ve become the sole supporter, the pillar, juggling different jobs to keep you two afloat. your love for each other has been put to the test as your relationship continues to face hurdles - hurdles that have you questioning whether or not your relationship will make it through.

pairing: reader x fiancé!kth

genre: post grad au, established relationship au | fluff, angst, smut

words: 4.8k

warnings: cussing/mature language, jealousy, lots of insecurities and overthinking, angst, crying, bar scene, alcohol consumption, flashback scene in the middle of the chapter, a lil sprinkle of fluff, implied sexual content, bickering/arguments

note: honestly, this was ALSO not supposed to get this long but like… 🙃 here we are lol

tags: @enchantaeduniverse​ @thedarkwinterrose​ @sapphirejeon​ @jwlmnbt​ @bluesharksandfish​ @ra-mun-e @brightcolorsoffendme​ @jungcrookthecookbook​ @sunniejinnie​ (please message me if you would like to be added to the taglist!)

"Okay, I think that's it." You said, hands on your hips as you and Jungkook walked through your door for the final time.

"What are you selling, the world?" He huffs and puffs.

"For someone who works out often, you complain a lot." He rolls his eyes playfully.

"Where's Tae?"

"Sleeping still." He nods.

"Oh, okay. Ready to go then?" You nodded silently as you grabbed your bag to hitch a ride to the café with Jungkook since he was working today. He starts to talk about the girl who works with you two and how he thinks she's a little cutiepie. He has such a silly crush on her that his cheeks are lightly rose tinted every time he talks about certain encounters they've had. You're happy to see him happy, and you tell him to keep pursuing it since she's a super sweet girl. However, part of you is sad solely because you couldn't say you were 100% happy at this moment. You wish you were, but these problems were hindering you from feeling complete. You just wanted to get past this page in the book.

As soon as you both get to the cafe, you start unloading his trunk and getting everything inside. Jungkook claims he has the last two bags covered, so you walk to the back and take breather just to gather yourself before setting up. But you truly didn't expect to lose it right then and there.

"Okay! I got all the— Y/N?" Jungkook instantly worries when he sees you crying into your hands in the backroom and hurries over to you. "Hey, woah. What's going on?" He gets in front of you, gently trying to pry your hands off of your face.

"Fuck, I'm sorry." You continue to cry as he successfully removes your hands from your face.

"Sorry for what? What's going on?" He wipes your tears with his sweater and lifts your chin to look at you in the eye.

"Nothing."

"The day barely started and you're already crying in the backroom." He says softly. "Don't try and lie to me."

"I just don't know what's going on between me and Tae and it's stressing me out."

"What's going on? Same stuff?" You nod, tears still streaming down your cheeks. You tell him about how he had been super weird about taking Jimin's help and how you both got into a huge argument about it. Then, you told him how last night ended [sparing your poor bestfriend the details] and how you couldn't help but feel used because he simply dismissed you, which is very unlike Taehyung when it comes to arguments and disagreements. "I'm sorry, Y/N. I know he's going through a rough time, but Tae also needs to respect you and look at you as his partner, not someone who's also attacking him or against him. Do you want me to talk to him?"

"No." Simply, no. Because you never get your friends involved like that. You just don't, no matter how much they wanna help. "He looks at me like I am, especially after this whole Jimin thing. I don't wanna say it's stupid because I don't wanna discredit his feelings, but god. Like, should I just do this on my own? Tell Jimin to forget it?"

"No." Jungkook shakes his head. "You're already getting a good start on your goals, Y/N. Don't let that go because of everything going on. Give him some time and space."

"I have been. For awhile now." You sat, feeling completely defeated already, tears still coming down your cheeks.

"Here, I'll go set up and I can take over the table for a bit. I'll ask Isabella if she can cover for a quick second." He stands in front of you, hands out to help support you as if you had lost your footing.

"No, I'll be fine—"

"Y/N, just sit. Okay?" He gives off a small sigh. "Just sit for a second and let yourself take a breather." He gently sits you down and makes sure you don't get up by slowly backing away from you.

"Kook, this isn't Marco Polo."

"I'm just trying to make sure you don't run off because you're stubborn!"

"Hey!" Isabella comes running in, a little confused as to what's happening.

"Hey, can you cover me at the front for a bit?" Jungkook stands back upright in a normal position to ask her sweetly, hands tucked behind his back as he bounced on his feet. This boy.

"Yeah, of course Jungkook." She blushes.

"Thanks. I'll be right back." He gives you a quick look before dashing off. You lay your head onto your arms as they rest on the table, a small headache forming at the center of your forehead.

"You okay, Y/N?" Isabella asks softly as she puts her things away.

"Yeah, sorry. Just a really weird day yesterday."

"I'm sorry." You feel her hand caress your back. "Let me know if you need anything, okay?" She says before shuffling herself out of the room. To be honest, you had no idea what was going on with you, and why you were feeling this way. You were just so sick and tired. Sick and tired of being sick and tired.

This was slowly taking a toll on you, and you weren't even sure if Taehyung realized what he was doing was hurting you in the process.

He can't say he does.

Tae set the weights down back onto the rack aggressively before sitting on the bench, watching Jimin finish his set. They had been working out after lunch, Jimin calling him shortly after Taehyung had fully woken up.

"Are you gonna go to the café after this?" Tae shrugged.

"I don't know, Y/N said she didn't need help and wouldn't be there all day."

"You won't even visit for a bit?" Jimin asks. Usually Tae was rushing to get back to you, but he knew everything that had been going on had been affecting your relationship to an extent.

"We'll see."

"You two coming to the bars tonight then?"

"What are we celebrating again?"

"Nothing. Just getting together like old times. I told Kook, Hobi and Yoongi. They're down." Tae nodded.

"Joon, too?"

"Joon, too."

"Me and Y/N will probably go but I don't think we'll stay long. She has to do that thing at the school—" He scratched his head. "The thing— the exhibit and talking to incoming art students or whatever." Jimin chuckled at how Tae couldn't get his words out.

"It's not whatever."

"You know that's not what I mean." Tae rolled his eyes at him, annoyed all over again at how Jimin had been kissing your ass lately. Cause fuck, the way Jimin had been painting himself as a knight in shining armor, an angel even, was pissing him the fuck off. It made him feel like he wasn't doing enough to support you, or like you couldn't turn to him for help. He hated that feeling, even though he had been rude as hell and showing it in a different way.

"That's fine. Just come out and hang out for a bit." Jimin sighed as he sat on the bench next to him, drinking some water before placing the bottle back down on the ground. "You two doing okay?"

"Yeah, what makes you think we aren't?" Tae asks, getting defensive. Jimin quickly eyes him, reading his body language. He knew Taehyung so well - so fucking well that he knew almost immediately when things were taking a toll on him. Things liiiike.. his parents. As a prime example. Jimin knew Taehyung and his parents obviously didn't have the best relationship, and he knew he took things to heart whenever his father got on him about stupid shit [just like he did over that dinner]. Taehyung wasn't one to show emotion much; he liked showing people he was mentally tough and that he could handle whatever came his way. For the most part, it was true. But, Jimin and Namjoon also knew he wasn't always like that, especially when it came to things that mattered the most to him - his family and you. Taehyung hated to admit it but his family's opinion of him was important no matter what. He was hard on himself because he wanted them to be proud. He wanted to actually feel like he had been doing something good for once. He was still longing for that feeling no matter what he said or did. It was a never-ending battle; like a plot with no happy ending in sight.

"I'm just asking." Jimin threw up his hands, showing that he wasn't suggesting anything behind the harmless question.

"We're fine. I know she's been stressed lately because of work and her art."

"Mmm."

"It's funny." Taehyung chuckles at himself.

"What's funny?" Jimin laughed a bit, confused.

"I didn't expect to be caught up in her like this. After Hana, messing around with all these girls. She's my fucking fiancé."

"Yeah and you better not fuck that up." Jimin stands to gather his things.

"You sound like my dad." Tae jokes, even though he was pretty offended.

"I'm sorry, didn't mean to." Jimin instantly apologizes, knowing everyone had been walking on eggshells around Taehyung lately. "She's a good girl, you've got it good."

Taehyung softly smiles at the thought of you, but he wasn't gonna lie, he was hurt by Jimin's statement. Call him sensitive or whatever, but he wasn't feeling the fact that people were constantly looking at him as a fuck up and hinting at it. It seemed to be a reoccurring theme lately. "You ready?" Tae sighs before grabbing his stuff. They get into his car, departing from the gym to make their way to Jimin's so he can get dropped off before Tae heads home. Taehyung replays yesterday's events in his head, which instantly irks him all over again. But, he has such a soft spot for you that he feels terrible for having been too harsh about it. He was still upset, and he wasn't gonna let up on his feelings. But he knew he should have been better about how he approached it. He knew better than that. He's learned to do better.

➤ FLASHBACK

Taehyung excitedly parks his car at the café to surprise you for your pop up today. He had been working endlessly to finish off finals strongly, and he had been so busy that he hadn't really gotten a chance to help you or support you. He felt terrible about it because you were his babygirl and he wanted nothing but to spoil you for all the hardwork you've been putting in.

He creeps up behind you, bouquet of flowers hidden behind his back. "Excuse me, miss." He says lowly near your ear.

"Holy fuck!" You say as he startles you. "Babe, what the hell! Don't do that!" He laughs.

"What's cookin', goodlookin'?" He wiggles his eyebrows, making you chuckle. "These are for you." He smiles toothlessly as he hands you the pretty bouquet. "And your favorite!" He hands you a Mcflurry cup.

You squeal. "Oreo Mcflurry! Aw, thank you baby." You place a quick kiss on his lips. "But don't ever scare me like that!" You playfully hit his chest, causing him to erupt in laughter.

"You should've seen your face."

"Ha-ha, very funny." You rolled your eyes, causing him to pinch your cheeks.

"How's it going?"

"Welp, I'm almost out for the day." You giggle. "I, uh, may have underestimated." You look down at his hoodie, realizing it was one of the hoodies you had made for a previous collection you sold at Jin's. "Waaaow, cute sweater, who made it?"

"Mm, I don't know if you know her. Her name's Y/N."

"Uh huh?" You nod, hand on your hip, waiting to hear more.

"She stands about this tall." He lowers himself close to the ground, causing you to laugh. "Cute, right? She's beautiful, incredibly smart and sexy. Brilliant visual designer and illustrator. Packed with hella attitude." He pretends to ponder on his thoughts. "I could go on about her, really. She's one of a kind."

"Cute. She must feel lucky." You smile.

"I know, I'd feel lucky if I knew me too." You roll your eyes and playfully hit him. "Ah, I'm kidding." He pulls you into a hug. "I keep this sweater in my trunk."

"Oh, so you keep it in your trunk just for emergency wear?" You sarcastically ask as he holds you from behind.

"Yeah, and cause it's the only sweater I'd choose to wear out of the hundreds I own." You smile up at him. "Mhm, not gonna try and win that one." He places a big, sloppy kiss on your cheek before pulling away. "Show me. How can I help my pretty baby today?"

➤ END FLASHBACK

"Hey, I can't stay out late tonight because of the event tomorrow."

"Yeah, I know." Taehyung says softly.

"Please don't drink too much."

"I wooooooon't." He whines with a small sigh, also slightly offended at that statement. He didn't know what it was, maybe it was the fact that his own father painted him in such a negative light that everything seemed off to him lately. Like people were just out to get him or constantly looking down at him and his actions. A personal attack at who he was. It was slowly piling up for him and he wasn't sure how much more of it he could take.

You prepared a quick dinner while he hopped in the shower. You set his plate aside before taking a look at the mail that had come in today.

Bills, bills and more bills.

You sighed to yourself as it felt like you had just paid things off, but clearly not. Moving into Taehyung's wasn't the greatest idea, being that his space was much more expensive than yours. But, he did have the space you needed for your work. There was money left, but you knew it wouldn't last forever. You hated tapping into your savings and whipping out your credit cards because you wanted to keep yourself clean as much as possible. However, that was proven difficult as of late. It was a sacrifice, especially since Taehyung had cut off his mother's help. Taehyung's pride was such a curse sometimes.

You shook your head, already finalizing the fact that you would deal with it later. You had began to set your things aside for the new student event tomorrow morning. You figured you'd get there early to set up and make your table at neat and cute, so you didnt have to worry much about it right now.

Taehyung comes out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist, hair slicked back and wet. You turn to face him, your eyes wandering down to his chest and bottom area. God, why was he so beautiful? It wasn't fair. You loved him so much that you could crumble even being upset. He talks a whole lot about you being the death of him, when really, this man is going to be the death of you. Truly. There's no debate about it.

Getting to the bar, you both immediately spot your friends in the corner, a huge tower of beer decorating the center of the table. Jimin is the first to stand, coming towards you two with a huge smile on his face.

"Friends!" Jimin yells. "Drink!" He says, holding up two shot glasses.

"Fuck, man." Taehyung says taking the glass. "We just got here."

"So! Y/N needs to be home early remember?" He watches wide-eyed as you two take the shot and make sour faces at each other.

"Okay, I'm good." You say, being that you were the DD tonight. Taehyung could enjoy himself if he wanted to [to an extent], but you definitely needed to be in tip top shape to be a good role model to those incoming art students tomorrow.

Throughout the night, the bar starts to get packed from end to end, you and your friends staying at the table and keeping to yourselves. You could tell Taehyung was crossing the line of pretty fucking drunk, which somewhat bothered you. You literally just told him to take it easy tonight - just for one night - so you could do what you need to do tomorrow.

"Hey." Jimin comes next to you, swinging his arm over your shoulder like he always does. "One more shot?" You give him a toothless smile. Ugh, why the hell not? Your man was drunk, and Jimin had only been helpful lately. You could at least return the favor by taking a shot with him.

"What are we drinking to?"

"You." He smiles. "Your shop. Your art. It'll only go up from here, yeah?" He rose his shot glass up before clinking it against yours and taking it to the neck.

"Mkay, that does it for me." You chuckle. "Thanks for the shot."

"No problem. You doing okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good." You looked at your watch. "Should probably get out of here soon, but Tae looks like he's enjoying himself. I don't wanna drag him out of here."

"We can just bring him home." You shake your head worriedly.

"I don't wanna leave without him." Jimin chuckles and looks over at Taehyung.

"He'll be okay and you'll be just fine tomorrow. Besides, you can make up all the bullshit in the world to tell the incoming students, they'll believe it either way."

"That's mean." You chuckle.

"Come. Let's dance!" Jimin says, leading the way to the empty space near the table. Everyone gets up to dance, Taehyung slipping himself behind you, whispering sweet nothings in your ear.

"Can I at least get one minute with my lady without Jimin interrupting?" He says in your ear.

"Taehyung." You flatly say, looking back at him.

"That's your mad face." He holds you tightly from behind as he sways you from side to side.

"I'm not mad."

"Mhm." He kisses the back of your head. "Why don't you have fun with me for a little? We'll go home after this." You couldn't even stay mad at him, with that fucking frustratingly handsome face of his. He was definitely drunk though, you could smell the whiskey lingering on his breath as he danced with you for a bit. You let him be, just so you wouldn't trigger anything within drunk Taehyung. Everyone around you was having a good time, the feeling of nostalgia hitting you pretty hard. You missed the days where you could get together and go to parties after a long week of school. Or, when you would tease the fuck out of Taehyung as his fuckbuddy during parties, or at the clubs. You know, before graduation and responsibilities happened.

But as one hour turned into two, and two turned into three, you found yourself getting restless. It was nearing 2AM and you had to be at the school by 8am - even earlier just to set your table up. You made your way to the bathroom, hoping Tae would get the point and start getting himself ready to leave.

Right.

Once you were out the bathroom, he'd realize you had been gone for a little and start saying his goodbye's. He'd realize time got to the best of him. Right?

"It's a fucking good time tonight!" Jimin tells Namjoon, laughing with him as he watches Joon act a fool with his dance moves.

"I'm sure it is, since you've been in Y/N's space the entire night." Taehyung says it jokingly, but he doesn't realize it only comes off that way in his head. Jimin furrows his brows at him, his high quickly dying with Taehyung's unnecessary comment.

"Don't start with all that. Not tonight. Everyone's having a good time--"

"Or what, Jimin?" Taehyung chuckles like the petty ass he can be. "You know it's true. Don't you think it's a little disrespectful to be crossing boundaries?"

"Hey, let's step back for a bit." Jungkook lightly tugs on Taehyung's arm as he hears the conversation going south quickly. But Taehyung breaks from his grip, stepping forward towards Jimin.

"You really think I would do that to you?"

"Haven't you already? Swinging your arms around her and shit, being all angelic--"

"Tae, come on. That's enough. Don't." Namjoon steps in the middle. "Let's go outside to get some air."

"You really wanna make me look that bad in front of my own girl?" Jimin lightly pushes him away, Taehyung getting too into his space.

"Enough." Namjoon shakes his head, aggressively stepping in the way to create distance. Taehyung shakes his head and walks off, the rest of the group watching as he walks. You finish off in the bathroom, assuming Tae was already getting ready to go. However, you realize your assumption of leaving by the time you're back is absolutely incorrect because when you get to the table, Taehyung is nowhere to be seen.

"Where's Tae?" Kook looks at you frazzled, before his eyes begin to pan the room again.

"Look, don't freak out, but him and Jimin just got into it and he walked off."

"What the hell do you mean they got into it and he walked off?"

"It's nothing, Tae is just drunk—" Kook squeezes your wrist and shakes his head.

"No, it's not just nothing because you and I both know how he's been feeling lately." You run your hand through your hair. "What did he say?"

"He just got into it about Jimin getting close to you lately, and how he felt like he was disrespecting boundaries." You sigh heavily.

"Fuck."

"We have an issue." Namjoon comes back from out of the blue. "He's not around."

"What do you mean?! Where did he go?" You run your hand through your hair.

"Okay, let's not panic." Jungkook tries to relax you. "Let me go check the bathrooms." Namjoon nods as he continues to look around the room.

"Please? We should get home." He nods to you before he's off to check for Tae in the bathroom. You stand near the table awkwardly, worry filling you quickly the more time passes.

"Hey, you okay? What can I do?" Hobi squeezes your arm, his face flushed with a red tint from how tipsy he is. You give him a small, reassuring smile and nod to try and keep calm.

"I honestly don't know anymore, but I'll be good. I think. We're just gonna look for him and head home."

"Is Kookie looking in the bathroom?" You nod. At this point, you catch a glimpse of Jungkook coming back alone.

"Jungkook?"

"I'm sorry, I couldn't find him in there. I swear I tried."

"So, where the hell is he?" Jungkook shrugs.

"Lets check around again. I won't leave until we find him."

"Have you tried to call him?" You had already beaten Yoongi's question, calling Taehyung's phone only to see his phone vibrating and ringing on the fucking table. "Hm, okay. Maybe not."

"Fuck." You snatch Taehyung's phone from the table. "Is he serious right now? It's about to be 2:30AM. How the fuck can he get lost at this time?"

"Y/N just go home, we'll find him and bring him home." Jimin says, coming back from roaming around the place.

"No, I'm not leaving here without him."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen." He says, looking at you in the eye. Although he was pretty fucking pissed, he couldn't help but worry about him either. No matter what, that was still his bestfriend. He didn't want anything to happen to him.

"It's not your fault."

"We need to check around the neighborhood." Jungkook suddenly comes back and grabs your arm. You follow him, Yoongi, Hobi, Namjoon and Jimin outside of the bar, the cold hitting your skin harshly.

"Let's split." Namjoon says. Jimin and Hobi split, Namjoon and Yoongi sticking together to go down a different path. You kept yourself close to Jungkook, knowing there were all sorts of drunk ass men out at this hour and you weren't helping wearing a tiny ass skirt and a deep cut shirt.

"Cutiepie, let me come holla!" A dude yells as he tries to swing his arm around your waist. Jungkook easily pushes him off, glaring at him.

"Back the fuck up." He spits out, your bestfriend coming to your rescue amongst the sea of men you're encountering on the sidewalk right now. He throws his jacket over your shoulders, hoping to shield you from them and the cold. "Your outfit." Jungkook frowns, a little worried.

"I mean, I didn't expect to lose Tae tonight." Once you had gotten to a quieter part of the street, you come from behind to walk beside him. "Where the hell could he have gone?" You whine. You're more worried for his safety and wellbeing right now more than anything and all you wanted to do was find him and bring him home, even though you were slightly worrying about yourself and how things would go tomorrow. You could give him an earful later. It could wait.

"He couldn't have gone far." You both continue down the street, heading towards your car, hoping he may be around the area. Jimin calls to check in, saying him and Hobi hadn't caught sight of him yet, and the same thing goes for Yoongi and Joon. You almost want to cry when you don't see Taehyung near your car, but Jungkook ends up walking further down towards the park near your parking spot. "Y/N! Here!" He calls out, running towards an individual slumped over on their knees on a bench. "Taehyungie?" Jungkook sits next to him and shakes him a bit.

"Shit dude, I just kept walking then I suddenly had no idea where I was at." He drunkily says as you sit next to him and sigh heavily.

"No one said you had to do that, Tae."

"I just needed some air."

"Yeah and look where that got you, it's close to 3AM." You respond, irritated.

"Y/N." Jungkook says softly, shaking his head at you as if he were signaling for you to quit with your attitude. "Let's go back to the car." Jungkook watches him stand up and wobble a bit, but eases up when he realizes Taehyung is capable of walking himself to the car. You three get back safely, letting the others know that you had found him before driving Jungkook back towards the club so he can meet with everyone else. You quickly thank him for his support before driving off to head home.

The car is incredibly cold, and silent.

"Love, I'm sorry. I just needed air and got lost." He breaks the silence.

"I see that." You say softly as you drive home, keeping your eyes glued to the road in front of you.

3:23AM.

"Please don't be mad." He gives your thigh gentle squeeze. "I just got a little into my head tonight." You sighed, gently removing his hand from your thigh.

"Taehyung, I'm your fiancé, I'm doing this with you and only you. Do you even understand how worried I was? You just walked off, without your phone. Without saying anything to me. Just cause you got in your head for no reason."

"I'm sorry." He repeats at a whisper. You don't say anything else for the rest of the drive home. You silently park the car and head to the apartment, Taehyung sluggishly following behind you. He knows you're bothered, knowing it's closing to 3:30AM and you had an early morning. Honestly, he didn't realize how drunk he was until he had gotten himself into that argument with Jimin then got lost, especially without his phone. The fact that he had made you worry and stress like that made him feel terrible, especially after these past few days. You could have easily left, but you didn't leave without him even if it was this late. He instantly just wanted to cuddle you and tell you how sorry he was.

You quietly get ready for bed and line your things up by the door, just so it would be an easy quick and grab as you head out in the morning. You slip yourself into the sheets, Taehyung following shortly after he gets himself ready for bed. He shuts off all the lights and grabs himself a water bottle to sit by his nightstand before slipping in next to you.

"I love you." He whispers against your ear, wrapping his arms around you. But you don't respond. He peeks over to see your eyes shut, silently sighing to himself as he nuzzled his head against the nape of your neck. He knows you aren't fast asleep yet, and it hurts him that you hadn't said it back. You both just knew exactly how to love each other well, but also push each other's buttons. But, maybe, it was true - he was just fucking up left and right lately. Enough for you to go to bed without saying 'I love you' back.

'cause baby if i find a way, i'm sure of it, this love won't stray; just give me a chance to say i love you, and i need you. now are you here to stay, or fade away like every other day? you're the reason that i lie awake

track two: 3AM - finding hope

[julie-thefatones]

Ghost of You || Luke x Reader || Part 3

A/N: Your best friends with Julie, since the stamp was removed from the boys they are able to be seen by lifers at choice and can touch lifers at choice, but are still ghosts. You and Luke grow closer and closer starting to go from friends to more than that and everyone starts to notice, it just takes a little longer for you two to figure it out.

Part 1 Part 2

@deanandthephantoms thank you for helping me with one line! Appreciate you! 🙌🏻💜

WordCount: 3,568

WARNINGS: 16+ years old to read this, me and my friends have discussed... its nothing super intense but still Mature themes. If this were a Netflix show the reasoning under the rating would say (Sexual content, rude behavior)

After the movie you could hardly focus on anything, walking home with Julie who was talking about something that Flynn did in gym class that you missed because you were off with Luke.... She probably wouldn't have noticed that you were in your own world of thoughts if it weren't for you tripping over every step you took *yeesh!* you thought to your self *Pull your self together! hes your friend, now stop it!* you continued to your self.... Julie's chuckle interrupted your thoughts and you turned to face her "So, you going to tell me whats really going on with you and Luke or are you gonna continue with the 'we're just friends' bull crap?" Julie said to you with a smile hoping to get something out of you, you sigh and roll your eyes "Seriously Jules, its nothing, we just like hanging out together" you said not really making eye contact with her, you could tell she wasn't gonna give up "Y/N! people who hold hands that often and sneak off together with out telling people.... usually aren't 'just friend'" she said the last part using air quotations around Just Friends, which you understood why she thought that.... You and Luke did seem really close... but that was the thing, you guys were just really close, he was like your second best friend at this point... you continued to look off, softly crossing your arms in insecurity still confused about your own feelings "Well, I guess we are the small percentage that is just friends.... so sorry to disappoint if you were looking for a more juicy story Jules" you said in a tone that wasn't very believable and Julie could see right through it "Well I think you should talk to him about how he is feeling... thats all" She said in her caring Julie tone that you grew to know over the many years of friendship, she only used this tone when she really cared and wanted you know it, Julie did a caring sigh and put her hand on your back "Listen, Y/N, if your avoiding having feelings for him just because he is my bandmate.... then this is me giving you permission or whatever to go ahead and go for it... because I don't care and quite frankly think you two would be cute" She said still in the same caring voice, but with a slight chuckle at the end, and then she removed her hand "But please be careful, I know he got a second chance at kind of being a live I guess you can say..... But you don't know how long that is gonna last ... so just be cautious" Julie said but this time more serious, you could tell she thought about this many times, concerning all the boys .... they slowly became a second family to her and you know how hard it would be when they eventually do have to cross over. You didnt want to even think about that.... You never wanted to think of a life with out them either.... with out .... Luke.... you shook your head to get the thought out of your head. You turned to Julie and gave her a hug resting your chin on her shoulder, you could feel a small tear come to your eye just from your previous thought "Thank you Jules" you said with sincerity, and then pulling away, Julie smiled as you guys continued walking "Of course! youre my best friend!" she exclaimed and then her face started to turn cocky "And I knew you liked him .... that just proved it" she said in a confident teasing tone, you laughed "WHAT? How?" you said with a gasp, she rolled her eyes "Oh please!! your literally crying at the thought of him crossing over" she said still in that cocky tone, you weren't award that your tear was that obvious, you quickly wiped your eyes and turned back to her "Excuse me! that doesn't mean I like him! it just means that I care for him because he is my friend" you said again with a tone that was not believable in the slightest, Julie laughed "Uh huh!" She looked to the side down the street we were in front of, which was Julies street "Well as you know this is where I leave you" she said with a sigh, and then she smiled "Text me, or FaceTime me when you are ready to admit that you are totally in love with Luke!" She yelled as she ran down the street, and you laughed because she tripped over

a rock on the way "Yeah! well then I wouldn't worry about checking your phone because thats not gonna happen!!" you yelled back to her "Liar!" she yelled as she approached her house, you rolled your eyes and continued walking.

When you finally got home you turned on your lights to find Luke, just casually sitting on your bed, leaned back, Legs crossed, and reading your Diary, You slammed the door to get his attention, He looked up slowly in the corner of his eyes, his eyes widening when he saw it was you and then the biggest half smile because he was chewing on a guitar pick "Y/N!!! Finally your here!" he said so excited he sat up and brought his legs into a criss cross apple sauce position, You stomped over to the bed and snatched your Diary out of his hands "Luke!" you exclaimed, his face fell, his eyes getting big but in a sad way this time, like he was a puppy dog, you sighed "You cant just read my diary..." you said as you sat on the bed next to him "I write personal, private stuff in there.... hence diary sir" you said pointing at the diary In your hands, he pouted his lip, but now you knew he was teasing because the pout had a hint of a smile "Im so sorry Y/N.... can you ever forgive me" he said in the fakest baby voice you have ever heard, as he leaned closer to you, you laughed and rolled your eyes putting your whole hand on his face pushing him away in a teasing manner, him laughing and sitting back up, nudging closer to you in the process "Anyways, I didnt read anything Juicy...." he said with a cocky smile, you knew something was up "What did you read Luke?" you asked with a huff scared to find out what he now knows, he pursed his lips and grew a mischievous face "welllllll..... I mean do I really have that great of abs ... like I haven't worked out in 25 years and I ate a whole pizza yesterday " he said looking down at his stomach, slightly lifting his shirt, then looking up at you with a smile, you gasp and then hit him in the shoulder "OUCH! make that 3 times that you have hit me today... really starting to hurt my feelings" Luke said laughing, you laughed "You wanna make it 4 because we can" you said with a cocky tone, he smiled with tight lips not showing his teeth showing he was thinking about it "Nah... unless you had a different form of hitting in mind?" he said with a cocky tone and wink, your eyes got big and your mouth fell open "LUKE!" you said hitting him once again "MAKE THAT 4!" he exclaimed, grabbing his arm and laughing "well thats what you get for being gross" you said tilting your head to the side, now his mouth fell wide open in offense "Oh so I have in your words 'the best abs I have ever seen, I just wanna like ice cream off them' but it would be gross to have sex with me......" he said still in a cocky, but jokingly offended tone, then looked off as if to think about it "Alright then" he said nodding his head slightly, then moving closer to you and leaning back into the same position he was in when you came home, You looked to the side and sighed "Yeah it would be gross, especially since you read that" you said in a sassy tone, he squinted his eyes and got close to your face scrunching up his nose as he said these next words "oh yeah? how gross would it be?" he said in cocky tone that brought out his slight accent that was almost a whisper, You could feel your hear race, that feeling in your stomach was back, but you got closer to his face, now you two were only centimeters apart "Oh it would be the grossest thing in the world Patterson" you said almost in a whisper, he tightened his lips together still squinting his eyes and then nodding, moving away from your face so fast and immediately going back to his teasing tone and huge smile "Alright! Good thing, we're just friends right" He said in teasing tone, your eyes got wide as you didnt know how to process what just happened, you had to catch your breath for a minute, were you and Luke really just discussing sex? you looked at him and smiled "Yeah! good thing" you said slightly out of breath, he smiled back at you and then he he got excited standing up so fast with the biggest smile on his face "I ALMSOT FORGOT!" he said almost as excited as this morning by the lake "I have something for you" he said going over to the corner of the room where he hid

whatever

it was, you were so distracted by everything you totally forgot he had gotten you something, he turned around, now holding whatever it was behind his back, his face just read excited puppy on it "Okay!! hold out your hands" he said so excited he could hardly hold behind his back anymore, You put out your hands and in an instant he put the thing in your hands.. it was the panda from the movie theater, the one with the heart that said I adore you on it, you didnt even know how to react, you loved it, you looked at Luke and then back at the panda and then brought it into your chest so tight squeezing it "YOU GOT ME THE PANDA!" you exclaimed so excited your self, Luke hopped forward with the biggest smile sitting back down next you on the bed "Yeah!!! I GOT YOU THE PANDA!" he exclaimed back still with the biggest smile, with out thinking you threw your arms around Luke giving him a big hug squeezing him so tight to you, he squeezed you back, you both laid down on the bed together still in the hug "Im glad you like it" he whispered in your ear while playing with your hair, you nuzzled your face into his chest "I don't like it..... I love it" you said cuddling in closer to him, holding him tight so he wouldn't leave "Hey Luke.... " you said softly, him still playing with your hair "Yeah Y/N?" he replied in a soft tone, you squeezed him closer "Don't leave tonight okay?" you said now half awake, he smiled "I won't..." He replied now braiding a piece of your hair, you felt him slide down a little bit, putting your hair down, now wrapping his arms completely around you as you drifted off to sleep feeling the most comfortable and safest you have ever felt. *Just friends* you thought to your self right before sleep came.

The next morning you woke up, Lukes arms still wrapped around you, he got to choose when he wanted to sleep since he was a ghost, when you looked up at his face he was in a deep sleep, you could see a slight smile on his face, you squeezed him in closer nuzzling your face into his chest to you wake your self up taking his scent which was something like abrocrombie and fitch and nature, you loved it.... he shifted a little bit as you nuzzled, you looked up and he was now looking at you with a soft smile "Goodmorning Beautiful" he said in his raspy morning voice, you smiled "Goodmorning sir" you said still waking up, he continued smiling "You have a cute morning voice" he said, still with his own morning voice, you blush, you didnt even realize you had morning voice "Thank you" you said shyly smiling into his chest, you look up at him "Thank you for staying last night" you said with a sincere soft voice, he looked down into your eyes softly "Of course..... " he said with a soft sincere tone, then he scrunched his eyebrows together, now thinking "Was there a reason you wanted me to stay?" he asked intrigued by the answer, you put your face back into his chest "I don't know.... I just wanted you to stay..." you said softly, you looked back up to see his response, his smile was back, he looked into your eyes and then he leaned down and kissed you, pressing his lips softly against yours, you kissed him back, and as quickly as it happen you both pulled away, his eyes wide and your eyes wide, you sunk back down with your face in his chest, you felt him tense up a little bit, not because he was uncomfortable but because he felt confused "was.... was that okay?" he asked softly, you had to think about it for a second, then you squeezed him closer "Yeah that was okay... it was just a kiss" you said shyly but confident.... you felt him relax again, and just like last night started playing with your hair, you sighed "We're friends... we were just caught in the moment" you said still sighing hoping that he wouldn't be freaked out, you felt him stop playing with your hair for a moment as if he had to think about something, and then he continued "Yeah.... friends" he said almost in a defeated tone.

It was really hard to get out of bed and go to school, it was so comforting laying in bed with Luke.... you guys laid there for about 30 minutes before you had to get up and get ready. Luke seemed down the rest of the time you were together before you left, he just didnt seem like himself.

You saw Julie and Flynn talking down the hallway, Carrie was with them since they made up after The bands performance at The Orpheum, it was nice having Carrie back your group.... but you just weren't up for talking to anyone, you tried to be low-key so they wouldn't notice but it didnt work "Y/N!" they all yelled in unison, you turned putting a fake smile on your face in hopes they would read your real emotions "Hey! guys!" you said with as much enthusiasm as you could manage, they didnt buy it "Whats wrong?" Carrie asked crossing her arms, demanding the truth, you sighed *dang it* you thought to your self "Nothing, just confused" you said with a dejected tone, Julie sighed and faced Carrie and Flynn "Our girl here has conflicting feelings about Luke" Julie said in an informative tone, Carrie nodded her head in agreement "I could have told you guys that" she said confidently, Flynn smiled super big "I knew it!! I SO knew it!" she said all hyped up, your eyes widening "What do you mean you all knew it! there's nothing to know!" You exclaimed and then looked to the side confused "I think...." you said in a softer but confused tone, all three girls rolled their eyes in unison "You do! we have known you since we were 5, we know!" Carrie said still confident, you looked at them and rolled your eyes in exasperation "Ugh! you guys are impossible" you exclaimed and started walking to class, as they all laughed at your response following after you "Oh she's in love" Flynn laughed.

After a long day at school, and then your job at your local Frozen Yogurt hang out, you were exhausted, you couldn't stop thinking about last night though, your emotions were .... all over the place. You sighed in relief at the fact that you avoided the topic with your friends though.... you didnt know how to explain it to your self let alone them.

You walked into your room, where you found a restless Luke that was pacing back and forth biting his thumb, you closed the door and he stopped in his tracks and looked at you with a passion in his eyes that was slightly confused, he dropped his hand from his mouth "Screw it!" he exclaimed and before you knew it he swiftly removed his white sleeveless tee and was pushing you against your door crushing his lips against yours, your lips moving so fluidly together, he tugged at the bottom of your work shirt as if to ask if it was okay to remove it, with out thinking you lifted your arms above your head only breaking the kiss for a second so he could swiftly remove your top, the cold air hitting your skin causing you to realize how on fire you were for him, not wanting that feeling to end you tangle your hands in his hair slightly tugging it as your kiss grew more passionate, you felt him pick you up, you wrapped your legs around his waist in response, he swiftly took you both over to your bed dropping you on to it, him gently falling over you, immediately kissing your neck tracing it down to your collar bone, you look up biting your lip, what was going on you wondered to your self, you didnt know but you liked it, you liked it alot... then you both stopped at the sudden gush of air you both felt, you both look up and see Alex and Reggie standing at the other side of your room, both with tight lipped smiles and bright cheeks, wide eyes with fists in front of their mouths "OH! JUST FRIENDS MY --" Alex started to exclaim with a laugh until Luke interupted him "SHUT UP ALEX!" Luke exclaimed with a sigh as he fell on his back right next to you on the bed, putting his hand over his eyes in frustration, Reggie laughing "Ehm Y/N, would you like your top back?" Reggie said with a smile picking up your shirt and handing it to you, you smile shyly and nod your head taking the shirt and sitting up to put it on "Thanks reg" you said, a little embarrassed "well, we just came to see if you two wanted to come get food with all of us.... but please... finish!" Alex said in a cocky tone, laughing a little bit, Reggie sighed playfully, hitting Alex's arm "Be cool man! That was mean...... anyway I don't think he would be able to finish now..... two of your friends popping up and laughing causes what I like to call a De-rection" he said smiling laughing at himself and widening his in approval at his joke, in which Alex looked at him like he was disappointed and shook his head no, then looked back at us "Well you kids compose yourself, and we will meet you both there...... alright...." Alex said still slightly laughing and then they both poofed out just as Reggie was defending himself to Alex concerning his joke. Once they were gone you laid back down on the bed next to Luke, he removed his hands from his eyes to look at you, you both shyly smiled "soooooo what was that?" you asked slightly teasing him but was genuinely curious, he sighed and then looked up at the ceiling "That was me acting on the thoughts I have been having all day since last night, and since this morning when you said ..... we were just friends" he said the last part like he had a bad taste in his mouth, then he looked back at you "I guess I didnt like that" he said softly, smiling shyly, you nudged closer to him "I don't know if I liked that I said that either....." you admitted, he looked at you, both of you just staring into each others eyes "What do we do now?" he asked softly.... You twiddled your thumbs "I guess we could pretend nothing happened and continue as we were....." you said softly, not knowing if thats really what you wanted, he sighed "Yeah.... I guess thats probably for the best" he said nudging a little closer to you, now with your arms lightly brushing against each other, then Luke sighed, and then smiled a shy cocky smile "But ya know if ya ever actually wanna lick ice cream off my abs! we could do that" he said laughing, and nudge his shoulder laughing and he laughed in response "BUT! I get to so the same to you! its only fair" he said in a teasing tone,

you

laughed "True that is only fair" you said in a teasing tone to match his, you both now just looking into each others eyes, He bites his lip and brushes your hair behind your ear, "Just friends?" he whispers.

[miyuhpapayuh]

24. Point of view

"This place is so cute, Stevie!" Tyler exclaims, pushing her cheetah print sunglasses up over her eyes.

"I thought so, too! I love this cute little deck we're sitting on, and the top floor has a wine bar!" Stevie squeals.

Tyler's face scrunches up, causing Stevie to laugh.

"Before you start!” Stevie stops Tyler's response in its tracks, "I know you like your hard liquor, wild child. I just think you should at least try it."

"I don't know about that."

"You mean to tell me, Chris has never offered to get you glass of wine after a long day?"

"He has. I told him that I didn't drink wine, and he went to the liquor store and picked up two vodka blue’s, came back and we had a great night. Very relaxing."

"Whatever works for you, man. I just want you try it."

"Ugh. If you're gonna pout about it." Tyler huffs.

Stevie waves her off and sips her mimosa.

“I'm not messin' with you. How's the husband?"

"As much as I enjoy that man.... we're nowhere near marriage. He'd look real good in a tuxedo, though." They share a laugh. "Anyway, he's fine. Work's been kinda kicking his ass, hopefully that lets up soon."

"At the club? Or??"

"Nah, the radio station. Him and some guy got into it in the parking lot, cause his girl was being rude. She called in bein' all hostile and Chris gave it to her, straight. She ain't like that, so she told her pit bull to come and fight him."

"Did they fight??"

Tyler snorts.

"No. The station is back in Manhattan, but them white people don't be playin' with us. Them cops was called faster than I could blink."

"You were there??" Stevie asks, eyes widening,

Tyler slaps her thighs in a very “of course my dumb ass was out there. I love that man!” manor without saying a word.

"Outside! In my good heels, cause I try to be cute at all times! In the damn parking lot, tryna calm one man down while ten seconds close to punchin' the fuck outta the other one. It was intense. Cops showed up and Chris pushed my ass back on the sidewalk. I felt like I had gotten in trouble."

"Aww, he ain't want you gettin' in trouble!" Stevie coos.

"I woulda been okay." She shrugs. "How's your baby daddy?"

"He's actually doing really good. Work's great. He's started getting more time off, which is nice. He's been hinting at being more than just my man, as of lately."

"While that's not shocking to me, that's still major!" She shakes her shoulder.

"It is! It's got me a little nervous."

"Why?" Tyler asks.

"You know... I'm not entirely sure. I think it's just me. My nerves get bad, sometimes.”

"Well, if you're not entirely ready for marriage, you should talk to him."

"It's not even that I'm not ready, I mean, I'd say yes, regardless. I love that man. I just like being his girlfriend... is that weird??" She asks.

"Stevie, this has been your only relationship. Of course, it's not weird! You be a girlfriend and enjoy as much of it as you can, and then enjoy the fuck out of being a wife!"

"You think he's gonna be upset when I tell him this?"

"The way you always call him a sweetheart, he shouldn't be anything other close to upset. He should understand you and where you're coming from, which I'm sure he will."

"Thanks, Ty."

Tyler's heart swims for her best friend, although, she wondered when her and Chris were gonna get there in their own relationship.

"I'm really happy for you, Stevie."

"And, I'm happy for you!"

A comfortable silence falls over them as they resume eating their, still warm, breakfast.

"Mm!" Tyler wipes her mouth with a napkin, "before I forget. I ran into Darla."

Stevie's incredulous expression almost makes her choke.

"Where??"

"The mall. She was there with some boy. You wanna tell me what color he was?" Tyler snickers.

"She finally got her a negro?? Oh, God!" She clasps her hands over her mouth, failing to hide her cackling. Tyler joins in, snickering away.

"She shol did. Look like she hit the lottery. She was still her bitchy self, but there's some sugar in it, now."

"Life is wild, ain't it?"

"Cheers to that!" They clink their half empty glasses together.

༺═────────────────────═༻

"Honey, I'm home!" Stevie calls as she opens the front door, sitting her purse on the table.

"Hey, gorgeous,” he greets, coming around the corner to wrap his arms around her waist from behind, inhaling her scent.

"I missed you." He presses kisses to her jaw and cheek, hugging her tighter. She blushes profusely, glad he can't see her face.

Relaxing in his embrace, she contently sighs.

"I missed you, too." She places her hands on top of his, squeezing them.

"You look pretty."

She giggles. "Thank you, baby."

"How was breakfast?"

"It was great. Tyler says hey. We caught up, which felt like we never left off. Talked about everything under the sun!”

"That's always a great thing, babe."

"Yeah, of course! It just really felt nice to be back with my girl, man. We haven't hung out like that, in a minute."

"You're making me miss my boys, cut it out." He fake pouts, twirling her around in his hold, her giggles filling his ears.

Pulling her back into his chest, he attacks her lips with wet kisses, unintentionally ruining her panties, as their tongues begin to wrestle.

Pulling away from their lip lock, she pants wildly.

"I.. I had a few drinks, and I'm not afraid to fuck you in this kitchen."

The wicked smirk on his lips turns her into a complete puddle.

Dragging a finger down her cleavage, he reaches back up to grip her neck, pulling her closer to him.

“Get upstairs.”

Sprawled out in the mess of sheets, as bare as the day they were born, the lovers wrap up in one another, savoring their intimate moment.

"Proposal's right around the corner," Rod mumbles into her fingertips, as his soft lips brush over them.

"Oh yeah?"

"Mhm. I've already got a ring." He casually says, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

"Picked out?" She asks, impressed.

"I bought it." He says, pressing another kiss to her lips. 

Her brows lift as she pushes up from her position, causing him sit up as well.

"Excuse me…what?" She asks in shock, eyes wide.

He chuckles, reaching out for her hands. "Stevie, stop playin'."

"No. You stop playin'! You bought an engagement ring??"

"Of course I did.” He jerks his head back a bit.

“I meant it, when I said I was marrying you sooner than you think. You ain't take me seriously?"

Still flustered at the thought of him buying her a ring, she opens her mouth to speak, but nothing comes out.

"Vie." He calls, worried he might've done too much.

"Gimme a second," she responds, sliding her hands out of his to pull the sheet over her naked frame.

"I didn't take you for a joke when you said it, I just.. I didn't think you'd go out and buy a ring. That's huge!" She stares at him with wide eyes.

"I'm sorry I overwhelmed you, baby. I just like being steps ahead of you. I'm not gonna rush it because I agree, we're not ready just yet, I just like to know that it'll already be there, when the time is right." he winks at her.

Her cheeks flush red.

"A well calculated man, indeed. You scare me, sometimes." She laughs, running her fingers through her sweaty hair.

"You wouldn't say yes, if I asked you tomorrow?" He teases, making her laugh.

"Roderick, you could ask me, right now, and I'd say yes. I just wanna be your girlfriend for a little bit longer, since this is the only time I'll be one. That's all." She shrugs.

He softens his defense, reaching back out for her hands. "I understand, baby."

"Are you upset?"

"Of course not. I didn't mean to make you feel rushed. I just know that I wanna marry you." He softly smiles.

"I wanna marry you, too."

"That's all I need, baby," he pressed kisses to her hands, “maybe a baby or two."

Stevie softly laughs. "A baby or two, huh?"

"A boy and a girl. Sounds good to me!"

"Me too! You have any names picked out?"

"Hm... I don't, actually. I just know I ain't gon be that dad that names his kid, Roderick jr." Stevie laughs, looking at the grimace that spreads across his face at the thought.

"Aw, a little Roderick jr. sounds so cute, though!"

His expression worsens, making her double over in laughter.

"You can't be serious." He shakes his head at her. "It's bad enough, me and that motherfucker's name start with the same letter. Ma woulda caught all the hell if she named me Richard jr. That's enough." He plainly states.

"Okay, okay. No jr's, got it."

She holds her hands out, welcoming him back into her embrace, “come'ere, my big baby."

They lay back down in the sheets. Her nails draw a pattern on his back as he drifts off to sleep.

"I love you." He says.

"And, I love you."

༺═────────────────────═༻

I want you, forever.

On rainy days,

After you've given a headache.

On sunny ones,

When I push your buttons.

On busy days,

When we get a little too carried away.

I want you, on bad days

When we shut down and isolate.

On good days,

Where life seems so sweet.

Even if we're unsure,

I'm always certain about one thing..

I want you, forever.

༺═────────────────────═༻

"Aye, David... Can I talk to you for a minute?" Rod asks, as he walks into his mother's kitchen, where David's cooking Sunday dinner for the foursome.

"What's on your mind, son."

Setting his elbows on top of the island, he gazes out of the big windows at his two favorite girls, laughing it up about God knows what.

"I'm ready to marry Stevie." He says, clearly.

"That's obvious, you know." David chuckles, covering the pots on stove, and turning to face Rod.

He cracks a smile. "I guess you're not wrong."

They share a laugh.

"Have you told her?"

"We talked last night, yeah. She's not quite as eager as I am, but I'm not mad. Just gives me more time to plan things.

"Well, having an understanding is very important in any relationship, so that's great." He pats his shoulder.

"So, you got a ring picked out, yet?"

“I actually do, it looks like something of her dreams.” He smiles.

“Yeah?”

“Got a sweet deal on it, too! Only five fifty!”

“That's a mighty sweet deal, what does it look like, though? You got me excited.” David laughs.

“Oh yeah! She stresses about her jewelry being rose gold, so I got a rose gold band and there's pink diamonds across the front, like petals almost. It's so dainty I was scared to hold it in my hand!” He stresses, chuckling to himself.

David fondly shakes his head.

“She's gonna love it. I already know it.”

“I hope so. I'm so nervous, even after talking about everything. I just want it to be perfect. She deserves that.”

“After everything you two have been through, I doubt the last thing she's needing from you is perfection. You know her like the back of your hand— I mean, just listen to you talking about this ring was wild, I think you're more excited than she is,” he pokes fun, making Rod laugh.

“Just go with your gut, son. No way you could mess this up.

“Thanks, man. You're not always a pain in the ass.”

“Ah, there he is!” He pokes again, cackling up a storm as Rod heads out the back door.

"There's my handsome man." Viv says, her warm hand reaching for Rod’s cheek.

"This is the best lemonade I've ever had, by the way."

"I know what I be doin', ma." He smiles, looking over at Stevie, giving her a wink. She blushes like always.

"What y'all out here talkin' bout?" He asks, draping his arm around Stevie's shoulder, pulling her into his side.

"Stevie tells me that you guys are taking a trip, soon."

"Yeah. The boys wanna get out the country and go to Jamaica for a lil bit. His girl's coming, so Stevie won't be the only girl there." He chuckles. "Sounds like it'll be fun."

"Yes, of course. You two just be very careful. Don't be getting into trouble."

"Ah, that's my middle name." Rod jokes.

"Don't make me hurt you, child."

"I don't wanna see nothing!" Stevie covers her eyes, the pair laughing at her.

"But, seriously. You two be careful." Viv stresses.

"We will, ma. I promise."

“I'll make him call you as soon as we land. My folks already gave me the same spiel.” Stevie says.

“See? Smart parents!”

“Ma, come on. We got common sense, right?”

“Your friends are questionable, especially outside the country. Flight risks.”

“Ma,” he laughs, not believing how she's talking about his friends.

“I love them like they're my own, which is why I'm saying what I'm saying,” she defends, making Stevie giggle and step away to drink her lemonade.

“Oh god,” she mutters, waving at David through the kitchen window.

“Those two at it, again?” He asks, opening the door as she heads up the stairs to talk to him.

“Aren't they always?” She laughs, taking in the aroma coming from inside the kitchen.

“What's for dinner?”

“Pork chops, mashed potatoes, macaroni, rice and green beans.”

“Oh man, that all sounds so good!!”

“And, there's red velvet cake for dessert. Also might've picked up somebody's favorite ice cream.”

“You got that boy almond fudge ice cream?? Aww, y'all do like each other!” She coos, rubbing his shoulder.

“Yeah, yeah. Knucklehead ain't too bad.” He smiles. “I'll let you know when the food’s ready.”

@thegifstories @blackerthings @abeautifulmindexposed @slippinninque @vonsbabymama2005 @ghostfacekill-monger @honestpreference @soufcakmistress @megamindsecretlair @starcrossedxwriter @dbaileyblog @planetblaque @harmshake @mauvecherie-writes