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[heegyukeluv]

If love was a battlefield…

pairing: heeseung x afab reader x jake

synopsis: If love was a battlefield, could there be more than one winner? In which Heeseung and Jake work in the same company as you, both of them sharing the same position and the same feelings: their huge crush on you.

my's note: i had so much fun working on this plot honestlyyyy and it was a bit of a challenge (in a good way!!!) since i had to learn a bunch of terms in english to write it and also my first love triangle 🤭🤭 THANK YOU SO MUCH ANONIE FOR THE REQUEST!!! also wanna thank mika for helping me brainstorming! a few scenes from here came from our talks 💘🤭

warnings: office workers heejake, y/n is in a higher position than them (manager), miscommunication to some extent, love triangle (but she does chooses! [spoiler alert] maybe both? hehe), hee and jake doesn’t get along too much at first (ps: they DON’T hate each other) but they come around!, quick mention of hee having a tattoo, there’s fluff, reader blushing/turning red! and SMUT - so minors DO NOT interact!, protected sex 💪🏻, unprotected sex (please, don't!!!), oral sex (f. receiving), quick handjob, sex in the office, the smut is jake x reader and heeseung x reader, there's no threesome!, jake has praise kink, hee is lowkey into degradation (receiving). LMK if missed anything!!!

request: an office or work space love triangle of heeseung x reader/oc x jake (you can pick which one the reader leans more towards or not✨or both✨) either way!!! (request here!)

wc: 24k

NOT PROOFREAD.

taglist 💖: @yvnempire, @marigold-sunflowers

Of course the printer would select that very specific day to malfunction, jamming the paper with its irritating noise that signaled another reset was needed, despite all your attempts to fix the problem. 

A wave of frustration washed through your body as you stepped back, taking a deep breath and fluttering your eyes shut in order to find any inner peace that might help you go through a simple routine task.

It wasn't just the clients pushing your buttons with their impossible deadlines, the entire work environment seemed to be against you, targeting you with its devilish plans. Everything that could go wrong, did.

You had little to no hope of getting better until your head rested on your pillow later that day. Unfortunately, there was still a whole six hours waiting for your irreplaceable presence. Being a manager had its perks, nonetheless, the down sides haunted you even in your dreams.

“Tough day?”

You startled at the sudden voice beside you, opening your eyes just to catch Jake sending you a curious glance, layered with a hint of comprehension. A ghost of a smile adorned his plump lips, his demeanor showed helpfulness, ready to assist. As usual.

“Some clients make the worst decisions and I’m the one cleaning their mess.” You began, exhaustion lacing your voice. “And some printers just hate me.” And then you shoot Jake an unamused smile.

Jake chuckled, his eyes turning into small crescents as he did so.

“May I?” He asked, gesturing towards the printer. You nodded, stepping aside to give him space to work. He began with the basics, checking for any simple errors. “It’s not running out of paper,” he pointed out quietly.

“Yeah…” You sighed and rested your body on the wall nearby. You had gone through everything Jake was doing.

“It doesn’t seem to be here. The problem.” He remarked, slightly confused.

You took a moment to observe how Jake’s concentrated frown deepened while he typed something on the computer, searching for the cause of the error. He nonchalantly played with his lips, wetting and biting them as he focused, his sharp eyes glued to the screen, slender fingers dancing across the keyboard.

You never paid close attention to how attractive Jake looked, especially while working – his light blue dress shirt and mandatory tie enhanced his pronounced features, complemented by his everyday black specs. 

Of course you thought Jake was handsome, any person in their right sense would. And his beauty was accompanied with his remarkable personality. He had a genuine, warm, prestative soul, ready to lend a hand whenever people needed him, and it was clear there was no expectation to receive anything in return as he did so.

Jake had unmatched intelligence and quick senses to discover easily what went wrong, and even his clumsiness, constantly dropping his pile of papers or having his glasses misplaced on the top of his nose’s bridge had its charm.

You never considered the possibility of Jake’s charming side. Nonetheless, there you were, unprofessionally checking out your colleague while hoping for a miracle.

“There you go!” Jake’s cheerful voice brought you back to reality, your heart racing in surprise.

“Did you fix it?” You questioned with a hopeful tone.

“Let’s see.” Jake replied and then pressed a few buttons.

To your surprise, the printer emitted its usual sound instead of the annoying one, smoothly pulling the paper and delivering it back, fully printed with your work’s documents.

“Jake! What the hell!” You exclaimed, mouth agape and eyebrows furrowed in bewilderment, a bright and genuine smile started to creep on the corner of your mouth as you looked back and forth between Jake and the printer. “What did you do?” You asked under your breath, still astonished with Jake’s quick and excellent skills. It felt like you could finally breathe again.

And it was just a malfunctioning printer. 

“I just–”

“You know what? It doesn’t matter.” You waved it off, too relieved to finally continue with your very busy day – the few minutes the printer had stolen from you would certainly be missed. “Thank you so much.” You flashed him a sincere smile.

“It was nothing, really.” He chuckled at your overreaction, in no position to admit out loud he was loving to be the cause of your sudden euphoria. Deep down he was fighting the urge to blush, fluster before you.

“How can I properly thank you for saving my day?” You joked with a grin, thrilled with the small victory as you took your papers in hand.

Your demeanor had lightened, and you couldn't quite tell if it was due to the relief of the printer working again or Jake's presence beside you. Either way, you felt a pleasant warmth spreading in your chest.

However, to receive Jake’s silence, widened eyes and cheeks with a faint blush as a response caught you off guard, along with his sudden nervousness as he fidgeted with his fingers, as though he prepared himself during his whole life for that exact moment. 

“So, uh…” He began, voice shaky, fingers trailing its way towards his nape to scratch it while his eyes avoided yours. 

“Yeah?” You prompted, curiously waiting for his words.

“I've been waiting to tell you something. I–I know we have a policy about it, and you're the last person I’d expect to break it, but–”

“Oh, hey Y/N!”

You turned to see another colleague of yours approaching with his characteristic bright, enchanting smile, carrying a cup of coffee in his hand, a sharp gaze never leaving yours as he confidently brought his strong aura closer to you both. 

“Hi, Heeseung.” You greeted with a smile, oblivious to the subtle change in the atmosphere between them.

“Jake.”

“Heeseung.” Jake’s voice was dry when he replied and a thick silence lingered for a moment before Heeseung flashed you an adorable smile and walked away without any other words.

You barely noticed Jake's clenched jaw and fists, or how he seemed ready to throw punches right in front of you if Heeseung didn’t return to his desk quickly.

“So you were saying..?” You asked, innocently drawing your attention back to Jake’s and consequently bringing his own towards you; his puppy eyes softened when they landed on your pretty features.

Jake’s heart immediately faltered a ton of beats as if he was about to collapse; having you looking at him so attentively was making his circuits crash, sending his brain into overdrive. 

All the courage he reunited to confess to you vanished in a snap.

“It was nothing, don't worry about it!” He forced his best cheerful smile. “You seem to have a lot to do! Fighting, Y/N!”

You giggled at his choice of terms, tapping on his shoulder slightly before you started to head your way back to your office room. 

“Thank you again, Jake.”

You offered him another smile, filled with genuine gratitude since he truly helped your day not to fall in shambles. And apparently, not only by helping your beef with the printer. 

On the other hand, Jake’s day just started to collapse. 

He headed back to his desk in the space he shared with a few co-workers and Lee Heeseung, one of the best employees the company had ever had since they started. The problem solving efficiency increased enormously during his time working there, and Jake had a not-so-soft spot for him in his heart. Jake viewed Heeseung as one of his greatest rivals. Not exactly in a mean way, but as a manner to motivate his improvement and outsmart himself each day, ensuring that his presence was felt just as strongly as Heeseung’s.

In Jake’s eyes, Heeseung had an annoying vibe, overconfident with his work and himself, although he knew Heeseung wasn’t an asshole at all. Deep down, Jake harbored a certain envy of how easily Heeseung seemed to connect with people; his charisma shone within every word, his confidence made others feel secure – and, depending on the context, a bit shy.

On that day, nevertheless, a nagging doubt about his co-worker motives during their earlier interaction was swelling in his chest. If he stayed quiet, not confronting Heeseung about it, he wouldn’t be able to focus on doing his job adequately.

“Ok, so what was that about?” Jake finally asked with a mild peeved voice. 

“What was what ab–”

“Don't.” Jake's fierce eyes shot Heeseung a warning while tilting his head. “Don't mess around. Just spill it out.”

Heeseung quirked an eyebrow in amusement after seeing the so said calm guy acting a bit off. 

“I was saving your ass.” Heeseung replied, a casual grin on his face as if he had just shared the most mundane, obvious fact.

Jake rolled his eyes, sighing and definitely not buying the nonchalance while turning his rolling chair towards Heeseung.

“And how exactly my ass needs to be saved, Heeseung?” he pressed, his voice low and serious with an elbow propped on the edge of his table.

“You seemed to be in trouble.” Heeseung shot back immediately, shrugging, avoiding Jake’s intense gaze.

Heeseung wasn't too open about his reasons because, honestly, he was still unsure of what had compelled him to interfere in the conversation, since you seemed to be beaming with happiness and Jake was just his normal, awkward self talking to you.

Something itched at the back of his confused thoughts, so he had to take action.

“I wasn’t.” Jake murmured, his jaw clenched as he turned back to his computer, fingers furiously typing on his keyboard. “Next time, ask beforehand if I really need your savior's help.” He said mockingly, voice dripping with sarcasm. “I was just about to confess and you totally screwed up my chances.”

Heeseung blinked a few times, immediately freezing in his seat, utterly flabbergasted. He had a faint, minor suspicion hinting that Jake was onto something he couldn't quite grasp. But this? This was the last thing he expected at all.

Heeseung had to bite back his own sharp and far from nice words in order to maintain a good relationship with Jake – and, consequently, with you.

“I mean, we have policies and rules...” Heeseung managed to say in return, ignoring the bittersweet taste on his tongue going all the way down his throat to sit uncomfortably in his chest, swallowing it whole in a suffocating way.

“I know about them.” Jake smirked, leaning on his chair with a cocky, relaxed demeanor as he side eyed Heeseung. “And I found a loophole in it.” 

Now Heeseung's curiosity was piqued, heart racing fast as he leaned closer. “Oh, really? And how's that?” 

Jake chuckled, shooting Heeseung a skeptical look. "No way I'm telling you, man."

Panic filled Heeseung’s vein, a cold feeling spreading within his chest as the realization hit. He could lose the chance of his lifetime; it felt like you were already fading away from his touch without even giving him the chance to make a move. The new information that Jake and he shared a common interest in you and Jake seeming to have an advantage on his game triggered his worst side. 

For the purpose of keeping on the war’s lead – the war that just got instaurated by his fantasy –, he decided to play dirty.

“If you don't, I'm gonna snitch on you.”

Now it was time for Jake to paralyze in his tracks, just to let out a soft laugh before saying. “You would not…” Jake squinted his eyes in disbelief.

After reading Heeseung’s expression, Jake realized he wasn’t bluffing. The slight raise of Heeseung's eyebrows, coupled with a hint of challenge and his annoying grin demonstrated it clearly.

“Try me,” Heeseung struggled a bit to maintain his confident facade, the slight tremor in his voice betrayed the underlying tension. 

But Heeseung had an advantage that outshone Jake's, one that could potentially lead Jake to be in a very unfortunate position, and if that meant Heeseung getting his chances with you, he would do anything to keep the fight. 

Jake leaned back further, the playful smirk fading as he studied Heeseung with a calculating gaze.

“Seriously, you’d snitch over this?” Jake muttered in disbelief, crossing his arms over his chest. He wasn’t entirely convinced Heeseung would go that far, but his colleague's persistence was throwing him off. And for what? To steal his chances with you just for fun? Unless…

“If it gives me a fair shot, yeah.” Heeseung’s grin widened, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

He was pretty chill about it, after all, you always seemed unattainable to anyone around you. With an unmatched beauty, an assertive mindset, and a captivating yet humorous personality – when necessary –, not to mention how understanding you were. 

Everyone's dream.

And until that day that’s how Heeseung had you, only in dreams. But now reality had knocked on his door, and it knocked close. He knew there was competition, a strong one. And much to Jake's misfortune, Heeseung was highly competitive.

There was a brief pause for quite long, painful seconds. Jake’s frown deepened as he finally understood Heeseung’s motives, clarification hitting instantly. They were on the same page.

Although it sent his brain into malfunction, especially because he feared Heeseung’s would be winning – just like he always did, the fucking annoying ace of the company –, Jake kept on the confident behavior, not showing his hesitation right in front of his, now unspokenbly declared, enemy.

He let out a sharp breath, shaking his head. “You really think you stand a chance?”

Heeseung’s expression faltered for just a second, but he quickly masked it.

“I don’t know,” he shrugged. “But I won’t let you get ahead without a fight. A proper one.”

A heavy silence settled between them again, Jake processing Heeseung’s words, the tension palpable as both of them knew they were walking on dangerous ground. It was the company field with you being the final prize.

And right at that point, neither of them cared that much about their reputation within the workers if it led to having you at the end of the day.

“Alright then, let’s see who wins this.” Jake’s voice filled the dead air.

Heeseung blinked, momentarily taken aback by Jake’s sudden shift in tone, overconfident with his decision. However, he nodded and shook Jake’s hand in a wordless deal.

“Let's see who wins this.”

A gentle knock on the door interrupted your focus as you organized your table for the day, still standing up.

It was common sense within your employees that if you didn't answer right away, they were not supposed to open it until you reached out yourself. However, the chaotic pile of papers that had overtaken your workspace had momentarily distracted you, and you were taking your sweet time organizing it all.

Just as you were about to call out, the door creaked open cautiously, and a familiar pair of eyes peeked inside.

“Hey.” Heeseung greeted you with a tender smile. “Mind if I come in?”

Without fully drifting your gaze away from the documents on your table, frowning as you found yet another mistakenly placed in between your sheets, you gave a brief nod.

“Sure.” 

As Heeseung approached, a bit hesitant, you didn’t give him time to say a word as you shove the paper on his face. “That’s definitely not mine.”

Your deadpan expression was enough to make anyone sweat, and you knew it well – sometimes using it to your benefit purely for fun, especially with someone like Heeseung, who was susceptible to falling for it easily. 

Heeseung momentarily blinked, stunned, before tilting his head to the side, uncertain. “I’m… Sorry..?”

You couldn’t help the small giggle that escaped, enjoying his reaction far too much; his confused, scared bambi eyes widening with the fear of a reprimand. You shook your head, biting back your smile while lifting one eyebrow.

“Relax. It’s not your fault.” 

You saw Heeseung’s shoulders loosening visibly, and he released a long breath he didn’t notice he was holding, relief washing over his body.

Behind his easygoing, self-reliant and confident persona, there was a huge layer of self-doubt blended with the concern of letting the company down – letting you down. He carried the weight of wanting to be perfect at his job, especially for you. He was proud to admit he barely made any mistakes during his years working there, let alone to incorrectly put important papers in wrong places.

“So, what brings you here?” You finally gave Heeseung your full attention, leaning one hip against the desk, watching him with curious eyes.

Heeseung cleared his throat before setting down a steaming cup on the wooden surface. “Thought you could use this.” He offered with an awkward grin. “A coffee for my favorite manager.”

You quirked an eyebrow, suspicious over his sudden decision. Of course you were aware of Heeseung’s kindness towards you, always trying to ease your overall work under his possibilities with his teasing blended with his gentlemanliness. However, something felt strangely off, different, weird even, and you struggled to pinpoint exactly what it was.

Maybe it was the way his two orbs seemed to drown you in a pool of affection and attention, almost expecting something in return.

“Oh, yeah?” You picked the coffee nonetheless, taking a sip and almost closing your eyes as the sweetness of it melted in your palatar. “And what’s the catch?” You smirked as you propped your free hand on the table, supporting your weight in it, eyes never leaving Heeseung’s sudden flustered self.

“No catch!” He urged to say, raising both hands in defense, bambi eyes widened more as if he just got caught in a compromising situation. You tilted your head, not buying it. “I swear,” he chuckled awkwardly, feeling small under your intense staring. “I just thought it could be a good idea. You’re fighting against demons with this desk today.” He pointed out to the said space and you actually laughed out loud at his words, painfully agreeing with them because it was your reality that day.

You studied Heeseung for a moment longer, trying to read his underlying true intentions. In doing so, you couldn’t help but observe his charming features.

His impeccably styled hair revealing a small portion of his forehead, enough to showcase his adorable mole, became a signature aspect of his daily appearance. His clothes were always neat, seamlessly placed and yet stylish. His lips seemed to be constantly nibbled or maybe he had some chapstick on, because it had the color of cherries, giving it an inviting glimmering aspect. 

He exuded a natural flirty aura that effortlessly drew people in, especially those he had a genuine interest in – you heard some of his stories before, when you weren’t in your current position. For some inexplicable reason, you found yourself wondering briefly what it would be like to be on the receiving end of his playful and certainly captivating advances.

“Thanks, Heeseung. I appreciate it." Your voice softened, and you gestured to the chaotic desk. "But next time, maybe help me with this instead of just getting me coffee."

Heeseung laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. “Noted.” Then he shifted on his feet, clearly trying to maintain his cool, but the slight fidget in his hand suggested something else. “Just wanted to make sure you’re taken care of. You know? You’re the head of our department.” He nodded to himself, letting his genuine, but appealing words come out of his mouth spontaneously. 

“Thank you again.” You smiled, feeling his gratitude, still not really accepting it as a normal behavior. 

You kept on watching him nervously acting out in front of you, so obviously apprehensive, however, fighting the pressure of dropping down his mask. You almost laughed at it, endeared by how entertained it was to be on the viewer’s side. 

“But really. You’re doing fine. And we all need you to keep on being fi– Doing! Doing fine.” Heeseung fumbled in between his speech, stuttering because he wasn’t expecting you to go full silent-mode out of nowhere, leaving him with his messy, and in love, brain, enough to make him act awkward.

You let out a small chuckle, the way Heeseung was being so out of his normal was so funny to your eyes, never in your life you thought of seeing him in such a manner.

Then you stood up only to gently guide Heeseung towards the door, grabbing the handle to signal it was time for him to leave your office. Somehow you had a feeling that if you let him, Heeseung would keep on talking and complimenting you for hours. 

“Ok, now you're just flattering me for no reason. Go back to your work.” You softly pushed his back, still smiling. 

“You know me too well,” he smirked and then threw you a cute wink before walking away, now apparently back to his regular demeanor, leaving you alone in the midst of your chaos – both in the room and in your mind.

Before you closed the door, the phantom of your smile lingering on your lips still, you heard someone calling your name.

“Oh, Y/N! I was looking for you.” 

Jake met Heeseung in the middle of the hallway. His subtle, yet triumphant smile radiated a confidence that triggered Jake’s desperation, so he had to come up with a quick plan to gain some extra points with you and, maybe, with luck, surpass Heeseung. 

Your eyes tracked Jake’s motions as he approached you, looking flustered with papers messily stacked in his grasp, his glasses unevenly on his face as though he had been in a race against time. He had a small pout decorating his plump lips, and his hair was a mess as well, strands poking out everywhere. Even so, he looked cute.

Cute?

“What's all that?” You nodded to his papers, sipping on your hot coffee.

Then you locked your gaze with his. Jake gave you a soft smile, as though he saw a cute puppy and you tilted your head with curiosity, waiting for his response.

“Uh.. I went over our latest reports,” he started as he clumsily handed you one of the documents, your fingers subtly brushing against the other’s in the process – while you barely noticed it, Jake winced, a jolt of ecstasy rushing over his body by your simple touch. “And there were a bunch of errors. I corrected them…”

You slowly blinked, eyebrows furrowing, utterly surprised by Jake's decision of reviewing the reports, and not enough, giving it the proper adjustment as you meticulously re-read the paragraph he pointed out.

“I'm sorry.” He said quietly after your silence. “You seem to have a lot to do and I know you'll have to revise it all again.”

“Jake.” You called out, a serious, focused expression still settled on your face. Jake straightened his posture, ready for the reprimand he was sure you would give him, already thinking about the hours he would spend overthinking it. However, you were far from being mad, so you softened your eyes after finishing reading, smiling and looking back at him. “Come in.”

Jake had dumbfounded eyes shooting your back when you turned on your heels after inviting him to your office, his foot glued on the ground unabling his movements. Nonetheless, the feeling of a small victory tasted addicting, and now he yearned for more. 

Just before fully stepping into your workspace after calming down his racing excited heart, he glanced over his shoulder, catching a glimpse of Heeseung giving him a death stare. 

Jake simply smiled coyly, as if he had won the round of a game he never intended to lose, although his adversary offered a strong amount of threatening.

Heeseung darkened eyes watched Jake’s fading away after closing the door, poking his inner cheek with his tongue with his breath hitching. Right when he found the perfect opportunity to prove he would be a great boyfriend by looking out for you, Jake stepped in, robbing him of the chance to be the only one in your thoughts.

Inside the room, you now sat on your chair while Jake kept on standing after putting the pile of papers on your desk. He was trying to suppress the adrenaline bubbling inside his heart, the thump-thump almost dizzying echoing inside his head, and the fact that your office was permeated with your scent did nothing to help to decrease the intoxicating, entrancing feeling. 

“Sit down, don’t be awkward.” You said nonchalantly, yet comforting, pointing to the chair in front of your desk without necessarily looking away from the words you were reading rigorously.

“Sorry.” He chuckled nervously, quickly sitting down as his fingers twitched on his lap, fidgeting out of tension.

The lack of acknowledgment about what your reaction would be was aching in his every pore; biting the sensitive flesh of his lips wasn’t enough anymore, so he glanced up at you, stealing a rapid moment to admire the way you were scanning the reports. Your mild concentrated frown and how your hair cascaded down your face almost made him melt on spot. 

The silence wasn’t comfortable at all, not hostile either – even so he was afraid of getting scolded.

“So, what made you decide to do this?” You finally spoke, your words aiming for one simple answer, nevertheless, your tender and still steady tone made Jake shift on his seat, breath getting caught on his throat. 

“I just thought I could help you,” he answered, a bit quieter than his regular self. “I–I know you have a lot to do lately, and I always revise our main reports.” He explained, not watching you anymore because you lifted your eyes to give him your full attention; your gaze weightening on him. “And I noticed those errors. Didn’t think it would hurt to re-make those parts based on your pattern of writing.”

You nodded softly, a smile tugging at the corners of your lips.

Jake was adorable with his cheeks painted in slight blush, fixing his glasses on his nose’s bridge, running away from your staring, unable to sustain eye contact. He was being his normal self, however, just like with Heeseung, something felt off. 

“That’s really considerate.” You said, tilting your head slightly to the side as you added. “I really appreciate your effort, Jake. But I’d like to be aware of the changes before you make them. Okay?” 

Jake eagerly agreed, nodding at your soothing words. He was relieved to hear them instead of harsher ones, even though there was no bigger reason to fear, after all, your reputation for handling things with grace and kindness mingled with your astute assertiveness was well-known.

You had a way of giving feedback that felt constructive, always leading with gratitude before addressing something more incisive, and your scoldings were far from being sharp like a retaliation and more striving for lightening the load for everyone involved, without leaving room for big mistakes.

But at that moment Jake held a very intimate, personal secret, and your sharp eyes seemed to read his every thought, so he expected the worst.

“So, what exactly did you change in the report?” you asked, leaning slightly forward in your chair, genuine curiosity lighting up your eyes.

Jake swallowed, feeling a familiar nervousness creep up, though it was softened by the warmth of your kind eyes. He smiled and tried to quietly shake off the warmth spreading on his cheeks before explaining every line he had modified and the reasoning behind it, his typical clever outstanding trait showing off within every word that flew from his mouth, walking confidently on the ground he built himself in.

As you nodded along, due to the small proximity, you also silently struggled to maintain your focus on what Jake was verbalizing instead of his refreshing perfume and his gorgeous, slender fingers, to which traced the paper as he kept on talking. Not to mention the motion of his lips, how his tongue would wet the flesh of it every once and awhile.

“You did a good job, Jake.” You said at the end of his analysis, lifting your eyes to meet his. A subtle smile adorned your mouth, and Jake felt a surge of pride bloom in his chest.

He could shamelessly admit – not to you, though – he was devoted to hearing your every praise. There was no aim to his work other than receive your compliments about him doing good. Being good for you was enough to pay his bills, he would even dare to say.

And of course that had nothing to do with his praise kink, buried in the depths of his mind. 

“Thank you.” Jake mumbled shyly, feeling the heat lingering on his cheeks, a light ton of red tinting them. “I really like being noted by you.” As soon as his words blurted out of his mouth, he rushed to backtrack himself with widened eyes. “I mean– I appreciate being recognized for my hard work. By any superior, of course.”

You leaned back on your chair, crossing your arms as you raised an eyebrow, studying Jake’s demeanor shamelessly – his nervous stuttering, his choice of words, his sudden overwork. Going through documents already approved for submission was nothing but a hellish task, nevertheless Jake seemed to be willing to give you that break without you asking for it.

Something odd was happening. It was way out of your regular routine, flooded with awkward situations and words that you weren’t sure you were supposed to overhear. And coming from two different people.

Another knock on your door interrupted your session of trying to read Jake’s hidden intentions, just like you did before with Heeseung. And as if your thought had summoned the said man, he appeared at the entrance after you allowed him to enter.

“I’m sorry, am I interrupting?” Heeseung asked innocently, his eyes darting briefly from you to Jake, acknowledging his presence – the thought of you and Jake being alone in a room weighed in his chest since the moment he saw his colleague entering your office, and increased with every heartbeat.

Heeseung couldn’t bear the idea of Jake claiming a larger area of their shared battlefield, and his only remaining option was to figure out methods to interfere in Jake’s progress.

Jake didn’t buy Heeseung’s feigned naivety, narrowing his eyes in disbelief without making it noticeable to you. It was a subtle exchange, a fleeting glance that only Heeseung was able to catch as he swallowed hard to suppress the pressing need to spill the truth beneath their actions.

“Seems like my office is the party room today,” you joked lightly, shaking your head. “You didn’t. I just finished with Jake.” 

Unaware of the silent tension unfolding between the two men, you draw your attention back to your laptop, quickly logging into your work apps as if the world wasn’t burning with unspoken feelings right before you. Yet, the awkward silence persisted, prompting you to glance up at Heeseung again, who seemed to be deep in thought.

He faltered for a second before realizing he was the one in the spotlight, snapping out of torturing thoughts, rapidly regaining his composure. 

“I, uh… I just wanted to remind you that your meeting is in less than an hour,” Heeseung’s voice was steady, but the quickening beat of his heart betrayed his nerves, especially with his brand new makeshift excuse. “I was wondering if you want me to set the room for it. I’m quite chilling with my work today.”

“I can help!” Jake was quick to interject, almost lifting his hand as if he was a middle schooler, looking at you with gleaming orbs filled with expectation.

Your inquisitive eyes flickered between Jake and Heeseung, your serious facade sharpening as you sensed the shift in the air. It made them both shiver in place, sharing a secret wordless connection. 

It was almost undeniable that the whole situation was affecting you in an unknown way.

You were aware of your position and fought hard for it – being assertive and resolving conflicts was your greatest work quality. Separating work from personal matters was also a point you vigorously defended and explained to many of your colleagues, especially since being the target of their flirtations was on your list as well.

Despite your efforts to maintain those things rewinding on your mind as a reminder, the way both Heeseung and Jake were acting sounded more than just strange to you – it was intriguing.

You felt an almost unbearable desire to investigate further what was the motive behind their sudden offers for help and the respective compliments that came with it.

At the same time, you wondered if there were layers of the situation you weren’t quite seeing correctly, having just one piece of the ongoing puzzle so far. So you decided to let it be for now.

“What about you both help each other?” You offered a solution while smiling, indirectly using it as a method to gather more explicit information. “I’m sure you can work well together, right?” You tilted your head with a challenging voice, to which didn’t go unnoticed by either of them.

“Sure.” Heeseung smiled in agreement, and you straightaway noticed he was masking his real reaction.

“Sounds amazing,” Jake, on the other hand, was obvious with his discontent, sounding explicitly unhappy and sarcastic. 

Either way, you opted to ignore it and move on with your work as soon as they left your office. It was just the morning and you had a lot to catch up with.

And besides your efforts, you failed to catch the palpable tension between Heeseung and Jake. 

Your following days seemed ordinary enough, until Jake or Heeseung – eventually, both – crossed your path.

They shared a constant odd behavior around you, whether proposing countless solutions to existent and mostly nonexistent problems, demonstrating an exaggerated level of proactivity, or complimenting your appearance, emphasizing details that surely hadn’t changed overnight – like the time when Heeseung asked if you had trimmed the ends of your hair, as if he was trying to impress you with his incredible observation skills.

At times, you were astonished by their creative ability to come up with lame excuses just to approach you, many of which were completely inconvenient and more of a distraction than a help.

You couldn’t help but wonder what triggered this new shift in their attitudes. What has switched inside their brains to overwork themselves just to make their presence noticeable?

Even your superior questioned about the employees' demeanors under your management, overdoing tasks and spending more time in the company than normal. You struggled to wash it off, because you also had no proper answer to that question.

Besides the chaos they implemented within their constant battle for something you quite couldn’t pinpoint precisely, it was somewhat adorable their attempts to get your attention. Also, you wouldn’t deny that the small perks they provided – like free coffee and lunch nearly every day – were more than welcome, allowing you to buy new decorations to your house, for instance.

Your first theory was that both Heeseung and Jake were working together to get a raise. But you quickly discharged it when you realized they were fighting against each other, not for each other. So for now, your main theory was they were still trying to win a raise, flattering you personally as a way to get it as if you held the key for their promotion as their manager.

Although excessive, they always respected your personal boundaries, giving your space when you demanded it. They quickly understood your disapproving looks whenever they crossed the professional line as well, avoiding furthermore conflicting situations in the workspace. 

However, even with their sweet personalities and kind, heartfelt gestures, the constant tension, battelish vibe they carried alongside each other was getting on your nerves to some extent. Especially because you were growing attached to some of their behaviors and constant presence.

While Jake would quietly offer assistance with your workload, subtly proving his reliability and cleverness to found solutions with ease, following you around like a lost puppy, Heeseung would choose a different approach, very likely to his personality, showering you with compliments and attempting to charm you with smaller favors, focusing more on your overall health and in making you a bit flustered.

You got caught in a dilemma. 

Jake and Heeseung began to build a soft spot in your heart, making it hard to ignore your pulse quickening in certain moments, like when Heeseung bought you some snacks because you skipped your lunch hour, showing his concern within a flatter – “A beautiful woman like you can’t go too longer without some proper food”. Or how Jake’s eyes brightened while you explained a new easy method to do spreadsheets, giving you his full attention, hyping you and adding to your idea – “You’re brilliant! And if we add this other option as well… Wow. How do you manage to be amazing like this?”

How Heeseung would rush over the entire floor just because you requested, jokingly, a coffee, even with him being loaded with work – “Can’t never let my favorite manager down, yeah?”. Or when Jake's fierce senses quickly noticed your struggle with a presentation and leaned over to offer you support and an alternative suggestion – “You’re doing great, Y/N. If you don’t feel like it, you can try explaining the third part, the one we talked about before.” 

And the bolder, touchy ones; when Heeseung wiped the corner of your mouth because it was stained with sauce, when Jake fixed a strand of your hair that was misplaced, when Heeseung’s arms involved your shoulders in a subtle, comforting hug after a meeting with an inconvenient client, when Jake scooched closer while sitting next to you during a workshop-lecture, his lips almost touching your ear as he whispered something about the topic. 

Other than all of that, you came to notice how Heeseung’s eyes radiated with a brighter glow and how his lips curved into a gentle, gorgeous smile every time you were speaking, as if he was daydreaming. And also how often Jake would turn into a fumbling mess, blushing and biting back a grin every time you complimented him, and eventually just the fleet meeting of your eyes became enough to send him into that flustered and adorable demeanor, your heart faltering some beats with the sight.

You were feeling over appreciated, and it was concerning, mainly because you were enjoying it. 

Your eyes started to drift briefly, but frequently to their lips when they were the ones talking instead of listening to their words. A knot on your stomach would form as you anticipated their presence in your office every day, sometimes even placing internal bets on who would be the first to knock on your door. And there were times where you found yourself nervously adjusting your hair or smoothing out your clothes before they walked in, hoping they would notice.

You expected your workflow to feel enjoyable not because you liked your job, but because at the end of the day, Heeseung and Jake’s frequent proximity would ignite a brand new nuance of sentiments inside your chest towards them – an excitement, the usual anticipation, some eagerness. 

Nonetheless, despite their courteous behavior and the subtle change in the air whenever they were near, there was something tingling, lingering in the back of your mind.

It became increasingly obvious with every interaction that Jake and Heeseung shared an unspoken rivalry, and if you had to guess, you were the prize they were competing for – the idea itself was enough to send shivers down your spine, especially since it left you facing an impossible choice, one you couldn't imagine yourself ever having to make.

Whenever Jake came into your office to discuss work, Heeseung would conveniently show up moments later, knocking on your door with an offer of assistance.

If Heeseung sat with you during lunch, Jake would immediately find a seat at the same table, causing the air to grow thick with tension.

They were constantly interrupting any moment that had the potential to evolve into something deeper, leaving you frustrated, as if you were only getting fleeting glimpses of who they truly were when the other wasn’t around.

To think like that – hoping that your interactions with them would develop into something more – wasn’t professional. It didn’t fit right to fantasize about the possibilities beyond a simple work dynamic, no matter how much the tension made you feel otherwise.

You were a manager, their manager. With a lot of responsibilities; Heeseung and Jake being one of them. Still you were already far intrigued and involved with your feelings in this triangle, and to just forget it and act like nothing was happening slowly became an impossible mission.

“This isn’t right.” You murmured, frowning at the vending machine that decided not to give you your snacks. Your phrase, however, wasn't only about it. “Come on…” You rolled your eyes, impatience swelling in you.

“Sometimes you just have to punch it.” 

You almost jumped in shock with the sudden presence of your fellow manager and friend, Sunghoon, carrying his usual cup of steaming coffee, wearing his typical full suit and showing you an adorable smile.

You chuckled at his solution, “I don’t feel like punching a vending machine today.”

“You look angry, though.” He quirked an eyebrow at you, casually sipping on his coffee. “It could help.”

You wetted your lips before answering. “Yeah, kinda,” you shrugged. “But I don’t think punching a vending machine would help my angryness at all.” You shot back with a cynical smile.

Sunghoon laughed with you before approaching the machine and analyzing it. “Let me help you then.” 

He did two or three taps on the side of it and within seconds it threw out the snacks you had selected before. You glanced in disbelief at him, mouth agape as you tilted your head and grabbed your food.

“What are you? A charmer of vending machines?” You asked with amused eyes, smiling bright before ripping open the cookie package, eating one and offering it to your friend.

“Definitely not,” Sunghoon also curved his lips into a grin, taking one of the cookies and then leaning closer while fauxing a flirty gaze. “But I would love to charm you into a project of mine.” His eyes were glazed on yours, taking in how bright they shone as the excitement bubbled inside your chest when you heard his proposition. “Not all of you, because I know you already have a lot to do.” He added, offering comfort and understandment. “But I think your method could help my supervisors and their respectives team leaders to do a better job.”

“And by my method you say my incredible way of dealing with people or just the new thing I developed with my incredible, amazing, wonderful supervisors?” You wiggled your eyebrows, teasingly, with a mischievous smile and nudging his shoulder playfully.

Sunghoon rolled his eyes and put on a smirk on his lips as he straightened his posture. “Whatever.” He chuckled. “Send me a text if you’re down for our date,” he said, his tone teasing as he lifted his cup of coffee and an eyebrow, starting to slowly walk backwards toward the elevator.

You widened your eyes, glancing around to see if anyone overheard your conversation, embarrassment washing over you and going straight to your cheeks, especially after the last remark.

You slapped Sunghoon’s chest as you contained a laugh, giving a last feigned disapproving look while shaking your head in disbelief. A quiet snort came out of your throat before you made your way back to your office.

Your relationship with Sunghoon was anything but new. You both entered the company at the same month, and you practically leveled up together – on your last promotion, you became a manager just days before him.

So far, you had shared a solid friendship that extended beyond the office, even if your growing responsibilities had limited the hangouts you used to enjoy between spreadsheets and meetings. Those carefree moments had become rare as the workload piled up, so the opportunity to work together with Sunghoon thrilled you.

Just the thought of the brainstorming sessions filled with laughter and playful jokes, a perfect blend of professionalism and friendship, sparked your excitement at most.

Many assumed that your relationship was more than a simple friendship, and Sunghoon's shameless flirting while using working terms didn't help at all. In fact, he had a boyfriend, and the reason you two constantly flirted was purely for fun and to stir up others' curiosity and laugh about it afterwards. 

On the other side of the floor, meticulously dodging from your sharpened gaze, Heeseung watched the bold interaction between you and Sunghoon unfolding. He had narrowed eyes and head slightly tilted as he tried to eavesdrop on your conversation. He got himself wondering why were you laughing and smiling so much, with an excessive amount of unnecessary touches and flirty eyes. 

“We should unite forces.” 

Heeseung nearly jumped or had a heart attack – or both – as Jake appeared out of nowhere beside him, whispering closely in his ear. He looked like a deer that had just been caught doing something wrong, with widened eyes and lips parted.

“Fuck off, Jake.” Heeseung dramatically placed a hand on his chest, as though to calm down his racing pulse, eliciting a genuine chuckle from Jake in response. “And what do you mean by that, huh?” Heeseung frowned, eyes flicking between Jake and you as you walked away.

“I don’t know.” Jake sighed deeply, shoving his hands into the pockets of his slacks while watching you disappear behind your office door, his head angling to the side to keep track of your movements until you were out of sight.

“So you have an idea, but not a plan?” Heeseung asked while side eyeing Jake, who was now biting his lip, clearly trying to swallow down the bittersweet taste on his tongue. 

And Heeseung wasn’t too different; when he heard people saying jealousy is a disease, he didn't think it would make his heart shrink and ache that much. 

“Pretty much, yeah.” Jake nodded with a pout, starting to walk towards his desk, with Heeseung trailing behind him. “I just don’t think Sunghoon is a good match, y’know?” He remarked, trying to sound casual about it, but his words felt like a bullet going straight to Heeseung’s gut, curving its way back to hit Jake’s chest.

“Yeah,” Heeseung agreed, his tongue poking the inside of his cheek. “He lacks a lot of things.” He added with a dry, nearly mean tone.

“Not in looks though.” Jake pinpointed, earning another judgmental side eye from Heeseung. “What? He’s good looking.” He said nonchalantly with a shrug. “I have eyes. I can notice when a guy looks good.”

“Whatever you say, nerd,” Heeseung voiced with an unfazed chuckle.

Jake rolled his eyes in annoyance, and even with them glued on the screen in front of him, numbers and words on display for him to analyze, his mind was long gone far away from the office.

“But listen,” he continued after seconds in silence seeking for the right way to verbalize his thoughts. “Don’t you feel that sometimes we’re kinda… Pushing her away instead of the other way around?”

Jake’s question hung in the air for brief seconds as Heeseung tilted his head, carefully contemplating it. Jake watched his colleague's face falter in realization. 

You seemed mad and somehow frustrated whenever they interrupted you, massaging your temples while closing your eyes, taking deep and long breaths, playing with your lips using your tongue and teeth… As if you were trying to contain yourself.

Not to mention that he started to draw disapproving stares from you during meetings or at times when he interfered with your workflow attempting to help. And Jake's side wasn’t different either.

“Yeah.” Heeseung finally nodded after concluding his chain of thoughts. “None of this would be an issue if you stepped aside, you know? I could take care of it.” He teased, gazing at Jake with a cocky expression.

“No way in hell, man.” Jake scoffed with a laugh, but then his facade softened, his feelings for you overwhelming his chest. “I only want what's best for her.”

Heeseung flashed Jake with an understanding glance, blended with seriousness and a hint of affection, as if the new reminder of his real main objective littered his whole world.

You littered his whole world.

And after all, to make you happy was the final goal.

“Agreed.” 

While in a brief pause, Jake and Heeseung reflected how deeply involved with their feelings for you they were, an unexpected, yet genuine connection maturing as they did so.

Work had become fun and enjoyable simply because you were there, being an important part of their routine. Your nuance of smiles – the bright ones, the skeptical ones, the awkward ones –, your subtle jokes and lowkey acid humor that eased the atmosphere, your serious and confident decisions, your confused grimaces whenever someone said something absurd, your habit of biting your lip and furrowing your eyebrows while absorbed in concentration.

They drank in every single detail of you, falling more and more in love, as if you were the sun, and they were mere planets gravitating in your orbit, waiting, fighting for your attention, for your decision.

Jake sighed, lowering his eyes while remembering all the moments he made you laugh with his silly and awkward jokes due to his nervousness, stumbling into his own words before your beautiful presence.

Heeseung pursed his lips together, nearly feeling the phantom of the slight bumps of your shoulders when you both sat next to each other, your body leaning just enough to whisper something important in his ear.

“We both want what’s the best for her…” Jake muttered under his breath. Heeseung glanced quickly at him, who immediately reciprocated – a silent dialogue being transmitted in their gaze.

Then they both said simultaneously, a shared realization hanging in the air.

“That’s why you should leave her to me.”

“And I am the best for her."

Apparently their alliance would take longer than anticipated.

After everyone settled into their chairs, you took a deep breath and stood at the head of the table, commanding attention. Your gaze swept across the room before you spoke, your voice firm and steady.

“So, our meeting today is crucial. These clients are incredibly high maintenance, and they chose our company to lead their main projects. I need everyone to be extra focused and serious, no slip-ups,” you emphasized, keeping on drifting your eyes through your colleagues, pausing for effect. “I expect nothing but professionalism.”

Your words hung in the air, and while the room nodded in agreement, both Heeseung and Jake had their minds far from there.

They were seated across from each other, however, both sets of eyes softly and attentively tracked your every move, as if the project was about you and you only.

Jake’s focus wasn’t on the blueprint details, let alone on the company's reputation; it was on the way your hair cascaded over your shoulder as you turned your head slightly, or the confidence you radiated as you spoke, so naturally drawing people in. Your voice was as soft as a cloud, and still precise with your every word. 

It was hard to remember the last time he had paid that much attention to a meeting, and there he was, mesmerized not by the content, but solely and exclusively by you. His heartbeat raced with every second, almost echoing louder than anything in the room.

Across the table, Heeseung was no different.

His usual composed demeanor during meetings faltered just enough to make his hands sweat nervously. He was sure your makeup looked extra perfectly placed that day. Every time you said something, his gaze flickered to the slight upward curl of your plump, soft colored lips, or how your jaw clenched with seriousness, together with your sharp, incisive eyes and slight frown, adding to your charm. You were shining on your element, controlling the whole room with your assertiveness and, for him personally, attractive demeanor. 

Both of them were caught in similar states – wondering what it would be like if your eyes were solely on them. Would they light up? Would your lips curve into an adorable smile? Would your head cock to the side as you paid deep attention to them?

The silly battle between Heeseung and Jake only grew stronger as the minutes passed; the previous talk had no purpose at all, besides light one’s own weight of being misinterpreted, proving their worthiness to you. 

As Heeseung leaned slightly forward, crossing his hands on the table’s surface, the shifting in his seat made his presence briefly more evident. Your eyes instantly darted towards his direction, catching his bambi-eyes fixed on you, wide and attentive. An almost instinctive smile crossed your lips after reading his expression that showed a perfect blend of genuine pride and a layer of lovestruck admiration.

For some reason, Heeseung quietly showing you support made your heartbeat steady, filling you with a warm sense of reassurance.

Jake clenched his fists under the table, his competitive side sparkling up after noticing your wordless interaction with his rival, flickering his gaze between the two of you. He pondered how he could stand out, and his whole body was stiff before he leaned back on his chair, relaxing, as he cleverly remembered the times you complained about the lack of sincere reactions or motions during meetings like those.

Again, just the movement was enough to catch your attention, since the rest of the room was completely still, deeply concentrated on your presentation.

As you approached your computer to pass the slide, you flashed Jake a quick recognition glance about his unspokenly intentions as well, smirking smally in gratitude before continuing with your script, feeling your breathing getting a little better, lighter. 

One thing you absolutely hated about those kinds of meetings was the participants’ rigid presence, the high level of responsibility tensed your nerves – unnecessarily, in your opinion.

You utterly understood the scenario’s nature, requiring a certain posture from you that you very much knew how to offer. But nothing stopped you from protesting every once and a while about the tension on your shoulders whenever you had to wear that facade. 

So you appreciated Heeseung and Jake’s effort in making your body loosen momentarily, carrying through with your words, and unfortunately oblivious to their real reasons. 

Of course Heeseung’s eyes registered the subtle exchange between you and Jake, automatically igniting his desire to reclaim your attention, as if your work was just an excuse, a battlefield to their competition.

His jaw clenched and his gaze sharpened when Jake shot a small scornful smirk at him, almost like he was showing off his brand new victory, taunting.

That simple gesture fueled Heeseung’s instinct to jump into action without much thinking, so he blurted out, intending exclusively to demonstrate to you how involved in the topic he was.

"And what about the user experience data? That’s going to be key for the next steps, right?"

You paused on your tracks, momentarily thrown off by Heeseung’s sudden, unexpected voice interrupting your thought process. Your eyes faltered in confusion for a brief moment before you opened your mouth to say something that didn’t come out right away, because in your mental script, that was the latest part of your presentation. 

Jake threw a shocked glance at Heeseung after noticing your slightly baffled and hesitant face, then he added, trying to settle down the ambiance to something less chaotic – his attempt failing as much as Heeseung’s, since it sounded like he was over-explaining your tactics into that project. 

“Right, but let’s not forget how crucial the user feedback is for improving our mechanics.”

Your eyes darted between the two men fighting against each other and then to your client, who had a disapproving grimace. 

As you took a deep breath to collect your thoughts, you could feel the tension in the air between them and the rest of your colleagues, including your client. The underlying competition became far from obvious at that point, you could practically hear them both thinking ‘Who would win your attention this time?’, and it was so annoying.

You hollowed your cheeks in order to calm down your frustration and angriness, sipping on your water before concentrating back on your presentation, determined to deliver your ideas without letting their stupidity get in your way. 

And a single serious glance was enough to shut Heeseung and Jake up for the rest of the meeting.

“Close the door when you leave.” You instructed, gesturing to a colleague that was heading out the meeting room. You focused back on organizing the papers sprawled across the table. “Heeseung and Jake, you two stay.”

Your words filled the space as sharp as a dagger, leaving no room for argumentation – and neither of them would dare to challenge you in this moment, so they sat in silence, a palpable tension hanging in the air.

Half expecting your own anger to diminish and half aiming to toy with their overwhelming emotions, you didn't lift your gaze until you had quietly finished your notes, feeling the atmosphere shift as the door clicked shut. The silence was loud, you could almost hear the rapid beat of their hearts as they anxiously waited for your next move. 

Finally, you looked up, intercalating eye contact with both men. You wetted your lips before standing, placing your hands firmly on the table and leaning slightly forward, radiating an air of superiority. Your gaze deepened in reprimand, your jaw clenched and your breath was feeling heavier each second.

Jake avoided keeping looking at you for too long, distracting himself with a cup placed on the table instead. The room seemed to shrank around him, his air ways seemed to close little by little and breathing became a hard task. The weight of your piercing stare and your painful silence made him feel small, ashamed, inadequate. His chest tightened with a growing sense of nervousness and self-doubt.

Jake hated being scolded, it triggered a wave of reflections about his abilities and intelligence, intensifying some of his insecurities, and mostly, it amplified his longing for validation that only praises could fulfill. 

What Jake cherished most about you was that you never reprimanded without eventually offering a compliment, skillfully highlighting a person’s strengths while still putting them in their place; your words healed wounds instead of opening them.

But right now, that reassurance felt impossibly distant, leaving him to accept the weight of his fate resting in your hands.

Heeseung, on the other hand, harbored a hidden secret that was significantly distracting him at that moment. He was lowkey into receiving degradation to some extent, so he shifted uncomfortably on his chair as he watched you look down at him, because there was no way he could allow himself to get hard right at the moment. 

He swallowed hard, casually placing his trembling hands on his lap in order to try covering up any possible bulge surging on his crotch area, attempting to seem indifferent or just the normal amount of being affected by you.

“I think you both are intelligent enough to realize that your behavior today is inadmissible.” You started to say, voice laced with disappointment, firm. “This is not a playground. This is a workplace. A serious one.” You paused, straightening your posture before starting to walk slowly towards them. They choose to sit at the end of the table as if they were avoiding your close presence. “And I won’t, under any circumstance, accept this happening again in my leadership. Not again.”

As you passed by them, your perfume traveling along within each step, you analyzed how Jake and Heeseung were reacting extremely differently from each other.

Jake looked like a child being scolded by their parents, sinking into the chair with a small pout, his puppy eyes lowered in pure guilt. Whereas Heeseung was agitated, legs bouncing anxiously beneath the table, his fingers fidgeting his rings while his eyes seemed to be in an internal battle between whether to glaze on you or not.

“Am I making myself clear?” you asked, your voice cutting through the silence with authority, your hands now grabbing the back of Heeseung’s chair. He shivered.

Jake nodded quickly, still avoiding your sharp eyes.

Heeseung, however, didn’t respond. His chest rose and fell slowly, his breath visibly heavy as he tried to maintain composure. He wanted to act indifferent, to pretend that your words weren’t having such an intense effect on him, struggling to halter his mind from drifting far away from that context, but the tension in his body was far too obvious to ignore, especially when you positioned yourself behind him, noticing his shoulders stiffening.

His whole body has heated up.

You arched an eyebrow, leaning your body enough to scan his side profile with your head slightly tilted, your curiosity piquing stronger with the lack of response.

“Heeseung?” you prompted, voice dropping an octave.

For a split second, he hesitated before nodding as well, afraid of his voice coming out as a moan.

“Yes, I understand,” he finally said, voice soft, nearly wavering as he did so.

You straightened up again, now walking back to your initial position.

Jake and Heeseung shared a common and painful thought; you held the weight of their fate in your hands, having the power to release them from your management at any moment if that sounded right to you. Given their trail of missteps they had, it felt almost inevitable that your final word would be anything similar to that. 

The idea alone made their hearts ache in despair.

“I expected better from both of you. And I know you are capable of doing better.”

You casted a last warning stare and Jake fluttered his eyes shut instantly, waiting for the harshful words, the one that would tighten the knot in his stomach. Heeseung clenched his fists, gulping. You noticed both right away.

“Besides, I don’t have time to babysit your egos,” you paused again, this time just for an extra drama, because you would never dismiss their incredible skills due to simple and solvable mistakes like that.

Knowing your workers' behaviors, you had faith they would find a way out of their messy situation – and you expected yourself to do as well. Also, you couldn’t deny the sinking feeling in your chest of giving up on them, the flashing red lights screaming in your head about how deeply invested you grew into their beings, surrounding you like magnets.

No matter how tangled it appeared, your fondness for them remained. For both of them.

Yet, occupying a higher rank in the workplace meant you had to keep up the appearance of superiority and remind them of their positions, of their responsibilities. 

“Let alone time for your silly little games.”

Jake's face flushed an even deeper shade as the realization hit him. You were, now, fully aware of their competition.

However, a hint of relief began to wash over him as you wrapped up your speech, signaling that you weren't dismissing them away from your management.

“That’s all.”

Heeseung, on the other hand, couldn’t stop fidgeting. 

Although his heart raced now comfortably with your unspokenly reassurance about their destinations in the company, it was so fucking hard to concentrate in anything other than how hot you were right at that moment with your dominant stance.

Your sharp words and bossy demeanor talked down on him and all he could think was how desperately he needed you.

He shifted in his seat again, the discomfort in his pants growing with each agonizing second.

“You’re not kicking us out?” Jake was the one bold enough to voice out a nuance of their river of anxious thoughts, his slightly trembling voice filling the room.

Heeseung glanced briefly at his colleague and then to you, waiting for your answer.

“No, I’m not.”

“Thank you.” Jake urged, almost desperate as his shoulders loosened visibly. 

Even with your heart pounding in your chest at the thought of their main concern being only that, you maintained your firm demeanor.

“Don’t see it as a favor, ” you said. 

Your gaze was unwavering, challenging them to meet your seriousness. Heeseung swallowed hard, because he felt his dick literally pulsing as you glanced at him; his blushed cheeks intriguing your curiosity once again, since that kind of reaction was unusual from him.

Jake opened his mouth to respond, but the words caught in his throat.

“Sorry,” he finally managed, his eyes darting between you and Heeseung, who seemed to be struggling with his own internal conflict; his forehead was pure sweat at that point, and he questioned himself when the room turned into hell. 

“You’re good to go,” you concluded, watching as both men relaxed just a bit, the tension easing, but the air remained thick with unspoken feelings.

Your eyes tracked their steps until they reached the door, both sharing a glance before darting their eyes back to you. You offered a little nod of reassurance and they flashed back a small smile before closing the door behind them.

"Oh my god, you're nasty.” Jake whispered a little too loud as soon as they left the room, shooting Heeseung a look of mock mixed with repulse. “Did you really get turned on just because she got mad at us?"

Heeseung smirked, amusement dancing in his eyes. "Why? You didn't?" 

“No!” Jake shook his head, acting like Heeseung said the wrongest thing in the world. “That’s gross. You’re disgusting.”

“Please, don’t act like you don’t run to the bathroom every time she gives you a compliment.” Heeseung rolled his eyes, a cocky grin creeping onto his lips. Jake widened his eyes, stopping in his tracks.

“You’re seriously saying that?!” Jake exclaimed, incredulous, fixing his glasses on his nose’s bridge. 

“You’re always wagging your tail around Y/N, waiting for some praise like a little puppy, Jake,” Heeseung said, still smiling teasingly.

“Shut up, Heeseung.” Jake quickly glanced around to check if anyone was eavesdropping, shoving his colleague's shoulder. “You’re still disgusting, kiss-ass.”

Heeseung chuckled, unfazed. “Whatever.”

And then he headed to the bathroom, because this time, he was the one with some other problems to deal with. 

The next day felt a bit odd. In every nuance possible.

Jake couldn't shake the weird sensation that you were actively avoiding him, as if his proximity was a reminder of his disappointment. He never wanted you to feel frustrated with his work, let alone with him personally. Yet, there was little he could do to change the situation except offer his support.

So, he made his way to your office, hesitantly pushing the slightly opened door. You were seated at your desk, frowning in concentration as you poured over stacks of paper, your lips pursed in a little pout – a cute habit he cherished heartfully.

A soft knock at the wooden surface was enough to bring your attention to Jake. You barely smiled, your expression was neutral, facing Jake as if he was a regular co-worker. He couldn’t help the shiver running all the way down his spine remembering about the times you greeted with a bright grin as your face lit up. 

He cleared his throat before saying, voice low, close to a whisper; there were layers of hesitation and fear. 

“Do you need any help, Y/N?” 

You blinked a few times and looked down at your papers before you shook your head, denying. “No, I’m fine. Thanks.” 

Maybe it was the manner Jake was reading the world throughout that very specific day, after the whole scolding situation, after how mad you seemed to genuinely be with him and Heeseung… But you sounded way more dry than he expected. Not even his name being voiced out, not even a smile. Just a simple, mere discard. 

“Oh…” He faltered, his puppy eyes casting downward, trailing to the floor as he fidgeted with his fingers. “So… I’ll be at my desk if you need anything.”

“Sure. Thank you.”

After Jake closed the door, granting the privacy you needed and valued, he walked back to his desk, unaware of how affected with his visit you were behind the closed door. 

“What happened?” Heeseung was quick to notice his colleague’s mood after he sat beside him – his pout was ridiculously big.

“I think Y/N hates me,” Jake mumbled, his voice laced with defeat.

“Oh, that’s great. More chances for me,” Heeseung replied, a scornful smirk on his lips as he leaned back, relaxing on his chair.

However, Jake didn’t respond to his teasing the way he expected; he let out a deep breath and gave a small shrug, a reaction to which piqued Heeseung’s curiosity further.

Heeseung approached closer, narrowed eyes searching for a hint of humor or anything similar. When he only found a melancholic scowl, he sighed. 

Was Jake really believing in that? If so, he was damned as well. Not to mention that Jake’s sad frown was heartbreaking.

“Listen,” he began, wetting his lips as he reluctantly placed a comforting hand on Jake's shoulder. “She’s probably just busy. Remember how important this client is for the company and for her?” Jake nodded, still avoiding Heeseung's gaze. “So don’t worry, she doesn’t hate you. She’s just focused.” He reassured. “Yesterday we kinda… crossed the line. But we did it together, right? If she hates you, then she hates me.”

Jake finally lifted his head, meeting an unexpected comfort in Heeseung’s eyes, something rare, considering he was used to Heeseung’s overconfident mannerism – his constant arrogant charm effortlessly got under his skin.

Yet, on that day, and despite Heeseung’s choice of words not being ideal, he had a gentle presence that softened the weight of Jake's feelings.

“You don’t want me winning so easily, do you?” Heeseung nudged Jake's side with playful familiarity, proving that his teasing nature hadn’t entirely vanished. Jake squirmed, a small smile breaking through his previous sorrowness.

“Fuck off.”

And how odd it was finding friendship with someone who had once been your rival?

Jake and Heeseung's camaraderie has bloomed in unexpected ways ever since. They began to explore new parts of their – now – friendship, discovering some sharing interests and even trading work tips, constantly being seen lunching together or just laughing with each other.

Jake now would chuckle at Heeseung's silly jokes, and Heeseung came to appreciate Jake's instincts for insights, something that often surprised him.

You were still the center of their conversations, but instead of competing to prove themselves worthy of you, they chose a different route, one where admiring you from a distance became their shared priority.

“Did you see how she looked today?” Jake asked once, his voice soft and almost awestruck. “My god, my heart actually hurts,” he dramatically placed one hand on his chest, closing his eyes, feigning the aching feeling.

Heeseung nodded with a small smile, leaning back in his chair. “I know, right? And that smile?” He sighed theatrically, also clutching his chest. “I swear, it’s dangerous.”

Jake chuckled, shaking his head. “She’s gonna be the death of us.”

Heeseung glanced at him, smirking. “Worth it.”

“Definitely worth it,” Jake agreed with a dreamy sigh.

Sadly, you missed out this big chapter of their lives, stuck with loads of paperwork that no one else could do, besides you. 

But, ultimately, it was your own fault, as you chose to ignore them, believing it was the most sensible way to handle your feelings.

After the day of the reprimand, instead of carrying on with your usual routine, you felt a heavy weight in your chest. You were upset about the scold and how they seemed downcast, almost disappointed in themselves after hearing your words.

Unlike other times when you had to call out others to get them back on track, this time you couldn’t shake the feeling that you had done something wrong, even if your intentions were justified.

You struggled to find the right place to be, overworking yourself as an excuse to spend some time alone, going over and over your thoughts in order to find somewhere to be, and with every second you just found yourself missing them more and more.

Heeseung’s playful teasing, always with an undertone of flirtation. Jake’s natural ease in helping you solve problems. The brief touches during Heeseung’s coffee runs, when your skin would brush against his just so. Jake’s clumsiness, which often led to scattered papers and the soft, accidental graze of fingers as you both reached down to pick them up.

Not to add the brand new fact that everything resembled them. The mug on your desk, your coffees, the knocks on your door – you eagerly expected to be them –, even when going home and seeing their parking spot empty.

Neither Heeseung nor Jake had openly discussed their feelings with you, but their recent behavior and your last encounter only served to reinforce your theory.

They both liked you.

Ironically, you felt the same way about both of them and so far, had no intention of choosing one over the other – that being your primary reason for your reclusion, as it became clear that they wouldn’t easily get along, so distancing yourself seemed like the best way to suppress your feelings for them.

Your internal conflict wasn’t about picking Heeseung or Jake, but between choosing Heeseung and Jake or none. 

Still, this choice also depended on their openness to share, and their constant friction wasn’t exactly helpful.

When you started to catch small glimpses of Heeseung and Jake wandering around your office floor, talking with each other with an odd enthusiasm and bright smiles, it piqued your curiosity as much as your mind relaxed, because those single actions seemed as a possible way out, as though it built a softened spot to your offer. 

At the end of two intense weeks, you finally felt like breathing again. And apparently your mind seemed to be in the right place. So after finishing the last part from your project, you called Jake and Heeseung into your office, feeling a mix of apprehension and relief as you waited. 

Your legs bounced impatiently, counting the agonizing seconds. In the back of your mind, you had carefully architected the words you wanted to say, such as how much you missed them, how happy you were to work with them again, and maybe even a question or two about their random, unexpected friendship.

You hoped they had sorted things out to some extent, because during your time alone, you yourself had been reflecting on your own feelings and was sure about your decision.

The knock on the door startled you, snapping you back into reality. Your heartbeats raced as you allowed their entrance and the door clicked. 

You took a moment to study the way they exchanged curious glances before focusing on you. They seemed to be the same, handsome as ever, Jake with his usual flustered cheeks and uneven positioned glasses and Heeseung with his gentle, flirty smile.

“Hi,” you greeted, pointing to the chairs in front of your desk. They sat.

“Hi,” Jake answered, mimicking your soft tone.

“Hello,” Heeseung, on the other hand, said confidently, relaxed. “Long time no see, huh?” 

You smiled shyly, after all it was your decision not to be with them for those busy days. 

“Yeah… And I think I owe you an apology,” you began without hesitation, your voice steady, yet, layered with comfort and genuine happiness for seeing them after what felt like ages. “I might have gone too harsh on you two the other day.” 

You were referring to the day you scolded them, the same day Heeseung left your room with a strange behavior, to say the least, if not interesting, and Jake with his tail between his legs. But internally, you also felt sorry for avidly avoiding them. 

“No, it’s fine,” Heeseung brushed it off with a casual wave of his hand, his characteristic smirk on the corner of his lips brightening the whole room. “We deserved it.” He admitted with a tender tone, then he looked at Jake. “Besides, we’re good now, right, Jakey?”

“Oh, are we?” You asked, crossing your arms, a hint of playful skepticism and shock in your tone as you leaned on your chair, eyes flickering in between the two men.

“Yeah, we definitely are,” Jake replied, his sincere smile making it clear that he meant it.

You couldn’t help but also smile at their interaction, the familiar warmth returning to the atmosphere, replacing the tense, weightened previous one. 

“Thank you for figuring it out.” Your voice was sweet as honey as you leaned forward over the desk, causing Heeseung and Jake to almost melt at how endearing you sounded. “I’ve been drowning with work lately. Couldn’t reach out to you sooner.” You gave your excuse and they both gave you an understanding nod, to which ached your heart a little. They seemed so genuine. “But I missed you, if I’m being honest. I really lov– like having you in my team. Having you by my side.”

If your sudden call wasn’t strange enough, that was strange.

Not only did you stumble over your words, but you also showed embarrassment, with your cheeks turning a subtle shade of red and your eyes faltering, almost like you were confessing to a crush. 

And honestly? To Heeseung and Jake, it felt like a confession.

At least, their reaction was as if they had just heard a confession, because not even in their wildest dreams could they have imagined you admitting that you missed them, let alone hearing you saying the words “having you by my side” all together. 

Heeseung’s heart was racing, his brain doing a 360 enough to leave him dizzy, his eyes slightly widened and he shifted on his seat, straightening his posture.

Jake’s hands were sweating since you called, but now they also trembled. An electrifying wave filled his chest, making the simple act of breathing feel difficult. 

“And again, I’m sorry if I was too hard on you both. And I really am glad you’re getting along, as well,” you rushed to add before either of them could respond, though the way they were looking at you made your heart race. It was clear they had noticed your nervous self. “Though... this does make things a bit more complicated. Or maybe not.” You mumbled to yourself when your eyes parted ways from them, furrowing your brow as you tilted your head slightly.

In the past few days, you had developed the habit of talking to yourself to sort something out through the chaotic thoughts and tangled feelings spinning in your mind – Jake and Heeseung being in each of them, without a doubt. But this time you weren’t alone. 

When you saw Heeseung narrowing his eyes with mouth slightly agape and Jake glancing at you with curiosity as the corner of his lips turned upwards, you froze.

Then they exchanged a brief, quiet glance before looking back at you.

“What do you mean by that?” Heeseung was the first one to ask, leaning forward just enough to express how interested he was in your slip-up. His pulse raced with the thoughts that flowed through his head.

“Yeah, what makes what complicated?” Jake added to the question, arching an eyebrow, stepping in the same field as Heeseung.

You blinked, their expectant stares making you want to shrink into your chair. 

Your office window was open and let in a cold, long breeze that indicated the weather was about to change. You shivered, however, you couldn’t pinpoint if it was due to the air brushing your exposed skin or because of your current situation.

“Oh, um,” you stammered, running a hand through your hair nervously – a habit Jake and Heeseung were pretty aware of. “I didn’t mean to say that! I– I was gonna say it’s good to know you’re… closer now.” You squinted, struggling a lot to find a way out for yourself. “It makes things easier and more interesting, actually, I guess,” you let out an awkward chuckle, biting your lower lip as you quickly grabbed your bottle of water and took a long sip, avidly avoiding their eyes. 

Jake’s smile widened, his eyes twinkling with a newfound spark of emotions. “Easier and interesting, huh?”

“Yeah!” You nodded immediately. “Easier for our dynamic. And interesting… Because it’s us three, working together, everybody getting along and stuff…” You explained, with an exaggerated amount of gestures. “If I’m being honest, I had some things to figure out as well.” You confessed for some random reason you weren’t able to identify right away.

After your hard work of days going through the same page, you were losing your composure, you were losing your inner battle, and mainly, you were losing yourself amidst your feelings.

“Like what?” Jake questioned again, his voice soft, sweet as his smile.

Heeseung, on the other hand, was too flabbergasted with the scenario developing in front of him to think straight, so he just watched and prayed for the best outcome, engraving in his mind your every reaction.

You analyzed the two pairs of eyes shooting you the tendernest look, dripping in affection, filled with what you dared to call love. They showed comfort blended with care and a layer of curiosity, afterall, it has to do directly with them and they had a mild good feeling about it.

So you sighed, accepting not your defeat, but your vulnerable state. 

“I felt like I was in the middle of a storm whenever we were in the same room,” you muttered, still maintaining discretion over the topic. “It was frustrating, and I had to figure out why I felt like this.”

“Oh, you still are right in the middle, Y/N.” Heeseung this time rushed to confess and you couldn’t hold back your slightly shocked expression. 

“But I think the storm isn’t happening anymore.” Jake added with a gentle smile, fixing his glasses on his face and placing his hand on the table, your eyes briefly flickering to catch a look of his slender fingers. You swallowed hard. 

“Why were you frustrated, though?” Heeseung asked, cocking his head to the side.

To say he was agitated was an euphemism; he found himself having trouble breathing because not only did you wear the prettiest and hottest clothing that day – a mildly tight dress shirt that emphasized the curves of your boobs –, but the whole situation was out of this word. 

Jake wasn’t different, expecting your reply with his heart aching in despair. He needed to know about what was happening, otherwise he was going to collapse overthinking.

A strong part of either Heeseung and Jake was struggling to maintain the focus in any other possibility, especially because you didn’t demonstrate you liked them back so far, since your natural demeanor to your colleagues was the same – bossy but playful, always reiterating through actions and decisions your superior position over them during work.

However, you seemed to be extra nervous, your face had a faint fluster and you didn’t sound like a manager at all, it was near to a friend type of conversation. It ignited the spark of hope inside their chest.

Once again, without wording it out, they shared a connection. 

As you were about to speak, you felt the fabric of your blouse loosen across your chest, and before you could react, Heeseung and Jake’s eyes instinctively snapped to the same spot, widening.

In sync, you glanced down and realized what had happened. One of your shirt's buttons had popped, revealing a glimpse of your lace bra. 

Your cheeks warmed immediately, a wave of embarrassment washed over you as you damned yourself for choosing such a tight outfit that day, clumsily looking around to find anything that could help cover it.

“Let me just–” Heeseung muttered awkwardly, taking off his jacket and draping it over you in one smooth motion, his fingers lightly brushing your covered shoulders.

Jake's eyes followed his friend’s movements and decided to help as well, as he said “You look good still, don’t worry,” with a small smile, trying to ease the situation and ignoring how he, himself, got affected with just a glimpse of your body.

This is wrong, Jake chanted to himself, trying to shake the thoughts away.

“I’m sorry,” you mumbled, gripping Heeseung’s jacket tightly around you, your face still flushed. “And thanks.” You nodded toward him in gratitude.

Heeseung caught Jake's flustered expression out of the corner of his eye and couldn't resist shooting him a playful glance. Then, leaning closer to you, he whispered near your ear, “Maybe the button couldn’t handle how stunning you look today.”

His hands lingered on your shoulders for just a moment before he walked back to his previous spot, a mischievous smirk playing on his lips. 

You fought back the urge of literally clenching around nothing due to his touch, his low voice and his warmth surrounding you.

“Right,” you chuckled softly, rolling your eyes to lighten the mood, though your heart raced rapidly. “Anyway, I just wanted to say I’m sorry about that day, and... I’m really happy that we’re figuring it out.”

The word “we” hung in the air like a delicate sound, and you felt the tension dissipate as a silence enveloped the room, being replaced for another type of weight. Something more affectual, more right.

Heeseung and Jake exchanged a quick, knowing glance before standing up simultaneously, their movements almost in sync.

“I’m glad too,” Heeseung said, his voice a bit softer, offering a small, genuine smile as he adjusted his dress shirt, now without his jacket.

Jake stepped closer to you, meeting your gaze for a second longer than usual before adding, “And just so you know... we missed you too.” His voice was sincere, his eyes filled with something deeper than just friendship.

The confirmation you needed.

And with that, they both left your office, leaving you alone with your thoughts, the lingering warmth of Heeseung's jacket around your shoulders and Jake’s sweet, meaningful words.

The same storm happening inside your mind seemed to mirror the one unfolding outside, rain cascading down in heavy sheets in front of you as you watched from afar. The sound of water splashing against the pavement might have been poetic in another circumstance.

“Hey.”

The soft voice startled you from your thoughts, and you spun around on your heels to see Heeseung approaching, a curious yet gentle smile on his face. His presence felt warm amidst the cold drizzle sprinkling through the wind on you.

“Oh, Heeseung!” You greeted, trying to match his energy with a bright smile, though your mind quickly jumped to why he was there. “Your jacket– Right.” You began slipping it off your shoulders, ready to return it to him.

But Heeseung quickly reached out, stopping your movement and pulling the jacket back over you. “No, no– Don’t worry about it,” he interrupted smoothly, his hand lingering for a second longer on the fabric as he gave you a reassuring look. Then his expression shifted, brows furrowing slightly in confusion. “But, uh, what are you doing out here?”

“Oh,” you glanced back out at the rain, pulling the jacket a little tighter around yourself, “I’m just waiting for the rain to ease up a bit so I can call an Uber.”

Heeseung frowned deeply, his gaze flicking toward the street and back to you. “Wait, don’t you have a car?”

You sighed, shaking your head slightly. “I do, or I did until this morning when it decided to break down.”

“Ah,” he nodded, processing your words before falling quiet for a moment. He shifted on his feet, as if trying to decide his next move, as if a strong battle was happening between his brain and heart. The rain wasn’t easing at all, and something sparkled in him – a protective instinct, perhaps. Or maybe a justification to keep you closer.

Heeseung cleared his throat. “I could take you home,” he suggested casually, though he felt a small rush of nerves rise. He wasn’t sure if he was overstepping.  “How does that sound?”

You smiled at him, grateful for the offer but quick to shake your head.

“I wouldn’t want to put you through that. You live way too far from my place,” you chuckled softly, nearly teasing. “Besides, I’m already stealing your jacket. I can’t steal your time, too.”

Heeseung’s lips curved into a small grin, but there was something deeper behind his eyes as he shrugged.

“It’s really nothing,” he said softly, his voice calm and sincere. “The jacket and the time – it doesn’t matter. I’ve got all the time in the world for you, Y/N.” He stepped just a little closer, the warmth of his presence cutting through the coldness of the rain. “And, you know… the rain doesn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon.”

You looked back at him, feeling a flutter in your chest at his words. The idea of being in a closed space with him for too long seemed wrong. The feeling of being his superior, being in a higher position in a company you both worked, stirred your conflict.

However, you had already clocked out. It was not about working anymore.

It was about your fear of losing your control when being in a space where there were no rules preventing you from kissing his oh, so tempting lips. 

Heeseung seemed to be in the middle of a fight as well, and it somehow helped you in your decision, as you smiled kindly, mimicking his same expression – soft, lovingly. 

“Okay.”

The drive was smooth, calm and with some words being exchanged on the way; you instructed the directions every once and a while, and Heeseung glanced at you within the excuse to listen to them correctly, but the real reason was to capture the image of you being so close.

As Heeseung pulled into the underground parking lot of your apartment building, the rain still pounded on the outside ground, seeming no close from ending.

You both sat for a moment, the quiet hum of the car serving as a background for the intriguing silence, as well as the sound of the relentless storm. 

Heeseung looked over at you, a soft smile tugging at the corners of his lips as you waited for your courage to build up completely with the thought that crossed your mind in a flicker of seconds. 

“Safe and sound.” His voice was sweet and low, a perfect blend to fuel your core into responding immediately, your throat feeling dry, your body temperature increasing. 

You chuckled lightly. “Yeah.”

Your eyes searched for his and invisible strings connected them for what felt like hours, your skin tingling, aching to touch him in any possible way, just a taste, just a crumb of him. 

“Thank you,” you whispered, noticing that Heeseung’s gleaming orbs followed the motion of your lips before coming back to your eyes, then it seemed to trace your features, taking in sweetly, tenderly. 

Heeseung was so fucking in love. 

You had your hair messy due to the humidity frizz, your makeup was a little smeared and your face showed a mix of tiredness and something he read as hesitation. Still, you were absolutely stunning.

He gulped down nothing, his eyelids slowly blinking as he engraved your perfect features. 

Unexpectedly or not, you were no different. You really appreciated every bit of Heeseung’s traits, how he would be smiling with the right amount of affection and flirtiness, his touches always tender and respectful, his words aiming and hitting right into your heart.

Heeseung was gentle as a lullaby, soothing and embracing. He was warm, comforting. 

“Do you want to come up and wait it out? No point in driving back through this rain.” You asked, voice barely above a whisper. 

A faint shocking expression washed over Heeseung’s face before he relaxed. 

“You sure? I don’t wanna bother you.”

You were quick to deny it with a head shake. “You’d never. Besides, I owe you a proper thank you for the jacket and the ride.”

There was some tension in the air as you both took the elevator quietly and walked towards your apartment. A different kind, almost tempting of tension. The same one that appeared when Heeseung and Jake stood in the same room as you after all of you sorted out things a bit.

It triggered your eagerness, fueled your desire, taunted your urge to kiss Heeseung and remove his clothes if he let you do it.

You mastered the art of detaching work from home and vice versa, and for that reason you hesitated before inviting Heeseung over, because you were aware your apartment was your safe space to feel everything you suppressed during the day.

With Heeseung’s scent enveloping you, the phantom of his touch lingering on your skin and the memories of his eyes lighting up when he saw you after so long, you feared to surrender to your deep, intense desires and screw up what just got resolved. 

You fought to keep that flame contained, reminding yourself not to seem desperate or to scare Heeseung out. The two weeks being apart didn’t help at all, each day had stretched on, filled with an aching longing for some closeness, not only with Heeseung but with Jake too.

Both men stirred something deep within you, igniting feelings of passion and affection that were dangerously intoxicating. And right at that moment, you shared an intimate setting with one of them.

You felt your heart race as you caught glimpses of Heeseung's shy smirk and those captivating eyes that always made you melt, never leaving yours, reading you like his favorite book.

As you opened the door, Heeseung excused himself while entering your living room, following your trail.

“Do you accept anything? Water? A drink, maybe?” You asked politely.

“No, I’m fine. Thanks.”

“Alright,” you smiled. “You can sit on the sofa, don’t be shy.” You said playfully before heading to the kitchen to get yourself something and to avoid being too close, your last view being Heeseung with flustered cheeks sitting on your couch.

Heeseung was a mess, and thanked you internally when you left him alone so he could breathe properly. He fluttered his eyes close, a movie of his day happening on the big screen of his mind, reminding him that you showed awareness of his situation with Jake, and somehow, it felt like you were open to trying something with both of them.

God, he genuinely hoped that was the case. Otherwise, he would be in deep trouble, his expectations shattered into fragments, and he would have to pick up the pieces alone – without Jake, with whom he had constructed such a personal and intense friendship during the recent days.

The possibility of you choosing Jake over him overtook a big place in his mind.

He had enough confidence in a confrontation, but the moment he recognized Jake's unique personality, he began to question whether the best choice for you was, in fact, Jake.

He still wanted you – desperately –, but nothing stopped him from believing that you deserved the very best. You had always deserved the best.

And how disgusted would you be to know that he got aroused just thinking about being in your apartment, close to your intimacy? Or that your fierce, assertive side made him go hard? Disgusting.

Ironically, the thought of you feeling repulsed by him only fueled his desire to have you in ways that went beyond a mere working friendship. He was acting like a pervert. 

He worked hard to get into your heart, and when you finally let him in, he was lost, he didn’t know what to do. It was pure chaos.

And now, he found himself getting turned on, caught in the mix of emotions and desires he couldn’t contain anymore. 

“I should get going,” he whispered to himself, unaware that you had returned from the kitchen and were watching him from behind.

“Should you?”

He nearly jumped in his seat at your bold, sudden question, turning his head just enough to catch a look of you now without his jacket, yet, with the same shirt. The exact same shirt that had the fucking button popped open and gave him a sneak peek of your cleavage and part of your boobs.

There was a smile dancing on the corner of your lips, an feigned air of innocence accompanying your features, yet you still seemed devilish. 

“It’s still raining, Heeseung,” you pointed out the obvious, using it as an excuse to keep him there. “Stay for a while. I’m sure we can entertain each other, yeah?”

Heeseung was speechless. 

He had a knot on his throat preventing words from coming out of his mouth, and he panicked when noticed your expression faltering before his silence.

You blinked out of your sudden courageous trance, your whole body shifting into something more restrained as you broke eye contact. 

“I mean, we can order something to eat and–”

“No,” he urged to interrupt you, leaving his briefcase on your couch as he stood up. His steps were light, but confident as he reached closer. “I’m sure we can enjoy each other’s presence for a little longer.”

The moment those words hung in the air, something snapped within you as if it was everything you needed to get your control back. Not the workplace, manager type of control, but control over him.

You closed the distance in an instant, capturing his lips with yours eagerly. Heeseung reacted instinctively, returning the kiss with equal desperation and desire, his hands roaming across your body as if trying to memorize every inch of you, squeezing your ass, your thighs, your waist, anything that put him closer to you.

The kiss deepened in seconds, a wild mix of urgency and need lingering on your tongues as they danced together, desperate for more.

What you had longed for just a few weeks, Heeseung had yearned for months.

He tasted as lustful as he seemed to be, touching the right places, pulling you near as he pressed you against him intensely. Your hands gripped on his shoulders trying to balance yourself as he guided you both towards a wall, your back hitting it softly although the shared touch was intense.

As your bodies moved in sync, you could feel the hardness of his dick pressing against you, especially when he started to involuntarily grind on you. A mischievous smirk tugged on the corner of your lips as you parted the heated kiss, searching for his beautiful eyes – now filled with craving.

“Oh, look at you,” you cooed, trailing down your hands just enough to graze his crotch area. “Already like this?” You gave it a small squeeze, eliciting a moan from him. “And I haven’t even done anything yet, huh?”

There was a clear amusement in your whole expression as you glazed your eyes with Heeseung’s deepened ones. His breath hitched at your words, a mix of embarrassment and excitement flooding his cheeks, sending a pulse straight to his cock. Your acknowledgment of his premature and humiliating state of arousal and how your eyes sparkled with mischief sent a thrill wave through him.

“You have no idea what you’re doing to me,” he admitted, his voice low and broken, desire dripping off it as he held you tightly and tried to kiss you again. 

You swerve to the side, teasingly. “Maybe I do,” you replied, your voice sultry as you leaned in closer, brushing your lips on his, tempting a kiss that you didn’t let happen.

Your hands maintained a mild friction against his hardness, giving just enough stimulation to drive him wild. You watched with delight as his hooded eyes struggled to stay open, his mouth slightly agape, letting out the prettiest sounds just for you.

Heeseung was already falling apart, and the mere thought of it excited you even more.

You chuckled softly before pressing a playful kiss to his cheek. “What should I do with you, hmm?” you murmured, kissing the other cheek. “So needy, aren’t you?”

His breathing quickened, and the flush on his cheeks deepened. “Please…” he begged, desperation lacing his tone as he once again tried to capture your lips. He wanted you so badly he was becoming impatient. 

You arched an eyebrow and smirked, your eyes catching every single reaction of him.

“Please what? You’ll have to be more specific than that, Hee.” You feigned innocent eyes, batting your eyelashes as if you weren't touching his clothed cock, his hips continuing to press forward searching for more. 

You placed another kiss, this time, on the corner of his lips, taunting. 

“Kiss me, please.” Heeseung whispered, and as his mouth tracked yours, you let him in with his attempt, his tongue immediately finding its pleasure in yours.

Heeseung moaned with how good you tasted, growing addicted within every second; he could spend hours kissing you, he came to realize. Nonetheless, his painful and neglected length was screaming for some more attention, especially because the fabric of his boxers and pants prevented a bolder, bare touch, and making out with you would do nothing except make it hurt more.

“Where’s your bedroom?” He questioned not really giving you space to answer, his mouth busy sucking your lower lip and tongue.

You let go of his erection to start to remove his dress shirt as you mumbled the direction to him before he grabbed you by your thighs, lifting your body with an unexpected ease as he led you two towards the said room. The opened door made it easier for Heeseung to enter, placing you on the soft mattress of your bed, hovering over your heated body, craving for more.

“You’re so hot,” he whispered against the flesh of your neck and then started to nibble the area, sucking and kissing as if his life depended on it. His hands found their way everywhere, all of his movements expressed how desperate he was for you.

“So are you,” you were able to respond, catching a glimpse of his tanned torso.

Heeseung had a tattoo that covered part of his left rib and you took a mental note to give it the due attention later.

Your fingers threaded through his hair, grabbing it with a mild strength, enough to guide him, so he could put his lips where you wanted. Heeseung let you control, going down to your exposed cleavage and distracting you as he started to unbutton your shirt so he had your laced bra holding your breasts in full display.

“So fucking beautiful,” he marveled in a whisper as he straightened his posture enough to drink from the view – you seemed so dreamy under him with your heavy breathing, swollen kiss parted with a hint of a smile and eyes filled with lust. 

It took seconds for Heeseung to return to his mission to dive into you after removing your bra with your assistance. His mouth toyed with each of your nipples, warm tongue making wonders as you squirmed a little, making no effort to hold back your sounds as you moaned, your panties long gone ruined with your wetness.

There was a feeling haunting the corners of Heeseung’s mind that defocused him a fraction from his actions, though. A fear of losing this proximity, losing the possibility of kissing you, losing his chances, losing you.

The more his tongue danced on your smooth skin, the more it felt bittersweet.

He figured his chances hovered around 50%, from what he had interpreted your intentions – maybe you would test what he had to give, comparing to Jake afterwards, then deciding on one of them?

The idea of sharing you never crossed his mind, not from jealousy; a little, sure, but it wasn’t just that. Sharing felt unrealistic, because he couldn’t see you making such a bold choice.

You sensed his sudden hesitation, how his fingers paused momentarily before resuming their exploration of your body, how his breath was irregular and not from arousal, but from something deeper, as if an inner conflict held him back.

“I don’t know what’s going through your mind right now, but I’m pretty sure you don’t need to worry about it,” you murmured softly, your voice cutting through the haze in his head and bringing him back to you.

He blinked, his eyes searched for yours and found tranquility on it, even behind the intensity of the momentum. You offered a delicate and unique space that allowed him to be free with himself, that being one of the reasons he started to have his feelings for you. 

You had an approachable aura, an adorable soothing voice and a way to play with words that anyone felt easy to open up with you.

“What if I’m thinking about–" He started, his voice small, but the fear of ruining the mood, of disappointing you, stopped him quickly. He shook his head, leaning in closer. “Forget it.”

“You’re safe here, Heeseung,” you said, your hand caressing his face with a tenderness that calmed him instantly. A reassuring smile appeared on your lips and the atmosphere shifted into something serene amidst its intensity. “No judgments. I’m not going anywhere.”

His lips pressed against the palm of your hand, and he placed his own over it, slowly moving it away from his cheek as he began trailing kisses up your arm, deliberate, heated kisses from your wrist to your shoulder, from your neck to your jaw, until it finally met your mouth.

It was slow, purposeful, filled with a restrained intensity that sent a shiver through your body and left you breathless. Heeseung wanted to show just a quarter of how much he needed you, afraid of overwhelming you with how his love for you felt, but equally terrified of losing you mid-battlefield.

In the midst of chaos, you became the only compass that guided him back home. You were the soul that gave meaning to everything, the calm after a relentless storm, the strength that kept him sane. Each passing day, he yearned for your presence, as if the mere thought of having you near made the world brighter – and it did. 

Your smile healed wounds he didn’t even know he had. You were always there for him, helping, listening, playing along with his jokes.

It was absurd, painful, and intense, and he was ridiculously in love with that feeling, and most of all, he was deeply in love with you.

“I want you so badly,” he whispered in a confessing tone when the kiss finally broke. “I want you every day, every second.” He kissed you again, his hands sneaking into your hair to grip your nape, pulling you closer. It felt like walking in quicksand. “It hurts to think I might lose you.”

In different circumstances, you would interpret that statement as a common fear of a lover regarding their passion. However, the context was more intricate, more delicate; there was a third person – Jake – who would also receive a similar treatment, and it struck you deep in your chest to recognize that Heeseung’s fear of being replaced felt constant and was becoming more vivid in that moment, as he realized he was having a piece of you.

Taking a deep breath, you met his hesitant gaze, your heart racing as you tried to articulate your thoughts.

“Heeseung,” you began softly, your voice barely above a whisper. His bambi eyes sparkled with a mix of fear and affection. “You don’t have to worry about this now, ok?” You reassured once again, his chest loosening the tight feeling, because you would always have that effect on him. “I have things figured out. Kind of.” You giggled timidly and Heeseung just realized he had a new favorite sound.

Your fingers gently tangled in his hair, your body warmth reminding you just how eager you were, the phantom of his mouth working on your body serving as a lascivious reminiscence.

“But let me have you tonight first, please?”

Heeseung’s breath hitched, reading your deep, lustful eyes. 

How could he refuse such a sweet plea?

“Yes,” he breathed, urgency coloring his voice, caring little for how desperate he sounded – because he was. “Yes, please.”

Almost like a snap of fingers, the atmosphere around you ignited once more, your room seeming to close in around the two of you as his eyes darkened with desire. Heeseung sounded so deliciously desperate that your only response was to gently turn him until his back hit the bed, positioning yourself above him.

Your hands caressed the bare flesh of his chest, fingertips grazing softly on his nipples and ribs, where they stopped for a while. Heeseung winced with the amazing feeling of you admiring him, your light-feather touch enough to send a wave of arousal straight to his dick.

“You are one of the most gorgeous men I have ever seen, Heeseung,” it was your time to marvel him, smiling lovingly as you used the tip of your nail to draw along his dragon tattoo. “And I’m so fucking lucky to have you like this right now.”

Your voice was filled with sultriness, velvety as ever as you lowered yourself to press your lips on his low stomach, eyes never breaking contact. Heeseung shivered once more under your intense gaze, watching you sneak one your hands on his pants’ waistband, unbuttoning it just to remove it completely and toss it somewhere else on your room’s floor. 

You stood up just to remove your pants as well, keeping on your laced panties, savoring the view of Heeseung’s chest rising and falling deeply, eyes dripping honey and desire as he also devoured your body.  

“You know, I have a feeling that you like something…” You started to say with a thoughtful voice as you leaned closer, placing yourself back on top of him.

“You?” 

You let out a genuine chuckle, shaking your head. Heeseung had a small smile on his lips and looked at you with curiosity. 

“No,” you answered, voice smooth as your hand trailed slowly up and down on his chest. “I think you like being… put in your place,” you smirked, watching his expression shifting into a mild shocking, then darkening at your words as his breath caught in his throat. “I noticed how you reacted when I was scolding you and Jake…” You kept on talking, now playing with the waistband of his boxers, teasingly; his prominent Adam’s apple bobbed as he gulped nervously. “Getting hard just because I was mad, huh?” 

Heeseung had blushed cheeks while failing to keep on looking at you, running away from your sly gaze, before he muttered, embarrassed, “I don’t know what you are talking abo–”

“Oh, you do know,” you purred, your voice lowering an octave. “Don’t act all shy now, Lee Heeseung,” you forced your tone to sound close to a reprimand, flashing a sharp look at him as you freed his throbbing dick from his last clothing piece. 

Heeseung groaned quietly in between his heavy breath as you admired his length’s flushed appearance, how hard and wet with precum it was, dripping for you. Your mouth watered and your hands itched, aching to give that man some more relief.

“Just give me the green signal and I’ll make you feel so good, Hee,” you voiced out as you glazed your eyes on his, your own body reacting to his state of desperation sending pulsing waves straight to your cunt.

His legs squirmed under you as you lowered your face, closing the distance between his cock and your mouth. Your breath brushed against its skin and Heeseung winced. “Please…” He whispered, nodding. “It’s hurting.”

You smirked. “There you go…” And tilted your head slightly, slowly grabbing his hardness with one hand.

Just the touch of your soft and warm hand enveloping his shaft had him closing his eyes and biting his lip, holding back an embarrassing moan that threatened to escape.

“You’re so needy,” you cooed teasingly with a quirked eyebrow, eyeing Heeseung with a faux disdain as he opened his eyelids just to catch a glimpse of it, his dick twitching under your fingers. 

“Yes, please,” his hips buckled forward as he whimpered, searching for more. “I am needy, please, keep touching me, Y/N–”

“Yeah?” A devilish smile tugged on the corner of your lips as you started stroking faster. “A little pathetic, Heeseung. Don’t you think so? All of this just for some handjob…” You clicked your tongue without halting your movements, neither letting your grin disappear. “Lucky to you, you’re just how I like it.”

Heeseung's breath hitched at your words, his chest heaving as he tried to keep himself grounded, but the teasing was overwhelmingly delicious. The way you handled him, every squeeze of your hand making him feel both humiliated and completely at your mercy. His mind fogged with pleasure, and it became harder to think, to hold back, to stay composed, his own body and voice betraying his attempts of holding back. 

When you started to give his tip more attention by cupping your hand on it and your tongue flattering against it, as if you taunted a full blowjob, he found himself near to the edge already.

Not only was he living his wettest dream, but your expertise on knowing exactly what and how to get him going eased his release to get closer and closer.

You noticed Heeseung's moans intensifying and his body squirming more than before. Although it was your first time with him, you easily deduced that he was close to reaching his climax.

But you had other plans.

Without any warning, you stopped everything – your hands, your mouth – retreating from his body, and eliciting a sound from Heeseung that landed somewhere between a cry and a whimper. His wide, desperate bambi eyes gleamed in confusion and frustration.

“N–No– Why–”

“I don’t want you to cum on my hands,” you said feigning innocence, blinking sweetly as if you weren’t ruining his release. 

Reaching over to your nightstand, you grabbed a condom, smoothly rolling it onto Heeseung’s painfully hard cock before positioning yourself over him. As you hovered above his length, you glanced at him, searching for confirmation.

Heeseung had propped himself up on his elbows, his eyes wide, flickering between your sultry expression and the sight of his cock pressing against your slick entrance. He understood your unspoken question and gave a quick, eager nod. His gaze was immediately drawn back to his dick disappearing inside of you as your walls enveloped him completely.

“F–Fuck,” Heeseung breathed, his voice trembling, almost strained, his abs flexing as he instinctively thrusted slightly forward before collapsing back onto the bed.

The sensation of your wet heat gripping him tightly was overwhelming. He rolled his eyes back and let his head fall against the pillow, biting his lip to keep from moaning too loudly.

“I’m not gonna last long–” he muttered through heavy breaths, his strong hands gripping your hips, holding on like you were the only thing keeping him grounded, forgetting that, in fact, you were the one leading his lustful ruin.

“Oh, you will,” you murmured, rolling your hips back and forth in a painful slow pace while you adjusted. “You’re not that pathetic, are you?” You teased, voice thick with challenge. 

However, to your surprise and delight, Heeseung’s response was unexpectedly better than your imagination.

“I am–” He interrupted himself with a deep moan as you purposefully clenched around his dick. “I am that pathetic,” he whispered, hands tightening on your hips. “I am pathetic for you, for you only.”

You instinctively reacted to his vulnerable, desperate words. You could feel the raw intensity behind it, his complete surrender to you, and it fueled your own desire. 

“Yeah?” You cocked your head to the side with a smug smile, supporting yourself with your palms planted on his chest as he started to thrust up into you, seeking for more of your addicting squeeze around his dick. “Show me, then.”

Heeseung’s entire body shuddered beneath you while he forced your hips down to meet his own buckling up; you, yourself barely helping, letting him do all the work just for a little teasing.

However, Heeseung hit a certain spot in you that had your dominant facade faltering, a choking moan slipping from your throat while you frowned with pure pleasure as your arms wavered briefly to hold you still.

“You feel that?” His voice cracked, eyes fluttering open to catch a glimpse of your lascivious expression. “I’m yours–”

You bit your lip, a rush of adrenaline waving through your body, tingling at his words, your mind spinning with the intoxicating pleasure of having Heeseung so completely at your mercy.

You leaned forward, your mouth grazing his ear as you whispered, “Such a good boy...”

The simple praise sent a visible shiver through his spine, his grip on you faltering momentarily as a desperate groan escaped his lips, eyes rolling as he threw his head back, letting his perfect neck in all display for you.

It became clear – he was close, teetering right on the edge, just waiting for your command, nonetheless you weren't quite ready to let him have it, especially because the knot in your stomach just started to tighten. 

"Not yet," you said breathlessly against his jawline, a wicked grin spreading across your face as you lightly bit and kissed the area. "You'll have to wait just a little longer, Heeseung."

You could feel his cock twitching inside you, his body trembling with the effort of holding back. 

In no universe could Heesung have imagined that this would be how his day ended, with you dominating him so effortlessly, and most importantly, him letting it happen and savoring every single delightful second.

“P–Please…” Heeseung whimpered, his voice cracking into a soft cry, his fingers trembling against your skin, kneading it as a way to regain his control. One of his fingers slipped to your clit, rubbing it the way he could due to the position.

You kept on riding Heeseung with all you had, your thighs burning in the process but you couldn’t care less. The way he was whining in your ear, panting and pleading, together with his touch on your sensitive spot and his fingers doing circles on your clit brought you close to the edge as well. With each clench around his dick, you could feel his restrain slipping away.

“I’m– Please–” 

“Let go, Hee. Cum for me, yeah?” You purred against his lips, sloppily kissing it as you drank his guttural moan, feeling the condom filling up inside you. 

Your core bubbled and the knot tightened, and you coated the condom with your juices while a whimper came out from your lips. Heeseung’s grip tightened as you rode you both through your highs.

Your mouths slowly found a comfortable pace as you also fully decreased your movements, savoring the aftershocks of your release and feeling Heeseung’s beneath you.  

Heeseung’s breaths came in heavy pants as you parted the kiss by sucking his lower lip. You lifted yourself enough to search for his eyes, filled with happiness and satisfaction. 

“Did that feel good?” you asked softly, brushing a stray hair from his sweaty forehead, your fingers lingering on his warm skin.

“More than I could ever imagine,” he admitted, a shy smile breaking through his panting breaths. “You’re incredible.”

“So are you,” you whispered, kissing him again.

This time, deliberate and loaded with emotion. All the feelings that once carried an air of doubt while hovering in your mind now felt certain, and the warmth in your heart only confirmed that as your body relaxed and you emerged from the lustful bliss, leaving you and Heeseung in a sweet, loving bubble. 

Heeseung helped clean you and himself, even taking a shower since you offered some of your brother’s never used clothes, you caught yourself mingling on his warm embrace, now resting your cheek on his bare chest that rose and fell softly.

“I really like you, Y/N,” Heeseung's voice was dripping in honey, kind and sweet as his fingers trailed a gentle path on your arm. “Like, really like you.”

“I know,” you whispered with a smile, struggling to contain the sting in your heart. “But you’re not the only one, right?” You asked and lifted your head just enough to capture his tender eyes focusing on you.

He shook his head, biting his lips nervously.

“No,” he finally confessed with a sigh, holding you closer as if you would slip away from his grip at any moment, without a warning. “I’m not.”

You both shared a silence filled with unspokenly delicate words. 

“Give Jake a chance as well.” 

Heeseung’s phrase lingered on your brain for longer than you expected, filled with sincerity. He was willing to offer you the option, the possibility to choose between him and Jake. And somehow that made the scenario even easier.

“Got your message. You called me in?”

You were slightly startled by Jake’s sudden entrance into your office, even though you had already allowed it through text. You took a moment to admire him – he seemed a bit out of breath, his disheveled hair and wide, puppy eyes making his adorable charm stand out even more.

“Close the door,” you said firmly. “And lock it.” Jake's trembling hands did as you instructed.

“What’s going on?” he asked, wincing under your intense gaze.

You had clenched your jaw, your fingers fidgeting casually as you leaned your hips against your desk, exuding an air of something he read as severity.

Despite the tension palpable in the air, he couldn’t help but take notice of how stunning you looked, with your clothing choice for the day accentuating your curves and your hair in a high ponytail. He shamelessly checked you out, mesmerized with your figure and oblivious of the fact you were playing with him with all bossy that posture. 

The topic was sensitive, but nothing stopped you from playing a little.

“Did Heeseung tell you he visited me yesterday?” You broke the silence

Jake blinked, gaze flickering immediately from your thighs to your eyes, completely thrown off by your words, confusion clear on his face.

“W–what?”

“Yeah.” You smirked, placing your palms against the desk behind you and leaning back, relaxed. “Did he?” You blinked innocently, as though you genuinely cared about his answer. “Because if he didn’t, he’s playing a much dirtier game than I expected,” you feigned disappointment, clicking your tongue and pouting after.

“What are you talking about, Y/N?”

For a brief moment, you hesitated. Jake seemed genuinely clueless, but you knew better. You had all the evidence – the little game between them, the silent competition that had gone unspoken for too long.

Heeseung had told you his side of the story and indirectly a quarter of Jake’s.

Even though Heeseung and Jake had grown closer and eased some of the tension between them, there was an underlying feeling that occasionally surfaced, standing out from the rest: beneath it all, there was the undeniable desire to have you. Despite the mutual understanding of the connection they both shared, the notion of a single winner still lingered in the background, subtly driving their everyday actions.

“You know exactly what I'm talking about,” you answered, voice still steady, but now with a layer of seduction laced in between your words. Your eyes never left Jake’s face, even when he drifted them away due to his shyness before you. “You are falling behind, Jakey.”

Jake stood there with a small frown, processing your words; he would be lying if he didn’t think at some point that, behind all his friendship with Heeseung, there was you, occupying almost every corner of his head with your beautiful smile and charming personality. 

You were his main objective, his goal, after all.

“Come on, Jake,” you pressed, your tone dripping with challenge. “Are you really just going to sit back and let Heeseung win this?”

Internally you prayed for any green light from Jake. Otherwise, your decision and respective demeanor could ruin everything – your job, your friendship. It was unethical, unprofessional, against every guideline you fought to uphold at the company.

But watching Jake with his jaw tightening, fist clenched and eyes widening in confusion and anger, was far too tempting to stop.

Your words sparked something deep inside Jake, awakening his competitive side that had been lying dormant despite the constant swirl of emotions in his mind. The need to win, to prove himself, came back to life. More than anything, he wanted to be the best, especially for you.

So a war happened inside him: on one side, the resentful acceptance that if he lost to Heeseung, at least you would be with someone who would treat you right; but on the other, a fierce, burning desire.

Jake couldn’t shake the intoxicating rush that came from your approval, the way your praise felt after his every effort, after every achievement; your cute smile and shining eyes showed him a galaxy of happiness. 

And now, the thought of losing that, of watching someone else receive what he craved from you, wasn’t something he could tolerate. He wanted to be the one to make you proud, to make you feel the way you made him feel – and that competitive fire was about to consume him entirely.

Since apparently Heeseung had his chance to prove his side, now it was his time.

The room was thick with anticipation as he slowly stepped closer, the space between you shrinking, the office boundaries blurring.

“Come closer…” you purred, eyes gleaming with amusement as you watched him move towards you, desire growing clear in his eyes.

The second he was in front of you, his hands traveled instantly to your waist, the heated touch making you nearly gasp. His fingers pressed into the soft fabric of your clothing, pulling you closer as his breathing grew heavier. 

For a brief moment, you felt drunk in Jake’s scent and firm grip, his eyes behind the glasses lingering longer on your lips before he bit his own, as if he was restraining himself. However, he easily lost his own battle, leaning in intending to kiss you, but you gently pushed against his chest, smirking.

“No, mm-mm,” you tutted, shaking your head as he hesitated, your teasing smile driving him mad; the proximity, the chances, everything taunting his desire to give up on his principles and pleasure you. “We cannot do anything while working, Jake. You know that.” You playfully reminded him, nodding along like it was an innocent rule, all while your eyes glinted with mischief. “I’m your manager.” 

Jake groaned softly, clearly torn between desire and duty, but then you leaned in closer, your voice dropping into a soft whisper. “However…” You cupped his jaw, thumb grazing his lip with agonizing slowness, and you could feel him melt under your touch.

His lips parted slightly, his warm tongue just brushing your thumb, causing a wave of arousal to surge through your body. You swallowed hard, suppressing a moan.

You continued, your voice barely audible but dripping with sensuality, being the only one filling the room as Jake just stood there, in need of you, “We can’t just ignore that Heeseung made his move, can we? Supposedly, you're next, right?” Your eyes sparkled as you cocked your head, taking in Jake’s hooded, desperate gaze. You licked your lips and grabbed his tie, pulling him even closer, lips now brushing against each other while you savored the delicious tension.

“So… what’s it gonna be?” you whispered the words, your breath mingling with him as you pulled even closer by his tie. “Hm?”

His eyes darkened before fluttering shut, and you knew he was near to the edge of letting go from whatever internal struggle holding him back. Yet, you didn't expect Jake to eagerly kiss you, throwing aside any thoughts about being at work.

It would be a euphemism to say you weren’t as desperate as he was, your arousal guiding your decisions the moment that attractive man showed up in your office with his usual clumsy state, all messy and unnecessarily hot as he demonstrated confusion from your sudden call. 

Jake’s taste melting on your tongue made the task of remembering your responsibilities harder, and you pathetically tossed your ethics aside as you devoured Jake’s plush, soft lips.

Fingers threading through his silky hair, you pulled him closer, as if the mere contact of your mouths and the warmth of his body pressing against yours wasn't enough. A fire ignited within you, threatening to consume you both, fueled by the ragged breaths escaping his lips mingled with groans of delight.

Jake felt like dying, and he was loving every second. 

There was an annoying itch at the back of his mind, reminding him that you were both in a workplace and that the risk of being caught was large. But instead of pushing him away, it drew him even closer.

In no universe he would let the opportunity of his life slip away easily like that.

Suddenly, your phone buzzed behind you, breaking the intoxicating moment for some seconds. Jake’s lips trailed down to your neck to give you the chance to reach for it. Your breath was heavy as you read the notification: meeting in an hour.

You quickly typed a message to Heeseung, asking him to come up with an excuse for anyone who might approach your door. You kept it vague, knowing he would totally understand the situation, especially since he had seen Jake enter your office.

With your heart racing you threw your phone at some random place before turning your attention to Jake, to dive back into the moment before the outside world interrupted your brand new little secret.

Jake gave you no chance to react when he suddenly lifted your hips and sat you on the wooden surface of your desk, forcing your legs open so he could place himself between them. His sneaky fingers found the hem of your shirt, invading the area shamelessly, the warm touch together with his lips sucking the flesh of your neck made you shiver, the bubbling desire in your core intensifying each painful second.

“D–Don’t leave any marks,” you warned breathlessly, loving how fast Jake found your sensitive spot and started to give it some proper attention, but afraid of being too obvious with the after. 

You could feel his hardness brushing against your legs from time to time, and you noticed at some point he began to slightly thrust forward, seeking for friction. You weren’t much different, though – your hands tugged his hair gently to give you some support as you waved your hips towards Jake, searching for a similar relief, moaning softly.

Impatience was growing as much as your desire, so you clumsily slipped down from your desk and pushed Jake’s torso back without saying a word. His instant reaction was to retract himself in a confused state, hands faltering on keeping squeezing you; his glasses were uneven as ever and a bit foggy, hair was sticking up all over and chest visibly raising and falling with each deep breath. 

“We don’t have much time,” you purred, your voice dripping with sultry seduction as your eyes roamed over Jake’s disheveled state. “And I’m pretty sure a dedicated employee like you doesn’t want to get caught, right?”

A playful smirk tugged at your lips as you began to unbutton your pants in a slow, deliberate, teasing show. Jake’s breath hitched with the view and your words, the aching reminder he unfortunately couldn’t do everything he dreamed of with you. 

His gaze fixated on every inch of your skin, shamelessly moaning when you lowered your pants just enough to reveal your white panties, completely soaked with arousal. You toyed with the waistband, your smile widening as he dropped to his knees before you, desperation written all over his face.

“Let me eat you out. We don’t need to do anything more. Just let me taste you,” Jake pleaded, his eyes filled with longing and urgency, his composure long gone completely out of reach.

Goosebumps sprawled over your skin before you commanded, “Eat me out, and then fuck me, Jake.”

Your tone was thick with confidence and lust as you turned on your back, bending over the polished wooden surface in a way of presenting yourself to him.

Jake groaned as he carefully removed your panties, revealing your ass and your cunt to him; Jake groaned, barely able to contain himself as he slid your panties down, exposing your ass and glistening cunt. His mouth watered instinctively as he leaned forward, positioning himself to take a long, delicious lick of your wet folds. His plump lips enveloped you, sucking gently as though he were savoring a delicate dessert, each flick of his tongue igniting a fire deep within you.

Jake envisioned purpose as being to please you, in every possible way. He would come up with alternative solutions to your problems, make you proud by delivering incredible results at work, and relieve the pressure and burden of your job by dealing with the part he could. 

But what he craved the most was to explore the depths of your satisfaction, discover and learn every inch of you that sparkled your thrilling emotions and give you what you deserved.

Jake was devoted to you, sweet as honey and affectionate as a teddy bear in an agonizingly delightful way. Because in the end, you would always praise him, leaving him flustered as you highlighted his positive attributes and unmatched skills.

He pleasured you for his own pleasure. 

And he knew that he might not be the only one in your life now, but nothing would stop him from trying to be the best.

As Jake’s tongue danced across your folds, each flicker ignited a wave of ecstasy that coursed through you, your body trembling as you struggled to keep it as quiet as possible, your knuckles turning white as you held on tight on the desk’s edge.

You could feel the heat radiating off him, littening you up with raw desire as you lost your ability to think straight. You found yourself surrendering completely to the bliss Jake offered, unable to control your sounds, let alone your own body from seeking for more as you pushed your hips back.

“God, Jake…” you gasped, your breath hitching as he licked and sucked with a fervor that made your knees weak. “Just like that. Don’t stop. You’re so fucking good–”

Encouraged by your moans and your praise, Jake increased the pressure of his mouth, groaning against your cunt as his hands gripped your hips to hold you steady, letting himself get lost in the taste of you.

The voice inside his read evoked the thought you weren’t fully his yet, so with every flick of his tongue Jake memorized your responses and reactions, the little sounds that escaped your lips and your skin prickled under his precise touch fueling his desire to give you more and more.

He wished for your taste to linger longer on his tongue, keeping vivid the feeling of having you in such intimacy, but it was undeniable that reality would eventually knock.

On the other hand, your mind was blank and could feel the tension building within you, your core tightening as you realized you were teetering near to the edge already. It was a delicious struggle between desire and restraint, your body begging for release, but your mind reminding you Jake was right behind you, probably eager for his own climax as well.

“Jake,” you breathed, your voice a mix of desperation and longing. For seconds you wondered where the innocent, clumsy and nerd-look-alike Jake you knew was at that moment, as the lewd slurping sounds filled your ears. “I need you. Now.”

Jake didn’t stop, though, diving deeper, keeping on forcing you to step near the verge of your climax. He wanted you to cum all over his mouth. He needed to taste you.

“Jake,” you called again within a loud moan that got you covering your lips right away. “Please–” You pleaded, rolling your eyes, finding it difficult to keep steady, your knees faltering, your pussy clenching around his tongue.

Your hands made a mess with the papers sprawled on your desk, knocking down some random things in the process.

“I want your dick, Jake,” you whimpered, trying to sound as firm as you could, “I wanna you to fuck me, please–” You whispered, almost sounding like a whine and a cry.

Just then Jake finally snapped out of his bliss and gave a last kiss on your glistening cunt before standing up. He paused for a brief moment, eyes dark with lust as he pulled back slightly to take in the sight of you; your body trembling from his efforts, part of your juices dripping on your exposed legs, your whole back in full display for him.

“You’re so beautiful like this,” Jake murmured, his voice husky and thick with desire. “I want to make you feel this good, all the time,” he said, determination and passion blended perfectly together as his hands caressed your sides with a softness that contradicted the abuse he was doing on your pussy.

“Make me feel better now, Jake,” you waved your hips a little, provoking. “Just fuck me, yeah?” 

During agonizing seconds, all you heard was the noises of Jake unbuckling his belt and his zipper going down, mingled with the sound of his ragged breath. You controlled the urge of looking back, too weak to do anything other than support yourself on the table and wait.

“Can I?” He asked softly, pulling you by the waist with one hand while the other held his own dick, until it pressed against your wet entrance.

“No need to ask,” you answered, mirroring his tone, although the anticipation grew within your chest.

Jake’s hand grabbed your hip to maintain your steadiness as he forced himself inside, your head dropped forward and your mouth fell open with the raw feeling of Jake entering you. 

“Damn, you feel incredible,” he whispered in amusement. It felt way better than any dream he ever had. 

With your warm walls tightened around him, Jake’s composure slipped away and he began to move, each thrust deliberate and deep, designed to send you into a haze of ecstasy. He had one palm still holding you in order to pull you by the waist while pushing deep, and the other slightly pressed on your back, either to support himself and also to keep you in position.

You rolled your eyes, your hands crumpling the papers on your desk trying to ground yourself, giving no care about its importance.

The world outside faded away, you nearly forgot you were fucking during working time and, mainly, under the company’s rules and ceiling as Jake’s thrusts grew faster, more frantic; he chased his own pleasure while desperately trying to push you over the edge, the slap noises filled the room together with your heavy breaths and moans.

“F–fuck– You’re hitting– deep– So deep–” Your voice was being cut by each hard slam of Jake’s hip against yours. “So fucking good,” you whimpered and arched your back when he hit your spot straight.

“You like that?” Jake asked, proud of being the one who received such praises from you. “Please, tell me you want me,” he pleaded, feeling his abdomen flexing with his orgasm getting near.

“I want you–” You urged to say, your climax building up on your core and your pussy clenching involuntary. Jake groaned. “I want you, Jake, please–” 

Jake kept on hitting you with a constancy that felt unbearably good. In that moment, everything else fell away – the meetings, the deadlines, the moral dilemmas. All you felt was the strong wave of pleasure rushing over every inch of your body, as you trembled and nearly cried in a last moan, coming all over Jake’s length.

“Fuck–” You hissed when Jake kept on going, driving your through your high before pulling out and jerking himself off. You were panting when you turned to shameless watch his hand speeding on his dick covered with your cum, the lascivious, wet sounds making you quiver, his arm’s popped veins making the view way too devilish. 

You bit your lip, knees failing to keep you correctly straightened up but you sustained yourself in the desk behind you.

“You’re so good, Jake. Always so good, always making me proud,” you said between heavy breaths, eliciting a guttural groan from Jake that you feared someone heard, his head throwing back, exposing his perfect neck to you.

Jake was unable to describe properly the jolt of electricity that ran through his body after hearing your words, spilling his cum forward, hitting your arm and part of your table. 

“Shit…” He whispered, eyes fluttering open while he struggled to breath. His gaze drifted to your desk. “I’m sorry,” he murmured as he got closer, using his clean hand to hold your waist as he placed a soft kiss on your mouth.

You didn’t understand at first what he meant, too lost in your bliss, but after you both cleaned up, you realized how messy in many, too many nuances – your desk was and understood why Jake was sorry for.

You had made your decision even before your night with Heeseung and your wild time with Jake. 

With Heeseung, it felt like it just naturally happened – and you didn’t regret any second. For Jake, it was something similar to an equality, giving them both the same treatment and chance. And again, you didn’t regret it. 

Your feelings for them were as clear as crystal water, each reflecting a different and unique facet of your heart. Each moment you shared together was filled with affection, desire, passion, and it drew you stronger into connecting yourself with Heeseung and Jake.

You spent days in deep contemplation, analyzing how your body reacted during every interaction – the way your pulse quickened with each lingering glance, how your cheeks warmed from the softest, lightest brush of hands, and how your inner core felt electrified after every encounter.

You tried to measure, but it was so obvious – and at no moment you tried to fight against it.

Consequently, it was relatively easy to invite them into your office for a personal conversation, where you felt no fear regarding your feelings, but were uncertain about how Jake and Heeseung would react to your decision.

“This is not the appropriate setting, but I feel like it’s our setting,” you began, your voice steady to express your certainty. This time, you held a sweet, softened gaze that darted between Heeseung and Jake, lingering not long enough in each of their tensed faces.

They were completely aware about the reason behind your gathering, their breaths coming heavy, throat dry, fingers fidgeting… You noticed each anxious demeanor. Your heart tightened, because you would never intend to make them feel bad. 

“I called you both here because…” 

You took a moment to find the right words, the same you sculpted during days in the back of your mind, now running away from your mouth.

But there was no doubt, because at some point, you questioned yourself.

If love was a battlefield…

“I’m not choosing.”

Could there be more than one winner? 

“Not between you two.”

[BONUS SCENE]

“Heeseung, please, stop chasing after Layla,” Jake rolled his eyes, a hint of exasperation in his voice while you chuckled, taking a bite of your ice cream. “You’re scaring her.”

It was a sunny Sunday afternoon and you had decided to take a peaceful walk with your, now, two boyfriends and Layla, Jake’s adorable dog. At some point you started to feel a bit tired, and opted to sit down on a bench with Jake while Heeseung continued to expend Layla’s energy, playing with her nearby.

“She’s literally smiling, Jake,” Heeseung shot back with a glance, though his smile betrayed his faux annoyed facade. He knelt next to Layla, gently stroking her fluffy fur and murmuring sweet nothings with a baby voice while nodding. “Isn’t that right, girl?”

“You’re just jealous because she likes Heeseung more than she likes you,” you teased Jake, trying to contain your laughter at his instant reaction. Jake blinked flabbergasted at your words before he pouted.

“Don’t ever say that again,” he muttered in a whine, feigning an anger that never really matched his energy. His facade quickly fell as he pulled you closer to kiss your cheek.

You giggled, melting into a shy mess when Jake began planting kisses along your neck too, the sound drawing Heeseung’s attention.

He stood up, holding Layla’s leash with a playful tilt of his head. The ghost of a smile lingered on his lips before he pouted dramatically. “I can’t believe I’m witnessing my girlfriend and my friend enjoying themselves without considering my presence,” Heeseung said as he slid into the empty seat on your left, planting a sweet kiss on your other cheek.

Just like that, it started a playful competition between the two of them, each trying to elicit a laugh or a shout of “stop” from you first. All you could do was giggle and squirm, drowning in the warm sensation blooming in your chest and the delightful tingling on each side of your neck as Heeseung and Jake silently agreed to tease you mercilessly.

You couldn’t help but be amused at how effortlessly Heeseung and Jake had adapted to this unconventional relationship. Everything had fallen into place, and you finally had an answer to the question that had lingered in your mind when you decided to take a step further.

Yes, two people can definitely win a love battle.

[theetherealbloom]

YOU'RE THE RISK, I'M GONNA TAKE IT

Summary: You help your boss, Joel Miller, buy flowers for his date. Or so you thought.

Paring: No Outbreak!Joel Miller x Fem!Reader

Warnings: FLUFF, SMUT, Light Angst, Reader Dislikes Roses (i also dislike them :P), Kissing, Cheesy, Crush, Grumpy Single Dad, Office/Workplace Romance, Assistant!Reader, Billionaire!Joel, CEO!Joel, Boss!Joel, She Falls First and He Falls Harder Trope, Grumpy/Sunshine Trope, Idiots-In-Love, Confessions, PWP (wrap it up ya’ll), Fingering, Power Imbalance, Pet Names, ‘Good Girl’, ‘Darlin’,

Word Count: 4.2k

A/N: SOOOO WE’VE ALL SEEN THAT PIC RIGHT???? FML, if I ever saw that man carrying flowers and gifting them to me, I would marry him right away. 

This is for @morallyinept Jett’s Flora & Fauna Writing Challenge for May! I was obviously inspired by the picture in the moodboard above and my love for Gracie Abram’s new song Risk! Likes, comments and reblogs are appreciated, thank you all for reading and supporting my deluluness tehe.

Side note: I’m dyslexic and English isn’t my first language! So I apologize in advance for the spelling and/or grammatical errors. As always, reblogs, comments, and likes are always appreciated. Thank you and happy reading!

Song: Risk by Gracie Abrams

Main Masterlist

In the elegant floral shop, the scent of fresh blooms enveloped you as you stood beside your boss, Joel Miller, a man of many responsibilities and hidden depths. His piercing gaze fixed on a display of vibrant roses, seeking your opinion on a matter close to his heart - choosing the perfect flowers for a date.

Joel, a handsome billionaire with a company to run, a daughter to care for, and a brother to watch over, often sought your counsel on matters both personal and professional. Whether it was a crucial business decision or selecting a gift for Sarah's upcoming birthday, he valued your input more than he let on.

You studied the roses with a critical eye, your brows furrowing slightly as you considered the implications of his choice. "I think Lauren will love it," you finally offered, your voice tinged with a hint of reservation at the mention of Joel's recent romantic interest.

The name 'Lauren' left a bitter taste in your mouth, a woman who seemed more interested in Joel's wealth and status than in him as a person. You couldn't shake the feeling that she was using him for her own gain, and the thought of Joel falling for her facade made your stomach churn.

Joel's keen observation didn't miss the subtle shift in your demeanor. "Why are you makin' that face?" he questioned, his narrowed eyes fixed on you with a mix of curiosity and concern.

Your heart raced at being caught off guard, your cheeks flushing with embarrassment. "What face?" you attempted to deflect, but Joel saw through your facade with unnerving accuracy.

"The one you make when you don't like somethin'. You're scrunchin' your nose and everythin'," he pointed out, his gesture leaving you feeling exposed and vulnerable.

Caught in his perceptive gaze, you struggled to find the right words, knowing that you couldn't deceive him. There was an unspoken connection between you, a bond that transcended the boundaries of employer and assistant, leaving you feeling both exhilarated and unnerved by his proximity.

Joel's expectant gaze bore into you, his hand resting casually on his hip as he awaited your response, a subtle sign of his contemplation or frustration. The air between you crackled with unspoken tension, a silent understanding passing between you as you navigated the delicate dance of honesty and restraint in your shared space.

You settled for the truth, pinching your lips as if you were thinking how to phrase the next few words, eventually meeting his brown eyes and saying, "I don't like roses." The words hung in the air, a confession that felt both liberating and terrifying.

Joel's eyebrows shot up in surprise, his expression a mix of curiosity and amusement. Before he could respond, you cut him off, rambling on in a nervous attempt to clarify your thoughts. "I know, I know, it's just... my preference. It's not that I don't find them pretty... I do. It's just, sometimes it feels like there's no thought into getting someone roses."

You really should shut up, but you couldn't stop, your words tumbling out in a rush. "That's not to say you're not like putting in the effort to get Lauren... roses or something. It's just there's a whole language to flowers and their meaning, and there's definitely more options than just a whole bouquet of roses."

The silence that followed was oppressive, Joel's eyes roaming all over your figure as if taking in every detail. You felt like you were going to vomit, because there was no way you had just told your boss that he wasn't being thoughtful as he was getting the bitch flowers.

"What d'you like then?" Joel's deep voice asked, his tone low and husky, sending a shiver down your spine. You took a moment to formulate an answer, your heart racing with anticipation.

"Red Peonies," you swallowed, the words feeling like a revelation.

"Why?" Joel asked, his eyes never leaving yours, and you swear he took a small step closer to you, the distance between you shrinking to almost nothing.

"Besides it representing love, it also represents passion, honour and respect," you explained, trying to sound calm despite the turmoil inside. "There's just something more to it, I guess."

The air was tense, Joel's gaze burning into you like a brand. You felt like you were drowning in the depths of his eyes, the silence between you a palpable thing. You knew you should look away, but you couldn't, your gaze locked onto his as if drawn by an unseen force.

The world around you melted away, leaving only the two of you, suspended in a moment of raw emotion. You knew that you had crossed a line, but you couldn't help the way you felt. The truth was out, and now you just had to face the consequences.

The sharp chime of a phone shattered the charged silence between you, pulling you both back to the reality of the moment. You reluctantly pulled out your phone, a sigh escaping your lips as you delivered the news. "Your 3 p.m. meeting with Bill and Frank is coming up. We should buy those roses and go—"

But before you could finish, Joel interjected, his voice firm yet tinged with a hint of reluctance. "We can come back for them later."

You blinked, momentarily caught off guard by his sudden change of heart. Quickly regaining your composure, you slipped back into your assistant mode. "I could have them delivered and—"

"Don't worry about it, darlin'," Joel cut you off, his deep Southern drawl sending a shiver down your spine. "Let's go to the damn meeting before Tess starts tellin' me off again."

Without another word, Joel strode towards the waiting car, the driver opening the door as you followed, slipping into the plush leather seat beside him. The tension in the air was palpable, the unspoken emotions between you thick enough to cut with a knife.

As the car pulled away from the curb, you found yourself acutely aware of Joel's presence, his warmth and the subtle scent of his cologne enveloping you. The silence stretched on, neither of you quite sure how to navigate the charged atmosphere that had settled over the two of you.

You stole a glance at Joel, his brow furrowed in thought, his fingers drumming a restless rhythm on the armrest. You longed to reach out, to bridge the gap that had suddenly opened between you, but the weight of your professional relationship held you back.

The drive to the office was a blur, the familiar sights and sounds of the city passing by in a haze as your mind raced with a thousand unspoken thoughts. When the car finally pulled to a stop, you both exited in silence, the weight of the unresolved tension hanging heavy in the air.

As you made your way through the bustling lobby, Joel's hand brushed against yours, sending a jolt of electricity through your body. You couldn't help but wonder if the touch was intentional, a silent acknowledgment of the connection that simmered beneath the surface.

But as you turned to leave, Joel's voice stopped you in your tracks. "Darlin'," he murmured, his eyes filled with a depth of emotion that took your breath away. "We need to talk."

Your heart pounded in your chest as you turned to face him, unsure of what could possibly be running through Joel's mind. The intensity of his gaze only added to the butterflies in your stomach, and you couldn't help but feel a sense of hope and trepidation at what he might say.

"What is it, Joel?" You asked, trying to keep your voice steady despite the whirlwind of emotions inside you.

He took a step closer to you, his expression serious as he reached out and gently tucked a loose strand of hair behind your ear. Your heart skipped a beat at his touch, and you couldn't help but lean into it.

"I can't ignore this any longer," Joel began, his voice low and full of raw emotion. "I've been trying to fight it, but I can't deny how I feel about you any longer."

Your breath caught in your throat as he spoke those words, a rush of emotions flooding through you. Could it be possible that Joel felt the same way about you? Or was this all just some cruel joke?

"Joel..." You started, but he cut you off with a shake of his head.

"No, let me finish," he said firmly. "Ever since I first laid eyes on you, I haven't been able to get you out of my head. And when we spent that night together at the charity event...I knew then that I had feelings for you."

You were speechless, unable to believe what was happening. You had harbored secret feelings for Joel for so long and never thought they would be reciprocated.

"I know there's the whole boss-assistant dynamic between us," Joel continued with a small self-deprecating smile. "But I can't let that hold me back from telling you how I feel."

A mix of emotions swirled inside you, and you couldn't help but feel torn. On one hand, you wanted to give into the feelings that had been building between you and Joel for so long. But on the other hand, the thought of risking your professional relationship and possibly even your job was a daunting prospect.

"Joel, I-I don't know what to say," you stammered, feeling overwhelmed by the intensity of the moment.

He reached out and took your hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze. "You don't have to say anything right now," he said softly. "I just needed to tell you how I feel."

Silence fell between you as you both stood there, lost in your own thoughts. You were torn between what your heart wanted and what your head was telling you was logical.

Finally, after what felt like hours, you gathered the courage to speak again. "Joel, I care about you too," you admitted quietly. "But there are so many complications..."

"I know," he said with a sad smile. "But we can figure it out together."

His words filled you with hope and warmth, but at the same time fear also crept in. You knew that pursuing a romantic relationship with Joel would be risky and could potentially cause problems at work.

Before either of you could say more, there was a knock on Joel's office door. Startled out of your reverie, you both turned to see Chelsea peeking her head inside.

"Hey guys, sorry to interrupt," she said apologetically. "But, Mr. Miller, we have that meeting with McKenna about the upcoming merger in 10 minutes."

After Chelsea left, Joel turned back to you, a hopeful expression on his face. "Can I see you later? Outside of work, I mean."

Your heart raced at the thought of spending more time with him outside of the office. You knew it was risky and could potentially cause problems, but the thrill of taking a chance with Joel was too enticing to resist.

"I'd like that...a lot," you replied, unable to stop a small smile from forming on your lips.

His face lit up at your response and he took a step closer towards you. "Can I kiss you?" he asked hesitantly.

You nodded eagerly. "Yes, please."

Without any hesitation, Joel leaned down and gently pressed his lips against yours. It was a gentle kiss at first, but quickly became more passionate as the chemistry between you two intensified. You wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling him closer as he deepened the kiss.

Eventually, the need for air forced you both to pull away. You gazed into each other's eyes, both panting slightly from the intensity of the moment.

"I should go," you said reluctantly.

Joel nodded and gave your hand one last squeeze before letting go. "I'll see you later then? I’ll meet you at your place.”

You smiled and nodded before heading out of his office. As you walked back to your own desk, your mind raced with thoughts of Joel and what this could all mean for your future.

Later that evening, as you heard a knock at your door, you couldn't help but feel excited and nervous. You had been thinking about Joel all day and now here he was, standing outside your door with a beautiful bouquet of peonies.

You quickly peeked through the door viewer, confirming that it was indeed Joel standing there. Your heart fluttered in your chest as you took a deep breath and opened the door.

"Hi Sweetheart," he said with his perfect smile, his dimple making an appearance on the left corner of his cheek.

"Hey," you replied with a bashful smile. "Come in."

Joel stepped inside, holding out the vase of peonies towards you. "I brought these for you," he said, his eyes sparkling with affection.

You took them from him and breathed in their sweet scent. "Oh, Joel, you remembered.”

"Anythin’ for you," Joel said with a small grin.

You couldn't help but feel touched by his thoughtfulness. "Thank you for remembering. They're beautiful. Thank you."

He shrugged nonchalantly before turning to take off his shoes. "So what should we do tonight? I can cook us dinner or we could go out somewhere if you prefer."

The idea of Joel cooking for you sounded wonderful, but at the same time, going out together also seemed like an exciting adventure.

"How about we have dinner here tonight and then we can go out tomorrow?" You suggested.

"That sounds perfect," Joel agreed with a smile.

As he prepared dinner in your kitchen, the two of you chatted comfortably about work and other random topics. It felt easy to talk to Joel and be around him, like it was just natural for the two of you to be together.

After enjoying a delicious dinner cooked by Joel (who turned out to be quite the chef), the two of you sat on your couch watching a movie. As the movie played on, you couldn't help but steal glances at Joel, his eyes intense as they flicked between the screen and your face. The air between you crackled with an unspoken tension, the soft glow of the TV casting shadows that danced across his features.

Joel shifted slightly, his arm brushing against yours and sending a shiver down your spine. You turned to him, your heart pounding in your chest, and found yourself caught in his gaze. Without a word, he leaned in closer, his lips hovering just inches from yours.

The world around you faded away as Joel's mouth finally met yours in a searing kiss. His hands roamed over your body, igniting a fire within you that threatened to consume everything in its path. Your hands tangled in his hair, pulling him closer as the kiss deepened, becoming more urgent, more desperate.

You melted into each other, lost in a haze of passion and desire. Clothes were shed in a frenzy of need, skin meeting skin in a symphony of sensation. Joel's touch was electric, sending sparks throughout your body and setting every nerve on fire.

As you lay intertwined on the couch, your breathing heavy and your bodies covered in a thin sheen of sweat, Joel's eyes searched yours intensely.

"I've wanted to do this for so long," he whispered, his breath hot against your ear.

You couldn't form words as he began trailing kisses down your neck, leaving a trail of fire in his wake. His hands explored every inch of your body, worshipping you with his touch.

"I want you," you finally managed to say, arching your back as he grazed his teeth along your collarbone.

With a growl, Joel lifted you up into his arms and carried you to the bedroom. 

He laid you down on the bed with a hunger in his eyes that sent shivers down your spine. His hands roamed over your body, tracing every curve and dip as if he was mapping out his favorite treasure. You moaned softly as his lips grazed over your skin, leaving a trail of fire in their wake.

Joel's kisses grew more urgent, more demanding, igniting a primal need within you. You tangled your fingers in his hair, pulling him closer as you whispered his name like a prayer. He captured your lips in a searing kiss, his tongue exploring every inch of your mouth with a fierce intensity that made your head spin.

He teased and tormented you with his touch, sending waves of pleasure coursing through your body. Your breath hitched as he plunged into you, filling you completely and setting your senses ablaze.

The rhythm between you grew frantic, fueled by a hunger that could not be satisfied. Every thrust brought you closer to the edge, your body yearning for his touch, craving the sweet release that only he could bring.

He whispered filthy words into your ear, his voice gruff and raw with desire. "You want it," he growled, "You need it." His fingers gripped your hips, guiding you onto his shaft with deliberate precision. You groaned, lost in the ecstasy of his touch, your body begging for more.

He kissed you fiercely, his tongue dueling with yours, their movements synchronized with the wild rhythm of their bodies. His hands roamed over your skin, leaving a trail of fire in their wake, as he explored every inch of your body with a possessive possessiveness.

You moaned, writhing against him, your body trembling with need, your heart pounding in sync with the frantic beat of his, as he plunged deeper into you with each thrust. Your nails dug into his back, leaving crescent marks that would later serve as a reminder of this night.

His lips trailed down your neck, leaving a trail of wet kisses as he nuzzled your collarbone, then your chest, and finally your nipples, which hardened under the gentle caress of his tongue. You arched your back, your body craving for more, as his hands cupped your breasts, kneading them with a ferocity that made you gasp.

As he continued to ravage your body, you could feel the heat building between your legs, a fiery ache that begged for relief. Your hips bucked against his, seeking that sweet release, the friction sending spears of pleasure through you. He groaned, his own arousal swelling, and he thrust harder, his hips meshing with yours.

His hands roamed your body, caressing your curves, leaving trails of electricity in their wake. You arched your back, your breasts thrusting forward, begging for his attention. He didn't disappoint, his mouth closing over one taut nipple, teeth gently scraping against the sensitive flesh, while his other hand trailed down your side, slipping between your legs.

Your breath hitched as his fingers found their mark, teasing your swollen folds, sending shivers of anticipation coursing through you. Your body trembled, desperate for his touch, for him to drown you in sensation. He obliged, his fingers delving deeper, slick with your arousal. 

The roughness of his touch against your sensitive skin became a symphony of pleasure, as he slid in and out, his rhythm perfect, his fingers working in unison with the movements of his hips. You could feel yourself nearing the edge, your body coiling tighter and tighter with each thrust.

“Fuck, c’mon darlin, be a good girl, give it to me,” He groaned, as he sensed your impending release and increased the speed of his fingers, sending you over the edge in a wave of pure ecstasy. Your back arched off the bed, your nails digging into his skin as you cried out his name. He followed you over, spilling into you with a guttural moan.

You collapsed onto the bed, spent and breathless, but he wasn't done with you yet. He rolled you onto your hands and knees, positioning himself behind you. You felt him smirk against your back before he slammed into you again, filling you up completely.

His pace was rougher now, more primal as he claimed your body as his own. You met each thrust eagerly, reveling in the raw passion that flowed between you.

He reached around to caress your clit, adding another layer of stimulation to the already mind-blowing experience. Your moans and cries filled the room as he drove you both to new heights of pleasure.

As you were both on the verge of climax once again, he flipped you over onto your back and plunged into you one final time. With one hand gripping your thigh and the other tangled in your hair, he pounded into you with an intensity that left you breathless.

When he finally let go and spilled inside of you for a second time, it was like a dam had burst within both of them. You clung to each other as waves of pleasure washed over you both until eventually subsiding.

You lay there tangled together in a sweaty mess, your limbs intertwined as you both fought to catch your breath. The air was thick with the scent of passion, the sheets clinging to your bodies in a sensual embrace. As the haze lifted from your minds and your heart rates slowly returned to normal, you looked up at him and smiled, your eyes shining with a mix of contentment and wonder.

"That was incredible," you whispered, your voice barely above a breath, as if speaking too loudly might shatter the delicate moment.

His lips curved into a satisfied grin, his gaze burning into you with a intensity that sent a shiver down your spine. "You're incredible," he replied, his voice husky with desire, the words caressing your skin like a lover's touch.

You both lay there for a while, basking in the afterglow of your intense lovemaking. The sheets were tangled around the two of you, but it didn't matter. All that mattered was the feeling of being intertwined with him, your bodies still connected in an intimate embrace.

A part of you couldn't help but feel a twinge of apprehension, a nagging voice in the back of your mind warning you that this was uncharted territory. You were jumping headfirst into the deep end, and the risk of drowning was ever-present. But as you gazed into his eyes, the warmth and affection you saw there quelled your fears, replacing them with a sense of exhilaration and anticipation.

"I can't believe this is happening," you murmured, your fingers tracing the contours of his face, as if to reassure yourself that this was real. "I never thought we'd end up here, but I'm so glad we did."

He chuckled, the deep rumble of his laughter sending a shiver of delight through you. "Darlin', you have no idea how long I've been waitin' for this," he confessed, his hand caressing your cheek with a tenderness that belied the passion that had just consumed them.

You felt a surge of emotion welling up inside you, a mix of joy, trepidation, and a deep, abiding love that threatened to overwhelm you. "I'm scared," you admitted, your voice barely above a whisper. "But I'm also so excited to see where this takes us."

His expression softened, and he pulled you closer, his lips brushing against yours in a gentle, reassuring kiss. "I'm here, darlin'," he murmured, his breath warm against your skin. "We'll figure it out, together."

As you lost yourself in the warmth of his embrace, you knew that no matter the challenges, you would face them side by side. The risk of drowning may have been ever-present, but with him by your side, you were ready to dive in, to explore the depths of this newfound love and see where it would take you.

[erwinsvow]

can we have rafe try to grovel ?? :((((( shy reader deserves better !!! <3 https://www.tumblr.com/erwinsvow/751213087399510016/what-if-rafe-ever-hit-shy-reader-from-built-up?source=share

he will grovel!! side note i dont know how i feel about this its just for the sweet anon who wanted part two

the moment rafe shuts the door and traps you in the room, between his body and the wall, you know some part of you has just broken that you'll never fully be able to fix.

everything in your body tells you to look up at rafe and do something. slap him back, push him away, turn around and storm out of the room and try to at least show him you're just as mad as he is—but none of that actually happens.

hot tears keep spilling down your cheeks, and you stay frozen like that for what feels like forever, staring at the floor of rafe's bedroom. the sound of rafe's heavy breaths fills the space, though you can barely detect it over the way your heart is pounding in your ears.

you want to leave. but you don't know where you even would go. before the events of the last hour, there was no where you wanted to be more than wherever rafe was. and now, staring at the floor instead of up at the boy who you had gladly given your heart to only for him to snap it in half with his bare hands and deliver it back, you stay frozen, waiting for rafe. you are always waiting for rafe.

"kid, i-" you finally look up, through wet lashes and almost painful eyes fluttering slowly, and rafe stops talking the moment you do. you don't know why, but it doesn't take you long to figure it out. there's a mark on your cheek the size of his hand, probably an imprint from his ring too.

it's such a shame—you always loved that ring.

you snap out of your thoughts when rafe keeps talking, though there's still blooding rushing in your ears. he sounds muffled, his mouth moving and expression looking, you can only imagine, somewhat close to yours—sad and angry all blended together. you keep blinking slowly, listening but not really listening, waiting for him to finish so you can leave.

how stupid you must seem to him, and to yourself, you think pathetically. he just hit you, and you're waiting for him to finish, so you don't impolitely interrupt. you should drive straight from tannyhill to a therapist's office—though you think not even a licensed professional could help you figure out what exactly is wrong with you.

the thought makes you laugh, corners of your mouth turning up and a rush of air leaving your throat. half a laugh, half a sob. the gutting realization has just hit you—whatever was wrong with you, rafe was the only one in the world who seemed to understand you.

"baby?" rafe asks, and you actually snap out of it this time—looking up at your boyfriend, wondering if he knows you haven't heard a single thing he's said so far.

"i think i should go home," you reply, wondering where your keys are and where your wallet is. you don't keep track of these things anymore, usually since rafe drives you everywhere and pays for everything.

"okay. i'll bring you, just let me go get-"

"no, i-" you stop yourself—about to apologize again. everything running through your mind makes you choose your words carefully. "i'm gonna go home."

"you didn't drive here, kid. i picked you up, remember?" rafe looks back at you and you feel a fresh wave of tears take over. you hadn't remembered.

"oh."

"listen, kid, i'm so-"

"i'm going home," you repeat firmly, mostly to yourself. "i'll just-i'll walk."

"y'not walking. it's dark and-"

"rafe, stop." the way you say it, he actually listens. you don't sound like yourself, you can tell from the way he looks at you, rafe's face doused with concern and apprehension. you look away, turning to face the door. "i'll be fine. i need to go."

"c'mon, kid, don't go," he says, and every bone and muscle inside you wants to listen, to do what he says like you always do. you feel more hot tears coming up, stopping them seems impossible yet you know crying is useless. it already happened and the damage is already done.

you turn around from your position, knowing it's a mistake. rafe gets closer, his hands coming up to cup your cheeks. he holds your face like he always does, except there's one big difference—you flinch the moment he starts moving.

"baby," rafe says quietly, and everything in you stops for a moment. brain lagging, breath catching, even the tears stop for a second while you look up at your boyfriend. "i'm so sorry. i am so sorry. i fucked up, okay? i know i did, but please don't go."

"rafe, i can't stay," it comes out just as quietly, a notch above a whisper. "you hurt me." it comes out wrangled in a sob. rafe wipes away some of your fresh tears with his hands.

"i-i know. and i'm gonna regret it forever, but-" rafe stops, and you stop too. you chew on your lip nervously, realizing it's going to bleed from how much you're biting down. "can-can i at least bring you home? please?"

"okay," you give in-but you shouldn't have.

you don't even know how you're gonna explain the mark on your face to your parents, or why you're home so early when you said you were sleeping over. every movement feels exhausting—grabbing some of your things and walking down the stairs to getting into rafe's truck. the drive to your place isn't very long, only ten minutes, and you stare out the window the whole time. it feels like hours with the way rafe looks at you at each red light.

rafe pulls into your driveway and you look up at him expectantly, though you're not sure why.

"can you-can you turn the headlights off? i don't want them waking up," you say, after what feels like ages of silence.

rafe turns the lights off but doesn't say anything. it's not until you reach for the doorhandle that he does—it's almost muscle memory for him. he leans over you to pull the handle and open the door for you, but you flinch so hard when he moves that he can't even get the door. instead he looks back at you while you stare up at him. without any words, you both know what the other is thinking.

"goodnight, rafe," you say, your own hand on the door now.

"wait, kid," he says, and you stop your movement immediately. even in this situation, you can't help but listen. "can i see you tomorrow? please?"

"i don't think that's a good idea."

"c'mon. we-we have to talk about this. i can't just.. not see you. i'm gonna go crazy."

"i need to go rafe." the second you say it, you start feeling bad about it. it's so engrained in you—trying to avoid hurting rafe in any and every way possible, that the very idea of not giving him what he wants makes your chest ache painfully. "i.. i have to think about it."

he leans over, slowly this time so you don't get scared again, opening the door for you like he always does. you climb out, getting your bag and trying to pretend everything's fine until you get inside your room.

"good night, kid. i'll talk to you tomorrow."

without replying, you walk inside. rafe's truck stays in your driveway until you lock the door, and he doesn't drive away until minutes after.

surprisingly, you make it to your room before you start crying. and you don't stop crying until the sun comes up.

[shmaptainwrites]

𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐋𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐇 [𝐉𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐒 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐒𝐎𝐍]

PAIRINGS — James Wilson x fem!Reader

SUMMARY — James and Reader go to a medical conference together and are forced to share a room, but after one bad night's sleep a prank war is waged

WARNINGS — a stripper? porn mentions? ig?

NOTE — Okay for this one I gotta shout out @shots-of-wilson-and-whiskey for helping me work out some kinks with the ending and providing the middle picture, but I really love how this turned out and I hope you guys like this silly one shot as much as I do

“Jesus Christ you drive like a grandma,” you yawned, dragging your suitcase through the hotel doors. 

“I don’t drive like a grandma; I drive the speed limit,” James asserted and you rolled your eyes. 

“We would have been here ages ago if you’d let me take the wheel.” 

“No we would have been in body bags,” James retorted. “Come on, it’s late, let's just check into our rooms and get this over with.” 

You nodded in agreement and made your way over to the singular receptionist, informing her you had booked two rooms in advance under both yours and the hospital's name.

“Um, I’m only seeing one reservation here,” she said. “This is for the medical conference right?” 

You both nodded your heads, confused as to what could be happening. 

“If you don’t have another one under the hospital do you have a spare room? Anything will do, we can just expense it,” James suggested. 

“Unfortunately not,” the lady shook her head. “We’re fully booked. There’s just the one room.” 

You pursed your lips and looked over at James with a frown before turning your attention back to the receptionist. 

“So you’re telling me not only did I have to drive with grandma here all the way from New Jersey, now I have to sleep with him?” 

“I wish there was something we could do, maybe you can get your hospital to contact the hotel to get credit or some reimbursement.” 

“I think I’ll need psychiatric care for this, but thanks for the offer,” you said sarcastically, picking up your bag and moving away, letting James take care of the rest of the check in. After a few minutes, he came up to you and handed you a hotel key, pointing to the room number on it. 

“Psychiatric care? Was that really necessary?” he asked. “And you’ve slept on the couch in my office, this cannot be that bad.” 

“Yeah, but you weren’t on the couch with me genius,” you rolled your eyes. “This is gonna be a long few days.” 

“You’re telling me,” James raised his brows as you entered the elevator together. 

Once you got to your room, as if sharing wasn’t bad enough they put you in a cramped one with a queen sized bed. 

“I’m gonna choose to ignore the glaring close proximity of this space and go get ready in the washroom. Any objections?” 

James pressed his lips together and shook his head saying he’d get changed out in the room while you were in there. 

You took your time, so you’d have some excuse for acclimating yourself to your sleeping situation. Brushing your teeth and caring for your hair and skin made the extension of time a little easier to justify. When you were finally changed and completely ready, you unlocked the door and stepped out of the washroom watching as James’ eyes widened at the sight of you. 

“What is that on your head?” he pointed. 

“It’s a bonnet,” you said simply. 

“A bonnet? Like, as in baby’s bonnet?” 

“No,” you shook your head, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “A bonnet as in a hair bonnet so it doesn’t get frizzy when I sleep?” 

“And what’s that on your teeth?” he asked, noticing the other interesting contraption you had in your mouth. 

“A mouth guard, James, seriously are you gonna ask me where I got my pyjamas next?” 

“You talk with a lisp when that thing’s in your mouth,” he pointed as he walked past you to the washroom.

“Yeah, thanks Captain Obvious,” you rolled your eyes and moved over to the bed, pulling back the blankets and slipping underneath the covers. 

You glanced at the clock and saw the late time, figuring it was probably a good idea to get some sleep since you’d have an early morning. How naive you were. 

It took James less than ten minutes to be done with what he needed to do in the washroom before he came to join you and it took even less time for him to fall asleep. 

And with sleep came the most monstrous snores you’d ever heard. You weren’t sure how much time had passed but it could have been an eternity of you staring up at the ceiling, your eyes twitching, wishing for sleep, but unable to rest while laying down next to a fog horn. 

Eventually you figured your best bet was to either suffocate yourself or James with a pillow, but settled instead on using it to cover your ears. 

When the sun peeked through the curtains and you could feel James shift next to you, you turned around to watch him closely while he woke up. 

“Good morning?” he yawned and looked at you with a hint of confusion. 

“Yeah, maybe for you,” you scoffed. 

“You look like hell,” he commented, noticing the tiredness in your eyes and sluggishness of your demeanour. 

You didn’t say anything, simply throwing the pillow in his face before getting up and pulling off your bonnet and mouthguard. 

“Where are you going?” James asked. 

“I’ll see you at breakfast,” you waved at him and grabbed your hotel key and a coat, not bothering to change out of your sweatpants before leaving the room. 

James spent the rest of the morning a little confused by your actions, but he put it behind him and instead took a quick shower, getting dressed, brushing his teeth, and shaving before heading downstairs for the hotel’s breakfast. 

It was there that he ran into you, still in a sleep t-shirt and sweatpants with a large jacket overtop. 

“Where did you go?” he asked, walking up to you. 

“To get you these,” you threw him a box and he caught it with a slight fumble before looking down to see what it was.

“Nose strips? Why?” 

“Because you snore louder than my maternal grandfather mixed with a foghorn. That’s why.” 

James looked offended, “I do not snore,” he insisted.

“You think I would look like this if you didn’t, Wilson?” you pointed to yourself. 

“I’ve had three wives, I think one of them would have told me about this,” he said. 

“Well maybe you developed sleep apnea, I don’t know,” you threw your hands up in the air. “Just use the nose strips and go to the sleep clinic when we get back to New Jersey. Wouldn’t want wife number four dealing with that.” 

“I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that,” he said, shoving the small box in his pocket. 

“I couldn't care less, I am running on zero hours of sleep so what you are gonna do is get me something to eat so I can take a shower and pop back three caffeine pills and hope for the best.” 

James didn’t have much of a chance to argue with you so he listened, making you a breakfast sandwich and wrapping it in some napkins before moving to go eat his own food. 

When you came back downstairs, you looked a lot better. James assumed the shower had helped a little bit with waking you up, but getting through a whole day of seminars would be tricky. 

“You feeling better?” he asked, handing you the sandwich. 

“I will after I drink this,” you held up an energy drink, but James quickly snatched it from you, reading the caffeine content. 

“How many pills did you take?” he asked. 

“I don’t know like four?” you said. 

“You can’t drink this, you’re gonna have a heart attack,” he said, throwing the drink in the trash. 

“Wilson!” you whined. “That was my wake up juice.” 

“I’ve seen you pull an all nighter and then do back to back cancer patient consults, you’re going to be fine,” he assured you. “I have to make sure I get you back to New Jersey in one piece.” 

“That’s rich coming from the person who broke me in the first place,” you snorted and James rolled his eyes before nudging you and motioning for you to follow him into your first seminar room. 

You were greeted first by some of the people at the registration table as you grabbed your schedules and name tags, hanging them around your neck. 

“Are you planning on going to Dr. Joyner’s talk on this new joint treatment?” James asked, pointing to his schedule. 

“I don’t know, I just figured I’d follow you around everywhere,” you admitted. “You know I hate coming to these things, I only do it because I have to.” 

“I thought you were coming to support me,” he frowned. 

“Well, yeah that too I guess,” you waved your hand dismissively. “But otherwise Cuddy forced me to come so here I am.” 

“Well, I think we should go because it might be a good thing to introduce for some of our breast cancer patients,” he explained. 

“Whatever you say Dr. Wilson,” you sighed. 

Your disinterested nature was, however, somewhat of a farce. In reality you did think Dr. Joyner’s treatment methods had proven to be very successful and could be worth applying in your own practice, but if you seemed too happy and excited your eventual retaliation against James for your lack of sleep last night combined with him throwing out your energy drink would seem less justified. 

The talk was interesting just as you had predicted and you and James both took ample notes, planning to corner Dr. Joyner to get her information to ask further questions about how it might look to implement the treatment at Princeton Plainsboro. 

“I have to moderate a panel during the next block,” James said. “Do you want to come, or is there another session that interests you more.” 

“No I’ll come with,” you nodded, sensing this would be the time to seize your opportunity. 

It was simple, silly even, because sitting in the second row from the front gave you just enough cover to discreetly flip off James as he was talking, making him look at you incredibly confused and lose his train of thought. 

“Dr. WIlson?” one of the panelists asked. “Is everything okay?” 

“Yes, sorry,” James apologized, hoping the red tinge on his ears wasn’t noticeable. He continued speaking but kept looking back over at you, knowing he couldn’t do anything without a whole room of doctors seeing. 

You seemed to have distracted James enough for there to be a few embarrassing moments where he fumbled over his words, possibly thinking in his mind what he could do to get back with you, but drawing a blank and in turn getting distracted from his job of fielding questions for the panelists. 

After the session was over and you broke off for lunch, James came to find you only to see you had slipped away into the masses, all a part of your design of course. 

Knowing he would want an explanation for your behaviour you figured you’d grab your food first and sit down, waiting for him to find you. 

Just as you had predicted, he found you and pulled out the seat next to you, sitting down. 

“What the hell was that for?” he asked. “Is this still about the snoring? I told you I don’t snore.”

“Actually,” you said loudly. “This is about the fact that you gave me-,” 

James quickly rushed forward and covered your mouth, knowing whatever could come out of it would not be good so you fought back by stomping down on his foot, watching as he let out a loud enough yelp to cause some heads to turn. 

You removed his hand from your mouth and said, 

“The finger was for all the snoring, that was for my energy drink.” 

“You’re a child,” he winced in pain, holding his foot in his hands. “A child with a mean stomp.” 

“I’m just evening out the scales Wilson, don’t worry, we’re even now.” 

“Oh no,” he shook his head. “You better watch your back, this is not over.” 

You smirked, “Am I sensing we’re about to make this conference ten times more interesting.” 

“To stay on theme, you started it,” he stuck his tongue out and you grabbed it before he could pull it back into his mouth. 

“Don’t underestimate me, Wilson. You forget I have to sleep in the same bed as you. Nowhere is safe.” 

You let go and wiped your hand off on his shirt before turning back to your food. This is exactly what the weekend needed. Just a little bit more entertainment. 

You were on your guard for the rest of the day, watching James’ every movement, but nothing ever came. 

Even once you had made your way back upstairs to your room and were getting ready side by side in the washroom, there wasn’t even the simplest retaliation or splashing water on you from the faucet. 

“What’s that?” James asked, pointing to the container you were holding. 

“Oh it’s just a serum,” you shrugged. “You should try it.”

“I’m good thanks,” he shook his head and looked back at his toothbrush. 

You weren’t gonna take no for an answer. 

“Come on James it’s not battery acid,” you rolled your eyes, trying to squeeze some from the dropper on his face but he quickly covered himself and tried to push you away, but wasn’t fast enough to see your hand coming from the opposite direction, squirting the solution all over his face. 

He squeezed his eyes shut, while you grinned in victory, rubbing in the serum over his forehead and cheeks. 

“Why are you like this?” he asked. 

“I thought you knew, we’ve been friends for long enough,” you chuckled. “Come on, today was boring, let me have some fun and do your skincare.”

“And why should I trust you with glycolic acid near my face?” he asked. 

“Oh, someone knows their stuff,” you chuckled. “You should trust me because it’s like only 7% strength and won’t hurt you unless it gets in your eyes or mouth or you have a sunburn.”

James opened his eyes again and couldn’t help but smile a little when he saw how much fun you were having. If anything it would help take his mind off his big presentation the next day. 

“Alright, you win this time,” he said. “But don’t think I’m gonna make this a habit.”

“That’s what they all say, just wait, you’ll change your mind.”

You got him to lean against the counter, pulling out a few things from your makeup bag and then taking the next thing out putting some of the solution on your hands before rubbing it under his eyes and around his forehead. 

“Hey watch it,” he swatted your hand that looked like it was coming for his eye. 

“Oh stop, I was just trying to smooth out your eyebrows,” you squished his cheeks with your fingers. 

Next was an exfoliating scrub and you watched as he scrunched his nose at the feeling on his skin. 

“Stop being such a baby,” you chuckled. “It’s not that bad.”

“Yeah, well excuse me for not thinking this is the sequence of events that would occur when I heard we’d need to share a room.”

You smiled to yourself, “Me neither, but this is kind of fun. Like a sleepover.”

James rolled his eyes at your comment.

“Yeah for you maybe. It feels like my face is getting molested right now.”

“Stop being so whiny,” you flicked his cheek. “Now wash your face off.”

He happily obliged, getting all the gritty textured product off his face before letting you do the finishing touches. 

It seemed to be taking a while so James decided to ask, 

“Are you done yet?”

“I’ve been done for five minutes,” you chuckled. “I’ve just been rubbing moisturizer all over your face to see how long you’d let me go for.”

James glared at you with a small hint of amusement in his eyes before turning around to leave, escorted out by your giggles. 

You finished getting ready in the washroom, only coming out when you realized you didn’t know where your bonnet was. 

“Wilson, have you seen my bonnet?” you peeked your head out of the washroom and asked. 

Seeing it on the bed he grabbed it and brought it over to you, placing it on your head and over your eyes like an oversized hat. You lifted it up to get a better look at him, noticing he was wearing one of the nose strips you bought him alone with a pair of glasses. 

“I didn’t know you wore glasses,” you commented. 

“I don’t,” he said simply. “I wear contacts, this is just for the evenings.”

“The things you learn when you’re forced to share a room with your colleague,” you hummed while adjusting the bonnet on your head. After you were content with its placement, you went to join James in the bed, both of you taking a moment to really observe the other and all of their sleeping gear. 

“You know I thought I was high maintenance,” James noted. 

It may have looked like overkill, but it never felt like overkill when an eye mask and some ear plugs would give you a good night’s sleep. 

“Yeah, you still look like a grandma,” you retorted, mostly a comment on him doing the crossword in bed with his glasses perched lower down on his nose. 

Climbing into the bed you turned off the lamp on your side and lowered your eye mask, allowing James to continue his crossword while you slept. You wished him a goodnight with a yawn and figured that would be the end of it. And it was…until it wasn’t. 

— 

“Wilson, what the hell did you do?” you asked harshly, coming over to him at breakfast and holding out your ringing phone. “Non-stop since six in the morning!”

“You haven’t picked them up?” he asked. “What if it’s an emergency? You really should take care of that,” he said while serving himself some fruit salad. 

With the next ring you caved, wondering exactly what it was he had done and when you listened to the person talking on the other side your eyes went wide before hanging up the phone. 

“I need to change my number,” you said, shocked. “You put out an ad for me? What the hell did it say?” 

“Oh, I don’t know who did it,” he lied. “But I think I came across something that said: Call me to make your dreams come true. 100% satisfaction guaranteed.”

“Oh my God! Ew, ew, ew! Wilson that is messed up!” 

“I didn’t do it,” he continued lying. 

“Oh cut the crap,” you rolled your eyes. “You picked a bad day to retaliate. Remember, you’ve got your presentation which means I have the upper hand.” 

James looked at you warningly, 

“You asked for it, Wilson. Prepare to deal with the consequences,” you pinched his cheek and left to go and grab some breakfast and then deal with your phone company to try and change numbers. 

As if James was not already nervous for the presentation of his paper, you had just gravely upped the stakes. 

He was the first speaker of the day so he decided to get in early, only to see you chatting with one of the organizers. He quickly walked over to meet you, but before he got there you had shaken the organizers hand and a deal was sealed. 

“Ah Dr. Wilson, I just met your colleague here,” Dr. Mwanza smiled. “She just offered to do the introductions for you this morning.” 

“Oh, great,” he forced a smile, trying to seem pleased with the outcome, knowing it couldn’t be good for him. 

“You made the right decision, Dr. Mwanza. No one knows James here like I do,” you wrapped an arm around James’ shoulder and kissed his cheek, watching as he turned beet red from the contact. 

“Well, you two seem very close. I can’t see anyone more fitting for the job.” 

You smiled and waved goodbye and watched as the hall began to fill with more and more doctors. 

“You ready, Wilson?” 

“Not anymore,” he groaned and went up to the stage where his notes were, preparing himself for whatever it was you were planning on throwing at him. 

Within the next ten minutes, everyone had returned from breakfast and were sitting in their seats, waiting for things to begin. 

Dr. Mwanza handed you a microphone and you stood up on the stage, looking back at James who was wringing his hands in his seat. 

“Good morning everyone,” you welcomed and began introducing yourself. “I’m here today to introduce you to my colleague, Dr. James Evan Wilson, who has done some fascinating research on cancer patient care. Now since you guys don’t know James here like I do, I’ll stick to the highlight reel and then we can let him talk.”

There was a small chuckle from the audience before you continued. 

“James went to McGill for his undergraduate and then proceeded to do medical school at Columbia and then a specialization in oncology at UPenn. He’s worked at Princeton Plainsboro for the past ten years and is the head of the department while also simultaneously providing consultations for the diagnostic team. On a more personal level, he’s painfully single and looking for a real connection so make sure to corner him at lunch if you know what I mean.” 

James simply squeezed his eyes shut and prayed you wouldn’t say more, but it still kept coming. 

“But if snoring is a deal breaker for you, you may want to skip out on that. Anyways, I’ve probably embarrassed him enough for now, so I’d like you to join me in welcoming Dr. James Wilson.”

The room clapped and James used whatever energy he had left in him to stand up and move forward, taking the microphone from you with a glare and then fixing it to the stand on the podium while you sat behind him on one of the chairs on the stage. 

As much as James was embarrassed by your previous comments, at least you hadn’t undermined his work, so he used his best acting skills and began to share about his paper and all of the research he had been doing over the past few years. 

When his talk was finished there was a period for asking questions and you could sense James wanted to drag things out as long as possible so he wouldn’t have to deal with the fallout of your comments about being single. 

Either way, a break finally had to come and his presentation came to an end, allowing you to finally see the fruits of your labour. 

It felt as if for the rest of the day there was a line of people waiting to talk to James, granted a few had questions about his paper that they wanted to discuss further, but most were testing the waters to see if getting a date was a possibility. 

After maybe the 20th person had come up to talk to him, he finally started saying something else, seeing an opportunity to get back at you. 

He waited until you were around to put his plan into play, coming up to you and wrapping his arms around you from behind. 

“Wilson, what are you doing?” you asked. 

“Payback,” he whispered, kissing your cheek before turning your chin so you were looking back at him. Your foreheads were now resting against each other and he quietly whispered. “You forgot we have witnesses who’ve seen us go into the same room and I’m a very convincing actor. Now everyone’s gonna wonder why you told the whole room your boyfriend was painfully single.”

“Well played, Wilson. Game recognizes game. And just because you figured out a way to weasel yourself out of this, I’ll let you have it, no fighting back.”

“Good because I’d probably get a pretty bad reputation and then get reported to Cuddy for harassment otherwise,” he reflected. 

“Yeah, I’m not that mean,” you patted his cheek. “But as usual-,” 

“Watch my back, you’ve got something else up your sleeve. Well, so do I.” 

“Best conference ever,” you grinned and James chuckled at your childish attitude. He would have been perfectly content taking in the content like the other doctors, but he had to admit this was a lot more fun and you brought a pretty good challenge.

By the end of the second day, you had managed to figure out to route all of your calls to James’ phone, forcing him to deal with the problem he had created for you, but he had also come back just as hard by sprinkling glitter in your purse when you weren’t looking, and knowing when you were in a rush to find something you’d dump it all out on your lap creating a mess that would be a nightmare to clean up. And as if the glitter wasn’t enough he told anyone who would listen that you’d visited a strip club last night. 

You walked back up to your hotel room after having gotten separate dinners, (you had called in for James’ reservation and pushed it by an hour), finding it hard to fight a smile while he looked at you extremely annoyed. 

“I don’t suppose you had anything to do with my reservation,” he asked you in the elevator. 

“A magician never reveals her secrets,” you shrugged. 

“I had invited Dr. Joyner out to dinner, but I’m guessing you didn’t know that,” he said. 

“No, but that makes it ten times better,” you laughed. “God what did you tell her?” 

“I didn’t know what the hell was happening, what was I supposed to tell her?” he asked. 

“Well if it was a date you could have used it as an excuse to go somewhere more intimate than the most crowded restaurant this side of Boston,” you shrugged. 

“It wasn’t a date,” he said when the elevator doors opened. 

“That look on your face is telling me otherwise,” you pointed to his red tinged ears. 

“It wasn’t a date,” he repeated. 

“Why are you so set on convincing me it wasn’t?” you turned around and asked him before entering your room. 

“I-You-,” he cut himself off and shut his mouth. 

“Smart move,” you raised your brows and unlocked the door, pushing it open. 

“What’s all this?” James asked, stepping inside, noticing a few balloons and streamers along with a container and gift bag on the counter. 

“Okay, I might have pushed your reservation because I felt bad for embarrassing you on your big day.”

“You did this? I thought you had dinner plans?” he asked. 

“This was it,” you motioned to the room. “Well I had to go out to get some of the stuff and then I got lost and hungry so I got some food and then I did this.”

James walked over to the container and opened it, seeing a small cake inside that was decorated with icing and read:

Congrats on the paper Dr. Wilson

“Awe, well I guess you do have a heart,” James chuckled. “Thank you, this is really sweet.” 

“Come on, we’re roommates,” you shrugged. “It was nothing.” 

“Should I open this too?” James asked motioning to the gift bag. 

You nodded your head and he peeked inside past the wrapping paper chuckling when he saw what was inside. 

“I had to find a build-a-bear for that,” you explained. “I had a vision and I had a feeling no one else would be able to execute it.” 

“A grandma doctor bear,” he said, pulling out the stuffed animal. “It’s perfect.”

He placed the plushie down next to the cake and came over to give you a big hug, followed by a kiss to your cheek. 

“Even though we’ve been kind of in the midst of a really intense prank war I am still really proud of you,” you said while he was still holding on to you. “And you’re right, I didn’t come here because Cuddy forced me to, I wanted to be here when you had your moment, even though I kind of ruined it.” 

“No, you didn’t ruin it,” he assured you. “It wasn’t lost on me how you didn’t insult my practice or my intelligence, just my personal life.” 

“Yeah, cause that’s so much better,” you laughed, finally pulling away from the hug. 

“In this case, it was probably the nicest way you could have embarrassed me,” he tapped your nose with his finger. “And I’ve had a lot of fun, probably more fun than if we hadn’t started this ridiculous back and forth.” 

“So are you saying the game’s still on?” you asked. 

“Oh, definitely,” he nodded. “It’s not over until we’ve checked out of the hotel.” 

“And that is the best present you could have given me, you big snoring grandma doctor,” you hugged him again and he shook his head with a chuckle. “Now come on, let’s stop wasting time and eat this cake, according to the receptionist it's from the best bakery in Boston.” 

You grabbed two forks from the table and handed one to James while he took the cake and brought it over to the bed, holding the container in one hand while you both went for it and took large bites of the rich dessert. 

“This more than makes up for all the pranks, I’m gonna forgive you right now for all the stuff you have up your sleeve before you even do it.” 

“Sorry, what did you say?” you asked, your mouth full of cake, completely distracted by the dessert. 

“Nothing,” James chuckled and watched as you grabbed another big forkful and offered it to him. 

He tried to fit it all in his mouth, but you had overestimated his jaw capacity and he was only able to get so much in before the rest fell back into the container. 

You pressed your lips together trying to bite back a laugh at the sight of James’ overstuffed cheeks and it seemed like he was trying to do the same, only worse because he ended up spitting some cake crumbs on you. 

“Jesus, James,” you groaned with a laugh, wiping the crumbs off your face. “That was gross.” 

He retorted with a garbled response you couldn’t understand because of the food in his mouth and your confused features prompted him to swallow before speaking again. 

“I’m sorry, but you just shoved half a cake into my mouth,” he chuckled. 

“What happened to gratitude, I was feeding you, it’s a sign of love,” you exaggerated and so he copied your actions, getting a large piece on his fork and holding it up for you to eat, which you did much more masterfully than he did. 

“There,” he said. “Is that enough love for you?” 

“Plenty,” you nodded your head and watched as he placed the container down on the bed with his fork inside before reaching out for your face wiping some icing from beside your lips with his thumb. “Thanks,” you smiled, hoping he couldn’t feel your cheeks heat up slightly by his actions. 

By the time the cake was half finished, you both couldn’t eat another bite and decided to save some for your last evening in the hotel. 

After packing things up in the mini fridge, you began your routine for bed, watching as James stood in front of the mirror and carefully laid a strip across his nose before taking off his contacts and putting on his glasses instead. 

“What are you looking at?” he asked. 

“Nothing,” you shrugged. “You just look cute like that.” 

“Cute?” he raised a brow and looked over at you and you nodded. 

“Like a little kicked puppy.”

“That’s cute?” he now became concerned with your comparison. “Kicked puppies are not cute, that's just sad.”

“Now you definitely look like one,” you pointed to his distressed face and he pressed his lips into a line, unimpressed. 

“Just be quiet and put your mouthguard in.”

“That doesn’t shut me up, James, just gives me a lisp.”

“Yeah, and it makes you look like a dork,” he retorted. 

“That’s rich coming from the guy with glasses and a nose strip.” 

He chose to ignore your comment, knowing the banter would go on forever if he didn’t, and instead focused on brushing his teeth and then climbing into bed with a crossword puzzle. 

A short while after, you followed, climbing in on your side and turning so you could face James, observing him with his newspaper. 

A part of you wanted to make a comment about his grandmotherly behaviour, but you settled on watching him for a few moments before pulling your eye mask over your face and going to sleep. 

James turned his head towards you as soon as he didn’t feel your gaze on him any more. He smiled to himself, content with the scene in front of him.

—

“When did you even have time to do this?!” 

You tried to bite back a laugh while putting on a touch of concealer under your eyes while looking into a small portable mirror you had brought with you. 

James’ annoyed voice from the bathroom was only amplified when he walked out and saw your facade slowly start to crumble at the sight of him with baby powder blown all over his face and hair. 

“I just took a shower.” 

“Are you sure, cause you’ve got a little something…” you motioned to his face and he closed his eyes, inhaling deeply before letting out a cough from inhaling some of the powder. 

“You’re getting me breakfast,” he said simply, returning to the washroom to take a second shower. 

You burst out laughing once he had fully re-entered the washroom, taking a minute before continuing to get ready and then go downstairs and get some breakfast for you both. 

Meanwhile, upstairs James was planning his comeback, figuring it would be good to go out with a bang. 

You were totally unsuspecting, sitting in the first session, twiddling your thumbs while James took notes from the speaker. 

You wished the speaker would talk about something more interesting so it would be easier to fight off the sleep that was coming, but before that could happen a man with a package went up to the organizer and whispered something in his ear. They paused the speech and the man made an announcement asking if you were in the room. 

Confused, you raised your hand while he informed you that he had a package for you. 

Unfortunately, by the time you realized what was happening, it was too late and the strip club music began to play while the man undressed in front of you. 

You turned over to look at James, mortified, but he simply pulled out a digital camera and snapped a picture of what was happening while you gathered your senses and stood up, pushing the mostly unclothed man in front of you away and informing him he needed to leave. 

James had his lips pressed together to hide a smile and you gingerly apologized to everyone for the mistake before sitting back down, wishing the ground would swallow you up whole. 

“I am never going to live that down,” you whispered harshly to James. 

“Thought we needed to end the conference with a bang,” he shrugged. “Don’t worry I told Cuddy to take you out of the conference rotation for a while so people forget about it by the next time we’re at one of these things.” 

“Oh, you’re such a saint,” you said sarcastically. 

You were thankful that since it was the last day the conference was scheduled to end a little earlier so you could go out, get a nice dinner and pretend to forget about that fact that James had called a stripper for you in the middle of a panel.

As an apology, James offered to pay for dinner and you didn’t hesitate to accept the offer, because as much as you both took a shine to pranking each other and making each other miserable, there was always something to sweeten the deal at the end. 

“God, all that pranking was exhausting,” you sighed while making the walk back to the hotel, arm in arm with James. 

“Maybe we should watch a movie or something to relax?” he suggested. “There must be something good on pay-per-view.” 

“I could get behind that,” you nodded. “Get ready, watch a movie, and then an early night?” 

“Yeah to go along with waking up early in the morning to drive back to Jersey.” 

You chuckled a little and removed your arm from being linked with his, instead grabbing his hand out of his pocket and dragging him toward the hotel, not wanting to waste any time getting into more comfortable clothes. 

You unlocked the door to the hotel room, letting out a surprised squeal when you felt James hands on your lower back tickling you and pushing you into the room. 

You grabbed your pyjamas and quickly ran off to the washroom before James could and got changed, removing your makeup and putting your hair in your bonnet. 

When you came out, James was already changed and ready, flipping through the movie options to see what was available. 

“Hey, why does it say I rented six hours worth of porn?” he looked over at you and you pressed your lips together shrugging innocently. “You know that gets charged to the hospital, Cuddy is gonna see this.” 

“I think I did what I had to do to get back at you for what you did this afternoon. You really thought I was gonna let you have the last laugh?” you asked, sitting on your side of the bed. “And the room was originally under your name so she won’t think it’s me so don’t try and flip this around on me.” 

“Just for that I get to pick the movie and we’re watching your least favourite,” he flipped through the options and clicked on a movie he knew you hated, and before your could protest and grab your earplugs and eye mask he confiscated them saying you could get them back when the movie was over. You’d have to suffer through it. 

Neither of you enjoyed the movie that evening, but you loved the back and forth nevertheless, no moment was safe, there was always a chance one of you would disturb the other’s peace. 

After the movie was over, James went straight to bed while you stayed up just a little bit later, neatly packing some of your things away and as you watched James curled under the blankets you felt your hand grab a pen and paper from the desk and beginning to write a note, folding it nicely and putting it in James’ bag for him to find later, finally ready to spend one last night in this godforsaken hotel before heading back home to New Jersey.

—

“Have you seen my wallet, I can’t find it anywhere?” James asked, patting down his pockets to make sure he hadn’t put it there and forgotten. 

“Did you check your work bag?” you asked, gathering your things together. 

He shook his head and stuck his arm in his bag, digging around for his wallet until he felt something a little unfamiliar, looking down and noticing a paper he hadn’t seen before. 

Curiously, he pulled it out and unfolded it, reading its contents quietly out loud. 

“Dear James, I’m not normally shy, but spending time with you these past few days has shown me something that I think I could get used to seeing. You probably haven’t heard this a lot, but I think you’re as beautiful on the inside as you are on the outside. The way you carry yourself, your eloquence, your demeanor, are all things that have inspired me to write to you. I’m not very good at expressing myself in words so I hope this short poem will do the trick. Roses are red, violets are blue, I think I’ve fallen in love with you. Love, your secret admirer.”

James looked at the paper confused then up at you with a disappointed look in his eyes. 

“Seriously? Another one, I thought you got me last night?” he asked. “This is a little much, a secret admirer, like who would even…” his voice trailed off as he watched you look at him. He had to admit the look you were giving him was similar to what you’d look like when you’d bested him in a prank, but there was a hint of something else past your eyes that he hadn’t quite noticed until now. “Wait…this is from you. Like really from you.” 

You nodded your head slowly, biting the inside of your cheek. 

“You mean it?” 

You nodded your head again. 

“Seriously?” 

Your lips were pressed in a thin line when you nodded your head for a third time. 

Instead of addressing you, James pulled out his phone and dialled a number. You were about to turn around and pretend the whole interaction hadn’t happened when you felt your phone buzz in your purse. 

Grabbing it, you saw James’ number flash on the screen so you answered it, albeit confused. 

“Hello?” 

“Hey, um I saw your ad in the paper,” he started. “It said you could make my dreams come true, but I was wondering if maybe I could make yours come true too?” 

Your hand flew to cover your mouth as you began to laugh and James dropped his work bag on the ground, tossing his phone on the bed and coming over to you pulling you in by the waist and pressing a firm kiss to your lips, only to be broken up by giggles and laughter on both your parts. 

You tossed your phone on the bed next to James’ and instead held his face in your hands, pressing repeated kisses to his lips, loving the way you could feel them pull into a smile against your own. 

“Does this mean I get to see you again with all your sleep gear?” he asked between kisses, making you laugh again. 

“Only if you get a C-PAP machine.” 

“Deal,” he chuckled. “Hey, I’ve got a poem for you.” 

“What is it?” you asked, pressing a kiss to his cheek. 

“Roses are red, violets are blue, I feel pretty lucky that you fell in love with me too.” 

TAGLIST —

@cuntyvicodin @paola-carter @kiddbegins @il0vebeingdelulu @illicit4ff4irs @lynnsthoughts @miarabanana @iwmflbb @/shots-of-wilson-and-whiskey @sarcasm-and-stiles @sun-flower-mad @x-uno @han11dh

[hero-the-meep]

Colour theory. The 60th Specials have this gorgeous colour palette of reds and blues and greens throughout. But what do they all mean?

Donna spends much of the specials drenched in red – her fiery copper hair, her pink and red jumper, the warmth of her house as the Doctor looks in from the cold, blue night, of the vortex, and of flames.

In many scenes, she's in fact the only source of warmth in frame.

The Doctor's palette is, of course, blue, and he starts his journey very blue prior to stripping off his long, solid overcoat to reveal brown and blue tartan (a mixture of both the Doctor's he's been) and white (a carte blanche that can throw to any colour).

Red and blue, the Doctor and Donna. These are our two primary colours for the Doctor and Donna as individuals. But it doesn't stop there.

Donna often throws red to the Doctor.

Or they share a frame of equal parts red and blue.

But more often than not, the Doctor casts Donna a sickly blue green – not in the moments of peril Donna chooses, like her choice to remember the mind of a Time Lord to save her daughter, but the moments of peril that truly make Donna afraid.

Staring out into the black nothingness of space without stars at the edge of the universe, so far from her family. Being confronted with herself. Half-remembering the Doctor with her daughter in danger, because of her (perceived) failure.

At her most afraid, like when the Doctor is genuinely angry at her, encroaching in her space, she wraps her body in her dark green jacket, a futile attempt to self-soothe. On an RGB colour wheel, green is our third primary colour.

Whereas the Doctor, at his lowest points, is drenched blue.

But where do they end up?

In glorious lavender purple and natural green with flickers of red and brown and yellow and blue.

Purple is a secondary colour, an additive of red and blue. Purple complements green. Green and red add to yellow; add a bit more red than green and you get brown. Yellow complements blue. Red and blue and green are triadic colours – high contrast, bold and vibrant, spaced evenly on the wheel.

Because their ark is not just for Donna to take on part of the Doctor, but for the Doctor to take on part of Donna as well. They are the Doctor and Donna, human and Time Lord, man and woman, travelling and at home – all these things and both and more, binary not-binary, a circle, complete.

Compare and contrast to season three and four.

Donna's colours are deep, jewel-toned reds and purples and blues, analogous colours. She's a bright, discordant blot in a sterile office. She's resplendently human in Pompeii. But by the end, she's adopted a long, brown coat, with just a hint of purple peaking out from a singlet top under all those layers. During Turn Left, never meeting the Doctor slowly sucks her colour to grey almost (but not) completely.

And when the Doctor takes her memories he returns her sans-jacket. Deep jewelled purple again.

The Doctor splits into a Doctor brown and a Doctor blue. One home, with a family. One travelling, alone. A bittersweet – not a happy – ending.

Now is their happy ending.

[virescent-v]

Love Languages

Summary: Love is a weird soup. Word count: 851 Warnings: None. It's fluff. :) *This also has absolutely nothing to do with the 'Lauren' arch. thanks to @mrs-prentiss for sending the gif that inspired this :)

You love spoiling your girlfriend. 

At work, she’s a total badass, analyzing psychopaths, chasing killers, and putting the bad guys behind bars. You’ve been in the office at Quantico and Emily is a completely different person there. She’s still funny, cracking a light joke here and there, bonding with her team, but there is an air of seriousness that clouds the demeanor you see at home. 

At home, Emily is soft. She wears comfortable fabrics that hang almost loosely off of her, her face is usually free of makeup, and the stoic lines on her face ease. She is more carefree, laughing at her own jokes as well as yours. 

She is also more touchy. Her hands find your body any chance they get. A hand at the small of your back when you’re both in the kitchen cooking dinner and she needs a way around you, a hand rubbing your foot as you both lay on the couch watching tv, playing with your hair any time you cuddle. 

Emily loves you fearlessly, endlessly, but quietly. 

You love her loudly. Constant gestures, words of affirmation, quality time. You are the embodiment of every love language, a way to combat the neglect and angst of Emily’s previous relationships, both platonically and romantically. 

You know a little of her past, her sharing bits and pieces as your relationship has progressed. You understand that those relationships, along with her job, have cracked and damaged parts of Emily that she shields from most of the world. So, you do everything you can to show her how much you love her. 

Thankful for the ‘sharing location’ feature on your phones, you can watch her as she approaches your house, giving you ample time to get things together. It’s been a few days since you’ve seen her, a case dragging her to the other side of the country. She gets home late into the evening, exhaustion rolling off of her. 

You meet her at the door, kissing her gently, before shooing her upstairs to shower the case off of her. 

Sometime later, she comes down in a cream colored sweater, her hair a little wavy. Emily can immediately tell you went to some lengths to make things relaxing for her. There’s a smell of some sort of red sauce pasta cooking, candles lit in the dining room. 

She comes over to you, wrapping her arms loosely around you as you stir the pasta on the stove. You feel her inhale deeply against your neck, breathing in not only the scent of your perfume, but also the smell of the food cooking before you. She pulls away, moving to grab glasses for wine, choosing a red she knows will go well with your pasta. 

She moves over to the table, settling in the seat and watching you. You move with ease, a comfortability that she’s never had in the kitchen. With her chin in her hand resting on the table, her mind wanders to all of the ways that you love her. Sometimes it overwhelms her, makes her feel as if she’s not enough, because she knows that she doesn’t express love in the same way, her past experiences making her more timid with her affection.

You remind her constantly that love can be shown in so many different ways; you don’t require grand gestures or expensive gifts or countless exclamations of love. You appreciate the quiet, subtle expressions of devotion: a good morning text, when she brings a little treat from the gas station on her way home, when she makes time to leave work on time to spend more time with you. 

Knowing her is loving her. 

Emily snaps back to reality as plates are put on the table, you smiling gently at her as you settle into the seat beside her. You rub her knee a few times before picking up your cutlery and digging into the meal. 

There are no words shared between you, a serene silence filling the space, each lost in your own thoughts. 

As the meal is finished, you clear the dishes away, shuffling back and forth to the kitchen. 

Tenderly, you walk over and grab her hand, dragging her up, making your way towards the living room with the intention of going upstairs to get some sleep…or do something else, awaiting to see what vibe meets you upstairs. 

Emily draws up short, her hand falling from yours. She waits until you turn around, confused. 

“I love you.” 

She’s said the words to you many times, but each feels like the first. You feel yourself blush, warming at the affection and attention her eyes are trying to portray. 

“I love you, Emily Elizabeth Prentiss.” You reach your hand back out. “Now come to bed with me,” you say, a devious look in your eyes, hinting at what more you expect to occur once you make your way upstairs. 

Emily’s face heats, her smile extending wide before she pulls her lip between her teeth. She looks back up at you, sheepish and coy, her hands on her hips. 

“I’d follow you anywhere.” 

[diejager]

More crow! Reader please for 141. I just love the idea of an eldritch being choosing and staying deliberately with a pack of monsters below their caliber for the sake of fondness

Crow Pt. 2

Pairing: Monster COD x Eldritch horror!reader

Cw: cannibalism, human meat, weird Eldritch horror thing, hive mind, tell me if I missed any. Wc: 3.7k Note: I wrote this over a few months, and I haven’t proofread it so a few parts might not connect.

With the knowledge they now held in their hands, they didn’t know how to react. You were, for all they knew, an ancient being, primordial even, and you were dangerous, much more than the unpredictability of König’s ire or the wildness of Ghost’s darkness. They didn’t know how to deal with the weight on their shoulder when your eyes landed on them, or how to react when they heard you speak to them with that low and raspy voice that you so rarely used. 

After that day in Russia, the saw you more often, rather than finding you at night around your murder of crows, in the darkness of your room or standing beside Price, they would find you in their rec room, sitting beside the open window while petting the body of a bird; you’d meet them in the gym, watching them train and sometimes join them; or you would occasionally sit beside them. You opened up to them, letting the men see what laid under your mask. Price encouraged them to reach out, to ask you questions and to quell their curiosity by speaking to you.

Soap and Gaz were the first to jump to the occasion, their wide eyes gleaming with innocent curiosity threatening to spill over the edge. In the privacy of their personal space, they swarmed you with enthusiasm, Gaz standing to your left and Soap to your right. Ghost was fortunate to be in the room that day, drinking tea from the table while Alejandro and Rudy shared the couch. König and Horangi were deployed off to some remote village to help another company detain their target, and Price was slaving off in his office signing off paperwork. 

While the two threw question after question at you, Soap being oblivious of his wagging tail and Gaz literally glowing with how much you spoke, the three men listened in, as interested in you as the two were. They learned a lot, their minds filled with everything they were given, clinging onto the sound of your voice, that soft rasp from under your mask.

When Soap, the ever-hungry pup he was, asked what you ate, a question that clouded everyone’s mind. They never saw you eat nor had they seen you at the mess hall. Your answer was soft and blunt, empty of fear and hesitance.

“Meat, human.”

You weren’t so different from Ghost and König after all, consuming humans as your means of subsistence. Yet none of them had ever caught a whiff of human blood or meat from your scent, only the strange and sterile musk from your body. Perhaps that explained why you sometimes went dark during deployments, Price only sent you out alone, believing you invulnerable (you somewhat were, old and powerful), you closed off all and any signal to gorge on human flesh. 

What did your mouth look like? Could your mouth open up like those alien-like creatures, where your lower jaw was separated in the middle, breaking open into a terrifying maw filled with rows of teeth? Or were you more human looking, with a small mouth like theirs and sharp teeth like the shifters of their TF? It was a nagging thought that one would have to ask one day, or see if they were fortunate enough to catch you eating. 

Gaz was mostly interested about the birds that swarmed you, the hundreds of corvid that followed you whether it knew you or not, from country to country you always had a feathery companion by your side. Mostly crows and ravens, the black feathers glistening under the light and squawking at him, a hybrid of the same genus as it. 

“I can feel and see through their eyes.”

It was similar to a hive mind, a connection between you and every bird from the same family as crows. You closed your eyes and had the magpie in your hand fly around, its eye moving from one hybrid to the other with an intelligent gleam, a dark and monstrous haze that came from you. You were looking at them from the magpie’s dark orbs. It landed on Gazwho - with a joyful grin - brushed its luscious feathers. You could reach out to corvidae birds, seeking help from them through their sight and ears, using their senses to navigate the world. 

“I can see, hear and feel every bird,” you drawled, hand reaching out of the window for a landing rook. “I feel them as much as they feel me.”

“An extension of ye, aye?”

“An extension of my being.”

Alejandro and Rudy would sometimes chime in, throwing a question from their seat, mostly about your hobbies and preferences. What did you do when you were free? You just sat outside, admiring the weather with a few cooing birds being fed from the seeds in your hands, little round pebbles that you offered from your palm. You also liked reading, dabbing into human and hybrid literature in an attempt to familiarise yourself with their culture and behaviours or watching people conduct themselves through the eyes of your little companions. 

That’s how you came to join the army, the odd behaviour and unusual attitude of most soldiers were excused by their harrowing experience and near-death meetings. You could blend in easier while keeping a slight uncanniness to your being, not necessarily perfect or impossibly broken. You were knowledgeable of military tactics and human suspicion, you were - essentially - a being of madness and chaos, you could sense the swirling tornadoes of malicious suspicion and the violent storms that promised a chaotic end. 

“What did you do then?” This was Ghost’s first question, his slow, yet intrigued tone rising in tone as was his want to know you won over his contained curiosity. 

Faking your deaths every time and laying low for the next decade or so had assured your safety from human cults and pagenistic beliefs who wanted to believe in something greater and deranged. Under different names - none were your true name - you enrolled in the British military and other countries, rotating between the Navy, the Army and the Air Force. Your last enrolment was the British Air Force, under another alias for the past decade until the UN made it mandatory to accept any demands from hybrids and monsters to join their ranks.

When Soap asked how you met Price, you grew pensive, blinking at the question he shot. Then you stared at him, telling him that you couldn’t tell him that story without Price’s consent. You only mentioned him working under you before without divulging to the five men any more information. They’d have to bring it up with the dragon if they wanted to know anything. Gaz and Soap groaned, pouting and whining at the limit you put down on the amount of information they could get from you. 

Then they wanted to know if you dreamed, if Eldritch creatures dreamed in their slumber. If you did, would your dreams be stalked by madness? That dark and dangerous madness that loomed over any person. A creation of human and hybrid minds when they couldn’t understand anything, when reality was outside of their reach. Or, if you did, would they be filled with memories? As often as people re-lived their memories in their sleep, replaying the what ifs that the mind concocted during stressful moments in their lives.

You shook your head, you could neither dream, nor need sleep. Although it wasn’t a need like mortal beings, you enjoyed sleeping from time to time, on days where the night seemed to stretch so far into time that it seemed unending from your seat on the roof. When you slept, you confessed to them that you couldn’t see, feel or ear, it was an endless plane of darkness who reached into the farthest point of your long life, the watery floor reflected back your human - or sometimes monstrous - appearance and the place would be eerily silent except for the echoing drip from an unknown source; perhaps the ticking seconds of your eternity. 

They’d all seen the good and bad in humanity, the horrors that greed and corruption could lead to, but they had less than half a century of experience while you had a millennia of living. Rather than seeing the disgust of their current time, you’d seen the world rise as fast as it crumbled, burned to ash by greed, corruption and selfishness. How could you even stand living around humans? How could you stay so patient towards humans? How could you work and dedicate your last century to them?

“It was easier,” you hummed, staring off at the setting sun, the warm caress of the sun smoothing the darkness in your eyes. “Time changed, it made humans less susceptible to hysteria and superstition. Eating, hunting and catching became harder, scientific advancement made them less… naive, so I adapted. Inherently, I am a creation of humanity’s fear of death and madness. I cannot die without the other disappearing.”

Soap managed to coax you into joining them, sitting between him and Horangi while Ghost and König sparred, their strength and prowess usually better suited to fight something of similar capabilities. Ghost was deadly if he let himself go too far, his vitriol taking away his ability to see and think clearly, making his powers lash out. It could eat and corrode, break things down to the bones without consuming anything, it felt like a curse at times and a blessing at others. It was a reason why he kept himself covered, from letting a piece of himself wander too far, to let himself grow too comfortable that he might suddenly crack and hurt the people he cared for. 

Ghost guessed it was the same for König, married to his sniper veil - or a big t-shirt at times - and his form-covering clothes, it stopped him from doing something irreparable. He had anxiety, a product of his life-long social reclusivenessfrom bullying. Maybe he would’ve turned worse if his mother hadn’t been so supportive of him, a caring and loving figure in his life when his father was never in the picture. König was a lumbering beast in humans clothes, but an impulsive and instinctual monster when shifted, following his needs and instincts. 

Rare monsters on their own, they spared together only, afraid of accidentally hurting one of theirs. You’d seen them fight, the bloodlust-leading adrenaline that coursed through their bodies while they terre through the field, not only these two but the whole Task Force, beasts within beasts. The power, the accuracy, the teamwork and the trust between them was mesmerising, even to you, a creature who lived to seam discord into the world; it was breathtaking. 

You watched them exchange blows, König pouncing on Ghost, pressing his whole weight on the block the wraith had built up against him. König was tall and broad, but Ghost was broader, his body in a shape of undying and unchanging physique, at its peak with human strength. He could withstand the force of König’s hits, blocking them with his forearms and palms, and returning them with a hit when he broke the Austrian’s stand. 

Horangi was counting their matches, voicing the scores when one of them tapped three times, forfeiting the match. Soap piped up left, right and centre, a flurry of words in Scottish that others would usually ignore or not understand, but with you, he liked going off in Scott. Thank the lucky star you understood him, he practically beamed the day he swore at the sky with jargons that everyone but you asked for a translation. 

It was comfortable, Soap spoke enough for the three of you, Horangi was purring softly beside you and you were simply taking everything in, finding comfort between two of your teammates. You nod and shake your head at most questions, words slipping through your lips on rare occasions where Soap asked something that simple motions couldn’t answer. You liked listening to them talk, it filled the silence you were used to with joyful laughter. You were content with simply listening without talking, yet Soap was an enthusiastic wolf, eyes narrowing with a sly gleam.

“Ye spar, Crow?”

You shook your head, gazing at him from the corner of your eyes, blinking owlishly. You had your reservations as well, more so for the safety of others than yours. Granted, you had a milenia to learn and draw a limit for yourself, to restrain your powers to a tenth of your strength to protect those you grew to care about.

“Aw, why naw?”

“Too dangerous, Soap.”

That caught Horangi’s attention, his eyes and ears straying from the spar to listen to your conversation, not that it bothered you. 

“Can’t be that bad, can it?”

At this point, König and Ghost were brought out of their haze, shoulders raising and skin coated in a sheen of sweat, they breathed heavily as they strained an ear to Soap’s encouragement. Limbs untangling from one another, they leaned on the flexible cords of the ring, amused eyes staring at you three. 

“It can be.”

“Why not give it a shot, yeah?” Ghost piped up, head tilted with his nose pointing up, an amusingly smug grin stretching his scarred lips.

“If not Soap, Ghost or I could fight you, nh?” König continued, who - unlike Ghost - had his head down, blinking lazily at you with squinted eyes, a smile hidden under the shirt he used as a veil.

You were hesitant, staring at them while you mulled over your choices: to either fold and appease their curiosity or to hold strong and reject the offer. But where was the fun in that? They looked giddy and excited, like pups finding out that they were getting treats. Soap was riddled with enthusiasm, leg jumping as fast as his wagging tail, the repetitive soft thuds from his tail hitting against the bench showed how much he expected you to say yes, how much he wanted to see you fight one of theirs. 

You truly wanted to decline, to tell them that you wouldn’t want to accidentally hurt them, knowing that your restraint was practised with ease, but they didn’t know that. You truly did, but with Horangi’s swaying and thrilled tail, König’swide and happy eyes, and Ghost’s soft rumble, groundingly affirmative, adding to Soap’s eagerness, you found it difficult to brush off by their wishes. 

Soap burst with joy when you nodded, pushing himself and Horangi closer to the ring. You jumped over the big cables and into the ring as Ghost moved out, it seemed that the two decided the order even before you agreed. You shrugged off your jacket, you tight shirt riding up your stomach, the soft fabric the same shade as your dark blue jacket. Hanging it on a pole, you turned to face a thrilled König, his body vibrating as he peered down at you. 

It was almost ridiculous how different you were to him. You were neither board nor tall as König and Ghost, you weren’t insanely big and buff like any of them either. You were normal, an average person surrounded with big hybrids. You wouldn’t fault anyone for believing that you were the weakest out of the bunch, seemingly too small and human like to be the strongest, but they knew, most monsters and hybrids had this instinctual fear - ingrained into them for as long as they existed - for monsters that looked too human. 

Horangi was once again nominated as the referee, he repeated the rules, anything went as long as the opposite party’s aware of the three taps for yielding. Hybrids were tougher and more resilient than human bodies, so most restrictions put in place for humans were lifted in hybrid spars, especially in this Task Force. 

At the end of the count, König charged you, his big body pouncing on your smaller and nimbler one. You moved and bowed when he lunged, feet dancing around his loud stomps. He growled, jabbing at you with his right hand and lunging with a left hook when you blocked his hit with your forearm. It was a back and forth motion, he took the offensive position while you stayed on the defensive, taking hits leg and right. After a right hook, you expected a jab, but Königbowed down and kicked out his leg, aiming at sweeping you off your feet. It was a great change in tactic, surprising you with his quick movement. 

You kicked up, hands firmly placed on his shoulder as you flipped over him. Soap whooped at your acrobatic move, moving and jumping around like a dancer - a gymnastic chorus - while König rushed frenziedly, strong hits and wide kicks, his body giving him a wider range than your shorter one. König growled, twisting in a crouch to tackle you down, his body was a weapon by itself. You landed with a grunt, wrapping your legs around him, one under his arm and the other around his neck. His hand latched to the arm you used to guard your throat while wrestling with his other one. 

He cackled in your guard, voice rumbling out his chest as you choked him, lean legs hooking by the ankle to hold his chest down. His legs kicked, kneeling down uncomfortably, choking down a loud snarl. König tried breaking your hold, but you held strongly, using your monstrous strength to keep him down. He tapped your thigh, three soft taps that made you loosen your lock. König rose first, panting loudly with a satisfied purr as he sat, arched forward. Standing before him, you waved your hand to him, giving him help to stand on his feet. 

Ghost had already joined you when you pulled König up, patting the giant’s back as he chuckled lowly, eyes squinted in amazement. 

“Yer awright, König?” Soap asked, still standing beside a clapping Horangi, both tails moving excitedly. 

“Yes, I’m all right.”

Unlike König, you were as winded or tired as he was, your metabolism working slowly and efficiently to survive for so long. It was a good show of power for König, to see what fought on his side rather than against him, but he doubted that you were the only Eldritch being working in the forefront, killing, consuming and hide in plain sight of other human and hybrids. 

“That was Brazilian Jiu-jitsus, wasn’t it,” it was more of an affirmation than a question, Horangi knew well the technique you used against König. 

He’d mentioned it in passing within the few drunken nights where you joined them at the bar, spewing his history of gambling on boxer in the ring, betting who would win for a few pennies to fill his pockets. You rarely used your hive mind on them i their leisure time, respecting their need for privacy and secrecy when you were away —they’d won your trust after a few Ops and proud and boisterous praises from Price. You shook away any lingering thoughts as you watched Ghost slip under the highest cord, entering the ring with tight fists and a mean stare, determined to get you once before he forfeited. Perhaps it wasn’t so bad that Soap forced you to watch with both him and Horangi, you - despite your tendency for your quiet corner and solace in darkness - enjoyed this team activity. 

You were regretting letting Gaz and Rudy pull you to the Mess Hall, insisting that you’d be left alone in their corner of the cafeteria. People rarely engaged them when they all sat together, whispers of them being too menacing, too dangerous, or too scary for human minds. You weren’t fond of cold and stored meat, the cold destroying any semblance of freshness that recently killed meat brought. It tasted stagnant, blank of any fulfilling aspect your kills had : from the lack of warm blood still leaking from every veins and arteries, to the suppleness of the flesh, it’s soft and flexible texture cutting easily under your teeth. 

You nearly gagged at the first whiff of it, locked under expectant eyes of both your teammates and curious eyes of others who’ve never seen you step a foot in the room. Your first bite was horrendous, your mouth washed with the revolting flavour of cold and stale meat. It was levels under your usual meal —not that you needed to eat, you’d recently eaten a few days ago on a shorter run in Argentina, but where was the harm in tasting military-provided meat when König and Ghost ate it without a second thought. Or so you thought, they’d simply gone numb, not having the luxury to be picky with the taste of their meal. Unlike you, they hadn’t spent centuries hunting for themselves, born into a restrictive world when monsters and creatures ran wild but hidden. 

But you still hunted, it was a ritual that even the world’s government couldn’t stop you, no one would fight one of the personalisation of chaos and madness, many having decided to abide by your word simply out of fear while very few respected your history and culture. 

“How is it?” Alejandro finally join your table, sweat still glistening from his brows as he cut into his steak with gentle and skillful slices.

“Stale,” you blinked, tongue lolling out of your mouth to lick the red stains on your face, long and serpentine, another aspect of your more reptilian body.

They snickered, knowing full well how repulsive it was, sharing their little quips and jabs about the quality of food everyone on base got. A few lines about the chefs being lazy, others of them being awful and some about them being talentless, followed by shared laughter around you, shaking shoulders and bright smiles before the table exploded in chatter, guilefully ignoring the world outside the safety of their bubble. 

Maybe… just maybe sitting - you’d never lay a single finger on these provided meals - with them when they ate would lighten up your world slightly, bring some flavourful warmth if it made them happy that you joined them. You refrained from saying anything, simply nodding at them and giving a small smile that seemed to brighten up their faces, restraining your interaction to a few gesture to stop yourself from feeling overwhelmed with the suddenness of emotions. Th last one who’d stirred your hearts so vividly was years ago, watching over a still learning John Price.

Taglist: @warenai @capricorn-anon @sae1kie @yeoldedumbslut @bvxygriimes @distracteddragoness @konigsblog @im-making-an-effort @daisychainsinknots @h0n3y-l3m0n05 @danielle143 @dont-mind-me-just-existing-sadly @tuttifuckinfruttifriday @notspiders @brokenpieces-72 @petwifed @randominstake @haven-1307 @shironasumi @sparky--bunny @bloobewy @cod-z @sweetnanah @aldis-nuts @evolutionarry @mxblobby @kaoyamamegami @cassiecasluciluce

[isagrimorie]

Because the whole Tuvix wank is rearing its head every week on Trek forums, I finally decided to rewatch this episode. I mostly avoided it because I am So Tired of the wank and how it's been relitigated for YEARS.

I was over it when it first popped up and I was even more over it with the way it's used as a bludgeon to promote 'psycho Janeway'.

But what's left out in the discussions is Kes's part in all of this, from the jump, Kes was troubled with the merging of Neelix and Tuvok, and anytime Tuvix tried to make advances, she just kept getting more uncomfortable.

(When Tuvix unconsciously touched Kes's shoulder, it looked like she had to consciously not flinch.)

To Tuvix's credit, he did give Kes space and respected her wishes but she was not happy with the whole merge because her relationship with Neelix and Tuvok is different.

We don't see the other people grieve but we see Kes's grief and confusion, which was shared by Janeway. But also, the moment the EMH had a solution to separate the two people in Tuvix, Harry jumped at the chance.

And he's already spent weeks with Tuvix.

The irony is that Janeway was coming around to thinking of Tuvix as an individual but the cure presented itself, but also as the Ship's Captain she has an obligation to care for her crew and absent or not that meant advocating for the two voices who couldn't speak up: Tuvok and Neelix.

Kes was the deciding factor. Kes made her plea to separate Neelix and Tuvok.

Kes was the biggest reason why Janeway decided to separate Tuvok from Neelix.

It was such a cop-out from the Doctor that he refused to do the procedure he made and pioneered. And forced Janeway to execute it instead.

Janeway is clearly not happy about the decision and she's caught between a rock and a hard place.

In Nothing Human Janeway verbalizes it.

"Any consequences of this decision will be my responsibility. Dismissed."

Janeway's constantly put into a wheelhouse of trolley problems, as the only high-ranking Starfleet officer, she is the final authority. In Nothing Human everyone is locked in an endless debate about the morality of using the Cardassians' methods to save B'Elanna's life. Meanwhile, the clock was running down to zero and B'Elanna could have died more.

(Honestly, the story should have been more B'Elanna, Doctor, and Janeway-centric than it was. Nothing Human is a weird episode. Especially since Seven was barely in it and seems to be the Acting Chief Engineer -- amusingly enough because the writers thought they killed Joe Carey between s2 and 3. Alas, poor Vorik, he's not getting any promotions either).

TLDR: Janeway is constantly living through what the Doctor of Doctor Who is living through. Or as the 12th Doctor once said: "Sometimes the only choices you have are bad ones, but you still have to choose."

[padfootagain]

Love in Verses (VI)

Chapter 6 : ‘I’ll lie here and learn how, over their ground, trees make a long shadow and a light sound’

Hi! Here is another chapter! A ‘party’ is happening, revelations are made, and the drama reaches a peak!

I hope you like this new chapter! Tell me what you think!

****

Pairing: Hozier x fem!reader (professor!AU)

Warnings: slow burn, angst, hurt, hurt/comfort, tooth-rotting fluff in later chapters, some scenes in later chapters will have heavy sexual themes even if it’s not explicit nsfw description, so minors here

Summary: Your life seems perfect. You're engaged, your career is thriving as you become an assistant professor at Trinity College, and this Andrew Hozier-Byrne you're sharing an office with seems to be a nice guy you hope to call a friend soon. Life seems to be smiling at you... until everything goes sour. When your fiancé breaks up with you, your perfect world shatters. And when your colleague also gets his heart broken soon after, your shared office seems to be a curse rather than a blessing. But Andrew seems determined to mend your broken hearts... Will things finally go according to plan?

Word Count: 2450

Masterlist for the series – Hozier’s masterlist – Main masterlist

Knowledge

Now that I know

That passion warms little

Of flesh in the mold,

And treasure is brittle,

I’ll lie here and learn

How, over their ground,

Trees make a long shadow

And a light sound.

Louise Bogan, Poetry, 1922

It took you over an hour to choose which clothes to wear.

To attend Frank’s party meant seeing some of his friends you hadn’t talked to since your break-up, meeting up with some of your common friends that tended to start forgetting about you, meeting his new girlfriend you needed to impress.

You were hurting about tonight already. Because you would see Frank happy with someone else, because you missed him so much it burnt a hole in your chest, because you wanted him back. In your group of friends, most people had stopped talking to you after your break-up, it was a tough after-effect you had not seen coming. If anything, you would have expected your friends to support you rather than him. He was the one running away with a new girlfriend he barely knew, after all. Didn’t you at least deserve your friends’ sympathies? Perhaps you didn’t. Perhaps they didn’t like you that much, in the end, followed the most charismatic one of the relationship when you separated. The fact that your only remaining friend was all the way north in Belfast and busy with her academic job wasn’t helping. You couldn’t wait for her to come visit in a couple of weeks. Of course, long hours had been spent on the phone with Siobhán, but it wasn’t the same. Anyway, you still had a couple of weeks to wait before being able to crumble in her arms and cry all the tears your body could produce.

For now, you needed to look as ravishing as you could, so Frank would see what he was losing. So his new girlfriend would not think herself better than you. So your former friends would see how good you were doing despite your break-up.

You were meeting in a posh pub downtown, a place that overpriced mediocre beer and expected their customers to look for expensive wine rather than a good time. You had been there a couple of times with Frank, you hated the place. You preferred simpler spaces, those that had a soul instead of an extensive bank account. Frank loved it, he had probably chosen it for tonight.

At the pub, it was easy to spot the large group that formed your exe’s party. You recognised many faces; some were new, you guessed that they belonged to people who came for Frank’s new girlfriend. You had barely stepped closer that a couple of your former friends greeted you with grinning faces, offering you a glass.

You cursed at them in your head for playing all nice and syrupy tonight when they hadn’t spoken to you since Frank had left…

“How are you keeping after… what happened?”

“Christ, I’m sorry about you and Frank, I really do… But his new girlfriend is good craic!”

“I’m glad you remained friends, that’s very mature of the two of you.”

You heard the questions and the remarks, and wanted to snap at every one of them, but you didn’t. You needed to make a good impression tonight, you came to get Frank back, not to push him away.

A couple of glasses later, and Frank was finally in sight, your glances meeting, and he smiled so brightly, you were blinded by it. You had heard his booming voice as soon as you had entered the room, but he was always busy talking with someone else. He was always like this. Bright, a little exuberant, the life of the party. You were always in his shadow, shier, bathing in his laughter and his light.

He hugged you, briefly but tightly, you let your senses be lulled by his cologne. You used to think he wore too much of it, but after missing his scent for over a month, you didn’t mind. On the contrary, you longed to drown in it now.

“Y/N! It’s so good to see you! God, I’ve missed you these past few weeks.”

“I’ve missed you too,” you let out in a quiet voice, trying to hide the tears in your eyes and the emotions in your voice.

“I’m glad you could come! We have a big announcement to make! But first, I need to finally introduce you to my amazing girlfriend. Babe!”

Babe… he used to call you that… now he called her ‘babe’…

You saw a woman turning around, to the pet name you thought you would be the only one recognising for the rest of your life.

And she was pretty. So damn pretty. Dark hair, vivid blue eyes, full lips made tempting by red lipstick, pearly earrings framing her face.

You felt miserable at the grin she offered you. You felt miserable in this dress you thought would make you look as pretty as you could be, you felt miserable because you thought she looked better than you ever would…

He turned to her, placed his hand on her waist, the same way he used to do with you at parties to keep you close.

“This is my friend Y/N,” Frank introduced you, and the jolt of pain that pierced your heart at the word ‘friend’ knocked out all the air from your lungs. “Y/N, this is my girlfriend…”

“Y/N?”

You were interrupted by a warm voice coming from behind you, a voice you were surprised to recognise here. But as you turned around you were met with the hazel eyes you expected.

“Andrew?”

You stared at each other, both of you frowning hard. He had dressed up tonight as well, in a black suit and black shirt that contrasted tastefully with his pale skin and bright eyes. His hair was tied in a bun, he wasn’t wearing his glasses, it was the first time you saw him with contacts on instead. You couldn’t fail to notice that he looked extremely handsome, although you had to admit you missed his glasses…

You noticed how his eyes trailed down your frame before he blinked to stare into your eyes again, how his cheeks became a brighter shade of pink…

“Andy?”

You both turned to Frank’s new girlfriend when she spoke Andrew’s name.

Did she… did they know each other?

“Sam…”

Sam? Like… in Andrew’s ex?

Andrew’s ex who had broken his heart four weeks ago?

“Do you… do you two know each other?” she asked, and you were too stunned trying to make sense of the situation to answer.

“Erm… yeah… Y/N and I work together. At Trinity.”

“We’re in the same office,” you added.

Frank and Sam exchanged a glance.

“Oh… we didn’t know.”

“Wait… what’s going on?” Andrew asked, blinking and rubbing at his forehead as he tried to think.

“This is my boyfriend, Frank,” Sam explained.

Andrew looked at you, eyes open wide.

“Frank? Like…”

“Yep,” you let out in a breath.

“Well, that is awkward…” Frank spoke with a humourless chuckle. “It’s still nice to meet you, Andy,” he added, offering his open hand for Andrew to shake it.

But by your side, Andrew blinked, trying to process the whole situation. It took him a moment to shake the hand that was offered to him.

“Erm… if you don’t mind… I prefer Andrew.”

“Oh, okay…”

“Only my close friends and family call me ‘Andy’. So…”

“Ha, yes! But I hope we can all become good friends, despite our pasts.”

You smiled, nodded. It was a lie, of course. And as you looked up at Andrew’s expression again, he seemed to feel the same.

“Thank you for coming tonight, Andy,” Sam smiled at him, and you watched the tenderness that softened his gaze when he turned to her.

“’Course,” he nodded, blinking a couple of times, as if stunned by her.

“Well, now that we’ve greeted everyone, I think it’s time for the announcement,” Frank grinned, excitement making his entire being shine, radiate warmth. And you were stunned by him a little too as you watched him call for everyone’s attention. He and Sam moved further away so the whole group could easily see them. Meanwhile, you could still feel Andrew’s presence next to you.

“Thank you all so much for coming tonight!” Frank spoke loudly, thriving in this situation, being the centre of attention, the life of the party, the perfect host… a role you had always struggled with, that you had always happily surrendered to him while you were together. Sam was grinning though, she seemed more at ease in this social event than you could ever be. “We have a big announcement to make. We… we know it might seem sudden, but… the second we met, we knew there was something special happening between us. We have been together for a short time, but every day only secures that feeling. This is why we have decided not to wait any longer to take a leap of faith. We’re happy to announce to all of you that we’re getting married!”

The group exploded with cheers, surprised gasps and clapping. Frank spoke again, thanked everyone, and so did Sam. They moved across the group to hug people they loved, the shouts and cheers continued on.

You heard none of it. Your ears were ringing. When Frank spoke about his feelings for Sam, you were focused on trying not to collapse on the floor.

Getting married…

He had waited years to ask you to marry him, had pushed back the wedding again and again for his career and now… now he was ready to marry her after a single month together?!

This was madness. This… this was not happening…

“Congratulations.”

Andrew’s voice pulled you back to earth, just in time to see the happy couple coming closer to you. His voice was a little too neutral to be convincing, but Frank and Sam didn’t seem to notice. Sam hugged him, thanked him, grinning so happily while you noticed that Andrew’s eyes were gleaming with tears. He blinked them away though, offered a warm smile when she pulled away.

And then Frank was standing in front of you. Handsome, all short blond hair and magnetic blue eyes. The buzz of the room was distracting, but you focused on him just the same.

“Congrats!” you smiled, closing your fists so hard your nails dug crescent marks in your palms.

“Thank you! Oh, I’m so glad, Y/N!”

And indeed, he was grinning, solar, bright and generous and your heart shattered at the thought that once you had been the reason behind that kind of grin…

Both Sam and Frank were soon pulled into their group of friends once more, and you seized the opportunity to run away from this bloody posh pub you hated, from these people you used to love who had turned on you, from all this mess your perfect life had become…

Sam had stolen your life from you. You were Frank’s fiancée, you were the one who should have been celebrating your engagement, you should have been the one kissing him now, you should have been the one he loved…

The door of the pub closed behind you before you could realise you had left. The air was cold as it hit your cheeks, you hurried to the side of the building, hiding from the busy street and the cars driving by, the bright lights of busy lives…

Footsteps followed you, you couldn’t care less. You barely noticed them, until the deep, familiar voice you weren’t expecting shook with anger and made you stop dead in your tracks.

“Did you know?”

It was the first time you heard Andrew angry. The tone sounded strange as it rested on his voice, made the timber of it more prominent, deeper, lower as well, almost threatening.

“Y/N! Did you fucking know about this!?”

You stepped in the little alley that ran along the building, and Andrew followed you under the orange light of the only lamppost of the dead-end street.

“Hey! I’m fucking talking to you!”

He grabbed your upper arm, hold firm, tight if not painful. He forced you to turn around with a rough yank.

His face fell, expression changing from wrath to pain in a second as he stared at you.

You let out a sob, your hand flying to your mouth to cover the sound, your fingers wet with the tears that streamed down your cheeks. Andrew’s expression immediately softened. He easily read the answer to his question in your pain.

He took a couple of deep breaths, immediately let go of your arm. You shuddered at the loss of contact, at the cool air of the night that replaced the warmth of his palm. He gritted his teeth in an attempt to calm down.

“I’m sorry…” he trailed off, voice shaking as he tried to control his emotions.

You rubbed at the spot he had touched on your arm, he blinked tears away, and stared at you with a frightened expression now.

“Did I hurt you? I’m sorry, I was a little rough… sorry… you’re okay?”

But your head was spinning, you shook your head.

“I hurt you? Did I hurt you? I’m sorry…”

Instead of answering, you felt your legs give way, and Andrew caught you in his arms before you would hit the ground. He held you to his chest to keep you upright, wrapped his arms around you.

And the heat of his body felt good against the cold of the night, and his chest was solid and reliable like an anchor, and his hands rubbed at your back in a soothing gesture that slowed your heart almost immediately, despite not being able to stop your tears.

He cradled the back of your head in his large palm, held you closer to him.

He sniffed, choked on a sob of his own. You held him tight, hated the pitiful whimper he let out.

You weren’t sure how long it lasted, but after a long while, Andrew finally stopped shaking, dried his cheeks on his sleeve.

“Hey… come on, Y/N. We should go home. Let’s get you home, alright?”

You nodded, pulled away to call for a cab.

“You’re alright?” Andrew asked, drying your cheeks with his thumbs.

You nodded.

“Did I… did I hurt you?”

“No, no. You didn’t.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright.”

“I’ll wait with you for your cab, alright?”

You nodded, dried your cheeks again.

“I… I had no idea,” Andrew mumbled, hands buried in his pockets now. “About Frank and Sam…”

“Me neither. I didn’t even know they knew each other!”

Speaking made you cry harder again, so you kept quiet until your cab arrived. Andrew opened the door for you, watched as the car drove away, and was left alone on the curb.

You collapsed onto your bed the second you reached home.

[guccixstyless]

Secrets (Part 2)

Part One

Word Count: 872 words

Pairing: Ryu Shio x Reader

************************************************************************

"I'm involved in mafia..."

Y/N was completely speechless, she did not see this coming. Shio was still holding her hand while kneeling on the floor beside the sofa she sat on.

"What?" she whispered.

She quickly removed her hand from his grip, Shio felt hurt.

"You have to understand I did not choose this, I was rather forced to join this field just to... survive," Shio said and hung down his head, as if he's ashamed.

Y/N did not say anything, she was just trying to process everything Shio was saying.

"Tell me," Y/N spoke after a while, "everything about you, I don't want anymore surprises," she said bitterly.

The dim light in Shio's office cast long shadows on the walls, creating an atmosphere of tension as Y/N confronted him about his involvement with the mafia. Shio's usual confident demeanor falters as he uncomfortably sat in the sofa beside her.

"It all started when I was a kid. The Russians took me in, and I was trained against my will. I never wanted any of this, Y/N. They brainwashed me." Shio started hesitantly.

He continued telling everything sparing no details about all his past traumas and up until the drug that he invented for Pavel.

Y/N's eyes widened as she processed the revelation. The weight of the truth hung heavily in the air.

Y/N sighed, "How could you hide this from me? We were supposed to be a team."

"They're dangerous people Y/N, I didn't want you to get involved in this mess. I was trying to protect you," Shio replied desperately.

Y/N stood up, her emotions swirling. Without saying a word, she walked out of the office, leaving Shio alone in the darkness.

Shio glanced at the clock; it was late, and concern etched his face. He started running after her and pleaded her to wait.

Y/N took a shaky breathe and looked behind him, the tall man approached her and said, "Y/N, it's late. Let me take you home."

Seeing her hesitation, Shio gently said, "I promise I won't push you, but it's not safe for you to be out alone right now."

Reluctantly, Y/N nodded, appreciating Shio's protective instincts. The car ride home was silent, but the quiet reassurance of Shio's presence began to ease the turmoil in her mind.

-

Shio began driving, the silence between them was thick. Y/N stared out of the window, processing all the newfound knowledge she found tonight.

"Y/N, I understand if you can't forgive me," Shio said sadly.

"Not now, Shio. I need time to process all of this."

Shio nodded understandingly, he longed to touch her hand. It always brought him comfort. He was scared that he won't be able to do it again if she breaks up with him.

When they reached their shared home, the atmosphere was heavy with unspoken words. Y/N headed to the guest room without looking at Shio. He stood in the hallway, aching for her presence.

Shio felt like his world was crashing down. As soon as he reached their shared room upstairs, Shio closed the door and collapsed while sobbing. He wanted to this pain in his heart to stop, it was too much to handle, the grief was consuming him.

The same thing was happening to Y/N just downstairs in the cold guest room. Both of them longed to be in each others arms.

Both of them could not sleep.

-

The morning light spilled through the windows, signaling a new day. Shio found Y/N in the kitchen, her back turned to him. He approached cautiously, unsure of how she would react.

"Hi bab-, Y/N," he cleared his throat.

Y/N rushed forward, wrapping her arms around him. The warmth of her hug cut through the cold tension that had settled between them.

Shio stumbled back from the sudden hug but quickly hugged her back tightly.

They both began sobbing, scared to lose each other.

"I need time, Shio. But I don't want you to leave." Y/N spoke through her sobs.

"I understand baby, I'll give you all the space that you need."

Their lips met in a lingering kiss, a silent promise of healing and understanding.

"Shio, can you leave that world for me?" Y/N asked hesitantly.

"Yes," he replied in a heartbeat, "God, yes, I can't ever lose you, I am ready to leave that."

"You have to, you can change, I know you, and you said you were forced, but baby you can start fresh, you can leave the dark world and start an honest and clean one," Y/N spoke gently.

Shio teared up, he finally felt a sense of relief, he nodded tearfully.

Y/N said, "I'll be beside you when you start again, I will be with you from the ground up."

"It will take time but I promise starting from now I will slowly yet urgently cut ties, just be patient baby, I promise to leave that darkness."

Y/N smiled at him before kissing him again. As they held each other, they knew the journey ahead would be challenging, but the love that bound them was resilient.

Tag: queenjang21

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

She wasn't allowed to contact a therapist or a mental health specialist but she got her personal photographer walking all over Buckingham Palace in QEll's private quarters and QEll's childhood dollhouse to snap pictures, make a whole mockumentary in South Africa behind The Palace's back, do "work lunch" with staffs outside, visit an apothecary after closing hours and all the other obvious things which in no way showed that she was restricted in the BRF?

But she couldn’t contact a therapist. She had to contact HR. Only HR is allowed to solve mental health concerns. /s

Anyway. That HR reference was so random, wasn’t it? Here’s my theory: It was a spin attempt to cover up Meghan getting a HR call about her behavior towards the staff re the bullying allegations.

Here’s a very abbreviated timeline:

October 31, 2018: Jason Knauf writes a letter describing Meghan’s bullying of/behavior towards staff is sent to Buckingham Palace HR. William begins discussion to split the households.

January 16, 2019: Meghan has thoughts of self-harm because of bullying.

March 14, 2019: BP announces the household split. The Sussexes are moving their offices and staff to BP. (The Cambridges, their staff, and their offices to remain at KP.) It sounds like the KP staff - who up to this point were shared between the Cambridges and the Sussexes - could choose if they stayed with the Cambridges or moved with the Sussexes.

Now, two and a half months for HR to follow up on a complaint is a bit long to me, but when you consider that any HR worth their mettle would look into a complaint to determine if it’s legit before escalating it and when you consider how much “kickbacks” KP, CH, and BP were doing in those days (KP sends something up to BP, they kick it to CH, who sends it back to KP, who gets frustrated and sends it back to CH, so on), it does seem a little plausible.

So my theory is that Meghan was contacted in January by HR about the bullying allegations (which she obviously didn’t like and found very offensive) and the remediation step was to separate her from the complainants, so the decision to split the household was finalized. The KP staff was invited to choose if they’d stay or go and once everyone made their decisions and new spaces were found for the Sussexes, the official BP announcement was made.

But that still left the pesky HR phone call on the record about Meghan and bullying. And since the Sussexes were both paranoid about the media invading their privacy with the palace’s support, Meghan needed a way to spin an angry HR call that makes her the aggrieved victim. Since the palace wouldn’t contradict her (“never complain, never explain”), she twisted the story for Oprah and then her glass house began falling to pieces.

[upsidedownwithsteve]

Bad For Business: Level One

Steve Harrington x fem!reader [1.3K] An enemies to lovers au. Arcade coworkers, who love to hate each other, get too competitive about Dig Dug and share a mutal annoyance for the kids that like to pester them. Choose your own adventure by picking an option at the end of the chapter.

“You’re late.”

“No I’m not.”

You were. Twenty five minutes, in fact, and your stomach was still swirling from the night before, remnants of cheap beer and cheaper vodka mixing unhappily with the cold, strawberry pop-tart you’d force fed yourself on the way to work. 

Steve Harrington leant against the wall with a grin as he watched you struggle to clock in, the old machine chewing up your employee card before it finally stamped it. You pushed past him, shoulder into his in a way that was awfully familiar now. The blunt words, the eye rolls, the semi serious acts of violence all part of your work day and they had been since last summer. He didn’t give in to you, arms colliding, the smell of his cologne now on your T-shirt too. 

“Hungover?” Steve asked, enjoying the way you squinted against the harsh, fluorescent strip lights. 

The office was much quieter than the arcade outside of the staff doors and you were trying your best to stay away from the sounds of Super Mario and Pac-Man for as long as you could. Except Steve wasn’t making it easy. 

“No,” you lied again. You were so hungover, stupidly hungover. And tired. You’d barely managed to crawl back through your bedroom window when the sun was beginning to rise, the summer outside starting back up as the sky turned apricot and the birds sang. Eddie had walked you home, both of you sharing the last dregs from a lukewarm beer before he bent at the waist and let you use his back as a footstool, groaning and swearing at you as you took too long to grab the end of the broken trellis. “What’s with the fucking interrogation, Harrington? Did Murray die and leave you in charge?”

Outside the office, the arcade machines jingled, beeping and ringing with each win and loss, the constant clinkclinkclink of quarters being dropped into the coin slots, the yells of sugared up kids making your head pound. 

“Nah,” Steve’s grin only widened, an almost smirk that made you grit your teeth together. You busied yourself at your locker, shoving your bag into the too small space, the rattle of the metal hurting your very being. “Seeing you each morning is just the best part of my day.” 

You rolled your eyes at Steve’s blatant lie, snorting at the possibility you could both be anything close to friends. Steve Harrington lived to annoy you, and had done since middle school. He spent the first couple of grades annoying you at recess, pulling your hair and snickering with his friends when you yelled, all pink cheeked and shocked looking when you stomped towards him, indignant, shoving the heel of your buttercup yellow shoe into his toes. 

It went on like that, spitballs launched from each end of the classroom, backs of chairs kicked and faces pulled at the other during presentations. Then you both got older and the words got colder, scathing remarks made in the hallway, lockers defaced with semi serious insults and potential dates ruined by mocking comments said in front of crushes. 

Then high school was over, Hawkins seemed to get smaller and the only job available to get you enough cash to leave the tiny, backwater town was a position beside Steve at Upside Down Arcade. Run by someone who everyone only knew as Murray - a man who had absolutely no time for anyone under the age of twenty five and was utterly inept with technology - the arcade was a staple in Hawkins. As permanent a feature as the community pool, the town hall and the library; the brown brick building looked bland from the street outside, but stepping in the doors led kids into a maze of gaming machines, air hockey tables and neon lights. 

The carpets had seen better days, the Space Invaders themed pattern a headache of dulled yellows, purples reds and greens, the painted black walls barely seen behind the rows and rows of games, all brightly light and beeping, illuminations flashing pink and blue, leaderboard charts mocking on the screens. 

It smelled like burnt sugar and stale popcorn, despite the machine not having worked for over a decade. A heavy mix of all things bad for you: sour candy, old hotdogs, cherry slush stains and pre-teen hormones. 

“If I’m somehow even bringing you the slightest bit of joy with my presence, Harrington,” you deadpanned, “then I’m doing it wrong.” You slammed the locker door shut and smirked when Steve had to yank his hand back, fingers narrowly avoided. 

He narrowed his eyes at you, moving only to grab his name badge from the board, making sure he knocked yours onto the floor when he shoved the bundle of keys into his pocket that opened up all the coin slots. 

“Murray’s not in until later, Donkey Kong is fried and oh,” he clicked his fingers and pointed a digit at you, all faux sympathy making his face soften. “I knocked you off the top spot on Dig Dug. Again.”

You glared. Steve grinned. 

 You wanted to say something sharp, something witty and mean, but your head was still pounding and your throat felt like the Sahara Desert. “Bite me, Steven,” you muttered instead, shoving past the boy so you could get out the door first, for no other reason than simply to feel like you’d won something. 

Steve was too close behind you when he answered, all charm and flirt, the cadence of his voice dropped to the level he used when he flirted with the older girls that brought in their baby siblings. 

“Bend over then, Princess Peach,” he cooed, “at least lemme see what I’m working with.” His voice was at your ear, his stupid hair tickling at your cheek. 

The stupid nickname made your nostrils flare, but the suggestive comment before it had your toes curling. You scoffed, shocked, because as the summer crawled by and the heat got higher, you and Steve’s snipes were getting more and more below the belt.

But that was his bravest yet. 

You didn’t bother turning round, you didn’t want to give him the satisfaction, and Jesus, you were sure your cheeks were flushed - but if he dared comment on it, you would’ve blamed it on the hangover you told him you didn’t have. 

“You’re a pig,” you bit out, ignoring how he kept close behind you as you finally braved opening the door. 

The arcade was already full to the brim, bursting with kids, a line of them at the desk, ticket stubs clutched in sticky hands, dollar bills ready to be exchanged for bags full of coins. The door almost hit Steve when you let it go behind you, his hands barely catching it as he scowled at your retreating figure. You planned to lurk in the darkest corner of the arcade for your entire shift, maybe sipping on a stolen slurpee, biding your time and waiting for your headache to soften enough in order to conjure a formulated attack on the Dig Dug machine. 

You turned around just before Steve served the first customer, narrowing your eyes at him in suspicion. He was already behind the cash register, Erica Sinclairs bundle of tickets in his hands as the girl pointed at a toy sword in the cabinet. 

“And don’t even try and pretend you haven’t looked before,” you called back to him, smug and referring to his lewd comment before. “Oh, ‘lemme see what I’m working with’,” you mimicked. “You’re not sly, asshole.”

A few kids tittered at the insult, Dustin Henderson snorting especially loud, but some gasped at how you cursed in front of them, a sure fire way to know there’d be a hand written complaint about on Murray’s desk tomorrow. You’d hoped your jab would make Steve shrink, maybe blush like he used to when you got all brave and bold with him. Shit, maybe he’d even had the right to look ashamed. 

But he simply shrugged, tongue pushed to the inside of his cheek to stop himself from smirking at you but his expression was still the same. 

Pleased. Too cocky. Challenging. 

You went straight to Dig Dug. 

[starlightshadowsworld]

Those traumatised cat learns to trust people again stories except it’s Atsushi with the Agency. Because he is part tiger and he’s never known kindness in his life before them.

Keeping his distance when all he wants is companionship. Ready to run or right the moment he feels threatened.

And the Agency meeting him half way. Letting Atsushi know through their actions that they won’t hurt him. Kunikida leaving his notebook on Atsushi’s desk when he doesn’t need it.

Dazai never approaches Atsushi from behind and has his hands in view. Yosano keeps her tools in her office. All in an effort to make themselves look non threatening.

They gave him space while letting him choose whether to participate or not. Never making him pressured to join in. Kenji leaves some leftovers nearby and cheerily takes them saying he’ll eat them later when Atsushi doesn’t touch them.

Atsushi is able to explore the office and the dorms to get comfortable with his new home. He spends most of his time observing everyone and calculating their movements.

Letting him try and figure out why they’re doing all of this.

Dazai even naps in the office citing it’s to show Atsushi he feels safe enough to sleep near him (and it pisses off Kunikida so double win.) Atsushi tends to only get close and sit silently beside one of them if they’re asleep.

Because he knows for certain they can’t hurt him then.

The day when Atsushi goes to them, moves his desk closer and asks questions everyone shares a secret smile. They hold Atsushi’s fragile new trust in their hands and swear to never break it.

[spoiled-fawn]

TF 141: Owl Hybrid HCS

Hi! I'm alive, just working on several things at once so my writing output is slow. This may be too niche but I've been thinking about this too much and wanted to share. Yes, I will be coming out with a Price x reader hybrid fic and this kinda sets the tone for it. I hope you enjoy!

A group of owls is called a parliament.

No warnings. There are some 141 x reader bits as well

PRICE: Blakiston’s Fish Owl

Price is a big bird, and is the largest in terms of body weight and wingspan comparisons. His wings take up a majority of his space when on the ground and in his human form. His feathers are monochromatic with brown and tan, his broad and ragged ear tufts start on his temple and hang slightly to the side- still perfectly seen and sticking out when he wears his boonie hat.

The scars on his neck mark a historic battle between him and a foe. His damage? His vocal chords.

This man has a deep hoot that now sounds like a scratchy croak most nights. He feels self-conscious about it after the damage that occurred but will use it to startle or scare enemies mostly. 

If you ask to hear his hoot he gets flustered.

Being the alpha predator, he is very territorial. Not so much over his nest or room, but rather his parliament. Over the others, he tends to take care of them as a stand-in father figure that none of them have. With his big form and feathers, you can find either of the sergeants nestled into his chest like the pillow Price is.

Playing with his ear tufts is a dangerous game, as your hand will either be pecked at or he’ll give you nesting eyes depending on his mood.

Loves fish, and will even eat it raw if his owl sense is craving it.

His species spends an unusual amount of time on the ground and prefers to travel as humans do when applicable. 

When fishing, he prefers to do so as his breed does. Dive in and catch the fish himself.

Likes to nest in tight spaces (that mimic hollow trees). Will make a fort between a plethora of cushions and blankets to hide within.

GHOST: Great Gray Owl

While Ghost is the largest member of 141, in his owl form, he almost doubles in size due to his plumage. The Great Gray has fluffy feathers and the longest tail, making him all the more threatening

He is not the type to build nests, but will often steal nests of others. He’s been found in Price’s nests when the Captain leaves for office work or has been known to crash into Soap's nest with no care to the men squawking

He’s vain to a fault. Will always preen himself in private, and the one time you pulled a cracked feather he immediately blushed snatched it from your hand, and left in a hurry to make sure there were no others

Once you got to really get close to him, he would let you do it for him.

Absolutely loses it when you call him pretty bird.

You also got him to parrot it back to you once and he almost cried with embarrassment.

Also has a deep hoot, but his come in shorter and quicker successions. 

These owls, much like Ghost, are hard to find. They tend to keep to themselves and blend into their surroundings by remaining still. There is minimal aggression in terms of territory, but when the 141 parliament is threatened, his talons are ready to maul.

SOAP: Barn Owl

Have you heard a Barn Owls call? It can get really annoying or is beyond terrifying.

Soap’s subspecies is the T. a. Guttata; He is large for his species while having grey and orange upperparts with an orange buff. He has speckling to his underpart feathers, and his face is white.

Will sometimes take naps in a roost of his choosing (supply closet, rafters of the gym) but does tend to make his own nest when needing a deep and comfortable sleep after a good meal or long mission. 

Makes a fuss when Ghost crashes his nest. He hisses and snaps his beak at the large hybrid but shuts up when he gets to nestle under his wings.

Soap bonded with Ghost over his species being known as the “Ghost Owl” to some, but also that they have a similar lay of face feathers.

Soap is a curious hybrid in nature, and not always defensive when a different species (or human) is interacting with 141. The first time he met you, his wings splayed out while he looked you over - too closely.

While looking at your dog tags (or any other jewelry) he accidentally beat his wing feathers on your face.

You lost your balance and spooked him, causing him to hiss at you. And beat you over the head with his wing, again.

He is very cuddly when on base, likes to be by your side, and at least has his wing draped on you if it's movie night.

GAZ: Great Horned Owl 

One of Gaz’s strong suits is his ability to camouflage. His feathers comprise a darker brown and even darker, complex markings across. He does have a patch of white feathers on his throat when fully shifted, and people make jokes that it's as if he wears a button-up shirt.

He has the classic owl hoot, and will often use it as comedic relief if a joke doesn't land. It is the most calming and subtle of the group, so he will often use it to find the other members while on base.

His eyes are big. Can give you the sweetest looks without saying anything, and is an absolute heartmelter when his tired eyes show in the daytime.

Like Price, he has tufts on the side of his head but are much smaller in comparison. They do as well peak out from under his cap.

He can adapt to the heat of the desert easily, and if in the Sonoran Desert again, he likes to sit in the sun to warm up.

Gaz does nest, but his is a bit wild and messy in terms of blankets and pillows strewn about when doing so. He doesn't need much, but when in his nesting season he can become aggressive and grumpy.

Price jokes that he can be like a parrot. Somewhat playful but has a tolerance when being preened at by the Captain himself.

Has nipped Price before.

Gaz keeps his talons well-maintained. He lost one in a fight before, and now takes excellent care of them. 

When he becomes fond of you, he will snag you by the arms and fly you in the air with him. Very cautious to not hurt you!

He one time made a nest high up in the rafters in the base but fell out of it and onto the ground when Ghost caught him sleeping.

~~~~~~

Cannot stop imagining Price's owl with a boonie hat on top. Like PLEASE. So cute and deadly.