#HOW LONG DID THIS TAKE YOU | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

maehemthemisfit · 2 years ago

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WORDS CAN N O T EXPRESS HOW MUCH JOY THIS GAVE ME AND HOW BEAUTIFULLY CRAFTED THIS PIECE OF GOLD IS LIKE- JTMFRD,IMRUTF GOD I LOVE YOU SO MUCH WHHAYRH

allow me to once again to simp over your writing, ahem

HOW LONG DID IT TAKE YOU TO COOK THIS ENTIRE MEAL?? BEVERAGE, SIDE DISH, MAIN COURSE- ALL THE WAY TO DESERT IM LITERALLY DROOLING JUST BY THE WAY YOU DESCRIBED HIM

"the first thing you notice is his eyes - a vivid violet ocean encapsulated in his irises as he glares down at your hunched form. there’s a small amount of bright red eyeliner smudged under his waterline in a tiny wing that perfectly compliments his complexion and distracts you so much that you almost don’t see the two black rings in his bottom lip, to which your stomach does a little flip upon noticing. cropped indigo hair frames his face delicately, a sharp contrast against his ivory skin that looks soft and unblemished from where you’re crouching."

JUST OH YMRMR FJE, LIKE HOW DO YOU DO THIS?? BEST SELLER MATERIAL???? Love the lip rings btw

“what, like divorced parents? isn’t that always rough on the kids?” he counters and shakes his head. “she deserves better so just let me handle it.”

"kuni acts like it’s the biggest inconvenience ever when you turn up at his door every time after that..."

"you tell him about your day even if he insists he doesn’t care..."

OKAY these bits literally made me crack up. I had to PAUSE and just laugh because idk it was just so funny and it fit amazingly well with his character. I love how reader and kuni agreed to a week and they just came everyday from then on, its just so adorable

AND THEN YOU MADE THE CAT GO BACK HOMEJDNTGUFDM AND THEN HE INVITED THEM TO EAT- in the most scara way ever might I add, he really would be directly indirect with his intentions

I REALLY DIDNT WANT THIS TO END BC IT WAS SO GOOD BUT I JUST WANNA TO SAY I REALLY LOVED THIS

lost and found

wanderer x gn!reader

genre: fluff, modern!au

warnings: none

word count: 4444

✧.* when a lost cat drags in your very snarky and attractive apartment neighbor, you end up with a bit more than you bargained for.

for the modern au writing event at @yae-publishing-house

it’s nearly the middle of the night when you see her for the first time - a little white cat huddled up by the staircase of your apartment building. your feet are aching from running around all day and your knees are on the brink of giving out from exhaustion, but you don’t even hesitate to approach her and crouch down to get closer the moment you take notice.

she chirps in surprise and stands up to greet you right away, brushing her cold pink nose against your hand and dragging her body against you affectionately with her tail twitching happily in the air.

“aww, sweet girl,” you whisper in a soft voice while scratching lightly around her ears. “aren’t you cold out here?”

the cat of course does not understand this, but she still meows once you finish talking before bumping her head against your hand in response. her fur is lightly covered in dirt and dust from being outdoors and she isn’t wearing a collar which would normally indicate a stray, but she’s so friendly that you can’t help but gnaw your lip in worry.

it’s not abnormal to see homeless cats in the area, and all of which are well taken care of by the people in the neighborhood, but what if she’s somebody’s lost pet? what if she hasn’t eaten in days and nobody has seen or fed her?

these thoughts are what have you ignoring the pain in your legs and jogging to the convenience store a few blocks away to pick up some cans of wet food. thanks to it being ridiculously late on a tuesday night the building is entirely empty aside from the cashier, so in record time you’re able to secure the goods and return to the little white cat that’s still waiting patiently under the concrete steps where you left her.

as soon as the lid is off the can she’s circling around your feet and meowing so you’re quick to set it down and let her at it. just as you had feared, she scarfs it down in under a minute before turning to you with her big green eyes like she’s asking for more. she probably hadn’t eaten for a while, and your chest flutters with anxiety about what to do in this situation.

animals aren’t allowed in this complex, so if she’s a pet she’s likely from the neighborhood nearby and ended up here after escaping her house. surely they have some sort of community group where everyone in the area can report things like porch thefts and lost animals, so you take your phone out to snap a few pictures of her while she continues to lazily brush against your legs.

“i’m sorry i can’t bring you inside,” you say to her sadly, slipping off your jacket to fold up and place under the steps for her to lay on. “i’ll make sure people know you’re missing, so stay here okay? i’ll bring you food again tomorrow.”

she once again meows very politely when you finish, and it takes everything in you to start walking up the stairs to your door and leave her behind knowing she’s stuck out here in the cold all night. when you finally get inside and kick your shoes off the first thing you do is download a neighborhood forum app and make a missing animal report, and it’s only seconds after that when you flop down on your bed and are out like a light.

the next morning, she isn’t there.

your jacket is still where you left it and covered in white fur from her laying on it, but the cat herself is nowhere to be found. you still leave an open can of food for her anyways, but the rest of the day while you’re out all you can think about is whether or not she’s safe and if you’ll ever see her again.

nobody has responded to the report you made last night yet, not even a single like left on the post despite the page having gotten multiple views, and you’re tempted to post in a few other neighborhoods nearby by decide to hold off and see if she comes back before jumping the gun.

later that night when you finally return, she’s curled up on your jacket under the stairs again. a tidal wave of relief rushes through you as you reach into your bag to pull out a can of food and peel the lid off.

alerted by the sound, the little white cats’ head shoots up and she’s already padding her way over to you before her eyes have even fully focused on the source of the noise. when she realizes it’s you, a series of delighted trills leave her throat and it takes everything in you not to scoop her up into your arms and baby her.

you sit with her for a bit longer after she finishes eating before bidding her goodnight and reminding her to stay put until tomorrow.

it’s only minutes after you’ve fled the scene that someone else who had also taken up the task of looking out for this cat for the time being approaches the stairs and clicks their tongue in annoyance at the sight of an empty can of food.

when tomorrow comes around, if she’s still there and nobody has responded to your post, you make an oath to yourself that you’ll sneak her inside and risk the consequences of doing so. it’s certainly more trouble than it’s worth, but you can’t sleep knowing she’s out there all by herself and the fleeting thought of her being taken by someone else and stuck in a shelter fills you with dread throughout the night.

she’s not there in the morning again, but you still leave an open can out for her like yesterday and have a little more confidence this time that she’ll still be waiting under the stairs when the day is over.

as expected, the sight that greets you as the moon hangs high in the sky when you finally reach the entrance to your complex is a sound asleep bundle of white fur on a jacket.

tonight is the night that you’ll take her up to your apartment and look after her, but you decide to let her eat first while you think up a backup plan in case picking her up and carrying her won’t work. a small smile sits on your face as you kneel next to her and watch her eat, lazily scratching up and down her back while she purrs between each bite.

“so you’re the one who’s been feeding my cat.” a male’s voice rings out from somewhere behind you.

you jump at the sound and snap your head around to face the source, the white feline slipping away from your hand to slink over to the person who spoke and meow at his feet expectantly. about ten feet away, with his arms crossed over his chest, stands the most attractive guy you have ever seen in your life.

the first thing you notice is his eyes - a vivid violet ocean encapsulated in his irises as he glares down at your hunched form. there’s a small amount of bright red eyeliner smudged under his waterline in a tiny wing that perfectly compliments his complexion and distracts you so much that you almost don’t see the two black rings in his bottom lip, to which your stomach does a little flip upon noticing. cropped indigo hair frames his face delicately, a sharp contrast against his ivory skin that looks soft and unblemished from where you’re crouching.

when you finally recover from how unfairly gorgeous he is and process his words, your brows crease together in a frown.

“your cat?” you can only watch helplessly as the white feline stretches up on her back legs and balances herself against his shins until he reaches down and scoops her up.

“yeah, obviously.” his tone is sarcastic as he gestures to the animal in his arms with a nod.

“then why does your cat live outside?” when you finally push yourself to your feet you realize he’s no taller than you are, standing at perfect eye level as you regard him with a suspicious look.

what kind of terrible person leaves their pet outside? it’s clear to you that he’s bullshitting and the cat isn’t really his, but if he’s so keen on being a jerk about it then he can have the same energy in return.

he purses his lips (curse those metal rings glinting under the fluorescent stair lights) and tilts his head back in a mocking manner. “she’s mine because she likes me the most.”

we’ll see about that.

“c’mere kitty, pspspsps.” at the sound of your voice the cat squirms out of his hold and pads over to you with a series of sweet little meows. the smug look you send him as you lean down to scratch her ears has his jaw visibly clenching with irritation.

“also, what’s so wrong with me feeding your cat?” you continue. “shouldn’t you be grateful?”

“grateful? she’s going to end up fat if we both feed her.” the man huffs.

“okay? so then stop feeding her.”

“no,” he retorts. “you stop feeding her. i was doing it first.”

“well that’s a shame. what do you want me to do about it? shall we take turns?” your tone is heavily sarcastic as you suggest this, and you’re positive that if looks could kill you’d be six feet under by now.

“what, like divorced parents? isn’t that always rough on the kids?” he counters and shakes his head. “she deserves better so just let me handle it.”

you look him up and down suspiciously, trying your best to ignore how hot he is. “why should i? i don’t know you.”

“are you-“ he releases an aggrieved sigh and pinches the bridge of his nose in exasperation. “fine, then let her choose.”

the cat, who’s sitting patiently watching you both exchange heated remarks, doesn't move a muscle. thirty tense seconds pass while she just looks between you and him with mild confusion, her tail flicking softly behind her until she gets bored and slinks off to go curl up on your discarded jacket, leaving the two of you standing in defeat.

“just let me take her inside.” you sigh, too tired to keep this up.

the man looks at you like you’ve grown a second head. “inside? are you crazy? we aren’t allowed to have pets.”

“okay, and?” you shrug. “you’re telling me that wasn’t also your plan?”

his eyes close and he seems to be contemplating something for a few seconds before speaking up again.

“one more night.”

“what?”

“one more night and if she chooses you tomorrow, i won’t argue.” he explains carefully, red lined violet eyes watching you closely. “but if she picks me, i’m taking her instead.”

reluctant to agree but unwilling to back down, you give a short nod and the deal is set. you both turn away at the same time without another word.

the next day, as the two of you meet under the stairwell at the same time and the tiny white cat beelines past you towards the man who wears a grin so smug it has your hands clenching into fists in irritation.

“have you even had a cat before?” you begin interrogating him, failing at trying not to be jealous over the whole thing. “do you even have everything you need? do you have electrical wires hidden and things she could eat and choke on picked up?”

he looks like he wants to argue, but instead shuts his mouth in a thin line and turns his head the other way, bangs falling into his eyes with the action.

“…no.”

with a defeated groan you drop your head into your hands and heave a large sigh.“we’re going to the store then. you need a litter box so she needs to stay out here until you do.”

“wait- we’re going to the store?” he asks, clearly against the idea of you tagging along. “why can’t i-“

“c’mon.” he pauses when you turn on your heel to start walking the other way, leaving him momentarily perplexed while staring after your retreating form.

there’s a place open for another hour down the road that should have everything you need, and you’re determined to not let the cat sleep out in the for cold another night so even though you can’t stand this guy, you may as well do it for her.

after swearing under his breath the man speed walks to catch up to you. the walk there is completely silent and neither of you acknowledges each other once, but once you walk through the sliding doors into the building you look over at him and wait until he meets your eyes.

“i’ll grab the litter, you grab the food. it’s that way.” you say while pointing to the isle. without another word, you take off towards your destination and spend a few minutes checking prices on different brands.

it’s not long before the man returns to your side with a small bag in his hand and you realize a little too late that of course he would have no idea which kind of food to pick.

“put that back,” you tell him while grabbing a case of litter.

“what? why?” he asks sharply, looking slightly offended.

“that brand is bad for them.” you explain while following hin back to the food isle. he’s visibly vexed as he trails after you.

“if it’s bad for them then why would they sell it?” the man deadpans.

“good question. here, grab this one.”

silently, he takes the bag from you and you lead him down a few other isles to grab things like food and water dishes and a small pack of mouse toys with bells before taking everything to self checkout. he’s strangely quiet the entire time, just letting you do your thing after having no choice but to accept that he knows nothing on the matter, and you can’t help but find it a bit endearing.

when you scan the items, the man hovers behind you silently until you pull out your wallet to pay. he rudely shoves you aside with his shoulder and swipes his card before you can even begin to protest, but anything you were about to say dissipates into thin air and is replaced upon seeing the name on his card.

“kunikuzushi?” you ask with mild surprise, reading the letters out loud.

the man’s shoulder tense up at the sound of his name coming from your lips but he’s quick to recover and clicks his tongue.

“don’t call me that.” he grumbles, typing in his pin with a little more force than necessary. despite his irritation expression, there’s a hint of amusement in the way he speaks that makes you think he truly is just putting up an act.

you watch him for a few beats to figure out if he’s serious or not before humming and nodding like you’ve just come to a conclusion.

“kuni it is then.”

kuni snaps his head around to glare at you, but the pink flush that stains the tips of his ears and cheekbones gives him away. “don’t call me that either.”

you give him an innocent smile and reach around him to grab the receipt and bag before heading to the exit, not bothering to wait and see if he follows. as expected, his footsteps approach from behind.

“cant believe i’m stuck living in the same complex as you.” kuni hisses under his breath when he catches up. you find yourself staring at his lip rings for a moment before ripping your eyes away.

“speaking of that,” you start to say, completely ignoring his prior words. “how long have you lived there? why haven’t i seen you before?”

kuni looks like he’d rather not answer, huffing an exasperated sigh. “around five months now.”

he won’t tell you much, but you force a little more small talk out of him until the two of you finally arrive back at the complex and scoop up the cat to bring her inside. she doesn’t make a sound once on the way up, and you can’t help but thank her silently for keeping quiet since you’re definitely not supposed to be doing this.

when you step inside, kuni’s apartment is clean and organized and dark just as you had expected. the walls are almost completely bare save for a few band posters and the only things decorating the small living room are a black leather couch and a tv on a simple glass stand. it takes no time at all to set things up while the white cat sniffs around the house and takes in her new surroundings.

the litter box gets tucked into a corner of the bathroom, the food and water dishes set on a mat by the kitchen counter, and a few toys are laid out around the place where she can bat them around as she pleases.

“you have to let me come visit whenever i want.” you demand when you’re finally being shooed out of the front door by him.

“what? absolutely not.” kuni snaps, turning back to give you an offended look.

“you have to! wouldn’t she be sad if she never saw me again? divorced parents both still get to see the kids.” you insist with full seriousness.

kuni watches you quietly, absentmindedly moving his lip rings back and forth with his tongue before sighing in defeat.

“fine, whatever.” he concedes. you’re about to pump your fist in delight, but he stops you to finish. “you can visit once a month.”

“one a week.”

“no.” he argues.

“please.”

your begging seems to do the trick, because kuni’s shoulders quickly drop in defeat when you look up at him with pleading eyes. “are you serio- fine. once a week.” he grumbles. “just get out now, it’s late.”

and so, because you’re fairly certain he’ll let you get away with it, you start showing up every night to see her.

kuni acts like it’s the biggest inconvenience ever when you turn up at his door every time after that, but he never denies you entry, begrudgingly stepping aside and letting you coddle the little white cat that lives with him.

you tell him about your day even if he insists he doesn’t care, and still listens intently and tells you about his when you ask in return. you learn more about him this way. he won’t tell you exactly what his job is, only that he works from home and occasionally takes small trips to collect something from people. it’s vague and makes no sense to you, but you don’t pry more than that.

he’ll sit on the couch while you kneel on the floor and throw her toys around, watching you laugh and fawn over her until he eventually kicks you out.

you discover that he’s actually incredibly easy to get along with, nowhere near as cold and unapproachable as he looks at first sight. he’s attentive and clever and loves nothing more than to laugh at your expense, but you find that you don’t mind letting him if it means you get to see the frown slip off of his face, even if just for a moment.

this little routine continues for almost an entire month before one night, kuni shoves his phone in your face with a grim expression. after pushing it away a bit to actually be able to see the screen, your heart sinks into the pit of your stomach.

it’s a missing pet post, with images of the little white cat attached.

after reading a bit, the situation becomes clear. her family had gone on vacation and hired someone to watch her, but that person let her escape and never said a word about it. her family didn't find out until they returned to her being gone, and were now clearly frantically searching for her and hoping she was still alive.

“oh no,” you whisper sadly, looking towards the feline who’s happily curled up on the couch. when you meet kuni’s eyes, he almost looks a bit torn.

“i’m calling them tomorrow.” he informs you bluntly.

“wait, but-“ you start, trying to ignore the stinging burn of tears that threaten to fill your eyes. seeing the cat, seeing him, has become something to look forward to in the last month. the thought of seeing her go has a lump forming in your throat, bringing with it the selfish urge to keep her for yourself instead of doing the right thing and taking her back.

“her family needs her. she needs to go home.” kuni says in a way that shows he’s trying his best to be sympathetic.

even though he seems fine for the most part, there’s no way he isn’t going to miss her. he took the risk of letting her stay with him, and went out of his way to make sure she was comfortable and well taken care of.

“i know, you’re right. i just…” you trail off quietly, fingernails digging into your palms.

kuni meets your eyes, and a moment of silent understanding rushes between you like a heavy current.

“i know.”

the next day, she gets returned to her very relieved family. kuni takes care of it since you’re not home, and then a week passes by, as slow and miserable as ever. you have no reason to go over to kuni’s apartment anymore, so you haven’t spoken to him since, and every night you go straight to your own place and spend the evenings by yourself.

it’s impossible not to miss the sweet little cat, the pleasant trill of her meows and the softness of her sides rubbing against your legs.

but it’s even more impossible not to miss kuni. the way he always waited for you to stop talking before he answered, the way he would open and close the door for you even while telling you to get out of his hair, the sound of his stifled laughter when you would trip over a cat toy or mess up your words.

one night, when you come home late as per usual, kuni is sitting at the bottom of the stairs appearing bored out of his mind. you don’t even notice him at first, but when you do your whole body freezes in fear until you realize who it is.

“you scared me!” you accuse sharply, slightly irked by the unapologetic look on his face.

he’s as attractive as ever, his red lined eyes creased together in amusement as he watches you gather your bearings. it may just be a trick of the light, but kuni seems almost nervous as he stands up and approaches you.

“did you eat dinner?” he asks while shoving his hands into his sweatshirt pockets, shifting his weight from one foot to another.

“um,” you respond intelligently, willing your eyes not to stray away to his lip rings. “no?”

he clicks his tongue and turns to start climbing up the stairs. “then come on.”

you follow after him wordlessly, having an internal battle the whole way up over whether or not he just asked you out or if you’re reading way too much into this.

why was he even waiting for you tonight? he barely managed to put up with you whenever you came to pester him and the cat, so there’s no way he’s actually interested in you… right?

“you eat meat, yeah?” kuni asks as he opens the door for you and waits for you to step inside. his apartment is the same as you remember, the only difference being one less cat and a navy throw blanket folded over the back of the couch.

brushing off the way it makes your heart twinge sadly, you take off your shoes and nod. “yeah, i do.”

“good.”

in the next thirty minutes of comfortable silence that pass, you find yourself sitting on the couch and helplessly watching as kuni moves around the kitchen and prepares something with practiced ease. the sleeves of his sweatshirt are rolled up to his elbows as he works, showing off his pale forearms in an all too distracting way.

his bangs keep falling into his eyes and every time he tries to blow them out of the way you have to fight back a smile. his hair was a bit shorter when you had first met, so he must be due for a haircut by now.

it’s strange to think that in the last month you had managed to become so fond of this grumpy stranger who nearly tried to fight you over a lost cat, but there’s no denying the way your heart rate picks up when he glances over and catches you staring every now and then.

as the delicious smell of stir fry fills the place and your mouth water uncontrollably, you make your way over to the small dining table and take a seat at one of the chairs. kuni carries two plates over and places them down before sitting opposite of you.

“sooo,” you finally break the silence. “what’s all this about?”

“eat.” kuni ignores you, gesturing to your plate with his fork.

“but i-“

“eat.” he repeats himself, a bit louder than last time. his violet eyes narrow in your direction when you raise a teasing brow at him.

“fine.” you huff. when you stab some of the food with your fork and shovel it into your mouth, you can’t stop the shock that spreads over your face as the flavor hits your tongue.

“it’s good!” you gush in genuine surprise. you never would have thought he was good at cooking.

“of course it is.” kuni says proudly, finally digging into his own portion. he gives a small satisfactory hum as he chews, and you feel your heart twinge again - this time for another reason entirely.

“come over again for dinner tomorrow.” he says with no room for negotiation before taking another bite and avoiding your eyes. the tips of his ears are visibly pink despite the low light and you agree easily with a muffled laugh.

“why are you looking at me like that?” kuni asks suspiciously after he swallows his mouthful, realizing you’ve been watching him a few moments later.

you smile knowingly and look away. “no reason.”

it seems that as fate would have it, finding that little lost white cat was only the beginning.