#*bangs loudly at keyboard*

[yestrday]

: ̗̀➛ YANDERE SALARYMAN IS A FOOL FOR YOU .

ahhh, looks like you caught the attention of an overworked white collar! who is truly the victim here, you or him?

( yandere, perverted man!!!, nsfwish but no s3x, hes creepy :(( ) + thanks to my bbg for being my beta reader mwah mwah

YANDERE! SALARYMAN who is constantly overworked to the bone by his abusive boss. He's clocked in so many overtime hours that human resources is beginning to suspect something, but his co-workers keep pushing their work onto him that he can't help but go overtime. Working days always seem to be like this— constant yelling by his shitty boss, papers jamming the printer, co-workers dumping more work on him before time-out, the side-eyes and whispers of women directed at him in the elevator, and somehow always forgetting to bring the lunchbox his roommate made for him.  He's a pushover with no backbone, so he spends most of his nights banging loudly at his keyboard and cursing his own spinelessness.

YANDERE! SALARYMAN who's just a walking black hole of negativity. It's already bad enough that he's been dealing with a lot of mental baggage from his childhood, but this stupid fucking black company is making him this close to fucking losing it.

YANDERE! SALARYMAN who only wants to go pick up a coffee after work and sees you manning the cafe. Just a sweet little thing, working their student debt away at the new cafe's that opened up near his workplace. He tells himself that it's all part of your job to smile and be polite but fuck— your sweet grin's making his hands go clammy and his voice tremble.The line behind him shoots him judgmental glances because the creep is blushing and sweating and stumbling over his words but if you were ever annoyed, you don't show it on your face. No one’s been this nice to him, but when your fingers brush over his shaking ones when you hand him his order, electricity spikes from his fingertips and sends his heart into overdrive as you flash him another service smile. He has never believed in a god before, but upon meeting you, he might as well declare himself religious.

YANDERE! SALARYMAN who feels super guilty about drooling over you when you're several years younger than him. You're just a college student trying to finish your studies while he's a white-collar slave about to enter his 30s. The contrast between you and him is like heaven and hell, and he curses himself for being such a stupid filthy pervert as he palms himself to your Instagram page he's managed to find.

YANDERE! SALARYMAN who is once again tired and about to die from another night of overtime, heading out to catch the last ride home and surprised to see you closing up shop. You brighten when you recognize him as one of your regulars (he could give two shits about the black coffee he was ordering when he was too busy ogling you). He stammers and shrinks when you ask him about how he's doing out of concern. You mention his eyebags and his pale skin and his overall sickly demeanor and you fret over him as you two walk to the station. He's at a loss for words when you force the ham and cheese croissant into his hands and tell him to eat up, before waving at him with a grin as you enter your bus.

Woah. So like. You're in love with him, right?

YANDERE! SALARYMAN who goes fucking crazy over this interaction. He knows, he knows, he knows, okay?! You’re just nice like that, but his affection-deprived mind is going into overdrive and can’t help but overthink. But he has to stop himself. You’re probably only like that because you pity him, huh? Whatever’s on his pallid face and baggy eyes must have had you pitying the minimum wage salaryman. … This pity act is probably only to make you feel better about yourself, handing croissants out to whichever near-death white collar you see on the street like some sort of good Samaritan. Well, he doesn’t need it! You can fuck off with your—

YANDERE! SALARYMAN who finds himself in front of the cafe again, nervously adjusting his tie and wiping his clammy hands on his slacks before pushing the doors open. You’re on the morning shift today (haha wow what a coincidence) and the grogginess from waking up extra early today is wiped clean after you look up from the tabletop you’re wiping and shoot him one of your megawatt smiles. Fuck fuck fuck why’d you have to be so damn cute! A man could get the wrong idea, you know?!  

“Espresso for Doppo!” Your bright voice rings throughout the cafe and the salaryman has to gulp down his anxiety as he makes his way to the counter. His neck grows hot as he feels glares boring into the back of his head, and the only relief he has is your sunny smile when he picks up his order. “Thanks again for your patronage! Quite the regular here, aren’t you? All staff’s been ecstatic over a Matenro member stopping by here.”

Ugh… The staff knows him? Not only is an insignificant water flea like him taking up a space in your mind, but there are others as well? What could they be possibly saying about him? He nervously laughs, eyes darting around the place as he fidgets. “Uh, ah, y– you know me…?”

He can feel the look that you’re shooting him right now, and he wants to dig a hole for him to hide away in. “Of course! Matenro, the winners of the first Division Battle… waaah, I was so ecstatic when I saw you for the first time! You guys were so cool. I was even cheering you on during the second Division Battle.” You sigh sadly. “Well, Fling Posse’s good, but a Shinjuku local’s gotta stay loyal, y’know?” Oh, so it’s just about being loyal. What was he even thinking, getting his hopes up that maybe you liked Matenro, liked him, for their rap. Stupid, stupid, stupid— “Oh, but don’t get me wrong though! I love the way you guys do hiphop. Especially your screaming shtick, Kannonzaka! Can really feel the pent-up stress from Chuohku all the way to here, haha!”

Doppo shrinks into himself, using his work bag to try and hide the shaky smile that’s been threatening to break out onto his face. To… To think the cute barista he’s been crushing on for a month now is a fan of him… This kind of stuff only happened to Hifumi, not him! He doesn’t… He’s not quite sure to handle the situation. Instead he nods as you gush over Matenro and at the end, finally squeaks out a tiny little, “Th– Thanks!”

You shoot him a pitying look. Clearly all that rap about his pent-up stress and rage is clearly stemming from somewhere. Sighing and looking at the building in front of you, you see the skyscraper’s soulless windows and architecture and sigh. “Enjoy the coffee then, Kannonzaka. Being a black company worker is stuff but!” You shoot him a grin and a thumbs up. “I’m rooting for you and Matenro!”

YANDERE! SALARYMAN who’s reeling from your compliments and praise. Oh… Oh god. You– You liked him! Actually liked him. And, and you said you were cheering for him too! Well, him and Matenro, but still! He goes back to his apartment feeling more chipper than usual, something that his roommate notices. The creepy smile matched with the dark laughter as he enters their apartment isn’t exactly charming, but he’s happy to see him happy nonetheless. He thinks that he’s been wearing that gloomy look for far too long and he’s glad to know that he’s found someone to brighten up his days.

YANDERE! SALARYMAN who has gained some courage to hold longer conversations with you. When you’re working the night shift and run into him after closing up, he’s glad to know that you take his dry humor very well. As the two of you silently walk together to the station, he can feel his heart beating so fast that he might near collapse. He wipes his sweaty palms on his slacks and swallows down the anxiety in his stomach. It’s already weird to see a near 30 man walking together with a fresh-faced uni student alone and at night, so he might as well not add more to his creepiness.

YANDERE! SALARYMAN who has to bite down his tongue when you press up against him in the jampacked train. You smell like coffee and pastries and he— he tries not to sniff himself— probably smells like sweat. A sudden lurch of the train has you clinging to him to maintain stability and oh god oh god oh god you smell so fucking good shit. He suppresses the urge to sniff your hair. Instead, he (oh gosh he was really about to this) shakily wraps one arm around you, his palm on your lower back to offer you more support. You smile at him so sweetly, as if the dirty old man didn’t have the agenda of just trying to feel you up. Oh… oh gosh he can feel the dip of your lower back… trailing to your—

He hopes you don’t feel the tent down… there. Though with how tightly you two are up against each other, he highly doubts that.

“Bye Mr. Kannonzaka!” You cheerily wave to him as you both part ways at your stop. Though he is unable to match your energy, he waves you off with a faint smile before you bound off to your home. His eyes linger long as your figure disappears into the distance and he’s left all on his lonesome.

— Then he runs off to the nearest bathroom. People cast him weird glances as he rushes off to the farthest bathroom stall and sits on the toilet, burying his head in his hands as he tries to make sense of the numerous thoughts rampaging in his head.

Oh god. That just happened, didn’t it? Something straight out of those perverted doujinshis that happen on trains. And he was the ugly bastard, wasn’t he?! The weird, creepy, scummy ones preying on innocent girls that don’t deserve their fantasies. He was a hopeless case. He should do the entire world a favor and make away with himself, but then he couldn’t see your pretty face in the hell that he was going to. You didn’t deserve this—

His phone dings. He checks the text notification that comes from you.

[Your Name]: heya ! just curious about what brand your bag is. felt it on the train and dats sum serious quality leather!

He screams into his hand. The man in the stall beside him angrily knocks on their shared wall to shut him up. He rack his brain to try and figure out any possible way to properly answer without rousing suspicion until you send another text.

[Your Name]: just kidding~ (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧ 

…

… You’re going be to the death of him, you. Youngsters these days.

you thought this was a general yandere fic, didn't you?! get hypmiced!!! /matenros you/

[heetos]

plushies and headsets? ･ﾟﾟ･｡

pairing- best friend!heeseung x tiny!afab!reader

synopsis - no one expected that a mall trip with your best friend, where you spot your favorite plushy store, could end up in him making you cum all over his sheets.

tw - size kink (he's huge), tiny reader, plushy humping, masturbation, cursing, use of nicknames, best friends down bad, lmk if i missed something!!!

word count - 1.9k

a/n - stop i hate this aahhh!!! seems like u guys like huge hee n soft toys ;) i love making manly guys crazy for girly girls.. pls lmk your thoughts rahh :3

taglist - @whowantshota

as the weekends roll around, you find yourself at heeseung's house, watching him furiously click away on his keyboard.

you know he's your best friend, but he looks ethereal like this. messy hair from his headset moving around, his bangs a little sweaty from the match, his shirt sitting perfect on top of him, his thighs spread out on his chair as he cusses at his screen.

"fuck" he hisses, missing another hit as his eyes remain glued to his screen.

you know he's your best friend, but why do you clench your thighs together whenever he cusses?

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧⋆ ˚｡⋆

heeseung's a big guy, much much larger than you. his hands, twice the size of your small ones, his face, beyond your reach.

"hee!!" you pout and look up at him after reapplying your lip gloss, eyes twinkling, batting your pretty eyelashes up at him. "is it too much..?"

to say heeseung is in love is an understatement. he's in awe as he finds himself zoned out looking at your tiny figure under him. he just wants to put his arms around your tiny waist, pick you up and kiss the lip gloss off your lips.

"hee..?" you whisper, blinking up at him, you find him zoned out with his eyebrows raised in surprise.

"oh... y-yeah.. looks great.." he manages to say, turning his eyes away from you to look at the plushie store. "why do you even need that, just lick your lips, same effect"

"ay! stop i paid $45 for this!!" your small fists land a punch at his muscular arm. you look at where his eyes are fixated, making you gasp. "plushies! i need to buy a new one!" you grab his arm, dragging him to the store as you run towards it, your cute little skirt riding upwards at your excitement.

heeseung feels warmth rush to his cheeks as he sees your tiny fingers struggle to grip onto his arm. your giggly state slowly making him lose his character.

your eyes sparkle as you enter the store, looking around for various types of plushies. "why do you even need these??, you've got like 4 already!" he huffs biting down his smile that naturally spreads across his face looking at you. "they're just full of cotton if didn't you know"

"woahh! i didn't know, i've been buying ones full of rocks all this while" you grit your teeth at him and slap his arm as he winces in pain.

"ugh you've got way too much strength for your tiny ass" he rolls his eyes and goes back to his phone, moving his thumbs around his screen, distracting himself from getting smitten by you.

25 minutes later, and you're still picking out the perfect new plush. debating weather you should get the cute strawberry one or the panda one. "heeseungggggg!!!"

"what" his blunt tone makes you pout up at him. when he removes his eyes from his phone, he chuckles loudly as his eyes meet your figure, completely hidden by the two large plushies in your arms.

"whatt!!" your voice comes out muffled behind the toys.

"nothing you look stupid as hell, what's taking you so long?"

"help me pick!!! they're both too cute!!" you tiptoe your way out of the plushies to look up at him properly.

"i literally saw a panda with a strawberry plush on your desk the other day" he sighs "just wait outside, i'll pick one out for you yeah?"

"really?" your eyes widen as you give him the biggest smile. "you better not pick an ugly one or else i'll beat you into a plush right here"

"fine geez i'll pick something 'cute' " he says visibly cringing at himself. taking the plushies out of your arms, smiling at how they now appear normal sized in his hold, he notices you walking out and opening your phone to call someone.

"fuck she's so cute" he mutters under his breath as he scans the store. maybe he's doing this for himself, just trying to get home quicker, but deep down he knows he's fucked with the way you jump excitedly.

"cute? what's cute..." with his hands in his pockets, he looks at some of them, imagining your cunt grinding against it. lewd thoughts flood his head even when he's trying not to think about you like that. "ugh i'll just get this weird ass bear" he pays for it quickly, rushing back to you.

"here idiot, take it" he hands the normal sized bear over to you while looking away.

"oh my god!!! hee!!!" you gasp, jumping up and down smiling and hugging the bear which almost covers your face. "it's adorable! i didn't think of this!!"

oh he's gone, he's so gone, he's so in love and is so visibly blushing at you. blood rushes to his cock once you jump up and down with it, "told you you'd like it" he chuckles, holding you down. "let's get home now i'll miss my game"

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧⋆ ˚｡⋆

you're now sitting on his bed, with your new bear in your hand as you watch heeseung from afar. you tilt your head like a puppy, looking at heeseung grunt and cuss at his screen, the movements of his fingers on the keyboard speeding up. "goddamn he's hot.." you mutter under your breath, trying to distract yourself from the heat thats beginning to build between your legs.

"ah fuck yes" he growls and runs his hands through his hair, putting his headphones back on as he makes a headshot.

the moment he curses, you find yourself slowly bringing your bear down in between your legs, trying to relieve some tension. "oh shit.." you whisper softly as you shudder from the sudden pleasure.

subconsciously, you wrap your legs around the soft plush and push your hips into it. you gasp as you let out a sudden soft moan at the feeling. you're so lost in the pleasure the soft bear is giving to your clit that you don't notice heeseung's mouth wide open staring at you.

"you have some nerve doing that in my bed" he scoffs, removing his headset as he adjusts himself in his chair, spreading his legs. he eyes full of lust as he fixates on your tiny body squirming in his bed.

heat rushes to your cheeks when you notice him getting comfortable to watch you. you feel yourself getting embarrassingly wet as his eyes land at where your cunt meets the bear. its exactly what he imagined, his lewd thoughts are finally coming to life. you're grinding against the bear he bought for you? in his room? looking at him?

"baby...go ahead and strip for me?"

its embarrassing how fast you comply, getting up and swiftly taking your shirt off, sliding down your shorts until you're left with a pink lace bra and baby pink underwear. "hee... what do you what me to do baby..?"

its crazy how fast the tension in the room shifted. two seconds ago you were squeezing your thighs together at him and now he's commanding you to get off. heeseung mutters out a soft moan when he sees your perfect tiny body, your pretty lips pouting at him, waiting for him to corrupt you. his hands slowly reach his pants, your eagerness going straight to his cock. "show me how you get off on it doll "

your cheeks flush red at his order. you bite your bottom lip as you tug your panties off. he groans when he sees a string of your arousal sticking to it. you slowly raise your hips as you keep the plush between your legs. the soft material coming in direct contact with your clit makes you roll your eyes back as you position yourself over it, lowering yourself slowly onto the fabric. "like this hee..?"

"oh fuck yeah' just like that baby" he throws his head back at the site, his cock twitching in anticipation. "you're so fuckin' cute baby" he whispers hoarsely. the precum stain forming a patch and deepening the color of his grey sweatpants.

you begin to grind your hips against the pillow, moaning softly as you watch his huge cock become visibly hard under his pants. "a-ah f-fuck..hee.. feels s-so good.." you whimper, eyes shut as you hump your plushy, putting on a show for him.

he watches every move of yours with hooded eyes, his tongue licking his lips as he draws his hand towards his cock, growing painfully hard by second. "oh you're so so sexy" he moans out as his hand comes in contact with his dick. "you-fuck-drive me fuckin' crazy princess" he growls as he throws his head back, squeezing his aching tip.

you lean forward, supporting yourself with one hand while using the other to grip the head of the plush. "n-gh一fuck-d-does it.. does it feel g-good for you too heeseung..?" you moan out his name opening your eyes and looking directly into his hooded eyes.

"fuck baby yeah' feels so good" his name has never sounded so fucking good coming from someone. something about your tiny fucking body humping his on huge fucking bed while moaning his fucking name sends him into a frenzy. he bites his lips as he looks directly into your eyes. "oh fuck sake" he mutters quickly as he removes his sweatpants and slides his boxers down. his dick rock solid as he trails his huge palm over it. "a-h baby.. you're s-so fuckin' hot" he barely lets out, his eyes focused on every single movement of your tiny body fucking yourself on a plush.

eyes widening, you gasp as you watch heeseung take his pants off, revealing his huge. fucking. cock. with a blood red tip aching to cum. you almost fall over with the image of his cock right in front of you. "fuck一 you're s-so huge.." you whine as you regain your balance and shut your eyes, riding the plush as if your life depends on it. you rock your hips back and forth rhythmically, the material soaked with your arousal, creating friction against your clit as you feel the knot in your stomach beginning to tighten. you move your tiny hands over to your tits as you speed up your movements.

"god fuckk" heeseung moans at the site, his hard cock covered in precum as he jerks himself up and down slowly, trying to match your rhythm. "shit一ah- cum for me doll" he groans loudly as he watches you rut against the plushy desperately. he has never wanted to be a piece of cotton so bad. he wants to be under you, he wants his face to be under you. he wants you to grind yourself down on his face, suffocate him, cum all over his face. "make a -fuck- make a mess baby" he groans out loud as he watches you edge closer and closer to your orgasm.

your body jerks forward as you grope your tit harshly. "f-fuckkkk.. h-heeseung!! -ah- 'm gnna cum!" drool spilling from your mouth, you look at him and let out a loud pornographic moan as you cum undone on the plushy.

your tiny body feeling weak from the intense orgasm, you fall on his bed but he catches you before you could hit the bed. "hee..." you whine breathlessly as your chest heaves up and down. he hovers over you, his huge body towering over your smaller one. he gently places a kiss on your forehead. "you're the prettiest and sexiest girl ever i swear to god" he smiles as his eyes turn over to the cum-covered abandoned plushy.

you flash him a soft smile, batting up your eyelashes at him, before feeling his rock hard dick grazing over your thigh.

"ready to get ruined by me now?"

end.

[ksakiswh0re-xo]

✧ cockwarming draken while you study :

cw: fem reader, cockwarming, draken teasing, dirty talk/praise, hair-pulling, backshots, spanking, big dick warning lolol

wc: 634

Imagine cockwarming Draken while you study. You're sitting on your bed with your laptop and books all around you and you're naked from the waist down as you try to focus on taking your notes, but it's hard because all you can think about is how deep his fat cock is nestled inside your warm hole.

He's got an arm wrapped around your waist, making sure that you don't move as he watches your screen over your shoulder while you type.

Experimentally, he gives you a little nudge just because he loves to see you fall apart for him so easily. He smirks and nips at your ear when you whine and your fingers fall from the keyboard and onto his thigh.

"Keep typing. Be a good girl for me. Gunna ace this test, aren't ya, baby?"

You're too dumb to talk so he grabs your jaw and squeezes, making you face him as he moves your head up and down in a nod.

"I know you are, because you're my smart girl, after all. Get to it, baby, so I can fuck this sweet pussy just how she needs to be fucked."

—-

“Focus.”

Draken growls into your ear as he kneels behind you, balls deep in your cunt.

You’re bent over your laptop taking a quiz, breasts dangling heavily beneath you and almost touching the keyboard from the mean arch that your boyfriend has you in.

“‘m focused, Ken…” Your voice wobbles as does your hand; your mouse shakily hovers over a wrong answer before you suck in a breath and correct it.

“That was a close call, but you caught it, baby. Look at you, you’re doing such a good job.”

He spanked your butt a couple of times then rubbed the supple flesh with his big hands.

“I-I’m done…” The quiz was now submitted: you scored 100%.

Draken’s grin grew wider, showcasing two rows of perfect white teeth that you could see reflected in your laptop screen.

“Good fucking girl.”

He moved over you to close the computer lid and slide it onto the floor, pushing himself even further against your womb before he eased about half of his length out.

“Put the rest of that shit on the floor,” Draken commanded, referring to your multiple books, pens, and highlighters.

You hurriedly brushed the items off the edge of the bed, some of the pens rolling across the hardwood while Draken grabbed your hair up into a makeshift ponytail and began fucking into you relentlessly.

“Ah ah ah ah! Ken!”

The bed squeaked and rocked, the headboard banging loudly against the wall that was sure to have your neighbors pissed at you, but how could you care when you were getting the best fucking reward? Literally.

Draken slowed down and eased himself in and out of you to let you hear the squelch of your wet pussy a few times before he was buried deep once again.

“Shit girl, your greedy pussy is squeezing me so fucking tight.”

Something in him snapped, and the next thing you knew, his entire weight was pressing down on you as he pulled your arms behind your back and held your wrists against your ass.

SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! SMACK!

Draken pummeled your pussy with ferocity until the both of you were moaning each others’ names out and spiraling into mind-numbing orgasms.

Finally, you were released and your fatigued body collapsed into the soft mattress. 

You could still feel your legs twitching while simultaneously your cunt contracted, releasing a thick gush of Draken’s cum.

Soft pecks were then pressed into your sweaty back until you rolled over to face your handsome lover, eyes fluttering dangerously as the urge to sleep swept over you.

“Rest for now. When you wake up, we’ll be on to the next subject.”

[cherrysoojins]

scream.

ghostface! choi san & ghostface! jung wooyoung, oneshot/drabble (no pt. 2), horror themes, subjects of murder, underlying yandere themes, for mature audiences ( no smut ).

🔪 ��� : the annual frat halloween party hosted by your two best friends was not supposed to turn into a actual halloween horror movie for you.

this was not how halloween night was supposed to go.

party music loud and blaring, drowning out the screams and the slaughter as everyone finds just one more person dead.

not just another person, but another person you slept with. another person you dated. another person who looked in your general vicinity. every male with at least some correlation to you, you realize, have all become victims of a murder in that house party.

how many people have died at this rate? you’re not too sure.

having your phone in your shaky hands as you hid in the cupboards under the bathroom sink, you texted someone— anyone, hands moving frantically against the electronics keyboard. calling someone didn’t seem like a safe option, knowing you wouldn’t be able to keep your shaky voice at bay despite the blaring music.

halloween was not supposed to be like this. halloween was never supposed to actually be scary. halloween horrors were not supposed to actually come true.

how did you get here? what brought this upon the night? why were people who were involved with you dying left and right? was it a coincidence? were people still dying as you hid under the sink, encased in the darkness, relatively safe for now? why couldn’t people get out? could people get out?

should you get out?

like any normal person in a situation like this, your mind raced back and forth with possibilities, what if’s, and or’s, what should you do, do you save yourself or other people?

the latter was the easiest thought you had. albeit selfish, but it was always you. you came first.

people would keep dying and you would stay hidden.

until you couldn’t.

until the door to the bathroom creaked open, heavy thumps of boots sounding out, close to you. close to your safety.

turning the phone off, encasing yourself in the complete darkness, you stilled. other things like extra deodorants and razors, common bathroom necessities littered around your body, but you refused to be the dumb blonde in horror movies.

so you didn’t move, you held your breath.

“come on, y/n,” san’s voice rung out, tantalizing, dark— so different from the voice you hear everyday walking around campus.

deep down, you knew none of those guys’ deaths were coincidences.

you just didn’t want san to be the bad guy.

“you can’t keep hiding, times limited, baby.” his voice cooed out, banging his fist against the wall loudly, looking to freak you out and give yourself away.

you didn’t. keeping calm and breathing deep, you just had to play it cool. you just can’t be scared.

you could hear a frustrated groan following a tear of the shower curtains being roughly pulled back, a kick to the bathtub. he’s losing patience, you’re losing your mind at how close he seems to be getting.

but he was never that thorough, he was just a stupid frat boy— or so you thought until now. used to think that he wasn’t very capable of much besides throwing big frat parties and serving as a pretty face, he always used to be a little clueless in a lot of aspects.

but what if that’s a front and he checks every goddamn inch of this bathroom, proving how thorough and smart he actually can be?

footsteps walked around the bathroom some more before you finally heard them disappear. where? you don’t know, but surely far enough away.

turning on your phone once again, your fingers frantically texted anyone within reach— ‘call the cops’ ‘murderer’ ‘think i might die please hurry’, anything you could. anything to save yourself.

“gotcha.” a voice perked, yanking the doors open to the cupboard, making you scream. hands immediately shot out and grabbed your ankle that was bunched up under the sink, harshly yanking you out to where your head slammed against the tiled floor.

“oh, man. you can fool san, but not me.” wooyoung this time. shock taking over your body.

words can’t formulate the feeling. the dread. anguish. fear. betrayal.

they were working together.

they were working together?

“come on, baby. places to be, things to do.” san piqued from the doorframe, leaning on it in his all black attire that matched wooyoung’s, two ghost face masks in his hand, lifting them and jiggling them around as if he was taunting you with that dimpled smirk on his face.

“you… the people…” your voice trailed off, looking back at wooyoung.

“dead or they left. let’s go before the party gets busted.” wooyoung joked, grabbing you by the waist and slinging you over his shoulder.

you didn’t fight back. how could you against your best friend?

lifting your head up to look at the bathroom you were once safe in, eyes meeting your other best friends who still had his dimpled smile along his features.

“we’re gonna have so much fun, baby.” san said, the ghost face masks still dangling in his hand.

halloween was not supposed to end like this.

not proofread lol 😝🫵🏻

[missmaniac25]

Home Is Where the Heart Is - Bang Chan

Hi y'all! Just something cute and fluffy for you - hope you enjoy it Chan x gn reader; platonic Felix x gn reader (implied Felix x Hyunjin) Word count: 3k Warnings: break-up; swearing (lmk if I missed anything)

~

 “Are you sure you’ll be ok?”

Felix stands in front of you, eyes full of concern. You love Felix dearly – he’s been your closest friend for years, and more recently he’s become one of your roommates. But he’s overreacting.

"I'll be fine. It’s not the first time I’ve been on my own for a weekend.”

“But it’s the first time we’ll both be out of town.” Felix puts his hands on your shoulders. “Are you sure that you’re sure?”

Again, you love him but seriously.

“Felix, my plans include going nowhere and doing nothing.” You start to shoo him towards the door. “Nothing is going to happen!”

“But… but!”

“No buts!”

With some struggle, you manage to manoeuvre your best friend to the exit where Chan stands, giggling at the scene in front of him.

Both boys are spending the long weekend away with their respective partners, which leaves you to be alone for four days straight, to do whatever you want to do.

“I love you both,” you say, giving them each a hug. “Now get out of here!”

“Bye! Enjoy your weekend!” Chan says, pulling Felix with him.

The latter give you one last worried look before the door closes and they’re gone.

With a sigh of relief, you turn back into the apartment and finally begin your four days of solitude.

~

The apartment is the quietest it’s ever been. No one is running in and out at a rate of knots; no one is raiding the fridge and eating the leftovers you’d earmarked for lunch. No clicky-clacky keyboards. No crashing of pots and pans.

At first the quiet is lovely. You can watch the TV as loudly as you want to; read without being disturbed.

By the afternoon of the second day though, the silence is starting to become… annoying. It seeped under your skin and you actually found yourself missing those two wild boys. It got even worse when you saw them posting pictures online.

‘It’s only two more days,’ you told yourself. ‘I can go forty-eight hours more.’

Day three began much the same as the previous ones. Get up, have breakfast, procrastinate, clean up, find something to do.

Lunch time rolled around after what felt like a life-time. Plodding your way through the kitchen, trying to find anything to eat, you hear a noise at the front door. You grab the nearest cooking utensil, ready to defend yourself form the intruder

The door swings open.

“Get out of my house! I’m armed and dangerous!”

But instead of a masked thief, you find yourself face to face with a bewildered Chan.

For a beat, you stare at each other in confusion.

“I don’t know how much damage a spatula is going to do but you’re welcome to try.”

“What are you doing home!?” You practically yell at him. “You scared the shit out of me!”

Chan smiles. It doesn’t reach his eyes though.

“I… ugh, I cut my holiday short,” he says, adjusting the bag on his shoulder.

‘So I see.”

You offer him lunch but he tells you that he’s not hungry. Instead, he moves into the apartment, quietly telling you that he’s going to unpack. You decide it’s best to leave him be.

It’s already evening by the time Chan remerges from his room. Even though you haven’t seen him since he got back, just hearing the movement from the other side of his door has brought you great comfort.

“What are you watching?” He asks as he plops onto the couch next to you.

“It’s just background noise,” you admit, sitting up properly. “It’s been too quiet without you guys.”

The notion makes Chan smile a little bit but it’s short lived. The pair of you continue to look at the TV without really watching. Where Chan’s mind is, you don’t know. But for you, there’s something that’s been nagging at you.

This isn’t Chan’s normal behaviour. He’s normally full of life; full of passion. As he sits besides you, he’s just a shell. Just like you, his mind is elsewhere and as much as you want to ask, you now how Chan hates burdening others; no matter how many times you’ve told him that it’s no burden to you.

“This movie kind of sucks.” You try to get him out of his head.

“Honestly.” He stretches, the first sign of life since he sat down. “I have no idea what’s going on.”

“Me neither so I don’t think that you’re missing much.” You peak over at him and find that he’s already looking at you.

“Is this all that you did while we were gone?” Chan asks.

“I was productive the first day,” you counter with playful defensiveness. “I just… didn’t realise how much I would miss you guys.”

His eyes flutter around your face, that sheen of sadness still covers his eyes.

“Well, I’ll be around from now on.” He shuffles in his seat. “You’ll end up being sick of me.”

You smile with the ghost of a laugh escaping you.

“Never in a million years.”

~

The last day of the long weekend came and went without much excitement. Though you really enjoyed having another living being around, regardless of how solemn he was acting. Just having movement, noise – that was enough to lift your spirits. And when Felix got back, you could’ve bounced right off of the walls with joy.

“I’m so glad you guys are home,” you say as you divvy out the takeaway pizza. “You’re never allowed to leave me on my own again.”

Felix laughs as he takes his plate.

“Ok, ok, we won’t. Right, Chan?”

You two look at the older boy but he’s just staring into nothingness. Felix and you lock eyes. You can see that he’s just as confused as you were yesterday. You shrug slightly before placing your hand on Chan’s arm, managing to snap him out of his daze.

“Sorry, did you guys say something?”

“Just that no one is allowed to be alone in the apartment ever again.” Felix watches him carefully.

“Fine with me.” Chan picks up his plate and walks to his room.

Only once you hear the door close does Felix speak again.

“What happened?”

“I don’t know,” you confess. “He’s been off ever since he got home.”

A silence envelops you as thought takes over.

“He’ll never tell us,” you determine. “He wont want to burden us.”

Felix nods and an idea comes to him.

“I can message his partner. They’re the only person he tells everything to.”

Slowly, you nod.

“Ok. But don’t push too hard,” you caution. “I don’t want us to break his trust right now.”

~

A week comes. A week goes. Felix confesses to getting nothing but a ‘this user has blocked this number’ message after tying to reach out and you take it as a sign to leave well alone.

That is until one evening when you come home to an almost empty apartment. Felix had gone out for the night so it was just meant to be you and Chan.

His keys sat neatly on the entrance table so you knew that he was there.

“I’m back,” you call, making your way down the hall and depositing your belongings in your room.

On the way back, you stop outside of Chan’s room, listening closely.

Crying.

It’s muffled but you’re quite certain. Gingerly, you knock and push the door open. Baring one dim bedside lamp, the room is dark. After letting your eyes adjust, you can just make out your roommate sitting on the floor, his back against his bed. His head in his hands and his shoulders shaking.

“Chan?” Concerned though you were, you didn’t want to cross a boundary. ”Can I come in?”

You see him nod a little and make your way to sit next to him. The two of you just stay in silence until Chan regains his composure, finally looking up with glossy eyes.

“They broke up with me.”

You take a deep breath in. There are a thousand different things you can say but you know that none of them will help right now. Instead, you place your arm around his shoulder and hold him against you.

Your heart breaks on his behalf.

“Thanks,” he whispers.

“No need,” you tell him.

You and Chan stay like that for sometime, just being a comfort for each other.

~

The next time that you see Felix, you fill him in on what happened and you both agree that it’s best to not bring it up unless Chan does first.

But he doesn’t. At least not outright. Some days he would be quieter, less lively, that half smile stuck on his face like a mask. On those days, you were extra careful with your words. You would sneak more food onto his plate. And if you got the chance, you’d hug him a little tighter.

Whether Chan noticed or not, you didn’t know. It didn’t matter – you were trying. On those days when Chan’s sun didn’t shine so brightly, you did your best to be a light in his life.

“I’m going out tonight,” Felix informs you in between mouthfuls of cereal.

“Cool,” you answer. “Just don’t be out too late!”

“Yes, mom,” he teases before a serious look overtakes his face. “Maybe you and Chan could go out? Have some fun?”

“I don’t want to force him.”

“It’s been two months; I think we now need to force him.”

Felix’s words ring in your head all day. You suppose that it had been long enough and seeing your friend still in such a state of sadness made your heart sore.

When Chan walked through the door that evening, you quickly got on his case.

“What are your plans for later?”

“Um…” Chan toed his shoes off. “Nothing, I guess. Why?”

“A new dessert shop opened nearby and I want to go try it out.”

Chan stands up straight, looking right into your eyes.

“Sounds like fun. Hope it’s good.”

He attempts to step past you but you move into his path.

“You’re coming with me.”

The two of you stare at each other, an intensity between you. Chan’s dark eyes look like they’re holding the weight of the world in them.

“I’ll pay…” you try to bribe him.

He sighs.

“You don’t have to pay. I’ll come with you.” 

The car ride is mostly quiet except for the music that Chan plays and your soft humming. Inside the shop, you and him debate what to get before opting to each get something you’d both like and just sharing them. Before you could even get your money out, Chan had already paid for both of your portions.

“Should we walk for a bit?” You offer as you step out of the building.

Chan shrugs.

“I’ll do whatever you want to do.”

“We’re walking then!”

You lead the way down the pavement, tucking into your food as you go, Chan at your side.

“Thank you, by the way,” he suddenly says.

“For what?” You glance at him.

“For taking care of me this past while.” His head hangs. “I know I’ve been… not myself. But I know you’ve extra kind to me. I promise I’ll get better soon.”

“Chan, you don’t have to rush your healing.”

“It’s not fair to you.”

“Hey!” You stop walking and step in front of him, facing him. “I’m your friend. I want to be extra kind to you and I want you to take as much time as you need until you feel ok again. Don’t be stupid about your feelings, ok?”

A small smile makes its way onto his face and you feel relief in your chest.

“You didn’t have to be so mean about it,” he jokes and it makes you happy.

“Well, you weren’t going to listen to me otherwise.”

The walk continues and although you know that he’s not one hundred percent yet, Chan seems to be a little bit happier tonight.

~

4 months later:

You weren’t sure exactly when it had started. It was definitely after that night that you went to the dessert shop, a place that you and Chan had subsequently deemed ‘your spot’. But at some point, between then and now, you’d developed a tiny crush on your roommate.

It was a nightmare.

You couldn’t exist without thinking about him because he was always there. You’d be damned if you let either him or Felix find out about it.

“Anyone have plans for tonight?” Felix walks into the lounge here you and Chan sit watching a movie.

Rather, Chan is watching a movie. You’re doing your best to be comfortable on the couch without touching him.

“Nah, just staying in,” Chan says with a shrug. “Might work on some tracks.”

“And you?” Felix looks at you expectantly.

You shake your head and he groans.

“You two and your antisocialism. If that’s the case, I’m going to stay the night at Hyunjin’s.”

Without another word, he turns, leaves, and prepares to go out.

You turn your eyes back to the TV screen, mind still going rapidly. It’s not too much later when you hear Felix call ‘good-bye’ and the front door closing.

Just you and Chan. Chan and you. Not even a metre apart. Alone.

“Are you hungry?”

His voice pulls you back into your body.

“Hmm?”

“Food. Do you want some?” He asks with a laugh. “You’ve been so spacey recently. Everything ok?”

You nod, shifting in your seat.

“I’m good. I’m also not really hungry.”

“You sure?” Concern swims in his eyes as he looks to you. He’s smiling still but it’s his eyes that get you.

Your heart beats faster and you hate it.

“I think I’m just going to go spend some time in my room”

You get up quickly and you don’t see the look of confusion that crosses Chan’s face.

“Oh, ok. I guess… I guess I’ll do some work then.”

“Cool, have fun.”

With nothing left to say, you dash to your room, leaving Chan behind.

The next day, while you’re relaxing, your bedroom door flies wide open.

“What is wrong with you!?”  Felix doesn’t waste a second barging in and making himself at home on your bed.

“What are you talking about? I’m fine.”

You avoid his eyes, focusing on your laptop instead.

“Chan thinks that you don’t like him anymore!”

“Why would he think that? Of course I still like him.”

Felix stares at you staring at your screen.

“You’re lying to me,” he says.

“No, I’m not.”

“Then why are you avoiding eye-contact, hmm?”

A thunk resounds as you shut your laptop and aggressively look at your best friend.

“Nothing. Is. Wrong.” You emphasis every word, like it’s a spell that will make him disappear.

He doesn’t. Instead, he smiles deviously.

“Ohhhhhh…” Felix eyes you up and down. “I think I know what’s happening here.”

“You know nothing, Jon Snow.”

He gets up and closes your bedroom door before sitting down again, now much closer to you than before. His voice is quiet wen he speaks.

“You like Chan, don’t you? Like, like him like him.”

You roll your eyes but your neck is burning.

“No, I don’t.”

“Yes, you do.”

“Stop lying.”

“I’m not lying, you’re lying.”

You reach over and pinch him on the leg which makes him yelps loudly.

“I don’t like him like that. I like him as my friend. Now leave me alone!”

Felix is still smirking as you hoist him off of your bed and he watches you as he finally goes.

You don’t doubt that he’s planning something mischievous. You’re proven right that same week.

‘A roommate outing for a meal’. At least that’s what Felix had called it. He sits next to you at the table; Chan opposite to you, at Felix’s insistence.

It’s also Felix who keeps the conversation going – his voice as chipper as it was from the moment you three walked through the door. He tells you and Chan about everything and nothing.

You don’t trust him as far as you can throw him. He’s pulled stunts like this before with your other mutual friends and he’s been acting weird all week. Tonight’s outing is clearly his magnum opus.

“So, I was telling her about it but she…” Felix is interrupted as his phone vibrates a few times on the table and he’s swift to pick it up and answer it.

Almost too swift; he’s been expecting it.

“Hey, Hyunjin… Oh!” His brow furrows.

Chan looks at Felix with worry.

“Yeah, yeah.” Felix gets up from his chair, grabbing his jacket. “I’m on my way. Yeah, see you soon.”

“Everything ok?” Chan asks.

“Emergency, I need to go.”

There’s a brief argument as Chan offers to come and hep with whatever it is but Felix is out the door before the conversation is even over.

You, on the other hand, know exactly what’s happening and you know there’s nothing you can do to prevent it.

“Well, that was weird.” Chan gives you an awkward smile as he gets comfortable again.

“Don’t worry too much about it,” you tell him. “He’s doing it on purpose.”

The boy cross from you frowns.

“He’s…” You swallow. “He’s trying to set us up.”

You hate saying it out loud but it’s been in the back of your mind the whole evening. It makes your heart pound hearing it.

“What?” Chan laughs and it sounds nervous. “How do you know that for sure?”

You play with your glass in an attempt to avoid looking at him when you answer.

“Cause I’ve been the person who had to call with a fake emergency. He’s done this before to other people.”

“Oh…”

The chatter of other patrons fills the space between the two of you. You hope that you haven’t been too honest with him. That he isn’t completely out off of the idea of being on a date with you.

You’d move out of the apartment tomorrow if that was the case. You hold your breath when he speaks.

“So, are you ready to order or do you need a few more minutes?”

It’s comical how quickly you lift your head.

“You’re not… upset?”

Chan smiles so brightly and you silently curse at how your stomach flips.

“No,” he says calmly. “I think you’re cool. A date with you sounds kind of fun. Well, a proper date at least.”

“What do you mean a proper date?”

Chan’s ears go red as he smiles sheepishly.

“I just, I mean.” It’s his turn to avoid looking in your eyes, suddenly finding the menu very interesting. “The couple of times we’ve gone to our spot, I kind of thought that they could be dates. If I had actually asked you properly, I mean.”

It’s as if the world stops spinning. Those times that you spent in agony, reminding yourself that he was only going to see you as he friend, instead of just enjoying being with him. He’d felt the same way the whole time.

“Oh.” You manage to squeak the single word out. The world continues to turn but you’re stuck in that moment. “So, is this a date?”

You need to hear him say it just to make sure that it’s real.

“Yeah,” Chan laughs a little, finally gaining the courage to look at you. “This is a date. If you want it to be, of course.”

Relief washes over you.

“Yes, yes I want this to be a date.” You smile.

 And although you hate to admit it, you owe Felix one.

~

2 months later:

“Arh! Get a room, you literally have two to choose from! Disgusting!”

Felix walks out of the lounge with his hands covering his eyes.

Chan laughs and you feel it vibrate throughout your body as you lie on top of him. You kiss him again, even deeper than before you’d been interrupted. Your boyfriend’s hands are warm on your sides and they stay there even when you pull apart for air.

He smiles and it lights up his whole face. You could watch him smile for the rest of your life if time allowed it.

“He can complain all he likes,” you tell Chan as you rest your head on his chest. “It’s his fault anyways.”

“I thank him every day for what he did and everyday he says he regrets it,” he laughs.

“That what he says but it’s not what he feels,” you say.

“I know.”

You stay with him in a comfortable quiet, his fingers trailing up and down your back.

“Hey,” Chan says in a soft voice. “I love you.”

Your heart beats faster but now you don’t mind.

“I love you too.”

[yulin-pop]

↛ ❀ 2023 Kickoff

Idia Shroud

“I don’t wanna be alone.” | “Me neither.”

“Hey, have you heard about the rumor floating around?” Idia asked with an excited voice.

You raised your eyebrow, “Which one exactly? There’s like 50.” You said back into your mic. You heard the clicking of a keyboard as Idia spoke.

“The one about that ghost.”

“Okay, Idia, I literally live with ghosts—“

“No, like evil spirits with intentions to kill.”

“Uhhh like Eliza the ghost bride that tried to bring you into the afterlife?”

“Shut up! That’s not funny so stop laughing.”

You continued to laugh into your mic. After you settled down, he went on. “It’s a ghost. It actually tries to kill live students. The teachers have had it under control for the most recent years because they sealed it away but I think the seal is weakening… There’s been reports of students being attacked in the halls when they’re alone…”

You shrugged at the thought of it. “It’s okay, all we have to do is stay away from the hallways at dark. I know you like to stay away from the halls period.” You teased. You expected an upset response but he didn’t respond that way.

“They say the ghost was sealed away at Ramshackle Dorm and when it’s not attacking students, it’s there…”

You went silent and looked around your room. There weren’t the usual ghosts that would be bothering you. Where did they go..?

Your silence made Idia continue, “I-I mean, it make sense because Ramshackle wasn’t abandoned for no reason. Maybe that’s why.” Idia quickly added. Your whole body tensed and you could feel your body begin to sweat.

“I don’t wanna be alone…” You whispered with fear in your voice.

“Me neither.”

“Wait why? You’re not the one that might be living with a murderous spirit!” You loudly said.

“Well I’ve already been kidnapped by that ghost lady. That was a near death experience! I don’t wanna go through that again.”

You sighed, “I’m kinda scared… Do you think I should risk it?”

Idia hummed to himself and tilted his head up. “Probably no— Wait risk what??”

“Risk leaving. Do you think the ghost will attack me if I make a run for it.”

“Oh yeah definitely.”

He heard some shuffle in the back and you picked up your phone. “Don’t tell me you’re actually gonna—“

Your laugh cut him off and your flipped your camera to show your surroundings. You stepped down the stairs and suddenly there was a loud thud. Your camera lagged but you seemed to leap at the door to escape.

Idia shrieked in fear, he doesn’t endanger but you were! The connection soon cut and Idia shook his head.

“Oh my god.”

He lowered his head, banging his head against his desk causing a loud noise. Ortho waltzed in with concern and approached him.

“Did you fail a level again?” Ortho asked but the lack of response said everything. “So it must be something else!”

The next few minutes felt like hours for Idia, what should he do? Did you die? Did the ghost get you?

He really couldn’t imagine what happened to you.

Until there was motion detected at the entry way to the dorm. It wasn’t a dorm student, all students had been confirmed to be present and inside the building already.

Idia and Ortho checked the cams and low and behold, it was you. They could see you slouching against the door.

“D-did they run all the way here?” Idia asked; as if the answer wasn’t obvious.

The two brothers rushed down stairs and opened the door for you. You sighed in relief and grabbed onto Idia’s forearms for support.

“Just give me a second. My stomach is cramping from all that running.” You cried.

“I thought you died!”

“I was bound to disconnect. I have no Wi-Fi away from Ramshackle!”

You two bickered back and forth like a married couple with Ortho standing there. He tilted his head.

“What’s this all about?”

You and Idia turned your heads and thought back to what initially caused this.

“Uh ghosts—“ “Death—“ “Ramshackle felt spooky so I ran.” “Evil spirit that attacks students.”

Ortho raised an eyebrow, “Those rumors about an evil ancient ghost that has been floating around.”

The two of your nodded your heads.

“It’s not true! It’s just a silly rumor a second year made up!” Ortho sighed. “I expected better from you two…!”

You clenched your fists and pointed your finger in Idia’s face. “W-well I only got spooked because he kept on feeding me lies. The atmosphere in Ramshackle plus all of that ghost junk scared me!”

“Are you seriously turning this on me? You know what… Go back! I don’t want you here.”

“No way! Not after I ran so far— it’s so dark and scary out there DON’T KICK ME OUT PLEASE!”

[xproskeith]

CLANCY TOUR ESSAY!!! ❤️

OK! So finally getting to this A MONTH LATER! IDK how well I'll structure this, but here we go.

Let's start at the beginning. The opening of the show was honestly one of the best/coolest to me and reminded me so much of BF/ERS! The lights went down and the intro to Overcompensate started with the beginning of the music video playing on the screens. The music built up to the "WELCOME BACK TO TRENCH" which EVERYONE at the show and especially in the pit with me YELLED in unison! The energy was immediately so high and everyone was so hyped.

The curtain fell and was pulled away to reveal just Josh drumming and an illuminated red microphone swaying. What a great opening. And then when Tyler made his appearance, everyone lost their minds. Overcompensate was so great and fun live.

I'm gonna preface this next bit by saying the transitions this tour are all just SO GOOD. So, then the transition from Overcompensate to Holding On To You was great because he finished Overcompensate on top of the pit and started Holding On To You on it! Featuring The Back Flip and Tyler's jump too. It was nice to hear Holding On To You from a personal level because my wife quoted the song in her vows.

Then that SMOOTH AF transition to Vignette. Like damn that was so well blended and executed. And we wall love when he pulls out the soundboard/keyboard and start banging out the tunes on stage lol.

Car Radio was SO GOOD too! It's such a banger and they kill it live. Plus it served as the song when Tyler Dropped down a hole and reappeared in the stands! Always so cool when he does that. I do wonder when they do the switch.

The Judge intro was so good. I love that they film people waiting in line for it at each show, truly making it unique for each one. Shoutout to Mark for that for sure! I did not get to be in it because I was in the FPE event when Mark came around. But it was so cool to see the people, some of whom we did see in line, and also get to see so many cool outfits and costumes! And then the song and performance itself was amazing! The Judge is a bop.

The Craving really hits different live. I honestly love when Tyler does these slower songs and it's just him and the spotlight really. There's something intimate about it and it draws you in and makes the song hit that much harder. Hearing Josh play keyboard for it was so cool too. I love that he's doing so much more! He's so talented!

Tear In My Heart had some great visuals and led to a cool transition to Backslide with the lights all falling and Tyler's just sitting there in that chair!

After Backslide, we got Shy Away! Something, something, there's a metaphor there for singing about Backsliding and falling back and then immediately performing a song from SAI, the album that was DEMA propaganda. But, lore and metaphor aside, this song live went so hard! I loved that they used this mini set up for Josh with a small electric drum kit and a mini keyboard for Tyler. It was great and cool to see. And the crowd LOVED it! Everyone was singing so loudly and that made me smile because I want them to know people love SAI and its songs. Tyler ended it perfectly with screaming the final "Don't you Shy AWAAAAAAAAY!" to draw it to a close.

Next we got our first real banter and interaction from Tyler! Some jokes about how we weren't their first (show lol) and then giving the crowd directions for Heathens! Heathens was great and I love that they still work it in to shows despite the song being for a movie. It's a great song and the colors they chose for the lights and visuals were great. Green and purple (my wedding colors lol).

They did Next Semester next which is always a hype song. But Tyler went HARD during this song and the crowd responded in turn! It was one of the highest energy moments of the show and it was just so fun and good to be there yelling/singing along!

Then it finally happened. THEY BEGAN TO MAKE THEIR WAY TO PLAY ROUTINES IN THE NIGHT! My now all time favorite TOP song! I loved that both Josh and Tyler made their ways down around the crowd to their mini stage set ups. It was just some beats playing until Josh got to his drums and started doing his thing, transitioning us into Routines In The Night. As he does, Tyler starts singing and appears on the screen, walking through the backstage area with red LED lamps until he emerges through a walkway on the opposite side of Josh. Carrying THE CHAIR! He really did just set it down midway down the walkway and start singing there with the fans before picking up and continuing on his way, singing and dancing the rest of the way. Then he got to his mini stage and IMMEDIATELY got on top of the piano to finish out the song lol. Seeing this song live was EVERYTHING to me!

Tyler talked to the crowd some, making jokes about how the people in the stands could sit for this part and that that was his dad's favorite part of the show. Amazing. Then they played some old songs including Addict With A Pen, Fall Away, and Forest, which he joked about it being so old that it technically doesn't exist (just re-record and remaster the songs and release them officially Tyler)! They finished up here with Mulberry Street which was really fun and involved the crowd with their phone flashlights! It was great.

Then Torchbearer appeared! In the stands with an actual flaming torch! It was such a cool and dramatic moment! I gasped when it first happened. And then he made his way down, approaching Tyler! Once he reached Tyler who was waiting solemnly for him at his mini stage, he gave him the Clancy Jacket and Tyler put it on. Then the lights fell and Clancy and Torchbearer made their way back to the main stage guided by the light of the torch (and a spotlight) as a solemn, ominous music plays in the background. The spotlight went out, leaving only the flame of the torch to illuminate the arena. And then DEMA is revealed in dramatic fashion! It was such a cool moment! And was we're still in awe of DEMA, it bursts into flames as the ominous music continues playing.

Finally, they began to move again, taking their spots on stage, and they started playing Navigating! The opening pyro was so intense, but brief, that we felt it in the pit! The visuals and pyro for Navigating was so good and cool! It may have been my favorite performance of the concert TBH!

Then the lights fell as they transitioned into Nico and the Niners. This song was so cool to see with all the yellow lights and visuals. Something about it felt so right to be played right after Navigating and the reveal of burning DEMA, thematically. But the transition from that to Heavydirtysoul was TOO GOOD AND SMOOTH! Then they killed that performance of it. Tyler of course broke out the tambourine. They followed it up with My Blood which was awesome. It's one of my favorite Trench songs and means so much to me.

Finally the time came for Oldies Station. I remember Tyler saying, "This next one's called Oldies Station." and the pit ERUPTED in cheers and shouts. Everyone was so excited for the song! He messed up the lyrics going into the second verse. I'm not sure if he's been doing that at other shows and it was a bit, but it happened! During this time, Tyler was on stage solo with his uke. After stopping from the lyric mess up, he looked over at Josh who had just walked back on stage and sat at his drum kit. Tyler asked Josh what he was doing and it turned out he was eating a bagel off stage lmao. Tyler then asked him if that's what he does every show during that part and Josh just gave him a giant grin I cannot lmao. After that, he dove back into Oldies Station, with Josh joining back in with drums and then some amazing visuals featuring all kinds of clique art. I cried essentially the entire time during this song and am so glad my wife was in front of me and did not notice.

After that emotional ride, they played Fake You Out and Guns For Hands. It was great to hear so many Vessel songs on this tour (but you couldn't give me Ode To Sleep, could you Tyler? It's OK I forgive you lmao [full clarity, this is 100% kidding and I'm not actually upset or anything he didn't play it]). The end of Guns For Hands somehow made for the PERFECT transition to Lavish!

Lavish was amazing live. The song grew on me so much since the album dropped, but it was so much fun to experience live. Tyler and Josh clearly loved it too and looked like they were having a blast and just goofing off more than anything. It was great. It was funny. And it felt genuine. I know this was Tyler's favorite song, so I'm glad he had so much fun performing it live and the crowd loved it too. I will say, Josh was an absolute tease during Lavish. He pulled his jersey off right at the start and teased throwing it so many different times. The arm linked walk and then Josh throwing it bridal style into the pit. Iconic lol.

From there, they transitioned into Ride which was so cool with the gradual slowing down/distortion of the Lavish notes and words into the intro of ride. So good. Eventually, Tyler walked down the walkway from the main stage to the mini stage where he had a young kid from the crowd come up and sing Ride with him! So cool and I hope it made the kid's night! Such a cool experience!

The lights fell and then a spotlight came back on the main stage to reveal Josh in the middle with a mini keyboard, beginning to play the opening notes of Paladin Strait. Soon, Tyler joined him back on the main stage, taking a seat with his back to Josh. The lighting and framing of them on stage felt so intimate, especially with the song they were about to play. It added to the intensity and just made you feel things. Then Tyler began to strum the opening notes to Paladin Strait and started to sing. I knew it was coming because it was one of the things I had been spoiled to for the tour, but I WAS NO PREPARED TO HEAR JOSH DUN SING LIVE ESPECIALLY NOT IN THAT SONG TURNING THE OPENING OF PALADIN STRAIT INTO A CONVERSATION BETWEEN CLANCY AND TORCHBEARER. YES I'M FINE WHY DO YOU ASK? ANYWAY!

Ahem... Honestly, Josh has an AMAZING voice and he did such a great job there. I really love how much he's doing in shows now, too! He's so talented and I like that he's branching out and growing, too! IDK if it was his or Tyler's idea or both, but it was a great idea. Then Josh moved over to his mini electric drum kit to add the drums, but still sing! I loved it so much and this whole set up with them on stage. It was so so good! I was not expecting Josh to come out on the crowd with his drums during this song! But it was a great choice! It was cool and the energy was there. I wasn't holding him, but I was very close in the pit to it!

When the true end of Paladin Strait started playing, I WAS NOT PREPARED FOR THEM TO USE CLIPS I HAD IN MIND WHEN I HEARD "SO FEW, SO PROUD, SO... EMOTIONAL."! I literally wrote a fic about Clancy flashing back to those/similar scenes when Nico was saying that to him! I CANNOT! I wrote this before the first show of the tour too!

The transition into Jumpsuit here was perfect. This performance of Jumpsuit was so amazing. The lighting, visuals, and pyro were all top notch. The pyro was so hot we could feel it DEEP in the pit! Honestly, this and Navigating were the two most visually stunning performances of the concert and are tied for my favorite of it.

Then they played Midwest Indigo which the managed to transition so well and smoothly to from Jumpsuit. Fittingly, this transitioned into Stressed Out, with the clip on the trikes playing on the screens as they transitioned. Tyler even broke out the red beanie and the old ERS/BF era visuals for it! It was great. It's such a great one to hear live and still such a relatable song. The end of it was especially cool with some intense visuals and pyro and then a big BANG pyro at the very end! It was awesome!

After that, it was time for the end. Tyler talked to the crowd a bit and then gave them instructions for Trees, explaining the red dot and all. Impressively, our pit followed instructions pretty well and it only took 2-3 minutes to fully clear the red circle! Then when they were moving on to their mini stages for Trees, the pit was very calm and let them get in place. Once in place, Tyler held his hands up, telling everyone to hold and keep calm. Once he was sure both he and Josh were set, he smiled and motioned for the crowd to fill in. And they did so quickly, but calmly! No one got trampled and no one was rude or didn't follow instructions! And Tyler asked, "I gotta ask, do you have one more left in you?!"

And to thunderous applause, cheers, and shouts, they began to play Trees! They finished the opening verse and the pit started the "HERE WE FUCKING GO!" chant! It got everyone so hyped and both boys grinned when we started! And boy did we (and they) fucking go! The full force of Trees started to hit and everyone was jumping and singing along!

And then it happened. They were climbing into position with their big bass drums on the crowd as the music started to build and build like it does as Trees hurtles towards its end. There was a bang of a pyro confetti cannon from the main stage timed perfectly with the first hit of the bass drums. And now the best, most memorable, indescribable, and almost religious experience part of Trees live began!

The music just continued to build as the boys hit the drums and motion to the crowd who shouted so loudly they can be heard over the deafening music! Giant red flame pyros were burning on the main stage. Red confetti began to fall, so much in fact that eventually all you could see was a wall of red. The energy is unimaginable. There's nothing like this moment. And then the final bass drum hits and crowd shout happened as the music comes to an abrupt stop. And for the briefest of moments, there is silence before the entire crowd erupts into thunderous applause, shouts, and cheers.

Tyler and Josh bowed to each other as they always do before running back to the main stage. They threw an arm around around the other's shoulder and took a few bows together before both making the band's symbol with their hands. And finally, Tyler said, "We are Twenty One Pilots and so are you! We'll see you next time!"

They walked off to stage with a few more waves to Lavish because of course they did.

This show was so good and intense and perfect. I loved everything about it. There wasn't a single bad moment in this show. The sheer performance of it all is just mind blowing. The visuals, the lights, the effects, the stage management, just everything! It's so damn good! And you are forever changed in some way from it, just like you are by any show they do. I don't know how or why, but no one can put on a show like them. It just draws you in and changes your life. It creates a truly unforgettable experience. I honestly have no other way to describe it than as a deeply religious experience. Especially with Trees, but this whole show in general. So much of it was important and personal and intimate even. Then there was the story and the lore elements too. Indescribable. I truly wish I could see them multiple times this tour.

[jaozendry]

"Don’t do anything stupid till I get back.”

Pairing: GN!Reader x Bucky Barnes

WARNINGS: mentions of self-harm

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

Type: Angst

Summary: Bucky picks you up from school after you call him on the verge of self-harming. The two of you have to explain to the school staff that he's your boyfriend.

______________________________________________________________

"Hey, what's up? Aren't you at school right now? Bucky says after picking up his phone anxiously. You weren't feeling well when he dropped you off this morning and he was worried something might happen. Thankfully, nothing happened, at least, not yet.

"Hey, uh, are you busy?" you ask over the phone, your voice shaking. You're currently sitting in a bathroom stall, the period started over 10 minutes ago, but you couldn't bring yourself to walk out and go to class. You felt... hopeless.

"No, why? What happened? Bucky asks, concerned. Do you want me to pick you up?"

You sigh loudly, banging your head against the door softly, holding back tears.

"I want to do it. I'm in the school bathroom, I didn't do it yet but it's in my pocket-"

Bucky cuts you off immediately.

"Alright, I'm coming. Just don't do anything, got it? Bucky orders you while putting on his jacket. I'm coming, please, just... don't do it."

You thank him as he hangs up and cry silently while Bucky closes the door to your apartment to pick your pitiful self up from school.

______________________________________________________________

You still hide in the bathroom, washing your red eyes from all the crying when you receive a text from Bucky saying he's 2 minutes away. From the text, you finally gain the courage to walk out of the bathroom. You get ready and head for the main office.

Unsurprisingly, you see Bucky greeting the woman at the front desk. You run to your boyfriend and hug him with all of your might in front of the lady. Bucky smiles and reaches for his pocket.

"See, Y/N has a doctor's appointment in about 30 minutes. I'm sorry I didn't advise the school earlier."

The woman takes the paper and examines it.

"Unfortunately, I can't let you leave if I don't have proof you're their father."

Bucky reaches once again in his pocket and pulls out a fake ID. This is extremely convinient, as you haven't seen your father in years. The school hasn't registered his name in the system, so you are quite literally fatherless.

"It seems you aren't registered in the system, but we can do it now and you'll be free to go, she explains taping on her keyboard. It will take only a few minutes."

______________________________________________________________

After completing Bucky's registration, you two head for the car while holding hands.

"Thanks, you say softly while closing the door. I needed it."

You look at him and he holds your hand.

"I'm always here for you."

You look at his fake doctor's appointment tment and his fake ID.

"Richard Y/L/N?" you ask, giggling.

"There's that smile I was looking for, he says, caressing your cheek. Show me your arms."

You pull out your sleeves to reveal that it hasn't been cut at all. Bucky smiles proudly. He immediatly reaches for your right pocket to confiscate your pocket knife from you. You act offended, but deep down, you thank him. You lean your hand on his shoulder while he starts to car and whisper in his ear.

"Thanks, daddy."

[ilovehugslikealotalot]

Why You?

TW: indecent language, slight smut, mentions of violence

Rebecca waited in her office for Keeley, how she wished she could rip that woman’s head off. It aggravated her that the woman was so bitchy but perfect. Keeley finally barged in seeing Rebecca pacing around, she plopped down onto the sofa. “Okay! What now!” She groaned, Rebecca rubbed her temples as she paced back to her desk. She scrolled up to see y/n’s perfectly sculpted face, “AGH!” she screamed, “why the fuck is she so perfect?” She seethed, leaning on her desk. “She’s so annoying, I swear!” She exclaimed, Keeley had about enough and smacked the sofa. A loud bang echoed around the room.

“JUST TELL HER YOU LOVE HER GODDAMIT! EVEN HELEN KELLER CAN SEE IT! AND SHE’S FUCKING BLIND REBECCA!” Keeley yelled over Rebecca to get her attention, the tall blonde woman looked at her taken a back. “Just. Tell. Her. It’s not that hard, Becca!” The tall blonde pouted and slouched into her chair. “But-“

“Rebecca! I love you. But shut the fuck up. Please.” Keeley stood up, walking over to Rebecca she gave her a tiny lecture of how she shouldn’t be scared to ask her out. “Now, hand me your laptop” Rebecca cooperated, handing the shorter woman her sliver colored laptop. Keeley grinned, “now. You won’t be getting this back until you ask her out. So, either you ask her or you don’t get this. Bye!” Keeley quickly ran out of the office with Rebecca yelling out her name.

Rebecca’s POV

I leaned on the office door frame and sighed. I groaned loudly as I moved and slammed the door shut. “Get your shit together, Rebecca. You’re a grown ass woman…just ask her out” I mumbled, walking roughly down the stairs, I stopped for a minute, what if she says no? I think. No. I’m Rebecca fucking Welton. There isn’t any way in hell she would reject me. But-

“Boss, you okay?” Ted’s voice came from the bottom of the stairs, I looked at him and smiled. “No, I’m fine!-“ flailing my arms in the air and bringing them to my side acting cool, leaning on the rail.

He smacks his lips and squints his eyes, “Oklahoma?”

“I’mfuckedandIdon’tknowifIshouldasky/noutornotcauseI’mscared she’llrejectme” I blurted, he pursed his lips and widened his eyes, “welp. You better be in your way then.” I at him in disbelief, “no peptalk?” He exclaimed and clapped his hands together, he smiled at me and laughed. Finally, he did a fist pump and calm down, only a little bit though, “I knew you liked my peptalks! Anyways, y/n isn’t that bad. She’s really sweet so just go ask her! And if anyone asks..you didn’t hear this from me but..she likes you back to! She was ranting about it this morning!” Rebecca looked at her feet for a moment before looking up at him to find he was there. She would never find out how that man worked.

Nervous, I walked sheepishly to y/n’s office. There she sat, hair messily put into a bun, french tipped nails clicking away on her keyboard. My hands shook as I knocked on the open door. Her focus was broken from her laptop and onto me, “oh, hey Rebecca. I didn’t know you were here. I thought you went to lunch with Keeley?” She asked, smiling at me. Closing her laptop, she rounded her desk and went to her mini bar. Opening the mini fridge she grabbed herself a water, Rebecca chuckled knowing there was no other use for the mini bar since y/n didn’t drink. “Wine?” She asked, already pouring some into the glass. “You know me too well, y/n”

“Well, besides from Keeley, you spend too much time with me. I wouldn’t be surprised if you beat everyone in a ‘Who Know’s Y/n Best.’” She laughed, taking her AFC Richmond jacket off. I watched as she slid it down her shoulders.

I saw a slight smirk grace her face, she knew what she was doing to me. And she enjoyed every second of it.

She was wearing a cropped tank top under which was very fitting. I bit my lip, the unspeakable things I would do to her if she just asked. “Aren’t you supposed to be in training?” I asked, taking a sip of my red wine. She turned around letting her hair perfectly drop around her shoulders.

“Yeah, but I’d much rather be here with you” her voice was amorous as she stared at me with desire in her eyes. I smirked as she sat next to me. “Is that so, Miss y/l/n?” I cooed, leaning in. Y/n giggled, “mhm” I glided my hand up her thigh and onto her butt, shifting her so she was in my lap. She lowly chuckled, her smug face was wiped off when I leaned in, my face millimeters from hers. “Please…” she groaned, I smirked, “Please what, Darling?” “Fuck me.”

[xticklemeemox]

The Love You Want: III, Part Eleven

fun fact this was like 18k yesterday. i took out the smut scene (its going into the next chapter) and was left with 15k…. and then i do this…

this chapter is 19,085 mcfreakin words

anyways as usual super insecure about posting this, i'm probably gonna hate it until the reviews come in and give me serotonin so yeah i love you guys thank you for reading im sorry this chapter probably sucks

Word count: 19,085

Ao3

Masterlist

Previous Part

Next Part

For a while, Vessel merely floats in an expanse of stars, awareness ebbing and flowing with the swirling galaxies around him. He is at peace, and that time is precious to him.

The peace is shattered in time, as the stars start blinking out one by one, a void opening up beneath Vessel. He sinks into it, inch by inch, as it swallows him whole.

Vessel didn't quite understand what was happening, at first. He didn't realize he was dreaming, didn't realize that none of what happened after he closed his eyes wasn't real. This realm felt just as much his reality as the waking world.

One moment he had been staring in horror as the galaxies around him exploded, the stars winking out above as he sunk into the abyss, the next he was blinking tired eyes open in his old apartment he shared with his third partner.

His single pair of eyes take in the dim lighting and the shadows in the corners that Vessel had grown used to being able to see with perfect vision. Where were his other eyes? His hands are holding his notebook open with a pen between pale fingers. The familiar pitch black with golden cracks is replaced with the pale, human skin he had Before. Panic sets in, a tremble shaking the pen pressed to a page of his notebook, smearing navy blue ink.

Vessel looks up again, forcing himself to look around as banging sounds from the kitchen, cabinets slamming shut loudly as he flinches with every harsh noise. The action is familiar. The walls are bare and the yellow paint faded. The dirty floors are chipped and covered in trash no matter how much he cleaned, laminated fake wood long since lost its shine. His panicked, wandering gaze catches on the line of cocaine on the coffee table in front of him. It was a small flat, only one bedroom, one bath. The kitchen and living room were attached, and there was barely any space for furniture. What little space there was, was taken up by her belongings. Vessel's old busted keyboard was in the corner, piled up with clothes that weren't his. It had been broken when his girlfriend had taken a hammer to it as he was playing, barely missing his fingers. There was no warning, no hesitation. Vessel couldn't even blame it on some drunken or drugged stupor. Her mind was perfectly clear when she yelled at him, screamed that his music was taking up all of his attention, that she had saved him and deserved better than this, as she smashed the ivory keys in and broke the buttons.

Vessel remembered sobbing so hard he threw up, dry heaving as he tried desperately to gather all the broken pieces and salvage the instrument. She'd been so pleased with herself, like she hadn't just destroyed the one thing, the only thing left, that made Vessel happy, until she got annoyed with him for crying over it. Not only was he in pain internally, after that, but his cheeks and ribs ached, bruised and battered after she was done with him. Then, she used him afterwards, and it hurt. She'd made sure. The bruises on his jaw and neck had lasted for weeks. There had been no point in hiding them, either. Vessel had no friends, no reason to leave the apartment. The wounds on his body eventually healed but a piece of him was shattered with his piano that day.

It was one of the worst days he'd ever had with her, and there were many bad days. Being with II and III has taught him that much... It was one of the only times she'd ever hurt him so severely, as she preferred ruining him with her words while his first girlfriend preferred her fists.

He tried to kill himself that night, once he was sure she was asleep. He couldn't handle being alive as it was, but for his last hope, his music, to be taken from him? Vessel couldn't remember a time where he had wanted to die more. He needed to erase himself from existence, no matter what it took. He'd limped to the bathroom across the hall and shut the door as quietly as he could. Held his breath deep in his chest as he waited, listened for any signs of movement from the bed. The door wouldn't lock, not after the first time she had pounded on it when he was cutting into his thighs and he couldn't bring himself to open it out of fear. She'd gone to the store the next day and bought a new doorknob, one without a lock. Grabbing the razor he kept on top of the mirror was easy. There was no real point in hiding it, she never cared to take them from him or say anything against his bloody habit. She was only a little shorter than himself, so she could have found it easily, too. Already naked, he had no need to be mindful of any of his clothes, and climbed right into the tub. It was too small for him, forcing him to bend his limbs at awkward angles to fit. Digging the blade into his arm deep enough to sever the vein had been painful but so easy at the same time. He'd slowly gotten colder as time stretched on infinitely, black spots gradually blotting out his vision as he wondered desperately if this was finally the attempt that would end all attempts and set him free. It wasn't.

Vessel had woken up in the tub, spilling out over its side like the blood in his arms, the shadows in the corners seeming to stretch endlessly into an infinite void. Vacant eyes couldn't seem to produce any more tears to shed, numb inside like he wished he was outside. He methodically cleaned up the blood on his arms, barely taking note of the scabbing already forming all along the vertical wound. Next had been wherever blood had slipped down his arms to the rest of his body, then the tub, and finally the floor.

He'd climbed back into bed, shivering from unnatural cold and the pain of his bruised bones as his mind wandered. Vessel vaguely remembered seeking any sort of comfort, pressing up to his girlfriend as she slept. The movement had woken her, then, and she placed a gentle kiss to his brow, barely awake, and then shoved him away to the other side of the bed. Rolling over to face away from him, she took the last bit of comforter he'd been afforded, and Vessel had felt so alone. She didn't question his puffy eyes or blotchy face that next morning, and didn't even care that Vessel had fallen into complete silence. She didn't care how he was or if he was hurt, as long as he was hers. A familiar possessiveness.

It felt nothing like II and III. He wouldn't mind being their possession. He was already Sleep's. When III had bitten him, in return for Vessel doing so when they'd had sex for the first time, they'd said it was to claim Vessel. That they liked the possessiveness it showed, and wanted to be possessive in return. Vessel's soul sang with yearning, and still his fear chained him down. They'd both treated him like he was worth something, loved him, cared for him, made him... made him want, to want, to-

Vessel forces his mind out of the pit its fallen into lest he travel down a road he's not sure he can stomach following. Not now.

He doesn't think II and III would ever destroy his piano because he wasn't paying enough attention to them. Sleep... perhaps if it was something aside from music taking his time, but there would be no need. Sleep could just bring Vessel to his realm on a whim.

Vessel hates this apartment and everything in it, he decides, himself most of all. But why is he back here? Why does everything feel so real? Was... Everything couldn't have been a dream. Vessel could never conjure up II and III on his own. They were too kind, so different from anyone Vessel had ever known that there was no possible way he could have dreamt them up.

"_! Did you break my favorite fucking glass? Are you fucking serious?!" Footsteps stomp towards him, like a death march.

Vessel finds he can't move, either from stiffening fear or something else keeping him in place. She called his name... didn't she? No, that's not his name anymore. Is it? No, no, he is Vessel. He chose it for himself, whatever name she called him isn't him. Not anymore.

Vessel shrinks back into the cracked leather couch, trying to disappear between the cushions at his back. He closes his notebook silently, stuffing it behind him between the cushions so his girlfriend doesn't find it.

She's in front of him between blinks as she screams unintelligible words through the ringing in Vessel's ears. Her face is a blur, the only feature he can see is her mouth, still moving as she speaks to him. There's a bit of white dust on her top lip, trailing down from where her nose would be. Her perfume is cloying, a strong scent that Vessel can't name as she grips Vessel's arm, nails digging into his bicep as she drags him up. He lets her, resistance long beaten out of him by those before her. She's still yelling, right into his ear now, it seems, as she pulls him along to the kitchen. The waste bin has been dumped all over the ground, glass scattered alongside the trash. There isn't much trash in the first place, since he took it out the day before and he'd only broken her mug this morning, but it doesn't matter as she shoves him harshly, weak knees buckling beneath him.

His palms land directly in the shattered remains of the glass he'd accidentally broken. He misses the smile that pulls one side of her lips up when he hisses at the pain, trying to keep the sound quiet.

"You broke my favorite glass and didn't tell me?" She spits, stepping close as she leans down into his face.

Vessel whimpers quietly as she digs her foot into the back of his hand, shoving more glass into his skin.

"I- I was going to get you a new one. They have it at the store all the time." His breaking voice is barely above a whisper, gaze locked on the floor in submission.

She laughs, a rose pink lipstick stain peeking out on her teeth, a well manicured hand coming to grip his jaw, "You? Go to the store? Don't make me laugh, ___. You know you can't go anywhere alone. I always have to go with you or in your stead since you're too pathetic to talk to people, let alone buy groceries on your own. I was going to find out eventually, and still you tried to hide it."

Her nails, the same color as her lipstick, dig into his cheek and jaw painfully. Vessel knows not to utter a sound, even as the sharp points feel like little, dull knives. He remains silent, knowing she won't want an answer.

Everything happening feels familiar. Did he live this before? Is this real? Is he back before Sleep, before II and III? If Vessel could move of his own free will, he'd take one of these glass shards to his neck to test it. He can only let things play out, even as fear makes him tremble. He hates being here. He wants II and III, wants them to hold him, so he feels safe again.

"Pick it up. With your hands, understand?" She orders, and when Vessel does not answer, can't answer when she's practically holding his mouth shut with how tightly she's gripping his face, she shakes his head side to side harshly as if he were nothing more than a doll to be played with until he's no longer wanted, "_, look at me, do you understand?"

Vessel's mind races as he tries to get his body to move, tries to answer her. Whether it was him or her who had broken the glass, she would always make him clean it up with his hands.

He tries to nod but her grip only grows tighter, nails digging harshly until Vessel swears blood is trickling down his jaw. Finally, she shoves him away, releasing his hand from underneath her shoe. He lifts it up, cradling it close as blood dribbles down his wrist.

"Can't even answer a simple fucking question. Clean it, _. I will not say it again."

Blood splatters on the tile as he does as ordered, starting with the biggest pieces that he puts in the trash bin. It had still been knocked over, and Vessel wipes his tears away with a forearm while he sets it upright. His tears do not stain his clothes, completely clear, human. Vessel hates it.

The smaller pieces start getting stuck in his fingers, getting shoved deeper into his skin as he picks up more glass shards. It hurts, but pain is a familiar friend.

Vessel cries anyway, on the verge of sobbing but he does not let a single sound escape his lips. He knows better. The tears fall regardless of his wishes, dripping onto his hands and the floor, blurring his vision so badly he can barely see to continue cleaning.

His girlfriend taps her foot relentlessly, just out of the corner of his eye, and he twitches with every movement, afraid that same foot will soon meet his skin.

"Faster, _. I don't have all day." Vessel tries, he really does, splitting more skin on the sharp pieces in his haste to do as ordered.

Nothing good comes from not doing as told.

Vessel thinks that there are more pieces to clean than before. Did he break more of the cup than he thought when he'd knocked it off the counter? He was almost certain there had only been a couple of large pieces to- Oh. She must have broken more of it when she dumped the trash all over the ground.

"God, fucking worthless, _. Stop fucking crying, its so goddamn annoying! All you ever do is cry, cry, cry. I'm fucking sick of it! Can't even do as told." She shouts, leaning down as sharp nails dig into his face again, "Am I not good enough for you? Is that why you never listen? I love you! Is that not enough?! Is my love not enough for you, _?!"

"If it weren't for me, you'd still be with your ex! I saved you from her, from the pain she caused you. I love you, more than she ever did! I deserve better than you being a whiny, pathetic, miserable man who can't do anything by himself! Who can't clean up his messes or tell the truth!"

With every word, Vessel feels himself slipping away further and further. A fog settling over his mind. Its happened before, not often, but enough for him to be familiar with the lack of memories after he comes back to himself. The shadows around him always seemed darker as he drifted away from his body, the distinct feeling of being watched so easy to brush aside.

His hands continue cleaning on autopilot, the repeated motions allowing his mind to slip away. Things get hazy, here. He doesn't remember finishing cleaning up the mess, and only vague pieces of being left to sit against the cabinets once she finally let him be, flicker through the fog of his mind.

He sits there, the world drifting in and out of focus, static in his ears, fingers tingling as he holds his knees to his chest.

"You know I love you, right, _?"

Vessel looks up and finds his girlfriend standing over him, dressed up in one of her nicer outfits that accentuated her curves. Her smile is kind, lipstick having been reapplied, as she reaches down to cup his jaw. Slowly, he nods with a smile of his own, wilted like his soul, feeling her grip tighten into something more familiar.

"Do you love me, too?" She asks, and the words are out of his mouth before he can stop them, "Of course, you're my everything."

"Good, that's good, _. You'd be all alone if it weren't for me, stuck with that bitch who didn't know how to keep you in line properly. You're so much easier to love when you behave, so don't break any more of my things, okay? Now, clean up all this blood, you've made such a mess again." Her smile remains sweet as she leans down to kiss him.

The kiss sends Vessel reeling, unused to affection like this. Vessel kisses her back, unable to stop himself. He wants to stop. He doesn't want her anywhere near him. He wants to go ho- He wants to be back at the manor, with II and III. He wants to die, right here, right now, permanently, if it means escaping the nausea that churns his stomach. It feels like seconds, or hours, later but she finally detaches her lips from his, patting his bruising cheek, so lovingly Vessel leans into it without a thought, and leaving again. The door to the apartment slams shut after her, and Vessel is left alone.

The silence is all he needs, the breath caught in his chest leaving him in a whoosh of air and taking a broken whimper with it.

Vessel sobs and sobs, silent, hitching breaths as his chest constricts, bloody fingers clawing into his arms as he hugs himself. His heart beats rapidly, a heavy thumping in his ears as he starts to hyperventilate, breaths coming in shorter and shorter pants, then wheezes, all while he whispers three little words desperately. He wishes he could stop saying them, questions their validity, now, as he chokes on the words through his sobbing.

"I love you, I love you, I love you-"

Vessel wakes up, choking on another sob he'd been about to let loose. Beside him, cuddled up into his side, is his plague doctor plushie. Sitting up is an arduous task, a weight pressing him down like a veil had been cast over his head and with every inch towards sitting up properly, its like it slips away. He's too distraught to truly take note of it, though.

He doesn't love her, he doesn't- not anymore. Not anymore.

He shakes with the force of his cries, muffled into the bloody hand he shoves over his mouth. Vessel doesn't trust himself to keep quiet right now, to be able to keep his sobbing as silent as it needs to be. He is shaken, rattled by the nightmare he has just woken up from, and yet his body, his mind is completely in perfect health. If you ignore the wounds he dug himself. If you ignore his panicked mind.

But he is not tired. The realization brings new tears to his eyes, ones of relief. Vessel couldn't remember the last time he wasn't utterly exhausted, even Before. He was always weighed down, but now its like a weight, one of many, has been lifted from his shoulders.

Stomping footsteps run towards him, echoing down the hall, and he turns to the door quickly, wide eyed as his mouth clicks shut. His body is shoved to the corner of the bed, his plushie stuffed half under a pillow and behind him, hidden from view. The blanket is pulled up over his chest as he hides his face between his knees to make himself as small as possible.

The door is slammed open, and Vessel expects to see his ex-girlfriend in the doorway. Instead, it is II, followed closely by III, and Vessel is struggling to get out from under the sheets so he can get to them. They both launch themselves at him before Vessel can manage to escape the covers, an exclamation from II the only warning he receives, "You're awake!"

They're warm against him, solid beneath his touch as he clutches each of their shirts with grey knuckled fingers. He didn't dream them up, he isn't back in that apartment with his ex.

He's safe, here.

"You're... real." Vessel murmurs, and the admission causes II and III to share a concerned glance.

It only makes him cry harder, for his fears to be abated. They have never hurt him like she did, like his other partners. To be shown it so starkly, the difference between the people of Vessel's past and those of his present is apparent... Vessel hates how afraid he was. Always such a fucking coward.

II presses kisses into his hair as Vessel claws at the back of II's shirt like he will disappear if he lets go, soaking II's shirt with his tears. III is silent at his side but holding him just as tightly. Vessel is thankful for the blanket he couldn't get out from under still covering him. He fears any day now that they will realize that he has no heartbeat. It terrifies him almost as much as the notion that they will eventually leave him, no matter how much they love him.

"You were asleep for an entire week, Vessel." II says as he finally pulls away, soft eyes widened in concern.

He keeps some part of his body touching Vessel regardless of the distance he puts between their torso's. III still says nothing, nor do they pull away, still holding tightly to Vessel, who squirms in apprehension despite craving the touch.

"Asleep?" Vessel murmurs, giving in and leaning into III pressed close at Vessel's other side, reassured by III moving away from Vessel's chest area.

"I- I don't have a headache." Vessel's quiet murmur is filled with muted awe.

"What happened to your face?" II asks, apologizing quietly when Vessel flinches back as he brushes a thumb over the bloody and bruised nail indents all along Vessel's cheek and jaw, smearing golden tears, too.

"I... Had a dream. It... It was more of a nightmare. My- My second girlfriend- She'd gripped my face with her acrylic nails as she yelled at me after I broke her cup. These were common, Before." Vessel explains, cupping his own cheek and feeling the indents underneath his fingers. "She made me pick up the broken pieces with my hands when I hid it from her. Did not care that I was going to get her a new one. I- I knew she would be angry with me, and I was afraid."

III eyes widen minutely, the scenario familiar. It was no wonder Vessel had looked so terrified when he'd broken III's mug. They want to ask for more details, to know what has befallen Vessel so III can't make sure never to repeat it, but his mouth is still shut. Vessel moves on before II can find the words to say, still running a finger over the indents in his cheek, "... This is a consequence of my rest."

'Sleep said something might happen.' III types out on their phone glumly, handed over for II to read out.

Vessel expects to hear III.

Wants to hear them. Needs them to say something. Why aren't they speaking? Vessel's memories are a mess, did he say or do something to anger them?

Vessel is suddenly bombarded with the fuzzy memories of what happened the night he last layed down.

"What did you do?"

III won't meet Vessel's eyes, he doesn't pull away either.

"Three, please, what did you do?" Vessel asks again, eyes wide in growing concern and horror.

III looks over to II, panic blatant over the bond as they silently converse with their eyes alone. II's lips thin in reluctant acceptance before speaking, "Sleep took his voice, temporarily... at least, we think its temporary. We'd- We'd both had enough of seeing you wither away from a lack of sleep, so- Three went to Sleep and demanded He let you rest."

"Demanded?" Vessel squeaks, a sob getting caught in his throat.

III demanded something of Sleep?

"He threw you out of the altar room! He- You- You could have been hurt! He took your voice!" Vessel raises his voice, distressed, pulling away to shove himself back in the corner.

His hands come to scratch at his arms as he holds himself. II looks around quickly, noticing Vessel's plushie right away and moving to grab it, to hand it over to Vessel. He had hoped something else to hold on to would make Vessel let go of his arms.

"Don't-!" Vessel blurts, crying harder, breath hitching in his chest as his throat aches with his fear.

II pauses, confused, but lets Vessel get his words out, "Don't destroy it. I'll- I'll do anything you want, just don't rip it. Don't throw it away."

Vessel digs his nails in harder, but can't force himself to grab his plushie to save it from its fate.

Slowly, II grabs the plushie with the gentlest grasp he can, handing it over to Vessel who takes it with trembling fingers, "I'm not going to hurt it, Ves. Why do you think I would do that?"

Vessel's lips pinch shut as he holds his plushie close to his chest, fingers trailing rhythmically over the plush material of its coat as he continues crying, "She would destroy my things. For loving them more than I loved her, she would say. My keyboard, my lyric notebooks. My 'Alpha Wolf' hoodie... it isn't the original. I had to save up for months to replace it."

III shakes with his anger, reaching out towards Vessel with arms opened invitingly. Vessel reaches back, crawling into III's lap and curling his head up against their stomach, tears never once ceasing. III runs a hand through Vessel's hair, uncaring how dirty it is.

"She should never have done that. She had no right, no reason-" II sucks in a deep breath to calm himself, clenching his fists in his lap.

"I'm sorry. I- I do not think you would do that, I just- That dream felt more like my reality. I thought- I thought I had been dreaming all of this up and that she had never abandoned me... that I was still stuck there where she hurt me, staying because I loved her and terrified to be alone. I realize, now, faced with what she was like... You two could be no more different from anyone else I have ever loved."

"I'm sorry, Vessel. I'm- I'm so sorry-" II isn't sure what to say, can't seem to find the words to express his thoughts.

"Do not apologize. It is not your fault." Vessel tries to reassure, still wiping away tears that are replaced quickly.

III simply holds him as he continues crying, II keeping a hand on his hip. Eventually, Vessel manages to calm down enough to speak again, small hiccups interrupting his words.

"Three... You risked the ire of our God... for me?" Vessel asks, so quietly its as though he thinks anything louder than a whisper will shatter the fragile atmosphere and everything he knows will be lost.

Vessel had never been a happy man, even in love. Not until II and III. They made him happy. Made him want to do better, be better.

His time After is still tainted with a pain of its own, but it is Before that lingers. Vessel... he wants to be rid of the past. He doesn't know how to start.

"You... You did not have to do that. I'm not worth it- Sleep, He took your voice for it, Three. You shouldn't have- I'm not worth it." Vessel's voice sounds defeated, a fresh wave of tears spilling over his cheeks, staining III's pajamas with gold.

"You are worth it! You will always be worth it!" II protests, falling silent with a miserable expression when Vessel shakes his head in silent refusal.

III holds Vessel to himself tightly, face screwed up in agony at the inability to reassure Vessel. III can't handle not being able to see Vessel's face properly, needing some way to communicate while still holding him. III pulls Vessel up by his shoulders, desperately grasping the others clothes before moving their hands to his face to cup it in a tender hold.

Shaking his head, III pleads with their eyes for Vessel to understand that they disagree with what Vessel has said. They have never hated Sleep taking their voice from them more than in that moment, feeling golden tears slip over III's thumbs.

"Do not ever do anything like that again." Vessel demands between his hitching, quiet sobs, hands coming up to hold onto III's, "I- I do not want to lose you. Please, Three, please! Promise me. Promise me, promise, promise-"

III looks to II for help, begging with their eyes for II to understand that III can promise no such thing as they shake their head profusely.

"Three can't promise you that, Vessel. I would do the same for either of you. You would do the same for us. We love you, at the risk of ourselves. We believe you worthy of our love, and so you will have it." II says, always so gentle with Vessel when he does not deserve it, does not feel worthy of it.

"I do not want either of you to get hurt because of me." Vessel whimpers, one hand falling down to clutch at II's on his thigh. "I want to protect you. I need you safe and unharmed, for my own sanity."

Vessel knows he must be a pathetic sight. Still, they do not shove him away. They do not hit him or scold him for his tears.

They love him, and Vessel believes it when they say so, when they press more kisses on whatever part of his body is in reach. No boundaries are crossed, his most closely kept secret remains just that, and Vessel is safe.

Despite knowing this, Vessel is... a little afraid of the next time he inevitably sleeps. Dreaming has brought forth things he had tried his hardest to forget, things Sleep had tried to bury without taking away who he was. Without his pain, Vessel would have been an empty shell.

Perhaps Sleep should have made Vessel forget everything, should not have left his pain, or any bits and pieces of who he was Before. Maybe he wouldn't be so damaged, now. He- He could have been a fresh slate, easier to love, easier to be loved.

This journey would have been so much easier... but would it have been the same...?

::

Once Vessel is fully calmed down, II and III reluctantly leave him to shower and change into different clothes, the tension that had been so high the past week loosening. Thinking nothing of the front door opening and closing, III lets Vessel wander off without his shoes again, peeking their head into the foyer to still see them by the door. III shrugs despite the errant thought that the other had just showered, going back to watering his plants in the house while II took a much needed nap, Elvira weaving between his feet as he wandered around. II didn't manage to sleep very well, worried over Vessel as he had been, so III isn't surprised he's trying to catch up on some much needed rest to try and relieve the pent up stress. They're in the middle of trimming up some damaged stems and leaves on the plants in the upstairs sitting room, unsure how much time has passed since Vessel left, when there is a pulling in III's chest, a tug on the bond he shares with the vessels. At first, they think it is II, since Vessel does not get their attention this way often. II is confused when III finds him up in his room, groggy from where III had woken him from his nap.

III apologizes quickly with a gentle pat to II's head, turning around to leave. They turn back quickly at II's slurred request for a kiss. II has nodded off again before III even reaches the door, and the sight threatens to bring a smile to III's face, though his sealed mouth stops it. III goes to find Vessel next, putting their shoes on at the door as the tugging persists. It does not lead in any particular direction, unlike the bond with Vessel that III can feel leads off faintly into the forest.

Stepping outside, III immediately notices something different, a change that strikes fear into their heart. One of the large trees by the house that lends a decent chunk of shade to the walkway leading to III's garden, has turned red. Its leaves, trunk, and branches are all a startling crimson color, like blood.

III doesn't think it was like this just this morning, but aside from taking care of their garden, neither II or III had left the shelter of the manor while they waited for Vessel to wake.

Vessel's probing, concerned bond leads off into the forest, and III will have to brave seeing so much red if he wants to find him, seeing down their own reassurance to relieve Vessel's worry. First, III needs to finish watering their plants, the task only half completed when he and II had felt the beginnings of Vessel's bond stirring as the other woke up slowly. The warm weather lends to the sweat trailing down III's back, and they know they will need a shower later, regardless of the dirt they're accumulating on their knees and hands while they water their plants.

Too soon, or perhaps not soon enough, that task is done, and its time to find Vessel. Steeling himself, III takes a deep, shaky breath. Walking further into the forest, III tugs questioningly on his bond with Vessel. There is a brief stint of sudden panic from him before its schooled into false calm and Vessel tugs back, leading III towards him. III sends down gentle affection, trying to soothe whatever made Vessel so panicked. Vessel's responding affection, quieter and more gentle than III's overwhelming love (no matter how subdued they had tried to make it) is treasured. They wonder if Vessel has realized it is their love that III sends him so often.

As III goes, he notices small little bits of flora have turned that same crimson as the tree by the house. A mushroom here, a patch of moss there, all red like blood. Any trees, their trunks like stained crimson bone, cast red light into the ground through the leaves. The sun beats down on III from above, but the thick canopies provide ample shade for most of the walk.

Vessel meets III at the edge of what seems a large expanse of red behind even III's enhanced eyesight, an unusual bounce in his step. Small band-aids have been placed over the nail marks torn into Vessel's cheek and jaw, and III is glad Vessel had clearly taken time to bandage them at all, after his shower. Vessel looks full of energy, bouncing on his feet with an eagerness III doesn't usually see from him. The rest has done him well. His demeanor now is such a stark contrast to what it was when he had woken up earlier that is almost sends III reeling.

The tugging in III's chest does not loosen, nor does it tighten, only persists in no particular direction. Following closely behind the First is a white stag, the same that Vessel had described to them. It towers over both of them, remaining a few steps behind Vessel as he walks. III eyes the beautiful, morbid creature warily as Vessel hesitantly reaches out for III's hand, a nervous, hopeful smile making his eyes all scrunch cutely.

"Three! This is the stag I told you about." Vessel says as III nods along, already having guessed it.

His modern English accent is more pronounced with his more energetic movements, as Vessel brings III's hand up to kiss his knuckles, "It will not hurt you, I promise."

III takes out his phone, typing a little slower than usual as he only has one hand available. Vessel waits patiently, a sad sheen overcoming the happiness in his eyes at seeing III.

?¿?: i believe you. whats in there?

"It is... Sleep's realm, here, in its earthly counterpart. I think it is a consequence of my rest. It is potentially dangerous, there are many of Sleep's creatures now residing there alongside this stag." Vessel explains, weary, "Promise me you'll stay away? Please, it is all I ask for." Vessel pleads, desperate for the other to agree.

III wants to protest, wants to assure Vessel that they can protect themself just fine, but Vessel is asking something of him... And III can find no discernible reason to disagree.

?¿?: alright ves, I promise

"Thank you, Three. For listening to me." Vessel smiles in relief, turning back to the stag, "You may go, if you wish. I've kept you from your duty long enough."

The stag snorts, shuffling its hoove in the rust red soil before it moves forward. III tries not to stiffen too noticeably as it moves closer to them, taking in the ghoul fungus littering what of its body that is not bleached bone.

"Steady, love, it will not hurt you." Vessel reassures, moving minutely closer to III's side despite his words.

III trusts Vessel, and so does not allow themself to back away like instinct demanded. It is easily a foot or two taller than III when it comes to stand in front of them, and for just a second, III cannot help the smile that pulls at the threading holding their lips shut at the thought of II beside the creature. He would look absolutely tiny beside it.

The stag leans close, large, sharp, branching antlers coming into startling focus as it bows its head before III. Careful not to startle it, III reaches up and places a hand right above where it's snout would be, fingers meeting only bone as empty eye sockets somehow seem to bore into III's very soul.

"Do you think the lovely creature would make Two look smaller than he already is?" Vessel jokes, and III could cry at the ease in which he does it, how he had voiced III's own thoughts.

If III could laugh, he imagines it would be a wet sound with promise of tears, but instead, all he can manage is a wheeze of air out his nose and his shoulders shaking. III nods eagerly in answer, eyes crinkled at the edges, and Vessel thinks they look beautiful. He wasn't sure the joke would land, perhaps even expected it to be met with irritation. Neither II nor III have ever met his negative expectations. They've exceeded every one of them with kindness and- and love, that Vessel feels he will never deserve.

The stag pushes its head further into III's hand, and while III isn't sure the creature can even feel his touch, he still pets above where it's snout should be anyway. Vessel lays a hand on the stag's side, where a patch of crimson moss has covered some of the vertebrae on its spine.

"It likes you." Vessel chuckles, still a quiet thing, but it surprises III nonetheless.

He's come so far since they'd first met. For him to laugh, as quiet as it was... Fuck, III loves him so much. Could not possibly put into words just how much Vessel means to them, but wants to try.

III can't, not right now, and it hurts.

III presses impossibly closer to Vessel's side as they both continue petting the stag. The creature lets them with no outward signs of displeasure. Displaying any sort of emotion may be difficult, though, with a lack of skin and muscles... and eyes.

Vessel turns his head in the direction of the house, tilting his head just so to the side as his petting ceases, "Sleep is calling for us. For you. He says you are not answering him."

III can't quite recall a time where Sleep had called for him, specifically. He's not sure II had ever been summoned either.

?¿?: is that wht this tugging is? It didnt leadt kn any particluar directon

Vessel squints at the phone for a second to decipher what III has written past the spelling errors, frowning. "Yes. I don't recall him ever calling on you before, so it might be different since you're the Third."

?¿?: ididnt mean to ignroe him

"Its alright, He says he's not upset, just that He merely wishes to speak with you." Vessel says, frowning heavily. "I think He is... regretful over what happened but will not speak to you directly, right now. I do not know why."

III puts his phone back in his pocket, bowing his head to the stag. They back away only slightly to avoid the antlers when the stag bows its head in return to both him and Vessel, before turning and walking back from whence it came.

"Do you wish to go speak with Him?" Vessel asks hesitantly as they, too, start walking back towards the manor hand in hand.

If it weren't for Vessel, III is sure they would have gotten lost trying to make their way back from this deep inside of the forest. Vessel seems quite certain of where he's going, though, so III trusts him.

?¿?: of course i do our god is calling gor me why wouldnt i want to speak witu him

"Because he almost hurt you." Vessel whispers, almost lost in the noises of the forest.

?¿?: i made him angy He could have just obliterated mr on the spto

"That... does not make it right." Vessel falls silent after finishing.

The short conversation peters out as they walk, hand in hand. III starts swinging their hands, curious as to what Sleep wishes to speak with them about. Maybe III will finally get his voice back. And use of his mouth in general, they're really quite hungry.

"I miss your voice." Vessel says suddenly, and III turns their head to look at him, finding Vessel already watching them with sad eyes.

III cannot even smile to reassure him, and they hate it.

"I- I miss hearing you talk to your plants while you water them. I miss hearing you call me by my nickname with that thick accent of yours. I miss hearing you laugh, so heartily it shakes your whole body. I miss hearing you." Tears well up in III's eyes as Vessel speaks, and he pulls both of them to a stop.

?¿?: im not too much?

"Never. You have never been too much, and I assure you, you never will be. Not to me." Vessel states with firm resolve, truly believing in every word he says.

III shoves his phone in his pocket and reaches up, grabbing Vessel's face, fingers threading into the others hair as he kisses him. Vessel lets out a noise of surprise, but does not protest the action. It is more of III pressing his lips to Vessel's than it is an actual kiss, but it will have to do. III swamps the bond with all the gooey, warm affection and adoration flooding his veins in the hopes that Vessel will feel it for what it is.

III pulls away, planting gentle kiss after gentle kiss all over Vessel's face until the other is a blushing mess. He looks so fucking pretty, III feels as if his heart is going to burst right out of his chest.

Vessel's blush lingers long after III pulls them forward once more, trusting Vessel to tell him if they start going the wrong direction.

III takes his shoes off at the front door, following Vessel up the staircase. They both try to keep quiet so as to not wake II, who is still resting. A quick glance see's his door open like III had left it, with Elvira laying in the doorway without a care in the world, sprawled across the floor like a particularly chunky pillow tossed aside carelessly.

The altar room is dark except for the single red candle, already lit. Vessel gets to work on lighting the others while Sleep speaks without preamble.

"You may leave us, my First. I wish to speak to the Third in private." Sleep says as III kneels before the altar, hands clasped in front of them on their knees.

Vessel does not say anything for a moment, nor does he move to leave. He lights the last candle and snuffs out the match, coming to stand beside III. A large hand falls to rest on III's head, slowly stroking over III's hair. If the situation weren't quite so serious, III might not have had to shove down the ardent arousal at Vessel standing over them like that, with such a steadfast expression on his visage.

"Can I... trust you with them, now, after what you did? If it were not for my- the manor's vines, you'd have hurt him." Vessel questions, finally raising his head to stare into the sigil on the wall resolutely, his eyes glowing a faint crimson.

There is a profound sadness in the bond, shared with their God, "I will not hurt them, my First. You have my word."

"Keep it, please. Or you will lose me. You've granted my wish... I implore you not to threaten it."

"I will lo...?" Sleep's voices seem to break into something deeply hurt, "Very well. I will not hurt the Third, nor the Second. Now, leave us, my First. I wish to speak with him."

Frustration and fear cloud His words before it is smoothed over into something ice cold to hide the hurt. III feels surprisingly... sympathetic.

"Are you certain you will be alright?" Vessel turns to III before he leaves, six eyes full of question as they scan his face.

III waves him off nonchalantly while they nod. Vessel stares down at him in scrutiny for a moment longer before slowly patting III's head only once. His footsteps make no sound as he glides out of the room and shuts the door behind him.

"A truly bewitching creature." Sleep muses, affection bleeding into their words as easily as breathing, if the God even breathes.

The golden flame flickers, shining brightly in the room as a fog roils around III's stomach, covering the flooring up so thickly III can't see their own legs. A veil seems to settle over III's head, weighing him down, shoulders hunching forward.

"Now, my Third. Your and the Second's insolence stems from your love for the First." Sleep practically spits, tone startling different from mere seconds ago, before all of their voices seem to sigh, the sound of it mismatched and echoing all around III.

The same tendrils keeping III's mouth shut wrap around their legs to keep them in place.

"I wanted vessels who would love him, who would not hurt him. I suppose I've found just what I was looking for, if you're so willing to anger me on his behalf. I told him your love was true, fleeting as it may prove to be." Sleep gripes, keeping III motionless and silent as their knees begin to ache.

"I- I apologize." Sleep spits out the apology like He'd sucked on a lemon.

III isn't sure why they picture a pinched face when they think of what sort of expression Sleep must be making, but he's sure he's right. Sleep continues, "I do not take kindly to demands. I... do not entirely understand humans and how they function. Much of my knowledge stems from my Firsts' experiences."

'Watch us, and learn, then. We are yours, but you are also ours. Learn from us as we learn from you.' III wants to say aloud, wants to scream until Sleep listens to him, but they settle with speaking with the God over the bond, pulling tightly on it so Sleep will listen, 'I love Vessel dearly, but his life has torn him apart from theinside out. He understands human emotion better than you, but he has only ever experienced a skewed version of love. What he has undergone is not love. Those before II and I, did not love him, not truly. We love him.'

"My First's physical state, self-inflicted injuries aside, has shown remarkable improvement in functionality. I have never seen him quite so... lively. Not since he was a young little thing. I thank you, even if we do not know the extent of the consequences his sleep will bring. Already, my earthly realm is changing, pieces of the realm I reside in bleeding over into the other plane. My First has more control over my realm than I had originally thought... My own doing, no doubt."

Sleep continues, "I... I will take care from now on to watch all three of you. Not just my First. Your voice will be returned to you, my Third. Oh, and take these, for the First and Second. Jewelry to disguise themselves around other humans. Use your own divine gift for the same purpose, Third."

Weight settles in III's hands, the appendages feeling distant from his mind and yet their fingers clasp around the items tightly. "Your voice will be returned to you when awareness flows back into your body. As of now, your mind is in a state of rest, on the cusp of sleeping. I hope it will bring us closer, so that next time I call upon you, Third, you will recognize it as myself doing so."

III nods, the action feeling distant, as though it was performed by someone else. Despite his body not feeling like their own, their mind is clear.

'Thank you, Sleep. Can I risk your rage once more? There is something I need to tell you.'

Apprehension colors Sleep's voices but He allows III to say what he will.

'I am not an idiot, Sleep, despite what my human peers thought. Vessel is your favorite, that is clear. But you chose us, too. We worship you just the same. All three of us are meant to be yours. I feel it in my soul, just as I feel it with II and Vessel. I want to be here with you, with them. Do not... I beg of you not to push us away. Don't make Vessel choose between us, or you.'

Sleep does not say anything further, contemplative in His silence, but their presence is cool against III's back, like a hand has come to rest on the sigil painting their lower back. It tingles under the phantom touch, long after that touch is lifted.

Vessel clings to III when the other comes to, still sat on his legs in worship. They blink in mild confusion, immediately getting an armful of Vessel to III's delight. The fog has lifted, no traces of it lingering on the floor, but III isn't surprised. The veil he had felt over his head seems to have lifted, too. III is too disoriented still to register that Vessel had briefly hugged him, such a quick thing that it didn't feel like much of a hug at all. Still, III cherishes the action dearly.

"I'm alright, Ves. Sleep apologized, and said He would try to do better."

"He returned your voice!" Vessel's face lights up with a smile.

"I did." Sleep's voices sounds through the room, "I have called the Second here, stay."

"Of course, Sleep." Vessel answers, arms wrapping around one of III's own, head coming to linger close to III's as though he wants to lean into them further.

"For you, from Sleep. He says you and II can use these to look human, while I will use my magic." III says, handing Vessel the necklace held tightly in III's fist.

"My necklace? Did He enchant it somehow?" Vessel asks rhetorically, taking the necklace gingerly.

The coin necklace looks just the same as Vessel remembers, having seen it just this morning in his bedside drawer, but he supposes a bit of Sleep's magic now swirls through the chain. Vessel thanks III for the necklace, holding it in hand while he leans his head on III's shoulder. He remains close to III even when II comes in, rubbing tired eyes. Sleep must have woken him from his nap.

Vessel and III remain on the floor, so II simply joins them on III's other side, placing a hand on III's thigh.

"Wait no longer. Tell him of your new manager, Second."

II's tired face scrunches in worry, but does as told, Bristol accent thick with sleep, "Sleep got us a manager for our band. We- We have a meeting with him tomorrow, at the record label he works under. I couldn't push it back any further or he was going to let us go regardless of Sleep's influence. We, uh, need to choose a name before we meet with him."

Straight away, Vessel's bond floods with anxiety. He doesn't say anything for a moment, only nods, trying to hide his face in the space between III's neck and shoulder.

Vessel speaks up quietly, surprising II and III who had expected him to remain silent due to his clear panic, "The band is an offering to Sleep, each song a token of our devotion. Sleep Token."

Vessel's six eyes go a little wide in startled apprehension, pulling away from III to look at both of them properly, "I mean, only if neither of you have any better ideas. I- You both probably do have something better than-"

"It's perfect." II states firmly, and it really is perfect.

II may have his strong opinions on the way Sleep handles Vessel's physical health, but II still cares for the God. He brought II from death, saved him, promised him fame and acknowledgement for his hard work in life. He brought him to Vessel, brought him III.

"Yeah, it's a neat name, Sugar. I was gonna offer up Sleep's Eepies. Or The Sleepies."

"The Vessels." II tacks on with an amused smile, tracing a subconscious pattern into III's thigh with a thumb.

Vessel's own amused smile is slow to lift his lips, lopsided and adorable. "You just wanted to name us after our group chat?"

"Why not?" III shrugs with a wide mirthful grin.

"Are you sure you're ready for all of this, Ves? You've barely been able to sing in front of us even with your mask. I know your voice is good, and we have a decent amount of songs written now, I just- I worry for you." II says, concerned.

"As ready as I will ever be. Circumstances have led us to putting this off for too long. It is time we do as we were made to, worship musically and bring in more worshippers. I need to do this. I can- I can force myself to sing if I must. The mask will help. It will be different, too. A proper ritual. Sleep will likely have more to do with it than He does when we practice."

"Yes, my First. You'll most assuredly feel me more strongly. You will do well, I know it. Do not fret. Hand over the Seconds gift, my Third. The coin necklace is a gift from my earthly realm. It deemed fit to bestow you a token of gratitude, First. I have placed a spell on it, to grant you the ability to take on your previous human appearance." Sleep explains as III hands II the necklace clutched in their hand, "The necklace is a gift to the Second from myself, for the same purpose."

"Is there not risk of danger, for us to be perfectly alive when we've all legally died?" III questions, voicing the thoughts of all the vessels.

"No, my Third. You came to the manor as your human selves. The only danger is potentially meeting those from your past, but my earthly realm is nowhere near any of them. There should be no real danger. Keep your identities hidden from the world except a trusted few, if you find any humans worthy of that trust. Your previous names will be written on any needed documents but a bit of magic will keep anyone from looking into them."

Vessel is silent throughout the conversation, eyeing II's new necklace as he fingers his own. Two drumsticks crossed over each other, with air streaking off of them like they were being spun. It makes the drumsticks look like scythes. A fitting piece of jewelry for II, Vessel thinks.

"You may all leave, if you wish. I will not be calling upon you today, nor tomorrow, my First. There will be much to do once speaking with that human manager of yours."

"Thank you for returning my voice." III says as they all stand.

None of the vessels move apart from each other, remaining close.

"I took it from you in my anger. It is only right I return it at some point." Sleep brushes off the thanks, but III knows, now, that the God appreciates their words.

He's about as attuned to his own emotions as Vessel is. III lets out a little sigh as everyone makes their way down to the main floor of the manor. From what III garnered, Sleep was about as emotionally intelligent as a rock, except about love, apparently.

And that comment Sleep had made about Vessel... He had implied He knew Vessel when he was a child...

How long did Sleep linger around Vessel before choosing him as the First? Or was Vessel always meant to be the First? The conversation certainly gave III some food for thought, but he would much prefer actual food as their stomach growls loudly.

"I'll cook you something, pretty." II says, not bothering to look back as he moves to the kitchen, III and Vessel following hand in hand without a word.

Vessel and II work together to make III something filling, but light. II refuses to let III help cook, having him sit on the counter while he and Vessel worked. It took more time than it would have if II had done it by himself, but Vessel had quietly asked to help, and II wouldn't refuse him much of anything.

It certainly didn't help that III wouldn't stop grabbing one of them by the shoulder when they passed, pulling them into a soft kiss before letting them continue. II and Vessel had no complaints to give.

III inhales their food voraciously, a man starved. The rest of the day is spent in front of the couch, watching Fairy Tail cuddled close with blankets and pillows covering the floor around them for comfort. Snacks galore are piled up on the coffee table, the last of their stash. None of them watched too much of the show itself, despite their best efforts. II and III were far too busy sharing kisses with each other, and stealing them from Vessel.

One thing became abundantly clear to III over the course of that conversation with Sleep, a multitude of little signs piling up until the picture painted is clear to him.

Sleep is in love with Vessel, in some way or another.

::

The next morning, Vessel is getting ready to leave the manor. He dresses in a plain black long sleeve shirt and a pair of tight jeans, leaving his socks and boots for when they head out the door. Tugging his unruly hair into his preferred half up, half down style, Vessel aims for something a bit non-descript in hopes he won't get stared at as much as if he wore his fancier clothes. Vessel slips his magic infused necklace into his back pocket, its weight heavy, and heads out of his room.

"Won't you be hot in that, Ves?" III asks as Vessel passes by them in the hall, their dirt covered hands a familiar sight.

He must have just left an offering for Sleep.

"I do not wish for anyone to stare at my bandages." Vessel says, leaning into it when III pulls Vessel close with an arm around his shoulder so they can steal a quick kiss.

"If anyone says anything rude, I can just punch them." III offers with a bright grin as though he could think of nothing more fun, or deserving.

Vessel laughs quietly, which causes III to grin even bigger, stealing another kiss. "As much as I think you'd enjoy that, we don't need you getting arrested the very day we meet the manager for our band."

"You guys would bail me out with Sleep's money. Besides, if someone did say something rude, it would be a deserved punishment and I wouldn't even mind the jailtime." III shrugs with one shoulder, still not quite letting Vessel go.

They've completely stopped in the hall now, but Vessel doesn't mind, in no true rush to leave. "I need to go finish getting ready, I'll see you in a bit." III says, placing one last chaste kiss to Vessel's cheek before bounding off.

Vessel heads down to the bathroom to reluctantly see himself as a human again. Its something he knows he must do, out of curiosity or a need to see what had made him so unlovable that only a God cared for him once he'd already perished. He fiddles with the coin necklace in front of him as he walks, passing by II who is sat on the last step clutching Elvira close to his chest, cooing at her like she were a babe. Its endearing, and Vessel brushes his hand over II's head as he passes.

He doesn't bother closing the bathroom door, only stares at himself in the mirror for what feels like forever before his head falls to look at the sink, at his mask placed on the porcelain counter to its side. Slowly, he lifts up the necklace and pulls it over his head. The weight of it settles over his chest and Vessel cannot seem to force himself to look up, to see.

Biting his lip harshly, Vessel does manage it.

He takes one glance in the mirror, at the single set of dull blue eyes speckled faintly with lighter blue shades, the rounded, human ears and the lack of Sleep's markings anywhere on his body, and puts his mask on to deter himself from tearing into the supple flesh of his face with his nails. The necklace slips over his head and is stuffed in his pocket again before even ten seconds have passed. He cannot stand the sight of himself from Before.

There is relief in seeing himself as he is, knowing what he looks like now under his mask. This is who he is, all the otherworldly inhuman parts of himself mixed with who he was Before, ugly, unsightly. A face made for radio, his boyfriend had said, the first time Vessel had played a song for him.

He supposes there is beauty too, in the features he shares with Sleep. The only parts of himself he has grown to appreciate to some extent. Only for his God.

Stepping out of the bathroom, II waits for him, leant against the wall. "Are you alright, my love? I felt how upset you were in the bond. Three was going to ask you about it but I encouraged him to finish getting dressed instead." He says, pushing off the wall to step forward and take Vessel's hands.

They tremble in his tender hold, and Vessel crumbles at the softness of II's sky blue eyes. "I do not like being glamoured, nor without my mask. I.. I do not have a face worth looking at."

II's eyed are sad, but his smile is kind as he contemplates what to say. Vessel lets him think, shuffling forward to be just that little bit closer to him.

"When I first saw you, sobbing with two new sets of eyes... I thought you were the most beautiful man I'd ever seen. When I saw you, moments ago, entirely human without any trace of Sleep's marks, I still thought that exact thing. My breath got caught in my chest and I was awestruck. You're beautiful Vessel, glamoured or not. Without your mask, or with it."

Fresh tears well up in Vessel's eyes, overcome with such strong love, such hope and disbelief. He manages to keep them from falling, but his voice cracks and breaks often, "I do not see what you see. I do not feel beautiful. I do not feel worthy of your affection, your kind words. Your love. I want to, though. You and Three... you're both so... so wonderful. I want to feel worth your love."

"You are worth our love, sweetheart, and we're trying to help you realize that." II says gently, bringing his hands, and subsequently Vessel's own hands, up to cup Vessel's cheeks.

Vessel's hands are cold on his face, warmth from II's hands a stark contrast. His eyes flutter at the affection, staring down at II with such blatant adoration that II feels nearly overcome by it.

"I know. You've helped me so much, in my ways than one. Even before Three got here. It means the world to me that you care enough to try when I don't des- Don't feel like I deserve it."

"I'm proud of you for making the distinction between not deserving something and feeling like you don't deserve something. That's important, Ves." II smiles up at him, and Vessel knows he would lay the world to waste if anything ever happened to the shorter man.

Vessel wants to see II as he is, without the glamor keeping him human. His eyes seem dimmer, not so bright of a blue without the black sclera surrounding the irises. Seeing his usual nose ring and eyebrow piercing is reassuring in ways Vessel didn't think it would be, the familiarity a godsend.

Vessel's answering smile is wobbly, but pleased in a muted, unsure sort of way.

Three little words are on the tip of Vessel's tongue. He wants to say them, doesn't want to let the fear that holds his tongue keep him from telling II he loves him, even if II doesn't say it first.

Vessel opens his mouth to speak, to tell II that he loves him-

"Are you boys ready? We need to be there in a few hours and its at least an hour drive. I want to find a sex shop. Oh, and we need to get that mattress for the living room! And groceries!" III calls, cockney accent thick, footsteps heard as they make their way down the staircase.

Vessel's mouth shuts, but his lips remain curled into a lopsided smile. II huffs out a laugh with an eye roll, standing up on his tippy toes to plant a chaste kiss to Vessel's lips. Vessel leans down a little so II doesn't strain himself trying, pressing his own kiss to II's forehead. He lingers there, foreheads touching, before he pulls away.

One day, Vessel will tell them. When he gathers the courage.

::

The further away from the manor they drive, the less of Sleep the vessels can feel. The tether connecting Vessel with Sleep grows thinner with distance, but at least Vessel can still feel him, faint whispers in his ear that he cannot discern. II and III cannot feel Him like Vessel can, only a faint trickle of His presence in the backs of their minds. No words can be shared with the God, the distance from His realm too great.

Finding a sex shop is a quick Google search and a five minute drive deeper into the city when they arrive not more than an hour and a half later. Vessel feels uncomfortable with the necklace on, but knows he can't go without it. III's own magic keeps him well disguised, a surprise to see for Vessel who had been asleep over the week it took III to master changing their features. Despite how easy looking human has become for them, they still struggle to control the spider limbs while II works on overcoming that fear of his.

Vessel is too embarrassed to ask much about the things he was curiously looking over at the sex shop, but II and III don't fault him for his lack of knowledge, nor the embarrassment. They take time to explain what certain things are, like the cock rings and the leather collars.

"Are you the sort of brat into collars?" II asks while they look at the section containing a small wall of different types of collars.

"I've never actually tried it. Are you the sort of dom into collaring your brats, sir?" III replies with a question of their own, smirking down at II with mirth shining in their eyes.

II carefully averts his gaze back to a bright red one with blunt, spiked silver studding, "I think your slender neck would look even prettier with something around it."

"You could just use your hand as a necklace, Doll."

"Such a naughty boy. I'll keep that in mind. How about this one, then?" II says with a playful gleam in his eye, pulling a baby blue collar from the rack that III had been very blatantly staring at.

III flushes red, "Oh, you were serious?"

"Quite. Were you not?" II queries, perceptive as always while Vessel watches their exchange silently.

"I appreciate you taking me so seriously, sir, but I've never been truly interested in having one. Some of these are just really pretty." III admits, uncharacteristically shy, and II nods in understanding.

"Okay, that's fine, then. If you ever want one, I wouldn't be opposed. Vessel, lovely, come here a second." Vessel startles, having been listening quietly as II and III went back and forth, trying to follow the conversation.

He wanders a little closer, right beside II as the smaller man speaks again, "Do you think you'd be interested in trying these out?"

Vessel looks at the rack stock full of collars of different colors and designs, glancing back at II nervously, then over to III. "What are these for?"

"Its a type of possession thing, Ves. Or a sign of devotion. Ownership, too, I think. There's a few different meanings and it can be different for everyone who wants to wear one. They can be used for breathplay, I think? I'm not entirely certain." II explains, waving his hands for emphasis.

"If you want to get me one you can." Vessel says, instead of offering a clear answer.

"It doesn't seem like you actually want one, Ves, so we'll hold off on the collars." II refuses for him, and Vessel cannot help the instant relief he feels. "Actually, its probably best we hold off on any of that until we've all gotten to know each others bodies and tells better."

"You're probably right, Doll." III agrees, also clocking in on just how relieved Vessel was with II's refusal.

Vessel not being ready for it is why III hasn't asked for lewd photos yet, why II has yet to go to Vessel to have sex, choosing instead to wait for him to come to II. III didn't have quite that much patience, and can't bring himself to regret the sex he'd had with Vessel. Perhaps III pushed him too far, too soon, but Vessel has opened up to them more, and is far more willing to talk about sex than he is his other traumas.

"I'm going to go grab some lube, feel free to stay here or look around." II says, patting III on the arm and wandering off.

III takes Vessel's hand, pulling the other to a different rack in the store, not too far from where they were before. Vessel keeps close, eyeing the whips and canes apprehensively. III makes sure to steer them away from the more pain oriented sections, and towards the shelves of butt plugs and dildos. Vessel is leaning into III, their shoulders pressed close, as III hums, idly scanning the small selection of butt plugs.

"Um... What exactly is lube?" Vessel asks quietly, shying away when III levels a blank stare at him.

"You don't know- Uh, lube is short for lubricant. Its to make sex easier. To be more specific for our needs it makes anal sex easier since your ass doesn't uh, create its own lubricant like a vagina? So you would put it on your dick so it slides better. Less pain and discomfort that way." III tries his best to explain but his brain is caught entirely on the fact that Vessel has no clue what lube is.

Its practically a requirement for anal sex, especially with another man and Vessel doesn't- Holy shit, did Vessel's first partner, the one man Vessel said he ever slept with, not use fucking lube?!

"I mean, you can use spit if you need something quick, but lube is just easier and works far better." III continues to try and stop themselves from traveling down that dark road of thought as Vessel slowly nods, a strange expression on his face.

"Did your first partner... not use lube when you had sex?" III asks carefully, trying to reel in the mounting anger they can feel building under their skin.

If they're not careful, a slip up in control caused by high emotions will cause their magic disguise to blink away, and III absolutely cannot let that happen, not in public like this.

II comes back with a couple large bottles of lube in time for the tail end of III's explanation, a concerned expression on his face. "No... Based on your explanation, I take it he was supposed to?"

"Yes, my dear, he was. Unless he has the world's smallest penis, anal sex requires lube or else its painful. Is this what you meant when you said your ex-boyfriend was rough?" II interjects before III can accidentally say something biting, that would cause Vessel to shy away further even if the anger wasn't directed at him but at his ex.

Vessel nods before quietly explaining further, "My whole jaw would ache for days, in the beginning, when I first started giving him blow jobs. It hurt less than the sex, so I couldn't find it in me to mind that much. He got so mad when I threw up that first time, but I still had a gag reflex then. I- I couldn't breathe and- and my throat- It hurt to talk because the back of my throat was so bruised, and my jaw-"

Vessel cuts himself off when he finally looks up and notices the thunderous expressions on II and III's faces. Those looks always seem to appear whenever Vessel speaks about his past. Has he... done something wrong? Maybe he shouldn't have started off with the bit about his first blow job experience, it had nothing to do with what was asked. II probably wasn't even asking about that, but perhaps the act of sex itself?

"You mentioned before that you- That you didn't bleed when we had sex. You were surprised. You don't know what lube is, and you didn't know what prepping was." III is thankful that the shop is pretty empty aside from the borderline asleep clerk at the counter by the door as he struggles to keep his voice low.

Vessel nods along, nervous about the anger in III's voice, stepping away to wrap his arms around himself. III's expression sours further, hand twitching up as though they want to reach out and pull Vessel back to their side. They stop when the skin on their arm flickers, a half-transformed arm flashing into view for a moment. He's grateful when II steps forward, wrapping an arm around Vessel's waist and pulling him close in III's stead.

"Was it... every time? Did you bleed every time? Did it hurt?" III asks, stilted like they don't think they can stomach the answer Vessel will give.

A short nod is the only answer Vessel offers, and III's face screws up into something agonized. II isn't faring much better, but is well versed in remaining composed in stressful situations if its required of him. With III crumbling in front of them and Vessel silent as a grave, it is required of him.

"That man did more than a disservice to you. He- Fuck, Ves- I'll be right back, I need to calm down before I lose my control." III doesn't wait to hear II protest, already leaving the store entirely.

"He- He can't- Its not safe. We shouldn't split up. Its not safe." Vessel tries to keep the terror out of his voice but all he can think about is that bastard straddling III, the fear in III's eyes even after they'd knocked him off, and the bruise that took so long to heal.

"Its okay, love, Three is fine. He's not too distant in the bond which means they didn't wander far." II tries to reassure, but he's sure it falls short in the face of his own discomfort at III not being at their sides out in a public space.

"Did I... Did I do something wrong? Are they upset with me? I- I didn't mean to make him upset. If- If they get hurt its my fault." Vessel whimpers, burying his face into II's hair.

His arms wrap around himself tighter, wishing he could ask II to hug him instead. He won't.

"No, no, Ves, it wouldn't be your fault at all. Three's fine, just- He's upset at what you've experienced, my love. I'm upset too, trust me, but neither of us are upset with you. Lets buy this and get out of here, we have a couple other places to go before we meet our manager. We all need a breather first."

The clerk rings up their items with barely any pleasantries, tired eyes not even glancing at them more than once. II is grateful for it, getting out of the store quickly. III is leaning on their car when he and Vessel leave the shop, visibly calmer even at a distance. One arm is held out it front of them as III observes the appendage for any traces of Sleep's markings or less human features.

They look up when II and Vessel near, standing up proper at the sight of them. III apologizes quietly, wrapping one arm around II in a hug and bringing them both forward to pull Vessel close by the nape of his neck, planting a gentle kiss on his forehead. Vessel leans into it, craving the affection desperately.

"Better now?" II asks, cupping III's jaw lovingly.

"Yes. Sorry to leave, my markings were returning and I was so angry. I still am. I- I don't know what to say, Ves, except you didn't deserve anything that has happened to you. Not a bit of it, and it makes me so upset that I can't take back all that has been done to you."

Vessel looks at III, gaze assessing both their expression and the bond, finding no lie. III means everything he says. Uncharacteristically, Vessel doesn't wilt in the face of their concern.

"I'm not sorry. Everything that happened led me to Sleep. Led me to you and Two. I wouldn't change anything, not at the risk of losing this." Vessel states, uncomfortable at baring his heart so freely, but he knows now that they're different from his past partners in a way that lets him feel a little less shackled by what has happened to him.

Only a little.

Tears well up in III's pretty blue eyes, and he's pulling away from II to cup Vessel's face, mindful of the band-aids. The kiss they plant on Vessel's lips is full of love and pain, leaving no room for Vessel to deny it.

"I love you."

Unbidden, Vessel's mind flashes to his ex girlfriend, how she had looked when she said those words to him. It sounded nothing like this, felt nothing like this.

She'd hurt him and then used her love as an apology. Loving him didn't make the pain she had caused him hurt any less. It didn't fix the wounds in his hands or on his face... or that she was the cause. What was so wrong with him that made the people who loved him want to hurt him so badly?

"I love you too."

Vessel wants their love for him to last.

III places another kiss to Vessel's lips before pulling away, swiping the keys from II's pocket with a wobbly smile. "Where to next? We still have a couple hours until we need to meet our manager."

Blessedly, III's almost imperceptible sigh of relief follows II taking the words for what they were, a means of moving past the stressful few minutes they'd experienced. He ushers III into the passenger seat, who goes with a strained laugh, fiddling with the radio after II starts the car. III puts on one of Vessel's cd's, a Bullet For My Valentine album from his collection. It makes Vessel smile, which in turn causes III to smile, happy to have brought some light back to Vessel's eyes. III watches in the rear view mirror as Vessel mouths along to the lyrics, attention forced back to II when the other settled a hand on their thigh. III's own hand comes down to rest on the appendage, picking it up to kiss each of II's fingers before pushing it away so II can have both hands on the steering wheel.

After the sex shop, they find a mattress store, buying a large king size mattress for the living room. It weighs Vessel's car down comically, but its still drivable. III had gotten into the car and laughed so hard he cried after they saw the look on the workers faces when II picked up the whole mattress by himself and put it up on the car's roof. Everyone was visibly less tense once III had seemed o have gone back to normal, and the guilt that had infested Vessel's bond ever since the sex shop cleared away.

The tranquility didn't last long once it was finally time to meet their manager. Vessel is so overcome with nerves that he can't stop shaking. The necklace feels heavy around his neck, like a too tight second skin. He knows it only feels that way, and that in reality, there is no way to tell he is glamoured at all. He feels sick with his nerves, mask clenched tightly in his hands as he stares down at it in his lap. II sits in the backseat with him, flush against Vessel's side with II's hand on his thigh. He'd climbed back with Vessel once the other started to breathe too heavily to be normal while they waited for their meeting time to come up.

III is braiding a section of his hair beside his ear with the help of the visor mirror, nervous, too. II is trying to go through all of what he knows about what the meeting will entail, the name of their manager, any info he has to lessen Vessel's anxiety over it. It helps, only a little, but Vessel is thankful anyway. Places his hand over II's on his thigh and squeezes gently, just once, to express his gratitude.

Vessel is thankful they brought their masks in, II having already told their manager over the phone that they would be a masked band, completely anonymous.

Introducing himself to their manager is nerve wracking, stumbling over his chosen name. He is glad when II steps in front of him, just slightly, as though the smaller man could shield Vessel from the odd look their new manager was giving all of them, likely for their names and the divine air around them. Vessel expects questions, expects to be asked to sing so the man, Johnny, can properly gage whether he wants to take them on or not. Sleep's influence over him, however that was done, must make it so Johnny doesn't actually care if they're decent or not.

The meeting itself, after introductions, is tense, but perhaps only to Vessel. II and III handle themselves much better, placing themselves on either of Vessel's sides, like human shields. Knowing Johnny's name beforehand helped, as well as smaller details that II had told him. Vessel will have to thank II later. He was more prepared than he thought he was, and its thanks to II's forethought in regards to Vessel's anxiety. Johnny doesn't argue when II and III lay out some rules, but his odd look remains. No recorded interviews unless the band themselves give explicit permission, no face reveals, their "stage" names will be all that is used at all times. II had fought against Johnny's insistence that their crew would need to see who they were, but ultimately only managed to put in place a contract for their crew. Severe legal action would be taken if any crew or venue leaked any personal information or photos.

The vessels hoped it would be enough to deter people from going against their wishes for privacy. Signing the paperwork is the easiest part, all of their past names being written with muscles memory even if none of them can read them. Johnny doesn't spare the signatures a second glance, and Sleep had already reassured them that no one would look into the names enough to find out that they're all legally dead. A touch of magic was over the paper detailing their terms for anonymity, as though the document was not just legally binding, but magically, too.

When all of the paperwork is done, Johnny tells them that he's got a few guitarists picked out already that are around what they'll need, Sleep's presence sparking in interest in Vessel's chest. Its only a matter of choosing the one they want for touring. Vessel is nervous about this, too, wondering if their Fourth will be there. Just because Sleep said it isn't time, it doesn't mean that they won't meet their Fourth prematurely like what happened with III. Granted, Vessel believes III to have been chosen by that point, and Sleep had merely been waiting for them to die.

Johnny sends them off with a scheduled meeting for their potential guitarists and a wave. They pretend not to notice when the man grumbles upon their exit, disgruntled by the meeting. Vessel disappears to write and play his piano once they're back at the manor, mask fitted over his face. II and III leave him to it, sensing his need for time to himself after the days grueling events.

They're all a little disappointed when none of the guitarists that arrive two days later at the set meeting time seem to be the Fourth, but pick one regardless for the ability to play an eight string and what seems to be a good personality.

His name is Nick, short for Nicholas, but he had insisted on the nickname. He's shorter than III and Vessel but taller than II, with a squared face and bright, honey brown eyes. His smile is kind, and yet Vessel is... unsettled by it.

From the moment he introduced himself, shook Vessel's hand, it was like something had crawled under his skin. II and III didn't seem to sense anything amiss with Nick, not like Vessel.

"What's with the bandages?" Nick asks, looking down at Vessel's bandaged arms and hand with a curious grin.

Vessel shrinks away with a nervous smile, unable to go far while Nick still grips his hand. He wants Nick to let go, hates the feeling of bugs on his skin like when he suffered through his transformation. Vessel tugs his sleeve back down, not even having realized it had ridden up.

"I'm sorry, but that doesn't seem to be any of your business." III grins back, friendly but assertive. "Mind letting his hand go now?"

"Oh, sure. My apologies, uh, Three. Just trying to make conversation." Nick says sheepishly, letting Vessel's hand go finally, only to bring it up and rub the nape of his neck.

It feels performative to Vessel, but III seems to relax. Maybe Vessel is looking into things too far. All of his social interaction has stemmed from II, III, and Sleep for so long now, maybe he is just out of touch. Vessel has never been good with people, even Before. It was a wonder he'd managed to get any partners at all.

Vessel holds his hand close to his chest the rest of the meeting as II and III talk to Nick about his previous gigs for touring bands and when he's available for practice. Vague flashes of his time undergoing his transformation torment him, the icky sludge of the memories coating the bond heavily enough for the others to notice, II stepping close and wrapping an arm around Vessel's waist. The soothing touch helps, as II's presence always does. Vessel leans into it, available hand coming down to rest overtop II's on his side, threading their fingers together. The meeting couldn't pass by fast enough, time seeming to drag on as it was eventually decided that Nick would be coming home with them for their first day of practice, unofficially.

Vessel had felt eyes on him the entire time, and wishes the icky feeling over his skin would go away.

The car ride home was filled with the low sound of Ghost on the radio and the idle chatter III had with Nick with II giving his input occasionally. Blessedly, III insisted Vessel sit up front as he crawled in the back seat behind him. Vessel was too thankful to protest much, remaining silent the entire ride back, holding II's hand on his thigh like a lifeline.

"Two, are you and Vessel close? You're awfully touchy." Nick comments, eyeing the two of them in the front seat.

Vessel shrinks into his seat, holding II's hand tighter. "We're together, romantically. All three of us, actually."

Nick smiles, nodding along, "Oh, alright then. Not a problem at all. I was just curious. Suppose I'll be the odd one out then."

No one says anything in reply to that, and Vessel isn't sure what he would have said if he could move past his anxiety, anyway.

"Are you not worried about what will happen to the band when you break up? Sorry, if."

"There are no plans of us ever breaking off our relationship." III insists just as II opens his mouth to say the same thing.

"Well, that's never set in stone. I'm happy for you though." Nick says, starting up the conversation he'd been having with III again, III's brow furrowed just slightly in consternation.

It smoothes out over time, Nick's charming but forward personality setting III at ease the longer they talk.

An unpleasant feeling settles in Vessel's gut when the car passes the boundary line between Sleep's earthly realm and the rest of the world. Sleep's magic thickens, swelling in the car as it settled back into the vessels bones. Nick shivers in his seat, pausing mid-sentence for a moment.

"Did you feel that?" He asks, rubbing his arms to rid them of the goosebumps that had sprouted.

"Felt what, mate?" III asks, an easy smile painted on.

If his canines looked a little sharper, well, Nick was too unsettled to notice them, nor the slight glow to all of their eyes as their God's magic coated their insides again.

"It must have been the air conditioning getting to me. It's cold in here." Nick brushes it off, thankfully, turning in his seat a little to watch out the window as the large trees roll by, view hindered by the mattress on the car.

The feeling was made worse when Nick actually stepped foot into the house.

Elvira, who had come to the foyer as soon as they opened the front door, hisses at Nick when he bends down to pet her. She slaps a clawed paw out, nearly catching Nick's hand with it, who only laughs while II apologizes, horrified.

Vessel watches Elvira bound off, tail raised and fur standing on end, and feels a sense of kinship with the cat.

"So you all live together out in the woods? That's kinda creepy." Nick comments, following II and III in taking his shoes off at the door, "This place is super old too. The outside looks way worse than the inside, though. All those plants climbing the walls, even in here."

Vessel places his boots down beside III's, bristling like the vines Nick next speaks about when he says, "You should probably get the ones inside removed. They're kind of unsightly."

Sleep's displeasure thrums through the bond alongside Vessel's, His presence sweeping into the room and sending shivers down all of their spines. Nick glances around discreetly, as though searching for something, head tilted just so to the side.

"I like them." III interjects before Sleep can do something they couldn't possibly explain to the cops, trying to keep his smile kind even as his eyes glint with steel, "They were here when we arrived and haven't messed up the infrastructure. This place is old, but it is home. I would appreciate any criticism be kept to yourself."

An annoyed expression flashes over Nick's face for only a millisecond before it is smoothed into an apologetic smile. "Alright, sorry. I didn't mean to offend you. Where do you guys practice? Will I be called Four from now on?"

Vessel barely stifles an angry hiss, turning his head away when II raises a confused eyebrow in his direction. As III drags Nick off to the practice room, II catches Vessel by the hand before the other can follow.

"You don't like him?"

No, Vessel doesn't like him. Not one bit.

Still, Vessel smiles reassuringly. What he says next isn't quite a lie,  "It's not that. I just... I don't like anyone but us here."

II's confused gaze seems to soften in understanding, "I understand, love. You're safe here, and to have someone encroach on your safe space is uncomfortable. You can go unwind in your room, or any of ours, whenever you need to."

"Thank you. Go ahead to the practice room, I'm going to go find Ellie... Maybe stay in your room for a little while."

"Of course, sweetheart, go on ahead. Don't feel pressured to join us this time, but do remember we need to practice all together soon." II replies, getting up on his tippy toes to kiss Vessel's jaw.

Vessel leans down so II can kiss him proper, smiling into it despite the anxiety still clawing at his empty ribcage.

II goes to grab the mattress off the car, bringing it in while Vessel wanders off to find Elvira. He searches every room in the house twice over before finding her curled under Vessel's bed, hissing at him. Her bright eyes seem to glow in the darkness, the only thing visible to his currently human vision.

When Elvira notices its Vessel, she stops hissing but refuses to come out. If Vessel could crawl under there with her, he would, but he's too tall and stuffed far too many books into the space.

Vessel keeps his voice nice and soft, trying to coax her out from hiding, "Please come out Ellie, don't you want to go lay down in Two's room? Take a nap with me surrounded by all of Two's things? It'll be nice, I promise. No Nick to make us uncomfortable."

Elvira inches forward, just close enough for Vessel to grab her and pull her out from under the bed carefully. Vessel holds her to his chest as soon as she's out, nuzzling into her black fur. She licks once or twice at the band-aids on Vessel's cheek before settling into his arms. Taking this as his cue to get up, Vessel grabs his stuffie from his bed and heads down the hall to II's room. Vessel curls up under II's bedsheets, holding his plague doctor close. The smell of II, something distinct that Vessel can't name, wafts into his nostrils, helping to soothe Vessel's frayed nerves. Elvira rubs her head against Vessel's jaw and down over his shoulder, meowing lowly all the while before settling in at his side. He does eventually fall to sleep like that, slowly petting her soft fur, hidden away in II's dark room.

Nick is there for the rest of the day as II and III go over their music with him so he can get a start on familiarizing himself with his parts. Vessel remains sequestered away in II's room, wrapped up in his bedsheets as he tries to get over the tremble in his frame. Elvira purrs from her spot cuddled up to his chest, kneading into his arm as he holds her close. He can feel II's drums faintly reverberating through the floor, somehow comforted by the sound as he is surrounded by the other man's scent. III's bass is thrumming, too, another comfort to his enhanced hearing.

Nick is playing the guitar notes beautifully. He is truly skilled to have already picked up one of Vessel's songs so soon. It sounds faintly like Thread The Needle, a song deeply connected with Vessel meeting Sleep.

It couldn't be any sooner that Nick decides to head out for the day, II collecting Vessel so they can drive him back into the city. Vessel is reluctant to leave Ellie alone on II's bed but allows II to drag him down the staircase to the foyer. No one wants to let any of them leave the house alone. They all pile back into the car to drive Nick back to where they'd met up for the interviews. Vessel bristles again when III puts them all in a group chat so they can schedule things and talk easier.

He feels silly, childish, for immediately not liking a man that II and III seem perfectly fine with. They're able to handle his forward personality far better than Vessel is. That must be the problem, Vessel reasons. He's... He's just not used to anyone other than the vessels so he's.... struggling to adapt?

He sounds like II or III but somehow far less wise, and more petulant.

Nick hops into his own vehicle with a smile and a wave, driving off when everyone waves back. Vessel relaxes immediately once Four is gone, finding himself exhausted by the events of the past few days. All the anxiety from meeting their manager, telling the other vessels more about his past sexual experiences... meeting Nick, bringing him to the manor in a space that usually made Vessel feel a little at ease...

It all left him drained, but with an excuse to take time for himself and think once they get bac to the manor. There is so much to do, an EP to properly record and put out, planning for future shows, deciding what their image will be... Vessel is wrought with anxiety just thinking about it.

"Are you okay, Sugar?" III asks from the drivers seat.

Vessel expects II to get into the passenger seat now that Nick is gone, but he remains in the back with Vessel.

Vessel hums an agreement, immediately slipping his necklace off. Only then can Vessel take in a deep breath, tight chest loosening. He feels like himself again, six eyes focusing as he blinks profusely. II takes this as his cue to remove his own necklace, and Vessel feels relief as II's true form is revealed. II is beautiful no matter what form he takes, but Vessel knows he will always prefer him with all of his Sleep given markings. III keeps his glamor up since he still has to drive home, but lets their eyes go back to normal, black sclera swallowing the white.

"So pretty no matter how you look." II hums, brushing careful, calloused fingers under one pair of Vessel's eyes, following the curve of his cheekbone up the length of his pointed ear.

Those same ears turn pink with Vessel's blush, mumbling incoherently in disagreement as he leans into the kiss II places by one of his eyes. On the drive back to the house, Vessel feels better than he has all day. The icky, oily feeling over his skin while in Nick's presence seems to have slid away and Vessel is grateful for it. Elvira weaves through Vessel's legs once they're home, following him around the house as everyone readies for bed. Its been a long day for them all.

"Coming to bed with us, Ves?" III asks as II clutches their shirt, already half-asleep leaning on them.

His brow is furrowed in puzzlement, expectant eyes following Vessel hopefully.

Vessel feels guilty to refuse them, but he desperately needs some alone time to bleed, to release some of the itch that had made its home under his skin the moment Nick touched him.

"Okay, that's fine, pretty. Are you going to leave me without a goodnight kiss?"

Grabby hands beckon Vessel forward. Once he's in reach, III holds his face featherlight between their large hands and kisses him, effectively stealing away the breaths Vessel doesn't need.

Instinctually, Vessel chases after him when III pulls away, and instead of getting angry with him, III merely gives him another kiss. Vessel smiles into it, like always, and doesn't follow when III pulls away this time. II is tugging insistently at Vessel's shirt, tired eyes begging for a kiss of his own. Vessel leans down so II can do so, smiling into this kiss, too.

It almost makes him want to just follow them to bed instead of separating in the hall, but Vessel needs to bleed. Needs his blood spilling down his skin, staining it such a pretty crimson over the black.

"I'll join you later." Vessel compromises, a little less guilty for it.

"You will?" II mumbles out, kissing Vessel again, leisurely.

"Yes, it will be a little while though. You may be asleep by then."

"That's fine, Sugar. Do you want us to wait up for you?" III says, resting his head on II's as he leans into his back.

His taller frame swamps II's shorter one,  its cute.

Vessel tilts his head in confusion. Why would they want to stay awake until he got there? He shakes his head in refusal and III hums unintelligibly, squishing II down under him as he takes Vessel's jaw in gentle fingers and kisses him again.

All of the tender kisses are leaving Vessel dizzy with swelling affection. Any more of this and he really will just follow them to bed. He steps away to avoid that outcome, but his remaining smile is genuine.

II groans playfully as III continues smothering him under their weight, forcing II to hold him up easily as they waddle back to II's room. It's endearing, hearing them laugh freely after such a long day.

Vessel adores them so.

He waits until they're in II's room, the door cracked open behind them, to head back to his own. The knife hidden under his mattress is pulled out easily, and Vessel's strips himself of his shirt. He eyes Elvira thoughtfully, wondering if he should set her out of the room, but ultimately doesn't care if she sees. The pretty little creature is only a cat, and II and III already know he self harms.

The blade glides across his flesh like a hot knife through butter, parting a golden crack in his skin and bringing forth crimson and black blood, swirling together but never mixing. He sits and watches as cut after cut is dug into his skin, blood dripping down over the side of his arm and onto his thighs. So focused as he was on finally being able to cut himself, he didn't remember taking off his clothes other than his shirt, but its obvious he stripped down to his boxers.

At some point, Vessel stops cutting, physically feeling the icky sensation he'd struggled with all day leaving him with his lifeblood. He merely watches, eyes growing heavy, as blood trickles out of his veins.

He doesn't remember tipping over to lay on the bed, staring at his closed door with vision spotted with black dots. He doesn't remember falling asleep.

Vessel opens his eyes to his first girlfriend above him, the weight of her keeping him pinned down to the bed. He's sure if he tried, he could get out from under her, but there is no fight in him, only acceptance.

She's kissing him, moans spilling out between her lips as she uses his body for her own pleasure. Its what he was good for, after all. A couple of holes to use and a dick to ride. That thought is quickly shoved aside by the more insistent thought that II and III have never used him like this.

They've never hit him relentlessly, ruthlessly, like she has. Never choked him, never made him feel less than.

Vessel's head falls to the side, gasping in desperate breath after breath, blurry vision struggling to focus as his lungs fill with much needed air.

Human eyes wander the room aimlessly, looking anywhere but up at her, and catch on something- Someone unusual.

There was a man in Vessel's nightmare. Someone who Vessel knows for a fact he's never seen before. There was horror on their face, kind eyes wide as Vessel's body jerked with a slap to the cheek, and they leapt forward as if they could stop what was happening. It made Vessel smile, even as his girlfriend gripped his face, long, fake nails digging into his cheek where she had just hit him, pulling him back to look at her.

For a few minutes, Vessel's vision is filled only with her and the curtain her hair has made around them. Her lips are all he can make out of her facial features, unpainted and shaped like a cupids bow. The entire time, his mind drifts from his body, staring up at her through vacant eyes as his brain struggles to get away from what is happening.

Then, she pauses, a long, drawn out moan falling from parted lips. His head falls to the side when she lets his face go, and the man is still there. He still looks afraid, a little green in the face.

A perfect stranger, and yet Vessel realizes that they know this person. Knows who they will become, that is. Something in his soul positively sings at the sight of them, a name on the tip of his tongue.

"Four..."

Vessel's voice is nothing more than a whispered croak, voice grating against his bruising throat, but the man stumbles back as though Vessel had yelled. If II's eyes were like the sky on a clear day, III's a deep, dark, stormy ocean blue, then Four's were beautiful, crystal blue waters, wide in surprise. As he fell, they seemed to shift into different shades in the strange lighting of this realm. In the next second, the man is gone in a wisp of black smoke, still stumbling backwards with Vessel's six eyes boring into his.

The smile doesn't leave Vessel's face, even as scratches are torn into his arms, nail indents make cuts on his bruising cheeks, and Vessel's ears ring with the sound of her breathy moans above him. 

For the first time since Vessel started dreaming, he was able to perform an action all on his own. He never remembered smiling during any of this, nor was there any reason for him to have been able to say the Fourth's name. An anomaly has occurred, and whether it was due to the Fourth's appearance, or something else, the seed has been planted in Vessel's mind. Perhaps he can do more than lay here and be hurt all over again, like he had never left his own personal hell.

Vessel wakes, the moon shining light into his room as he holds his stuffie close, he feels giddy. Elvira purrs loudly at his back, vibrating the bed a bit with the sound. His cheeks ache, iron spilling over his tastebuds as he sits up with a wide grin on his face. His arm aching fiercely brings Vessel's attention to the blood limb, still leaking crimson onto his sheets. He gets up to wrap it quickly, but his mind remains on the Fourth, enraptured by the color of his eyes, of the pale eyelashes framing such startling bright ocean waters. The man is untouched by Sleep, and yet, Vessel knows with every atom in his body that he is their Fourth. There is not an ounce of doubt in Vessel's mind, nor his heart and soul. That is the Fourth, and Sleep has simply not found him yet. Vessel keeps his smile, even as his lip stings, too, having been busted during his dream, spilling red, human blood down his jaw.

Vessel removes the bloody sheets from his bed, tossing them under the frame to deal with later. He has spare bedclothes if he needs them. Cleaning off the dried blood from his skin is a little harder, and takes more time than Vessel would like to admit as the action strains his slow-forming scabbing. Getting dressed in a set of pajamas is marginally easier.

Perhaps Vessel should be embarrassed that the Fourth had seen him in such a compromising position, held down by the weight of his ex as she rode him, a hand around his throat, but he could only feel pure, unadulterated joy at even that small glimpse of the Fourth.

Any worries Vessel had had about Nick being chosen as the Fourth seem to slip away. Sleep would not choose a vessel that Vessel himself did not like, right? Especially not now that he has seen their Fourth with his own eyes.

Suddenly, though, Vessel isn't so sure. If Vessel were to tell the others that he had found the Fourth, would they believe him? He'd only seen him in a dream. Besides, II and III had already taken to Nick- Four (Vessel needs to start calling him by that name. He'd asked Vessel to, and its only right Vessel does as requested), quite well.

He has no right to get in between their budding friendship with Four, so Vessel will keep quiet until he can ask Sleep about the man in his dreams. He's tempted to do so now, but finds that he just wants to go lay with II and III, if they'll welcome him. Vessel gathers up his clean blanket, stuffie, and Elvira in his arms and makes his way out his door. II is awake when Vessel pushes the door to his room open, sitting up on his phone which he sets down upon seeing Vessel.

"Hey, Ves. I felt you having a bad dream when I woke up to use the restroom. I was going to wake you but you calmed before I could." II explains without prompting, scooting over to squish into III's side as the other remains asleep.

Vessel frowns, guilty for worrying II, but smiles when II reaches out for him invitingly. He crawls into II's arms after setting Elvira down at the foot of the bed, laying his head on II's stomach as an arm slings over II's legs to pin his stuffie between them. II thumbs at Vessel's busted lip carefully, looking down at him in concern, "This happen in your dream?"

Vessel nods without responding verbally, soaking in the affection and the warmth of II's arm over his back as his fingers gently scratch Vessel's scalp soothingly.

He wants to tell II about Four, their Four, so badly, but finds the words caught in his throat. Sensing his creeping unease, II picks up his phone again, holding it up on his knee with the arm wrapped around Vessel. There's an app for watching movies open on the screen, something called Lord of The Rings pulled up.

II stares sadly at the fresh bandages around Vessel's arm, at the small splotch of blood seeping through the white. II wants to ask him to stop. Stop hurting himself, and hurting them in turn. But he is afraid of how Vessel would react. Would he grow angry? Would he shut down? Pull away from them entirely? Would he try and listen to what II said, would he try and stop marring his flesh?

II wants to ask him to stop, but he is afraid.

II wants to ask about the busted lip, too, the bruise glancing over his jaw, but Vessel's bond is back to being excited, happy, and II would hate to ruin that with difficult questions.

"Wanna watch this with me? I'm not tired right now." II says, trying to keep his voice from breaking, and Vessel finds himself nodding before he can think better of it, none the wiser to the turmoil slowly brewing in II's mind.

Neither II nor III are any better than Vessel, sometimes, when it comes to hiding away the emotions they don't want the others to know about.

II grins, the expression a little forced, leaning down to press a kiss into Vessel's hair and restarting the movie. They stay like that until the sun starts peeking through the curtains, only halfway through the extended edition of The Fellowship of the Ring. Neither of them make to move, quite content to bask in each others presence as III breaths softly from beside them, curled into himself as Elvira stretches out over the length of his torso, balanced precariously on their side.

Idly, Vessel wonders if he died. His body doesn't ache like it would if he had died, so he concludes he must've passed out from the blood loss. Its a wonder he didn't die, to be honest,

Vessel will speak with Sleep another time. For now, he wants nothing more than to be here, with them, where he is safe. Cared for.

Loved.

[asterri-writes]

🅰🅲🆃 【1】 : Ⓟⓡⓞⓛⓞⓖⓤⓔ

Mafia Main Character!I.N x author!reader(fem)

Masterlist

Content & Trigger Warnings: uoıʇɐɹɓıɯsuɐɹ⊥

"No..."

Rapid taps against the keyboard of her laptop were heard throughout the desolate night in her messy room as she deleted the texts on the screen before she began typing the scrambled-but-seemingly-made-sense thoughts in her head.

"No..."

A disgruntled tone was evident in her voice as she began pressing down on her laptop's keyboard to input more words before once again...

"Ugh, No! This isn't it! Why won't my brain keep on braining?!" (s/c) was met with the dark oak wooden table as she flopped her head onto it harshly and groaned, feeling frustrated that she just couldn't get the scene she's been typing for almost 30 minutes to sound right and found her head empty of ideas, making her heave a sigh.

Figuring to fix her posture and sit back properly as she felt her pitiful back ache from all the slouching she's been enduring for awhile, (y/n) looked at the blinking cursor in the draft "Secret's Untold" document with a pout.

"I.N was supposed to sound like... I.N-ish while talking against that damned Ye-Jun but why can't I get it right? This was supposed to be the life-changing experience for I.N and make the transition from Jeongin to I.N too! I also have to write about the funeral of- Ugh! There's so many ideas in my head, why can't it just type on its own!"

A loud bang was heard from her room as she slammed her hand on it in frustration even though she knew that throwing tantrums won't make the laptop type on its own, (y/n) slouched against her seat with a defeated look instead as she tried to rationalize herself but the thoughts were caught of when she heard-

"(y/n)! Motherfucker, just sleep already. You're so loud there, are you throwing a tantrum there?!"

... Her grandmother yell at her in their native language through the door as she scrambled out of her seat to look at the the time, cursing internally when she saw it was almost 11 PM in the screen and apologized quickly to her fuming and tired grandmother loudly through the door in hopes the old woman would calm down before quieting herself, afraid that her grandmother would come in her room to give her a good verbal beating.

Focusing her eyes on the screen once again with a conflicted expression, (y/n) put her hands against the keyboard to start typing as she thought to herself, 'No pain, no gain (y/n). Just put whatever thoughts onto the draft and call it a day when you can't think no more. You got this!' Fueling her soul with determination!

...That was 1 hour ago though.

(y/n) deeply underestimated that sleeping for only 4 hours for the whole day since she thought it was a good idea to binge watch Stray Kids content throughout the past late night was alright!

But, before she knew it, she passed out before she could continue to the next chapter and let the battery run.

Her body didn't mind though. In fact, it was such a needed sleep (y/n) began dreaming, deep asleep with light snores in an awkward position which she would complain later on while a hazy remembrance of her dream in mind.

Though in her deep slumber, (y/n) had one clear thought in her mind, a desire that she wished she had the power of that slipped out of her mouth as she talked whilst asleep in a murmur- a common occurrence caused by the constant stressed out life she had to endure.

“I wish… I could write stories in their world myself…”

Unbeknownst to her, a bright shining star zoomed through the dark sky, illuminating the street beneath and her whole room causing a power outage but still, the laptop was left undisturbed as it continued to be powered and left the laptop's cursor in the monitor blinking.

𝘉𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘬

20%

𝘉𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘬

17%

𝘉𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘬

13%

𝘉𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘬

10%

𝘉𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘬

7%

𝘉𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘬

5%

𝘉𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘬

3%

𝘉𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘬

2%

𝘉𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘬

1%

𝘉𝘭𝘪.. 𝘛𝘺𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨....

*01001001 00101110 01001110 was looking through the seemingly rectangular-sized window as he observed the messy yet nearly barren room before his piercing onyx orbs cast onto the girl who was snoring loudly, face planted comfortably against her forearms on the dark oak desk and the sight caused his eyes to narrow, a complexed look was plastered on his face while he tried to make sense of his situation.*

*Putting a hand against the delicate glass, he felt the glass warp around his fingers when 01001001 00101110 01001110's fingers went a bit further into the glass and alarmingly pulled his hand out from the glass.*

*But with a sudden surge of an indescribable emotion within him, he locked his gaze onto the girl's figure before he pushed his arm out from the glass, its fragile structure warped around his limb as he grabbed the girl's (f/c) t-shirt's crew neck and forcefully pulled her through the small-rectangular glass, ending the scene when everything went white.*

*Though before the small rectangular view all faded into nothingness, a voice echoed throughout the white space as he began to speak, making sure that the girl would remember even through her slumber.*

*Well, It was hard not to when the voice was filled with contempt and sorrow.*

"R⃒e⃒a⃒p⃒ w⃒h⃒a⃒t⃒ y⃒o⃒u⃒ s⃒o⃒w⃒, ######."

𝘽𝘼𝙉𝙂!

©️ asterri-writes

[obxthornton]

Chapter 1

WC: 3179

5 years prior

If you took satan himself and slapped him in the black skinny jeans your mom wears, it would be Luke Hemmings.

I hated Luke more than life itself, more than rain on a beach day or the last cigarette in the box. 

It used to not always be like this. My band and his band used to be best mates, he and I had alittle chemistry. Alittle. Not a lot, but a tiny drop. We hung out every day after school, we played songs with each other. 

That was until Luke stole my song.

Stole my song. A song about how I felt after the events of the breakup and Luke Hemmings changed a few pronouns and broadcasted it across the school. And fucking 5 seconds of summer got the credit for it.

I didn't blame the other bandmates. Ashton and Michael were oblivious to when Luke had even written the song and Calum, well Calum said he just showed up to rehearsal and played the bass.

Luke claimed he came up with it in a dream. Isn't that the most bullshit excuse ever? A song about my personal life made up in his dream. He claimed I stole it from him. Even more bullshit.

I wrote that song, expressing all the emotions I had felt concerning the breakup and he stole it.

~~

"I can't wait to leave this school," Maddie said fixing her bag on her shoulder. She was significantly shorter than all of us and I wasn't even sure how her legs could catch up. She was maybe a foot shorter than Kiara who stood at almost 6'. Maddie was the bassist of our band and what she would call the 'hype man.' She was bouncy, bubbly, and not afraid to call people cunts to their faces. She liked to watch Star Wars movies and play soccer in her free time. 

"Aren't we all?" Kiara rolled her eyes at the girl's words like they weren't known. Kiara was our lead guitarist who was actually from America. She moved here for Dad's job back in grade 7 and we had been friends ever since. She had dark skin with her natural hair and she towered over most of us. She wasn't that much taller than me but she still intimidated the crap out of me. When Kiara was not volunteering at school or saving the world, she was usually with one of the two bands.

"I actually like school." Willow smiled, sunglasses covering her bloodshot eyes. Willow was our drummer. And when Willow wasn't banging on drums, or with her girlfriend, she was usually getting high or drinking. She was the party one of our group and was the best fucking drummer in all of Australia. Don't tell Ashton I said that.

"This is the first time you've been at school all week," I told her rolling my eyes. Then there was me I guess. I'm the lead singer in the band. Sometimes guitar, sometimes keyboard, sometimes wherever I was needed. 

"And? That doesn't mean I can appreciate the beauty of learning." Willow said sarcastically. It was good to say we were all done with year 12 and just wanted to leave. Kiara was going back to America for university, Willow was marrying her girlfriend and moving to Spain, and Maddie was going to university in England. I was staying here.

It was hard knowing that after this year I'd be alone. The band would be broken up until further notice and I'd be stuck here, alone.

"Georgina Summer? Where's Georgina summer?" A voice boomed through the hallways. I turned my head to look behind me to see Michael Clifford with one of those megaphone speaker things. His red hair made it easy to spot him in the hallway, so I didn't know why he couldn't spot me with the same hair color.

"Shut the hell up, Clifford!" Maddie yelled loudly at the boy whose head snapped in our direction. He had a huge smile on his face as he ran up to us.

"Women." He said still in the megaphone making us wince. He realized he was still talking into it and pushed it down, "women." He said again a lot quieter, shooting us all a grin.

"You really couldn't have just called me?" I asked unamused staring at the megaphone in his hand. 

"You wouldn't have answered." He pouted.

I leaned in towards him slightly, sending him a sarcastic smile, "Exactly."

"You're no fun, but hey, I'm here to invite you to this party Ashton's having tomorrow At his house," Michael said looking at us four.

"I'm in," Willow said smiling before turning and walking away suddenly.

Michael's eyebrows scrunched in confusion  "o-okay? She's in. Maddie's also in because Calum will be there and-"

Maddie shook her head and her arms at the boy, "wait wait wait. You can't just assume I'd come to a party just because My boyfriend is going."

Michael raised his eyebrows at her before she grumbled, "I'll see you there." She said before walking away in the direction Willow went

"Kiara is always in," Michael said smiling. Kiara shrugged, "always. Bye Gigi."

"And you." He said looking down at me, "You'll say you won't come because Luke's coming but then you'll break and come."

Michael Clifford thinks he knows me so well, doesn't he? I shook my head giving him an amused smile. "We'll see about that."

~~

"Black or red?" I asked holding up two dresses as the girls lay sprawled across my room. Willow was on my roof smoking a cigarette that I wouldn't let her smoke inside, Maddie was on the phone with Calum and Kiara was actually giving me input.

"You have red hair," Kiara said unamused. "You don't wear red on red."

I held up my hands in defense, putting the red dress back in my wardrobe, and slid off my jeans and T-shirt before sliding on the dress.

"Calums picking us up," Maddie said pulling the phone away from her mouth for a second.

"Hell no. I do not want to be stuck with you and your boyfriend making out in the front seat for 5 minutes before we leave the house." Kiara said glaring at Maddie.

Maddie pouted, "fine he'll pick me up."

"I cannot 7th wheel all night tonight." Kiara groaned and rubbed her eyes with the palms of her hands. My eyes narrowed at her, "I don't have a partner."

"You and Luke have so much sexual tension that it feels like you're still together," Kiara said making me groan in response.

"It's true, you guys need to like bone already," Willow yelled from the roof. I walked over the my window and smiled at her sarcastically before shutting the window and locking the latches.

"Just because me and Luke dated for the tiniest amount of time doesn't mean we have any chemistry left," I said grabbing my trainers and putting them on my feet.

Maddie looked at me puzzled, "tiniest time? are we talking about the same Luke? You dated for four years." 

"Maybe alittle more than a tiny amount of time. Either way, it doesn't change how much I hate the guy. He stole-"

"My song." Maddie and Kiara said at the same time rolling their eyes.

"We know. Still don't know how that happened, I mean it has been seen that people come up with the same ideas at the same time." Kiara said.

"Not the entirety of a song!" I said before sighing, "Look, me and Luke are history. And by history I mean we hate each other's fucking guts. It's not changing."

A tap came from the window and Willow smiled before blowing her hot breath on the window. She drew an arrow heart and wrote L+G in it backward.

I rolled my eyes before standing up and closing the blinds on her.

"I'm not saying that you have to, bone, him tonight, I'm just saying try to be civil for the rest of us," Kiara said with a pleading look.

"I'm alwasy the civil one." I argued, "It's him you should be telling this to."

------

I had already regretted coming to this party. 

I didn't have school in the morning and I was staying over at Maddie's so there was no reason for me not to let loose and have a drink. But god did I hate the taste of alcohol. I also didn't like who I was on alcohol, it wasn't me I guess. I didn't mind being the designated driver.

"Here," Willow yelled over the music handing me a red solo cup of something. It looked like piss if I was being Honest.

"Don't get your pants in a mess, it's apple juice." She said rolling her eyes at me. "I brought some in my bag for you so you wouldn't feel left out."

I smiled gratefully at her before taking a sip; Apple juice at parties always hit differently.

"I'm going to find Danica." She said patting my shoulder and looking around for her girlfriend. "Call me if you need me." She disappeared into the crowd as soon as I nodded in approval.

"Hey, pretty girl." I turned my head to see Ashton Irwin smiling a toothy grin at me. Ashton and I had been friends since we were 4 years old, making him my utter and total best friend. He's how I met Michael, Calum, and the other one.

I smiled brightly at him before throwing my arms around his neck, "come here often?" He asked dipping me like we were dancing.

"A lot actually." I winked at me causing him to blush and set me back on my feet. This was our relationship, anyone from the outside would think we had been dating for all our friendship but in reality, he was just my best friend.

"Didn't think you'd show up. If you get tired or bored, just go up to my room. I'll tell Maddie where you are." He said taking a sip of his beer can he had.

"Thanks. Neither did I," I said raising my eyebrows slightly. "But Michael is just so persuasive with that megaphone. I mean who let the loudest kid in the group get a megaphone?" 

Ashton laughed and shook his head, "Luke bought it to shut him up in the moment, however, it just made everything worse."

I rolled my eyes, that was such a Luke thing. Only thinking about now and not the future.

"Are you guys like ever going to makeup? I hate not being able to hang out with both of you at the same time." Ashton said, his face turning serious as his fingers danced over the top of his cup.

"You know how bad the breakup was," I said shuffling my foot uncomfortably. It was true, even before Luke stole my song our relationship was in shambles. 

"I know." Ashton sighed, "I'm not trying to tell you who you love but come on Gigi. You and Luke were unbreakable. What even happened?"

I shook my head slightly, tugging on my lip ring anxiously with my teeth. Me and Luke never told anyone why we broke up. After you date for so long people expect you to last forever, but that wasn't the case with me and Luke. It was all I ever heard these days. 'Why did you and Luke break up?' 'Y'all were so cute!' 'Such a shame' 

People just fall out of love.

"Sorry," Ashton mumbled seeing my discomfort. I shook my head again waving him off, "No no it's fine." Maybe I did need a drink. I turned my head to the living room to see some kid throwing up in Ashton's mum's vase. Never mind.

"Shit." Ashton said, "Hey mate! That goes outside not in the vase." He yelled at the guy pointing towards the backyard, "I'll talk to you later alright?" Ashton said kissing my cheek before running off towards the sick guy.

I sighed at his absence, Taking a sip of my drink. "Gigi!" Maddie yelled over the music, pulling Calum along who was pulling Michael.  "Hey," I said to the three.

"Where'd Ashton go?" Michael asked looking around. I pointed to Ashton dragging the sick guy by his shirt towards the back door. Michael 'ahead' in recognition and turned back to us, "'Well see' huh?" He smiled 

I rolled my eyes at him bringing up what I had said yesterday. "We did see. And I chose to come." I said.

"We're always happy to see you, Gigi," Calum said smiling at me, I hadn't talked to him in a while but he was just always with Maddie.

"I'd like to take the credit for it," Maddie said smiling proudly.

I rolled my eyes at her, "it was Michael's obnoxious voice actually."

Michael smiled at her in a mocking 'ha ha I win' kinda look but then it fell and he snapped his head towards me. "Wait what?"

I smiled brightly at him as he pouted, "I'm dying my hair back." He threatened.

My mouth was agape and I glared at him, "Rude Michael! We're twins." He shook his head before putting the hood of his hoodie over his head to hide his hair. "Not anymore."

"I liked it when it was black." Calum said, "Oo or the green."

"God I hated the green." I said, "It made my hair completely dead." Me and Michael alwasy dyed our hair the same color. It was fun, alittle weird, but it was fun.

"Your hair is always dead," Maddie said reaching out to touch my hair, making me smack her hand away. 

"Maybe we should take a break after this color," I told Michael.

He nodded, "Yeah or we may have to shave off our heads. This is the 5th color this month."

"Speaking of shaving off our heads, where's Luke?" Calum said more to Michael than me.

I scrunched my eyebrows at him slightly, "why does shave heads make you think of Hemmings?"

Michael rolled his Eyes, "Calum shaved Luke's head in grade 5." Calum had a wide smile on his face as he remembered that day. I didn't remember that day, maybe we hadn't met yet but I only remembered Luke with long hair.

"I don't remember that," I said shrugging and turning around looking for the blonde boy for Calum. "If I see him I'll let you know."

"I need a drink." Maddie said looking at us, "One of you want to come with me?"

Calum nodded before Maddie grabbed his arm and pulled him along towards the kitchen. "I need one!" Michael said waving goodbye to me quickly before following the couple, who probably wanted to be alone, to the Kitchen.

I sighed looking around at the unknown faces. I didn't really hang out with people other than 5sos and Sugar's so this entire party was not in my comfort.  I mean sure at school I knew everyone and everyone knew me but did I know them? Absolutely not.

Willow was gone probably smoking on the roof with her girlfriend. Kiara probably went home to be honest, I hadn't seen her all night. Maddie and Calum were making out, Ashton was nowhere to be seen and Michael was in the crowd partying.

Ashton's bed was always comfy. He had stuffed animals that he put under his bed when the guys came over but in reality, he slept with them every night.  It always smelt nice in there, you wouldn't expect a teenage boy to have lived there. Clean laundry, lavender, citrus. It probably smelled better than my room.

So with that thought I ascended the stairs up to Ashton's room. I'd play on my phone, play his guitar, do something. Anything was better than standing alone at a party or following the only person you knew around like a sick puppy.

I twisted the knob of Ashton's room and opened the door.  I immediately groaned seeing Luke hemmings on top of some girl now both staring at me.

"Put a fucking sock on the door hemmings." I groaned throwing my head back annoyed.

"Get the hell out Geo." He said glaring at me before throwing the pillow behind the girl's head at me.

"Hemmings? I thought your name was Luke?" The girl under him asked.

I stifled a laugh but failed miserably. Luke shot me a glare before turning back to the girl, "Hemmings is my last name."

"I thought it was Robert?" She asked.

Luke sighed closing his eyes and sliding off the girl, "That's my middle name." He mumbled, "Just go." 

The girl pulled back on her jacket, still looking confused as she walked past me out the door. I sent her a cheeky smile as she did before turning back to Luke. "Got you a real keeper there," I said sarcastically motioning out the door with my head.

"At least I can get some if I want to." He grumbled sitting back down on the bed. 

I rolled my eyes at him, "are you going to leave now? Kinda want Ashton's room."

"Absolutely." Luke said, "not." "I was here first so I will stay." He kicked back his Legs on Ashton's bed nuzzling himself into the bed.

"Yeah, but Ashton said I could have his room. And I'd hate to call Ashton to kick you out." I said shaking my head.

Luke thought for a minute before shaking his head and getting underneath the covers.  "I'm not scared of Ashton. And I'm also not scared of my ex-girlfriend of four days."

"Four weeks." I corrected him.

"Four years!" Ashton yelled walking into the room. "You guys dated for four. Years. Years!" He said franticly. 

"he is drunk," Luke said groaning earning a confused glance from sober Ashton.  I looked at Luke with the same expression he was giving me before shaking my head, "I think I know how long we Dated."

"4 months at most," Luke said nodding in agreement.

Ashton let out an audible sigh, "At least you guys arent yelling at each other."

"Oh yeah. Back to that. Get out." Luke said pointing towards the door. 

I shook my head, "fuck no. You leave." I said grabbing his shoes from the ground and throwing them out the door.

"Stop that." He said as I threw the other one out as well. I grabbed his phone out of his hands too throwing it out the door as well.

"Hey!" Luke yelled standing up to go retrieve his phone. I smiled as I shrugged off my jacket and jumped on the bed, digging myself under the covers.

"Bitch!" Luke yelled as Ashton started to close the door. I didn't know if he was talking to me or Ashton but we both flicked him off before shutting the door completely. 

"Kiara told me you guys would be civil," Ashton said looking at me unamused.

I scrunched my eyebrows at him slightly, "that was me being civil. If I wasn't I would have thrown it out the window."

[streetsrot]

one ( 1 ) new message from @leatherforhell : it’s a wonder she hasn’t been found out by now. clara stands behind v, making innocent and perplexed expression every time she’s looked at. poor v has been trying to work something in this computer for sixteen minutes now. clara’s not sure what the actual goal is, she just knows that every time v gets to another new page, she flicks her finger, and the whole thing crashes again. she coughs to cover a laugh. ❝ gotham library computers. gotta love ‘em. ❞

another minute of staring at flickering code on old ass computers from the stone age and she was going to start exploding every electronic around her until there was nothing left. not wanting to give clara the satisfaction of glaring back at her once more, v simply raises her middle finger over her shoulder. binary vision takes hold of her, and she watches as, once more, she comes so close to finally breaching the restricted files housed on the public library's private subnet just for everything to bluescreen.

she has to admit, the gotham public library subnet is a weird fucking place to hide things but hey, she isn't the one who did it. she just got hired for the extraction of the files. v groans loudly and bangs the top of the monitor with the base of her fist, ❝ 'm tryin' to do a job here, clara. you're not exactly helping. ❞

v scans the library and nestled in the corner is a guy sitting with a laptop that has a giant california state tech sticker on it. perfect. she breezes over to him and smiles, ❝ yo ! how's it goin' ? been tryin' to mess with the dinosaur computers to pay everything off on my ubill. any chance you could do a solid to another cal stater ? ❞

she had never been to university a day in her life, she actually had never been to school at all. but clearly, mr. cal state didn't care, cause he spun his computer around instantly. her fingers dance smoothly across the keyboard, her powers doing most of the work. without any outside disturbances, the file transfer is done in under thirty seconds. she gives the guy his laptop back and makes her way back over to clara.

v scoops up her bag, slings it around her shoulder, and sighs, ❝ you coulda made me lose out on 10k. y'know that right ? speedy delivery was requested as part of the gig. ❞

[str0yberries]

Late Night sessions - TeruAoi

Teru found it adorable how Aoi gets tired after explaining the FNAF lore, so it wasn't surprising to see her curled up like a ball sleeping and snoring like there's no tomorrow. The older boy was used to the sight of his girlfriend mumbling even in her sleep making his heart do a little gymnastics routine.

The exorcist looked over at his watch and realized that he could technically play right now, that way Aoi wouldn't have to wait for him and his friends to finish playing one match. He didn't want to leave her all alone and uninterested; though he had a strong urge to play at least three matches, he resisted. He quietly padded over to his pc, got on discord, hopped on a call with some of his friends, and waited in the lobby. It was refreshing to know he still managed to maintain a friendship with some of his old friends.

The youngest Minamoto made it clear to his friends that he was only gonna play one match since his little lady was over. Soon enough, they immediately started the match. Obviously, the blond made sure to focus on the game but he would occasionally look over his shoulder to look at Aoi's sleeping form. Still as cute as ever.

Okay, one match might've been a little too much to ask for but, the purple-haired girl was still asleep so she wouldn't mind him playing another match... would she?

"No, you fucking idiot!" he loudly mumbled (if that's even possible).

"Dumbass, I'm already at the— what. Why the fuck are you attacking now?!"

"Fuckface, only attack when you're told! Holy shit you're dumb," he groaned to his teammates who also reciprocated the anger.

"Who the fuck are you calling dumb?! I'll fucking beat you up!"

"The enemy's on cooldown, we could totally wi— WHY ARE YOU ATTACKING?!?"

He had a short temper and was always irritable, so seeing him raging over some stupid game wasn't new. Plus, Aoi knew the struggles of losing since she was a perfectionist after all; however, the loud clicking of the mouse, loud mashing of the keyboard and loud slams on the table were bothering her sleep. She woke up to Teru quietly yet angrily swearing at his teammates and himself. The purple maiden was a little too tired to tell him not to be loud so instead opted to sloppily stand up and tugged on his shoulder.

"Shit dude, wrong way—" the older boy was surprised at the tug when he saw Aoi practically drooling beside him. Shit.

"I guess my beloved is awake, hm? You can go back to bed, the match is almost over."

"Hmm... okay!" Aoi replied in a soft and quiet voice but didn't even bother going back to bed. The older boy took his headphones off to assist his lover back to her bed but was caught off guard when the smaller girl pushed him back on his chair.

"Oh, h-hey! not right now A-Aoi..." Teru said with a panicked and rosy expression, blushing harder than he thought he would.

Aoi took the opportunity of sitting down on Teru's lap. Her arms finding their way around the exorcist's shoulder while she adjusted herself to a more comfortable position. Usually, she wouldn't be the one leading such PDA, letting Teru hold her as he pleases due to his love language being physical touch. But right now, she was too tired and exhausted to care. With another sloppy smile, she simply utters.

"Shut up Teru, you're too loud..." and just like that the blond happily complied. With that, his room was suddenly filled with Aoi's quiet snoring and his teammates yelling: "DUDE, WE'RE GETTING OUR ASS BEAT HERE! WHAT THE FUCK." over the mic but he was too focused on the love of his life sleeping on him. Slowly, his hands snaked around her waist as he carefully moves his chair closer to his pc. Trying his best not to wake the Kannagi up. So with one -maybe three- clicks of the mouse, he leaves the call, quits the game and shuts his computer off.

He lets out a content sigh as he pushes her bangs out of the way, leaving a kiss on her forehead.

"Goodnight, Grumpy."

[framed-incompetence]

I don’t know when I’ll be done with part two so I thought I would post the rough draft what I have so far here. Just to get something out, you know.

The working title for this part is “You Can’t Put A Price On Peace of mind” and it focuses in on the Batfamily’s dynamic in this AU from the point of view of Duke.

———💡———

Duke had high hopes for college.

Everybody does, Duke thinks to himself. But now, as he sits in his dorm at the very tail end of his first semester at Gotham University, the “college experience” everybody kept going on about back in high school might have just been one huge inside joke. A joke that maybe he’ll laugh at when he’s older and has kids of his own, that maybe he’ll tell to them and stifle his laughter when they come home over break with an endless litany of complaints falling from their lips. But now is not then and as he sits in his dorm working through his English final—that he definitely didn’t procrastinate on—trying desperately to tune out the sound of his dorm mates having a “little” get-together in the room next door and his roommate behind him loudly complaining on the phone to his friends about how much noises they are making he’s starting to realize that maybe Tim had it right

“Urgh,” he groans into his hands he checks his word count; five hundred more words to go. The yelling, banging, and music continues around him as he gets back to work. He still has two more hours until this paper is due, plenty of time.

It was a lot quieter back home, he thinks to himself. The chaos around him reminds him of what it was like before Tim was killed-, Duke violently cuts that thought off as his fingers freeze on the keyboard. It’s been months since Tim showed back up in Gotham and still, he slips up. Tim was taken, not killed.

Taken, not killed.

Taken, not killed.

Taken, not killed.

The repetition eases his mind and his fingers begin to move across the keys again. Back before Tim was taken Steph would come around so often that someone could be mistaken for thinking she lived at the manor and Barbara would come around every so often as well sometimes with her father in tow; he and Bruce would sit in the parlor for hours with drinks just talking. Now he only sees Oracle and Spoiler in the cave and the commissioner on chilly rooftops. Is it weird to miss something he is not sure he ever had?

Nevertheless, considering the signal that came through his coms early this morning that’s all going to change soon. Bruce has never used this particular signal before. Even when he definitely should have, the clacking of the keys under his fingers gets louder as Duke remembers the multiple city-wide gang wars or hostile takeovers orchestrated by various members of his rogue gallery over the years. He remembers seeing the panic and the fear so familiar in the eyes of his people as they flee once more. But most importantly he remembers the resignation in their eyes and wonders if Tim ever saw the same or if Jason, still barely out of training, has seen it yet.

He lays his head on his desk and curses Bruce for making him so distracted at the most crucial time in the semester. He breathes in, then breathes out. He lets the chaos around him block out the thoughts and memories of what awaits him back home. Of whatever fight that was so difficult Bruce needed the entire family's help to deal with it. Of Tim and his seemingly endless catalog of secrets. And of his upcoming first encounter with Damian Wayne: the eldest, the first Redbird, the perfect son.

Duke lifts his head and focuses on the screen in front of him. He has four-hundred-thirty-eight more words to go and an hour and a half to get it done. Plenty of time.

Here’s a link to part one of this AU if you’re interested:

[rove-bogge]

BG 0/1/0 CPU

@s-essha _______

Ignihyde was a dorm filled with impressive pc setups. It was almost mandatory to have some beast of a computer system in this house. Rove's was no different with his large monster tower sat under his desk and the three raised monitors the tower hummed and whirred as it worked on multitasking. A fortress holding back a pandora's box of viruses and malware Rove's pc was something to fear as the side monitor showed code being scripted and written for some devious project or just for its owners giggles and entertainment.

Currently the messy blonde haired student was tapping away on the keyboard goading his teammates in the game they were playing. Abusive words tumbling from his lips as he smugly put down who he believed was holding them back from stomping the other team he was about to continue when suddenly his screens went black.

"Huh?" Was all that escaped his lip when a loud bang erupted from his Pc tower smoke billowing out from the now broken glass.

"WHAT THE FU-" He screamed realising the project he was mid coding was a commission for a client...lost.

Swearing he quickly brushed the glass to the side so he wouldn't cut himself coughing on the putrid smelling smoke he was quick to open his door wheezing as Dollface landed on his head her fluff puffing in distaste of her space becoming smoky.

"Urgh..." He was quick to rush to Idia's door knocking loudly.

"O-Oi Idia...I need your help!" He wheezed praying he could recover his files but he knew the damage needed someone who was a specialist in engineering.