#Front-facing Dog was part of a style study last semester

[diyadoesntdowhatshessupposedto]

I feel like Front-facing Dog and Fox Swimming would be welcome here

[craniumhurricane]

call me, baby, if you need a friend

Cleaning up some old WIPs. This has been in my drafts since end of season 2/around season 3.

Basically 4 times Clarke calls Bellamy and 1 time that Bellamy calls Clarke.

Thank you @casleyislove and @sushigirlali for always reading things before I post them!

[ On AO3! ]

___

(i)

It's a quiet night in at the Blake apartment. Or, at least, for Bellamy it is. He's having a nice Friday night by himself after surviving a truly grueling week of finals. Octavia tried to convince him to go out and celebrate the end of the semester the "right way," but he turned her down… he's still not quite sure how he managed to do that.

His feet are currently propped up on the coffee table with a large bowl of store brand cocoa puffs in his lap. Bellamy may be an adult but damn if he isn’t going to celebrate the end of the term with sugary cereal… nevermind that he didn’t actually make time to grocery shop this week. The TV was queued and ready for the marathon of Ancient Aliens episodes he’d missed due to studying, and he was just about to press play when he hears a short but insistent buzzing sound.  

Glancing around, his eyes land on Octavia’s phone sitting on the corner of the coffee table. She must have left it in her hurry to leave since she was running late to meet up with her boyfriend.

Bellamy keeps his eyes on it for a second before deciding to ignore it, and once again his finger hovers over the play button on the remote. Then the phone lights up again, this time with a phone call; a picture of Octavia and a curly haired blonde that he recognizes, the name CLARKE THE GRIFFIN flashing across the screen. He considers ignoring it for a second time but... if she’s resorting to actually calling instead of texting again then something could be seriously wrong.

Bellamy swipes his thumb across the screen to answer and brings the phone to his ear but before he can even say anything a voice on the other side interjects immediately.

“Men are dicks,” the woman says without preamble. “No! Worse than that. They're weird tumors that grow on dicks," she pauses, seems to think about it, and then adds, "Preferably life threatening.”

Bellamy blinks a few times before he answers, “I'm sure you're right, but don't you think that's a bit harsh?”

The line is quiet. He can hear her shifting the phone, no doubt checking the screen to make sure she called the right person.

“Octavia?”

“Bellamy.”

Clarke huffs. “Where's Octavia?” she snaps. He can hear the annoyance seeping into her tone, which in turn just makes him feel his own frustrations start to rise.

He tamps it down though. “On a date,” he answers.

She deflates at that, “Oh right. One month anniversary with Lincoln.”

He hums a confirmation and then they’re silent for a few minutes. So long that it’s Bellamy’s turn to look at the phone and make sure she’s still there. “Did you need something?” he asks once he sees that the call is still, in fact, in progress.

She takes a deep breath before answering, “I ended things with Finn tonight.”

Bellamy had only met Finn Collins a handful of times; the guy was fine except for a little cocky… and he always seemed to want to show off in front of pretty girls. His hair was too long and always styled like he was some kind of frat boy that came from big money even though Bellamy's 100% sure he never so much as pledged.

And then there was that one time he flirted with Octavia.

Ok, so Bellamy didn’t like the guy. But a break up is still a shitty thing to go through which is why he says, “I’m sorry,” and finds that he means it.

“Not your fault,” Clarke says immediately, “But I was kind of looking for someone to watch me binge drink and listen to me vent.”

He understands that, having gone through the same thing when he broke up with Roma at the start of the term. If you could really call them “hooking up occasionally” the same thing as dating, but still, getting drunk with Miller had been essential in the whole moving on process.

“You want to come over here anyway?” he offers carefully, casually. He doesn’t mind Clarke. She’s younger than him, around Octavia’s age. They aren’t exactly friends, but he would consider them a little more than acquaintances. Enough that it shouldn’t be too weird for him to invite her over even without his sister present. Plus, her getting drunk here is a better alternative than her getting drunk by herself in some bar.

“You don’t mind?” she asks and he thinks he hears relief in her voice, “I was kind of already on my way over to your guy’s place... I don’t really feel like going out and I really don't feel like being depressed and alone in my dorm right now.”

“Nah,” he says and then tries a joke to brighten her spirits, “Sounds like something fun to watch. I’ll order food.”

“Chinese would be great,” and he swears he can hear a smile in her voice so he’ll count his dumb joke as a victory. “Thanks, Bellamy, see you soon.”

He's not even a little bit mad about dumping out his now soggy cereal.

*

(ii)

“So, you’ve been in school for basically forever. Is it normal for a person to experience this amount of stress?”

Bellamy’s lips twitch as he holds his phone to his ear. After Clarke crashed his Friday night in, and spilled on the whole cheating Finn debacle while they did shots, Bellamy figured he should give her his own cell phone number. As much as he hated to admit it, and honestly he never will, his sister and her boyfriend were getting serious, so who knows how much Octavia would be available for late night bitchfests about significant others, fellow students, and the human population in general. Which were just a few of the topics they discussed that night. Hanging out with Clarke ended up being kind of fun, a better night than he originally planned. She even let him watch a little of his marathon and offered her own commentary. Bellamy would do it again… which is something else he would never admit.

It's not like they suddenly talk every day, but it’s a near thing. They would send each other the occasional text when one of them sees something that the other absolutely has to know about. Mostly, he gets pictures of old dogs she sees at the park, asking if this will be him in 20 years. Bellamy responds in kind with memes about college life and rubbing it in her face that they no longer apply to him since he graduated last semester.

But sometimes she reaches out to him if there is something particularly bothering her. Such as dealing with egotistical dickwads that consider themselves professors and shutting down female students in a male dominated class.

Clarke’s probably the only person that ever calls him and can never start the conversation with a simple ‘Hello’. Actually, she’s probably the only person that actually still calls him.

“I just got a job teaching so that insult isn't going to work anymore since I literally will be in a school as part of my job,” is his first response before he turns to one of concern, “Midterms got ya down?”

“It’s just,” she gives an exasperated sigh before continuing, “I want to do something that helps people, I know I want to help people… But maybe I don't want to help people the way my mom wants me to help people...ya know?”

“You’re going to have to give me more to go on here, Princess-”

“I’m thinking about switching my major,” she says abruptly, like she’s ripping off a band aid.

He’s silent, waiting to see if she’s going to say anything else. When it becomes clear she’s waiting for him to say something he responds honestly, “If being a doctor isn’t something you want to do, then you shouldn’t do it.”

“But-”

“What your mom wants you to do shouldn’t overrule what you want to do, Clarke,” he interrupts her. Due to the increasing amount of time he’s been spending with Clarke, he’s learned that the Griffins have always had a capital “P” Plan and he knows that Clarke has a hard time knowing when she can push the boundaries of said Plan.

She’s silent again and Bellamy’s starting to think he’s going to have to prod her a second time. He’s got the beginnings of his big speech all prepared when finally she speaks up. “I’m thinking about going into Art Therapy,” She says thoughtfully, “Or maybe teaching? Helping out underprivileged kids...or hell, even underprivileged adults. Or maybe something for the community?”

His lips twitch on another smile at hearing the beginnings of a hint of passion in her voice. “Teaching can be very rewarding,” he says magnanimously.

She snorts and it turns into a full laugh, “You haven't even started yet! It could be the worst thing you’ve ever done and a total waste of your degree.”

“Your confidence in me really is touching,” he deadpans and then adds simply, “You’re an amazing artist, Clarke. I think doing something with that could be something you'd enjoy and be really really good at.”

She’s quiet when she asks, “You think I’m amazing? You’ve never told me that.” And Bellamy swears he can hear that smile in her voice again. The one he always looks forward to. The one he tries to coax out of her without realizing he’s doing it.

He feels his cheeks start to heat up and even though she can't see him, he feels the need to brush it off. “Yeah, well, I generally try to be as dickish as possible so…”

She snorts again and damn if he didn’t feel a slight flutter in his chest.

“For the record, I think you’re going to be an amazing teacher,” she says it so matter-of-factly but he’ll have to dwell on it later because she sobers and then asks softly, “So, you think I should do it?”

It’s not hard for him to build her up. She spends so much time being there for the rest of their slowly merging friend groups that she rarely takes time to see the greatness in herself. He doesn’t mind helping.

“I think you should do whatever the hell you want.”

*

(iii)

“Women are worse than men.”

Bellamy rubs the sleep from his eyes and glances at the clock; it was almost 3 in the morning. “I thought men were tumors?” he asks around a yawn.

“Yeah, well, women can be tumors too,” Clarke huffs, but she just sounds tired, “Comparing people to tumors is equal opportunity. Strides in feminism are being made, didn’t you know?”

Bellamy pushes himself into a sitting position, suddenly more alert as he picks up the trace of tears in her voice. “You ok?” he asks.

Clarke is silent at first, but he waits her out, he knows that she’ll tell him. “Lexa broke up with me,” she says quietly and then adds in confusion, “Or we broke up with each other? I’m a little unsure. We spent the whole night arguing and then suddenly she was packing up her stuff.” She pauses before taking a shaky breath, “It’s over. We’re over.”

“I’m so sorry, Clarke.”

“She was leaving anyway,” she continues, bitterly, “Some new job. She was leaving in a few weeks and didn’t even bother to tell me. I told her we could make it work long distance, I was willing to try and make it work. That’s when the arguing started. Not just about that but about-,” Clarke abruptly cuts herself off and hesitates, “about... other things. Things I didn’t even know were an issue.” She’s quiet again before she adds, “She didn’t say it but I think she was disappointed that I never suggested going with her...”

The thought makes a quick flash of irritation run through him. “She wanted you to uproot your entire life and go with her,” he summarizes as he tries to adjust the pillows on his bed by beating them, maybe a little too roughly at the thought of her doing just that, before leaning back against them.

“Which is completely crazy, I know,” she hurries to say, “but I wish we could have talked about it.”

“I am sorry, Clarke,” he says again, “I know Lexa seemed like she was it for you.”

“But maybe she wasn’t?” Clarke counters as if trying to reason with herself. “I don’t know. We were both committed to each other, but maybe this was a sign that we weren’t going to be able to make it work long term?” She pauses and Bellamy can hear the gears in her head turning as she processes a way for her to handle this, too explain it to herself. “When we were together,” she hesitates before continuing, and he can imagine her biting her lip, “I was happy... but I felt like a separate version of myself, ya know? Still me, but not completely me?”

Bellamy chews on the words he wants to say and goes with, “Sometimes the person you're with can change you; it's not always a bad thing.” He gets quiet as he adds thoughtfully, “I like to think Gina made me a better person...and she probably did,” he pauses, this time unsure if he should keep going, but Clarke hasn't said anything, so she must be waiting for him to continue, “We tried, tried really hard, to make it work, but eventually you just realize that maybe the relationship isn't going anywhere and what’s best for everyone is just to call it.”

“Wait, you and Gina broke up?” Clarke asks in surprise, “When did that happen!?”

“That's what you got from that?” He rubs a hand over his face as he thinks about it, “About two weeks ago?”

“Shit,” she says and is quiet before asking in a small voice, “Why didn't you tell me?”

“Honestly, I haven't seen a whole lot of you these last few months,” he hears what he said and corrects himself, “We haven’t seen a whole lot of you.” He’s surprised at his ability to keep the bite out of his voice; because the truth was this last year has sucked since Clarke started dating Lexa.

They met at one of Clarke's art gigs. Lexa was cool; fun when she wanted to be, but also a little hard to be around. Most of the time, she seemed to prefer doing things without any of Clarke’s friends.

“I’m sorry,” Clarke says.

“It’s fine,” he answers her and means it. “Gina and I are still good friends.”

“I wasn’t talking about you and Gina,” she says, voice soft.

He realizes what she’s actually apologizing for and he doesn’t know what to say. Because of course he forgives her, he will always forgive her.

The silence lasts too long so he clears his throat and prompts, “Want to come over and get drunk?”

Her laugh through the phone breaks the tension, “It’s like 3 o'clock in the morning.”

“My bar is always open.”

She chuckles. “I really want to hit something,” she says with a determined edge to her voice, “Then maybe get drunk.”

“How about this, we get a few more hours of sleep, wake up at a normal time, and go hit something,” he offers and then adds as if it's an afterthought, “And then get drunk, of course.”

She laughs again, “Oh, of course.” There’s that smile. “I forgot what being single with you was like.”

Bellamy sobers at the thought. It has been awhile since the two of them were single at the same time. “Always here to help, Princess.”

*

(iv)

“Why did I agree to this trip again?”

He’s packing up the essays that are scattered across his desk when she calls, 4 o’clock on the dot. Bellamy tries to suppress a laugh but he’s pretty sure she can at least hear the teasing smile in his voice.

“Just getting back to the hotel?” he asks in lieu of his own greeting.

“Yes!” she exclaims in exasperation. “And if it were up to Josephine, we probably would have walked all of damn Paris tonight,” her voice gets muffled at the end and he can only assume she’s thrown herself face first onto the nearest bed. “I cannot wait for a shower- No! A bath, definitely taking a long, hot bath.”

And now the image of Clarke Griffin in the bath, with just enough bubbles to cover up to her chest, has entered his mind. He shoves it away before anymore thoughts can accompany it.

This used to never be a problem. Sure, he’s always known that Clarke is attractive, but he has never been attracted to her. But ever since he broke up with Gina and she broke up with Lexa, Bellamy has been exceedingly aware of the fact that they have both remained single.

The last time this happened was right after Finn.

Bellamy shakes his head for good measure before responding. “You’re going to fall asleep in the tub and your roommate will find your prune-y, wrinkled body in the morning.” He cringes.  Apparently he wasn’t able to get the image of her completely out of his head.

Clarke scoffs, but he can tell that it’s in an exasperated but fond kind of way. “How is it that you manage to be a buzzkill from over 4,000 miles away?” she asks drily and then pauses before adding, “Actually, Josie would probably just leave me in there for the entire trip and never let on that something was up.”

He turns the key to lock his office behind him and heads for the staff lot. “Don’t worry, if you don’t call to check in, I’ll call the National Guard,” he teases.

“I know you would,” she says simply, like it’s a known fact.

Things have been a little weird after he became aware that they were both single. Mostly because, he’s pretty sure that Clarke has also come to realize it. When he turns to look at her, he often finds her already looking. Their innocent touches are now more frequent and linger just a bit longer.

Bellamy has come to realize that he doesn’t want to be single and the reason he doesn’t want to be single is because he wants his best friend to not be single with him.

There’s just never a right time to tell her.

“So, what did you do today?” he asks.

Despite the exhaustion and jetlag that’s surly setting in, Clarke jumps into an animated retelling of the flight and arriving at their hotel room just in time to change clothes and head back out to walk the streets of Paris to get their bearings before their tours officially start tomorrow.

“I’m a little disappointed that we’re doing the Louvre first thing tomorrow. I was hoping to be a little more alert for that.”

“Your coffee addiction hasn’t stopped just because you’re in another country,” he points out as he gets in his car.

She laughs, “Jeez, you are such an ass.”

He starts the car but doesn’t leave just yet; afraid the long distance call will drop out.

“What are you doing now?” he asks into the comfortable silence.

“Admiring the view,” she admits softly. “It really is gorgeous all lit up. Makes me want to dig out my sketchbook.”

“You have a week, Princess,” he chuckles. “Don’t screw up your jetlag even more by losing track of time in your drawings on the first night.”

She’s quiet again before confessing softer somehow, “It also makes me wish you were here.”

His heart clenches in his chest and he wills himself to sound normal. “Maybe next time,” he tries for teasing but it comes out almost wistful.

“Next time, hmmm?” Clarke hums. “You’d come to Paris with me?” And he’s sure she’s flirting with him.

“Well, maybe not for our first date,” he says, “But maybe, like, our fifth or something.”

Clarke’s quiet for a long time and he’s afraid he’s overstepped, misread the room. He’s about to take it back, play it off as a joke when she finally speaks.

“And what would a first date look like?” she asks with what he thinks is hope in her voice.

He swallows a couple of times. “Well,” he starts, “Since you’re already getting some of the best museum experiences, I’d probably settle for dinner and a movie. Something cheesy that’s playing at the dollar theater; where we’re the only ones there and can yell at the screen.”

She chuckles and his heart flutters, “We already do that, Bell. Quite frequently, actually.”

“Yeah, but if it’s a date then I’d get to kiss you at the end of it.”

“What? No making out during the movie?” she asks and he can picture how cute her face gets when she pouts.

A grin spreads across his face and he’s grateful no one can see how goofy he must look.

“We’ll have to make sure it’s a really bad movie.”

*

(+i)

Clarke rubs some moisturizer on her face before capping the tube and tossing it into her bag on the bed. After ensuring that everything she’s going to need for tomorrow is packed, she zips it up and grabs one of Bellamy’s hoodies to slip on over her clothes.

Ever since he picked her up from the airport when she got back from her trip to Paris, and she ran directly into his arms, giving the other people waiting quite a show, there always seems to be one laying around, waiting for her to find it. She assumes that he gets as much of a thrill out of her wearing them as she does.

She heads down the stairs of their townhouse, passing various pictures and artwork, and shoots Raven one more text not to forget to bring her dress to the venue tomorrow. She’s supposed to help her get ready in the morning along with her mother. In the meantime, Abby has sent a car to pick her up and take her to the hotel. Easier to get ready if she’s already there for the stylist… something else her mother insisted on paying for. No matter how many times Clarke told her she didn’t care what her hair looked like because she was marrying the love of her life.

Clarke locks up the house and greets the driver, slipping into the backseat. She intends to spend the ride lost in thought, going through the checklists that were running through her head.

Their engagement had been on the short side but she didn’t mind. They were both ready to get on with this next chapter in their lives.

Her phone is resting loosely in her hand, face down on her knee, when it starts to vibrate with an incoming call. She holds her breath for a second, praying it isn’t the florist or the caterers. But when she sees the photo of her and Bellamy from New Year’s flash on the screen, she can’t help but smile.

She taps the button and greets him with a sultry, “Hi, handsome.”

“Hey,” he says and she can tell he has a soft smile on his face, the one just for her. “You just leave the house?”

“Yep. On my way to the hotel now, so hopefully you haven’t forgotten anything because it’s too late now.”

“The most important thing is already on its way,” he responds with a teasing lilt.

Clarke can’t help the sharp laugh that escapes her lips, “Oh my god! You are such a sap!”

“I was referring to the ring, obviously, Princess.”

“Oh, obviously,” she says, mock serious.

They chuckle to themselves for a few minutes and she honestly can’t tell if the driver is rolling his eyes or thinks they’re being cute from hearing one side of the conversation.

Bellamy sobers up first only to let out a groan. “I hate whose ever idea this is,” he whines.

“Aren’t you the history professor? Shouldn’t you know where common traditions and such come from?”

He scoffs, “No, I mean I hate whichever of our friends is making us do this.”

The two of them haven’t seen each other since yesterday morning, him having been spirited off by his groomsmen while she was left to spend last night alone in their bed. And now they’re meant to go one more night without seeing each other.

To Bellamy’s point, Clarke isn’t altogether sure why this is a tradition anymore, nor why they are choosing to follow this particular one. She and Bellamy aren’t even that superstitious! And yet somehow they were talked into spending the days leading up to their wedding apart.

“Ah,” she answers him now, “That would be Raven and Miller. Although, I’m pretty sure it had nothing to do with marriage traditions and has everything to do with getting back at us for making out in front of them so much.”

Bellamy scoffs again, “Well, jokes on them, because after tomorrow, I don’t ever have to stop kissing you.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” she says, “We’ll have to come up to eat at some point.”

The driver pulls up under the awning of the hotel and Clarke gets out and grabs her bag before he’s able to get out and grab it for her. She gives him a wave and a simple thank you before heading through the sliding doors.

“How’s your room?” she asks into the phone as she bypasses the check in desk, her mother having already checked her in and given her the key card to her room this morning when they were getting their nails done.

He heaves a deep sigh. “Lonely,” he answers as she steps into the elevator. From what Clarke knows from his texts, Miller dropped him off here last night and left him to his own devices. Apparently, the best man gets to sleep next to his husband but Bellamy wasn’t allowed to sleep next to his soon-to-be wife.

She makes a split second decision and presses a different button, jolting the elevator to stop sooner than intended. When she steps off she casually offers, “I could help with that.”

“Oh yeah?” He chuckles. “You going to describe for me what you’re wearing?”

“Hmm,” she hums as if she’s considering it. “I could do that… but I was more thinking that I could show you.”

Clarke stops in front of a door and gives it a nice rhythmic knock.

She doesn’t have to wait long before it’s opening and Bellamy is standing in front of her with his phone against his ear and a huge grin on his face.

She lowers her own phone from her ear, pressing the end button without looking.

“Hi, handsome,” she manages before he’s pulling her into his room.

[winterisakiller]

Get Better - Chapter Nine

Title: Get Better

Chapter: 9/18

Character: Tom Hiddleston/Cath Richardson (OFC)

Genre: Romance

Rating: Teen and up

Summary: Love. Companionship. Family. These are all of the things Tom Hiddleston desperately wanted. But his life and his choices left that a distant and unlikely prospect. So he did his best to move on and live his life as is. When an opportunity to return to the theater arises, he jumps at the chance and along the way finds that maybe, just maybe, those distant and unlikely prospects are closer than he could have imagined. Sequel to Brave Face.

Authors Notes/Warnings: So as I was writing Brave Face I knew that Tom’s story wasn’t over, even if that particular part of it was. And while I knew, more or less, what the overall ending to the story would be, its taken me a while to figure out the time in between. Thanks to @redfoxwritesstuff for letting me continually throw ideas off and at you. I still can’t fathom why you put up with it, but I am eternally grateful you do. This story will update on Thursdays.

Tag list: @tinchentitri @noplacelikehome77 @theheartofpenelope @blacksuitofdoom @nonsensicalobsessions @messy-insomniac-bookgirl @wolfsmom1 @just-the-hiddles @theoneanna @hiddlescastle @echantedbytwh @alexakeyloveloki

Previous Chapter

CHAPTER NINE

 “I don’t know how or why I let you talk me into this,” Cath groaned, leaning her head back against the cool wall behind her. Every inch of her ached, how she was ever going to manage making it from the studio floor back into the changing rooms she couldn’t begin to fathom. “I’m dying.”

 Gemma tossed her head back, her short, light blonde hair flying back from her face as she let out a loud laugh which echoed throughout the now empty room. “You are not dying.” She placed a hand on her hip surveying the sight before her, shook her head, and bent to offer her hand to her deflated friend. “Besides, it’s good for you.”

 Cath reluctantly took the proffered hand and allowed herself to be pulled to her feet. She limped pathetically towards the changing room behind Gemma, not bothering to keep pace with her much taller friend. How could she be this out of shape? It was mindboggling. When Cath had gotten the call yesterday afternoon, she’d gladly taken Gemma up on her offer to attend a yoga class with her the following morning. After all, how difficult could it possibly be? Oh, she thought with a biting cynicism, to be young and naïve once more.  

 What she had assumed to be a basic yoga class (something she’d been so sure she could handle. She was reasonably in shape, after all, and not completely inflexible) had turned out to be anything but. This was evil yoga. Sweaty, difficult, insane yoga. God, Gemma must have been out of her mind to think that Cath would possibly enjoy twisting herself into positions the human body, or well her body, had absolutely no business even attempting.

 Gemma turned back as they reached the door and let out a sympathetic chuckle. “You’ll feel better after a shower, trust me.”

 Cath scoffed. “The last time I trusted you, I ended up here. You’re track record isn’t exactly speaking highly of you right now.”

 She’d known Gemma since uni; they’d ended up suitemates in their first year and hadn’t initially gotten on. Clashes happened frequently over study habits, music choices, and hundreds of other little things; leaving both at each other’s throats more often than not. Gemma had been an only child of only children; sharing a space hadn’t come easily to her and Cath, while typically an unfailingly patient person, was finding her resolve wearing alarmingly thin. It hadn’t been until halfway through the semester and the pressure of midterms that they’d bonded. It was amazing what a bit of alcohol and breaking into tears of frustration at three in the morning could do for a friendship. They’d remained close ever since despite conflicting schedules and occasional (well more than occasional, if she were being completely honest) clashes of personality. It was an odd friendship between them, but it worked more often than it did not.

 Gemma shook her head and wandered towards the showers. “My track record is flawless, not my fault you can’t keep up.”

 “Why am I friends with you again?”

 “Because you love me,” Gemma’s voice echoed from the showers.

 “And that love shrinks by the day!”

 Gemma’s resonating laughter echoed from the other room. Cath shook her head and, with a grimace, found the locker where she’d stored her change of clothing and shower supplies (something she had almost left in her flat, despite Gemma’s instance that she bring them along. It was yoga after all, nothing too strenuous. Ha, yeah right.), and gathered what she needed before making her way to the showers with a slowness bordering on comical.

 The hot water, however, felt amazing against the tenseness of her shoulders and back. As she stood beneath the torrent of water, Cath felt herself start to relax. It was with the greatest reluctance that she tore herself from the sheltering warmth of the shower fifteen minutes later. She dried and dressed with care, while the water had done wonders she didn’t want to chance anything by moving too quickly. Gemma was dressed and leaning haphazardly against the wall of the dressing area as Cath ran her towel over her hair one last time and quickly pulled it back into a bun at the top of her head; she would worry about drying and styling it once she got home.

 “So you up for joining me again next week?”

 Cath snorted loudly, covering her mouth in a futile gesture. It took several moments for her to compose herself. “Absolutely not. I barely survived this time.”

 Gemma shook her head. “It does get easier each time. And besides,” she added with a wicked gleam in her eye, “it’ll do wonders for your skills in other areas…”

 She didn’t bother to cover the loud and obnoxious laugh Gemma’s words tore from her. “Be that as it may, I’ve currently got no one with whom I am trying to impress so those ‘skills’ would be wasted on me.”

 Gemma shrugged. “Still it’s something to file away for a rainy day…”

 “As fun as that sounds, I think I’ll pass.”

 The tall blonde smiled and shook her head. “Fair enough.”

 The two said their goodbyes and Cath took off down the street towards coffee shop that had caught her eye two hours prior on her way to the yoga studio; a small brick and glass front building with a hand-painted sign hanging above the door bearing the name Uncommon Grounds in bright, clean lettering. The caffeine was practically screaming her name and, honestly, who was she to ignore its call. Bag stashed over her left shoulder, she pushed the shop door open and paused as the scent of coffee, pastry, and spices flooded over her. God, she would never tire of it.

 What was not so pleasing, however, was the queue that formed from the counter nearly towards the door of the shop. Just great. It moved quicker than she’d expected, given its length, and within ten minutes she was out the door again, double vanilla latte in one hand and a Triple Chocolate Meltdown muffin in the other. It was definitely not one of her better choices but once she’s seen it in the display case, Cath had known she was a goner. Besides, she’d reasoned with herself, after all the work she’d done that morning she’d earned the damned thing. And she was definitely going to let herself enjoy it.

 She flirted with the idea of heading directly towards the Underground station and home, she was certainly tired enough for it to be an intriguing idea, but found herself instead heading down the pavements and into the nearby park. It had warmed up enough to make the idea of enjoying her hard-earned treasures on one of the benches overlooking the heath below well worth it.

                                                            —

 Cath popped the last piece of her muffin into her mouth and sighed, leaning her back farther into the wooden slats of the bench. It wasn’t a particularly warm day, but nice enough that the heath below was dotted with people running around; parents chasing children, people walking dogs, couples walking and in hand. She took another sip of her latte and closed her eyes, letting the slight warmth of the just barely visible sun warm her face.

 That peace, however, was short-lived.

 A loud, and strangely familiar, series of barks exploded from somewhere down the main path. Cath’s eyes shot open in time to see a streak of reddish brown baring straight for her. Without thinking she leapt to her feet, a flash of panic racing through her, and nearly swallowed her heart when the blur came to an abrupt stop before her. The blur, now clearly a brown spaniel, barked once and sat panting, eyes wide and filled with mischief.

 “Bobby?” The name spilled from her lips in confusion. Surely this couldn’t be Tom’s dog. The spaniel let out a woof as if confirming he was, indeed, the dog she believed him to be. “What are you doing here? Where’s your human?”  She glanced around behind him, hoping to see Tom hurrying along the path behind the dog. There was not a soul. Damn.

 She knelt to the ground, reaching out and scratching him behind the ear. She noted with a flash of amusement that he was without his usual harness, though his collar was still intact. The spaniel leaned into her hand, his tail a blur of motion. “Oh young man, something tells me that when Tom finds you, you’ll be in quite the spot of trouble.”

 Cath pushed herself back up to her feet, scanning the area around them once again hoping to see Tom jogging up the path. No such luck. She looked down at Bobby whose attention seemed now laser focused on the tree behind her. “Oh no you don’t.” Bending down, she looped her fingers in his collar. Bobby whined but didn’t try to pull away. She held him for another minute before slowly letting go. He wriggled but didn’t take off. “Alright. Let’s see if we can find Tom, shall we?”

 Grabbing her gym bag from the bench behind her, Cath rifled through it and pulled out the laces from her trainers, tying them together in a crude but effective knot. Just because he seemed to be listening to her now didn’t mean she trusted the spaniel not to attempt bolting at the first distraction. From the stories Tom told, and from the small amount of time she’d spent in the spaniel’s company, Bobby was not one to be trusted over much. She quickly looped the end of the lace around his collar, double knotting it before wrapping the other end around her free hand. It wasn’t ideal but the last thing she wanted was for him to run off.

 They’d finished a loop around the nearby pond when a high pitched squealing caught both her and the spaniel’s attention. Cath spunk around to find a strawberry blonde little girl in a bright pink coat and blue wellies charging at them at a fair clip yelling “Bobby!” at the top of her voice. “Bobby! Bobby! Bobby!”

 A few paces behind her, a harried look etched across his features, was Tom. “Allie,” he bellowed, “no!”

 The little girl paid Tom absolutely no mind as she continued to barrel at both Cath and the spaniel in question. Bobby excited by all the chaos began barking like mad and darted off in the little girl’s direction, ripping free of Cath’s grasp, shoe lace trailing behind him.

 “Shit,” Cath hissed and sprinted after him.

 Bobby and the girl collided with a mess of barks and tears. Tom reached them first, dropping to his knees and picking up the girl, quickly looking her over from head to toe to rule out injury. Seemingly satisfied that she was, in fact, alright, he rocked her gently and kissed her head. She continued to whimper and cling to him. Probably more startled by the happenings than truly hurt, Cath reasoned. “Darling, it’s alright,” Tom admonished, rocking her slowly back and forth until her crying seemed to slow.

 Cath stopped a few feet back from Tom and the little girl. Allie, she corrected herself, remembering the name he’d called. The last thing she wanted was to intrude but leaving without saying a word felt…wrong. She instead, fixed her attention on Bobby, who sat on the grass beside his master and the girl confusion painted clearly across his features. He hadn’t tried to bolt again, though, and Cath counted her lucky stars. She had absolutely no desire to play another round of chase at the moment.

 Allie appeared to be calming, her wailing had begun to die down into the occasional sniffle. Once it was clear that particular crisis was over, Tom’s attention snapped toward Bobby who began to whimper and then quickly up to Cath.

 “It seems I owe you a debt of gratitude for finding this little trouble maker.”

 Cath shrugged, “More like the escape artist found me. As soon as I realized I knew the barking terror bolting at me, I figured grabbing him and trying to find you was the most sensible option.”

 Tom laughed, sending a ripple of amusement and warmth coursing through her. “I am forever in your debt, my lady.”

 “Uncle Tommy silly,” a muffled voice echoed from his lap, turning both of their attentions to the little girl still tight in Tom’s arms.

 It was Cath’s turn to laugh. His niece. That answered several of her questions and brought to light countless more. She filed the information away to process later. “He certainly is.”

 Allie pulled herself back from her uncle’s embrace and turned her hazel eyes on Cath, interest and confusion warring for dominance across her small and reddened face. After several moments silence she declared, “You’re pretty.”

 It was such a frank and matter of fact statement that Cath blinked at her for several seconds before breaking out into a wide and toothy grin. “Thank you. You’re quite pretty yourself.”

 The girl beamed, squirming her way out of her uncle’s embrace and darting towards Cath. She wrapped her arms around Cath’s leg. “Princess?” Cath blinked again in confusion. Allie pulled back, turning towards Tom and exclaiming, “Princess! Princess!”

 Tom looked first at Cath, offering her a sheepish smile, then down at his niece. “Allie, sweetie, I don’t think…”

 Cath laughed, catching on to the girl’s train of thought. She bent down and smiled brightly at Allie. “I’m not a princess, but I do work with them sometimes in the theatre.” Allie’s eyes widened. “What about you, Allie? Are you a princess?”

 The young girl nodded enthusiastically. “I’m a princess!”

 “It’s one of her favorite games as of late,” Tom provided, smiling and rubbing at the back of his neck. Bobby barked, clearly not thrilled at being ignored. Tom sighed, his eyes darting down towards Bobby, and a slight confused frown spread across his face. He grabbed at the spaniel’s collar and fingered the attached shoe laces with amusement before returning his gaze towards Cath. He held up the end of the makeshift lead. “Creative.”

 Cath shrugged. “He darted on you once and I wasn’t taking that chance…Besides the laces were all I had.”

 Tom laughed heartily. “Can’t fault you there.”

 He bent to reattach Bobby’s harness and lead, untying the laces and handing them back to Cath, whose attention was steadfast on Allie. The little girl was talking a mile a minute, bouncing and laughing, about dressing up and going to balls like ‘Uncle Tommy’ and asking in turn which princesses Cath had worked with. “Belle?” she’d asked with wide, hopeful eyes.

 “Yes, I did actually,” Cath laughed, watching the delight and awe spread across the young girl’s face. “And she is just as charming as she seems.” She’d worked on a production of the musical in the West End a few years back and found herself smiling at the memory. It had been a draining, chaotic, but fun several months.

 The more the girl talked the more Cath found her utterly enchanting. It was clear she idolized her uncle, and honestly, Cath couldn’t blame her. She let her eyes drift over to where he was standing. The man seemed almost too good to be true, and experience taught her to be wary of him because of it. By all accounts she’d known Tom to be just as he appeared; he’d never once given an indication of being anything other than a thoroughly decent man both on and off the stage. Everyone she’d met who knew or had worked with him consistently sang his praises. But still, sometimes looks were deceiving.

 “Alright, Allie, I think we’ve taken up quite enough of her time.” Tom moved to place a hand on the girl’s back, his other still tightly gripping Bobby’s lead. Allie looked up at him, pouting and eyes once again on the brink of tears. Oh Lord.

 “Don’t wanna go,” she ground out defiantly.

 “Alice Marie…” There was a warning in Tom’s tone Cath recognized from her own mother, and any parent she’d ever encountered, while dealing with a stubborn or unruly child.

 She watched the interplay between them with a wry sense of amusement. It was clear that Allie was prepared to throw quite the fit if not granted what she wanted and it was just as clear that it was the absolute last thing that Tom wanted, though he was prepared to stand his ground regardless. He’s the makings of a fine father. The thought stole its way across her mind and she furiously brushed it aside. That was the last thing she needed to be thinking of. But still…

 As if sensing weakness Allie turned, focusing her wide, tear-filled hazel eyes on Cath. Strong. She needed to stay strong. But then the girl’s small lip began to tremble and Cath knew it was a lost cause. But still she tried. “Allie, sweetheart, your uncle said it was time for you to go.”

 “No. Wanna stay.” The tears were now slowly running down her reddened cheeks. Cath looked helplessly from Tom to Allie and back. “Wanna stay with princess.”

 She swallowed thickly, “I know you do, sweetheart, but I think your uncle has things he needs to do before he has to go to work tonight.” Cath glanced helplessly at Tom. Stubborn, temperamental actors she could handle in spades, but crying children…

 “And I’m sure Cath has things she needs to get done as well,” Tom added, smiling softly at his tearful niece. Allie only shook her head, the tears coming in earnest now. The panic in Tom’s eyes was impossible to miss.

 Cath took a deep breath and commended her soul to god. “I can stay for a little while longer, Allie sweetie, but then I do need to be getting home.”

 Allie’s face immediately brightened. She wiped her eyes with the backs of her hands and looked hopefully between Cath and her uncle. “Ice cream?” She pointed vaguely down the jogging path towards a small stand selling ice cream bars and ice lollies.

 Tom let out a soft groan. “Your mum is going to murder me.”

 “Won’t tell.” The grin Allie gave him was wide and hopeful. Cath could see Tom’s resolve crumbled just a bit further. She laughed at the sight, trying desperately to cover the action with her hand. Tom’s sharp glare told her she’d utterly failed. And that only seemed to make it harder for her to stop.

 “You’ll get one small thing. One mind. And you cannot mention this to your mum or granny.” He turned his attention briefly to Cath who was still struggling to regain her composure. She took a deep breath and did her utmost to school her features back into proper order.

 It was completely unfair what seeing Tom like this was doing to her resolve. He’s a friend. Thinking him anything more is just going to make it worse. She watched as he wrestled Allie up into his arms, still maintaining a tight grip on Bobby’s lead, and settled her across his shoulders. Allie giggled in delight and shouted “Ice cream! Ice cream!”

 Cath shook her head, laughing, as she followed the trio down the path towards the ice cream stand.  If he ever has a daughter she’s definitely going to have him wrapped round her little finger.

                                                            —

 Allie sat on the bench, happily consuming the colorful fruit flavored ice cream bar she’d chosen (after Tom had vetoed the chocolate and caramel monstrosity she’d initially wanted. Sucker or not, he knew that giving the girl that much sugar in one go would be a terrible, terrible mistake). Bobby had placed himself at her feet, head resting on his outstretched paws, his eyes ever vigilant for dropped bits. Cath found it adorable the way they interacted, it seemed Allie had all the Hiddleston men wrapped around her finger. And she’d told Tom as much when he handed her the coffee flavored ice cream bar she’d chosen (the hell with good eating choices today).

 Tom flushed and ran a hand through his hair. “She’s quite the character. There is a great deal of my sister in her that’s for certain.”

 “Is that a good or a bad thing?” Cath asked, licking the remains of her ice cream from the wooden stick before rolling it up in a napkin and stowing it in her bag to bin later.

 He let out a loud laugh, “God, it honestly depends on the situation. I love Emma dearly, but she can be a complete pain. She was the baby of the family…”

 “I know about that all too well,” Cath added with a laugh of her own.

 His eyebrows rose. “You have siblings?” She nodded. “Older or younger?”

 “A mix of both. I have an older brother and a younger sister.”

 Tom grinned. “Middle child? Welcome to the club.”

 She looked him up and down, smiling. “You’re a middle child. That explains so much."

 “You don’t exactly have room to talk, now do you?” Tom countered with a raise of his eyebrow. She stuck her tongue out at him in retaliation. “So mature.”

 Cath grinned. “I try.” She settled herself down on the bench beside Allie, who smiled brightly and attempted to grab her arm with sticky fingers. Tom was quick to swoop in with napkins.

 “Not so fast, Allie love. We mustn’t grab with sticky hands.” The girl reluctantly allowed her uncle to clean her before returning her attention back to original goal.

 She bombarded Cath with more questions about princesses and asked repeatedly if she could be made into one. Tom had told the girl that Allie worked with him (‘making people look pretty’ he’d explained to the girl’s wide eyed amazement as they’d walked to get their ice creams). “You would have to ask your mummy sweetheart,” Cath had answered as diplomatically as she could. She watched as Allie worked through the idea, her small face scrunched in thought.

 After several moments her face cleared and she once again smiled brightly. “Okay!”

 Beside her, Tom chuckled. “And you said she had me wrapped around her finger.”

 “Watch it, Hiddleston.”

 “Whatever you say, darling,” he countered, still smiling. “Whatever you say.”

 Cath shook her head and turned to face Allie. “What are we going to do with your uncle?”

 Allie laughed, “Uncle Tommy silly.” She pointed at Tom. “Silly!”

 Bobby barked twice, wagging his tail. And they all dissolved into laughter.

 “He certainly has his moments,” Cath agreed once she’d calmed enough to speak. “He is a very silly man.”

 Tom shrugged. “Makes my line of work infinitely easier.”

 “And mine that much harder,” Cath added, amusement coloring her tone. As much as she liked the man, Tom could be a complete pain when in her chair; like sitting still and not fucking blinking or squirming where things that happened to other people. She shook her head. It was a damned good thing he was so likeable or she just might hate him.  

 She raised her eyes to Tom’s face and watched as a frown slowly spread across his features as his eyes swept over the overly complicated watch on his wrist (why he insisted on wearing something that ridiculously complex as a means to tell time she’d never understand). Cath could clearly hear the curse words he’d been dying to utter but would not as he knew the little ears in his presence would not only hear them but repeat them loudly and most likely at the worst possible moment.

 He grimaced instead and let out a huff of annoyance. “Allie darling, we best be off. Your mum will be back soon.”

 Allie’s face crumpled as she looked between her uncle and Cath. It was clear she didn’t want to leave but at the same time, she very much wanted to see her mother. Cath leaned over and nudged the girl lightly with her shoulder. “It’s alright. I have to go home too. But it was wonderful meeting you Allie. I hope I get to see you again soon.”

 “Promise?”

 Cath nodded, “I will do my best.” Allie beamed and launched herself into Cath’s lap, enveloping her in a fierce hug. Beside her she could hear Tom laughing and Bobby’s quiet woofs signaling his apparent desire to go. The little girl pulled back and climbed off the bench, grabbing her uncle’s hand. Bobby immediately jumped up, resting his front paws onto Cath’s lap, barked once, and licked her hands. “Such a ham,” she laughed, cutting her eyes up to a bemused Tom. “Just like your human.”

 Tom simply laughed and shook his head. He pulled gently on the lead and Bobby, with great reluctance, let himself be lead down the path beside Tom and Allie and out of sight. Cath smiled as she watched them go.

Next Chapter

[itsmealyyy]

we meet again l jeon jungkook CHAPTER 1

It was a very tiring weekend as my family and I moved into a new house, AGAIN. Well,  it is not that new to me because it was the 5th time we move into a new environment. From Gwangju to Ilsan to Busan to Daegu and now Seoul.

Seoul is not new to me as my brother built his own family here. But their house takes 15-20 mins drive from our house sooo...I can't at least go there and visit unless I have my own car and can drive on my own HA HA

Anyways, it's Monday morning and I'm about to see my new school. I really miss my friends in Daegu but grrr because of this stupid move, I can't see them. Well, I can't blame my parents because it was part of their business but ugh! I don't know

*Knocks*

"Raejin sweetie" a voice was heard inside my room

"Time to get up honey!" I heard my mom say as I felt her sit in my bed and removed the blanket from my head.

"Mom, it's early." I whined as I try to get the blanket back to my head.

But a hand slapped my hands.

"It's 7 and your class starts at 8, remember?"

I got up annoyed by her sentence as she stood up and was about to leave the room.

"Arasso, Eomma." I said defeated and got up from my bed.

"Breakfast is ready downstairs." She smiled as she exited my room.

Great. Now I can go back to sleep again wiiiieeee. I was about to get back to my bed when my room's door opened, surprising me.

"Get dressed." My mom said again as she walks out from my room passing the hallway.

I sighed as I looked at the uniform that is placed on the chair, in front of my study table.

"Right. I have to be early on my first day... at least"

I said to myself as I grab the uniform and went inside my walk-in closet. I placed it on the sofa of my closet and went inside the Restroom.

Well you see, it is connected to the walk-in closet so I can you know, easily dress up. But there's a door that just go straight ahead to the restroom. I didn't use it cause I have to get my uniform ready.

So anyway, going back to the story.

I was already finished taking a bath and brushing my teeth. I looked at myself in the mirror as I scan myself with my new uniform.

"It is better than what I have expected." I said as I fix the ribbon.

Once I'm done, I went out of my closet and grabbed my phone and my bag at the table.

I checked my phone.

7:30 A.M.

*1 new unread message* Annoying Brother *1 new unread message* Jieun Unnie ❤

I first opened my cousin's message.

----------------------------------- From: Jieun Unnie

It's your first day at your new school, right? I hope you enjoy your first day and make a lot of friends! I'll see you soon when I'm free. Fighting Raejin~!

-----------------------------------

I smiled from her message. She is just like a sister to me. But sadly, she was shooting her new drama that's why she can't visit...

I now opened my brother's message.

----------------------------------- From: AnnoyingBrother

How's my baby Rae? Are you up now? You should be up now, or else I won't let you meet Park Hyun Sik. Geez. Anyway, I have a shooting today so wish me luck.

Good luck on your first day and meet new friends! Fighting!

-----------------------------------

Aigo. I think I have to hit him for this. Why did Sejin unnie even marry him? Aigo.

I giggled as I made my way out of the room.

*Bark, Bark*

"Good morning Appa, Eomma" I said as I kissed their cheeks.

"Good morning Seochanie!" I hugged my dog.

I grabbed an apple in the counter and a bottle of water in the fridge and put it inside my bag.

"Are you not going to eat?" My dad asked as he went back to the dining after brushing his teeth.

"I'll eat at school." I said as I smiled and head towards the door.

"I'll drive you." He said as he was about to grab his keys from the table in the living room.

"Aniyo Appa. It's fine. I will just take the bus." I said as I opened the door.

I waved my goodbye at them and headed outside our house.

"Take care!" I heard my dad shouted from our door.

"Raejinah, don't forget to eat!" my mom shouted.

I glanced at them and smiled. I opened our gate.

>>

I'm now walking towards our school from the bus stop. Once I reached the main gate, I turned my bag in front so that I can get my letter from the principal. The guards on duty glanced at me.

"Student, where's your I.D.?" The guard asked with a not so overwhelming sound.

I looked at him. He looks like he's in his 40s. I bowed to the guard.

"Yo-you see... I-I'm a ne-new student." I said as I gave him the letter.

"Ahhh. Well." He said as he finished reading the letter.

He gave it back to me with a warm smile.

"Welcome to the Seoul National University" he said.

Giving me a bow, gesturing me to come in. I smiled and bowed to the man.

I made my way to the front. I looked at my surroundings and it was really beautiful. The school's name is shown right at the front. There were 2 buildings on each side and a walk-rail and also, a road in the middle.

As I walk inside, trying to find the principal's office, there were a lot of cars coming in from gate 3. It must be the students. Some students are gathered by groups, chatting.

It felt really weird because they were all looking at me. Am I that ugly? Or they know that I'm a new kid? I feel really uncomfortable.

"Hey. Is she a transferee?"

"I think so. But transferring at the start of the second semester?"

"She's pretty."

"I think I saw her somewhere"

I heard some students say as I pass by them.

I was now at the front of the C12 Building. I feel really lost right now...

I'm trying to look at the map that was given to me by the guards and... I think I'm in the right place. I think TT

"Excuse me." a voice said from the front.

I lifted my head up to see a tall handsome guy with his dimples flashed in his face.

Wow. His dimples...It's so deep and he's soooo cute! I can just look at him the whole day.

*Coughs*

I returned to my senses. Did I just spaced out????

It's really embarrassing.

"Are you lost?" He asked.

"Ahh. N-neh." I said as I looked at my feet, hiding, as I felt my cheeks burn out.

WTF! It's so embarrassing.

I heard him giggled.

"Principal office?"

I lifted my face again and nodded.

"This way." He said as he showed me the way.

There was an awkward silence as we head to the principal office. Well, awkward for me I think. I just followed him around. At some time, he glances at me and gives me a warm smile. Is he killing me with his dimples?! Gosh. I want to reach the office fast because I think, I'm going to die here just because of his appearance!

"Here it is." He said as she showed me the door.

"Ahh yes. Tha-thank you so much." I said as I bowed to the man.

"I'm Kim Namjoon by the way." He said as he offered me a hand to shake up.

I was hesitating to whether to accept his handshake but it would be really rude if I refuse it. Especially when I think he's a senior... I just grabbed his hands with my two hands and shake it up.

"I'm in my 4th year. You?" He said again after.

"I'm Lee Raejin. 2nd year." I said as I bowed.

The bell rang as a signal that classes are about to start.

"Oh. I should get going. See you around Raejin" He said as he rushed towards his class, waving his goodbye.

I just bowed at the man, feeling grateful for his kindness. Phew! That was close. I turned my body towards the door. Breathing in, breathing out before knocking.

"Neh. Come in."

I heard a voice from the other side of the door said. I quickly twitched the doorknob for it to open. And I opened it, a beautiful woman that seems to be in her mid-30s greeted me with a smile on her face.

"You must be Ms. Lee. It's good to finally meet you." She said as she gestured me for a handshake, which I took with both hands.

"I'll bring you to your teacher. He's waiting for you" She said as she stood up from her seat and gestured me to follow her.

>>

"Everyone. As you all have probably heard, we have a new student in your class. I hope you will treat her well and help her with all the lessons that she has missed."

I heard Mr. Cha, my homeroom teacher, said to the whole class. I'm outside the door right now. Waiting for my signal to come. I'm really nervous right now. My hands and feet are shaking like crazy.

"Aii sseam (Teacher)."

"Where is she?"

"Introduce her to us already, teacher!"

"Arasso. Arasso."

I heard my teacher calm them down. Now I'm the one who's really nervous.

"New Student?" The teacher called inside the room.

I slowly opened the door and walk-in. I can see all their eyes, scanning me.

"She's the one that I saw a while ago." Girl 1

"She's pretty." Boy 1

"She's my style." Boy 2

"Omo. I think she's..." A girl said, third row, 3rd element.

The class has gone wild. I'm super embarrassed right now...

"Everyone, keep quiet." a girl from the 2nd row, 2nd to the last element said to the whole class.

And it was just a miracle! I think she's the President. She has that kind of authority in her. I looked at my teacher. He's signaling me to introduce myself. I looked, then, to the whole class. All eyes were on me. Okay. I guess this is it.

"Annyeonghaseyo." I said as I bowed to them.

"I'm Lee Raejin. Please take care of me well."

I bowed again to the whole class.

"Aii. That's so boring." a boy from the 1st row, 3rd element said.

"Ne-neh?" I feel really confused right now. I mean, I was introducing myself. Why bother interrupting my speech? I blinked my eyes to the comment.

"Please tell us where you're from, your hobby, likes, dislikes, like that." My teacher said.

I flushed.

"W-well, I'm from Daegu...my parents and I just moved to Seoul... I used to be a volleyball player at our school. And well, I love to sing, dance, and play with my nephew and my dog." I said.

Resounding applause was soon heard in the whole room as I rubbed the back of my neck from embarrassment.

"Alright. Please take care of her well. You may sit beside Jihyo over there."

Mr. Cha gestured me towards the name.

The person raises her hands in the air and smiled in my direction as she heard her name. And it was the President who I think it was minutes ago.

But just then... I saw a familiar face at her back. He's staring at me. Why is he here? I asked myself as I cursed in my breath as I head towards the empty seat beside Jihyo.

I sat at the empty seat. But I can still feel an intense stare behind my back.

"I'm Kang Jihyo. I'm the president of the class." She said with a warm smile on her face. She reached out her hands for me to take in. I just smiled and took it. I'm still anxious about the boy that is behind me. God! Help meeee!

"Let's start our discussion shall we?" Mr. Cha said

Right. You came here to study and not for him. Let's focus shall we, Lee Raejin? I started to gain my focus. I hope it would be a good stay here for me...

[marshmallow-phd]

Charming Instruction

Part of The Untamed - EXO Wolf Universe

Genre: Supernatural, Wolf Au

Pairing: Junmyeon x Reader

Summary: You were just an average, everyday college student desperately trying to graduate. Only one more year stood between you and that celebratory walk. However, due to an oversight by your adviser, it seemed that the one class you never wanted to take was required to take that walk. It wasn’t the subject matter that made you uncomfortable. It was the teacher. Your heart sped up every time you saw him and you didn’t want that distraction in your life, attractive or not. With meeting him now an inevitability, you swore that you would keep your hormones in check. But after your first day of class, a series of hi jinks and weird situations lead you to discovering the secret of your professor and why he seemed to bombard your every thought.

Part: 1 I 2 I 3 I 4 I 5 I 6 I 7 I 8 I 9 I 10 I 11 I 12 I 13 I Final

**

Your heart was still racing when you closed the door to your apartment. Raising your hand to your chest, you felt the drum beat keep a steady pace that was well above its normal rhythm.

He’d almost kissed you. He’d almost kissed you.

That had to be what he was doing, right? With the closed eyes and forehead touch? And, oh, god, did you want him to kiss you. How many times had your imagination fluttered in that direction when you weren’t keeping it in check?

Gemma and Cam were lounging on the couch watching some drama on the television and hadn’t caught on to your presence until now. The former tilted her head at you, frowning.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, jumping up from her spot and walking over to you. Out of instinct, she reached out and placed the back of her hand against your cheek. “Why are you so warm? Are you getting sick?”

You shook your head adamantly. “No, I’m fine.”

Taking a step back, Gemma smirked. “Okay, I know we silently agreed to not bring it up anymore, but did something happen with Junie?”

“O-oh, n-no, I, um, I just – no, you see-” Coherency apparently was a skill that had now left you entirely. An efficient enough lie couldn’t be conjured up and you were stuck as a stuttering mess.

Cam was giggling into her mug over on the cough, smartly pressing her lips together and keeping her comments to herself.  You threw her a glare, but stayed quiet, knowing that whatever biting remark you could come up with would just come out choppy and useless.

“Did he kiss you?” Gemma asked excitedly.

Chewing on your bottom lip, you shook your head. “No. But he almost did.”

Your admission cause Cam to accidentally swallow her drink down the wrong pipe, throwing her into a coughing fit. When she was finally able to breathe again, she screeched, “What do you mean he ‘almost did’?”

You started fidgeting with your fingernails, absentmindedly digging out the nonexistent dirt from underneath them. “Well, he was leaning in, but then a couple walking their dog came by, so he pulled back.”

Gemma and Cam gave you identical dumbfounded looks. It was actually quite comical, but you were able to hold back the chuckle building in your throat.

“So, basically, what you’re saying is that he didn’t want to be seen kissing you? Like he was embarrassed?” Cam inferred with a particularly curtly tone. She even slammed her mug down on the side table for emphasis.

You wanted to argue that that wasn’t the case. At least, you were pretty sure that wasn’t the case. They didn’t know that “Junie” was actually your professor and if he’d been seen kissing a student by the wrong person, he’d be in boiling hot water. And even if you were brave enough to confess that little secret to Gemma and Cam, you couldn’t be entirely sure how they’d take it. Cam might smirk at the sneakiness and forbidden aspects of it all, but you could only guess how Gemma would take it. You’d didn’t think she’d exactly be jumping up and down with excitement.

“I don’t think he was embarrassed,” you said meekly. “I think it was just the surprise at the couple’s presence. We were at the park and there wasn’t anyone else there at first.”

“Hm,” Cam pursed her lips, giving you the feeling that she didn’t entirely believe it. “Okay.” She narrowed her eyes at you. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

You nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine. I was just a little flustered, that’s all. I wasn’t expecting it.”

Gemma patted your head gently. “Okay. Just let us know if you need us to kick his butt.”

That truly managed to make you laugh. While you could see Cam really trying to throw a punch at Junmyeon’s face, you couldn’t imagine for a second the gentle Gemma trying anything to physically harm him. She’d probably instead start lecturing him on the possible psychological damage his actions could have caused you. That was much more her style.

“Thank you,” you smiled at your friends. “But I’m okay. I promise. He’s not going to do anything.”

You actually believed that last sentence. What happened back at the park was probably just a fluke, brought on by the heavy subject the two of you were engaged in. Junmyeon probably didn’t actually want to kiss you because he liked you in that way. He had a mate to find, remember? It was easy to get caught up in the moment. That couple was actually your saving grace, keeping the two of you from doing something you would regret. Yes, that was it.

At least, that’s what you would keep telling yourself.

**

Junmyeon was anticipating seeing you in class today. He wanted to see you again. He wanted to see if he could get you to agree to meet up with him, maybe take you for a run in his wolf form. You’d turned him down last time, but maybe he could persuade you.

Just a little bit of alone time, that’s all he was asking for. A place where you wouldn’t be interrupted, where he wouldn’t be scared of being seen by the wrong person. A place where he could build up the courage to try and kiss you again.

Maybe his plans were getting too elaborate.

He was sure he was getting close to being able to tell you everything. Hearing the way your heart was beating as he leaned in last night was a beautiful melody that he would never get tired of listening to for the rest of his life. And you would have let him kiss your lips. That was the strike that lit up his little match of hope after you’d been pulling away from him.

There was a lightness in Junmyeon’s steps as he headed towards the classroom. Sure, he was an idiot, but wasn’t everyone a fool in love?

Yeah, he could definitely say he was falling in love you. He felt elated when he could make you smile. He loved watching that sparkle in your eye when you were mesmerized by his family’s artifacts. The way you would clam up when you were flustered or the way you could read into the cultural significance of the fairytales he was lecturing on. You paid attention and listened to him on a level that he wasn’t used to. He wanted to get to know every single facet of who you were and fall deeper in.

You were already there when Junmyeon walked into the classroom. He nearly exploded when he saw that you were back in your front row seat, materials out and ready to start the period. No one else was around you and the other students that were scattered among the room were too busy talking to each other or scrolling through their phones to pay too much attention.

As calmly as he could, he walked up to you, earning your curious gaze when he reached the long, curved table where you sat.

“Can I see you after class?” he whispered. When you nodded, he simply smiled before walking back to his desk.

He was practically bouncing with anticipation throughout the whole lecture. It was a stupid thing to be excited about, but he couldn’t help it. Part of him always expected to be rejected whenever he asked you about staying back or meeting up with him. But you never told him no once he was finally able to ask. You would avoid him at times, not giving him the chance to say one word, but hopefully those times were behind him.

As class came to an end, you continued to just sit there in your seat as all the other students filed out. Junmyeon busied himself at his desk, pretending to go over lecture notes and piling up the quizzes he’d collected at the beginning of the hour.

“You wanted to see me?”

With his back still to you, Junmyeon smiled widely. Your voice was quiet and unsure and he couldn’t help but find it adorable. Turning around after he was able to get his face under control, he started, “I was, um-” he cleared his throat. Smooth, Junmyeon. “I was just wondering if you had any plans Friday afternoon.”

You frowned guiltily. “Well, yeah, actually I do. Midterms are next week, so I’ll be spending the weekend studying. I have a big test on Monday.”

Junmyeon deflated. He’d completely forgotten about that crucial part of the semester, second only to finals. “Oh, right. Hm.” Racking is brain, he tried to come up with some sort of solution. The next meeting outside of the classroom would have to be on your terms. “May I see your phone?”

“M-my phone?” you stammered.

He chuckled. “Yes. The cellular device you used to talk and text.”

By the look on your face, you didn’t entirely appreciate his comment, but you fished your phone out from your back pocket, unlocking it before handing it over. Junmyeon quickly added in his contact information before giving it back to you.

“There,” he sighed. “Now if you find yourself a little bored or needing a break from studying, you can get ahold of me. I’ll be free all weekend, if you change your mind.”

Your eyes were wide, filled with innocent surprise. “Okay…. I’ll, um, let you know. I should head to my next class now.”

“Of course.” Junmyeon watched as you hurriedly ran up the steps, tripping only once as you dashed away. The chuckle bubbling up in his chest couldn’t be held back anymore as he piled the papers scattered on the desk together and left the lecture hall.

Since he didn’t have another class until later in the afternoon, he headed back to his office to get started on grading the ever growing pile of quizzes that he’d been putting off. It took him a good hour and a half to get through the multiple classes’ worth of grading and plug the results into the school’s site. His eyes were beginning to glaze over and he was already looking forward to when he could head home.

Knock, knock, knock.

Junmyeon perked up at the sound. Did you, perhaps, change your mind to come see him?

“Come in,” he called out, hurrying to clear out the papers from his desk.

But it wasn’t you that slowly walked through the door.

It was Soomi.

Standing up from his desk, Junmyeon rushed over to the door, glancing up and down the hallway to make sure it was empty from any nosy gossipers before closing the door and turning back around.

“Soomi, I told you-”

She put up a hand to stop him. “I’m not here for that. I’m here on business.”

“Business?” Junmyeon frowned. He walked back to his desk, sitting down taking off his glasses. “What do you mean?”

Soomi didn’t sit down, opting instead to keep standing, arms folded across her stomach. She sighed. “Nia had a vision.”

Junmyeon couldn’t understand what was so important about those four little words. “Who’s Nia?”

“She’s my trainee,” Soomi explained. “She’s one of the few among the witches that can receive visions without casting a spell.”

“They just come to her?” Junmyeon didn’t like where this conversation was headed.

“Yes,” Soomi confirmed. “Poor thing still isn’t able to completely handle them when they come on nor be able to control them. We’re working with her on them, but it’s still touch and go.”

Junmyeon nodded sympathetically. “And what did Nia see?”

“Something is coming.” The way Soomi lowered her voice and stared at Junmyeon made the hair on his arms stand up.

“What’s coming?”

Soomi shook her head. “Nia couldn’t see. It all came in flashes, she said. She couldn’t get a clear grasp on what she was seeing. But there was strong emotion with it. Fear, terror, the need to protect. She collapsed after it was over, the vision was so forceful. Something is coming for the pack and you must be prepared.”

There wasn’t anything Junmyeon could really say. A vague notion didn’t give them a good foundation on how to proceed. Until there was more information, there was very little they could do to prepare.

“I appreciate the warning,” Junmyeon sighed. “I’ll talk to the boys. I’m sure it won’t be anything that we can’t handle. We did take out a pack of hybrids.”

Soomi kept her gaze down, licking her lips as if she were trying to get the words she was holding back to slip out. She rounded the desk, carefully hopping up to sit on the now cleared table top. Taking Junmyeon’s hand in both of hers, she stayed quiet.

Junmyeon wanted to pull away, to tell Soomi to please get off his desk, but the gentleman in him just couldn’t find a nice way to say it. He’d instead let you say your piece and leave.

“Junmyeon,” she whispered, “I know you've found your mate, but that doesn’t mean my feelings for you just go away. I don’t want anything happen to you.”

“I appreciate that, Soomi.” Out of politeness, he squeezed her hand, before starting to pull away, “But, I think-”

“Junmyeon- oh.”

Shit.

**

Why did it have to be you?

Why did you have to make stupid decisions? Let yourself hope on useless things?

It had seem at like a good idea at the time. Yes, Junmyeon had give you his number, but it felt a little silly to text or call when you could just… see him.

So, after your second class of the day, you headed off to the professor’s building, telling yourself that if he wasn’t there then you would text him. You were sure you could carve out the time to spend a little of Saturday afternoon with whatever he’d had in mind. At first, you’d thought that maybe you’d see if Saturday morning would work, but you knew that if you did block out the morning from him, you’d be too tempted to spend the entire day with him.

When you reached Junmyeon’s office, you hadn’t been thinking that he might not be alone. The sign outside his door didn’t indicate he was with another student so, like an idiot, you just opened the door. And your heart didn’t just sink.

It cracked into a million pieces you didn’t believe would ever be put back together again.

Soomi was sitting on Junmyeon’s desk, holding his hand while looking down at him with that look you knew all too well.

“I’m sorry,” you mumbled. “I should have knocked.”

Junmyeon jumped up from his seat. “No, (y/n), wait-”

You didn’t stick around to hear whatever explanation he’d felt the urge to give you. You didn’t need one. It was none of your business and you needed to get out of there before either of them saw you break.

Once out of the building, you didn’t stop running. Only when you reached the crosswalk off of school grounds were you finally forced to stop. Bouncing on the balls of your feet, you wanted to just sprint out into the street to get to the other side, in case someone actually decided to come after you. The chances of that happening were slim to none, but you let the thought linger anyway.

Safe inside your apartment, you threw yourself down on your bed and let the tears flow free.

For the next several days, you just stayed there in bed. Not even the urgency of midterms could coax you out of your room and onto campus grounds. You only crawled out of bed when your roommates were gone to use the bathroom and grab snacks so you didn’t starve to death. Other than that, you simply lied there and stared at the wall, playing the scene of Junmyeon and Soomi over and over. Your phone rang several times, but you never answered it or even bothered to look to see who it was. You had a pretty good inkling and you didn’t feel like talking to him.

“(y/n)?”

It was Friday night and Cam and Gemma had more than caught on to the fact that something was wrong. Both of them tiptoed into your room and sat as carefully as they could on the bed.

“Hey,” Gemma greeted softly. You barely peeked out from under your covers. “Do you want to talk about what happened?”

You shook your head, too ashamed that you were falling into the same pattern of hopelessness that you’d experienced your freshman year, only this was a hundred times worse. Back then, you saw the light at the end of the tunnel, you just had to pick yourself up and walk towards it. This time you felt like you were lost in a cold, dark cave with no idea which way led out.

“We’re going to go to a party,” Cam informed you as she rubbed your leg in a motherly fashion over the covers. “I think you should go with us. Maybe take your mind off of whatever happened?”

“I don’t think a party is the solution,” you grumbled.

“Not a solution,” Gemma chimed in. “Simply a momentary distraction. Why not show the world that you’re strong and don’t let temporary setbacks or people who aren’t important keep you from living your life?”

With a huff, you flipped the covers off of your top half, letting you stare at your friends. “I’m not a huge supporter of drinking away your problems.”

Cam shook her head, “That’s not-”

Flinging up into a sitting position, you stopped her, “But, this one time, I can give into to the idea and live a little like a college student for one night.”

The grins that grew on your roommate’s face were scary and almost made you change your mind, but you couldn’t go back out now. You’d tried the wallowing around in bed doing nothing and that didn’t really work to ease your pain. So why not try the other extreme? You’d already had your heart broken. What was the worst that could happen?

[winterisakillerwrites]

Get Better - Chapter Nine

Title: Get Better

Chapter: 9/18

Character: Tom Hiddleston/Cath Richardson (OFC)

Genre: Romance

Rating: Teen and up

Summary: Love. Companionship. Family. These are all of the things Tom Hiddleston desperately wanted. But his life and his choices left that a distant and unlikely prospect. So he did his best to move on and live his life as is. When an opportunity to return to the theater arises, he jumps at the chance and along the way finds that maybe, just maybe, those distant and unlikely prospects are closer than he could have imagined. Sequel to Brave Face.

Authors Notes/Warnings: So as I was writing Brave Face I knew that Tom’s story wasn’t over, even if that particular part of it was. And while I knew, more or less, what the overall ending to the story would be, its taken me a while to figure out the time in between. Thanks to @redfoxwritesstuff for letting me continually throw ideas off and at you. I still can’t fathom why you put up with it, but I am eternally grateful you do.

Previous

CHAPTER NINE

“I don’t know how or why I let you talk me into this,” Cath groaned, leaning her head back against the cool wall behind her. Every inch of her ached, how she was ever going to manage making it from the studio floor back into the changing rooms she couldn’t begin to fathom. “I’m dying.”

Gemma tossed her head back, her short, light blonde hair flying back from her face as she let out a loud laugh which echoed throughout the now empty room. “You are not dying.” She placed a hand on her hip surveying the sight before her, shook her head, and bent to offer her hand to her deflated friend. “Besides, it’s good for you.”

Cath reluctantly took the proffered hand and allowed herself to be pulled to her feet. She limped pathetically towards the changing room behind Gemma, not bothering to keep pace with her much taller friend. How could she be this out of shape? It was mindboggling. When Cath had gotten the call yesterday afternoon, she’d gladly taken Gemma up on her offer to attend a yoga class with her the following morning. After all, how difficult could it possibly be? Oh, she thought with a biting cynicism, to be young and naïve once more.  

What she had assumed to be a basic yoga class (something she’d been so sure she could handle. She was reasonably in shape, after all, and not completely inflexible) had turned out to be anything but. This was evil yoga. Sweaty, difficult, insane yoga. God, Gemma must have been out of her mind to think that Cath would possibly enjoy twisting herself into positions the human body, or well her body, had absolutely no business even attempting.

Gemma turned back as they reached the door and let out a sympathetic chuckle. “You’ll feel better after a shower, trust me.”

Cath scoffed. “The last time I trusted you, I ended up here. You’re track record isn’t exactly speaking highly of you right now.”

She’d known Gemma since uni; they’d ended up suitemates in their first year and hadn’t initially gotten on. Clashes happened frequently over study habits, music choices, and hundreds of other little things; leaving both at each other’s throats more often than not. Gemma had been an only child of only children; sharing a space hadn’t come easily to her and Cath, while typically an unfailingly patient person, was finding her resolve wearing alarmingly thin. It hadn’t been until halfway through the semester and the pressure of midterms that they’d bonded. It was amazing what a bit of alcohol and breaking into tears of frustration at three in the morning could do for a friendship. They’d remained close ever since despite conflicting schedules and occasional (well more than occasional, if she were being completely honest) clashes of personality. It was an odd friendship between them, but it worked more often than it did not.

Gemma shook her head and wandered towards the showers. “My track record is flawless, not my fault you can’t keep up.”

“Why am I friends with you again?”

“Because you love me,” Gemma’s voice echoed from the showers.

“And that love shrinks by the day!”

Gemma’s resonating laughter echoed from the other room. Cath shook her head and, with a grimace, found the locker where she’d stored her change of clothing and shower supplies (something she had almost left in her flat, despite Gemma’s instance that she bring them along. It was yoga after all, nothing too strenuous. Ha, yeah right.), and gathered what she needed before making her way to the showers with a slowness bordering on comical.

The hot water, however, felt amazing against the tenseness of her shoulders and back. As she stood beneath the torrent of water, Cath felt herself start to relax. It was with the greatest reluctance that she tore herself from the sheltering warmth of the shower fifteen minutes later. She dried and dressed with care, while the water had done wonders she didn’t want to chance anything by moving too quickly. Gemma was dressed and leaning haphazardly against the wall of the dressing area as Cath ran her towel over her hair one last time and quickly pulled it back into a bun at the top of her head; she would worry about drying and styling it once she got home.

“So you up for joining me again next week?”

Cath snorted loudly, covering her mouth in a futile gesture. It took several moments for her to compose herself. “Absolutely not. I barely survived this time.”

Gemma shook her head. “It does get easier each time. And besides,” she added with a wicked gleam in her eye, “it’ll do wonders for your skills in other areas…”

She didn’t bother to cover the loud and obnoxious laugh Gemma’s words tore from her. “Be that as it may, I’ve currently got no one with whom I am trying to impress so those ‘skills’ would be wasted on me.”

Gemma shrugged. “Still it’s something to file away for a rainy day…”

“As fun as that sounds, I think I’ll pass.”

The tall blonde smiled and shook her head. “Fair enough.”

The two said their goodbyes and Cath took off down the street towards coffee shop that had caught her eye two hours prior on her way to the yoga studio; a small brick and glass front building with a hand-painted sign hanging above the door bearing the name Uncommon Grounds in bright, clean lettering. The caffeine was practically screaming her name and, honestly, who was she to ignore its call. Bag stashed over her left shoulder, she pushed the shop door open and paused as the scent of coffee, pastry, and spices flooded over her. God, she would never tire of it.

What was not so pleasing, however, was the queue that formed from the counter nearly towards the door of the shop. Just great. It moved quicker than she’d expected, given its length, and within ten minutes she was out the door again, double vanilla latte in one hand and a Triple Chocolate Meltdown muffin in the other. It was definitely not one of her better choices but once she’s seen it in the display case, Cath had known she was a goner. Besides, she’d reasoned with herself, after all the work she’d done that morning she’d earned the damned thing. And she was definitely going to let herself enjoy it.

She flirted with the idea of heading directly towards the Underground station and home, she was certainly tired enough for it to be an intriguing idea, but found herself instead heading down the pavements and into the nearby park. It had warmed up enough to make the idea of enjoying her hard-earned treasures on one of the benches overlooking the heath below well worth it.

                                                          —

Cath popped the last piece of her muffin into her mouth and sighed, leaning her back farther into the wooden slats of the bench. It wasn’t a particularly warm day, but nice enough that the heath below was dotted with people running around; parents chasing children, people walking dogs, couples walking and in hand. She took another sip of her latte and closed her eyes, letting the slight warmth of the just barely visible sun warm her face.

That peace, however, was short-lived.

A loud, and strangely familiar, series of barks exploded from somewhere down the main path. Cath’s eyes shot open in time to see a streak of reddish brown baring straight for her. Without thinking she leapt to her feet, a flash of panic racing through her, and nearly swallowed her heart when the blur came to an abrupt stop before her. The blur, now clearly a brown spaniel, barked once and sat panting, eyes wide and filled with mischief.

“Bobby?” The name spilled from her lips in confusion. Surely this couldn’t be Tom’s dog. The spaniel let out a woof as if confirming he was, indeed, the dog she believed him to be. “What are you doing here? Where’s your human?”  She glanced around behind him, hoping to see Tom hurrying along the path behind the dog. There was not a soul. Damn.

She knelt to the ground, reaching out and scratching him behind the ear. She noted with a flash of amusement that he was without his usual harness, though his collar was still intact. The spaniel leaned into her hand, his tail a blur of motion. “Oh young man, something tells me that when Tom finds you, you’ll be in quite the spot of trouble.”

Cath pushed herself back up to her feet, scanning the area around them once again hoping to see Tom jogging up the path. No such luck. She looked down at Bobby whose attention seemed now laser focused on the tree behind her. “Oh no you don’t.” Bending down, she looped her fingers in his collar. Bobby whined but didn’t try to pull away. She held him for another minute before slowly letting go. He wriggled but didn’t take off. “Alright. Let’s see if we can find Tom, shall we?”

Grabbing her gym bag from the bench behind her, Cath rifled through it and pulled out the laces from her trainers, tying them together in a crude but effective knot. Just because he seemed to be listening to her now didn’t mean she trusted the spaniel not to attempt bolting at the first distraction. From the stories Tom told, and from the small amount of time she’d spent in the spaniel’s company, Bobby was not one to be trusted over much. She quickly looped the end of the lace around his collar, double knotting it before wrapping the other end around her free hand. It wasn’t ideal but the last thing she wanted was for him to run off.

They’d finished a loop around the nearby pond when a high pitched squealing caught both her and the spaniel’s attention. Cath spunk around to find a strawberry blonde little girl in a bright pink coat and blue wellies charging at them at a fair clip yelling “Bobby!” at the top of her voice. “Bobby! Bobby! Bobby!”

A few paces behind her, a harried look etched across his features, was Tom. “Allie,” he bellowed, “no!”

The little girl paid Tom absolutely no mind as she continued to barrel at both Cath and the spaniel in question. Bobby excited by all the chaos began barking like mad and darted off in the little girl’s direction, ripping free of Cath’s grasp, shoe lace trailing behind him.

“Shit,” Cath hissed and sprinted after him.

Bobby and the girl collided with a mess of barks and tears. Tom reached them first, dropping to his knees and picking up the girl, quickly looking her over from head to toe to rule out injury. Seemingly satisfied that she was, in fact, alright, he rocked her gently and kissed her head. She continued to whimper and cling to him. Probably more startled by the happenings than truly hurt, Cath reasoned. “Darling, it’s alright,” Tom admonished, rocking her slowly back and forth until her crying seemed to slow.

Cath stopped a few feet back from Tom and the little girl. Allie, she corrected herself, remembering the name he’d called. The last thing she wanted was to intrude but leaving without saying a word felt…wrong. She instead, fixed her attention on Bobby, who sat on the grass beside his master and the girl confusion painted clearly across his features. He hadn’t tried to bolt again, though, and Cath counted her lucky stars. She had absolutely no desire to play another round of chase at the moment.

Allie appeared to be calming, her wailing had begun to die down into the occasional sniffle. Once it was clear that particular crisis was over, Tom’s attention snapped toward Bobby who began to whimper and then quickly up to Cath.

“It seems I owe you a debt of gratitude for finding this little trouble maker.”

Cath shrugged, “More like the escape artist found me. As soon as I realized I knew the barking terror bolting at me, I figured grabbing him and trying to find you was the most sensible option.”

Tom laughed, sending a ripple of amusement and warmth coursing through her. “I am forever in your debt, my lady.”

“Uncle Tommy silly,” a muffled voice echoed from his lap, turning both of their attentions to the little girl still tight in Tom’s arms.

It was Cath’s turn to laugh. His niece. That answered several of her questions and brought to light countless more. She filed the information away to process later. “He certainly is.”

Allie pulled herself back from her uncle’s embrace and turned her hazel eyes on Cath, interest and confusion warring for dominance across her small and reddened face. After several moments silence she declared, “You’re pretty.”

It was such a frank and matter of fact statement that Cath blinked at her for several seconds before breaking out into a wide and toothy grin. “Thank you. You’re quite pretty yourself.”

The girl beamed, squirming her way out of her uncle’s embrace and darting towards Cath. She wrapped her arms around Cath’s leg. “Princess?” Cath blinked again in confusion. Allie pulled back, turning towards Tom and exclaiming, “Princess! Princess!”

Tom looked first at Cath, offering her a sheepish smile, then down at his niece. “Allie, sweetie, I don’t think…”

Cath laughed, catching on to the girl’s train of thought. She bent down and smiled brightly at Allie. “I’m not a princess, but I do work with them sometimes in the theatre.” Allie’s eyes widened. “What about you, Allie? Are you a princess?”

The young girl nodded enthusiastically. “I’m a princess!”

“It’s one of her favorite games as of late,” Tom provided, smiling and rubbing at the back of his neck. Bobby barked, clearly not thrilled at being ignored. Tom sighed, his eyes darting down towards Bobby, and a slight confused frown spread across his face. He grabbed at the spaniel’s collar and fingered the attached shoe laces with amusement before returning his gaze towards Cath. He held up the end of the makeshift lead. “Creative.”

Cath shrugged. “He darted on you once and I wasn’t taking that chance…Besides the laces were all I had.”

Tom laughed heartily. “Can’t fault you there.”

He bent to reattach Bobby’s harness and lead, untying the laces and handing them back to Cath, whose attention was steadfast on Allie. The little girl was talking a mile a minute, bouncing and laughing, about dressing up and going to balls like ‘Uncle Tommy’ and asking in turn which princesses Cath had worked with. “Belle?” she’d asked with wide, hopeful eyes.

“Yes, I did actually,” Cath laughed, watching the delight and awe spread across the young girl’s face. “And she is just as charming as she seems.” She’d worked on a production of the musical in the West End a few years back and found herself smiling at the memory. It had been a draining, chaotic, but fun several months.

The more the girl talked the more Cath found her utterly enchanting. It was clear she idolized her uncle, and honestly, Cath couldn’t blame her. She let her eyes drift over to where he was standing. The man seemed almost too good to be true, and experience taught her to be wary of him because of it. By all accounts she’d known Tom to be just as he appeared; he’d never once given an indication of being anything other than a thoroughly decent man both on and off the stage. Everyone she’d met who knew or had worked with him consistently sang his praises. But still, sometimes looks were deceiving.

“Alright, Allie, I think we’ve taken up quite enough of her time.” Tom moved to place a hand on the girl’s back, his other still tightly gripping Bobby’s lead. Allie looked up at him, pouting and eyes once again on the brink of tears. Oh Lord.

“Don’t wanna go,” she ground out defiantly.

“Alice Marie…” There was a warning in Tom’s tone Cath recognized from her own mother, and any parent she’d ever encountered, while dealing with a stubborn or unruly child.

She watched the interplay between them with a wry sense of amusement. It was clear that Allie was prepared to throw quite the fit if not granted what she wanted and it was just as clear that it was the absolute last thing that Tom wanted, though he was prepared to stand his ground regardless. He’s the makings of a fine father. The thought stole its way across her mind and she furiously brushed it aside. That was the last thing she needed to be thinking of. But still…

As if sensing weakness Allie turned, focusing her wide, tear-filled hazel eyes on Cath. Strong. She needed to stay strong. But then the girl’s small lip began to tremble and Cath knew it was a lost cause. But still she tried. “Allie, sweetheart, your uncle said it was time for you to go.”

“No. Wanna stay.” The tears were now slowly running down her reddened cheeks. Cath looked helplessly from Tom to Allie and back. “Wanna stay with princess.”

She swallowed thickly, “I know you do, sweetheart, but I think your uncle has things he needs to do before he has to go to work tonight.” Cath glanced helplessly at Tom. Stubborn, temperamental actors she could handle in spades, but crying children…

“And I’m sure Cath has things she needs to get done as well,” Tom added, smiling softly at his tearful niece. Allie only shook her head, the tears coming in earnest now. The panic in Tom’s eyes was impossible to miss.

Cath took a deep breath and commended her soul to god. “I can stay for a little while longer, Allie sweetie, but then I do need to be getting home.”

Allie’s face immediately brightened. She wiped her eyes with the backs of her hands and looked hopefully between Cath and her uncle. “Ice cream?” She pointed vaguely down the jogging path towards a small stand selling ice cream bars and ice lollies.

Tom let out a soft groan. “Your mum is going to murder me.”

“Won’t tell.” The grin Allie gave him was wide and hopeful. Cath could see Tom’s resolve crumbled just a bit further. She laughed at the sight, trying desperately to cover the action with her hand. Tom’s sharp glare told her she’d utterly failed. And that only seemed to make it harder for her to stop.

“You’ll get one small thing. One mind. And you cannot mention this to your mum or granny.” He turned his attention briefly to Cath who was still struggling to regain her composure. She took a deep breath and did her utmost to school her features back into proper order.

It was completely unfair what seeing Tom like this was doing to her resolve. He’s a friend. Thinking him anything more is just going to make it worse. She watched as he wrestled Allie up into his arms, still maintaining a tight grip on Bobby’s lead, and settled her across his shoulders. Allie giggled in delight and shouted “Ice cream! Ice cream!”

Cath shook her head, laughing, as she followed the trio down the path towards the ice cream stand.  If he ever has a daughter she’s definitely going to have him wrapped round her little finger.

                                                          —

Allie sat on the bench, happily consuming the colorful fruit flavored ice cream bar she’d chosen (after Tom had vetoed the chocolate and caramel monstrosity she’d initially wanted. Sucker or not, he knew that giving the girl that much sugar in one go would be a terrible, terrible mistake). Bobby had placed himself at her feet, head resting on his outstretched paws, his eyes ever vigilant for dropped bits. Cath found it adorable the way they interacted, it seemed Allie had all the Hiddleston men wrapped around her finger. And she’d told Tom as much when he handed her the coffee flavored ice cream bar she’d chosen (the hell with good eating choices today).

Tom flushed and ran a hand through his hair. “She’s quite the character. There is a great deal of my sister in her that’s for certain.”

“Is that a good or a bad thing?” Cath asked, licking the remains of her ice cream from the wooden stick before rolling it up in a napkin and stowing it in her bag to bin later.

He let out a loud laugh, “God, it honestly depends on the situation. I love Emma dearly, but she can be a complete pain. She was the baby of the family…”

“I know about that all too well,” Cath added with a laugh of her own.

His eyebrows rose. “You have siblings?” She nodded. “Older or younger?”

“A mix of both. I have an older brother and a younger sister.”

Tom grinned. “Middle child? Welcome to the club.”

She looked him up and down, smiling. “You’re a middle child. That explains so much.“

“You don’t exactly have room to talk, now do you?” Tom countered with a raise of his eyebrow. She stuck her tongue out at him in retaliation. “So mature.”

Cath grinned. “I try.” She settled herself down on the bench beside Allie, who smiled brightly and attempted to grab her arm with sticky fingers. Tom was quick to swoop in with napkins.

“Not so fast, Allie love. We mustn’t grab with sticky hands.” The girl reluctantly allowed her uncle to clean her before returning her attention back to original goal.

She bombarded Cath with more questions about princesses and asked repeatedly if she could be made into one. Tom had told the girl that Allie worked with him (‘making people look pretty’ he’d explained to the girl’s wide eyed amazement as they’d walked to get their ice creams). “You would have to ask your mummy sweetheart,” Cath had answered as diplomatically as she could. She watched as Allie worked through the idea, her small face scrunched in thought.

After several moments her face cleared and she once again smiled brightly. “Okay!”

Beside her, Tom chuckled. “And you said she had me wrapped around her finger.”

“Watch it, Hiddleston.”

“Whatever you say, darling,” he countered, still smiling. “Whatever you say.”

Cath shook her head and turned to face Allie. “What are we going to do with your uncle?”

Allie laughed, “Uncle Tommy silly.” She pointed at Tom. “Silly!”

Bobby barked twice, wagging his tail. And they all dissolved into laughter.

“He certainly has his moments,” Cath agreed once she’d calmed enough to speak. “He is a very silly man.”

Tom shrugged. “Makes my line of work infinitely easier.”

“And mine that much harder,” Cath added, amusement coloring her tone. As much as she liked the man, Tom could be a complete pain when in her chair; like sitting still and not fucking blinking or squirming where things that happened to other people. She shook her head. It was a damned good thing he was so likeable or she just might hate him.  

She raised her eyes to Tom’s face and watched as a frown slowly spread across his features as his eyes swept over the overly complicated watch on his wrist (why he insisted on wearing something that ridiculously complex as a means to tell time she’d never understand). Cath could clearly hear the curse words he’d been dying to utter but would not as he knew the little ears in his presence would not only hear them but repeat them loudly and most likely at the worst possible moment.

He grimaced instead and let out a huff of annoyance. “Allie darling, we best be off. Your mum will be back soon.”

Allie’s face crumpled as she looked between her uncle and Cath. It was clear she didn’t want to leave but at the same time, she very much wanted to see her mother. Cath leaned over and nudged the girl lightly with her shoulder. “It’s alright. I have to go home too. But it was wonderful meeting you Allie. I hope I get to see you again soon.”

“Promise?”

Cath nodded, “I will do my best.” Allie beamed and launched herself into Cath’s lap, enveloping her in a fierce hug. Beside her she could hear Tom laughing and Bobby’s quiet woofs signaling his apparent desire to go. The little girl pulled back and climbed off the bench, grabbing her uncle’s hand. Bobby immediately jumped up, resting his front paws onto Cath’s lap, barked once, and licked her hands. “Such a ham,” she laughed, cutting her eyes up to a bemused Tom. “Just like your human.”

Tom simply laughed and shook his head. He pulled gently on the lead and Bobby, with great reluctance, let himself be lead down the path beside Tom and Allie and out of sight. Cath smiled as she watched them go.

Next

[fymoanstax]

Monsta X as Professors

This was not requested but Admin Ponyo just,,,,,,thought of it. Hope you guys enjoy!

Shownu

Teaches Political Science

‘You can call me Hyunwoo or Mr. H I don’t really care just don’t call me sir because it makes me feel old’

Monotone voice makes you want to fall asleep during lecture

Gives direct answers to exams

If the question is like ‘when was the declaration of independence signed?’

On the study guide/exam review it’ll say ‘make sure you know the day the declaration was signed’

Easy A class

Doesn’t take attendance bc there are like 200 people in class

Every day is casual friday

Dresses more like a student

Arrives to class late sometimes

No homework

He’s the professor where you’re kind of like ‘should I be having these thoughts about him?’

Sometimes he'll just put on Law and Order™ because its it's too much of a hassle to actually teach that day

On the first day of class he asked in the middle if the students wanted to take a break for 20 minutes or just keep going and get out of class early.

Gives out candy on review days

Despite seeming like he doesn't care he wants his students to be socially aware and active in politics

Really raising the next generation of leaders 11/10 would take this class

Wonho

Teaches education courses

But he also Handles 1st year seminars

Makes people call him coach for no reason

Very inspirational

Female students swoon over him

Wears dress pants and dress shirts and dress shoes

BUT NO BLAZER OR JACKET OR ANYTHING

Rolls up his sleeves a lil

You know those biceps are LI VINg

‘I can be your mentor’ (du du du du du du du du, get it. Like,,,,,’i can be your hero’ okay nvm)

Always comes into class right on the dot

Lectures include a lot of uplifting quotes

Has powerpoints with cute animations, transitions and lots of videos

Stays behind after class and is surrounded by students wanting to talk to him

Has a good rating on ratemyprofessor plus a whole chili pepper bc lots of people take his class

No phones in class because he wants everyone to pay attention but newsflash they already are

No electronics in general

Says attendance doesn't count but passes around a sign in sheet bc he wants to make sure people that show up are rewarded

Minhyuk

Teaches nutrition courses

Wears tracksuits to class

Talks about staying healthy and eating well but shows up late to class with burger king

Has never been to a gym unless pokemon go counts

When people go to his office hours they find him playing overwatch

Gives a lot of extra credit

Makes twitter deals with his students

‘If this post gets 100k retweets our professor will give us all As’

Assigns homework randomly

Next class he has forgotten he assigned homework at all

Until a student brings it up

‘Did I assign that? Okay yeah hand it in then.’

Gives everyone As for the sake of not grading

Actually forgets to grade entire exams

Tells students when pop quizzes will happen

‘Well we’re gonna have a pop quiz this week and if its not today then it must be,,,,the only other time we meet this week.’ *wink*

Asks students to call him the Italian Stallion despite not being Italian or a stallion.

Asks everyone how their weekend was and really does want some stories.

*finished a chapter like 15 minutes early* “You guys want to stop here?”

Group work all the time

He likes it because even he learns from it

Kihyun

Math professor

High level math like calc 2 or smth

Wears suits to class

Doesn’t give study guides or do review days

Homework every week

Only 6 questions

1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 1e, 1f, 1g, 1h, 1i, 1j, 1k, 1l…….you know

Has never cancelled a class

Gives you dirty look if you walk out of class early

‘We still have 45 seconds of class don’t pack up’

Syllabus is 15 pages long

No calculators allowed

‘You learned this in math 126 so i won’t go over it’ UH YEAH 3 SEMESTERS AND AN ENTIRE SUMMER AGO BOI

Asks for homework at the beginning of class

Before you even walk in

If it’s not in your hand no points for the day

Takes attendance daily + counts as 20% of grade

Only allowed 1 excused absence with note

Always bashes the rival university by using said university as the bad examples in word problems.

“Professor what does this have to do with math"

“Nothing I just hate (insert university here)”

At the end of the semester he said “I should have called you guys worms and then at the end said ‘congratulations you are all now maggots’"

Tough professor but everyone loves him still

Hyungwon

Teaches classes on law

ALWAYS has his hair styled and his suit looking pristine

Fashionably late is reAL for this man

Student: ‘I heard if the professor doesn’t show up for 15 minutes we can le-...’

Hyungwon: ‘You can leave whenever. Nobody’s stopping you’

*INSERT SASSY WALK AWAY*

Takes like 10 minutes to get settled before starting lecture

Carries a briefcase to class to look professional but its empty

Students fear him

His beauty AND his brains

Tells class that there will be pop quizzes

Never has a pop quiz in the entire semester

Mock trials every week

Will destroy his students during mock trials but its for their own good

‘There’s too much traffic so I’m cancelling class’

Helps students practice their law poker face by making memey faces at them

It’s part of the final

Laugh or smile is minus 10 points

During an exam he stopped everyone so he could show them a meme.

Jooheon

Teaches music appreciation

Students call him sir

He thinks its funny

One page syllabus and all you do is sign and return it

Asks his students for new music suggestions

Goes off on tangents about his life

‘Yeah, last week I adopted a new dog and his name is Bark Obama’

Will show you videos of his dog on FACEBOOK

When he goes off on tangents he stops mid story and says “why am I telling you this? I dont know”

Dances in front of the class

Will dance to anything

Gregorian chants

Clair de lune

Anything by Chopin

Always wears a hat to class bc he changes his hair color often but that’s seen as unprofessional

Is always down to sit and talk about some good songe

‘Appreciate the music’

‘Feel the music’

‘BE THE MUSIC’

Once his students walked in and he was playing All Star by Smash Mouth and he claimed it was “because if he didnt hear it now it would be stuck in his head forever"

Changkyun

Biology professor

Syllabus is riddled with biology puns

*walks into class* ‘The name’s bond. Hydrogen bond. Just kidding I’m your professor Im Changkyun’

Doesn’t know how to spell,,,,,,,,,,,,,proffesor,,,,,,,proffessor,,,,,,professor,,,,,,,,,

Sits on his desk at the front of the class while lecturing

Relates to his students

The professor you will accidentally run into on the street

Or at coachella who knows

Guaranteed to break at least one microscope or test tube during the semester

Shows the class he can rap the beginning of nicki minaj’s super bass perfectly

Won’t stop talking about his friends dog Bark Obama

Gossips about other professors

A genuinely great teacher

Cares about his students

Wants them to succeed

Wants them to thank him in their speeches when they win awards for ground breaking discoveries

‘All you have to say is I owe all I know to my old professor Im Changkyun. It’s not that hard Kenny.’

Everything went wrong at a lab once when he was a TA and he got so done he just cancelled the lab. He had no fear of getting in trouble

Has puns on his slides that nobody understands.

‘Biology is the best science. Physics and Chemistry can choke but go off I guess.’

Sometimes doesnt wear shoes in class

[strawberriestyles]

Shakespeare (Part I)

(Banner made by the incredibly talented @tiostyles)

Harry X Reader (AU)

In which Harry is a poetic frat boy who just so happens to be the TA for your new English class.

Author’s note: This is gonna be a multi-part fic!! I’m really excited for it and would love any and all feedback. I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed writing. Xo

You aren’t a newbie, but your frazzled appearance might portray you that way.

Autumn air nips at your cheeks as you rush around the corner and continue along the edge of the sidewalk. Your feet carry you around other students who aren’t as pressed for time. They give you amused side-glances  as you hustle into the entrance of the closest brick building.

This was supposed to be your semester, the one where you get to class early and rewrite your notes by hand and get straight As. But one-too-many snoozed alarms later and your first day of classes has become your worst nightmare.

You take the stairs two at a time, and are rushing through the doorway to the second floor when you slam full force into a particularly solid shoulder. You’re knocked off balance and a flurry of papers careen through the air to scatter the floor around you.

“Shit, fuck,” a deep voice mutters from above where you’ve landed in a heap. You rub tenderly at the bruise that is bound to form from your collision.

“Are yeh okay? Yeh hurt?”

The man leaning down in front of you addresses you with a thick accent. With an upward glance, you find tired green eyes framed by a large pair of glasses.

“I’m fine,” you answer quietly, pushing yourself back to your feet. “I’m late, sorry.”

You spin around to rush down the hall. A prick of guilt stabs your chest as you leave your victim to collect his belongings. You hear a sigh and shuffling papers from behind you as you open the door to your classroom. Heads turn to assess you in your flustered state. The clock on the wall informs you that you’re forty-seven seconds late—a feat, if you consider how late you woke up.

It’s a small class with about twenty students. Seats are arranged in a large circle that you’re forced to cross. The gaze from the professor—who must be Dr. Glasser—at the head of the room does nothing to soothe your nerves as you find an empty chair and slip into it as quietly as possible.

“As I was saying, on time is late in my book.”

Your head lifts from the backpack you’ve set at your feet to find a pair of narrowed eyes. Dr. Glasser has his arms crossed over his chest, brows raised as he quirks his lips at a joke you’re not yet in on. Getting on his bad side was everything you wanted to avoid today.

“Hey, ’m sorry.”

The door closes behind a man who’s entered the room unnoticed until now. His voice draws the professor’s gaze from you and your eyes follow suit.

“Woke up not feelin’ well and then some girl bowled m'over in the hall.”

You cringe, sinking back into your seat in hopes you’ll melt away. If your day could get any worse, you’d rather it happen now than later when it might take you off guard. But at least there’s another student who can share the guilt.

“It never changes,” Dr. Glasser replies with a curt nod and a knowing chuckle. “That’s all right. This is Harry. He’ll be your TA for the semester.”

You sink even lower in your seat, stomach churning in discomfort. How could you fuck up your first day so terribly?

Harry sets a mess of papers down on a desk beside the professor’s and turns to look at the class with a half-hearted smile. His white t-shirt is clean but wrinkled. You notice the red glint of his eyes and the way his fingers pause to rub at his temple as his hand passes through his tousled hair. He’s sporting a nasty hangover, by the looks of it.

Your thoughts cease completely as his eyes stop scanning the students to pause on your regretful face. He gives a soft shake of his head and a quiet chuckle before he sits down. You’re screwed.

“What does it mean to be an English major? What are we here for?” Dr. Glasser pipes up, pushing away from his desk to pace the center of the circle.

There’s a short pause before a couple of stray hands rise hesitantly into the air. You remain stationary, unwilling to dig yourself a deeper hole. Until you’re more sure of his personality and teaching style, you’ll be a quiet student in this class.

“To study literature?”

“More generally.”

The room goes silent and Harry smiles lopsidedly, fiddling with the rim of his glasses. Dr. Glasser gives him a prompting side-glance.

“T'study words,” Harry corrects, and his smile widens as he shifts forward in his seat, “aesthetically. How they interact, wha’ they make us feel. Lot o’ people make fun o’ English majors, but we have the best deal, ‘f yeh ask me. We get t'play 'round. Not everythin’s gotta be pragmatic and serious.”

“Right,” Dr. Glasser agrees with a nod and a grin that stretches across his middle-aged face. He’s handsome in his own right, in a pair of glasses much thicker than his assistant’s. They magnify his eyes to an abnormally large size. You notice the brown laces of his black shoes and the mismatched plaid of his socks that peak out whenever he takes a step.

“Everything we do is toward an aesthetic end. You don’t really get that when you’re collecting data or memorizing the anatomy of a rhinoceros, do you?”

“Rhinoceros?” Harry asks with a raised brow and a quizzical scratch of his stubbly jaw.

“It’s a bit more interesting than a dog, wouldn’t you say?”

“S'pose,” he agrees with a chuckle.

You admire the way he can still stay focused and present with the leftover alcohol taking its toll on his body. You’re sure you would be a useless blob if you were in the same condition.

“I’m not trying to say that English is the best major-”

“Yes, he is,” Harry interjects, grinning at the professor.

“Okay, yes, English is the best major,” Dr. Glasser confesses, stuffing meaty hands into the pockets of pants that are a size too large. You find yourself agreeing. Science classes are far less than enjoyable and math classes can be close to impossible. “And you may think that I’m a bit biased, but it’s a fact. Ask your science-majoring friends.”

You notice a girl a few seats around the circle from you who is scribbling intensely in a brand new notebook. You chew on your lip to hold in a chuckle. She must be a freshman. 

“They’re probably too loaded up with work t'answer yeh, though,” Harry adds, sifting through the pile of papers on his desk and rearranging them. “Yeh wan’ me t'take attendance?”

“Yeah, sure,” Dr. Glasser concedes, hopping up on the edge of his desk and swinging his feet.

Harry smooths out a sheet of wrinkled paper with a faint shoe mark—one that would match the sole of your boot perfectly, if you were to put them side-by-side. His eyes flit over rows of printed pictures that match the faces in the room. He clears his throat before beginning to roll through the alphabetical list, and you consider not reacting when he calls your name. Maybe you can make one up, so your actual title isn’t tarnished by your faulty first impressions.

“Y/N,” Harry asks, and if you’re not mistaken, you can hear a lilt to his voice, like he’s testing the sound of your name on his tongue. His gaze lifts from the page before him to find you immediately, only a small pie-slice away from him in the circle of desks.

You lift your hand meekly in response. You don’t trust the anxiety you feel not to stain your voice. His eyes hover on yours for a moment longer, flickering with amusement, before dropping back to the attendance sheet.

“It might take me half of the semester to remember those,” Dr. Glasser admits when the list comes to an end. He returns to the floor with a heavy thud and presses his spectacles back up his nose by the bridge. “But we’ll get there.”

“Yeh didn’ remember m'name 'til the last week o’ classes,” Harry complains, rolling his eyes playfully.

“That is most certainly untrue,” Dr. Glasser denies with a feigned look of hurt. “You were my favorite student and your name was the only one I remembered. But let’s stop our bickering, now.”

The professor spins in a circle to survey the class before he speaks again.

“Harry is smarter than you,” he states matter-of-factly. “When it comes to English theory, at least. I can’t say he’s the smartest at deciding which nights are good ones to go out drinking, however.”

Harry coughs to cover his a laugh, but he can’t hide his entertained smirk while Dr. Glasser shoots him a playfully disappointed look. He pushes his glasses up his forehead to rub at his eyes with long fingers.

“Anyways, I am also smarter than you in this department, but Harry happens to be much nicer than me. I’m not trying to intimidate you, I’m just letting you know that if you have questions or need help with anything, it’s probably better to ask him first. Plus, his voice is a lot nicer to listen to than mine.”

Harry groans audibly, but the ever-present smile is still plastered across his lips. You can tell how much he loves this class, and Dr. Glasser, specifically, and you can feel yourself hoping that your below average first day doesn’t set the tone for your semester.

“He’s quite talented. And quite the poet, if I may add.”

“Yeh may not,” Harry huffs, flicking his glasses back down in front of his eyes.

“Well, he’s quite the poet,” Dr. Glasser repeats, ignoring Harry’s remark and smiling to spite him. “He’s the smartest kid I’ve ever met and none of you will compare, but we can pretend.”

“Oi! Can we stop talkin’ 'bout me, now?”

“I love when he uses British terms. It’s very endearing.”

“Dr. Glasser,” Harry complains again, rubbing his hands beneath the lenses of his glasses once more.

The professor shrugs with a grin to the class and checks his left wrist, which he finds to be watch-less. He then checks the clock on the wall.

“Does anyone have any questions?” he asks, continuing on before anyone has a chance to raise a hand. “Great! Your reading assignment is on the syllabus, which is online. You probably should have looked at that already. We’ll start talking theory next class. And a bit of advice: don’t drink as much as Harry did last night.”

Students erupt into snickers as Dr. Glasser slings his messenger bag over his shoulder and leaves the room, and you can’t help but laugh at his closing statement, too. Harry drops his head back in exasperation, huffing out a loud breath. The room is suddenly filled with a chorus of footsteps and ruffling papers and zipping bags. 

You slide out of your seat, hiking your backpack up and over your shoulders. Your feet hesitate, mind trying to decide whether you should apologize or if it’s best to just leave. Harry is stacking his papers and trying his best to align the rumpled edges. He slips the pen he used for attendance between his teeth. Before you actually make a conscious decision, you’re standing in front of his desk, rocking on the balls of your feet nervously.

“Hi, Harry.”

He lifts his head briefly and then looks back down at his papers, shaking his head almost imperceptibly.

“I’m-”

“Y/N, yeah. Not gonna forget tha’ one,” he interrupts, mumbling around his pen and chuckling under his breath.

You sigh, fiddling with the straps of your backpack. Harry lifts his bundle of papers and hugs them to his chest, plucking the pen from his mouth and tucking it behind an ear.

“I just wanted to say that I’m-”

“’M late, sorry.”

And with that, he gives you an amused smirk and skirts around you to leave the room.

Part II

[assweetassuga]

Prompt 15: Late Night Confessions

Prompt: "do you have ANY idea what time it is-” “Shhhh-" “AND YOU’RE OUT HERE ON THE STREETS IN YOUR PAJAMAS” “Not so loud" “no, you PUT me down right this instant-” AU: Roommate Genre: fluff Ship: Reader x Min Yoongi/ Suga Third person POV with reader referred to as 'Y/N', 'she', 'her',... Note: Yoongi isn't 'famous' or part of BTS here. He's only an aspiring music producer who is somewhat well known. Warning: this is pretty long and not proofread or edited. ___________________________________ It wasn't Y/N's fault. It really wasn't. She tried her hardest to avoid failing her exams but she let one subject slip away and earn her an F. But it wasn't her fault, the professor hated her and made it her mission to fail Y/N- only because she wouldn't talk much during class. What kind of dumb reason was that? And what did the professor benefit from having her repeat the class and seeing her again?- Y/N could never figure it out. Anyway, despite it only being ten in the morning, Y/N's day was already ruined. Having received her grades for the previous semester with many disappointments, she cancelled her plans to meet up with her friends and headed back to the apartment she shared with the self-proclaimed world renowned music producer, Min Yoongi, who was actually only a locally known but brilliant producer who worked behind the scenes for some very well known groups and artists. Although his work can be done from the comfort of his own room/ office, his company forces him to work from their official building, so she was sure she wouldn't find him when she reached their shared space. Despite this, she made sure to knock on his door once she got home and was actually surprised to hear a response. Suddenly concerned, Y/N entered his room and almost immediately tripped on a shoe placed haphazardly in front of the door. "Yah Min Yoongi clean your room up it's a safety hazard," Yoongi, who was somewhat concealed by the back of his huge desk chair, swiveled around in said chair while posing like The Godfather and and eyed her silently, quirking an eyebrow. "It's an organized mess. It reflects my genius," Y/N rolled her eyes at his typical response and walked over closer to him, seating herself on the small couch next to his desk. "Whatever. Why are you here?" "What? Can't I be in my room?" "You know what I mean. Aren't you supposed to be at work?" "I am at work," "Yoong," "Y/N (nickname)," "I'm waiting for a valid response," "I gave you one," Y/N usually loved their routine banter, but on that specific day she couldn't even handle looking at him, let alone talking to him. She was feeling especially guilty that day, because he was expecting her to inform him of her grades and he knew she was stalling. The only reason she felt guilty about her less-than-satisfactory results was because he'd actually taken time out of his busy schedule to help her study some topics he was good at, and she didn't want to seem like she was taking his help for granted by displaying such ugly marks. Since she wasn't getting anywhere with her attempt at stalling, she decided to just leave and avoid talking about the topic. With that, she got off the couch, gave him one last eye roll, and headed towards the door that would lead her to her freedom and her cosy bed. "Not so fast, Y/N," Y/N couldn't hide her groan and rested her hand on the door knob. She closed her eyes and composed herself, trying to look as innocent as possible before she turned around to face him. "Yes, Yoongi?" "Your grades please," and he held out his arm for the folder that she held that contained the shameful truth. "Uuuhh... I didn't get them," "Bullshit. Hand it over," "Please no," "Y/N," "Please," she begged, using the well known puppy dog eyes technique she knew would usually work on him. "Your cuteness won't work this time. Come on, Y/N, show me your grades. I know they're not as bad as you're making them seem," "They are, I swear they are. You'll be disappointed and you'll realize you wasted your time. And I'm sorry about that. I really am. Just please don't look at them," "Y/N, it's okay. I promise you I won't be mad. And you're not a waste of time, I actually enjoyed those study sessions, even if you think they didn't pay off," Y/N jutted her bottom lip out, pouting, as she tried one last attempt at the puppy dog plead. Realizing it really didn't work this time, she visibly deflated and huffed. "Fine. I'll give you the folder, but don't open it before I leave the room. Let me leave first then look at them. Please," "Whatever you want, Y/N," "Promise me," "I promise," "Pinkie swear?" Yoongi chuckled at that but held up his little finger. "Pinkie swear," he said as they hooked their fingers. As soon as the oath was bound, Y/N all but ran out of his room and over to hers after throwing the folder on his bed. Without even bothering to take her clothes off, she dove onto her own bed and rolled herself up in her bedcovers like a burrito. Within half an hour, unexpected sleep overtook her, leaving a confused Yoongi standing at the foot of her bed with her grades in his hands. "She falls asleep even faster than I do. What a weirdo," he mumbled as he placed the grades folder on her desk and wrote her a sticky note- which he then stuck on the folder. He decided against waking her up and let her rest after weeks of stressing over finals and the results afterwards, promising himself he'd check on her around dinner time after he ordered something for them to eat. Fourteen hours later, Y/N woke up with a pounding headache. Confused about the year and the planet she lived on, she groped around for her phone to check those details before she checked herself into a mental hospital. She found her phone dug under her back bra strap; how it got there was a mystery to her and the universe. As soon as she saw the time and the darkness outside her open windows, she yelped and her phone slid out of her hands. She'd never been able to sleep for fourteen continuous hours; she must've been really upset in order for her to take a depression nap like that. With a throbbing head and numb limbs, she got off her bed and tiptoed to the shared bathroom, trying not to make any sound and thus avoid any unnecessary encounters with her roommate. She still didn't know how to face him after those shameful grades. When she passed the kitchen she saw a bag of food from the usual place she and Yoongi would order from when they wanted to treat themselves- but there was no Yoongi and no indication of him having eaten. She immediately felt bad, she was usually the one who nagged/ reminded him to eat, while he was the one who reminded her to do everything she forgot to do... which is everything needed to function as a human being. She decided to check up on him after relieving her sad, distended bladder and then brushing her teeth. Yoongi wasn't in his room when she slowly opened his door. He wasn't in the living room either. He was no where to be found, and she was starting to worry. At this time he'd usually be asleep, eating or working away at his laptop, finishing what he couldn't during the day, but he wasn't doing that right now, and breaking a habit was near impossible for him. She called his phone too many times for rationality before she discovered it buried underneath his bedsheets. The fact that he didn't have his phone on him worried her even more. She paced the apartment endlessly, thinking of a logical course of action, before she threw caution to the wind and put on her shoes and coat and head out to look for him in the few places he went to when he left home or work. An hour later found a furious Y/N and an out-of-character Yoongi. "do you have ANY idea what time it is-” she started, seething with anger and worry. “SHHHH-” “AND YOU’RE OUT HERE ON THE STREETS IN YOUR PAJAMAS," “Not so loud, Y/N,” “no, you PUT me down right this instant-” "Y/N, stop fidgeting," he whined, holding her bridal style and swinging her left and right as if to halt her movements. "Yoongi I'm dead serious put me down right now," Y/N's heart was pounding with fear of falling- perhaps both ways of that sense. "What if I don't want to," he deadpanned, posing it as a phrase instead of a sentence. "You'll regret it. If you let me fall I'll have your head. I'm pretty sure you're drunk and I don't need a head injury right now," He suddenly stopped the swinging but he kept her in his arms. "I'm not drunk," he said, sounding as sober as ever. "Then what are you doing?" Y/N was convinced he wasn't drunk- despite the fact that he can hold his liquor, Yoongi was a way-too-obvious drunk, his face would be flushed and his eyes would be unfocused and watery. He would also be unstable on his feet and he sure as hell wouldn't be able to lift and carry her like this. Right now, his eyes were watery, but that was probably because of lack of sleep- also evidenced by the black under-eye bags. "I'm carrying you back home," he replied, tilting his face to where hers was, smiling his rare wide smile that made Y/N want to frame it and keep it with her for when she was feeling down... which was generally all the time. "Can I ask why?" She inquired after she recovered from the effect his smile had on her. "No," he smiled again, sarcastically this time, but still a smile she loved seeing. For someone who was as attractive looking while straight-faced as Yoongi, his smile always left an unexpected aftertaste in Y/N's heart that was different from the usual appreciation she had for his looks. I mean, come on. She knew being attracted to her roommate was a bad idea, but it's not like it was interfering with anything... maybe. Whenever she was confronted with her potential feelings for him she'd always shut them out and ignore them; she was convinced they were useless and more than likely only one sided. Besides, she was fine with her relationship with him as it was; she was too terrified of alienating him by talking about such useless things as emotions. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts and think of a response for his statement, she narrowed her eyes at him as her gave her a (cute) shit eating grin and shuffled her in his arms, shifting her weight to distribute it evenly so it wouldn't interfere with their walk back home. "Yoongi seriously I'm too heavy for this just put me down," "Don't wanna," he said and held her tighter. Y/N's heart squeezed at that- before she shut it up, that is. "Yooooooongiiiiiiii," she whined, then she realized there was no getting anywhere with him. "Fine, then at least tell me where you were," "Hmm," he feigned being deep in thought, "I was just out and about, walking to clear my head," "You and I both know you don't do that," "Indeed?" "Indeed," "Maybe indeed will be our always," "Shut up doofus," They both erupted in hardly muted fits of giggles, Y/N's left arm went around Yoongi's waist and clutched the back of his shirt while he subconsciously brought her closer to his chest. They were aware of how silly the exchange was but they both were smitten by each other's presence that they couldn't see the signs staring them right in the eyes. "Yoongi aren't you exhausted?" She asked as she saw him unsuccessfully hide his yawn. Both of them were unconscious of her right arm slowly inching up to reach his face until it touched the side of his cheekbone. He shook his head in denial but his drooping eyelids and watery eyes betrayed him. Her thumb stroked his cheek languidly, neither of them minding the contact. In fact, they were both enjoying the minimal skinship- not that either of them would admit it even if it saved their lives. "We'll be home soon," he whispered, subconsciously angling his face towards her touch. She nodded, maintaining the eye contact as she consciously caressed his cheek, enjoying the way her heart reacted to a gesture as small as him smiling faintly in response. His smile grew as she cupped his cheek with her entire hand while she still caressed his cheekbone with her thumb. She nodded in acknowledgement of his statement as their faces drew closer and their emotions ran deeper. They've been dancing around each other for the past three years, so this advancement in their relationship was logical- at least that's what Yoongi thought. Y/N held her breath and stilled as she watched him draw even closer, letting him take this interaction in the direction he wanted. She thought her heart would burst out of her chest as he rested his forehead on hers and closed his eyes as he sighed slowly. Her hand was still on his face but it was inching closer to his neck and then his hair. She'd always wanted to stroke his hair and feel its softness- despite his claims of it being rough and damaged because of over-dying, it was actually silky smooth and fluffy she was almost jealous. "Y/N," he started, his voice rougher than usual despite the fact that he was whispering. "Hmm?" She couldn't bring herself to say anything besides a hum in fear of ruining the moment. "If you keep doing that I might fall asleep while walking," he whispered, his eyes still closed, causing her to smirk triumphantly and angle her face up so both their foreheads and noses were touching. Still stroking his hair, she inched her face away from his, causing his eyes to fly open at the sudden loss of contact. Before he can question it, she quickly pecked his nose and just as quickly moved back, almost falling in Yoongi's suddenly less stable arms, then hiding her face in his chest. She didn't want to over think and go over what she just did and what it could mean to him but it was hard to avoid the thoughts... until he stopped walking and slowly set her back to her feet, her face still buried in his chest. Both hearts pounding and minds racing, each one of the two individuals was thinking of a way to take this moment in the direction he and she wanted. The directions were the same, unbeknownst to the other party. Suddenly decisive, Yoongi placed his arms around her waist, silently asking her to look at him. Once she did, he took his chance. With their eyes staring into the others' and both of his hands cupping her small face, he gently brushed their lips together in an almost-but-not-exactly kiss. They both sighed at the teasing contact but stayed where they were, collecting their wits and attempting to calm their racing hearts. Y/N's arms circled his waist, prompting him closer. He took the gesture as encouragement and pressed their lips together as he kissed her over and over in small, innocent kisses that conveyed both their feelings for each other. Y/N kissed back, and after countless tiny kisses that made her head spin into euphoria, she held his face in place and deepened the kiss, starting slowly at first and then exploding and letting rip the fire of emotions she felt for him. After his initial shock he reciprocated, and all too soon they were both coming up for air. "Damn, Y/N," he sighed, eyes wide and pupils blown wider than she's ever seen them, "if I'd known that would be your response I would've kissed you sooner. Much, much sooner," Suddenly shy, Y/N kissed his cheek in response and buried her face in his chest. He drew her in closer and held her tightly, smiling faintly at the precious girl in his arms. Even without verbal confession, he knew he finally had her. Years and years of pining were worth it for just this moment of complete satisfaction and tranquility- he wondered if this is what happiness truly felt like. They remained standing in the same spot, in each others' arms, for what felt like a happy lifetime. They weren't sure who moved first, but at some point they resumed their walk home, still wrapped in each other with small smiles and secretive glances. Anyone could tell they were smitten- it was as if they were in their own heart-shaped bubble with small heart-shaped bubbles floating around them. In short, it was super cheesy and they both knew it. Once they got home, the atmosphere shifted and became somewhat heavier. Yoongi- whose stomach rumbled loudly at some point during the walk- headed straight for the kitchen, while Y/N went to her room to change into her pajamas before joining Yoongi for a late night snack. "What're we having?" She asked as she entered the kitchen wearing one of her better pajamas. Yoongi, whose back was turned to her, lifted the bag of food that he'd ordered almost a lifetime ago, but it was empty as he'd removed the containers and was heating up the food. "It'll be ready in around five minutes," "'Kay," she replied, walking slowly toward him and hugging him from behind, resting her head on the back of his shoulder. He stiffened slightly at the unexpected contact but relaxed almost immediately, letting out a soothing sigh as he got back to the mugs of hot chocolate he was preparing. Y/N's head was placed strategically to hear his heartbeat, and she was strangely satisfied to hear it beating as rapidly as hers was. The disbelief as to what had happened earlier was starting to sink in- had they really kissed? Did they really have such a cute moment just around an hour ago? She was baffled- she never expected one of her greatest wishes would come true this easily. "Yoongi," she murmured slowly, mind still foggy. "Yes love?" He replied, throwing in the endearment almost mindlessly and causing Y/N to melt and spike her heartbeat up a few notches. "I- we- that is, um... what-" Yoongi cut her off by turning around and holding her arms tightly but not painfully while looking directly into her eyes as if trying to convey a message merely by eye contact. "Y/N," "Yes?" She squeaked uncharacteristically then cringed at how she was acting. Why was Yoongi turning her into a pile of mush like this? He blinked slowly once, twice, three times, the action mesmerizing Y/N and causing her to reflexively mirror him. "I'm going to say this once because honest to god I haven't had much time to prepare and I want to do it now so please pay attention. Y/N, you mean the world to me. I mean it, you're more important to me than anything or anyone else. You make me want to say and do cheesy things like in those movies you watch when you're PMSing. You make me want to laugh and cry and love and hate and I just- you make me feel. Ever since I met you five years ago and especially three years ago when you let me move in- you slowly wore down my walls and let yourself into my entire being and helped me learn how to feel again- and I love you for that. I don't know if mere words can describe this... thing that I'm feeling but, Y/N I don't think I can ever just remain 'friends' or 'roommates' simply. I've been in love with you for so long and I've had many opportunities to tell you and hopefully make you mine but I've always chickened out- until tonight when my cousin called me crying about losing his wife and asking me to come over and help with arrangements. His situation terrified me and I realized I would never want to lose you like he lost his wife- his other half. Yes, I realize I'm being super cheesy and we're not married or anything but you bring out this side in me and I'm not sure if I should hate you or love you for it- although I'm inclined to choose the latter. I'm not sure why I'm telling you all this and I'm probably scaring you off but it's been building inside for so long it was bound to come out at some point. Y/N, I love you so much and I can't see myself without you in any way. Will you accept my feelings and make me yours?" Throughout his speech, Y/N got more and more teary eyed until the tears started flowing rapidly when he mentioned his cousin's loss. Once he noticed the tears streaming down her face, he panicked and tried to backtrack and rectify what he said, until she interrupted him with a kiss she didn't realize she was capable of giving. She kissed him with all the passion she had and a handful more, conveying all the love and tenderness she felt for him, answering all his questions and giving him more answers than he'd asked. Her kiss made his head spin so fast he almost forgot his own name, which he was reminded of when she sighed it heavily after they broke apart for air. Tears still streaming down her face, she held his in both hands and tried to word exactly what she was trying to say with her kiss. "The feelings you induce in me when you're around, when you look at me and talk to me and touch me, even the innocent and mindless touches, cannot be explained by the simple word 'love'. Yoongi, the way I feel for you transcends any emotion articulated by our limited human vocabulary, but for the lack of better wording, I love you. I love love love you so much I never thought I'd be able to tell you. Yes, I accept your feelings. I am yours and you are mine and I don't want this to ever change. I love you Yoongi, so much that it terrifies me," she ended her smaller speech with a sigh and a shake of her head. "You've even made me cry because I couldn't handle my emotions. I hope you can take responsibility for that. Oh, and," she added as an afterthought, "after this I will be clinging to you like a damn koala so much so you'll regret this," she giggled, silently praying that he'd never regret this; them. At this he laughed loudly, his lips stretching over his teeth and gums in a genuine laugh at her ridiculousness- not that she minded, she loved his smile and even more so his laugh; both so rare but so beautiful. She voiced her thoughts, ceasing his laugh but causing him to grin stupidly at her statement. "That smile and laugh, they're yours and yours only," he proclaimed, pecking her forehead and holding her close. "That's so damn cheesy though," she groaned, her voice muffled because her face was pressed to his chest, "but I love this side of yours," "Well I love you, so I guess it's a fair trade," "You, sir, are the king of cheese," "You love it though," "Damn right I do," she admitted, kissing his cheek and begrudgingly removing herself from his warm embrace after both their stomachs rumbled embarrassingly loudly causing them both to burst into laughter. "So the food's ready. Let's eat quickly, Y/N, I want to sleep next to you tonight," Y/N blinked at the unexpected statement and blushed when the words sunk in. She squeaked a quick 'okay' and took the plates of food and mugs of hot chocolate from him and placed them on the table. He joined her soon after, displaying a self-satisfied smile and a twinkle in his eyes. Halfway through their meal, Yoongi seemed to remember something. "Oh, before I forget. Y/N, about your grades-" "Aaaaaaagh Yoongs no don't bring this up when I'm in the best mood," whined Y/N, pouting. "I'm not disappointed in you, baby," he rolled his eyes, Y/N's heart skipping a beat at the pet name, "however," Y/N could see a dangerous glint in his eyes before he finished his sentence, "I will have to punish you later for that D-," and he winked, pulverizing Y/N's intestines into mush and coloring her cheeks a warm red. She felt her whole body heating up in a blush at his comment, but she soon recovered and swatted at his arm, looking him straight in the eye and trying to mess with him too. "I can't wait, sweetheart," smirking, she stroked his hand as it lay on the table close to her then linked their fingers together, before looking up through her eyelashes at a violently blushing Min Yoongi. "I really can't wait,"

[cyberocean]

I’m More of a Cat Person (One-Shot)

Fandom: GOT7 (with BTS cameo)

Pairing: Jaebum x Reader

Genre: This is pretty fluffy

Word count: 5,017

Warnings: Very mild mentions of sex and suggestive comments.

Summary: You finally have some free time to spend with your close friend and class mate Haruko. It was her turn to choose your hang out spot but her decision didn’t make you very happy. That was until you met a very alluring server.

Comments: In honor of Leader JB’s birthday! It’s a very simple and cute one-shot and I wanted to finish this by the 6th but alas I kept getting distracted. lol Enjoy!

Preview:

“Want to stay another hour and ogle at the Prince of Cats?”

You rolled your eyes but eventually gave in as you knew your friend wanted to spend some time with the dogs. Just because you were a bitter cat person didn’t mean you could take away from your dog-person friend’s enjoyment of the café. Plus, there was Jaebum walking around the place. He would sometimes stop to take care of one of the pets or answer questions from the other guests. But what you kept noticing most were his constant stares in the direction of your table. He would always smile when he would happen to catch you staring back. He was such an incredibly good looking guy and you just couldn’t help it. He was your type of guy from head to toes right down to his bright, wide set of teeth, the sharpness of his nose, the strength of his forehead, his long, long legs, his-

“(Y/N)!”

You jumped right out of your reverie when you heard your name being yelled.

“What?” Your friend was now staring at you as if she were staring at a misbehaving child. “What?!”

You and your friend were out and about in the town trying to figure out what to do for the day. It was a beautiful spring day, the air was crisp and the sky was crystal clear. It was also the weekend so you were eager to go out for some much needed fresh air and fun before university work got the better of you free time.

 “Oh my god! I’m so glad we finally have a day off together!” You said as you hugged you friend Haruko. The two of you had met at the orientation for your graduate school of international studies the previous semester and had become quick friends.

 “I know! Work has been so daunting this month.” Haruko worked as a supervisor at a large fashion retailer while you were a part-time bank teller. Doing your master’s degree while working wasn’t easy but you found support in each other. Haruko had thought her life abroad would be very lonely being so far away from her family and friends who were back in her hometown of Fukuoka, Japan. Fortunately she had found a kindred soul in you who had also left everything behind in your hometown.

 “I bet! Retail is an unforgiving mistress.” You chuckled at your friend who was pretending to choke herself. “Well, let’s forget about work for now. You said there was a place you wanted to check out?” Ever since you started hanging out you made it a habit to visit different cafes and tea houses in the city as a pastime. In the 8 months you had spent together in the city you had both garnered quite a reputation on online review sites. You had even started a blog together.

 “Yup, it’s actually an animal café…” Haruko ended her sentence carefully. She had been trying for a while to have you accompany her to a dog café but she knew you weren’t a big fan. And as expected you didn’t look very enthused.

 “An animal café?” You looked at you friend suspiciously. “I know it’s completely naïve of me to even ask but I’m going to go ahead and give you the benefit of the doubt.” You took a deep breath then looked directly at Haruko again. “What kind of animal café?”

 Haruko grimaced comically, closing one her eyes, and then slowly uttered her answer. “It’s a dog café.”

 “Of course it is.” You huffed and shook your head. “You know I’m not a big fan of dogs. Come on Haru-chan…” You placed your left hand on your hip as you brought your right one to your forehead. This wasn’t the first time that Haruko had suggested it and you suspected it wouldn’t be the last one either. It’s not like you hate dogs, you could find them cute, when they weren’t being hyperactive little burdens. The problem was that your experiences with dogs at the dining table were not so pleasant.

 When you looked up again, Haruko was giving you the biggest googly eyes you had ever seen on your friend. She almost looked like she had a Puri-Cura style eye enlarging filter over her already adorable face. “Come on (Y/N)! Please! Just this once! I swear we won’t be there too long. And if you find you don’t like it at all and can’t stand to be there even a millisecond then we’ll leave. I promise!” She crossed her delicate fingers in front of her face. “Just humor me this once.”

 You stared at your cute friend for almost a full minute before all the air left your lungs in a long, suffering sigh then you shook your head in defeat. “All right! All right! I’ll do it.” Haruko was about to explode from happiness but, before she could, you placed one of your hands on her shoulder. “But only this ONCE.”

 “Yes yes yes yes! Of course!” Haruko gave a small jump then hugged you very tightly. “Ikuyo!! Let’s go!”

 *****

 “Welcome to Wan Wan Café.” A girl with a high pitched voice greeted them from behind a wildly colored counter. She had a very big smile and an adorable bob cut that framed her rounded face very fashionably.

 “Hello~~” Haruko went in first, waving at the young girl. “A table for two please.”

 “Of course! How long will you be with us today?” The girl brought out a small pad with a sign-up sheet.

 “Hhm… Is it ok to do an hour first and then go from there? This is my friend’s first time and she doesn’t hang out around dogs very much.” Haruko looked over her shoulder at you but you weren’t paying any attention, instead you were interestedly looking around at the décor and beyond the iron gate by the counter that kept the dogs from wondering into the receiving area. Haruko turned back to the girl and leaned on the counter to whisper to her. “I’m trying to convince her that these cafes are good but I don’t want to push it you know.”

 The girl nodded her head as she giggled. “I totally get it. Don’t worry. We’ll put you down for an hour and if you wish to stay longer then you can just let your server know.”

 “Thank you!” The girl handed Haruko the form and she filled it out for the both of you.

 “Ok ladies. Please wait here one moment and one of our servers will come get you.” She typed your information into a computer and left through a door behind the counter.

 “It’s cute isn’t it?” Haruko asked you.

 “Yeah, the décor is pretty nice. But I can tell it’s going to be quite noisy in there.” Already the sounds of barking were drifting in from the main area. Through the Victorian style gate that separated them from the action you caught a glimpse of a young woman trailing behind a little French Bulldog. The dog’s dorky face made you giggle. Suddenly an adorable looking beagle was at the gate and he started scratching the metal railing.

 Haruko was already visibly excited as she stepped forward to coo at the little guy. The dog was wagging its tail vigorously which he followed with some pretty loud barking. You cringed a bit at the sound.

 “All right Taffy, stand back boy.” You heard the voice before you saw the man. He had a smooth timbre to his voice that made you immediately zero in on his face. The guy was pretty tall with very long legs. His hair was pure black, slicked back in a neat, dandy style. He was dressed casual, like the rest of the staff, but somehow his ripped jeans and baggy hoodie looked extra fashionable on him. That could’ve been because his face was gorgeous and his ears were full of piercings, though. “Welcome ladies.” He said when he finally managed to get Gummy distracted enough he stepped out into the receiver. “My name’s Jaebum and I’ll be your server today. You can call me JB though. It’s easier to remember.” Haruko immediately gave her signature Japanese bow to the man, who was obviously Asian as well, but you were slightly frozen in place.

 “Thank you so much JB. I’m Haruko and this is my friend (Y/N). It’s her first time at a pet café.” It was a good thing your friend’s brain was functioning because you were very blatantly just staring at the server who had definitely noticed. Haruko shook you slightly by the arm. “You ready (Y/N)-chan?”

 You came out of your dumb stupor and smiled at them both. “Yes, of course. I’m sorry. I’m a little bewildered by the whole concept still.” Great (Y/N)! So mooth… You thought sarcastically as you followed the chuckling server and your grinning friend. Real smooth… Jaebum brought them to one of the tables that lined the walls. Most of them had good views of the city below which was a big plus for you as reviewer. The center of the café was set-up as a play area and covered with foam like tile in green. It almost resembled a little garden surrounded with dog toys and other cute decorations. Overall the place seemed clean and didn’t smell as bad as you thought it would. “Hey, it smells nice in here.”

 Jaebum scooted the chairs back for each of you for which you both smiled. Slight blushing might have happened as well. “Yeah, the place is designed with really good ventilation and we use air purifiers with natural deodorizers such as coffee grounds and activated charcoal.” He set down the menus for you girls then straightened out his clothes as he stood tall again. “Well ladies, we do have a complete coffee menu and an extensive list of teas. We can also prepare them as milk tea if you like. Your entrance fee includes one free drink, any of them are ok. Finally, these” he pointed at two comically little menus with wooden covers “are the dessert and snack menus. Since it’s your first time with us I’ll give you gals a few minutes to look over the menu.” The little French bulldog from earlier popped its head between Jaebum’s legs out of nowhere which made the man startle a bit and start laughing. “And of course, you’re free to play with any of our dogs. This is JJ. Say hi to the cute ladies JJ.” He scratched the little dog’s head which made him shake his head and move closer to where Haruko was sitting. The woman was so excited she started scratching the little dude’s ears and chin. Jaebum chuckled at the scene. “He definitely likes you. All right. I’ll be back in a bit.” He finished with a bow then went over to another table.

“He is so cute!!” Haruko shrieked.

“Yeah he is.” you said.

Haruko looked up at you to ask you to pet JJ but she realized that you weren’t looking down at the dog. You were still looking in the direction of the handsome server. “Umm… (Y/N)-chan?” nothing. “(Y/N).” nothing. “(Y/N)!”

“What?” You looked back at your friend with big eyes. “Sorry!” You face was slowly becoming pink. “Yes, yes. The goofy dog is cute too.”

The room then became engulfed in Haruko’s loud laughter which made a few of the dogs and all the humans turn their way. Most of the time you were very glad your friend wasn’t as bashful as other Japanese girls you had met but at that very moment you really wished she was just a tad less loud. Haruko noticed your embarrassment and covered her mouth. “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry.” When she finally calmed down she crossed her arms over the table giving you a mischievous smile. “So? Are you glad we came?”

You took a deep breath. “We only just got here. But I’ll give this place its full hour and see how it goes.” Honestly it wasn’t as bad as you had thought initially. You thought you would be walking into a place that would be as loud as a pet shelter and just as smelly but the café was actually pretty calm. There were only about 5 dogs lurking around at the moment, the air felt clean and the calming aroma of coffee beans and baked goods was floating around. As you looked through the menu you both immediately fell in love with the selection, especially with the sweets. “This really reminds me of the cafes I used to visit in Kyoto and Osaka.”

“Sou desu ne. The sweets selection is very Japanese, except they have some Taiwanese and Korean style snacks too.” Haruko was looking through the desserts menu when her eyes went really big. “AH! Fresh Taiwanese taro cakes! I’m having that. I’m so having that. It’ll go great with a nice cup of hot Oolong.”

“I completely agree. But I think I’m gonna go with something a little more traditional Japanese.” You were very impressed with the different kinds of green tea that they carried. “These people are quite serious about their café and tea house side of the business. Why even bother with the dogs?”

“Not much a dog person?” Jaebum was suddenly at your table again, a big smile on his cute lips.

You both looked up a bit startled which made Haruko chuckle. “Oh no I love dogs. The fact that you guys also have an awesome selection is just the smooth taro crème in the flaky cake.”

“Wow, that’s a good one.” Jaebum laughed at her little pun. “I’ve never heard that one before. Is that what you would like to order?” Haruko nodded at him and also ordered a pot of Oolong tea. He jotted down her order then turned to you. “How about you?”

“Oh, I’m actually more of a cat person.”

Jaebum chuckled again. “I’ll be honest. I really like dogs” he leaned a bit closer to you and whispered “but personally I’m also more of a cat person.” He came back to full height with his smile still in place. “I have a cat at home. Her name is Nora. She’s a sneaky little ball of fur but I love her.” Your eyes lit up and you clapped your hands mutely at his confession. You loved cats and guys who loved cats where totally your type. “Anyway, what I actually meant was ‘what would you like to order’.”

Haruko started laughing loudly again as you realized your slip-up and your face started heating up. “Oh, yes! Of course!” You quickly looked down at the page of the menu you had left open just so you could hide your pink-ish face. Jaebum was trying not laugh out loud. He was actually starting to feel guilty for embarrassing you. “I’ll have the pot of Matcha infused Sencha and the adzuki roll cake.” You said almost lamely but you finally looked up and smiled at him.

“All right, I can appreciate someone with classical tastes.” Jaebum took one set of the menus. “I’ll be back with your orders very shortly. Make yourselves at home.”

Once Jaebum disappeared through the kitchen doors you dropped your face onto the table as your friend started laughing again. “Why must I make a fool out of myself in front of every cute guy I meet?”

“There, there.” Haruko petted your hair. “I think he was kind of flirting with you, actually.”

“No way! Not even for a minute.” You brought your face back up, breathing in and willing your face to stop feeling so hot.

“Well, why don’t we go play with some of the dogs so you can forget all about your oh so tragic moment of failure.”

“Yah! Please stop!”

You both left the table and made your way to the center of the room to roll around with the cute pups.

******

“AH!” Jaebum grabbed his hair as he melted against the wall. “I’m so stupid.” Just after he had taken the girl’s orders he had made his way to the kitchen and began berating himself over what happened. He had clearly embarrassed the girl which had been far from his intention.

“Woah. Buddy, what’s up.” The café’s owner and pastry chef was just coming out of the pantry when he heard Jaebum’s usual shouts of frustration. He knew the guy was kicking himself over something silly.

“Jin-hyung…” His hands were now dragging down this face in an attempt to get over his own embarrassment.

“Let me guess. You made a fool of yourself in front of a cute girl.”

“No, worse. I kind of made a fool of her.”

Seokjin cringed at that. “Man, what’d you do? Is this going to affect business?”

“AH!!” He covered his face again, actually banging his head against the wall. “I don’t think so but damn it. She might not come back.”

The pastry chef rolled his eyes. “Come on man! You can’t be like this!” He gave Jaebum a loud clap to his shoulder that had him hit his head again. “Tell me what happened?” Jaebum proceeded to explain the situation exactly as it happened and the more Seokjin heard the more he laughed.

“Why are you laughing hyung?! I’m suffering here!” Jaebum was at the verge of melting down to the floor, as he usually did when he was overwhelmingly frustrated.

Seokjin shook his head. “What did they order?” He took the order pad from Jaebum. “Table five?” the server simply nodded his head and pointed to the correct part of the order. “Ok! Your very handsome hyung has come up with a solution. Follow me.”

******

You were both playing around with a brown poodle that seemed to have taken a liking to you. You kept trying to make the dog stop licking your feet. “Did I step on some food or something?” You looked under your shoe but saw nothing there. The poodle proceeded to start licking your hand instead. “Oh come on! No, no, no, I need that hand not to be full of doggy germs so that I can eat peacefully.”

“Ladies, your tea and cakes.” Jaebum started placing the items on the table as you came back to your seats. He also placed hand sanitizer and a pair of hot towels on each side. “Your taro cake.” He said as he set down the purple confection in front of Haruko. “And, here’s your adzuki roll cake.”

You looked down at your cake and gasped. “This is so cute!” The maroon cake had been decorated with a pair of whipped cream cat ears and whiskers. There were two dollops of adzuki bean paste as eyes and one as its nose.

“A special treat from me. I apologize if I made you feel uncomfortable earlier.” Jaebum bowed with the empty tray pulled to his chest.

“Oh, gosh. Thank you. That’s very sweet of you. I guess I should apologize too. You know, for being such a social klutz.” You chuckled and bowed from the waist. “The cat is pretty on point by the way.” You commented in an amused tone.

“Well, I am an authority on cats around here.” Jaebum gave the room full of dogs and dog lovers a suspicious look which made both girls laugh. “Please enjoy and let me know I you need anything else.”

Haruko looked at you with huge eyes, her lips in a big ‘O’ shape. “Oh my god!! (Y/N)!” She swatted at your arm several times. “Girl, get it! He’s totally flirting!!”

You were completely red by now and you couldn’t stop the big stupid grin spreading on your face. You looked down at your cat roll cake and couldn’t help the feeling that you shouldn’t eat it. It was too adorable. Finally you decided that a picture would last longer so you did the modern thing and instagramed it.

As it turned out the confections were delicious and quite true to their cultural origins. The adzuki crème was very smooth and fluffy and there were deliciously fresh pieces of the actual adzuki bean in it. As far as you were concerned this place would be getting all five stars from you. If Snickers the poodle would stop licking at your shoe that is. “Could you not?” You said down at the brown dog who just sat at your feet.

“Wasn’t that delicious (Y/N)?” Haruko finished off her cake which had been wonderfully flaky and still warm from the oven, just as she loved it.

“Absolutely. I could give this place another try.”

“Want to stay another hour and ogle at the Prince of Cats?”

You rolled your eyes but eventually gave in as you knew your friend wanted to spend some time with the dogs. Just because you were a bitter cat person didn’t mean you could take away from your dog-person friend’s enjoyment of the café. Plus, there was Jaebum walking around the place. He would sometimes stop to take care of one of the pets or answer questions from the other guests. But what you kept noticing most were his constant stares in the direction of your table. He would always smile when he would happen to catch you staring back. He was such an incredibly good looking guy and you just couldn’t help it. He was your type of guy from head to toes right down to his bright, wide set of teeth, the sharpness of his nose, the strength of his forehead, his long, long legs, his-

 “(Y/N)!”

 You jumped right out of your reverie when you heard your name being yelled.

“What?” Your friend was now staring at you as if she were staring at a misbehaving child. “What?!”

“Do you want to order anything else? We should get going soon.”

When you looked down at your wrist watch you noticed that another thirty minutes had already flown by. “I guess I should get one more cup of tea. If their green tea was that good I can’t imagine what their jasmine must be like.”

*****

Just behind the counter Jackson, the tea sommelier, smiled at himself as he prepared a new batch of iced barley tea. The best part of his job was listening to their client’s chatter especially when they were complimenting his creations. He put a lot of effort on his craft and on choosing only the best quality of tea for their shop. He could tell that the girls on table 5 were his type of people, the type that could appreciate a good cup of high grade tea and the best pastry to go with it. That’s why he was pleased that Jaebum had come up with a good way to bridge the awkwardness with their semi-unwilling client. He had been busy behind the counter taking inventory of all their tea when he saw the silly scene unfolding and he really thought this woman would never come back after that. There are few things that keep women away from establishments more than feeling embarrassed in front of an employee, especially when she was making googly eyes at said employee. Things seemed to be better now and the girls decided to stay for another hour, which surprised him.

Jaebum was coming over with the new order from table 5 and as soon as he got there Jackson pinched the server on his side. “Eeeeeeeeey, I see what’s happening here.”

“What? What are you talking about?” Jaebum feigned innocence but he knew Jackson very well. They were friends outside of the café so he knew that the man, despite his loud and seemingly obnoxious behavior, was a very keen observer.

“Don’t play games with me JB. Was the cat roll cake Jin-hyung’s idea?”

“Hell no! He suggested I put rose petals in her tea and write her a poem in chocolate over the roll cake.” Both men chuckled at their strange hyung because of course he would come up with such ludicrous ideas. “Wendy overheard the whole thing and gave me the suggestion.”

“Aaaah, now that makes a lot more sense.” Jackson finished setting up the iced barely tea dispenser then turned to look at the new tea orders. “Awesome. These girls have good taste man. I need them to come back. I want them as regulars, do you understand me JB?” The server nodded his head but seemed a little creeped out by his friend’s insistence. “You don’t get it. Most people come here because they love dogs, which is perfectly acceptable given the fact that this is a freaking dog café. BUT, but, rarely do we get the ones that come back strictly for the awesome things we cook here. So you go out there and you charm those ladies. Here.” He looked under the counter and came back with two small thank you cards. “You write one for your cat lady and I write one for the Japanese angel. Copy?”

Jaebum took the thank you card and nodded. “Oooook. What should I write?”

Jackson gave his friend a tall eyebrow. “Oh I don’t know. Maybe something along the lines of ‘you like cats, I like cats, let’s fuck.’”

“Yah!”

“OH! OH! I have a good one! How about… ‘here’s my address if you want to come visit Nora sometime.’” Jackson patted himself in the back. “Damn, I’m good at this.”

Jaebum rolled his eyes. “Stick to your day job man.” He took the card anyway then pointed at the order he had set down. “Can you please get to your job now? I have tables to serve.”

“Sheesh, here I am trying to get you some kitty-cat loving and this is how you treat me?”

“Jackson, the tea, our valued customers are waiting for it.” And with that he went out onto the floor again.

*****

“Thank you, ladies. We really appreciate you coming to Wan Wan Café today. So how was your first experience at a dog café?” Once the two girls from table five were getting ready to pay their final bill, Jackson decided to come out and deliver his thank you card personally.

“Oh, it was actually pretty fun. But I have a question.” You said to him with a mild smile that then turned into a serious expression.

“Yes m’am?”

“Does Snickers have a foot fetish or something? She would not stop licking my shoes.” You asked in all honesty and you heard Haruko exhaling loudly at her friend’s inability to let the cute poodle live.

Jackson burst out laughing and looked over his shoulder at the dog. “You know, I’ve been asking myself the same thing ever since the boss brought her in. She’s a sweetheart though.” He then turned to Haruko with a big smile and gave her the thank you card with both hands as he bowed at the waist at an almost ninety degree angle. “I noticed you’re a very avid tea lover. I’m a tea sommelier and I consider myself to be a pretty good judge of character. I believe you and I are kindred souls.” He paused dramatically then bowed again. “When it comes to tea, of course.”

Haruko looked very surprise but bowed to him as well. “Thank you. That’s a sweet gesture. And we really did enjoy your incredible tea. We will for sure be back soon.”

Then you added, “Our compliments to the pastry chef too. The cakes were simply perfection. Oh and to our kind server as well.”

“Thank you very much.” Jackson bowed at you as well. “Have a great day ladies.”

Jackson made his way back behind the counter then you and Haruko started giggling with each other as you stood up to leave. “Does this place double as an ikemen café or what?” You said as you grabbed the scarf you had draped over the back of the chair and took your purse. “Is this why you brought me here? You knew this all along didn’t you?”

“I had absolutely no idea (Y/N)-chan. But it all turned out pretty well.” You both made your way to the exit, going through the iron gate again to pay your final bill at the main counter. The same young woman with the bob cut rang you up and you were almost at the door when you suddenly hear a loud “Wait!” You both turned at the door and saw none other than Jaebum walking out of the main area in a hurry.

“I’m sorry, I almost forgot this.” Jaebum was holding a thank you card in one hand while he pulled back his hoodie’s sleeve with the opposite hand. “Thank you for being so understanding today and I’m glad you both stopped by.” He extended his hand toward you with a sheepish smile. “I hope someday I could introduce you to my cat.”

You took the card from him with a smile you couldn’t hold back. It almost felt like your face would split in two. “Thank you. That would be lovely.”

“Awesome.” He wiped his slightly clammy hands on the edge of his hoodie and when he noticed the silence was getting awkward he waved and chuckled. “Have a great day. I hope to see you again soon.”

******

As soon as you were out the door you both started laughing. What an adventure that had been. “Oh my god! And that tea sommelier, holy shit!” Haruko fanned her face with both her hands, one of which was still holding the thank you card from Jackson. As you walked toward her car you urged her to open the card and read it which she did. “Ok, ok. Listen. Dear and beloved guest. It has been an honor listening to your delicate voice as you enjoyed the things we have made for you with dedication today. Judging by your great taste and worldly comments I would say you’re a woman who enjoys the finer things in life and knows exactly what she wants. I can only hope that one of those things you desire is a date with me. With much admiration, Jackson Wang.”

“WAAAAHH!!” You both shrieked at the same time then you shook Haruko exorbitantly by her arm. “Get it girl! Did he leave his contact info?”

Haruko only nodded as she fanned her face again with both hands. It took her a moment to gain back her composure and to stop smiling long enough to breath. “Read yours!!”

You looked at the cute little thank you card with a bit of trepidation. What if it wasn’t as cute or inviting? What if it was a sore disappointment and you had read the situation all wrong? “Ok.” You took a deep breath and opened it. There was a single line on the card followed by a kakao ID. As soon as you read the one liner you started laughing out loud. Haruko was looking at you with big eyes urging you to read it out loud. “It says, ‘Hey, I left my kakao ID in case you ever want to meet my cat, Nora.’ And he made an adorable drawing of his cat.”

[drsilverwoman]

Yoga Story

2012

           A little after seven, Serena climbed out of bed, put on her robe to cover her naked body, and signaled to the dogs it was time to go out. On the way out of the bedroom she kissed Alice, who was still very much asleep. With Lola and Pepe in the back yard running around, Serena began to boil some water for tea. Standing with the robe tied loosely around her waist, Serena stared through the kitchen window watching the dogs play and waiting for the kettle to whistle.

           Serena never slept late anymore these days, the stress of school was the initial reason for such an early awakening, however, after months of morning restlessness she finally gave in and used the time for herself. In fact, this quiet part of the morning had recently become her favorite time of day; before Alice woke up and before the Florida sun grew too strong, Serena discovered she liked this time to herself. Staring out the window she began to think about last night, dinner at their friends’ house was delicious and after an evening of watching two moms negotiate life with kids and dogs, Serena and Alice came home and fucked like they hadn’t in months. It was a perfect mix of wine and children to make them appreciate what they had with each other. Serena felt a soreness between her legs as she moved towards the screaming kettle, it had been a while since she was sore from sex. She was raw and she liked it.  

           Lola’s scratching at the door broke her sex trance and she began her morning routine – feeding the dogs, doing the dishes, fixing up the living room, and checking her email. Sundays always had the least emails and for this she was appreciative. Sitting in the office sipping on her second cup of tea Serena began to think about the yoga class she wanted to teach that morning. Earlier in the week a new class had brought new ideas to her practice and she was excited to share them with her Sunday morning class. This class has caused a fight between she and Alice when the gym offered her the time slot. Serena knew Sunday was their one day off together but at this stage in her teaching, she was hesitant to pass up any classes. Besides, something about yoga on Sunday seemed right to her and the women at the gym were so appreciative of her teaching. The class was also beginning to get her some private classes and gave her free access to the gym during the week. Still, every Sunday she saw the disappointment in Alice’s eyes and she left their house and more so, noted the frustration whenever brunch plans had to be pushed back till after noon.

           With the class mentally planned in her head, Serena allowed her mind to wander again to last night. A thanksgiving dinner in March had been an unexpected treat as was the last minute inclusion of two other teachers from the yoga studio where Serena taught. Initially, Alice was annoyed by hippy heteros and the suddenness of it all, but after a few glasses of wine she was able to ignore the yoga chatter and seeing Serena relaxed and happy was enough to consider any night a good one.

Walking home from dinner, their arms were linked, and the two women were both smiling. Alice stopped in the middle of the street and kissed Serena, “it is good to see you happy. You haven’t laughed so much in a while. When you smile…I miss your smile.” They kissed again, this time longer. And deeper. Serena pushed her body against Alice and allowed herself to be there in that space, totally absorbed by the woman she loved. The remainder of the walk home was a blur, each of them anticipating the feel of the other’s body. In bed, they first moved quick. Excited and anxious to cum they fucked each other at the same time. Using the rhythm of their bodies and strength of their arms the two rocked and pushed and kissed until they climaxed together. Three years together had gotten the timing right. Still upright and still inside each other their eyes met and they smiled. Reluctantly untying themselves, Serena lowered onto her back as Alice remained seated. Looking down at her body made Alice even wetter, Serena was gorgeous. Curly auburn hair, full lips, small breasts, a flat stomach, and a huge ass; the difference between the size of her waist and her hips always amazed Alice and she couldn’t help but reach down and grab the flesh on Serena’s thighs.

“Mmmmm. I love that ass,” she growled and Serena blushed. No matter how many times she heard Alice say it, years of teasing still made her shy about her body. Turning her head to the side, partly for show and partly because of embarrassment, Serena tried to hide her smile. Alice gently took her cheek to turn her face back and leaned down to kiss her. Their kiss quickly grew deeper and the pulsing between each of their legs grew. Alice spread Serena’s legs wider and slid in between them. With one foot resting on her shoulder and the other leg used for grip and support, Alice began to move. The feel of Serena’s clit against her own made Alice moan. She came quick and hard. Then she began to fuck Serena, who was wet and aching for it. First she entered with two fingers and then three; as the third orgasm closed tightly around Alice’s hand Serena moaned, “put your whole hand in.” With that, Alice began to slowly maneuver her fingers inside. Finally, that moment came when Serena’s body opened up enough and all that was left to be seen was Alice’s wrist. Serena reached down and slowly began to rub her own clit, the slightest movements caused her entire body to quiver. The sight of this caused Alice to reach for her own clit and the two women worked their bodies until each climaxed.

“Baaaaaby!” Alice called from the other room, bringing Serena back to her desk and her tea that had grown cold. As she began to move towards the bedroom, Serena noticed how wet she had become. She pulled the covers back, opened her robe, and climbed in alongside a sleepy Alice. Her naked body was warm and Serena pushed herself against Alice as she pulled Alice’s hand down toward her wet inner thighs. Alice immediately responded, “gentle” Serena pleaded, “I’m sore.” One finger was all Alice needed; she came almost immediately. “Stay inside me.”

For a few minutes Serena fell back asleep until Alice gently woke her, “Don’t you need to get dressed babe? Want me to make some breakfast before you go?”

“Mmmmm… I don’t want to go anywhere.”

“I told you not to teach this stupid class.”

And with that Serena was awake and her defenses back up and her heart sank. She wondered how she could go from feeling so loved to angry and resentful. Immediately her body shifted inwards and she moved to get out of bed.

“Awww, come on. I was just kidding.”

“Its fine. I need to get dressed.”

“Serena?”

“What.”

“Baby, I’m sorry. It was stupid to say that”

“I said its fine” and with that Rea climbed out of bed. She walked over to her dresser and grabbed a shirt.

“Serena. Don’t be mad baby. Come on, last night was so nice can’t you just let it go?”

After what felt like months of fighting, Serena could not let it go. Her eyes began to well with tears and she felt like if she didn’t keep getting ready she would collapse. She turned her back to Alice and pulled out a pair of pants. Her favorite black ones, low waisted and wide legged with a simple lotus flower on lower right leg. A grey built in bra tank went nicely with the light colors in the flower and looking in the mirror she began to feel better. The intensity of teacher training had done wonders on her body and she loved the way her clothes were fitting these days.

“Can I make you some breakfast?” Alice asked; more like pleaded in hopes of turning the morning back around. “No thanks. I’m just going to have some fruit.” Alice knew that any hopes of things being okay for the rest of the morning were over. Frustrated she got out of bed, threw on her sweatpants and a t-shirt over her short black hair and went into the kitchen. Watching her walk away Serena felt bad and wanted to follow, wanted all of this to stop, wanted to not be angry and hurt so much of the time. She stood there. She turned back towards the mirror, wiped the tears from her eyes and pinned her curls in place.

                                   *          *          *

“Good morning everyone and happy Sunday” Serena greeted her class. “I thought today we would try something new, how is everyone feeling today?” The gym’s studio was always cold and dark. Forced to pick between bright neon lights and none at all she chose the later. Pleased with how the first few songs on her new yoga mix were sounding she began to bring the class to life. Ten minutes in, as the women were getting warm enough to shed their outer layers, Camille walked in. She was always late to class and always gave Serena the same sly grin as she unabashedly placed her mat in the front of the room.

Serena and Camille knew each other from school. The women’s studies department was small and even though the women were years apart in their graduate work, crossing paths was unavoidable. For a moment, Serena lost where she was in the flow. Camille noticed the distracted sound in Serena’s voice and took it as a sign she might one day have a chance. The two women had met in class years before, Serena’s last semester of course work and Camille’s Second semester of graduate school. At the time Serena was single and although Camille was with a woman who she claimed to love, she flirted shamelessly with Serena every chance she got. Serena loved the attention. Especially from such a beautiful woman; Camille had dark brown skin and long red dread locks. A few shells woven in the plaits gave her an earthy look Serena loved. Camille’s style also intrigued Serena, mostly jeans and cool kicks but every so often a low cut shirt that allowed the top of her full breasts to be seen. Now, with her short tight curls, Serena still remembered the site of Camille cleavage underneath her more fixed boyish style. She was the only woman in class in baggy sweats, sometimes even hanging off her ass a bit. Serena knew Camille’s work on black feminist thought and also knew her low hanging pants were a sign of resistance at the lily-white gym near campus.

“Lets take one last breath together. Inhale. Exhale. Thank you all for coming and have a wonderful week, Namaste.” Serena smiled, she loved what she did and how people felt after being with her for an hour. Her voice was low and smooth, and somewhere along the way she had picked up a drawl of sorts. Part Canadian and part Utahan Serena’s Philly roots could still be heard in the way she pronounced her As and Os. Friends loved to tease her for the way she spoke, especially the voicemails she left. It worked well in yoga. What was once described as “monotone and sounding like she is on drugs” from a student evaluation at school, seemed appropriately soothing in the yoga studio.

Rolling up her mat, she could feel Camille’s eyes on her. Since their initial meeting years before, Rachel had met Alice and moved into a house with her and gotten a dog. Typical lesbians. At least they waited a year until the move and another six months before the dog. Camille on the other hand fell in and out of love every six months or so. She had a tattoo at the nape of her neck from one affair and managed to avoid a full-on cheating fall-out when her last girlfriend moved to Argentina. In between lovers she would vow to never fall so quickly again and delve into her work. She would also resume her flirtation with Serena. Still angry that she had been too involved with Trina to really notice Serena when she was single, Camille shamelessly flirted any chance she had. And yoga class was no exception – in fact, it was one of her main reasons for going.

Unfortunately, after class Serena was bombarded with women asking for tips and suggestions, wondering about private classes, and complimenting her style. After a few minutes Camille gave up on waiting, called out a goodbye, and left. Serena felt somewhat relieved. Her attraction to Camille was undeniable and being around her always gave her butterflies. She was relieved to see her leave and happy to hand out some business cards to a new group of ladies. After everyone trickled out of the room Serena was faced with the reality of going home and wasn’t quite ready. She put on her sneakers and went to the treadmill to run. A few miles later she felt better. Her head was clearer and the wine from last night had been sweat out. Still unready to go home, she decided to go into the steam room.

As the smell of camphor rushed through her sinuses and the steam surrounded her, Serena made her way towards the back of the room. The towels the gym offered barely covered her, especially around her hips. The hot room felt good and the longer she sat there the more relaxed she became. Her mind began to drift again to last night and her anger towards Alice began to subside. Something needed to give. The months of irregular sex and bickering were wearing thin. Last night had been great and gave Serena some hope, it reminded her of the way they used to be and she wanted to get back there. Sitting in the hot room she promised herself to stop angering so easily and start letting things go. Practice what you preach she said to herself, no more future, no more past, just here and now. Feeling like the run and the steam had done their job, Serena began to get up when the door opened and Camille walked in. “Well hello there” she said as she swaggered through the door, “going so quickly?”

Serena’s heart began to race and she was glad the thick mist hid the blood rushing to her face. Camille sat down close enough to Serena so that their thighs were touching. She leaned back and spread both arms wide, placing one just a few inches behind Serena’s neck and shoulders. “Great class. You are an amazing teacher,” Camille cooed. Flattery will get you everywhere Serena thought. She knew she should leave but was enjoying the compliments. “How’s Alice?” Camille offered with a bit of sarcasm. “Everything alright between the two of you?”

This made Serena shift a bit. Never a good liar and she nodded and mumbled fine. The shift in Serena’s body prompted a move in Camille’s and she pushed her thigh a bit closer. Serena looked down at heir legs touching and Camille followed her gaze, “the towels are small,” she commented. “Barely fit around that ass, huh?” Serena was silent. “Mmmm. What I would do to that ass,” Camille continued.

“I have a girlfriend,” Serena offered weakly.

“I know. I’m just sayin’ is all. You know, in case things don’t work out between you two.” I wish they were working better Serena thought. Damn, Camille is hot and the feel of their skin touching was making Serena nervous. Camille seemed to get off on Serena’s discomfort and brought her hand towards Serena’s neck. The subtle movement sent chills down Serena’s body and her nipples grew hard. Camille saw this effect through the towels and took it as a sign. She quickly grabbed the back of Serena’s hair, “if you were mine I’d get you on your knees and fuck you from behind. The ass shaking in the air, damn girl!” And then let go.  

Equally shocked and aroused Serena said nothing. She crossed her legs as she felt her clit begin to swell. Camille chuckled. “Okay. That’s enough. We are friends and I have a girlfriend.” “You keep saying that,” Camille teased “but you seem to like me being so close and all.” Serena turned to face her, trying to think of something witty to stop anything more from happening and not seem like a bitch, however, before anything would come out of her mouth Camille kissed her.

Hard.

Camille’s full lips pushed Serena’s mouth open and her hand still at the back of Serena’s head put just enough pressure on her so that she couldn’t move. The kiss probably only lasted a few seconds before Serena pulled away. Shocked and already light headed from the heat, the run and no real food in her belly, her attempt to stand up was unsuccessful. She got up again and staggered towards the door. Cool air hit her face when she opened it and the bright lights of the locker room jolted her back to reality. Getting dressed and into the car her head was racing. She was not a cheater. She did not need this. Fuck. Alice already disliked Camille, for obvious reasons and now this. Shit. Shit shit shit.

                                   *          *          *

When Serena’s car pulled into the driveway she didn’t have any more idea of what to do or say then when she pulled out of the gym. Unlocking the front door she felt a pang of guilt. “Baby is that you?” Alice called from the kitchen, “Where have you been? I picked us up some bagels and coffee from down the street; whole wheat everything ones, your fav. Come eat, you must be starving.”

“I am.”                                                      

“I’m sorry about this morning. Can we just forget this and start today over? Please?” Alice stepped forward to hug Serena who almost collapsed into her arms.

“Yes. Let’s forget this morning.”