#Ch.1

[shizukais]

Mitsumi & Shima | Skip to Loafer, chapter 1.

[aiko0invalid]

|Older|

Genre: Fluff/Slow burn

TW:Cursing/Suggestive/Bl00d

Au:Non-idol/Vampire/Strangers to lovers

Additional info: Reader is Female and a human while Minho is a Vampire. Reader is visiting family during the holidays and encounters Minho throughout her stay an oddly amount of times. Stray Kids are a clan of Vampires. Mentions of Hyunlix.

Next: ->>

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Ch.1

“I’m leaving now, I’ll be there in a few hours. Yes Umma, I packed enough warm clothes.” You were currently on the phone with your mother as she frantically told you what to pack and asking when you were arriving.

After moving across country to attend University in Seoul, leaving your family up in the mountains, it has become very important for you to take things like holiday break off and spend time with your parents and little sister.

“I’ll call you when I get into town, but I have to go or else I’ll be there even later.” You reminded her, quickly saying your goodbyes so you could load up your car and drive the most grueling 5 hour drive of your life. It was worth it though, anything is worth it when you get to see your family.

You were on the road in no time, taking quick stops to get gas or buy a few snacks but after 5 hours you finally made it to the familiar cabin you grew up in.

You got inside quickly, escaping the cold and entering the warm house as you saw your little sister and dad on the couch. "Appa! Soomin!" You said, getting their attention with your voice.

Soomin, your little sister who was only 14, jumped up and ran over to hug you. Since you guys had such a big age gape there wasn't that much sibling rivalry between you two and the relationship is super sweet.

You also didn’t have to worry about clothes, makeup and skincare products suddenly disappearing since by the time you moved out the house, she was only 6.

And now you're 26, fresh out of medical school/ college and currently looking for a job. That being said, that isn't the only thing your mom has pestered you about. The topic of love has come up many times and each time you've replied that between studying and self-love your life is too hectic to add someone else to the mix.

Thankfully she's on the more understanding side and had dropped the conversation after a few failed attempts of asking about how your love life was going.

“Umma is making some tea right now.” Soomin explained while picking up one of your smaller bags. “The room is still the same.”

After you moved out of the house the room that used to be yours was the guest room but after Soomin got older and wanted a bigger room they switched them. So technically the guest room is Soomin’s old room and not yours.

“Thank you.” You said quickly as you followed Soomin upstairs despite knowing full well where the room was.

It was nicely decorated, on the more minimalistic side but that was fine with you. Soomin left quickly so you could get yourself situated and that’s what you did for the next 20 minutes.

You took out your clothes, curler and/or straightener, hair products, makeup, and many more stuff. You filled the dresser with your clothes and that’s when you heard your mom from downstairs.

“Soomin! Y/n!” She called out, yelling for them to come to the kitchen since the tea was ready.

You quickly made your way downstairs, Soomin and your mom already there as your dad stayed in the living room. He wasn’t a big fan of tea. “So, How have you been lately?” Your mom asked after sliding over a cup of tea towards you.

You shrugged your shoulders, picking the cup up for a sip. “Nothing interesting lately, I sent in some job applications but haven’t gotten any words back yet.”

Your mom understood that well, knowing it took time to find a job fresh out of university. “It’s good you’re atleast trying.” She said before standing up. “I know you just got here but, do you have anything in mind for what you’d want for dinner?” She asked as you smiled and shook your head.

“It’s ok Umma, really.” You tried to convince her but, as if you were straight out of a cartoon, your stomach growled and your mom looked at you with an ‘really?’ Look and signature hand on her hip.

“You know what, Jjigae sounds good!” You said, remembering the warm and hearty Korean stew that your mother was always good at making. “Ohh! That’s sounds good!” Your sister said immediately, looking up at your guys mom. “Appa wouldn’t mind having that either, you know he doesn’t care as long as there are soft boiled eggs too.” She added which made your mom nod in agreement.

“Great! I’ll start making that.” She smiled and turned around to grab all the ingredients out of the fridge. She brought out the meat, they recently gotte pork belly so that’s what they were going to use. Along with veggies before she paused. “Oh no…” she dragged out, grabbing a mostly gone tube of soybean paste.

“Aish, I’ll head to the store to grab some more.” She sighed but you’d topped her. “It’s ok Umma, the store isn’t far away, I’ll go get it and you can cut up the vegetables and meat so it’s ready to go when I come back.”

“Are you sure?” She asked ever though she was already grabbing her apron and tying it around her. “Yes, I’m sure.” You reassured her and she smiled more. “Ok! Thank you!”

You nodded and quickly went to the door to slip on your shoes, grabbing your coat again and keys before going to your car.

The store wasn’t busy, thankfully, but it was rearranged differently than you remembered and you were having a hard time find the soybean paste. “They had it with the broth last time…” you muttered to yourself as your eyes scanned the shelf’s of canned chicken and beef broth.

“They moved it to the fridge section.” A voice said, scaring you since you hadn’t heard footsteps behind you.

You turned around to find a young man, dark brown almost black hair, equally as dark eyes and blank stare face. His cheekbones were high and he had a deep cupids bow with a plush upper and bottom lip. ‘How can someone be so… perfect..?’ You thought to yourself in awe.

He, after seeing your wide eyes, quickly flashed a smile. “Sorry, I heard you talking to yourself and thought I could help.” He explained, making you sigh a bit in relief.

“It’s ok, your hearing is amazing by the way!” You noted, a bit shocked he was able to hear your quiet muttering. “Been told that before.” He grinned, one laced with mischief and smugness. “You’re looking for soybean paste right? I only know because it used to be here.”

You nodded with a small smile of your own. “Yeah, you said fridge section? Is it by the butter?” You questioned and he nodded his head. You knew if you stayed any longer you would inevitably blush if you’re not already.“Thank you.” You said before walking off to get the small tube quickly.

“Can you go to the library with your sister? She usually goes alone but since you’re here I would feel better if she was with an adult.” Your mom asked while tying her hair up.

She approached you as you were sitting on the couch and you smiled up at her. “Sure! To double check, they didn’t move that too did they?”

You asked in a joking yet serious tone. After the grocery store, you had wanted to go to the strip mall, only to find it’s location moved and demolished. It also just so happened that the local ice skating rink also moved spots!

You were beginning to think the town was just going to get up and leave too.

“Yes, same place it’s always been”. Your mom chuckled and you stood up while stretching. “Ok, I’ll go drive her now.” You said as she took your spot on the couch next to your dad.

“Drive safe then!” She smiled and waved as you and your sister got into your car. “Since when did you go to the library?” You asked as soon as you guys buckled in. “I don’t.” Your sister smirked.

“Wanna know where I actually go?”

“Soomin, where do you even get the money from?” You asked, parking right in the town center where there were lots of shops open for business. It looked straight out of a hallmark movie.

“I do people’s work for cash, the longer I know them the less they pay me. Which means they recommend me to their friends and I always get new clients! I’m currently doing all of my 4th period classmates work.” She smiled smugly and you chuckled.

“Hustling for money at the ripe age of 14, maybe you are my sister.” You joked, messing up her hair with your hand before getting out of the car. “I won’t rat you out to mom but that doesn’t mean you get to drag me around today. If we spend more than 2 hours here Mom will get suspicious.”

Soomin nodded in agreement, closing the car door before jogging up to you with a big smile. “That’s fine! You haven’t been here in forever, let me show you around!”

It was close to the time you guys were about to leave when you entered an actual book shop. “I know I said I don’t like books, but I need one to read for English so I can write a report on it.” Soomin explained, leaving your side immediately to go to the fantasy shelves.

You went to your own way, roaming the fiction side a bit. You were in the dark romance section before bumping into someone. “I am so sorry!” You apologized quickly, turning around to see a blonde slightly shorter male there.

Damn, had there always been this many gorgeous people?

“It’s all good, I didn’t see you either.” He said, his voice way deeper and richer than you expected. You couldn’t help but blush and turn to look away. “Sorry if this seems nosy, but are you new?” He asked before you could fully turn away.

“Not really, I grew up here but moved a few years ago for school. I’m visiting family this week.” You explained and he nodded. “Ahh, understood. My family and I moved here a few years ago so that must be why I didn’t recognize you.”

You nodded also and couldn’t help but glance down at the book he had in his hand. “Vampire story?” You guessed, seeing the fangs on the cover as they hovered above a rose in a glass case. He smiled instantly and nodded.

“Yeah! I don’t do much reading but my boyfriend has been pestering me a bit, says that gaming for too long hurts my eyesight.” He rolled his eyes as he explained and you laughed softly at the sass. “He’s not wrong, blue light actually makes it harder for you to sleep also. Doctors recommend that people don’t use any electronics 2 hours before bed if they want to fall right asleep. Otherwise you’ll just be staying awake for the whole night.”

He blinked a bit, processing your information with surprise. “Wow, you sounded like a doctor yourself!” He chuckled which made you blush in embarrassment.

“Sorry, I study medicine so I tend to info dump whenever the topic of health comes up.” You explained which only made him laugh more.

“I get it, my boyfriend is that same when it comes to art. Like painting and drawing.” He reassured you. You were about to say something else when his head snapped to look at his right.

“Hey hyung!” He smiled brightly as a guy came around the corner where you two stood. “Ready to go home, Felix?” The guy asked and that’s when you recognized him. His familiar monotone but lively voice triggering a blush to dust across your face.

It was the guy from the store, he was now in black jeans, gray V-neck tshirt and a black & white plaid jacket. He had regular white sneakers and black ball cap that made his dark drown hair almost cover his eyes.

“Awh, already?” Felix pouted before sighing and nodding his head. “Bye, hope to see you around.” He grinned before walking up to the guys side. “I’m ready Minho-Hyung.”

They left quickly, not giving you a chance to say bye before the bell above the door rang and they began walking on the brick sidewalk.

It was a strange swirling feeling in your stomach at the sight of the man who you now know as Minho. It made you stare off in space for a bit as your mind raced with him. Was him and Felix related? It would make sense, they were both stunning human beings. Almost too stunning to be human.

The town was small, but was it small enough to run into someone twice in tow days back to back? Maybe, it had been awhile since you had been here. “Uhm, earth to Smile McGee.” The voice of Soomin said, pulling you out of your trance.

You blinked a few times, the brain fog clearing and you smacked her shoulder. “I told you to stop using that dumb nickname.” You hissed, remembering the times you used to have braces and when you had a few friends over they teased you with that nickname.

She was only 4 at the time but seemed to remember it like it was yesterday.

She mumbled an “ouch” and gave you a small glare. “Anyways, I’m ready to go.” She said, holding up a hefty sized book. “Maybe you are a nerd.” You mumbled, eyeing the huge book before shrugging and buying the book for her.

“Who was that by the way?” Soomin asked once you guys exited the bookstore. “Who?” You rebutted and she rolled her eyes. “That guy you were talking to, the blonde haired one.”

“Ohh.” You said, nodding before shrugging your shoulders. “His name is Felix apparently, I don’t know him personally though.” You explained and it was her turn to nod her head.

“And that other guy?” You felt the same swirling feeling in the pit of your stomach as she referred to the other guy. “Minho, I actually ran into him yesterday at the store. I only just now learned his name.”

Soomin hummed in thought before looking up at you with a smirk. “He’d make a good boyfriend~.” She said, bumping her hip with yours as you shook your head in disagreement.

“No way, I just got Umma to stop pestering me about dating; you can’t start.” You lightly scolded her as she just ignored you. “He was handsome though, you can’t deny that. Both of them were.”

You grumbled slightly, looking off to the side so you wouldn’t have to verbally agree with her. She knew she was right, the proof was the guy’s themselves.

Felix had a softer and more happy vibe with him, a golden brown eye color and blonde hair cut in the style of a mullet. He had many silver rings adorning his fingers and piercings on his ears.

He was dressed in a black turtle neck, dark blue jeans and a mocha brown fluffy jacket. His style was different from Minho, along with his appearance.

While Felix had freckles and slightly bigger eyes, Minho had not one mark on his clear and slightly tan skin. He had two silver mini hoops on one ear while three mini silver hoops on the other ear.

His outfit was a bit more casual compared to Felix’s but his stunning and sharp face made up for that.

“Whatever.” You grumbled back at your sister, sighing a bit as you both made it back to your car.

Safe to say, you stayed up a bit longer than usual with thoughts of a certain dark eyed boy.

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[skebbles]

Chapter one of the fic is out!

Here are some illustrations for the first chapters events!

It follows the events of the jungle idea! I made that series of posts when I under the impression that I was never gonna do anything with it. But it helped me gather a strong enough outline of the events to give me a final push to write it.

[amaranth-devi1]

There is a beauty that becomes visible only to moths and the sleepless ones. Vanilla cactus - Queen of the Night and some of us bloom only during the darkest hours of the night, in the light of dimmest lamps and behind the darkest curtains.

@amaranth-devi1

[tamanegi-san]

the first thing I thought about after reading 118

[loveofeverythingwritten]

Trials of a Princess: Ch1.

The Twin Suns were beaming down on the garden floor, breaking through the leaves. A young girl sat on a wide branch in a tall tree by the garden wall. One of her legs was dangling, the heel of her shoe clicking against the trunk of the tree and she sighed in contentment. She lifted her face towards the sun beams, feeling the warmth on her skin.

“Princess Mala!” someone from below shouted, voices raising in concern.

“Yes?” she answered, leaning over the branch slightly, her hands gripping the wood. A group of guards were scattered under the tree, faces showing a variety of concern.

“Please, you must return to the castle,” one of them said. “The queen will be back any minute.”

Mala hummed, titling her head to the side. She closed her eyes, smiling slightly. “No,” she said, sitting up and crossing her legs at the ankles.

The guards groaned, whispering amongst each other, concern palpable.

“Hey, Princess!” a voice from the side said. “How are you?”

Mala huffed a breath out, hunching her shoulders and sitting up. Her hair glittered in the sun beams. She turned her head to the side, and smiled, all the teeth and cheek. A young man stood on the edge of the wall, his feet planted firm on the edge and his hands on his hips. Behind him, one of the suns was making a halo around his head.

“I’m fine, thank you for asking,” she answered, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “How are you, kitchen hand?” Mala leaned back and closed her eyes, the warmth of the sun shining down on her. “Now leave me alone, Jacob.”

Jacob huffed a small breath, sitting down on the wall and swinging his legs. “You wound and insult me, with that tone of voice.” He bent his head to look through the leaves, the shade of the tree obscuring his view a little. “What do you think you’re doing?” he asked, crossing his arms.

“I am enjoying the warmth.” Mala turned so that she was sitting with both her legs dangling. The leaves were cutting the suns’ rays into little spotlights. When she looked down, the group of guards that was under her scrambled like a pack of wild animals. “What about you?”

Jacob shrugged. “Just sightseeing.” He looked at the guards and smiled, teeth bright in the setting suns. Mala tilted her head, her hair fluttering in the breeze. “Go back to the castle,” he said, looking up through his lashes. “Your mother will return soon and you have to receive her, since you’re the princess of the kingdom.”

Mala blew air out of her mouth. She was not ready to receive her mother from wherever that lady went to, maybe to conquer more tiny towns or bring fear into the hearts of the weak. That was her mother’s favorite hobby. “Fine.” She grabbed the nearest branch and swung herself down, her feet grazing the bark of the tree. She landed on her feet and the guards surrounded her, patting her down to make sure she was not hurt.

The wind kicked up the hem of her dress, the shiny fabric making patterns against her skin. She wiggled her fingers at them, smiling. “Hey, boys.”

“Princess, you shouldn’t be giving your guards a hard time,” Jacob said, his voice carrying through the wind.

Mala rolled her eyes and turned her head towards him. Jacob jumped from the garden wall onto the tree. He was dangling from his bent knees, his face getting redder the second he remains upside down. “A kitchen hand shouldn’t be talking to the princess like they were good friends,” she responded.

Jacob smiled and flipped onto his feet and bowed. He looked up at her, one eye closed. “I’m sorry.”

Just then, horns were blaring, and Mala knew it meant one thing: the queen has returned.

[oddinary4bts]

Chasing Cars | ch 1 (jjk)

☆summary: when your brother goes to study on a semester abroad, your life collides with his best friend Jeon Jungkook, who's coincidentally your roommate. Will you survive the collision, or will you crumble into dust?

☆pairings: brother's best friend!Jungkook x younger sister!female reader, Hoseok x female!reader

☆rating: 18+ (minors DNI, this chapter contains mature content)

☆genre: forbidden love?au, college!au, slice of life!au, smut, angst (as usual a lot of it), fluff

☆warnings: alcohol, curses, jungkook is lowkey a cocky asshole but we love him, mentions of ghosting (reader to Hoseok), mentions of frosh week, mentions of Nabi spraining her ankle, a frat party, beer pong, Sam Hwang, peach, explicit content: overhearing someone having sex, female masturbation, sex toy (vibrator), praising, nipple play, hickeys, dom!Hoseok, sub!reader, degradation, Hoseok likes being called sir (lmao), whip (sorta, with a belt), choking (with a belt), safe word, oral sex (male receiving), mouth fucking, balls fondling, jerking off, spitting in the other's mouth, Hoseok does not believe in aftercare (rip)

☆word count: 11.8k

☆a/n: CHAPTER ONE!! LET'S GET THIS JOURNEY STARTED BABY!!! thank you to @moonleeai and @jessikahathaway for beta-ing, you guys are the best <3

☆series masterpost

☆add yourself to the taglist here!

☆☆☆☆☆

If I lay here If I just lay here Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

Chasing Cars, Snow Patrol

☆☆☆☆☆

Thursday, January 17th 

If there is one thing you’ve figured about Jeon Jungkook, it’s that he is an insufferable prick, yet an endearing one. As your older brother’s best friend, Jungkook has taken a liking to teasing you, treating you like his own little sister. It was weird at first – the day you  met him, you were struck by his looks. Who wouldn’t be? Jungkook is tall, has a sleeve of tattoos, and he rocks an eyebrow and two lip piercings. 

It took you all but three days to realize that he is a too full of himself asshole. And had you known what you were signing up for when Taehyung suggested that you move in with him when his friend Jimin moved out to live with his girlfriend, maybe you wouldn’t have accepted.

You love Taehyung. He’s an incredible brother, has always taken care of you when you were younger and your mother was never home to do so. You love him enough that you didn’t mind moving in with him even though there was a third party you didn’t know.

Jungkook, that is.

It’s been months now. Months of living with Jungkook, of waking up to his insufferable smirk and even worse teasing, whenever Taehyung is not around. Because, of course, when your brother is here Jungkook is an angel, never once saying anything to you that could be taken the wrong way.

Thing is, Taehyung has always dreamed of studying abroad, in Paris. Has always wished to experience the French lifestyle, to wake up to eat croissants and gaze at the Eiffel Tower in the distance. So when he got the opportunity to do his winter semester over there, of course he jumped on the chance. 

You’ve been living alone in the same apartment as Jeon Jungkook for less than a month and you already wish May to be at your door and for Taehyung to come back.

It’s late. Sometime close to two am, and the bed creaking in the room next to yours, the one banging into the wall, has been keeping you up.

Or maybe the intermittent high-pitched clipped moans are what are keeping you up. Because, mind you, the walls of your apartment are paper-thin. So paper-thin sometimes you think you’re in Jungkook’s room while he’s ramming some girl he probably doesn’t even know the name of. Sometimes, you think you can almost picture him. Almost see the muscles of his back move under his skin as he jack-hammers into yet another girl, almost see his powerful thighs slap on hers each time he pushes in, almost see his fucked-out face when he comes with that loud grunt of his…

You miss Taehyung being around because Jungkook wasn’t as loud then. Still brought girls home every Thursday like clockwork, but made sure he wasn’t loud enough for the whole building to hear him. With Taehyung gone, Jungkook has stopped caring, and you have been suffering the consequences since then.

In truth, it hasn’t been that long. Less than three weeks, and you’ve heard Jungkook fuck like four times? You reckon it could be a lot worse… but he could also be respectful and not fuck people when you’re trying to sleep because you have a nine am class the next day.

The first time it happened, you were mortified. You listened to music, hoping you wouldn’t hear it anymore but, the thing is, his headboard bangs against the same wall your headboard is against. So you still felt it, and you suffered through the whole ordeal hoping you would disappear through the floor.

The second time it happened, you were annoyed. You considered knocking against the wall to tell him to shut the fuck up – or rather to tell the girl to shut the fuck up – but you resisted. Solely because you didn’t want to stir shit with Jungkook. You considered asking Taehyung to tell Jungkook to be more respectful, but it sounded childish and stupid so you eventually let it slide.

The third time it happened, you were… aroused. Maybe because it had been a long time since you had sex – the last time being in late November with Hoseok, a guy studying in the same major as you, though he’s Jungkook and Taehyung’s age. Yet, even though you felt aroused, you focused on all the ways you were going to murder Jungkook the next day.

Today… today the arousal is winning the game. It’s been making your heart run wild, and your grip on your sheets has your knuckles turning white, skin stretched taut over how hard you’re clenching your fists. 

And when you hear Jungkook say something that definitely sounds like “Good fucking girl”, you lose it. You’re too aroused, dripping from just hearing him, and you need to have the coil inside of you snap if you want to be able to sleep tonight.

With all the sounds emerging from his room, you doubt Jungkook is going to hear you. So you shamelessly rummage through the top drawer of your night table, searching for your vibrator, smiling in victory when your hand closes around it.

You’re wearing PJ shorts, and you quickly rid yourself of them as the girl lets out a short-clipped moan that makes you think you’re listening to porn, and not to your roommate fucking.

Though you reckon sex with Jungkook really does sound like porn.

You lie back in bed once you’re rid of your shorts, taking a hold of your vibrator. You turn it on, adjusting it to your favourite setting. You feel strange doing so, like you’re doing something you really shouldn’t be doing, but you can’t help it.

The second you press the vibrator on your clit, you forget all about how what you’re doing is wrong. All you can focus on is the pleasure that radiates through your body, and your eyes close tightly, images of Jungkook swirling in your brain.

When the girl moans again, and Jungkook tells her that she’s ‘taking it so well’, your free hand shoots to your breast, pinching your nipple through the fabric of your t-shirt. It’s not enough, and you’re quick to move it under the shirt. You pinch hard, and you let out a breathy sound as your thighs instinctively close on your wrist.

Jungkook’s headboard starts banging against the wall even more, and your brain produces an image of Jungkook between your legs, fucking you until all you can think is his name. It has you pushing your vibrator inside of you, and you lightly moan again at the pleasurable intrusion. 

You let go of your nipple, moving that hand to your clit instead, and your fingers expertly start drawing circles on it. You listen to Jungkook’s grunts all along, to the girl’s moans, and maybe you’re a little too blissed out to realize they’re done, but when you reach your high you can’t help the broken moan you let out, a little too loud for the paper-thin walls of your apartment.

As you’re coming down from your high, you realize the apartment is eerily silent, and you swallow the lump of awkwardness that’s formed in your throat. You wipe your vibrator with some tissue, knowing you’ll have to actually clean it on the morrow, but you don’t want to kill the silence of the night just so you can put your vibrator back in its hiding spot right away. 

But you’re not stupid, and you know you need a trip to the bathroom anyway. You put your PJ shorts back on, grab your phone to use it as a flashlight so you don’t bump into a wall on the way to the bathroom, and you tiptoe all the way over there, hoping to be as soundless as possible.

You have to walk in front of Jungkook’s room to get to the bathroom, and then halfway across the living room. You notice his door is closed on your way, and you peacefully make it all the way to the bathroom. You quickly pee and clean yourself up, washing your hands before you open the door.

Which, you reckon might have been your demise. Because when you open the door of the bathroom, it’s to let out a high-pitched startled yelp at the sight of a shirtless Jungkook on the other side. The sound of the faucet must have hidden his footsteps.

You stare at each other for a few seconds, and in the dim light, you’re pretty sure Jungkook is smirking.

“Couldn’t sleep?” he asks after the silence has started to stretch into awkwardness.

You clench your jaw, gaze dropping to the ground. “You were disturbing my sleep.”

He chuckles, cocking his head to the side. “Was I now?”

Your eyes shoot back to his face at the low huskiness of his tone, and you wish with all of your heart that you had the courage to punch him in the face. But you don’t, so all you reply is, “You need to start fucking your hookups somewhere else.”

His smirk falls into a pout. “I won’t go over to the girls’ places. But I can make sure they’re more silent next time.”

Your brain can’t help but wonder if he means ‘they’ as in he was fucking two girls or just they as in generally referring to a single person.

You obstinately remain silent for a moment, holding his gaze with surprising defiance. “Please do,” you finally choose to say, and the smirk makes its way back to his features.

“I promise,” he says, voice low once again, and you hate how it has something tightening inside of you once more. 

You hate it so much that you escape, wishing him good night as you walk around him. You feel the warmth of his body on the way, and you’re thinking about ways to stab him in the back when he says, “Sleep well, peach.”

Saturday, January 19th

You’ve taken to referring to last Wednesday night, or early Thursday morning, as The Incident. At least that’s what you call it when you talk about it with your friends, Ria and Nabi. Ria, who’s always had some sort of a crush on Jungkook is absolutely flabbergasted each time it’s mentioned, and Nabi thinks he’s proven that he’s the biggest asshole in college.

You relate to both, and mostly agree with Nabi. 

You’re supposed to go to some party later tonight. Ria convinced you to pre-drink at the girls’ dorm before you go, considering it’s closer to the party than your apartment, and the three of you are sitting in a circle on the floor, with music playing in the background. Needless to say, Nabi has been complaining ever since you got there, because she doesn’t usually do parties, and Ria is so excited she’s got you convinced that tonight will be the best night of your life.

Almost.

“Shots?” Ria asks as if you haven’t already taken two shots each.

She’s holding the bottle of tequila up, a red flush to her cheeks and mischief lighting her gaze. You don’t find it in you to say no, because you know that without the tequila Nabi is never going to make it to the party.

“Let’s do this,” you say, offering her a smirk as Nabi hides her face in her hands.

“You girls are going to kill me,” she complains. 

“Come on,” Ria says, playfully pushing her on the shoulder. “Maybe that cute guy you like is going to be there!”

Nabi has had a crush on someone from your major, Kim Namjoon, ever since you met her at the beginning of Frosh week last semester. He’s a tall guy, with dimples whenever he smiles, and you can see why she’d have a crush on him. Thing is, Namjoon has been dating someone ever since then, and Nabi has just been suffering in silence.

You still remember the moment you saw the crush bubble to life. It was day three of Frosh Week, and Namjoon was in charge of your team, along with Hoseok. You, Nabi, and three other first years were winning the relay race, figuring out the puzzles so quickly you had a good advance on the other teams. In a leap of happiness, Nabi jumped over a small stone wall on campus. One of her feet got tangled, and she ended up spraining her ankle.

Namjoon had been right by her side, asking her if she was okay. And Nabi has been in love with him ever since that day, though she’d never dare say it aloud.

“I don’t like anyone,” she grumbles, but the way her cheeks flush red is telling.

“Namjoon, Namjoon, Namjoon,” you singsong, offering her a shit eating grin. 

She retaliates by saying, “When’s the last time you’ve fucked Hobi? Didn’t you say he was the best lay of your life?”

Your mouth falls open in surprise, and Ria lets out a loud laugh.

“We stopped fucking in November, you know that!” you burst, feeling yourself turning crimson. “And it’s not like I have a crush on him, I stopped because it felt like he had a crush on me.”

Nabi has a winning smile on her lips. “And what’s so bad about that?”

“I mean…” you trail off, shrugging your shoulders. “The sex was good, but I didn’t feel like dating him. Simple as that.”

“Why not?” Ria asks, tequila forgotten. “You never told us.” She adds a pout to her sentence, trying to get you to explain.

There’s no explanation. You just didn’t feel like it. You tell them as much, but Nabi doesn’t buy it. Ria, on the other hand, lets out a sound that has both you and Nabi startling.

“I know why!” she explains.

You cock an eyebrow. “Why?”

“You live with fucking Jeon Jungkook, of course you don’t want to date Hobi. Especially after The Incident.”

You laugh, as it’s just as ridiculous as you expected it to be. “Not at all. Jungkook is Tae’s best friend.”

Both your friends look at you, as if what you said was the stupidest shit they ever heard.

“What?”

“What does it change?” Nabi asks with a small voice. 

“Well,” you let out, because you don’t really know. It’s just weird to you, and you don’t know how to explain it. “For one, I’m pretty sure Tae would kill him if he ever laid a finger on me.”

“Tae is in Paris,” Ria innocently says.

“Irrelevant,” you say, chuckling. “He’s going to be back in just a few months.”

“A lot can happen in a few months,” she adds, wiggling her brows suggestively.

You roll your eyes before reaching out between the two of you. “Give me the tequila.”

“I’ll fuck him if you don’t,” she teases, and she cradles the tequila to her chest. “As a matter of fact, maybe I’ll try to fuck him tonight.”

“Have fun!” is all you answer before making grabby hands at her. “Now, give me the alcohol, let’s get plastered before we get there so we don’t have to drink the crappy frat booze.”

*****

The frat house hosting the party is wild. Has always been – you’ve always found they go too far with most of their parties. But they also host the most memorable parties, and you know tonight will be a blast the moment you set in to see the strung LED light, shining different patterns of colours around the main room. A table in the corner is stacked high with every bottle of hard alcohol imaginable, and there are three coolers you assume are holding beer or something of the sorts. 

One of the guys – Dave? – shows you three where you can leave your coats, on a bed in the upstairs bedroom, and then he walks you to the alcohol table, offering to pour you some shots.

Nabi giggles, because by the time you left their dorm, she got quite drunk, claiming she needed it if she were to run into Namjoon after what you and Ria had said. She accepts the shot she’s handed, though half of it has spilled on her hand by the time the guy gives you yours. He puts salt on your hands, carefully, as Ria makes fun of Nabi, and you look around, scanning the crowd. You recognize a few people from your class, along with the usual party crowd of your college. You smile at two guys you’ve spoken to before at least once, before resuming your attention on Dave (?) as he hands you a slice of lemon.

When the four of you are ready, you lick the salt, knock back the shot, and then bite in the lemon to chase the taste of tequila away. It’s cheap tequila, and even with lemon the taste lingers while you prepare vodka cranberries for you and your friends. And though Ria loves dancing, you and Nabi win as you choose to head to the kitchen, where you know the music isn’t usually as loud.

The first thing you notice when you enter the kitchen is the beer pong table in the middle. Jeon Jungkook is currently playing, along with Jimin, another of your brother’s friends. As he sees you, Jimin raises his glass, offering you a wide grin, and then he punches Jungkook in his side before motioning to you.

Jungkook notices you then, and he offers you a smirk as he eyes you up and down. You feel shy for half a beat, though you know you look good. You’re wearing a green corset along with a pair of black leather pants, and you know the two pieces of clothing hug your body perfectly. Plus, Ria did your makeup, and Ria never fails when it comes to makeup. So you wait as Jungkook looks at you, hoping the foundation Ria put on your face is thick enough for him not to see you blush as The Incident inevitably comes back to your mind.

You look away, and then you see Hoseok hovering by glass sliding doors, along with Namjoon and their other friend Yoongi. Hoseok is busy with a conversation, and when he bursts out laughing you can hear it clear as day.

Why didn’t you want to date him? You don’t know. You actually really don’t know, because he ticks off all the boxes. But something was missing, you presume, and sometimes you hate yourself for it.

He must have sensed your attention, and he turns his head towards you. You don’t miss the way his smile falls a little, and he nods once in recognition. When you smile, his mouth closes to offer you one of those awkward tight-lipped smiles, and your gaze drops away to the cup in your hand.

Of course, Ria has a nefarious plan in mind, because she hooks her arm with yours and Nabi’s, pulling you towards the trio of guys. You’re fully aware that it’s mostly for Nabi, and that it’s stupid because last you’ve heard, Namjoon is still dating his girlfriend, but you let your friend pull you towards the men, gaze still stubbornly hiding in your cup.

You watch the liquid slosh around as you stop in front of them, and Namjoon greets you. Hoseok falls eerily silent, and Yoongi asks you all how you’ve been doing.

You only join in the conversation when you’ve taken a long sip from your cup to ease your nerves. Not that it really helped, but you reckon just standing there in silence would probably make things more awkward than anything else.

“Nabi is pretty drunk,” Ria is saying when you finally look up from the cup. 

“Am not!” Nabi insists, voice slurred. “Or maybe just a little.”

Namjoon laughs, while Yoongi chuckles. “As long as you don’t fall and sprain your ankle again, I think you’re alright.”

“Won’t fall again,” Nabi promises. “Not with these two with me.” She says that motioning to you and Ria, and it somehow brings Namjoon’s attention to you.

“I saw your essay on the synthesis and control of energy metabolism,” he tells you, a dimpled smile on display. “It was pretty good.”

You can’t help but slide your eyes to Nabi, who wrote a far better essay on human health and bacteriophage in your opinion, and you don’t miss the way her gaze drops to the ground.

“Thanks,” you reply to Namjoon nonetheless.

He’s started TA-ing to help out Seokjin, one of the biochemistry grad students. All of you are biology students, except Ria and Yoongi. Ria is in administration, and Yoongi studies music, his concentration being piano and producing.

There’s an awkward silence, and you glance towards Hoseok, feeling the weight of his gaze on you. He’s good-looking, even though he’s simply dressed in a T-shirt with some graphics on the front and a pair of discoloured jeans. Knowing him, he probably has a crazy jacket upstairs, because you know he’s good when it comes to fashion.

It’s what attracted you to him in the first place.

“How are you?” you ask him, and you notice Yoongi’s pointed gaze on you. It’s disapproving, you think, but the question left your mouth without you even wanting it to.

“I’ve been great,” Hoseok replies, though it’s a little colder than what you know him to be.

You nod, gaze dropping to the ground as Ria strikes a conversation with the three others, clearly trying to give you and Hoseok some space. It has the two of you just standing in aimless silence, until the sound of whooping behind you attracts your gaze to the beer pong table, where Jimin and Jungkook are celebrating a win. “I’m…” you trail off as you turn back to look at him. “I’m glad. How are your classes?”

He sighs. “They’re harder than first-year classes.”

You don’t miss the ghost of a teasing glint in his eyes, and you immediately latch onto it. “Oh, please, you struggled in molecular biology. I got A+ in the class.”

He chuckles, and you physically relax. Because you haven’t really talked since you ended things in November, finals coming in the way of partying and other events where you would run into him. So you didn’t know before today where you stood with him, and you’re relieved that he doesn’t seem like he’s holding a grudge.

“You weren’t in Lester’s class,” he points out. “Even Namjoon almost failed Lester’s class.”

You gasp in fake outrage. “No way! And now he’s the biochem TA.”

“I know,” Hoseok says, slightly shaking his head. “Unbelievable.”

The renewed complicity between the two of you is easy, you realize, and when he suggests playing a game of beer pong, you immediately agree. Or maybe you only agree because you don’t know where Nabi, Ria, Yoongi and Namjoon went, only that they aren’t next to you anymore.

 Jungkook and Jimin are still undefeated at the table, and when Jungkook catches sight of you moving closer, he winks before shooting.

You’re not surprised when the ball goes right in a cup, leaving only one on the table. Jimin laughs as their opponents claim Jungkook cheated, and Jungkook shrugs his shoulders.

“You should know better than to call me a cheater, bro,” Jungkook says, and he runs a hand in his hair.

An infuriating small strand falls in his big doe eyes, but he seemingly doesn’t care. He glances at you once again, eyes trailing between you and Hoseok.

“Enjoying yourself?” he asks when his gaze settles back on you.

You don’t miss the way his eyes dip to your cleavage before moving back to your face.

“I’m here to beat your ass,” you reply, and you offer him a shit-eating grin.

He laughs, and he sets his attention on Hoseok. “I hope you’re good, bro, because she’s just declared war.” And then he looks at you, smirking that insufferable smirk once more. His doe eyes narrow threateningly, and you find yourself wishing you had never heard him fuck before.

Because all your brain can picture right now is how you came to the sound of his grunts a couple of days ago.

“What?” you can’t help but say, though he looks away from you as the two other guys shoot, completely missing the three cups left in front of Jimin and Jungkook. 

You notice Jimin looking at you with an eyebrow cocked, and the smile on his lips means nothing good. You furrow your brows, because you know how much of a gossip he is, but thankfully enough for you, he has to throw.

You watch as he does so, landing it right in the last cup. Jungkook of course throws right in the cup too, claiming the victory for them as the two other guys grumble and leave the table, leaving the place free for you and Hoseok.

You meet Hoseok’s gaze, offering him a small smirk. “I hope you’re ready to get fucked.”

You only realize how crude your words sounded, especially considering your history with him, when he starts laughing, that contagious laugh you’ve always found cute.

“I mean, I’m a pretty good shot,” he says once you’ve calmed down. “Are you?”

You wince. “Once in a while I’m good,” you answer truthfully. “Most of the time I suck.”

“Well hopefully you’ll be good tonight,” he teases, gently nudging you with his elbow.

You offer him a determined nod, before turning to face Jungkook and Jimin. You quickly put the solo cups back in position, as Jungkook watches you with a half-smile on his lips. You don’t know what to make of it, so you ignore him.

A small, tiny, minuscule voice at the back of your head tells you he probably knows about The Incident, but you ignore it entirely like you’ve been doing for the past few days.

Turns out Hoseok really is a good shot. He lands all of his shots, but of course, it has to be the day you suck. You don’t land any, up until the redemption that brings you back into the game when Jungkook and Jimin are about to win.

It makes you scream in happiness, and you throw your arms around Hoseok’s neck, right as his hands lay flat on your waist. He pulls you close, laughing in your ear until you let go, and you have the decency to feel bad.

You’re pretty sure you broke his heart in November, and you’re pretty sure you’ll only end up breaking it again. But there’s just something in the way Jungkook is staring from the other side of the table, smile gone, that makes you want to cling to Hoseok. So you do, and when he stands behind you to help you with your next shot, you let him put one hand on your hip.

Your gaze meets Jungkook’s, and you watch as his eyes dip to the fingers on your hip. He cocks his head to the side, wets his lips, and then an infuriating smirk lights up his features dangerously until you feel like you need to look away or else you’ll combust. So you glance at Jimin, who is just smiling prettily because when is he not, and then you focus on the lone solo cup you have to aim for.

“What you want to do,” Hoseok says, leaning so he can speak in your ear. You’re infinitely aware of how his pelvis brushes your ass, and your breath catches in your throat. He continues, “is to throw in a parabola. That way you won’t hit the rim of the cup”. He grabs your wrist, lifting your hand. “From this height, it should work.”

You nod, because you don’t think you can answer, especially not as you can hear Jungkook snickering from where he’s standing. Instead, you really focus on the cup, and when you’re about to throw, Jungkook speaks up.

“Put it in, baby.”

Your brain short-circuits, and it’s no wonder you miss by a good, few inches. Jimin is a giggly mess next to Jungkook, Hoseok can’t resist his laugh, and all you can do is glare at Jungkook’s satisfied smile.

“What the fuck?” you let out.

He winks at you. “Gotta learn to not get distracted, peach.”

You hate the nickname. He knows that you do, and it’s the reason why he’s been using it for months now. Ever since one late night where you played Mario Kart together with Taehyung and Jimin, and you kept choosing Princess Peach as your character. When you went in the kitchen to grab a drink, Jungkook followed you and teased you about it, and now the nickname has stuck.

Though evidently never in front of Taehyung.

You wish you had a snarky retort in you, but all you can do is think about The Incident, and pray he can’t tell that your cheeks are burning up because of him and not because of the alcohol.

You end up losing the beer pong game, and you cringe internally as you watch Hoseok dapping Jungkook and Jimin up. You begrudgingly congratulate them, as Jungkook teases you for the loss.

“Would have thought your brother taught you better than this,” he says, nudging you with his elbow.

You roll your eyes, glancing at Hoseok, but he’s striking a conversation with Jimin. 

“Tae and I didn’t spend all that much time together, Jungkook,” you remind him. “You know I just moved in with you guys because you needed someone after Jimin left.”

Jungkook shrugs. “You seem pretty close to him.” 

He falls silent, pulling at his piercing as you glance at his features. You’ve left your liquid courage somewhere on the table, and you really wish you had it with you right now. Only so you could avoid the sudden wistful look in Jungkook’s haze, though it disappears so quickly you think you might have imagined it.

“He’s really protective of you,” he comments as you too remain silent, not knowing what to say.

You chuckle, because if there is a thing that is true, it’s that your older brother is an overbearing asshole. “That he is,” you agree, and you both laugh.

“Hey, do you want a drink?” Hoseok suddenly asks, and you realize that Jimin has disappeared. 

You’re pretty sure Jungkook is eyeing him up and down when you reply, “Please, I need a new drink.”

Hoseok beams, and you make to move towards him when Jungkook grabs your arm to stop you. Your eyes widen, The Incident flashing in your mind, but his tattooed fingers let go of you as you throw him an inquisitive look.

“I’m not drinking tonight,” he admits. “I came with my car, thought I’d offer to drive you home.”

At that, your eyebrows shoot towards your hairline in surprise. “What?”

He shrugs, corner smile back on his pink lips. “As long as you don’t get sick, that is.”

You ponder for a time, because you were supposed to sleep over at Nabi and Ria’s dorm tonight. You reckon heading home would probably be better, especially now that Hoseok has caught your attention again.

Maybe you can give Jungkook a piece of his medicine.

“Ayt,” you tell him, moving closer as a secretive smile moves on your lips, brought up by the evil plan that is just starting to form in your brain. “I’ll find you later?”

Jungkook looks down at you, tongue pushing on the inside of his cheek as he tilts his head to the side. A smirk moves on his lips and he glances at Hoseok before settling his doe eyes back on you.

He looks nothing like a doe when he says, “I’ll be waiting for you.”

And then he’s the one that walks away, and you can’t breathe for a few seconds as Hoseok waits patiently, either unaware of the situation or not caring. Though you know he knows Jungkook is your roommate – he probably just thinks Jungkook is being nice.

You inhale deeply, before turning to look at Hoseok as you let out your breath. “So, drinks?”

He smiles, genuinely, nodding his head as he offers you his hand to take. To your surprise, he pulls you close to him, and the way his gaze looks down on you makes you all too aware that you used to fuck him, and he used to fuck you good.

“What are you drinking tonight?” he asks, head dipping so he can ask the question in your ear.

“What do you want?”

His smile turns a little dangerous, and he looks over your head to the doorway to the living room. “Shall we?”

You laugh, nodding your head enthusiastically, and you let him pull you behind him. He guides you to the drink table in the living room, where he makes you a rum and coke as you scan your surroundings. You spy Ria and Nabi dancing, and you only understand why when you notice that Namjoon is nearby too, with Yoongi who’s just standing to the side, scrolling on his phone as if bored.

You know Hoseok likes to dance. That’s how you first kissed all those months ago, so you don’t hesitate to ask if he wants to join your friends after you’ve both drank a couple of sips from your respective solo cups. He obviously agrees, and you take his hand to guide him to your friends. You’re painfully aware of how Yoongi raises his head when you get closer, eyes dropping to your entwined hands. He furrows his brows disapprovingly, and you wonder if he’ll speak up.

If he’ll speak up and ruin your plan for you. 

He doesn’t, instead meeting your gaze as if daring you to do something. It makes you feel bad for a split second until Hoseok lets go of your hand to rest a hand on your hip as he nestles his lean body against your back.

“You know,” he says in your ear, and you look away from Yoongi, refusing to acknowledge his challenge. “I always wondered why you ghosted me.”

You gulp, and you follow his lead as he makes you sway your hips against him. Ria whistles and your eyes widen a little as if to say ‘please not right now’.

“I’m sorry,” you apologize, and it’s true. “I didn’t really mean to ghost you, just got busy and…”

He laughs, and you’re surprised to hear it ring true. “Y/n,” he says. He leans even closer, and his lips brush your ear. It makes goosebumps rise all over your body, right as he continues, “You can say you got scared. I gave you plenty of reasons to be scared.”

Because you had agreed on no feelings, and he still had developed some, hadn’t he?

“I’m still sorry, ghosting you was shitty of me.”

He chuckles, and you’re starting to recognize the man that he is in the bedroom. His voice is low, husky, when he says, “Should I punish you for it?”

The Incident and Jeon Jungkook are thousands of miles from your thoughts when his words settle in, making heat pool at your core.

“You’d still want to do this?” you ask, breathlessly.

He nibbles at your earlobe, and you instinctively tilt your head to the side to give him better access. He kisses under your ear, tongue darting out to taste your skin, and this time Ria fully hollers in front of you.

You glare at her, only to see that she and Nabi are having the time of their life watching you.

“I haven’t been able to forget how good your pussy feels wrapped around my dick,” Hoseok replies after he’s sucked a hickey on your neck. “Trust me, if I can fuck you again, I’ll do it.”

You don’t hesitate when you turn around, resting your forehead against his. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

And you know you would. Especially considering how tense he was when you first talked to him tonight. 

“Sweet of you,” he comments, and a smirk grows on his lips. He pulls away from you, taking a sip of rum and coke. “I wasn’t catching feelings for you, if that’s what you were worried about.” He pauses as his face falls fully serious. “You just don’t like when people treat you right.”

You’re insulted. You really are, yet… he isn’t entirely wrong. The minute a guy gets too close, you dip – you blame that on the fact your father abandoned you and Taehyung when you were still kids.

“Is that why Yoongi is glaring at me?” you ask, a little colder than intended. 

The message still passes, and Hoseok shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t care what Yoongi thinks. He always thinks he knows me better than I do but, trust, he doesn’t.”

You’re surprised at just how bitter Hoseok’s sentence sounds. You always thought Yoongi and he were best friends. It’s strange to think that maybe they aren’t, or at least maybe they aren’t close enough to be.

“Anyway,” Hoseok adds when you remain silent for a little too long. “If you’re willing to fuck again, I’d be down. I haven’t found another pussy like yours since the last time we fucked.”

Which coincidentally is the last time you had sex with anyone. You’re not surprised Hoseok fucked some other people after you – with his easy charm, you know he can have anyone wrapped around his finger pretty easily. 

And if he wants to participate in your evil plan so willingly, who are you to tell him no?

“The night’s barely started,” you point out. “But maybe you can come back to my place later?”

You’ve never invited him over before, because if there’s a thing that scares you more than anything in this world, it’s Taehyung hearing you having sex with some guy. But now that your brother is in Paris, you figure it doesn’t matter.

Plus, if you want Jungkook to get a taste of his own medicine, you have to bring Hoseok home.

“Deal,” Hoseok tells you, and he seals the deed with a searing and unexpected kiss.

You still kiss him back, hungrily, your body remembering just how good Hoseok can make you feel. You just have to make it through a party – with Jungkook driving you home, you know it’s likely you won’t leave until the party is starting to dwindle down.

When you pull away, Hoseok licks his lips once, as if wanting to remember the taste of you, before saying, “I’ll find you at the end of the party”.

You nod, and begrudgingly let him leave when he walks over to where Yoongi is standing, now joined by a baffled Namjoon, who glances between the two of you a couple of times. You ignore him, instead focusing on Ria and Nabi as they drunkenly pull you away, laughing wildly.

“What the fuck was that?” Ria asks in between two sets of laughter as you emerge in the kitchen. “I thought you said you didn’t want him anymore.”

You don’t want to jinx your plan, so all you can think to do is shrug your shoulders nonchalantly. “It just happened.”

In a weird moment of soberness, Nabi says, “Please don’t lead him on. He’s a decent guy”.

You tell your friends what he told you, and they both seem taken aback, yet they don’t question it. After all, the amount of alcohol in your blood is enough to make it so it’s a little hard to think profoundly, and inhibitions have flown out the window before you even got to the party.

After the conversation is over, your two friends insist on playing beer pong, claiming that they need you to encourage them. You recognize Dave at the table – you think that’s his name – and you all cozy up next to him as you ask to be next. You linger behind, mostly because you’ve noticed someone you’ve been avoiding ever since you got to college last semester, and you hope he doesn’t notice you.

Maybe he’s one of the reasons why you’ve been struggling with people treating you right, like Hoseok mentioned. Because Sam was your first love, and he played you immensely.

If he notices you, he doesn’t look like he does, instead keeping his arm tightly wrapped around the girl next to him. You don’t know her, and you wouldn’t even care if you did – you stopped caring about Sam a long time ago. But you’re still a little put off at the sight of him, and when you catch sight of Jungkook and Jimin by the backyard’s sliding door, breathing in some fresh air, you decide to join them.

Which, you reckon, is a very stupid idea. Because they are Taehyung’s friends, not yours, but they feel safer for you than being in the vicinity of Sam Hwang right now.

“Weren’t you sucking face with what’s-his-name just a second ago?” Jimin asks straight away as you stop next to them.

You snort in your cup, taking a long sip from your drink. “Maybe,” you say once you’ve swallowed.

“Tae would have killed him,” Jimin jokes, looking at Jungkook.

You don’t miss the way Jungkook’s gaze is focused on a spot on your neck, and you rub it mindlessly. 

“Good thing he’s in Paris,” you point out. “And I can trust you two to not tell him?” 

You say it like a question, though you know it’s useless. Jimin is the biggest gossip you know, and you expect Taehyung to be scolding you by the time you wake up tomorrow morning.

Though that attracts Jungkook’s attention to your face, and he meets your gaze with that same infuriating smirk he was sporting earlier. 

“Lips sealed,” he says, uselessly because both of you know that Jimin is the real danger.

Before anything else can be said, Jimin points towards the beer pong table. “Didn’t feel like playing with your friends?”

You shrug, taking another sip of rum and coke. “They don’t need me.”

“Pretty sure you’d be a liability anyway,” Jungkook teases.

Jimin and he laughs at your expanse, and you’re stuck glaring at Jungkook, right as The Incident takes the forefront of your thoughts again.

You wish it would stop haunting you. Wish it would leave you alone, because you feel like it was the cataclysm to a series of bad decisions. The first event of a butterfly effect that is threatening to push you over the edge of the cliff.

“I did get the redemption shot,” you point out, and Jungkook playfully nudges you again.

“Doesn’t count, your little boyfriend got all the other shots for you.”

Your gaze widens. “He’s not my boyfriend!” you quickly defend.

Admittedly a tad too quickly.

Jungkook cocks an eyebrow, wetting his lips before playing with his piercing. “Of course not.”

You narrow your eyes at him, though you remain silent because you feel like saying something else would be far too incriminating. 

“Leave her alone,” Jimin jokes. “She did her best.” And then his gaze settles on you, and you balk at the mischief burning in his eyes. “Not her fault if her best sucks.”

“Bruh,” you let out, and you all burst out laughing.

After that, the conversation moves on easily, as you ask Jimin about his girlfriend. He starts gushing about the girl – he always does whenever Sera is mentioned. He tells you about her latest publication, and Jungkook looks bored out of his mind by the time something catches his attention, and he walks away from you and Jimin.

You watch him leave, somehow disappointed, but you entertain the conversation with Jimin for longer still. And Jimin is fun to be around, easy to talk to, and you don’t realize but an hour has passed before he glances down at his phone.

“Shit, I gotta go,” he admits. “I told Sera I wouldn’t be home too late.”

Your solo cup has been empty for half of the hour, so you raise it and say, “Go home, I’m going to get a refill.”

He hugs you goodbye, though you both walk together towards the living room. You part ways as you head to the drink table, once again scanning the room in search of your friends. They are nowhere to be seen, so you set on exploring the house after you’ve made another rum and coke for yourself. 

You find the stairs, and you head upstairs thinking they might have needed to settle in a calmer environment. Knowing Nabi, it is to be expected, yet you don’t find them anywhere upstairs. There’s a closed door leading to what you think is a bathroom, but you refuse to look in there.

You almost let out a startled yelp as it opens, and Jungkook steps out, pretty lips swollen red as he leads a girl behind him. At the sight of you, he lets go of her hand, and she looks between the two of you curiously. As both of you remain entirely silent, she furrows her brow but then dips, running a hand through her visibly tangled-up hair.

You can easily imagine what she and Jungkook were doing just a moment ago.

“Really?” you tell him.

His tongue pokes his cheek, and he laughs. “You asked me not to fuck at home anymore.”

You purse your lips, actually surprised that he took your word into account.

“Didn’t expect you would respect it.”

He doesn’t fake the offence that paints his features. “I’m not an asshole, peach.”

The nickname is said condescendingly, and you reckon you should feel a little bad. Because you’re still set on bringing Hoseok home tonight, no matter if Jungkook decided not to fuck anyone at home again.

“Sorry,” you apologize, not knowing what else to say.

Silence moves between you, and Jungkook leans against the doorframe, arms folding on his chest. He watches you carefully, as if he’s never really seen you before and, frankly, you wish he’d looked at you like this before.

It’s a treacherous thought, and you push it away as best as you can. 

“Jimin went home,” you tell him, feeling the need to fill the silence with something, anything.

Before he can reply, a group of people move upstairs, talking loudly. Jungkook pushes up from the doorframe, walking towards you.

“Do you want to go home too?” he asks when he’s right next to you.

He’s tall. You have to tilt your head back to be able to hold his gaze, and damn you, you’re hypnotized. You don’t want to look away, don’t think that you can.

“You already want to go home?” you answer, wetting your lips, and his eyes drop to your mouth.

He scoffs, as if it’s an inconvenience, before shrugging his shoulders. “I’m not drinking, I don’t see why I’d stay longer.”

Right.

“Why aren’t you drinking anyway?” you ask, genuinely curious. 

He smiles, with no hint of that infuriating smirk for once. “Got morning shift at the library tomorrow.”

The fact he works in a library still makes no sense to you. Though he’s claimed it’s because that way, it’s easy to approach all the pretty, intelligent women who don’t go to parties. Easy targets for a fuckboy like him.

“Ah,” you let out. “Well…” you glance at the group of people as they get out of the room where the coats are. When you resume your attention on Jungkook, you’re struck thinking he’s moved even closer. “My friend is supposed to sleep over, can I go find him?”

You say it innocently, and you don’t miss the way Jungkook frowns slightly. “Who?”

You force Hoseok’s name out, mostly because the way Jungkook is looking at you right now is making you want to disappear through the floor.

“Ah, the guy you played beer pong with,” Jungkook comments. “Thought he wasn’t your boyfriend.”

You furrow your brows. “He isn’t.”

A smirk grows on his lips. “Then why are you bringing him home, peach?”

Your own smirk is easy to come to your lips as you reply, “I’ll let you imagine.”

“Your brother wouldn’t approve.”

As he licks at his piercing, you can’t help but look down at his lips. “Good thing you’re not my brother then.”

He doesn’t reply, only looks over your head as you hear the unmistakable laugh of Jeong Hoseok. It makes you take a step back, and you turn to see Hoseok appearing at the top of the stairs. To your surprise, he’s accompanied by Ria, Nabi and Namjoon, but Yoongi is nowhere in sight.

Namjoon is helping Nabi walk, as she’s clearly gotten even drunker since you abandoned them downstairs. You wince at her sight, knowing she’s going to be a nightmare tomorrow. 

Ria catches sight of you and Jungkook, and her gaze widens.

“Here you are!” she shrieks. “We were looking for you everywhere.”

You don’t miss the way Hoseok looks you up and down, and you thank your stars for making this so easy. “I was thinking of heading home,” you tell the group, and you glance over your shoulder to confirm it with Jungkook.

He’s got an unreadable expression on his features, one that makes you think you’re going to enjoy your payback way too much.

When you look back to the group, it’s to see Hoseok cocking an eyebrow as if to say ‘Am I still coming?’ You nod, and you take a few steps towards him, interlocking your fingers with his. Ria watches as if it’s a scene from her favourite movie, and you all enter the room with the coats. 

You find yours in the mess on the floor, fast enough to catch sight of Jungkook as he’s waiting outside the door. You recognize his coat in the mess, so you grab it before bringing it to him.

“Here,” you tell him.

He chuckles. “Thanks, peach.”

Hoseok is next to follow, and the two guys eye each other before you hear Namjoon say, “Are you sure you’re fine with getting her home?”

You look into the room – Nabi is now lying on the bed, laughing to herself.

“Hopefully, yeah,” Ria answers. “I’ve already called an Uber.”

Namjoon is watching Nabi with a strange expression on his features when he says, “You guys are still at the dorms?”

“Yeah, we are,” Nabi slurs. “Where else would we be?”

Namjoon chuckles, and he glances your way. You immediately look away, right as he says, “I’ll come with you guys, then.”

Your thoughts head to his girlfriend for a few seconds, feeling bad for the girl, though clearly, Namjoon is just trying to be a gentleman. When you see Jungkook and Hoseok waiting patiently for you, you forget all about Nabi, Ria, Namjoon and his hypothetic girlfriend, especially as you see the not-so-genuine smile on Hoseok’s lips, and the dark look in Jungkook’s gaze.

Maybe your plan was a little too evil after all.

*****

The night is cold outside ─ arctic ─ and you wish you were drunker. That way, you’d barely feel it, but no, you’re forced to a shivering mess as you walk behind Jungkook towards his car, which he was forced to park a few streets over because of a recent snowstorm. All that can be heard is the sounds of your shoes crunching in the snow and the distant buzz of the highway. Up above, the stars twinkle in the night, and smoke moves from your mouth to create a cloud over your head.

You hate winter. Always have, and always will. Especially when it’s so cold you feel like your face will fall off, and you reckon tonight is one of the coldest nights in a while. 

Your eyes trail to Hoseok, and you smile in relief – at least your bed won’t be cold tonight.

You finally reach Jungkook’s car, and he unlocks the doors, the sound reverberating through the cold air. You sit in the back seat with Hoseok, pushing Jungkook’s gym bag to the side, and Jungkook is quick to turn on the engine, blasting the heater on. He meets your gaze in the rearview mirror as he waits for the engine to be warm enough to actually start driving. 

For a moment, you forget Hoseok is next to you. All you can focus on is Jungkook’s gaze. Where it’s usually wide, big and innocent, his eyes are narrowed now, as if he’s eyeing you. Judging you, even. Judging your choices, and you think he’s full of shit for it – he’s the first one to fuck around whenever he has the opportunity, after all.

A moment later, he deems the car finally ready, and he looks away, focusing on the street instead. He turns up the music on the stereo, and you watch as he taps his fingers on the steering wheel in time with the beat. You do so until you feel Hoseok’s hand landing on your thigh, which attracts your attention to him.

“Thanks for inviting me,” Hoseok says, not too loud, but clearly Jungkook hears because his fingers stop tapping on the wheel.

You smile, glancing down at Hoseok’s lips. They look chapped from the cold, yet when he smiles that bright smile of his back, you can’t help but think they are still inviting.

“Please don’t judge the state of the apartment,” you whisper, leaning closer to him. “This idiot doesn’t know how to –“

Jungkook slams the brakes, and you whip your head towards him as the aftershock sends you back into your seat. His eyes are gleaming with barely concealed mischief, and the infuriating smirk graces his lips.

“Sorry,” he says, but he doesn’t seem apologetic at all.

You roll your eyes, but that kills the conversation until you arrive at your apartment, which thankfully isn’t too far away from the party. Jungkook parks out front, and you all file out of the car, walking up the stairs to your door. You unlock it while the two men stand next to you, and you’re not sure what’s colder – them, or the actual winter night.

You’re not sure you want to know the answer either.

Warm air wraps you in its embrace as you open the door and step in, and you quickly shut it after the two men to make sure the cold doesn’t come in too much. By the time you’ve turned back around, Jungkook’s already halfway to his bedroom.

“Good night,” he says over his shoulder. 

For some reason, you expected him to be more of an ass about the situation, but you’re reduced to thinking he actually doesn’t care all that much. You watch him until he disappears in his room before your eyes slide to Hoseok.

He’s been observing you all this time, and the moment your eyes meet, he smiles.

“We can hang our coats in the closet,” you tell him as you unzip yours, and he follows your motion.

You grab a hanger for him, handing it to him before taking off your coat and hanging it. Once that is done, you head towards your room, pit-stopping in the kitchen to grab glasses of water. You reckon you didn’t expect him to be so silent, and it makes you slightly uncomfortable.

Even when you’re in your room, and you’ve plugged in your fairy lights, Hoseok still doesn’t say a thing. 

“You good?” you ask him, doing your best to calm your sudden nerves.

Was it a good idea to bring him here after all?

He grins, nodding once. “The apartment isn’t as messy as you let it sound like.”

Not expecting that at all, you let out a small laugh. But he isn’t wrong – out of the three of you, Taehyung is by far the messiest. And now that he is gone, Jungkook and you have managed to keep the apartment tidy and clean, though sometimes Jungkook does leave some dirty dishes around.

“Oh,” you let out, and you chuckle. “Yeah, we cleaned this week.”

Last Wednesday, actually. Right before Jungkook had his pussy appointment, it turns out.

Hoseok looks around, and you gaze at his honey skin for a time. It looks warm in the lights, and his smile is still just as blinding when he offers it to you.

“Like your room.”

You scan it as if you haven’t lived here for months now. You’ve brought most of the stuff you had at home – except your collection of plushies. Polaroid pictures of you growing up are hung on threads over your desk, which is a little messy from the project you were working on yesterday. Your laptop lays there unattended, screen black, and you walk over to shut it absentmindedly. 

“It’s not much, but it’s home,” you tell him, and you don’t have time to turn around for him to put his hand on your hip like he was doing earlier at the party. 

You take a long swig of water, before putting the glass down on your desk. Hoseok imitates you, and then his other hand finds a home on your waist.

“Feels like you,” he whispers, head dipping down so he can say the words in your ear.

You shiver, eyes fluttering shut, as he moves your hair out of the way before kissing on the hickey he sucked on your skin at the party.

“Yeah?” you breathe out.

He nods, and you feel him move against your neck. He pulls you closer, and your breath itches in your throat when you feel his dick against your ass.

“Fuck,” he curses. “I’ve been wanting to fuck you again for so long.” He nibbles at your earlobe, and one of his hands moves to your neck, holding you firmly into place. “But you had to run away, thinking you knew me. Baby,” he pauses, as his fingers dig in your arteries, making your head swim with the lack of oxygen, “you don’t know me at all. And I’m going to fucking punish you for it tonight. Understood?”

He releases his hold on your neck, and you suck in a sharp breath. “Yes.”

“Mmh?”

You know exactly what he wants, and it makes your insides boil again. “Yes, sir.”

He smirks against you, before biting at the skin of your neck. “You’ll be a good little slut for me?”

You nod, entirely unable to form a sentence. You’ve completely forgotten that the goal of tonight is to make Jungkook pay for how he’s been having loud sex. All you can think about right now is the man behind you.

“Then turn around, baby. Strip out of your clothes.”

You obey, mostly because Hoseok brings out a submissive part of you that just craves to do what he wants. Yes, you’ve always been more on the submissive side. But with other people, you can’t help the brat in you.

You fear being a brat with Hoseok would be a very dangerous game to play.

You don’t break the eye contact as you take off your clothes, slowly. He doesn’t look away from you, though he wets his lips as if the sight of you is making him hungry. 

Hoseok has a duality you have rarely seen before. Where he is an incredibly sweet person in his regular life, his bedroom self turns into a demon, a force to be reckoned with. No wonder sex with him is always so good.

When you’re finally naked, panties pooling around your ankles, Hoseok offers you a smirk. He doesn’t say anything, but he slowly undoes his belt, before motioning for you to get closer.

Only one step separates you from him, and then you’re standing right in front of him. He raises his hand, making you tilt your head back, and then he captures your mouth in a hungry kiss.

You can’t help but moan when he swats the belt at your side, the leather making your skin tingle. He pushes his tongue in your mouth, and your hands instinctively grab onto the hem of his shirt.

“Nu-uh,” he tuts, making you let go of it. “Get on your knees, baby.”

You drop to your knees, eyes darting to the bulge in his pants once before he makes you tilt your head back again. You gulp, right as he wraps his belt around your neck until the buckle is pressing against your skin. He doesn’t make it tight enough to hurt, but your hands still shake a little at being so vulnerable in front of him.

“You remember the safe word?” he asks.

“Red.”

He nods appreciatively. “And if you can’t speak, you tap my leg, correct?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Fuck you look so good like this.”

Not knowing if you can touch him, you just smile up at him, wetting your lips.

“Want to get a taste of me?”

You already know where this is going to lead. Hoseok fucked your mouth more than once in the three months you had casual sex with him. So you answer, “I want you to come down my throat.”

He smirks. “Good girl.”

With his free hand, he unbuttons his pants, before pushing them down his legs. He doesn’t step out of them, instead palming himself through his boxers. You watch the imprint of his dick, salivating at the sight, especially as precum is already wetting the fabric.

Hoseok doesn’t have a particularly big dick. But whenever he fucks you, it feels like he’s the biggest you’ve ever had, mostly because he knows how to use it. Knows how to move and snap his hips in a way that makes you think you’re seeing into the future. It also makes it so sucking his dick doesn’t hurt your jaw too much, so you’re able to do it for a longer period of time.

Tonight, you have an inkling that you’ll be doing it for a while.

He pushes his underwear down, freeing his dick. Your eyes drop to it, not surprised to see the angry, swollen tip. He looks like he’s about to burst, but you know it’s a trick of the eye – Hoseok has more stamina than one would think.

Holding the base of his dick, he brings the tip closer to your face. Your mouth falls open, expecting him to push his cock in, but he instead taps your cheek with it.

“I want to ruin you,” he says in a low voice. “I want you to never be able to fuck another guy because you still think of me.”

You gulp, tongue darting to wet your lips. He gets the cue, and he brings his dick to your mouth. You don’t hesitate before licking at his slit, the salty taste of his precum filling your mouth. You then wrap your lips around the head, giving a tentative suck as your tongue plays with the underside of it.

He grunts, cocking his head to the side. And then he starts pulling on the belt – just a little, not enough to hurt, but enough to make it so it’s a tad harder to breathe. He’s usually pretty safe in his sex practices, but you feel like this could be dangerous.

You only then understand what he really meant by punishing you, and it makes your pussy drip on your thighs.

You moan around his dick, before slowly pushing forward until he hits the back of your throat, and your eyes water. You swallow around him, keeping the gag reflex at bay as he circles his hips. You pull away from his cock to move to his balls instead, still not using your hands as you lick at the spot between them, licking up his dick at the same time.

“Hands on me, baby,” he commands.

As per usual, you obey. One of your hands moves to fondle his balls, and the other wraps around the base of his cock so you can jerk him off as you suck. And then you get to work, eyes shutting as you concentrate on pulling grunts out of him.

He doesn’t let you do it for a long time. He’s quick to pull on the belt more – it’s a leash more than a belt, is it? – which makes you pull away, lips parted as you struggle to suck in some air.

“Eyes on me,” he tells you. “I want to see you cry as you choke on my dick.”

When he guides his cock back towards your mouth, you keep your eyes on him, ever so a good girl, and you let him thrust in your mouth. The first two times he does it, your gag reflex doesn’t show up, but the third time you gag, spit rolling on your chin as he pulls away. A line of drool connects his tip to your mouth, and it breaks as he once again taps his cock on your cheek. Tears water your eyes, and he watches you blink them away, slightly shaking his head in disapproval.

You know that was your last chance when he pushes his dick in your mouth again, establishing a steady yet hard rhythm that has your gaze blurring. You moan against him, right as he grunts, whispering filthy curses entwined with mentions of your name. And when he starts going faster, the sounds of you choking get louder. It’s indecent, pornographic, and tears roll on your cheeks as he throws his head back, grunting loudly.

“Fuck, baby.”

He stops at the back of your throat, looking down at you. He wipes some tears on your cheeks as you swallow around him. His dick twitches inside your mouth, but you know he’s not about to come.

Soon, perhaps, but not just yet.

“You’re okay?” he asks, because even though he’s pretty rough, he always does care about his partner too. 

He lets you pull away to catch your breath, releasing his tight hold on the belt too. You breathe raggedly, throat feeling raw from the intrusion.

“Yes,” you breathe out. 

“Good.” He licks his lips, offering you a dangerous chuckle. “You’re going to let me come down your throat?”

You nod, and he taps the tip of his dick against your sealed lips. You don’t remember shutting your mouth, so you open it wide again for him. He pushes forward, slowly, until all of it is embedded in your mouth, head pushing against the back of your throat. He remains unmoving long enough for you to gag, and then he pushes forward even more before pulling back.

When he starts fucking your mouth again, you know he’s chasing his high. So you fondle his balls, moan around his dick, try not to choke whenever he hits the back of your throat. Evidently, you still do sometimes, and tears roll down your cheeks by the time he growls, “Open your throat up for me, baby”.

You moan one last time, as he pushes all the way to the back of your mouth, grunting loudly as hot spurts of his cum fills your throat. As his dick twitches, he pulls out a little, and you know better than to swallow right away. So you patiently wait as he finishes, before fully pulling away. 

He grabs your jaw, and forces you to tilt your head back. “Open up.” You do, and he spits on top of his cum before saying, “Swallow”. You do that too, and the next time you open your mouth, it’s fully empty. Only then does he let go of your jaw, and he also quickly takes his belt off from around your neck, letting it drop to the floor.

It falls with a loud thump, and you breathe in deeply for the first time in a while. Your throat aches, and you massage your neck where the buckle left an indent in your skin. Concern grows on his features as you chuckle awkwardly, getting up from the floor.

Your knees are already hurting, and you know you’ll have bruises by the time you wake up tomorrow.

“Is your neck okay?” he asks.

You drop your hand, and his fingers ghost over the spot. “Yeah,” you reassure him. “It’ll be okay.”

“Good.” He smirks, and then he captures your lips in another heated kiss. One of his hands moves between your thighs, and he feels your wetness, groaning in satisfaction. “You’re dripping for me,” he says as he pulls away from the kiss, resting his forehead against yours.

“I am.”

He licks at your mouth, before saying, “Too bad you won’t be getting some tonight, mmh?”

And he moves his hand away from your core to settle it on your waist instead.

“What?” you let out.

At this, he laughs, and it’s a little mean. “You think I’ll make you come when you’ve ghosted me for a few months?” He pauses, letting his words sink in. “Nah, you’re going to have to work for it, baby.”

You want to curse him, but somehow it just turns you on further. “When can I see you again then?”

He ponders for a time, pulling away so he can meet your gaze. “What about next weekend?”

You’re disappointed, but you try not to let it show. “Any chance you’d be available during the week?”

“Maybe,” he says, cocking his head to the side. “Will you be nice and not touch yourself until then?”

You bite at your bottom lip, nodding once. 

“Then yes, we can hang out this week,” he concludes. He frees your lip from your teeth with his thumb, before gently tapping your cheek. “But I’ve got to go now.”

It surprises you. Back when you were friends with benefits, you always stayed the night at his place, so you expected him to stay tonight. But he immediately steps away from you, putting his clothes back on quickly as you just stand there, naked and awkward.

“You’re leaving?”

He glances at you as he’s putting his belt back on. “Yeah, won’t have you think I’m into you like that again.”

It hurts just a tad little bit, but at the same time you agree with him. Not sleeping over is a good way to avoid feelings, so you decide to throw on a pair of sweatpants and a sweater so you can walk him to the front door.

Hoseok kisses your forehead once when you get there, before grabbing his coat. You watch as he slides his arms in it, draping it on his shoulders before he bends down to put his shoes on too. When he straightens, he offers you a hug and you gladly embrace him as he wishes you good night.

You’re somehow confused as you shut the door behind him, and you stay there for a few seconds, almost expecting him to come back. He doesn’t, and you’re left heading to the bathroom to brush your teeth, only so you can get rid of the taste of him, and then you head to your bedroom.

And as you lie awake in bed, the only thing you can hope is that Jungkook didn’t hear you after all. You’re ashamed of what you did, but you’re far too tired to think about it deeply. All you can do is stare at the wall in front of you, hoping that sleep will take you.

It doesn’t, not until the early hours of the morning, when the sun is starting to kiss the horizon, turning the sky to liquid gold.

Teaser | Chapter 1.5 | Next

☆☆☆☆☆

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[lynnlyrae]

Well, this new chapter sure has been… eventful. Idk where exactly all liquified folks go, but I’ve decided to let them just hang out in some other realm and be pals. When Ame no Gozen liquifies another one, I’ll add them to this group. New drinking game unlocked~

[bonus-links]

RUINS, pt. 16

first | <&lt;prev | next>>

[creative-writings]

Twenty-Three

Integra often thought about death. It was hard not to when one was surrounded by it, striving toward it every day. Today, those thoughts were on those soon to die in Délit. Perhaps, some of those who were likely already dead.

Délit was a large, intoxicated part of Laimira’s precious wine industry. Though most days it wasn’t a jovial intoxication. No Dionysian celebration. It was the daily slog of determined alcoholism. Getting drunk on wine, and the 2nd day re-invigoration of the feeling with the first glass of water. People drinking themselves into quiet, pitiful unconsciousness in the damp streets to be ignored by others. Passed by. Unbothered. It was safe to assume rifling through their pockets wouldn’t bring about any worthwhile yield anyway.

Integra skirted around a bit of refuse on the street, then over the legs of a man that was laying slumped into a halfway sitting position against a wall, mumbling to himself. The beginning drizzle was going to wash it away, into the gutter with the man’s remaining dignity. “I abhor coming into the city,” she muttered to herself as she continued on through the network of streets toward the Finean temple.

It was no wonder this city was considered by one of them to be a fertile hunting ground. There were always people milling about, not one of them paying any attention to their surroundings any more than they absolutely had to until they made it back to their own little neighborhoods. People spent their workdays marching, drunk and zombie-like, toward the next day. Even the more respectable citizens simply knew better than to wander out in the streets too much outside of festival days. No one would notice a few people going missing here or there because they were determined not to.

The general filth and depressing energy for the majority of the year was most of the reason she practically refused to step foot onto the uneven streets of Délit. That, and she simply couldn’t stand people in general. But, she had to do something here, so she had to be on these streets, in the damp, getting gods-only-know-what on her boots, and going to the worst places in town. On purpose.

She had to keep her eye out for any sign that the creature she was here to hunt really was present. It could have been just a random serial killer, of course. Regular people were capable of much worse than one would generally assume. The missing people could just be alive, kept somewhere for some purpose or other, too.

The sad truth of this situation was that very few cared about what was happening to the missing people. It wasn’t them, so why should they? The police wouldn’t investigate such disappearances. They considered it a waste of resources. They wouldn’t get any extra pay for it, so why bother? The only sadness for the events they held was that the nobles to whom the missing people were in debt would not gain returns on their money.

The largest of these lenders was the duke: Leofric Farlight. He was a disgusting, gluttonous, lustful jackass. Most half-elven nobles kept their heads low, but he stuck his nose into everyone’s business and spread his findings with impish delight.

So, Integra was here, investigating in the dead of night since the police wouldn’t, and hoping that His Grace wouldn’t cause any problems just for the fun of it. If he began gossiping, she would have a harder time. It will make its way around the whole city somehow, and the possible vampire would hear of it. She tugged her hood up a bit more and plodded on through the drizzle.

The majority of them were being taken from in front of the temple, just a bridge away from Estrose: the red-light district. Somewhere in the pointed arches, or perhaps even in the steeple attempting to get out of the wind and rain, was an orc by the name of Hugo Arsenault.

—

Hugo was Integra’s right-hand man, her informant, eyes, ears, and – though Integra would never admit it- her closest confidant. His job was to watch for another ‘event’ tonight. Keep an eye on the movements of people in the square, reach out to the lady if he has noted anything suspicious. Easier said than done in Délit.

The man breathed out a sigh as he reached into the basket beside him for the flask he had brought and took a sip. If the lady wanted him out in this drafty belfry, he was going to at least sneak a few drinks of something to keep him warm. His steely gray eyes searched through the square. There were not many people about. He assumed it was because of the rain or the temperature outside. It was almost the wintry mid-year solstice, and people sought shelter in pubs and homes when they didn’t absolutely have to be out and about.

Hugo felt a small pang of jealousy as he desperately tried to keep from the wind. But a job was a job, and it couldn’t be avoided. He took a second to jot down a few notes.

He’d made it a habit to take constant notes whenever he had a chance. With how often he had to just know things, it had become a necessity. His family had not been in her service for so long because they didn’t live up to expectations.

The page in front of him read:

Missing Persons- Exclusively women – numbering in the twenties.

All young women, mostly human. Seemingly abducted at a rate of two per week.

No bodies found, though the rate of abduction remains steady. Spawn is unlikely, as suspicious deaths would have increased with the population.

Well, that wasn’t much to go on, but he’d manage. That was his job, after all. He almost laughed to himself as the thought crossed his mind. Yes, his job. It seemed his job was never quite complete, and even after all these years he could never quite tell what his duties were. It was always expanding. He reached beside him for the binoculars he’d brought up and took a look about. It was starting to rain, forcing the few stragglers to run for cover. Well, those that cared about getting wet. And then there was a coach. It was moving through the city quite quickly and if Hugo wasn’t looking, he might have missed it. The black body of the coach nearly blended in with the night as it raced through the streets. He could swear it was heading toward Estrose.

He reached into his pocket and fumbled with a little orb kept there, pulling it out. “Lady Erzeiros, where in the city are you?”

“I have just crossed into the Estrose district,” came the reply, slicing through his mind with all the cold precision of an ice pick. He needed desperately to look into more enjoyable forms of communication. There was something about the psychic methods that made his head pound. “Tell me you have something of note.”

“Nothing concrete as yet.”

“Then keep your attention on task, will you?” And then that small, stinging pain pulled itself out of his head. It was strange how, even though she was communicating psychically, Hugo felt that he could still hear the irritation that laced her short reply. He sucked his teeth- a feat for one with tusks- and looked back through the binoculars at the misty, dimly lit streets. In the beginning trickle of water in the gutters, he could swear he saw all of his free time for the next week wash away.

How lucky would he have to be to, for once, see the monster they were hunting on the first night? Just one time… Very; and unfortunately his luck was never quite so good. The coach took a sharp turn to the right toward Maîtrisaide, and the slim chance of a lead disappeared with it.

He set the binoculars to the side and leaned back against the wall behind him, reaching up to smooth some stray hairs away from his face and back toward his ponytail. “Fineas’ beak…” he huffed to himself. “In this weather, I would not be surprised if we saw no signs. It would take an absolute madman, or a desperate one, to be out and about at this time, and in this rain.” With the rate of the disappearances it seemed tonight or tomorrow were most likely. Though to be safe, he would be stuck here when not at the side of his Lady for the next week or until they found something.

When you want something done properly, do it yourself. Or, send Hugo Arsenault.

—

The maze of streets did not, despite their best efforts, turn Lady Erzeiros around. She’d walked these streets much more often than she would like to admit over the years. She’d walked past the houses and businesses that made the most direct bridge across the River Porter into a cramped and winding nightmare. Furthermore, she’d gone to a mass in the center Temple to Fineas, that elusive bastard, and patronized many of the merchants in the Westmarc district. As much as she liked to still think of herself as a citizen of Ofril, she knew Délit better than she could hope to remember any city in her homeland now. It made this city all the worse against her senses.

Currently, the offending tract of land was Estrose. Crossing into it over the bridge, she was bathed in a rosy glow from a nearby building’s lanterns, highlighting the sign hanging above the door. The Dragon’s Den. For a moment, she hesitated. It would be wise to go and ask about the disappearances here, correct? This was the brothel. All the young women that had gone missing were connected to this one. It was the most popular in town. Most of the cash flow from other brothels even directed itself through here.

She walked up to the door and paused, reaching for the handle. This type of place was the last she wanted to pay a visit to. Perhaps that was why she was able to focus with laser intensity on the small silver placard next to the door bearing a coat of arms. An excuse, perhaps, but she found it justifiable. It was Duke Farlight’s insignia. If she stepped foot in there, he would know. More importantly, he would know she was conducting inquiries rather than looking to conduct business within the walls of the pleasure-house.

She stepped back and brushed her hand over her coat pocket briefly, clicking her tongue as if to prove to herself that she was anything but relieved. Well, the night was still young. If she stayed in the area she would be able to find someone to tail and observe discreetly instead. Observation was so much better than questioning anyway. People lied with their lips, but actions always spoke a material truth that could be trusted. Before she could turn and go completely, however, a swift tap was delivered to her shoulder. She whirled around, coming face-to-face with a woman a few inches taller than she. She was young, probably in her early twenties, blonde, blue eyes, seemed human.

“I don’t mean to rush you but if you don’t mean to go inside yet, might I slip by you, madame?” she asked, a tentative smile stretching over her lips as her eyes flickered away from Integra’s face and to her hand as it rested on the hilt of her weapon. She looked back up to make eye contact and only slightly raised her brows. Her Southern Laimiran accent was thick, sounding as though there was a wad of cotton in the back of her mouth. Each muscle in her face moved in precise and exaggerated ways Integra hadn’t seen prior to occupying this gods-forsaken city. While unsettled by the dagger’s possible threat, she didn’t seem surprised or nearly so fazed as Integra would have liked, placing the girl firmly in the category of ‘belonging here’. The girl had more important matters to attend to and no moment to be halted by a stranger with a knife if she could help it.

Integra averted her gaze and lowered her hand to her side, taking a step aside and mumbling a quiet “excuse me,” as the woman stepped by and went inside. So much for being discreet.

[exilethegame]

Hello friends! Sorry for disappearing off the side of the earth for this month. Some news: I just wrapped up the fight scene in Chapter 1, and it is now possible to throw Jost out a window, and I just think that's neat.

Also, Chapter 1. Soon. Ish? Soonish. :)

It'll release on Patreon first (both tiers) for one week, for play-testing reasons. And then it'll be public! I'll make an official announcement post when it's good to go :P

Also, here are some very good, very important screenshots

[shizukais]

Ippo Makunouchi x Ricardo Martinez Paralells (Chapter 01 x Chapter 1407)

"How does it feel- to be strong?"

[amberluvsbugs]

Summer Sand

📰⛱️ Official illustration for Mob.

Speedpaint

Process is down below

[naomistares]

i drew a fake cover (and a fake crappy backcover) for my kinda real comic

[amaranth-devi1]

Hell i miss those carefree days where the role of loss was so slight and poetic. Barely noticeable, unlike today; fear of being betrayed is present even in the moments we are together.

@rottingveil / Amaranth, book: Aurora On The Obscure Path

[frog-cultist]

Bowstetter garbage