#Chen Turning red

[joongdunking]

Of course his broooo Dunk is here to support!

[bonniehooper]

Endless List of My Favorite Movies

Turning Red (2022)

[rynris]

Some more studies of Auntie Chen and Helen from Turning Red. I'm planning to put this project on the side, so I can tackle some smaller projects first. However, I'm feeling a lot more excited about this! I hope to have this done before the end of the year. One thing I need to work on is looser drawings. But also some more careful studies on proportion because the pixar style is very specific. I don't think I quite nailed it here so i'll need to do some more later. Plus perhaps some different outfits for these badass ladies.

Apologies for the heavy stuff last week. I'm in a lot better place now and feeling much more at peace after having made that little animatic.

[whatamigonnawatchtoday]

Turning Red

2022. Animated Fantasy Comedy

By Domee Shi

Voices: Rosalie Chiang, Sandra Oh, Ava Morse, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Hyein Park, Orion Lee, Wai Ching Ho, Tristan Allerick Chen, James Hong, Addie Chandler...

Country: United States

Language: English

[fluentmoviequoter]

Pull This Move

0.8k+ words of chaotic Tim Bradford fluff

A/N: Have you guys seen the "when he's copying your snaps so you pull this move" thing? I saw a drawing of it with the Batboys and then this happened.

“Tim never keeps his ringer on,” Lucy muses after your phone buzzes again. “Is that a cop-to-cop thing?”

“Yeah, some people have problems with it, others don’t mind,” you explain. “I usually have mine silenced, I just forgot.”

“Do you know why Tim is off today?”

“Just needed a break,” you explain. “Have to have to a balance in a job like this.”

“And Snapchat gives you that balance?” Lucy teases as your phone chimes with an incoming photo. 

“If it’s from who I think it is, maybe,” you answer cryptically. 

“Who do you think it is?!” she inquires loudly. 

“Hold that thought, we’ve got a reckless driver ahead.”

During your lunch break, you open the new Snapchat and roll your eyes. 

“So,” Lucy says as she sits beside you. “Who is it? New boyfriend? Potential boyfriend?”

“Let’s go with really good friend,” you reply. “Who doesn’t know how to use the app and just copies my snaps.”

“Cute!!”

You hum, then think of the snap you wish to get. So, you open the app and move the phone to one side to capture your flexed bicep. Lucy gasps as you lock the screen, and you furrow your brows at her. 

“What?” you ask. 

“It is a guy! Why else would you flex to have them copy it? Tell me everything!”

“New rule, when I’m substituting as your TO, you have to talk to me like Tim.”

Lucy sighs and raises her hands in surrender when your phone chimes again. Yet, after you unlock it, she snatches your phone out of your hand. 

“Lucy!” you yell as she stands. “No, stop- listen. I will blue page you, Chen!”

Lucy freezes. Half-standing with your arm extended over the table, you exhale. 

“Give it back and I’ll- I’ll let you see the picture. That’s it, and you have to learn to respect boundaries.”

“Will you tell Tim?” she asks, blocking your phone with her free hand. 

“Not if you listen.”

Lucy nods and passes your phone back with a quiet apology. You sit, and Lucy pulls her chair beside yours. You click the red square in the app and lift a brow appreciatively at the muscled arm on the screen. There is a familiar gray shirt stretched tightly around the flexed bicep, and you hold the screen for several seconds to prolong your enjoyment of the picture. 

“There,” you say, shifting your hips to slide your phone into your pocket. “Happy, Chen?”

Lucy doesn’t answer, and you turn toward her. Her jaw drops as she stares at you. 

“What?”

“Was that Tim?” she asks. 

“Why would you think that?” you say rather than answering. 

“He wears a lot of gray shirts, and you… I don’t know how to say this without getting in trouble again.”

You cross your arms below your powered-off body cam and lean back in your seat. “Speak freely, Lucy.”

“Everyone knows you have a crush on him,” she blurts out. 

“So, a gray shirt and a workplace crush lead you to believe that Tim - officer stoic and serious - would send me a Snapchat?” you challenge. 

“Well when you put it like that,” Lucy mumbles, “it sounds ridiculous.”

“I’ll give you something if you give me something,” you offer. “I need some dirt on Lopez. Help me get that, and I’ll tell you something.”

“Done,” Lucy agrees. Then, she asks, “Wait, why? What’d she do?”

“No questions. Agree or don’t,” you reply. Lucy nods, and you say, “I’m going on a date with the guy in the picture tonight. We’ve been dating for a while.”

“Will you tell me more later? If things work out and I get something on Angela?”

You stand to return to the shop and say, “We’ll see.”

Walking into your house after your shift ends, you sigh. 

“Did you actually help my boot today or just send Snapchats?” someone asks from the kitchen.

Laughing, you enter the room and lean your forehead between your boyfriend’s shoulder blades. 

“Lucy saw the picture,” you say. “It was a really good picture, though.”

“How?” he asks, holding your arm as he turns toward you. 

“She wouldn’t leave me alone. I didn’t tell her much, and she’s helping with our Angela problem.”

“Your Angela problem,” Tim corrects. 

“Which will become our Angela problem when she finds out that my fiancé and my least favorite sergeant are the same man,” you point out. 

“Shouldn’t have told her you were engaged.”

“I didn’t!” 

Tim chuckles, so you sigh and fall against his chest. 

“It’ll be fine,” he assures you. 

“As long as you keep showing those Bradford biceps,” you grumble against his chest. 

“Hey,” Tim begins carefully. 

You pull back and narrow your eyes at him. 

“If Angela already has an idea, and Wade knows… maybe we should ask them to help,” he suggests. 

“You want Wade and Angela to be our witnesses?” you clarify. After a moment, you concede, “It could work. She’d keep it a secret if we let her come to the wedding.”

“Not what most people think about when they’re wedding planning.”

You smile and kiss Tim, thankful that your relationship is anything but average. Most people don’t have Tim Bradford going down the aisle with them, you think.

[sapphic-smau]

‧˚₊ ⊹ ‧˚₊꒷꒦︶︶︶︶︶꒦꒷‧₊˚⊹ ‧˚₊ ꒷꒦︶︶︶︶︶︶꒷꒦‧₊˚⊹ ‧˚₊

|Pairings: Lucy Chen x Fem!reader; Tim Bradford x Lucy Chen x Fem!Reader platonic friendship. | Rating: M | TW: Pregnancy, police work, violence, cussing, drinking, implied smut. | Word Count:

an: here is the first of many SMAU’s, I hope you guys like it. Before Requesting, Please read my guidelines. REQUEST ARE OPEN.

✧ taglist ✧ Masterlist ✧ submission guidelines✧

| part 1 | part 2 |

18+ MINORS DNI

‧˚₊ ⊹ ‧˚₊꒷꒦︶︶︶︶︶︶꒦꒷‧₊˚⊹ ‧˚₊ ꒷꒦︶︶︶︶︶꒷꒦‧₊˚⊹ ‧˚₊

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I woke up to the sound of the phone ringing, my wife’s legs were tangled with mine and since there was no light coming through the window I knew it had to be my phone. “turn your phone off before it wakes up El, it took me forever to get her down last night” Lucy groaned before turning away from me. I grabbed the phone and answered “This is Chen” the line was silent before I heard someone clear their throat, “Wait did I call the wrong Officer? Is this K9 Chen?” I groaned, “yep this is she, what can I do for you.” “We need a K-9 unit on stand by and Sgt. Grey said to call you.” I sat up and prepared to start my day at 1:30am. “Give me 15 minutes and I’ll head in.” I hung up the phone and leaned over kissing Lucy on the head. Thankfully when we bought the house our closest is in our bathroom which means we don’t wake each other up on days like this.

I threw on my uniform, my vest, and my rig belt, opened the safe and grabbed my service weapon. When I was fixing my hair the door opened and a very sleepy Lucy was staring at me, “Did we actually think being parents and both being on patrol would be easy? Plus you being on call 24/7. Tell Grey to hire another K-9.” I chuckled lightly, “Right, because Grey listens to me. On the other hand, we do have a really cute kid, so sleepless nights are worth it.” When Lucy finished using the bathroom she walked over to me and wrapped her arms around my neck, I could smell the scent of her shampoo. “I have to go my love.” I smiled and gave her a quick kiss. She groaned loudly and went back to bed.

I walked quietly into my daughter’s room and kissed her on the forehead. I heard my K-9 Rocky standing up in his kennel, I bent down and opened the door letting him out. I clipped on his vest and his collar, “let’s go buddy.” I grabbed my backpack and my water bottle, and walked out the door to head to the detail.

———————————————————————————-

I met Lucy, Juarez, Lopez, Harper, Nolan and Bradford at our local diner near the station. When I parked I saw my wife and best friend talking outside near the entrance, walking up I heard Lucy say “I just think we should have one more while El is still young enough to be able to play with the new baby!” Juarez chuckled “getting her to sign off on that will be tough, after your pregnancy with El and the delivery scare I don’t know if she will ever recover from that.” I cleared my throat once I was close enough, and kissed Lucy on the cheek. “Let’s go eat.”

I zoned out at the table as there were 4 different conversations happening. Is she serious about wanting another baby…? "Babe, hello, earth to my wife.." I snapped out of my thoughts and looked at Lucy's worried face, "Hm?" I looked around the table at our friends staring at me, "What's wrong?" Juarez raised her eyebrow. I smiled "Sorry, i was thinking about how tired I am right now." Bradford laughed "Fuck off Bradford." I flipped him off. Lucy rested her hand on my upper thigh, "Tim be nice, also can you take El this weekend? I would like to have my wife back after all of these extra hours." Tim looked at Lucy and I smirking, "holy shit, Chen actually talked you into having another baby didn't she?" I could tell my face was red, I looked over at Lucy and smiled, "we are still talking about it."

Angela, Celina, Nyla, and Tim were all talking about the idea of us having another baby when a shots fired call came over our radios. I took out a hundred-dollar bill and tossed it on the table, as all five of us took off running out of the door. I stopped dead in my tracks when a scream came over the radio, "Officer Down."

Fuck.

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Taglist:

[endzithefangirl]

"I'm gong to put 'being a WAG' on my CV" part 2

Authors note: The part 2 of this to celebrate Maxie winning the Brazil GP! Sorry it took so long, your girl is a STEM student, life got busy. Also now you know the inspo for the TechCEO!Reader.....

Summary: You come with Max to the Brazil GP to see many things: a win, an engineer.... and to have a long chat about Alexa....

Warnings: English isn't my first language, no use of Y/N, female reader, famous reader, swearing, also slight jabs at Max's dad and a few others...

Word count: 2.9k

It was the first race you had come to watch in a while. You desperately wanted to attend the one in Austin, but you got stuck in New York for work. But here you are, in Brazil, being driven to the paddock at 6:30 am for a delayed qualifying session that was probably going to be in the rain. You were worried about many things: the fans, your looks, the fact that Max's dad was going to be there, and the possibility that Max's ex-girlfriend might also be there, although Max reassured you that they were on friendly enough terms where it wouldn't be a problem.

Also, Max winning. He hasn't won since, like, April. He's been doing better recently, but he still hasn't won. And Norris was getting closer and closer to that number one spot. It was an incredibly chaotic morning. In that pre-qualifying session, Max was doing everything to avoid a repeat of the weekend before. On top of that, he was trying to end a months-long winless streak.

Great.

"Well, at least I brushed my hair today..." you mumble, looking at yourself in the phone camera. You still didn't know how to dress like a WAG. You were wearing jeans, the Red Bull jacket Max got you a while ago, some boots for the rain, and your hair down and brushed, which for you is a big thing. You also put on concealer. Miracle.

You were incredibly sexy to Max, though. Unfortunately, you both knew his father and the fashion police on social media might disagree. He didn’t mind, though. He actually preferred you didn’t wear a high-fashion, tight dress. It would have just been a distraction, not to mention, he wouldn’t see you in anything but a hoodie and a pair of sweatpants in the flat anyway.

"Did you know," you say, trying to make conversation to distract from the anxiety, "that your engineer Michael and I went to college together?"

"Really?" he asks, genuinely surprised. If he was honest, he had no idea what the engineers were like outside of their job. The rain was coming down harder, hitting like stones against the windshield.

"Yeah. So, if he got into MIT, he must be good."

Max chuckles, nodding as he looks at the road in front of him for a bit. His engineer was good, but then again, Red Bull didn’t hire anyone but the best and the brightest from the top of the class. He needed people who could handle the race and perform well under pressure. Suddenly, Max turns to you.

"Remind me again, who graduated top of the class at MIT?"

"Allen Chen..." you say, confused.

He laughs loudly before turning back to the road, his eyes fixed ahead once more. He was impressed that you didn’t even have to think for a second before listing them. That was very much like you.

"God, you’re a nerd..." he mutters affectionately with a smile.

"Says you," you laugh. "It's really raining, huh?"

Seeing your reaction to his little joke made him feel all warm inside. Knowing your sense of humor, you had absolutely no idea what you were doing to him. It was also making Max forget about the race, but at this point, he knew it was a rain delay anyway. "Yeah. Feels like we're in a carwash."

"Well, as a big enjoyer of the laws of physics, the best advice I can give you is to go slow on the turns but speed up when going uphill... There is an uphill, right?"

Max actually paused and turned back to you with a grin. It’s funny how you can switch him from hot to cold so swiftly. He still wasn’t convinced you weren’t doing it on purpose. But he couldn’t help but be amused and also impressed. "There are two hill sections, yeah. You sure you never thought of becoming a race engineer instead of becoming a nerdy billionaire?"

"I was gonna be one, but I had to drop out of college, you know, to run the company."

"You had to?" he said with an amused smirk. Max was well aware of the fact that you could buy out the entire campus if you wanted to. But he’d be lying if he said your workaholic tendencies didn’t slightly concern him.

"I tried, but it was really hard. And also, I had to move to New York—"

"Babe, you can run your business in every country imaginable and you’re telling me attending one university was too much?" Max knew he was being a smartass about it. This was more than just the workaholic in you, though. You were also a very stubborn creature, to say the least.

"Okay, I just went to college to get the visa, there, I said it. You happy?"

He chuckles, the car coming to a halt as you arrive at the paddock. The rain is hitting the sides of the car loudly. Max turns to you with a playful smirk. "See, was that so hard? But I’m happy if you’re happy, babe."

You walk out, people with umbrellas waiting for you. There were people taking your pictures as you walk into the Red Bull garage. You introduce yourself to everyone new, and a few of the engineers want pictures with you.

"Hey, we went to MIT together," you say to Michael.

"You remember?" he says, shocked.

"Of course I do," you say before Max pulls you to walk back to the driver’s area.

Max had been watching you talk to the engineer and the others with a faint smile on his face. You had been able to charm all of them within 30 seconds. It wasn’t particularly surprising, but he was still amused. He didn’t think many people realized just how captivating you were.

When you’re done talking to Michael, Max takes you to the Red Bull garage.

"That was easy. How did you make friends with my mechanics so fast?" he asks with a small chuckle.

"You might be a legend to regular people, but I'm a legend to nerds."

"Do I want to know how that happened?" he asks, amused. He knew you had always been incredibly smart and talented, but he had no idea you actually had a bit of a nerd fandom attached to you.

"I’m running a billion-dollar tech company," you say, shrugging.

He looks at you for a moment, his eyes wide. He always somehow keeps forgetting that you’re a goddamn genius. Because whenever he looks at you, he can only think how goddamn beautiful you are.

And yet you say stuff like that as if it’s normal.

You kiss his cheek. "I'll leave you to go ride fast. I'm gonna see if Michael will let me sit with them during quali." Max smirks as you say it before you kiss his cheek. He’d always found your ability to go from incredibly sexy to super nerdy to be insanely attractive. It was one of the things that made him fall in love with you in the first place.

"Sure thing, nerd. Have fun." Max jokes before giving you a kiss on the forehead.

You stayed with the engineers during quali, both because it was super interesting and also to avoid Max's dad in the front of the garage.

And then the rain fucked it all up.

All up.

Max was out of Q2.

He was 17th.

You all saw him and his dad raging in the front of the garage.

The whole quali was a mess, with so many crashes, slips, and generally poor driving in the heavy rain and fog.

As Max got out of the car, soaked and drenched from the rain, he slams the door shut in sheer anger. This whole quali was a shitshow from start to finish. So many poor decisions, so much poor driving. He wasn’t even the worst offender. And he was still only P17. In the garage, he could still hear his dad going on a rage, but he just couldn’t. Max was too annoyed and frustrated to listen.

"Well, that was shit," you say, turning around to Max from where you were sitting.

He didn’t even notice you were nearby until he heard your voice. He turned around to look at you, his hair and shirt completely soaked from rain and sweat. But he couldn’t help but smile at your comment.

“That’s putting it lightly…”

"They definitely fucked you all up with that delayed yellow flag," you say, taking off the headphones and walking over to him slowly. "Save my seat for the race, guys."

He’s about to open his mouth to answer when he finally notices the headphones around your neck and realizes you had actually been in the garage the whole time. Despite how bad the day had been so far, he’s still very impressed that you’re here in the garage and not in some skybox with champagne in your glass. As you come closer, Max can’t help but wrap his arms around your waist and pull you close, not caring how soaked he is.

You hug him back. "It's fine. At least you didn't crash like some of them. Take a breather and then you'll do great at the race later." You take a Snickers out of your pocket. "Calm down now. You're not yourself when you're hungry. Here, eat a Snickers."

He raises an eyebrow as he sees you take out a Snickers from your pocket. It wasn’t the most normal thing to have in a pocket, but somehow it wasn’t surprising at all. It was definitely very you. He also couldn’t help but think that you were probably the type of person to carry emergency snacks around in case anyone was hungry.

“How many of those do you have on you?”

"A few. They're for you if you want them. You know I'm a Mars person," you say, showing him the inner pocket of the Red Bull jacket he got you.

He smirked slightly. The fact that you were so casually admitting to carrying around a little bag of Snickers for him was hilarious. But knowing how much you care and how much you want to make sure he’s doing okay, it wasn’t actually that surprising at the same time.

“Of course you are… Can I have another one?”

He unwraps the second one and pops it into his mouth, chewing on it slowly as he looks at you. Max takes a seat in the chair behind him, his legs spread wide as he leans back, exhausted.

“…come here…” he says, pulling you to sit on his lap. You blink as you realize what he wanted.

He looks at you with a pleading look in his eyes. He usually wouldn’t ask for something like this because he knows you weren’t the type for public displays of affection in the slightest. But for some reason, he was feeling particularly needy, and he knew you would most likely not refuse if he looked at you this way.

He’s surprised at how easy it was to convince you, but it probably has to do with how terrible this weekend has been and how miserable he looks. Or maybe you’re just extra nice today. Who knows…

As you sit on his lap, the other engineers laugh.

"That's right. I know how to code and I get laid," you say, making them all laugh. "You should go have lunch and then be ready for the race."

He hums in agreement. He knew you were right, but he was still very reluctant to let go of you now that he’d finally gotten you to sit with him. He’s well aware that the others are probably still watching you.

“One kiss, please?”

You roll your eyes and give him a quick kiss. You ruffle his helmet hair as you stand up. "Go."

“See you after the race?”

You nod and wink. Max’s heart skips a beat as you wink at him, and he gives you a small smirk in response. There was something insanely attractive about your confidence and how well you handled yourself in this environment.

Before the race, you came to the front of the garage to wish Max good luck. You saw him talking to his dad in Dutch. "Hey, just wanted to say good luck," you say from the door.

His dad noticed you first as you came in from behind Max. Both Max and his dad turn to look at you, Max’s features immediately softening as he sees you. He had to hold himself back from just immediately coming up and giving you a hug… his dad was standing literally next to him… He takes a deep breath, his voice still sounding a bit tense and nervous as he looks at you with a forced smile. “Thanks, babe… Thanks for coming…”

"I'll be with the engineers. Just be calm; it's gonna be a good race regardless."

Jos, Max's dad, nods at you politely. You smile at them both and then leave.

Max watches you leave, his smile turning much more genuine right after. He really did get lucky, being able to be with such an amazing person. Even his dad seemed to acknowledge it with a respectful nod in your direction.

Max looks at his dad, taking a breath as he can somehow feel a lecture coming.

".....Ik denk dat als je het uit moet maken met de dochter van een drievoudig wereldkampioen... Je hebt haar in ieder geval vervangen door iemand die heel rijk is...." his dad said.

Max looks at Jos, his face already turning into a frown as he starts his little speech. He already had his suspicions as to where this is going, but he knew he won’t be able to stop him anyway, so he just listens.

"...... Ze is een beetje raar. Maar... Niet de slechtste die je hebt uitgekozen..... Denk je dat zij mij kan helpen met het installeren van het volledige camera-AI-systeem op mijn nieuwe plek?"

The question takes him off guard a bit. He didn’t expect his dad to actually say something like that at all. He looks at him for a moment, his expression conflicted. On one hand, he didn’t like the idea that his dad wants to ask you something like this. On the other hand, he’s well aware that you would excel at something like that… “I wouldn’t be surprised…”

Max won the race. After a red flag and on-and-off rain, Max was the winner of the Brazil GP after a 10-race no-win streak. You run to the barrier with Christian, the Red Bull team principal, cheering with the team as Max comes into the garage. Max parks the car in the garage, exhausted by the long and hard race, but elated by the victory. He gets out of the car, helmet in hand, as he walks up to the rest of the Red Bull team, adrenaline still running through his veins. He looks around at everyone, giving them all some high-fives and handshakes as he walks through the garage. But he’s most excited to see you, standing by the side, cheering together with Christian.

Max immediately makes his way towards you and Christian. He gives the team principal a high-five, but his main focus is on you, of course. He looks at you with a tired but joyful smile as he finally comes up to you.

“Hey there…”

"Whoooo! That was one hell of a race!

He wraps his arms around your waist, hugging you tightly, not even caring that he got you all drenched with rain and sweat. “That it was…” He gives you a quick kiss before going to do the post-match interview and then into the cooldown room.

As he stood on the podium, you cheered loudly from the bottom.

"Hey there champ," you say, coming through the door of the trailer a bit later. "We were thinking of dinner? And by we I mean your dad and I.... He has an Alexa?" you say, confused.

Max looks up from his phone, his face brightening almost instantly as he saw you in the doorway. His eyebrows raise in surprise at the mention of his father. Though he supposed it wasn’t really a surprise, the two of them were supposed to go out to dinner together after all.

“An Alexa?” Max asks, a look of bewilderment on his face.

"He asked me if I could set him up an AI house helper, and I was like, 'an Alexa?'"

Max nods and shakes his head, amused, a little chuckle leaving his lips at the thought of his father coming up to you with those kinds of requests.

“You’re gonna have to be careful, he’ll be asking you to install a whole AI security system in his house next…”

"....he does know my corporation is a partial owner of Ring cameras, right?"

“Maybe we should keep that little fun fact secret from him for now…”

You hug him tightly, more intimately as he stands up. He hugs you back, his arms sneaking around your waist to hold you tight against his body.

“Could you do me a favor?”

"What do you need? An Alexa?"

[bon2bonn]

Orign of Orion The Great

Max Verstappen X female!driver!reader

Words count : 900

* I miss writing WYS ☹️.

Back to 🏁 the Grid 🏎️

Our driver's birthday became an anticipated code red situation , so it was Max's life mission to make it the best as it could ever be , and that includes a lot of discreet planning, secret gifts shopping and most importantly find the best gift for her . She wasn't the picky or demanding type, No , she was worse than that , She was indifferent about her birthday to begin with , not to be mistaken for forgetful but indifferent to a fault , shrugging at the reminder and moving on with her day like it's nothing.

Max took it upon himself to make every birthday memorable in it's own way, not bothering with the big celebration and throwing parties, he same as her preferred the simple day/night in , making dinner or going out on an adventure Just the two of them, which turned into a tradition of a lifetime that they carried on doing for the other.

And this time it wasn't any different, the day turned into a glorious adventure which led them to a pet store, upon her insisting after seeing the window display of the store and he could only open the door for her as she dragged him in after .

Smiling as she made a Beeline for the back where the worker led them to see the little fellows up for adoption, and the quiet scream she let out once she saw the rows of chambers in each side, along with the shove she gave him in favour to make him move out the way to get to the closest baby she could get her hands on made him know he's in the right place.

She claimed she was in heaven, surrounded by a numerous number of kittens, two of them were napping on her lap while another was in her arms on the verge of sleeping, she pout and gave her best puppy eyes to Max who was already holding one in his hands and asked " can't we take them all ? " He looked like he was actually considering the idea but shook his head " you know we can't do that , we can't look after them all through the season, and we can't bring them everywhere we travel" she contemplated for a moment then declared " then I'll retire" he squint at her , not knowing if she was joking or if she was dead serious. You'll never know for sure with her , then he bargained " alright, for now you get to take one . But we'll see what happens in few years " she turned the option in her head for a second but was interrupted by a loud scream from another room followed by a cry of " he's out!! " Then a panicked call of " oh God!! Bethany get away !!!!! No ! Go back ! " Then a traumatized cry followed by running feet heading their way .

They were greeted with two disheveled employees who were running for their life , passing them in a haste before disappearing down the door behind them , and as the door swung after them , a small ball of furr came running through it , letting a screeching meow that made the other kittens surrounding our driver screw away in alarm , then stood in a wide stan as if ready to bounce on her if needed , but kept his distance as he started her down, or tried to, seeing how small he was at the time.

She looked in wonder at the small ball with the great attitude and was bemused at his antics, making her way bit by bit towards him and extended her hand to him , laughing at the hiss he made towards her extended hand , which he ignored and went to attack her shoe instead, biting and scratching with all his might , but it only resulted in small almost nonexistent scratches and a laugh out of her as she gently ran her hands between his ears and down his back , then under his chen when looked up at her as she cooed softly " oh hi there little guy " earning a ' meow ' in return making her humm as she scratched behind his ears emitting a purr of content before he nudged his head against her hand in approval. " Oh ! , you little cutie " she then held him up and asked " aren't you a precious little thing !? " Earning a "meow!" In reply making her giggle with glee " yes you are ! " She held him higher and declared "you and I will take over the world and then we'll burn it down! " He let out a loud 'meow!' in affirmation and squint his eyes happily.

Max stood on the side along with one of the employees both watching in silence then Max nod to himself " yeah , we're taking him " the woman looked at him in bewilderment, shaking her head " are you serious!? , no ! . It's not safe! I can't do that" he gave her a side eye and asked " you want to tell them that ? " Then nod at the two who were busy with their world domination scheme making her gulp before making her way to collect the required papers for the process.

[lizhly-writes]

based off this post. and this line, because i am going insane:

it’s okay, an ding disciples are allowed to unlock the top rights when they grow up, they take after their dad!

introducing: hallmaster jiang and disciple wu!

The peak lords of Cang Qiong were not meant to be Shang-shixiong's personal harem, but that seemed to be what was happening anyway. This was not something that Jiang Yunyan usually minded -- he normally found it incredibly amusing -- but. But.

"Disciple Wu," Jiang Yunyan said. "That is not how you are supposed to solve your problems."

"But it worked, though," muttered the little disciple that he had pulled aside after hearing about said disciple's escapades.

Wu Youxuan had been an entirely normal An Ding disciple, if one with the unfortunate tendency of getting roped into fights against Bai Zhan disciples. While he came out of these fights without too much damage, it was still disruptive to his regular tasks and duties. It was becoming a problem.

A problem that Wu Youxuan had apparently gotten advice about from the An Ding Peak Lord.

"You seduced five Bai Zhan disciples," Jiang Yunyan said.

"It's an overstatement to call it seduction," Wu Youxuan said. "This disciple simply... said a few words."

'Said a few words'. If he was following the direction of Shang-shixiong, Jiang Yunyan could very well imagine what kind of words. "Is that so?"

"Well --" Wu Youxuan began, and then his head abruptly snapped to the side, the movement not unlike that of a cat suddenly catching sight of a flock of birds.

Jiang Yunyan followed his line of sight to see that this was almost exactly what had happened. There was a pack of Bai Zhan disciples who had been passing by, all of which had frozen under Wu Youxuan's gaze, which had shifted from 'sullen boy getting reprimanded' to 'boy with enough arrogance to drown the world'. The way he tilted his head, the way he smirked -- it was all... strangely familiar.

When Jiang Yunyan recognized it, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry. That was the exact bearing Shang-shixiong had worn when Jiang Yunyan had almost walked in on him seducing Liu Qingge.

Shang-shixiong was so annoying. Why was he like this? Furthermore, if he had to be like this, did he have to set this kind of example for the disciples?

"Hi," Wu Youxuan drawled, and fluttered his fingers almost teasingly at the Bai Zhan disciples, who were all turning various shades of red and starting to scatter. Most of them, anyway. There was one entirely unaffected disciple who made a rude hand gesture at Wu Youxuan before almost pointedly turning his back on him.

Wu Youxuan's smirk dropped.

"Do you have a particular disagreement with that disciple?" Jiang Yunyan said.

"No, that's just Chen-shidi," Wu Youxuan said. "I think he's mad at me. He won't talk to me anymore. Which is fine. I don't need him to talk to me. He's an asshole, anyway. Who needs him? Jerk."

None of these words seemed to stop him from staring longingly after that Chen-shidi as the other boy stomped off.

Was it that Wu Youxuan seduced all Bai Zhan disciples except for the one he was actually interested in?

"Did Lord Shang's advice not work on Disciple Chen?" Jiang Yunyan said, vaguely amused.

"I didn't try it on Chen-shidi," Wu Youxuan said, in the voice of a boy desperately trying not to sound miserable at the fact that his crush was ignoring him.

"You specifically didn't seduce Disciple Chen?"

"It's not seduction," Wu Youxuan said immediately and then, a little more hesitantly, "Jiang-laoshi thinks I should try it on Chen-shidi...?"

That was not what Jiang-laoshi had said at all.

"If I seduced him -- not that it's seduction -- he can't ignore me anymore," Wu Youxuan said, warming up to the idea. "He'd have to talk to me again." A pause. "Not that I care about that.

Fucking teenagers.

"Yes, you obviously doesn't care at all about that Disciple Chen," Jiang Yunyan said dryly.

"Right," Wu Youxuan said, sarcasm flying over his head in the face of his newfound determination to seduce his crush. "May I be excused, Jiang-laoshi?"

Shang-shixiong was such a bad example.

Jiang Yunyan contemplated what he could say. Have you considered your crush is mad because you're seducing other people? You shouldn't use seduction to solve all your problems. An Ding is getting such a strange reputation nowadays. Stop listening to Shang-shixiong, he's a terrible role model.

In the end, all he said was, "You're dismissed."

Wu Youxuan nodded sharply, and spun on his heel, settling into the graceful stalk of a predator after prey.

That Disciple Chen was in for an interesting time.

[witchthewriter]

𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲/𝐰𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐊𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐲

⤷ female, ambiguous race, and any size reader. Requests are open, thank you for reading!

ᴹᵃˢᵗᵉʳˡᶤˢᵗ | ᴹᵃˢᵗᵉʳˡᶤˢᵗ ᴵᴵ

ISFJ

Gryffindor

Neutral Good

Cancer Sun, Virgo Moon, Aquarius Rising

𝑺𝑭𝑾🌿

・To say your life had turned on its head would be an understatement.

・It had taken you a while to come out of your shell, seeing as though it was only you who had been ... transported into this purgatory

・But that didn't mean you were alone. Oh no. Kenny made sure of that. As well as his mother, Tien-Chen (who treated you with so much love and respect)

・You had moved in with the Liu's but found a frenemy in the ever so arrogant Jade.

"Oh god what is this? Bring home a stray day?"

"Jade enough!" Kenny grumbled, lugging your things into the one spare room.

"Let's make this clear." Jade now stood infront of you, his hands at his hips and all you could do was try not to laugh. "I do NOT share."

And then he stormed off.

・Kenny was a little embarrassed. But you only giggled as Jade huffed out of the house.

・"So Kenny, what do you do around here?"

・The question was obvious but the deputy didn't know how much he should share with the newest resident.

"Umm, how about you spend the day with me?"

"I would love to!"

・They day turned out to be much more hectic than Kenny had internally planned.

・It started off normally: to the Diner where his mother had food prepared for the town.

・Kenny sat you down and got your food for you, as an apology for how Jade acted.

"It's okay really, I was expecting a lot more crazies than this. Everyone is taking it ... so well."

"You'd be surprised by how well people adapt."

・You nodded your head, trying not to let the panic you had felt ever since getting stuck here.

・The food in front of you looked actually really delicious - homemade but even better

"I think your mother is a goddess, this is amazing."

・Kenny chuckled and a small blush heated his cheeks. But he did all he could not to let it show

・Neither you or Kenny noticed but the other residents decided that the two of you would end up together.

・To be honest no one had tv, barely any books, which meant other people were the towns entertainment

𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡𝐬 𝐋𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫

・So much had happened since your arrival.

・To the point where ... you shared the same room as Kenny ... but you weren't an official couple...

・The reason: nothing.

・Kenny had fallen in love with you

・And you had fallen in love with Kenny

・At night, you would change into your pajamas and snuggle up together, talking about your day, your thoughts and worries.

・GOD it was like you were already married!!!

・But neither of you were game enough to officially say something

・Mrs Liu already called you Kenny's girlfriend once and both of you turned beat red

・In all honesty, it was Boyd who was getting sick of Kenny not speaking up.

・He had tried to push him to tell you about your feelings. But something was telling him that he needed to intervene a little more...

𝑹𝒆𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑 𝑻𝒓𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒔:

The Gomez & Morticia Adams (loving and devoted, you top)

Friends to Lovers

"You wear the pants in this relationship" (You) x "oh I wish, I cannot control you at all" (Kenny)

𝑹𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒄 𝑷𝒍𝒐𝒕 𝑻𝒓𝒐𝒑𝒆

Timeless Love

Mutual Growth and Empowerment

Trust and Dependence

𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒎𝒆 𝑺𝒐𝒏𝒈

Ain't No Sunshine by Bill Withers

L-O-V-E by Nat King Cole

#1 Crush by Garbage

[pagelets]

Danger- C.B

Synopsis: Choi Beomgyu is a South Korean spy in a cyberpunk era where South Korea has imposed Prohibition across the entire country. One night out in NeoTokyo, while trying to gather information, Beomgyu meets a girl as mysterious as himself. Falling in love while on duty is a dangerous thing, especially when it’s with someone who has as many secrets as he does. 

Disclaimers: nsfw, contains smut.

Word count: 16k

Notes: I recommend you to read this with Gyu's deep voice in your mind (I swear it hits different). And honestly, I don't think Beomgyu would be able to live without his precious 멕주 (aka beer) for 6 whole years, haha.

위험

NeoTokyo, Japan; spring of 2333:

Beomgyu was standing on the sidewalk across from a milk shop. It was night and he had his hands tucked in his black sweats ‘cause of the cold air of late spring. He stared at the sign of the store, the bright red and white lights formed the name: Ichigo’s Palace, “A milk shop”, he muttered to himself before chuckling, “Subtle”, he looked to both sides of the street, then crossed it to enter the establishment.

 As he pushed the glass door open, his vision was filled with a scene straight out of a 2000s anime. From the strawberry-shaped booths and the checkered red&white tile floor to the oversized milk cartons pinned on the walls— with their kawaii faces grinning at him— made him feel like he was trapped into some kind of bizarre coffee shop video game, “What the hell…”. Approaching the counter, he hesitated before pressing the button on the touchscreen, the monitor flickered to life, revealing a cute virtual attendant, wearing a maid outfit. Her oversized eyes sparkled, and her high pitched voice greeted him cheerfully: “Welcome to Ichigo’s Palace! How can I help you today?”, Beomgyu moisturized his lips before saying the secret code he had memorized, “One strawbeery milk, please”. As the words came out of his mouth, the screen froze, then turned black for a few moments, before showing a message: please proceed to the payphone at the end of the corridor on your right, he obeyed the virtual command, wondering what was a payphone during his ride down the hall. He couldn't avoid glancing around looking for cameras, he found 2 hidden among the milkshakes and desserts advertising on the walls. 

He turned to the right and saw a large, rectangular, metallic thing attached to the wall. It had a moving part—the receiver— that resembled another device he had seen once in an antique store in Busan, “Using old technology to avoid being tracked… clever”, he thought. 

Beomgyu reached out his hand, pulled the receiver off the hook and brought it to his ear, but immediately had to pull away due to a loud buzz coming from the other end of the line, “Shit!”, he cursed while pressing his ear, “Hello? Is there anyone there?”, he heard a voice coming from the speaker, “Yes”, he said placing it back to his ear, “Name and ID number, please” “Chen Beomgyu, 130301040319” “Hold on”, after a few minutes of silence the voice came back, “Please, put the receiver back on the hook and protect your head with your forearms” “What?!”, he asked, confused, but the only response he got was another loud buzz. He pulled the receiver away from his head and stared at it, unsure of what to do. Then, the floor gave away beneath his feet, pulling him down into a dark hole. Beomgyu felt a bang to his head, instantly regretting not obeying the mysterious voice. He couldn’t see anything and had no idea where he was going to, but by the way his body was moving, making sharp curves at a high speed, he assumed he was on a slide heading to the speakeasy bar,  “Aaaaahhh!”, he shouted, his deep voice echoing through the metallic tube, “How did I end up here?”, he asked to himself. 

Choi Beomgyu ended up in a turbulent, dark slide beneath a milk shop in NeoTokyo, with a fake identity and a mission to investigate clandestin bars because he was a spy for the South Korean government. 6 years ago, in 2327, the South Koren president decided to ban alcohol consumption, under the pretext of providing a longer and healthier life for the citizens. But the actual truth was, the president was a clever player, th alcohol producers, including artisans and industrials, had been gaining more and more political influence. Fearing losing his power to them, the president implemented the Prohibition, and it didn’t happen only in Korea, but also in one of its main allies, Japan. Together, they launched an anti-alcohol campaign across all Asia. Industries were closed and liters of alcohol were burned in public places, even so, illegal bars and shops still existed,that’s where Beomgyu’s job came in— locating, investigating and commanding the destruction of those places, as well as arresting those who kept them running, was the role of the army and its advanced reconnaissance squads. 

According to his contacts in Japan, the milk shop was also a front for a clandestin bar, the Japanese spies couldn’t infiltrate ‘cause all their IDs were marked by the criminals. But Beomgyu was Korean, young, had a charming smile and incredible persuasion skills— including his cute pout in extreme cases. That’s why he was there.

He wished he hadn't complained about the slide because when he reached the end, he fell into a ball pit that, instead of colorful balls, had purple and cyan cubes with a jelly consistency to cushion the fall. He was submerged among the cubes, which glowed in a neon glow, “Biotech”, he tought, before moving to the surface and breathing deeply. 

Around the ball pit, was the supposed bar, decorated in neon tones of purple, green, blue, and pink. The walls were made of metal, giving the place an industrial vibe. On the ceiling, there were black and blue light lamps and tubes which a yellow fluorescent liquid flowed through. Electronic music played from the speakers, and he could feel the bass vibration on his chest. People danced nonchalantly on the dancefloor, holding different laboratory glassware containing neon liquids in various colors— it was a true underground rave.“Clandestin, but not amateur”, he thought.

He left the ball pit and moved through the crowd, cautiously scanning the place: there were no cameras, no guards, no doors or even a single window, the place seemed to have been designed to prevent any sort of invasion. For a spy, that place was a trap, in which he was completely locked in. He leaned over the counter, and there was a bartender with a bionic arm on the other side, “How can I help you tonight, sir?” “Beer. Cold”, he said, “Right away”, the man went to the kitchen, leaving Beomgyu alone. He sat on the bar stool, still alert, his fingers drummed against the counter while he tried to architect an escaping plan in the back of his head, but still seemed impossible— he definitely couldn’t crawl the slide up and it had no perspective of getting out of that place. The same man from before came back with his beer, “Your drink, sir” “Thank you”, the drink had a radioactive chic look, glowing fluorescent pink and served in a chemistry glassware, a Beaker. Beomgyu grabbed the container and looked at it with suspicion, “Is this thing radioactive?”, he said loud enough to catch the attention of a woman sitting a few stools away, “Relax, you won’t die. At least not of that”, she said in a playful tone.

He looked toward the sweet voice coming from his right, the woman seemed young, not like a teenager, but like a mature woman in her mid 20s. She had an octopus tattooed on her right hand, and he was almost certain that her arms��� exposed by a black tank top— were stronger than his. Besides that, she had dark short hair styled in an undercut, with locks dyed in blue, pink and green that glowed under the black and blue lights. She was a badass, that was for sure, maybe even an outcast. “Are you sure?”, he asked, his face relaxing for the first time since he stepped into that place, “Yes, beer is my go-to in this place”, she said before drinking the glowing blue drink that was in a round bottom flask. 

Beomgyu adjusted himself on the barstool, turning toward her. "So, do you come here often?, she smirked, “You like asking questions, don't you...", she left room for him to say his name, "Beomgyu. Chen Beomgyu" "Beomgyu..." Isn't that a Korean name?" “Damn. She's sharp”, he thought, "My great grandfather was Korean"

"Ah! So you have Korean heritage” "I guess so”, he shrugged. She smiled, then raised her frask, "To the Koreans, who made this place possible”, he raised his Beaker, laughing, “Cheers!" “Cheers!”. He brought the glass to his lips and drank the suspicious drink, the cold beer hit his throat like magic, the bitter taste in contrast with the smooth bubbles of the carbonation, feeling like a dream to him. She watched his Adam's apple move up and down as he swallowed the drink, she couldn't deny that he was attractive. After drinking half the beer, he let out a satisfied sound, something like: "Ah!", which made him even more attractive. "Was it good?", she asked, "It was perfect. I haven’t drunk beer in years” "Well, you’re in the right place now”. He looked at her in a way he shouldn’t have, he should’ve been subtly questioning her to maybe get some useful information about that bar. But no, there he was, looking at her and thinking of compliments, thinking about how he wanted to ask her questions— not to investigate the place— but to get to know her better. "You’re beautiful, you know that?", he let it slip, "Do you think so?" "I do" "Thanks…", she felt her cheeks burn and a shy smile form on her lips so she grabbed her drink and tried to hide her  flusterness behind the glass. Beomgyu followed along, "It even tastes like real beer, doesn’t it?,  she commented, changing the subject, "This isn’t real beer?", she laughed. "Beomgyu, stop asking questions!”, suddenly she stood up, “C’ mon” “Where are we going?” “Dancing, silly”, he didn’t move an inch, “C’mon! I won’t bite you”, she offered her hand, he switched his gaze from her hand to her eyes, which begged him to accept. Hesitantly, Beomgyu grabbed her hand and after emptying the Beaker, stood up and followed her to the dance floor. 

“What are you doing?”, he asked himself while they moved through the crowd, “You're not here to have fun, you're here on duty, to find clues”, he lectured on himself, but his conscious didn't matter at that moment, what mattered was to see her happy and if dancing with him was going to make her happy, he was going to dance with her.

 “So…”, he started— his voice slightly louder to be heard over the music— as they danced to the sound of another electric beat coming from the speakers, “...are you a regular?” “You already asked me that” “And you haven’t answered”, instead of answering, she turned around and glued the back of her body in front of his, he could feel her ass pressing against his crotch. He could already feel the blood flow increasing in the area of his genitals as he moved her hips in swing motions, completely lost in the music— driving him insane. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, when he opened again, he spotted the tattoo he saw earlier, “I like your tattoo”, she turned her neck to look at him, “Which one?” “The octopus”, he showed her the back of his own hand,  “Right! I forget that’s the only tattoo other people can see” “Do you have others?” “Oh, a lot more” “Really?” “Yes”. She turned to face him again, Beomgyu silently thanked for that, then she pulled her tank top up just to show her first left ribs, “TXT”, he read, “Yeah” “What’s that?” “Something really special to me”, she put her top down again. “You don’t really like answering questions, do you?”, he teased her, “And you really like asking them, don’t you?”, she teased back, “Well, I do like actually” “Don’t you think that’s suspicious?”, she said approaching him, “Don’t you think that not answering them it’s even more suspicious?”, she looked into his eyes, “I have nothing to hide, Beomgyu”. Their hearts were beating faster, their breaths getting shallow, maybe because of the drinks or maybe because of the undeniable chemistry they had, “Neither do I”, he was lying, of course, but also was she, they both could tell, but both of them couldn’t care less. 

All that mattered was that they were leaning in, their lips were getting closer and closer, almost blending into a beautiful mistake when they heard the sound of something crashing in the background, Beomgyu turned toward the noise, a shower of glass came flying their way, so he immediately turned back to shield and protect her.

That mess was the result of 2 idiots getting into a fight and spoiling everyone's night. “Shit! Are you ok?”, she cursed underneath the protection of his body, “Yes”, he tried to suppress a moan of pain, “Just some scratches. How about you?” “I’m good”, the two brawlers started to get more aggressive, “Fuck those assholes! Let's get out of here”, she said, “How?” “Just follow me”, she said, grabbing his hand, not really giving him much option, and dragged him with her towards the kitchen. He concluded she was a regular customer, since she knew a way of getting out of that bunker, as they moved through the kitchen, dodging droids and cyborgs, his eyes scanned the cabinets, appliances, and utensils, trying to figure out where the secret exit was. Until she stopped in front of an industrial freezer, "Are you a fan of the cold?" "Not really” "Then you might not like what I'm about to tell you”, she said, opening the freezer door, "Please don’t tell me there’s another slide in there”, she laughed, "No, no. Just a few meters of ice. You go in, walk until you reach the edge, climb down the fire escape, and jump” "Where does that lead?" "An old abandoned subway station" "A ghost station?"

"Yes. From there, we can walk to Ginza” "Alright" "Now go, I’ll be right behind you", Beomgyu nodded in agreement. He took a deep breath before stepping into the freezer, the cold air got into his nostrils, burning them, he could hear the sound of ice cracking around him, "Who thought it was a good idea?", he complained, squinting his eyes as the icy wind blew against his face— he could swear he’d leave that place with frozen eyelashes. But his agony was about to end, after walking a few meters, he reached the edge of a drop, looking down, it seemed more like a sewer than a train station. With his hands trembling from the cold, he grabbed the freezing metal of the fire escape and climbed down, being careful not to slip. With a jump, he landed in the mysterious ghost station, the first thing he did was look  around as always, the armed guards he missed in the bar were down there, illuminated by neon blue lights, “Whoever did all that, it’s a fucking genius”, he thought. Beomgyu tried not to stare too much, but it was almost impossible, the men were tall and strong, like walking walls, and they carried rifles in their hands. There were also machine guns on the ground, probably for defense against attacks.

He nodded casually at one of the guards who was suspiciously staring at him, the man nodded back, gripping his weapon tightly, "Don’t be nervous" he heard her voice coming from above, "Anyone new is suspicious”, she said descending the ladder. Beomgyu quickly moved to hold her by the waist, helping her come down, "Thanks," she said when she reached the ground with him, "Where are you heading?" she asked, "Shibuya" "Great! We can walk to Ginza together". "What’s the story of this place?" he asked as they walked,

"The abandoned station?" "Yeah" "From what I know it was occupied during the rebellions when Prohibition was implemented. After it ended it stayed abandoned until they built the bar here" "You know a lot of things" "Not really", she shrugged, "You know… I never imagined myself doing something like this", he confessed, "Like what?" "Walking on an underground train rail with a stranger, surrounded by armed men after witnessing a bar brawl", she laughed, "What?! How have you never done this before?" "What? Have you?" "Of course! All the time, actually" "Maybe you could teach me how to have fun” "Yeah, I think so. You could use some lessons”, he placed a hand on his chest, pretending he was offended, but before he could say something, she stopped and climbed another fire escape under a manhole cover. She pushed the cover open and looked around before sliding it to the side and stepping out, "Come on!" she said, looking down at him, he climbed the ladder, putting his head out first— it was a dark, empty alley, the only light was an old Japanese sodium vapor lamp, relatively safe. She reached out her hand to help him climb up, he took it, feeling the strength he had already guessed she had, "Wow, you’re strong. Were you ever in the military?" he ventured, she gave him a smile, chuckling softly, "Good guess". She slid the manhole cover back into place, "I think that’s hot", he said, completely unfiltered as she walked toward him, "You think so?" "Yeah”, their bodies were close, hearts already racing, and breaths were slightly heavy once again. His eyes blinked slowly, and he moisturized his lips, a sign of what was about to happen. She was so beautiful, even more so close like that. Beomgyu looked down at her slightly lifted heels, and then he looked up again. Without being able to control himself, he bent down, her face drawing closer to his. His stomach knotted with anticipation, their lips approached more and more , until they finally met in a passionate, desperate kiss. His spy instincts— never let your guard down— completely failing. Beomgyu hadn’t felt the euphoria of drinking in a long time, so he wasn’t sure if it was the beer or the kiss that brought it back. After they pulled away searching for oxygen, completely against their wishes, she avoided his eyes, she was shy, something that Beomgyu never thought it was possible to see, “You didn't say your name”, he asked with a smile printed on his face. She introduced herself, “Nice to meet you” “Nice to meet you too, Beomgyu” “Do you live around Ginza?”, she smiled, “There you go with your questions again” “Answer at least this one”, he pouted, making her roll her eyes, “Fine. I live in Shimokitazawa with some friends” “With friends?” “Yes, 4 friends. Me and 4 guys” “Do you live with 4 guys?”, asked, completely in disbelief,  “Yeah” “You’re courageous” “I know. What about you?” “I live by myself in Shibuya” “You should try living with your friends, it’s so much fun” “I don’t have any friends” “Well, now you have me” “But…”, he approached his lips to her ear, “...what if I don’t want to be friends only?”, she smirked, “So we should meet again” “Yes”, she grabbed her phone from her pocket, “Leave your number” “Okay”, he mumbled shyly, tapping his phone number, “There you go” “Alright. I text you”, he nodded, “Have a good night, Beomgyu. And stop asking questions, you can get in trouble because of that”, she said before winking and walking away to disappear in the night.

 At the end of the day, as Beomgyu floated home, completely lost in ecstasy, he was sure of one thing only— it wasn't about his mission, nor about the girl, but about himself: he was completely screwed.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

In a cozy apartment in Shimokitazawa:

Yeonjun dragged his tired body to the living room. He heard a sound coming from there, and since he lost at rock, paper, scissors, he was the one who had to check what was going on. He held a hair straightener in one hand, hoping it would be enough to beat the supposed thief, but thankfully, it wasn't. It was just one of his roommates, "Bro, what are you doing? It's 3 AM”, he complained to her, who had her head stuck in the fridge, looking for a snack, "I'm hungry” "Where were you?" "At the bar” "How was it?", he said, throwing his tired body on the couch. She grabbed a bowl with green grapes and joined him on the couch, "It was good. I met a cute guy”, Yeonjun smirked, "Really?” "Yes” "And how was it?" "It was good. He's a weird type who asks a lot of questions, but is very charming" "What kind of questions?” "About the bar. I suspect he is Korean" "Why do you think that?" "He said he hasn't drunk beer in six years, and he lives alone in Japan, no friends, no family" "Maybe he left the country to drink something that doesn't taste or look like dirty water”, Yeonjun referred to the beverage the government replaced alcohol with, something very suspicious and disgusting. She laughed, placing the bowl down and grabbing the remote, "I recorded a drama" "Did you? Let’s watch it" "Should we call the other guys?" "I’ll wake them up" “Alright”.

There were five of them in total: Choi Yeonjun, Choi Soobin, Kang Taehyun, Huening Kai, and her. Together, they were TXT, short for Tomorrow X Together, a gang of exiled South Korean former soldiers. They operated with other gangs in Japan, trying to get rid of every person involved with the South Korean government— it didn’t matter how, they were going to get their revenge. Years of serving their nation only to be discarded like that would not be forgiven.

She opened the texting app and sent a picture of the grape bowl to Beomgyu:

 ‘Have you eaten already?’

Then she locked her phone and closed her eyes, thinking about their kiss.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

Shibuya, NeoTokyo, Japan:

In a dark and wet underground garage, Beomgyu was struggling to take his fake contacts from his left eye, “Why is this thing so annoying?”, he grumbled to Jeongin, aka I.N, his partner for that mission, that guy was good with computers, so while Beomgyu collected information, I.N broke them down. “Did you rather get an implanted camera?” “Not even death”, he heard creepy stories about implantations which went very wrong, “Just a little more and…”, he took the lens out of his red eye, “Ugh! That’s ugly, bro. You should put some saline solution in that eye, man” “Yeah, yeah. Go ahead and watch the tape” “Alright”, Beomgyu went to the bathroom and looked for some gauze and saline solution, his eye hurt really bad every time he used that contact. He heard a buzz coming from his pocket and grabbed his phone to see what it was: a text from her. She was eating grapes and wanted to know if he had eaten already. He smiled, no one cared about if he had eat or not since his mother died when he was just 14 years old:

‘I haven't yet’, he replied back, 

‘Go eat, then’

 ‘I’ll soon’

‘Can't stop thinking about our kiss…’, she confessed. He was about to answer ‘me too’, when he remembered I.N was watching the whole thing he recorded through the hidden camera on the fake contacts, “Shit!”. He placed his phone on the metallic sink and ran to the other room, exactly in the part when they kissed. Of course nothing could be seen since he had his eyes closed but it could be heard, Jeongin turned around and looked at him “Bro…” “Why are you still watching it?”, Beomgyu asked, completely embarrassed, “Her moans are sexy”, the other man felt his blood boiling out of embarrassment,  “Take that off!” “Why? Don’t you think this is sexy?”. Of course he  agreed with Jeongin, but Beomgyu knew what was coming next, his own moans. I.N never reached for a button that fast in his life. He grabbed an empty can of Cherry Coke he had on his desk and threw it on his partner, “Why didn't you say before?!”, Beomgyu dodged the can, “Cause it was embarrassing enough already!”, he shouted, feeling his cheeks burning, “Who's the girl?” “I don't know” “So you kissed a complete stranger?” “I just know her first name. I was investigating her, I think she's a regular to that bar” “That’s an interesting way of investigating someone”, Jeongin teased him before turning back to the computer screen,  “Well, while I’ill try to gather information through facial recognition from the images you got, you keep investigating her”, he said casually while he tapped in his keyboard. 

Beomgyu nodded, investigating her was the natural thing to do, he knew it— his analytical spy brain knew it— even so, he couldn't help but feel flustered with the idea, he liked her for some reason. His confusion was clearly printed on his face, “You shouldn't have kissed her”, Jeongin said without taking his eyes from the screen, “Excuse me?” “You let your guard down, man.You know, this girl can be involved with illegal stuff. She can either be your way to get more information or she can be your downfall” ” “I know, she’s just…”, I took his bangs from his eyes, “... different. I don’t know why or how but she got my instincts to fail” “Just don’t get too attached, bro. If she’s involved in some operation, she’ll kill you the second she finds out who you really are” “I know that. I won’t get too involved”. Jeongin leaned back in his chair, “Good. Now go take some rest while I dig into this”, Beomgyu just nodded, and dragged his body to the apartment above the humid garage after grabbing his phone in the bathroom. 

His mind raced as he thought about her, her confidence, her strength, and the way her lips tasted like sweet watermelon lip gloss and bitter beer. Despite knowing it was dangerous, part of him wanted to see her again, and the other part knew he had to for the good of the mission, so he picked up his phone and replied to her, 

‘I can’t stop thinking about it either. Let’s meet again soon, you pick the place ;)’.

After sending the text, he lay on the bed with his back flat to the mattress, staring at the ceiling. He had no idea what he was getting himself into, but he was certain it was not going to end well, either for her or for him.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

Shinjuku, NeoTokyo, Japan: 

The next time they saw each other was 2 days later, on a date at a ramen restaurant hidden inside the brick walls of an alley in Shinjuku. The neon lights on the ceiling gave off a soft pink glow over the only counter in the place, creating an intimate and cozy atmosphere. Beomgyu was sitting at the counter, nervously drumming his fingers on it while he waited for her to arrive. Would she really show up? Or was this all part of an ambush? He shouldn’t trust her so much. His chaotic and anxious thoughts calmed down when he saw her walking toward him, gracefully, the colorful strands of her hair glowed even more under the pink light — he had never seen a girl as enchanting as her before, and her smile? Ah, when she smiled at him, all his worries melted away— how could he not trust her? She sat next to him with a playful smile on her lips, “You really are into secret places, aren’t you? First a fake milk shop, now a ramen hidden in the thickness of the wall...", he said, "What can I say? I have a thing for places with personality” "That suits you," she smiled shyly, but before she could respond, the chef came over to take their order. Beomgyu watched as she read the menu and decided what to eat, he was so absorbed in watching her that he lost track of reality, "What about you, sir?" the chef asked. He looked at the man, completely disconnected from himself, "Hum... the same as hers”, the chef nodded, then walked away. 

 “So, did I pass the test?”, she tilted her head, confused, “Test?” “You know, the one girls do to figure out if the guy’s cool enough to see them again”, she grinned, “You’re so lame! You’re lucky I’m a sucker for charming smiles and too many questions” “I’m just a curious guy. Don’t you think that’s sexy?”, she hummed, “Sexy? I wouldn’t put it like that. It’s more like… How do you say it? Oh, right! Annoying”, he smirked, “Well, since you already think I’m annoying, I’ll keep going with the questions” "Here we go" she rolled her eyes, but the smile that never left her face when she was with him, showed how much she was enjoying that, “What’s the story behind that octopus tattoo?” “The octopus? It’s a reminder” “Of what?” “Of resilience. It can also mean camouflage, you know, adapting to whatever life throws at you” “So you had a rough past?”, she looked at him before sipping her drink. He took advantage of the silence to tease her even more— a strategy to get the information he wanted, “In the military, maybe?”, she choked on her drink, coughing in response, then looked at him pale as if she had seen a ghost, “Did I get it right?”, he said, smirking. 

She nodded. "Yes, I was..." she drank more sake, why was she even considering telling her past to someone who was almost a stranger? There had to be something connecting her to him because she couldn’t stop her tongue, "... I was dishonorably discharged” "Am I about to eat ramen with a murderer?", he joked, but she didn’t smile, just shook her head, denying, “A traitor, then?” “Deserter” “Oh!” “Yeah… but what about you?”, she quickly changed the subject, “Any tattoos I should know about?” “None. I’m boring like that.”, she laughed, the tension fading away, “Boring? You go to secret bars and drink radioactive chic beer. Not exactly boring in my opinion” “You have a point. But tell me something, do you always go out with guys you met at that bar?” “No, you’re the first. Consider yourself special” “Special?”, he puffed out his chest, feeling his ego inflated, "I like that”. 

Their conversation was interrupted by the chef, "Enjoy your meal," he said, and they thanked him in unison before Beomgyu continued with the conversation, "You said you live in Shimokitazawa, right?", she nodded, "That’s a cool area. What’s it like living with four guys?", he asked between bites, "Chaotic, to say the least”, she shrugged, still chewing, "It’s messy, and also loud. But they’re family, we’ve been through a lot together" "In the military?", she nodded again, "Sounds nice. The family part, not the chaos” "What? Can’t handle a little noise?", she teased. Beomgyu leaned in closer— close enough for his cologne to fill her lungs— and spoke in a low voice, "Depends on the noise". She blushed, placing a hand on her chest and pretending to be innocent, "Are you flirting with me, Chen Beomgyu?!" "Depends. Is it working?”, she stopped chewing, holding her gaze with his , their faces were so close, "Maybe", he gave her a silly grin and leaned back, satisfied, "I can live with that", she smiled shyly, silently begging herself to stop blushing. They continued eating and teasing each other, a playful energy flowing effortlessly between them.

After finishing their meal and chatting, they left the ramen shop, the alleyway was bathed in the glow of neon signs in kanji, reflecting on puddles on the dark pavement. The air was cold, Beomgyu took off his jacket and placed it over her shoulders. She looked at him with a grateful smile, pulling the edges closer, "You okay?", he asked, "Yeah, why?" "You didn’t even finish your food" "Oh! I enjoy the experience more than the food itself", she glanced at him, "Anyway, I thought spies were supposed to notice these things”, he was almost certain his face turned pale, yet he smiled softly and tried to keep cool, "So now I’m a spy?", she smirked, "Well, you ask too many questions and you show up in unusual places you don’t even go often. Either you’re a spy or a guy with way too much free time" "Maybe I was just meant to be at that bar that night… to meet you”. She stopped walking and looked into his eyes, "That’s more dangerous than being a spy, you know", her tone was playful, but he could see something dark in her gaze, as if she was trying to warn him about something. He let it slide, he was here to investigate her, not to dive deeper into her world—or at least that’s what he kept trying to convince himself, he couldn’t tell the difference anymore. "Dangerous? I think you’re overestimating yourself" "What do you mean?", she raised an eyebrow, trying to get into the shield he kept between them, "That maybe I like danger", he mumbled, she looked away and kept walking, "You should be careful, Beomgyu”. 

They passed a street artist playing a smooth jazz melody on a saxophone, Beomgyu subtly followed along the rhythm with his head, she glanced at him—he was so cute, yet so enchanting— he shouldn’t be with someone like her, with dirty secrets and full of sins. "Why did you want to see me again?", she asked, he looked at her, surprised by the question, "Do I need a reason?" "People usually seek out others for their own benefit. What do you want from me?", he turned to face her, "Can’t I just want to spend quality time with you?" "I don’t understand how someone like you could simply want to spend time with someone like me" "Someone like me?"  "Yeah. Predictable", he chuckled internally— If there was one thing Beomgyu wasn’t, it was predictable. "Ouch" "Predictable isn’t always bad” "If I’m predictable, then you’re full of surprises" "I know". He took a few steps closer to her tilting his head slightly, carefully choosing his words, "Maybe someone like me just needs someone like you", she kept eye contact, her expression completely unreadable, "Look, if I were a spy, I’d say you’re impossible to crack" "That’s exactly what I’m trying to do" "Have I mentioned I like challenges?" "Why do I get the feeling you’re going to be my downfall?", she said, "Because I feel the same way". “Beomgyu...", their voices were barely audible, "Hum?" "I’m no good" "I’m not looking for any good" "You have no idea what you’re saying, what you’re getting yourself into by wanting to be with me" "Then tell me. Let me in". At this point, Beomgyu wasn’t investigating anymore, he was on a date, his mouth was spilling nothing but raw truths and raw feelings— he meant every single word.

In the heat of the moment, she grabbed his neck and pressed her lips to his in a heated kiss, full of emotions. The sensation of his warm tongue contrasted with the cold night, sending shivers down her body, his hands roamed her curves as if his life depended on it. His training taught him how to identify and avoid getting trapped, but that time? That time he fell into the ambush, completely entrapped, with not even a cyanide pill to escape. When they pulled away, she wiped her lipstick stains from his lips with her thumb while his hands firmly rested on her waist,  "Come on, let’s hit the bar" "Do I have to go down that slide again?" "Yes"  "Damn"  "It’s okay if you want to call it a night" "Are you going to the bar?" "Yes" "Then I’m coming with you”.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

The next morning, Beomgyu woke up naked in an unfamiliar bed. Beside him, her sleeping— also naked— body rested peacefully. The sunlight intensified his throbbing headache so much that he could barely think.  Great—he was naked, hungover, and in a place he didn’t recognize, Jeongin was going to love it. He scanned the room, wondering how he’d ended up there, the place wasn’t exactly neat, and by the amount of women’s clothes scattered all over the floor, he assumed it was her room.

A sudden stab of pain in his head brought back reminisces of the previous night, he remembered his bare body on top of hers, sweat dripping onto her chest, rising and falling with effort due to her heavy breathing as he gave slow, deep, blissful thrusts... All of sudden, he knew why his back burned, a reminder that her nails had left behind. He looked at her, she looked so beautiful sleeping like that, with her bare chest coming up and down at a cool pace, so different from the last night. He snapped out of his thoughts when his eyes caught sight of the tattoo on her ribs—TXT. His fingertips  touched it softly, “What the heck is that?”, he wondered, “Maybe something related to her time in the military or even an old high school band…”.

“Good morning”, her lazy voice broke his inner monologue. He retreated his hand from her ribs and looked at her with his usual enchanting smile, “Good morning. Did I wake you up?” “Nah. It was the light” “Do you also have a headache?”, she nodded while rubbing her eyes, “I can get you Advil if you want to” “Please”, he muttered, “Can I also have water?”, she stepped out of the bed, searching for a shirt, “Sure”, he nodded, “I’ll be back soon. Feel free to take a shower”, she pointed to the bathroom, “Okay, thank you”, she muttered something he didn't understand before leaving the bedroom. He looked around, a note at the bedside table caught his attention, it said: 

“Meet me at The Rooftop Garden tomorrow at 8PM

-Tae”

He hummed, it was a great opportunity to investigate her without being caught up in the moment and waking up next to her in the morning after. He took a mental note of his new appointment before putting the note back in its place. The room had a lot of her personality, it was decorated with old action movie posters, fluorescent string lights, lava lamps, a gaming PC with a colorful keyboard, piles of clothes in some corners, platform boots scattered around— kinda messy with a retro vibe. But nothing seemed suspicious other than that note, either she was innocent, or she was very good at hiding her tracks.

 With his head throbbing, he decided to take a break and take a shower to relax.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

After taking a shower and popping an Advil, he found himself in the kitchen having breakfast, something rare for him. They were laughing together when other 4 tall men came into the room, their sweaty hair sticking to their foreheads, “Must be the roommates”, he guessed. They greeted her, the tallest of them messing with her hair. “Who’s him?”, Yeonjun asked, “This is Chen Beomgyu, I met him at the bar. Beomgyu, these are Choi Soobin, Choi Yeonjun, Kang Taehyun and Huening Kai, my best friends and roommates” “Nice to meet you all”, he said politely. Yeonjun, Kai and Soobin greeted him casually,except from Taehyun, his silence made it clear he didn’t like the new guest. 

“Coming from the gym?”, Beomgyu asked, attempting to small talk, “How did you guess?”, Yeonjun asked, completely astonished, “I’m just good at guessing things” “He really is”, she confirmed, smiling. 

“We also went shopping”, Kai added, “Soob’s making meatballs and pasta for lunch today” “No!”, she whined— Soobin wasn’t the best cook in the house— “Can you at least pretend you like my food in front of the guests?”, Soobin scolded her,  though his tone was playful, “That’’s a no”, he ignored her before turning to Beomgyu, “Are you staying for lunch, Beomgyu?” “Oh, no. I’ll be heading out soon” “I will brush my teeth and take you to the train station”, she suggested, “Alright”, just like that she disappeared down the hall, leaving Beomgyu alone with her friends. 

With his peripheral vision, he could see Taehyun staring at him, which was  more uncomfortable than the headache from before, “So…”, Kai began, sitting next to him, “What do you do for a living Beomgyu?” “I work with cybersecurity” “That's nice”, he nodded, “What about you guys?”, the 4 men exchanged glances, silently communicating between themselves. “We….”, Kai hesitated, his eyes pleading for Yeonjun’s help, “... work from home”, the older one smoothly finished the sentence, “That’s cool. What do you work with?” “We work with gaming development”, Yeonjun continued, “Really?”, Beomgyu knew they were lying, what he was trying to figure out was why, “Yes. Except for Taehyun, he's a bouncer in a nightclub”. Beomgyu’s gaze shifted to Taehyun, his dead cold stare still on him. “I haven’t been to a nightclub in a while. Cause of alcohol, you know” “We only serve diaries”, he nodded in acknowledgment, looking back at Kai,” So, you all run a game development company?” “Yep,” Kai said, he was nervous, a trained spy like Beomgiyu could tell, “It’s called TXT”. Taehyun’s jaw tightened, clearly irritated that Kai was revealing their actual name, “TXT? What does that stand for?” “Tomorrow by Together,” Kai said quickly, “It means we work together for a better tomorrow” “Creative,” Beomgyu said with a small smile, “I know. She picked the name” “Did she?”.  Taehyun had enough, he stood up, walking towards the table to interrupt the conversation, “You really like asking questions, don't you?” “Yes, he really does”, she answered, walking back to the kitchen with something in the palm of her hand, “Look”, she showed it to Beomgyu, “I found this on my bedside table”, he looked at her hands— she was holding his fake contact. “Shit! I completely forgot about them” “I just could find one, tho” “I only took one off”, he replied casually, grabbing it, “Why?”, Taehyun asked, even more suspicious, “So Jeongin wouldn’t watch us later”, he thought. Instead, he answered, “My left eye was irritated” “Really? You eye looks fine to me”, Taehyun said, narrowing his eyes, “Okay, Tae, enough”, she interjected, grabbing her keys, “Let’s get going, Gyu, you’re infecting him, he never asks this many questions”. Beomgyu chuckled, standing up to shake hands with the men in front of him, Taehyun’s grip felt like the bones of his hand were being crushed, “Watch out, Chen Beomgyu. With the bar, I mean, alcohol’s no good for that hurt eye of yours. Stop by the club sometime, for having some real milk”, Taehyun said as low as a mutter, “I’ll think about it,” Beomgyu replied, avoiding Taehyun’s eyes. 

As they walked out, Taehyun watched their figures getting smaller and smaller. “Something’s off about that guy,” he thought, hoping he was wrong.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

The Rooftop Garden:

Beomgyu adjusted the collar of his leather jacket as the transparent elevator hummed softly,  its walls giving him a full view of the neon city under his feet. The sea of holograms and skyscrapers taking his breath away. The Rooftop was a floating rooftop garden, some kind of tropical paradise for the elite and outlaws, suspended high above the chaos of the city. He only had heard whispers about that place, he even doubted it actually existed.

Suddenly the elevator slowed down and the doors slid open soundlessly, revealing the garden. The platform floated in the air, held up by some type of magnetism, it was breathtaking, almost from another world.

A tropical greenery filled with monstera, palm leaves, and heliconia plants dominated the scene. A cascade of ferns, illuminated by bioluminescent mushrooms, gave the environment a soft, ethereal glow. Cherry blossoms moved gently  in the cool breeze, their petals falling slowly like snow. The air was surprisingly fresh for a late spring night, highlighting the contrast between the metallic atmosphere of the city with the sweet aroma of the herb being smoked there.

Holographic koi fish swam through what appeared to be pools embedded in the transparent floor of the garden. At the center stood a crystalline booth selling smoothies and açai bowls.

The place was full, yet calm. He activated his trained hearing, trying to listen beyond the gentle hum of dispersed conversations, searching for her familiar voice. At the edge of the garden, behind a curtain of cascading ferns, he saw her.

She was sitting on a bench, leaning back with her legs crossed, Taehyun was sitting next to her, his posture relaxed but still alert, his expression was unreadable as usual. A trail of smoke curled up in the air from the herb they were sharing, the emerald green glow matching the colors of the neon lights reflected on the vegetation.

 Beomgyu blended in the shadows, carefully moving closer, his hearing never leaving their conversation, “Our next target is big. If we make it, we’ll be untouchable”, the girl said, her voice calm but with a hint of anxiety in it, “But it's very dangerous, we must move fast”, she completed. Taehyun exhaled a cloud of smoke, he glanced over the curtain of fern, exactly where Beomgyu was hidden behind like he could feel his presence. Beomgyu froze, his breath getting heavy. Did Taehyun see him? She continued, lost in her own mind, “Do you and Yeonjun already prepared everything for tomorrow?” Taehyun finally looked away, then nodded, “Yes. Our package was delivered today. Our allies will implant it in the basement of the brothel tonight” “Good. How is that place called again? The holographic geisha? Something like that?” “The wired geisha” “Wired!”, she acknowledged, exhaling a cloud of the green smoke. Taehyun chuckled sarcastically, the man was resentful, “That's what the diplomats of our country do, they go on supposed businesses trips to eat the finest ramen, sleep in th best beds and fuck chromehead geishas while honest and innocent people are expatriate”, Taehyun said with a hint of disappointed in his voice, “Korea isn't my country. Not anymore” “I know, sorry”, Beomgyu's stomach twisted, so was she also Korean? He asked himself, his instincts telling him to walk away when it was still time, but his emotions didn't let him move. How could she make his earthquake like that? 

His instincts kicked in even more when he saw them standing up and preparing to leave. Taehyun crushed the glowing herb with his black military boots, Beomgyu caught the metallic glint of an object attached to his belt. A weapon? Whatever it was, he carried it with the confidence of someone who knew how to use it. They began walking out of the green curtain toward the elevator, and Beomgyu knew he needed to move fast before someone caught him hiding he knew staying there could be a fatal mistake. Pretending to adjust the sleeve of his jacket, he silently slipped into the light, maintaining distance from the duo, his mind already thinking of a convincing excuse in case he was noticed. 

She was talking about what Soobin was going to make for dinner, mindlessly, when Taehyun noticed a shadow approaching them from behind, “Wait,” he said sharply, his voice cutting through the air like a blade. Beomgyu rushed to behind a bush when he heard Taehyun. The TXT member stopped abruptly, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the area. Beomgyu had to act quickly, running would be too suspicious, so he decided to step out from the bushes with a relaxed expression on his face as if he was simply admiring the garden. Her eyes widened when she saw the familiar frame emerging from the greenery, “Beomgyu?”, she called without thinking much, he looked at them as if he was surprised, “Oh, you guys are here too,” he said with a casual tone in his voice and a smile. He switched his gaze toward the mushrooms, as if the view was more interesting than they were. Taehyun didn’t seem to be convinced, he stepped forward, eyes locked on Beomgyu’s trying to see into his soul. She tilted her head slightly, also studying Beomgyu, she was no fool, “Do you like places like this?” she asked, her tone casual yet curious. Beomgyu shrugged, “I heard about the place. Seems like a good place to relax, right? I was needing to relax”, he looked directly at Taehyun, making sure he noted his indifference, “Are you alone?” Taehyun asked, his jaw completely tense, “Yes. I don’t have family or friends in the country” “She mentioned” “Didn’t expect to run into familiar faces here” “What are the odds, huh?”, Tae murmured, not even bothering to hide his suspiciousness, Beomgyu chuckled softly, gesturing toward the bar. “Actually, I was thinking of grabbing an açai bowl. Is a tropical fruit, I heard is pretty good”. She exchanged a quick glance with Taehyun before responding, “Well, we’re leaving already. Why don’t you join us on our way to the elevator?”. Beomgyu bit his tongue, trying to suppress the discomfort that her invitation made him feel, he knew refusing would be worse, so he smiled and nodded. “Sure. Why not?”

As they walked together, Beomgyu kept commenting about the garden’s design and the city view, trying not to show his anxiety, even though if one of them grabbed his hands, he’d be in trouble as sweaty as they were. It was clear they were already suspicious, but he worked to maintain the image of a curious visitor lost in the charm of the extravagant place. Inside the elevator, he had nothing to say anymore so the silence grew heavier, Taehyun remained alert, his gaze burned Beomgyu’s back the whole ride till they landed in his keychain hooked on his belt, a familiar symbol to Taehyun, the insignia of one of the South Korean army’s squad, he knew something was off. “So, what did you think of the garden?” she asked, finally breaking the silence. Beomgyu kept smiling, “So beautiful. A little bit of peace in the middle of all the chaos down there. Sometimes it’s nice to escape for a while, don’t you think?”, she nodded, “You guys didn’t seem too impressed with the garden” “We’re used to coming here” “Oh! I see”. When the elevator reached the ground floor, Beomgyu casually said goodbye before walking away without daring looking back, he knew they would be watching him. He did his best to maintain his relaxed posture until he blended into the crowd of the city. 

Once he was far enough, he stopped in an empty alley, leaned back against the cold brick wall and placed his hands on his knees. Finally he could exhale, his heart still beating hard in his chest, damn shadow, he would need to be more careful next time. The adrenaline rushed in his blood, they were going to attack Korean diplomats? They were Korean? Was she indeed involved with crime? He had so many questions, how was he supposed to find the answers? How was he going to make them say anything now that Taehyun was even more suspicious? How was he going to… but then, a glimpse of her tattoo flashed into his head, “What’s TXT?” “A very important thing to me”, “TXT?” “Yes, is our company’s name”, those moments flashbacked on his mind, and then, he knew. TXT was the answer to everything he was looking for. He pulled the hoodie he was wearing under his jacket to his head and ran back to Shibuya, if someone could help him in that city, that person was Jeongin.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

“I.N”, Beomgyu called out his partner, breathless from running, “You’re back already?”, he spun his chair to face Beomgyu, “Did you find anything about the girl?” “Still nothing. There’s no facial recognition record of her in the Japanese archives, so I’m searching through other countries databases. It’s going to take a while since I need special permission for that”, Beomgyu sat on a chair and started untying his shoes, “Can you figure out what TXT is?” “T what?” “TXT. Tomorrow X Together, with an X.”

“I can take a look”, Jeongin turned to the computer and started typing on the keyboard, searching on the national archive, “Apparently… it’s a gang” “A gang?!” “Yes, it’s in the Japanese police’s wanted criminals registry” “I knew it had to be something like that”, Beomgyu muttered to himself, “What do you mean?” “I heard their conversation. They’re planning to attack a brothel full of Korean diplomats tomorrow” “You said ‘they’, was she with someone else?” “Yes, a friend” “Do you know have his full name?” “Kang Taehyun”, Jeongin typed the name in the search bar, “Also nothing”. Bemgyu remembered of Taehyun’s words— our country— “Try in the Korean archives” “Korean?” “Yes, go ahead search there”. I.N obeyed, his fingers moving across the keyboard, Beomgyu watched the screen carefully, as Jeongin selected the eligible citizens. “That one!”, he shouted when his partner clicked on the name with the photo that matched the man they were looking for. “Ex-military, dishonorably discharged for deserting his position as a protest against the Prohibition”. 

Beomgyu let out a disbelieving chuckled, “I can’t believe it,” Beomgyu muttered, his voice was shaky. He buried his face on his hands, his breath becoming shallow, his heart pounding like a clockwork. Jeongin looked at him, confused at his partner’s sudden breakdown, “Damn it! She told me the same story”, he shouted. Beomgyu couldn’t, or rather, he didn’t want to, believe it, she was a criminal, a traitor to her nation, and worse, she probably was involved in the illegal bar scheme. And he was falling in love with her.

Jeongin pulled him out of his turbulent cloud of thoughts by tossing him a device, “What’s this for?” “To report the attack. So they’ll be busted” “No! Taehyun already suspects of me. He’ll know who did that” “So what?” “I need more time to investigate them. I’m almost certain they’re involved with the illegal bar. They have the answers, but if they get arrested, it’s over. Our mission is over” “I’m going to pretend you’re not doing this just because of her” “Jeongin” “Am I wrong?” “I’ll stop the attack, but don’t say anything to anyone, okay?”. Jeongin sighed, shaking his head, the things he would do for Beomgyu, “Look, I’ll keep my mouth shut, but if any of the diplomats die or get hurt, I’ll report them with no hesitation. And also you” “Fair enough”, I.N nodded, “And Beomgyu…” “Hum?”

“Try not to die, you idiot” “I’ll do my best, bro”.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

The night of the attack:

Beomgyu had spent the last four hours on top of a building across the street from the brothel, he had never seen a place like that before, its architecture was old, probably was an actual chaya in the past, but the neon sign of a naked chromed geisha—with one bionic eye and arm—revealed the exotic essence of the place. During the time he spent on the rooftop, he meticulously studied the building's layout, observed everyone who entered and left— including three members of TXT: Yeonjun, Taehyun, and Soobin—and went over his plan with Jeongin. “Let’s go over it one more time”, I.N said through Beomgyu’s earpiece,  

“Dude, we’ve already reviewed it like 30 times”  “Then let’s do it again. Come on, what’s the first step?”. Beomgyu took a deep breath, trying to be reasonable, he knew his partner was just as nervous as he was, I go to the air duct that leads to the basement” “And then?”  

“I crawl until I reach it. If someone’s there I wait for them to leave, then I go in. Once inside, I find the package they talked about in the garden and get rid of it”  “And the grand finale?”  

“I get out before anyone sees me” “Good. It’s simple, right?”, Beomgyu let out a sarcastic laugh, the IT guys would never understand how nothing was simple in the field, but he wasn’t going to tell Jeongin that, “Yes, quite simple” “Do you have your tools?” “Yes, everything’s here”  

“And the camouflage?”. He placed his fingers in a pinching motion on the bridge of his nose, it was the fifth time they’d gone through everything, “Yes, Jeonginnie, it’s all he…”, Beomgyu stopped in the middle of his sentence when he saw her entering the brothel, arm in arm with a middle-aged man who wore a black suit— she was disguised as a geisha, obviously a human one. She was there, which shut down any doubts he had about her being a criminal. Beside her was Kai, dressed as security. If everyone was there their plan was about to start, which meant his plan was too.  “They’re here,” Beomgyu updated I.N, “It’s showtime”, he pulled up the bandana around his neck to cover half of his face, wore the hood of his hoodie and slid down the metal pipe of the building he was on. Once on the ground, he ran to the side of the brothel and removed the metal screen from the air duct,  “I’m entering the duct, Jeongin” “Copy that”, Beomgyu muted the earpiece and crawled into the ventilation shaft. Of course it was dark, so he turned on the flashlight attached to the camera in his contact lens to see the long metal path ahead of him, “Okay,  give me the directions” “Go straight until you hit a junction, then turn left and go all the way to the end”  “Got it”. 

He crawled along the path his partner indicated until he spotted a pink light coming from the metal grid. He arrived. Carefully, he glanced through the gaps of the grid– Yeonjun stood at the door guarding the entrance with a walkie-talkie in hand, while Soobin and Taehyun stood in the center of the room, apparently waiting for a signal. Beomgyu’s suspicions were confirmed when a male voice echoed through the radio, causing Yeonjun to nod at the other 2 men. In one swift motion, Soobin lifted Taehyun, who pressed a button on the ceiling, Beomgyu quickly kept down to avoid Taehyun’s sharp gaze. “Done. Activated”, one of them said, “Activated? Activated what?”, Jeongin asked through the earpiece. When he looked up again, the 3 men had already left, Beomgyu scanned the room until his eyes landed on the ceiling. His stomach sank— a bomb.  “Shit,” he muttered, punching the grid until it came loose so he could jump into the room, “Jeongin” “What’s going on?”  “A bomb. They planted a bomb on the ceiling” “What?!”. Remembering of the layout he had memorized earlier, Beomgyu realized that the room above the basement was a private room, “I think they’re planning to blow everyone up” “Fuck, fuck, fuck! How much time do we have?”, Beomgyu looked at the timer on the bomb, “Less than ten minutes” “Disarm it now, damn it!” “Yeah”. Scanning the room, Beomgyu looked for something to climb on, he spotted a wooden bar stool so he dragged it over, and climbed on top to be face to face with the bomb. 

9:38, the timer said,  “What kind of bomb is it?” I.N asked, “TNT” “Classic. Cut the red wire” “I know”, Beomgyu said back, struggling to balance on the stool while reaching for the pliers in his bag, his hands were sweating, and his heart was racing faster than an olympic sprinter. Taking a deep breath, he gripped the tool as firmly as he could and carefully pulled the only visible red wire,  “I found it, J” “Great. Cut it and get out of that place”. Beomgyu didn’t need to be told twice, he pressed the pliers onto the wire expecting the timer to stop. But it didn’t. His face turned pale, he couldn’t believe it. He cut the wire again at a different point, but nothing happened. The timer kept ticking: 7:40... 41... 42... 43... 44, the bomb had been modified— as if they anticipated someone would try to sabotage their plan. “J,” he called, “Did it work?” “No” “What?!” “The timer’s still running” “Did you try cutting the wire again?” “Yes” “And nothing?” “Nothing” “Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! Try cutting another wire, then” “Which one?” “I don’t know, try the green”. Beomgyu’s stomach twisted, there were at least six tangled wires, some even the same color. The timer showed 5:57.His trembling hands reached for the green wire, praying it wasn’t a trap, he cut it. Nothing happened. “Still nothing”. 5:32. “Try a black one”, he grabbed the black wire, he closed his eyes and thought about her—dressed in that traditional geisha outfit—if the bomb exploded, would she have escaped already? He opened his eyes, the timer was under four minutes now, he didn’t know what, but something inside of him told him to not cut the black wire and for some reason he decided to not do it. Inspecting the bomb again, he spotted a purple wire— purple reminded him of the bar, reminded him of the first time he saw her, when they danced together and their lips almost touched— purple was an unusual color for a wire, maybe it was a way to trick anyone who might find the wire too suspicious to be cut. 3:02, the timer said.“I.N” “Hum?’” “I’ll cut the purple one” “Are you sure?” “No. But that’s all I got for now”. With his sweaty hands, Beomgyu grabbed the wire and cut it. Suddenly, everything around him froze, the wind stopped, the sound of music in the background faded, all he could hear was his heart pounding. He looked at the timer: 3:02. He had done it. He had disarmed the bomb, “Jeongin!”  “What?” “I did, It was the purple wire” “Hell yeah, bro! Good job!”, they celebrated briefly, before focusing back on finishing the mission, “Alright, get out now” “Got it”. Beomgyu climbed down from the stool, his legs were shaking, but he had succeeded. He walked to the door— locked. “Damn it,” he muttered, before coming back to the ventilation duct. He climbed onto the stool again and crawled out of the basement. Once he reached the street again, he stopped, resting his hands on his knees as he tried to calm down. That’s when he heard voices approaching, it was Taehyun’s voice speaking with the walkie-talkie, “You two, get out now!”, he was referring to Kai and her. But Beomgyu didn’t need to worry anymore, the place wasn’t going to explode.

He saw Yeonjun, Soobin, and Taehyun at the brothel’s entrance, so he ran in the opposite direction. The older men seemed too concerned with their members still inside to notice him, but Taehyun— who was always sharp— caught sight of a shadow moving. Taehyun took a few steps toward the figure to investigate, but all he saw was a black silhouette disappearing down the street. His brows furrowed,  “What the hell is that?”, he muttered before turning back to join his members, now all of them, on the brothel’s door.

But then, his eyes moved to the alley beside the building, the air duct grid was thrown on the ground, he knew that the duct led to the basement, “Shit!” he shouted, drawing the group’s attention. “What is it, Tae? We need to go” she said, following him to the alley. “There’s not going to be an explosion”, he replied, turning to face them, who seemed confused, “Someone sabotaged us” “What?!”, they said in unison, “Someone entered the basement through the air duct” “But who?”, Kai asked, “Let’s get out of here before someone sees us”, Soobin, their leader, said, “But what about the diplomats?” she protested, “He’s right,” Taehyun agreed, “We can deal with them later. For now, let’s go”. She looked at him,  her eyes burning in fury, “We’ll make whoever did this pay, okay?”, Taehyun assured her, “Okay”, she said, finally bending.

The group walked toward their getaway car, Taehyun glanced one last time at the air duct, that’s when something shiny near the entrance of the duct caught his attention, he kneeled down and picked it up— it was the keychain he saw on Beomgyu’s belt 2 nights ago in the elevator of The Rooftop. He gripped on the object tightly before walking to the street and stared in the direction the figure ran away—“You’re so done, you son of a bitch”,  he swore to the night before joining the others in the car. Beomgyu didn’t know it yet but things were about to get ugly.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

Back in his temporary apartment in Shibuya, Beomgyu rested on his bed, the adrenaline still rushing in his bloodstream, his mind was a turmoil of thoughts, but he wasn’t thinking about the bomb or the fact that he could have died—that had happened a few times before and it was almost a habit for him. In fact, he couldn’t stop thinking about her, she wasn’t the woman he thought she was. The woman who smiled at him so beautifully was the same woman who had almost blown up those people just to have her revenge? The people she considered her family, they were also all a bunch of criminals. It was all a big lie. He chuckled sarcastically, maybe they really were made for each other—he was just as much of a liar as she was. He pressed his pillow against his face and screamed. But his breakdown was suddenly interrupted by his ringing phone. It was her. "Like she read my mind," he thought before picking up,"Hey!", he tried to sound casual and hide the knot in his throat.

"Beomgyu… are you busy?", her voice lacked its usual energy, "No, I’m not" he replied, concerned, did she already figured out it was him? No, that was impossible, he didn’t leave any traces behind. 

He leaned back against the headboard, feeling anxious, "Are you okay?", she let out a heavy sigh, "Not really. Today things were messy… at work", he gulped, the disappointment in her voice cut him even deeper cause he knew he was the one who did it to her, "What happened?" "Everything went wrong, and I just… I know it’s kinda stupid, but… I don’t know, I just needed to hear a comforting voice”, the line went silent for a moment, the guilt was consuming him, "The comforting voice I mentioned was yours, you know…" "Yeah, I know… I…", he couldn’t believe she had called him seeking comfort. He hated himself so much in that moment that his chest physically ached, "I don’t think that’s stupid, I think it’s human", she smiled on the other side of the line, "What can I do to help you?" "Just distract me. I don’t want to think about work" "How about I take you out the day after tomorrow?", he offered, caught in the moment once again,"We can do something fun, just the two of us" "What do you have in mind?" "Do you know The Scuba Diver?" “Yeah” "What do you think?"

"Sounds perfect to me", her voice brightened again, and he could swear he could hear her smile through the phone. "Great! I’ll pick you up in the afternoon, then" "It’s a date" "It’s a date," he murmured back, "Okay, I’ll try to get some sleep now" "Alright. Good night"

"Good night, Gyu. And… thank you” "It was nothing". 

His head spun as she hung up, what the hell was he supposed to do? Should he stay loyal to his mission or to his feelings for her? He fell asleep hours later with those thoughts haunting his mind.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

She spent the next day shopping. She decided to buy a sexy black dress for her date with Beomgyu, she didn't mind wearing her black clothes and military platform boots everyday, but when it came to him, something different lightened up inside her, something that awakened not just her sensuality but also her delicacy. The dress was a basic sleeveless black, but it fitted her so well it was almost breathtaking. She liked it and she knew he would like it too. After returning home, eating her favorite ramen, and taking a shower, she needed to dry her hair. However, she lent her hairdryer to Taehyun, so she wrapped a towel around her dripping hair and went to her friend’s room. Just as she lifted her hand to knock, she heard the sound of the lock clicking, and the door opened. The person who stepped out was none other than Lee Heeseung, a hacker from Enhypen, a gang allied with TXT in Japan.

"Heeseung?!", she exclaimed, he looked at her and smiled, "Hey! You smell great", Heeseung was the personification of rizz, "I just took a shower... What a surprise, what are you doing here?" "Taehyun asked me to come" "But he’s leaving already", Taehyun interjected, stepping into the hallway, "I am," Heeseung confirmed, "Thanks for coming," Taehyun said, "It was nothing. Good night, guys, see you around", Heeseung said before bowing and disappearing down the hall.

She looked at Taehyun, he was shirtless, alone in a locked room with Heeseung in the middle of the night, "You and Lee Heeseung, huh?", she teased, "What?! It’s not like that"

"Then what was he doing here?" "He was in town, and I asked him to help me with something" "I’m not sure I want to know the rest" "Stop thinking nonsense and come in. I need to talk to you", she obeyed, he was too serious for her to keep teasing him, "What is going on Tae? You don’t look okay", he ran a hand through his hair and took a deep breath before he started speaking, "Heeseung was here because I asked for his help to investigate Beomgyu" "What?! Why?" "I haven't liked that guy since the first time I saw him" "I know he’s… different. But that’s just how he is. He’s a good guy" "That’s what you think", she crossed her arms, "What do you mean?" "He’s lying to you. His name is Choi Beomgyu, and he’s Korean", her lips parted slightly, "Well... I lied about my name and nationality to him too. He must have his reasons" "He does. The guy is military" "M-military?", her voice trembled, "Yes" "Are you making this up just because you don’t like him, Tae?", she really didn’t want to believe him. Instead of arguing, Taehyun just grabbed the tablet that Heeseung had left behind and handed it to her, "See it for yourself if you think I’m making it up”, she looked down at the device in her trembling hands, there were documents confirming everything Taehyun had just said, along with photos of Beomgyu. In some of those, he was in uniform with his squad, in others, he was leaving government buildings. There was even one of him receiving honors. The tablet slipped through her fingers, landing on the fluffy carpet of her friend’s room. "I tried investigating him with Kai’s help, but there was nothing in the Japanese records except the lies he’s been telling you", Taehyun said, pulling out the keychain he had found the night before and showing it to her, "This was on his belt that night on the rooftop garden". She looked at it, it was a keychain only South Korean militaries carried,"Recognize it?", she nodded, "That’s from the army…" "Yes. That’s why I called Heeseung, because I didn’t know what this insignia meant, so I asked him to hack some Korean databases". He bent down and picked up the tablet from the floor, slid the screen, and showed her, "Advanced Reconnaissance Squad", her eyes switched from the screen to the keychain and back again, it was the same insignia. She could barely breathe, "Are you telling me… that he…", she tried to breathe, but the air didn't come, "…he’s… he’s…" "A spy? Yes”, her eyes filled with tears, but she fought to hold them back, the pain was excruciating, "He… he was using me to investigate the bar and the gang, wasn’t he?", Taehyun nodded, "I think so" "That’s not possible…", she murmured, "And there’s more", she looked at him, her eyes begging him to stop, but she needed to know, he couldn’t let her keep being fooled, "I found this keychain last night near the entrance to the ventilation duct", she already knew what her friend’s next words would be,"I believe he sabotaged our plan", but hearing it out loud was an even more painful. Her knees gave in, and she collapsed on the carpet, the towel falling from her head to the floor. Taehyun kneeled down, "It was all a lie…", her chest hurt as if her heart had literally been broken. He had taken advantage of her, and she had fallen in love with his lies, with the person he made her believe he was, “I’m sorry," Taehyun said, pulling her close and letting her tears soak his bare shoulder as he gently stroked her hair, "Let it all out”. 

When she finally calmed down, she pulled away from Taehyun, "I’m sorry, but you needed to know”, she looked at him, fury burning in her eyes, "You should feel sorry for him, not for me", her voice was flat, as if the warmth of it had faded away, "What do you mean?"

"That guy is done. We’re going to eliminate him", and by eliminating, she meant killing him, "Are you sure you want to do this?" "I’m sure. I’ll do it myself. Tomorrow” "If that’s what you want, you’ll have our support”, she smiled bitterly, "Thanks, Tae" "What are you planning?"

"The Scuba Diver" "Good. The chances of escaping are almost zero" "Exactly"

"Will you need our help?" "No. I created this mess, I’ll deal with it", Taehyun nodded. 

The Scuba Diver was an underwater motel, isolated and nearly impossible to escape from without drowning first. Beomgyu had chosen that place himself, unaware he was digging his own grave.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

The Scuba Diver motel was just as surreal as its name suggested. Located beneath the surface of an artificial indigo blue lake, the only way to reach it was through a pod elevator that descended underwater. The walls of the pod were transparent, showing a dizzying view of the vibrant corals and schools of exotic fish swimming outside. The pod stopped at the bottom of the lake, Beomgyu had never been there before, but he had heard it was the perfect shelter for forbidden lovers. He followed her down the hallway, his nerves on edge, he kept telling himself to stay calm, to put aside his inner battle for just a moment. She needed him, and he couldn’t let her down— again. She opened the door to their room, The soft buzz of the room decompressing echoed through the hall. The room was small but luxurious with a bed surrounded by soft red lighting and a panoramic view of the underwater world. “Wow,” he said, surprised,“Pretty cool, huh?”, she replied, glancing back at him over her shoulder, “It’s impressive,” he admitted. She stepped closer to him, her fingertips brushing against his chest, allowing himself to relax a little, he placed his hands on her waist leaning in to brush his lips against her neck, “You look stunning today,” he whispered. His warm breath against her sensitive skin sent a shiver through her body— how was she supposed to go on with her plan when he was so irresistible? His soft lips finally pressed against her neck, leaving slow, wet kisses, she let out a small moan, unable to control herself, her fingers tangling in his hair. “C’mon,” she murmured, slipping from his arms before she lost control of the moment entirely.

Beomgyu swallowed hard, his heart pounding—as it always did when he was with her— and he followed her to the bed. She grabbed his hands, pulled him closer, and turned his body, making him sit on the edge of the king sized bed, “It’s so sweet of you...” she began, standing between his legs and letting her hands ran over his shoulders and down his chest, “...to take the day off to spend time with me”, her touch sent a wave of heat through his entire being, “I-it seemed like you needed it,” he tripped over his words. She leaned down, bringing her lips close to his, “As a thank you,” she whispered, “I want to take care of you, too”, he swallowed hard, feeling her cold hands slip under his shirt, contrasting with his warm skin, driving him crazy, “T-take care of me?” he asked, “Yes,” she replied in a low, sensual voice, “I have plans for you, loverboy”. His hands slid to her hips, pulling her closer and closing the gap between them. That kiss felt different, it was deeper, heavier, with emotions that were almost suffocating and he responded with the same intensity, pouring out all his confusion into it. Her hands traveled up his bare chest, making him let out soft moans into her mouth, his shirt was pulled up, and their mouths parted so she could take it off his body. 

She took a step back, slowly and provocatively slipping the straps of her dress off, one by one as he watched her, lust overflowing from his eyes. "You’re beautiful”, he said as her dress slid down her curves, revealing her body covered in tattoos in a black laced lingerie paired with black silk knee socks."Liar", she thought, but she just smirked at him and climbed onto his lap for another round of kisses. He pressed her hips against his erection, and she threw her head back, moaning in response, she hated that he had that effect on her, but he did. Her body betrayed her mind, showing him how much she wanted him, how much she needed him. Without wasting more time, she brought her hands to his belt, unbuckling it and opening his pants—a signal for him to take them off. He obeyed immediately, lifting his hips to slide his black jeans and boxers down. She glanced down at his almost fully hard member pressing against his belly button, she grabbed it with one hand, tracing circles around the tip with her thumb. He lay back on the bed, breathing heavily, “I-I don’t think I’ll be able to last much if we keep playing around like this”, he fumbled over his words again. She smirked, slowing the pace of her movements, “Are you that desperate for me?”, she teased, receiving a nod in response— he was too overwhelmed by pleasure to speak. She chuckled, releasing his dick and leaning over him to kiss and suck on his neck, his hands moved to her hips, one sliding down to her core, still covered by her panties, then he pressed his thumb against her entrance, making her shiver, “You’re so wet already” “Just for you, baby,” she replied— and unfortunately, it wasn’t a lie. No one had made her feel like that in years.

He pulled his thumb away from her core and moved his hands to the waistband of her panties, removing them in one smooth motion. Then, his fingers worked smoothly on the clasp of her bra, easily freeing her soft, round breasts. He switched their positions to hover over her body and pushed down to take one of her breasts into his mouth, sucking it fiercely, almost too roughly for something as delicate as her breast, but he didn’t care— she squirmed beneath him, and if she was enjoying it, nothing else mattered. Her hips lifted involuntarily in response, and he knew what she wanted, so he let go of her breast and kissed her mouth before aligning himself with her entrance to slowly, almost torturously, push his member inside her, little by little, giving her time to adjust to him.

She let out a deep sigh as she felt him filling her, and as he started moving, slowly and teasingly, tears escaped her eyes. That wasn’t how it was supposed to be, he wasn’t supposed to have that much power over her— but what harm could one last time do before she left him forever? “Beomgyu…”, she moaned, “Are you okay? You’re crying”, he dried a few tears with his thumb, “It’s… it’s just because it feels so good” “Alright”, he leaned over to place a kiss on her forehead, “Let me know if you feel uncomfortable”, she nodded. It wasn’t entirely a lie— she cried from the pleasure, but also from the sadness, from the pain of his betrayal. Beomgyu shifted the angle of his hips, hitting a sensitive spot inside her— her eyes rolled back, and her back arched. She couldn’t wait any longer, she had to put her plan into action before she gave up. “Gyu…” “Yes?” “Let me be on top”, he smirked, “Sure”, he replied before switching positions with her.

“Hold on”, she reached for her bag. While he waited for her, he wiped the sweat from his forehead and took his hair out of his eyes. She took out from the purse a black ribbon, saying with pleading eyes, “Can I tie you up?”. His spy instincts told him to say no, it was too risky, but he wasn’t thinking with his head—at least not with the one he had over his shoulders, “Only one hand” ““Both” “Just one. Take it or leave it” “Fine. Just one, then”. She tied his hand to the headboard, then leaned down to kiss his lips, he grabbed the back of her neck, deepening the kiss as she rode him, chasing her own climax, “Shit! I can’t hold it anymore”, he said between moans, “Cum for me. Let it all out”. After a few more thrusts, he threw his head back, his body collapsing beneath her, as he released inside of her. She kept grinding against him for a few moments longer before reaching her own orgasm, then she rested her hands on his abdomen, breathing heavily as she tried to recover. 

That’s when she realized it was the perfect moment to execute her plan, he was tired, with his eyes closed and his guard completely down. Quietly, she reached a hand down to her knee sock and, as sly as a fox, pulled out a switchblade. Slowly, she moved up it his leg, 

“Are you already ready for another round?”, he chuckled, eyes still closed. But when she pressed the blade against the sensitive flesh of his dick, his eyes snapped wide open instinctively, “Don’t move an inch”, she said through gritted teeth, her voice dark and hostile, “Or I’ll cut it off”.

He swallowed hard, breathing heavily, he could see in her eyes that she knew everything,

“What the hell…” “Shut up! No more games, no more lies”, her voice firm and sharp, “Who are you?”. He laughed nervously, “What are you talking about?” “Stop playing dumb” she pressed the blade harder against his member, “I know you sabotaged our attack”, she held up the keychain in her other hand, “So stop lying and tell me who you are and what do you want from me”. Beomgyu didn’t know if it was the fear of losing his manhood or the hurt in her eyes that made him speak the truth, “My real name is Choi Beomgyu. I serve in the South Korean military under the advanced reconnaissance unit, which means I’m a spy”, he held her breath, trying to keep her tough exterior still, “I was sent to Japan to investigate the speakeasy bar”, she didn’t say anything, so he continued, “When I met you, I didn’t know who you were or what you did, but as I investigated you…” “You were really investigating me?”, she interrupted, “Yes, but…”. The air left her lungs as reality hit her, so he really had been using her for his mission, “Then everything between us was a lie?”. He felt the pressure of the switchblade ease slightly, like his confession made her lose strength, “No! No, not everything was a lie. I like you, I care about you, more than I should. That’s why I didn’t report your attack. That’s why I’m here now” “And you really expect me to believe you?” “It’s the truth. I’m risking everything for you. Everything”

She looked down at her hand, the knife trembling against his flushed skin,“I don’t believe you” “You don’t have to believe me, but it’s the truth. I never wanted to hurt you”, she stared at him, dropping the blade, unsure of what to do or say. He took the opportunity to trap her between his legs and change their positions and even with one hand tied, he managed to pin her arms and toss the weapon to the ground. He looked down at her, lying beneath him with tears rolling down her red face. If he could, he’d take all her pain and put it on himself. “And you? Who are you? The real you” “You want my help to finish your mission, don’t you?”, she chuckled, “Where are the cameras, the bugs? Where?” "There's nothing, just me. The guy who asks too many questions and can’t stop thinking about this girl stuck in his head", even while pinning her down, lying, and using her, he still managed to be charming. She hated him for that. "Who am I? You already know who I am, don’t you?" "I only know parts", she laughed bitterly, "I’ll tell you, so you can see how rotten the system you work for really is", he nodded.

"I come from a family of brewers from Busan. They were artisans, and for generations, my family poured everything they had into their craft. Until Prohibition", she paused, feeling her jaw tightening, "Everything they had was taken from them. The government treated them like criminals. They were marginalized, starving, and anyone who dared to help them would be punished including those in the military, like I was", Beomgyu’s brows furrowed, "Tae’s family was in the same situation as mine. So one day, we decided to bring together everyone who was opposed to Prohibition and put our plan into action: to desert" "As a form of protest?"

"It was much more than just a protest. We were desperate, watching our families die a little more each day, unable to do anything. Deserting was our  hope of getting their dignities back. But it didn’t work, they didn’t care if hundreds of soldiers deserted, we meant nothing to them", she said, her voice breaking as tears returned to her eyes. "All those years serving the military, giving our blood, sweat, and tears, it was like none of it mattered. Tae and I were exiled, along with our families. The rest of the men left the country because, with a dishonorable discharge, they couldn’t do anything else in Korea. When we arrived in Japan, a family of former brewers took us in and together, we built the bar. Tae and I joined the rest of the TXT a year later, not for justice but for revenge. Those people don’t even know the meaning of justice”.

Beomgyu’s mouth hung slightly open, they had made innocent people go through all that because of alcohol? He didn’t know what to say, he had been following orders blindly, unaware of what those people had passed through to build their illegal bar. "I-I’m… I’m so sorry. I had no idea”, she chuckled sarcastically, "Don’t lie, Beomgyu. You are one of them. So… just grab your stuff and leave before Taehyun finds out I let you go and comes after you" "You’re… letting me go?" "Just go before I change my mind. And never bother any of us again". He bent down, picked up the blade from the floor, and cut the ribbon binding him to the motel bed. In a few minutes, he was gone, completely embarrassed, leaving behind a girl with two broken hearts—- hers and his, because his heart belonged to her and no one else. ⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

Days had passed since their fateful episode at the motel. Beomgyu had vanished without leaving a trace. No one had heard from him, not even Jeongin, it was like he had never existed. She had told TXT she had killed him, hoping that Beomgyu wouldn’t come back to bother again. So it seemed insane that Beomgyu was now standing at the entrance of a club, hesitating. But he had nothing left to lose, his job no longer made sense, and the girl he had fallen in love with hated him, and back in Korea, he had no family—his father had disappeared when he was a child, and his mother had died of illness when he was a teenager. With nothing holding him back, he walked into the club, the neon sign above the door said, ‘The Dairy Lounge’, "These guys are really creative" he muttered to himself.

Inside the place, he passed through people dancing with bottles of milk and yogurts in hand, mumbling apologies as he bumped into a few of them. He stopped in front of a door with a VIP sign above it, the guard standing in front of it was Taehyun. Turns out, the guy actually had a job outside of the gang, "Hey!" Beomgyu called out, catching Taehyun's attention. Taehyun’s eyes narrowed at the figure dressed in all black standing in front of him, "You..."

"Think we can talk?", Beomgyu asked, "You're alive?", Taehyun muttered, “Either that or this drug adulterated milk you guys serve here is messing you up real bad", Beomgyu replied with a smirk. Taehyun’s jaw clenched, and his fists tightened as he lost all his composure. Without saying a word, he grabbed Beomgyu by the collar and dragged him to the alley behind the club. Out of sight from his superiors, Taehyun’s fist hit Beomgyu’s face without any ceremony, "What the hell, man?! I just want to talk!", Beomgyu shouted, placing a hand on his sore cheek, "I don’t want to talk", Taehyun landed another punch, this time making Beomgyu’s cheek bleed.

Fed up with Taehyun’s temper, Beomgyu fought back, throwing a punch of his own, right on the other’s jaw. The shorter man touched his jaw, in disbelief, “Are you out of your mind!?” “I said I just wanted to talk, but you started hitting me”. Taehyun didn’t bother in reply, he shoved Beomgyu to the ground, straddling his torso and began punching him repeatedly. One blow after another, not giving him a chance to defend himself, “You survived, but not for long. I’m going to kill you, you son of a bitch!” “Do it. I’m already dead anyway”, Beomgyu said, making Taehyun freeze in confusion, “What?” “I’m already dead inside…”, Beomgyu paused, struggling to breathe without choking on his own blood, “... without her. So go ahead. End it now., do this favor for me” “You care about her that much?”, Taehyun asked,

Beomgyu nodded, the excruciating pain spreading through his head, “More than anything”

“Then why did you make her suffer, huh?”, Taehyun shouted, “I didn’t mean to… the last thing I wanted was to hurt her”, Beomgyu said, leaning on his elbows, “I need to talk to her. She needs to hear this, to know how much she means to me” “No way. And even if I let you, she wouldn’t believe you” “I’ll do anything to prove I’m trustworthy. Anything” “Even swim in the Electric Seaweed Lake?”, Taehyun asked, “What’s that?” Beomgyu asked, confused, “You really don’t know anything about this city, do you?” “No, but whatever it is, I’ll do it” 

“For real?” “If I do it, will you let me talk to her?” “I’ll think about it” “Fine, I’ll do it”, Beomgyu said firmly. Taehyun got off him. “My shift ends in two hours. Stay here and wait until I come back”, Beomgyu sat up with difficulty, spitting blood onto the ground, “Okay” “If I come back and you’re gone, I’ll hunt you down, even in hell. Got it?” “Got it” “Good”. With that, Taehyun came back to the club.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

2 hours later, Taehyun showed up with the rest of TXT — except her and Soobin— the four of them got into a car and headed toward the Electric Seaweed Lake. When they arrived, Beomgyu was hit by a strong scent of something rotting, the lake was green , shady, and had a sticky consistency. But he was determined to do that.  Beomgyu began taking off his clothes when a voice interrupted him, "Are you insane?", Yeonjun asked, "What?" "I asked if you're insane. Do you even know what's in there?" "Electric seaweed?"

"You wish it was just seaweed. That lake is full of strange creatures that feed on human skin cells and some even eat human flesh!", Beomgyu smirked, "I’m not insane. I’m just a guy in love", he said, finishing removing his pants and standing there in just his underwear. “ALright what are the rules?’, he asked Taehyun, "You swim to the bioluminescent coral reef and back. If you make it out alive, we’ll have your back" "Okay, let’s get over with this", Beomgyu said, stepping into the lake.

The moment he placed one foot inside, he felt like a strange force was pulling him down. He turned to Kai and said, "If I die, tell her I love her, okay?" “O-okay”, then he continued walking into the water, trying to ignore the strong smell of decomposing seaweed invading his nostrils like poison until his entire body was completely submerged. The three men stood watching from the shore, "Tae?" "What is it, Kai?" "Is this really a good idea?" "What do you mean?" "There’s no way he’s coming out of that alive. If she finds out we killed him, she’ll kill us" "Then it’s better if she doesn’t find out", Taehyun replied coldly.

Underwater, things weren’t as terrifying as they seemed from the surface. Sure, there were plenty of strange creatures that seemed unnaturally drawn to his body, but they weren’t as bad as he feared they were— some were even cute, others had vibrant colors. If he survived, he’d want to learn more about that ecosystem. He swam several meters, coming to the surface for air occasionally, until he spotted the glowing corals Taehyun had mentioned. He reached out to touch them but was startled by a small electric shock, "Better stop messing around", he thought and turned around, ready to return. But suddenly, he stepped on what he thought was a rock and his foot got stuck. It wasn’t a rock, it was some kind of weird creature that fed on human flesh. He felt its grip tighten as it started to take in his foot. Panicking, he tried to free himself, but nothing worked, he tried to scream for help, but no one would hear him this far underwater. As the surroundings grew darker, his eyelids began to feel heavy, "I guess I really can’t live without her", he thought before everything went black. ⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

“Do you think he’s dead already?”, Yeonjun asked the other two, “I bet he is”, Kai answered,  

“Silence”, Taehyun ordered in a low voice, hearing the sound of a car engine approaching. They turned around, momentarily blinded by headlights, from the truck, she and Soobin stepped out, “Where is he?” she demanded, fierce like a raging animal., “Soobin! Did you snitch on us?”, Kai asked, panicking, “She heard you guys talking. You know how scary she gets when she’s angry?”. “Where is he, Taehyun?”, she yelled, “In the lake,” he said calmly,  

“Are you insane?!”, she shouted, “You told us he was dead!”, he shouted back. She ignored him, starting to remove her clothes, “How long has he been in there?”, she asked. No one answered, “How long?!”, she yelled again, “At least seven minutes”, Yeonjun finally said,

“Damn it!”. She moved to the edge of the lake, ready to jump in, but Taehyun grabbed her arm, “You can’t go in” “Let me go” “I can’t let you die because of him”  “I want to die because of him”,she shot back, pulling her arm free and diving into the lake, swimming at lightning speed.  

The lake was dark despite the bioluminescence, but spotting a man of 180 cm wasn’t hard. Near the coral reef, she saw her beloved’s lifeless body, one of his legs caught in the jaws of a strange creature. Quickly, she swam to him, pulling a laser device from her bra and slicing the creature in half— fortunately, that species took hours to digest human flesh, so Beomgyu wouldn’t lose his foot or leg. She placed his arm over her shoulder and swam back to the shore, her lungs burning from the lack of oxygen, “Kai, Yeonjun, help me here!” she called out once she reached the sore. The two of them grabbed Beomgyu by the arms, pulling him out of the water, while Soobin and Taehyun helped her get back to land. Ignoring everyone, she went straight to Beomgyu, pressing her ear to his chest. No heartbeat, no breathing Immediately, she started CPR— she learned in the military. 30 compressions, 2 breaths, 30 compressions, 2 breaths, again and again for 2 minutes in a row. Finally, she stopped, exhausted, holding his face as tears streamed down her cheeks,  “Beomgyu, please”, she whispered, “I think he’s gone”, Soobin muttered, his heart breaking from watching the scene. “No! He can’t be gone!”,  she screamed, turning to Taehyun, “What is your problem?! Why did you force him into the lake?” “He…” Taehyun began, but a deep voice cut him off, calling her name, “Not now, Yeonjun,” she snapped, assuming it was him. But it wasn’t, “I… went in because I wanted to” , the voice continued.  She turned around almost unable to believe what she was hearing,

“Beomgyu!”, she ran into his arms, collapsing against his chest in tears, “Why did you do this? And your face looks like that?”, she asked between sobs, ““Taehyun told me if I did this, he’d let me see you. And because I think I’m in love with you… I did it”, he said as it was the most ordinary thing ever. She looked at him, scanning his bruised face, the air caught up in her throat, “Do you think?” “I know”, she leaned in, kissing his hurt lips, the taste of blood mixing with both of their tears,   

“You idiot, you almost died!” “I can’t live if I’m not with you”, she sniffed, “I think I’m in love with you too”, she whispered, “No more lies, okay?” “No more lies,” she promised.  

He pulled her close— vowing to himself never to let her go again— and there, lying on that wet ground, covered in the slime of the lake, he knew he would never be in danger again as long as she was by his side.

⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹`✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹

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Tags: @dawngyu, @nanahachi3, @whatblop

[chiefdirector]

Hiding | Tim Bradford | The Rookie

Act Two| Chapter 30 | Chapter 31 | Chapter 32 | Chapter 33

“Have a nice day off, did we?” the voice of Sergeant Caradine rang out from behind (Y/N), causing her to jump in her seat. Quickly, she whipped her head around to face her boss. “Didn't take you for a slacker, Bradford.”

“Please, I’m not a slack-”

Caradine rolled his eyes, “Don’t act like you don't have more coffee breaks than anyone else in this department. And don’t get me started on the amount of times I've caught you playing computer chess.”

(Y/N) guilty looked down at her lap, “So… you’ve come to fire me?”

“Not yet, if you were anyone else I would’ve. But despite your flaws, you're damn good at your job.” Cardaine looked like he wanted to smile, but fought the urge off. Slamming down a file on Bradford’s desk, he continued. “I got a case for you. Homicide. Lopez had already been briefed. You two are going to be partnered for the time being.”

“Cool-” 

Caradine cut (Y/N) off again. “What have I said about the word ‘cool?’”

“That it isn’t ‘cool’”

The sergeant just huffed, demanding that (Y/N)get out of his sight.

—

Lopez tried to keep her focus on the road, focussing on the case at hand even but she couldn’t help herself. Pulling up on a red light, she turned her head to her partner  “Bishop told me that you and Tim went on a date…”

“We’re married.” (Y/N) deadpanned.

“Still. Was it fun? Sexy even?”

“Why do you care, Ange. You're also in a committed relationship. Unless you have something to share?”

Angela lightly punched (Y/N) on the shoulder as she saw the lights turn green. Turning back to the road, she rolled her eyes. “It’s a little dry. He’s a lawyer, he doesn’t have any cool work stories to share. So spill.”

“He took me to where we had our first date.”

“Ooo. Let me guess! Romantic restaurant? Walk on the beach?  Wait no- it’s Tim. Football! He took you to see the football!”

“Shooting range.”  (Y/N) revealed, laughing at Angela’s insistence.

“Damn it!” Lopez groaned, pulling the car to park next to the sidewalk. “That’s not romantic.”

“It wasn’t too bad. But we’re here now, let's be a bit more professional.” (Y/N)  tried to reason as she looked across to Angela who had an eyebrow raised. “And I will tell you more later.”

“Good, let's go.” (Y/N) went to get out of the car before she realised where she was. It shocked her that she did not recognise the address in the file, but looking at the house, there was no way she could mistake it now. 

This was Kade Sullivan’s house.

“Do you know who died, was it the homeowner or…?” (Y/N) said, letting her voice trail off, the implications running through her mind.

“Yeah, the homeowner. Did you know them or something?”

(Y/N) hummed in acknowledgement before getting out of the car and towards the house. 

—-------

The patrol officers shot her strange looks as she made her way directly into the kitchen, (Y/N) had her mind only on one thing only. The bug that she had planted with Harper. Looking over her shoulder to make sure she wasn’t being followed, She ran her hand under the counter until she found the device. Quickly, she pocketed it before heading back out to the living room where the body lay.

Around the body, several patrol officers stood, waiting for the coroners. Most of the officers (Y/N) didn’t recognize. She had never bothered to learn most of their names, most people relocate before bonds were formed, but she clocked onto two standing in the corner immediately. 

“Chen, Bradford. Come here, I have a job for you.” She beckoned, waiting as the two came over. 

Quietly, she told Chen to come to her side, slipping the bug into her hand once she was close enough. “Take this back to the station, don’t stop for anything. Upload any data it may have that hasn’t been looked over and destroy it.”

“Destroy it? Doesn’t it need to be reported?” Chen asked, keeping her voice as low as (Y/N)’s.

“Yes, tell Grey. Don’t give any details. Once me and Lopez wrap up here, we will meet. Don’t tell Grey anything he doesn’t need to know.” She said, before turning to her husband. “You do the talking. I will be back soon. Let Harper know if you see her. And both of you, don’t say anything on the radio.”

(Y/N) walked further into the house as soon as she finished talking, not giving Bradford or Chen any room to argue.

“You heard her,” Tim said, looking at his boot as Lucy stood still, “Move!”

———————

After watching her partner examine the crime scene one to many times, Angela finally managed to drag her partner out of the house and back into the shop. 

They drove in silence for a bit, Angela deliberately taking the scenic route back to the precinct. Eventually the quietness got to her and she couldn’t hold back nah longer. “Are you okay?”

(Y/N) just hummed in response, looking out of the window to avoid Angela’s concerned look. 

“You know this isn’t the end of the world. We will be able to find another way to Dyer.” Angela didn’t need to say the name for (Y/N) to know who she was talking about. “It’ll work out.”

“I know… it’s just-” (Y/N) trailed off

“Just what?”

“It just feels real now. Seeing Sullivan dead… before, I knew the threat was there but I could ignore it. Other cases to work on, you know? But now, with him gone. Another pawn off the board.”

It was Angela’s turn to hum, processing her partner’s words. After a few moments, she spoke again. “This just means we’re one step closer to ending this.”

“But so is she.”

—————

It didn’t take long for the coroner's report to come back; the death was ruled as suspicious. No foul play, just a lonely man, too burdened by the world. Or by guilt. That was how he died but the real mystery came post-mortem. The call had been sent out as a homicide but all violent markings had been inflicted after death. As if someone was staging him. 

(Y/N) sighed as she ran her hand through her head. Looking down at the file, she reread the words over and over, as if she couldn’t fully comprehend them. There was something else that she was missing, something familiar.

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[harmonyrae]

Power Couple

CHAPTER 12 - Revelations I am incorporating my headcanon for the Aether Core connection. It’s NOT lore accurate - as far as we know.

You’ve been staying at the house on the hill for the past few days. You and Sylus have indulged in every fantasy you can think of. You’ve recreated your dream of being eaten out on the dining room table. Recreated his dream of throat fucking you by the pool. You secretly pray the chef never finds out Sylus bent you over the kitchen counter, the sink, the stove, the fridge… Basically his entire workspace.  

You both handled work from home, opting to join conference calls from the pool or private office. You were careful not to discuss confidential information when Sylus was around. You knew if Dorian found out you were talking shop with Sylus in the room he would never forgive you.

When you weren’t tongue deep in each other, you and Sylus talked about the bond you seem to share. He explained the situation at the gallery and Chen’s possible “client.” He also explains the Aether Core. He had an Aether protocore fragment implanted into his eye when he was young. He had no say in the matter and no parents to fight for him. 

“The connection we share, the Aether fragment, you have one too.” He places a hand over your heart. You feel that similar warmth.

“I don’t remember...” You cover his hand with your own. He wraps his other hand around your waist. The warm water in the tub has cooled, but you don’t want to get out, not yet. You feel his breath on your neck, his body firm against your back. Sitting between his legs as he presses kisses to your shoulders and neck as he explains.

“Do you want to know?” You lean your head back on his chest.

“Maybe? Yes… Tell me.”

Sylus takes a deep breath. You can tell this story will be hard for him to tell. You pull his hand from your chest and interlace your fingers with his. Giving his hand a squeeze, he sighs. 

“We were in the same laboratory. My surgery was experimental. No one expected me to survive. So when I did, they didn’t waste any time putting your fragment in. Our rooms were next to each other. The walls were thin, so we’d sit and talk for hours. Well, when they weren’t running tests or experiments on one of us. We grew up together. We kept each other sane all those years. If you came back from tests crying, I’d sing to you. You’d be laughing in no time. And… if I woke up from a nightmare, you’d read to me until I fell asleep.”

Sylus tightened his grip around you. You could feel his heartbeat quickening against your back. You rub small circles on his arm, his grip loosening slightly.

“On your 18th birthday, I... aha, 'gently convinced' a nurse to let me into your room. It was the first time we were truly alone. No nurses hovering or doctors forcing us to practice controlling our Aether energy by resonating. Or…” His voice trailed off. Your heart broke listening to him.

“Did you make me a cake?” You heard him let out a breathy laugh. 

“Sort of. I could finally pick up things with my energy so… I stole cookies out of the vending machine down the hall. Couldn’t steal a candle though, but you still made a wish. You wished we could be free. And I made you a promise, that I would find a way for you to be free. I don’t remember much else from that night. Besides just holding you. And trying to figure a way out.” 

“And did you?” 

You finally turn slightly to look at him. He avoids your gaze. You lift his chin so his eyes meet yours. And your heart nearly stopped when you saw his red eyes were glazed over, tears threatening to spill out. 

“I did.” 

The rest of this story can be told later, you were desperate to see him smile again. You quickly change the direction of the conversation. 

“What happens if we find another Aether core or fragment? How does that help us?”

He presses your back lightly urging you to stand. He wraps his arm around you, helping you out of the bathtub. He takes a towel and starts drying you off gently. You raise your arms and turn in a circle for him, he chuckles. When you face him his smile has returned. 

“Well, it might strengthen our connection. Stabilize it. May change our evol or strengthen it.” You grab the new towel off the rack and he holds onto your hips as you dry him off.

“So was the protocore at the auction…” 

“It was a decoy. I have people testing it now. It was strange, the energy it gave off... It drained me. If it hadn’t been broken, I don’t like to think about what could have happened.” He leans in and starts placing kisses to your neck, you’ve stopped trying to dry him at this point leaning into his kisses.

“So we keep searching. We’re in this together, okay?” He cups your face in his hands. 

“Okay.” 

He takes the towel from your hands and tosses it on the counter. His hands slowly reach around you to grab your ass, he pulls you to him, his erection pressing against your stomach.

“Don’t you have a meeting in an hour?” Your voice is gruff as his hands squeeze.

“That’s more than enough time to fuck you senseless.” You let your head tip backwards, his lips pressing against your jaw. Your arms wrap around his neck.

“Promises. Promises.” 

He laughs, moving swiftly to pick you up and place you on the bathroom counter. He captures your lips with his. He presses your shoulders back to the mirror, you shift your ass forward and relax into the position. He pulls away from your lips bringing them down your neck, to your collarbone and over your breasts. He places a gentle kiss to your nipple before he takes the bud between his teeth, biting lightly. You grab onto the back of his neck.

“Sy!” 

You feel him smile against your skin before his lips continue down your body. He kneels with his head between your thighs. He drapes your legs over his shoulders and looks up at you with the slyest of grins. You’re about to give him an earful, but he sinks his face into you. His tongue pressing directly into your pussy with no hesitation, his nose pressed against your clit. Your eyes roll back and you gasp.

He speeds up his movements, rubbing his nose against your clit faster and faster. His tongue thrusts and swirls inside you, savoring every ounce of your arousal. He wastes no time, he has a meeting to get to after all.

Ding Ding

Sylus’s phone chimes on the other side of the room where your discarded clothes are. Sylus swears under his breath before rising to his feet, his chin and nose coated in your wetness. You let out a small whimper.

“I’m sorry kitten, there’s an emergency apparently.” He strides over to his jacket. And as frustrated as you are, you enjoy this view of his ass. Sylus retrieves his phone from his jacket pocket.

“What?” His voice is cold. 

The need for friction between your legs is nearly impossible to ignore. So, you decide not to ignore it. Your fingers find your clit and you start to trace circles, being more rough than usual, you stare at Sylus letting your desires fuel the speed. You moan quietly, but Sylus still hears you. He turns and looks at you, eyes wide as he realizes what you’re doing. 

“No no, I’m still here. Did he say why he wants to attend?” His voice is strained. Keeping it professional while watching you play with yourself is proving to be very challenging. 

You spread yourself open as your middle finger glides over your opening. Your long strokes gather your arousal. You finally push your finger into your pussy, feeling how wet you are pushes you to move your fingers faster against your clit. Your breathing is erratic and your legs twitch slightly, but your eyes are locked on Sylus. And from the look on his face, he looks as if he’s about to cum from just watching you. You slide another finger inside and a deep growl escapes your throat.

“I’m on my way.” Sylus says and hangs up quickly, dropping his phone on the clothes pile. 

He crosses the bathroom in a blink and places his hand over yours, putting more pressure against your clit. He buries his face into your neck and nibbles at the soft skin under your jaw. Stars cross your vision as you near your release. 

“Sy… I need to cum…” 

Sylus pulls your hand away and reaches down to place his leaking tip at your entrance. He rubs himself against your clit. 

“Say please.” Sylus whispers. His hand reaches up to wrap around your neck. As his grip tightens and your breath hitches, you wrap your legs around him.

“You’re the worst…” You mutter between gasps. Sylus pulls back and tries to move away from you. You throw your arms around him and dig your nails into his back.

“No no no… please please Sy… please…” Your words rushed and desperate. 

Sylus smirks before pushing into you, hard. Pleasure mixes with pain, as he starts to thrust into you rapidly. Your head presses back into the mirror and Sylus grunts at every thrust, feeling his hips slam against yours, a symphony of wet slaps fill the space around you. 

Ding ding

Sylus’ phone chimes again. Frustrated moans leave both you and Sylus’ mouth. Sylus’ pace never falters. He tucks his hands under your knees and pulls them upwards, placing your feet flat on the counter. He wraps his forearms around your thighs, using them as anchors. With your legs pushed closer to you, Sylus is able to dive deeper. Slamming against your deepest sweet spots. 

“Fuck-in he-hell…” Sylus mutters against your chest. 

Ding

Now it’s your phone ringing. Your fingernails dig into Sylus forearms, forcing Sylus to pull back and you pull him into a kiss, trapping him against you. His pace becomes more erratic and you feel every twitch of his cock as he unloads into you. Your release is not far behind, you break away from him and scream his name. Sylus holds onto your thighs, rocking your forward, working both of you through the peak of your joined climaxes.

Ding

Your phone rings again. Sylus finally pulls out, he places a gentle kiss on your forehead.

“I’ve got to get to this meeting, jackass arrived early and brought a special guest. I’ll bring back dinner, okay?” You nod and kiss him before he leaves to get dressed.

You hop off the counter and shuffle to your clothes to grab your phone. You place a towel on the vanity chair before sitting down. You finally open your messages.

(Dorian) Call me.  (Dorian) It’s urgent.

You press the call button and it rings only one time before Dorian picks up.

“You need to come to the office.” Dorian’s voice is cold and bitter.

“What’s going on?” You try to mentally prepare for Dorian’s latest tirade. 

“Sylus has been lying to you.” You roll your eyes. 

“Dorian, you’ve been suspicious since-” Dorian cuts you off.

“Onychinus is behind Ridgeway Liquors burning down.”

“What?”

“Sylus is Oni.”

Tag List (comment if you wanna be added!): @trishiepo0 @not-so-quite-human

When your slow burn story is too slow burn, so you do 2 spicy chapters back to back... maybe 3... Smile.

[stargalaxxy]

˚♡˚𖥔˖Insecure!Lloyd x Reader

𐙚 ‧₊˚ ⋅ Lloyd has me in a chokehold I SWEAR I CAN WRITE FOR OTHER CHARACTE- (๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧ I think I'm gonna try for a Zane fic but oml I have so many scenarios running through my head with Lloyd I'm not even joking ૮꒰ྀི⸝⸝> . <⸝⸝꒱ྀིა But on frfr this takes place after the movie Lloyd is still hated but that oki bcs we love himmm ( ˶˘ ³˘(ˊᗜˋ*)!♡ Garmadon comes for dinner bcs I want them to be a big happy family!!o( ˶^▾^˶ )o ⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪

˚𝜗𝜚˚⋆Now Playing: Dark Red by, Steve Lacy｡☆

✧˖°Imagine…✧˖°

  Insecure Lloyd is tired of being the hated boy in public eye, both in school and in Ninjago media. He has his team helping him and his sensei to calm his mind, as well as loving mother and somewhat now supportive overlord father that tries his best. But the stares of hatred that he gets, his extra mile of politeness that he forces out to not have people hate him more. The roll of eyes and groans he gets when he walks by a group of kids at school, and the constant berate that his friends get for being associated with him is unbearable.

  Insecure Lloyd, trying to find some light at the end of his tunnel. He should be grateful that he has a handful of friends or a loving mother, father, and uncle who are there to support him. But whenever he feels an ounce of happiness, just turning on the tv or phone to check social media instantly pummels his mood. Seeing videos of him sitting by himself at lunch and people making fun of him. Or being painted as a villain when he finally sticks up for himself from Chen, or just constant name calling from peers on school newsletters.

Insecure Lloyd just wants peace, a day that people like him, or even see him as the normal joe and show him a bit of stranger etiquette. He comes home drained shuffling to his room mumbling a hello to his mom and a nod to his father, that comes home for dinner. Laying his bag on the floor and falling face first into his pillow hoping the bad day would sink into his bed. Sometimes he wishes that he could do the same. Just sink in and never come out, but he knows that people don’t hate him for everything he does.

Insecure Lloyd finds peace when he’s out on patrol with his team doing ninja duties, hearing people excitedly look up at him as he beats up the next big villain brings purpose to his dark world. Seeing people post about his good deeds on social media is what makes him come back on the app. 

Seeing people idolize the Green Ninja gave insecure Lloyd the reason to get out of bed and deal with the people out in Ninjago city. 

Until he meets you,

You’re a transfer student from an all-girls boarding school. Used to living in a village in Jamanakai you weren’t used to a big city. It was overwhelming when students your age would come up to talk to you asking what it was like being in an all-girl school or to live in a small village. 

You spoke nervously as you tried to answer everyone in your class, the teacher seemed to notice and gives the grace of saving you. 

“Settle down class, I know a new student is exciting, so how about we show her around? For the first hour we have a free period. Do I have a volunteer to show our new friend around?” hands come flying up causing you to jump back. “Well, it seems we have plenty of volunteers~” your teacher sings as she smiles to you, “why don’t you pick, dear?” she pats your shoulder as she heads to her desk.

Oh geez,

You nervously scan the class as you didn’t want to upset or offend anyone with your picking. “Uh-um…” your eyes land randomly on a boy wearing a green hoodie staring out the window in the back of the class. You start walking up to him not seeming to have his attention yet as Lloyd didn’t expect anyone to approach him. 

“Uh-um, hi, can you show me around?” the class audibly gasp as even the teacher drops her coffee, you look around bewildered as Lloyd finally shoots up at the sudden shift in atmosphere.

Finally realizing you he looks around and points to himself unsure, “me?” you take a moment then nod your head assuring his uncertainty. Lloyd quickly gets up almost knocking down his chair, he curses nervously feeling he’s already making a bad impression. But when he looks up from steadying his chair, he sees your smile and a small chuckle that you try and hide behind your hand. 

It wasn’t a mocking laugh, or a pity smile, or fake! It was genuine, it made his cheeks warm and heart flutter. Puppy love visible in his eyes as he smiles at you as well nervously, when he finally gathers himself and walks out the classroom with you.

He shows you around the school and different rooms. It’s clubs and after school activities, at times Lloyd has to stop himself from taking second glances at you just to see your pretty smile, he’s never felt like this with anyone. 

You’re the first person to show him genuine kindness, sure you didn’t know him for who he was and relationship to his father. But that didn’t matter to him he just wants to talk to you more, so he boldly asks for your schedule, you smile as you hand it to him, peaking over his shoulder to see him scan your classes and lunch periods. His heart was gonna jump from his chest if you keep pressing against him.

“Oh, we have the same lunch!” he spoke a bit too excitedly as he shuts his mouth, you giggle, “really! That’s cool! Maybe we can talk some more during lunch!” it felt more like a question as you weren’t sure if Lloyd would be up for more of you. As you did choose him when he didn’t volunteer so you were hoping you weren’t getting on his nerves.

“Y-yea! I-I mean sure I don’t mind, sounds cool” he gives finger guns as starts walking backwards giving a nervous smile, when he turns around to stop facing you, he face palms himself. “That sounds great!” you follow him back to class noticing as free period was about to end, “Hey what’s your name?” you tilt your head to look at Lloyd’s blushing face as he finally lifts his head to face you. “I-It’s Lloyd” he plays with his hoodies string absentmindedly as he looks away from the corner of his eyes, you nod as you play with his name on your tongue.

“Okay, Lloyd! My names (y/n) let’s be friends!” smiling you walk beside him to class in comfortable silence. Lloyd however was racing thoughts in his head, a friend, he has a new friend! His smile gets bigger as he happily walks with a pep in his step alongside you. 

He never wants this feeling to go away!

You two spend more and more of your time together, both inside and outside of school. Lloyd is surprised at the fact of how you still don’t know about his reputation of being an overlord son.

You guys have been hanging out for a few months and nothing, the odd glares and flash of media that goes over your head you don’t ever notice. Or do you just not care?

Whatever it is Lloyd wants to keep it that way, 

“Hey, (y/n)! do you want to go and get some coffee?” Lloyd suggests as he stands by your locker. The school day had ended early for the beginning of spring break, “yea, I’m dying for something sweet~” you hum as you shut your locker having the last of your belongings before heading out with Lloyd.

“Mmm, but what about your friends? Don’t you have plans with them?” you met Lloyd’s friends the same week you met Lloyd, he introduced you to them and you all got attached to each other. 

“Oh, I’ll meet with them later” he shrugs and continues, you smile and grab your phone. “Okay, well my mom is asking for me, but it’ll totally be quick, I can message you when I’m done, and we can head to the café!” you hold out your phone showing your contact. It took Lloyd a moment to register what you said until he connects the dots, “y-you want my number?” he stutters out in disbelief his heart once again coming back to life.

“Yea! I-is that okay?” you nervously retract your phone in fear of overstepping, but in lightning speed Lloyd pulls out his phone and lets it scan your contact instantly putting in your number and information. 

You laugh as you both continue to walk,” Okay, Lloyd, I’ll see you then!” you hop onto your bus as you wave to him at the window. Lloyd looks down to his phone seeing your photo and number his cheeks grow red as he turns around a beat of excitement rushes through his body as he jumps.

Not caring if people stared or grumbled at Lloyd’s happiness, he could care less. Because now he had the girl of his dreams number!

After exchanging numbers, you and Lloyd would text nonstop, either about comics and manga, or new anime. Video games that were coming out, and new movies to see, it would go on to late at night to the morning before you guys would make plans to meet each other. He was constantly glued to his phone when you guys were a part,

“Uhp, there he goes again..” Jay teases as his team watches Lloyd take down a bad guy and sends a quick text to you,

“What, It’s my mom!” Lloyd shouts as he dodges another attack.  “Oh, yea when my mom calls, I send kissy faces to her~” Kai puckers his lips under his masks making kissing noises as the team laughs through the coms, Lloyd groans and rolls his eyes as they finally take down the last guy. 

“But seriously Lloyd, you’ve been getting distracted” Nya pops up behind him making Lloyd jump at her sudden appearance before sighing in defeat.

“Sorry, I don’t mean to bring you guys down.” Lloyd apologizes as his team comes around, “No way man, It’s awesome!” Kai shouts as he runs over to Lloyd as well, “seeing you happy and not mopey is great!” Kai continues as the team nods, “Yes, I as well have noticed your increase in mood Lloyd.” Zane drags the bad guys together as Cole ties them up nodding along silently. 

Lloyd blushes under his mask as he thanks the FSM that his friends can’t see, “so, who is she~” Kai slides up beside him as he wraps an arm around Lloyd who huffs a smile at his friends teasing. 

“No one just someone I met.” Lloyd tries to play it off as if they didn’t know who Lloyd spends majority of his time with.

“It is (y/n)” Zane interjects as if solving the riddle, Lloyd groans as his team giggles and ooo’s fall from their mouths. “haha! Yes!” Kai hops happily as they walk out from the alley to drop off the bad guys at the police station, “I knew it!” Nya adds on to her brother’s excitement as Jay smiles and Cole laughs. 

“How’d you know?” Lloyd jumps along the roofs with his team, “it’s not hard to piece you guys together, I mean c’mon man” Kai looks back as he grabs onto a pole to sit on dangling his legs.

He then flips back to see Lloyd who was upside down, “You two are always together” Kai grins as Lloyd pushes past him Kai pulls himself up as he continues. 

“You guys are so cute~” Jay coos as he too joins in on the teasing making Lloyd roll his eyes,  “Alright I get it, I suck at hiding my feelings” Lloyd huffs as they finally reach the police station and drop the criminals on an unsuspecting cop. He jumps in surprise until he looks up seeing the ninja turn back to the monastery,

“Suck at it? Dude your terrible!” Cole finally speaks as the team laughs at his joke, “ahhaha, you guys are hilarious” Lloyd grumbles as they finally take a break when they got far enough from the city.

Kai grips Lloyd’s shoulder removing his mask, “when are you gonna confess?” Kai had on a smirk not seeing Lloyd’s face drop under his mask and heart sinking. 

“Wh-what, no. no way, I can’t confess! She’ll hate me and she doesn’t even know who I am” Jay stops Lloyd’s ramble with his own shock, “she doesn’t know you’re a ninja!” Cole then comes beside him and smacks his head. “No dummy, Lloyd being Garmadons son.” Jay rubs his head from the heavy hit as Lloyd looks back, “well that too,” Jay sticks out his tongue at Cole as the earth ninja raises his fist to hit him again.

“No way, she’s totally into you, you guys are like attached to the hip” Kai wraps his arm around Lloyd taking off his mask finally seeing Lloyd’s emotions,

“But what if she doesn’t!” his anxiety was at its peak thinking about you rejecting him as he’d be losing you as not a lover but as a friend.

Kai looks away to try and find the right words landing on Nya who looked just as lost as he was. “Well, Nya you hang out with (y/n) all the time in science. What does she say about Lloyd” Nya hums in a hiding tone, “sorry that’s classified girl talk, I’d be tarnished as a woman to share (y/n) secrets” Kai huffs as he walks to Nya, “couldn’t tell, your more manly than me~” Kai teases being an older brother again as Nya laughs with him then splashes his face with water with an unamused expression.

Lloyd looks to the ground as Zane shuffles his way into the chaos, “what do you think Zane, do I have any chance with (y/n)?” Lloyd asks as a last-ditch effort. He watches Zane’s eyes glow and his body convulsing as it finds an answer to Lloyd’s question. 

“Calculating…” after a short second a ‘ding!’ sounds off, stating that Zane was done calculating. A piece of paper files from Zane’s mouth as the ninja gather around Lloyd. 

99%

“Hey that’s great!” Kai shouts as Jay and Cole pat Lloyd’s shoulder in congratulations, “What’s wrong Lloyd?” Nya tilts her head as she noticed Lloyd wasn’t as happy as the rest were. 

“It’s ninety nine percent.” Lloyd states as facts, “yea, perfect chance to me” Kai smiles as Nya shushes him letting Lloyd talk,

“That one percent, anything can happen in that one percent of me confessing to (y/n)” Zane nods as he interjects, “Lloyd is correct, (y/n) can find many reasons to not share intimate feelings with you, she could find out your relation to Garmadon, she could have a hatred for ninja. Or she could be attracted to the same sex.” “Hey Zane?” 

“Yes Nya-“ 

“Not helping.” 

Nya quickly shuts Zane up as they notice Lloyds defeated look, “Lloyd of course anything can happen, but you gotta look at the positive. There are plenty of reason why she could accept your confession!” his team nods,

“you’re both reader dorks!”

“She talks nonstop about you!”

“You both are together all the time.”

“You both are very cute together.”

“Calculations do not lie, Lloyd.” 

He looks up to his friends as he finally breaks for a small smile, “thanks guys, I guess, I just feel like. I finally have someone that I like outside of friends and family, it feels different when I look at them. I want to be by their side, and I want them to feel the same way that I do. I just don’t want to lose the only outside support that I truly have with her.” Lloyd’s friends start to hug him, “aww buddy” Jay squishes himself into the hug as Zane even joins in hearing the groans and heaves from his tight hold.

“But thanks, you guys. I really appreciate the words.” Lloyd huffs out as he was caught in the middle of a group hug. His friends laugh at his struggle as they finally loosen up, “no problem, man!” Kai pats his shoulder with a grin as Cole nods, “yea, we’re here for you!” “Always Lloyd.” Nya smiles kindly as Jay nods.

“Alright let’s head back before sensei gives us chores to do for being late.” Kai starts walking as the group follows,

“I’m hungry” Jay huffs at Cole, “You’re always hungry!”

Later that night Lloyd continues to text you when he got home, when he sits for dinner, his dad was with him. Garmadon coming home for dinner wasn’t new, after settling some things Koko felt comfortable enough to let him back into their lives. If he promises to not try and take over the city,

They negotiated once month takeover attempts.

Lloyd takes one last glance at his phone as he swoons seeing the last text of the night from you,

“’Goodnight! : )’”

Of course it wasn’t much to the average person, but every time Lloyd saw your good morning texts or goodnight texts. He’d feel so happy that you would take the time to wish him a good night.

It was obvious to Garmadon that his son was in his own space calling it la la land to Koko thinking his son was possessed when he would come home with a huge smile. But his ex-lover would only shake her head and grin at him and state he was in love, 

Garmadon squints his eyes at his son who was mixing his food with that same smile on his face.

He was glad that his son was happy, he just didn’t know how to communicate with him that was appropriate. Being out of the loop as a father for seventeen years has had him catching up on some things.

Garmadon whines to Koko stating his son wasn’t cool anymore going on as now all he wants to do is be on his phone, Koko puts a hand on her hip as she watches the feared overlord pout under her as he laid on the tile floor.

“You should talk to him then, get to know the girl he’s talking to and give advice, y’know like how a dad would.” Koko turns to cut vegetables for dinner as Garmadon hums as if pondering on Koko’s foreign words. He instantly gets up as if have a eureka moment. 

“Hmm, Yea, I’ll give him advice!” Koko hums as Garmadon looks for something else to do, she finally snaps from her trance, “w-wait, Garmadon no you suck at advice!” 

But too late, his mind was set as when Lloyd came home from patrol he would talk to him during dinner,

And here they were. Lloyd in front of Garmadon still playing with his food, Garmadon clears his throat causing Lloyd to look up arching a brow over his cowlick. 

“So, your mother has told me you’re interested in someone.” His bottom hands fold together as if having an important meeting with one of his generals, Lloyd groans, “ugh, mom dad’s bothering me!” Lloyd calls as Garmadon stands over the table in shock, “wha- nu-uh!” Lloyd squints at his father as he sinks into his chair as if to get away from an embarrassing conversation.

“Garmadon, don’t make me get the broom.” Koko calls from the kitchen, “Wha-but I didn’t do! He-“ Garmadon huffs as he flops back down on his chair giving up as he looks to his son again who was now eating quickly.

“I just notice how…happy you seem, that’s all” Lloyd stops shoveling food in his mouth as he swallows, taking in his father’s words, seeing Lloyd stops Garmadon takes the chance to continue. “I…enjoy it when I see you happy, I hope you continue to feel this way.” Garmadon peaks to see Lloyd’s smile. Lloyd knew his dad was trying to make up for lost years, and every effort he made caused Lloyd to want to be near him. 

“Thanks dad” Garmadon takes a moment to process as a smile grows on the overlords’ lips, it was a toothy happy smile. The genuine enjoyment of his son thanking him and calling him dad.

“y-you’re welcome…son” Garmadon looks down at his plate as he scratches the table his smile still big.

There was a comfortable silence between the two, the only noises were the scrapes of Lloyd’s fork on his plate. 

“So, was that her texting?” Garmadon breaks it with more questions Lloyd sighs “yea, it was… she texted me ‘goodnight’” there was that la la land smile again as Garmadon hummed as if thinking of something that was upsetting him. He wanted to keep the comment to himself, but it slipped out,

“hm, probably to text other guys.” He mumbles out sassily,

And down went Lloyd’s mood plummeting, Koko wasn’t far as an audible gasp sounded from the kitchen fueling Lloyd’s sudden appropriate change of mood.

“Garmadon! Why did you say that you idiot!” Koko instantly got her spatula and smacked the back of Garmadon’s head. 

“Ack! What it’s true! It’s 7:30pm what person goes to bed at this hour?” Garmadon rubs his head as he squints at Koko, 

“People that have lives and don’t spend all night scheming to take over a CITY!!” Koko screeches her frustrations at her idiotic ex-husband as Lloyd slips under the table hearing another thwack and a groan from the overlord.

Later that night Lloyd sat in his room staring down at his phone, the ‘goodnight’ stared right back at him.

He sighs as he turns over, staring up at his ceiling, he drags his hands down his face with a groan thinking back on his dad’s words. He really had no filter, knowing this Lloyd probably should’ve expected something like that to fly out his mouth.

But damn did it hit hard.

Were you really texting other people?

He wouldn’t blame you if you were though, Lloyd thought about so many reasons as to why you would.

He could be boring you,

Annoying you, 

You might’ve wanted to talk to someone that didn’t have red eyes,

Or sharp teeth or was the son of an overlord.

Insecure Lloyd being insecure again. He forces his hands down as a tired sigh escapes his lips again as he rolls over one last time to go to sleep. 

Closing his eyes, he thinks of anything that would be better than this, anything that will take his mind off his constant worrying and sinking pit feelings.

Or the anticipation in his heart for you to text him again. But those were only thoughts, so he decides to sleep to continue his bullishness thoughts-

‘briing’ ‘briing’

Lloyd’s eyes shot up as he lifts his body up to search for his phone that was under the covers, looking down at it he sees your contact. He pauses for a moment as he ruffles his hair squinting at his phone as if the bright light was lying to him about who was calling. 

He clears his throat, he has never spoken to you on the phone before, but he knew his phone was ringing a bit too long so instead of worrying he slides the green dial and answers the phone.

“…Hello?”

“h-hey, Lloyd” it’s like Lloyd could hear your smile, as in turn he as well, the dark clouds disperse as he lays back down.

“Hey.” He couldn’t say anything else but a greeting, so happy that you called him, you giggle on the other line sending him soaring to cloud nine. 

“’m sorry for calling you, I didn’t know who else to call.” Lloyd could hear something moving in the background, were you now getting into bed?

“No no, it’s fine. I thought you were going to bed?” he inhales deeply as he turns over putting his phone on speaker, but still low enough so it didn’t wake his mom who was next door.

“I was, but I couldn’t” it was too vague for Lloyd to understand,

“What?” he asks as he hears a soft sigh fall from the other line, once again he hears fiddling in the background. Were you nervous about something?

“(y/n), is everything okay?” Lloyd asks unsure if he should be worried about your sudden call.

“n-no! everything is fine. I’m sorry, I’m just being stupid” you laugh softly, 

“Don’t say that, you’re not stupid, at least, you can’t be more stupid than me~” he jokes as you both quietly laugh.

Your laughter dies down, “…you’re smart too, especially in history” Lloyd’s face turns pinks as he hums. “You’re not bad at science” he compliments as well, 

You huff, “I tryy” you whine as Lloyd chuckles. “So, why did you call me again?” there was a pause on the other end.

It was long to where Lloyd thought you had hung up,

“I just, really wanted to hear your voice.”

It was simple, your voice quiet to where if Lloyd hadn’t paid attention, he would’ve missed it. But he heard it, and so did his heart. 

“Oh.” Was all he could say, his face red and heart stuttering, butterflies running wild and head spinning. 

“S-sorry, I don’t sleep well by myself, I used to call my friend, but she isn’t available. S-so I thought, maybe you’d be up. I just really wanna talk to someone, I don’t want to be alone.”

Like a river it came flowing down, your face completely red as you squeaked out each word. Wishing that Lloyd had that on recording just so he could hear each word repeated.

“Oki, let’s talk” Lloyd spoke so calmly as if his face wasn’t about to explode if you said anything else his heart might explode with it. 

“Oki” your smile grows bigger, “how is your night?” you ask starting conversation, Lloyd grins,

“It’s better now that you called.”

You guys have been talking for hours, mainly Lloyd leading with things that he likes, it got deeper as you both spoke about fears. Even Lloyd shed some light to his insecurities, it made him feel better to confide in someone to talk about what he worries about and for them to do the same. It was as if you two were taking each other’s garbage and throwing it out together, soon Lloyd is quiet for a little bit a comfortable silence hits the both of you. 

It was going on for a while as Lloyd assumed you went to sleep, your phone then hangs up. Lloyd had heard feet walking into your room and an older women’s voice presuming to be your mom stating how you must have fallen asleep on the phone.

Lloyd smiles down at his phone as he too closes his eyes, warm and fluffy feelings enter his chest. Falling asleep he decides to call you tomorrow morning to wish you a good morning text this time.

AAAA I finisheddd hehehe ( ◡̀_◡́)ᕤ oki but frfr I hope you guys enjoyed I love seeing you guys like my other posts like it said it really motivates me to continue ᯓᡣ𐭩 ⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪ Love, ⋆˚࿔ Karrots 𝜗𝜚˚⋆

[bealorelai]

Lloyd Garmadon x Clousedaughter!reader

Lloyd's first meet with Clouse’ daughter before the Tournament of Elements.

part 2

Being Clouse’s daughter, never was easy. The burden of her father's demands that she has to become like him, to be able to wield dark magic and rule over Ninjago City. That's why he sent his daughter to the Tournament of Elements. Because he knows she will win, knows that with her power inherited from him, she is able to defeat the rest of the competitors and rule dark magic.

And she? She wants to live up to her father's expectations. She wants him to be proud of her. But little did she knows, that the day her paths crossed with Lloyd Garmadon, until then, she has to decide who she wanna be.

Now she stands on the ship next to Skylar, leaning on the railings and looking out to sea. She still can't believe that she let her father convince her to participate in the Tournament of Elements. She thought that since she already had the ability to control dark magic, why should she participate in some stupid games where most of the players would probably either die or become Master Chen's subjects. And because she doesn't want both, so against her will, she agreed to it. And her father seems to be proud of her…

Atleast that was she thinks..

She turned around when she heard footsteps and voices behind her. Adjusting her hood, she looked at the 6 men, 5 of whom were obviously around her and Skylar’s age, and the 6th looked to be an older man at least in his 30s, judging by his grey hair and the wrinkles on his face. She raised an eyebrow when she noticed one of the boys, with strange gelled hair and a red outfit, throwing flirtatious glances at her bestriend. “Seems like you’ve got an admirer, Skylar…” She teases and giggles quietly.

Skylar just rolled her eyes. “Ha. Ha. Ha, hilarious as always…”

However, they both let out a surprised gasps when suddenly a tall man with a beard and huge steel gloves grabbed Skylar by the arm and shook her. "Hey, Hey... Step back, will you? Can't you see we're trying to rest?" She raised an eyebrow, standing straight in front of the man.

Imagine her surprise when Karlof grabbed her by the arm and threw her along the ship, causing her back to hit a wooden pillar so hard, that she knows she’ll have huge bruises along her spine.

She looks up, seeing that the man who was ogling her bestfriend, now starts fighting with the metal man. She groans frustrated trying to stand up, but was quickly stopped by strong hands keeping her on the ground. She frowns.

“Get off me, blondie.” She rolls her eyes trying to gets up, but the man stopped her again. “What the fuck is your problem, go get your man before Karlof kills him, bitch”

The Green Ninja just sighs still keeping his hands on her shoulders. He knows well, she won’t be able to stand up because of how hard she hit her back against the pillar. But for now, he can only imagine her pain and be glad that he is not in her place.

“He can handle himself, don’t you worry bout him. Are you okay? You hit yourself pretty hard…” He tease, cannot help himself. If she wants to be sassy, he can too.

“No, im totally fine, you know? Its a common for me to be throwed by some metal fuckass. I like it rough, I guess.” She groans again as she leaned against the green ninja to stand up.

She just rolled her eyes as she watched the battle between the fire master and the steel master grow fierce. They had barely sailed out and these men were already asking for death.

Concentrating her powers, both men were suddenly grabbed by dark purple tentacles, which she controlled with her hands and threw them to the floor, giving them no chance to escape. She just chuckles to herself, as she watches them trying to escape.

“Enough!” A loud voice shouted, and the blonde immediately stopped using magic, retreating back and bowing her head down. She didn't have to look to know it was her father's voice. A voice, filled with hatred and contempt towards others. Towards Her. “We’re here! Welcome to Chen’s Island..”

He pointed to the island emerging from behind the fog, and the others went to the railings to get a better look. But she stood, and when she raised her head, she only swallowed hard as she stared at her father.

“We've barely arrived and you're already showing off your skills... Save the best for later, daughter..." He says, patting her on the shoulder and walking away, leaving her alone with the ninjas.

Shaking her head, she straightened up ignoring the pain in her back and began to slowly walk away, wanting to get to the island as soon as possible and rest. But she heard a voice behind her, and as she turned around, her eyes landed on the green ninja who had wanted to help her earlier.

"At least tell me your name?!" He shouted, smiling slightly in her direction, not wanting to show that the stranger girl intrigued him. A lot.

“The less you know the better…” She whispers, walking towards her father and disappearing behind the wall, leaving the surprised ninjas behind.

“She’s Clouse daughter?!” Jay shouted, waving his arms dramatically, and Cole rolled his eyes at his best friend's behavior.

“She is, and better stay away from her, Lloyd.” Garmadon says, walking past him. “Semms like shes just like her father. I dont want you to be involved with her, understand? She looks like trouble, and we dont need them again…”

But Garmadon knows his son and can already tell that Lloyd will not stop until he gets to know her.

hello, I don't even know if it's grammatically correct, but okay. I wanted to give a chapter that would give some insight into how they met. I can't write chapters like that so dont hate pookies 😔☝🏻 xoxo reblog and like pls!!!

taglist: @dreamayy

[fluentmoviequoter]

S.O.S.

TO!Tim Bradford x fem!TO!reader, fluff, 0.8k+ words. You and Tim are in grave danger, and it's up to your rookies, Lucy and Jackson, to save you.

Lucy Chen SOS!!!!!!!!!!🆘 

Nolan and Jackson look at one another, wondering why Lucy is texting them an SOS from the bathroom. She rushes back before they can stand from the table to see if she really needs help. 

“Code red, worst case scenario, this should be the standard for defcon 1,” she rambles as she leans against the table. 

“Uh… there was no toilet paper?” Nolan guesses. 

“Do you know what SOS means?” Lucy questions. 

“Save our ship,” Jackson says. His eyes widen suddenly, and he adds, “No.”

“What am I missing here?” Nolan implores. “Is this about your TOs or something?”

“Yes!” Lucy and Jackson answer. 

“She’s on a date. Here. It doesn’t look like it’s going well, but I think Tim knows,” Lucy tells Jackson. 

“Why does your TO being on a date have anything to do with Tim?” Nolan asks Jackson. 

“Because they… they’re great for each other and dancing around it. They’re the perfect ship.”

“My head hurts,” Nolan complains as he lowers his forehead into his hands. 

“What do we do?” Lucy poses. 

“You said the date wasn’t going well?” Jackson repeats. “We can use that.”

“What?” Tim says when the call connects. 

“Tim, uh, there’s this guy at the restaurant we’re at that is not being nice to his date. At all,” Lucy explains. 

“And? Do something about it,” Tim replies. 

“He’s with my TO,” Jackson adds. 

“Which restaurant?” Something shuffles on Tim’s end of the call, and Lucy silently high-fives Jackson as she answers. 

“Tell her the truth, Tim,” she encourages before ending the call. 

You examine your fingernails under the table as your date tells you how terrible his last girlfriend was. One of your friends set you up on this date, but you’re seconds away from walking out. 

“One little slap - accidental! - and she stormed out,” the man concludes. 

You look up then, shocked as you repeat, “Slap? You hit a woman and you’re telling me about it?”

“I wouldn’t do it to you,” he promises. 

You exhale sharply in disbelief, then move your napkin from your lap onto the table. Before you can say anything, your date reaches across the table and takes your hand tightly. 

“Sir, you can’t be in this area without a table,” the hostess calls.

Tim runs into your table, sees the grip the man has on your hand, and demands, “Let her go.”

You pull your hand away when his fingers loosen, then stand and wrap your hand around Tim’s bicep. 

“Let’s go,” you whisper. “He’s not worth it.”

“I’d have to agree, sir,” the hostess says. “Please don’t disturb the other customers.”

Tim looks at you and stares into your eyes to ensure you’re okay. He turns toward you after you nod, catching your hand as it falls from his arm. He leads you out of the restaurant but stops beside his passenger door. 

“Thank you,” you tell him. “I don’t even know why I agreed to the date.”

“Did he hurt you?”

“No, no. He hurt his ex from what he told me, but-“

“I don’t care about her, or him,” Tim says, carefully holding your face toward his. “I care about you.”

“How did you even find me?”

Tim sighs, and you laugh once before shaking your head at his lack of an answer. Tim uses his hands on your jaws to pull you close, and when he kisses you, everything makes sense. All the longing, the fear of seeing each other in danger, the arguments, and the lack of interest in anyone because you compare them to Tim Bradford suddenly allow you to realize that you love him. You move your hands to hold his wrists as you move with him, kissing him like your life depends on it. 

“Thanks for coming,” you whisper as you move back. 

“I always will.”

“Are you going to tell me how you found me?”

“Lucy called,” Tim mumbles. 

“What was that?”

“Our rookies are nosy,” he speaks up. 

You smile, straightening Tim’s collar as you agree, “I should’ve known. How are we going to get back at them? Push-ups? Big staged break up?”

“Let’s figure it out later,” Tim replies as he opens the car door for you. “I think you’re owed a good date.”

Inside the restaurant, Lucy and Jackson cheer as you kiss Tim. 

“You know they’ll make you pay for this,” Nolan reminds them. 

“Unless they’re so happy they forget about us and the misery they think we deserve,” Jackson argues. 

“Your TO? Maybe. Tim Bradford? Not a chance.”

Lucy’s smile drops, and she falls into her seat. “I saved our ship, but endangered my soul.”

“You’ll be fine,” Jackson assures. “Just bring her up every time he’s mean and you’ll be fine.”

“Leverage,” Lucy muses. “It could work.”

“And if it doesn’t, just lie that she’s in danger. It’s worked before,” Nolan adds. 

Lucy and Jackson watch him eat a bite of their shared appetizer before asking, “Have you done that?”

“It’s not just your ship.”