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lalal-99 · 3 years ago

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Five Years

This is chapter 2 of 5 of the short story "Right Place, Wrong Time" {skz l.f.}. Word Count: 4,7k

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"So, your boss just went and promoted that douchebag over you? What a prick!"

"I know, right. And that, after I tortured myself for two years. The only difference between Dan and I is that he's a suck-up."

"Asshole!"

As the second insult left your best friend's mouth, you unlocked the door to your apartment. In contrast to the hot air outside, your place greeted you with a cool breeze. During summer, you always kept your air-conditioning running so that your apartment didn't heat up as much. That was the luxury of living on your own with no children. The money you spent on electricity was your business, and your business only.

"Should you be swearing so much in front of the baby?" you asked Keira through the phone as you closed the door behind you to keep the cold air inside.

"It can't hear me. There are about 500 layers of skin and fat between its ears and my mouth. So, I'm not that concerned," Keira replied as she tilted her phone so that you could see her rubbing over her barely visible belly. "So, are you finally gonna quit that stupid job?"

"I don't think so. It's still good money, and I can use that," you told your best friend as you brushed off your shoes, making your way over to the fridge.

"You can be an accountant somewhere else," Keira pointed out as you inspected your empty fridge with a frown. Apart from two 2-litre bottles of Fanta, it was empty.

"I know, but I don't think that will change anything. Assholes are everywhere. That's in the job description," you explained as you made your way over to another cupboard. Before you could find something edible, though, you tripped over an object on the floor. "Fucking hell!"

"What?"

"I tripped over Jo's skateboard. I swear if she doesn't come to pick it up by next week, I'll throw that thing away." You took the skateboard, placing it back against the wall. Somehow, it always rolled to random places in your one-bedroom. "I don't care how much money she spent on it."

"Jo still has her stuff at your place? I thought you asked her to get it months ago."

"I did. But apparently, she doesn't care about it," you said with a sigh. "Or maybe, she got stuck in her new girlfriend."

"That's certainly a picture that won't leave my head again," Keira joked, a disturbed laugh leaving her lips. You couldn't keep yourself from laughing as well, sitting down at your table as you started massaging your ankle. "Oh, by the way. Did you happen to go on the Gram today?"

"Why?" you asked, opening the app in the meantime.

"One of Felix's bandmates has posted a new picture, and I wanted to get your input on that."

The mention of his name made a frown appear on your face as you quickly typed in the band's name. As you opened the last posted picture, your frown deepened.

"Why would you want my input on that?"

For a second, your eyes scanned over the black and white picture. One of Felix's bandmates, Chan, had posted a photo of himself, holding up a peace sign, a bright smile on his face. He was stood on a bridge, a never-ending body of water in the back. The caption read 'No place like home', and listed below it were some hashtags you didn't bother examining.

"Doesn't that bridge look familiar to you?" Keira asked, a little annoyed at your apparent stupidity. As you looked closer, you had to admit that you had seen it before. Multiple times. About every other day.

"Harbour Bridge?" you questioned, still a little confused. "Still, I don't understand what you-"

"Gosh, I thought I was supposed to get the pregnancy brain," Keira pointed out with a chuckle, interrupting you in the process. "Where's Harbour Bridge? In Sydney. What does that imply? This dude is in Sydney."

How you didn't make the correlation yourself, you didn't know. Maybe you did inherit Keira's pregnancy brain, but still, you didn't know why this piece of information would be relevant to you.

"Gosh, you're slow today. If this dude's in Sydney, there's a chance that Felix is also here."

It was only when Keira's told you her assumption that you finally made the connection. Frankly, the thought of him being here made you feel weird. Not uncomfortable, not scared, but something in between. You hadn't talked to Felix in five years, and the thought of running into him in the streets made you shiver.

"I guess," you agreed as you closed the app. Keira's face appeared again, looking a little concerned.

"You good?"

"Yeah. Just weird to think that he might be back," you explained your behaviour as you pressed your lips together. "Let's change topics. Is Mario's back open? I don't have any food here."

"He opened back up over the weekend. Maybe, I'll get some Pizza as well," Keira agreed, biting her lip as she was apparently looking up the menu.

You were more than thankful that Keira didn't question your change of topic. But that was what best friends did, after all.

For the next half-hour, you stayed on the phone as both of you waited for the food to arrive.

As your adult life had found its rhythm, this was how most of your nights went. You'd be talking to your best friend for hours as you were doing your evening chores, and she was waiting for her boyfriend to come home. It was a comfortable arrangement, especially after Jo had left you. It kept your mind off it, and even though you were doing good now, you kept your new tradition.

It was kinda like the four of you – that being Keira, Calum, their unborn baby and you – were living in some kind of flat-sharing community. The only reason that couldn't become a real thing was that they would have a child soon, and you didn't want to third-wheel in that.

Apart from that, you really enjoyed living on your own. No one was nagging you about how you cleaned the floors or how you kept your ketchup in a cupboard rather than the fridge. You enjoyed the freedom of that.

Your doorbell rang about 10 minutes after you had placed your order at the local Italian delivery service.

"That was fast," Keira pointed out as you stood up from the comfort of your wooden chair, which was a paradox. Admittedly, 10 minutes was a short time to have a pizza ready and at your doorstep. For a second, you wondered if you should maybe change Pizza places. Up until now, there had never been a problem, though, so you quickly shrugged that thought off.

"I'll be right back," you told Keira as you made your way over to the counter to get your purse. It was when you opened it that you realised you didn't have any cash. With a concerned pout, you walked to the door opening it as you still searched for what you hoped would be a twenty. "I'm sorry. I don't seem to have cash on me. Do you also take cards?"

It stayed quiet for a few seconds as you still sought through your porte-monnaie. There were a few cents, some Ibuprofen for your migraines, a tampon and a hairband. Though, you doubted they would give you the Pizza for that.

"I don't take cards, but I'd take a hug."

A little taken aback, you looked up at the person on the other side of the door. Your frown disappeared within milliseconds as your mouth opened slightly. At this sight, you nearly let your purse fall.

Stood in front of you was not the Pizza delivery girl who usually delivered to your complex. It was not a girl at all and definitely not a Pizza delivery person sent by Mario's.

For a while, you stood frozen. As if Medusa herself had rung your bell, turning you into a stone for all eternity. That couldn't have been further from the truth, though.

The first thing you noticed was that the boy had grown. A lot. Felix had been your height for all you could remember, but now, he was a head taller than you. At least. There was a light stubble around his mouth and chin area, mimicking a beard. His eyes still were the same earthy brown, though they were holding a lot more wisdom now. It took you a little to realise that the boy you once knew had become a man at some point in the past five years.

"Hey," Felix said as his hand scratched at the back of his neck. "So, about that hug-"

Before he could continue, your arms were already around his upper body, pulling him close. You couldn't really reach his neck comfortably anymore, so you had gone for his torso. As your cheek pressed against his chest, you could feel a new set of muscles beneath his shirt, twitching a little at the contact.

When he wrapped his arms around you, you finally closed your eyes, relaxing against him.

The next thing you noticed was his smell. You couldn't believe that even after years, he still used the same Kiwi shower gel. The scent brought back so many memories, you couldn't possibly have played each one through in your head. The most recent one, and therefore the most prominent one, was him leaving five years ago.

All of a sudden, you remembered so many things you hadn't thought about for years. Like both of you hanging out at Felix's place, playing cards in his garden. Or both of you sitting in his hammock, chuckling over secrets you spilt about your friends. Or both of you doing your homework on his bed, almost crying over Chemistry or Physics or whatever was the hardest one that day.

All those moments had once been the most important ones for you. When the two of you had still been together, you had assumed you'd never forget any of them. You had planned to tell them to your kids and grandkids. Still, you forgot most of them after he left. For the most part, because they just hurt too damn much to keep them in the front shelves of your mind.

As the memory of the countless sleepless nights after his departure crept into your head, you let go of him, automatically putting some distance between you.

"What are you doing here," you asked Felix as you looked up at his face. The freckles still were where they used to be, and you recognised a particular one you had always deemed your favourite. The heart-shaped one, right by the outer corner of his right eye.

"I'm here on vacation," he quickly explained as he placed his hands in his pockets. The smile on his face warmed your heart more than you would have admitted at that moment.

"That's not what I meant," you countered as you leaned against the door. You needed something to hold on to, Felix's presence making you nervous for some strange reason. "Why are you here at my apartment? And how did you know I moved here?"

"I wanted to visit you. I didn't get to the last time I was here, so I thought I shouldn't miss out on it this time." His voice had gotten noticeably lower since he moved, and you wondered if it was due to all the vocal lessons he had obviously had. "My parents ran into your mom a few months ago, and she told them that you had moved here."

"I see." You nodded at his words, a few seconds of silence following. You still hadn't really caught up with the moment, him standing so close to you making it feel more like a dream than reality.

"Look, I know I should have called before. But I wanted to surprise you. If this is a bad time, or if you want me to leave, I will."

You thought about his words for a second. Even though you hadn't planned on ever catching up with him – the thought of talking to an ex just so weird to you - you couldn't help but want to invite him in. You kinda wanted to hear what he had to say for himself. So, after a while, you did.

"It's fine. Come in," you said, opening the door for Felix to enter.

When he did, he immediately started to look around your small living space. There was barely enough room for a couch and a table, those somehow fusing together. The TV was facing both the sofa and the table, as well as the open-plan kitchen. After closing the door, you quickly turned off whatever show was running in the background, making your way over to your phone on the table.

"Keira, Imma call you back," you told your best friend as she looked at you in confusion. "You were right. He's back."

The last part was whispered, but Keira heard it anyways. Before she could protest against your quick goodbye, you had already hung up, throwing your phone onto the couch as you joined Felix in your kitchen.

"Please, sit down," you tell him as you point towards your table. "Do you want something to drink?"

"Are you still into Fanta?" Felix asked, remembering your deep love for the yellow drink. You nodded in agreement as you opened the fridge. You took out the open bottle before getting two glasses out of the cupboard. "I really like your place."

"You don't have to lie. It's a shithole," you joke as you take all the supplies over to the table. "But it's my shithole. So, I love it."

"I mean, it is small. But since it's just you and Jo, I guess it's enough."

You frowned at the mention of her name, sitting down on the opposite side of the small table.

"Yeah, we broke up," you quickly explained as you filled the glasses up with the yellow liquid.

"I didn't know. I'm sorry to hear that." For some unknown reason, he seemed genuine. Felix really was sorry about hearing you had broken up with the girl he had always known was after you. Back when you and Felix still were a thing, he had told you multiple times that Jo – a friend of both of you at that time - was coming on to you. Much to his dismay, seeing you didn't believe him and still hung out with her a lot.

"Don't be. We're better off going our own ways anyways," you pointed out as you took a sip of your drink. "Apart from that, Jo got a new girlfriend, the cat and our shared car, and I got- well, I got this shithole. So, I guess we're even."

It was meant as a joke, and even though Felix chuckled at your words, you could feel the compulsion behind it.

"The only thing I'm mad about is her using my apartment as sort of a storage room as she is moving in with her new flame."

"Still using sarcasm as a coping mechanism, I see." Felix seemed to remember the trait you've developed at some point in time. It probably had developed somewhere between your dad leaving for another woman when you were ten and your mother's disapproval of everything you did afterwards. "Honestly, though. Are you good?"

You smiled at his concern. Apart from Keira, none of your friends had actually asked you this. After your break-up, all of them had assumed you were okay by the way you were joking with them and showing no sense of sadness. No one seemed to notice that it had actually hurt more than you wanted to admit.

"I'm alright now. It hurt a ton more in the beginning, but it was nothing compared to when you left."

You hadn't intended those words to leave your mouth, but they were the truth. Though your relationship with Jo had lasted a lot longer, Felix's departure was still the most painful thing that had ever happened to you. It had hurt even worse than when you had found out your dad left.

After a few seconds, you noticed how Felix avoided looking at you, now that your thoughts had left your head. He seemed sad about your words, somehow hurt. That hadn't been your intention, so you quickly tried to avoid any sort of confrontation.

"Where's your mullet? Did you cut it?" you questioned as you took another sip.

"Erm-" Felix spoke up, obviously a little confused at your attempt to change topics. His hand came to the back of his neck as he let it run through his newly short hair. "Those are extensions, actually. I only wear them for promotion and stuff."

"I see," you agreed with a nod. This had become awkward sooner than you thought, but you were glad once Felix became more relaxed again.

"So, you follow me, huh?" he asked as his hand ran through his hair a couple of times. That had always been his reaction when he was nervous. You couldn't believe he still did it, though. "Did you go to our concert last year?"

"I thought about it, but Jo didn't really like the idea of me going to see my ex-boyfriend. Funnily enough, she was the one cheating on me. So in the end, the joke's on her, I guess." Why you kept making those stupid, self-deprecating jokes, you didn't know. Maybe that was just a part of your coping mechanism. "Also, I don't follow you specifically. I follow your band."

Felix nodded at that, his hands coming to the table as they started fiddling with each other.

"I didn't expect you to be interested in us."

"I wasn't at first. But after a while, I figured that I needed to support you. We were best friends for five years, after all. Also, I needed to know that breaking up was worth it."

"So, was it?" Something in his voice told you that he wanted you to answer a certain way. You didn't know which one, though.

"I mean, your music slaps, and you have, like, millions of fans all over the world. I guess it was the right decision," you told the boy honestly. You couldn't quite decipher his reaction, but he somehow looked disappointed. Like he had wanted your answer to be a different one. "You seem genuinely happy in all the videos I've seen. I don't think you would have been this happy if you had stayed and become a teacher or something."

"The footage only shows you what the company wants to show you, you know."

"So, you don't think it was the right decision to leave?" You were confused. Wasn't he as happy as you had thought? He seemed to enjoy being on stage and singing their songs. He couldn't possibly fake all of that.

"No, I do. I think leaving was the right decision. Sometimes, I wonder if it was worth leaving you, though," Felix explained as he looked at his hands. He hadn't taken one sip of his drink yet. Also, his words made your stomach twitch a little. You couldn't quite understand why, though. "I wonder if there was a different path. If there was an in-between between leaving you and just leaving. You know?"

"I'm not sure I understand what you're trying to say."

"I'm not still hung up on you, don't get me wrong. I just sometimes wonder if there was a way I could have left without leaving you. And if there was, if we would still be together now," Felix tried explaining as he looked up at you. "I'm probably not making a lot of sense right now, am I?"

"I'm just a little confused," you told him, looking back at him. He was opening up to you as if he had never left. He was talking to you like you weren't estranged. Like you were right back where you had left off five years ago. "If you feel like we made a mistake, then why didn't you say so. Why didn't you call me as you promised? Why didn't you text me or contact me earlier? You were here a year ago. Why now?"

Your question was reasonable. If Felix had felt like this ever since he left you, up to right now, where he told you about his doubts, then why didn't he say so? There had been many opportunities throughout the past five years. Why now? You couldn't help but address the elephant in the room.

"When I left, I just thought it would be easier this way. I didn't want to have to hear your voice. And most of all, I didn't want you to have to go through this. I thought it would hurt more than it would do good."

The words were flowing out of Felix like a waterfall. It seemed as though he had held all those thoughts inside for five years, which apparently, he had.

"I wanted to tell you the last time I visited. But then, Olivia told me about you and Jo. I didn't want to put you into that situation. Maybe, I also didn't want to be rejected."

"What do you expect me to do now? Am I supposed to forgive you for ignoring me and my calls?" You had tried reaching Felix countless times after he had left. There had been promises that you'd be talking to him every day. Those promises were broken the moment Felix stepped onto the plane.

"I don't expect anything from you. I would understand if you didn't want to talk to me ever again. I was a complete dumbass for not keeping my promise," he explained, looking deeply into your eyes. You could see the honesty in his and regret. He really was sorry for breaking his promise. "But, if you are up for it, I would like to be friends again. I missed my best friend more than I missed anything."

After those words, the room became silent. All that could be heard were the air vents, cooling your apartment to human standards. It was just like when Felix had told you he'd be leaving.

As he looked at you, you felt a little uncomfortable. He was obviously expecting an answer, and you weren't quite sure what that would be. Of course, you had missed him. You had been best friends for a reason.

"You know what? Just think about it. There's no hurry. I know I mishandled things, and being too young and too dumb to know better is no excuse," Felix added after a while, his hands finally taking the glass. "I didn't even come by to tell you that. All I wanted was to catch up."

Felix took a huge gulp. His throat must have been dry from all the talking, so he was enjoying the way the sugary liquid helped him out.

"I'm glad you came by," you told Felix to calm down both yours and his nerves. It wasn't a lie, anyway. After years of no contact, you enjoyed hearing his voice and feeling his presence again. He had always calmed you down, and somehow, his ability to do just that hadn't vanished.

"Should we try a lighter topic, maybe?" You nodded at his question, taking a sip from your glass as well. "How's your mom?"

You laughed out loud at his question. Felix obviously didn't know this, but even though he had wanted to talk about something less depressing and awkward, he had asked something just as.

At first, you didn't know how to tell him. It wasn't easy to tell your childhood best friend how your mother had abandoned you when she found out you were in a romantic relationship with a girl. It wasn't just a fact one could simply tell someone.

Also, the question in itself was unanswerable. You had not talked to your mom ever since she found out, so you plain up had no idea how she was doing. You hadn't received any calls about her dying, so she must still be alive. That was about all you knew.

So, after a few seconds of debating how to tell him, you just did.

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"It was nice talking to you again. Thank you for coming by."

After a few hours of small talk and light conversation, the time had come where you needed to throw Felix out. It was after 11 p.m., and you needed to go to work the following day. You could have spent another 3 hours just eating Pizza and listening to all the crazy stories he had in store. Being a famous idol seemed to be really interesting, and you somehow regretted never being able to sing or dance. You would have had a great time.

"Thank you for not throwing me out right away. I really expected you to hate me after what I did."

"Didn't I tell you five years ago that I could never hate you? I did come close, but I just couldn't bring myself to it."

Felix laughed a little at your words, the vibrations radiating through you as he held you close. You never thought a hug could be so healing, but you also never thought you would hug Felix again. It felt good. Familiar.

"Well, I'm glad you don't," Felix told you as he let go. "Maybe, you also like me enough to meet up again?"

"Sure," you agreed, a smile playing on your lips. "How long are you gonna be here?"

"I'm leaving two weeks from today. You think a busy accountant like you can spare a few hours of her time for me?"

"I think I can make some changes in my schedule," you told him as you crossed your hands in front of your body. "You're leaving in two weeks already. Don't you need like a real break from work to do some travelling or something?"

"We actually start preparing for a comeback in a few weeks, so there's really no time to have a long vacation. Chan is working 10 hours a day, even here," Felix explained, his lips pressed into a thin line. "It's kinda ridiculous."

"Does Chan ever actually sleep? There's this rumour going around that he's like a vampire running on two hours of sleep a night."

"Even a vampire gets more sleep than Chan. But he loves what he's doing. I don't think he'd hold up if he didn't." Felix sounded a little concerned, and you smiled at the thought of him feeling that way for his friend.

Even though you had only spent a few hours with him, you loved the man he had turned into.

Before Felix had left, he couldn't really let himself feel that way for his male friends. There was a stigma about boys who cared too much for friends of their own gender. The fact that Felix had somehow gotten over that made you proud.

"Hey, I almost forgot," Felix suddenly exclaimed as he took a step towards you. "My mom planned this barbecue-thing this Saturday. She begged me to invite you. I think my family would really love seeing you again."

"You don't think it would be weird? It's gonna be your family and little 'ole me?"

"It won't be. My family still talks a lot about you. Even after all those years."

"Well, how could I say no to that then?"

The smile appearing on Felix's lips warmed your heart. You had somehow missed it without noticing.

"I'll see you Saturday then."

You nodded at his words, giving him one last smile as he started walking towards the staircase. One last time, he turned around to wave at you awkwardly. You laughed at his action, waving back until you couldn't see him anymore.

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#felix x reader #reader x felix #felix x you #felix x y/n #skz x reader #skz x you #skz x y/n #felix scenarios #skz scenarios #stray kids scenarios #bang chan scenarios #felix smut #Lee Felix smut #stray kids smut #skz smut #skz fanfic

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gretavanbitch · 3 years ago

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Tangled up in blue- 2

warnings- drugs lol

One month and six weeks prior-

Keeping herself busy when Josh was gone was no easy task for Penny. She tried her hardest to focus on work, sitting in front of rows of developed film, feeling burned out. There was no good reason for this feeling, simply that she was lonely. Sighing, she thought of the only thing to relax her and calm her mind without Josh, weed.

Her bare feet padded across the hardwood floors of their loft softly, overalls rustling slightly as she made her way to their bedroom. She walked to the brown cabinet next to her side of the bed and pulled out a small encrusted gold box. This box was opened probably too often when she was home without Josh, but also when he was there. She pulled out a filter, and papers. Then taking a bunch off the gram, she grinded it slowly, closing her eyes and wishing she was somewhere else. As her hands moved absentmindedly, she imagined what the boys were doing right now. They were probably on some tour bus or green room getting drunk, which sounds a lot more fun than getting high alone. She imagined Josh, sitting in some plush chair with some extravagant jumpsuit on, smiling and laughing with his friends, without her. She decided to shoot him a text, just some reassurance that he was still there.

Penny: Hey babe, Jake try to murder you yet?

Sent: 8:23pm

She sat, licking the joint closed and waiting eagerly for a reply from Josh. After five minutes, she decided that she would put on a record and smoke, just to pass the time. Joni Mitchell’s Blue started to reverberate off the walls of the apartment, causing her to smile softly to herself. She remembered back to the first road trip she took with Josh, playing this album over and over again until they reached the other side of the country. His hair would run wild with the windows down, and a smile never left his face that week. Snapping back to reality, she brought the joint to her lips and lit her lighter, inhaling deeply and falling back into the couch. After the record had run through both sides, she felt like she needed to do something with her day other than smoke and miss Josh.

Once again, the rows of film stood daunting before her. It was as if they were the royal guard for an impenetrable force in which her motivation was protected. With a hazy mind, she started flipping through the photographs of the recent week, smiling wider with each one. Your favorite was one that you took of Josh outside of a cabin in Washington. He stood away from the camera, but was smiling straight at it, teeth shining and bandana around his neck. That was the most beautiful sight she had ever seen, the purest form of natural beauty. Nothing like anything, ever. She also chuckled to herself as she flipped to one of Sammy biting Josh’s hand, and Jake posed dramatically against a boulder.

She loved the way that the light reflected with the camera lens, and the way that it interacted with the subject. Just as she was about to write down a title for the series, her phone buzzed on the table next to her, lighting up with a notification from Josh.

Josh: Hey mama, just got off stage, it went great. I wish you could've seen it. How did the film come out?

P.S, Jake has tried to stab me sixteen times already.

Sent: 12:34AM

Penny: It came out great, here see.

Attachment: 3 images

Sent 12:35AM

Josh: Beautiful, my love. You have a gift for manipulating the light, it's amazing. Can we talk or are you too tired?

Sent: 12:36AM

The thought of talking to Josh without seeing his face and expressions change with each word, caused her chest to hurt with want. So instead, she clicked the Facetime button rather than call.

Her phone vibrated for a few seconds, panging in her ear loudly. Yet within the blink of an eye, she was greeted with her favorite pair of brown eyes staring onto the screen in front of him. She smiled, and floofed her hair to make sure it didn’t look too trash.

“Hey pretty lady,” he smiled at her. Josh was laying on his back on a bed, presumably on the tour bus. He was lacking in a shirt, but the beads that always decorated his neck hung down past his chest. His hand was stretched above his head, and the phone was angled up from his stomach.

“Hey pretty boy,” she responded, positioning the phone in a more comfortable position on the couch, “watcha up to rockstar?”

“you know the usual, living the life, but I really really really wish you were here, everybody does.” His eyes blinked slowly, showing signs of tiredness, but he would never reveal that to you right now, your time was too precious.

“I do too, trust me its so fucking depressing here with just me and Marely,” she sighed, reffering to the tabby cat that her and Josh adopted together a few months ago.

“aw how is she?” He asked, smiling into the phone. Penny moved the camera to her right, displaying the cat that was curled up by her hip.

“She is great, but wishes she was living the rockstar life,” Josh chuckled to Penny’s response.

“Okay but seriously Pen, can’t you just call sick for one week, say you got really bad food poisoning,” he pleaded.

“If I say that, then I feel like I will accidentally manifest that I will actually get food poisoning for a week,” she laughed into the phone.

“fair point, but it’s not the same without you here, I’m not the same without you here,” his tone shifted to a more serious one with every word, looking straight into her eyes through the screen.

“I mean technically I’m on studio time right now, so they wouldn’t know if I came with you for a week or two...or they would fire me,” she scratched her chin, thinking out the possibilities in her head.

“If they fire you, then just go freelance, they never fully understood your work anyways,” he smirked at her, knowing that she always complained about the company she was hired by, repeating their failures for understanding creativity.

“Alright Kizka, you drive a hard bargain,” Penny smiled.

“Is that a yes?” Josh’s eyes widened at the blonde girl through the screen.

“it is not a no.”

“fuck yes, so I can book you a plane ride to California for tomorrow?” He now got up from the bunk, excitedly running to his computer.

“Mhm, just tell me what time.”

“Ok here’s one, leaves Nashville at 8, gets in Cali at 10,” Josh said, calculating the time difference in his head.

“you are such a bad influence, Kizka,” Penny rubbed her forehead tiredly.

“I will see you tomorrow my love, get some sleep okay?” he smiled at her tired expression, kissing the camera of his phone sweetly.

“see you tomorrow.” and with that she hung up the phone and exhaled loudly. What just happened? One conversation with Josh and she hits the road. It makes her think back to when she didn’t have anyone, and spent years alone in her little studio apartment, taking photos of walls and birds. Now she would drop everything with the snap of his fingers. In her heart she knew that her dependency on him for happiness was not right, but she was too deep in. Her head was stuck underwater, surrounded by the cool rush of his love. The flaws went unnoticed by both of them in fact, just simply mistaking it for head over heels infatuation.

As her head hit the pillow, she thought that the emptiness of the room was less significant as it was a few hours ago. Maybe it was the excitement of the idea of not sleeping alone tomorrow, or just the few minutes of hearing his voice. Whatever it was lulled her softly to sleep.

In a hazy dream, she remembered her and Josh’s first kiss. It was outside of their favorite bar after their second date. He stood next to her, shoulder pressed to hers, and hand interlacing with her own. He was wearing his usual attire, a white long sleeved shirt and tan pants. Yet he looked extravagant, his energy was inherently outgoing. As he says, the Kizka’s have a “flair for flair”. The cool wind seemed to push the pair together, jostling her hair softly as he looked over at her. His eyes were slightly hooded, closed just a slightly against the wind. Her glances fell down to his cupids bow, admiring its shape, then to his lips where she wished she never had to leave. He noticed the shift in her gaze and did the same himself, smirking at her. She smiled, tugging his chin towards her. His hands laced through her hair, smiling into the kiss. Their lips met, and they fit together like they were made for each other, and no one else.

Her alarm forced her out of the wonderful image that played in her sleep, jutting her eyes open to the harsh sunlight of the morning. She quickly packed an old leather suitcase with a few pairs of jeans, shirts, and dresses, knowing that she would be stealing jewlery and sweatshirts from Josh. In what seemed like five minutes she was at her gate, coffee in hand, and camera stowed in her carry-on bag. She decided to text Josh that she was about to board the plane, knowing that he was probably still asleep.

Penny: Hey, boarding now. I’ll text you when I land

sent 8:05am

She then put her earbuds in, deciding on listening to the new album, just so she was prepared to sing alone at the shows. It wasn’t like she hadn’t memorized it the night it came out, but she always felt bad listening to it with Josh, it just felt odd to her. The first song to come on shuffle was Light My Love, and she nearly cried remembering the fireside performance she witnessed a not too long ago.

The plane ride went by in what felt like minutes. Her mind was racing with so many thoughts, most about getting in trouble with work, but others about Josh and how excited she was to see him and the rest of the band. The tires of the plane landed in California with a jaulting thud, and she was brought out of her dissociation.

She knew that Josh expected her to uber to the venue, after all he was probably just waking up now. So she called an uber, standing outside of LAX clad in an old Janis Joplin shirt, flare jeans, and her classic high heeled leather boots. Penny looked straight out of the 70′s, but Josh felt like the 70′s, a pair who perfectly complimented each other.

The uber ride was bumpy and seemingly and hour too long. She finally reached the venue at 11:46, hastily thanking the driver and sauntering to the tour bus parked behind the stage. She knocked a few times on the door, and after the third time, she finally heard a groggy “what do you want”

She smiled, pushing the door open with her foot and walking up the stairs, she was met with a pool of long brown hair and a very naked Jake laying on one of the bunks. Josh was nowhere to be seen.

“Oh hey Penny, what are you doing here?” Jake asked casually, ignoring the fact that he was naked. She was not phased by the latter twins actions, after all, she spent a fair amount of time with the band and often felt like she was equally as close with all of the members.

“Just lookin for my loverboy, any idea where he is?” She answered, leaning against on of the seats camly.

“I think I remember him saying he wanted to go hear the acoustics of the empty stage, so maybe he’s there,” Jake answered groggily.

“thanks,” she said as she made her way, now at a faster speed then before towards the back entrance of the venue. The staff didn’t seem to bat an eye at her as she hastily walked hallway after hallway until she reached the back of the stage. Then she saw him, standing with his arms out wide, silently absorbing the feeling of the empty arena.

“babe?” she said, accidentally making it sound like a hushed whisper.

The curly headed man then turned his head over his shoulder, smiling. His smile widened nearly ten fold when he saw the girl to his left. She looked amazing, her hair seemingly always falling in just the right way, she paused for a moment, reaching for something in her bag.

“don’t move, and look forward again, just like you were before,” She smiled and clicked the shutter of the camera, knowing it would be beautiful, every photo with Josh in it is. She then put the camera away and ran into his arms, collapsing into his embrace. He hugged her tightly, moving his hands up and down her back.

“I missed you so much my love,” He said into her hair.

“I missed you more lover,” she replied.

Hey pretty people! I hoped you liked this chapter, I may or may not write another either tomorrow night or by sunday! Asks are open for Jake or Josh imagines BTW!

#gfv #josh kiszka #josh kizka imagine #jake kizka fic #jake kizka #sam kiskza #danny wagner #danny wagner fic #sam kizka fic #greta van fleet #greta van fic #greta van meme #peaceful army #battle at garden’s gate #highway tune #classic rock #rock #writerscommunity #josh kizka fic

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rangergranger11 · 4 years ago

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Headcanons (I promise these won’t make you cry)

Ok so on @eatyourdamnpears post there were a lot of headcanons, and I decided to put them all in one post, but just bear in mind, half of this is credit to @thedarkestcrew cuz she did some amazing HCs, and I’m by no means stealing hers, just putting it all in a better place.

- Liam sends packages to Ruby because he can't make a fool out of himself in person so it's the next best thing.

-These packages include things like hand writing notes, stuffed animals, any ruby jewellery he finds, pictures of them on dates that he printed (he has matching pictures and keeps them under his bed)( Cole and Harry find them but it's too cute to tease him), and finally, videos to make her laugh

- He also keeps a menu from Ruby Tuesday, and LOADS of old CDs and rock band t shirts

-Cole and him borrow each others jackets all the time and it's not a problem because they live in the same house and they can just go over to the room next door,

-But when ruby starts stealing Liam’s jackets that he stole from Cole? well now the Stewart house is missing 10 leather jackets and you can't just get them form the girl who lives a state away. So she has to send them back in the mail,

-keeps a few that smell like Liam because she can

-sometimes people are confused which Stewart brother Ruby is really dating. And the fact that they look like twins it adds to the confusion, and the Ruby and Cole literally love to watch people get so mixed up

-oh absolutely, they’ll walk in on ruby and Liam making out, but two second later see Cole smoothing Down her hair and calling her Gem, AND seeing her he friendly with Chubs and cleaning his glasses because her skirt has better fabric for it, AND seeing her joke around with Nico

-it becomes a bet to see who she's with

-Liam will give Ruby his jacket, but than Cole comes and notices it's his jacket and makes a joke about them dating, she just gives him the jacket because she'd rather wear lee'. bystanders are distraught

- And then Clancy comes along and brags about how he kissed Ruby and then the people who bet are just like 'where. the. hell. did. clancy. frickin. gray. come. from???

-Ruby thinks most of the rumours are funny and will be really vague about who her boyfriend is. most of the time just seeing Ruby and Liam together will be enough for people to figure it out by how the are relaxed around each other and look lovingly at the other.

-But when she hears the Clancy rumour she shuts that down faster than Charles scarfs Down a pancake

- Also, Liam's mum and Harry have an ongoing bet about who Ruby is actually dating because it's just so confusing at this point. Grace is like 'are you blind???' and Harry Is like 'there's something with Cole, I swear!!' But eventually realised its Liam and gives in

- Grace thinks she’s dating Cole, because when she visited she hugged Cole first and than a minute later hugged Liam. Yes, she went out to the park with Liam but grace doesn't know that, also she spend 20 minutes in Coles room chatting. She thinks Liam just has a crush on her or something

- Ruby's parents can't tell them apart for anything and made a rule of " announce who you are before talking" after Liam kissed Ruby on the cheek and her mom thought that was the same person who told someone to go-F themselves ten minutes ago and nearly faints. It takes them a while the even figure out there are two blond southern men that flirt with their daughter

-Grace is always giving Liam encouraging mom advice like, 'there are always others' and 'you'll get there someday' and Liam is just like 'thanks, mom'

-Ruby's dad is just so tired of confusing Liam and Cole, he's like 'Stewart sr' and 'Stewart jr.' He tried to call them 'Ruby's boyfriend' and Ruby's friend, but Cole answered to both just for the fun of it

-Chubs does not think it's funny at all and spits out what he's drinking when he sees Cole look when her dad says ' Ruby's boyfriend'. almost strangles Ruby until he hears about it.

-Vida thinks it's really funny but event breaks and tells everyone it's a joke the day after. she doesn't know how many more times she can see Liam pouting

-After the Cole fiasco is over. his parents wait about a week and try to get Liam with Ruby. it's a bunch of prep talks, buying new clothes, telling him how to not mess up. when the big date comes her kisses her as a hello and they feel betrayed

-When ruby’s dad says the jr, sr thing he has Harry looking too and now he just needs to have ruby in the room with him, whoever’s face gets softer Is Liam, the one who stands up to tease her about something is Cole

-One day they talk about it and their 70 percent sure it’s Cole because they think he’s more her type while Liam would be good for her. Anyways they see her making out with Liam and are shocked and think she’s cheating on Cole.

-Harry had to sit Cole down and explain that Ruby isn’t faithful and Cole is absolutely loving it. He’s eating it all up, goes along with it, calls ruby in-front of him and ‘breaks up with her’, she also thinks it’s hilarious because for crying out loud it’s been a few month into the new program and why not see how long they can keep going. I swear they have a whole plot on how they met, what line made them fall in love the, whole 9 yards.

-Grams knows of course because she pulled her aside and threatened her to date Liam because he’s the poster ’ nice southern boy’. Liam does not enjoy his girl friend pretending to date his brother but she throws enough Liam flirting into the mix to make it even.

- when Cole ‘breaks up’ with her, they have a fully fledged fake argument, like ‘remember that time when we got ice cream and you told me you told me you loved me’ and ‘you never loved me!!’ And for Ruby this is easy, because let’s face it Ruby is a grade A liar (in a good way) and Cole should be a 5 star actor because he is so damn dramatic.

-Harry is totally buying this, and in the end they confess to their parents that Ruby + Cole was never a thing, and Liam is just looking at his mum like ‘SEE, I TOLD YOU I WASN’T A TOTAL LOSER’ and poor Grace just bakes a bunch of things just to make it up to him, and they all have a laugh about it.

-But it was getting to the point where Ruby’s parents asked Zu which one she was dating and she was like ‘I am not getting involves in this.’ and Cole is just giving her a discreet thumbs up for playing her part while she just rolls her eyes.

-Oh absolutely they get into it, everyone who knows their lying get popcorn and treat it like its a movie. Cole says something absolutely ridiculous like “ you can take my heart, and my dignity, but I’m taking back the popcorn I gave you that one time” and Ruby has to use all of her enegery to not burst out laughing.

-Ruby can also fake cry quickly so she’s sobbing, and by the end schools her face within a second and wipes away to tears Cooly. Ruby’s mom can’t trust her after that. also still kinda doesnt belive she’s dating anyone because of the Cole thing. Liam comes over 5 times before she’s convinced that this isn’t another prank. Ruby tells her she’s going on a date Saturday and says “ ha ya alright I’m not falling for that again” and than on saturday spends 6 minutes looking around the house for her before calling her and realizing that she wasent kidding

-Vida definitely films the whole thing like it's some telenovela, while Chubs is rolling her eyes at her but Zu secretly loves the drama and her stupid family. And Rubiam parents mention this at their wedding as well like, Ruby's dad would be doing a speech 'today we are gathered for the union of my daughter and Cole- Liam, i meant Liam. Its definitely Liam. Right Ruby??'

-Cole shows up to Haven for a visit about to yell at Liam and Ruby for not inviting him sooner after Harry and Grace let the location slip

( I know cole being dead is one of the things that sparked haven being made on liams part, but let's just say the spark for haven was Ruby getting harassed and Liam not being able to see her like that and asking her to run away with him to the middle of no where. Good? Great)

-Cole is about to walk through the door before a kid puts a frog in his hand and another kid asks if he can beat the level on his game boy.

-he thinks it's really adorable and the kids start calling him Liam for a Few minutes so why not,

-anyways he sneezes in a lone hallway and lights something small on fire before quickly putting it out.

-Owen is coming out of his room but sees the panic in Coles eyes and says ' hey, I'm not one to judge' and walks back into his room.

-When Ruby gets home she stops and stares at him for a full minute like " that's..... not Liam????"

-he calls her gem and she can't decide between jumping a hug onto him or punching him.

-Liam gets home and the kids all do a double take like ' you changed shirts??? can got a hair cut????' before doing a double take between the two

-Loads of the kids gather around and start making daisy chains for Cole’s hair, and he freaking loves it.

-He’s surprisingly good with kids as they all hover around him asking questions, holding his hand and showing him random things and it warms Ruby’s heart so much

Again, credit to @thedarkestcrew for thinking all of this, and this post has been fun

#the darkest minds #tdm #in the afterlight #rubiam #ruby daly #cole stewart #liam stewart #vida conner #charles meriwether

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mcwriting · 3 years ago

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sweet home alabama (2)

Hi all! Between marriage project and some one shots, I decided to upload this chapter!

Reminder: Characters have strong southern accents (save for Tom in the present).

Masterlist

Word Count: 2618

Warnings: slight injury mention

∆ present ∆

The weekend came and went, allowing Tom some time to get a new wardrobe for farmwork and acquire a pair of boots, as his last pair had been passed down and worn out by Sam years ago.

Tom had been enjoying a peaceful rest when he was jolted awake by two hands forcefully shaking him.

“What the- Sam! What are you doing?” Tom exclaimed, sitting up.

“You gotta go to Mel’s today, right? Sun rises in an hour. Better get up and eat ‘fore you head over there,” the younger brother explained. Tom tossed back his head and groaned.

“Fine. I’ll get up,” he replied, tossing off his quilt and sheet.

With the money Tom had made in recent years, he had been able to send some home every so often, which helped fund a much needed expansion of the family home. Unfortunately, they hadn’t added enough bathrooms for each brother to get their own.

“Tom! What in God’s name is taking you so long! You’re gonna be working cotton not modeling it!” Harry yelled, pounding on the door.

“Alright alright! It’s all yours!” Tom exclaimed as he opened up the door. Harry couldn’t help but laugh at his brother.

Though Tom had dressed in a button up, jeans, and boots, he had also made sure to style his hair until every wisp sat straight.

“You know you’re gonna sweat that gel off in ten minutes, right? Especially if you wear a hat.”

Tom rolled his eyes.

“Harry, you know me. There’s always a camera somewhere. Gotta be ready for anything. And it’s pomade, not gel.”

The other young twin just rolled his eyes back and slammed the door shut.

∆

A few minutes down the road, y/n was getting ready to start her own day. She rose at dawn like always, stretching a bit and hopping out of bed.

Though she was living a country life, she still took the time to do a full skincare routine, being especially attentive to the products she used and how much sunscreen she applied.

Since she wouldn’t be at any farms in the morning, y/n put on leggings and tshirt and headed out the door, a granola bar in hand. She only had to drive a mile away to get to the “s.h.e.d.”

As usual, she was the first one there, so she keyed in and turned on all the lights. She took in a deep breath of the smells of the soil and chemicals around her as she tossed on her lab coat.

You didn’t think she was any ordinary farm girl, did you?

In reality, she had actually gone to UCLA, getting degrees in both chemistry and environmental engineering. Now she had spent the last year doing research thanks to a grant to improve the agricultural health of her hometown so she could eventually receive a master’s degree.

But we’ll talk more on that later.

Now that the sun was finally peeking above the horizon, her two lab assistants finally showed up.

Her assistants, Ciara and Jacob, were students at a community college in the town 45 minutes away. They were bright and the three always enjoyed working together, as they played fun music and conversed while recording research.

“Hey! Glad y’all could finally make it! Y’all know that last week I collected more samples from Mel’s, so today I want to prepare a gram from each jar in solution so we can run samples and start looking at what nutrients need supplementing and where so I can put a fertilizer together for tomorrow.”

The two were happy to follow their boss’s instruction, and y/n couldn’t help but smile as she scanned over her lab, remembering where she started.

∆ 16 years old ∆

Y/n had always been good at school.

A straight A student, never one to act out or deliberately miss work. Everyone knew she was bright, and she continued to prove that as she aged.

By sophomore year of high school, she was already an above-average scorer on the ACT and was taking courses above her grade level to keep from boring herself.

But in a town as small as hers, one could only get so advanced in high school alone.

Thankfully once she was a junior, the community college Ciara and Jacob were now attending allowed students to enroll in some basic online classes and receive credit, so long as they had good enough internet connection.

Because she was ahead, y/n had a free period where she could mooch off of the school’s wifi in an empty classroom. However, she didn’t have the same luxury at home, and had to go to Tom’s to complete any assignments after school.

By this point, Tom had been going to small auditions for a couple years, picking up the occasional commercial role and making a few bucks here and there, enough to get his family better TV and internet, anyways.

“Hey, y/n?” Tom asked one day, late in the fall. He laid back on the bed, tossing a foam basketball above his head while y/n worked on her college math class from the floor. She hummed in response, holding a pencil between her teeth.

“What are you plannin’ to do with all this college stuff anyways?” he asked. His accent was still as strong as ever. He hadn’t taught himself to let it go yet.

“I’on know. Maybe git a degree and move out of this town for a while. Find a real job that ain’t baling hay or planting stuff. You know I really love science,” she replied. She knew she had a lot of options, she was only a couple points away from that perfect ACT score by now.

There was a pause as she continued to tap numbers into a calculator and record them.

“I got another audition ‘fore thanksgiving,'' Tom announced after a while. Y/n didn’t look up.

“Oh yeah? What for, toothpaste ad or somethin’?”

“Uh, no actually. This one’s for a movie. A real movie.”

Y/n dropped the pencil and looked up at Tom, pushing up from the ground to sit on her knees as he sat up straight.

“Really? You’re serious? You ain’t pulling my leg or something?”

Tom smiled big and nodded.

“I mean it. I really got this audition coming up.”

“Oh my gosh, TOM!”

Y/n quickly stood up, tackling her best friend in a hug, practically ending up on his lap. They stayed that way for a while.

“Tom, this is seriously incredible. You’re gonna be in a movie!”

He pulled back quickly.

“Don’t be too quick, now. This is only an audition, there’s no way to say I’ll actually get the part-” he started, but y/n got off him and kneeled on the floor, so that her eyes were level with his and she could grab his upper arms to look at him directly.

“You’re gonna get that part,” she smiled, unable to contain her excitement. “You’re gonna nail that audition, and you’re getting that part. This is gonna be your big break, I just know it.”

“Thanks for believin’ in me. Hopefully I won’t prove you a liar this time,” he replied, pulling her up into another hug.

She ended up being right, too, because after his first audition, he got a callback during Christmas break and secured the role which he’d film the summer between junior and senior year.

The pair knew they were really starting to grow up, but didn’t let their different pursuits come between them just yet.

Tom was the one who drove her to her final ACT where she got her perfect score (since she didn’t have a car yet), and the movie filmed a few hours away in the Birmingham area (where y/n drove Tom’s truck in his absence since he was still too young to live there alone).

It worked, for the most part.

∆ present ∆

Tom drew in a sharp breath and winced, limping through the barn and plopping onto a hay bale as he gulped down some water. He had been walking up and down the rows watering the plants, as the four-wheeler Melanie’s dad typically used to water was broken.

“How’s it looking, Mr. Carmichael?” he asked, dabbing away the sweat on his forehead with a towel as he rehydrated.

The older gentleman stood up and looked at Tom.

“Well, son. I’ve almost got this thing here fixed, but you ain’t looking too good,” he pointed out.

“What do you mean, sir?” Tom asked. He may have lost his accent, but didn’t forget his manners.

“Looks like you’ve been ridin’ horses the way you’re walkin’. New boots? Not to mention that sunburn you’re startin’ to nurse. Why don’t you run up to the house and have Mel fix those up. I’m sure her momma fixed some lunch for ya, too.”

“A- are you sure, sir? I’ve only got about 10 more rows before I’m done.”

“No, no. It’s alright, boy. Run along and fix yourself up. I’ll handle the rest.”

Tom thanked the man and slowly got up, immediately remembering the pain in his feet and now aware of the stinging on his cheeks.

He’d forgotten that boots don’t really break themselves in and he hadn’t worn very thick socks. He also had somehow neglected that the sun beats just as hard in the farmlands as it does in Malibu.

He waddled up to the house, where Melanie was on the porch reading a book.

“Well by God, Tom. You’re walkin’ like you just got your back blown out for the first time,” she laughed, causing his cheeks to redden more.

“They’re new boots, alright? Now could you help me out? Your dad said you might know of something?”

She looked past him towards the barn, then closed her book and nodded her head towards the door, standing.

“Come on. Momma made you a sandwich if you want it. You can leave your boots by the door.”

They headed inside, a large living room on the right and the kitchen to the left. Tom wiggled his shoes and socks off in the entryway as Melanie ducked into a hallway to grab a few things.

“Oh Tom! I’m glad you came in! Are you hungry? I’ve got lunch for ya,” Mrs. Carmichael said as she appeared from the kitchen.

“That would be really nice, Mrs. Carmichael. Thank you,” he replied as she sat him down at the kitchen table, placing a plate with a turkey sandwich and some chips in front of him along with a glass of sweet tea.

He dug into the meal, immediately realizing just how hungry he really was. By the time he’d finished the sandwich (which really didn’t take that long), Melanie appeared with a laundry basket full of stuff. Tom washed down his meal with some tea before speaking.

“Jesus, Mel, how much does it take to patch up some blisters?” he asked.

“First off, don’t be takin’ the Lord’s name in vain in this house,” she commanded, pointing her head towards her mother in the living room, to which Tom covered his mouth and shot a thumbs up. “And second, I figured it best just to grab all my stuff than dig through it.”

She plopped the basket on the table and herself into the seat next to Tom, stealing a chip from his plate. It crunched in her mouth as she began pulling out random things like a stethoscope, a blood pressure cuff, and meds.

“What’s that all for?” Tom asked, brows furrowed. Melanie gave back an equally confused look and went back to digging.

“What do you mean? They’re just medical supplies.”

“Well, yeah, but I mean why do you have a stethoscope and stuff?”

She paused what she was doing and looked back up at Tom.

“You do know I’m a nurse, right?” she asked. She immediately knew he didn’t by the way his eyes popped open.

After high school, Melanie had been able to go off and get her nursing degree, now working in the closest hospital which was, you guessed it, 45 minutes away.

She usually worked 12 hour shifts at the hospital Tuesday through Thursday, spending her other days at home so she could respond to small needs around town, especially on weekends when people liked to get drunk and be reckless.

“Oh, wow. I didn’t realize that. Good for you,” Tom replied, unsure of what else to say.

“It’s alright. You’ve been gone quite a while and we all know you ain’t checking in on what happens ‘round these parts no more. Now take this and let me grab the aloe from the fridge,” she said, dropping two advil on his plate and getting up.

Tom did as told, feeling the weight of what she had dismissively said. He really hadn’t checked in since leaving. Sure, his brothers and Harrison sometimes kept him in the loop. At least, he thought so.

He was trying to remember what the last big piece of news he had heard about home was, but came up short. He couldn’t even remember the last time he had seen anything on social media about home, since he’d unfollowed most of the people back home after his career took off.

They all reminded him of y/n anyways.

“You mind if I put some of this on your face?” Melanie asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. He obliged and she spread some of the cool aloe gel over his sunburn.

“Feel better?” she asked, to which he nodded. “Good, now let’s take a look at those blisters.”

She cringed when she saw how beat up his feet were. She pulled out a bit of numbing gel, hydrocolloid bandages, and fabric tape. Soon enough, she had his blisters all covered up and was handing him some more bandages and tape.

“Now I want you to leave these on as long as possible, alright? When they fall off or the spot in the middle gets too big, you’ll switch ‘em out for new. You should be in ship shape here in a few days. And you best not forget sunscreen from now on.”

“Will do. Thanks again, Mel. Hard to believe I’ve been gone long enough for you to become a nurse and all, huh?” Tom asked, half joking. Melanie nodded.

“Yeah, well. ‘Lot’s changed around here, even if it don’t look like it. You’d be surprised… Now before I forget...” Melanie quickly got up and left the room, returning with two wood and metal contraptions. “Here’s some boot stretchers to put in your shoes when you get home. Should help stretch ‘em out and I’m sure the boys would lend you some leather conditioner.”

With that, Tom put his boots back on and thanked Mrs. Carmichael for the meal, heading back outside. He found Mr. Carmichael sitting on the now-functioning four wheeler.

“Well, boy, you all good?” the older man asked.

“Yes sir. Melanie got me all taped up and your wife made a great lunch. So what else do you need me to do?”

Mr. Carmichael looked around for a moment, staring at a few things, then back at Tom.

“Well I got the rest all watered and y/n won’t be around with fertilizer till tomorrow so why don’t you go home and rest up those feet, eh?”

Tom tried to object, as it was still quite early in the day, but the old man wouldn’t have it. He eventually conceded and gave one last thank you, hopping into his old truck and heading home, pondering why y/n would be bringing fertilizer in the coming day.

∆

A/N: hope you guys are liking this story so far! I really love the time jumping, and the progression of it in future chapters is really cool!

Send a message or ask if you’d like to be added to my permanent or series taglists so I can verify you’ve been added!

Tag list: @jackiehollanderr, @one-big-fangirl, @l0lmk, @primadonnasdream, @bookworm06, @thenoddingbunny-blog, @agentnataliahofferson, @spider-babe, @stxfxniexreads, @mortallythoughtfulgurl, @onebigolemess, @justafangirlduh,

#sweet home alabama #tom holland #tom holland fanfic #tom holland fanfiction #tom holland x reader #tom holland x you #tom holland x y/n #tom holland story

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stylesnews · 4 years ago

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If your quarantine has been anything like mine, Harry Styles content has been the only thing getting you through. At the beginning of the national lockdown, he created a line of shirts and donated the proceeds to coronavirus charities. And last month, he showed solidarity with the Black Lives Matter protests by marching in L.A. and posting about the cause on Instagram. Even more recently, he recorded a sleep story for the Calm app because his fans had been begging for one for so long. Basically, he's been doing what he can during this crazy time, and it's a delight to see.

But back on May 18 (approximately two centuries ago ago), when the sexy and fruit-filled “Watermelon Sugar” music video dropped, Twitter rightfully lost its collective mind. Watching the video was an ~experience~, and it made me wonder what it was like being in it. You know, feeding Harry watermelon, running in the ocean with him, and cracking jokes as the sun set. The video dropped during a time when people were supposed to be avoiding any personal contact. Watching Harry and all the other people in the video rolling around with each other felt almost voyeuristic, and it made me miss living in a time even just a few months ago when touching other people wasn't so scary.

I hadn't stopped thinking about the video in the weeks since, so I decided to do some digging. For your reading pleasure, I talked to five models about the juicy (heh, get it?) details of being in the video.

Most of us scroll through the ’gram to see pics of Harry, but these ladies’ feeds landed them the gig. After putting out a call, the casting director scouted every model on Insta, sending them DMs if they thought they’d be a good fit. Many of them didn't even know the shoot was with Harry at first, only finding out it was him the literal night beforehand.

"I was immediately down to do it when I found out was him," model Elizabeth Tyson says.

Unlike us normal people, these girls balance their day jobs with, you know, spending time with Harry Styles. “I actually didn't even ask my boss if I was going to get [the day] off [for the shoot],” laughs model Mercy Odima, who is also a nanny. “I just replied, and I was like, ‘Yeah. I will be there.’”

That was back in January, and the girls had to keep their mouths shut for literal months until the video premiered on May 18. Can you imagine not being able to tell a single soul about the way Harry suggestively eats a watermelon slice?

By the end of the day, after countless shots where models were not-so-subtly licking watermelon slices and shoving their face (and Harry's) with the very-dense fruit, these ladies could 100 percent live without the watermelon sugar high. “We were like, ‘I can never eat a watermelon ever again!’—we were all sticky, it was dripping,” says Elizabeth. “They must have gone through a hundred watermelons for that shoot.”

And not all of it was so sweet: “I said something like, ‘Did you know that watermelon is actually kind of bad for you if you eat a lot of it? It’s bad for your digestive system,’” Maris says she told Harry. “He was like, ‘Oh, really? I’ve never heard that before.’”

Looking sexy while you feel like Bloat City is a challenge, to be sure. “The last part was us running up and down the beach at sunset,” Maris says. “I had just eaten probably a whole watermelon at that point. I was just praying it didn't come across—I just felt so uncomfortable.”

If it looks like the video is just a massive group hang with friends rolling around on the sand and making orgasmic faces into the camera, that’s because it basically was. “Everything was genuine,” Ephrata says. “They weren't like ‘now laugh’ or ‘now go crazy.' A lot of our scenes are actually us talking.”

Other scenes, though, had more direction. “There was a moment where the directors were like, ‘Okay, we want it to be kind of like an LSD trip,’” Maris laughs. We'll let you try to figure out which scene that is, because, TBH, it could have been any of them.

Overall, all the models agreed it was an incredibly chill experience. “It was probably one of the most natural shoots I've ever been on,” model Aalany McMahan says.

As if there weren’t enough about Harry Styles to fawn over, he also has top-notch nail polish game, as many people know. He ended up matching with one of the models on the set and it became an inside joke.

“Me and him literally had the same polish on,” Ephrata remembers. “We started laughing, and he was like, ‘I think yours is more like a coral.’” Before long, it became an on-set debate: “Everybody was trying to decide what color our nails were,” she laughs.

ICYMI, Harry was recently knighted a “consent king” for asking before he touched Ephrata’s hair. “[The directors] were like ‘You can play with her hair!’ And then he was like, ‘Wait wait wait, are you even cool with that? Is that okay? Are you comfortable with that?’” she remembers.

It meant a lot to her that he took that second to check in (and she later asked him if it was okay to kiss him on the cheek). “That was a moment on set where I was taken aback for just a second, and was like, ‘Wow, he really cares if I’m comfortable. He cares if the other models are comfortable,’” she says.

It goes without saying that a Harry Styles music video is guaranteed to be flirty. I mean, this shoot required the models to lay all over Harry, rest their heads on his shoulders, sexily feed him, etc. Those vibes didn’t stop when the cameras did.

During breaks in shooting, Harry—ever the gentleman—asked the group of models where they were all from. Maris said Wisconsin, which piqued Harry’s attention. “He goes, in his very British accent, ‘Oh, you’re from Wisconsin? Are you a Packers fan?’” she laughs. “I was like, ‘Yes, duh, I’m a Packers fan!’”

Later, as the sun went down on the Malibu beach, Maris tried (unsuccessfully) to hide how cold she was in her bikini. It was January, remember? “In between takes, he kept asking me if I was okay, cause I was shivering,” she reveals. “He was making jokes, like, ‘Oh, you're from Wisconsin, you should be able to deal with this!”

But even for a music video for a song is probably definitely about oral sex, it only went so far as flirting. “There was a group of us who were trying to get him to go out to dinner, but he had plans with someone else,” Maris says. Have fun spiraling while trying to figure out who that someone might be!

Considering his entire brand is "treat people with kindness," it's no surprise Harry was nice on set. That energy started right at the beginning of the shoot. “He was nice enough to come and say 'hi' to us even before we started shooting,” Ephrata recalls. “He came and shook everybody's hand and gave us hugs and was like, ‘Hi, I'm Harry,’ and I was like, ‘Yeah, I know.’”

Throughout the shoot, Elizabeth says he would have conversations, ask questions, and joke around with the models. “Most people, when they hit cut, they just sit there quietly, they don’t interact with you, but he definitely did,” she says. “He’s so laid back. He’s so funny, sweet—he has a personality.”

Many of the models expressed that it was this experience that made them full-fledged stans: “After working with him, I was definitely a bigger fan,” Ephtata says. Welcome to the club, ladies!

#harry styles #article #cosmopolitan #july20 #mention

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ebthecelebrity · 3 years ago

Photo

Sometimes the Grass is Greener on the Other Side Because it’s Fake

Introducing Brenda and Her Insecurities…...

Brenda stares at herself in a full length mirror. She turns to the left then to the right, eyeing her booty. She sucks her teeth and sighs. “Ugh, why did my mama give me her flat ass!” She walks off in disgust and plops down on the sofa. She grabs her phone and opens up Instagram and the first picture she sees on her timeline is a chocolate IG Model in an orange bikini on a yacht. She clicks on her profile and scrolls only to see more half naked pictures of this model’s voluptuous shape.

“Her ass can’t be real,” she mumbles to herself.

She clicks off and continues to scroll her timeline. She sees her high school classmate with his two kids playing at a park, a photo of some cute puppies, and The Shaderoom’s petty commentary on rapper Bow Wow. She cuts her phone off and walks into the bedroom to find her boyfriend, Keith, laying on the bed scrolling on his phone. He was zoned in.

“What are we doing today?” she asks. He continues to scroll his phone.

“Keith!”

“Huh?” he replies startled.

“What are we going to do today? Did you want to go out to eat at that new restaurant off 49th Ave?”

“I mean...I thought we could hit up the beach later. You know, pack the cooler with some drinks and maybe get something to eat out there.” Keith replies.

Brenda shrugs her shoulders. “Okay, I guess that’s cool.”

Keith smiles and grabs on her leg playfully. “Put on that sexy swimsuit you bought last summer, you know the black one.”

Brenda rolls her eyes. “Naaaaah, I’ll just put on some shorts. I’ll save that one for another time,” she replies.

She walks out the bedroom and goes back to the full length mirror and analyzes her body again. Truth is, she didn’t like it and definitely not in a bikini. She imagines her pancake shaped booty and A cupped breast looking pitiful in the midst of DD’s and Georgia peaches flaunting in the hot sun. Keith tells her all the time that she is beautiful, that he loves her body, but she just can’t seem to believe him. They’ve been together for two years but till this day, there are many times that she caught his eyes wandering. The beach was just a playground for her feelings to get played with under his dark shades. She truly resents going there but in order to keep the peace this Saturday, she agrees to his suggestion.

“I think my butt getting big, butt getting big, butt getting big…..” The song loudly blasts out of the bedroom. “Buss it, buss it, buss it, buss it….” Brenda silently listens to Keith watch “The Buss It Challenge” on his phone. It’s the new tik tok dance challenge where women appear raggedy looking at first with bonnets, pajamas, no makeup, etc. and then they drop down and twerk in the camera made up with hair, makeup and form fitting clothing. Brenda knew you had to have something to twerk in order to participate. She saw women of all races do the challenge and pop their ass on the gram, gaining likes and lust. She heard whatever video Keith was watching loop in replay three times. Before she knew it, a tear rolled down her right cheek. She quickly wipes it away.

It’s been two weeks since Keith and Brenda’s beach outing. Brenda is now sitting in an exam room, waiting to be seen by a doctor. She nervously tugs at her shirt and looks around the room. A few seconds later, a short gray haired doctor walks in and introduces himself.

“Brenda London?” He asks.

Brenda nods her head. “Yes.”

“Hi, I’m Dr. Castlerock. Nice to meet you. What brings you in today?”

Brenda takes a deep breath and replies, “Well, I want a consultation on a Brazilian Butt Lift.”

On the drive back home, she calls Keith.

“I scheduled it for August 16th,” she says.

“Brenda, why would you do this to yourself? I told you, I love every inch of you. It’s unnecessary man.”

She could sense the disappointment in his voice. “I don’t like every inch of me Keith! Why can’t you just support me?”

“I want to support you in everything you do, but this is not it. Where is your self love?” he replies.

“I got self love, and that’s why I’m doing it.”

“So you’re really just going to disregard how I feel about your natural body? Don’t I tell you all the time how beautiful you are?”

Brenda remained silent.

“And what about the cost? Isn’t it expensive?” He asks.

“I have cashed out my 401K.” she replies.

“Wow.” Keith replies.

“Listen, my butt has bothered me my whole life. I want to be the woman you lust after on Instagram. I want to be the bad bitch in the bikini!” Brenda cries. “You say you love my natural body, but you’ll love this even more.”

“Aight Brenda, do you. You’ve made up your mind. I just don’t understand, and I never will. I don’t lust after those females. I lust after you. I love you.” Keith replies.

Brenda bits her bottom lip and holds back tears. “I got to focus on the road Keith. I’ll see you when I get home.”

They both disconnect the call and Brenda lifelessly stares out the windshield of her car.

It’s now August 21st and Brenda can’t sit, drive, properly shower, or even have sex. She’s currently lying on her stomach on the couch, watching tv in a compression garment to help reduce swelling and discomfort. This week has consisted of strong pain meds, tears and a little regret. Even with his disapproval, Keith agreed to be her caretaker for the next two weeks. He walks out the kitchen area and hands her a small bag of Lay’s potato chips.

Brenda grunts in discomfort while lifting up off the couch a little to grab them. “Thanks”, she says.

Keith looks at her in an emotionless stare. “I got to make a few runs. You good?” he asks.

“Uh yeah, how long will you be out?” Brenda replies.

“I’m not sure.” Keith grabs his fitted cap from the back of the bedroom door and walks towards the front door.

“Okay, well be sa…” Before Brenda could get out “safe”, he had already slammed the door and walked out. The past few months leading up to the surgery had been difficult between them two. It’s like all the love and admiration Keith had for her went out the window. They had not really been intimate and he refused to discuss the BBL. Brenda yearns to get the man she fell in love with two years ago back. She feels that as soon as her recovery is here within a week or so and he sees her new curvy ass, they will bounce back. He will not be able to keep his hands off her. She smiles while envisioning the make up sex they will soon have and how things can get back to normal. Her phone rings. It’s her best friend, Sadie.

“Hey girl, what’s up?” Brenda answers.

“Girl….” Sadie reponses with a pause.

“What?” Brenda sits her upper body up in attention.

“I just saw Keith with a bitch.”

“Say what?!” Brenda tries to get up off the couch but suddenly feels a sharp pain in her upper left thigh. “Owww oh my God.”

“Take it easy girl, I did not want to call you with this shit, but you know I took pics of the evidence. Sending the pics now.” Sadie assures.

Brenda’s phone alerts with the text message. She quickly opens it up and clicks on the picture of Keith and a random girl hugged up outside of a gas station. Her mouth drops open and she’s in disbelief. The random woman has the biggest smile on her face while he holds her close and has both of his hands palming her booty. Sadie yells the words right out of Brenda’s own mouth.

“How the hell is he going to cheat on you with a flat booty bitch?!”

Introducing Trevor and His Enviness…..

“Aye excuse me Sir, can you take this pic for me real quick?” Trevor hands his iphone X to a stranger walking by who agrees to snap a pic of him in front of a silver 2020 Mercedes Benz S 560. It’s valet parked outside of the Ritz Carlton Hotel downtown. The man snaps the pic of Trevor and hands him back the phone. Trevor looks at the pic for a hot second and smiles.

“Thanks man,” Trevor says.

The man nods his head and replies, “No problem bro, that’s a nice whip you have!”

Trevor is a little startled by the compliment but replies back. “Uh yeah man thank you.”

“Those are going for like $100k. I’m sure it rides nice.” The man stares at the car in admiration.

Trevor nodded his head in agreement. “Oh yeah man, it’s laced out inside.”

“So dope, I’m trying to get like you one day bro,” the man says. “Take care and stay up.”

“You too.” Trevor replies.

Trevor waits until the man walks out of view and walks the opposite direction. He hurriedly walks two blocks down the street and stops at the bus station. He takes a seat on the bench and pulls out his phone. He pulls up the picture of him in front of the Benz on Instagram and captions “Just dropped 100 bands on the new whip. Talk to me nice.” He clicks upload and chuckles to himself. The city bus loudly pulls up and comes to a screeching halt at Trevor’s feet. He jumps up off the bench and gets on it to go home.

That next morning, Trevor wakes up to a loud vacuum outside his bedroom door. The door bursts open. He jumps up startled and rubs the cold out of his squinted eyes.

‘Really Mom?!” he says groggily.

His mom frowns her face and rolls her eyes. “It’s time to get up!” she says loudly over the vacuum. Trevor sighs loudly and rolls over to the edge of the bed. His mom, Cynthia cuts off the vacuum and looks at him annoyingly.

“If you don’t get a job by the end of this week, you gotta get out,” Cynthia says.

“This week?” Trevor asks, confused.

“This week is what I said. All you do is sleep in late and eat up all my damn food,” she replies.

“Ahhh man. Mom, you got to give me a little more time than that. Getting a job doesn’t happen overnight.”

“I don’t know who you think you are, but you are 30 years old still living with me and unemployed. You are not too good to drop them fries at Wendy’s down the street. I told you they were hiring last week and you still refused to put in an application,” Cynthia says. “I’ve had enough!”

Trevor sucks his teeth. “Man, I’m not working at no Wendys. I’ll figure something out,” Trevor replies.

“You got 5 days and I mean it,” Cynthia replies. She angrily cuts the vacuum back on and rolls it out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

Trevor stares at the wall for a minute, in an effort to fully wake up. He has no desire to work at Wendy’s. In his eyes, it was not good enough. He decided to get up and look online for a job. He pulls his laptop out of the closet and begins his search with indeed.com.

“Hmmm...desired salary range? $75,000 a year will do,” He says to himself.

Upon clicking search, he finds a lot of great paying jobs with benefits but the catch 22 is, they all require previous experience. Trevor has a high school diploma. After failed attempts to get into very prestigious universities, he was unable to secure an acceptance. His mother begged him to attend the local Community College to start off with his electives, but he felt that was not good enough. Trevor had dreams of becoming a journalist. He enjoyed writing and he used to record his own radio show for leisure. In High School, his grades were just not up to par for some of the schools he applied for. This discouraged him, and he never thought twice about going back to school. That was 12 years ago, and he has since worked dead end jobs and has yet to move out of his mother’s house. He became somewhat of a hermit, not engaging with friends and family. He secludes himself from everyone. His social media shows that he is a successful businessman residing in Atlanta, but in reality, he is broke, depressed and his mother still makes his bed.

After 30 minutes of searching online, his frustration grows and he slams his laptop closed. There is no way he can work at Wendy’s. He fears that his fabulous lifestyle would be exposed by running into anyone he knew. He opens up his Instagram and looks at his profile.

“532 likes?! Haha, that’s crazy,” he says to himself while admiring the photo of him in front of the luxury Benz from last night. He then scrolls his timeline to find a picture of a black suit and purple tie that someone had laid out on a plush hotel bed. He screenshots the picture and opens his profile up again. He captions “Rise and Grind. #GoodMorning.” and uploads it. He then puts his phone down and prepares to take a shower. He opens up his dresser drawer and pulls out a pair of blue boxer briefs. They had a hole in the back.

“Damnit!” He yells and slams the drawer.

Three days have now passed and Trevor is in his room playing his Playstation. His mother, Cynthia busts in his room.

“It’s Thursday young man and I’m not playing with you. Have you found a job?” She demands.

Trevor doesn’t take his eyes off the game and responds. “I’ve applied to a few places Ma, can you give me some time? I can’t just find a job in a week like that.”

“You’re lazy! And I want you out tomorrow! You better go stay with your cousin or something. I am no longer taking care of a man child,” she replies.

Trevor pauses the game.

“Ma, are you really going to kick out your only son? I’m really trying.”

Cynthia throws an empty box at him. “Pack some things. It’s time for you to grow up,” she replies.

She walks out the room. Trevor just knew he couldn’t live with his cousin Maurice. He still owes Maurice $500 from weeks ago. He truly had nowhere to go. Finally, years of misleading people with untruthful social media posts, borrowing money without repayment, not willing to work low wage jobs, and trying to keep up with the Jones’ has suddenly come crashing down. In desperation, he opens up his computer and types in “PPP Loan.” He reads where he will need a legitimate business to qualify and knows the consequences. This fictitious lifestyle has pretty much caught up with him but now he’s desperate. He wants the car, the money, the clout…. He clicks on the SBA website and begins to fill out an application.

#BeGrateful Fake WaterYourGrass FakeGrass IG BBL SelfLove

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thebrotherssalvatore321 · 4 years ago

Text

Keeping Secrets Ch. 15

Keeping Secrets Masterlist

Pairing: Damonxoc, Tylerxoc, Elijahxoc, then Klausxoc endgame. Warnings: Mentions of mental and physical abuse.

Katie sat in her car in the school parking lot catching up on homework that she had failed to do when she saw Stefan drive up in an old, but very well taken care of sports car with the music blaring. He was throwing caution to the wind, tossing a big red flag in the air that Elena clearly didn’t see since the two of them kissed then Elena walked off with a smile on her face. Katie tucked her finished homework into her bag then walked over to meet Stefan at his car. “You’re not being inconspicuous.” Katie said as he quickly closed the trunk and turned to her with a smile on his face. “You’re not okay are you?” she asked with and appraising glare.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He told her with a tight lipped smile as he pushed the strap of his backpack higher on his shoulder.

“I’m not Elena, Stefan, I’m not going to let you lie to me. You’re not acting like yourself.” She told him as she placed her hand on the trunk and gave him a ‘talk to me’ look.

“I’m fine.” He told her with a look that told her to stop asking questions.

“Look, I’m not going to tell Elena, but if you’re not doing okay you need to talk to somebody. Let me be that somebody.” She asked and he just took his sunglasses out of the neck of his shirt and put them on. “Okay. I’m not going to beg you to talk to me, but you can’t say I didn’t try to be there for you.” she sighed and started walking with him to the school in silence.

When they walked into history and took a seat both Elena and Alaric gave her a questioning look. “Katie, what are you doing here I thought I had you in fifth period.”

“They changed my schedule, something about there being too many people in period one Spanish.” She shrugged and he started looking at a stack of papers on his desk.

“Ah, I over looked that notice.” He told her then looked up to see two other kids walk in and take a seat only leaving one seat available in the room. “Which explains why you two are here.” he observed. “Okay, this week we’re going to set aside our regular curriculum for a lesson in local history as we approach founder’s day.” Mr. Saltzman started. “Apparently the community leaders feel that’s more important than world war two. But hey, what do I know?”

He was interrupted by Bonnie walking through the door. "Sorry I'm late." She told him as she shut the door.

"Looks like we'll be at full occupancy today. Welcome home, Bonnie." Alaric said as Bonnie took a seat. He started talking but Katie wasn't paying attention. Instead she gave Bonnie a smile that went unreturned. She brushed off Elena and Stefan too.

She and Elena gave each other ‘what’s up with her?’ look then turned their eyes to their teacher. Bonnie was the first one out the door when class was over.

Elena and Katie tried several attempts throughout the day to talk to Bonnie, but she kept slipping away. It wasn't until after school that they managed to catch her on the way to her car. “Bonnie,” Katie called and Bonnie stopped walking, “hey, how are you?”

“Yeah how's the family?” Elena added.

“We're dealing. It's been hard.” Bonnie answered understandably vague.

“We all really missed you.” Elena said as she pushed the strap of her bag higher on her shoulder.

“Yeah I just had so much to deal with after Grams funeral, and honestly after you told me that the tomb spell failed, I just really didn’t want to come back.” she told them.

Katie looked at Elena, “You told her over the phone?”

“I wanted her to know before she came home.” Elena defended herself then turned back to Bonnie. “I hope you understand why I told you.”

“I understand why. I just wish I didn’t know.” Bonnie’s eyes turned a little cold as she looked at her two friends.

“Bonnie!” They heard Caroline say as she ran over and scooped Bonnie up in a hug making her smile. “Thank god you’re home.” She let go of Bonnie just as fast as she scooped her up. “I know we talked everyday, but I missed you. How are you doing?” Caroline asked in a whirlwind.

“Better, better. You know, just glad to be back. Trying to keep myself busy.” Bonnie said giving Caroline more words than she had Elena and Katie.

“Well, I can help with that.” Caroline said with a smile on her face. “Major wardrobe confab needed asap. You need to help me pick the perfect dress for the founder’s court.”

“The founder’s court?” Elena asked. “Did I miss something?”

“The founder’s court. You know, Miss Mystic Falls.” Caroline told her like she should already know what she was talking about. “They announced it today and um, you and I and Katie are on it.”

“Oh, my god, we signed up for that so long ago. I completely forgot.” Elena replied.

“So are you dropping out then?” Caroline asked sounding a little too hopeful.

“I can’t.” Elena said as she sank back into herself a little bit.

“No?” Caroline asked confused.

“Her mom is the one who wanted her to enter.” Bonnie explained.

The three girls shared a look. “Hey, Katie,” Tyler called from behind her and she looked over her shoulder to see him standing a few feet behind her with his hands in his pockets, “can we talk?”

“Yeah.” She told him then looked at her friends. “I’ll see you guys later.” They walked away as Tyler walked up to her. “What’s up?”

“I know you said you wanted to take a break for a few days, but I don’t need a few days.” He told her.

She pushed the strap of her bag up her shoulder. “Okay, so what does that mean?” she asked as she started walking to her car.

“It mean’s that I don’t want to break up with you.” he told her as she came to her car.

She opened the driver’s door and tossed her bag into the passenger seat. “Good, because I don’t want to break up with you either.” She told him and he smiled. “But,” she held up her finger stopping him from being too happy too soon, “if this is going to work both of us need to make a few changes.”

“Like what?” he asked with a sigh.

“Like I’m going to stop dancing with guys who aren’t you.” she started.

“And what change do I have to make?” he asked with pursed lips.

“You need to realize that I’m not the kind of girl that parties and gets drunk at public events. A bonfire, a random kegger in the woods…alone in my room with you…?” she said as she hooked her finger into the collar of his button up shirt and pulled him a little closer. “Sure, but I’m not going to be stupid and ruin my chances for a scholarship.” He smirked down at her finger in his shirt. “Is that cool with you or is it a deal breaker?”

“It’s cool.” He told her as his smirk turned onto a smile. “You care about your future, I get it.”

“Does that mean you’ll be my escort for the Miss Mystic Falls founder’s pageant?” she asked with a hopeful smile.

“You made the court?” he asked with a smile and raised brows

“Why do you look so surprised?” she asked with a small laugh.

“Well, because my mom is over that.” He said with a tilt of his head.

“Regardless, I’m on it and I need an escort.” She told him getting back on topic. “So will you?”

“Yes, I will learn the stupid dance and everything.” He told her with a smile as he leaned in and pinned her between him and the open door of her car. She placed her hand on his chest and kissed him.

“Wanna help me find a dress?” she asked with another hopeful smile when the kiss broke.

“No, hard pass.” He told her shake of his head.

“Okay fine.” She sighed then pulled him back in for a kiss.

TVDTVDTVD

She was sitting at the bar at work, slacking off while writing what she was going to say when the judges did their whole, we want to get to know you before picking a winner, thing when she felt someone touch her shoulder making her jump and almost fall off of the stool. “Whoa there Katie Cat, didn’t mean to scare you.” Damon laughed while pulling her back onto the stool. “What are you concentrating so hard on?” he asked as he sat down and slid the paper across the bar and began to read it. “While I haven’t helped the community first hand I have had a part in the-”

“Give me that back.” Katie said trying to take it from him, but he lifted it high in the air and kept reading.

“go green campaign at school and made several donations to the M.F. beautification committee and the rec. center soup kitchen. My plans for the future are to go to Duke university and become a pediatrician.” She finally managed to get it from him and stuff it in her bag to be worked on later. “What is that?”

“The speech I’m going to give the founders court judges.” She told him as she walked around the bar and made him a glass of bourbon on the rocks.

“A pediatrician huh?” he asked as she slid him the glass.

“It’s what I put on the paper when I signed up.” She shrugged. “I didn’t think I would actually make it. Now I have to buy yet another dress and heels and I have no idea what’s appropriate for this kind of thing.” She complained with a sigh. She saw Damon looking her up and down. “What?”

“Blue, one shoulder, flowy with one of those sparkly belts on the waist.” He suggested, wiggling his fingers at her waist.

“I can’t wear blue, Elena’s claimed that color.” She argued.

“Then red.” He suggested.

“Really, a red dress with red hair?” she asked with a point to her ponytail.

“Wine red, it won’t clash.” He explained and she gave him an odd look. “I enjoy looking at women and I happen to pick up on what looks good on them. Don’t judge me.” He told her with a smirk as he leaned across the bar.

“Not judging.” She said holding her hands up in surrender. “Just appreciating.”

“Get back to work and stop breaking the law before they fire you.” he told her with a jerk of his head to a couple that had been seated in her section when he walked in who were looking impatient.

“Crap.” She said as she walked around the bar pulling the notepad out of her apron pocket as she did.

A few hours later, Bonnie came in a sat in Katie’s section without realizing it. “Hey, what can I get for you?” she asked not getting even a small smile of a greeting out of her friend Bonnie told her what she wanted in the most uncaring unhappy voice in the world. “Are you made at me for something?” she asked not caring that this was keeping her from the work she was supposed to be doing. “I mean, you barely spoke to me the whole time you were gone and then you come back and you won’t even look me in the eyes. So if I’ve done something I need to know about it so I can fix it.”

“You haven’t done anything, so you can’t fix it.” Bonnie told her with a frown.

“But there is something wrong.” Katie argued.

“Look, I can’t just sit back and pretend that everything is fine. Grams died protecting us from those tomb vampires and they’re out. So Grams died for nothing.” Bonnie explained.

“Do you blame me for that?” Katie asked, confused.

“No, I blame them.” Bonnie told her coldly. “Damon and Stefan.”

“Still waiting for the part where you explain why you’re cutting me out of your life.” Katie said getting a little aggravated.

“You’re friends with them, Katie.” She said as she looked down at her hands. “I’m not going put you or Elena in a position where you have to choose sides.”

“Okay then, consider me Switzerland.” Katie stated making Bonnie look up at her. “I’m living with my grandfather again. I wasn’t safe with the Salvatore’s. So if you decide you still want to be my friend, you know where I’ll be.” Katie told her then walked away.

TVDTVDTVD

The next day she got in from work and went up to her room only to freeze in the doorway when her eyes landed on a wine red, chiffon, one shoulder dress with a thin line of rhinestones around the waist, hanging in her window. Matching red suede lace up shoes with thick, easy to dance on, heels sat on the floor beside it. She instantly pulled her phone out of her bag and called The Hotter Salvatore Brother. “Surprise and you’re welcome.” He answered with a smile in his voice.

“Damon Salvatore, I did not ask you to buy me a dress. I don’t need your charity.” She scolded him. Even though she loved the dress she couldn’t accept it.

“It’s not charity it’s a gift.” He argued as she walked over and looked at the price tag only to find that the price had been taken off of it.

“Damon I can’t accept this.” She argued back not being able to take her eyes off of it.

“Well, do you like it?” he asked ignoring her statement.

“No it’s absolutely hideous and I will not wear it.” she told him sternly.

He was quiet for a second before he said, “You almost had me there for a minute. You love it and you know it.”

“Fine it’s freaking beautiful, but that doesn’t change the fact that I can’t keep it.” she argued.

“You can and you will. If I don’t see you wearing it at the pageant I am going to be very angry at you.” he warned.

“Fine, I’ll wear it.” she gave in knowing there was no fighting him.

TVDTVDTVD

Katie, wearing her red heels, stood in the school cafeteria across from Tyler as his mom instructed them on the dance. “Honor your partner.” She told them and they stepped up to each other and she curtsied as he bowed then they stepped back in line. “Let’s focus, right hand around.” They held up their hands and walked around each other. “Flirt with your eyes.” She told them and Tyler gave her his best attempt at a flirty gaze making her crack a smile even though she was trying her best to be serious. “Left hand around.” They did the same thing in the opposite direction. “Both hands.” Katie was aware of Elena and Stefan talking throughout the whole lesson then Stefan grabbed Elena and twirled her around. “Oh, no. No, no, no, there’s no touching during this part.” Carol scolded the laughing couple. “It’s about the simple intimacy of the near-touch.” She told them then motioned for them to get back to it.

When they started waltzing Katie was surprised that Tyler had really good form. “You know how to dance?” she asked with a surprised smile.

“Have you met my mom?” he asked with a glance at his mother. “She made me take dance lessons specifically for situations like this.”

“Oh.” She said with a head tilt.

“Little tip,” he started, “stiffen your arms more and act like you have a pole up your ass.”

She bit her lips holding back a laugh as she did what he told her. “Looking good guys.” Carol told the couple with a smile as she walked by and touched her son’s shoulder. Tyler gave Katie a cocky smirk.

TVDTVDTVD

The day of the pageant Katie went to a salon and used the money she had intended on buying a dress with to get her hair and nails done then went to the founder’s hall with her dress, shoes and makeup bag in hand. The other girl’s dresses were all already hung up in the dressing room, so Katie added hers then headed to the room where the girls were getting ready. Elena and Caroline gave her a smile when she walked in and sat down at one of the free vanities complete with a lighted mirror.

After putting on some subtle makeup Katie headed to the dressing room to put her dress on. She thought the dressing room was empty but instead she walked in on Damon and Elena. “Oops. Sorry I’ll just uh,” she stared backing out of the room, but Damon grabbed her wrist and pulled her inside. “What’s going on?”

“We all need to talk.” Damon told them as Katie walked over a grabbed her dress.

“Does it have to be right now?” Elena asked waving her dress at Damon.

“Normally I would have a completely different outlook on what I’m about to tell you,” Damon started talking and Elena gave Katie a questioning look as her friend started unbuttoning her shirt. “Katie, I’m trying to concentrate here.” Damon said with an interested look at Katie.

“And I’m trying to get dressed before I’m late.” Katie argued.

“Anyways.” Damon blinked rapidly and turned his eyes to Elena. “Since what I’m about to tell you could really inconvenience me, I’ll… squeal.”

“What are you talking about?” Elena asked still holding her dress in her hands while Katie slipped hers over her head.

“Stefan’s still drinking human blood.” Damon told her.

“Called it, but he refused to admit it to me.” Katie said as she took her shorts off under the dress. “Someone wanna zip me?” she asked turning her back on to the two of them.

“What?” Elena asked and Katie knew she was talking to Damon.

“Yeah.” Damon answered as he walked over and zipped up Katie’s dress. She walked around Damon and sat down on the white couch in the room. “A month ago I would have rejoiced.” Damon kept talking as he watched Katie switch her flip flops for the red heels. “But with the council back on the alert it is not a good time for Stefan to fly off the handle.”

“I know he’s been a little edgy, but he said that was normal.” Elena argued with Damon then turned to look at Katie as she stood up and moved to look at herself in the mirror. “And you called it?” she asked her friend. “Why can’t you just have a little faith in him?”

“It’s not about faith, Elena, it’s about seeing what’s right in front of your face.” Katie said as she straightened her dress.

“He has a fridge full of stolen blood bank contraband in the house.” Damon told Elena making her sit down on the couch. “He has no idea what normal is. His entire existence isn’t normal.” Katie, seeing that the dress was as perfect as it was going to get turned from the mirror to look at her friends. “Normal to a vampire is drinking human blood. But he spent all this time fighting it when he should have been learning how to control it. and now it’s controlling him instead.”

“I can’t believe it. I mean, it’s Stefan we’re talking about here.” Elena said not wanting to accept what she was being told.

“Stefan on human blood, Elena.” Damon argued. “He’ll do anything, he’ll say anything, because he’s not going to want to stop.”

“He had me keeping secrets from you.” Katie spoke up as she moved to stand next to Damon.

He looked across his shoulder at her and looked her up and down. “You look gorgeous by the way.”

“Thank you.” she told him with a smile.

“Wait what do you mean he had you keeping secrets from me?” Elena asked as she stood up.

“The night after you gave him your blood I walked in on him binging blood bags.” Katie explained. “He made me promise not to tell you.”

“Oh my god, this is all my fault. I’m the one who fed him the blood in the first place.” Elena said as she started pacing the room.

“What’s going on in here?” Stefan asked as he opened the dressing room door.

“Just…filling Elena and Katie in on your extracurricular activities.” Damon answered as he turned to look at him. “Although I think Katie already had her suspicions.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Stefan said with a shake of his head.

“I know about the blood Stefan.” Elena told him with one of her judgy little looks.

“We're just gonna...go.” Damon said holding his hand out for Katie to come with him. She followed him out to see that the other girls were lining up to walk down the stairs.

Katie was third in the line up and as the first girls name was called Carol walked over to Katie with a smile on her face. “You look beautiful.” She told her as she adjusted a curl that was framing Katie's face. “Good luck.”

“Miss Katie Finnegan.” Her name was called and suddenly Katie felt as if her heart was going to beat out of her chest.

She made herself take a deep breath and let it out then plastered a smile onto her face as she started walking down the curving stairs. The red chiffon of her dress flowed over the stairs behind her creating a beautiful contrast of white and red. However when Tyler and Damon's eyes landed on her neither of them were looking at her feet.

When Katie's eyes landed on Tyler's awe struck face her smile turned into one that lit up the room. Damon found himself frowning at the younger man as Katie took his hand and walked with him outside.

But when Katie saw Elena walk out with Damon instead of Stefan she felt a pang of jealousy shoot through her. Tyler cleared his throat reminding her that she was supposed to be keeping eye contact with him. So she looked at him and made herself forget about Damon and Elena. It wasn't hard once the music started playing and the two of them started the choreographed dance.

By the end of it she found herself only thinking about Tyler. "I really want to kiss you right now." Katie whispered to him as he escorted her to the stage.

"Save it for when you win." Tyler told her as he let go of her hand and went to stand in the crowd.

"Where's Amber?" She heard Caroline ask Elena and Katie realized that they had been missing a girl and an escort.

"Before I crown the winner," Mayor Lockwood said as he walked up to stand on the corner of the stage, "I would like to offer a personal thank you to all of these young ladies for their efforts to better our community." Katie put on a close lipped, polite, but genuine smile as everyone clapped. "So without further ado," Katie's heart raced with anticipation, "it is my honor to announce our very own Miss Mystic Falls...Miss Caroline Forbs!" The Mayor motioned to Caroline and Katie's heart fell to her feet.

But when Caroline turned to her Katie plastered on a smile and hugged her friend. "I actually won." She told Elena who hugged her too.

Katie tried to keep her face cheerful and not the least bit disappointed, but she felt herself failing. After Caroline got her sash and was awarded her scholarship they all walked off the stage, met at the bottom of the steps by their escorts then were allowed to enjoy the rest of the party. "I think you should've won." Tyler told her as he let go of her hand and wrapped his arm around her waist.

"Thanks." She told him with a sad smile.

"I do too." Katie turned to see Carol behind her. "I tried to argue that you managed to help the community while balancing school and work without your grades slipping, but they didn't listen." She said with a shrug.

"Caroline's worked really hard for this and the title meant more to her than just a scholarship." Katie said with a small smile and a shrug. "The right girl won."

Carol smiled at Katie and patted Tyler on the shoulder as she walked off. "How did you win my mom over?" He asked looking impressed.

"I have my ways." She told him coyly. "So…I didn't win the scholarship, but I did manage to make it through that dance without tripping over this dress in these heels. Does that still qualify me for a victory kiss?" She asked.

He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her. "Did I see jealousy on your face when Elena walked out with Damon?" Tyler asked making her frown.

"No, you saw worry. She was supposed to be with Stefan, but he disappeared." She explained. "He’s been going through something here lately and I’m worried about him. Speaking of which will you excuse me for a minute? I really need to talk to Elena." She asked and he nodded. "Thank you." She pecked him on the lips then picked up her dress and started looking for Elena and Damon. She ran into them as they were headed out of the front doors. "Hey, where's Stefan?" She asked as she rushed after them noticing Bonnie behind her.

"I think he took Amber." Damon explained and when they got into the parking lot they heard a scream off in the woods. "Come on, this way."

They followed the sound to find Stefan feeding on the crying blond. "Oh my god. Stefan!" Katie yelled sounding like she was scalding a misbehaving child.

"Stefan!" Elena yelled sounding scared as they all stopped a somewhat safe distance away from the raging vampire.

Stefan turned to look at the four of them. Katie and Elena stood at Damon's sides while Bonnie stood further behind them. “Stefan. Come on. Get control of it.” Damon started coaxing him. “It’s okay. Come on.” He walked cautiously over to his brother. “Breathe through it man.”

As soon as Damon touched him Stefan growled and threw him into the distance. He started walking over to the three girls, blood dripping from his mouth and veins popping under his eyes. He was halfway to them when he stopped and started grunting in pain as he grabbed his head. Elena and Katie turn around to see Bonnie glaring at Stefan with her hands at her sides and her palms facing out.

After a few seconds of agony Bonnie stopped and Stefan, no longer raging, looked at all of them with scared eyes full of regret. "It's okay, Stefan." Damon tried, but Stefan turned from them and ran.

"Okay, I'm going to call Sheriff Forbs. You three found her and called me. You got it?" He asked as he walked over to Amber and compelled her to forget what happened.

Police cars started showing up before Damon could even pull out his phone. Soon they saw some EMS workers along with the Sheriff walking over. The EMS practically jumped Amber while the Sheriff pulled Damon to the side.

After talking to him and Amber the Sheriff walked over to the girls and Damon. "She doesn't remember what happened."

"It's a good thing the girls got here when they did. She lost a lot of blood." Damon told her.

"And you didn't see anything?" The sheriff asked and while Elena looked at Bonnie, Katie looked at the sheriff and shook her head no.

"No, we just...found her and then called Damon." Elena answered for all of them.

"Is she going to be okay?" Bonnie asked.

"It looks like it, yeah. Why don't you girls go back to the party? Damon and I can take it from here." Sheriff Forbs told them and they all nodded and left.

While Elena and Bonnie talked Katie went back inside to find Tyler. "Hey, where have you been?" Tyler asked as she walked up to him where he stood at the bar drinking a soda.

"That's a long story that I'd rather tell you later." She sighed as she wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his shoulder.

“Are you okay?” he asked as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

“Yeah I just needed a hug.” She answered feeling stupid as she let go of him. "Wanna tell your parents that you're staying at a friend’s house and stay the night with me?" She asked.

"Are you serious?" He asked with a laugh.

"As a heart attack." She answered with a smile. "My grandpa won't say anything to anyone."

"Sure." He answered as he placed his hand on the back of her neck and kissed her.

"Then I will see you later." She told him as she let him go. "I'm going to head home and get out of this dress and take the ten pounds of hairspray and bobby pins out of my hair."

TVDTVDTVD

She had just gotten out of the shower when she heard her text tone chime. So she dried her hand and picked up the phone to see a text from The Hotter Salvatore Brother. "Stefan is locked away thanks to Elena and one if Alaric’s vervain darts. Just wanted to let you know Mystic Falls is relatively safe again."

"Thanks, Damon." she typed then hit send.

"Goodnight, Katie Cat."

"Goodnight."

She closed her phone and put it on her desk. She had just put on a tank top and shorts when she heard a knock on the door. She ran down stairs to see her grandfather shake Tyler's hand and let him in. "Hey." She greeted him from the stairs and waved him up. "Come on."

He followed her up the stairs and to her room. "So are you going to tell me where you disappeared to tonight?" He asked not letting it go.

"Elena, Bonnie and I found Amber in the woods with a big bite on her shoulder and neck." She answered. “I didn't want to talk about it at the party." She sat down in the middle of the bed and placed a pillow in her lap.

"Is she okay?" Tyler asked as he sat down next to her.

"Yeah, they said she'll be fine. She just… lost a lot of blood." Katie shrugged.

“Are you okay?” He asked placing his hand over hers as he threaded their fingers together.

“Yeah, it's just been a really eventful day and all I want to do right now is vegg out with you. Wanna watch a movie?" She asked as with a point to the tv hanging on the wall across from the foot of the bed.

“Sure.” Tyler answered so Katie slid off the bed and started looking through the DVDs that lined the shelves of the bookshelf in the room.

“What are you in the mood for?” She asked as he slid off the bed and walked over to look with her.

“Scary.” He answered as he wrapped his arm around her waist.

“Have you seen ghost ship?” She asked holding up the DVD case.

“Nope.” He answered so she popped it into the dvd player then grabbed the remote and they got comfortable on the bed.

“This is probably going to make me sound crazy, but I love the opening scene of this movie.” She said as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and she snuggled into his side.

They watched as someone flipped a lever making metal cable wind up on a spool, pulling it so tight that it the cable snapped. It sliced through all the people on the ships dance floor and they slowly slipped apart and fell to the floor in pieces, leaving a little girl alive, screaming at the carnage around her. "What is wrong with you?" He asked when the scene was over.

"I told you…I'm crazy." She said with a laugh and Tyler just shook his head.

As they watched the movie Tyler flipped her hand over and started lightly drawing on her palm with the tips of her fingers. The light touch sent a relaxing wave of pleasure through her.

When the credits rolled on the tv, playing music in the background, Tyler kissed her, laying her back on the bed. As they kissed she grabbed the hem of his shirt and pulled it over his head. As she threw it to the side, not caring where it landed, Tyler started kissing her neck, pulling a quiet moan from somewhere deep inside her.

Her hands slid down the smooth taunt skin of his back as she rolled them over. He slid his strong hands up her sides under her shirt pushing it up as far as he could. With a small smile she grabbed it and flung it to the side then leaned down. A deep moan left his lips when she started kissing his neck.

She wasn’t surprised when she felt him start unhooking her bra. It wasn’t surprising that he wanted more since they had been dating for two months and hadn’t gone further than heavy make out sessions. What surprised her were the butterflies that started fluttering in her stomach. Butterflies that let her know that she was capable of loving someone other than Damon.

She sat up and tossed her bra onto the pile of shirts then looked down at Tyler’s body, sliding her hands over the contours of his abs while he caressed her thin, curvy sides. She smiled softly as she moved her eyes to his. “God, you’re beautiful.” His honest compliment made her smile grow bigger.

“Thank you.” she told him then fell forward, bracing herself with her hands on each side of his head. “You’re pretty damn handsome yourself.” She told him, her face just a few inches from his.

He closed the gap, pressing his lips to hers in a kiss that quickly deepened until Katie kissed his jaw then down to his neck. As she stayed there, alternating between kissing and nibbling Tyler’s hands explored her back and chest, pulling a moan from her as his thumbs slid across the peaks of her breasts.

Deciding she needed more from him, she started trailing kisses down his chest and stomach until she got to the waist line of his jeans. She sat up on her knees, between his legs and looked at him with lustful eyes as she started unbuckling his belt. Still looking him in the eyes she unbuttoned and unzipped his pants. “Come here.” He told her with a jerk of his head and a smirk on his face. So she crawled back up him, he caught her face in his hand and pressed his lips to hers as he flipped them over and stood up letting his jeans fall to the floor.

She made it a point to keep her eyes on his face as his boxers followed and he hooked his fingers into her cheer shorts and panties and pulled them down at the same time. As he tossed them to the floor, Katie sat up and grabbed the back on his neck, pulling him down for a kiss as he crawled on top of her. His hand gripped her thigh and pulled her long, toned leg up and around his hip.

He stopped kissing her and pulled back to look her in the eyes as he sank into her. A sigh left her lips and she pressed her fingertips into his back. “Tyler.” She sighed his name then pressed her lips back to his.

TVDTVDTVD

Katie laid on her side her head on Tyler’s shoulder while he wrapped his arm around her, brushing his finger tips up and down her side. “You okay?” he asked with a look down at her. “You’re really quiet.”

“Yeah.” Katie answered, looking up at him with a smile. “I’m awesome.”

He pecked her on the lips with a smile. “Good.” It was comfortably quiet for a while until he broke the silence. "Do you really want to be a pediatrician?" Katie picked her head up to look into he chocolate eyes, giving him a questioning look. "Mom mentioned it."

"I used to, yeah. It's what I've been working toward my whole life." She answered as she put her head back down on his shoulder.

"But you don't want to anymore?" He asked as he picked up some of her hair then let it slip though his fingers.

"I don’t know. I've realized that not only am I doing all I can just to stay in the top twenty of our class, but I don’t do well in high stress situations. And if I'm having to fight this hard now then I'm afraid that once I get into college I'm going to get chewed up and spit out." She told him then took in a deep breath.

"So what do you want to do instead?" He asked.

"I've been thinking about becoming a song writer." She admitted.

"Can you sing?" He asked looking down at her even though she couldn’t see him.

“Good enough to get my songs heard, but I’m nothing amazing.” She brushed it off. “Who knows, I night end up working at the grill for the rest of my life for all I know.” She sighed as she rolled over onto her stomach to look at him. As the reality of what she’d just done with him set in a smile took over her face.

“What?” he asked with a small laugh at her.

“You make me really happy.” She admitted.

Tyler slid his hand over her cheek and pulled her down for a kiss that made her eyes slip shut. “You make me happy too.” He whispered and kissed her again then laid back and tucked his arm behind his head. Katie laid her head on his shoulder and snuggled into his side. “Sometimes all I can feel is anger. Exercising helps, but when I’m with you…I’m calm.”

Katie just looked up at him and smiled before he pecked her on the lips. “I’m glad I can be your escape.” She told him as she brushed her finger across his bottom lip. “Because you’re mine.”

They ended falling asleep in each other’s arms.

15 notes · View notes

andrew2luv · 4 years ago

Text

OBX: An Outer Banks Story (Season 1 - Episode 1)

“Hey! Wake up! You’ve gotta be at work in 20!” Her shouts annoy me as they do every morning.

“I’m awake!” I shout back, already dressed for work and sitting in my bed, staring at the small crack on the wall.

After a minute I finally force myself to my feet and walk downstairs. I quickly try to pass the kitchen and out the side door, but Grams sees me and gives me a look.

“Love you.” I walk over and hug her as she chops her herbs.

“Love you too. Have a good day at work.”

I walk out and immediately hop onto my bike. As I do the same ride I’ve been doing every day for the past two weeks, I continue watching the people of this town. There are those people who are running around like mad dogs, just trying to stay afloat. Then the people walking around like they know something no one else does. Then my favorite people of the OBX, those who own it and know it. They intrigue me more than the rest. They put their noses up at the rest of us, yet if you look close enough you realize that their lives are just as fucked up as ours.

“Hey. New kid!” The shout distracts me as I bike up to the country club and I fall off my bike. “Damn!”

“Fuck!” I shove the bike off my legs, noticing the scraps and blood beginning to drip.

“Dude, you okay?” The same girl that shouted my name before runs up to me, offering a hand.

“I’m fine.” I get up and notice her, she’s my age, shorter than me, and wearing an apron.

“You sure? You’re bleeding.”

“Yeah. I’ve had worse.” I pick my bike up and start walking it to the bike rack with her.

“Sure. Okay. I’m Taylor. I work with the pastry chef.”

“Parker. Busboy.” I lock my bike in. “Why were you yelling for me?”

“Oh. Yeah. You’re needed to help at the bar today.”

“Okay.”

“It’s a busy weekend. You’ll probably be there till Monday.”

“Okay.” We walk in together.

“Is that the only word you know?” She steps in front of me, smiling a weird amount.

“No.”

“Okay.” I laugh at that and she smiles.

“Sorry. I’m just not a morning person. Or a person person.”

“Well, that’s fine. I’m sure I’ll be your type of person soon enough.”

“Really? You think so?”

“I know so.” She smiles and turns down another hall. “See you later Busboy.”

“How was work?” Grams is hovering by the backdoor when I arrive. “Make any friends today?”

“Nope.” I go over to the fridge and grab a water bottle before I notice she’s dressed up. “What’s going on?”

“My friend’s throwing a little game night. I’ll be gone pretty late. There’s money in that jar for pizza or whatever.” The Winnie the Pooh cookie jar just stares at me.

“Sure. Have fun.”

“You too.” She says as I walk upstairs.

I didn’t sleep a minute last night. Well, I actually did, but maybe forty minutes tops. I had fallen asleep until I had the worst dream. I dream that brought me back to one of the worst moments in my life. It just kept repeating. The scream. The grab. The Fire. The beeping. Over and over. Over and over. Over and over.

Then I snapped out of it. Sat straight up in my bed, sweating. The sad thing is… I wish I could say it was the first time or even the tenth. And as I did the other times, I sat and played sudoku on my phone. I played it over and over until the sun rose. Once the sun was up I took a quick shower and left the house on my bike.

I’ve been biking for nearly two hours and am pretty sure I’m lost. I’m somewhere next to the water. There are a few boats tied up, but not much else around. It’s quite beautiful though. I’ve never taken a real moment to notice how nice the water looks. And how perfect the sun shines on it. And for just a second my mind goes blank. The sound of the wave goes through my head.

“Hey. What the fuck are you doing on this dock?” I nearly fall on my ass when I hear the voice and turn to see someone on a nearby boat.

“What?” I just starting to snap out of my daze.

“Private. Property.” I can’t really see the guy with the light in my eye, but I take the note and start walking back.

I got to the club early for my shift so they let me get some extra hours. The bar has been crowded all afternoon. I’ve realized the bar area is filled with four different types of people since I first started. The first are the men who sit at the counter and drink for hours. They’re harmless, but really like to talk. The second type are the group of men that come after they’ve played golf and now want to discuss business. They’re usually quite rude, but they tip a darn good amount. The third type are the men that bring women far younger than them who are clearly not their wives. They are the type that prefers very little attention to them, but really want to impress the women they’re with. The fourth and final type of people that come to this bar is the group of teenage boys who think they are entitled to drinks because their daddy’s pay far too much to get them in. They are the type that truly drives me insane. They try over and over to get what they want, then threaten to get my boss or their parents.

Speaking of which… just about five minutes ago this group of four teenage boys walked in and took a table. They’ve been chatting, laughing, and looking over at the bar.

And now one of the boys, one with slicked-back brown hair and wearing a bright-colored shit with cache shorts. He’s smirking and looking way too confident.

“Hey.” He takes a seat on a stool.

“Hey. What would you like?”

“Just four rum and cokes.”

“Four cokes?”

“Umm… no. Rum and cokes.”

“I.D.?”

“Well I left it in my office, but ask anyone, I’m a regular here.”

“Well... “ He smiles, thinking he’s about to get what he wants. “No I.D., no drinks.” I walk over to another person and top off their drink.

I start cleaning up and the boy is still sitting there, watching me. He seems intent on me. Watching. Smiling. Then looking back at his friends and laughing every once and a while. He waits a few minutes before he speaks again.

“It’s you!” He snaps like he knows something.

“What?”

“You’re the kid that was on our docks this morning.” Wait… that was him? “You were standing there like some kind of idiot.”

“Anything else you need sir?” I can feel my blood starting to heat up.

“I should’ve realized you we’re some poor Pogue. You probably live in some shithole with your alcoholic mother and father who beats you around for the fun of it.”

It hits me. Hits me hard. I can feel my blood going from zero to a hundred. My fists tighten, nails digging into my palms. I being picturing the things I could do to him. I could grab a glass and shove it in his face. I could grab him by his hair and shove his head into the counter. But my favorite thought right now is grabbing him by his hair and dragging him across the bar and throwing him into the hundreds of bottles before stomping my foot into his ribs and shattering a large bottle of tequila in his face.

But I don’t do any of that. I stare him straight in the eyes. I put all my anger into my eyes and let him feel it. At first, he stares back, but after thirty incredibly long seconds, he blinks. He puts on this fake laughter and steps off his stool.

“Come on guys, let’s go. It’s boring here.” They all walk out together.

I quickly walk to the main bartender.

“I’m taking my break. Be back.” I speed out of the bar.

I make my way down the halls of the club. Through the back exit and where most of the workers hang. I step through the few workers hanging out and around the corner. I immediately face the wall and punch it. I regret it the second I swing my arm, but at that point, there’s no going back. I immediately want to scream, but hold it in.

“Parker?” I jump out of my skin as Taylor turns the corner. “Oh shit!” She runs up to me as she sees the blood dripping down my fist.

“I...I…” I begin finding it hard to breathe. “It’s… it’s… al…”

“It’s okay. Shhhh.” She takes the apron off and wraps it around my hand.

“But… I can’t… I can’t breathe!” My chest is tightening and everything begins to get a bit hazy.

“Parker,” Taylor grabs my face and looks me in the eyes. “Focus on my eyes.”

“But…”

“Focus on them,” She’s stern. “What color are they?”

“Blue.”

“What’s my name?”

“Taylor.” Things begin to loosen.

“Where are we?”

“Hell.” That makes Taylor laugh, then I do as well.

“Not technically wrong.”

“Thanks.” I start to feel normal, if I was ever normal to begin with.

“No problem.” She helps me to my feet.

“It’s just not my day. This kid came in…”

“You don’t need to tell me. I understand.” I take a look at my hand. “I’ll go and get some bandages.” She turns to walk away.

“Taylor. Thank you. Really.”

“What else are friends that you’ve known for 24 hours for?”

“I don’t know, depends if they happen to bring me back a cookie.”

“Oh, really?” We both laugh as she walks away.

I turn around and lean against the wall. I take a deep breath in and run my hands through my hair. Then I look forward and that kid from the bar is standing in the parking lot. He notices me and smiles. Then he waves before hopping onto his motorbike. He looks to me once more, that grin digging into my skull. I flip him off and that only seems to make him smile more. He rides off and before I know it I find myself getting hard as I watch him ride off.

“Damn.”

6 notes · View notes

ddaengyoonmin · 5 years ago

Text

BTS Friends to Lovers Series (Taehyung)

Pairing: Police officer!Taehyung x Badgirl/Stoner!reader

Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, small attempts for humor

Warnings: some slightly dark themes, drug dealer!Jungkook, swearing, lots of weed references, deep throating, cum swallowing, dom!Tae, face slapping with hands and with his cock (cleanse my souuul oops) assault on a cop, some abuse of power from a Pervy older cop. Getting arrested. (I think that’s all let me know if I missed any)

A/N: while this is a reader insert I put a lot of my own personal experience and life into this piece. It was also partially based on a dream I had about getting arrested by taehyung

Word count: 6k

Songs to listen to: ‘Free spirit’ - Manila Grey ‘Parking lot’ - Manila Grey ‘Play with Fire’ - Sam Tinnesz

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to tell my mom and dad about this. You know they’ll just go right to your parents about it. As long as it’s the last time this happens... right?” Taehyung turned around and cocked an eyebrow at you from the driver’s seat.

You let out a groan and rolled your eyes. “Sure Tae, of course it’s the last time” you spoke with a hint of sarcasm in your voice.

“I mean it y/n, you’re lucky it was me that got to you and not one of the other guys. You’d be down at the station right now instead of sitting in my car with a milkshake” He scolded

You took a big sip on the straw of your milkshake “Yeah thanks for this by the way, I was really getting the munchies” You joked

Taehyung let out a loud sigh, taking off his police issued hat and running his fingers through his shaggy brown hair annoyed. Then holding up the plastic bag that had the remaining weed that you hadn’t smoked yet in it. “I’m keeping this you know that right?”

You shrugged “What for? are you gonna start smoking again Mr. Do-good?” you teased him.

“y/n…” he spoke sternly. “Damnit, you’re so lucky we are friends. I don’t think you realize how many times I’ve saved your ass from doing actual time over this stuff”

“It should be legal anyways and you know it. Besides...I knew a time when you would’ve been right there with me” you said matter of factly.

“Well that was a long time ago y/n. We were kids, now we are adults. Well...I am at least” he shot you a joking glare and you pretended you didn’t see him and just took another long sip on your milkshake.

“I’m taking you home now” he sighed and drove out of the parking lot the two of you had been sitting in.

You had known Taehyung since the two of you were practically babies, he was a year older than you but the two of you had been best friends since as long as you can remember.

Your mom and his mom were best friends at college and were each other's maid of honor for their weddings. Your families were tied together like an unbreakable knot, dinners together at least twice a month and unscheduled random hangouts were just part of your life, and with it, Taehyung.

You were there when he had his first kiss at the middle school dance, you comforted him after his first break-up with said girl that he had his first kiss with. You both drank your first beer together, and smoked your first joint together. Everything that you did, you had done with Taehyung. Until he graduated highschool a few years ago, and had the grand idea that he wanted to become a police officer. That decision put quite a damper on the shenanigans you were used to getting into with him, and you’d felt yourself grow slightly more distant from him as a result.

But, he still looked out for you. Times like today you were kind of grateful he had joined the police force, because he was right, if anyone else had caught you smoking a joint with a few extra grams to spare on you, sitting inside a big yellow slide on a playground thinking that no one would notice (Spoiler, they did…) They wouldn’t have just scolded you and then bought you a strawberry milkshake.

Taehyung pulled up to your house and walked around to open the back door of the police cruiser for you.

“Stay out of trouble y/n. There's only so many get out of jail free cards I can offer before someone notices you know.” he pulls you into a quick hug

You snuggle your head into his chest for the quick moment, that he hugged you.

“Ah, Don’t make me smell” he quickly grabs your shoulders putting you arm's length from him with his nose scrunched, a disgusted look on his face.

“Don’t act like you don’t miss that smell” you winked at him as you walked the cement path leading to your front door.

Taehyung rolls his dark eyes and gives you a quick smile.

He didn’t always used to be like he was now, he was the biggest stoner you knew. Which is what always caught you off guard about his decision. It seemed quite random, it was strange enough to you that you felt it could’ve made the news, ‘Small town Stoner Turns Good Boy Cop’ You chuckled at that thought.

Though you missed your favorite smoke buddy.

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

The next day when you got out of work you drove over to your dealer’s house to replace the Eighth that Taehyung had to confiscate from you.

Your old beat up car had been running on its last leg for a while now, but it continued to get you where you needed to go, and you spent too much money on smoke to think about getting a new ride.

Jungkook was lounging on his front porch smoking a cigarette, his eyes shut in a dreamlike state, his jet black hair falling slightly down over the closed lids. The bright rays of the summer day blessing his sun kissed skin in an angelic manner.

“Hows my favorite pot-head” you grinned as you approached him, catching him off guard and causing him to flinch at the sound of your voice.

Realizing it was just you he grinned and extended out a hand for you to help him stand up from the step he was relaxed on in front of his house.

He stood tall and smoked one last drag on his cigarette before putting it out and opening his front door with a welcoming gesture inviting you inside.

The scent of weed burned into your nose instantly when walking into his house, you loved the smell, you loved everything about it.

Taehyung used to too…

He was the most knowledgeable stoner you’d ever met. He could even tell the strain of the weed he was smoking after just smelling it. You and your friends used to quiz him for fun and he’d always ace every test without fail.

You wondered if sometimes when he’d pull someone over and arrest them for the exact thing he used to partake in, he’d catch a whiff and know the name of their bud.

It all seemed pretty hypocritical to you, but you have to remind yourself you both have grown up, people change, though you haven't much, you can’t blame him for it.

Jungkook went over to a drawer and pulled out a large glass jar, carrying it with two hands over to a wooden coffee table near his couch. You, knowing the drill, doing this trip to Jungkook’s at least once a week, had sat down on the couch to wait for him.

Jungkook pulled a long un lit joint from the front pocket of his red flannel and held it between his lips with his eyes focused on the jar in front of him.

He pulled out a few nugs from the jar and put them on a cheap gram scale he had on his table, weighing it out to the eighth he knew was your regular purchase.

“Isn’t this a little early to be here, how fast did you go through your last bag?” Jungkook chuckled, placing the nugs into a ziploc bag carefully.

“Ugh” you sighed. “Taehyung again”

Jungkook knew just what you meant by that. Taehyung used to be close friends with him as well before he became a cop. They had a big falling out when Taehyung joined the force, Jungkook hated cops with a passion and said some choice words to Taehyung that had severed their relationship permanently. It hurt to think about how things used to be, the three of you laughing and smoking, riding around in your old car flying on cloud 9. Literally, the strain that was your favorite at the time was called cloud 9.

Jungkook shook his head and pulled out a lighter from the same pocket the joint came from, lighting the tip for a second before inhaling and letting the smoke glide down his lungs, then passing it to you.

“I don’t know how you can stand to be around him anymore” Jungkook grumbled.

“First of all, I really don’t have a choice, actually I think we are having dinner with our families together later tonight. Secondly” you made eye contact with Jungkook “Hes really not that bad. It could be worse. All I got was a soft warning and a milkshake” you passed the joint back to Jungkook.

“Until he gets some pressure from his higher ups to be more of a hardass. I think your days of getting off easy are short lived y/n. Enjoy it while it lasts. He’s sold his soul to ‘the man’ trust me” He spoke between coughs from the rough hit he’d just took. Putting air quotes around ‘the man’.

You didn’t like the idea of that and you shut up for a bit, sharing the rest of the joint and paying Jungkook for your bag.

He gave you a hug and a smile on your way out. “Be more careful out there y/n” he winked and bumped your shoulder with his fist playfully.

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

You went straight from Jungkook’s to your parents home where you were to have dinner with Taehyung’s family. You sat in your car and quickly sprayed a massively overpowering amount of perfume on yourself hoping to mask the weed smell. Then putting in some eyedrops to help with your glassy eyed expression you’d seen in your car mirror. You winced at the way that it burned but were thankful for the relief that it gave to your dry eyes.

When you arrived through the door your mom instantly ran over to you and embraced you in her signature hug, that always included a large inhale.

“You smell like Marijauna” her eyes narrowed at you.

“Oh no, not the Marijauna” you feigned shock and put your hands to your cheeks a surprised expression looking like the boy from home alone.

She glared at you, not amused. You knew your parents didn’t care that much, your dad especially. They didn’t smoke but you knew your dad was a hippie in his day so he had no room to judge. Your mom was slightly more judgemental but she usually just let you off with some snide comments and rude glances before returning to her normal bubbly self.

She ran to her room and grabbed some febreeze and started chasing you around the house with it while you laughed, tears forming in both of your eyes at how ridiculous she was being. She was mostly worried about upsetting Taehyung’s family most likely. Not that they were the type to judge either, but it was still made for a slightly more awkward dinner if it ended up getting brought up with Taehyung’s current position in life. No one in town really knew how to act around him.

You thought that must be tough on him. People that were once his peers were now all terrified of him. No one wanted to talk to him about anything more than casual small talk, and it was always very shallow conversation. No one wanted to open up all of their deep secrets or emotions in front of a cop. On the surface no one would think that it bothered him much. He was good at keeping a constant blank expression that never let anyone into what he was thinking even back in highschool. But, knowing Taehyung the way you knew him, it must bother him.

He was the life of the party, and now he's the buzzkill who crashes the parties.

Taehyung’s family arrived and you all sat down to eat. Your parents asked Taehyung about his job and how it’d been going. He said he liked it and he was actually getting close to a promotion.

His eyes flickered your way, almost like a small apology was hidden in that look.

You knew what that meant, no more getting off easily anymore. Jungkook was right, the idea that you had a cop friend on your side was just a fun fantasy. Next time you got caught by him, he wouldn’t be treating you like a friend one bit.

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

The moment came sooner than you’d thought. You and Jungkook had been going on a late night taco bell run, smoking a joint the whole way there, and you as usual were carrying a decent amount of smoke in your bag.

You had stopped in the parking lot, parked in the back to hotbox and eat in the car. Hotboxing was one of the funnest activities you used to do in highschool and you had mentioned to Jungkook that it’d been way too long, he was more than happy to oblige.

You were giggling like a child over the way the word ‘Taco’ sounded if you said it slowly when you were startled by a tapping noise on the window.

Not able to see through the smoke fogged glass who had knocked on your window, you squinted then glanced to Jungkook, who stared wide eyed at the colors of blue and red flashing to the side of the car.

“Fuckkkkkkk” he groaned, hitting the steering wheel roughly with a flat palm. “Fuck fuck fuck. Y/n you’re carrying a bag aren’t you”

Your eyes grew wide, “Y-yeah…are you?”

Jungkook gave you a ‘what do you think’ look

Of course he was.

You sighed and rolled your window down, a wave of smoke pouring out and flowing right into the face of the officer standing there. Fuck, it wasn’t Taehyung.

“How’s it going officer?” you asked sweetly. He was less than pleased.

“Both of you. Step out of the car” he ordered sternly.

You did as he said, and now realized that another officer sat in a separate car. Taehyung…

“Officer Kim, can you assist me here” The older policeman spoke Taehyung’s way.

He got out of the car, his uniform fit him way too sinfully, you’d always though he looked more like the cop from an old porno , than one you’d ever have taken seriously. But, the expression he currently held on his face gave you the chills, and not in a good way.

He glared your way, shaking his head in disappointment. Jungkook was throwing dagger eyes towards Taehyung as he started to approach him to pat him down.

“Oh fuck off Mr. High and mighty” Jungkook scoffed, stepping back from Taehyung.

“Kook” you pleaded at your friend to take hold of his temper. The older cop had started to pat you down as you held your arms out. Upon finding the bag in your pocket he waved it in the air like he’d hit the jackpot.

“Look what we’ve got here Officer Kim. Someone’s been a naughty girl” he playful spoke. The way he said that made you nauseous, you didn’t like the way he had just started behaving one bit. But, what could you do.

He continued his pat down, his hands lingering on your breasts for too long. You shot him a glare and tried to recoil away from his touch.

“Ah ah, you’d be surprised how many ladies try to hide illegal items in their bra’s thinking I wouldn’t check there” he grinned evilly. Fucking pig. You thought.

You turned to see how things were going with Jungkook just in time to see him winding up a fist and throwing it forward into Taehyung's face.

Shit.

The hit sounded out like he’d damn near broken Taehyung’s nose, and the other officer was immediately to Taehyung’s side. Both of them tackling Jungkook and pinning his arms behind his back securing them with handcuffs. The older cop holding him down with a knee on his back pressing his face into the parking lot’s asphalt.

You stood shaking in realization that Jungkook had just gotten himself into some real trouble. All because of his stupid grudge with Taehyung. If anyone else had gotten in a small tuff like that with an ex best friend, it probably would’ve just ended with a couple bloody noses and both men walking away feeling like they got the better hit in. But because Taehyung was what he was now...it’s most likely going to end with Jungkook doing some time. Assaulting a cop was definitely not a minor crime.

They had scooped Jungkook off of the ground and shoved him into the backseat of the older officers cruiser. Jungkook cussed and grumbled the whole time.

“I’m gonna take this one down to the station,” the Officer pointed to Jungkook “You take our little lady here home. Maybe teach her a lesson on picking a better choice in boyfriend” he winked Taehyung’s way.

You were appalled but not surprised at the older man’s behavior. Some cops felt like they could get away with that shit...cuz well...they could.

You followed Taehyung to his car silently with your head low, only lifting it once to send one last glance Jungkook’s way, catching his eyes for a second and both exchanging looks of worry. Possibly a goodbye for a little while.

Once you were in Taehyung’s car the waterworks came. You held your face in your hands and sobbed loudly, your body convulsing with the heaviness of your emotions.

Taehyung was quiet, pulling a few tissues from his glovebox and holding them to his nose tilting his head back.

The two of you sat there for a while, silence lingering between you like some delicate thing just waiting to break.

“I’m sorry” Taehyung whispered.

“For what? Getting Jungkook arrested or for your pervy boss and his grabby hands?” You spat out with some fire, still slightly fucked up on the drugs you’d been inhaling.

“Both...All of it…” he muttered, staring straight ahead and avoiding your piercing gaze.

“Why’d you even do this Tae? This job doesn’t suit you, I just don’t get it. We’re best friends. And look at us.” You motioned to the way you were sitting. Him in the front, and you behind glass separating the space between the two of you. You noted on how much of a metaphor for that felt like for the distance he’d put between you, differences between you now…

“Regular Catwoman and Batman huh?” he murmured.

Goddamnit. And there's the exact reason you could never hate him. “You fucking nerd.” You sighed chuckling and falling back into the seat shaking your head. “Oh my god. You’re not allowed to make me laugh right now.”

Taehyung sent an apologetic smile your way.

As upset as you were, his joking really did shift the tone in the car and you decided to tease him back.

You put your wrists together and held them to the glass near Taehyung’s head.

“Aren’t you gonna cuff me officer?” you said flirtatiously, batting your eyelashes at him. Expecting him to roll his eyes and groan at your joke.

Instead you were met with a serious expression. His eyes lingering on your wrists and then trailing over to your lips. His tongue darted out and licked over his bottom lick slightly.

“Holy shit did that actually turn you on or something?” you gasped, lowering your hands from his view.

He instantly snapped out of the state of mind he had gone into so suddenly. “Of course not” he snapped “Don’t be ridiculous”

“Oh my god. It did! I didn’t realize how kinky you were Kim Taehyung.” you winked at him “Handcuffs get you going? No wonder you became a cop. You’re going to turn into old pervy Officer whatshisname aren’t you? Gross Tae,” You started to laugh.

“Shut the fuck up, I’m not like that.” he barked loudly. Instantly catching you off guard and having you sit up straight and rigid.

“Sorry” you mumbled. “Officer” you added with a bit a spite.

“Damn right. You think you can just get away with all of this, with no consequences and no worries. One day you’re going to have to grow up y/n.”

“Oh like you?” you raised an eyebrow “No thank you...sir”

You heard what sounded like a low growl from Taehyung.

In an instant he sped up and parked the car in the far corner of the parking lot where the lot lights weren’t reaching. In hindsight that was probably where you and Jungkook should’ve been parked.

Taehyung got out of the car and stood by your door. You wondered if he wanted you to get out and join him outside the car. But the car doors of police cars are always locked from the inside unless you have the key. So you waited, for what seemed like painfully long time.

You glanced out the window to see Taehyung pacing back and forth outside of the car with a hand pressed to his forehead, he was stressed. Probably from the fact that he’d basically just sent Jungkook, his former best friend, to jail.

Taehyung turned and rested a hand on the door handle. Was he finally going to let you out? He seemed to be hesitating. After what felt like forever the door clicked open and Taehyung was climbing into the back seat with you.

“Oh hello?” you spoke in surprise.

Taehyung didn’t speak, he continued his hungry gaze from earlier, biting his lip slightly and staring at you with bedroom eyes.

“Taehyung…” you started before you were cut off.

“I wanted this job to protect people. I care about those close to me. The older I got the more I realized how important that was. Everyone thinks that I just want to bust them for weed or partying and be the killjoy of our town. But, that wasn’t it. Remember that summer that girl got drugged at that party. No one was able to find the guy. I wanted to be the type of person that could look out for people. That could maybe do something about things like that. It sucks that I had to give up some of my habits that I don’t necessarily agree with the laws on. But I follow it, I sacrificed that to keep this town safe. To help keep you safe” he added at the end. His expression sincere.

“I guess I hadn’t really thought of it that way. Jungkook probably hasn’t either…”

“Yeah Jungkook doesn’t give a shit about my reasonings. Fuck the police and all that.” he rolled his eyes.

“I get it” you shrugged. “That's actually a pretty decent reason. I miss getting to hangout with you other places than the back of your cruiser though” you teased, poking him in the shoulder.

“Mmm then maybe you should start behaving little girl” he growled in a tone you’d never heard him take with you before.

“Tae..” you looked at him with furrowed brows, your mouth hanging open slightly in confusion.

Before you knew it Taehyung's hand was clutching you jaw lightly, one finger trailing over your lips.

“I’d always thought…” he whispered. “Maybe one day, you’d calm down with all of this stuff, and we could…” he trailed off.

You blinked rapidly in realization of what he was saying. Did Taehyung really just imply what you think he did? You felt your hands start to shake slightly. Not that you were completely opposed to it, but you just couldn’t understand why he would feel that way. You’d on and off had a crush on Taehyung your whole life. He was your first crush when you were just in elementary school. You weren’t even sure if he’d remembered, but one day when you were probably only 7 and he was 8 years old, tiny little Tae had run up to you on the playground with a bouquet of yellow dandelions clutched in his small hand.

“Y/n. Will you marry me?” he had squeaked out.

You had chuckled and taken the dandelions from his hand “Taehyunnnng, we’re too young to get married.”

He had pouted cutely, crossing his arms across his chest. “Fine. Well one day you will. And I’ll buy you a big house, with a puppy, and a big garden.” You had nodded and said “Fine. One day a lonnng time from now. Promise” and the two of you had continued to play during your recess and it was never spoken of again.

You’d occasionally think back on it as a funny memory. But now, looking at him here. The way he looked at you…and those words. ‘Maybe one day you will’ ‘Maybe one day you would…’

“Tae…” you stuttered out again.

“Maybe you just need to learn a lesson or two. Maybe I need to teach you how to behave.” he growled, his hand trailing over your lips was now making its way to your neck. His thumb slightly pressing down on your jugular as he eyed you dangerously.

You whispered under his touch but didn’t try to pull back. You couldn’t deny to yourself that this excites you, it probably shouldn’t but you’d always been a sucker for a little pain.

“Is that was you need hm?” he asked authoritatively.

Should you?

“Y-yes…” you stammered out.

“That’s what I thought” he hissed out. “That handcuff comment was uncalled for. Maybe you were the one who wanted me to tie you up hm?” He started to move to pull out the handcuffs he kept on him, twirling them around on his middle finger.

Your heart started to beat rapidly, and your breathing was becoming so quickened at the sight of Taehyung, your best friend Taehyung...Police officer Taehyung, in front of you, uniform and all, about to handcuff you for mutual pleasure.

You nodded innocently.

A low groan rumbled in his chest as he leaned over to you, pushing you down onto the backseat so your back was flat against the cushions. He now hovered over you, his face mere inches from your own, and a look of pure lust gazing down at you.

He started to grab your hands and cuffed you to a spot they had in the cruiser that made his task of securing you quite easy. The metal bit into your skin slightly but you could tell he made sure not to put them on too tight. Your arms were now held over your head, and any thoughts of backing out had been pushed away. You wanted him, you craved him, you needed this.

Taehyung’s lips crashed down on to yours sloppily and wet, instantly slipping his tongue into your mouth as he held your jaw roughly with one hand.

“I’m gonna fuck that dirty mouth of yours. I’m going to teach you how to respect authority little girl” he growled, now straddling your hips and unbuttoning the belt of his uniform and tossing it to the side.

He didn’t continue to undress himself. Instead his hands pulled on the bottom of your shirt, rolling it up over your breasts and letting it sit high up on your chest, not being able to fully take it off due to the way you were cuffed.

He let out a lustful moan and bit his lip at the sight of you.

Of course you weren’t wearing a bra, he thought. It was so like you to be like this, always the tease. Taehyung had loved you for as long as he could remember, and finally he had you here underneath him. Strangely when he used to picture fucking you in the back of a cop car (because he totally had fantasized about that) he wasn’t the cop. But, here you were, and here he was, grown up and still exactly the way he had always pictured. Your tits looked so incredible, better in person. He’d never told you but when you’d gotten your nudes leaked around the town at one point by an ex boyfriend he happened to get a copy sent to him. He had deleted it right away...if right away meant after jacking off to them first and then deleting them…

He felt bad about that, but he loved you so much and your body was completely irresistible to him, he didn’t know how he’d managed to make it this long in life without having you for himself.

He gave your tits a few squeezes and lowered his head down to them, biting now on your nipple grazing his teeth over your skin, and loving the way you squirmed under him at the sensation. He sucked and bit at you, making sure to roll the neglected nipple in his fingers while he did.

You were absolutely loving it.

Taehyung then pulled back releasing you with a pop. He now started to unbutton the black uniform pants and pull out his enormous cock.

Your jaw dropped at the mouth watering sight.

You’d always assumed he was big, you’d seen him get hard in some swim shorts once at a pool party when you’d shown up in a skimpy swimsuit, but now seeing it fully you realized you’d underestimated the length and girth of him greatly. You licked your lips hungrily, wanting a taste.

“ You like that huh baby? Dirty little slut, so weak for my cock right now?” he grinned stroking himself slowly.

You nodded in response, your eyes fixed on the length in front of you.

He moved to position himself so it was right in front of your face and he was leaning over you.

“Hungry little slut” he whispered. He smacked you hard against the side of your cheek with his heavy cock, you were surprised but mostly turned on at the fact that it actually hurt a bit.

“Are you gonna behave for me?” he asked sternly, looking down at you with a fucked out expression.

“Maybe?” you teased.

Whack. He smacked you again with his cock, slightly harder this time.

“Don’t be a brat now. You are going to behave, or I’ll make you behave. Okay?” he growled.

“Okay” you whimpered, trying to pretend that you weren’t totally in love with how he was acting, trying to play into the game.

“Okay what” he snapped.

“Okay...sir?”

“Thats right.” he nodded. Then placed his hand back around your jaw, gripping you tightly. “You’re gonna open up and take my dick, allll the way. Let me fuck this dirty mouth of yours” he ordered. “And maybe once you’ve sucked every last drop of cum out of me, you’ll think a little more before you go around acting out.”

“Yes sir” you nodded, parting your lips showing him that you were ready to take him.

“Fuck,” he whispered, breaking the stern voice he’d been maintaining for a quick moment, letting on to just how excited he was to be this intimite with you.

He pushed his hips forward, his hand on his shaft and the tip of his cock now sitting on your lips.

“You’re okay with this right?” he whispered. Gentleman Taehyung making an appearance for a moment

“Yes sir” you purred with a grin.

“Get ready to take me then baby girl” he growled, going back to his previous demeanor.

He pushed his cock into your mouth all the way, slowly, getting you adjusted to how huge he was and getting a feel for how much you could take. To his delight he slid all the way down until your nose was buried into his abdomen.

“Fuckkkk” he hissed out. “Such a Good girl for such a bad girl.”

He quickly pulled out and repeated slowly fucking his cock all the way into your mouth and quickly pulling out again.

“Get ready baby” he moaned. Then started to speed up his pace, his hips rolling into your mouth quickly, causing you to gag lewdly a few times as he did which only seemed to turn him on more, causing a pleasured hiss each time.

“I fucking love this mouth baby. You take me so well.” Taehyung was biting at his lip and staring down at you in awe.

You moaned around his cock, the vibrations making him stutter and throwing him off his pace for a moment.

“So good” he whispered. You felt like that one wasn’t meant for you to hear, but you loved knowing how good you were making him feel so your heart skipped a bit at his praise.

Taehyung gripped your hair, steadying your head and pumping himself into your at a fast pace.

“Thats fucking it y/n.” He panted out “Fucking. Learn. How. To. Behave.” he growled and smacked a hand to the side of your face.

Your eyes were watering and you felt a warm pool of wet growing between your legs. You could get used to this Taehyung.

“I’m gonna cum in your mouth and you’re going to swallow every. Last. fucking. Drop.” he pounded into you in sync with each of those last words.

You stared up at him with flirtatious eyes and smiled slightly.

“Damn those eyes are dangerous” he groaned and with that you felt him tense up and his pace grow uneven.

“Shit. Fuck. Y/n. Oh my god” he screamed out while emptying himself into your mouth. His cock twitching wildly as he fucked into you. You closed your lips around him as he pulled out, sucking slightly to get every last drop as he’d ordered.

He looked down at you with pure joy as you stick out your tongue to show him his cum pooled up and gathered in your mouth before rolling it back into your mouth and swallowing with a loud gulp.

“Wow.” he stared wide eyed at you. “So fucking hot” gasped out

He now went to the cuffs and pulled his key out, releasing you from your restraints.

Taehyung rested down on top of you where you still laid. His head on your chest.

“You alright man?” you chuckled running your fingers through his sweat drenched hair.

“Mhm” he smiled widely with his eyes closed “That was amazing”

This cute Taehyung that cuddled up next to you now was a Taehyung you thought you’d lost long ago. Your heart felt full and warm seeing him this way.

“Soooo are we returning the favor or?” you joked

His head snapped up he hovered over your face and looked at you with a playful expression. “Nope. that’s your punishment for getting caught.”

“For getting caught huh?”

“Well yeah. You don’t have to stop doing what you love y/n. For God sake, if you’re going to date a cop you can’t be that reckless with it thought. Keep it in the house and where you’re for sure safe from anyone catching you or calling me to come check out the situation” he rolled his eyes.

You sighed. “I guess I can manage that. Wait...date? A cop? Wait…” you started to stutter realizing what he’d said.

“Well you promised you’d marry me one day remember? but, I figured dating is a good place to start” he grinned with a wink.

You felt butterflies in your stomach at his recollection of that day so long ago.

“What an odd pair we’ll be” you chuckled.

“Yeah… oh also I’m gonna get things with Jungkook figured out okay. I feel like shit about it, and I’m going to make sure everyone at the station knows he didn’t mean it, and I barely got a scratch on me.” he let you know.

You nodded, almost forgetting about Jungkook.

“I think that’d be a good idea Tae, I think he honestly misses you, you know?”

“Yeah I miss him too…”

You planted a small peck on Taehyung’s lips. “You’ll get it figured out. I know you will.”

Taehyung smiled down at you and returned your quick peck.

“How are you so bad and so good all at the same time” he shook his head.

“I guess that's just what you like in a future wife” you teased.

“I suppose so,” he replied. Except he knew, that he meant every word.

Love is such a funny thing.

#bts fanfic #bts x reader #bts fluff #bts angst #bts smut #taehyung x reader #v x reader #taehyung x you #cop!taehyung #bts friends to lovers #jungkook x reader #bts x you

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thadelightfulone · 5 years ago

Text

Better When You Are Quiet

Summary: Keyara and her group are studying for their Chemistry final.

Finals Week at CSUF is both a blessing and a curse. The Student Union opens for 24 hours the week before and during finals week. All-night study rooms are wonderful, but Keyara wishes she was at home asleep instead of here. She finds herself with her Basic Chemistry study group sweating it out in a small room in the back of the Student Union. They just moved from chemical compounds to molar mass of those compounds. She enjoys the science, but mixing math and some of these long ass equations is some of that bullshit, getting on her nerves. Nevertheless, she needs this course for her Chemistry minor.

They have been at it for 2 hours already. Everyone’s schedule only allowed the group to get together after 10 pm three days before their Chem final. You know, because they do not have other finals to finish studying for or papers to complete before the week is out. Keyara drops her pencil since she has finished the final two problems for their current section. She waits for their self-appointed group leader to move on.

Erik is standing at the whiteboard, ready to solve the next problem so everyone can see it. “Did everyone finish number 15 yet?” He looks around, “I’ll give you a couple more minutes to find the number of Potassium ions.”

Keyara sat back and waited while the rest of the group finished up. She was happy with the progress she had been making in the class ever since her friends started this study group. She was on the verge of failing after the first two exams and labs, and now she brought her grade up enough to keep up her GPA. The only drawback was the guy standing at the front of the room: Erik Stevens, certified jackass, number one in the class, and fione as all the fucks.

Tapping her pencil on her notebook, she looks away from the 6 ft chocolate Adonis leaning against the board with a smug smirk on his face. Dimples deep enough to hide the eraser from her pencil, short dreads falling messily around his head. Tonight he happens to be wearing a black hoodie, a long white tee, and grey sweats. She looks back up as he turns back to the board to start working out the problem.

Keyara slightly jumps when her neighbor and bestie, Stephanie, pokes her in the arm. Steph starts giggling at her and slides a sheet of paper to her. You two need to fuck already. Keyara rolls her eyes before snatching the paper and writing her response. Never gonna happen, so let it go. Stephanie shrugs her shoulders and turns her attention back to the whiteboard.

Erik finishes writing and turns back around. “Is everyone within five-hundredths of 1.863 ions of Potassium?” Several heads look up at the board and then down at their answers. Those same people look around the group of seven, but no one says anything. “Come on, people. Now is not the time to be quiet. Let me know how I can help.” A hand goes up, “Yeah, Steph.”

“Ummm, Erik. That’s not what I got.” Stephanie puts her head down. She had been having just as much trouble as Keyara when they started meeting up. Keyara snatches her paper to have a look.

“Girl stop.” Nodding her head, “Steph, I got the same thing as you.” She hits her with her elbow facing her with a smile.

“So, you’re both wrong?” Erik laughs and shakes his head since he is not surprised. Stephanie and Keyara needed the most help out of the people in their small study group. “Where did I lose you?”

Keyara looks at her work and then back up at the board. She starts laughing, “It ain’t us, but since you asked.” She points at the board, “At the beginning. Your numbers are wrong, Erik.”

He looks down at the sheet in his hand and then turns to what he wrote on the board. “Nah, this looks good to me.” Looking at Keyara, who is rolling her eyes at him and tapping her pencil on the table, Erik grabs the practice exam that they had been using for questions. He rolls the exam up, slamming it down on the table. “Damn!”

“You see it now?” Keyara stands from her seat, walking to the front and takes the marker out of his hand. “You started with 98.3 grams of Potassium Carbonate instead of the 89.3 listed on question 15.” Smiling at him, she pats him on the back before pointing him to the nearest seat. “We are all off by less than two tenths from YOUR answer, but at least your work is correct.”

Erik scoffs at her and takes the seat. “Man, whatever.”

“Don’t be mad. I said your problem-solving work was correct.” Keyara shrugs and turns to write the next problem on the board. “Maybe Dr. Filowitz will give you partial credit.” Some snorts and soft laughter reverberate throughout the small room. Erik stands up and rushes Keyara. She turns and stands tall right in front of him, waiting for him to say something.

Devin, another quiet but smart classmate on the other side of Stephanie, jumps up and speaks. “Hey! You know what it’s after midnight, and they gotta clean the room anyway. Why don’t we all take a break and come back in an hour?” He steps forward between Erik and Keyara, scooting her along and out of the way. Keyara moves towards Stephanie.

Steph throws her stuff in her bag, “Sounds like a plan. I could use a neck massage right about now.” She grabs Keyara’s stuff as she makes her way to the door, and they walk out of the room. “OH SNAP! They got protein bars and energy drinks. Thank god!” Stephanie’s loud voice booming down the hallway as everyone packs up, making way for the cleaning crew to come.

Keyara and Stephanie walk into the basement pub lined with tables full of different grab & go snacks, juices, water, energy drinks, and school supplies. They pulled a few items and then took the elevator upstairs to the first floor near the Alumni fireplace where the volunteer masseuses set up the massage chairs. They wrote their names down and waited nearby against the opposite wall until their turn.

“So, when are you gonna stop playing?” Keyara, who just bit into her apple eyes Steph over her glasses as she casually stirs the straw in her energy drink. Shaking her head, Keyara looks to the left, avoiding Stephanie’s stare. “Oh, come on. It is so obvious, it’s disgusting.”

Finishing her bite, “Steph, I am not doing this with you. It is too late, and I am trying to relax.” She leans her head back against the wall. “Leave it alone, please.”

“Key, if not him, then please from somewhere because I am sick of you.” Keyara can hear Steph’s nails tapping on her can.

“We all can’t have D lined up waiting for us to call for delivery like some folks.” She pushes up her glasses as Stephanie gasps in faux outrage. “Nah, bitch. Don’t even. I just want to pass this class, and then I don’t have to deal with him anymore.”

“Right, because the engineering major will not have any more science and math classes before he completes his degree.” Steph bumps her shoulder. “Until you finish your minor, you are stuck with him,” she snorts at Keyara’s pouting face.

“Don’t put that on me.” Just then, Keyara hears her name called from the far end of the chairs. “Gotta go. Bye.” Stephanie watches her go, smiling and slurping on her drink.

---

“Why do you let that girl get to you?” Erik and Devin are the last to leave the study room as the cleaning crew enters with their supplies.

“Let who? Do what? Nah.” Shaking his head, “Do you know who I am?” Erik throws his backpack over his shoulder, holding onto his jacket. “I am not worried about lil Miss Keyara.”

“Right, ok. That’s why you almost did what to her a few minutes ago?” Devin grabs his messenger bag and walks out.

“Yo, that girl makes a nigga wanna throttle her. All that mouth. Why can’t she be like her homegirl?” Erik catches up to him in the hallway.

Devin stops and looks at Erik, “You want Keyara to act like Stephanie? Oh, now I know you buggin’.”

“Not all the way like her, because you know how Steph gets down, and Miss Thang is too uptight for all of that. But like Steph knows what to say and when to say it.”

“Steph caters to the male ego. Key is not about to do all that, and you know it.”

“Yeah, well, a nigga can dream.” Devin laughs and nods as they make their way to the Midnight Snack area in the basement. “Man, I wish it was PB & J night. I hate energy drinks.”

Devin stops as they approach the table, “Damn, there she go.” Erik runs into his outstretched arm and follows his line of sight. “Brittany looking right.” Watching the girl in question, bend over in her baby blue sweatsuit, “Juicy, oh yes. Yes, she is.” Erik laughs and grabs some fruit and juice from the table.

“Let’s go out to the patio. I’m not tryna stay in here.”

They find an empty table outside and sit down. Erik leans back in his chair, briefly closing his eyes as he hears the music pumping through the outdoor speakers. He cracks open his apple juice when Devin waves over some of their people. They all start chatting about how their finals are going, how many they have left, and their Winter Break plans.

He looks up to the Alumni lounge, where he can see the massage chairs and decides to get one. He daps up the guys and runs up the stairs outside the building to get to the first floor. Erik makes it upstairs to see Steph standing by herself against a wall. “Where do you sign in?” She points to a table, and he runs over to add his name to the list before heading over to Stephanie. “So, where’s your girl?” She looks behind him, and he looks up to see Keyara sitting down for her massage. He smiles, throws up a peace sign, and walks over.

Erik makes his way to Keyara’s chair, and sees Brisa, a Kinesiology major, and friend, moving behind her to adjust the settings on the chair to make her more comfortable. Keyara has leaned forward with her head in the chinrest, ready for her massage to begin. He taps Brisa, whispering, “Aye, let me handle this massage for you. Go take a break.”

“Erik, you know I can’t do that. She already knows I am doing her massage.” He smiles at her, pleading with his eyes. She huffs at him, “Fine. Are you getting a massage?” He looks at Keyara, who sits up and is getting ready to turn around. He holds her shoulder in place to keep her from moving. Erik nods in the affirmative to Brisa, “Then I got you, and only me.”

“Done.” He moves up behind Keyara as Brisa walks behind him.

“15 minutes, E. Not a minute longer.” She taps him and leaves. 

Erik moves his hands up to the sides of Keyara’s neck, rubbing slow circles from under her ears to the top of her shoulders. She leans forward and relaxes all her weight into the chair.

Keyara closes her eyes and allows her body to relax as the hands squeeze and roll the tense muscles in her neck, shoulders, and upper back. She softly moans but doesn’t say anything at all. She starts drifting off when the hands move lower down her back.

“So, is this what a nigga gotta do to keep you quiet?” Erik whispers in her ear. Keyara tries to turn around, but Erik runs his hands along her spine, rolling from the inside out towards her waist. It felt wonderful, but she still stiffens under his touch pulling her arms up. “Relax. I’m just trying to release the tension. You are carrying a lot of shit in your shoulders and back, you know.” He presses harder, and Keyara moans again.

Keyara mumbles, “Just shut up, Erik,” she drops her arms back to the sides of the massage chair, “Enjoy it while you can, it’ll be the only time you touch me.” Erik chuckles and finishes her massage.

---

Thirty minutes later, everyone in the group has made it back to the now freshly cleaned study room. Devin looks around, and even though everyone seems much more relaxed than before, they took the break; he can already tell going on will be a waste of time for them.

“Yo, it’s almost 2 am. Let’s call it a night for Chem. I know a few of us have a final or two in the morning and want to get some more study time or sleep before it.” Everyone agrees, and some even yawn, “Yep, see ya Thursday.”

They all clear out of the room, going their separate ways. Erik and Devin catch up with the guys they were talking to earlier. He can study for his next final with a few of them. Steph and Keyara part ways since Stephanie’s last final exam is the Chem one. She has papers for the rest, so she’s headed home. Keyara walks towards the front of the Student Union. She has an 8 am final and decides to stay on campus instead of fighting traffic, trying to return to campus in about 3 hours.

Keyara heads upstairs to the Quiet Study Lounge and finds a couch in the corner. She curls up on one side and opens her book to study. About an hour later, her book has fallen off her lap, and she is sleeping curled into the back of the couch.

Erik finished studying with his homies and decides to find a quiet space to chill until his 9 am final. He walks into the Quiet Study Lounge and finds Keyara asleep in the back on the two-seater. He takes the seat next to her, picks up her book, and sets it on the table. Watching her quietly for a few minutes, he notices her slightly shivering. He grabs his jacket and lays it over her, making sure she is covered then straightens her legs out pulling them over his own. He puts in his earbuds, leans back and closes his eyes.

---

Keyara’s alarm goes off at 7, and she sits up suddenly, sensing a heavy weight on her chest and legs. She feels the jacket fall to her lap, and as she picks it up to look it over, placing her phone on the table, she notices arms draped across her legs, which are laying on the owner’s lap. Keyara softly inhales when she looks at the culprit, Erik freaking Stevens. She takes in his relaxed sleeping posture - head back, arms across her legs and his own stretched out, crossed at the ankle under the table in front of the couch.

The alarm on her phone goes off again, vibrating against the table, causing Erik to stir. He looks up at her as she turns it off. “Good morning Sunshine.” He smiles at her, deep dimples showing and golds gleaming.

Keyara sighs, “Moment ruined.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I’m not the only one who is better when quiet.” She stands up, gathering her backpack, throwing Erik’s jacket at him. Keyara looks at him as he stares back in shock. “Shut up and come on.”

“Come where? I don’t even get a thank you for giving you my jacket while I was shivering in my sleep?”

“My thank you was gonna be a breakfast burrito before my final, but if you don’t want it. I’ll just head to class now.” Keyara walks to the door, Erik hot on her trail.

He catches up to her, throwing his arm over her shoulder. “That’s all you had to say, babygirl.”

“Nah uh,” she pushes his arm off her, “you have done enough touching on me for the day.”

Drawing Keyara back into him and wrapping his arms around her waist, Erik erupts into a full-body laugh that sends chills through her.

“I’m tryna have my hands all over you again.” He nuzzles her neck as she leans back into him.

She groans and smacks at his hands trying to get out of his grasp. “My final is over at 10.”

“I’ll be at your place by 12,” he nips her ear and lets her go. “Now, for this burrito, you promised a nigga.”

She pops in the arm, pouting, “I swear I hate you.”

He walks backward in front of her, “You hate to want me; there is a huge difference.” His sly smile matches her bashful one as they head to the Carl’s Jr. across campus.

#erik killmonger #erik killmonger x oc #college erik #black panther fanfiction #college shenanigans #thadelightfulone

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blue-pens-and-cold-coffee · 4 years ago

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TW: TALK OF DRUGS AND HALLUCINATIONS

I may have taken laced weed because of my dumb life choices

...

I need to write this all down before I forget. I don’t exactly need to, but it would be nice to have a solid record of my poor life choices. I stole my mom's edibles. Nice smelling chocolate squares in a plain white carton. Innocent enough. Her best friend gave them to her over dinner as a birthday gift. When I asked her about it later, she said she hadn't even touched them.

I rifled through her underwear drawer with shaking hands until I found the clear Tupperware container where she stores her weed. I didn’t do this thing often. The whole rebellious thing I mean. So when I do, I’m always panicky. Looking over my shoulder every five seconds, any and every creak made me jump out of my skin. Once I grabbed the carton, I shoved it up my sleeve, grabbed some q-tips from her bathroom in case if anybody saw me coming out I had an alibi. I hid away in my room for the upteenth time that week. I once got in trouble for stealing her weed a few years ago, but that time I didn’t actually do it. My grandfather took me up in his room to show me something cool, and it was the joint my mom had been saving for over a year. Next thing you know I’m being blamed for smoking it. Pissed was an understatement. Of course though, my mother was worried about all the wrong things. She was more mad about her weed being stolen then her fourteen year old allegedly smoking weed. Off topic.

I know I shouldn’t have taken her chocolates. But this was quarantine, and I was losing my mind. Days and nights were blurring together and I couldn’t take the noise in my head anymore. I wanted to shut everything up. I heard from my friends that that’s exactly what weed does. Blocked out the unwanted thoughts. I needed that.

Back in my room, I took a look inside the box. Only two squares were left. Liar. I decided that night time was the best course of action, I laid in bed and played Animal Crossing until the anticipation got the best of me. I was never a patient person. I could never wait for my mother and brother to go to bed. I needed it right then. I waited an hour tops before popping one into my mouth. It was the most disgusting, disappointing thing I’ve ever tasted. The tartness made my jaw hurt and my eyes water. I felt chunks of the flower across my tongue and between my teeth. The urge to gag was overbearing. Why did people do this? The thick burn of vodka was better than that. As I went downstairs to wash my mouth out, I texted Katie about it. She told me I was lucky and to save one for her. I disagreed and told her about the taste. She didn’t seem to mind.

I sat down on my bed and grabbed my switch to play animal crossing.

I didn’t feel anything for the first half hour, so I decided to try the last square, but this time I was prepared for the taste. Or not. Even with my nose plugged it was even worse the second time around. I was sure I was going to vomit. The slightly contaminated paint water went down the hatch. Anything to get the wretched taste out of my mouth. It swished around in my mouth until the chunks of herb dislodged from my molars.

It occurred to me that I should check how much I actually took. 135 grams in an edible. I’m 5”2. What a ride it was.

I toyed the idea of showering for a bit, but decided against it when the heaviness of my eyelids proved itself to be too much and I succumbed to the thought of sleep. I put down my switch and turned around to get comfortable. That’s when it started. It took a second for my brain to process the fact that I’ve turned my head. Senses lagged like an old video game. It was a but nauseating, but exciting. After an hour and a half, I was finally feeling something. I don’t remember being upright, but there I was, sitting against my headboard….. and then I itched my head. Everything hit me like a freight train. The scratches felt amazing. My scalp was hypersensitive to the feeling of my fingernails dragging themselves along my skin. Every micromovement felt electric. I took my hands away for a moment to look at my hands. They were so fuzzy it was like they weren’t there at all. Mist almost. But they were so lovely. And I was so lonely. They could be my friends right? I stared at my liquid fingers with a grin so wide my lips cracked and bled at the corners. Moving my head back and forth like a viper, I sighed. This was what I was meant to feel all along. My eyes were still heavy and my mouth hung open in awe. The idea of napping was long gone. I was wide awake. My hands found their way back to my head and my sole focus was scratching until I was raw. . . Trying to dig out the happiness. The feeling was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. Colors danced across my vision and I didn’t want it to fade away. I couldn’t let it fade away. I dug at my scalp until the happiness oozed out and I went cross eyed. I started laughing. Giggling even. Rocking side to side like A dumbass. Somewhere along the way I ended up completely folded in on myself; limp in the middle of my bed.

This is just the placebo effect, I told myself. It has to be. There’s no possible way I can be high. I’m just imagining things. I don’t remember standing, but there I was, dancing on my bed(and I never dance). I was clumsy, tripping over myself, but I didn’t care. My arms flailed around as my feet moved toward the edge of my bed. Then, I was in front of a mirror. My eyes were red and puffy, like they were trying their hardest to push themselves out of the socket. It never registered that my eyes hurt until that moment. I looked horrible. Ugly...Hideous... So pretty... I’m so desirable... I’m disgusting… My thoughts came in slow, but piled on top of each other. I would think one thing, stop mid thought, have another idea, stop, and pick up where I left off with the previous one. The cycle repeated itself over and over and over. It drove me fucking insane. My one coherent thought was how annoying it was. Then the thought disappeared for a while. Then came back. Gone again.

A shower felt like a good idea then. I gathered my phone, a t-shirt and some underwear before stumbling my way into the bathroom with minimal bruising. I wasn’t used to feeling this way. Addiction runs deep on both sides of my family, so when I had six shots of vodka in one sitting I didn’t feel a thing except rosy cheeks. A placebo. That’s all this is. I usually don’t feel anything, so I’m not feeling anything now.

I placed my clothes on the toilet and put on a Shower Playlist. I stood there with only my bottoms on, staring at nothing for who knows how long before finally turning on the shower. I roll up my sleeve and turn the knob towards me. The pushing sensation of my eyes came back full force. I have my phone in hand, but for some reason I couldn’t for the life of me remember what I was doing on it, so I stood there once again for an unknown amount of time.

I looked at the wall beside me, and I was appalled. The ceiling was so high. I was so close to the ground. I was so small. What the fuck what the fuck. My breathing began to accelerate until I was light headed. I couldn’t deal with it. My thoughts passed a mile a minute but I couldn’t make sense of them. That made me panic even more..

My eyes darted to the ceiling, back to the floor. All of a sudden my bathroom was two sizes too small. This couldn’t be happening. Why is this happening. Fuck fuck fuck I made such a huge mistake. I gripped both sides of my head harder than I should’ve and began to hyperventilate. Placebo. It’s a placebo. This can be happening. I looked up. Looked down. Looked up. I was so small. The was so tall.

Alice in wonderland, I thought to myself, and that’s exactly what it felt like. I focus on the shower curtain but it’s so close to me that I could see the texture of the fabric. That must be it. It’s a new curtain. I turn my head to the opposite wall and I’m being closed in. The walls were an inch away from touching me. Are we so poor that we can’t afford a bigger bathroom? I don’t remember it being this small. I breathed so hard I felt the bottom of my ribs touch my spine. Next thing I know, I’m in the shower still gripping my head. Pathetically.. brokenly whispering aloud, “it’s not a placebo” over and over between ragged breaths as all the air I even had was thrusted out of my lungs and into the steam.

I snapped out of it. Suddenly I’m fine. It was all a placebo. Sitting down in the shower, folded in half, I thought how easy it was to give myself a panic attack while high. I thought the idea was funny so I replicated my breaths from before. Heavy inhale. Harsh exhale; and then I’m dying, trying to push my eyes back into their sockets with my kneecaps. Hands on my head once again. I’m breathing in all of the steam. Felt it in the back of my throat and in my nose. In my lungs. I thought that was how I was gonna die. All the steam was gonna build up in my lungs and I would drown. The steam was gonna get me and strangle me in my sleep. It hurt but I didn’t move. Just gripped my scalp and cried.

My thought patterns scared me. I couldn’t think more than one thing at once. My thoughts cut out and got replaced by another before continuing where I left off. Washing my hair, I rested my head against the tub and and tried to replicate that special feeling by scratching my scalp for a bit. It worked, but not in the same way. Wasn’t as intense. I was so foggy. I was so dizzy. I couldn’t focus on anything. Not even the wall in front of me. Nothing was solid.

I was back in bed and I was blown away by the most amazing feeling in the world. I laid on my back with my arm thrown over my eyes and I soaked everything in. I saw the electricity radiating off of my body in waves. It was green and shot up from my body in small squiggles about an inch high before dissipating. Cycle repeats. I felt so many things.

My eyes hurt just then. They burned so bad. The arm thrown over my eyes was wet from my blinking eyes. Bare skin was on my eyes. I’m a fucking dumbass.

A sick shudder goes up my spine and I wondered if high me was more creative than sober me. I wanted to paint something, but the bed was so comforting; I decided to do the next best thing: experiment with my creativity. I imagined a wet, sloppy tongue slipping its way into my ear canal. I could hear the disgusting sounds and my stomach churned. I could feel the way it wriggled inside of me. Long and horrible and deep. Then there were two, then three. They kept shoving their way in until the final number was six. My ear was too full but they just kept pushing their way in until my head split open. They went from my ear canal to my throat. Fucked it raw. Like long tentacles they came out of my mouth and nose up into my eyes and holy fuck I need to stop being so fucked up.

My breathing was ragged again. My ribs touched my spine again. That area glowed red with every inhale. In my head, I saw my body in x-ray vision. I turned on my side and a new feeling arose just as amazing as the first. There were pink and purple waves this time. They fell over me like a blessing from Aphrodite herself. Rolled over slightly more. Green and blue. My body lights up like a neon sign. Then I also thought sober me would think I was being ridiculous right now. Sober me? I am sober. This is just a placebo. I'm not really paying attention anymore. I keep zoning out but I love it.

It was when I finally decided to fall asleep that I felt sick to my stomach. I rolled back and forth for hours with intense pain. I was nauseous and swore I was going to vomit the chocolates back up. I haven’t thrown up in seven years, but thought I might break that personal record. It went on for hours. I have multiple medical issues and I’ve never been that sick before. I don’t know what was wrong with me. All the nice feelings disappeared and I was left with nothing but suffering. After what felt like an eternity I fell asleep only to wake up with a throat dryer than the Sahara desert. I felt I was gonna die from it. I would shrivel up like a dried grape and turn to dust. My thoughts only got more rapid and disturbing. I cried into my pillowcase at my own twisted fantasies. I still don’t know if I was hallucinating or if the drugs were enhancing my twisted creativity.

The first thing I noticed when I was finally sober was that my head was unbelievably quiet.

...

I think I understand addicts now. What terrifies me is even though my trip was awful, I would do it all over again just for those five minutes of glee. I’m ashamed of myself for thinking that way, but it’s true. If I could get my hands on it again I take it without hesitation. I just hope I don’t seek it out. Please don’t let me get to a point where I seek it out.

#tw drugs #poem #spilled writing #exerpt from my diary #teenage diary #diary entry #trauma writing #vent writing #my writing #free write #wtf #im sorry #writing #spilled ink #spilled emotions

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findingyouagain · 5 years ago

Text

𝙷𝙰𝚁𝙱𝙸𝙽𝙶𝙴𝚁 𝙾𝙵 𝙳𝙴𝙰𝚃𝙷 ( 𝙿𝙰𝚁𝚃 𝙾𝙽𝙴 ).

Feelings could override facts, as facts could alter feelings. Choose the truth first, rather than following after feelings. — Anthony Liccione

"At least you're up on time this morning."

Kennedy glanced up from her spot on the kitchen counter, a bowl of Cheerios in her left hand and a spoon in her right, her feet kicking back and forth in the air. She watched as her father, still dressed in his pajama pants and robe, made his way to the fridge, pulling out the orange juice and setting the carton on the counter next to her.

Kennedy took another bite of cereal. "To be fair, I was on time yesterday morning as well, just not Monday."

"Or last night," Bryan quipped as he opened the cabinet above Kennedy's head and grabbed a clear glass.

Kennedy shrugged, having no desire to rehash the breaking of her curfew from the previous night. Instead, she pointed at her father's attire with the end of her spoon. "No work today I see?"

Shaking his head, Bryan poured the orange juice into his glass. "Don't try and change the subject, Kenn. You know, I should ground you for coming home late."

"Extreme circumstances, Dad.," she huffed. Kennedy jumped down from the counter and walked over to the sink, turning the faucet on. She washed the last bit of Cheerios and milk down the drain. "Like I told you last night—Vicki Donovan got attacked by a cougar or mountain lion or something, and I called 911, meaning I had to stick around to give my statement to the police. That's why I was late."

"That excuse would work except you didn't bother to call me or your mom to inform us what was going on."

Kennedy sighed, placing the dirty bowl in the dishwasher. "Again, after I got off the call with the police, my phone died, and I was a little busy trying to make sure Oliver didn't go full-freak out mode on an ambulance driver—look, are we just going to repeat our entire conversation from last night? Because if so, let's skip to the part where you've decided to ground me anyway despite the fact that I already said I'm sorry." She leaned against the counter and glanced down at her watch. Bonnie and Elena would be pulling into the driveway soon. "It won't happen again, I promise."

Bryan sipped his orange juice, staring at Kennedy with uncertain eyes. It wasn't that he didn't trust his daughter. He did. She was one of the most responsible teenagers in Mystic Falls (even if she could backtalk her way out of most problems, even if he did let her get away with sneaking out with Oliver to go to parties every so often, even if he did notice that occasionally the bourbon in his home office would be a little lower than usual right around finals week in school); however, he was worried something extreme might happen again, and instead of Vicki Donovan or some other kid, Kennedy would be the one in danger. "Okay, I'm not going to ground you. If I did, I'd be going back on what I told you last night. But—and this is an important but—you have to respect the curfew from now on. No second chances, Kennedy."

"Thank you, thank you!" Kennedy squealed as she bit back the urge to reply this was her second chance. She rushed up and wrapped Bryan in a hug, almost causing his juice to spill out of the glass still in his hand.

"You're welcome."

Releasing her father from the hug, Kennedy stepped back and leaned against the counter. "And I can still go with Bonnie to her grandmother's house for dinner? You'll cover for me at church, yeah?"

A honk blared through the house, and Kennedy looked out the window to see Bonnie's Prius pulling into the driveway. "Yes, but I'm sure Pastor Young will miss your help at bible study. Now, go to school." She nodded, grabbing her backpack off the table. "And expect there to be extra chores around the house that need your attention this week!"

"Love you too!"

Two hours later, Kennedy tapped a red pen against her desk in Mr. Tanner's classroom. Having finished stapling the class's first homework assignment together, her notebook lay open in front of her, revealing the sketched beginnings of a crow. Tanner stood in the front of the classroom, where he paced back and forth in front of his desk like he did every day. However, today he seemed to be ending class on a current local event rather than U.S. History.

"Originally discovered nearly 5 centuries ago, it hasn't been seen above Mystic Falls in over 145 years. Now, the comet will be its brightest right after dusk during tomorrow's celebration—are we bothering you?" Kennedy glances up to see Mr. Tanner standing over Elena's desk. She followed his gaze as he glanced over to Stefan before his eyes landed back on Elena. "Mr. Salvatore? Ms. Gilbert?"

The duo dropped their gazes, and Kennedy rolled her eyes. Her friend had never quite learned the art of discretion. She recalled last year, before Matt and Elena had started dating, Elena had been infatuated with Jason, one of Kennedy's teammates from track, and had been called out a few times by Mr. Tanner for the same longing glances.

The bell rang, and the class gathered their bags. Kennedy stood up, slinging her book bag onto her back and grabbing the homework assignments with one hand and her notebook and pen with the other.

"Here you go, Mr. Tanner," she said when she reached his desk. He took the stack of papers, acknowledging her with a nod before going to erase his chalkboard for the next class. Taking that as her cue to leave, Kennedy walked out of the room.

Students crowded the hall, pushing and shoving each other on their way to their next classes. Some lingered by their lockers, chatting with each other about homework assignments and awful teachers. It was only the third day of school, and already the students of Mystic Falls High were ready for the year to be over so they could hang around their houses all day long. Spotting Bonnie and Caroline, Kennedy hurried in their direction, leaving behind the two lovebirds and their discussion on Emily Bronte behind her.

"I'm confused. Are you psychic or clairvoyant?" Caroline asked as Kennedy began to walk in step next to the blonde.

Bonnie shot her a smile before answering. "Technically, Grams says I'm a witch. My ancestors were these really cool Salem witch chicks or something. Grams tried to explain it all, but she was looped on the liquor, so I kinda tuned out. Crazy family? Yes. Witches? I don't think so."

Kennedy laughed as the trio turned a corner. "She's been saying your guys were witches since we were kids, Bon. I don't think she's been looped on the liquor the past seventeen years."

Bonnie stopped short in the hallway, green eyes narrowing at Kennedy. "You think I'm a witch?"

Shrugging, Kennedy shook her head. "Nah, just stating an observation. A witch does sound pretty far-fetched, but you could be psychic, you know? There's thousands of people across the world who claim to be able to see the future or talk to ghosts. Not nearly as crazy sounding as a witch."

Bonnie rolled her eyes at her friend and opened her mouth to remark, but Caroline beat her to it. "Yeah, well, Bonnie, feel free to conjure up the name and number of that guy from last night."

"I didn't see him," Bonnie argued, smile lining her face. "You did. Why didn't you just talk to him?"

"I don't know. I was drunk."

Eyes furrowing in confusion, Kennedy glanced away from the bright pink poster on the wall that had caught her gaze and back to the blonde. Had she missed something after she had left the Grill? "What guy?"

"Oh, just some dude who showed up after you left." Bonnie shrugged her shoulders, fingers moving to twist the long necklace she was wearing. "I don't know why she's so infatuated though. She didn't even talk to him."

"Because he was hot. Capital H-O-T—hot," Caroline interjected with a giggle. Her grin was wide and contagious, and Kennedy felt a smile of her own reach her face. Now, she wished she had stayed around just a bit longer to get a glimpse at the guy the duo was referring to, even if it would have resulted in her actually being grounded.

All three girls giggled. Before they knew it, the bell rang again, and they departed off to their separate classes.

By the time her sixth and final period of the day came, Kennedy realized she hadn't spotted Oliver all day. Other than Calculus, the two didn't have any classes together, but they would normally, along with Vicki and occasionally the rest of the gang, sit and have lunch together outside if the weather was nice. However, if it was rainy or too cold, Kennedy tended to find herself in the school's library instead.

She glanced to the seat next to her, ignoring Mrs. Halpern as she began to describe limits in her nasally voice, and sighed as it remained empty. So, Oliver was definitely not at school then. Knowing she would have to be subtle about it, Kennedy pulled out her phone, kept it placed strategically in her lap, hidden under the notebook she had hovering over the back edge of the desk, and began typing.

Where are you? You're missing a fantastic lecture about limits. I thought you were excited to be able to use that Mean Girls quote and understand why it didn't exist.

Well, that might have been a lie. It was more that Caroline hadn't stopped talking about the fact that Kennedy was going to be able to explain the math behind said quote so the younger blonde could finally use it without anyone trying to call her too dumb to understand the reference.

Her phone screen lit up, and she felt the soft buzz of the device vibrating against her pants. At the hospital visiting Vicki, but I'm sure Mrs. Halpern's lecture would be more fantastic if she didn't sound like Fran Drescher.

Kennedy couldn't argue with him there. She felt bad though. She had almost forgotten all about Vicki's attack from the previous night since arriving at school. Despite Oliver being Kennedy's best friend, Vicki's presence or lack thereof was usually below her radar. The two seniors just did not get along, and both had very strong opinions on what was better for the blond. Kennedy didn't feel like Vicki was going anywhere with her life other than where the next hit from her blunt took her, and she did not want Vicki to bring Oliver down with her. He could go places, was smart enough to go places even if he sometimes lacked the needed motivation, but that was what she was here for—to be his friend and push him to succeed.

But it also meant checking on him emotionally, which today, meant asking about Vicki.

Is she feeling any better? she typed out before locking her phone and returning to her notebook. She wasn't really taking notes since Mrs. Halpern recorded the lectures and placed them on the school website so students could look back at them later. Instead, she had continued the drawing she had begun working on this morning: a crow sketched out in red ink on lined wide ruled paper. She scribbled back and forth in a triangular movement across the paper, attempting for the fourth time that period to get the beak right. It always looked too jagged or too sharp.

A glance back at her phone. Better. I got here a little after Matt, but she's still kinda out of it. Sounds like she might be released tomorrow though.

That's good. I hope she feels better soon. That's such a crazy thing to have happened to someone. Did they ever figure out what type of animal attacked her?

Mrs. Halpern cleared her throat, and Kennedy glanced up to see a very pointed look directed at her from the calculus teacher. She gave a soft nod and made to put away her phone, but the device buzzed once more as a new message lit up her screen. They said it was probably just a mountain lion. But, according to Matt, Vic was so out of it earlier she told him it had been a vampire that attacked her. Gotta love strong pain meds, right?

Kennedy rolled her eyes before tossing the phone back into her backpack and releasing a soft sigh. She picked her pen back up, brown eyes focusing on the sketch in front of her. The crow sat in the same position as before, caught mid-flight in a clear sky, wings spread out and beady eyes staring ahead. It was the beak, however, that she had taken interest in again, mostly because the beak no longer resembled that of a crow but, somewhere along the course of her doodling, had taken on the fang-like features of a bat.

A vampire crow, she thought as she shook her head. Way to keep your art realistic.

With her earbuds in, Kennedy hummed along to "When You Were Young" by the Killers as it came through the small speakers into her ears. She stood in the middle of the history section of the public library, thumbing through and picking out misplaced books onto the gray metal cart she pushed. Work had only started an hour ago and already she was bored. She had tutored a seventh grader in Pre-Algebra at the beginning of her shift, but the younger girl only had a few math problems to solve, so Kennedy had been freed quickly to begin restocking the bookshelves and updating the online catalogue.

He doesn't look a thing like Jesus, but he talks like a gentleman, like you imagined, when you were young.

She nodded along to the beat, picking up the memoir from the Civil War and sliding it between two other books on the wooden shelf. Glancing down at the pager attached to her hip, she wondered briefly if the front desk needed any help. That was what the pager was for, so on the rare occasion the library got swamped and no one could spare the time to look for her, Mrs. Karp could notify her they needed help downstairs.

They say the devil's water, it ain't so sweet. You don't have to drink right now, but you can dip your feet, every once in a little while.

Something cold and rough touched her shoulder, and Kennedy jumped, chocolate brown eyes widening as she whipped around, coming face to chest with a black cotton t-shirt. Titling her head upward, Kennedy met the man's amused blue eyes before letting out a soft sigh. That was the third time that week he had managed to sneak up on her like that. It had to be a weird coincidence. Mystic Falls was a small town, and everyone came to the library at one point in their lifetime. She'd even spotted Mayor Lockwood in here every once in a while, browsing through the library's portion of the Founder's Archives.

She pulled out her earbuds, wrapping them around her phone and stuffing the object back into her jean pocket. "Uh—" she muttered, hand moving to scratch at the back of her neck. Why was she suddenly so awkward? Sure, the man was attractive, but if there was one place Kennedy felt the most confident and at home, it was the library…well, with the track and field coming in as a close second.

"Sorry," he apologized, blue eyes racking over her small form. "I didn't mean to scare you, but in my defense, I've been trying to grab your attention for at least three minutes now."

"You have?" she asked, not having realized how absorbed she had been in her work or how loud her music must have been. "I mean—um, how can I help you?"

Kennedy watched as he laughed lightly at her uneasiness and pushed his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket. His blue eyes never left her face. "The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice? Do you guys have a copy? I can't seem to find it anywhere, and I've been itching to read it again."

"Anne Rice?" Kennedy bit back a laugh of her own. It was hard to imagine the tall stranger reading the gothic novel. Wasn't society's current obsession with vampires limited to the female population? Not that she was judging. He just didn't seem to be the type. Leather jacket, jeans, classic sports car, and eyes that reminded her of James Dean. Shouldn't he be more into rock and roll and motorcycles than vampires? To be fair, she wasn't sure what his type was though. She didn't even know the guy's name. "Well, it's not in this section of the library, obviously." She pointed above her head to the sign that read 'History'. "But, yeah, I'm pretty sure we have a copy. If I'm right, it's over in the gothic literature section. I can help you find it if you want?"

He nodded. "Yes, please." A tilt of his head and a small smile, he extended his hand out. "I'm Damon, by the way."

"Kennedy," she replied, shaking his hand with a small smile of her own. At least now, she finally had a name for the peculiar stranger. Was he new to town? She had never seen him before Monday.

"I know. You told me yesterday—when you tripped outside."

"Right." She nodded, biting her lip. She let the air fill with quiet tension for a few seconds before hooking her thumb in the direction of the gothic literature section. "Follow me." She didn't wait to see if he was behind her as she began walking, leaving behind the cart still filled with books needing to be re-shelved. When she reached the bookshelf, her index finger danced across the spines of each book before finally seeing Rice, A. tapped to the bottom of one paperback. She plucked it off the shelf and handed it to Damon. "Here you go—one copy of The Vampire Chronicles. Much better story than Twilight if you ask me, but don't tell my friends I said that. I'd be shunned."

Another laugh and Damon nodded again. "Thanks. Can you check it out for me?"

She shook her head, teeth digging into her lip again. She really needed to get back to restocking the bookshelves, and although Damon was being very polite, there was still something…off about him, something she couldn't put her finger on. "Actually, that's more Mrs. Karp's job. If you go downstairs to the front desk, she can help you there. I've got some books that need putting away."

"Okay, well, it was nice seeing you, Kennedy." His blue eyes raked over her again, like he was afraid this would be the last time he'd see her and he needed to memorize the image. She felt a shiver go down her spine.

"…You too." She tried to avoid his gaze. Her fingers twitched, and she glanced back at the bookcase—Dracula, Frankenstein, Wuthering Heights, and a collection of Edgar Allen Poe stories. When she looked back up, Damon was nowhere to be seen.

"If he wasn't so hot, he'd be weird," Kennedy muttered and pulled her phone back out of her pocket. At least now, she could get back to work.

"Well, I was talking to Grams, and she said the comet is a sign of impending doom. The last time it passed over Mystic Falls, there was a lot of death. So much blood and carnage, it created a bed of paranormal activity," Bonnie explained, and Kennedy watched as the girl folded another flier in half. How they always got dragged into helping out with the town's events and celebrations, Kennedy wasn't sure, but at least she could put it down under the volunteer section of her college resumes.

Caroline scoffed, taking a large sip of her lemonade before setting her glass back onto the table. The sun was bright overhead, warming up the girls' skin as they sat and chatted over drinks. "Yeah, and then you poured Grams another shot, and she told you about the aliens." The blonde turned to Elena, a glint of mischief in her blue eyes, and propped her elbow under her chin. "So, then what?"

Rolling her eyes, Elena shrugged. "So, then nothing."

"You and Stefan talked all night?" Caroline continued, and Kennedy noticed Elena's eyes fall down to the pamphlets in her hand, clearly trying to avoid the blonde's probing gaze. "There was no sloppy first kiss or touchy feely of any kind?"

"Care, there doesn't always have to be something touchy feely on the first night," Kennedy interjected. Caroline always did this. As soon as she got wind that one of them was becoming entangled in anything that even slightly resembled a relationship, or even a fling, she pounced, ready for details to spill from her friend's lips like juice from the first bite of a pomegranate.

The blonde rolled her eyes. "How would you know? You've never even had a boyfriend."

Huffing, Kennedy folded her arms but said nothing in response. She was right. The senior had never had a boyfriend. There had been a sloppy kiss or two behind the bleachers and a lingering gaze or so from a few guys at one of the college parties she and Oliver had snuck out to, but nothing more than that, which usually meant that her opinion when it came to relationship advice got ignored.

Elena, however, continued to answer as she folded yet another flier. "No, Caroline. We didn't go there."

"Not even a handshake? I mean, Elena, we are your friends." The blonde gestured between the four of them, eyebrows raised. "Okay? You are supposed to share the smut."

It was Kennedy's turn to scoff, biting back a laugh at Caroline's choice of words. "Smut? Really? What is this? Fanfiction? A cheesy romance novel our moms have hidden in their dresser drawer?"

"Really, Caroline. We just talked for hours." Elena shook her head as she shrugged, but Caroline wasn't take no as an answer.

"Ok, what is with the blockage? Just jump his bones already!" Kennedy's eyes widened at the blonde's words, and she watched the same look of surprise cross Bonnie's face. Despite knowing exactly what their friend had been hinting at the entire conversation, neither had expected her blunt reaction. Maybe it was because nothing was happening in the love department for anyone else at the moment, but in Kennedy's opinion, Caroline was being rather overzealous about insisting Elena get it on with Stefan so quickly. "Okay, it's easy. Boy likes girl, girl likes boy, sex!"

Straight face as always, Elena just shook her head; although, Kennedy caught a slight smirk cross the younger brunette's features. "Profound."

Meanwhile, Kennedy furrowed her eyebrows, mouth slightly agape. "That's not how—S'not even remotely how that—" she spluttered before sighing. "Just let her figure out how she feels her own way and at her own pace, Care. Not all of us are as sex positive as you are." Her brown eyes trailed back to Elena, who now looked more conflicted than before. A few seconds later, the younger brunette stood up, and Kennedy knew her defense had been unnecessary.

Bonnie at least had the decency to appear shocked. "Where are you going?"

Shrugging, Elena explained. "Caroline's right. It is easy. If I sit here long enough, I'll end up talking myself out of it instead of doing what I started the day saying what I was going to do." She grabbed her bag and walked off, leaving the three other girls staring at the now empty chair in front of them.

It was a minute later when Kennedy broke the silence: "So…impending doom, blood, and carnage? Is the comet going to turn Mystic Falls into the Twilight Zone?" Three small cheeky grins and laughter followed before the girls continued folding fliers.

#the vampire diaries #tvd fanfiction #damon salvatore x oc #damon salvatore x reader #tvd #*ashtynwrites #*mine #*story: reborn #*ship: kennedy steele & damon salvatore #*muse: kennedy steele

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unconsciouscelestial · 4 years ago

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Bone-afide Buddy

for @smitemight Sorry this took so long! Things have been busy. I really hope you like it~ What a week you had been having. Work had been absolutely horrible, and you were reminded that it was thanksgiving- which you felt obligated to go to. To make matters even worse, the date you were going to bring broke it off two days ago. You just knew that if you didn’t have a date, your step-cousin Sarah was going to spend the whole night bragging about her relationship and purposefully making your lack of a partner topic of discussion. You couldn’t stand her fakeness most days but she was always particularly awful at family gatherings.

So now you found yourself posting a profile on a dating app with the clear instructions you were only looking to make friends for a family event. It didn’t take long before you got a private message.

[Stretch: hey. sounds like you could use a bone-afide buddy]

Was that a skeleton pun? Why would he...? You checked his profile and almost fell out of your chair laughing. He was a skeleton! It was definitely a pun. Even better! Sarah vehemently hated puns. You skimmed over his profile, already pretty sure he would be perfect. Apparently he had brother he was super proud of, and he looked fairly laid back. You messaged him back no hesitation in your mind at this point.

[you: Tibia honest, I really could. Are you really willing to pretend to be my date?]

[Stretch: well when you think about it, its still a date, just platonic. no one needs to know that though. do you wanna hang out first sometime before thanksgiving so its less awkward and we're past first meeting? make it less obvious?]

[you: oh hey yeah that's a great idea actually! Do you have anything in mind?]

[Stretch: there is a sweet cafe that I frequent, its pretty relaxed and I think youd like it]

[you: sure! How about you text me the details and we will go from there? Xxx-xxxx]

The two of you spent the rest of the day texting back and forth asking each other questions and setting up plans to hang out. Thanksgiving was coming up soon, so getting together had to be sooner. The two of you arranged a day and time and you went to bed satisfied with how things were turning out.

Later that week the two of you met up at a place called Muffet's. It was a lovely cafe, run by an attractive spider monster and little monster spiderlings. You spotted Stretch at the sitting counter chatting away to whom you presumed was Muffet. You thought you were early, only to discover that Stretch had already been there for over an hour already. After a somewhat shy greeting, you ordered your fave drink and snack and the two of you sat down at a little two person table by some bookshelves and a few potted plants. The plants had a few cobwebs but it was nice and cozy. You went over the situation again, making sure that he knew he had the opportunity to back out at any time. He just chuckled, “hey its all good. we've all bean there, and I don't mind helping out a new friend”

You covered your mouth in an attempt to hide your laughing. “Did you just??” Stretch just nodded and winked, popping a sucker in his mouth. Once you had composed yourself, the two of you chatted about your family and little details. Once everything was settled you moved on to asking questions about each other. Stretch told you proudly about his brother, and a little about what it had been like on the surface for them. Before you knew it, the streetlights were flickering and you decided it was best to call it a night. You could always continue texting. The two of you parted ways, and as you watched him walk away down the side walk you grinned wide and called out.

“Hey, Stretch?” He turned his head to acknowledge you.

“Thanks a latte, it really means a lot,” you smiled. He chuckled deep, you blinked and he was gone.

The two of you spent the rest of the week texting back and forth, and playing video games together on your fave console. Thanksgiving came quicker than you had anticipated but you woke that day mostly excited. On the radio ‘I do Adore’ was playing and you got ready with a bounce in your step. Stretch was fun to hang out with, and you kinda missed him? You cleaned up and upon checking the weather, (it was actually going to be a warmish and sunny day today) decided on bright pink shorts, a green tank top and for good measure you threw on your big light yellow sweater. After grabbing something to eat for breakfast you gathered all your things, (keys, phone, wallet, check!) you put on your light purple sneakers and headed out the door. You figured you would wait on your front steps for Stretch to arrive. It was a nice enough day. He pulled up in a honey gold two door sedan and popped open the passenger door from inside. As you got in, you noticed in the back seat were a few bags with snacks and a large couple bottles of honey. You eyed him questioningly and he chuckled lightly.

“Figured it was a bit of a drive, just in case you got munchy before we got there. Didnt know if you had time for breakfast or not,”

You mentally squealed, that was super thoughtful, even though you had already eaten. You told him as much and he just nodded, turning on the radio. You didn't object, but you kinda grinned when you noticed the orangish hue that had gathered just on his nasal ridge. Apparently he had put on a playlist since Final Girl by Graveyardguy came on, and that was definitely not top 40. You turned it up, and he looked over at you inquisitively.

“Its one of my favourites right now,” you shrugged. You were glad that you had already sent him directions, sometimes trying to guide someone by memory was a pain in the ass. The two of you enjoyed the rest of the ride there, it wasnt too long of a drive. When you arrived, you jumped out of the car eager to stretch your limbs a bit. You waited by the front steps for Stretch, as he parked and locked the car. As you were waiting Sarah threw open the door.

“Ohhhhh y/n! You're here! Isnt that lovely,” she drawled out, pulling you into a very obvious fake hug. You stiffened like a board but let her do it anyway, awkwardly patting her on the back. “Yep. Im here. Yaaaay.” you retorted with a hint of sarcasm.

“Oh! But where is that guy you were seeing? Grams said you were bringing him?” she smiled mischievously, looking around you pointedly. You coughed, and pulled yourself out of her grasp.

“Yes, well you see-” you started, when Stretch's voice called out like a beacon.

“He bailed on our girl quite some time ago, so I'm the date.” He stated, pointing to a pin of a date on his sweater. When you noticed what it was you covered your mouth to hide the fact you felt like cackling. He putting his hand out to shake Sarah’s and she recoiled with a fake smile.

“Ohhh yesss. Well I see. I think I hear my fiancé calling, but please the two of you come inside.” she backed up and practically ran inside. You had to stifle a laugh. You muttered a thanks, and he whispered no problem. As soon as you stepped inside you were practically bombarded by children. A few were pulling you into the living room, some wanted you to come out back. Stretch kneeled down and beckoned them close, whispering something. They all ran off screaming and laughing into the yard, giving you some space and time to breathe.

“What on earth did you say to them?” you asked while clutching your sides laughing. He grinned in response.

“That’s for me to know, and for you to find out,”

you smirked and let it be for now. You looked around, it was a pretty full house. Your parents, aunts uncles cousins, a couple sets of great uncles and Aunts, and your grandparents too. It seemed whatever Stretch had said, had all the young kids outside in the yard. Some of the older teens were downstairs on their devices and playing video games probably. Your thoughts were interrupted by your Gram calling you, and Stretch took your hand and let you lead him over. He introduced himself quite suavely and your grandparents were clearly satisfied. The two of you sat near, and chatted a while. Sarah came in to the sitting room practically dragging her fiancé behind her, and almost shoved him in your face.

“Here Y/n! This is Greg, my fiancé. He is a lawyer, isn’t he just wonderful?” She gushed. The poor guy looked like he wanted the ground to swallow him whole.

“Nice to meet you,” you nodded, and he gratefully slid away into a corner beside Sarah's father.

“So. When did you start dating Mr. skeleton?” Sarah asked, plopping herself down beside you. You shifted over a little, but smiled sweetly.

“A couple weeks now, since what’s-his-face dumped me.” You figured most of the truth was a good idea. Stretch just nodded beside you. Sarah just smiled painfully and left you alone, she was clearly not going to get a rise out of you tonight.

Your aunt called everyone to the tables for supper, and Stretch led you to the youth table and sat down beside you. You blushed, he had remembered what you told him about thanksgivings past. After everyone at the adult table had said their stories, desert was served. The kids were nonstop telling you and Stretch their stories, and once or twice you caught him looking your way adoringly. It wasn't unpleasant, and actually felt quite natural. Like he just fit. After the meal was done, you let the kids drag you out both outside. You watched them play a few games for a while, leaning into Stretch sleepily. He just leaned back a little and let you doze off on his shoulder. When you awoke, you were laying on your front porch furniture with a note next to you. It read:

hey y/n, you had dozed off hard, so I just took a shortcut to get you home, everyone understood. Thanks for inviting me, I actually had lots of fun. cant wait to hang out again

-stretch

You went inside with the biggest smile on your face, and butterflies in your stomach.

#us!papyrus #stretch #undertale au #fanfiction one shot #reader insert #fluff #friends to maybe more trope

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jaehyun-eclipsed · 5 years ago

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Before I Met You | Three

Updates: Sundays and Thursdays, 8 PM EST

Pairing: NCT (Jaehyun, Lucas…) X Reader/OC

Genre: Romance, Angst, Coming of Age

Summary: Four. There were four people before I fell in love with you… Here are their stories.

Warnings: Some swearing

Before I Met You Masterlist

Prev | Next

Winter Ball seemed like a dream. In a matter of a few hours, my expectations for how life could occur were shattered. How often is it that you have a fantasy about a guy you like that actually comes true? Lucas inadvertently raised my bar for how my love life was going to go for the rest of my life. He proved to me that the things in the movies really can happen. And unfortunately, I don’t think that’s the best way to go about life because it presents too many opportunities to end up disappointed.

For several days, concentrating in class was difficult, to say the least. My mind was constantly replaying the events from the weekend, trying to decipher whether or not I had a real chance with the guy. My next hope was to go to prom with him. I hadn’t had a date the year before and I really wanted to have that experience for my senior year. But in the back of my mind, I was afraid that I would have to ask him myself. I suppose that wasn’t a horrible idea, but since I had never asked anyone out and, like everyone else, I feared rejection and was terrified to do it. So for the next few weeks, in addition to preparing for May exams and waiting for college acceptances, I tried to increase my interactions with Lucas. I frequently texted him new songs to listen to, spent time in the senior parking lot with him, and talked to him more in our volunteer club.

Valentine’s Day was on Saturday and various clubs had been advertising their Valentine-gram fundraisers to send to friends, significant others, and crushes. You had the option of sending messages with candy or flowers. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to receive one from Lucas after the dance, but I made sure I didn’t get my hopes up on the Friday before when all of the Valentines were being delivered during my physics class. It was a good thing because I ended up not receiving anything anyway. However, to my surprise, Doyoung texted me with news of a different experience.

Doyoung [1:25 PM] I think Heejin likes me

My forehead creases in confusion. What is he talking about? I already knew that.

Me [1:26 PM] What do you mean?

A minute later, I receive a picture of the inside of a Valentine’s Day card filled with bubbly writing.

Doyoung,

So I thought the card was kinda cute, but also kinda creepy but anyway Happy Valentine’s Day!

Thanks for dancing with me at Winter Ball and not letting my clumsy-self fall to my death!

Enjoy (or try to) the rest of senior year! Hope we get to hang out soon, don’t be a stranger. Call me up sometime, like maybe this weekend if you have nothing going on.

♥, Heejin (xxx-xxx-xxxx)

I cover my mouth in an effort to keep myself from laughing out loud. My physics teacher was currently going over a PowerPoint with the lights off. Laughing would have been inappropriate.

I told you!

Me [1:30 PM] I told you she did!

Doyoung [1:30 PM] When?!

Me [1:31 PM] A couple weeks ago, in the car after winter ball because she danced with you!

Doyoung [1:32 PM] No you didn’t!

Me [1:33 PM] Yes, I did! I even told you again when we were sitting in biology the following Monday!

Doyoung [1:34 PM] I don’t remember that

I roll my eyes. No one listens to me. I pause, a realization hitting me. Wait a second… If Heejin pulled Doyoung to dance and she likes Doyoung… Lucas pulled me to dance – does that mean…? That must mean Lucas likes me too!

Right?

Does the transitive property work here?

“Which room are you in?” Doyoung asks me.

“A3, I think. You?”

“Damn, A1.”

This evening, we were required to give a presentation in front of our classmates about the various service and volunteer hours we had been completing over the past two years. I was hoping that I would end up in the same room as Lucas, but students were assigned randomly and Lucas was in the same room as Doyoung.

“Hey!”

I turn around to see Lucas running up to me.

“Oh hey, Lucas.”

“What room are you in?” he asks.

“A3. You?”

“A1.”

“Where did you park?” I ask.

“On this side,” he says, pointing towards the back of the building.

Idiot. Why did I park in the other lot on the opposite side?

“Oh, I parked on the other side.”

“Why did you park over there?” he asks, confusion marking his tone.

“I don’t know…”

I figured you were going to park where you usually park, but I forgot that you’re lazy. So that’s way too far to walk, obviously.

“Hey so, I listened to that song you sent me,” he says, walking along a row of lockers with me towards the other end of the building. “It was good.”

“Oh yeah? Good.” I smile. “Are you going to the reception afterwards?”

“Probably for a little bit. Where is it?”

“Library.”

“All right, well I’ll see you later,” he says as we arrive at the other side of the building and part ways to our respective rooms.

“See ya.”

The next hour is torture as we sit in a classroom with ten other students and some of their parents, each droning on about their favorite and least favorite volunteer experiences. The interaction prior clouds my thoughts. It was nothing, but he wanted to talk to me. I mentally scold myself as my mind starts on its irrational train of thought, reading into everything that could possibly be another sign. The excitement from my thoughts appears to express itself during my presentation with too many smiles and an extraversion that was normally restricted to my inner circle.

“I think I sounded more excited than usual, huh?” I whisper to Seungwan after finishing my presentation.

“Yes, you did.”

At least I’m self-aware.

When our presentation session ends, I walk to A1 to see if they had finished. The door is open and it is still filled with students. Seungwan waits with me briefly.

“I’m going to wait for Doyoung,” I lie. “You can go to the reception first; I’ll meet you.”

She walks off as I continue to pace in front of the room.

Honestly, what are you doing? You are so desperate.

After a few minutes, I look up when I hear shuffling from the room and see Doyoung and another classmate walk out, engrossed in conversation such that he doesn’t he even see me. They quickly exit the building when Lucas walks out and pauses at the entrance when he locks eyes with me.

“Hey,” I greet.

“Hey.”

“You wanna go to the reception?” I ask.

I look over Lucas’s shoulder when Siwoo walks out of A1 and smirks at me. I ignore him and return my gaze to Lucas.

“Uh sure,” he hesitates. “Yeah, I’ll go for a little bit. Let’s go.”

I repress a grin and lead the way out of the building. We exchange brief small talk, but mostly walk to the library in silence. I pull out my phone to see a text from Siwoo.

Siwoo [6:02 PM] Get your prom date now!

I roll my eyes and quickly put my phone back in my pocket.

We enter the library and Lucas quickly walks over to Sicheng, Yang Yang, Seulgi, and several others.

Well that was short lived.

I make my way over to the refreshments table and fill a cup with some juice and grab a cookie before joining Seungwan at a table with her parents. We chat about school and the presentation, giving an opportunity for Seungwan’s parents to scold her for not having officially submitted any of her volunteer hours.

I glance over at Lucas who is busy with the boys, Seulgi, and Sooyoung. Siwoo walks over to me and asks to discuss a history project. It doesn’t take long for the topic to switch over to Lucas.

“So do you have a prom date?” he asks with a grin.

I glare at him. “Of course not. We didn’t even really talk on our way here.”

“I’m pretty sure he likes you. He used to talk about you a lot in class last year.”

“Yeah, well, that was last year,” I say. “How are you and Mina?”

“Eh, we’re okay. You wanna go chat outside? I need to tell you something.”

I raise an eyebrow, wondering what could be so private that we need to discuss it away from everyone else. I shrug and follow him, stopping just outside the side entrance of the library when he turns to look at me, a concerned expression looming over his face.

“It’s been super awkward with Ara around. I think she’s jealous and it’s been putting a strain on Mina and me.”

Well no shit.

I let him talk, occasionally interjecting with a comment about Ara’s reactions to be expected in this situation. Let’s face it, if I were Ara and my ex started dating my best friend, I wouldn’t be too happy either. Siwoo is an interesting character – he is very loyal to me, but in my personal (and crass) opinion, his moral compass is fucked. How someone could be so careless the way he is, is beyond me, but I digress.

“Anyway, I think Seulgi is jealous of you…”

I grimace. “What does that have to do with Mina and Ara?”

“Nothing – well, not exactly nothing.”

“Now why would you say that?” I ask, incredulously. “She probably thinks she’s prettier than me and she has all of these guys fawning over her for validation of that.”

“But it’s not like you’re not pretty…” he says. “Plus you’re smarter than her. And, I mean, Ara and Mina are jealous of you.”

I think for a moment. I can understand why Ara was jealous – she thought I was trying to steal her boyfriend even though I wasn’t doing that at all and Siwoo was the one who couldn’t keep his feelings to himself. Given that Mina and Ara used to be best friends, Mina is probably aware of that situation and has the same reservations about Siwoo. But these are different issues compared to what we’re talking about.

My face sours. “What? But they’re not like Seulgi… they don’t run in the popular crowd and they don’t… have guys chasing after them left and right.”

“So?!” he exclaims. “You know that Yunji hates you, right?”

Yunji is another one our classmates. I didn’t speak to her much. We had several classes together and I sat next to her in Korean class. She seemed fine, though she was often overdramatic in her relationships.

“I’ll never love again!” she claimed one day, shortly after her boyfriend broke up with her during our second year.

I frown. “What did I do to her?”

“Nothing, I don’t think…” He pauses for a moment before shaking his head, deciding whatever he was thinking is no longer relevant. “She’s very fake. She saw me talking to you one time and after you left, she came up to me and said, ‘You know, I really hate Y/N.’ I asked her why and she said, ‘Because she’s too pretty.’”

I burst into laughter. “Are you serious?!”

“Yeah! I wouldn’t lie to you about that!”

“That’s why she hates me?” I ask in between laughter. “What a stupid reason to hate someone. What did you say?”

“I just said something to try to defend you, but we switched the subject.”

I’ll admit, I was flattered after that confession, but also disappointed. If you’re going to hate me, at least hate me for a legitimate reason.

“So anyway, that’s why I think Seulgi is jealous of you. Yeah, she’s pretty, but you’re pretty and smart; she probably thinks you’re better than she is. So she probably thinks you’re trying to steal Lucas.”

Just like how Ara – and now, probably Mina – think I’m trying to steal you.

How foolish of them.

On the other hand, Seulgi wouldn’t be wrong…

“You know,” he begins, “when Ara and I were dating, she said something weird because she hated you too.”

I scoff. “Humor me.”

“We were waiting for the bus one day and she was watching you and she said, ‘I bet Y/N is really bad in bed because she’s so callous. Like she just lays there with no expression.’“

I start laughing again. “What kind of insults are these?! Weren’t we like fifteen?”

“Yeah.”

“All right.” I bite my lip, fighting a smile of amusement. “Whatever makes them feel better, I guess.”

A cold breeze makes me shiver. “It’s cold. We should go back inside,” I say.

I turn my head and look through the open door at Lucas and the rest of the boys who are all sitting in chairs next to the entrance. As Siwoo and I walk through the doorway, all of the boys simultaneously turn their heads and stare at me. I momentarily freeze before regaining composure and head directly to a table on the opposite side of the library.

“Did you see that?” I ask as Siwoo follows slightly behind.

“Yeah, they all looked at you.”

“Okay, just checking.”

The following week, my biology teacher announces a group project; we had to teach the class a chapter in the book. He begins assigning group members by numbering off the class from one to four. Doyoung and I groan in annoyance. Sitting next to each other meant that we would not be placed in a group together and were subjected to luck. I am placed in group three and Doyoung in group four. We turn around in our seats to see the rest of the numbering.

“Two, three, four…”

Lucas is assigned to group two.

“Wait, who’s two?” asks Lucas.

“Two,” Mr. Cho says as he points to the boy sitting next to Lucas. “Lucas, you’re three.”

I maintain an outward look of nonchalance. Now what are the odds of that? Internally, I’m surprised at the turn of events, wondering how this arrangement occurred so easily.

Lucas suddenly looks at me. “Y/N, what number are you?”

His face lights up when I hold up three fingers. “Hey we’re in the same group!”

I want to be excited since I now have an excuse to talk to him more, but I can’t help but remember my academic opinion of him: he selectively uses his brain, assuming he uses it at all. He’s not reliable when it comes to school work as he has a tendency to be overconfident in his abilities.

“Okay, everyone, get into your groups to discuss what you’re going to do.”

Lucas, Seohyun, Kibum, and Sooyoung maneuver over to my side of the room, filling the recently vacated seats. Lucas jumps up to sit on a lab bench next to my desk.

“All right, group, what we need is bitches!” Lucas says jokingly.

He and Kibum chuckle at each other. My forehead creases, unimpressed by his immature joke. I force a small smile in an effort to go along with it, but when I was truly unimpressed, it was hard to mask that emotion. Fortunately, he pays no attention to me, exchanging several more jokes with Kibum.

“So what section does everyone want to do?” I ask, interrupting their conversation.

We were assigned a chapter on the kidney and were instructed to make a PowerPoint presentation.

“I’ll do the intro,” Lucas chimes.

Of course – the easiest part.

Doyoung and I decide to watch How to Train Your Dragon during math class. My attention is pulled away when a girl walks up to Mr. Lee and hands him a stack of square, gold envelopes.

Prom invitations.

I stare at the envelope as it is placed in front of me, my name written in red capital letters next to a character from The Legend of Zelda on a label stuck to the front. I glance over at Hyojin who is engaged in a conversation with Sooyoung; a previous conversation flashes in my mind.

“Do you know if Doyoung is going with anyone?” Hyojin asked.

“I don’t know.”

“I really want to go with him…” she quietly admitted.

“Why don’t you ask him?”

“No way! Do you think you could ask him to see if he would even be interested?”

“Sure.”

I bite my lip. It’s almost comical at how often I seem to be running into this problem. Of course, I already know that Doyoung isn’t interested in going with Hyojin; but again, I have to play along. To put up the front, I knew he was more likely to go with Taeyeon since they were friends and she knows his secret. But I told Hyojin I’d ask, so I will keep my promise.

“Are you going to ask anyone to go?” I ask Doyoung.

“Probably.”

“Who do you think you’re going to ask?”

“I don’t know – probably Taeyeon.”

“How about Hyojin?” I ask innocently.

He presses his lips together, his facial expression clearly displaying a lack of appeal. “I don’t want to go with Hyojin.”

As expected.

“Yeah, I don’t know who else you could ask. Seungwan?” I suggest, giving additional alternatives to keep things casual.

“Nah.”

Well, I tried. Why do all of these girls like him and come to me asking for help trusting that I’m not going to tell him?

I shake my head in frustration and sigh.

Now the question is: how am I going to get my desired prom date? Speaking of which –

My mind drifts back to the biology presentation. I pull out my phone to send a text.

Me to Kibum, Sooyoung, Lucas [10:15 AM] Do you guys think we should meet up this weekend?

Sooyoung [10:16 AM] Yeah that sounds like a good idea!

Kibum [10:16 AM] Do we really need to?

Me [10:18 AM] It might be a good idea for doing all of the organization. How about Saturday? 2pm?

Lucas [10:19 AM] Yea! I can do Saturday

Kibum [10:19 AM] Saturday is fine

Sooyoung [10:20 AM] I can do Saturday too

We didn’t really need to be meeting up in person to do a PowerPoint presentation. Quite frankly, I was just trying to create a better opportunity to get Lucas alone. Now that prom invitations had been handed out, I was hoping that he would ask me. But there was a thought lingering in the back of my mind that I might have to ask him myself if I wanted to have him as my date.

I walk through the parking lot to my car during my free period at the end of the day to go home. Lucas’s car is parked in the space in front of me to the left; he’s already sitting at the driver’s seat. From my periphery, I can tell that he’s watching me as I open the back door of my car to throw my backpack in and change into a lighter jacket. I check my phone and respond to a text from my dad asking if I can stop by the grocery store before going home. Glancing over my left shoulder, I meet Lucas’s intense gaze as he continues to watch me, becoming increasingly self-conscious of my actions.

Why is he just sitting there watching me like that? Y/N, it’s fine. He’s probably just thinking about where he wants to go.

But maybe, you can go up and talk to him about prom…

I close the door and turn my head to the right when I hear a car driving by; Lucas’s Honda Accord speeds through the parking lot.

Dammit, he left. That was a bit odd though.

I sit with my dad in his office and start working on the biology presentation.

“Do you think I’m going to have to ask Lucas to prom myself?” I ask.

“Probably.”

Crap.

“You could do it on Saturday,” he suggests. “Sort of wait for everyone else to leave and then ask him.”

“I feel like that’s not going to work; he’ll leave at the same time Kibum leaves.”

Maybe I can suggest we get frozen yogurt and then tell Lucas to go with me to the garage when we leave. Then I’ll ask him there.

Yeah, that’s stupid.

Saturday morning, I send a text to everyone to make sure they were coming.

Me to Kibum, Sooyoung, Lucas [11:28 AM] Everyone still good for 2pm today?

Kibum [11:30 AM] Yeah I’ll be there

Sooyoung [11:31 AM] Same

Seohyun was unavailable and had already finished her part of the project. Unlike the rest of the group, I trusted her with group projects.

Kibum and Sooyoung had confirmed they were going to come, but Lucas was taking an awfully long time to respond. It reminded me of my birthday dinner that Hana tried to plan a few months ago. She had asked him if he wanted to attend in person and he agreed, but when she tried to text him to see if he would be going, he said he had to babysit.

Lucas [12:30 AM] I have to babysit

I stare at the text and sigh.

Of course you do. I like how you don’t explicitly say you can’t come. You just say you have to babysit. How convenient. I guess I don’t have to ask you to prom today either.

Kibum and Sooyoung arrive a short while later. After working for a couple hours, I suggest that we get frozen yogurt. Kibum declines; Sooyoung says she’ll meet me at the yogurt shop.

As I’m driving, I think about how Lucas and Sooyoung run in the same circle.

Maybe I can somehow ask her about who Lucas is thinking about asking to prom.

Unfortunately, Sooyoung is known for running her mouth so if I were to bring up anything, I had to be ensure that I brought it up casually. Otherwise, everyone would find out and that was the last thing I really needed.

“I’m annoyed that Lucas decided he didn’t want to show up last minute like that,” I say as I eat another spoonful of my strawberry frozen yogurt.

“He tends to do that. It’s really annoying. He usually uses the excuse that he’s babysitting.”

“Does he even have anyone to babysit?”

She shrugs. “He does have two younger half-brothers, but I don’t think they’re that young.”

I roll my eyes. “I’m gonna kill him. I know Mr. Cho doesn’t really care, but we’re still being graded on this. I’m not letting him screw up my grade.”

“I know! I don’t know how Seulgi puts up with him.”

I suddenly recall that Sooyoung has a strong dislike towards Seulgi. This would be a good time to ask about both Lucas and Seulgi since she was “friends” with both of them – on the surface, at least.

“Does Seulgi still like Lucas?” I ask.

“I honestly don’t know. If I had to guess, she probably does,” she says, annoyance in her tone. “She acts like she hates boys, but she actually loves all of the attention she gets.”

“Mm, yeah, I’ve noticed.” I click my tongue and maintain an expression of indifference. “Does Lucas still like her?”

“Probably,” she says, rolling her eyes.

“Is he asking her to prom?”

“No, he already has a date.”

I freeze. What?

“Really? Who?” I ask, trying not to act surprised.

“His friend, Yuna – she doesn’t even go to our school.”

I believe in fate to a certain extent. I believe that some things happen for a reason. Perhaps that’s my optimism speaking for me because if I choose to believe that, then I can choose to believe that I’m supposed to reap some kind of lesson from the things that happen to me – that it’s not just some negative occurrence to set me back. Or maybe it’s to protect me from even more severe negative consequences. I don’t know, but I will say that it has allowed for me to retain my sanity.

I wonder if that was a coincidence that he didn’t come… It prevented me from asking him so I didn’t even have to make the risk of getting rejected because I absolutely would have been rejected.

“How does he know her?”

“I think they’re both into anime or something.” She shrugs. “They go to those anime conventions together.”

“Why on earth would he ask her?”

“I have no idea. I thought he was going to ask Seulgi.”

I hesitate for a moment, thinking back to Winter Ball and deciding I’ll make the risk with Sooyoung.

Maybe I can pass this off as a mere curiosity or confusion.

“So there’s something that I’ve been wondering about…” I begin. “At Winter Ball, Lucas came up to me and grabbed me to slow dance with him.”

“He did?!” She looks at me, wide-eyed and in disbelief. “That’s so weird! Why would he do that?!”

I shrug. “I don’t know. That’s why I’m wondering what in the world is going on with him because I always thought he liked Seulgi. Then he danced with me and now he’s going with whoever this Yuna girl is. Why would he do that?”

I notice Sooyoung’s forehead crease briefly. My heart jumps, realizing that she may have suspected that my curiosity in Lucas is more than just a passing interest.

“Hmm, yeah, I don’t know. His thing with Seulgi is really weird.” Her face becomes bitter. “I hate the way she treats him – it’s like he’s her slave.”

I return home, displeased with my newly learned information.

“Lucas has a prom date already,” I say to my dad. “Maybe that’s why things didn’t work out today.”

“Maybe…” He tilts his head and shrugs. “Who knows, maybe it would have been worse if you had gone with him. This prevented that from happening.”

“I couldn’t ask him since he didn’t show up, which is good because I would’ve been rejected anyway.”

“Who’s he going with?”

“Some girl named Yuna. She doesn’t even go to our school.”

“How does he know her?”

“Sooyoung said they go to anime conventions together.”

“Do you know who Seulgi is going with?”

“I don’t think she has a date yet…”

“Huh,” he remarks. “I wonder why he wouldn’t ask her then.”

I had no idea why Lucas didn’t ask Seulgi, but I was also wondering why he went out of his way to ask someone else who didn’t even attend our high school. To me, that’s the easiest way to avoid any kind of potential drama or judgement from anyone. If no one knows Yuna, no one can have any opinion. If he went with Seulgi, people probably wouldn’t be surprised. But on the other hand, if he went with me, that would surely become the subject of some major gossip. We didn’t run in the same circles and I surely wasn’t “popular.” I was just “the smart girl” that rejected “the smart guy” last year and I guess that makes me a bitch.

Regardless, all I knew was that I wasn’t going to have a prom date, which was fine; I didn’t want to go with anyone else anyway. I also wouldn’t have to work up the courage to ask the boy myself anymore. It was a bit of a disappointment, but it saved me the anxiety.

I continue working on the presentation and doing other homework until late into the night. Half past midnight, my phone screen lights up.

Lucas [12:30 AM] I’ll do my part tomorrow I was busy today

I roll my eyes.

I’m gonna kill him.

“So did you ask him?” Hana whispers to me during our physics class.

“He didn’t even show up. He said he was babysitting and would do his part of the project yesterday.”

“Babysitting?” She uses her hands to form air quotes. “Or babysitting?”

“My guess would be the latter.”

She frowns. “Did he at least do his part of the project?”

A look of displeasure washes over my face. “What do you think?”

She rolls her eyes and sighs. “Oh, Lucas…”

“We’re supposed to meet in the library today during seventh period to finish it before I have to go to Academic Olympics.”

“Hopefully he finishes the presentation.”

“Honestly, Hana, that’s all I want.”

I pull out my phone and see that I have a text. Upon checking the single message, my jaw tightens and it takes me a bit of self-control not to throw my phone across the room.

Lucas [1:45 PM] Y/NN I have to go home to meet my mom. Can you text me pics of my topics?

“I’m actually going to kill him,” I say, pushing my phone onto Hana’s desk.

She deadpans. “Are you serious?” She looks at the message again. “What the – he even spelled your name wrong.”

“I’m gonna kill him! He doesn’t even know his topics?” I growl through my teeth as I pick up my phone to type in a quick response.

Me [1:46 PM] *Y/N

Lucas [1:47 PM] Auto correct

A picture follows his response; it’s a screenshot of our message thread, showing me that my name is spelled correctly in his contacts. I scoff and put my phone in my pocket right as the bell rings.

“I’ll see you at A.O. later,” I say to Hana while tossing my backpack over my shoulder and making my way towards the parking lot to my car.

I am parked next to Lucas and realize I would likely see him as he “went home to meet his mom.” Opening the trunk of my car to put my backpack in, I hear footsteps coming in my direction.

“Hey! Did you get my picture?”

I roll my eyes before glancing at him. The audacity…

“Yes.”

“It was autocorrect.”

“I know, I got it,” I say curtly.

I pull out my biology notes to find the list of topics for the presentation. I make a point to slam down my belongings, ensuring that he would be aware of my annoyance.

“You said you needed pictures?” I ask.

“Oh! Yeah!”

I roll my eyes again. I wasn’t thrilled that the project was due in two days and the idiot didn’t even know what he was supposed to be presenting. He should’ve had the list already, but knowing him, he probably misplaced it. I just want him to do his part because I don’t want to do it myself. I’m not here to give him an A.

I point to the list. “It’s these four.”

He pulls out his phone to take several pictures.

“Oh okay. Thanks. But yeah, it was autocorrect.”

Jesus. If you keep saying that, I’m going to punch you.

“I know, I’m just giving you a hard time,” I reply, monotony filling my tone.

I suddenly feel an arm wrap around me and I’m sure that if it were possible, my irises would be replaced with flames.

Are you fucking serious, Lucas? You’re giving me a hug?

“Thanks for the pictures. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

Are you trying to kiss up to me?

“Okay,” I grumble.

“QUIET! You’re just reading off the slides! This isn’t why I assigned the presentation! You guys need to actually learn this stuff because when the test comes in May, you’re not going to know anything! Do you know how many people in this class I’m not worried about!? Three – four of you, maybe!”

Doyoung and I exchange an annoyed glance at each other and sigh. The first group had presented and Mr. Cho was scolding the entire class on the single group’s unsatisfactory performance. Once he was finished, Lucas walks up to Kibum and me.

“Guys, I’m so glad I slacked because now we have to redo the whole presentation.”

What the fuck? No, we don’t.

I am seething. “Uh, no, we don’t. Just don’t read everything you write,” I spit back.

Lucas looks at me, his face expressionless. I feel myself returning a stern look, attempting to temper the fire behind my eyes.

“I’ll meet you in the library today, Y/N.” Lucas says.

“Okay.”

“Is Lucas meeting you in the library?” Hana asks.

“He better be.”

I pull out my phone to send Lucas a text.

Me [1:30 PM] Are we meeting in the library after 6th?

Lucas [1:30 PM] We can

We can? What do you mean ‘we can’?

Me [1:31 PM] Okay, well, we are

Lucas [1:32 PM] Ok cya then! :3

“What the hell is this?” I growl, showing Hana the text.

She laughs. “He’s just trying to be cute.”

I couldn’t believe myself. Prior to Lucas sitting next to me in biology last year, he was never my favorite person. I always thought he was attractive, but largely thought he was a lazy and arrogant idiot. I changed my mind later on when we would work together, but I was starting to feel that my first impression had been, in fact, correct. Lucas was all talk. No action. No commitment. Yet, I was silly enough to fall for his good looks.

I walk to the library after class and sit down at one of the computers. I sigh as I pull up the presentation; the only empty slides are Lucas’s. He only had to do the introduction – it should have been easy to complete in a short amount of time.

Glancing at the clock, it was ten minutes past the time class ended. Lucas’s last class was the same distance away from the library as mine was; he should have been here by now.

It’s fine. Calm down. Worst case, you do it yourself.

Suddenly, chatter between two boys can be heard from the main part of the library. I turn my head as Lucas and Yang Yang walk into the computer area.

“Hey, what’s up?” Lucas greets, resting his hand on the back of my chair.

“Hey, so here’s the presentation. You’ve got the first few slides.”

He turns around to reach for a chair at one of the nearby tables.

“You know, why don’t you sit here?” I interject, getting up from the chair in front of the computer.

He remains silent as he sits down. I decide to stand directly behind him, crossing my arms like a supervisor overseeing a terminated employee gather their personal belongings before leaving. I watch him as he slowly uses the biology textbook to copy down information to the slides and add accompanying photos from the internet.

So you were just going to copy and paste from the textbook and you thought we had to redo the whole presentation? And it takes you this long to get it done? Pathetic.

He asks me for my opinion on the miscellaneous photos he uses to supplement the text on his slides – making a point to emphasize how the GIFs he chose were of superior quality.

After forty-five minutes, he finishes his section.

“I think I’m done! It looks good, right?”

I click my tongue. “Yep.”

He stands up, overly pleased with his work and slings his backpack over his shoulder.

“All right, I’ll see you tomorrow, Y/N.”

I remain displeased, my tone monotonous. “See ya.”

I sit down in the previously vacated chair and save the presentation, quickly closing out and packing up my things to go home. I am indignant as I make the realization that I practically had to babysit him to get him to do his work. It wasn’t even like he really did any work considering he just copied and pasted from the textbook.

Great, he knows shit about the topic that we have to present on tomorrow. Fantastic.

And since he knew nothing, he was likely going to do exactly what Mr. Cho said not to do – i.e. read directly off the slides – because this is how he does everything else in school.

“Oh I barely studied for this test, but I’m really good at this subject,” Lucas would say right before we began an exam.

When the exam was returned, you could hear from the back of the classroom, “Shit! I got a C!”

I roll my eyes and push those thoughts away. Being angry sapped away my energy and quite frankly, I wanted to conserve it for something worthy.

I walk to the parking lot and see a shadow in my periphery as I near my car.

“Hey! Long time no see!” Lucas calls.

Please just shut up.

I don’t respond and keep my focus straight ahead. He jogs over to me and begins to match the pace of my gait as we walk to our respective cars.

“Are you going home?” he asks.

“Yeah, but I’m going to wait for the traffic to clear out before leaving.”

“Oh, me too.”

We reach our respective cars and put our backpacks in the backseat. He proceeds to sit in the driver’s seat of his car and starts browsing something on his phone, leaving the door open with one leg resting outside the car. It was another facet of his personality – he did always try to act like he was cool.

“Hey, you like scarves, right?” he calls from his car.

I furrow my brows. What a strange question. He keeps his gaze on his phone, continuing to scroll through Instagram when I appear next to him.

“Yeah, why?”

He shrugs and tilts his phone towards me, a picture of a young woman wearing a Burberry cashmere scarf on the screen. “Was just thinking about how you wear them a lot.”

But why?

I attempt to keep my expression neutral. “Oh, well, that one looks nice,” I say. “I have an imitation Burberry scarf.”

He continues to stare at the photo. “Yeah, I remember. It’s nice.”

I blink several times, shifting my gaze around the parking lot in confusion.

“I really like scarves too,” he says.

Uh okay, that’s cool…?

“I think you’d look nice in this one,” he says, tilting his phone towards me again.

The day of our presentation, Lucas is late to class again. Normally, I wouldn’t be concerned because Lucas could just present when it’s his turn, whether he’s late or not, but since he’s supposed to do the introduction, we have a little bit of a problem.

“Do you know if Lucas is coming today?” Kibum asks.

“Nope, but he better be here because he has to speak first.”

“Which group is presenting today?” asks Mr. Cho.

“Ours, but we’re waiting for Lucas.” I reply.

Mr. Cho sighs and walks out of the classroom. I take the opportunity to set up the presentation on his computer. I turn my head towards the door when I see Lucas walk in shortly afterwards. It takes some effort on my part not to roll my eyes into the back of my head when he arrives, announcing to the class that he had trouble finding something to wear that morning to explain his lack of punctuality. I shake my head in disapproval as I head towards the front of the classroom to stand by the projector screen; the rest of the group members follow my lead.

“You guys ready?” Mr. Cho asks as he walks back into the room.

“Yeah, I think so.”

Lucas sits on a lab stool across from me and begins to describe the basic functions of the kidney. I widen my eyes in surprise.

Holy shit, he actually knows something.

I control the remote to transition to the next slide and Kibum starts explaining his portion of the project. I shift my gaze when I hear Lucas chuckling and making slight hand motions to someone in the class. Following his line of sight, Yang Yang was making faces and hand gestures at Lucas from the back of the classroom.

Typical.

Soon enough, it’s my turn to speak. I explain a diagram of the Loop of Henle, trying to recall the notes I had made the night before. In the midst of turning to make eye contact with the rest of my class, my head stops short when I meet Lucas’s gaze. He carefully watches me as I speak.

He’s probably just watching me because I’m speaking. The best way to assess this is to watch his behavior while everyone else is speaking.

Surprisingly, I’m fairly decent at presenting even if I’m thinking about other things. Every time I turn to look at the audience, I pause on him briefly to check that he’s still looking, quickly turning away every time to make sure the rest of the class doesn’t catch on to my blatant staring. Without fail, he continues to watch me throughout my section of the presentation. As the presentation transitions from me to Sooyoung and Seohyun, Lucas’s eyes wander around the classroom, a look of disinterest on his face. He was no longer making faces with Yang Yang, but he wasn’t paying attention to the presenters anymore either.

“Congratulations, Y/N!” I look over my shoulder to see Sicheng shouting from across the parking lot.

I raise an eyebrow. What’s he congratulating me for?

“Thank you!” I call back as a formality.

Oh, maybe it’s about –

“Hey!” a voice shouts from behind me.

I pause to let Lucas catch up to me.

“Hey, what’s up?” I greet.

“Congratulations on getting into UCLA!”

Yep, it’s about that…

“Thank you!”

I was surprised both he and Sicheng knew about my acceptance, but realized that Kibum must have told both of them. Kibum, Hana, and Doyoung were the only people I told since I had received the news.

“Where are you going?” he asks.

“I was going to the other parking lot to go to my car to leave. Why?”

“I wanna show you some music!”

“Oh, sure!”

It was stupid of me to give in so easily after his clear demonstration of laziness and irresponsibility. But for whatever reason, I never opposed more bonding time with him unless it was over something dumb, like babysitting him while he did his homework. And on the bright side, it appeared that he didn’t take my anger at him too personally if he still wanted to show me music.

He turns around and I follow him to Seulgi’s car where she has her trunk popped open. He sits on the edge of the car trunk next to Seulgi while she talks with some of her friends. I lean against the car next to him.

“So my friends and I are practicing this dance…” he says as he types something into YouTube.

“What for?”

“We’re gonna compete in a K-Pop dance competition.”

You’re gonna what? I didn’t realize you danced…

“Oh really? That’s cool. How’s it coming along?”

“It’s all right; BTS has choreography that’s really complicated.”

“I’m not really into BTS – not a huge fan of rap and hip hop.”

The music video for “Boy in Luv” by BTS began to play. I sit and watch silently. I wasn’t a huge fan of the song, but as always, their choreography was amazing.

“He’s cute,” I remark.

“That’s Jungkook. He’s my favorite too.”

He continued to show me videos for the remainder of the lunch hour and convinced me to stay during my free period instead of going home. We discussed school a bit and my acceptance to UCLA. I thought my prospects with him seemed to be increasing, but I knew it would never last. I was leaving in a few months to go to college in California and Lucas would likely be staying here. Aside from that, the whole presentation issue wasn’t a good sign for long-term commitment. And even though I knew having a crush on Lucas wasn’t really worth my time, I couldn’t help it. But in the back of my mind, I was constantly reminded of the fact that he was going to prom with someone else that didn’t even attend our school. And unless something crazy happened, I probably wouldn’t have my chance for another dance.

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